At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

To motorists on I-64, Zion Crossroads is a convenient stop, offering quick access to gas, fast
food and overnight lodging. For local residents, the community is an emerging commercial
destination. There’s shopping at big box stores like Walmart and Lowe’s, jobs at businesses as
diverse as banks, warehouses and a sawmill, a sprawling subdivision and top-notch golf.
Just 15 miles east of Charlottesville and straddling the Louisa-Fluvanna County line, Zion
Crossroads has long been a target for development. It’s growth explosion over the past
decade-particularly around the I-64 interchange on the Louisa side-has made it an economic
focal point and, in some instances, a battleground.

As county leaders in both Fluvanna and Louisa have wrestled with how to best develop
Zion-considering such broad issues as infrastructure, preservation and aesthetics-tensions have
surfaced both between and within the counties.

The water negotiations of 2010, during which Louisa and Fluvanna failed to ink a deal aimed at
bringing water to the area via a James River pipeline-a key in Fluvanna County’s plan to spark
economic development and Louisa County’s efforts to continue its commercial growth-is only
one manifestation of the swirling debate over what Zion will become in the next decade and how
it will get there.

By the numbers

Louisa County, which claims both the bustling I-64 interchange and the intersection of Rts. 250
and 15-the crossroads from which the community derives its name-has transformed Zion into an
economic engine, dotted with retailers, fast-food restaurants, business parks, a hotel and a
residential community, much of which cropped up just in the last five years.

1 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

In 1999, developers broke ground on the 990-acre Spring Creek subdivision along Route 15.
The potential for thousands of new residents at Zion primed the pump for other sorts of growth,
helping the county attract the jewels in its retail crown-Lowe’s and a Walmart Supercenter. But
any sizable development at Zion demanded infrastructure, namely a water and sewer system.

Over the last decade, Louisa County invested approximately $6.5 million in such a system,
drawing water from over a dozen wells, drilled in excess of 600 feet, and, in 2003, opening the
Zion Crossroads Waste Water Treatment Plant. According to local officials, it’s money well
spent.

“Look at what Zion brings back to the county in real estate taxes and now sales taxes. It’s a
very sound investment,” Louisa’s Patrick Henry District Supervisor Fitzgerald Barnes said.
“Zion has always been a desired location from a geographic standpoint. For us, infrastructure
was the key. Zion would remain a ghost town if not for the water and sewer infrastructure we
put in.”

Louisa County boasts a significant return on its investment. Since 2008, the county pulled in
over $12 million in revenue, including property taxes and sales taxes, from the Zion Crossroads
Designated Growth Area, which stretches south of Camp Creek to the Fluvanna County line
and east along Rt. 250. In 2005, prior to much of Zion’s commercial growth, Louisa’s revenue
for the area totaled approximately $1.28 million compared to $4.5 million in 2010. In Oct. of
2010, the county collected almost $50,000 in sales tax from Walmart alone. Lowe’s chipped in
nearly $20,000. (Virginia localities receive one percent of sale tax revenue).

According to Louisa’s Economic Development Director Andy Wade, the retail behemoths
together project about $100 million in sales in the coming year. Walmart, which also operates a
large distribution center at Zion, has emerged as one of the county’s leading employers and top
taxpayers.

“Folks in Louisa and Fluvanna didn’t have any where to shop. Paychecks cashed here just
went to further economic growth in Charlottesville and Richmond,” said Supervisor Richard
Havasy, whose Green Springs District includes Zion. “Now people don’t have to leave to spend
their money. It stays in the community.”

2 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

Over the last two years, a variety of establishments have opened in the area’s shopping centers
and business parks including Walmart, IHOP, UVA Credit Union, a dentist office, medical
practice and animal hospital, among others. The businesses provide shopping, dining and
much-needed services, local officials said.

For its part, Fluvanna County has been reluctant to fund infrastructure at Zion, leading to much
slower growth. Its side of the crossroads is primarily home to semi-industrial businesses and a
few retailers. Better Living Building Supplies, Cabinets by Design, Van der linde Recycling and
Blue Ridge Mountain Sports corporate headquarters and warehouse all opened around
Fluvanna’s slice of the Rt. 250 corridor over the last several years.

