Highlights & Major Milestones

Sep 1996

Hal Launders dies having finalized a multi-year estate planning exercise just 5 weeks before his death. He leaves his wife Ruth as his only heir and an estate, excluding real property, worth around $10 million. He entrusts his affairs to 8 Trustees. By early 1997 Ruth Launders, one of the 8 trustees, is unable to participate meaningfully.

Funeral of Hal Launders held. Burial at Arrowhead Farm per his directive at a location east of his house and as close as possible to the pond.

Board of Trustees of Joseph H. Launders Trust meets and organizes. By-laws and governing procedures are adopted.

Care plan is fashioned for Ruth Launders, surviving spouse. She remains in her house, largely ambulatory, with around the clock care-givers until her death in May, 2001. She is buried on the property next to her husband.

Joseph H. Launders Family Trust is funded. Pecuniary legacies totaling $46,000 are paid to specific beneficiaries. Only 1 legacy lapses, $10,000 to John F. Davis, who is presumed dead.

Ruth C. Launders Marital Trust is formed and funded.

1998

Launders Trustees engage PHR&A, civil engineering firm, to survey Arrowhead Farm and to superintend preliminary geotechnical and environmental assessments. Reports conclude property is suitable for commercial development. Phase 1 environmental survey identifies a number of environmental issues, including 2 underground storage tanks (UST) and hazardous materials located on-site.

May 2001

After battling lung cancer and Alzheimer’s Disease for several years, Ruth Launders dies on 11 May 2001. Her funeral is held at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church as was Hal’s. Pastor David Bonarrigo presides at the Funeral Mass as he had done with Hal Launders in 1996. Mrs. Launders is buried next to Hal on Arrowhead Farm. Her estate, excluding real property, is worth slightly less than $10 million.

2002-04

Family Trust distributes more than $2.5 million to Family Trust discretionary beneficiaries in two separate distributions, the first in 2001 ($750,000 total) and the last in 2006 (approx. $1,752,500). Distributions are based upon a beneficiary’s degree of kinship to Hal and Ruth Launders. Special provision is made for Dorothy Kline, a disabled beneficiary. Three named Family Trust beneficiaries do not survive to take the entire distribution: Ann Popkins, Jay Popkins (2nd distribution only) and Ann Reidy.

Trust sells lot and dwelling at 900 Alabama Drive for $140,000.

Trust terminates Hazel Sanders’ lease in the Herndon Curio Shop (Dranesville Road) property. Two lots are sold to a local home builder for $150,000.

Rezoning case is filed in June, 2002. Rezoning team prosecutes the rezoning case for the next 3 ½ years. It is not approved until the end of 2005. Biggest obstacle is the requirement for the 10-acre park. As finally approved, the development plan calls for a 6-acre on-site park with a state-of-the art soccer field.

Trust sells property on Monroe Street in Herndon (Mademoiselle Cleaners site) for $275,000 with seller financing. Note is prepaid in 2004.

Estate tax returns are filed for Ruth Launders’ estate. Federal and Virginia estate taxes total more than $1.8 million. The returns are eventually approved without any adjustment in 2004. Arrowhead Farm is valued at Ruth’s death at $23 million.

An abbreviated probate administration is conducted of Ruth Launders’ estate to administer both a lump-sum distribution due Hal Launders by reason of his service on the U.S. Coast Guard and a small outlot off of Dranesville Road in the Town of Herndon.

Trust evicts tenants from the outdwelling on Arrowhead Farm known as “the House on the Hill”. Trust then engages a local contractor to demolish the house, with a county permit, and to remove all of the trash, junk and debris in its vicinity including an abandoned Metrobus.

Contractor engaged by the Trust also demolishes all other buildings at Arrowhead Farm except for the main house, guest house and garage. All hazardous materials are removed from the site, including non-friable asbestos. An asbestos report is prepared.

2006

Trust contracts a $12 million mortgage loan from Wachovia Bank and uses the loan proceeds in part to pay half of the $4 million pledge to St. Lawrence University. Proceeds are also used to fund the 1st purchase money installment for Merrybrook and final funding of the Family Trust. Bank appraisal sets value of Phase One, Arrowbrook Centre, alone at $60 million.

