| Route
28 Financing Failure |
| Have you seen that huge pile of dirt at the intersection
of Route 28 and Route 606? There's a reason it's just sitting
there. |
| And why hasn't the burned-out building at Route 28 and and
Church Road been torn down? There's a reason that eyesore
is just sitting there as well. |
| When I first moved to this area in 1985, Route 28 was little
more than a two-lane cow path, with cars and trucks moving
slowing but surely on the north-south road. There was a traffic
light at its conjunction with Route 7, which was usually backed
up for miles. It was a terrible and dangerous intersection. |
| As time went on, dozens of office buildings were built along
Route 28 on the 14-mile strip from Route 7 to Interstate 66.
A special tax district was formed for businesses along Route
28, with revenue going into a fund to help improve the important
high-tech corridor as time went on. Businesses must pay an
extra 20 cents for every $100 of its assessment. |
| Dulles International Airport flourished, adding even more
traffic to the now over-burdened, high-speed, highly dangerous
highway. Today more than 70,000 cars and trucks use that road
daily, and transportation officials say traffic volume will
double in 18 years. The Air and Space Museum Annex is now
under construction at the south end of Dulles Airport, which
will add even more cars to the route. |
| The Route 606, Route 28 intersection is the most deadly
in all of Loudoun County. Recently two Herndon men were killed
there when their car was hit by another car speeding through
a red light. |
| Finally, a plan was hatched to widen the road and add nearly
20 "above-grade" interchanges, complete with cloverleafs,
and the elimination of traffic signals. It would be a limited
access highway and the road would be widened to eight lands
from six. The widening portion of the plan was killed in January
because the region must come into line with federal air-quality
standards before it can begin new transportation projects. |
| But now the entire $250 million plan is in jeopardy because
the state has no cash for Northern Virginia transportation
projects even if air-quality standards are met. If the area
is lucky, maybe three or four above-grade intersections will
now be built along Route 28. As of now, Virginia has committed
to two interchanges, one at the headquarters of America OnLine
and the other at the space museum. |
| Also, construction and insurance companies which were supposed
to begin construction on the three-year project this spring,
have had their financial ratings lowered because of the poor
economy in the region, making it difficult for them to secure
financing. |
| Adding to the financial woes is the fact that Route 28 runs
through both Loudoun and Fairfax counties, making it necessary
for supervisors in both counties to agree on financing arrangements.
It seems officials in both counties, and rightly so, don't
want to get stuck with the tab, which would almost certainly
raise taxes. |
| Dranesville Supervisor Stuart Mendelsohn may have said it
best: "We were cruising along. I was pretty excited what we
were going to do (for transportation)." he told The Washington
Post. "Now I'm very disappointed." |
| The real disappointment, however, may be in those businesses,
like Sterling Glass and Tart Lumber, which have been waiting
for construction to begin. |
| They, and several other business along Route 28, have had
to plan for the day they would either have to relocate or
lose part of their property. Those plans are now up in the
air. |
| The delay in funding for Route 28 is a lose-lose situation
for everyone, and there is little we can do about it. In the
meantime, we'll be forced to look at burned-out bank buildings
and huge piles of dirt. |
| And that's Our Town this week. |
