A three-day trial has been scheduled in the case regarding the Wilderness Crossing rezoning.
The case stems from an April 2023 decision by the Orange County Supervisors to rezone more than 2,600 acres of land in the eastern end of the county, changing it from being zoned primarily agricultural and industrial to mixed-use allowing for development by KEG Associates III. The project plans consist of a variety of uses with up to 5,000 residential units and 732 acres of industrial use, along with commercial use and possibly data centers. A lawsuit filed by the Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) discovered that 10 local officials had signed nondisclosure agreements for “the benefit of Amazon.com, Inc. and its affiliates.” PEC voiced concerns about the project, noting it would irrevocably change the landscape, as well as cause a potential health risk due to several contaminated abandoned gold mines in the area. Supervisors, meanwhile, state the rezoning is inline with the county’s comprehensive plan and Germanna Wilderness Area Plan which calls for development along the Rt. 3 corridor.
In May 2023, the American Battlefield Trust (ABT), Friends of Wilderness Battlefield, Inc. and Central Virginia Battlefields Trust, Inc., along with residents Mark and Cheryl Nowacki and Robert J. Foster filed suit against Orange County and the board of supervisors challenging the rezoning. The suit consisted of seven counts, but in September, Orange County Circuit Court Judge David B. Franzen reduced that number to four, dismissing three of the seven counts. The remaining counts allege violations of Virginia law governing rezoning processes, public hearings and taxation.
In early January, Orange County Attorneys Amy Wilson and Robinson Hubbard, along with KEG Associates III attorneys, filed an appeal with the Court of Appeals of Virginia. A motion to withdraw that appeal was filed April 20 and granted May 1, sending the case back to the Orange County Circuit Court. According to court records, a three-day trial has been scheduled for Feb. 22-24.