Half of the $4 million pledge is paid to St. Lawrence University. The balance is paid in June, 2007.

Ruth and Hal Launders Charitable Trust is funded and adopts a fiscal year ending April 30. All assets, including real estate, is conveyed to the Charitable Trust. Arrowbrook Centre, LLC, a limited liability company, is formed to take ownership of the Trust’s real estate assets with the Charitable Trust as its sole member. The investment assets of the Charitable Trust are worth just over $4 million of which some $1.1 million is pledged to Wachovia Bank to pay interest accruals on the $12 million mortgage loan.

The Marital Trust maintains a small investment cash account to cover its final expenses. The Marital Trust pays the Family Trust for its proportionate share of Arrowhead Farm based on the $23 million valuation.

RHLCT crafts and executes upon a marketing plan designed to sell the first phase of Arrowbrook Centre. Four developers express genuine interest in the property. Two are interviewed by the full Board of Trustees in September, 2006. The Board unanimously selects Carbon Thompson Development as the developer with whom to negotiate. Negotiations ensue and a contract is signed just before Christmas, 2006.

Ruth and Hal Launders Charitable Trust makes its first charitable distribution, a $1 million bequest plus interest to St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.

Merrybrook is acquired in March, 2007. Sale of Phase 1, Arrowbrook Centre, to Carbon Thompson Development (CTD) settles in April, 2007. Gross sales price is more than $45 million or over $3 million per acre ($41 per FAR foot).

2008

Wachovia Securities is selected as the investment advisor for the Trust.

RHLCT files an application with IRS to seek recognition as a tax-exempt private foundation. At the same time RHLCT files an application for a set-aside ruling requesting confirmation that the $3.5 million cash set-aside to fund the construction of Arrowbrook Park is a qualifying charitable distribution by RHLCT.

The Trustees hold a meeting in Greenwich, Connecticut, home of Hal Launders. The meeting includes a tour of the local sites including the old Greenwich Town Hall, the boyhood home of Hal Launders at 81 Sherwood Place, and the town cemetery where many of the Launders and Whelan family members are buried.

The Trust modified and adopts its first comprehensive Investment Policy Statement. An asset allocation model is adopted calling for a long-term investment horizon with a 65% target allocation to return-seeking assets. A cash reserve of $3.5 million is set aside to fund the construction of Arrowbrook Park. The value of the investment account at Wachovia is $28.66 million on 1 August 2008.

The first grant cycle of trustee discretionary grants totaling $50,000 per co-trustee is completed. A recurrent cycle of discretionary grants, also in the budget allotment of $50,000 per co-trustee, is authorized for the fiscal year ending 30 April 2010.

A multi-year Board Level grant of $600,000 is awarded to St. Lawrence University.

A Board Level grant of $50,000 is awarded to St. Joseph Catholic School for student tuition subsides, fiscal capacity augmentation, and to revive the Hal Launders Financial Literacy Program.

The Trust files a lawsuit to request an amendment to Hal Launders’ Trust Declaration to modify the formula for determining maximum fiduciary compensation. The lawsuit results in an order entered in May of 2008 by the Circuit Court of Fairfax County, Virginia adjusting the formula. A subsequent amendment to this court order is entered in January 2010, when the case is re-opened, to align the formula with the trustee compensation schedule used by Wells Fargo Bank. This formula still controls maximum fiduciary compensation allowed to the co-trustees.

Lehman Brothers fails and a financial panic follows leading to the deepest economic recession in 70 years. The Trust’s investment portfolio suffers a decline in value of over $7 million. The value of the portfolio on 31 March 2009 is $21.06 million.

2010

The Trust award a Board Level grant in the sum of $60,000 to Project CURE and $30,000 to Partners in Health for Haitian earthquake disaster relief.

The co-trustees meet in Denver, Colorado in June 2010. Board meetings are subsequently held in Denver in February 2011, October 2011, and January 2012 to accommodate the travel restrictions of Farnum Johnson, Chairman of the Board of Trustees.

A committee on Trustee Succession is formed and tasked with planning a trustee workshop on this topic. Budget and Governance Committees are also established.

