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History
of the District
The Plains
Agricultural and Forestal District was created in 1981. At
its inception, 51 parcels totaling 8,999 acres were included
in the District. The District has been renewed twice, in
1988 and 1996. The district now consists of 123 parcels
totaling 12,593 acres. On January 20, 2005, the District
expires.
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 has 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
December 3, 2004, nine parcels with a total of 1061.98 acres
have been withdrawn by the owners.
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, any parcel less than 25 acres will automatically
be 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 direction of the Agricultural
and Forestal Committee, staff has asked the owners of these
smaller parcels to specifically confirm that they are either
part of a working farm over 25 acres in the district or
under open space easement.
Of the 123
parcels, 22 parcels are less than 25 acres. As of November
22, 2004, of these 21 parcels, 5 are being removed because
no request has been made by the owner for inclusion, and 1
has been withdrawn by the owner. The owners of the
remaining 16 parcels have asked to be included in the
renewed district, but of these, staff has not included the
following 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.
6090-89-3729 Peter D. & Linda D.
Rich 21.06 acres
6090-89-4240 Peter D. & Linda D.
Rich 11.98 acres
Mr. & Mrs.
Rich have stated that their property is in an open space
easement pursuant to the
Virginia
Open Space Land Act, but have provided no documentation to
confirm this, therefore staff is unsure that these parcels
comply with the Board of Supervisors policy.
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 December 3, 2004, the following requests
for additions have been received:
PIN#
Owners
Acres
1.
7000-55-1219 Andrea Currier/Kinloch
Farm 152.5 acres
The
application materials for this parcel are attached.
Staff has
recommended inclusion of the Currier parcel in the
district. It is located off Bust Head Road, north of its
intersection with Hopewell Road. This parcel is part of a
working cattle farm which includes ten other parcels already
in the Agricultural and Forestal District.
Conditions
The Board
of Supervisors may place conditions on the renewal of any
district. Currently, all parcels in The Plains 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 Board 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.
Staff
Recommendation:
The staff
recommended conditions are incorporated into the attached
Ordinance.
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