Big box stores

Still, such development can’t compete with big box store revenues. From Nov. 1, 2009 to Oct.
31, 2010, Walmart and Lowe’s contributed $776,651.17 in sales tax to Louisa County. For
fiscal year 2010, Fluvanna collected just over $1 million in sales tax from the county as a whole.
According to Virginia Department of Taxation figures, made available via UVA’s Weldon Cooper
Center for Public Policy, Fluvanna collected nearly $97,500 in sales tax revenue in September
2010 while Louisa garnered over $245,000. Walmart and Lowe’s contributed almost $68,000
per Louisa County’s figures. Specific revenue data for the Zion growth area was not
immediately available from Fluvanna County, which currently lacks an economic development
director.

“I can only speculate [about Fluvanna’s approach to Zion]. Some people may feel that
[investing in infrastructure] will increase sprawl. Some people don’t want growth,” Barnes said
of the divergent development patterns along the county line. “When you make these kinds of
investments, you have to believe what you are doing will benefit the population. We’ve seen the
results in Louisa.”

Some Fluvanna officials have seen those results too and believe it’s time the county joins the
crossroads’ business boom. Investing in infrastructure at Zion, they claim, is crucial to pulling
the county out of its near crippling fiscal constraints—Fluvanna faces mounting debt, much of it
associated with the construction of its new high school, about a million dollars in annual
operating expenses once the school opens, a significant overhaul of its emergency
communication system and other issues that could further cloud its financial picture.

“[Zion is] definitely our primary target for economic development…it’s a not a panacea. It’s not

3 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

going to solve all our problems but it is one solution,” Planning Director Darren Coffey said,
adding that Louisa’s success in the area has created a “synergy,” helping to open the door to
economic growth for its neighbor. “We can have dense development, a wider variety of
businesses that could potentially create significant revenue streams for the county. We are glad
to have the businesses that are there now. But we want to build on that.”

Newly-appointed Board of Supervisors’ Chair John Gooch (Palmyra District) agrees. “I have no
doubt that it would be a good investment…I don’t think we can ever catch up with Louisa but I
would like to see us get our share,” he said, noting that “rooftops are funding our county” and
commercial development would diversify the tax base.

Given the county’s fiscal woes, some residents argue that now is not the time to spend millions
on such infrastructure. “If the county were an individual, we would be sent to credit counseling,”
said Elizabeth Franklin of the Fluvanna Taxpayers Association (FTA), a citizens’ group that
rallied against the counties’ proposed James River pipeline.

Water wars

Louisa County and Fluvanna County have, for years, discussed bringing water to the Zion area.
Louisa’s current solution-ultra-deep wells primarily located in the Green Springs National
Historic Landmark District, which adjoins the northern end of the Zion Crossroads growth
area-can’t provide adequate water for full build out.

To keep their dreams of economic development alive on both sides of I-64, the counties formed
the James River Water Authority (JRWA), which now holds a withdrawal permit for the area’s
largest river. On the cusp of moving forward with a 22-mile, roughly $55 million pipeline,
Fluvanna faced mounting pressure from residents-a number of whom pushed for a public
referendum-and lawsuits questioning JRWA’s legality.

When Fluvanna County missed a crucial bond pool funding deadline, Louisa halted
negotiations, stating in a press release that talks about a pipeline had been underway for 15
years and that the project should have been completed in 2007. The release also noted that
both counties had spent about $1 million preparing for the project.

The project’s collapse raised the temperature among folks in both counties and, in an area long

4 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

targeted for regional cooperation, seemed to suggest that the neighbors might struggle to work
together in the future. Though JRWA is still intact, leaving the door open for a joint pipeline to
the James in the future, both counties are scrambling to settle on individual infrastructure plans.

In Fluvanna, several supervisors said that pumping water to Zion is high on their agenda.
Gooch admits he isn’t exactly sure how the county will bring the resource to the area. But he
and Supervisors Shaun Kenney (Columbia District) and Joe Chesser (Rivanna District) did point
to a potential partnership with Aqua Virginia, Lake Monticello’s water provider, noting that the
project would cost millions less than a cross-county James River line. One Aqua Virginia plan
studied last year had an estimated cost of $7.6 million.

