The Charlottesville-Gordonsville transmission line expansion project is directly driven by the 26 data center requests in Louisa and Culpeper counties that Dominion has received over the last five years.
Albemarle County & the City of Charlottesville
The staff in PEC's Charlottesville office works with citizens to solve the many land use and conservation challenges facing the Charlottesville and Albemarle area.
Old Mills Trail Extension: Long-Time Greenway Vision Coming into View
Albemarle is beginning the first phase of a planned project to extend the Old Mills Trail four miles downstream. There it will eventually connect to a future park at Milton Landing and an existing greenway in Glenmore.
On the Ground Updates – June 2026
Albemarle & Charlottesville
- Over the next three years, Albemarle County will implement the AC44 Comprehensive Plan focusing on four major initiatives:
- The Zoning Modernization project is a comprehensive update to the 40-year-old zoning ordinance to make regulations clearer, more consistent and better aligned with the community’s vision for the future.
- Activity Centers in the county’s Development Areas will identify locations for higher-density development and redevelopment.
- A multimodal transportation planning effort will prioritize completion of the current list of transportation projects and develop the county’s first Multimodal Transportation Plan.
- Shorter-term priorities for the Rural Area include: allowing updated uses in existing non-residential structures; considering permitting restaurants, weddings, and other events and agricultural operations; and continued work on allowing craft artisan uses. In the longer-term, a detailed analysis will identify areas of terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity, active agricultural lands, and historical and archaeological resources, as well as drinking watersheds and entrance corridor buffers — all of which will lay the foundation for the county’s first Rural Area Plan.
The implementation of the AC44 Comprehensive Plan is one of PEC’s highest priorities in Albemarle. PEC will be actively engaging community members, supervisors, planning commissioners, county staff and allied organizations to ensure that these initiatives use best practices and comply with the Comprehensive Plan.
Clarke
- County staff have completed the public input meetings on the newly drafted Rural Lands Plan, which includes the county’s historic villages. The draft will come to the Planning Commission for a public hearing over the summer, then move on to the Board of Supervisors for adoption.
- After posting potential routes for the 765-kilovolt Joshua Falls-Yeat transmission line, carrying power from West Virginia to Maryland, Dominion Energy is holding public meetings for impacted counties in June and July. PEC is monitoring to see if this line impacts Clarke County and will share public meeting information and other opportunities for people to make their voices heard.
Culpeper
- Strata Energy has withdrawn its application for Maroon Solar, a large, utility-scale solar installation on Raccoon Ford Road in southern Culpeper County, after the Planning Commission recommended denial. This marks the fourth time the project has failed to obtain a conditional use permit. PEC opposed the project because of Strata Energy’s history of erosion and sediment violations and the potential presence of rare plants on the site. Strata Energy plans to make a fifth application in the future.
- Several of Culpeper’s data centers are now under construction, including Databank at the corner of state Route 3 and U.S. Route 29. The Culpeper Technology Campus and Copper Ridge, both STACK Infrastructure-owned campuses between McDevitt Drive and East Chandler Avenue, are expected to break ground this summer. If you are being impacted by the construction, you can find contact information for your town and county elected officials on our website: pecva.org/culpeper
- The Culpeper Citizen Information Network is hosting a free lecture series about zoning and development. The series is designed to inform residents how zoning ordinances, the comprehensive plan and citizen input all play a role in land use decisions by the county. The next lecture is tentatively scheduled for July 16 in Jeffersonton.
Fauquier
- Remington Tech Park developers have changed their plan for on-site power generation from natural gas turbines to natural gas fuel cells. From both noise and air emissions perspectives, PEC sees this as a positive change and will continue to advocate for the health, safety and welfare of Fauquier residents.
- Williams Co., developer of the Power Express Quantico Lateral gas pipeline, have asked some landowners in the Catlett area to allow property surveys. Neither the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the State Corporation Commission, nor Fauquier County have received an application for this pipeline project. PEC is working with partners to identify the prospective route and understand all potential impacts.
- Dominion Energy acquired 85 acres adjoining its Morrisville substation, positioning the site for a possible major expansion, separate substation, or battery energy storage system. PEC and partners are closely monitoring all activity related to this substation site and its surrounds.
- Fauquier Forward, a 501(c)(3) whose mission is to “build a county that works better for everyone,” is deepening community divisions by pitting protected lands and zoning restrictions against the tax-revenue potential of commercial and industrial development. PEC and partners are demanding transparency around this organization’s actual mission, which we believe to be advocacy for new data center development.
