The developers of a proposed campground in White Oak said Monday that they’ve won a legal victory, but their opponents aren’t fretting about the outcome just yet.
Mark and Vivian McLeod’s project, called Crow’s Nest Outdoor Adventure, is planned for a 75-acre parcel off Belle Plains Road, and they have sued Stafford County because the proposal hasn’t been fully approved by the locality.
The county filed a demurrer in the case, which means officials were arguing that there wasn’t enough evidence to go to trial, and Stafford Circuit Court heard arguments on May 19.
Judge David B. Caddell Jr., however, ruled May 27 that the case can go to trial.
A major issue in the case is whether the campground can allow recreational vehicles and travel trailers.
Mark McLeod told the Stafford Planning Commission last month that the county’s Planning Department told him that the campground can be for “tents only,” not allowing for other types of camping.
But the McLeods believe the operation should be considered a “by-right” use that doesn’t require specific permission from the Stafford Board of Supervisors. By-right projects need only bureaucratic (staff) approvals.
Mark and Vivian McLeod want to develop a campground called Crow’s Nest Outdoor Adventure. (Photo courtesy of the McLeods)
At the same time, the commissioners voted May 14 to recommend the supervisors approve new zoning regulations for campgrounds, changes which include requiring a conditional-use permit if the developments are on agriculturally zoned land.
Because the Crow’s Nest campground is already in the works, it’s possible that it would be considered a grandfathered use and not subject to the new rules. But a decision on that issue rests with the supervisors, who will take up the matter soon.
Regardless of that, Caddell’s decision is a “huge win,” Vivian McLeod said Monday.
“Our attorney said this was a big one,” she said.
McLeod said she and her husband filed a Virginia Freedom of Information Act request to see county correspondence about their project, but would drop their lawsuit entirely if county officials approve their plans.
The campground has been a source of controversy for more than a year, and the McLeods went so far as to offer a continually escalating cash reward to anyone who could find a Stafford regulation that said campgrounds had to be for “tents only.” The amount of the reward reached $250,000 but was never given out because no one, the couple said, found the required legal language.
Opponents, many of whom live near the site of the proposed campground, have argued against Crow’s Nest Outdoor Adventure for several months. They point to concerns over safety, traffic and potential environmental impacts.
The project would be adjacent to tidal wetlands, known as Big Marsh, and would harm the ecosystem, they say. And additional traffic — especially from RVs — would be more than the local roads can handle.
Joni Kanazawa, who lives on property that would be surrounded by the campground, said Monday that she wasn’t fazed by Caddell’s ruling and noted that they’ll still have their day in court.
She dismissed claims that she and her neighbors are just “NIMBYs,” an often-derisive acronym that stands for “Not in My Backyard.” Rather, “We are more vocal because we see [the area] every day.”
Kanazawa said she’s OK with the idea of a campground, just not the location.
Sarah Southworth, who lives down Potomac Creek from the campground site in King George County, said she believes the idea that the project is planned for 75 acres is misleading. She said 40 acres of the property is Big Marsh, which means the McLeods would have to fit the 150 campsites they want to build on only 35 acres.
Southworth said if the campground was anywhere else on Potomac Creek, she wouldn’t have a problem with it. But she’s worried that algae blooms could kill aquatic and plant life.
“It’s just the wrong area because of so many of those aspects,” she said.
Michael Silver, whose family owns and operates the 100-year-old Silver Ridge Farm, said that despite Caddell’s action, he and his neighbors will keep their fingers crossed for an eventual, favorable outcome.
“We’re not gnashing our teeth [or] wringing our hands,” he said.
