May 8, 2008

Loudoun County: How Green is My Valley?

Image: The Loudoun Valley and Blue Ridge Mountains

I’ve been hearing a lot more about solar panel usage in Loudoun recently, but I always just assumed that none of the “big name” communities would allow them. I was happily surprised (and impressed) to read in this Loudoun Times-Mirror article that quite a few of those communities do allow them, even if some of them place conditions on their use.

So, which communities are solar-friendly? The article specifically names Ashburn Farm, Cascades, Ashburn Village and CountrySide as allowing residents to use them.  Broadlands also allows solar panels, as long as their use is under the accepted guidelines. 

South Riding and Brambleton both disallow the use of solar panels, but South Riding is investigating changing that bylaw. 

Lansdowne, Belmont Country Club, Belmont Greene and River Creek were not mentioned as being either for or against it. It would probably just be a matter of a simple phone call to find out where they each stand, so I’ll try to follow up on that. 

Do I expect there to be a stampede of consumers charging the solar panel stores as a result of this discovery? Of course not. But it’s interesting to me how open-minded many of these HOAs are, since so many of them get a bad rap. The lesson here is obvious and simple: Always ask. Especially if you’re a homebuyer, it’s important to ferret out the details about the community you’ll be living in. And always read thoroughly through your HOA documents, if applicable. HOA docs may seem to fall under the “Seen one, seen them all” category, but that’s just simply not the case. What you find in them might surprise you.

If you’re really into the environment, EcoVillage of Loudoun County might just be the place for you. According to their website, “Our inspired community is nestled on 180 organically managed acres of beautiful rolling hills north of Leesburg, VA, close to the Point of Rocks commuter rail station serving Washington, DC and suburban Maryland.” Among other “green” practices, the village clusters homes to encourage land preservation, builds with environmentally safe materials, and uses the “solar envelope” concept to best take advantage of the sun’s light.

To find out what other Loudoun residents and business are doing to help the environment, click here. You can also read about how the recently elected Board of Supervisors is getting in on the action by joining 3 area environmental programs, including the Cool Capital Challenge.  

For more information about Loudoun’s environmental policies, activism and activities, check out the websites below.  

http://greenerloudoun.wordpress.com/ 

http://www.keeploudounbeautiful.org/ 

http://www.loudounwildlife.org

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