Quantico Pushes for Land Preservation

"We think this effort is positive and a win for both sides," said Kim Hosen, executive director of the Prince William Conservation Alliance. "It protects Quantico's capacity to meet its mission and benefits the community."

The land eligible for the program, most of which is in Stafford, lies within five miles of the four sites on the base where explosives are discharged, Rushing said.

Residents within that radius could hear noise from the base, he said, noting that the frequency and pitch of sound depends on many factors, including the time of year and atmospheric conditions, which affect how far sound travels.

"We worked successfully with them on Merrimac Farm, and if we can replicate that again, that would be great," said Prince William board Chairman Corey A. Stewart (R-At Large). "The beauty of this is that the county's interest in preserving more open space is completely in line with the Marine Corps' interest in expanding the buffer around the base."

Because the majority of the land within the five-mile radius is in Stafford, Quantico officials have taken the encroachment issue one step further there. During Tuesday's presentation to the board, they recommended that supervisors consider rezoning to reduce the number of houses allowed near the base.

Stafford Supervisor Paul Milde (R-Aquia) said that 50,000 to 60,000 people live within the five-mile radius and that most of the land is zoned for one house per three acres. Quantico officials recommended changing the zoning to one house per 10 acres.

In Prince William, much of the land in the targeted area is already zoned one house per 10 acres or is part of Prince William Forest Park.

"They are asking us to downzone, and that's a huge property rights issue," Milde said. "The Marines are good neighbors, and I think it's a worthy cause to keep the density low close to the base, but they would have to make the landowners whole if they devalue the property. . . . If they can come up with something like at Merrimac Farm, then we would have something to talk about."

Stafford supervisors Mark Dudenhefer (R-Garrisonville) -- an ex-Marine -- and Cord Sterling (R-Rock Hill), whose districts touch Quantico, said that they see merit in what the Marine Corps is trying to do but that a lot of issues and questions have not been addressed.

One question Sterling raised is why the Marine Corps just built military housing within the five-mile radius when it is asking Stafford to minimize development in that area.

"The general concept they presented I agree with," Sterling said, adding he would prefer to have an entity purchase the development rights rather than rezone a large portion of the county. "We need to know what actions would or wouldn't encroach on their training, but at the same time, they need to understand the various details of what goes on in the county."

Rushing said about 1,100 units were just built on base. In relation to rezoning, he said the Marines aren't forcing Stafford to do anything but are merely informing the county about the noise issue.

"Our fundamental interest here is to work with the community to ensure we can continue our military operations and do so in a way that is compatible with the entities' long-term development plans," Rushing said. "The land-use decisions are up to the community to make."

Although Quantico officials want to keep development near the base at a minimum to avoid noise complaints, supervisors in Prince William and Stafford counties said their constituents rarely protest the noise at the base.

"We call it the sound of freedom," Stewart said. "The reality is, the base has been here longer than probably any living resident. We support the Marine Corps, and they have to do what they have to do to protect us, and we understand that."