‘Bigger than Varina’; residents react to Henrico’s proposed conservation plan

Varina District supervisor Tyrone Nelson and Henrico Planning Director Joe Emerson presented the county’s new land conservation proposal to Varina District residents at an Oct. 20 community meeting.

The proposal, which Emerson introduced to the Henrico Board of Supervisors last month, would place about 27% of the Varina District under a new zoning designation – Prime Agriculture/Rural Conservation (PA/RC) – and classify another 20% of the district as rural or conservation land. As a result, almost 50% of Varina would be placed under zoning that limits suburban or urban development.

Most attendees reacted favorably to the new land-use proposal, which will be included in the county’s draft comprehensive plan for 2045. With the Varina District comprising half of Henrico’s landmass, the proposal would impact more than one-fourth of the entire county – and some residents see an opportunity to expand the proposal to more of Henrico.

“I think what you’re presenting is bigger than Varina – it’s all of Henrico,” said John Montgomery, a longtime Varina resident and the former Varina representative on the Henrico School Board. “One of the things that is most wonderful about Henrico is its proximity to rural areas and agriculture. And this shows the opportunity for the whole county to do something great.”

Limiting development in Varina also would allow the county to invest money and resources into redeveloping business corridors that have deteriorated, instead of funding new infrastructure, said Montgomery. Along with other Varina residents, Montgomery hopes to form a citizens' working group on the land-use proposal to gather more public input.

Under the proposal, almost all land in Varina’s southeast quadrant (east of I-295 and south of White Oak Swamp) would be designated for rural residential, agricultural, recreational, environmental or conservation uses. 

But most areas outside of that quadrant are still marked for suburban residential or industrial uses, and some residents argue that those areas also would be more suitable for less intense development.

“I look at this map and see there’s a line drawn down I-295, everything over here is green. But I’m worried about the developmental intensity in some places on the other side. . . that have a lot of acres of high density future land use on it now,” said one Varina resident. “I just want you to maybe go back and re-look at the land uses you have put on some of these parcels and think, is the infrastructure really going to be able to support that?”

Nelson said that while he supports the plan and its intent to “keep Varina as green as possible,” he wants to make sure to balance conservation interests with the interests of individual property owners in the area.

“I’ll be honest, I probably have the most difficult job on the board of supervisors,” Nelson said. “I think when we make decisions about people’s land, we have to be sensitive to how that impacts individual landowners. . . I’ll never forget one of the conversations I had with a farmer who owned a significant amount of land, and he said that land is an asset, that it can be someone’s whole retirement fund.”

Other residents pressed county leaders on investing in Varina’s business corridors, specifically small businesses.

“There seems to be a lot of plans for really appreciating land in Varina. . . but what else is going to attract people to make use of these spaces in a way that benefits the county and beautifies the community?” said Beatrix Plaza, a resident of Varina since 2021. “I think about driving down Williamsburg Road, there’s a lot of vacant businesses. What are we doing to bring in small businesses?”

Nelson said that the county has “some game-changing things” planned for the Williamsburg Road corridor, as well as interests in agrotourism and other ways to invest in small businesses.

“This is the first time in a decade-and-a-half being on the board that I am hearing a consensus on the board of supervisors that investing in small businesses, bringing in new businesses, is something that going forward, will be a focus,” he said.

Henrico officials will present a draft comprehensive plan with the PA/RC land-use proposal to the Henrico Planning Commission by late December or early January, according to Emerson, and will hold another round of public engagement in 2026.

Nelson and Emerson also hosted another community meeting on the proposal Oct. 27 at the Henrico Theatre in Highland Springs.

Liana Hardy is the Citizen’s government and education reporter. Support her work and articles like this one by making a contribution to the Citizen.