Culpeper Supervisors Approve Partial Easement Release for Battlefields State Park

The Culpeper County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a partial release of historic easements at Elkwood Downs so portions of the property can transfer to the commonwealth for Culpeper Battlefields State Park.

Supervisors extinguished certain historic preservation, buffer, trail and marker easements on six parcels while retaining those easements on five others. Height-limitation easements on all parcels remain because of Federal Aviation Administration requirements tied to airport operations.

The easements date to 1993 rezoning proffers for a corporate park and Formula One racetrack that were never built. About 571 acres went to a predecessor of the American Battlefield Trust in 1997, and additional open-space protections followed. The Trust and the Department of Conservation and Recreation sought the release because the older easements appear on title policies and duplicate newer permanent protections.

No easements on privately owned property were released. County staff, including the attorney and airport manager, supported the request. No one spoke for or against it at the public hearing.

Email the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors:
Tom Underwood, tunderwood@culpepercounty.gov,
Gary Deal, gdeal@culpepercounty.gov,
Paul Bates, pwbates@culpepercounty.gov,
David Lee, dlee@culpepercounty.gov,
Mandy Brown, mbrown@culpepercounty.gov,
Keith Farrish, kfarrish@culpepercounty.gov,
DeWayne Payne, dpayne@culpepercounty.gov,