Sports complex not endorsed by committee
By Jason Jacks
A proposal to build a large sports complex featuring outdoor and indoor athletic fields along Belmont Ridge Road in Ashburn is struggling to gain a majority of support on the Board of Supervisors.On July 28, a four-member board committee decided to send the proposal by Play to Win LLC to the full board without a recommendation for approval or denial.
The key concern some supervisors have is that the complex is too large. At 40 acres, the site would have six outdoor playing fields – four synthetic – and three more inside a 225,000-square-foot building south of Route 7. The facility also would house athletic courts, classrooms and a restaurant. Additional space would contain offices and an aquatic center.
So far, only Chairman Scott York (I-at large) and supervisors Lori Waters (R-Broad Run) and Eugene Delgaudio (R-Sterling) have publicly voiced support for the project in its current form.
Others, including Supervisor Kelly Burk (D-Leesburg) -- chairwoman of the Transportation and Land Use Committee, which discussed the proposal Monday night -- are worried that an influx of additional cars accessing the complex would further clog narrow Belmont Ridge Road, which is slated to be widened someday.
"How is it going to handle 800 more cars?" Burk asked, citing traffic estimates. "That is a big concern for me."
Field lights, game noise and sediment runoff into nearby Goose Creek are more issues the applicant and supervisors are now hashing out.
"We've put more standards on our fields than the county has," said Play to Win spokesman Charlie Jackson. "And we'll continue to work with the county on any concerns that supervisors, like Burk, might have."
The full board is expected to vote on the proposal in September.
Contact the reporter at jjacks@timespapers.com