The Rockbridge County Board of Supervisors reviewed reconstruction plans for the Lexington Golf and Country Club last Tuesday, May 27, and citizens weighed in with their concerns about the plans.
Only three of five supervisors were present, and they opted to postpone taking action on a requested special exception permit until their next meeting on Monday, June 9. LGCC officials are hoping to secure an SEP in time for work on the reconstruction, beginning with the removal of the golf course’s grass, to get underway this summer.
The reconstruction project is an initiative of a partnership between the LGCC and Washington and Lee University. A considerable investment is being made into expanding the golf course and improving the country club facilities.
The Planning Commission earlier recommended approval of the SEP with conditions, including provisions for the testing of water in streams and wells before and after the application of herbicides and fertilizers. At last week’s meeting before the supervisors, questions were raised about the processes for conducting such tests.
“What are we going to compare [the test results] to?” asked Supervisor Dan Lyons “What is a safe level for contaminants [found in water samples]?” He asked whether tests of the streams would be conducted prior to the applications of any chemicals so it would be known if the water was already impaired by certain chemicals.
Neil Whitmore, the county’s assistant director of community development, said he believes the conditions recommended by the Planning Commission already address the issue of pretesting the water. He said there are industry standards that can be followed for what is acceptable.
Citizens expressed concerns about amplified music at a planned outdoor pavilion. There was sentiment among the speakers for placing limitations on the number of such events with amplified music to be held each year, and the hours that the events would be allowed. Neighbors asked about measures being contemplated to mitigate noise that would emanate from planned pickleball courts.
Larry Hammer, a nearby neighbor, said the country club has in the past held maybe four or five outside parties during the summer in which “sound can be heard clearly throughout much of the neighborhoods and is loud enough to penetrate the walls of the homes. The functions they have now are over by 10 p.m., which is tolerable and a worthwhile compromise for them to have some fun.”
He worried, though, that with the addition of W&L activities the number of these events would “dramatically increase, adversely affecting our quality of life.” Allowing amplified music until midnight on weekends, as would be permissible unless more restrictive limits beyond the county sound ordinance aren’t established, “is not compatible with a residential area. Neither are 20 such events. Please vote as if your friends and family lived near the course. We are depending on your help.”
Barbara Walsh suggested adding a condition “to address potential impacts from the quantity of groundwater used” for irrigation purposes. Limits could be placed on the amount of water taken from the aquifer to prevent adverse impacts on neighbors’ wells, she said.
Russ Orrison, a civil engineer with Perkins & Orrison and an LGCC member who has been the presenter at the public meetings, said that changes to the main pond and dam are to result in an irrigation system that is more efficient and uses less water. “I don’t think we’ll have to use the well for irrigation,” he noted.
Walsh asked that fully shielded LED outdoor lighting be used to protect neighbors from light pollution and safeguard the Natural Bridge State Park’s International Dark Sky designation. She asked also that the LGCC be required to “prevent stray golf balls from being washed offsite in[to] Woods Creek to protect aquatic wildlife, birds and other animals, and prevent chemical contamination from ball disintegration.”
Anna-Lisa Fitzgerald said she has family members with health issues that could be adversely affected by the introduction of toxins into the soils of the golf course. She said there are non-toxic ways to remove and fertilize grass that should be explored. Gretchen Sokow said she too has concerns about the amount of chemicals to be used and their toxicity. “It’s toxic for us and the environment,” she said.
Several citizens expressed support for a condition requiring LGCC to install acoustic panels on the planned pickleball courts to lessen the sounds of the games heard by neighbors. Supervisor Leslie Ayers expressed concerns about the noise from pickleball games and how best to mitigate it.
As for all of the various issues that have been raised about the reconstruction project, Ayers said county staff and the supervisors needed more time before deciding whether to approve the SEP and, if so, what conditions to impose. She said she favored waiting until the supervisors’ June 23 meeting to make a decision.
Supervisor Bob Day said he too wanted to hold off on taking action. He expressed a desire to hear the thoughts of the two supervisors who were absent, Jay Lewis and David McDaniel.
Noting the “time sensitive” nature of the project, which LGCC officials hope to get underway this summer, Lyons said the supervisors should make a decision at the June 9 meeting. He made a motion to that effect. It passed 3-0.
