Valley Commerce Center rezoning to industrial advances to Board

By Valerie Cury

After two unsuccessful attempts to annex the property into the Town of Purcellville—first by a previous owner and most recently by current applicant Chuck Kuhn, developer of the proposed Valley Commerce Center at 17110 Purcellville Road—the application is now before Loudoun County. The industrial development would total 986,000 square feet, down 288,892 square feet from earlier plans.

Although county planning staff recommended denial, the Planning Commission, at its Feb. 12 work session, voted 6-2-1 to forward the application to the Board of Supervisors with a recommendation for approval, citing anticipated economic benefits, revisions by the applicant, concerns that the 39 homes allowed under current zoning could use more groundwater than the proposed 986,000-square-foot industrial project, and the presence of nearby industrial uses.

Commissioners also noted that residential wells and septic systems would not be subject to centralized oversight, while the industrial project’s water and wastewater service would operate under a regulated utility system. 

The measure passed 6-2-1, with Commissioners James Banks Jr. (Algonkian), Eric Combs (Ashburn), Dale Polen Myers (At-Large), Mark Miller (Catoctin), Madhava Madireddy (Dulles), and Chair Clifford Keirce (Sterling) in favor. Ad Barnes (Leesburg) and Michelle Frank (Broad Run) opposed, and Robin-Eve Jasper (Little River) was absent.

The proposal seeks to rezone 117.07 acres from Joint Land Management Area-3, which allows up to 39 residential units, to Planned Development–Industrial Park (PD-IP), allowing 986,000 square feet of industrial development The applicant is also requesting a Zoning Modification to waive certain road, water, and wastewater requirements.

County planning staff wrote in a Feb. 5 memorandum that they could not support approval, finding the proposal inconsistent with the development pattern and land-use guidance of the Purcellville Joint Land Management Area Rural Neighborhood Place Type outlined in the County’s 2019 General Plan.

“Further, impacts associated with the proposed industrial zoning are not adequately mitigated given the immediate proximity to residential uses,” the memorandum states. 

County Senior Legislative Land Use Planner and Project Manager Rachael Iwanczuk said the proposal could affect surrounding neighborhoods and that those impacts are not sufficiently mitigated. She also noted that the requested Zoning Modification could limit offsite residential water availability.

During the Commission’s July 29, 2025, public hearing, 22 speakers addressed the application. While the staff report listed 13 in support and nine opposed, the actual count at the hearing was reversed: 13 opposed and nine in favor.

The applicant, JK Land Holdings, has committed 300,000 square feet of the development to warehouse or storage use space to reduce overall water usage. They have also pledged to monitor off-site wells for up to 24 months and implement a mitigation plan if monitoring indicates any adverse effects. Data Center use is proffered out.

Commissioner Madireddy asked about potential impacts to an archaeological site. Iwanczuk said the applicant has increased tree conservation in the northeast portion of the site, to protect wildlife—specifically the threatened loggerhead shrike—and avoid the archaeological area in the event graves are discovered. 

The applicant is committed to a 60-foot-wide reforestation in that area, and to researching the identities of early property owners should graves be found.

Chair Keirce said that if the property were developed by-right with 39 homes, there would be no oversight of water usage, and residents could remove trees on their property, affecting wildlife habitat. 

Michael Romeo, senior land use planner with Walsh Colucci Lubeley & Walsh representing JK Land Holdings, said the developer has reduced building heights to 32 feet in the west and 40 feet in the east, near Wright Farm, with the closest home in the neighborhood set back 358 feet from the project. 

He also said the applicant has committed to rural economy uses, establishing a minimum of 5,000 square feet for such activities.

In addition, the applicant has agreed to add a Mayfair left-turn lane for northbound traffic on Purcellville Road and to contribute $500,000 toward the Hirst Road, Hatcher Avenue, and Purcellville Road intersection. The primary entrance would be from the southern entrance.

Romeo said the proffers include mitigation measures if off-site wells are impacted, including drilling another well, drilling deeper wells, or reducing production from existing wells.

A letter from Clayton Tock of Urban Ltd. noted mitigation would not be required if impacts were caused by other sources, like residential pumping or drought.

Romeo said effluent will be treated in an on-site wastewater treatment facility that includes a system of treatment tanks designed to allow the effluent to settle and be aerobically treated before being conveyed to drain fields under state regulation. 

