Mountain Gap Farm Protected by Conservation Easement

Historic Property Saved from Development

Ayrshire Farm announced today that Mountain Gap Farm, a 350-acre farm located in Leesburg, has been placed into a protective conservation easement with Loudon County. Mountain Gap Farm serves as an extension of Ayrshire Farm, a certified organic and certified humane farm in Upperville, Virginia owned by Sandy Lerner. “I am committed to ensuring that this historic, working farm remains a sustainable, working farm forever,” stated Lerner.

The property was purchased by Lerner in 2008 when she rescued it from development where it had been approved for a 68 lot subdivision. The farm is a historic property listed with the Virginia Department of Historic resources and dates back to 1741. It contains a 19th century historic archeological site with a standing 19th century dwelling and six contributing ancillary structures that are potentially eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places due to information the site may contain about rural life in Loudoun County in the 19th century. The lack of modern alterations to the structure makes it an interesting specimen for showing the 19th century evolution of amodest log and frame residence in Loudoun County.

Recognizing that the property had historically been used as a cattle operation, Lerner brought in some of her heritage-breed Scottish Highland and Ancient White Park cattle. The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors worked in partnership with the landowner, Oatlands, Inc., and The Journey through Hallowed Ground to finalize the conservation easement. “I strongly support what Sandy Lerner is doing. She has proven herself a wonderful steward of the land and of Loudoun’s agricultural history,” stated Loudoun County Supervisor Jim Burton.

Oatlands’ executive director, David Boyce, concurred, “We believe that Mountain Gap Farm is of significant historical value due to its close proximity to the Oatlands Historical District. Saving this farm was critical to the history of the region. I salute Sandy Lerner for her commitment to stewardship.”

Lerner was recognized last month by the Land Trust of Virginia for her conservation efforts in placing Ayrshire Farm’s 800 acres into easement, currently the largest single parcel under LTV easement.

Ayrshire Farm, located in Upperville, Virginia, was the first Virginia farm to be certified both organic and humane. The farm produces a variety of meats and organic produce supplied to top regional restaurants, including its own Hunter’s Head Tavern, Home Farm Store, and Ayrshire Farm Catering Company. Hunter’s Head and Home Farm Store were the first restaurant and farm store in the nation to achieve the certified humane designation through HFAC. Ayrshire Farm’s mission is to farm sustainably and profitably, promoting the benefits of locally produced, humanely raised meats and organic produce to the local consumer community through education, outreach and example. For more information visit www.ayrshirefarm.com.

Burton Addresses Chesapeake Bay Act

Dear Neighbors,

In a Meeting Alert I sent out last month, I promised a fuller discussion of the Board’s consideration of the Chesapeake Bay Act. Before I drafted such a discussion I wanted to make sure that I fully understood the context (historic, scientific, and political), the goals, and the approach. Given the other items before the Board this Spring – the Countywide Transportation Plan, proposed changes to the Land Use Tax Deferral for Open Space, the Kincora Rezoning, the White’s Ford Park Special Exception, meetings with the Bond Rating Agencies – it has been difficult to find the time to undertake such study. This was one of the reasons I moved that the Board table further discussion of the matter until September. … Continue Reading

America’s Economy and Open Decision Making

From Forbes: “The top six bank holding companies earned an aggregate of $51 billion in pretax income in 2009. We’re talking about JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Wells Fargo. All of this pretax income can be attributed to their trading revenues of $59.7 billion. The proprietary trading operations of an oligopoly of banks, saved from disaster by Uncle Sam’s largesse and subsidized with cheap money from the central bank, was the single driving force behind the restoration of their fortunes and the renewed surge in their stock prices…..This astonishing performance underscores the casino the oligopoly has become. It bears testament to the payoff from the Wall Street bailout of 2008, which resulted in the elimination of competition and the concurrent strengthening of the few giants left standing.”

From this story by Tyler Durdan: “Of the 986 bank holding companies in the US last year, a total of 980 of them LOST MONEY.” This year 98 of those banks shuttered their doors.

