More News

It was standing room only at Travilah Elementary School on June 10 as the Hanson family of North Potomac presented preliminary plans for the eventual development of their 170-acre farm into a residential community.

And while the group lauded the family's willingness to include the community in the plans, some neighbors also expressed fears about the impact the development could have on the area.

The 2002 Potomac Subregion Master Plan called for a residential community at the farm, located at the intersection of Travilah Road and Quince Orchard Road, with as many as 187 homes and a park. At least 50 percent of the property would be preserved as open space.

The family doesn't have current plans to develop the property, according to family spokesman John Hanson, but they anticipate selling it to a developer shortly after both of their parents pass away. Both elderly parents still reside in a house on the property, and Hanson's brother and his family also live on the farm in another house.

The timing of the sale is due to a federal estate tax that will trigger when their second parent dies, Hanson said. Three generations of the Hanson family have farmed the land — Hanson's grandparents, Minna and William, purchased the property in 1941. The farm, which produces mostly mixed hay and Black Angus cattle, hasn't been financially viable for years, according to Hanson — it's too small and located too far away from most of the county's agricultural activity upcounty. However, the family hopes to farm it as long as possible.

The family recently applied to rezone the farm from residential to planned development, following the master plan's recommendations. They've also worked to develop preliminary sketches of the development, though the plan would undergo an extensive public hearing process with final approval required from the County Council before construction begins.

The sketches detailed three possible entrances to the community along Travilah Road, which borders the property to the south — one closest to Travilah Elementary School, another opposite Hunting Hill Way, which would include a four-way stop, and another at the intersection of Travilah Road and Turkey Foot Road with a traffic circle. The sketches also included one or two entrances off Quince Orchard Road, which borders the property to the east. A 10-acre park is planned for the property's east side. Homes on two-acre lots border existing homes to the south, with density increasing toward the center of the property.

The Hansons repeatedly told the crowd that although development is yet far off, they were carefully planning it along with neighbors and citizens groups to ensure the outcome will mesh with the surrounding community.

"This way, when it is sold, we won't have a developer with a fancy attorney coming in and pushing something through the County Council we don't want," Hanson said at the meeting.

While neighbors praised the Hansons for their planning and inclusion, some also expressed apprehension. "We have a concern about our property value going down," said Jeff Schmalz, whose property neighbors the farm.

Schmalz said he and his wife, Sally, planned to become actively involved with the hearing process and would advocate for fewer units in the development because of the "noise, construction and traffic that would last for several years if 187 units go in."

Robin Rice, who operates a day care near the planned community, said that one of the planned Travilah entrances would be next to her driveway. Fearing increased traffic, she said she hoped the planners would choose the traffic circle option. "We thought a traffic circle would be a nice entrance to the community," Rice said.

She also approved of the Hansons' plan to buffer existing homes with two-acre lots.

At the meeting, longtime Potomac resident Ellie Pisarra-Cain, who was involved with the advisory group for the Potomac Subregion Master Plan, lauded the Hanson family. "This is a great thing this family is doing for the community," she said. "… Aren't we lucky that we have a family that is planning this whole thing?"