Proposed housing developments strike continued debate over Henrico’s population growth

More than 280 new homes were proposed to the Henrico Board of Supervisors at its meeting Nov. 12, but the board approved only 41 housing units after hearing arguments from both developers and concerned residents.

Several community members, who live nearby areas where new residences are proposed, spoke out to the board about the county’s “exploding development” and how approving hundreds of new homes could overcrowd local schools, wear down infrastructure, and damage environmental features. Developers, however, argued that new housing, specifically affordable housing, is desperately needed in the county.

The board approved rezoning cases that would allow for 40 new homes on the border between the Brookland and Fairfield districts and one home in the Three Chopt District, but denied cases for 95 new homes near the Chickahominy River in the Varina District and 72 new homes near the Wyndham community in Three Chopt. Board members also deferred cases for 60 new homes in Varina and 14 new homes in the Tuckahoe District.

One of the cases voted down by the board would have established the “Washington Park” housing community, including 95 single-family homes, off North Washington Street and Delbert Drive in Highland Springs. At least 10 of the homes would have been reserved for homebuyers making 20% less than the area’s median income.

The housing community would also have helped to restore the Tuckers Branch Creek, which flows right through the proposed site, using a stream restoration project that would reduce the amount of pollution flowing into the nearby Chickahominy River, said George Massie, one of the developers of Washington Park and a prominent real estate leader in Central Virginia.

Washington Park aimed to address the area’s housing affordability crisis, Massie said, and bring millennial-aged renters closer to the “American Dream”: home-ownership.

“If Washington Park cannot be approved in Henrico County, what can be?” he said to the board. “Does it get any better than creating a first-time homebuyer community that cleans up the Chickahominy River and creates a beautiful amenity?"

But several residents living nearby the proposed Washington Park site argued that the 95-home complex would impede the area’s quiet, rural character and potentially impact neighbors’ well water by bringing “excessive development.”

A petition that stood against the Washington Park proposal, and another housing proposal in the area denied by the board this past September, received more than 200 signatures.

“I believe Henrico County has provided more than enough housing. Look around, everywhere you go in Henrico, they’re building,” said resident Shelly Parmelelawrence. “We will not stop fighting for our community because this is where we live, this is our home, and we will leave this to our children.”

The board also denied a case that would have allowed for 72 new single-family homes to be built at the intersection of Pouncey Tract Road and Wyndham West Drive. Wyndham resident Dennis Berman, who used to serve on several Henrico County boards, spoke out against the proposed development, saying that it would overcrowd the elementary schools nearby and cause Wyndham to become backed up with traffic.

“This project will put two of our three schools into trailers. That’s not a good thing,” Berman said. “I’m hoping that you will deny this request and help control some of this exploding development in our area.”

The proposal had already been deferred upwards of 20 times during the past three years, and Three Chopt supervisor Misty Roundtree said she did not want the project to “continue to be dragged out.”

“By and large, the folks I meet within the housing community want to deliver good products and are now struggling with trying to figure out how to do it in an affordable way,” she said. “There’s no easy solution to it, and I think it’s easy to villainize folks based on misperceptions. . . I know you guys aren’t vultures. . . but I do not think it’s appropriate to defer it again.”

Despite some concerns about school capacity and road infrastructure, the board unanimously approved 40 single-family homes off of Woodman and Winfrey roads that would expand the River Mill housing development. Brookland supervisor Dan Schmitt said he worried about increasing the number of cars on Winfrey Road, which for decades has been used by only about a dozen cars, but also wanted to increase the housing supply in the area.

Homes in the development would start at $350,000 and developer HHHunt has stated they are willing to participate in Henrico’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

“These are single-family homes that people can afford,” Schmitt said. “I can speak from first-hand experience, I have 24-year-old [children] who no longer live in my house that were seeking a home in this price range, and quite frankly, they couldn’t find it. So please don’t believe anybody that tells you that we do not need single-family homes in this affordable price range. We need them.”

Liana Hardy is the Citizen’s government and education reporter. Support her work and articles like this one by making a contribution to the Citizen.