Transportation officials will reconsider their plan to build a commuter parking lot on a Haymarket farm inside the Rural Crescent.
The proposed commuter lot is part of a wider plan to improve Interstate 66 by adding toll lanes, new transit service, and expanding commuter parking options.
Today’s announcement comes after Prince William County officials this morning held a special session to draft a letter to the Virginia Department of Transportation urging the agency to reconsider the placement of the parking lot.
The owner of the farm on Antioch Road, Jeanie Heflin, was notified in September that VDOT wanted to take a portion of her 80-year-old farm by eminent domain.
Here is a press release sent out Monday afternoon by VDOT:
The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) announced today that the I-66 Outside the Beltway project team, which includes the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT), is working together with Prince William County to implement a commuter parking lot in the vicinity of I-66 and U.S. Route 15 in Haymarket. The parking lot has been identified as part of the overall transit elements supporting the larger Transform 66 Outside the Beltway project.In plans presented in May and June of 2015, the parking lot location was shown in an area that falls within the boundary of the Buckland Mills Battlefield, which is potentially eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. As the concept plans were further refined based upon public input and additional environmental analysis, an alternate parking lot location along Antioch Road was proposed outside of the Buckland Mills Battlefield boundary.Following recent public input and coordination with Prince William County, VDOT is committed to evaluating other locations in the vicinity of the I-66 and Route 15 Interchange, as part of a separate, but coordinated effort with the Transform 66 project. Moving forward, the I-66 project team will work with Prince William County to consider options that may include other park and ride lot locations, explore the best options to construct the parking lot, and further coordinate with the surrounding community.