The Trust By-laws are amended to formally create the offices of Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer of the Board of Trustees with such officers to be elected at the annual meeting of the Trust in even years and to serve two (2) year terms, during periods of good behavior, beginning as of the first day of the next following fiscal year and ending on the last day of the fiscal year, i.e. May 1 to April 30. Farnum Johnson is elected to the office of Chairman, and Jeff is elected to the offices of Secretary and Treasurer, each to serve a two (2) year term beginning on May 1, 2011.

A Board Level grant of $75,000 is awarded to St. Joseph Catholic School. Jeff is authorized to negotiate the terms of a multi-year Board Level grant agreement with St. Joseph Catholic School to provide student tuition subsidies, payroll support for financial capacity enlargement, and financial support for the Hal Launders Literacy Program.

The Trust engages the public accounting firm of Argy, Wiltse & Robinson, PC to conduct an audit of the Trust’s financial condition. The audit occurs during the first quarter of 2011 resulting in a standard audit letter issued in May 2011 approving the material accuracy of the Trust’s financial statements.

2012

Farnum Johnson is unable to attend the meeting of the Board on January due to illness. Cathy is selected to chair the Board meeting in his absence.

A hybrid grant funded by both Board Level and Trustee Discretionary grant dollars in the total sum of $100,000 was awarded to Project CURE to fund its effort to establish a distribution warehouse on the east coast of the United States.

Farnum Johnson dies on 31 March 2012. Cathy is selected to chair the next meeting of the Board of Trustees in June 2012.

A policy is adopted to include as a regular item on each meeting agenda an opportunity for any co-trustee to comment on pending or post-grant activities or communications with prior grantees. This agenda item will appear immediately after consideration of the pending applications for approval of trustee discretionary grants, which item has precedence in the agenda order.

Arrowbrook Centre, LLC signs a lease with the Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) to authorize its use of Parcel 3, Arrowbrook Centre, owned by Arrowbrook Centre, LLC, for harvesting hay for use at the FCPA facility at Frying Park Historical Farm Park in Herndon effective for a term of years beginning 1 May 2012. The Trust thereafter files a request for a private letter ruling (PLR) from IRS asking confirmation that this lease places the Trust’s real estate in an exempt charitable use thus allowing its value to be disregarded for purposes of calculating the annual 5% minimum charitable distribution requirement. A favorable PLR is issued by IRS in February 2014 retroactive to 1 May 2012.

The architectural firm of Davis Carter Scott is engaged to explore possible design revisions to the 2005 Final Development Plan for Arrowbrook Centre as it relates to Phase II, or Parcel 3, Arrowbrook Centre, owned by Arrowbrook Centre, LLC.

At Jeff’s request, Tom Field, the CEO of CTD, reports to the co-trustees via telephone conferencing at their meeting in Herndon in June. He is pressed on the failure of CTD to honor its contractual commitments to the Trust to build site infrastructure and buildings at Arrowbrook Centre. Mr. Field places the blame for the delay on his colleagues at Prudential Insurance, but he promises to arrange for a meeting with the Prudential representatives within the next month. A special phone meeting of the co-trustees is set for early August. No meeting is held.

A special phone meeting of the co-trustees is held on 9 October 2012 to consider what action, if any, to take as a result of the failure of CTD to honor its commitments to build site infrastructure and buildings at Arrowbrook Centre. The co-trustees decide to instruct Jeff to write a letter to the senior Prudential managers citing the failure of CTD to fulfill its contract obligations and asking for a meeting. Jeff writes the letter that month. There is no reply.

Cathy is elected to the office of Chairman of the Board of Trustees for a term of two years ending 30 April 2015. Jeff is elected to the offices of Secretary and Treasurer for a 2-year term ending 30 April 2015.

An ad hoc working group is constituted to consider and propose a policy for the submission, evaluation, and award of Board Level grants.

A policy governing authorized travel by co-trustees to make grantee site visits, to attend programs or seminars, or to conduct other Trust business is adopted.

Several decisions are made in the wake of the death of Farnum Johnson. First the co-trustees decide that any finding that a vacancy exists on the Board of Trustees will be deferred to a future indefinite date. Secondly, they decide that Jeff should serve as the managing co-trustee of the Trust. Finally, they adopt a revised method of allocating allowable fiduciary compensation among them based on the burdens and responsibilities each co-trustee assumes in the administration of the Trust. An independent compensation consultant is asked to opine on the reasonableness of this allocation method to confirm adherence to the IRS rules against self-dealing.

