April 15, 2026 – The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors held a public hearing Tuesday evening on the Valley Commerce Center application, a proposal that would rezone approximately 117 acres in the Purcellville Joint Land Management Area (JLMA) for an industrial and business park of up to 986,000 square feet. The application, Leg. 2023-0080, requests rezoning from JLMA-3 to Planned Development Industrial Park (PDIP), along with a zoning modification to waive certain road, water, and wastewater requirements under grandfathering provisions of the revised 1993 zoning ordinance.
The property, known as the former Warner Farm, sits on the north side of Route 7 east of Purcellville Road and is currently undeveloped, featuring tree areas that include old-growth forest. Neighboring properties include the Wright Farm subdivision to the east, Chestnut Hill to the northwest, the Mayfair community to the west across Purcellville Road, and the newly established Hillsboro Agricultural and Forestal District to the north.
Thirty-two speakers testified during a public comment period that ran nearly two hours. Eighteen urged the board to deny the application, while 14 spoke in support, many citing a critical shortage of flex industrial and warehouse space for Western Loudoun businesses. Chair Randall noted at the close of comments that the split was closer than she had expected.
Elected Officials Raise Concerns
Purcellville Mayor Christopher Bertaut opened elected official testimony by urging the board to reject the rezoning. He warned that the proposed industrial square footage would amount to more than six times the light industrial space currently available inside the town, which he said risked hollowing out Purcellville’s commercial core. “This project was rejected by your own planning department because it’s fundamentally incompatible with uses envisioned in the county’s comprehensive plan,” Bertaut said.
Purcellville Town Councilman Caleb Stought, a Mayfair resident, cited both water and traffic as primary concerns. He referenced the town’s 2019 mandatory water restrictions enacted in response to drought conditions and warned that drawing tens of thousands of gallons daily from the local aquifer “can only exacerbate this problem.” On traffic, Stought described the intersection of Purcellville Road and Hirst Road as already severely congested during school hours, telling the board it was “not an intersection where I want traffic to degrade.”
Councilwoman Erin Rayner, speaking as a Mayfair resident, focused specifically on the proposed northern collector road and its potential routing through Mayfair Crown Drive. She asked the board to remove that segment from the transportation plan, calling it a residential road that ends at a high school access road. Chair Randall responded by offering to drive the corridor with Raynor to better understand the layout.
Opposition: Traffic, Water, and Comprehensive Plan
Opponents consistently raised three concerns: traffic safety on Purcellville Road, groundwater impacts on private wells, and incompatibility with the 2019 Comprehensive Plan. Lloyd Harding presented road dimension data, noting that Purcellville Road lanes measure only seven feet, four inches wide — narrower than a standard tractor-trailer. “It is physically impossible for two tractor-trailers to pass each other going in opposite directions,” he said, adding that through-truck traffic is already prohibited on the road by posted signage.
Michael Parrish cited a community survey showing 93 percent opposition among Mayfair, Wright Farm, and Chestnut Hill residents, and warned against “industrial creep — one approval at a time.” Brenda Alder, who lives adjacent to the proposed site, challenged the hydrogeological data directly, stating the study found the project would require over 157,000 gallons of water per day from a well capable of supporting only 75,000. “That is not a safety net,” she said. “That is a gamble with our lives.”
Tia Earman, speaking on behalf of the Piedmont Environmental Council, argued the 24-month monitoring window was too short and called the applicant-funded oversight insufficient. “Allowing a hydrogeologist working for the applicant to monitor and determine if damage to wells is occurring is akin to allowing the fox to guard the henhouse.” John Ellis of Save Rural Loudoun added that the project’s traffic generation would negate the congestion relief expected from the Route 7/Route 690 interchange currently under construction on Hurst Road.
Angela Mendez, a Mayfair homeowner, offered a personal account of what the community means to her family after years of saving to leave an unsafe neighborhood. “Moving to Purcellville wasn’t just buying a home,” she said. “It was the moment that dream came true.” She asked the board to “protect our children and reject this proposal.”
