The “Just Say No to the Tri-County Parkway,” citizens group organized a town hall meeting Thursday at Bull Run Middle School, where citizens and Virginia elected leaders discussed a new direction to stop the building of the proposed highway.
The limited-access expressway known as the Bi-County Parkway, or North-South Corridor, is planned to connect Prince William to Loudoun County and Route 95 to roads near Dulles Airport.
Catharpin residents and “Just Say No,” organizers Page Synder, Mary Ann Ghadgban and Philomena Hefter sent the message that the Parkway would affect all of western Prince William, leading to higher traffic levels on I-66 and neighborhood roads as VDOT would calm traffic on 29 before new roads were open.
“This is greater than those on Pageland Lane. There are ripple effect outside our community,” Hefter said.
Virginia General Assembly Del. Tim Hugo (R) and Del. Bob Marshall (R) spoke on a panel against the parkway along with Gainesville District Supervisor Peter Candland and School Board member Alyson Satterwhite. State Sen. Dick Black (R) was unable to attend, although he does support the “Just Say No,” campaign.
Two hundred citizens attended, and a line of 20 people spoke, expressing their concern for how the proposed Parkway and closing or slowing of Route 29/Lee Highway and Route 234/Sudley Road would impact them.
Organizers of the event expressed their concern that Secretary of Transportation Sean Connaughton, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) were pushing an agenda that would benefit Dulles Airport’s desire to expand cargo delivery at the expense of the Prince William citizens.
The Manassas Battlefield Park and its contributing agencies also favored the Manassas Battlefield By-Pass, which would move traffic away from the park. However, residents felt it would negatively impact traffic patterns and disrupt the way of life in their rural crescent community.
“Do we want longer commutes? Do we think we are being given a fair shake? Do we want this road?” Ghadgban asked the crowed, who answered, “No.”
Del. Tim Hugo made a case that VDOT was not dealing with citizens fairly, saying they changed their timeline on the road frequently, and did not tell citizens the whole story.
“It’s going to be a disaster from Fauquier to Fairfax, when you close 29- when you close 234” Hugo said.
Marshall told citizens they need to take action against this “bigger, broader beltway” of “state-wide significance.” He added that he recently read that VDOT was planning to begin construction over the summer, before the Virginia General Assembly would be back in session.
Marshall said people could make a difference. He urged residents to contact their friends across the county and enourage them to write to their supervisors, Chairman Corey Stewart and the folks in the business community. He asked that people especially speak with Marty Nohe of the Coles District, who is a member of CTB.
Candland agreed with Marshall and Hugo explaining how Hugo persuaded him that the parkway would be a raw deal for Prince William.
“He thought it stunk, and he was absolutely right,” Candland said. “The more and more we’ve done our homework, things are just not adding up.”
Although Candland originally had great hopes that the road would bring economic benefits to the county, he soon came to find holes in VDOT’s reasoning. Candland explained VDOT had said this would happen in 15-20 years that existing roads would have time to catch up and that it wouldn’t affect traffic, but they have since reversed those terms.
“Every single point one of those points has been proven wrong,” said Candland, “I plan on standing shoulder to shoulder with all of you."
Marshall encouraged residents to find a strategy to block the construction, such as an alternative road plan, because, “You can’t beat something with nothing. We have to find a cheaper way to get over to Dulles.”
Jim Rich, who worked with the Virginia Department of Transportation, was in attendance at the meeting. Rich said he was recently fired from VDOT for publicly speaking out against the road; something said he felt compelled to do.
Others felt the roads would diminish their land value, way of life and access around the area. They questioned why the needs of the historic battlefield took precedence over their lives.
“Preserve history by closing a road and closing out a church that preexisted the Civil War for 72 years?” asked one resident, who explained that her congregation at Sudley Methodist Church in Catharpin would not likely survive the closing of local roads.
School Board member Alyson Satterwhite, said it would affect schools, because it would affect traffic patterns as well as school’s ability to buy new land.
“You need to tell all of your friends in the Linton Hall corridor that they do not want the by-pass either. This will create a nightmare that none of us want,” Satterwhite said.
As a multi-purpose state road, the expressway is also likely to have HOV lanes, tolls and heavy truck traffic. Residents at the meeting expressed their concern that this would make it unpleasant for them to travel the parkway to go to Manassas or Eastern Prince William.
They were also dubious about the jobs that were promised.
According to VDOT documentation on the North-South Corridor, the first goal of the project is to support economic growth via increased access between Dulles Airport: “Ensure adequate capacity and access to allow for projected growth at Dulles International Airport area.”
Residents at the meeting suspected that Dulles Airport might profit from the road, but residents of Prince William could loss their home values due to a superhighway running through the rural crescent.
However, economic growth is why Prince William Chamber of Commerce said it supports the project. On its website, the Chamber said the officials speaking out against the Bi-Couny Parkway were confusing it with the Manassas Battlefield By-Pass, which they believe is unlikely to be approved.
Other elected officials, such as Brentsville District Supervisor Wally Covington, said that while he believes the Bi-County Parkway will be good for business in Prince William, he wants to help people protect their property and road access.
“We need to do everything we can that we don’t close Pageland Lane down. We want to see the connectivity stay. You build a more expensive road, but you protect property rights that way,” Covington told Bristow Beat in a phone interview.
Covington also said it may be out of the supervisor's hands as recent Virginia laws make it so a jurisdiction cannot take a road off their comprehensive plan without paying back the state for work they have already done, such as environmental land use studies.
Hugo, who was in favor eliminating or delaying the parkway, said that he supports bringing business to Prince William, but not at a cost to residents.
“I am for the business community; but I said this is not the right thing to do, because what you are doing is going to affect people’s lives. This is why we moved out there, and we are going to stop it right now.”
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