A Board Level grant to sponsor a summer concert series at Arrowbrook Park is approved in memory of Ruth Launders.

2014

Representatives of Bernstein and Wells Fargo Advisors appear at the March Board meeting in the midst of a late winter snow storm. Each present to the co-trustees on its qualifications to serve as the investment advisor for RHLCT. Later that month, in a special telephone meeting, the co-trustees vote to engage Bernstein as the investment advisor for the Trust. A transition follows and Bernstein is in control of all of the Trust’s investment portfolio, less and except its alternative asset portfolio which does not redeem until later in 2014. At the end of March 2014, the market value of the RHLCT investment account at Wells Fargo Advisors was $20.6 million.

A brokerage listing agreement is negotiated and signed between Arrowbrook Centre, LLC and Farms & Acreage, Inc., the long-standing real estate advisor for RHLCT and in anticipation of land sales in the coming years.

Prudential submits a non-binding offer letter to sell back all of Parcel 2, Arrowbrook Centre, containing just over 9 acres, for $2 million per acre or $18 million, albeit subject to conditions. Prudential is not willing to sell Parcel 1 containing about 5 acres.

A multi-year grant agreement with St. Joseph Catholic School is approved for a five (5) year term beginning 1 August 2014. The amount of the grant is $900,000 of which $400,000 is to fund an endowment for SJS, and the $500,000 balance is comprised of annual grants of $100,000 each over five (5) years to provide student tuition subsidies, payroll support for financial capacity enlargement, and to defray the costs of the Hal Launders Financial Literacy Program.

The co-trustees authorize Arrowbrook Centre, LLC to file a lawsuit against CTD to enforce its contract rights under the Interim Operating Agreement (“IOP”) with CTD unless legal counsel for Arrowbrook Centre, LLC secures an agreement with CTD to toll the statute of limitations which is about to expire on these contract claims in March 2014. Hunton & Williams LLP subsequently secures an acceptable tolling agreement thus averting the commencement of a lawsuit in 2014. Negotiations follow with the senior management of CTD and the portfolio managers with Prudential. A face-to-face meeting in October, at which Justin Gleason and Jessica Newth, senior portfolio managers with Prudential, attend. Arrowbrook Centre, LLC tenders a letter of intent to purchase all of 2, and the retail component of Parcel 1 containing about 1 acre, for $15 million. The offer is rejected. Prudential tenders a counter-offer to buy all of Parcel 3 for $12 million. The co-trustees reject this offer. Special Board meetings conducted by telephone conference call are held in May and September to discuss and consider these real estate issues.

A self-assessment survey is undertaken by the co-trustees under the supervision of the Association of Small Foundations (“ASF”), now known as Exponent Philanthropy. ASF issues a report based on the survey responses.

Eugenie first invites prior grantees of the Trust to submit post-grant reports to be uploaded to the RHLCT Grant Administration Web site supported by Foundant Technologies, Inc. A post-grant reporting form is adopted for this use.

The co-trustees vote to authorize Arrowbrook Centre, LLC to file an application with the County of Fairfax, prior to 1 January 2015, to amend the approved Final Development Plan for Phase 2, Arrowbrook Centre, which is owned by Arrowbrook Centre, LLC. This action is taken under the authority granted by the IOP which will expire on 1 January 2015. To this end, a zoning application is filed with the county at the end of December 2014.

Cathy is elected to the office of Chairman of the Board of Trustees for a term of two years ending 30 April 2017. Jeff is elected to the offices of Secretary and Treasurer for a 2-year term ending 30 April 2017. 

2016

A Board Level grant in the sum of $20,000 was awarded to the Fairfax County Park Foundation to underwrite the costs of the summer concert series at Arrowbrook Park in 2016.

A multi-year Board Level grant in the sum of $250,000 is awarded to Boca Helping Hands to underwrite the capital costs of the Justin D. Webb Training Center to be dedicated in memory of the late Justin D. Webb, eldest child of Jack and Nancy Webb.

