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Reserve at Long Forest headed to public hearing

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY — A plan to build 104 65 new homes outside Manassas will go forward for approval in September.

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors will hold a public hearing for the Reserve at Long Forest, a planned cluster development located on Birmingham Drive near Signal Hill Elementary School. Supervisors must rezone 131 acres of land from agricultural land to semi-rural residential (SRR) land called for in the county’s comprehensive plan, in order for the development to proceed.

Of the 104 homes, All of 65 homes will be single-family homes.

A public hearing on the matter is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 17 at the McCoart Building at the Prince William County Government Center.

If approved, the new neighborhood will generate about 81 new students for Prince William County Public Schools. By 2022, Signal Hill Elementary School is expected to be at 103% capacity, and then 120% capacity by the 2026-27 school year. The projected capacity numbers about the same for nearby Parkside Middle School.

At Osbourn Park High School, the building is expected to be at only 78% capacity by 2027.

As part of the deal, the developer will give about $2.2 million to the county school division to help offset the cost of the additional students, a total of $20,694 per home sold.

The number of planned homes at the site has been reduced from 120, which had been on the plans back in January 2018.

In a newsletter to members, the Prince William County Conservation Alliance states this development is an example of how developers, county officials, and the community can work together to achieve the desired development that benefits everyone.

“In addition, approximately 60 acres of green open space will be placed into a conservation easement and opened to public use, via a natural surface trail system. Preservation of the 60 acres protects important wildlife habitat as well as a natural drainage corridor to Bull Run, which flows into the Occoquan Reservoir. The Applicant has already met with a land trust to ensure the environmental values of this property qualify for perpetual protection in a conservation easement.”

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  • I'm the Founder and Publisher of Potomac Local News. Raised in Woodbridge, I'm now raising my family in Northern Virginia and care deeply about our community. If you're not getting our FREE email newsletter, you are missing out. Subscribe Now!

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