This story put me in mind of the following article from John Robb which he gave us permission to republish. While most historians rate George W. Bush as the worst president in American history (and he is a worthy candidate), my vote has always gone to the ideologue Ronald Reagan. His administration was the one to decide to favor the wealthy over the rest of America in the mistaken belief that “a rising tide raises all boats,” which of course makes no sense. Reagan’s administration was the beginning of the end of the American Empire and the American economy. It was during Reagan’s administration that American’s GINI index began to climb into failed state and banana republic territory. Reagan declared war on America’s middle class and poor.

I’ve been reading John Robb’s Blog Global Guerrillas for years now and recommend it.

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Wednesday, 17 September 2008

The global financial system is melting down. Our approach to decision making may have been the reason we are at this impasse today.

This gets us to the nexus of our current problem. The environment within which we make decisions is getting more complex, uncertain, and incomplete at a faster rate than the mental constructs we use to model it are being improved. To wit: ever greater amounts of novelty (for example: new technology) is being produced than ever before yet our strategies and methods are scarcely different than those we used half a century ago.

From the brief “Open Decision Making.” Read the entire thing.

The 20th Century’s central struggle was between the ideological systems that advocated governmental control of the economy and those that relied on market control. The market-based systems won. Why? In short, market-based systems made better investments, over the long term, than government managed systems. The lesson: systems with large numbers of decision makers, each with capital to invest, make better decisions.

As is often the case, the emerging victory of the market-based system created yet another problem/struggle. Specifically: is it better to trust that individuals empowered with growing salaries/wages will make the best investments for future economic success — or — is it better to grow corporate profits (at the expense of wages/salaries) and let capital markets invest the excess?

Between WW2 and 1974, while still engaged in a bitter struggle with Communism, the US hedged its bets on that question. Both individuals and the capital markets received an equal share of the benefits of productivity growth. Incomes rose mightily and we became broadly wealthy, mirrored by generous growth in the capital markets, relative to the start of the century. As a result of this shared decision-making system, smart investments in infrastructure, industry, education, and much more made America the economic powerhouse of the world. In short, we prospered.

However, the shared decision making system ended. From 1974 onwards, the rewards of productivity growth (economic expansion) went exclusively to the capital markets and not into income growth for individuals. This was likely done, although the mechanism is unclear, under the assumption that the discipline of capital markets produced better investment decisions than individuals. Regardless of the motive or the specific mechanism, where the flow of capital from American economic activity went, couldn’t be clearer:

• Median per capita incomes in the US are the same as they were in 1974 — there hasn’t been any income growth at all.
• In contrast, we have seen torrential capital accumulation / concentration and the capital markets have enjoyed a nearly 30 year run of unbridled expansion.

So, what were the results of this concentration/narrowing of decision making power in the hands of the capital markets? How did they invest thirty-four years of American productivity growth for the future?

As of this year, the final results of this American experiment in financial decision making are in. The allocation of this capacity exclusively to capital markets, rather than sharing that decision making with hundreds of millions of Americans, has produced a horrible result. Instead of investing the accumulated wealth of America in productive assets that yielded long term benefits, the money was invested in derivatives (illusory financial products) that yielded nothing of tangible value. In short, the narrow group of actors that operate within the capital markets made the decision to forgo the long and difficult process of growing investments in the tangible world in favor of the outsized returns available through investments in virtual products. That investment is now evaporating.

What it Means

Even under the most ideal conditions, it’s dubious whether the capital market’s decision making loop (the sum total of the intellectual product of all capital market participants) can even closely approximate the requirements of the rapidly evolving global environment we currently find ourselves in. In short, we are falling behind ever more every day. Given a situation where decision making is falling behind the requirements of the environmental reality, we can expect inevitable catastrophic failure at some point in the future.

Would we have been better off if the benefits of massive productivity growth over the last three decades had been shared with hundreds of millions of Americans? Of course. In fact, it is hard to see any other way, other than an open decision making process, which would be able to deal with the growing complexity of the modern world — from globalization to technological change to growing instability.

Can this be error be corrected? Probably not. Most Americans have fallen deeply into debt (mirrored by the US government) in an attempt to maintain lifestyles (or an illusion of progress). They don’t have the financial resources for any meaningful decision making power left and worse; there isn’t any recognition that a concentration of decision making was even a problem in the first place. In fact, given that most of the last 30 years of American economic investment is now vapor, it’s hard to imagine us avoiding economic catastrophe.