The co-trustees hold a retreat in the Paradise Farmhouse at the Norman Bird Sanctuary in Middletown, Rhode Island in July. Mary Anthony, Executive Director of 1772 Foundation, a tax-exempt private foundation, meets with the co-trustees. She relates her experiences with this organization and describes many of its policies and practices. She also tracks some of its history.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approves the zoning modifications to the development plan for Arrowbrook Centre which provides for 147 townhouse type dwellings and adds about 100,000 square feet of density.

The $4 million margin debt contracted with Bernstein is paid in full plus its accrued interest.

Following a spring marketing effort managed by Farms & Acreage, Inc., Jefferson Apartment Group is selected as the developer to construct Buildings D2 and D3 at Arrowbrook Centre (approximately 400 dwelling units plus 50,000 square feet of retail). A contract for the sale of the land for these two (2) buildings, approximately 6 acres, is negotiated and signed in October. The contract purchaser cancels the contract however in January 2017 prior to the expiration of the feasibility study period.

Cathy is elected to the office of Chairman of the Board of Trustees for a term of two years ending 30 April 2019. Jeff is elected to the offices of Secretary and Treasurer for a 2-year term ending 30 April 2019.

The County of Fairfax approves the site plan for Land Bays B1 and C1 under contract for sale to Pulte Home.

Parcels 1, 2, and 3, Arrowbrook Centre, are subdivided into ten (10) parcels. Pulte Home purchases new Parcel 3, which contains slightly more than 4 ½ acres and is planned for 94 townhouse style dwelling units, and pays over $3.5 million per acre. The net proceeds are combined with cash raised through the Trust’s investment portfolio, just under $900,000, to retire the $17.2 million mortgage debt owed to Prudential Insurance.

At the end of 2016 the value of the Trust’s investment portfolio is $10.61 million, and the cash in its bank account is just over $500,000. It also owns approximately 23 acres of entitled, but undeveloped, real estate.

2018

Jerry resigns as the Tax Advisor for the Trust and as the co-manager of Arrowbrook Centre, LLC effective on 25 January 2018. Jeff continues as the sole manager of Arrowbrook Centre, LLC.

Upon the recommendation of the Trust’s investment advisor, Alliance Bernstein, the Board approves amendments to the Trust’s Investment Policy Statement (“IPS”) adjusting the ranges and targets for its asset allocation and authorizing limited investments in various alternative products offered by Alliance Bernstein LP (“AB”) with the goal of increasing the yield on the Trust’s investment portfolio. The Board tasks Jeff, in consultation with the Trust’s outside accounting firm, Beck & Company, CPAs, P.C., to recommend the specific AB products for investment along with the amount of the Trust corpus to invest in these products. Jeff subsequently recommends to the Board a limited investment in three (3) AB proprietary products in the aggregate amount of $2.7 million. These positions are established in June 2018 following the sale of Parcel 2, Arrowbrook Centre, to Pulte Home in March 2018.

The Board approves and adopts a Trustee Job Description thus implementing one of the primary recommendations of the Association of Small Foundations (“ASF”), now Exponent Philanthropy, contained in its report on the RHLCT self-assessment survey undertaken in 2014.

Jeff leads the co-trustees in a day-long workshop held during the winter Board meeting in Alexandria, Virginia. The workshop covers an array of issues which the Board will need to address in the coming years, including governance, employment of staff in lieu of self-management, continuity planning and succession, a shared charitable purpose, mission, and focus, together with related topics. Jeff subsequently prepares a written summary of the discussion at the workshop and distributes it to the trustees. At the conclusion of the workshop, Jeff offers to resign as a co-trustee if the Board chooses to employ him at the first Executive Director of the Trust on an interim basis. Jeff explains that if employed as the RHLCT Executive Director, he would seek to assist the co-trustees resolve many of the issues and challenges identified at the workshop.

Arrowbrook Centre, LLC is directed to engage Pennoni to prepare and file an application to obtain site approval for Land Bay D, the site of the mixed-use residential and retail building known as D2, in accord with the modified design approved in the rezoning case during January 2018. The Land Bay D2 site plan application is filed in June 2018.

In March 2018 Arrowbrook Centre, LLC closes on its sale to Pulte Home of Parcel 2, Arrowbrook Centre, consisting of just over 2.6 acres. This land sale nets the Trust slightly more than $7.86 million.

