Project Abstract

The Partnership sought and received funding to prepare a Corridor Management Plan (CMP) for the following purposes:

• to identify specific strategies as to how the three states, nine counties, numerous localities, and private and non-profit partners can work together to conserve the special qualities of this nationally significant landscape;
• to work with the heritage tourism partners including fifteen convention and visitors bureaus and dozens of owners and managers of historic sites along the route to coordinate their efforts in telling the story of “where America happened” and working together to market the region as a unique destination unto itself; and
• to work with each state’s Department of Transportation to develop context sensitive solutions and approaches to maintaining and enhancing the travel route itself as the primary travel route for the Heritage Area – as the “spine along the chapters of our American history”.

Overview

The Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership, representing the many localities, agencies and heritage sites within the region, recognized the need to define and then conserve and enhance a primary travel corridor through the National Heritage Area to ensure that the experience of getting from one point to another is just as interesting and enjoyable as being at one of the many sites and attractions in the region.

The Journey Through Hallowed Ground (JTHG) is a scenic and historically rich landscape that, according to the late historian C. Vann Woodward, has “soaked up more of the blood, sweat, and tears of American history than any other part of the country.” It can be said that this 175-mile corridor from Gettysburg, PA, to Monticello, VA, holds more historic sites than any other in the U.S. – two World Heritage Sites, Monticello and the Rotunda of the University of Virginia; 13 National Park Units, among them Gettysburg and Manassas National Battlefield Parks; 15 National Historic Landmarks, including the Eisenhower National Historic Site and Montpelier, the home of James and Dolly Madison; 60 National Register Historic Districts; a significant concentration of National Register Rural Historic Districts; and more than one million acres listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This recently designated National Heritage Area is widely known as “Where America Happened.”

In addition to being home to much of the nation's early American and Civil War history, the region also functions as a major north-south transportation route between Interstate 95 along the eastern seaboard, and Interstate 81 in the ridge and valley of the Appalachians.

Unique Challenges

The first challenge in developing the JTHG CMP was the great multi-jurisdictional effort required. The primary travel corridor, now known as The Journey Through Hallowed Ground Byway (and referred to as “the Journey”), follows US Route 15, US Route 15 Business and Virginia Routes 20, 231, 22 and 53. Together, these routes total 175 miles and traverse nine counties in three states. At that scale, a multi-jurisdictional planning and design effort had to be carefully coordinated. To that end, the Project Team devised a truly a collaborative effort that included input from all three states’ transportation, conservation and historic resources agencies, each local government, Destination Marketing Organizations from each community, over 250 civic organizations, 18 historic Main Street communities, numerous businesses, landowners, the operators of historic sites, and the owners of cultural and recreational attractions.

In addition to the sheer size of the JTHG Corridor, its location presented a second challenge. Only a short distance from the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area, the corridor is facing enormous development pressure. While many of the communities and historic sites along the corridor have maintained the rural character and scenic beauty for which the region is prized, they will have to take an increasingly proactive role in order to preserve that character and adapt to future growth. Understanding the difficult balance these communities must strike, the Project Team set about developing strategies for the Plan that promote the stewardship of the lands within the corridor while respecting the rights and responsibilities of the individuals, businesses, corporations, and institutions that own those lands. From a transportation perspective, this was particularly interesting in that a large portion of the route is on the National Highway System and a smaller portion of the route performs an important commuting function in addition to its role as a gateway to this nationally significant heritage area. (See below for how these challenges were addressed using CSS.)

CSS Qualities - Process

The first challenge – leading a planning effort that involved 21 communities of diverse economic and cultural traditions through a three-state geographic area – required a unique approach. At the heart of this approach was public participation. At the beginning of the project, an advisory committee was created, composed of members representing every locality along the corridor, numerous civic organizations, government agencies, historic sites and attractions, and private landowners. This group of more than 70 individuals met regularly throughout the planning process to provide input on topics ranging from conservation to marketing to context sensitive roadway design. In addition, public workshops held during the early stages challenged participants to envision how they would like their Main Street to look in 30 years and then work collaboratively to create a shared vision. Nearing the end of the process, a second round of public workshops insured that the general public’s vision was indeed reflected in the Plan, and where not, allowed further opportunity for input and feedback. Finally, small group meetings were held up and down the corridor to address community-specific questions and tailor the strategies to local circumstances. The result of this effort was a unanimous endorsement of the Plan.

The second challenge required that land use and transportation issues be inextricably bound together through the application of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) to the corridor’s planned transportation and development projects. First, the Project Team devised a recommended approach for addressing highway safety and capacity issues using CSS and worked with each state’s Department of Transportation and local governments to raise the awareness and need for a different approach within the JTHG Corridor. Once the DOT's were on board with the process, the Project Team identified specific planning and design techniques that can be used to establish the desired corridor qualities over time. Measures included creating a network of rural roads to accommodate increasing traffic demands, rather than simply continuing to widen the primary road. This was crucial in places where significant resources are adjacent to the road, such as at Buckland and at Brandy Station. Solutions also included creating transitions from high speed rural roadways into the corridor’s “Main Streets” using changes in roadway design to give drivers more clues that they are entering a pedestrian oriented place.

Finally, the Plan used case studies to address real concerns that required more detail and consideration than is typical of plans of this scale and magnitude. One of these, in historic Buckland, Virginia, tested the CSS process before the CMP was even completed. Plans to expand US Route 15/29 threatened a significant Civil War battlefield as well as extensive historical and archaeological resources at Buckland. The Buckland Preservation Association and Prince William County were able to work together to incorporate language in the county’s comprehensive plan that reflects the CSS approach and protects the historic and natural context of this area. A second case study was performed in Orange, Virginia where the Project Team demonstrated how to transform a strip commercial area into a village street.

CSS Outcomes - Stakeholder Benefits

The Plan is the product of a great multi-jurisdictional planning effort that will serve as an example for future heritage areas and corridors throughout the country. The Plan includes input from countless stakeholders. It advocates a context sensitive approach to projects within the corridor to protect its significant resources, all of which were tirelessly inventoried and analyzed through months of research and miles of field work. Commitments were made and precedents set for conducting transportation and development projects in a manner that preserves and maintains the character defining features of the corridor. Using this Plan, the JTHG Partnership – all three states transportation, conservation and historic resources agencies, each local government, Destination Marketing Organizations from each community, over 150 civic organizations, 18 historic Main Street communities, numerous businesses, landowners, the operators of historic sites, and the owners of cultural/recreational attractions – will work together to preserve and enhance the Journey Through Hallowed Ground – “where America happened”.

   Journey thru Hallowed Ground Submission Form