Kincora & Land Use, Part I: If You Build It, They Will Come

In certain cases, it can prevent the truth from emerging and stifle a complete dissection, inspection and conversation, involving all elements of a project. On the other hand, the object can also represent hope and promise. Not the “pie in the sky” kind of hope, but real tangible opportunity, a crisp road map to guide us into the future and measure progress.

Over the next few weeks, we will scrutinize the Kincora Project slated for the north end of the Route 28 corridor, and its star attraction, the ballpark with its built-in baseball team, mascot and all. Core arguments, for and against, include all the same elements that plague most applications, especially those that require a rezoning: traffic, environment and economic impact, proffers—possibly a developer’s most powerful and hypnotic incentive, and to many residents the most significant aspect to consider—community impact.

For this series, the Independent will welcome participation from the project’s most ardent supporters: NA Dulles Real Estate Investor LLC (the applicant), VIP Baseball (who will call the ballpark home), non-profit groups and big business—who both stand to capitalize on the projects secondary and tertiary benefits.

We will also hear from those with opposing voices and the harshest critics of the proposed development, including the Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) and other grassroot and well-established environmental groups. As the series progresses, private residents—both for and against—will have an opportunity to address concerns, state opinions and separate fact from fiction by confronting the rumor mill head-on.

The Kincora Project will include a 5,500-seat baseball stadium, office space, a performing arts center, retail shops and restaurants that–in theory–will be supported by 1,400 apartment-style homes. With the special exception for the construction of eight additional office buildings and the ball park already approved, the developer has filed two land-use requests with the county, and will seek rezoning this fall. At a price of $3 billion, the project stands to be one of the most important developments in Loudoun County over the next few years and, should it pass, will change the development and vision of Loudoun County’s very own red carpet—Route 28.

The recent report produced by Fulton Research Real Estate, retained by Loudoun County Department of Planning to study the development of the business side of Route 28, provides some of the most insightful and detailed information yet—backed up by hardcore data—on Loudoun’s busiest transportation artery.

Accepting Route 28 as the "Gateway to Loudoun County," offering outsiders their first impression to some of the nation’s youngest and wealthiest, one must appreciate the relevancy of the Fulton report.

A general consensus exists among private and public entities that Route 28 has failed to realize its full potential as a haven for Class A office space and employers. Route 28’s inability to define the brand of Loudoun County as home for the most successful businesses in their industry might be one of its most recognizable failures yet, at least from a land use perspective.

The Fulton report warns that “If existing land use policies and zoning regulations remain, the Route 28 Study Area will continue to develop haphazardly between now and 2040.” Fulton spared no specifics in providing clear directions and recommendations on how to draw Class A tenants, such as Kincora:

“The population in Loudoun County is projected to grow substantially between 2010 through 2040. Studies show that many emerging segments of young and aging consumers seek housing in mixed-use settings and/or walkable communities. Class A office space users also prefer a mixed-use setting, indicating that both commercial and residential consumers are seeking similar built environments.” 

A mixed-use development is defined as “the practice of allowing more than one type of use in a building or set of buildings. In planning zone terms, this can mean some combination of residential, commercial, industrial, office, institutional or other land uses.”

The report also addresses the type of building most likely to attract Class A office tenants. “At a minimum, some Class A office users want a mix of office, retail and restaurant uses, while others prefer a more varied setting that also provides hotel, residential and cultural uses.”

A tug-of-war between current planned land uses defined by Keynote Employment, Business Community, Destination Retail Overlay and Route 28 Tax District, along with the power of market demand, is contributing to Route 28’s inability to thrive. The presence of multiple zoning ordinances existing in the Route 28 Study Area has brought about office environments unappealing to the type of businesses Loudoun County is attempting to attract. Zoning ordinances that result in by-right development (projects permitted under current zoning) provide developers no incentives to purchase more parcels of land, or develop large-scale projects.

