Consultant Picked For Maple Ave Vision

After a decade of discussions and visions about the future of Maple Avenue, the Vienna Town Council hired consultants this week who could help put new zoning regulations in place along the corridor by January 2013.

The Alexandria-based Lardner/Klein Associates will, in part, determine if the town can create overlays to its existing zoning laws to accomplish the vision  — marked by a proposed 15-foot setback, maximum building height of 54 feet and green, walkable community space — or whether it will have to create entirely new ones.

But the consultants — who previously led Vienna's development of the Town Green in 2007 — will also give the town a more defined, three-dimensional look at what's possible in the corridor, now lined by several larger plazas separated by disconnected, small, independently owned lots.

The process, which will include a steering committee and a focus on public involvement, according to the firm's proposals, will take just more than half a year. The contract, which will not exceed $125,000, was funded as part of the fiscal year 2013 budget the council passed last month.

Plans for a revitalized, more developed Maple Avenue began about a decade ago with a committee of seven members who spent years compiling early ideas about what Vienna's main strip should look like. But things sat "on idle" until a feasibility study was conducted around 2009. The town contracted local engineering firm Wiley Wilson to complete renderings based on some of those findings, The council used those drawings to articulate a vision it used to create drafts of an RFP in November and December. It authorized staff to move forward on soliciting bids in early 2012.

The town met with six vendors in a pre-proposal meeting March 1, Planning and Zoning director Greg Hembree said. Four firms submitted proposals for consideration March 14.

An evaluation committee reviewed proposals and ranked the firms interviewing the top three. Lardner/Klein Landscape Architects was chosen as the top firm firm.

Lardner/Klein, who has also worked in the area with the Fairfax County Park Authority, the Town of Herndon and Henrico County, is partnered with planning and zoning consultants Clarion Associates. Seth Harry & Associates will support the team with architecture, urban design illustration and public participation; Wiley/Wilson, the town’s on-call engineering firm, will offer support for infrastructure investigation needs, according to the proposal.

Lardner’s proposal will introduce a steering committee, a group of 11 to 15 representatives from council, local businesses, community associations and town commissions who will serve as a 'digester' of recommendations at various stages before they are presented to town staff, council and the public, Elizabeth Lardner, the lead landscape architect on the project, told council members Monday.

"There aren't opportunities for false moves ... [this is a project very important to the town] so it's a way to make sure everybody is really on board before we take next steps," Lardner said.

Lardner will create the committee over the next two weeks, according to her plan.

After a review of past studies, analysis and discussions, the process will include:

• A vision statement work session with council members
• Phase One: A zoning draft outline and a public workshop to gain input on the draft
• Phase Two: Draft amendments and public forums about those amendments. The outline is updated with illustrations and text.
• Phase Three: Public review and adoption

The firm's initial proposal estimates the completion of phase three in early 2013.

The town completed a similar project for Historic Church Street called the Church Street Vision, a five-year process with the first set of ordinances approved in April 1996.

"I’m happy to see you on board because you obviously know Vienna from the Town Green," Mayor Jane Seeman told Lardner on Monday. "‘What a wonderful place that is, and it really is a sense of place."