Community weighs in at public hearing for Philomont Fire Station

By Reed Carver

The Board of Supervisors, at their Jan. 10 public hearing, deferred a decision for a zoning Special Exception for a new fire station in the rural historic village of Philomont.

Earlier that night, the board considered a proposal for a new 18,800 sq. ft. Philomont Fire Station to be built on the 7-acre Horse Show Grounds located within the Village Conservation Overlay District and zoned Countryside Residential (CR1) which requires a special exception for this type of civil structure.

The current fire station has been in operation since 1956 with additions in the 70’s and 90’s and is located with two other historic community buildings, the Community Center, and the Philomont General Store. 

Philomont residents have argued that the modernization through addition/renovation, designed by Bill Ridge, would retain the distinctiveness of the village better than a new station on the Horse Show Grounds. The addition to the existing 9,000 sq. ft. firehouse would add 12,000 sq. ft. totaling 21,000 sq ft. Community support is reflected in a petition of 451 residents who do not want the new building.

During the county staff presentation, staff stated that adaptive re-use of the existing building is more in line with the Comprehensive Plan vision for Philomont; but it was too impractical. Staff said the intentions of the Comprehensive Plan can be satisfied because the architecture of the proposed new station is intended to break up its large profile, and blend with the area in using rural motifs.

Loudoun County Fire & Rescue Chief Keith Johnson said he believes the new building proposal is optimal, because it’s a one-story floor plan, and the existing facility has confines, and a temporary facility would be needed if it was renovated.

Chief Johnson reiterated in a later interview that a renovated station would share one of its entrances with the parking lot of the community center, creating hazards for children and possible delays. He acknowledged that in the renovation plan, fire vehicles could avoid the parking lot and exit directly onto Snickersville Turnpike in an emergency. Likely the vehicles would still pass through the parking lot on return. 

Bill Ridge’s renovation plan has two stories. Other two-story designs have been built in Ashburn, Sterling and other places, but Johnson said a one story design contributes to a faster response time, because stairs are slow. The problem could be solved by fire poles, but Johnson said they should be avoided because they have caused injuries and are especially dangerous at night. 

At the Public Hearing two veteran firefighters said that the new station will meet fire department needs. John Myers, speaking for a firefighter’s union, said response times are the top priority. “We want residents to sleep soundly, knowing help is just minutes away,” he said.  

Dulany Morison said the Horse Show Grounds are a contributor to Philomont’s National Register of Historic Places designation, and it’s a critical community space. 

Jane Covington, speaking for the Heritage Commission highlighted the history of the Grounds. They were bought in 1962, with community money from fundraisers which were held with the collaboration of the Volunteer Fire Department and the community. 

In a later interview Philomont resident Madeline Skinner said the 7 acres were bought from farmer Frank Pierce. The PVFD bought the land for $10 according to the deed. However, Skinner and Philomont resident Stephen Price said that the land was bought for $4,800, with money raised from the community. The Ladies Auxiliary ran most of the fundraising events until 2012, and retired in 2017.

Since 2005, Covington said the relationship between the PVFD and the community changed. The PVFD leadership avoided cooperation with the community, and they were no longer connected. 

PVFD Chief Richard Pearsall, and board chair Douglass Frost however gave a different explanation. In a later interview they explained that the shift was due to a lack of volunteers. Philomont had become more of a bedroom community, thus the transition to career staff was necessary.

Pearsall said at the Jan. 10 meeting, “I think it’s time to move on … I want to say this in bold letters, the Philomont Volunteer Fire Department wishes to reiterate that by an approved motion the existing station is not, emphasis, is not being made available or offered for renovation or adaptation as a fire station … It’s privately owned by the fire department.” 

Frost said in an interview that the PVFD never said they would sell the existing station for renovation. They were just asked for the value, which they place at $2 million. “We were never inclined to give them [county] that property,” he said, “never as a donation. We don’t want to materially change the existing facility.”  

Phil Ebaugh, a landscape architect, said that if a new station was built, “We’re going to have this huge, abandoned building, doing nothing,” referencing the current station if the firefighters move. 

Erin Gable owns a house adjacent to the Horse Show Grounds. She thinks the proposed station would be “a monstrosity,” and she is concerned that the presence of carcinogens and chemicals running off the property and entering groundwater could contaminate her well. The surrounding neighbors worry about the same impact.

Amanda Fallon lives in one of the oldest log cabins in Philomont, across Snickersville Turnpike from the entrance to the proposed station. “This will create light pollution and a lot of noise … Please adhere to our county policies and zoning, that you all approved, and keep our fire station where it is with an addition and renovation,” she said.

Chris Baker said that anything that disrupts the nature of Philomont is an unpleasant prospect. 

Drew Bishop, owner of the Philomont General Store said, “We don’t have a consensus in the community … I’m troubled by the fact that Bill Ridge’s plan has not been considered.” 

Peter Weeks said he doesn’t want the beautiful open area to be lost. Once it’s lost it’s gone forever and the development cannot be undone, he said. 

Skinner said the feasibility study from 2023 was done on an earlier concept from Bill Ridge, not the one agreed to with Chief Johnson and DTCI in December 2022. It was finally determined by county staff on Dec. 21, 2023, that an addition/renovation was feasible, and will meet all requirements. Skinner said, “We want nothing less for our fire staff, whom we respect and appreciate.” 

Architect Bill Ridge worked for 30 years for the Environmental Protection Agency developing designs that allowed renovation, while the employees remained in place to avoid impact to their daily work. “What I have proposed meets all of the standards, nothing is compromised, with the one exception that there will be stairs. A fire pole is faster to get to apparatuses than running down 75 feet of hallways.”

County Administrator Tim Hemstreet said that a renovation would cost at least $6 million more than building a new station on the Grounds. But, Ridge said, “The costs in the feasibility study were based on a misunderstanding of my design. They had raised the level of the addition 8 feet, which created huge costs for 8 feet of fill and retaining walls, that were totally unnecessary.” 

Skinner argued that one of the hidden costs, if the new station is built on the Horse Show Grounds, is the very likely scenario that the county would need to acquire the current old firehouse property and pay for the maintenance and eventual renovation of the existing station. 

Supervisor Caleb Kershner (R-Catoctin) said, “I don’t believe frankly there’s a perfect answer,” but, he thinks there are deeper questions to be asked. 

Supervisor Matt Letourneau (R-Dulles) said most people missed the fact that they could not adapt the current station because it was privately owned. “So, the option to modify is not actually an option,” he said.

Supervisor Laura TeKrony (D-Little River) said they need to look more closely at Bill Ridge‘s design. “Not having consensus in the community is not a good thing,” she said, and she was not willing to move forward without it. 

Loudoun County BOS Chair Phyllis Randall (D-At Large) said there were times when they thought there was no solution, like in Aldie, but eventually they found one. “I’m willing to give it two more months to see if anything else is possible,” she said. “Building on the current fire station grounds is literally not an option.”

The Special Exception will be on the March 13 Public Hearing agenda. In the meantime, the supervisors are going to look for another piece of land.