Upon the advice and recommendation of Jeff and Jerry, the Board authorizes the engagement of Carolyn Klamp, Esquire, of the law firm of Klamp & Associates, P.C., Washington, D.C., to act as the outside Tax Advisor to the Trust. Ms. Klamp attends the RHLCT annual meeting in the fall.

The Board reviews and discusses a draft of an Executive Director job description which Jeff has composed. The Board votes to engage independent legal counsel to negotiate possible terms for the employment of Jeff as the Executive Director. The Board also votes to engage an independent compensation consultant to opine on the reasonableness of proposed employee compensation for Jeff as the Executive Director in addition to a plan of proposed fiduciary compensation for the co-trustees once RHLCT has an employed Executive Director. The Board also engages Carolyn Klamp, Esquire, to provide a written opinion on these compensation questions.

The Board votes to authorize Jeff, in his capacity as the manager of Arrowbrook Centre, LLC, to enter into negotiations with SCG Development Partners, LLC (“SCG”), an affordable housing developer, to develop Building D2 on Land Bay D2 as an affordable or workforce housing apartment building pursuant to 99-year ground lease. The proposed terms of this ground lease include development and construction of approximately 36,000 square feet of rentable retail space in this building for conveyance, upon completion, to Arrowbrook Centre, LLC for its retention as an income-producing real estate asset. In execution of this initiative, Jeff enters into ground lease negotiations. At the 2018 RHLCT annual meeting, the trustees tour an affordable apartment building in Fairfax which SCG has developed. At the conclusion of the tour, the Board votes to re-affirm its commitment to enter into a ground lease with SCG on the general terms expressed in a certain memorandum of understanding between the parties to be supplemented with additional terms negotiated with SCG.

The Board authorizes Arrowbrook Centre, LLC to extend the term of its real estate brokerage and consulting agreement with Farms & Acreage, Inc. through the end of June 2021.

A Boundary Line Adjustment deed and plat is recorded to alter the boundary lines of some of the land parcels which comprise Arrowbrook Centre in order to align with the modified development plan resulting from the rezoning case approved in January of 2018. Parcel 1 is renamed Parcel 1A, Parcel 4 is renamed as Parcel 4A, and Parcel 7 is renamed as Parcel 7A.

With the approval of the Board, Arrowbrook Centre, LLC signs a sales contract with Pulte Home for the sale of Parcel 4A, consisting of slightly more than 1.5 acres, for a gross contract price of $6.5 million, subject to conditions including approval of an amendment to the Arrowbrook Centre development plan to permit construction of ten (10) traditional townhouses and one (1) mid-rise condominium building on this parcel. The Board authorizes Arrowbrook Centre, LLC to file and prosecute to approval the necessary rezoning applications to obtain these development rights for Parcel 4A. With the approval of the Board, the gross contract price is subsequently reduced to $5.8 million after Pulte asks for a price reduction prior to the expiration of its contract cancellation right during the feasibility study period.

A draft policy is approved providing for the creation of a junior board to be known as the “Trustee Advisory Body” or “TAB”. Prospective members of the TAB include both members of the next generation of descendants of Alice Johnson plus non-family members if the Board elects to appoint them to the TAB. With the approval and advice of Carolyn Klamp, Esquire, who advises the Board on this topic by telephone at the annual meeting, the policy provides for reimbursement of reasonable expenses of TAB members incurred in performing its advisory role or in attending meetings of the Board of Trustees. The TAB policy, if approved, is slated to take effect on 1 May 2019.

Cathy is elected to the office of Chairman of the Board of Trustees for a term of two years ending 30 April 2021. Jeff is elected to the office of Secretary for a 2-year term ending 30 April 2021. Jerry is elected to the office of Treasurer for a 2-year term ending 30 April 2021. Jerry subsequently delegates his duties and responsibility as Treasurer to Jeff pursuant to the amended and revised Trust by-laws adopted in January 2019.

Arrowbrook Centre, LLC closes on its sale to Pulte Home of Parcel 7A, Arrowbrook Centre, consisting of slightly more than 3 acres. The Trust receives net sales proceeds of almost $8.9 million. The three (3) land sales to Pulte Home which closed in December 2016, March 2018, and November 2018 have generated net proceeds of more than $32 million.

