The other night as I drove home, I paid attention to each bridge crossing. There were 18 concrete slab bridges. A majority of our roadways are repetitive monolithic creatures with little character or interest of their own. This reminded me of a statistic I once heard about how the drive to somewhere can be a valuable part of the tourist experience. Most people probably don’t travel out of their way to visit a historic bridge, but crossing one is a memorable part of the journey. And if you live near one, it probably is a part of what defines ‘home’ for you.
Fauquier County
PEC works to help citizens in Fauquier build better communities and protect cherished resources–scenic views, working farms, historic heritage, clean water, and healthy air.
Protecting Thumb Run
What’s good for wildlife is often good for water quality,” said Celia Vuocolo, PEC’s wildlife habitat and stewardship specialist, as she spoke to guests at the fifth Annual Thumb Run Open House.
This sentiment was reinforced at the event, held on November 13 at the Orlean Fire Hall, by speakers Amy Johnson of Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute’s Virginia Working Landscapes Program, Janet Davis of Hill House Farm and Nursery and Dr. Tania Cubitt of Performance Horse Nutrition LLC, whose presentations focused on grassland bird conservation, landscaping for wildlife and healthy horse pastures, respectively. While the presentation topics varied, the underlying theme was the same — land stewardship supports clean water.
A small town with a lot to offer
Creating a community park takes quite a bit of planning, which is why the historic railroad town of Remington is about to receive support for adding recreational space for its residents and visitors.
Situated on a scenic natural crossing of the Rappahannock River, Remington has an abundance of character and contains elements of a walkable community, including a compact street grid. But the town has few common areas for recreation and no official public access to the river.
Truck Stop Proposed in Markham
The following email alert was sent out August 2016 regarding a proposal by VDOT to open a truck stop in Markham, VA:
Fauquier Hits a Conservation Milestone
A significant milestone happened this summer that took the collective effort of hundreds of landowners, farmers and families. Leading the charge, Fauquier became the first county in Virginia to forever preserve more than 100,000 acres of land using conservation easements.
Tri-County Feeds Reinvests in Conservation & Preservation in the Piedmont
In an effort to ‘Reinvest’ in our beloved Piedmont Region, Tri-County donates a portion of the proceeds from the sale of our branded TCF Horse Feeds to the conservation and preservation efforts of the Goose Creek Association and The Piedmont Environmental Council. For more information, please visit the Tri-County Feeds website, call 540-364-1891 or stop by their retail store in Marshall, VA.
Fauquier Mythbusters
A look at some popular myths about Fauquier County’s land use, growth, taxes and development. From ‘Fauquier County is no growth’ to ‘Land with a conservation easement limits farming’…
Conservation at Work
5 conservation stories from around Fauquier County, including Cool Lawn Farm, Environmental Studies on the Piedmont, Hopefield, Rappahannock Station and Hunger Run Farm:
Talking Taxes and Growth
Over the past year, there has been a heated discussion of issues tied to growth and taxes in Fauquier County, both in the local papers and in casual conversation. In these discussions a host of terms are often used without definition. So here’s a short list of some taxes and concepts that every resident of Fauquier County should know when talking growth and taxes:
Fauquier’s PDR program helps working farms
Fauquier’s Purchase of Development Rights program pays landowners of agricultural operations to limit the development potential of their land through a conservation easement. Unlike a donated conservation easement, the PDR program pays farmers a flat rate of $25,000 per development right they wish to extinguish.