Chesser said the potential pipeline would draw water from the Rivanna River, via Aqua Virginia,
and run along Rt. 250 to Zion. He believes the project could be completed by the middle of
2012. “It’s only a few miles. You can drive this in five to 10 minutes. Why can’t we build a
pipeline by next year,” Chesser said, adding that the county is first concentrating on water then
will consider sewer infrastructure.

Kenney had a similar view. “When the shovel is in the ground, it’s 18 months until we have
water...One way or another, water is coming to Zion Crossroads,” he said. He expects a
pipeline project to be on the table during the fiscal year 2012 budget process.

Still, both supervisors suggested that the answer to Fluvanna’s long-term water needs, which
extend beyond Zion, may ultimately lie with the James.

Franklin, who represented the FTA on the Citizens Water Committee (CWC), a group that
studied a range of water plans last year, isn’t a fan of any of the county’s pricey options. Of the
14 proposals considered by the county and the CWC, her group overwhelmingly supported
what they called “The County is Broke Plan.” Translation: Presently, Fluvanna should not make
any investments in a public water line to Zion or anywhere else.

Franklin contends that a pipeline to Zion should not be on the taxpayers’ dime. Instead,
businesses that will benefit from it should foot the bill. She doesn’t buy the argument that
economic development means tax relief for citizens, worrying, in part, that it will bring in
residents, who will need more services. If growth at Zion really means lower taxes, she wants

5 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

some proof. “Show us a business plan. Do the math. Sell it to us like you would sell us a
mutual fund,” she said. Fluvanna’s property tax rate is currently 54 cents per $100 of assessed
value, though an increase is likely. Its more developed neighbor, Louisa, has a 62-cent rate.

In Franklin’s view, if supervisors continue to pursue a costly pipeline, they are “not in touch with
the people.” “County leaders should listen to citizens. It’s a testament to the swell of outrage
that people packed [so many county meetings],” she said.

Louisa has its own infrastructure struggles. The county has long been locked in legal battles
with Historic Green Springs Inc. (HGSI), a preservation group dedicated to protecting the Green
Springs National Historic Landmark District, a picturesque swath of farmland dotted with 18th
and 19th century homes prized by architectural historians.

HGSI’s latest legal efforts have resulted in heavy penalties for the county. In Camp Creek,
which forms a natural border between the development of Zion and the pastures of Green
Springs and runs through a number of farms, the group discovered high levels of polluted
discharge, courtesy of the Zion Crossroads Wastewater Treatment Plant. A series of reporting
errors on part of the plant were also uncovered.

In December 2010, Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality levied over $164,000 in

fines. HGSI President Rae Ely said the group is currently pursuing action against the county in
federal court that could lead to additional fines and penalties. County Attorney and former
interim County Administrator Dale Mullen, who began overseeing the plant in the wake of the
problems, did not return repeated phone calls for comment.

Ely and HGSI’s water concerns go far beyond Camp Creek. Zion’s wells lie within Louisa’s
historic district and, according to Ely, are a threat to the long-term water supply of both
communities. “It’s just not sustainable...they can’t keep drawing down the water table in Green
Springs. If Green Springs dries up that will dry up Zion Crossroads as well,” she said, noting
that springs have already dried up on several farms.

Ely doesn’t believe the county can find a cost-effective way to support Zion’s continued growth.
“Louisa’s Board of Supervisors can wish with all their hearts that there will be water at Zion but

6 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

there is no magical place where it will come from,” she said. “Their best bet was the James
River and even that was dicey.”

Havasy and Barnes disagree. Havasy, who lives in the historic district, said the county monitors
its wells and, while they fluctuate with weather conditions as any well would, there have been no
significant problems. Barnes sees HGSI’s legal pursuits against the county as “a waste of
taxpayers’ money.”

Barnes didn’t provide details of Louisa’s current water plan, saying the county was looking at
several options. He pointed out that implementing water and sewer infrastructure near Lake
Anna, another area ripe for commercial growth, is also high on the county’s agenda.

