By Chelyen Davis

RICHMOND—The state Senate on Monday passed a bill that would let localities choose whether to participate in so-called “urban development areas.”

The Senate bill from Sen. Ralph Smith, R–Roanoke, passed on a 25–15 vote, with most Fredericksburg-area senators voting for it.

It makes UDAs optional for localities, and also allows them to repeal past approval of UDAs.
A similar bill has passed out of a House committee and will be on the House floor for a vote this week.

UDAs are a development tool intended to urge high-growth counties into planning development around certain areas and preserving open space in others.
Virginia’s law requiring some fast-growing counties to use UDAs passed in 2007, as part of a larger transportation package.
Under the 2007 law, localities that have had more than 15 percent growth, or 5 percent and a population of at least 20,000, are required to designate at least one urban development area in their comprehensive plans by this year.
 Those UDAs must comply with various rules, and be designed to accommodate growth for at least 10 years.
Locally, Stafford, Spotsylvania, Culpeper, Caroline, Orange, King George and Louisa counties fall into the group that must develop UDAs.
But local governments say the UDAs are too restrictive.
Del. Mark Dudenhefer, R–Stafford, has his own bill this year that would raise the population thresholds for requiring UDAs.
Dudenhefer was a Stafford supervisor before winning his House seat last November.
He said Stafford is being forced to plan for density it doesn’t have, and that the UDA can’t take into account more than 20,000 by-right development units that are already on the books and can’t be revoked.
Those developments were approved years ago—a developer could choose to build houses in those areas, and  while it might conflict with the county’s UDA plan, there’s nothing Stafford could do to stop it.
Dudenhefer said he’d like to see a revamping of the state and local land-use and development tools because current tools—like UDAs—aren’t doing the job.
“The problems are not being solved with the tools you’re giving us now,” he said.

A House subcommittee voted to lay Dudenhefer’s bill on the table, which effectively kills it, although his bill would be unnecessary if the House passes the optional-UDA bill later this week.

Chelyen Davis:  804/343-2245
cdavis@freelancestar.com