Sale agreement expected on same day Dumfries to vote on homeless shelter

Updated at 8:15 p.m. 

Prince William County is set to reach a purchase agreement for a new homeless shelter on the same day the Dumfries Town Council is set to decide whether or not it will allow the facility — which is located in one of the regions most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Staff members recommend approving a zoning text amendment to the town’s zoning ordinance that would allow a homeless shelter in the B-1 zoning district, where businesses like retail stores, retail shops, hospitals, schools, and government offices can already set up shop.

The shelter, as we’ve reported, would be located inside the building that houses Grace Chruch, at 1006 Williamstown Drive. The town’s Planning Commission is set to hear the case for the zoning amendment at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14, 2020.

The meeting won’t be held in an open setting at the town hall, but electronically on Zoom, where all of the town’s meetings have been held since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. If approved, it could clear the way for the Town Council — which meets the following night at 7 p.m. on Zoom — to approve a conditional use permit that would allow the homeless shelter to locate inside the church.

The county is in negotiations to purchase the building from the church, which has already purchase a new plot of land at the nearby corner of Route 234 and Van Buren Road to build a new church building.

Dumfries Mayor Derrick Wood is a member of Grace Chruch and, in an email to PLN, states he does not plan to recuse himself from voting on the conditional-use permit at the meeting Tuesday night.

Wood writes:

“I have nothing to gain financially and have no ownership in Grach Church. There is no conflict of interest for me to vote on a text amendment in the B-1 Zone.  If it were the case then other members of the council who work in the B-1 Zone or can profit because of their professions with a zoning change would have to remove themselves from every vote.  I plan to fully disclose my position as a member of the church.”

Closing the deal

The 25,000 square-food church building is on the market for $5.4 million. The county did not say how much it was willing to pay for the building, citing ongoing negotiations.

The county expects to reach a sale deal for the new building by Tuesday, Sept. 15. The purchase agreement will include the date the sale will go to closing, said Johnson.

On that night, the Dumfries Town Council is set to vote on the conditional use permit for the shelter.

The church had been listed for sale with a commercial broker until March 31, 2020. The county began formal negotiations with the church on August 14, said Prince William County Deputy County Executive Elijah Johnson.

Some town councilmembers suspect some town officials knew about the deal before others. Councilmembers told PLN they were blindsided by an 11th-hour addition to the council’s August 5 meeting agenda, where they first learned about the deal. Johnson also briefed the council about the project for the first time that night.

Later that evening, the council scheduled a hearing for the conditional use permit for September 15. Multiple councilmembers who spoke to PLN are questioning why the council had been not been briefed about the deal earlier than August 5.

“I suspect the mayor knew about this deal well before we did,” said Councilwoman Melva Willis.

Mayor Wood on August 5 told the council that, at first, he was against the idea of a homeless shelter. However, a conversation with Prince William County Potomac District Supervisor Andrea Bailey who urged him to bring the deal to the council for discussion, he said.

More than what the town asked for

Earlier this year, town officials asked Prince William County to provide more health and human services in the town, said Johnson. The coronavirus pandemic curtailed local bus service making it difficult for residents to go to the Ferlazzo government building on Route 1 in Woodbridge, where the county’s social services department has an office to serve residents who live on the eastern side of the county.

Currently, the county is housing the homeless at the Ferlazzo building, and at a motel on Route 234 near Dumfries. For those who live in the woods in Woodbridge, the Bill Mehr Drop-In Center next to the OmniRide transit center provides meals, showers, and clothing.

The new shelter would be a 24-hour operation that would provide 60 to 80 beds for single men and women, with no children, a place to sleep, eat, and receive mental health and job placement services, said Johnson. Until today, the county has declined to comment on the project.

Transportation and security

Some users of the shelter would come and go during the day, said Johnson. The county plans to use some of a $40,000 federal aid funds to provide transportation for the occupants of the shelter.

Grace Chruch is located on an OmniRide Local bus line, however, the county has not had conversations with the transit provider about increasing bus service for the would-be shelter since OmniRide in June restored regular bus service to pre-pandemic levels.

Opposition from neighbor

Both Prince William County and Dumfries town police officers would work to patrol the area around the shelter, located in a neighborhood known for its crime rate, and that already frequented by police.

The homeowners association of South Cove, a neighborhood next to Williamstown, voiced its opposition to the project in a letter to PLN.

Homeowners association president Ebony Lofton wrote:

“…I don’t have to tell you the adverse effect it will likely have on our property values. There is also the concern of excessive loitering, a rise in crime with an already diminished Dumfries Police Department, and the overall safety threat to our children and residents with such high foot traffic in close proximity to our community.”

The county, however, says it wants to assure that is working to help those who need it most.

“The more we can put resources where these conditions exist, the more we can effect change,” said Johnson.

Mayor Wood will hold a community meeting tonight at 7 o’clock to discuss the homeless shelter. While residents will be able to comment on the matter, the comments are not entered into the public record.

Public hearings on the zoning text amendment at the Planning Commission, and on the conditional use permit to be issued by the Town Council — the final hurdle for the homeless shelter — will be held at 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, respectively.