Spotsylvania Parkway; VDOT to maintain a certain segment beginning in 2020. (HB1836)

Introduced By

Del. Bobby Orrock (R-Thornburg)

Progress

Introduced
Passed Committee
Passed House
Passed Senate
Signed by Governor
Became Law

Description

Virginia Department of Transportation to maintain a certain segment of Spotsylvania Parkway beginning in 2022. Requires the Virginia Department of Transportation, as of July 1, 2022, to take over maintenance of an approximately two-mile segment of Spotsylvania Parkway that is currently maintained pursuant to a 2005 "Easement and Cost Sharing Agreement" unless the homeowners association that is party to such cost-sharing agreement, VDOT, and Spotsylvania County reach a new road maintenance agreement prior to July 1, 2022. Read the Bill »

Outcome

Bill Has Failed

History

DateAction
01/10/2017Committee
01/10/2017Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/17 17103242D
01/10/2017Referred to Committee on Transportation
01/13/2017Assigned Transportation sub: Subcommittee #4
01/31/2017Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendments (7-Y 0-N)
02/02/2017Reported from Transportation with amendments (21-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/03/2017Read first time
02/03/2017Impact statement from DPB (HB1836)
02/06/2017Engrossed by House as amended
02/06/2017Read second time
02/06/2017Committee amendments agreed to
02/06/2017Engrossed by House as amended HB1836E
02/06/2017Printed as engrossed 17103242D-E
02/07/2017Read third time and passed House (96-Y 0-N 1-A)
02/07/2017VOTE: PASSAGE (96-Y 0-N 1-A) (see vote tally)
02/08/2017Constitutional reading dispensed
02/08/2017Referred to Committee on Transportation
02/15/2017Reported from Transportation (13-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/17/2017Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/17/2017Impact statement from DPB (HB1836E)
02/20/2017Read third time
02/20/2017Passed Senate (39-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/20/2017Reconsideration of Senate passage agreed to by Senate (40-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/20/2017Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/23/2017Enrolled
02/23/2017Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB1836ER)
02/23/2017Signed by Speaker
02/24/2017Signed by President
02/28/2017Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on 2/28/17
02/28/2017G Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, March 27, 2017
03/23/2017Impact statement from DPB (HB1836ER)
03/24/2017G Vetoed by Governor
04/05/2017Placed on Calendar
04/05/2017House sustained Governor's veto

Comments

Raymond Burns writes:

The two Homeowners Associations (Lee's Parke, and Virginia Heritage at Lee's Parke) need relief from this "undisclosed financial obligation" which dates back to 2002 Proffers and a 2005 so-called "Easement". This HOA support for the beautification and grounds maintenance of a 2-mile stretch of Spotsylvania Parkway (aka State Road 628)has cost the HOAs over $2,400,000 since 2005 ($240,000/year). Such agreements are now prohibited by both Statue 55-509 (passed in 2012)which limit HOAs to no more than 5 years of financial obligations with Developers, and the 2016 Obenshain/Reeves law restructuring how Developers/ Builders deal with Virginia Counties on Proffers. In fact we would like to be out from under this onerous obligation in two years (July 1, 2019, instead of five years (July 1, 2022). In 2019 the HOAs will have paid for the beautification of a State Road for 14 years.

Frank Brodersen writes:

Lee's Parke's original proffers required building 2 miles of a divided 4 lane parkway. 224 ft right of way, 15 ft median, landscaped with 400 trees, etc. That expense is paid with each lot purchase. I.E., Homeowners built and landscaped 2 miles of State Route 628. Three years later, the developers obligated two HOA's [then with no homeowners] to maintain the parkway in perpetuity.

Two actions [as noted above by Mr. Burns] passed by Virginia's legislature have sent a strong signal that developers must not obligate future homeowners via their required participation in HOA's for longer than five [5] years.

