Dominion's proposal would nearly double average structure height while affecting homes, viewsheds, trees, construction, property, and future grid expansion.
This is the residents' hub for the facts, the deadlines, and every chance to be heard, all in one place. This project may not be stopped outright, but its impacts absolutely can be shaped, and that takes an informed community taking action. Thank you for standing with your neighbors!
Thursday, October 22, 6:00-10:00 pm - Charlottesville City Council Chambers, City Hall, 2nd floor, 605 E. Main Street. No advance sign-up: arrive by 5:45 pm and register with the Commission's bailiff. Each speaker gets five minutes.
This is the moment our community has been working toward - the one local, in-person chance to be heard on the record. Mark the evening and bring a neighbor.
Following hearing requests from residents, Albemarle County, PEC, and Historic
Keswick Properties, the SCC moved the case into a formal hearing schedule - and the
local hearing is now set.
New in the case
Virginia Outdoors Foundation: easements should not block undergrounding options.
The foundation holding open-space easements on 16 properties along the route told DEQ those easements should not be treated as a bar to pursuing an underground line - directly disputing Dominion's application - and offered to help assess the underground options.
What this means: Dominion says burying the line is impractical partly because of these easements. The organization that holds them says they should not stand in the way of studying it - strengthening the case for underground alternatives.
Speak in person on October 22, testify by telephone on November 10, or submit comments through November 23. The formal evidentiary hearing follows on December 2.
What this means: The case moves through these dates. Yours to act on: October 22 in person, November 3 to register for the phone hearing, November 23 for written comments.
Written comments are open through November 23 - about five minutes with the SCC's online form. You can also register by November 3 to testify by phone on November 10 - five minutes, no trip to Richmond. Do one or do both - each adds to the record.
Dominion, the formal respondents, and SCC Staff argue the technical and legal evidence in Richmond - the closest thing this case has to a trial. The Hearing Examiner's findings go to the Commission for the final decision.
What this means: Not a public-comment session - open to observe, but residents' moments are October 22, November 10, and November 23.
Westminster-Canterbury of the Blue Ridge has joined the case.
The Pantops retirement community - home to more than 470 senior adults, with more than 300 local staff - filed on September 11 to take part as a formal respondent, represented by counsel. Its filing says its property borders the corridor and that taller lines would affect residents' day-to-day lives and how it can use its land.
What this means: A Pantops retirement community with more than 470 residents is now a formal party, able to file testimony and take part in the December 2 evidentiary hearing. Your own chances to be heard are unchanged: October 22 in person, November 10 by phone, and written comments through November 23.
It's required legal notice - here's what it is and what to do.
The SCC's July 21 ruling required Dominion to mail affected property owners a new notice of the case schedule set that July - the telephone hearing, comment deadline, and December 2 hearing. (The October 22 local hearing was scheduled later, on August 27.) So the mailer isn't new news; it's the official version of what this site already tracks.
What this means: If you received one, you don't need to do anything - but the participation deadlines in it are real: November 3 to register to speak, November 23 for comments. If you're near the route and did NOT receive one, you can still participate fully - and it's worth telling the SCC: mention the missed notice in your public comment or call the SCC Clerk's Office at (804) 371-9141.
the height of today's structures (56 ft → 112 ft average)
150 ft
tallest proposed structure
15.8 mi
of corridor from Charlottesville to Gordonsville
$97M
estimated cost, per Dominion's application
Mark these dates
Speak in person, right here. Local public hearing at Charlottesville City Council Chambers (City Hall, 2nd floor, 605 E. Main St). Arrive by 5:45 pm to register with the bailiff; five minutes per witness.
Sign up to speak. This is the deadline to register for the November 10 telephone session.
Written comments close. This is the last day to submit a public comment for the case record.
The main evidence hearing. Dominion, official case participants, and SCC Staff present and challenge technical and legal evidence before the Commission decides the project. This is not the public speaking session.
The Albemarle-area public hearing is set
Now scheduled: Thursday, October 22, 6-10 pm at Charlottesville City Council Chambers. Arrive by 5:45 pm to register with the bailiff - no advance sign-up needed.
We are now sending updates to this list. Join for confirmed hearing dates, public-witness
reminders, comment deadlines, new SCC filings, and practical ways residents can help.
Join the update list
Add your contact information and choose how you would like to stay involved. You can
also reach us at pantopscoalition@gmail.com.
