Apartments  Bad  For  The  Park ?

In June, 2001 the construction began on what was then known as Briant Park Commons (condominiums) and is now known as Lakeside At Briant Park (apartments). Three years later the work nears completion with the last building  accepting occupants in May, 2004. When the complex is finished there will be 138 units of two and three bedroom apartments spread over four buildings. If you're interested in the history and politics of how the complex developed, refer to the following information:

• To see an aerial view of the pre-construction site - Click Here>

• For newspaper coverage as the work progressed - Click Here>

• If you haven't had a chance to oversee the activities at the Lakeside At Briant Park  complex facilities, take one of the following picture tours:

• Under Construction Tour - Click Here>

• Current Site Tour - Click Here>

A quick survey counted about 285 automobile parking spaces in the apartment complex. This means that the traffic, particularly at rush hour, will be terrific and probably require a traffic light at the corner of Springfield Avenue and Briant Park Drive.

In addition, we lost the parking lot on Briant Park Drive which had provided an off-the-road area for about 16 cars. This lot had been a particularly convenient area for mothers to unload baby carriages, people using the bathroom facilities, handicapped park-goers, buses unloading children, et. al.. The county took all that away by granting the apartment complex that space for additional tenant parking. See the BPN Editorial "The destruction of our parking lot." - Click Here>

In the final analysis, maybe the question should not be "are condos bad for the park?" but rather "are apartments bad for the park?" In either case the answer seems to be YES.