While Dennis Dombkowski mowed his yard in Springfield, a deer stopped by to check things out from the nearby wooded lot. The deer will have company in the 10-acre lot on Pohick Road behind Dombkowski's house. The land is slated to be the new home of St. Raymond's of Penafort church.
Although Dombkowski likes the wooded area, he isn't anti-church, but doesn't think the lot is big enough.
"They've done what they can to make this accomodating," Dombkowski said. "The pastor walked around the neighborhood. I think this is just a way too small piece of property for a church."
Like a wandering nomad, though, the parishoners of St. Raymond's have had services at various places around the Springfield area until finally finding the land three years ago. The fire station on Backlick Road and the West Springfield High School auditorium were home to the parish before they set their sights on the property.
The official groundbreaking ceremony took place on Wednesday, May 4. Father James Gould is the parish priest. He said that construction should start in July and last 12-18 months.
"It's going to be a traditional church," he said, with marble stone and stained glass dominating the facade.
BILL HART moved in the house across the street from the church site in 1964, back when he had to drive all the way to the A&P Grocery store in Alexandria to buy groceries. He's not looking forward to the traffic problems.
"Sunday morning it's going to be backed up," he said.
Although the church plans on having a police officer there on Sundays to direct traffic, like there is at St. Bernadette's on Sunday, he's still not looking forward to it.
"They've already said they'd do that," he said.
Todd Buffington grew up in the house that borders the wooded lot. Although some of the trees will be left in place like by Dombkowski's yard, the parking lot will come right up to the Buffington's.
"It's coming right to our backyard," he said. "They are taking all the trees except one."
"It won't be quite as close to ours," Dombkowski said, but he's worried about all the trees coming down and the noise from Pohick Road and the Fairfax County Parkway carrying across the parking lot.
"In terms of noise, it will be even worse," he said. "You can hear the traffic on Pohick already."
Gould said there will be trees surrounding the property, and at the county meetings each tree on the property was examined.
"The county dictated the types of trees and locations," he said.
Gould said that he heard the opposition to the church at the first meetings but once the alternative was introduced, things quieted down.
"The option was going to be a strip mall," he said.