Press Release
Campaign for Loudoun's Future

For Immediate Release:
April 4, 2005

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Phil Strother (804) 523-2001
Laura Olsen, (202) 244-4408 x4#

25 Citizen Landowners Seek to Intervene in Loudoun Court Case on Rural Zoning

Concerned that Loudoun County isn't Protecting Their Interests

25 Citizen landowners from western Loudoun, representing over 4,000 acres of land, have submitted a request to the Virginia courts to intervene in the court case over Loudoun County’s rural zoning.

“As citizens and landowners, we are seeking to intervene in this court case because we are not confident the county is fairly protecting our property rights, business interests, and the financial needs of all Loudoun residents,” said Malcolm Baldwin, a farmer and vineyard owner in the Lovettsville area.

The Virginia Supreme Court ruled in March that due to a technicality relating to the wording of the newspaper advertisement, the new zoning rules put in place two years ago are now in question, despite the fact that landowners were mailed actual written notice of the proposed action.

“No one in Loudoun County, with land in Loudoun County, or with a general interest in zoning in Virginia was unaware that there was the likelihood of a re-zoning. We all got letters in addition to it being the hot topic of conversation,” said Martha Polkey, a sheep farmer from Lucketts, the area the Virginia Court thought might be unclear if it was part of western Loudoun and that the zoning changes would apply. “Now, we are concerned that the County is not taking the needed action to defend the current plan and zoning and protect the interests of Loudoun residents and landowners.”

Generally when an ordinance is struck down on a procedural defect, counties re-enact it and cure the procedural problem, but this board has refused to take this common sense action, despite three Supervisors proposing a motion to re-advertise the rural zoning in a manner that complies with the Supreme Court’s ruling.

Because the Board of Supervisors does not appear to be taking action to protect the existing plan, the landowners are seeking a role in court proceedings about the County’s next steps.

The motion, filed on Friday, notes, “Relief sought by the Complainants will subject the Citizen Landowners to irreparable harm insofar as the Citizen Landowners have relied on and stand to lose rights under the AR-1 and AR-2 zoning classifications and their property values will be substantially diminished.” It also notes, “The Citizen Landowners believe….the Court should provide a period of time for the Board of Supervisors to take some legislative action to correct any procedural defects in the enactment of the new zoning.”

The Citizen Landowners are also concerned that a deal might be negotiated behind closed doors that will negatively impact both Loudoun’s rural economy and the needs of Loudoun’s suburban communities.

The Real Debate: Will the Supervisors support Loudoun’s Rural Economy?
The rural economy has been Loudoun’s history, and it is currently blossoming as people from throughout the region look for local farms, specialty markets and nearby tourism opportunities. The plan put in place two years ago made a specific effort to foster Loudoun’s rural economy, because it is a special asset, culturally and financially. While the zoning reduced the potential density for residential development, it gave landowners new rights for an expanded set of commercial enterprises.

“What is at risk is one of the most innovate efforts to create incentives for rural commercial uses,” noted Baldwin. “The zoning was inherently a give and take. We gave up some options for more residential development but got the right to conduct more commercial operations. Many people have taken advantage of the new zoning that allows businesses from commercial wineries to farm machinery repair by-right when the old zoning did not allow them at all.”

“Loudoun’s rural economy is a bright spot in American agriculture. We are supplying restaurants and farmers' markets while saving the county money --- money that is desperately needed to provide enough high quality schools, services and recreational facilities in our suburban communities,” noted Polkey. “If the Supervisors abandon the rural zoning, everyone in the county will lose. Well, everyone but a handful of speculative developers, who will profit at the expense of Loudoun residents.”

Eastern and Western Loudoun United
“It seems it is taking an extraordinary effort on the part of Loudoun citizens and small business owners to get the Board of Supervisors to understand HOW important these issues of growth are to us,” said Nick Lutkins, a business owner and resident in Cascades. “I want to thank these courageous landowners for stepping in to protect the interests of everyone in Loudoun --our interests in fair government, democracy and having a good place to live.”

Many Eastern Loudoun residents are extremely concerned about the traffic, tax and school impacts of the development proposals and zoning changes that would double or triple the size of Loudoun County. In the last few years, Loudoun County has absorbed nearly 25% of all of the residential growth in the state of Virginia. Hundreds of residents from Eastern Loudoun sent letters to the Board of Supervisors and attended their meetings to ask them to re-enact the rural zoning.

“Nearly all of Loudoun is west of me,” noted Susan Buckley, founder of the Eastern Loudoun Schools Association. “The rural zoning put in place in western Loudoun and the transition area was good for me and my neighbors. We need money for schools, which won’t be there if 50,000 to 100,000 more new houses are built in Loudoun.”

A copy of the motion filed on behalf of 25 landowners can be obtained from Strother Law Offices, 804-523-2003.

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