The Lee's Parke Owners Assoc. and the Virginia Heritage Home Owners Association will contractually pay $250,000 in 2017 to maintain 2 miles of State Road 628. This is the 12th year home owners have paid. More than twice as long as is currently permitted.

About 30,000 vehicles use this road daily. But only those of us living adjacent to the highway pay. We all get the same benefit from this highway. The requirement that only our HOA's pay is onerous, unfair, and inequitable.

In my personal opinion HB 1836 should take effect 90 days after passage. To continue to penalize the senior citizens of Virginia Heritage and the young families in Lee's Parke is both unfair and unnecessary. Spotsylvania County can decide to assume the HOA's contractual obligation, do the maintenance themselves or contract with VDOT.

To pay for another five [5] years violates the clear intent of the 2012 amendment to 55-509 and the Obershain/Reeves bill limiting proffers. Please treat the senior citizens and young families in the Lee's Parke development fairly. Pass HB 1836 with a quick implementation.

John Levasseur writes:

The aspect of this agreement was a DEVELOPER agreement. The developers knowingly presented this agreement knowing that their actual costs for maintenance would go away after a few years and the HOA would be stuck with dealing with the costs long after they took their profits and left.

In buying a house in the neighborhoods we accepted this as a cost, but no one explained that the costs were in perpetuity. It would be a different matter if the road only serviced the community, but traffic has increased to service other neighborhoods and commercial enterprises.

Fair is fair. The road benefits the people way beyond the two neighborhoods.

Maybe a TOLL should be imposed similar to the HOT LANES? Its not that far fetched of a comparison.

Marlene Brummond writes:

Based on the fact that Spotsylvania Parkway is used by almost all residents of Spotsylvania County, as well as many others, the residents of Lee's Parke and Virginia Heritage should NOT bear the burden of maintenance and upkeep to the parkway. For the residents of Virginia Heritage and Lee's Parke to be paying these costs, is unfair. This should be paid by all citizens of Spotsylvania County.

James Lewis writes:

What upsets me most about this unfair agreement is the fact that we were not notified of it when we bought our home. South Carolina requires all home-buyers to be notified by their realtors of any and all attachments to their homes...before they buy. Take note legislators....this is a good law for Virginia.
Now, about the Spotsylvania Parkway agreement. It isn't use by the residents that is damaging it (example.....the deterioration at the intersection of SP and US 1)...it is the commercial dump trucks coming to and fro the quarry. Also, in a very short while, the new food distribution warehouse will be opening and then we will have multiple tractor-trailers transiting it daily. Do they pay anything toward repairs??? No, it is the homeowners of Lee's Parke and Virginia Heritage. I agree that since it is used by all citizens of Spotsylvania (and anyone else who wants to use it) it should be taken over by VDOT ASAP!!!!

Dennis Stotlemyer writes:

As residents of Virginia Heritage at Lee's Park, my wife and I would ask that this burdensome levy be removed from the residents of Virginia Heritage at Lee's Park and Lee's Park and shifted to VDOT where the maintenance rightly belongs. This will also bring us into alignment with current state law.

Van Churchill writes:

We purchased our home 10 years ago no disclosure of the subject attachment was provided to us. Vote yes!

Adrion Whitaker writes:

I highly recommend this bill be passed. The cost too the senior citizens is higher than should be expected. Recommend passage with an effective date of 2019.

Debbie Pederson writes:

We live in Virginia heritage please vote yes so the residents do not have this burden we brought in 2014 and thus was never disclosed to us just not fair to residents

Russ Marshall writes:

I highly recommend this bill be passed. The two Homeowners Associations (Lee's Parke, and Virginia Heritage at Lee's Parke) need relief from this "undisclosed financial obligation" which dates back to 2002 Proffers and a 2005 so-called "Easement". Such agreements are now prohibited by both Statue 55-509 (passed in 2012) which limit HOAs to no more than 5 years of financial obligations with Developers, and the 2016 Obenshain/Reeves law restructuring how Developers/ Builders deal with Virginia Counties on Proffers.

