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2005 Scenic Awards
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Slideshow of 2005 Awards
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On November 1, 2005, Scenic Virginia
announced the winners of its third annual Scenic Awards in six
statewide categories, as follows:
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Best Preservation of a Scenic
Viewshed |
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This award was presented to the Clarkton
Bridge Alliance “for
rallying a coalition to save the historic Clarkton Bridge
spanning the Scenic Staunton River between Charlotte and Halifax
counties, and for celebrating its importance as a regional
resource for heritage tourism, nature tourism, and outdoor
recreation.”
Two years ago, time seemed to be
running out for the Historic Clarkton Bridge, which spans the
Scenic Staunton River in Charlotte and Halifax counties. VDOT
had slated it for demolition, and there didn’t seem to be much
of a chance for it to be spared. That didn’t deter Pamela Kent (P.K.)
Pettus and Doug Powell, who saw in the Clarkton Bridge an
opportunity to save a piece of history and contribute to
Virginia’s burgeoning nature tourism and historic tourism
trades.
Pettus, Powell, and others formed
the Clarkton Bridge Alliance and took it upon themselves to
gather state and local leaders – including Secretary of
Transportation Whittington W. Clement – to develop a plan to
save the bridge. They gained approval from APVA/Preservation
Virginia to take ownership of the bridge if necessary, and they
worked with VDOT officials and the Secretaries of Transportation
and Natural Resources to save the bridge.
Accepting the award for the
Clarkton Bridge Alliance were P.K. Pettus, Doug Powell, D.A.
Powell, Carl Espy, and Barbara Bass.
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Best Preservation of a Scenic
Viewshed - Honorable Mention |
The Honorable
Mention was given to Save Our
Gateway in Front Royal,
Virginia for
their
successful opposition to the location of a Wal-Mart along a
gateway near the south fork of the Shenandoah River.
Accepting the award for Save Our
Gateway was Craig Laird.
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Best Preservation of a Scenic
Water Corridor |
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This year’s award was given to RappFLOW
for developing a county-wide watershed management
plan for the people, land and streams of the Upper Thornton
River in Rappahannock County, and for subscribing to the belief
that “where there is health, there is beauty.”
This year’s winner had a
slightly different focus: In 2002 interested citizens founded
RappFLOW with the mission “to help preserve, protect, conserve
and restore water resources and Rappahannock County’s
watershed.”
From the start, the group has
stressed the need for community involvement and inclusiveness.
Phase I established a foundation for future watershed protection
efforts through broad community involvement; education and
outreach; an atmosphere of inclusiveness and openness; strong
ties with experts in government, business and non-profits; and
identification of high-priority watershed protection issues.
Accepting the award for RappFLOW
were Beverly Hunter, Janet Davis, Cliff Miller, Mitzi Young,
Carey Whitehead, Hal Hunter, and Sarah Gannon.
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Best Preservation of a Scenic
Water Corridor - Honorable Mention |
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The Honorable
Mention was given to the Town of
Marion, the
Marion Civitan Club, and
the Grassroots Conservancy
for the Marion Riverwalk project. |
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Most Creative
Scenic Improvement
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This award was presented to the Friends of the
Rockfish Watershed and the Lynchburg VDOT District
for
the two-mile restoration of the South Fork of the
Rockfish River in Nelson County that enhances the beauty of the
Rockfish Valley as seen from several Virginia Byways, and that
has made the river a candidate for Virginia’s Scenic River
designation.
This project was initially hard
to classify because it meets the criteria of several Awards
categories, including Best Preservation of a Scenic Viewshed and
Best Preservation of a Scenic Water Corridor. What ultimately
decided it is that the project represents a creative approach to
solving a problem.
The South Rockfish Valley in
Nelson County is the scenic viewshed of several Virginia Byways
(Route 151 and Route 664), and it leads to the Blue Ridge
Parkway, now nationally designated as an America’s Byway.
Hurricane Camille destroyed and divided a historic mountain
headwater of the Rockfish River in 1969, and the river and
nature were left to fend for themselves.
Since June 2005, VDOT has been
working to return the river to a more natural state. The
project’s goal is to lengthen and slow down the stream by laying
back slopes and erecting vanes of large rock to create pools.
What was once dead drainage now has riffles, pools, meanders and
life; and 22,000 native tree seedlings are being planted to
stabilize the ground. In addition, a loop trail has been created
and accepted into the Department of Game & Inland Fisheries’
birding trail system.
More than 20 area property owners
have participated by donating conservation easements. The
changes to the river will reap scenic rewards for years to come.
