12.A) Rezoning #10-22 of Fruit Hill (Equus Capital Partners, Ltd.; DTS, L.C.; and William O. Minor) Submitted to Rezone 220.06+/- Acres which Consist of 189.08+/- Acres from RA (Rural Areas) District to M1 (Light Industrial) District, 10.34+/- Acres from RA (Rural Areas) District to B2 (General Business) District, and 20.64+/- Acres from RA (Rural Areas) District to TM (Technology Manufacturing) District with Proffers. The Properties are Located at 384 Ruebuck Lane, 1420 Rest Church Road and Southwest Corner of Intersection of Rest Church Road and Zachary Ann Lane and are Identified by Property Identification Numbers 33-9-1A, 33-A-89, and 33-A-90 in the Stonewall Magisterial District.
I am located in Gainesboro. Approving Fruit Hill compromises the quality of life in Frederick County by adding more congestion and industrialization to an area who's appeal is its rural character. Ironically you want to turn an area called fruit hill into a commercial morass and you want to add a data center, which the Star has reported is a facility that has been strongly objected to in other areas. If you want to make Frederick County look like Fairfax, why don't you just move to Fairfax.
I'm a resident of Gainesboro District, living just off Rest Church Road. Everyday I travel through this intersection multiple times, and at peak times it is congested and dangerous. While I understand that development will likely occur in this highly coveted area, roads need to be improved before bringing the development in, especially for more tractor-trailer traffic. When I81 shuts down due to accidents, traffic flows to Rest Church and Welltown Roads and the adjoining country roads, which aren't wide enough for tractor trailer traffic, and then they become dangerous. This happens fairly frequently, and more large trucks will add to that mess. Additionally, traffic will increase on Welltown as residents seek to avoid I81 and Route 11. I strongly encourage the Board of Supervisors to consider the traffic impacts and plan for them NOW. We don't need to be widening roads and bridges after construction is finished, like we did when Flying J was built. Finally, this development is NOT in compliance with the Comprehensive Plan, so I'm left to wonder why the County develops a Comprehensive Plan if exceptions are easily granted.
We should not add more trucks to this area. Many trucks exit the Flying J and do not fully stop. They leave Zachary Lane and pull out in front of you. Trucks also block lanes as they turn into Flying J so you cannot use the Thru Lane to continue down Rest Church Rd. There are many times when the entrance ramp southbound from Rest Church is lined with parked trucks. The length of the entrance ramp has made it dangerous to safely enter I-81 due to the increase in truck traffic. We have been nearly run off the road several times by trucks as we tried to adjust speed and move onto I-81.
We now go down Rest Church Rd to Welltown Rd to Rt 37 to avoid using I-81 to access Winchester. The problem with going this route is the increase in traffic on these roads, especially during early morning and early evening hours. The roads are single lane and there is little room for two cars to pass. We have come around blind curves to be faced with vehicles crossing over the middle of the road. Welltown does not have lines painted for a few miles, and drivers don’t stay on their side of the road.
Adding the changes to Fruit Hill will add more traffic to Rest Church and Welltown as more of the residents use this option for travel. On occasion, we have also had trucks travel down Rest Church Rd to Welltown when there is a problem on I-81. Even though they are not allowed, we still see them and there is not sufficient room for a truck to pass another car, let alone another truck.
Did the study of this intersection and the addition of a hotel, restaurant and warehouse space address how much additional traffic will begin using Rest Church Rd to avoid the interchange. We are also hearing of a potential Sheetz Gas Station/Rest Stop being added at this interchange, across from Flying J. What traffic studies have been conducted on the impact for the many residents living in this area, that is still zoned rural?
I oppose the rezoning of such a large tract of land that abuts residential areas. I live down Rest Church road and have to drive past Flying J travel center to go anywhere. The truck traffic is dangerous. At least 60% of the time I have to lock up the brakes when driving past Zachary Ann lane since trucks just ignore the stop sign and do not yield the right of way. Many times I am required to "thread the needle" when it's too late for me to stop and I have to drift to the left to avoid the truck from Zachary Ann lane while a truck is attempting to turn into Flying J due to both of them not yielding the right of way. I also want to point out that the traffic survey showed very little pedestrian traffic on Rest Church road. Perhaps the survey should ask why that is. Kids have been killed on that road and every parent in the area knows to not allow their children to walk or bike down that road. My son's best friend in high school, Tristan Long, was killed as a pedestrian on Rest Church road in December 2014. Please do not allow this rezoning to pass.
