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An American lotus blooms at Crow's Nest. Defenders of Wildlife |
Residential development on Crow's Nest would violate several state and federal environmental laws, a national wildlife watchdog group is warning.
Defenders of Wildlife sent certified letters threatening legal action last month to the Stafford County Board of Supervisors, the owner of the 3,800-acre tract between Accokeek and Potomac creeks, and Toll Brothers, the developer that has a contract to buy the parcel.
The letter states that two species covered by the Endangered Species Act--the bald eagle and the shortnose sturgeon--have been found at Crow's Nest. Because of that, the developer is required to file a detailed habitat conservation plan with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the letter says.
The letter also says that 138 bird species managed under the Migratory Bird Species Act have been documented at Crow's Nest and could be harmed if the peninsula is developed. And it warns that residential development there also could violate the federal Clean Water Act, the National Historic Preservation Act and the state's Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act.
"Development of the peninsula could subject [owner] K&M properties, Toll Brothers Inc., and the Stafford County Board of Supervisors to enforcement action from the Fish and Wildlife Service and a citizen suit from Defenders of Wildlife," wrote Aimee DeLach, a senior program associate with the nonprofit group in Washington.
The June 18 letter was sent to Toll Brothers and to Stafford Lakes Limited Partnership, of which K&M Properties of McLean is a part. The letter also went out to the Stafford board and to eight federal and state environmental agencies.
DeLach said Wednesday that she became familiar with Crow's Nest in 1998, when she and her husband volunteered to do a Christmastime bird census on the peninsula for the National Audubon Society.
She also researched the peninsula's bird population for the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, which had planned to buy Crow's Nest for a nature preserve. That sale fell through late last year.
Save Crow's Nest, a local grass-roots organization dedicated to keeping development off the peninsula, said it welcomes help from Defenders of Wildlife.
"The involvement of this national organization reaffirms that Crow's Nest is a national treasure that should not be destroyed by development," said Save Crow's Nest member Tarver Harris. "It also means that there will be close scrutiny of any efforts to develop Crow's Nest."
Toll Brothers, a regional builder whose Virginia projects include Ashburn's Belmont Country Club and Prince William's Dominion Valley Country Club, said in April that it had a contract to buy the parcel from K&M.
The company has not filed any plans or applications with the county to begin developing the land, but it did ask the Board of Zoning Appeals to rule on whether it needed a rezoning to cluster houses on the property.
The BZA ruled that any deviation from the minimum one-acre lots Crow's Nest is now zoned for would require a rezoning. Toll Brothers has appealed the decision to Stafford Circuit Court.
The Crow's Nest peninsula isn't suitable for any residential development, whether the houses are clustered or spread across one-acre lots, DeLach said.
"Crow's Nest is a phenomenal habitat for endangered species, sensitive species, rare species," she said. "This is an extremely important piece of habitat for this area."
Her nine-page letter refers repeatedly to a study by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2000, when the state was negotiating to buy the land.
"They list all sorts of negative environmental impacts associated with it being developed," DeLach said. "Logging will have temporary impacts, but residential development will have permanent impacts."
Now, DeLach said, she is just waiting for a response from those who got the letter.
Neither Stafford Lakes Limited Partnership nor Toll Brothers has responded yet, she said. She said Wednesday that she can't even confirm that Toll Brothers has gotten the certified letter, since her group hasn't received a return receipt.
Toll Brothers did not return calls from The Free Lance-Star this week seeking comment.
DeLach said she also hasn't yet gotten a formal response from Stafford County. But Supervisor Kandy Hilliard, whose district includes Crow's Nest, said she's not worried about the group's threat to sue the county.
"If the individual who owns that property goes ahead with the by-right development he has, there isn't anything I, as a supervisor, can do to stop him," Hilliard said. "But I will do everything in my power to see that land ultimately preserved."
Earlier this spring, Hilliard got other supervisors to agree to hold a bond referendum in November seeking to raise money for the county to buy and preserve Crow's Nest. She said the county is working on an application for a Virginia Resources Authority loan to help with the purchase.
" I don't have any plans to see that land developed in any way at all," Hilliard said.
To reach RUTH FINCH: 540/720-1622 rfinch@freelancestar.com
