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Text of a letter from the Commonwealth of Virginia Department of
Historic Resources:
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December 27, 2001
Ms. Deborah Kendall
Planning Director & Zoning Administrator
Orange County Department of Planning and Zoning
112 West Main Street, P.O. Box 111
Orange, VA 22960
By fax: 540 672-1679
Re: Application for Special Use Permit, General Shale Products, LLC
Dear Ms Kendall:
This is to inform you that the Board of Historic Resources, an agency
of the Commonwealth served by this department, holds a permanent
preservation easement on Burlington, a property listed on both the
Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic
Places. Burlington is adjacent to the Darnell property for which
General Shale Products is seeking a special use permit for surface
mining. The Burlington easement, donated in 1996, covers the
property's entire 199.63 acres. It provides architectural controls
over the mansion, limits subdivision, and prohibits surface mining. As
administrator of this easement, I wish to state this department's
opposition to the special use permit. Surface mining on property
adjacent to Burlington, potentially within one thousand feet of the
historic mansion, will have a detrimental environmental impact on
Burlington and is incompatible with Burlington's historic and scenic
character, which this department is obligated to protect.
Both the Darnell property and Burlington are within the boundaries of
the Madison-Barbour Rural Historic District, which is also listed on
the Virginia and National registers. This district, composed of
unspoiled pastoral scenery, is one of Virginia's most intact cultural
landscapes. The district is named for the area's two most famous
landowners, James Madison and James Barbour, who were responsible for
its two nationally significant plantation complexes, Montpelier and
Barboursville. This department worked closely with Orange County as
well as many property owners in establishing this official
recognition. I should mention that we also administer preservation
easements on four other properties within the district: Beaumont,
Frascati, Greenwood, and Rocklands. These easements also prohibit
surface mining.
In order to maintain the integrity of both Burlington and the
Madison-Barbour Rural Historic District, I ask that Orange County
maintain the current agricultural zoning of the Darnell property.
Surface mining is an incompatible land use for this special area.
Sincerely,
Virginia Epps McConnell
Easement Administrator
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