The Prince William Board of Supervisors approved a rezoning application that will allow for the construction of 210 new homes on a historic Black community in Gainesville called “The Settlement.”
The Settlement was a community where emancipated people bought land after the Civil War. It’s located along Old Carolina Road and Route 29, and was previously zoned for agricultural use only.
Last week, the board approved a request to change that zoning to residential to allow the Grayson Overlook project to proceed. This plan from developer K. Hovninian Homes will include the construction of 210 homes on approximately 80 acres in the Brentsville District.
In addition to housing, Grayson Overlook also includes recreational spaces like playgrounds and a gazebo. The developer will be responsible for extending Thoroughfare Road and adding additional turn lanes at the intersection of Old Carolina and Route 29.
Clayton Powell spoke at the Board of Supervisors meeting. He said that his grandparents were the original property owners. They bought the land in 1920, and it was a farm until they died in 1969. “They invested in this property with the intention of passing down their wealth to the next generation,” he said. Powell said that he and his family had been working to sell the land since 2005 but could not because it was only zoned for agriculture.
The supervisors voted 6-1 to approve the rezoning. Gainesville district supervisor Bob Weir was the only dissenter. He said he believed the density of new homes would be too high for Old Carolina Road.
Some board members also expressed concern over school zoning for students on the property. K. Hovinian said it would request to send neighborhood kids to Gainesville Middle School rather than Ronald Reagan Middle School, which is over capacity. The change would require redistricting approval from the school board.
Weir objected to this. He said he did not want to allow “putting school boundary decisions in the hands of neighborhood HOAs.”
According to the rezoning application, a review of The Settlement land in 2023 found that it was not eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. However, developers plan to include three historical markers in the Grayson Overlook property to explain the history of The Settlement.
Feature image, stock.adobe.com
