Photo by M.V. Jantzen.

Daniel Dellinger, candidate for the Vienna town council, recently stirred controversy by claiming that a proposed hiker-biker trail between Vienna and Tysons would bring “undesirables into our neighborhood.” Last night, I asked Dellinger if he would clarify his remarks. Dellinger responded today with the following:

First let me state I am pro trail. I live adjacent to the WO&D trail and my wife and I walk it extensively to reach downtown Vienna. I also feel as if the WO&D should be the hub for connector trails. The benefits to our communities and our nations health are under estimated. The issue you speak about concerns not trails in general but a proposed prospective trail in NE Vienna. If the trail would be installed, it would open a quiet neighborhood open to possible commuter traffic, congestion and safety issues for children and citizens of that area.

The four metro stations in Tysons Corner will not have parking lots therefore I envision the same scenario as what occurred in the neighborhoods adjacent to the Vienna metro station, parking in residential neighborhoods not in metro lots. I’m still learning about this proposed trail and will make further comments in the future concerning this issue but I’m not opposed to any trail that is properly planned and citizens from the community given the opportunity to introduce input.

My original statement had an omission of a word… not undesirable people but undesirable cars or may be I should have said unwanted cars. I hope this gives you further insight into my view but would be willing to discuss this with you further in person.

I still found aspects of Dellinger’s response a bit confusing, so I emailed him again seeking additional clarification. I also called the Fairfax County Park Authority to see if I could get a copy of the actual plan.

It turns out, however, that there isn’t a specific plan at this point. “There are a lot of ideas being discussed and proposed, but I haven’t seen a drawing or anything concrete yet,” said Jenny Pate, the Trail Coordinator for the Fairfax County Park Authority.

She did say, however, that she had heard that the Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling (FABB) and people associated with the NoVi Trail Network had been circulating proposals informally.

Does anybody plugged into the planning process in Virginia have more details? Or a good sense of what exactly Dellinger is getting at with his clarification? If so, please share them in the comments or email me at bike.examiner@gmail.com.

Crossposted at DC Bicycle Transportation Examiner.