By Lloyd Harting

Over the past 20 months the Town of Purcellville has served as the playing field for an acrimonious public conflict between Team Mayberry and Team Megabucks. 

In November of 2024, the residents of Purcellville elected Christopher Bertaut, Ben Nett, and Susan Khalil to the Town Council. All three identified themselves as “Team Mayberry.” A sitting council member, Carol Luke, also identified herself as a member. 

Their objective was to keep Purcellville a safe, peaceful and comfortable community with a stable population; end further expansion of the town; foster the success of small businesses rather than large “big box” businesses; and require town government to exercise fiscal restraint, operate efficiently and keep living in Purcellville affordable for its residents.

The other competitor is what I call “Team Megabucks.” In my view, it represents a convergence of interests among certain members of the Purcellville Town Council, town employees, Virginia elected officials, large businesses and wealthy investors, and certain members of the Loudoun County Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors. 

I believe these interests share a desire for greater influence over Purcellville’s future, particularly regarding growth and development where significant financial interests are at stake.

Investors have an interest in maximizing returns. Developers benefit from opportunities to build on undeveloped land and to pursue rezonings and annexations. Construction companies compete for contracts to build projects and to replace infrastructure. Big box businesses seek to expand their markets. Consultants seek town contracts. 

Political campaigns often depend on contributions from businesses and wealthy donors. These interests benefit from growth and increased spending, while residents are left to pay the costs and risk losing Purcellville’s small-town character.

Team Megabucks, in my opinion, is well-organized and well-financed, and sees Purcellville as an opportunity for growth and financial gain, regardless of the consequences for residents and established small businesses. 

More troubling to me is what I see as support from certain Virginia elected officials and government institutions bringing the considerable power of the state into what should remain a local debate over Purcellville’s future.

There are no rules of the game that ensure a level playing field. Mockery, bullying, intimidation, ridicule, harassment, insults, doxxing, vulgar language and obscene gestures at public Town Council meetings, daily online attacks, employee terminations, defamation lawsuits, removal actions against elected officials, Purcellville-specific state legislation, and criminal investigations, arrests and prosecutions have all become part of this battle.

The consequences have been substantial: one Town Council member resigned, another declined to seek reelection, and the Vice Mayor and Town Manager were suspended and criminally charged. I believe that those charges are dubious and are among the most troubling examples of how government power has been brought into Purcellville’s political disputes. Taken together these actions have given Team Megabucks a powerful advantage.

Yet Team Mayberry has not responded in kind. Despite the attacks and distractions, its members have remained focused on real issues facing Purcellville residents and businesses.

Here is an example of what is at stake. A national grocery chain has expressed interest in developing a property near West Colonial Highway and Main Street that is not currently zoned for its contemplated use. Other suggestions have also included the potential for several large commercial buildings on the site, although no proposal has yet come before the Town Council.

Purcellville already has two grocery stores, and this is one of the town’s most heavily traveled areas. Adding several large commercial buildings would bring substantially more traffic to an already congested corridor. Decisions of this magnitude should be discussed openly and publicly before they move any further.

The November election is about more than who sits on the Town Council. It is about the direction Purcellville takes from here.

Purcellville will change, and some properties in town do need redevelopment. Property owners can improve and reinvest in their properties consistent with the Town’s zoning and planning rules. 

Redevelopment is different from changing those rules to accommodate greater density, larger projects or expansion beyond the Town’s boundaries, particularly when developers and property interests seeking those changes are also campaign donors.

Purcellville is not simply a collection of parcels to be exploited for highest financial return. It is a community people choose to call home. The question before voters is whether change will respect Purcellville’s small-town character—or gradually replace it.

Once we give away the things that make Purcellville worth calling home, we may discover too late that they cannot be bought back.

Lloyd Harting is a Purcellville resident and a member of the Purcellville Planning Commission.