Newsroom
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Contact: Mary Curtius 703-228-7943 (voice) 703-228-4611(TTY)
County Board, Developer Agree Bromptons to be Finished or Demolished
Settlement includes timeline for action
ARLINGTON, Va. – Today, the County Board has approved an agreement with Ed Peete, owner of the unfinished Bromptons at Cherrydale mixed townhouse-condominium and retail site plan project at 3800 Lee Highway, that requires him to repair and complete the building on a strict timeline or pay for the building demolition.
The Board approved a settlement agreement negotiated with Peete that determines the fate of the building after years of uncertainty. The Bromptons has stood, unfinished and fenced, since March 2006, when the County issued a stop work order.
“This is an ironclad agreement that eliminates the uncertainty of this project that has become such an eyesore in the Cherrydale neighborhood,” said Board Chairman Barbara Favola. “The settlement assures the community that either the building will be completed within the next year or will be demolished at no cost to taxpayers.”
Highlights of the settlement agreement include:
- The owner will make necessary repairs to complete the approved site plan project and bring it into compliance with the building code within an agreed timeline that balances the complexity of the required re-design and repair with the need to correct the conditions that make the building unsafe.
- The County is authorized to demolish the building if the building re-design and repair does not proceed in accordance with a detailed timeline that specifies each incremental step in the re-design and repair process.
- The owner will set aside $250,000 in escrow for the County to use to cover demolition costs if the building is not finished on schedule. The County has obtained estimates confirming this amount as appropriate for full demolition.
- The timeline requires completion of exterior portions of the building at the earliest possible time so that the community can begin to enjoy the benefits (e.g. sidewalks, street trees) of the approved site plan project soon. The agreement anticipates some work beginning as early as next month.
Background:
The County Board approved the Bromptons at Cherrydale site plan project in July 2002. The single family homes and townhouses that were part of the project were completed. Work began on the mixed use building but ran into design and construction problems when it was nearly halfway built.
The County’s Building Official issued the stop work order in 2006 after County building inspectors found serious building code violations. The Building Official followed that action in November 2007 with an unsafe structure notice and order to demolish or repair the building within 60 days. Peete appealed the order, and received an extension of the demolition deadline by the local building code appeals board until late July 2008. No action was taken by Peete to demolish the building however.
In September, 2008, the County authorized the County Attorney to take legal action against the Bromptons at Cherrydale LLC to compel the owner to comply with the Building Official’s order to demolish or repair the building or, alternatively, to sell the property and use the sale proceeds to demolish the building. A suit was filed shortly thereafter and the case is scheduled for trial next week in the Arlington Circuit Court. The settlement agreement makes trial unnecessary. Instead, the settlement agreement will be incorporated into a court order enforceable by the Court.
The settlement agreement achieves the County’s objectives by requiring the repair of the building in the most realistic time frame possible while also ensuring that, if the repair is not diligently completed, the building will be demolished at the Owner’s expense and not the taxpayers.
Arlington, Va., is a world-class residential, business and tourist location that was originally part of the "10 miles square" parcel of land surveyed in 1791 to be the Nation's Capital. It is the geographically smallest self-governing county in the United States, occupying slightly less than 26 square miles. Arlington maintains a rich variety of stable neighborhoods, quality schools and enlightened land use, and received the Environmental Protection Agency's highest award for "Smart Growth" in 2002. Home to some of the most influential organizations in the world - including the Pentagon - Arlington stands out as one of America's preeminent places to live, visit and do business.