At the end of 2018 the value of the Trust’s investment portfolio is $21.25 million, and the cash in its bank account is just over $1.6 million. It also owns approximately 14 acres of entitled, but undeveloped, real estate. Unlike the acreage the Trust retained following the sale to CTD in 2007, all the retained land is adjacent to either Centreville Road or the Dulles Toll Road and is better positioned for future sale.

2020

The Board of Trustees holds its winter meeting in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida at the end of February 2020, a few weeks prior to the public health emergency resulting from the covid-19 pandemic. It will be their last in-person meeting for over 2 years.

Several members of the TAB attend the February in-person meeting and present a TAB report recommending the award of four (4) Board Level grants totaling $100,000. The trustees award these grants upon this recommendation and direct that these grants be funded during FY 2021.

At the February 2020 in-person meeting, the trustees meet with two (2) candidates to provide facilitation services in searching for a revised mission statement and a more narrowly focused charitable purpose. The trustees unanimously select Danielle Oristian York of 2164, Inc. to provide these facilitation services and the Trust signs a contract with 2164, Inc.

The trustees formally adopt a policy for the election of successor co-trustees. The policy limits the term of office of a successor co-trustee to three (3) years but allows for re-election for one (1) successive three (3) year term. The Board of Trustees amend the by-laws to incorporate this policy into the existing formalized procedure for filling vacancies on the Board of Trustees.

In response to the covid-12 pandemic, the Trust accelerates its charitable giving and simplifies the process for the review and approval of grant applications. Over the course of the next 12 months, the Trust disburses $100,000 in emergency covid-19 related grants to support the general operations of various charitable grantees.

The trustees appoint three (3) additional persons to the Trustees Advisory Body (“TAB”) including one non-family member. In June 2020 the TAB has ten (10) members. By the following May TAB membership has fallen to seven (7) persons due to a resignation and the election of two (2) TAB members to the Board of Trustees.

The Trust maintains normal operations during the covid-19 pandemic by limiting access to its office to its Executive Director. The Trust’s administrative employee converts to independent contractor status following her relocation to Florida due to a change in her spouse’s employment and performs her administrative and accounting responsibilities using remote computing software.

The Trustees conduct and complete a performance evaluation of the Executive Director which includes an Executive Director Self-Assessment survey.

Cathy is elected to the office of Chairman of the Board of Trustees for a term of two years ending 30 April 2023. Eugenie is elected to the office of Secretary for a 2-year term ending 30 April 2023. The election of the Treasurer is deferred.

Art Anselene, the retired Town Manager for the Town of Herndon, is elected as a successor co-trustee for a three (3) year term beginning on 1 May 2021.

The Trust begins a facilitated process begins to search for a narrower charitable purpose. The facilitator, Danielle Oristian York, conducts telephone interviews of the trustees and TAB members. She meets with the trustees and TAB members during a virtual session held prior to the Trust’s annual meeting in October. Eventually this process leads to the Trust adopting a statement of purpose and a revised mission statement in 2021.

Arrowbrook Centre, LLC, the Trust’s real estate subsidiary, succeeds in its effort to rezone approximately 3.4 acres comprised of Land Bays B2 and A1 on the Arrowbrook Centre Development Plan to permit development of Land Bay B2 with ten (10) SF townhouse and 1 mid-rise condominium building together with a high-residential building on Land Bay A1 which it has under contract for sale to Pulte Home Company, LLC.

The trustees ratify a ground lease agreement between Arrowbrook Centre, LLC, as the ground lessor, and two affiliates of SCG Development Partners, LLC, a national developer of affordable housing, as the ground lessees, for a 99-year lease of Land Bay D2 at Arrowbrook Centre containing about 4 acres.

This ground lease agreement provides for the development of one (1) multi-story building containing 274 rent-restricted affordable rental apartments and approximately 38,000 square feet of rentable retail space. The Trust agrees to purchase the retail space from the ground lessor, upon its completion, for $4 million. The ground lease agreement further grants the Trust a limited first right of refusal, subject to conditions, to purchase the land subject of the ground lease after approximately 50 years. The co-trustees adopt a resolution identifying the promotion of affordable housing as one of the charitable purposes of the Trust. The ground lease transaction closes just before the end of 2020 from which the Trust realized $5.475 million less the $4 million retail space purchase price. Construction begins on this building to be known as Ovation at Arrowbrook in early 2021.