The Valley Commerce Center would be served by a private waterworks system designed to collect, treat, store, and distribute water for safe drinking and sanitation, he said.

The system would draw from a primary well with a maximum yield of 74,880 gallons per day, or 52 gallons per minute—and a back up well producing 15,000-20,000 gallons per day if needed.

Romeo noted that Wright Farm borders the site and that a distant industrial development on St. Francis Court is visible in winter, citing it as an example of existing industrial activity in the area. He also pointed out that there are three corners near the property that are industrial.

If the Northern Collector Road section were to be omitted, the Valley Commerce Center plan would expand the reforestation area to 60 feet, said Romeo.

Jamie Emery, with Emery & Garrett Groundwater Investigations, said the developer will conduct water-level monitoring for two years, with nearby residents able to track the results. He added that the state will oversee the process and that multiple safeguards would be in place.

Monitoring has shown that the project would not impact nearby Town of Purcellville wells, including the Forbes Well and Town Well #1—also confirmed by the Town’s hydrologist. 

Commissioner Barnes said he is familiar with the area from when he picked up his grandchildren at school and expressed concern about traffic on the two-lane road, near an elementary school and a high school. “I don’t think they have mitigated that,” he said. The proposal is estimated to generate 3,086 weekly trips.

Charles Yudd, Director of Land Planning and Development for JK Land Holdings, LLC, said, “We don’t believe there are any other outstanding transportation issues,” citing a protected turn lane into Mayfair on Purcellville Road and a proposed right-in, right-out entrance if the North Collector Road would be connected. 

His comments came amid concerns about the traffic that could be generated by the project’s 986,000 square feet of industrial space. Yudd also serves on the Board of Loudoun Water and previously held the position of Loudoun County’s Deputy County Administrator until his retirement in 2023.

After Commissioner Combs asked about the water usage of 39 by-right homes versus the industrial proposal, Emery said the average homeowner uses 400 to 500 gallons per day. Irrigation systems, he added, “throw that entire equation off the guardrail,” noting that one system could use 10 gallons per minute for four or five hours. “If you put two or three people together and you are pumping 30 gallons a minute for five or six hours, the equation is gone,” because it is not regulated.

Yudd said water usage can vary widely within the flex category. A bounce house facility or a brewery might use more water, while a contractor’s office primarily for storage might use less. “The metric for flex equates to roughly .235 gallons per square foot per day—we would have to be prepared to regulate that and say no to certain tenants,” he said.

At the end of the meeting, Yudd said the applicant could remove development from the tree-save area, while seeking flexibility to recoup that density elsewhere.

Commissioner Miller moved to approve the project, saying, “I have long supported this project largely because of its need in the County,” and noted that only about one-third of the proposed industrial development would be visible from the road.

Commissioner Frank said, “This property is on the edge of Town in the JLMA and should serve as a transition to lower density.” She added it is still not aligned with the 2019 Plan policies or uses, and that the scale isn’t appropriate for its location.

Because the property is in the JLMA, even if the County approves a rezoning, the Town of Purcellville must still agree before it could move forward. 

Town planners noted in a June 27, 2025, memo that the proposed development “remains fundamentally incompatible with both the Loudoun County General Plan and the Purcellville Comprehensive Plan, an incompatibility that was a central factor in the Town Council’s denial of the annexation request.”

“The Town’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan, ‘Plan Purcellville,’ supports the JLMA Rural designation as a mix of low-density residential uses and limited agriculture-supportive businesses in a rural setting distinct from the Town’s development pattern,” the memo states. 

“Based on these guidelines, the Town’s Planning and Engineering Departments cannot support approval of the Valley Commerce Center.” 

The County’s 2019 General Plan also emphasizes preserving rural character, farmland, and green space, encourages Town–County cooperation, and recommends maintaining greenbelts and view corridors at Purcellville’s entrances.

Speaking about the applicant’s open house, Chair Keirce said, “There wasn’t a huge ground swell [saying], ‘We don’t want this.’” He said he heard that “some residents were unhappy the Town did not annex the property, while some council members support the project—overall community opinion is mixed.” 

Public opposition has been extensive over the years, and on Jan. 8, 2025, four Purcellville Town Council members voted against continuing the annexation process.