Planning commission does not
recommend local ordinance
By Angela H. Hill
The question of whether and how Patrick County officials could or should regulate salvage storage dominated the county planning commission’s January 17 meeting.
Commissioners Ralph Cline and Marvin Anderson; commission Vice Chairman Mike Helms; Chairwoman Brenda Quesinberry; County Attorney Alan Black; Board of Supervisors liaison Roger Hayden; and Planning Commission Clerk Teresa McCormick discussed the issue at length.
At this point, the commission as a whole does not officially recommend that a local ordinance be drawn up to regulate storage of inoperable cars, unoccupied mobile homes and other types of salvage. Quesinberry said she will continue to examine the issue, noting that the 20-plus complaints she’s received from area residents pertain to the same five or six geographic areas.
Hayden and Helms both spoke about county residents’ general opposition to regulating what’s stored on their property, which can include cars waiting to be restored and aging farm equipment.
“What people want is to clean up the junkyards around them, and that’s not going to happen,” Hayden said. Property owners should take a “buyer beware” approach when purchasing land, he continued, and note the surrounding area.
Helms said he feels that additional regulation will create “a lot of red tape” without providing solutions for residents concerned about salvage. “The Board of Supervisors is letting us have our freedom,” Helms said. “If Joe Farmer has parts – call it what you want – stored on his property, he has a right to do that. Do I have to like it? No.”
Cline, who joined the planning commission in August after his experience with a salvage situation beside his home in the Cedar Hills subdivision, disagreed. He would like county officials to institute a local ordinance stipulating that no junkyard be established within 200 feet of an occupied dwelling.
“I think they should have to get a permit from the county,” Cline said, “and meet all the requirements in the ordinance and I think they should have to pay a fee.”
Cline bought two lots in Cedar Hills, where five additional families reside. A 25-acre property behind the homes has since been used to store salvage.
“This is happening all over the county,” Cline argued. “And it’s only going to get worse as time goes on. It’s too late to close the door once the horse is gone.”
VDOT regulations
One place residents may take some of their concerns is the Virginia Department of Transportation by calling (276) 692-2582, officials at the meeting said.
To comply with the Code of Virginia’s “Junkyards; penalty” section, new junkyards within 1,000 feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way of any National Highway System highway or primary highway should be screened so that the junkyard is not visible from the main-traveled way of the highway.
In Patrick County, the primary highways are US route 58; and state routes 57, 8, 103, and 40.
The screening requirement also applies to new junkyards established within 500 feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way of any highway or city street (secondary roads). County roads that begin with the number 600 or higher are considered secondary roads; for example, state route 773.
The law is specific in defining “highways,” what constitutes a “junkyard” and the types of screening. Also, junkyards established before April 4, 1968, fall under guidelines that involve screening by the Commissioner of Highways.
Residents who feel that salvage is creating a pollution concern may also contact the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality at (540) 562-6700 or fill out a Pollution Report at deq.state.va.us.