Current Keynote Employment policies of the 1993 Revised General Plan–the most current plan on the books, support large-scale single-use office campuses along the Route 28 corridor, and do not allow for a residential component. In other words, the policies of the Revised General Plan are not compatible with mixed-use projects such as Kincora, which this study reports to be the biggest draw for Class A businesses and tenants. Changes to these existing policies are recommended by Fulton Research in order to attract corporate headquarters or entice a sizable group of employees to relocate to Loudoun.

The report further recommends:

“While the Study Area is and should be predominantly an employment corridor, residential elements should be included in tomorrow’s mixed-use environments in order to create whole communities with a complete set of uses and amenities that will appeal to office tenants and residents alike…policies governing the Route 28 Tax District would also need to be amended in order to allow for such mixed-use developments…”

Kincora, as a mixed-use project, would also fit into “a unique opportunity in Loudoun County” category as also recommended by the Fulton report. Other advice included modifications with the Route 28 Tax District policies and the elimination of the Destination Retail Overlay.

“Zoning should be a tool designed to implement a land use vision. At present, most of the Study area is zoned industrial yet the land use vision calls for office development,” Fulton Research reports. The present zoning policies and the development vision should be reconciled in order to maximize potential. Even conversion to the Revised 1993 Zoning Ordinance from the one established in 1972 is not recommended, noting this transition would still allow developers the freedom to build industrial structures and stand-alone office buildings through a special exception. Once again, these allowances would not be consistent with the vision for Route 28.

Many of the same recommendations and conclusions came from two previous studies, The Route 28 Tax District Existing Conditions Report (November 2008) and The Route 28 Business Outreach Project Results Report (June 2009), both conducted by the county to study the development of Route 28. Both reports stated that Class A office tenants would not find current policies in-line with their projects, with most zoning for industrial parks.

The Route 28 Tax District, designed to tax businesses along the corridor, resulted in three separate zoning ordinances and invariably “conflicting adjacent land uses,” the reports agreed. Also agreed upon, the 1993 Revised General Plan does not support a mixed-use environment sure to create the accepted vision for Route 28. The inability for applicants to predict outcomes of large-scale projects because of a “disconnect between planned land uses, zoning regulations, and emerging development types” is also noted in both reports.

So, where does that leave Kincora? It depends on whom you ask.

Piedmont Environmental Council, a group historically critical of developers and large-scale projects, believes it may be premature to see the report as a vote for Kincora. “I’m hesitant to comment on the report. While the market report is one part of it, that is not the complete analysis promised by the board in February,” notes Ed Gorski, Loudoun County Land Use Officer for the PEC. “If the board completes its detailed analysis and the board decides to change the Comprehensive Plan, we’ll have something else to talk about. Our basic premise is you have Keynote [Employment] on that property, not only Kincora, but also Loudoun One. They both should be put on hold until that commitment is filled.”

Gorski points out two companies who have been recently successful under current land use policies, Orbital Sciences and Raytheon. “To make a blanket statement that the zoning isn’t working, I don’t know. If I look at those two examples that have come to the Route 28 District, it may not be as broken as people may think. Orbital really didn’t have the problem with the land use policies that existed.”

Those who favor a clean slate for zoning might point out both Orbital and Raytheon moved into existing buildings.

Michael Scott of Norton Scott LLC, lead developer of the Kincora project, has obvious reason to be encouraged with the outcome of the study. “We applaud the efforts of the Loudoun Board to re-examine the Keynote designation for the Route 28 corridor. We believe the mixed-use vision presented by the county’s expert, Fulton Research, will encourage the development of Class A Office space closer to the homes of Loudoun’s highly educated workforce; leave the county less exposed to the changes in fortunes of dominant, single-user campuses; and helps transform the corridor into a gateway that showcases the knowledge-based industries of the 21st century.”

While opinions differ as to what the future of Route 28 should be, most do agree that changes to the existing zoning are necessary. As stated in “The Natural,” a 1984 film about baseball and redemption, “You've got a gift Roy... but it's not enough - you've got to develop yourself. If you rely too much on your own gift... then... you'll fail.”