- The Town of Remington invited area residents to an Open House to learn about its Comprehensive Plan, the committee leading its review and revision, and ways to take part in the process. PEC continues to work with other members of the Comprehensive Plan Committee via biweekly public meetings through 2026 and early 2027.
Greene
- The county has started work on an updated Comprehensive Plan scheduled to be adopted in 2028. As part of the update process, PEC will be advocating for rural protections — including action items to explore a purchase of development rights program and a riparian buffer protection program. The county is also in the process of preparing a flood resilience plan.
- PEC is following the economic development work associated with the U.S. Route 29 corridor in Greene and will continue to engage Greene regarding potential impacts of future development.
Loudoun
- During its June business meeting, the Board of Supervisors discussed a version of proactive zoning enforcement that is part of the Western Loudoun Rural Standards and Uses Zoning Ordinance Amendment process. The board also discussed a county-led inventory of existing rural business uses to confirm that filings in the county system are consistent with the current use and that all appropriate health and safety permits are in place.
- Hosted by the Loudoun County Preservation and Conservation Coalition in partnership with PEC, Loudoun Wildlife Conservancy, Save Rural Loudoun and Loudoun’s Future, community groundwater meetings wrapped up in April. With over 300 attendees in total, these meetings revealed that long-term groundwater availability is clearly a concern for residents. This group will hold more localized meetings as it plans next steps in support of a Groundwater Management Area for Loudoun and Fauquier.
- In April, despite incredible community support for partial undergrounding of the proposed Golden to Mars transmission corridor, the State Corporation Commission selected Route 4, which will cross school property at Rock Ridge High School and Rosa Lee Carter Elementary School, requiring School Board approval by July 2. Given the School Board’s previous opposition, the SCC designated Route 3A as the mandatory backup. This alternative cuts through backyards, and would require Dominion to use eminent domain to seize land from homeowners (an outcome the SCC says would be “regrettable”).
Madison
- PEC’s work continues on the proposed Rapidan River-Clark Mountain Rural Historic District. Our consultant, the Fairfield Foundation, recently completed survey work in the Madison County community of Tanners, and PEC has formally submitted the nomination to Virginia’s Department of Historic Resources. During the department’s review process, PEC expects to hold another community meeting to gather public input in summer or fall 2026. We hope the nomination will go before the Board of Historic Resources by the end of the year. If the Board of Historic Resources approves the nomination, the district will be listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register. That listing opens the door for a final submission: for review by the Keeper of the National Register for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. The historic district, which includes over 40,000 acres of mostly intact agricultural landscape in Madison, Culpeper and Orange counties, would be one of the largest rural historic districts in Virginia.
Orange
- The Orange County Board of Supervisors has removed data centers as a by-right use from the Industrial Zoning District. Now, any future Orange County data center application will need to seek a rezoning to the Technology Zoning District and obtain a special use permit. The only exception might be the property already rezoned for the Wilderness Crossing development. No data centers are currently proposed in Orange County. PEC closely monitors land use applications and will alert the public should a data center be proposed.
- The Orange Town Council has approved an updated zoning ordinance definition of “data center” that better describes modern, hyperscale data centers. Unfortunately, the council did not incorporate PEC’s recommendation that the definition clearly distinguish between on-site emergency back up power generation and on-site primary power generation. However, council members publicly stated their intent to address that elsewhere within the zoning ordinance soon. Next up, we expect the Town Council to continue discussions about a draft data center policy document and to make additions to the zoning ordinance to provide use standards that any future data center would be required to meet. No data centers are currently proposed for the Town of Orange.
Rappahannock
- Rappahannock County continues to evaluate designs for a new, replacement courthouse building on the existing courthouse grounds in the Town of Washington. Following an open house in April, the Board of Supervisors is further assessing the most recent proposal after the judges who will preside in the building raised concerns about some design elements.
- Phase II of Rush River Commons is working to secure tenants for the planned commercial office spaces. The county Library Board of Trustees is currently considering an offer to relocate there from their current location nearby.
- FirstEnergy has announced plans to file an application to wreck and rebuild the existing Page-Sperryville transmission line with the State Corporation Commission in June. PEC is not opposed to the rebuild of the 138 kilovolt line, though we have numerous concerns about FirstEnergy’s lack of public engagement and lack of substantive information about the project.