2022

The Board meets on six (6) occasions. All but two are conducted virtually using the Zoom video conferencing platform. In June the co-trustees meet in person at the Norman Bird Sanctuary in Middletown, Rhode Island. They again meet in person in Herndon, Virginia for the annual meeting in October 2022. These are the first in-person Board meetings since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020. 

At their June meeting at the Paradise Farmhouse in the Norman Bird Sanctuary, the trustees make site visits to two of its prior grantees, Edesia, Inc. in North Kingston, Rhode Island, and the Southside Community Land Trust in Providence, Rhode Island. They confer with the leaders of these grantees. In addition, representatives of local charities engaged in combating food insecurity and homelessness convene with the trustees to share their insights on how to identify the root causes of each of these societal ills. A summary report of these conversations is prepared and distributed to the trustees.  

On recommendation of the Trustees Advisory Body (“TAB”), the Board awards three (3) grants totaling $120,000 to 826 National, Inc., Intersection for the Arts as fiscal agent and for the benefit of Draw Together Classrooms, and Reading Is Fundamental.  

The Board grants $25,000 to Virginia Tech Foundation, Inc., of Blacksburg, Virginia, to fund an endowment in honor of Ruth C. Launders for the support of the Fairfax County 4-H Club.  

The ad hoc committee tasked with proposing a strategic plan for the Trust presents its preliminary draft at a meeting of the Board in March. Several drafts follow resulting in the final adoption of a Four (4) Year Strategic Plan at a special Board meeting in November. A tentative timeline for the implementation of the plan goals is composed for use as a guide.  

On recommendation of an ad hoc committee appointed for this special purpose, the Board awards a restricted grant of $100,000 to Educational Foundation of Palm Beach County, Boynton Beach, Florida, in memory of deceased Co-Trustee Jack Webb. 

The Board establishes an ad hoc committee to spearhead the search for a new Executive Director of the Trust who will assume these management responsibilities at the end of Jeff’s term as Executive Director in 2024. 

The Board elects the following trustees as its officers each to serve a two (2) year term ending on 30 April 2025: Art as Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Eugenie as Secretary, and Cathy as Treasurer.  

Nancy Webb, widow of Jack Webb, is appointed as a member of the Trustees Advisory Body (“TAB”).

Pursuant to zoning proffer commitments made in 2005 and thereafter re- affirmed, the Trust’s real estate subsidiary, Arrowbrook Centre, LLC, dedicates to the Fairfax County Park Authority the Merrybrook parcel on which sits the Laura Ratcliffe-Hanna House, a historic structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the former home of David and Win Meiselman, now deceased. The Trust, likewise pursuant to a zoning proffer, distributes a restricted grant of $115,775 to the Fairfax County Park Authority to restore and maintain this structure.  

The Trust’s subsidiary, Arrowbrook Retail, LLC, signs its first lease agreement with a retail tenant for the demise of space in the retail condominium units located on the street level of the Ovation at Arrowbrook Condominium Building, now under construction. Arrowbrook Retail, LLC signs a second lease before the end of the year. Both leases are contingent on the landlord acquiring title to these condominium units upon their completion expected in the spring of 2023. 

Pursuant to the terms of its land sales contract with Trinsic Acquisition Company, LLC (“Trinsic”), an entity controlled by a residential apartment developer headquartered in Dallas, Texas, Arrowbrook Centre, LLC files a set of land use applications with Fairfax County to amend the development plan for remaining undeveloped 9 acres at Arrowbrook Centre denoted as Land Bay A. The centerpiece of the amended development plan is a proposed concrete and wood frame, podium design, mid-rise apartment building facing the Dulles Toll Road and containing approximately 300 dwelling units. The sale to Trinsic is contingent on zoning and site plan approval with closing slated for the spring of 2024.

2024

Valerie E. Maine is elected to the Board of Trustees for a two (2) year term ending 23 March 2026.

The Board selects Caitlin E. Orth as the next Executive Director of the Trust.  She assumes her role at the end of April.  After an on-boarding process concluding at the end of July, Jeff Fairfield departs as Executive Director to assume his new role as Real Estate Manager for the Trust’s real estate assets.