John Robb

John Robb is an author, an entrepreneur, a former USAF pilot in special operations and author of the book Brave New War, in April 2007.

Robb proposed a new theory of warfare in his book called “open source warfare” which made the cover of Nature magazine (one of the world’s two most prestigious science magazines, the other being Science). He was named one of the “Best and Brightest” by Esquire Magazine, and invited to speak at a plethora of venues (the DoD, CIA, NSA, NIC, Highlands Forum, Center for Biosecurity, and many more).

Storm’n on Through!

Well here I am, back in the saddle again. This week I am diverging from my story book (which I hope to have in real print later this year … so you will just have to wait to read “The Rest of The Tails” (as the great Paul Harvey would say).

But right here, right now … Shamanawanawana!!!!! Holy Shamoly!!!!! Yippee Kai Yhea !!!!!!!

The 75th Annual Loudoun County Fair is here and it was “Kick Started” on Sunday, July 25 by the Loudoun County 4-H Cantelopers. That’s the 4-H horse club for you non-horsey types.

All year long the work and excitement had been building. Young and old pitched in for one whole week of good old fashion togetherness.

The Cantelopers had worked so hard. They had painted jumps with the names of the neighborhood business sponsoring many of the young riders. They helped the other 4-H clubs groom the fairgrounds, tidy up livestock barns and the horse and rodeo arena, scrub bleachers, mend broken fences and knock down a year’s worth of cob webs – cleaning the grounds until they looked their very best.

Then came the kick-off night! The start of the Great Fair!

I could feel the excitement here at the farm, when the clouds quickly became dark and ominous, wind whipping and howling ferociously, louder and more commanding than my best Cairn Terrier growl. Uh oh, sensing concern that the show might not go on – our departure for the fairgrounds delayed – I quickly gave Bernie and Laino my very best encouraging brilliant white toothy grin and wagged my tail.

Taking my cue, in short order the trailers were hooked up and ready to roll, the horses quickly loaded, and last minute items stowed in the back up the farm truck. Timing the tremendous storms perfectly – as all cowboys and cowgirls just seemed to know how to do – the Cantelopers managed to dodge their trailers and animals lickity split to the fairgrounds.

At the fairgrounds the storms passed as quickly as they came and the Cantelopers got the excitement started with hilarious riding skills in the “Gamblers Choice.”

Gamblers Choice is a crazy game where the horse and rider are given a set time and then choose their “obstacles” – each of which has a set of points awarded according to the dollar amount each local company had decided to “PONY UP” (hee hee hee). (All the proceeds go to support our very own Loudoun County Fairgrounds.)

In the Gambler’s Choice the winner is chosen by the number of points earned within the time allowed.

Now, I ain’t no bettin’ dawg myself, but I would put my money on these cowboys and cowgirls any day!

First in the ring came a little girl on a striking black pony with a big ole’ blaze cast ‘cross its face – Phantom I think they called him. Cantering up to the first jump – sponsored by Personal Mortgage Advisor, The Farrell Team ( Leesburg, Va.) – Phantom decided to take a closer look. Maybe he wanted the number for a new stall. But either way, that pony had the crowd all go “aaaahhhh… gulp!” First coming to an almost dead stop in front of the jump, he decided last minute to take his leaping straight into the air and up and over he went like a deer. And boy did that little girl stick to that pony’s back! Losing her foot in the stirrup, she still rode like the wind around the rest of the course.

Then there was the Loudoun Flooring (Purcellville, Va. ) sponsored obstacle. That was really funny. Now you wouldn’t think it a big deal to walk a horse over a few carpet squares, but let me tell you, we animals have an uncanny sense for what’s natural and what’s not. Carpet in a horse arena is just not natural – no siree. Those kids had a time getting their horses to get one hoof (much less the two required to earn the points) to touch that scary flooring.

Lynden Farm Event Rental (Purcellville, Va.) – it was another good obstacle. Here, the horse and rider had to weave through four round tables – when was the last time you saw a horse sit down to eat?

