Greenvest Inc. has a controversial project here in Loudoun County — but it's not the only place the developer is making waves.
At the end of March, the Charles Town, W.Va. Planning Commission approved the master schematic plan for a 3,200-home development called Huntfield. If Loudouners think Greenvest's proposed 15,000 homes for Dulles south is significant, take this perspective: Charles Town currently has 1,000 homes, meaning that upon build-out, Huntfield will quadruple the city's size.
The proposal also includes 200,000 square feet of commercial space.
The process of Huntfield's approval has been as contentious as Greenvest's here in Loudoun. Charles Town City Councilman Matt Ward has decried the development. While he acknowledges that it's "the most progressive subdivision" that his home has ever seen, he has constantly battled Greenvest, first as a planning commissioner and later as a city councilman.
"The Greenvest team is a formidable force, sparing no effort to make their case," Ward said. "Their presentation on supposed benefits will seem to make the case that wonderful things will happen. Many will be convinced."
Charles Town is a rapidly growing area that has struggled to keep services at a minimum rate. The overworked sewer system has violated the Clean Water Act so many times that the city is under a state order not to issue any more building permits before rectifying the situation.
GREENVEST lobbied community leaders to gain support for its project, Ward said. And when he grew increasingly critical of the project, the company supported a candidate to run against him two years ago. The candidate failed, but is now serving on the city's Planning Commission.
"When I continued to raise concern about the impact of Huntfield, continuing to make public statements that our community was not ready ... they became very adversarial against me," Ward said.
Ward's opposition to the subdivision stemmed from what he perceived to be a vague set of promises from Greenvest. The vagueness of Greenvest's plans allowed the company wiggle room that it soon took advantage of, Ward added.
"At many points in the development process, the developer tried to break most of their promises and to extract concessions from us," he said. "They will take advantage of every ambiguity, every vague word to their own advantage — then they'll push for more."
While none of Greenvest's actions are blatantly illegal, Ward said, the company has fought against completing all its promises: trying to get out of a deal to provide land for a high school, reneging on a bike/pedestrian path, agreeing to build a berm to buffer a historic estate but using, in Ward's opinion, faulty materials.
JIM DUSZYNSKI, chief executive of Greenvest, denied that the company had cheated Charles Town in any way.
"I don't agree with anything Matt says," he said.
Duszynski said the company has been in compliance with all proffer agreements.
"Matt has continued to allege that we're not in compliance, yet on Monday a week ago, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve the schematic plan," he said.
Huntfield will help the city's growing pains, Duszynski added. The company is providing some of the debt services to help expand the Charles Town sewer system via a public/private partnership.
Duszynski acknowledged that the company supported Don Clendenning, Ward's opponent in the last council race.
"I understood that [Clendenning] was a long-time resident of the city of Charles Town," Duszynski said. "Matt has shown himself to be anti-business."
With the final approval of Huntfield all but certain at this point, Ward recognizes that the new population is coming.
"In the long term, we may benefit from this project," he said. "We're growing at a rapid rate."
The Huntfield controversy has become so well-known in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia that the many families it brings will be well-educated about the area, and that is something he welcomes, Ward added.