http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/article.asp?article=332929&paper=71&cat=104
Land Owners Hold Out on Rail Tax
Without agreement on tax district, two Herndon, one Reston stations are unfunded.
Friday, September 18, 2009
So far, elected officials and rail supporters have been unable to convince enough landowners around the planned second leg of the Dulles Metro extension to support rail by volunteering to pay higher property taxes.
Fairfax County is relying on the creation of a special commercial property tax district to generate $330 million of the $420 million the locality is contributing to Phase II of the Dulles rail extension’s construction, from Wiehle Avenue to Dulles Airport.
The county also used a special tax district to provide much of the locality’s share of the funding for Phase I of the Dulles rail project from the West Falls Church station to Wiehle Avenue.
Without the tax district’s revenue, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority could forego building the three stations planned between the Wiehle Avenue stop in Reston and Dulles International Airport. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors said it will not dip into other funds to make up the monetary difference.
"Fairfax County has made it clear that these stations will not be built without the tax district," said Carson Lee Fifer, a lead negotiator with those landowners who are holding out on agreeing to higher taxes.
Fifer is general counsel for the Western Alliance for Rail to Dulles, formed by property owners who support the creation of a special tax district to fund Phase II of the Metro project.
Of the three stations in jeopardy, one is located in Reston and two are located in Herndon. The first would be near the Reston Town Center, at the intersection of the Dulles Toll Road and Reston Parkway. The second would be located near the Herndon-Monroe Park & Ride lot at the Dulles Toll Road and Monroe Avenue. The final stop, just before the airport, would be near the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) building at the Dulles Toll Road and Route 28.
Those properties that would be included in the proposed tax district are closest to these planned Metro stops and could increase in value if the three proposed stations open.
But the county can only form such a tax district if those who own parcels that make up 51 percent of the overall tax district’s assessed land value or acreage agree to pay the extra fee. And thus far, Fifer has not been able to convince enough landowners to contribute.
"It is nowhere certain that we will get all the way to 51 percent but we are optimistic," he said.
According to Fifer, many of the property owners who are resistant to the tax increase live in far away cities and do not understand the appeal of a metro station in the D.C. area.
Others are also wary because they already have to pay a special Route 28 corridor fee and an additional county commercial property tax. Many have to subsidize their employees’ use of the toll road as well, said Fifer.
The lawyer said Fairfax County could ease the process by ensuring that increased development and density would be allowed on properties located in the tax district.
Fairfax County is relying on the creation of a special commercial property tax district to generate $330 million of the $420 million the locality is contributing to Phase II of the Dulles rail extension’s construction, from Wiehle Avenue to Dulles Airport.
The county also used a special tax district to provide much of the locality’s share of the funding for Phase I of the Dulles rail project from the West Falls Church station to Wiehle Avenue.
Without the tax district’s revenue, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority could forego building the three stations planned between the Wiehle Avenue stop in Reston and Dulles International Airport. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors said it will not dip into other funds to make up the monetary difference.
"Fairfax County has made it clear that these stations will not be built without the tax district," said Carson Lee Fifer, a lead negotiator with those landowners who are holding out on agreeing to higher taxes.
Fifer is general counsel for the Western Alliance for Rail to Dulles, formed by property owners who support the creation of a special tax district to fund Phase II of the Metro project.
Of the three stations in jeopardy, one is located in Reston and two are located in Herndon. The first would be near the Reston Town Center, at the intersection of the Dulles Toll Road and Reston Parkway. The second would be located near the Herndon-Monroe Park & Ride lot at the Dulles Toll Road and Monroe Avenue. The final stop, just before the airport, would be near the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) building at the Dulles Toll Road and Route 28.
Those properties that would be included in the proposed tax district are closest to these planned Metro stops and could increase in value if the three proposed stations open.
But the county can only form such a tax district if those who own parcels that make up 51 percent of the overall tax district’s assessed land value or acreage agree to pay the extra fee. And thus far, Fifer has not been able to convince enough landowners to contribute.
"It is nowhere certain that we will get all the way to 51 percent but we are optimistic," he said.
According to Fifer, many of the property owners who are resistant to the tax increase live in far away cities and do not understand the appeal of a metro station in the D.C. area.
Others are also wary because they already have to pay a special Route 28 corridor fee and an additional county commercial property tax. Many have to subsidize their employees’ use of the toll road as well, said Fifer.
The lawyer said Fairfax County could ease the process by ensuring that increased development and density would be allowed on properties located in the tax district.