John Gaines writes:

Residents of Virginia Heritage are only a small percentage of the people that use Spotsylvania Parkway. We were not advised of this when we purchased our home 6 years ago. Please approve this legislation to remove this unfair obligation.

Gerald Sutts writes:

Putting the maintenance of Spotsylvania Parkway on the backs of retirees living in Virginia Heritage and the residents of Lee's Parke should never have happened in the first place and should not be continued. Spotsylvania Parkway has become a major thoroughfare leading from Spotsylvania Regional Hospital, and the apartment complex growing in the hospital area, to Courthouse Road (Route 208) and as far as Plank Road (Route 3). Vote yes on bill HB1836 that will remove the maintenance cost burden from the Virginia Heritage and Lee's Parke residents and turn it over to VDOT where it rightly belongs.

Danette Taylor writes:

Vote. YES to this bill. As a resident of Va Heritage for three years I had no idea we were paying this. Seems unfair o the residents of these two subdivisions to carry this br don when this road is heavily traveled by all members of the county.

Phyllis Jurgensen writes:

Vote yes. Spotsylvania Parkway has become a major thoroughfare and with the expected future construction of homes in this area it is time to turn the cost of maintenance over to VDOT and not the residents of Virginia Heritage and Lee's Parke.

Judy luneberg writes:

VDOT should take over maintenance of Spotsylvania Parkway. This road is used as a thoroughfare by many people, not just Virginia Heritage and Lee's Parke residents, and they should not have the burden of maintenance.

JD CRIBBS writes:

This is just another burden levied upon the residents of Virginia Heritage by the ever feckless American Homes Corp; masquerading as Lennar. This burden is just one more example of the ongoing duplicity of Lennar. Legislative help is needed to rein in the RICO actions of the Lennar vermin. VOTE FOR THIS BILL!

Russ Duenow writes:

This agreement was put in place to help the Developer put in place the infrastructure necessary to develop Lee's Parke. Since it was developed, however, usage has risen 10-fold to a point it is widely used far and beyond the residents of this community; it truly is a county/state commuter route and receives heavy usage from business and trucking companies, especially from the quarry up the road.
If this community is forced to keep carrying this heavy financial obligation, we ought to be able to start charging tolls for the tens of thousands of cars which get a free ride using a parkway supported just by one community which happens to live astride the route.
Please support passage of this tax relief legislation.

Chazz Carter writes:

Putting the maintenance of Spotsylvania Parkway on the backs of retirees living in Virginia Heritage and the residents of Lee's Parke should never have happened in the first place and should not be continued. Spotsylvania Parkway has become a major thoroughfare leading from Spotsylvania Regional Hospital, and the apartment complex growing in the hospital area, to Courthouse Road (Route 208) and as far as Plank Road (Route 3). This is just another burden levied upon the residents of Virginia Heritage by the ever feckless American Homes Corp; masquerading as Lennar. This burden is just one more example of the ongoing duplicity of Lennar. Legislative help is needed to rein in the RICO actions of the Lennar vermin. VOTE YES on bill HB1836 that will remove the maintenance cost burden from the Virginia Heritage and Lee's Parke residents and turn it over to VDOT where it rightly belongs.

Elizabeth Sampson writes:

This is an injustice. Someone should definitely be held responsible. Not only should we tally all the costs and expenses that was unjustly placed upon us, but we should mandate a rebate. We should show solidarity and protest along the parkway. How about we talk about this and maybe in the near future we (VH residents and Lee's Park residents) can make this wrong a right. No disclosures were ever issued about this would allow us to make a great case in the Judicial system. I also believe if a Real Estate attorney looks further into this, he/she may want to fight for us!