Havasy pointed to a potential pipeline that would connect Zion to the county’s Northeast Creek
reservoir. He said the line would cost about $10 million dollars less than the James River
project and could be completed in the next several years. He also noted that the county hopes
to solicit bids for additional sewage infrastructure this year.

While both counties pursue their own water plans, some believe that the door is still open for a
future joint James River pipeline. “No one on this end has closed any doors and I don’t think
anyone [in Louisa] has either. It just makes sense to work together,” Coffey, formerly Louisa’s
Community Development Director, said. Coffey dismissed the idea that there may be lingering
animosity among county officials.

Havasy agrees that regional cooperation is mutually-beneficial, believes the counties can work
together and mentions the potential for projects like a joint medical park. But, he said, their
water partnership is “dead.”

Zion today and tomorrow

Assuming Fluvanna finds a way to get a water and sewer system to Zion, officials on both sides
of the county line see a bright future. “Louisa was the first to step up and make those
investments. But we are [geographically] locked in by the historic district. The future belongs to
Fluvanna. Louisa has the point but the sword is Fluvanna’s,” Havasy said.

7 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

Dennis Holder of Fluvanna Friends of Rural Preservation (FFRP), a local group dedicated to
maintaining the county’s rural character and opposed to the joint James River line, takes a
different view. He worries that the area will attract “fringe” development like apartment buildings
while Louisa reaps the revenue-producing “core” development. “Louisa has the geographical
advantage. We don’t have the highway or the crossroads. We are on the fringe,” he said.

For a glimpse of Zion’s development potential, Coffey points to the county’s Comprehensive
Plan, approved via a lengthy public process in 2009. He describes the plan as a detailed guide
for “achievable” development at Zion, not a “pie-in-the-sky, happy vision.” He also points out
that the county needs to focus its development on revenue-drawing commercial enterprises
while including some residential space.

The comp plan paints a compelling picture of Zion’s future, focusing on high-density
village-style, mixed-use growth that limits sprawl and offers a place for folks to live, work and
play. The plan recommends a transportation infrastructure that is not only car-friendly but
pedestrian and bike-friendly too. It encourages commercial growth that, in part, includes an
anchor retailer, a mix of local businesses, mid-size stores and other services, and suggests a
park and playing fields. In effect, the plan aims to retain a sense of identity and community at
Zion while reaping the economic benefits of commercial growth.

Holder took part in the comp plan’s public process and believes there is good in it.

He and FFRP aren’t against development in the county’s designated growth areas-89% of the
county is deemed rural while 11%, including six community planning areas, is designated for
growth-but he doubts Fluvanna can achieve the plan’s vision.

Holder contends that this type of development, with extras like sidewalks, drives up costs. He
worries developers will look elsewhere in the county where land and building costs may be
cheaper. He’s also concerned about industrial sprawl along the Rt. 250 corridor. “In any city,
there is always some highway that has the used car shops, the waste disposal, the
semi-industrial businesses. We would hate to see 250 become that kind of highway,” he said.

Kenney isn’t so concerned. “I would be concerned about sprawl if the comp plan wasn’t so
good,” he said. He doesn’t want Fluvanna to hinge its development on big box stores, like

8 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

Louisa, questioning the sustainability of such an approach. He points to Northern Virginia

shopping centers along Rt. 1 where hulking retail establishments now stand empty.

Louisa County officials are proud of Zion Crossroads with its commercial amenities and the
Spring Creek subdivision nestled among them. “Spring Creek is such a quality development,”
Havasy said, pointing to its entrances, generous buffers, upscale homes and
nationally-renowned golf course. “You attract quality with a place like that. It makes you feel
good when you have this [kind of development].”

Ely doesn’t see anything quality in Louisa’s approach at Zion. “[HGSI] wanted Zion to be an
attractive gateway to [Green Springs]. We tried to help with design but the county wouldn’t
listen. We wanted something that was a cut above strip development,” she said.

