FLUVANNA COUNTY, V.A. (WVIR) – A controversial project to support growth in Zion Crossroads is back in the spotlight.
There seems to be a disconnect between the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (VDHR) and the James River Water Authority (JRWA). At issue is an anticipatory burial permit from the authority to build its water intake and pump station at Point of Fork, which was formerly the capital for the Monacan Indian Nation.
The permit outlines a process if JRWA should encounter any graves or burials while excavating the site, attorney Justin Curtis explained. Construction can continue without the permit, however if crews were to find burials or graves, all work would cease and the project would be suspended until the authority applied for the appropriate permit, he added.
JRWA recently filed an appeal in Fluvanna Circuit Court following a September letter sent by the VDHR. The state has also filed a motion to dismiss.
“We still took the September 6th letter to be a denial. We weren’t able to resolve those issues in time to avoid filing, so we had to go forward and protect our legal rights and interests,” Curtis said.
VDHR Director Julie Langan says that was not the case: “We have always maintained it, we never denied burial permit. It was not a complete application, and so the purpose of my letter was to call attention to those issues,” she said. “I thought they were well aware of that. What they would not have been aware of, and that is also addressed in the letter, is that we would need for them to obtain the professional services of an archaeologist to meet certain standards.”
Read the entire article at NBC 29.