Edward Landgrover writes:

This bill should be passed and made effective in 2019! The simple fact that tis onerous requirement was undisclosed to the HOAs as well as to individual buyers begs for relief from this burden. This is, after all, a public thoroughfare and is not limited to providing access to only these two communities but it provides access across a whole landscape of Spotsylvania County and there fore should be a shared cost across a much wider spectrum of users.

carol eckles writes:

This is an unnecessary burden for the homeowners that live in Virginia Heritage. The developer was the one who gained. At this time the parkway is used by the entire city and county residents and the cost should be born by the tax payers. Please pass this bill and give relief to the residents of Virginia Heritage

P. David Mittiga writes:

Without question HB 1836 should be passed. For the residents of Virginia Heritage to burdened with the cost of maintenance on Spotsylavania Parkway is a cost obligation which was hidden from all those making a purchase in the sub-division. This undisclosed cost obligation is unfair. Both the developer and county officials are responsible for crafting of this deceptive scheme to hide and then pass the cost of maintaining this section of roadway in perpituity onto the HOA members. The roadway in question is used by ALL persons of the State and County and has become a high traffic corridor for East to West motor vehicles.
As a homeowner in the HOA , I have been paying this unjust cost each year since 2006.
I am asking that our elected officials pass this bill and adjust it's effective date 90 days from passage date.

Stephanie Sloan writes:

VOTE YES! I agree with everyone above that expressed their opinion and the need to vote YES.. We don't need the burden that has been put upon us and to not be informed is just not right.

Maria Hawkins writes:

I agree with other homeowners in Va Heritage. We bought in August 2016 and were never informed that we had to pay for what vdot should be maintaining without question. The people who live here know how heavily traveled this road is. I assumed you only have to maintain a road when it is private. Guess Not.........

Peter Hussekmann writes:

The Virginia Heritage & Lee’s Parke communities have suffered under the burden of this surreptitious arrangement for more than 10 years. The arguments that supported passage of the 2012 legislation limiting obligations of this nature to five years are no less valid for VH & LP which have now met that obligation twice over. Now layered on top of that is the reality of the significant growth which this end of the county has experience and which according to plans will continue and even increase. This is no longer a bucolic byway, but a major thoroughfare heavily used by commuters, significant commercial trucking and shoppers connecting between Routes 1 and 3, with a proportionately diminishing number of resident users. If somehow the original concept of this arrangement had as a basis the notion that users should pay, that notion has long since been turned on its head. SP is now a major part of the County and State transportation plan used by all, and maintenance should properly be shared with this larger constituency. VOTE YES effective upon passage.

John Luckey writes:

I am strongly in favor of this bill. I think the residents of Virginia Heritage should not be burdened by these maintenance costs forever.

Rosemary Burke writes:

We join our neighbors and fellow citizens in asking our representatives to support the clear intent of the 2012 amendment to 55-509 and the Obershain/Reeves bill limiting proffers. To do that you must Vote Yes and pass HB 1836. The reasons already listed by others are more than compelling. Thank you!

Joe Wrkich writes:

Vote yes, for all the reasons above .

Jim & Jeanne Vaught writes:

We strongly support this bill moving forward and passage by the General Assembly. We totally support the comments already posted which contain the history of the financial responsibility placed upon homeowners by the developer. When we moved to Virginia Heritage in September 2006 we were not made aware of the financial obligations imposed upon us as homeowners for the Spotsylvania Parkway upkeep. Please move toward the passage of this important legislation!

Percy Palkhivala writes:

We support the bill. Virginia Heritage homeowners should be moved out of the financial responsibility.

Phillip E. Ellis writes:

Virginia Heritage residents should not be required to pay for maintenance on Spotsylvania parkway.

Barbara O'Connor writes:

HB1836 needs to be passed and the residents of Virginia Heritage and Lee's Parke relieved of the burden of being the only two neighborhoods contributing to the maintenance of a road used by the entire county.