This article appeared in the 2026 summer edition of The Piedmont Environmental Council’s member newsletter, The Piedmont View. If you’d like to become a PEC member or renew your membership, please visit pecva.org/join.
Bike Month 2026: Better Than Ever
Bike Cville’s momentum is spreading. This year, there was something happening every single day, from group rides to events and clinics.
Expanded Transmission Line Planned for Southwest Mountains
This text was taken from an email alert sent out on May 12 2026. Sign up for email alerts →
Dear Supporter,
The Southwest Mountains have long been a priority for The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) because of their layers of natural, cultural and historical significance. As data center-fueled infrastructure threatens this area’s unique communities and landscapes, we invite you to a community meeting Wednesday, May 13 to learn more about the proposed Charlottesville-Gordonsville transmission line and how you can make your voice heard.
Charlottesville-Gordonsville Community Meeting
Wednesday, May 13 @ 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Keswick Hunt Club, 626 Hunt Club Road, Keswick
Dominion Energy’s proposal is to wreck and rebuild 20 miles of existing single-circuit 230 kV transmission line between Dominion’s Charlottesville and Gordonsville substations as a double-circuit 230 kV transmission line. This will significantly increase the size of the line and potentially expand the right of way through the Southwest Mountains Rural Historic District and neighborhoods in the Pantops area.
Dominion is framing the upgrade as necessary for “reliability,” but it, and other energy infrastructure expansion across the state, is largely being driven by increased energy demand from data centers.
PEC’s Involvement
Across our nine-county region, PEC is leading the effort to mitigate data center infrastructure projects. Including the Charlottesville-Gordonsville line, we are engaged in 6 transmission projects, more than at any other moment in our history. Understanding the impact of these intensive projects on communities, we are allocating extensive resources to monitor local, state, regional, and federal forums where prospective transmission line projects are proposed and pursued. Our goal is to ensure communities get information about what’s coming and are equipped with information to weigh in knowledgeably about projects throughout the process.
PEC is engaging on this project in several ways:
- In conversations with Dominion Energy and community members, we are advocating for full consideration of alternatives and mitigation of impacts such as:
- undergrounding portions of the line,
- minimizing heights while staying within the existing right of way,
- better design of towers that blend in to setting,
- minimal disturbance during construction, and
- establishing enforceable limits on future expansion.
- Participating in the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) hearing before the SCC.
- Encouraging submission of comments about the line and impacts on communities and properties to the SCC — we need you!
- We anticipate this project to file with the State Corporation Commission any day now.
At the community meeting Wednesday, May 13 PEC staff will present about the Charlottesville-Gordonsville project, how it fits into a broader data-center driven movement, and what you can do about it. RSVP →
Why This Project Matters
Transmission line projects, even those limited to existing rights-of-way, can cause visual impacts from taller towers and poor siting or design selection, construction impacts to nearby rivers, streams, wetlands, and impacts to sensitive ecosystems that support biodiversity, and visual and construction impacts to cultural resources, including archaeological and historical sites, historic buildings and structures and cultural landscapes.
This Charlottesville-Gordonsville project cuts through scores of permanently conserved parcels, the Southwest Mountains Rural Historic District and falls within the Monticello Viewshed Protection Area and the Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area, and is proximate the Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Scenic Byway along State Routes 22 and 231.
In addition to being highly valued nationally-significant resources, their preservation directly contributes to our region’s tourism industry, which depends heavily on protecting the area’s historic and scenic landscapes — valued at nearly $1 billion annually.
Hope to see you there,
Chris Miller
President
[email protected]
540-347-2334 x7100
Bike Cville: Jump Starting Sustainable Momentum
This is the second in a series of blog posts reflecting on BikeCville’s eighth year. The previous post described the rides from the viewpoint of a participant. This post talks about why PEC started BikeCville and how it’s going.
Not many land trusts organize urban bike rides but for the Piedmont Environmental Council it makes perfect sense. BikeCville combines our purpose to promote compact, livable communities with our primary method, which is to empower residents to advocate for positive change.
I was hired in 2017 to help bring about better infrastructure for walking and biking in the Charlottesville, Virginia area. This work carries a chicken-or-egg question: which comes first? We know that most people will only bike on well-protected infrastructure. Our bike-lane network was (and is) insufficient and quite fragmented. As a result, there were far fewer cyclists than one might expect in a small college town. Yet we have also learned from more than 50 years of advocacy that good infrastructure is only possible if droves of people come out and demand it. Charlottesville was stuck; it needed some kind of jump start.