All in all, the obstacles and sponsors were many, fun made for all, and the skills displayed on those horses, WOW! And not one rider fell off.

Now I can hardly wait to share my next story, as there ought to be plenty to tell after this year’s 75th Annual Loudoun County Fair has ended. Speaking of that, don’t let it end before you get out to see it. Check out the schedule at www.loudouncountyfair.com.

See you next time!
With lots of love,
Sushi

Blue Ridge Leader News -July 25, 2010

The Bright Side

Kinda nice to start our morning off on a positive note; one of our missing teenagers is back safe and sound after being gone for over a month. Ana Maria Ferster turned up in Reston this past Thursday; she’d been missing since June 12. … Continue Reading

Eating Green

Being green from the inside out may be easier than you think and can start with a few simple steps at your local supermarket. Sustainable food shopping can help you be socially responsible, environmentally conscious as well as healthy! There are many reasons to want to eat a little “greener” but the benefits can stretch from you to your community and globally. Buying locally means not only the products will get to you, the consumer faster allowing less nutrients be lost from the time of harvest or being processed but also cuts down on air pollution, water pollution and a decreases our oil dependency.

Taste is another incentive to buy unprocessed and locally raised groceries. Many times foods are not only sprayed with chemicals but meats are injected with solutions to, “improve texture”. Grass-fed animals also have been found to have substantially more omega-3’s.
Although shopping at a local farmer’s market would be the ideal circumstance this option is not available to everyone and many times doesn’t carry everything you need. If you shop at a large chain supermarket and do not want to change where you buy food there are steps you can take to help you shop more sustainably.

Many times you can find organic or local fruit sold in your store. Look for signs stating such and if they aren’t posted speak with the manager to see if they could be labeled locally grown if it is available at your location. The meat department is another area where you can shop more sustainably. Ask your butcher or store manager if any of the meat is organic, sustainably raised and/or from local farms. If this is not the case ask for them to start carrying the type of meat you wish to buy as many times you will find they will do so in order to keep their customers loyal.

Another step is to simply cook for yourself. It will not only help your wallet by not spending money at restaurants, but by not purchasing prepared foods you save by not having to pay for the companies expenses of packaging, processing, and advertisement. This will allow you to pick more sustainable ingredients. Preparing your food at home also allows you to pick your method of cooking which can help you keep some of the nutrients that may have been lost in the factory due to overcooking and preserving methods.

Lastly, educate yourself! Look at food labels and find out what they mean. De-coding organic food can help you understand which items will help you shop more sustainably and which companies use the term “organic” for advertisement. Many online sites can help you de-code labels as well as give you list of food items or brand names to look for. Happy Shopping!

This article written by Debi Skaggs of Lou Who Contracting, Inc. for informational purposes only.

Surveying the Damage

So … last time I wrote to you I was talking about the ferocious dark of night fight that we had had with the sly ones, the foxes …

It’s the next morning now and on Mr. B’s instructions Bernie, Laino, LuLu Belle and me are going down to the barn yard to check on the damage done.

This would be my first introduction to all the farm animals – Old Gnarly Gander, a large white China Goose, the lovely Miss Zaza, a rare and beautiful Sabastapol Goose, Sheep (making noise and poking their heads through the fence rails), the farm ponies (whinying; “Hey, new dog, welcome!) White Crested ducklings, American Heritage Turkeys, a feast for the eyes!

But, oh, oh no, now I remembered why we were here.

Above to the doorway of the Chicken Palace I observed a beautiful rooster. His eyes seemed distant, his wings drooped. Even a young pup like me could feel sadness in the air, and not speaking a word, Bernie and Laino picked up the dead hens.

Lulu Belle stood below Lord Percy. Her deep, brown eyes pierced his very soul – expressing her sorrow for his loss. Old Gnarly Gander waddled toward us. Lulu Bell came over to my side and said, “Gnarly, this is our new partner.”

Gnarly honked like something I’ve never heard before. “What! That little thing! What can he do?”

“Gnarly, this little man is born and bred to hunt foxes. He fought right by my side, tooth for tooth last night.” My heart skipped a beat as Lulu Belle acknowledged me. I felt like I belonged …

So, more next week, and, oh, Mrs. B tells me there’s something called the Loudoun County Fair. It’s been going on for 74 years! July 26-July 31st (hope Mrs. B will let me go and hope to see you).

