Residents press council after shadow‑study error; call for restored limits on Winter Hill edge

Several Winter Hill residents told the Falls Church City Council they had lost trust after staff circulated shadow‑study graphics that contained errors and later proposed higher allowable heights near the neighborhood edge.

Residents including Nader Baruch and Joseph Conedy described how the December study images were mislabeled and how the public had only one business day to digest corrected materials. Baruch said the mistake had been called a “cut and paste error” but argued that the public relied on the earlier representation and now needed the council to restore the 40‑foot maximum and stronger stepbacks to protect neighborhood sunlight and park access.

In the public‑comment period, the council also heard repeated community requests to prevent garages and service areas from facing Winter Hill and to explore historic‑preservation incentives and tax credits. Staff responded that the shadow‑study graphic error had been corrected and that the substantive analysis would be made available and supplemented if needed; a staff presenter said the team stands behind the analysis but committed to clearer presentation and more modeling where useful.

The concerns influenced the council's decision to add the shadow‑avoidance sentence to the small area plan and to reinstate targeted height language in the zoning first reading. Council members stressed the importance of distinguishing human error from malintent but agreed more transparent change logs and corrected exhibits were required.

"The shadow study in Massing turned out to be wrong," Nader Baruch told the council during public comment. "When you make a mistake, you own it and you try to get to a fix. You don't double down."

Council and staff agreed to post corrected materials in the RFP addendum and to run additional modeling if alternative proposals arise during the procurement stage.