PEC has been attacking both sides of the equation since day 1. We have advocated for and assisted on multiple infrastructure projects that take a long time. After eight years, some of those are finally starting to appear (topic for a future post). We have also spent at least as much time on the cultural front strengthening the bicycling community.
We received a grant from the Bama Works Fund of the Dave Matthews Band for a program we named “BikeCville.” It started as a simple series of group bike rides that emphasize safety education, camaraderie and fun. We hoped to encourage interested-but-concerned riders to claim their rightful place on the street and to learn from one another while enjoying each other’s company. We were also building a strong cohort that would lobby for safer streets for everyone.
Although we’re working hard for safer streets, we refuse to wait another generation (and continue to sacrifice environmental and human health) for slow-developing infrastructure to get built. We want to encourage more cyclists and to make cycling more visible on the streets we presently have. Longer term, we were also methodically building an army that would advocate for the better local policies and infrastructure that were so clearly needed. We organized group bike rides as catalysts and they have been successful.
From Spark to Pilot Light to Burn
PEC is just one organization and could never tackle this complicated problem alone. We needed to build a program that could maintain its own momentum, spread and grow. Generational change needs to outlast any grant’s life or any single organization’s attention span. So, while the rides were fun, educational, organizing events that could change attendees’ day-to-day choices, they were also a proof of concept for other groups to replicate. We figured that if PEC could organize community bike rides, so could anyone.
The rides and our other community-building activities (like Bike Month) have been quite effective. Bicycling in Charlottesville has proliferated. Many others have taken the baton and what were once just a few rides per year, attended by die-hards and “usual suspects”have proliferated into a full calendar with multiple group rides every week. These are organized by participants themselves through clubs, groups and businesses. BikeCville began as a hashtag; now it is a movement.
The Bama Works Fund has stuck with us, renewing the grant every year since. PEC is leading fewer rides now because others have taken the baton. That was always the plan. Now we are using the Bama Works grant primarily for our annual Active Mobility Summit and other programs that nourish the advocacy community and further leverage the effort.
Flames Catching
We’re also picking up important local policy wins. For example, Charlottesville has adopted a policy to eliminate deaths and serious injuries; Albemarle has committed to reduce them by half. Charlottesville has an ambitious e-bike voucher program and both localities’ new Comprehensive Plans emphasize dense housing and walkable neighborhoods.
Infrastructure improvements have not unfurled as quickly, but several projects that have been in the works for a long time are either coming online or about to be built. We’d be unreasonable to expect that a built environment made of earth, stone and steel, where every inch is full of challenges, would be dramatically changed in a short time. But it is clear that a motivated and organized community is a necessary precondition for change. We have that now, and they’re working on it.
As I look toward the next eight years, I hope to see better infrastructure, deployed more widely, at a more rapid pace. I’d also like to see the roadways we already have to be more equitably shared. After all, many of the roads in this area were walking and biking (and horseback riding) routes before the advent of the automobile. There’s nothing inevitable about the landscape of today.
I am most excited about who I’m seeing: many leaders and groups organizing rides, creating programs, starting businesses and hatching ideas that I could not have imagined when we started. I can’t wait to see where this energy takes us.
Shenandoah Borderlands project protects 5,000 acres for clean water, habitat, scenic viewshed
Shenandoah National Park is one of Virginia’s most beloved and visited outdoor spaces, attracting 1.7 million visitors in 2025. It’s also a global conservation priority for biodiversity protection and climate resiliency. For these reasons, The Piedmont Environmental Council has been strategically identifying and conserving privately-owned lands running along the park’s eastern edge with a project called the Shenandoah Borderlands Conservation Initiative.
On the Ground Updates – April 2026
A series of short updates from around the PEC region – Albemarle & Charlottesville, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Greene, Loudoun, Madison, Orange & Rappahannock.
Albemarle’s Budget Should Reflect its Promises
It’s budget season in Albemarle County. And you, residents of Albemarle County, have the ability to weigh in on what should be included in next year’s budget.
Outdoor Access is Economic Infrastructure: the Sixth Active Mobility Summit
Thanks to everyone who made the sixth annual Active Mobility Summit a success!