Zoning ordinances, conservation easements, prime soils, land use, and drones dominate discussions at Rural Town Hall

By Laura Longley

On June 30, Board of Supervisors Chair Phyllis J. Randall (D-At Large) and Catoctin District Supervisor Caleb Kershner (R-Catoctin) hosted a Rural Town Hall at Round Hill Elementary School. Blue Ridge Supervisor Tony Buffington (R-Blue Ridge) was unable to attend, but his senior staff represented him.

Looking around the school’s multi-purpose room, you could spot brewery and winery owners, viticulturists, innkeepers, pick-your-own and pumpkin patch growers, conservationists, horticulturists, a few farmers who still plant feed crops, raise cattle, goats, sheep, pigs, turkeys, and chickens for market, and developers growing housings on by-right parcels. 

Virtually all of them have a stake in the outcome of Loudoun County’s review and rewriting of zoning laws, a process soon to conclude its public input period. That process, well underway, will include further reviews, discussions, and approvals by the Transportation and Land Use Commission, Planning Commission, Board of Supervisors, and many public hearings until final approval next spring.

Zoning changes and conservation easements

At this forum, the Supervisors heard concerns that will continue to inform the zoning rewrite process: protection of prime soils for agriculture, current zoning law that permits dense, cluster development with houses often built on prime soils, and conservation easements as tools for protecting privately owned land. A voluntary legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust or government agency, a conservation easement permanently limits uses of the land to protect its conservation values. As the Land Trust Alliance explains, landowners retain many of their rights, including the right to own and use the land, sell it, and pass it on to their heirs. 

Concerned about the impact of proposed zoning ordinances on property values and the value of a conservation easement, Kershner has asked staff to provide further information. “I’m hoping that we can have our cake and eat it, too. If we can provide an incentive to maximize the use of soils and not cause a devaluation, then that’s great.”

Keeping land open without housing developments while monetizing the property brought the supervisors to the burgeoning business of unmanned aerial vehicles for creating a “no build” rural economy.

Impact of drones

“We held a drone summit on May 13, and it was really interesting,” said Randall. “Some of these companies are building drones, others are teaching people how to fly them. I hope it is the next large way that we can have economic growth without having more homes in western Loudoun. This is always, always, always my goal.”

General audience response to the drone idea was lukewarm. Lifelong conservationist Al Van Huyck articulated the objections of conservationists: “When you raise the possibility that you will be throwing activities all over, that’s scary to me and maybe to others interested in agriculture. If we are only interested in having nonbuilding, we’re going to lose the agricultural community and begin to jeopardize our rural tourism.”

Farming’s future

“I would point out,” Van Huyck added, “that we’ve only scratched the surface of trying to reestablish farming activities that were underfunded, and we have lots of programs that are available. I look for people here today to really come up with exciting ideas” to support farming and growing.”

His comments and concurring remarks from Randall drew a few loud dissents from property owners at the back of the room.

Finally, a vegetable farmer, Pam Jones, who had been waiting patiently for her turn at the mic, took up a topic no one else had addressed: Who in the future will know how to work the prime soils and run a farm if there’s no one left farming to teach beginners like her? Co-owner of a small-scale, sustainability-focused, diversified produce farm—Gathering Springs Farm near Middleburg—Jones made a welcome case for the need and opportunities for today’s farmers to ensure the future of farming in western Loudoun County.

Whites Ferry and Rt. 15 North

Also up for discussion: Rt. 15 North and Whites Ferry. Randall pointed out that that while the Board of Supervisors’ recent approval of a Loudoun County Comprehensive Plan Amendment to allow widening or other safety and congestion solutions for the corridor, it does not signal an automatic start of construction. 

Indeed, Supervisor Mike Turner (D-Ashburn) intends to put forward a proposal to initiate short-term safety design and construction to extend over the next seven years. With that strategy, the County could make the road safer more quickly, apply for regional and state funding, and protect farms and rural businesses along the corridor.

Regarding resumption of the Whites Ferry service, Randall and ferry owner Chuck Kuhn, present at the town hall, affirmed their efforts to resolve issues with the private property owners on the Virginia side of the Potomac River. However, Randall said, she would not pursue eminent domain action to take the property for public use.