Update: After years of consideration and seven public hearings, the Village of Catlett proposal was finally voted down. This over-sized development never made very much sense, but it was kept alive based on a promise from the developer to provide sewer to Catlett at no cost to taxpayers. In the end, the Board realized that was not likely, and turned the project down on a 3 to 2 vote. However, the developer has decided to challenge the denial, so the county and the developer are currently in litigation. We will keep you updated as we find out more.
Planning and Zoning
PEC believes in smart growth planning and decision-making that enhances communities, reduces vehicle miles traveled, and protects natural, cultural and historic resources.
Honoring Local History
“This part of northern Virginia has soaked up more of the blood, sweat and tears of American history than any other part of the country.” –Late Yale historian C. Vann Woodward
Subdivision Ordinance Changes Being Considered
On June 7th the Orange County Planning Commission voted unanimously to retain the time-phased component of the subdivision ordinance until an alternative is in place. We will keep you informed as this issue progresses.
Tools to Preserve Rural Land
Many tools are available to preserve rural land, from private land conservation to Purchase of Development Rights programs, land use taxation, zoning provisions and more.
Planning and Zoning Terms
Definitions and descriptions of important terms and concepts.
Controlling the Costs of Growth
Uncontrolled growth can cause taxes to skyrocket, but with good planning and the use of proffers and other tools, communities can accommodate growth without a budget crisis.
Better Comprehensive Planning
Every locality in Virginia must express its goals in a Comprehensive Plan, a twenty-year vision which must be reviewed and/or revised every five years. These documents are of foundational importance for communities that wish to shape their own future.
Developer Still Considering 275 Homes in Clevenger’s Corner
Update: At its April public hearing, the Culpeper County Planning Commission made a recommendation to deny the rezoning by a vote of 9-0. With the resignation of Supervisor Tom Underwood and his replacement with former Supervisor John Coates, the Board of Supervisors have agreed to delay the public hearing on the rezoning until its July meeting.
Unison Historic District Offers a Window to the Civil War
The village of Unison in western Loudoun, as if charmed in some way to keep from changing, is a quiet hamlet of well-kept old buildings, with many farmhouses, barns and churches that measure their age in centuries. They are settled into a landscape of farm fields and stone walls, where the curving hills and stands of trees give way, in their own rhythm, to views of the calm blue line of mountains on the western horizon.
It’s the roads in Unison that historians get most excited about, says Mitch Diamond of the Unison Preservation Society, which is leading efforts to list this area as a historic district on the state and national registers of historic places.
Big Growth in Greene
When Brian Higgins joined PEC’s staff as our first full-time field officer for Culpeper and Greene, this summer, he had to hit the ground running in Greene County. For one thing, the county is considering a rezoning for a development of nearly 1,200 units—a single project that could increase the county’s population by 20%.