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Road linking Gravely ES to U.S. 15 still a ways off
It could be two years before school buses have direct access to Samuel L. Gravely, Jr. Elementary School from U.S. 15.
That is because the residential developer Toll Brothers is not required to build the extension of Waverly Farm Drive to U.S. 15 until a certain number of houses are sold in the Dominion Valley subdivision.
But there is no confirmed construction date yet for the road, and there will not be for a while.
“I think it does depend on not just one factor, but a bunch of factors,” said Louise Valdov, the local marketing director for Toll Brothers.
She cited the housing market and economy as just two reasons why Toll Brothers has not sold the number of required houses that would trigger the road construction.
“We knew that this was the way the school would open in terms of transportation,” said David Beavers, supervisor of planning for the Prince William school system.
Maureen Hannan, the supervisor of land acquisition and capital improvement projects for the school division, said that the last file she read from Toll Brothers, dated October 2007, set a goal for the Waverly Farm Drive extender as late 2009.
Gravely is located on Waverly Farm Drive, and Toll Brothers is responsible for extending the north end of that road under a 2006 proffer.
But the road construction doesn’t have to start until the company obtains 2,600 and 2,700 building permits in the Dominion Valley area from the county, according to Supervisor John Stirrup (R-Gainesville).
Those permits are issued as prospective homeowners actually buy homes.
“No question, it’s not the most efficient process,” said Stirrup.
He added the “silver lining” is that when Gravely opens in September, it will relieve massive overcrowding at Alvey Elementary School.
“We are going to try to expedite the delivery of that road,” said Stirrup, though if that does not work, he said a temporary road could be established to allow buses in and out.
That plan is not set, however.
Until then, buses will have to enter Dominion Valley Drive from U.S. 15, and turn right on to Waverly Farm Drive, which will take more time and burn more fuel than simply driving straight to the school from U.S. 15.
School time at Gravely this fall is scheduled to begin a half-hour after Alvey so the buses for the two schools will not have to compete for road space.
While it may be 2009 or 2010 before the connector road is established, road crews are already working on the widening of U.S. 15. Proffers from Toll Brothers have been responsible for a lot of that completed work, according to both Stirrup and Valdov.
“The Waverley Farm Drive extension from Gravely Elementary School to Rt. 15 is the latest improvement in Toll Brothers’ ongoing program of infrastructure, improvements, and land dedication to benefit residents of Prince William County and the Dominion Valley area,” said John Elcano, Toll Brothers group president, in a written statement provided by Valdov in an e-mail.
“To date, improvements totaling approximately $35 million include Route 15 upgrades, three other school sites, major improvements at James Long Park and Sudley Park, public facility sites for a library, fire ]and) rescue station, and commuter lot, and significant land dedications at Silver Lake and Long Park,” he added.
Tom Blaser, the county’s director of transportation, described the north of U.S. 15, which is under construction, as part of a county bond project, as a four-lane divided road.
That is “very similar to other sections Toll Brothers has built,” he said.
U.S. 15 will have more than just extra lanes. A trail is set to run along the north side of the road, a sidewalk is designed for the southbound side, and there will be a grass median separating the two sides.
“Any time you provide a capacity expansion, the buses will move at a quicker rate,” said Blaser. “The existing network is what’s going to be used to serve the new school.”
According to a July 11, 2006 proffer statement for Dominion Valley Country Club, the extension of Waverly Farm Drive is a proffer related to the fourth phase of the construction project.
The statement says that a maximum of 2,778 units can be built during Phase IV of construction.
Toll Brothers has not publicly released how many houses shy of that number the company is, but Stirrup said he had been told they were about 500 units shy of where they needed to be.
“As of now, they have not reached that number, so we can’t compel them to build that road,” Blaser said.
What all this means for Gravely students, parents and administrators is although Toll Brothers agreed to build the connector road, fluctuations in the housing market and economy ultimately determine when that road will be built.
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