Accepting the award for Most
Creative Scenic Improvement were Peter Agelasto of the Friends
of the Rockfish Watershed and John McClain of the Lynchburg VDOT
District.
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Best Local Anti-Litter Practices
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This award was presented to the
Keep Henrico Beautiful Committee for its “Because
We Care” program.
Improvement of Henrico County’s
natural environment is the prime goal of the Committee, and its
objective was the development of a comprehensive educational
program that conveys the visual and personal benefits of litter
reduction to the County’s businesses and 200,000+ residents.
In 1992 the group started its
“Because We Care” program, which takes an umbrella approach –
rather than an “Adopt-a-Highway” spot approach -- to the
problem. Volunteers participate “because they care” about their
roads, parks, schools and communities; they represent every
facet of County life, from businesses and civic groups to scout
troops, school clubs, churches and individuals. Currently, the
Because We Care program has 78 different groups adopting 44
roads, 16 parks, 13 schools and 5 communities.
Accepting the 2005 award for Best
Local Anti-Litter Practices were Art Petrini, Henrico County’s
Director of Public Utilities; Steve Yob, Henrico County’s
Chief of
Solid Waste,
and Megan Brown, the Keep Henrico Beautiful coordinator.
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Best Local Anti-Litter Practices
- Honorable Mention |
An Honorable
Mention was given to Giles
County
for their School Litter Program, held in the spring of 2005 and
launched in conjunction with their annual Litter Clean-Up Day.
More than 450 students participated, and over 2000 bags of
litter were collected.
Accepting the Award on behalf of
Giles County was Scenic Virginia Trustee Deborah Dull, a County
resident.
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Best
Implementation of VDOT Tree-Trimming Policy
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This award was given to the
Staunton VDOT District
in recognition of
its efforts to enhance the Avenue of Trees entrance into the
Village of Brownsburg, a National- and State-Registered Historic
District, along Route 252 in the Walkers Creek Magisterial
District of Rockbridge County.
Scenic Virginia’s successful
2001 legislation led to the development of statewide standards
for the trimming of trees along Virginia’s roadsides. It is now
the responsibility of the nine VDOT districts to implement the
resulting policy approved by the Commonwealth Transportation
Board. Scenic Virginia developed this category to recognize the
VDOT district with the best results.
The winning project illustrates
the benefits of good communication. Staunton District Arborist
Scott Nye recognized that dying trees along the Brownsburg
Turnpike posed a significant safety risk, but he also knew that
the stretch of sugar maples were beloved by the community.
Before proceeding with any work, Scott held public meetings with
residents to educate them about the necessity of removing
certain trees and to gain their support. In November 2004, VDOT
removed 28 dead or dying trees, planted 64 new sugar maples, and
trimmed dead wood from the remaining 171 trees on both sides of
the scenic Brownsburg Turnpike.
Accepting the award for the
Staunton VDOT District were Fairfield-area Headquarter
Superintendent Phil Sheets and Roadside Manager/Arborist Scott
Nye.
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Scenic Hero
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Scenic Virginia reserves this
honor for a citizen, elected official, or organization that has
accomplished something extraordinary or that has a long history
of work on scenic conservation issues.
This year’s winner is Governor Mark R.
Warner,
for
his administration’s support of the successful multi-year effort
to secure the America’s Byways™ (National Scenic Byway)
designation for the Blue Ridge Parkway, Colonial Parkway, George
Washington Memorial Parkway, and Skyline Drive.
The Federal Highway
Administration established the National Scenic Byways program in
1996, and since that time the FHWA has wanted the Commonwealth
of Virginia to be a participant. Past Virginia administrations,
however, did not support the National Scenic Byways program, and
one governor actually fought against the designation of the Blue
Ridge Parkway as a National Scenic Byway. All of that changed
when Governor Warner took office. He understood the value of the
America’s Byways program, and he directed his Secretariats and
agencies to participate in the effort to secure the designation
for the four roads.
The statewide coalition working
on this project included Scenic Virginia (project coordinator),
the National Park Service, the Federal Highway Administration,
VDOT, Virginia Tourism Corporation, the Virginia Department of
Conservation & Recreation, the four Parkways, local marketing
groups (e.g. the Blue Ridge Parkway Association, Luray Caverns
and Colonial Williamsburg), and elected officials at every level
of government. As a result of our work, the Commonwealth of
Virginia will -- at long last --be included on the National
Scenic Byways map and website that are used by potential
tourists from around the world.
Note: Scenic Virginia presented
the Scenic Hero award to Governor Warner on January 12, 2006. To
view photographs of the presentation,
click here.
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