Fairfax City Council To Vote On Hybrid Option Of Controversial George Snyder Trail

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — Time is running out for the Fairfax City Council to decide what it wants to do about the controversial George Snyder Trail Project.

After convincing the Virginia Department of Transportation to give the city a third choice from which to choose, the council must pass that hybrid option at its meeting Tuesday night. The city faces a June 20 deadline to submit materials for consideration by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.

If the city council doesn't choose the hybrid option, it has a June 30 deadline to vote on whether to approve construction of the full trail, an alignment already approved by VDOT, or cancel the project and forfeit $3.7 million in state transportation funds the city has already spent. This decision will have to be made at the council's last meeting before VDOT's deadline — June 24.

Fiscal Impact Of All 3 Options

The Fairfax City Staff Report for Tuesday's meeting broke down the fiscal impact for each of the options.

• Option 1 – Proceed with the entirety of the Project as designed and construct the George Snyder Trail: Cost allocations would remain as previously discussed and approved, and there would be no repayment of any project funds.
• Option 2 – Pursue the hybrid option (western half of the Project): This would require NVTA recommendation to the Commonwealth Transportation Board and CTB approval. If approved, because all the concession fee funds would not be needed to build only half of the project, unused funds would be returned to VDOT. In addition, under this option, the city would be required to repay about $1.6 to $1.8 million of project funds already spent. The exact amount and terms would be negotiated and coordinated with VDOT and represents no more than half of what has been spent to date.
• Option 3 – Cancel the Project: Under this option, the city would be required to repay the entire about $3.7 million in project funds already spent.

Related:

• Fairfax City Gets 3rd Option, Shorter Deadline For Controversial George Snyder Trail Project
• VA Elected Official Responds To Patch Story On Controversial Trail Project: Letter
• George Snyder Trail Project Delayed By Fairfax City Council

The staff report also included these recommendations from transportation director Wendy Sanford and David Summers, the city's director of public works:

"If the overarching desire of the City Council is to not repay any funds to VDOT, then the City Council should approve the resolution to construct the entirety of the project as designed and previously approved (Option 1).

"If the overarching desire is to not impact trees and forest at all, then the City Council should approve the resolution to cancel the project (Option 3).

"Approving the resolution for only the hybrid option (Option 2) will require some repayment of project funds to VDOT, the foregoing of certain of the concession fee funds, as well as impacting trees and forest in the area where the Project is to be constructed."

How To Participate

The Fairfax City Council has a public hearing set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 10, at Fairfax City Hall, 10455 Armstrong St.

The George Snyder Trail discussion is the ninth item on the public hearing agenda. Speakers may address the city council during the public hearing for the project or submit a comment on the city's website.

Timeline For City Council If It Choses Hybrid Option

Following the city council's May 29 work session, Block and City Manager Bryan Foster each spoke to Bill Cutler, VDOT's Northern Virginia District Engineer, explaining the city's interest in having a third option.

Cutler gave the city the following conditions and deadlines VDOT would need the council to agree to in order to allow for a third option:

• June 10: City Council resolution to formally endorse this option. The resolution needs to state the city supports this alternative and requests approval of the scope change from CTB with the understanding that there will be some payback required for design costs associated with the east part of the trail that will not be constructed.
• June 20: Materials due to CTB for July 15 workshop (assumes positive endorsement of RJACC and NVTA)
• June 26: RJACC endorsement (staff group to NVTA)
• July 10: NVTA endorsement
• July 15: CTB Workshop to discuss City request
• Post-July 15: City requests authorization to advertise in anticipation of positive CTB action in September
• Sept. 17: CTB action to endorse GST scope change
• Post-Sept. 17: Project advertisement (assuming positive CTB action)
• VDOT will perform a detailed evaluation of design costs spent to date to determine an exact repayment amount.
• For now, they are prepared to provide a "not to exceed amount" of repayment prior to the June 10 meeting. VDOT has indicated that they will work with the city on a repayment plan schedule that works for us.
• VDOT will send us a formal response in writing before the end of this week.

The George Snyder Trail was designed to connect to the I-66 Shared Use Path, which VDOT installed as part of the I-66 Outside The Beltway project. If the full trail were built, it would connect the county trail to the city's Wilcoxon Trail and ultimately the Gerry Connolly Cross County Trail near Thaiss Park.

Currently, cross-county trail users can access the shared use path from the south, using Picket Road/Blake Lane and the north via Jermantown Road near the county's Oakmont Recreation Center.

If the entire George Snyder Trail project were canceled, trail users, both from the city and county, would continue to traverse Jermantown Road and Blake Lane/Picket Road to access the cross-county trail.

George Snyder Trail Timeline

• Included in the 2012 and 2035 Master Plans
• Parts of the trail were built c. 2000 and will be incorporated into the new trail
• Included in the 2016 Strategic Master Plan
• Part of the Parks and Recreation Master Plan per Parks and Recreation Advisory
• Board (PRAB)
• 2019-2029: four advisory group meetings were held
• 2020 Public Hearing at 60% completion: Supported by speakers from PRAB,
• DMV Smarter Growth Coalition, Audubon Naturalist Society, Fairfax City Citizens
• for Smarter Growth, and the Fairfax Alliance for Better Cycling. Opposed by one
• business owner near the trail and two other citizens.
• June 2020: Trail included in the Northfax Small Area Plan to connect neighborhoods with nature with themes of “an ecologically sensitive place” an“stitching neighborhoods together.”
• A key idea of the Northfax vision is to bridge the divides between Northfax and the surrounding neighborhoods and to connect with the Accotink Creek watershed.”
• July 2023: 100% completion plans submitted to City Council (144 pages)
• January 2024: City Council rejected changes to the original plan and voted to stay with the existing plan. Property acquisition commenced.

Timeline Via Fairfax City Citizens for Smarter Growth

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