Stafford's economic development director says the actions taken by the county's Board of Supervisors on Tuesday night made it "one of the biggest days in years for economic development" in the county.

Tim Baroody said the actions could lead to denser, pedestrian-friendly developments in the county, particularly in the Boswell's Corner area of North Stafford. He added that the board has restricted the amount of residential development near the Quantico Marine Corps Base, which has been a concern of base officials.

Baroody said the changes are consistent with the county's 10-point economic development plan. Tuesday's actions follow in the wake of Stafford's decision to eliminate the Business, Professional and Occupational License and aircraft taxes. Supervisor Susan Stimpson said the decisions show investors that "Stafford is open for business."

Supervisors on Tuesday created a new zoning classification for the Boswell's Corner redevelopment area called RDA 1, which allows denser development. Baroody said similar classifications could be created for redevelopment zones in the courthouse, Falmouth Village and U.S. 17 areas.

One of the changes will allow developers to build more square footage on less amount of land. The supervisors changed what's called the "floor area ratio," which is the relationship between the square footage of the building and the size of the property, to put it on par with the rules in Spotsylvania and Prince William counties.

As an example, Baroody said, the 140,000-square-foot buildings at the Quantico Corporate Center off U.S. 1 each required 9.5 acres of land under the old rules. Under new rules, each could have been built on 7 acres. That allows for greater density and makes developments more cost-effective.

Several area projects, particularly planned hotels along U.S. 1, that would have needed conditional use permits under the old rules, will no longer need those government approvals.

Supervisor Bob Woodson wanted to keep the Conditional Use Permit, or CUP, process to keep a level of government oversight, but Supervisor Mark Dudenhefer said "oversight is just a buzzword for more government bureaucracy getting in the way of business."

Though the floor area ratio rules apply countywide, the Quantico Corporate Center--which is being developed by the Silver Cos.--could be a beneficiary.