Varina couple commits to fifth conservation easement to protect land
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Varina residents Randy and Meade Welch recently donated their fifth conservation easement to Capital Region Land Conservancy, helping permanently preserve 39 acres in Eastern Henrico.
The property, known as “Kingsland Bend,” is located at 2231 Kingsland Road in Varina. The easement protects the historic battlefield landscape and scenic views from Kingsland Road while preventing further residential development in an area that is witnessing accelerated growth.
The easement safeguards soils for future agricultural use and protects and enhances water quality, as well as aquatic and riparian habitat in nearby Roundabout Creek, the James River, and the downstream Chesapeake Bay.
The preservation of Kingsland Bend builds on earlier efforts by the couple and CRLC, including 353-acres located about one mile to the east that the Welch family conserved and then donated to CRLC – property that is now the Varina LandLab Conservation Area.
With its proximity to the Varina LandLab and Henrico County’s Deep Bottom Park, and sitting approximately half a mile to the south of the future New Market Park at Route 5, Kingsland Bend is an important green infrastructure connector, according to CRLC officials.
Its protection also conserves rural scenic views; its frontage on Kingsland Road is within the Captain John Smith Adventures on the James River thematic driving tour route, as noted by the Virginia Outdoors Plan Mapper.
“A conservation easement on this tract of land provides the Varina community another building block for important planning,” Randy Welch said. “The location is extremely significant to local and national history and its protection provides open space around Henrico County facilities.”
The protection of the property in its relatively undeveloped state also helps protect the environmental quality of the region, according to the CRLC, and is designated as top priority for conservation in the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation’s ConserveVirginia model for Natural Habitat and Ecosystem Diversity.
ConserveVirginia is DCR’s land conservation strategy for identifying Virginia’s highest priority lands for protection. With about 1,285 feet of frontage on an unnamed stream that flows into Roundabout Creek, then into the James River and eventually downstream to the Chesapeake Bay, the easement protects the land and water to create improved water quality values and healthy habitats.
The Kingsland Bend property exemplifies the Varina District’s agricultural and rural character. Its 27 acres of prime farmland and soils of statewide importance have the highest agricultural value, as determined by the Virginia Heritage Data Explorer, which also notes the entire property is most vulnerable to the threat of development.
Of local, state, and national importance, the entire property is designated in the ConserveVirginia model for Cultural and Historic Preservation due to its association with core battlefields from the First Battle of Deep Bottom (July 20 - 27, 1864) and Second Battle of Deep Bottom (Aug. 13 – 20, 1864) and study area of the Battle of New Market Heights.
“For nearly a decade Randy and Meade have partnered with CRLC to conserve land in their beloved Varina so that it can remain much like it has throughout their lifetime as residents,” said CRLC Executive Director Parker Agelasto. “Their efforts have helped to ensure that hundreds of acres of working farms and forests are preserved while shielding the incredible natural resources of the area from the threat of conversion.”
CRLC serves the City of Richmond and 19 surrounding counties and since 2005 has helped protect more than 15,000 acres, including easements on more than 5,000 acres.
