Cheers,
Heather

Unfortunately, this isn’t the only way that Dominion Power will be disrupting traffic in our area in the next few months. More concerning is their announcement that as they string the power lines along the new route, they will be “intermittently” stopping traffic on Route 7, causing major delays. As there are no other major roads coming in from the western part of the county, this is probably going to create a bit of a mess, unless they are careful how they time the closings.

Here’s the schedule of closings, as posted on Loudoun County’s website:

Traffic stops on Route 7 are expected to begin May 17. The tentative schedule is:

• May 17- June 4: Expect periodic traffic stops on Route 7 near the interchange at Hamilton Station Road in Hamilton
• June: Expect periodic stops on Route 7 near the interchange of Route 9
• July: Expect periodic stops on the Route 7 Bypass between Dry Mill Road and Route 15
• August-September: Motorists will experience the most delays in this time frame as workers string lines along Route 7 and the Bypass between Route 15 and River Creek Parkway.

According to a VDOT news release, the closings will be timed on Mondays between noon and 3:30 pm, Tuesday through Friday from 9:30 am to 3:30 pm, and Fridays from 9 am to noon.

Cheers,

Heather

Kenneth W. Culbert Elementary in Hamilton

As I’m sure you noticed, the buses are running in LoCo this morning, as the kids (finally) head back to school.  I’m admitting to a little melancholy today, as I send my youngest of four off to kindergarten, my middle child to first grade, and my twins to their first year of middle school.  It will be a different year for me this year! I’m holding up a coffee mug to ::cheers:: in the new school year…

The picture above is of Kenneth W. Culbert Elementary, which opens it’s doors for the first day today, as a brand spanking new school in Hamilton, Virginia.  I’d also like to send a shoutout and big congratulations to a friend of mine, Janice Koslowski, who takes over as principal at Potomac Falls High School in Sterling for this school year.  She is moving there after four successful years at the helm of Eagle Ridge Middle School in Ashburn.  She used to be the vice principal at Potomac Falls, so this isn’t new territory for her.  I’m sure that she is going to have a fantastic year, and I know that she will be welcomed there with open arms.

Cheers,

Heather

Company 2's New Digs

A short wrapup of news and notes around LoCo lately:

On the agenda for the Board of Supervisors public hearing on Monday, June 8th is a “Special Exception to permit a 75,000 square foot recreational facility for use by a professional minor league baseball team (Atlantic League)” as part of the proposed Kincora development at the intersection of Routes 28 and 7.  The Leesburg Today wrote about the issue here.  (The descriptive quote is straight from the Board’s agenda for the meeting.)

The cover story for the Loudoun Times Mirror this week called a shift in the real estate market to a seller’s market, based on shorter days on market and an upswing in the number of sold homes. You can read their take on the situation here.

The Purcellville Volunteer Fire Department Company 2 moved into their new digs at the corner of Maple and Hirst (pictured above) after lowering the flag at their old location on Maple for the last time, and caravaning up to the new spot.

The Friends of Hamilton Park are holding a community fundraiser on Thursday, June 25th: have dinner at the Purcellville McDonald’s between 5 and 8 pm that evening, and 20% of all proceeds will benefit the park.

Cheers,

Heather

If you break it down by town/city, here is how it looks:

• Sterling:   461 active listings, 144 under contract… 3.2 months
• Ashburn:  384 active listings,  92 under contract…  4.2 months
• Leesburg: 630 active listings, 105 under contract…  6 months
• Western Loudoun (Hamilton, Purcellville, Round Hill): 280 active listings, 24 under contract… 11.7 months

It’s easy to see that the market is stronger the further east you go. Pretty simple when you consider how high gas prices have affected commuting costs, and also how much more affordable homes are now than they were two years ago. I’m still seeing strong traffic through open houses, and a good amount of showings on listings.  Keep an eye out for some neighborhood specific market reports here in the next few days.  If you have a particular area that you would like more information or data about, please email me at heatherelias@weichert.com, call me at    571-233-5491   , or comment here on the blog.

Cheers,

Heather