In a November 20 Herald-Progress letter to the editor, Doswell resident Mark Gardner demands clarification on rural preservation promises.

        It seems an opportune time, with a slowed economy and limited development pressure, for the Board of Supervisors to define exactly what the rural preservation areas are and how they are to be preserved.
        I know there was a committee formed and I do recall one article in the Herald-Progress expounding on some of the suggestions the committee presented, but the issue has been pretty dormant. It is typical of government to paint ideals with a very broad brush to gain public acceptance but never really get down to defining specifics.
       As time goes on, development within the designated preservation areas will typically impact a fairly small number of people. This is much easier for the Supervisors and the Planning Commission to deal with than a county wide request for action. A perfect example is what happened recently in Doswell. When we first attended meetings concerning the Comprehensive Plan update an area later approved for a major expansion of the Martin Marietta quarry expansion was shown on the maps as rural preservation. The maps changed after the final public meeting and it was pretty easy for the Board of Supervisors to ignore the couple of hundred citizens that were directly affected.
       I ask the Board to put on paper and the citizens of Hanover to demand clarification of the County’s promise of rural preservation. We pay the taxes and these people work for us! We have a right to demand action and now is the time for straight answers.
 
Mark W. Gardner
Doswell
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Filed under: 2006 Comp Plan |