Received by email at fauquierNews on 3 December 2007

NOTE:  The text below with strikethru and highlighted in yellow were requested deleted by Amy Trotto.

Concerned residents in New Baltimore and Scott District have established Citizens for Accountability in Government (CAG) in response to the Fauquier County Board of Supervisors' special exception zoning approval of a Costco in New Baltimore on November 8, 2007.  The decision violated the County Zoning Ordinance, and sets a bad precedent for future zoning applications.  Legal action will soon be taken to seek to overturn the Costco special exception decision and to prevent recurrence of ignoring our County’s ordinances in future land-use decisions.  CAG is designed to be an advocacy group for smart growth and sound planning, and to provide neighborhood and financial support for legal actions when needed to assure local government accountability.
 
A little background information may be useful to understanding the merits of CAG’s mission.  Although comprehensive plans are generally considered merely advisory, Fauquier County Zoning Ordinance § 5-006.1 expressly requires that the proposed use in a special exception application be “in accordance with” the applicable provisions of the adopted Comprehensive Plan.

In the case of the Costco special exception application, the Comprehensive Plan calls for a prohibition on destination retail concentration or big box stores in the New Baltimore Service District.  The New Baltimore Citizens’ Committee, appointed by the Board to review and revise the existing Comprehensive Plan, added the preclusion of “big box store” in the Draft dated 05/04/06, which was approved by the Planning Commission on 09/28/06.  After being presented with at least four drafts of the Plan for review and revision, the Board of Supervisors unanimously adopted the Plan with the added “big box store” prohibition on April 12, 2007.  The Plan was adopted the same month that the Costco application for a special exception was filed with the County.

 Before a special exception application is heard before the Board of Supervisors, the application is considered by the County’s Planning Commission.  The Board of Supervisors appoints the Planning Commission members.  After four months of public hearings and consideration, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended denial of the application, finding that the proposed use is incompatible with the general area and the Comprehensive Plan, inconsistent with the zoning ordinance, and will create hazardous traffic.

 The majority of the five-member Board of Supervisors approved the special exception application on November 8, 2007.  During their deliberations on the special exception application, all five Supervisors acknowledged that the proposed use was not called for under the New Baltimore Comprehensive Plan.  While Supervisors Robison and Atherton cited this as a reason for denying the special exception application, Supervisors Stribling, Graham and Downey approved the application despite its acknowledged conflict with the Plan. 

 CAG believes that accountable government requires our Board of Supervisors to follow the zoning ordinances when making land-use decisions.  Indeed, in adopting its Code of Ethics, the current Board has recognized that the effective functioning of democratic government requires that our elected officials comply with the letter and spirit of the laws that affect their decisions, including Fauquier’s Codes and Ordinances, in order to provide an accountable local government worthy of the public’s full confidence for integrity.

 CAG also believes that smart growth and sound planning can not occur when our Board of Supervisors ignores our zoning ordinances when making land-use decisions.  Fauquier County’s zoning ordinances and land use plan are based upon decades of commitment to preserving the rural country and rural economy while steering reasonable growth into service districts. For smart growth success, it is incumbent on the County to ensure that service districts are places of high quality that add to the community and are embraced by the citizens who already live there.  Part of making service districts work is adherence to the zoning ordinance and comprehensive plan, which were designed to work together to protect our sense of community and sense of place within the County. 

CAG is sponsoring a "Defense Fund" contribution drive to support legal expenses associated with the defense of Fauquier County's Zoning Ordinance which was not complied with in the Costco decision.  The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) has agreed to serve as fiscal agent by receiving designated donations for this effort and dispensing funds as needed.

A tax deductible donation to the CAG Defense Fund may be made by:

Mailing a Check to:  

                PEC
                Attn: CAG Defense Fund   
                PO Box 460
                Warrenton, VA 20188
    Please note in the memo line either "CAG Defense Fund"

On-line at https://secure.citizen-networks.org/08/supportpec

Please BE SURE to complete the DESIGNATED GIFT box by entering "CAG Defense Fund" to ensure your funds are used to overturn the Costco Special Exception decision.

By phone, by calling (540) 341-0175 ext. 4 during weekday normal working hours.  Please be sure to let the PEC staff member know to designate your donation for "CAG Defense Fund".

 Also, if you would like to show your support for this effort, please send an e-mail to cagfauquier@earthlink.net with your name, phone number, and county district so we can include you on our membership list.  Please indicate if you do not want us to share your contact information with other CAG members.  Thank you.

 Amy Trotto, Mindi O’Connor, Kim Baird and Barbara Jancse.