McGaheysville residents rallying against proposed development

MCGAHEYSVILLE, Va. (WHSV) - A group of concerned residents in McGaheysville are banding together in an effort to prevent the proposed development of new homes in their neighborhood.

At their meeting earlier this month, the Rockingham County planning commission tabled the proposal for the 155 single family homes. The proposed development would be constructed on nearly 42 acres of land off of McGaheysville Road between Three Leagues Road and Power Dam Road. Each lot would be either 45 or 60 feet in length, the homes would total 4,000 square feet.

Members of the group from the surrounding neighborhood are not happy about how close the homes would be to their backyards.

“Their houses will be so close that we will not be able to see over them so we’re gonna lose visual of the mountains, the trees, everything,” said Donna Dyer, a McGaheysville resident.

Residents said the development would take away from their neighborhood’s quiet rural feel and neighbors on all sides of the project are coming together in opposition. “Our petition is around 200 signatures from the past couple days of going out, every single person with property that touches this development has opposed this particular development, not just because they don’t want it but because there’s so many questions around it,” said Jared Lamb, a McGaheysville resident.

Lamb said the county has not given residents answers to many of their concerns about the project.

“What’s this going to do to our drainage, the runoff, the loss of the farmland, we have several developments in the area. Why does this one have to be added on when we have so many other ones in the immediate area also going up?” he said.

Donna Dyer worries the influx of people would be too much for the rural neighborhood.

“All the extra added cars, children, I don’t know that our area can support all that,” Dyer said.

The group of residents will hold their second meeting on Wednesday night at 554 Three Leagues Road. They said there were over 50 people at the first one.

The planning commission will not hold any more public comment on the development, but there will be a chance for written public comment before the proposal goes before the Board of Supervisors. A few members of the Board are expected to come to the meeting on Wednesday.

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