I am located in Gainesboro. Approving Fruit Hill compromises the quality of life in Frederick County by adding more congestion and industrialization to an area who's appeal is its rural character. Ironically you want to turn an area called fruit hill into a commercial morass and you want to add a data center, which the Star has reported is a facility that has been strongly objected to in other areas. If you want to make Frederick County look like Fairfax, why don't you just move to Fairfax.
I'm a resident of Gainesboro District, living just off Rest Church Road. Everyday I travel through this intersection multiple times, and at peak times it is congested and dangerous. While I understand that development will likely occur in this highly coveted area, roads need to be improved before bringing the development in, especially for more tractor-trailer traffic. When I81 shuts down due to accidents, traffic flows to Rest Church and Welltown Roads and the adjoining country roads, which aren't wide enough for tractor trailer traffic, and then they become dangerous. This happens fairly frequently, and more large trucks will add to that mess. Additionally, traffic will increase on Welltown as residents seek to avoid I81 and Route 11. I strongly encourage the Board of Supervisors to consider the traffic impacts and plan for them NOW. We don't need to be widening roads and bridges after construction is finished, like we did when Flying J was built. Finally, this development is NOT in compliance with the Comprehensive Plan, so I'm left to wonder why the County develops a Comprehensive Plan if exceptions are easily granted.
We should not add more trucks to this area. Many trucks exit the Flying J and do not fully stop. They leave Zachary Lane and pull out in front of you. Trucks also block lanes as they turn into Flying J so you cannot use the Thru Lane to continue down Rest Church Rd. There are many times when the entrance ramp southbound from Rest Church is lined with parked trucks. The length of the entrance ramp has made it dangerous to safely enter I-81 due to the increase in truck traffic. We have been nearly run off the road several times by trucks as we tried to adjust speed and move onto I-81.
We now go down Rest Church Rd to Welltown Rd to Rt 37 to avoid using I-81 to access Winchester. The problem with going this route is the increase in traffic on these roads, especially during early morning and early evening hours. The roads are single lane and there is little room for two cars to pass. We have come around blind curves to be faced with vehicles crossing over the middle of the road. Welltown does not have lines painted for a few miles, and drivers don’t stay on their side of the road.
Adding the changes to Fruit Hill will add more traffic to Rest Church and Welltown as more of the residents use this option for travel. On occasion, we have also had trucks travel down Rest Church Rd to Welltown when there is a problem on I-81. Even though they are not allowed, we still see them and there is not sufficient room for a truck to pass another car, let alone another truck.
Did the study of this intersection and the addition of a hotel, restaurant and warehouse space address how much additional traffic will begin using Rest Church Rd to avoid the interchange. We are also hearing of a potential Sheetz Gas Station/Rest Stop being added at this interchange, across from Flying J. What traffic studies have been conducted on the impact for the many residents living in this area, that is still zoned rural?
GAINESBORO district
I oppose the rezoning of such a large tract of land that abuts residential areas. I live down Rest Church road and have to drive past Flying J travel center to go anywhere. The truck traffic is dangerous. At least 60% of the time I have to lock up the brakes when driving past Zachary Ann lane since trucks just ignore the stop sign and do not yield the right of way. Many times I am required to "thread the needle" when it's too late for me to stop and I have to drift to the left to avoid the truck from Zachary Ann lane while a truck is attempting to turn into Flying J due to both of them not yielding the right of way. I also want to point out that the traffic survey showed very little pedestrian traffic on Rest Church road. Perhaps the survey should ask why that is. Kids have been killed on that road and every parent in the area knows to not allow their children to walk or bike down that road. My son's best friend in high school, Tristan Long, was killed as a pedestrian on Rest Church road in December 2014. Please do not allow this rezoning to pass.