Arlington County Board October Meeting Agenda Highlights 

Published on October 10, 2020

The Arlington County Board will hold its October Regular Meeting on Saturday, Oct. 17, and its Recessed Meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 20.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the County Board is holding virtual meetings, as allowed under Virginia law. Board members, staff, applicants, and the public all will participate remotely.

Speaking at the Board Meeting

Members of the public who wish to speak at public comment at the start of the Saturday, Oct. 17, Regular Meeting, or who wish to speak on an agenda item, should visit the County Board website for information on how to register online to comment virtually.

Watch it Live

County Board meetings are live-streamed on the County website, and on YouTube, and broadcast live on Arlington TV, the County's cable channel, with live captioning, on Comcast 25 & 1085 (HD), and Verizon FiOS 39 & 40. The meetings also are live-streamed on ATV's YouTube channel. Videos of Board meetings are archived on the County website (with captions and staff reports) and on YouTube.

Saturday, Oct. 17 — Regular County Board Meeting

The Regular Meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m. with public comment. View the agenda and read the staff reports. (Note: Some reports are posted closer to the meeting date.) Highlights include:

Increasing income limits for affordable homes on Columbia Pike — The Board will hold a public hearing and consider increasing income limits and extending the affordability term for affordable homes in the Columbia Pike Neighborhoods Form Based Code (N-FBC) Districts. The N-FBC is an alternative zoning district that applies to multi-family residential areas along Columbia Pike that surround its commercial centers. Currently, the N-FBC currently requires that all affordable homes delivered through redevelopment are limited to those residents who earn no more than 60 percent of the Area Median Income and that they must remain affordable for 30 years. The standards apply to both rental and ownership developments.

The Manager is recommending that the Board allow for affordability levels up to 80 percent of AMI and up to 100 percent of AMI when ownership units are proposed. The change is meant to reflect the overall cost of homeownership in Arlington and expand the pool of eligible, qualified buyers trying to buy an affordable home in Arlington. Existing affordability requirements for rental projects would be unchanged. The Manager also recommends that the affordability term for condominiums should be extended to "the life and use of the existing improvement as a residential dwelling unit." To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 47 on the agenda for the Saturday, Oct. 17, 2020, Regular Meeting.

COVID-19 relief project funding -- The Board will consider the Manager's recommendation to amend Arlington's Annual Housing and Urban Development Plan for Fiscal Year 2021 for COVID-19 relief. The Board will consider using $2.2 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funds to support seven COVID-19 relief projects that will assist more than 4,100 Arlington families and individuals impacted by the pandemic.

Nonprofit organizations that will receive funding include the Arlington Food Assistance Center; Arlington Thrive; Doorways for Women and Families; Legal Aid Justice Center; Northern Virginia Family Service; Real Food for Kids, and Service Source. The County awarded the funds through a competitive bidding process that identified housing, food security, job training, and placement and small business retention and support as priorities, and funded services aimed at supporting low and moderate-income Arlington residents. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 29 on the Consent Agenda.

More Housing Choice Voucher funding --The Board will consider accepting $888,572 in additional Section 811 Housing Choice Vouchers under the federal CARES act. The money will help meet the increased assistance need of Housing Choice Voucher holders for rental assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. To read the staff report, scroll to Item No. 33 on the Consent Agenda.

Tuesday, Oct. 20 — Recessed County Board Meeting

The virtual meeting will begin at 3 p.m. with reports from the Board Members and the County Manager. To view the agenda and read the staff reports, visit the County website.

No earlier than 6:30 p.m. the Board first will hold a public hearing on any item pulled from the Saturday Consent Agenda. The Board also will hold public hearings on:

Fiscal Year 2020 Close-out — The Board will hold a public hearing and consider the Manager's preliminary financial results and close-out for the Fiscal Year 2020 Budget. The Board will vote at its November meeting on close-out allocations. (Item No. 48 on the agenda.