VA Attorney General Says: Camp Allegheny Evidence Must be Allowed

In a letter hand-delivered by the Office of the Attorney General to Joel Peck, Clerk of the Virginia State Corporation Commission, and stamped received at 2:36 pm on September 22, 2009, Assistant Attorney General Steven Owens responds very strongly to Highland New Wind's "Motion In Limine-Viewshed."

Mr. Owens makes several powerful points, among them:

• HNWD has repeatedly refused to "coordinate with the Department of Historic Resources for guidance regarding the need for archaeological and architectural surveys, recommended studies, and field surveys to evaluate the project's impacts to historic resources..."
• HNWD has not consulted "with DHR in order to determine the impact on Camp Allegheny, specifically, and to determine what steps can be taken to minimize/mitigate those impacts."
• HNWD's position that "The only arguable impact of the project on Camp Allegheny is visual, or viewshed..." and that "viewshed is a settled issue" represents a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of a "viewshed analysis."
• "Evidence pertaining to the adverse impact of the project on Camp Allegheny is relevant to the obligations of the Defendant (HNWD) and should be allowed at any hearing regarding the Defendant's compliance with the Commission's Final Order."

I'll report from the hearing in Richmond tomorrow.