Louisa officials shrug off Ely’s complaints and maintain that they are on the right path. In tough
economic times, they said, Zion has provided a glimmer of hope. Businesses continue to open
at the Shoppes at Spring Creek including Anytime Fitness and a soon-to-arrive Subway, Made
in Asia restaurant, Go Wireless and Hair Cuttery, as well as at neighboring developments.
“Zion is still on the upswing,” Barnes said. “We are one of the few areas that still has
construction.”

Living on the county line

There’s plenty of talk about Zion among the planners, politicians and preservationists but its
unlikely many folks know the area better than Stuart and Ivy Glass, proprietors of the Crescent
Inn at the corner of Routes 15 and 250.  Eighty-three year-old Stuart Glass was raised in
Fluvanna County, about a mile from the crossroads.  His mother, Grace, ran a country store in
the community and her industrious son eventually joined her there, stocking groceries at night
after finishing his shift cutting meat at Safeway.

In the 1950s, Glass and three other aspiring local businessmen, including E.W. Thomas, started
a string of small grocery stores that they simply called “Buy Low.”  The passers-by who
frequented Glass’ country store-turned-supermarket, often just for the coffee and camaraderie,

9 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

soon convinced its owner to open a restaurant across the street and, in 1956, the Crescent Inn
was born.

The small inn, then the area’s only eatery, catered to a mix of truckers, travelers and neighbors
with a menu of inexpensive comfort food.  Over a half-century later, the restaurant still draws
some truckers but its mainly loyal locals who keep the doors open.  They come for the
hamburger steak-Ivy Glass says it’s a bestseller-the omelets, the cheap daily specials and the
conversation.

Aside from a sizable addition and a new sign (a motorist knocked down the original one), the
Crescent Inn hasn’t changed too much over the years. But its neighborhood sure has.

When Glass began working alongside his mother at the store, the crossroads was known as
Hasher’s Corner because, as he puts it, “J.B. Hasher owned all four corners.”   Glass isn’t sure
why folks started calling it Zion, the name of a train depot a little ways down the road.  But he
remembers how a few small businesses, like his store and a service station, thrived long before
the construction of Interstate 64 in the 1960s.

That Zion has grown into a commercial hub doesn’t surprise the couple, who have run several
successful businesses in the area including a roadside motel.  “I always suspected this area
would be something,” Stuart Glass said.

Those keen suspicions led the Glasses to invest in real estate. They scooped up several
parcels from Hasher decades ago.  “He would finance it and I would buy it,” Stuart Glass said. 
Needless to say, it was a very wise investment.  The couple owns nearly 200 acres around the
crossroads, much of it prime commercial property.

Yet, the Glasses are somewhat wistful about Zion’s development.  They like the shopping and
other services that are now available for locals and they hope more businesses will come to “the
other side of 64” as Stuart said, but they miss the close-knit feel of the community and the way
business used to be done.

10 / 11
At a Crossroads

Written by Tammy Purcell, Correspondent

Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:15 - Last Updated Wednesday, 02 February 2011 13:18

Stuart Glass remembers when he built the inn’s addition, how part of it inadvertently wound up
on an adjoining slice of land.  Glass purchased the piece, without contracts or lawyers, just
folks’ word.

Zion real estate deals aren’t so easily worked out these days.  In 2006, the Glasses struck a
multi-million dollar deal with Capital Land Management to sell a 119-acre parcel adjacent to
Burger King along Rt. 15.  The Utah developer planned to build Merchant’s Walk, a one million
square-foot, “eco-friendly” outlet mall, with restaurants, a convention center and more.  The
company halted the project in 2008.  Ivy Glass attributes the move to a souring economy.

But the Glasses have taken the deal in stride.  Stuart Glass said at least one or two people a
week approach him about buying a piece of his property but he isn’t interested in selling off
small parcels.

Glass chuckles when he talks about the politics of life on the county line. He has followed the
water debate and notes, with a smile, that he is in the middle of three supervisors’ districts –
Gooch’s Palmyra District, Barnes’ Patrick Henry District and Havasy’s Green Springs District.

In fact, his restaurant’s location has caused a bit of confusion through the years.  “I paid taxes in
Fluvanna County for 50 years,” he said.  “Then I got a notice saying I was in Louisa County.”

11 / 11