Hard truths

 

Around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, August 3, the Goochland Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve rezoning approximately 105 acres on Ashland Road north of Interstate 64 from A-2 agricultural to M-2 industrial. A companion conditional use permit to allow a structure of 120 feet on the same parcel was also unanimously approved. This will pave the way for “Project Rocky,” (PR) a middle mile E commerce distribution center, to rise on the site.

The vote followed several hours of thoughtful, passionate, and civil remarks, mostly from residents of Parkside Village, a 55+ residential enclave in the northeast corner of the county.

Unlike public bodies in some other Virginia jurisdictions, Goochland supervisors welcome citizen engagement at their meetings. All are welcome to attend and make comments, which are carefully considered by board members. Each board member said that they take each comment into careful consideration before voting.

Goochland’s comprehensive land use plan and economic development strategic plan consider the interstate interchanges prime economic development areas, to concentrate commercial growth to keep 85 percent of the county rural. The Ashland Road corridor north of I64 has been industrial in nature for decades. A study performed by Virginia Tech showed that, because of its location, Goochland should target logistics operations for economic development. A middle mile distribution center, like PR, is exactly that.

Opposition to PR, centered on increased traffic on Asland Road between I64 and Pouncey Tract Road. Parkside Village residents contended that tractor trailers hauling cargo from ports in Tidewater to PR would use their neighborhood roads as a shortcut to avoid the clogged Ashland Road/Pouncey Tract intersection, which is in Hanover County. That seems very unlikely. A last-minute proffer added a sign prohibiting left turns toward Pouncey Tract Road from the site.

However, these concerns stem from very real daily instances of large trucks cutting through. Perhaps traffic control measures, like a weight limit on through trucks, could relieve this issue for Parkside Village.

Some speakers—most spoke in opposition—were brief and direct. Their comments were pretty much “there’s too much traffic there, I don’t want it”. Others contended, in detail, that the pollution caused by diesel trucks going to and from PR would create significant health problems in a ten-mile radius from the site. One woman presented a detailed description of the harmful effects of pollution on children and fetal development. She contended that pollution from PR would harm children attending the county’s new elementary school, which is more than 20 miles from PR.

If the end user of PR is the widely suspected E commerce entity, it is entirely possible that it will use electric trucks. The approximately 115 miles distance between Rockville and Tidewater ports puts a round trip well within the expected 300-mile range of an electric tractor trailer.  Truck will access PR from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m., when the other businesses in the Ashland Road corridor are closed. Employee shifts will be staggered outside of peak hours.

Another issue was public safety response. Parkside residents were aghast at the notion that, through a mutual aid agreement with Hanover County, EMS calls could be answered from Rockville. Not that long ago, Rockville was in the “first due” territory for Centerville Fire-Rescue Company 3.

Opponents demanded the county build road improvements, including the second bridge over I64 before PR was approved.

Supervisor Ken Peterson, District 5, pointed out that the county tried an “if you build it, they will come” strategy about 20 years ago when it borrowed heavily to pay for the Tuckahoe Creek Service District in expectation that it would attract significant economic development. Instead, the TCSD mired Goochland in debt with little to show for it and “darn near bankrupted the county,” said Peterson. “You can either spend the money and hope the development comes, or wait for revenue from eventual development, which overwhelms your infrastructure, or, what I prefer, you can do them together.” Instead of putting the cart before the horse, Peterson said, hook the horse to the cart and go down the road.

Since the July planning commission meeting, at which time the Ashland Road/I64 improvement was a two-lane diverging diamond, the county has communicated with the governor’s office, and secretaries of transportation and commerce, with indications of support for funding a second bridge over I64. This would enable a four-lane diverging diamond to greatly ease traffic flow.

Supervisor Don Sharpe, District 4, which includes PR and Parkside Village, spelled out the hard truth about improving roads in Virginia. “We could not tax you enough to pay for this ourselves,” he said of the second I64 bridge. Transportation funding in Virginia is incredibly difficult, Sharpe contended. There is only so much money available, only the most pressing needs are funded. If PR was not approved and nothing changed in the corridor, contended Sharpe, traffic congestion will continue to get worse with few options for improvement.

For all the justified complaining about traffic in Goochland, few citizens bother to attend the annual public hearing on the VDOT secondary six-year plan. This is when the supervisors prioritize use of the funds VDOT allocates for road projects in Goochland.

The county has been on a quest for funding to mitigate the I64/Ashland Road congestion for at least seven years. When first submitted to the VDOT “Smart Scale” funding competition, the two-lane diverging diamond interchange (DDI) was ranked 67^th out of 73 projects. Over the years it rose until it was mostly fully funded. (It takes so long for projects to get to the finish line that inflation, even in more normal times, increases the actual cost.)

Deputy County Administrator for Community and Economic Development Jo Ann Hunter, and Sharpe pointed out that only something of the magnitude of PR, estimated to be approximately $500 million, would move the Ashland Road/I64 interchange to the front of the funding line. The investment in Goochland represented by PR is more than the combined new investment in economic development for the previous four years.

In the meantime, PR proffered—that means it must do it—a right turn lane onto I64 west, in addition to double left turn lanes into the site and the longest right turn lane permissible. The I64 right turn land was added after the planning commission presentation. Hunter contended that this would ease congestion at the existing traffic signal, because westbound vehicles would no longer need to wait for the light to change to enter the ramp.

Hunter said that a sound wall built around the truck bays, on the north side of the proposed building, away from residential property to the south, will dampen sound to roughly equivalent to an air conditioner. The project must comply the county’s dark sky lighting regulations.

Traffic from the 1,000 or more employees at PR was another concern. Hunter said that there is adequate parking on the site to accommodate seasonable fluctuation in the workforce. No “satellite” parking facilities are expected. Hunter and Andy Condlin, the attorney representing the applicant, reiterated that there will be no last mile van traffic from PR.

Condlin addressed the complaints about lack of transparency of the end user. The application was filed by Panattoni, LLC, a commercial contractor, who builds facilities all over the country without naming end users, he said. A social media page dedicated to opposing PR is just as opaque.

Peterson recalled that when he voted to approve the rezoning application that created Parkside Village, he was skeptical that anyone would want to live in an industrial area near a quarry. Homes were built and occupied. New residents were surprised to learn that they lived close to an active quarry and other industrial activities including an asphalt plant.

A rezoning application to build homes on land just south of Parkside Village on Pouncey Tract Road, has been withdrawn because it does not follow the Comp Plan, which designates the area for commercial and industrial development.

About 300 people attended the public hearing. They demanded that the supervisors listen to the citizens and do what they wanted. There are approximately 25,000 people in Goochland, all represented by the supervisors.

Citizens who complain that their wishes are ignored never show up for meetings when the comp plan is revised. That is the proper time to weigh in on plans for growth.

Our form of government needs an informed engaged citizenry to function well.

There have been cries for new supervisors. Local elections are next year. Remember, no matter how hard elected officials work to do the people’s business, at least half will be mad at them at any given time. If you run for office and win, be prepared to get lots of angry phone calls from constituents.