Town Council Work Session
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What agenda items were introduced at the start of the Town Council work session?
LET ME CALL TONIGHT TOWN COUNCIL WORK SESSION TOGETHER FOR NOVEMBER 24, 2025. OUR FIRST ITEM FOR DISCUSSION TONIGHT IS ATTAINABLE HOUSING OPTIONS. MR. DAVID.
GOOD EVENING MADAM MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL. JAMES DAVID COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR HERE TO TALK ABOUT ATTAINABLE HOUSING. So what have we talked about this year at the council level related to affordable attainable housing? Well, the council added affordable housing to your 2025-26 council work plan. In that work plan, the council was interested in supporting affordable housing through alternative funding sources, for example, perhaps data center money. Council identified support for a legacy project, support for zoning changes to break down barriers to affordable housing, process improvements, and further engagement with Loudoun County. And then also that same month this year, the council considered their first 100% affordable housing project.
This was tied to the Oaklawn Data Center application, so ultimately it was not supported, but just wanted to bring that up as an example of a 100% affordable project that was proceeding according to those state programs such as LIHTC and other housing funded programs at the state level. On September 8th, the council requested an information memo from the town attorney on their affordable housing options. So that memo outlined various sections of the state code that enable localities to take different actions in support of affordable housing. September 9th, the council asked for that memo to come back as a discussion item. So that led to tonight's item. And so what we have to present tonight is to go through each of the options in that information memo and then provide a status update on what the town staff is up to related to those topics.
So as we go through that list, some council direction may be needed. And I invite you all to think about which attainable housing options should the town continue and or pursue, and what could be the priority ranking. And if there's programs that the majority of the council wants to see more that potentially have funding constraints, then we'll go ahead and bring that back as part of your fiscal year 27 budget process with additional details. please note the town does not have a housing services division nor do we have housing staff we rely on the county to provide our housing services and they administer our affordable dwelling unit program and there's a existing memorandum of understanding that was attached to your staff report tonight that has more details about that agreement with the county
Okay, so the first option that was presented in that September 8th memo was density bonus for affordable dwelling units. Well, this is already in practice in the town, and it has been in practice for quite some time. And basically what happens with this program is residential development projects exceeding 24 or more units in development yield are asked to provide a minimum percentage as deed-restricted affordable dwelling units. And in exchange, they get a density bonus. So what you see on the screen in the top table is our existing zoning regulations. For single family detached projects, the minimum percentage of affordable dwelling units is 12.5%. In exchange, 20% density bonus. For single family attached, which is typically townhouses,
same program requirements, 12.5% minimum ADUs, 20% density bonus. In the multifamily category, that's apartments, it's 6.25% minimum ADUs, 10% density bonus. So with the draft zoning ordinance rewrite that's making its way towards the council, staff is recommending that we go up to a 15% minimum ADUs across the board, regardless of housing product type, and then increase that density bonus to 20% to bring multifamily in with the rest of the housing product types. And this aligns with what the county has done recently as well in increasing to their minimum percentages for ADU requirements. Just so you all know, I checked with our county partners who administer our ADU program. The town currently has 59 active affordable dwelling units in the town limits.
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Agenda
8 items
1
What agenda items were introduced at the start of the Town Council work session?
3:08–17:13
2
How did the council staff explain the current attainable‑housing options and zoning incentives?
17:13–30:21
3
What are the key considerations for creating a town housing authority and workforce‑housing program?
30:21–41:52
4
How did council members prioritize the housing options and discuss commercial‑property impacts?
41:52–52:26
5
What updates were provided on the Leesburg Customer Assistance Program and its funding?
52:26–1:02:51
6
What budget highlights and challenges were presented by the Information Technology department?
1:02:51–1:11:27
7
What financial and operational issues did the Utilities department raise for FY 2026‑27?
1:11:27–1:21:53
8
What final actions, motions, and next‑step items were agreed upon before the closed session?
1:21:53–1:49:13
Speakers
2 identifiedOfficials recognised by voice; public commenters shown as “Speaker N” unless they state their name.