– Forever yours, as always, Sushi

P.S. This is the last “creative” excerpt from my book … which I hope will be available in print later this year. When it’s available for purchase you’ll be the first to know. Watch for my Loudoun County Fair update in next week’s Tails from the Barnyard …

Missing Mysterious Negative Feedback

Click here to read the newest column Missing Mysterious Negative Feedback

Leadership Loudoun Recruits

The Leadership Loudoun Board of Directors is hosting a recruitment event on Wednesday, July 28, at Tuscarora Mill Restaurant, located at 203 Harrison Street, S.E. in Leesburg, from 7:30-9:00 a.m. This is an opportunity for people interested in applying for the 9-month leadership development program to meet with board members and staff who will explain the program and answer questions.

The event is free and open to the public.

Blue Ridge Leader News – July 18, 2010

Earthquake Weather

No, I don’t have any intelligent reactions from local officials on this one; I was jolted out of bed at 5:04 a.m. on Friday morning, though. My first thought was, “Oh, no, another plane crash in Leesburg.” … Continue Reading

Sushi’s Adventure Continues

That evening;

“You are the bravest and mightiest Cairn Terrier ever” was still singing in my ears.

The girls ascended the farmhouse stairs, taking Tiki and me with them. We all curled up together in bed, thanking God for each other and our wonderful Lulu Belle. I was one worn – out little pup. Quite frankly I had forgotten about growling and snapping at this Laino creature. She was pretty cool. I really could get use to snuggling with her. I decided to put on my best behavior.

Waking up the next morning Bernie and Laino carried Tiki and me down the stairs and straight out to the front yard for us pups to do our duty. Mr. B was just heading out for work.

The girls ran over to give their daddy a hug. “Well girls, it looks as though I missed some serious excitement last night. Look at all the hens killed by the foxes!”

Beyond the fields near the barn they could see the many lifeless birds from the hunt the night before. Looking over to Lulu Belle, Mr. B saw a dead red fox. Looking up to her master she reassured Mr. B. that this fox was not going anywhere. Mr. B. reached down and affectionately rubbed Lulu Belle’s ears. “That’s my girl Lu. Good dog.”

Looking down at me, he added, “I hope this new pup will live up to the job it is born and bred to do. Lu, you deserve some extra help girl.

Bernie and Laino, you girls better go check on the damage done and the rest of the livestock. You know, this time of year is when the foxes are teaching their young how to hunt. You had better keep the poultry and fowl locked up at night!”

“Yes Daddy” the girls chimed.

Until next week – stay cool,

Love ,

Sushi

Burton Addresses Kincora Vote

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

On Monday night five members of the Board – Scott York, Susan Buckley, Eugene Delgaudio, Stevens Miller, and Lori Waters – approved the Kincora application, which includes 1,400 residential units in an area planned as the County’s premier employment center. I am deeply disappointed in my colleagues’ decision, especially those who professed a commitment to stand by the County’s Comprehensive Plan and to understand the fiscal correlation between residential development and higher taxes. … Continue Reading

New Plans for Connecting Loudoun to Metro

With leadership from Supervisor Stevens Miller (D-Dulles), concrete steps are being taken now to design the transit system that will get Loudoun residents from home or work to Metro without cars. Over the past week, the owners of both the Kincora project and the Fox Gate project have made specific new commitments to connect their respective projects to the planned Route 606 Metro Station and to work with county officials in developing the proposed Dulles South Circulator that will allow many more county residents to use public transit instead of cars.

“With the Kincora project under review right now and the Fox Gate project, in my district, coming along shortly, I saw the need for both projects to connect to Metro and to support public transit options for the county,” said Miller. “This is a good example of how we can enlist the business community to help us reduce traffic congestion with meaningful new commitments to public transit.”

The Kincora proffers have been revised to add the Route 606 Metro Station as one of the required stops for the proffered Kincora shuttle service. The Fox Gate applicant will be revising its proffers in the coming weeks to establish a connection to the Dulles South Circulator, which will serve the Route 606 Metro Station from Dulles South.

