Planning Commission Proposes Tysons Tax District

The Fairfax County Planning Commission's Tysons Committee has proposed creating a special tax district in Tysons Corner to help pay for an expected $1.2 billion in transportation improvements.

The commission will host a public hearing tonight on the group's proposal, along with the other recommendations on how to fund new and existing infrastructure and access to the future urban city.

The tax district would include developers along with homeowners, who make up 10 percent of the total assessed value of properties in Tysons.

"The Tysons-wide road improvements will benefit all residents and landowners who live, work, play and shop within Tysons, whether they are new office workers or long-time residents. Therefore, a portion of the cost of the improvements should be borne by all Tysons landowners," the proposal reads.

The district would help fund what the county calls "Tysons-wide Road Improvements," a list of $1.2 billion in physical improvements to roadways and transportation infrastructure known more commonly

These projects include , expanded capacity on select primary and minor arterial roads, and the creation of new minor arterial roads to support the Grid of Streets (which will be funded largely by developers).

The county expects to fund $701 million of that cost from state, federal, regional and county sources.

The remaining $506 million will have to come from the private sector, the proposal says.

Half of that private sector funding, $253 million, would come from the district, whose boundaries are Dulles Toll Road to the north, Magarity Road to the southeast, Gallows and Old Courthouse Road to the southwest.

The county would pledge about 10 percent of that funding to "transportation projects that have an immediate benefit of the residential landowners in Tysons," such as improved sidewalks and trails or increased and improved transit services. They also recommended accelerating that funding to complete the projects in earlier phases of construction.

The remaining $253 million should be funded through those properties seeking redevelopment within Tysons, the proposal says, through a contribution of $6.48 per square foot of new non-residential development; or through a contribution of $5.63 per square foot of new non-residential development and $1,000 per new residential unit, the proposal says.

According to the proposal, the commission strongly encouraged Tysons landowners to petition the Board of Supervisors to establish a transportation improvement district (TID) instead the same revenue model used to establish the Dulles Phase I Tax District that filled in funding gaps for Phase I of the Silver Line Metro Extension.

Residential property owners do not pay into the TID.

Commissioners said in their proposal that the landowners within Tysons, as represented by the Tysons Partnership, said they wouldn't be able to secure a petition, at which point they but together a proposal for the board to create a service district for the same purpose.

Providence Supervisor Linda Smyth said the Tysons Committee, which also worked through the issues of the Tysons comprehensive plan, "have a very good record of trying to work through the issues ... this is just a step in the process."

Tonight's public hearing: 7 p.m. in the Board Auditorium in the Government Center (12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax).

Committee mark-up of the proposal: 7 p.m. June 26 in Rooms 9/10 in the Government Center.