Nan Joseph Forbes, chair of the county’s Board of Zoning Appeals, spoke in a personal capacity and urged supervisors to review the relevant state code sections governing rezoning criteria. “No one bought their home expecting an industrial park next door,” she said. “No one signed up for this.”
Support: Flex Industrial Shortage and Local Business Needs
Fourteen speakers, including local business owners, commercial real estate professionals, and a farmers wife, argued that Western Loudoun faces a genuine crisis in the availability of flex industrial and light warehouse space that is forcing businesses to relocate.
Tony Howard, president and CEO of the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce, told the board that vacancy rates for this type of space have fallen to near zero in some submarkets. “This crisis is truly hurting local businesses,” Howard said. “Companies cannot find space to locate and expand, and existing businesses are being priced out of the market.”
Barry Morris of Caprello, a global mobility company founded in Loudoun County, described his lease costs rising from $9 per square foot triple net five years ago to $28 this year. “Companies that are operating on small margins cannot afford this,” he said. Peter Dalton, owner of Hunt Country Wildlife Control, described running his five-person Purcellville business across two storage units and a separate truck lot, with morning briefings held at a local bagel shop. “Without available space, we may be forced to relocate just to keep up with the demand.”
David Cox, president of JK Moving Services, said his company was evaluating the site for long-term storage with minimal truck activity, while also exploring options in Clarke and Prince William Counties. “Our sincere desire is to remain in Loudoun County,” he said. Sam Chapman, who operates multiple construction companies out of Purcellville, argued the Route 7 corridor has long served as the area’s industrial spine. “If not here, where?” he asked.
Staff Recommendation and General Plan Consistency
Planning and Zoning staff member Rachel Evanchuk presented the application, reiterating that county staff recommends denial. The two primary outstanding issues are inconsistency with the 2019 General Plan’s rural neighborhood place type for the JLMA, and insufficient mitigation of industrial impacts given proximity to surrounding residential communities.
Board Chair Phyllis Randall was direct on the land use question. “For me, it’s not the use, it is the land use that does not work for me,” Randall said. “Because from a land use point of view, this is not an appropriate use, from just a land use point of view.” She also pushed back on the applicant’s residential water demand estimates, saying she found staff’s figures more credible: “It is more appropriate for me to use the numbers that were given to me by our staff who don’t have any stake in the game financially or otherwise.”
Staff noted the Planning Commission, which voted 6-2-1 to recommend approval in February, had relied in part on older planning documents rather than the 2019 General Plan. The applicant’s proffers had also not yet been approved as to legal form by the County Attorney as of the hearing.
Water, Traffic, and Board Discussion
The board’s own discussion reflected the divisions heard during public comment. Supervisor TeKrony said she remained concerned about water availability, noting a Western Loudoun groundwater monitoring program is scheduled to come before the board on May 5. “We don’t know what we don’t know about groundwater,” she said, adding she was not yet persuaded that 39 residential lots would consume more water than the proposed industrial complex. Supervisor Kershner countered that large-lot homes with irrigation and pools could realistically match or exceed the project’s water use on unmonitored, uncapped wells.
On transportation, the board examined four options for routing the Purcellville North Collector Road through or around the site. Staff recommended Option 1C, which shifts the road southward along the Route 7 right-of-way to avoid an area that may contain an archaeological site with human graves. Traffic commitments from the applicant include widening Purcellville Road to VDOT standards, installing a proffered signal at the primary entrance, and adding a left-turn lane at Mayfair Crown Drive. The county’s transportation staff found signal spacing workable and noted that intersection performance was acceptable when modeled with the Route 7/Route 690 interchange in place.
Next Steps
The board voted 7-0 to advance the application to its May 19, 2026 meeting for action. The motion was made by Supervisor Kershner and seconded by Supervisor Umstattd. The procedural vote does not indicate support or opposition to the application.
Chair Randall said she planned to tour the corridor and would reach out to residents and the applicant before the May meeting. “We heard your voice,” she said, “and we will make the best decisions we can.” County staff’s recommendation of denial remains in place.