Anne Anderson writes:

This situation has placed been an extremely unfair burden on the Virginia Heritage and Lees Parke HOAs which have paid $250K annually to maintain landscaping along a public road. I question why Statute 55/509, which limits HOAs to no more than 5 years of financial obligation with developers, was not made retroactive to include all HOAs. VOTE YES on HB 1836 to be effective 90 days after passage.

Dick szmanski writes:

Vote yes on the HB1836 bill. I concur with the many reasons given for doing so. We must align ourselves with current state law on this issue.

Don Swadley writes:

Vote yes on HB1836 bill. Effective upon passage.

Gerald Daltan writes:

My wife and I moved into a new home in Virginia Heritage subdivision in March 2015. We were not aware of this obligated expense by our HOA, for the maintenance of the highway adjacent to our subdivision for approximately one year. We agree with all of the comments that have previously been made with regard to why this bill should be passed by the legislature. I would like to add several additional comments for consideration.
Even before the passage of the legislation that has been mentioned several times by others, the law in Virginia provided that a locality could not require the developer to provide certain improvements or expenditures outside of the proposed subdivision unless the improvements or expenditures were necessitated by the proposed development. It could be argued, when these subdivisions were first developed, that the construction of the highway was necessitated by the new subdivisions. As others have pointed out, this argument has been considerably weakened by the residential and commercial development in the nearby area.
It should never have been arguable that the maintenance of trees and other landscaping along the highway was necessitated by the new subdivisions. Some cases in Virginia have held that requiring such offsite expenditures not directly related to the development has constituted an unconstitutional taking of property without just compensation. These cases have resulted in a reimbursement for money already spent.
The difference in this case is that the county did not require the developer to landscape the highway. The developer volunteered this expenditure and then placed the burden of future maintenance on the prospective homeowners in the subdivisions in perpetuity (forever), through HOA's, controlled by the developer until some time after the last house has been built.
This bill, relieving the homeowners of this burden in the future, should be passed and made made effective immediately.

Willie Brown writes:

The bill should be passes in favor of the the homeowners. Only in a place like Virginia, you will find a law that obligated the tax payers to pay for a public fixture on County land. I see the assessment to homeowners as a tax because it is beyond reasons. This was not disclosed to my wife and i when we bought our home in Virginia Heritage. I do not believe any homeowners were told of the assessment. This is another case where the developer and builders made deals for themselves and do not have the interest of home owners. This deal is similar to the Verizon situation. Yes, for the passage of HB 1836.

Bob Pickett writes:

This is an unfair burden for the homeowners that live in Virginia Heritage. The developers made this deal and didn't disclose it to us when we bought into Virginia Heritage. The parkway is used by the residents from the whole Fredericksburg Metropolitan area as well as becoming a major thorough fare to southeastern Virginia via State Route 218. The cost should be born by the tax payers now, we have more than paid our five years of fees IAW the current state law. Please pass this bill and give relief to the residents of Virginia Heritage.

Larry F Taylor writes:

Vote yes on bill HB 1836.Paying to maintain this parkway is a big burden on the residents of Lee's park, and Virginia Heritage.The Oberstain/ Reeves law should come into play here.

Judy Finney writes:

Please vote yes. This community needs relief after footing this bill such a long time.

Judy Finney writes:

Please vote yes. The Lee's Parke community needs relief after footing this bill such a long time.

John Flynn writes:

HB1836, introduced by Bobby Orrock should be approved. This proposal would alleviate the current $240,000 annual cost to maintain the landscaping on a 2 mile stretch of the Spotsylvania Parkway.
This maintenance obligation was agreed to by the developer, the Fried Corp., as part of the proffer to secure approval of 2,232 units of residential housing along the referenced parkway. That financial
obligation was later to be foisted upon transfer of title to the new owners by way of the respective Homeowners Associations (Lee's Parke & Virginia Heritage) fees.

While this may have been done legally, I would venture to say that few if any buyers knew they were taking on this obligation in perpetuity.

