PUBLIC HEARING REQUEST

                                                                        Board of Supervisors

Owner/Applicant:                                                                   Meeting Date:

Fauquier County Board of Supervisors, Applicant                      February 18, 2003

Luck Stone Corporation, Owner

Staff Lead:                                                                             Department:

Robert C. Counts                                                                Community Development

Magisterial District:  Lee                                                      PIN(s):

Service District:  None                                                          6898-27-5158-000

Topic:

Special Exception Amendment SEA03-L-01: Temporary Suspension of a Special Exception condition to allow the use of a private road to deliver equipment and building materials through the Luck Stone property to the Marsh Run Generation Corporation Peaking Facility being constructed near Lucky Hill Road (Route 655).                         

Topic Description:

On December 16, 2002 , the Fauquier County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution referring a Board requested Special Exception Amendment to the Planning Commission for public hearing and recommendation. The Board’s request called for an additional amendment to an existing Special Exception granted to Luck Stone Corporation allowing for the operation of a stone quarry on property owned by the company. That quarry operation is not the subject of this amendment.

The original Special Exception granted to Luck Stone (renewed several times since) was conditioned by a prohibition against using a private road through the property to bypass public roadways for the delivery of materials.  In November of 1999, the Board of Supervisors approved an amendment to the Special Exception temporarily lifting this prohibition. Specifically, the use of the private road was allowed for the delivery of equipment (e.g. large scale electrical generators) and building materials to the Virginia Power Peaking Facility during the construction period for that facility on Lucky Hill Road .  The purpose of that amendment was to alleviate safety concerns on existing public roads associated with the transport of significant quantities of concrete, stone, and asphalt and heavy equipment needed during the construction of the Virginia Power facility.

The Marsh Run Generation Corporation [a.k.a. Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC)] will soon begin construction on another similar peaking facility, also located off Lucky Hill Road . The proximity of the site to Luck Stone and the type of construction to be undertaken make the situation at the Marsh Run facility very similar to the one that faced Virginia Power in 1999. In order to overcome the same type safety concerns, the Board of Supervisors has requested another amendment to the Luck Stone Special Exception, this time allowing the use of the private road through the Luck Stone property for the delivery of construction materials and equipment to the site of the Marsh Run Peaking Facility. The Luck Stone Corporation has accepted the amendment proposal, and has voluntarily signed the requisite land development application for the Special Exception, as the property owner.

Action Requested of the Board of Supervisors:

The Board is requested to conduct a public hearing consider adoption of the attached resolution.

Staff Analysis and Planning Commission Recommendation:

The proposed amendment to the Luck Stone Special Exception would allow the temporary use of a private road through the Luck Stone property to minimize the use of adjacent public roads to deliver concrete, stone, asphalt, turbines, other materials, and heavy equipment. The proposed amendment is virtually identical to a prior amendment used to successfully mitigate safety concerns associated with the construction of the Virginia Power Peaking Facility from November 1999 through part of 2001.

If approved, the proposed Special Exception Amendment will minimize the effects of heavy construction traffic on all but a short section of Lucky Hill Road and Old Grassdale Road (Route 782). It will diminish the need for additional truck traffic on Remington Road (Route 656) and potentially eliminate the need for an at-grade railroad crossing in the vicinity of Remington Road and Lucky Hill Road .  The Luck Stone Corporation supports this condition amendment.

The Planning Commission held a public hearing on this application at its regular meeting held on January 23, 2003 . Based on public testimony and staff analysis, the Planning Commission concluded that the temporary use of the private road though the Luck Stone property will benefit the area residents by reducing potential road hazards associated with transporting materials and heavy equipment during the construction of the Marsh Run Peaking Facility. Given the relatively short duration of this use, the amendment should not establish an undesirable precedent for the use of private roadways. Accordingly, the Planning Commission voted to forward a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors for the approval of SEA03-L-01, subject to the following conditions:

  1. That the amendment be limited to allow the use of the Luck Stone private road only to permit delivery of concrete, stone, asphalt, turbines, and other construction materials and equipment directly related to the construction of the Marsh Run Generation Corporation Peaking Facility.
  2. That ODEC monitor the use of the Luck Stone private road to assure that the road is only used for traffic related to the construction of the Marsh Run facility.
  3. That the term of this amendment will be limited to the duration of the construction of the Marsh Run Peaking Facility, and will expire upon completion of that facility.