Letters
about Wedderburn
From
the neighborhood known as Midgetville
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To the Governor of the Common Wealth of Virginia
Tim Kaine
Dear Sir,
It has been brought to my attention that you were on the radio the other
day talking to people about saving unique places from being developed.
In many's opinion the most unique place in Virginia is a place called
Wedderburn.
Wedderburn is located in Vienna near Cedar Ave. next to the W&OD
bike trail. In 1892 George Wedderburn bought this property that was
a farmer's grange. Using the existing structures and building new ones,
he created a village of little cabins he would rent out the people during
the summer. The cabins were then converted to year-round use and rented
out to artists and musicians. Given the unusual architecture, people
in the surrounding area began to believe that Wedderburn was the legendary
“Midgetville”.
This property has remained unchanged for over a hundred years and is
extraordinarily beautiful. It should not be allowed to be turned into
what the developers have in mind. There have been many attempts to save
this place, but to no avail. There was a request to postpone the development
to protect a family of barred owls but the developer has actually moved
the schedule up a month. The property is home to many other creatures
and plants including the endangered pileated woodpecker and the protected
Virginia bluebells. There is also a one-room school house located there
that people are trying to save as well.
Wedderburn is a very unique property and it needs to be saved from what
is far too common. If anyone can do it it is you. You should at least
visit the property before it is to late.
Sincerely,
CMO, Vienna, Virginia
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Dear Governor Kane:
The citizens of Virginia do NOT want the Wedderburn historical sight
bulldozed and developed into modern buildings. At least two dozen local
residents have stated so at the town zoning meeting. The Northern Virginia
Regional Park Authority is also opposed to the development because it
will destroy the privacy of the W&OD trail. The public and media
response to the impending development is disappointment and concern,
nevertheless, the project moves ahead with frightening stealth.
Elm Street Development—the same company that razed the 200-year-old
Evans Farm Inn—will be destroying this local treasure this year
in order to add 24 houses to the labyrinth of homes in the area.
What will be destroyed:
- Eight arts-and-crafts cottages ranging in styles from Spanish to
European built in the 1930s (dwellings that are small, quaint, with
handcrafted wood and brick work, and concrete construction. Because
the architecture is so unique, the area has been called “Midgetville”
for many decades.
- Nine park-like acres adjoining the W&OD bike trail
- 100 year-old, towering canopy of Norfolk pines, tulip poplar and
mulberry trees
- Homes of barred owls, Pileated woodpeckers—both protected
species—deer and fox
- Original location of the publication of the Alexandria Item—published
at the turn of the century
- A walled garden, and other secret gardens colonized with thousands
of nursery plants by early residents
- Native bluebells and wild flowers of many kinds
- Little Bear Run, a local stream that courses through Vienna Virginia,
which will be turned into a storm drainage ditch
- A one-room schoolhouse on the neighboring lot which was also caught
up in the project
- Area of an original whistle stop train platform
The newspapers of our areas have been sounding the alarm of this impending
development for about a year.
I ask you to PLEASE intervene in the destruction of this land and
allow the acreage to be turned into a foot-path park for the benefit
of the citizens of Virginia.
- The arts-and-crafts cottages would make excellent facilities for
park personnel.
- There is ample room for weddings, parties, arts and craft festivals,
folk-art festivals, and access for the handicapped
- The acreage could be easily accessed by citizens via foot, because
of the W&OD trail and enough room for parking near Cedar Lane,
a major thoroughfare
- The acreage could easily be protected by fencing that will disappear
into the wooded surroundings—for example black chain link such
is used by the Metro system
- Shade and coolness from the stream and the tall trees prevail even
on the hottest summer day
- Colonies of flowers and plants that have lived for decades are ideal
for garden clubs to restore
- The one-room schoolhouse, a replica of the Wedderburn train platform,
the horse-and-buggy ring roads, the antique newspaper publishing house
could all be revitalized to create a fabulous learning environment
for children of our area
- The park could easily pay for itself as a for-hire facility
Please note how the W&OD trail adjoins the land
and the many features such as the arts-and-craft cottages that could
easily be included in a park similar to Glenn Echo park in Maryland.
S.S.
Fairfax, Virginia
_____________
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