Coundown to Closure: 51 Days

VDOT's Order Scheduled to Take Effect on August 31st

There have been a number of questions raised about what the VDOT suspension of the temporary construction permits will actually mean.  Here are some of those questions:

Question:  Will the suspension of the VDOT access permits stop the dump trucks?

Answer:  VDOT believes the suspension of the VDOT access permits for the Smith Farm property that had been granted to Brad Smith and Donovan Construction will result in a stoppage of any remaining work on the purported landfill operation that has been ongoing for the past three years.  Donovan Construction has other contracts for hauling and snow removal with VDOT that would obviously be at risk if Donovan Construction fails to comply with the VDOT permit suspension.

However, the Smith Farm could find another construction company to manage the purported landfill construction who would be willing to ignore the VDOT order, so there are no absolute guarantees that the trucks will stop.

Question:  Isn't it true the Smith Farm claims they are only building new grazing areas for their livestock, and that project is nearly complete?

Answer:  Testimony at the public nuisance trial last year reportedly raised concerns that the hauling of dirt to the Smith Farm was projected to continue for several more years into the future.  However, the Smith attorney stated in his June 16 letter to VDOT that the "land leveling operation is almost complete."  Mr. Richardson, the Smith attorney then stated that the "current operations involve importation of top soil to prepare the pasture land to be seeded, and removal of some material excavated from the ponds which is not suitable for topsoil or other use on the Farm."  There is no timeline provided that would allow for a discussion with concerned citizens about the safety concerns and a possible final end date.

Question:  Is it true that Brad Smith is claiming he is not making any money from the dump trucks hauling landfill onto his property?

Answer:  According to County Attorney Jeff Notz, who spoke at a public meeting at Heritage Hunt last month, Smith is claiming he receives no compensation for the dumping that is done on his property.  However, there is a price sheet purportedly published by Donovan Construction that sets the fees for dump trucks who drop their loads on the Smith Landfill, including premium fees for trucks who dump tires, asphalt, concrete, "mud or slop" and rocks larger than 1 foot in diameter.

In a telephone conversation between Mac Haddow and Brad Smith on Saturday, July 2nd, Smith stated that "farming has changed" and it "more about money than anything else."  The discovery process that is ongoing on the Prince William County Zoning Complaint litigation may well shed some light on this issue of who is getting paid and who is not.


Question:  Are the VDOT access permits for existing roads, or are they new roads?

Answer:  This is an excellent question, but unfortunately VDOT does little to verify such applications for farming operations.  Based on information gathered to date, it appears both the Catharpin Road entrance to the Smith Landfill, and the Artemus Road entrance are both new construction.  VDOT officials claim they were told that both entrances already existed and were just being improved.

Technically, VDOT should have required compliance with a variety of regulations to determine if the proposed access permits should have been granted in the first place.  However, VDOT generally allows farmers a great deal of latitude, and that permissive policy appears to have allowed Smith to install brand new entrances under the ruse of being existing entrances to his property.

Question:  Do the Smith's understand how much of a negative impact on safety the dump trucks have on Catharpin and Pageland Roads?


Answer:  In a conversation with Brad Smith's wife when I talked with her when the Gainesville Times reporter and photographer were taking pictures of the Artemus Road entrance, Mrs. Smith stated that they "could not control the way the truck driver's drove on the roads."  She was unwilling to even acknowledge the Smith Landfill had any responsibility for the number of dump trucks on the road that were headed to the Smith Landfill.   There is no evidence the Smith's have done anything to mitigate the safety hazard that is a direct result of the high volume of dump trucks that threaten families traveling on Catharpin or Pageland Road.