Lawsuits and zoning appeals were filed in the wake of one of Westmoreland County's most controversial economic development prospects.
But the dirt continued to fly at the O'Gara Group's Montross tactical training facility despite public protest.
Most controversial in the company's relocation to land adjacent to Westmoreland County's Industrial Park, was a zoning decision made by a former zoning administrator that ruled that the O'Gara project qualified as a school. That ruling made the project eligible for zoning approval without a public hearing, referred to commonly as "by-right" zoning.
Although Westmoreland ruled that those activities were in line with those of a school, the other counties of the Northern Neck would have handled the project differently had it come their way.
"Number one, any time there are rifle or pistol ranges, it requires a special exception," said Bill Duncanson, Richmond County Administrator.
He added that the process would require two, advertised public hearings-one each by the planning commission and board of supervisors-in addition to a notification by mail to adjacent property owners. The board of supervisors would then have the final say whether to grant such an exception.
"That seems to be the biggest thing that I've heard out of Westmoreland, is that there wasn't enough public discourse on it," Duncanson said.
According to Duncanson, "schools" are allowed by-right in Richmond County's agricultural zones. But the county's zoning ordinance defines a school as "any place of instruction in any branch of knowledge having regular sessions with regularly-employed instructors, which teach those subjects that are both fundamental and essential in general education and comparable in nature to the curriculum offering of a public school system."
"That doesn't sound like O'Gara to me," Duncanson said, adding that Richmond County was never contacted by the O'Gara Group.
Don Gill, director of planning and land use/zoning administrator for Lancaster County, said that under Lancaster's land use guidelines, the O'Gara Group would not even be considered for a special exception in an agricultural zone.
"I can't see any way we would be able to allow that type of activity in an agricultural district," Gill said.
In addition, Lancaster defines a school as any educational facility accredited by the Virginia State Board of Education. The O'Gara Group would also not qualify for by-right zoning under those perimeters.
Wellington Shirley, zoning administrator for Northumberland County, also said that there was no way around a public hearing for a project like the O'Gara Group's facility, adding that it would be considered either a private school or a gun range, both of which require board approval and a public hearing.
In a January 2009 presentation to Westmoreland's board of supervisors and industrial development authority, O'Gara Group representatives referred to themselves as "a leading provider of advanced security products and training solutions to aid in the global war on terrorism and to enhance Homeland Security."
The facility proposed at that time contained a total of eight small arms ranges of different lengths, a 360-degree "shoot house," a six-block urban simulated ammunition range, a paved raceway, skid pad and areas for vehicle-based scenarios and off-road training.
According to land records, the O'Gara Group finalized a land deal with Bryan Chandler, Montross landowner, last summer for a parcel adjacent to the county's industrial park.
The group has also entered under contract to purchase a county-owned parcel with a building referred to as "the shell building." However, according to a contract re-negotiation entered into last summer between the county's industrial development authority and the O'Gara Group, any finalization of that deal is dependent upon the outcome of pending litigation.
Law suits/appeals
A lawsuit filed by George Ripol, owner of property neighboring the O'Gara project, alleges that public bodies in Westmoreland violated open meeting requirements in the approval of a contract to sell county land. Ripol also filed an injunction suit to prevent further development activity.
According to Ripol, the Virginia Supreme Court has assigned a judge from the Charlottesville area to hear the first case after several local judges recused themselves from hearing the matter. However, no hearing date has been set due to scheduling conflicts. The court has not yet assigned a judge to hear an injunction suit regarding the O'Gara Group, Ripol added.
In addition to his appeal to the courts, Ripol filed an appeal to the county's board of zoning appeals on September 19, which challenged the zoning administrator's August 21approval of a phase one site plan.
However, Robert Fink, Westmoreland County's zoning administrator, approved a second phase site plan on September 23 - the subject of a second appeal filed by Wilbur Dameron and Lisa Clark, represented by Caroline Peters.
In documents prepared by Peters, she cites a section of Virginia Code that states, "an appeal shall stay all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from unless the zoning administrator certifies to the Board that by reason of facts stated in the certificate a stay would in his opinion cause imminent peril to life or property."
Also in the appeal filed October 20, the appellants allege that the training facility does not belong on agriculturally-zoned land.
Ripol said that the zoning appeal filed by himself and two other property owners is still pending but could be heard as early as November 23 by the county's board of zoning appeals.
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