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Dear Supporter,
In November, Loudoun County began a series of seven work sessions as the first step to update the Zoning Ordinance and Comprehensive Plan for Western Loudoun in an effort to better support the modern farms of Loudoun, address harmful inconsistencies within the existing ordinance, and reduce negative impacts on neighboring properties within Loudoun’s Rural Policy Area. The second Transportation and Land Use Committee work session is Wed., Jan. 29, with the focus this time on Agricultural Processing and Farm Worker Housing. We encourage you to provide fresh, public comments to support our agricultural community.
Rural Area Stakeholder Meeting: Agricultural Processing
Wed., Jan. 29 @ 5 p.m.
1 Harrison Street, S.E., Leesburg
The year-long update process began well with the first stakeholder work session, focused on Equine Uses and Indoor Recreational Uses, held Nov. 21, 2024. The discussion was productive, with direct and thoughtful questions from County staff coupled with knowledgeable feedback from the stakeholders involved.
Hopefully it will result in a draft Zoning Ordinance and Comprehensive Plan that adequately addresses the ongoing issues impacting these industries and the productivity will continue into the second work session, focused on Agricultural Processing and Farm Worker Housing.
Greatest Concerns for Jan. 29 Stakeholder Meeting
Loudoun County is home to a vibrant farming community working to keep active agriculture alive and well in this unique region. Changes to regulations on agricultural processing and farm worker housing, more than any of the other six work topics, can best support many of Loudoun’s farmers. Whether they are growing a variety of vegetables for farmers markets or specializing in a single product such as strawberries for a CSA, many of Loudoun’s most successful operations are processing their own products for market and employing numerous people during the growing season to do so. Therefore, its critical that any updates to the Comprehensive Plan take this into account.
According to the newly adopted Loudoun County Zoning Ordinance, agricultural processing is “the processing and/or preparation of agricultural products, including changes to the physical state or form of the agricultural product.” The industry term is broad and includes a range of activities like harvesting and jarring honey, washing and packaging berries and rolling oats.
Specific areas to address:
1. Broaden local processing definition.
Farmers in Loudoun often lease numerous parcels of different sizes that may or may not be contiguous with their farming operation. They are allowed to harvest and process their products on the farm as an accessory use, but are severely restricted because the current ordinance requires that 51% of that product to be processed must be grown or raised on one parcel (“on-site”). This is an unrealistic expectation that does not match the realities of modern farming in Loudoun, with its high land prices. The 2022 Census of Agriculture shows that in Loudoun, far more farmers are farming on smaller parcels of land than ever before, meaning that more operations are utilizing multiple parcels to grow their products.
The current regulations were written over 20 years ago for single large site operations in mind. They have not been adapted since then to reflect today’s typical producers, who run “farms” composed of four or more small parcels. As new uses in the Rural Policy Area arose, like breweries and event venues, they were not inhibited in the same way that smaller and medium-sized farms now are.
Because of this, PEC supports changing the language of the ordinance from “on-site” to “within Loudoun County” to ensure that we are supporting both local production and Loudoun farmers’ ability to process their product.
2. Remove arbitrary limits on number of employees and equipment.
Regulations for agricultural businesses are often more stringent than other nonagricultural businesses in western Loudoun. Two other unequal standards limit the number of employees a business may have and heavy equipment (tractors, trailers, and business vehicles) that may remain onsite. These limitations on employees and critical equipment hamper farm businesses, small and large.
PEC supports removing these limits to allow businesses to operate with the tools and workforce necessary to thrive. Should the standards remain, the limitations must be reduced and/or clarified to determine if standard farm equipment is considered “heavy equipment.” Identical regulation should also be placed on other business industries.
3. Adjust screening regulations to be more consistent.
Many of the same restrictions that impact the equine industry, discussed in the first stakeholder work session, are also negatively impacting agricultural uses. The restrictions in place today impede innovative farm practices for many properties and should be modified to recognize the limited negative impact of farm processing operations on nearby neighbors.
