The Purcellville Board of Architectural Review will consider a design approval Tuesday for a new roundabout at Berlin Turnpike and Eastgate Drive, a project that would move the Patrick Henry College entrance sign into the center of the traffic circle.
The board meets at 7:30 p.m. May 19 in the Town Hall Council Chambers. The roundabout review is the only action item on the agenda, along with approval of minutes from the board’s Feb. 17 meeting.
The application, CDA-26-01, seeks a Certificate of Design Approval for the overall roundabout design and for the relocation of the college’s monument sign. The town has designed and plans to build the roundabout at the intersection of Route 287, also known as Berlin Turnpike, Eastgate Drive and Patrick Henry Circle.
Construction of the roundabout will displace the college’s existing sign at its main entrance at 1 Patrick Henry Circle. The town and the college jointly agreed to place the relocated sign in the center of the roundabout, according to a staff report prepared by Summer Wilkes, director of planning and community development, and Ben Sullivan, a town planner.
The project is planned as a two-lane hybrid roundabout roughly 88 feet in diameter. A roundabout was identified as the preferred solution after a study that reviewed existing conditions, no-build conditions, traffic signal warrants and other improvement options.
Route 287 is maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation, but the intersection sits within town limits, and the central island may include aesthetic elements. The design calls for a decorative circular brick wall carrying a “Town of Purcellville” logo on its north and south faces, with the college sign rebuilt at the center. The town name would appear in silver acrylic letters on the lower portion of the wall.
The college sign would be surrounded by a green field. Its lower section would read “Home School Legal Defense Association,” and its upper section would read “Patrick Henry College, For Christ and for Liberty.” The staff report states the relocated sign would match the existing sign, which was approved by the Board of Architectural Review on Feb. 24, 2006.
All materials are to match the current sign and campus buildings, which use red brick and natural concrete. Renderings included in the agenda packet were prepared by Kimley-Horn and Associates.
Because all properties tied to the application fall within the Historic Corridor Overlay District, the design requires review by the architectural board. Staff recommend approval of the certificate.
The roundabout is scheduled for completion in late 2027 or early 2028.
