*Update to Culpeper County Meetings on Changes to Minor Divisions

NEXT MEETING

 

Public Roundtable with Culpeper County Cedar Mountain District Supervisor David Durr
Saturday, November 2, 2024

12:00pm

Carver Center

4H Room

9432 N James Madison Highway

Rapidan, VA  22733

 

Sample Letter to Planning Commission

 

Culpeper County Planning Commission Public Hearing 

This is a chance to speak and let your voice be heard!

Wednesday, November 20, 2024

7:00pm

Eastern View High School 

16332 Cyclone Way

Culpeper, VA 22701

 

The Planning Commission is moving ahead with a public hearing to solicit public comment on proposed changes to the Minor Division ordinance.  According to a memo provided by staff to the Planning Commission, the changes include the following:

 

1. Draft an ordinance in which the A-1 (Agricultural) and RA (Rural Area) districts be amended such that subdivision in a time based scenario (five-year division) require 10 acres in the A-1 and 6 acres in the RA for lots with adequate road frontage, as opposed to the current 5 acre and 3 acre minimums; and 10 acres in both zoning districts for any lots without required state road frontage. 
2. Develop and draft an ordinance to allow a Rural Cluster option with a density of one residential lot per 10 acres.
3. Develop and draft ordinance provisions that establish private road standards using VDOT's private entrance standards as a basis. 

GPR has analyzed the proposed downzoning and estimates that, if implemented as described, Culpeper County property owners could lose the ability to create over 23,000 lots—an enormous loss of financial opportunity for the community. The clustering provisions offer little incentive for developers and are likely to promote the kind of sprawl that the public typically opposes, without compensating for the lost development rights. Additionally, strict road standards could financially burden many promising future subdivisions. If passed in its current form, this change would severely limit growth in rural areas while failing to address the primary driver of development in the county: large subdivisions that have a significantly greater impact.

 

Update

September 26, 2024

GPR is currently in a pause phase for the Issues Mobilization Campaign on Minor Divisions as the issue works its way through the process.  The Planning Commission sent a proposal to the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors that preserved the current time-based methodology for doing minor divisions and added a clustering option.  The Board of Supervisors rejected that option and instead voted to send a downzoning back to the Planning Commission for consideration.  The Board's motion would keep the time-based methodology but increase the minimum lot size from the current 3 and 5 acre minimums for A-1 and RA to 6 and 10 acre minimums.  In addition, the Board asked the Planning Commission to consider establishing private road standards for any minor divisions.  

 

This is expected to be on the Planning Commission's October 16 work session agenda with a public hearing expected sometime in November.  GPR will send another mailer to our target audience of landowners once the Planning Commission sends something back to the Board.  In the meantime, we will gather the contact information of those who have already responded to our Call for Action and alert them to the Planning Commission public hearing when it is scheduled in case they are motivated to turn out and advocate against these changes.    

 

Meeting Update

Culpeper County Planning Commission

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

The Planning Commission met in a Work Session and extensively discussed many options for further regulating Minor Divisions.  After much debate, one option was officially put forward to the Board of Supervisors to see if the Board would like to formally initiate an ordinance change for that specific option.  This option would encourage clustering when doing Minor Divisions but also allow the option for the current-based system of doing a division every five years for a max of two lots plus a remainder parcel. 

Culpeper County is exploring options to significantly restrict Minor Subdivisions in the A-1 and RA zoning category.  Keep track of all meeting activity using this post.  Public comment is a powerful tool for making sure your elected officials know how proposed changes will impact you.  Consider speaking at an upcoming meeting and telling your story about how valuable your land is to you and your family.

Option 5 reads as follows:  Require clustering in A1/RA but allow option that uses current time-based regulations

• Create new primary minor subdivision ordinance that requires clustering, with an alternative option that uses the current time-based system and lot minimums. 
• Minimum 70% of land must be deed-restricted to one parcel with current rights of a parcel in A1/RA excepting subdivisions rights 
• Minimum 70% of any state road frontage must convey with the 70% land if practicable (if it can be achieved without reducing permitted density in the 30% cluster area)