The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is holding public hearings on at least six Dranesville District land-use items Tuesday, Oct. 27, including the long-delayed rezoning of the Wolf Trap Nursery site on Leesburg Pike.

The afternoon session at the Fairfax County Government Center starts at 3 p.m. with three concurrent hearings for APB Woodland Park JV LLC, a rezoning and two proffered-condition amendments spanning the Dranesville and Hunter Mill districts. A hearing on the Sekas Homes rezoning for the nursery site is also scheduled for 3 p.m., according to the county's meeting agenda.

At 4 p.m., the board will take up amendments sought by Pomeroy Investments for the Aurora Station at Dulles development near the Innovation Center Metro station. A separate 4 p.m. hearing covers a proposed sale of easement rights at the Wolf Trap Fire Station, 1315 Beulah Road, to an entity called Castleton, L.C.

Wolf Trap Nursery rezoning

Vienna-based Sekas Homes wants to rezone the 6.58-acre nursery property at 9439 Leesburg Pike from R-1 to PDH-2, a planned development housing district allowing up to two homes per acre. The proposed neighborhood, called Castleton Hills, would include 13 detached houses with an average lot size of 12,400 square feet.

The board deferred this hearing from its Oct. 13 meeting without explanation, as we reported Oct. 14. The Fairfax County Planning Commission recommended approval at its Sept. 30 hearing.

Tree preservation remains the plan's biggest sticking point. Only 5,381 square feet of canopy would be saved, falling nearly 40,000 square feet short of the county's requirement. Sekas Homes is seeking a deviation from that standard, citing the poor condition of existing trees.

Mike Van Atta, acquisitions and development leader for Sekas Homes, told the Planning Commission on Sept. 30 that healthy trees were scattered across the site rather than clustered in one area. "That's always been a challenge with this application, but it's an infill residential development," Van Atta said at that hearing.

To offset the shortfall, Sekas Homes proffered funds for offsite landscaping improvements coordinated with the Fairfax County Forest Conservation Branch and Dranesville District Supervisor Jimmy Bierman's office. The plan also calls for new sidewalks, a community gathering area and an updated shared-use trail along Route 7.

Wolf Trap Nursery, opened in 1972, announced it would begin winding down operations at the end of June.

Aurora Station at Dulles amendments

Developer Pomeroy Companies is seeking amendments to its 2019 rezoning plan for a 39-acre vacant property at 13710 Frying Pan Road, south of Herndon near the Innovation Center Metro station. The project, called Aurora Station at Dulles, could deliver between 1,414 and 1,551 homes across four multifamily buildings and four blocks of townhouses or biplexes, plus retail and commercial space.

The Planning Commission recommended approval at its Sept. 16 meeting, FFXnow reported. But a staff report flagged concerns about affordable housing conditions, a proposed private street connection and a lack of detail on urban parks.

Pomeroy wants to increase the residential portion of the development by 388,000 square feet to 1.96 million while capping commercial space at 150,000 square feet. The developer also wants to drop a planned senior living facility in favor of more residential units.

Other Dranesville items

The board will also consider selling easement rights at the Wolf Trap Fire Station at 1315 Beulah Road to Castleton, L.C. The terms of that proposed sale, including the easement's size and price, are not detailed in available agenda materials.

Several sanitary district changes in the Dranesville District round out the docket. Those include adding refuse and recycling collection for properties on Valley Wood Road and the Ivy Hill Drive area, removing service from 612 N. Oak St. and ending vacuum leaf collection in the Woodland Terrace area.

Public comment is scheduled for 5 p.m.