At the risk of inciting my blogging friend Groveton, I recommend to readers an op-ed piece that I penned for the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star, “History, lifestyles, and vistas are threatened,” in which I extol the virtues of the Journey Through Hallowed Ground.
JTHG is one of the most promising experiments in free-enterprise conservation taking place in the country today. The broad-based initiative, which encompasses the region along the U.S. 15 corridor between Charlottesville and Gettysburg, is based upon respect for property rights. Contrary to the delusional claims of adversaries who see it as a Trojan horse for introducing land use controls, JTHG is conspicuous by its refusal to get embroiled in land use disputes. The group’s purpose is to create an alternate economic model for towns, hamlets and farms on the fringe of the Washington metropolitan area — a model built upon heritage tourism, Main Street revitalization, and sustainable agriculture — that enables landowners to make a decent living without selling off their property for scattered subdivisions and shopping centers.
I’m not saying the model is perfect. Perfection is for heaven, not earth. JTHG wants a federal designation as a National Heritage Area, which would come with funds for educational programs, and it seeks National Scenic Byway status for Rt. 15, which also would entail the expenditure of federal funds. So, if you’re a deficit hawk worried about runaway federal funding, like Groveton, you might object to these priorities. Ed Risse offers a different criticism: If heritage tourism becomes really successful, how much automobile traffic will it generate, and what are the implications for highway congestion in the corridor and for environmental sustainability?
Both legitimate points. But to my mind, those objections are far outweighed by the positive, uplifting example set by the Journey Through Hallowed Ground. JTHG aims to preserve our cultural and historic heritage, and it aims to do so not by filing lawsuits and lobbying for government restrictions on growth, but by creating economic value and preserving natural and manmade landscapes. How self-styled conservatives can object to that is a mystery to me.
(Photo cutline: Oakhill plantation. Photo credit: Journey Through Hallowed Ground.)