February, 2003 - Volume 87, No. 6

Chesapeake Bay Ordinance and Neighborhood Historic Designation at February 4th meeting

Special Election Debate February 13th

February Meeting to Feature Two Programs

Planning and Zoning Committee and Cultural Affairs Committee will present a short program on neighborhood historic designation in Arlington. Michael Leventhal, the County�s Historic Preservation Program Coordinator, will describe the various types of designations, including local, state, and national, and the pros and cons of the different types of designation and the process for obtaining designation.

Several neighborhoods in Arlington have received designations, and several others are pursuing designation. Several townhouse and garden apartment complexes, such as Fairlington, have received state and national designations, and are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Lyon Village recently became the first single family home neighborhood in Arlington to be added to the National Register list, and Ashton Heights, Lyon Park, Cherrydale, Maywood, and several other neighborhoods are currently pursing National Register designation. The state and national designations are honorary, generally do not involve architectural review, and offer some tax benefits to homeowners undertaking renovations. Maywood is the only Arlington neighborhood with a local designation; in the case of Maywood, homeowners must go through an architectural review process before making exterior changes to their houses.

The second program will feature Jeff Harn, who is an Environmental Planning Office Coordinator, and Jason Papacosma, who is an Environmental Planner, for the Arlington County Department of Environmental Services� (DES) Environmental Planning Office. Harn and Papacosma will discuss the County�s proposed revised Chesapeake Bay Preservation Ordinance. Arlington County is updating its Chesapeake Bay Preservation Ordinance to comply with new Virginia state regulations. The County is proposing to designate buffer areas around all County streams and open channels, to ensure that development near these environmentally sensitive areas is carefully planned and constructed to minimize adverse water quality impacts. This is intended to improve the quality of the County's streams and help restore the Chesapeake Bay. The changes are also intended to reflect a more complete understanding of the impact of development on County streams and the importance of preserving adjacent riparian buffers along streams, as documented in the County's Watershed Management Plan and the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Plan, both of which were adopted by the County Board in April 2001. Residents who own property next to streams and open channels may be affected by these ordinance amendments, if there is future development on their property. You can find more detailed information about the ordinance amendments at www.co.arlington.va.us/des.

Resolutions up for Vote

Civic News and Events

Charles Monroe Education Fund Established

Those interested in making a contribution to the fund may send a check made payable to the Arlington Community Foundation at 2525 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Va. 22201, and indicate on the check that it is for the Charles Monroe Education Fund.

Colonel Thomas� Memorial Service

Transportation Authority Wants Input

Details along with required submission forms are available on the Authority�s Web site at www.novaregion.org/novatrans. The deadline for submission is February 24, 2003.

The Authority will review the applications in an open meeting at its March 13, 2003 meeting. For details regarding this meeting, please contact James Van Zee at (703) 642-4630 or log onto www.novaregion.org/novatrans.

Neighborhood Day Planning Underway

Civic Federation Banquet

Community Forum

To answer these questions, the Arlington Forum is conducting interviews with Arlington residents, County staff and civic group members. The Arlington Forum wants to hear your thoughts and perspectives on the Arlington civic community.

The Community Forum is provided as a service to the community by the Civic Federation. It allows for private and government-based groups and organizations to speak to community leaders about what they do in Arlington. Any group wishing to participate should contact dan+.

Committee News

Status of Prior Issues. On January 14, 2003, the chair of the Environmental Affairs Committee received the Water Pollution Control Division 2001 Master Plan Update on a CD from County staff. On January 7, 2003, at the Arlington County Board work session on the draft 2001 Master Plan Update, the Board approved the Master Plan in concept and authorized its release to the general public. Although this Master Plan has been approved , each upgrade or expansion involving expenditures of County funds will require approval by the Arlington County Board. It is anticipated that the Master Plan will be made available on the Arlington County�s Water Pollution Control Division�s web site, � http://www.co.arlington.va.us/des/wpcp/wpc_main.htm ,� prior to the upcoming Civic Federation Meeting.

On January 17, 2003, the chair of the Environmental Affairs Committee discussed the results of the November 2002 e-beam trials testing with County staff. This testing was to serve as both a proof-of-concept and a demonstration of the Electron Beam irradiation technology's capability in waste stream disinfection for bacteria and viruses in primary influent (raw wastewater), secondary effluent and sludge, sludge odor control, and for the destruction of endocrine disrupter compounds (nonyl phenol, nonyl phenloethoxylate, and brominated diphenyl ethers) in sludge. The testing matrix was selected to meet the EPA 503 regulations for the generation of Class A Biosolids, which state that sludge must be irradiated with a dose of 10 kGray (kilogray). For this phase of testing samples were collected at both 4 and 10 kGy.

