A home developer has offered to fix one of Stafford County’s sharpest curves.
Winding Creek Road is a two-lane street that links Shelton Shop and Courthouse roads. It’s a back way for most drivers, and the street weaves through a series of neighborhoods.
There’s a sharp curve just east of where Winding Creek meets Walpole Street. The developer, Winding Creek Property Owner, LCC, has agreed to widnen Winding Creek Road at the dangerous curve.
The developer offered Stafford County nearly an acre of the right of way along Winding Creek Road for the widening. It amounts to 60 feet of space for the widened road, according to county documents that date back to January.
The street widening would come with 97 new homes on Winding Creek Road. The developer has applied for a special use permit from Stafford County for the project that would clear the way for the homes to be built.
The new development — with the road widening as a condition — must be approved by the Board of Supervisors.
The addition of 97 new homes also means the existing Fireberry Boulveard in the adjacent Autum Ridge neighborhood will be extended. The street was accepted into the state network of streets maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation in 2006.
The plan has always been to to extend Fireberry Boulevard, according to Virginia Department of Transportation spokeswoman Kelly Hanon who provided this information on the project:
· The proposed Winding Creek subdivision is required to connect to Fireberry Boulevard under VDOT standards for new subdivision streets that are planned for state maintenance in the future.
· Fireberry Boulevard is an existing state-maintained road. The road was accepted into Virginia’s network of state-maintained roads in 2006 with the intention of being extended in the future. A sign noting the ultimate extension of this street has been present at the road’s future connection point, referred to as a stub, since 2006.
· The proposed Winding Creek subdivision is subject to Stafford County Subdivision Ordinance (Sec. 22-179, 186), which requires subdivisions to contain public roads that are built in accordance with VDOT standards, making them eligible for acceptance into the state maintenance system. The ordinance also requires (Sec. 22-190) streets to connect with adjacent properties.
· Based on the proposed 97-lot configuration, the ordinance requires Winding Creek to contain two connections to adjacent parcels. Winding Creek proposes to meet this requirement by providing connections to Fireberry Boulevard in the adjacent Autumn Ridge subdivision, and by leaving a future connection point to a separate neighboring parcel.
· VDOT regulations (24VAC30-92) require subdivision roads to connect with existing state-maintained stub roads in order to be accepted by VDOT for future state maintenance. Fireberry Boulevard qualifies as an existing state-maintained stub road.
Stafford County Garrisonville District Supervisor Luara Sellers said man of the residents who live along Fireberry Boulevard do not want to see the street extended. She said residents are petitioning VDOT not to extend the street as planned.
Hannon said an exception request not to extend the street must be submitted by residents to VDOT and approved by an agency administrator. No such request has been submitted, said Hannon.
The issue is expected to come before the Stafford County Board of Supervisors in August or early September.
