BCLP’s goal is to enable each and every citizen of Bedford County to participate in making decisions that will determine what Bedford County will be like 10 years, 20 years, 50 years from now. Property tax increases are inevitable with the growth that is taking place in the county today. The taxpayers are going to have to pay for the community services – schools, roads, water and sewer lines, police, fire and rescue services – that our new subdivisions and developments require. Owners of large tracks of land, including farmers and horse owners, will be hit disproportionately hard by the increases in the cost of community services because they will pay for new residential infrastructure they don’t need. In effect, they will subsidize growth --ironically, an added expense that may force them to sell their land in the future. If we’re going to keep taxes down, we need to put the brakes on uncontrolled growth and start focusing on finding a balance that makes financial sense.
Nancy Raine, Co-founder, BCLP
Talk with your Planning Commissioner and your Supervisor. Share with them your vision for Bedford County’s future and your concerns. Go to www.co.bedford.va.us for contact information.
Visit BCLP’s Resource Cart at the Public Library in Bedford where you can borrow a copy of BCLP’s multi-media slide show, Finding the Balance in Bedford County: Where are we growing? and peruse research materials.
Write a Letter to the Editor. Making your views public makes other people aware of issues common concerns, Letters also can influence decision makers. Click here for where to send you letters
If after investigation of our web site you still can't find answers to your questions about BCLP, the land preservation options we advocate or concerns you would like to share with us please drop us an email. Someone from the board will answer your questions. If you are interested in helping us with conducting research, public education or special projects please contact our President.
If you would like to be added to our regular mailing list in order to receive our periodic mailings, click here for a sign-up form
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Join Our Email List! If you'd like to get information from our organization on timely issues and events related to land preservation, please enter your email in the box on the right and hit submit. You can visit our home page at any time to remove yourself from the list. We will not give your email address to anyone else |
Go to Who We Are to learn about our current subcommittees and volunteer opportunities.
If you are considering protecting your land through a conservation easement, go to Frequently Asked Questions and/or the Western Virginia Land Trust.
If you would like to talk with a Bedford County landowner who has already chosen to protect his or her land through a conservation easement, e-mail Nancy Raine
