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An independent federal preservation agency will hold a public hearing in Spotsylvania County Tuesday on the proposed development of the Mullins farm.
The Advisory Council for Historic Preservation hearing is in response to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' recent decision to end consultations on a permit connected with John Mullins' plan to develop the nearly 800 acres he owns on the Chancellorsville battlefield.
The hearing will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Massaponax High School on U.S. 1.
The consultations have involved preservation groups and other interested parties that have weighed in on the project. The decision to end the talks has pushed Mullins' plan for up to 225 homes on the land closer to approval. The council has until July 18 to will make a recommendation on how it believes the corps should proceed, but the corps is not bound by the recommendation.
The public has until July 9 to make comments to the council. Residents unable to attend Tuesday's hearing can send comments via the council's Web site at achp.gov.
Corps officials have said they made the decision after the parties were unable to agree on the scope of the permit and whether more archaeological investigation of the site near the scene of first day of fighting during the 1863 Civil War battle is justified.
Jim Campi, spokesman for the Coalition to Save Chancellorsville Battlefield, said preservationists are disappointed with how the corps has handled the case.
"They could have investigated this land more," he said.
He said he hopes the advisory council will be successful in having the corps scrutinize the permit further.
Campi's group opposed earlier plans to build the 1,995-home Town of Chancellorsville on the farm. After the Spotsylvania Board of Supervisors rejected the project in March, Mullins pledged to develop his land as zoned--offices and stores on 55 acres and 225 homes on the rest. Mullins, who owns Covenant Funeral Service, has pledged to donate some of the commercial land to the county for use as a tourist stop.
The project requires a corps permit under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act for six road crossings of streams on the property. Mullins has declined comment on the permit application, saying it is a matter between him and the corps.
Preservation groups have expressed interest in buying Mullins' property, but have called his $40 million asking price "almost laughable." The property is assessed for tax purposes at $5.6 million.