The two HOA's have been paying these maintenance costs for over 10 years and the several thousands of residents impacted by this unfair obligation seek relief now.

The landscaping maintenance of public roadways must not the obligation of a select few, as over 30,000 vehicles traverse daily on this route and the occupants of these vehicles are the true beneficiaries. HB1836 should be approved.

Kathy Steiger writes:

Please vote yes. We need relief from this burden which shouldn't be ours to bear. We are a community of retirees which makes this burden even greater. There is a great deal more traffic on this roadway than what is created by our community.

Sandra E. Clother writes:

HB1836: Please vote yes and pass this Bill. I concur with my neighbor's reasons for giving relief to the Communities and would also point out that the Parkway has a become a major thoroughfare for those traveling from the Massaponax area to Sotsylvania Courthouse, Leavell's Rd, Rt 208 and to Rt 3 West. I would wonder if this has saved wear and tear and some overcrowding on other County roads, which has been of further benefit to the County, over and above the direct maintenance costs.

Lawrence and LaVon Hawley writes:

We are used to getting "govermentized" add this is a sample of do they recognize... that we live here because we like the community and Spotsylvania County. We retired in 1989 and that was our last raise. the police, fire men and county employees are
respectfull ...

Lisa Frensley writes:

Please do NOT sign this Bill. Every homeowner IS aware that the parkway maintenance is a part of your HOA dues - it's in your HOA Disclosure packet that you receive PRIOR to closing on your home. It is YOUR responsibility to understand where your HOA dues go before buying a home. Of the roughly $210 per month Virginia Heritage residents pay, only approximately $8 of that $210 goes toward the parkway - you are not being charged extra and it is a fraction of what your dues are. The rest of Lee's Parke pays their fare share as well. The cost is based on the number of homes in ALL of Lee's Parke (Estates, Falls, Executive and Villages). We bought our home in Lee's Parke, in part, because of how nice the community looks with the manicured parkway. Turning it over to VDOT will ensure that all trees (not just in the median, but along the sides) will be cut down, the mulch removed and no fertilization or watering. It would only be mowed TWICE per year. Do you really want your community to look like Leavells Road to save $8 per month? Surely you can find something else in your $210 per month you pay to cut out that would be more substantial in lowering your costs.

Mirela Fetea writes:

Please do NOT sign this Bill!

A pleasant community appearance adds to home values and improves the neighborhood reputation. The aesthetically pleasing parkway and the HOA promise of continuous maintenance in future years was one of the reasons we bought our home in Lee's Parke. We decided to buy and pay the HOA fee (planned for potential fee increases) and therefore invest in that pleasant community appearance.

A VDOT turnover (a $8 per month saving for Virginia Heritage residents) will completely change the landscape of my neighborhood. It may negatively affect our home values and will certainly take away those few minutes of daily driving through a pleasant environment for hundreds of homeowners leaving or returning to their homes. And yes, there are many other Spotsylvania residents who enjoy the Parkway even if they do not “pay” for that joy.

I feel cheated by this bill. We bought the house with confidence, knowing that we’ve done our homework (read our HOA Disclosure packet) and we made an investment / entered into a contract based on the restrictions and guidelines we had on the books. Indeed, the 2012 legislation is limiting HOA obligations of this nature to five years. But that legislation cannot and should not be implemented retroactively. We should not have our contracts invalidated because some residents failed to understand where their HOA dues go before they bought a home (having a buyer’s remorse?!?), or because their income is now limited, and they do not want or cannot afford to pay the dues. When you live in a community governed by a HOA, regardless of whether you know it, you have entered into a contract to abide by the Association’s Governing Documents. If you can’t see yourself conforming to all the rules, then that home might not be for you.

The 1836 bill helps a handful of residents breach a contract that will impact hundreds of residents who were not informed about the existence of this bill, and therefore had no say in protecting their home investment and the appearance of their neighborhood.

The House Bill 1836 should get vetoed by the governor!