Therefore, we encourage the county to work with the farmers to adjust or remove, where appropriate, expensive screening requirements, which can be barriers to entry for new businesses and visually screen the very scenery that agritourism depends on. Ironically, the restrictions on small farming operations with onsite processing are more stringent than large, high impact uses like wedding venues!
PEC supports consistency in the setback requirements for western Loudoun businesses, and encourages the county to work with production agricultural operations to adjust hours of operations in a way that fits the day to day realities of their businesses.
4. Provide reasonable solutions to the lack of farm worker housing.
Farm worker housing is a vital component of a successful business plan for many of Loudoun’s production operations, as farmers rely on temporary labor to support their businesses in the busy season. Short-term, seasonal housing options for farm workers within the county provides them with a more stable and healthy environment that in turn helps businesses grow. PEC supports finding a more reasonable, flexible, and sustainable solution than the ad hoc, insufficient options that exist today.
Review Process & Stakeholder Groups
Please check out the official county webpage where all of the documents and schedule updates are available. We also encourage you to fill out and submit an official public comment form for the upcoming work session Wed., Jan. 29, even if you have given comments in the past. Please remember newer input relevant to the topic at hand has the greatest impact on the process.
The stakeholder input process will take place over the next 12 months through seven meetings of the Transportation Land Use Committee. Three distinct groups of stakeholders, identified by the Board of Supervisors — comprised of agro-businesses and preservation and agricultural businesses — will contribute to these meetings:
- Residents: These will be nominated individually by the three supervisors whose districts comprise western Loudoun. Contact Supervisors TeKrony or Kershner or Chair Randall if you’re interested in serving as one of these representatives.
- Agro-businesses: For these meetings, this group represents an array of business interests chosen by Beth Erickson of Visit Loudoun. They will largely focus on the diverse agrotourism sector including you-pick farms, wineries, breweries and equine event centers.
- Preservation and Agriculture: This group represents all other agricultural businesses and farmers of western Loudoun. Loudoun leads the Commonwealth of Virginia in 10 different agricultural industries, including equine, vegetable production, cut flowers, berries and goats. Representatives from this stakeholder group will be chosen by Chris Van Vlack of Loudoun Farm Bureau.
These stakeholder work sessions started in November 2024 and are currently slated to run through early 2026. Towards the second half of 2025, county staff will develop the draft language for the comprehensive plan and zoning amendments, which staff is working on. They will begin to be reviewed and worked on first by the Zoning Ordinance Committee. Finally, the amendments will move on to a Planning Commission public hearing and work sessions and a Board of Supervisors public hearing for any final revisions and adoption. This process is expected to conclude in 2027.
Although the process will include opportunities for public input at each of these phases, it is vital that the public and interested parties give their input now, while there is ample time to address the most pressing issues.
Meeting Schedule
Over the holidays, the county removed the tentative schedule for the stakeholder sessions from the official webpage. It was previously posted as follows:
- Meeting 1: Liveries/Stables/Outdoor Recreation – Nov. 21, 2024
- Meeting 2: Ag Processing / Other Farm Related Uses – Jan. 29, 2025
- Meeting 3: Value Added Farming / Other Farm Related Issues/ Conservation Easement Density – Mar. 2025
- Meeting 4: Mountainside Overlay District / Signage Anticipated –
May 2025 - Meeting 5: Farm Wineries/Limited Breweries / Limited Distilleries/Events – July 2025
- Meeting 6: Food Trucks / Food Service / Rural Restaurants – Sept. 2025
- Meeting 7: Outstanding Issues – Nov. 2025
With the number of topics to be covered, new issues are still being identified, and given the county’s already-full workload, it’s likely these dates will move around a bit, but we appreciate vital topics being given ample time for consideration. The meeting following Jan. 29 has tentatively been scheduled for April 24. PEC and partner advocacy groups have worked hard to support residents’ needs and keep active agriculture thriving in western Loudoun for many years. We will keep you updated as this process moves along and share our concerns in advance of each meeting.
Thank you for all of your support and submitting your input at this critical time for these agricultural producers! This is the moment to show the Board of Supervisors that the public is paying attention and engaged on these issues.
Sincerely,
Tia Earman
Senior Land Use Field Representative
Loudoun and Clarke Counties
[email protected]