Opinion

The pleasures of Loudoun’s gravel roads

January 3, 2024

By Adam Stevenson I imagine that every place has its own comparative advantages and pleasures, both subtle and obvious, that let it grow up in a person’s affections until one’s identity is inseparable from the beauty and bounty of the place one knows best. This is both simple and complicated.  It’s simple in how natural…

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The case for supporting Ukraine

December 19, 2023

Dear Editor: Vladimer Putin last week said that Russia will not end its war against Ukraine until his country achieves “denazification,” “demilitarization,” and neutrality in Ukraine; i.e., no peace until Russia controls all of Ukraine and purges its perceived enemies. It is also clear that Russia’s ambitions include control over Georgia, Moldova, the Baltic states,…

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Three cheers for the new zoning ordinance

December 16, 2023

Dear Editor: Congratulations! Loudoun County has a new zoning ordinance – adopted by the Board of Supervisors on December 13. Everyone involved should be proud – the County Planning Staff, the Planning Commission, the Board of Supervisors and the hundreds of organizations, businesses and individual citizens that invested the time and energy to follow, understand…

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Dear PJM: Please Don’t Run Power Lines Through Western Loudoun!

December 7, 2023

By Caleb Kershner, Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, Catoctin District Supervisor A proposal is being floated to run high-voltage power lines through the middle of western Loudoun. This would be a terrible blow to our rural west, especially to the farms and residents that it would run past. That’s why I oppose this proposal, and…

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An open letter to Aaron Spence, Ph.D., Superintendent, Loudoun County Public Schools

November 29, 2023

Dear Dr. Spence, I have learned of your “listening” sessions you are hosting at all the schools in Loudoun County. I wish to speak up; I hope you are listening. LGBTQ issues do not belong in the public schools. This is a private matter between the child and the child’s parents. The only reason for…

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Election 2023

November 29, 2023

By Charles Houston No more candidate mailers clogging my mailbox. No more questionable ads on social media. No more candidate photos popping up when I use Google. Rejoice Yes, be happy those irritants are gone, but rejoicing at the election results is up to your opinion about the results. The most notable thing is that…

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Faithful stewards of Catoctin Meadows wetlands fight to protect its natural beauty 

November 29, 2023

By Ron Rise Sr. On the northwest edge of the Town of Purcellville quietly rests a 14.2 acre-green open space with forested wetlands with life-giving waters of the South Fork Catoctin Creek, all nestled quietly along N 21st Street. In 1996, Bruce Brownell approached the Town of Purcellville during the design and development of his…

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No to big lattice towers through western Loudoun

November 26, 2023

Dear Editor: Loudoun’s growing data center industry needs more power than the electric power utilities can provide with current infrastructure. As a result, the regional power industry consortium, PJM, is considering a package of proposals to expand the high voltage transmission line network (link to a 27 MB file) in order to bring additional power…

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In support of Laura TeKrony – Policies not Politics

November 7, 2023

Dear Editor:  The boundaries of the new Little River voting district encompass some of Loudoun’s most diverse landscapes, stretching from the Blue Ridge in the rural west to Brambleton in the suburban east. Therefore, the Little River District has diverse land use policies with rural, transitional, and suburban policy areas and diverse demographics ranging from farmers…

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Rt. 9 congestion needs traffic circles

November 7, 2023

Dear Editor It has been four years since Hillsboro initiated its transitional traffic-calming plan by replacing the town’s traffic light at the intersection of Route 9 (Charles Town Pike) and Hillsboro Road with a Round-About traffic circle. The result has been the elimination of traffic jams at that junction, especially for the 17,000 commuters that…

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