Loudoun supervisors forward West Belmont rezoning after debate over private roads and affordable housing

The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted Jan. 14 to forward the West Belmont rezoning application (ZMAP 2020-43) to the board's February business meeting for final action, after staff and the applicant described a redevelopment plan for a 27.36-acre former shopping-center site in the Ashburn district.

Staff planner Allison Britton told the board the applicant proposes up to 318 residential units and about 11,000 square feet of neighborhood commercial on the site, and disclosed 27 new public comments submitted before the hearing (6 in support, 21 opposed). Britton said staff supported approval but raised two elements "for more consideration": the amount of public civic/open space (the applicant proposes a 2,500-square-foot community building while the plan calls for roughly 5% civic space) and additional affordable housing the staff recommends be provided.

The applicant's attorney, Colleen Gillis of Curata Partners, told supervisors the project reduces density from prior submissions, provides 44 accessory dwelling units (ADUs) "which is 44 ADUs more than is required by the ordinance," and increases open space from four to five acres. She highlighted proffers including no construction access within an hour before and after school, two new bus stops with shelters, crosswalk warrant studies, and a $25,000 contribution to Beth Miller Park.

Board members repeatedly returned to two issues: the removal of a previously proposed LIHTC (low-income housing tax credit) building that would have contained about 60 affordable units, and whether the new development may be allowed to connect to private roads maintained by the adjacent Belmont Green homeowners association. Gillis said the LIHTC building was removed after community and planning commission feedback and because the smaller site footprint created material financing challenges; she described a recorded shared-maintenance agreement that gives reciprocal use rights but said private-street access and property-rights questions remain subject to negotiation.

Residents who spoke offered mixed views. Supporters from across Ashburn urged the board to approve redevelopment that adds housing and reuses underperforming commercial land; Paul Serrano said the proposal "meets those needs with development that is practical and appealing to a diverse community." Neighbors directly adjacent to the site, including the Belmont Green HOA president Jessica Farb and Belmont Green representative Michael Overson, said they support redevelopment in principle but oppose opening private dead-end streets to project traffic and argued the applicant's counted open space includes unusable setback areas. John Loop, a Belmont Green resident, asked the board to "deny any approval that permits the new development to connect to existing private neighborhood roads," urging instead the use of alternative access the developer has identified.

Supervisors discussed whether reintroducing the LIHTC building would require re-advertising and another public hearing; staff and counsel said substantial changes to advertised density would require additional notice and hearing. Several supervisors said the plan represented a substantial net gain of housing on land that has been fallow, while others urged more affordable units or stronger proffers to ensure usable civic space.

After closing public testimony, the board voted to forward ZMAP 2020-43 (West Belmont) to its second business meeting in February 2026 for action. The recorded vote on the forwarding motion was 8-0-1. The board asked staff to follow up on private-street legal questions and on the feasibility of additional affordable-unit proffers and crosswalk commitments before final action.