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History
of the District
The
Marshall/Warrenton Agricultural and Forestal District was
created in 1981. At its inception, 272 parcels totaling
18,300 acres were included in the District. The District has
been renewed twice, in 1988 and 1996. The district now
consists of 198 parcels totaling 13,872.53 acres. The
District expires on January 20, 2005.
Renewal
Process
The Code of
Virginia establishes procedures for the review and renewal
of local agricultural and forestal districts. The renewal
process is intended to provide the local jurisdiction with
an opportunity to re-evaluate the agricultural and forestal
significance of the land remaining in the district, and to
change or add conditions to the parcels in the district.
The renewal process also provides landowners in the district
an opportunity to re-evaluate their participation in the
district; any landowner may withdraw their parcel from the
district during the renewal process by written request.
Fauquier
County sent letters to all owners of property in the
district notifying them of the renewal process and their
options relative to the renewal. Property owners may
continue to make requests for withdrawals and additions up
to the time the Board of Supervisors acts on the renewal.
Withdrawals
Pursuant to
the Code of Virginia, any landowner with property in the
district may withdraw their land during the renewal process
by submitting a written request for withdrawal. As of
January 3, 2005, 18 parcels with a total of 1380.23 acres
have been withdrawn by the owner.
In 1990,
the Board of Supervisors adopted a policy stating that
parcels less than 25 acres in size will not be permitted
within an agricultural and forestal district unless the
parcel is under an open space easement, or the parcel is
part of a working farm totaling more than 25 acres which are
included within the agricultural and forestal district.
Therefore, it has been the practice that any parcel less
than 25 acres will be automatically removed from the
district during the renewal process, unless a landowner
specifically requests that the parcel remain in the district
and demonstrates compliance with the Board’s 1990 policy. At
the request of the Agricultural and Forestal Committee,
staff has asked the owners of these smaller parcels
requesting to remain to specifically confirm that they are
either part of a working farm over 25 acres in the district
or under open space easement.
There are
81 parcels in the current district that are less than 25
acres. Of these, four (4) have requested withdrawal, and 12
are being removed because no request has been made by the
owner for inclusion. The owners of the remaining 65 parcels
have asked to be included in the renewed district, but, of
these, staff has not included the following nine (9) parcels
in the list of parcels to be renewed because the owner has
not demonstrated compliance with the 1990 Board of
Supervisor’s policy:
PIN#
Owners Acres
1.
6978-35-2541 John R. & Mary Trautmann 22.28
acres
Mr. & Mrs.
Trautmann do farm the land, along with other, larger
parcels, but none of the other parcels are in the
Agricultural & Forestal District; therefore the Board Policy
is not met.
2.
6965-36-1567 Philip R. Croessmann
10.60 acres
Mr.
Croessmann indicates he does utilize the land for
agricultural purposes, but it is not part of a larger
working farm and is not under open space easement.
3.
6978-52-3199 Fawnborough, LLC 5.28
acres
6978-52-8377 Fawnborough, LLC 1.68
acres
6978-82-0415 Fawnborough, LLC 1.90
acres
This
property owner has not provided any requested information to
demonstrate compliance with the Board of Supervisors policy.
4.
6965-19-9992 Hazel B. Olson
2.07 acres
6966-00-8312 Jack O. & Hazel B. Olson
23.77 acres
These
properties together comprise 25 acres, but Mrs. Olson has
indicated they are not farmed; they are trees and grass and
mostly wooded.
5..
6966-74-9935 John & Hillary Davidson
5.33 acres
6966-84-1552 John & Hillary Davidson
10.00 acres
Mr. & Mrs.
Davidson do own a larger wooded parcel in the district where
they live. These two smaller parcels adjoin the larger
parcel. The owners have not indicated that they have a
working farm, and they do not have an open space easement on
the properties.
Additions
The Code of
Virginia also allows additions to be made to the district
during the renewal process up until Board action on the
renewal. As of January 3, 2005, the following requests for
additions have been received:
PIN#
Owners
Acres
1.
6966-99-7575 Raymond Fox, Trustee
33.93
2.
6976-08-8738 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.69
3.
6966-97-7397 Raymond Fox, Trustee
32.21
4.
6966-97-1253 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.87
5.
6966-86-9146 Raymond Fox, Trustee
26.47
6.
6966-77-7324 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
7.
6966-76-5874 Raymond Fox, Trustee
27.00
8.
6966-76-2074 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
9.
6966-68-7155 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
10.
6966-56-9989 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
11.
6966-66-4380 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
12.
6966-56-2031 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
13.
6966-54-8974 Raymond Fox, Trustee
25.00
14.
6966-44-9971 Raymond Fox, Trustee
27.00
The
application materials for these parcels are attached.
Staff has
recommended that these parcels be added to the district.
Each is over 25 acres; hay and forestal products are the
principal products.
Conditions
The Board
may place conditions on the renewal of any district.
Currently, all parcels in the Marshall/Warrenton
Agricultural and Forestal District are subject to the
following conditions:
1. That
pursuant to Title 15.1, Chapter 36. Section 15.1-1512(b) of
the Code of Virginia
(1950), as amended, the Fauquier County Zoning Ordinance
shall apply except as modified
below.
These modifications are necessary to assure that the
Ordinance does not conflict
with
the purpose for which the District was established.
a. All uses allowed by right in the applicable
zoning district(s) for each parcel listed in this
ordinance shall require a special exception except
that farming uses and single family
dwellings on a legally recorded parcel of record
shall be permitted by right.
b. Subdivisions of land as defined in Article 2-39 of the
Fauquier County Subdivision
Ordinance are not permitted.
c. No special exception shall be in conflict with the
purposes for which the District was
created.
2. That
these parcels shall qualify for land use value assessment
provided that the parcels meet
the
criteria of Section 58.1-3229 and 58.1-3244 of the Code of
Virginia.
3. That the
owners of land within the District shall not terminate the
District except as
provided for in Section 15.1-1511(e) of the Code of
Virginia.
4. That
lawful termination of any owner’s association in the
district shall not serve to terminate
the
existence of the district, but the district shall continue
in effect until the review required
by
Section 15.1-1511 (e) of the Code of Virginia.
In addition, recent additions to the district have had these
additional conditions placed on them:
1. If a
parcel is sold, it is to be withdrawn from the District.
2. If a
parcel is sold, divided or boundary adjusted to below 25
acres, it is to be withdrawn
from
the District.
Agricultural and Forestal Advisory Committee and Planning
Commission Review
The
Agricultural and Forestal Advisory Board and the Planning
Commission have both met to review this renewal and
application for addition to the District. These bodies are
charged with advising the Board of Supervisors regarding the
renewal of and additions to Agricultural and Forestal
Districts. The Committee and Planning Commission recommended
that the district be renewed subject to the conditions
recommended by staff. The Committee asked staff to follow up
with additional review of parcels less than 25 acres, to
ensure that owners of such parcels meet the criteria
established by the Board of Supervisors in 1990. Staff has
carefully reviewed the smaller parcels recommended for
inclusion to ensure they do meet the policy. The Board of
Supervisors held a public hearing on December 9, 2004 and
decided to postpone approval of the renewal and additions
until the next meeting.
Staff
Recommended Conditions:
The staff
recommended conditions are incorporated into the attached
ordinance.
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