We, the undersigned residents and visitors of Orange County, Virginia, respectfully call upon the elected officials and planning leaders to uphold the Comprehensive Plan and protect the historic, agricultural, and scenic landscapes that define Orange County.

Orange County is not merely another small town on a map. It is home for the nationally significant historic site, Montpelier. The home where James Madison wrestled into existence the Constitution and the Bill of Rights —a place that shaped the very framework of American liberty. It is the birthplace of President Zachary Taylor. Orange County is hallowed Civil War ground, where soldiers marched, encamped, bled, and sacrificed their lives for our future in its fields. 

It is vineyard country — home to more than a dozen wineries and tasting rooms that draw visitors from across Virginia and beyond. It is rolling horse country, where fenced pastures stretch beneath open skies and barns rise against the Blue Ridge foothills. It is cattle fields, horse farms, hayfields, and generational food farms that feed families and sustain livelihoods. It is rich agricultural soil — some of the most productive land in the Commonwealth — stewarded for generations and still working today. This preserved farmland is not vacant space waiting for industrial use. It is living land that supports local businesses, local families, and the very identity of Orange County. It is both our economy, our inheritance, and our children's future.

This beautiful land shaped the ideas that shaped America. We refuse to watch it be industrialized. Orange's agritourism is the bloodstream of this community, and a major economic engine built upon preserved viewsheds, historic districts, scenic gateways, and open countryside.

Our Comprehensive Plan calls for:

• Protection of historic resources
• Preservation of agricultural land
• Support of agritourism
• Maintenance of rural character
• Thoughtful, compatible development

Large-scale data center and industrial infrastructure development conflicts with these guiding principles due to its scale and cumulative impacts.

Such development requires:

• Major high-voltage transmission line expansion, often utilizing eminent domain
• New substations and utility corridors across farmland
• Significant water usage and stormwater runoff management
• Continuous diesel generator backup systems
• Conversion of hundreds — sometimes thousands — of acres of agricultural or historic land into industrial campuses

Orange County’s farmland and historic landscapes are rare and irreplaceable. Once converted to industrial use, they cannot be restored. Once scenic viewsheds and rural gateways are altered, they are lost permanently.

We support responsible economic development. However, development that undercuts agriculture, tourism, and historic preservation undermines the very assets that sustain this community.

We respectfully urge local leaders to:

• Enforce the Comprehensive Plan
• Require heightened review and tightened restrictions for high-impact industrial uses
• Protect historic and agritourism landscapes and viewsheds
• Safeguard farmland, water supplies, and scenic corridors

Orange County is a place of national historical significance and agricultural strength. 

It deserves careful stewardship and protections.