As the Committee reported in last month�s newsletter, staff indicated they have received the lab results for all of the e-beam trials except for the endocrine disrupter tests and the results were pretty much as expected. For example, the results of testing showed that it achieved nearly complete pathogen destruction on the trials of Plant influent and diluted sludge. The testing showed similar positive results on sludge that was diluted to approximately a 1.1% solids concentration. The thickened sludge sample at 3% solids concentration, however, did not achieve good reduction, because the beam in the mobile unit was not strong enough to completely penetrate the depth of the sludge as it passed under the beam. Also, the results of testing did not achieve the odor reduction staff had hoped to see and the lab results from the endocrine disrupter testing were not conclusive. Because of the potential significant cost benefits associated with this technology versus current conventional approaches for waste stream disinfection, staff plans to conduct more testing by the end of CY 2003, or schedule additional testing in Spring 2004. Staff indicated that this approach, if implemented, could help avoid as much as $60 million in possible capital expenditures for the County, along with additional savings in reduced operational and maintenance costs. According to staff, the estimated total costs for the e-beam trials testing was approximately $150,000 -- with most of these costs associated with the lab work. If you have any questions concerning the e-beam trials testing, please contact Phil Loar at (703) 228-6867. Mr. Loar is a staff coordinator for Arlington County�s Water Pollution Control Division.

Next Meeting of the Environmental Affairs Committee. On Tuesday, February 25, 2003, beginning at 7:00 p.m., in the auditorium at the Arlington County Central Library, County staff will make a presentation on the Water Pollution Control Division 2001 Master Plan Update. Following the two-hour presentation, the Environmental Affairs Committee will discuss the Master Plan and identify potential areas for review or follow-up with County staff. If you are interested in serving on the Environmental Affairs Committee, or have questions concerning the Committee, please contact Ernie Ragland at (703) 525-6297, or by e-mail at ragland.ernie@prodigy.net.

The Executive Committee continues to consider methods to engage the community, to insure the free flow of information so that all our member organizations can be apprised of activities and issues throughout the County. In addition to enlarging our e-mail capacity, the ExCom is working to expand the Web Site to insure, to the extent possible, that issues for consideration by the whole body are placed on the site prior to meetings at which they�ll be considered.

Program formats are also of primary interest, and they are designed to bring current and topical information to the attention of delegates so they might, in turn, share these with their member organizations. Upcoming meetings include the Budget, general and school; our State delegation; and the Open Space Master Plan � as well as the many zoning, development, environmental, cultural and safety issues that present in between meetings.

Perhaps the greatest challenge, however, has been in finding a date when all members of the Executive Committee could meet without sacrificing their attendance at other organizations� meetings. It wasn�t easy, but we did it. The Executive Committee meetings will now be the first Friday after the general membership meeting at the Hospice of Northern Virginia cafeteria from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

As always, any Committee Chairs, delegates or alternates with issues they wish to share are invited to attend. Please notify Kim Smith if you are planning to attend since we�ll be feeding (pizza) our members given the early hour! Kim can be reached at kim+ or 703-527-0294.

The Public Services Committee (PSC) received a resolution from one of our Civic Federation Delegates calling for the County Board to �direct the County Manager to establish effective complaint procedures within the Police Department.� This resolution will be the subject of the next PSC meeting.

Resolutions: The PSC and Environmental Affairs Committee discussed the potential introduction of �several� 45,000 gallon Liquid Compressed Natural Gas tanks at the bus depot in South Arlington with members of the nearby community, County Staff and WMATA. Subsequently, the PSC and the EAC crafted a resolution expressing concern over the possible WMATA choice of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), based on currently known information about siting LNG/LNCG in such a densely populated area and in such close proximity to federal buildings and National Airport. See resolution on the Civic Federation Web Site.

On-Going Initiatives:

Public Preparedness Initiative: Members of the Committee are currently continuing their efforts to provide the public with information (Red Cross, FEMA and Arlington-specific) on emergency preparedness. Approximately 1/3 of Civic Associations have provided this program to their residents. Topics covered include What You Can Expect of Your Government in a Disaster, What Citizens Can Do To Be Better Prepared, and What Neighborhoods Can Do. The program is 1.5 hours long and includes, when available: