Loudoun County has been studying alternatives for the future of Route 15, and while they’ve said they want to preserve the historic and rural character of the road, new county documents show their intent is a four-lane divided expressway, which would attract more traffic.
Our Region
PEC focuses on nine counties and one city in the northern Piedmont of Virginia: Albemarle, Charlottesville, Clarke, Culpeper, Fauquier, Greene, Loudoun, Madison, Orange, and Rappahannock.
We also team with local organizations to promote thriving communities and healthy natural resources in a much larger region, including the Shenandoah Valley, the central Piedmont, and the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Corridor. In addition, we are proud to serve as fiscal sponsor of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, an organization that focuses on land use and policy in the greater Washington D.C. area.
A Ride to Surprise and Delight
About two dozen cyclists gathered on the evening of June 21, garlanded their bikes with lights and reflective decorations, and set out for a relaxed four-mile celebration of the Summer Solstice. The route through Charlottesville followed a combination of quiet neighborhood streets and roads with bike lanes. The colorful and musical procession elicited reactions of surprise and delight.
Petition: Don’t Remove Disclosure Requirements For Fracking Chemicals
I wanted to share a petition with you that is picking up steam across the state. It calls on the state’s Freedom of Information Advisory Council – a state agency responsible for resolving disputes related to the Freedom of Information Act – to keep disclosure requirements for fracking chemicals in place in Virginia. A subcommittee of the Advisory Council meets later this month to discuss the issue.
A Legacy of Love
Through the Headwaters Stream Initiative, an astounding 3,765 trees were planted on 16 acres the Goodall property in Madison County, including 4,600 linear feet of stream.
Fauquier County Pursues Broadband Tower Locations: Let Us Know What You Think
As you might be aware, Fauquier County has been trying to figure out ways to improve broadband service county-wide. As this is an important local land use decision, we want to hear what our supporters and members think about the county’s approach. Please take a moment to look at the map and fill out our short survey.
Learning from Loudoun’s Route 50 Traffic Calming Project, a National Model
This paper was prepared by Ian Lockwood, PE, of the Toole Design Group, for the Catoctin Coalition, Journey Through Hallowed Ground, Piedmont Environmental Council, Coalition for Smarter Growth, and Southern Environmental Law Center. In it, he advocates for traffic calming along the critical stretch of roadway on Rt. 15 north of Leesburg in order to make the road safer, reduce congestion and increase accessibility. Read the paper >>
Loudoun Plans for More Scattered Development
The Loudoun County Comprehensive plan is being revised through a process called Envision Loudoun. It is a particularly important policy framework for a county like Loudoun, which is consistently one of the fastest growing jurisdictions in the U.S…Unfortunately, upon reading the released draft, I don’t believe it represents the majority of Loudoun resident’s values and interests expressed in the Envision Loudoun public input phase.
Fixing Rt. 15 North of Leesburg
I want to let you know about a critical transportation decision before the Board of Supervisors pertaining to Rt. 15 north of Leesburg. The County originally proposed 4-laning Rt. 15 from Battlefield Parkway to White’s Ferry Road, but then expanded the proposal to widen an additional 1.5 miles north to Montresor Road. Alternatively, we support putting a roundabout in place of a traffic light at the White’s Ferry intersection, and maintaining the road north of that at two lanes (with improved shoulders).
Your General Assembly Update
The beginning of spring marks the end of the 2018 Virginia General Assembly session. Well, sort of. In the case of the budget, there was no resolution, which means the fate of conservation funding and the general path forward is still up in the air. To address this, the Governor has announced that a special session will convene on April 11.
One of the bigger issues taking up bandwidth this year was Medicaid expansion. The House’s budget bill included the expansion, while the Senate’s bill did not — this set up a showdown in the budget conference committee. Due to this and other differences, the conferees were unable to come to an agreement, meaning it will be some time before we know what programs will be affected.
Neighborly Effort to Protect the Piedmont
“This beautiful and agricultural open land was here before we purchased Waverley and it’s my hopeful intention that it will look the same as it does today long after I’m gone,” remarked Charlotte Tieken, Somerset resident and owner of Waverley Farm.
The Piedmont Environmental Council worked with Ms. Tieken to put 669 acres of her property under conservation easement at the close of 2017.