“We have always seen the need to connect Kincora to Metro,” said Mike Scott, leader of the Kincora development team. “It is a key transportation option for those who live or work at Kincora or for those who want to come to Kincora for a baseball game or a performance at the arts center.” “Now, with our revised proffer, we are linking Kincora with the public transit plans Supervisor Miller is working on for Dulles South,” said Scott.

“Fox Gate’s initial transportation focus was to use a shuttle service to provide convenient access from Fox Gate to the surrounding neighborhoods,” explained the owner’s representative, Bob Hess. “Now, with encouragement from Supervisor Miller, we are committing to connect our project to the Dulles South Circulator and, with that, to the 606 Metro Station and ultimately all the way to Kincora,” said Hess.

The Kincora project is located at the intersection of Route 7 and Route 28. Fox Gate is located on the opposite side of Dulles Airport on Route 50 near the Loudoun/Fairfax line.

“Locating apartments, stores, and offices together in one development—called ‘mixed use’—can yield meaningful transportation benefits by reducing car trips,” explained Supervisor Miller. “However, these benefits are multiplied if you can link multiple mixed-use communities to Metro with public transit.” “That’s why I asked these two landowners to work together,” said Miller. “It not only improves the transportation connections to their own projects, it helps jump start the public transit network for this whole part of the county.”

My First Hunt continued

It was in the early hours just before dawn. Tiki had silently hopped from the bed upstairs, and then I heard her yip, “Sushi! Little man! Little man! Something bad is outside. Don’t you hear Lulu Belle barking?”

I thought that Lulu Belle must be very big by the size of that bark. I uncurled myself and listened intently. I decided Tiki wasn’t so bad after all and allowed her to join me in making a loud noise. Something was indeed happening outside! Tiki and I were growling and barking in the front hall. Tiki’s bark became more aggressive. She was very upset. Sitting up in bed, struggling to wake up, Mrs. B. pulled herself together and found her way down the dark hallway. Bernie yelled from upstairs, “Mama is everything okay? Lulu Belle is barking like crazy outside!”

Mrs. B. hurried. Lulu Belle could be heard just beyond the front door, growling and barking. Bernie scooped up Tiki for fear of what might be outside that could hurt her. Mrs. B. held me and cautiously opened the front door, while Mr. B. snoozed away in the comfort of his bed.

Stepping into the light of the front porch, with Laino clinging to her side, Mrs. B. strained her eyes to see what Lulu Belle was after.

The barnyard was eerily quiet. Lulu Bell became instantly protective of her family. Propelling her enormous frame into the air, she leaped with lightning speed and disappeared into the dark, just beyond the light of the front porch. We could hear vicious growling, hissing and snarling. I was unable to control my born and bred instincts. I leapt from Mrs. B’s arms into the night. Snapping and barking with all the energy I could muster for a pup, I took to my first hunt. I could hear Tiki barking from the safety of Bernie’s arms. I pictured her wiggling her little body, encouraging Lulu Belle and me. I kept telling myself, “Sushi, to the rescue!”

The excitement was great. It was dark all around me. I felt piercing eyes moving in for me. I bared my white teeth and snapped back. Lulu Belle flew through the air, thundering down between me and the foxes. I was glad that she was on my side. Slinking off, they snarled at us over their shoulders, “We’ll be back….”

One of the foxes was not so lucky. Lulu Belle let it dangle from her jaws like a rag doll. I clung to its tail like a mighty warrior. Lulu Belle, completely ignoring me, triumphantly carried the fox back into the light of the porch.

Laino snatched me up and hugged me lovingly. Then pointing at the fox exclaimed; “Mama, look at all those teeth on the Sly One!!” The fox’s long snout held forty – two teeth in all. With love in her eyes, Mrs. B. reached down, petting Lulu Belle’s head. She had once again protected her family. Oh how Mrs. B. loved that dog!

Gently guiding the girls back into the house, Mrs. B. gave each a good night blessing. Just like her Mama, with love in her eyes, Laino snuggled me and whispered in my ear, “You are the bravest and mightiest Cairn Terrier ever!”

Come join me for more “Tails” next week!

Until then,

Forever Yours,

Sushi