A Step in the Right Direction

Unfortunately, Thursday’s vote was not the end of it for the Planning Commission. After that vote, the Commission moved to adjourn and reconvene on Friday. At Friday’s meeting, which only 6 of the 10 Commissioners were able to attend, there was another vote, with a result of 5 to 1 to recommend approval of the special use permit. This 5-1 vote is now the official vote of the Commission, superseding Thursday’s vote because although the Orange County bylaws for the Commission allow a tie result (which effectively becomes a denial since an action cannot be approved without a majority), the Virginia Code expressly requires a majority result for a Planning Commission action.

So now it goes to the Board of Supervisors on Monday with the Planning Commission’s recommendation for approval of the special use permit. Three of the five supervisors are already on record (some of them repeatedly) that they also approve of and will vote to grant the special use permit. It’s looking like a done deal at this point, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a 4-1 vote in favor of the permit from the Board.

All of this, of course, is despite the opinions expressed at the two Planning Commission public hearings, where each time the comments by Orange County residents ran about 2-1 against granting the permit. I went to both meetings and said my piece, for what little good it did. Meanwhile, I keep hearing how–based on a poll commissioned by and conducted for Wal-Mart–the Orange county residents “overwhelmingly” want to see the Wal-Mart built at the Wilderness location.

It was good to see the smugness wiped off the faces of the Wal-Mart reps for a few minutes on Thursday night when they realized that the 4-4 vote would be construed as a recommendation to deny their permit, but that victory was short-lived. At this point, the best we can hope for is that the Board will have enough sense to put some teeth into the conditions imposed on Wal-Mart by the terms of the permit so that at least some of the damage can be mitigated.

Today’s issue of the FLS (8/25/09) shows that the Planning Commission recommended 5-4 that the Board of Supervisors approve Walmart Orange Supercenter — correct? When will the Orange County B of S actually vote on the permit application? It would sadden me if the permit application is approved.

I currently live in a small subdivision where a Civil War battle occurred, May 3-4, 1863, namely the Battle of Salem Church and part of the Chancellorsville campaign. Today only an acre+ has survived for posterity. It’s a nice community but unfortunately what has been disturbed can never be retrieved!!!!