Louisa Board of Zoning Appeals Votes 4-3 to Deny Zoning Appeal for the Charlottesville I-64 Spirit of Defiance Memorial Battle Flag

After several hours of public testimony, arguments from the Louisa County Planning Commission and the Va Flaggers, and questions from the board, members voted to deny our appeal of the alleged zoning violation at the Charlottesville I-64 Spirit of Defiance Battle Flag site. http://www.cbs19news.com/content/news/488582611.html In our presentation, our attorney presented evidence that both the landowner and a representative from the Va Flaggers had done due diligence in calling the proper office for zoning and building permit information.  In its presentation, Louisa County officials claimed that we were lying about our contacts and that we had willfully and intentionally ignored zoning laws.  Testimony by the landowner and our representatives, in combination with the presentation of a confirmation email sent by our folks, was compelling and hard to dismiss. Stressing our experience in having raised 27 flags in the Commonwealth, we effectively argued that we would not spend the $14,500 it cost to raise this flag, without getting proper confirmation of county requirements, nor would we attempt to knowingly and willfully violate county laws and regulations, as county officials and some speakers claimed. We also presented evidence of irregularities in the application of exemptions in the zoning ordinance and were able to effectively defend and dismiss the claims made by county officials and the county attorney. Public testimony against the flag was largely emotionally charged and hysterical, based on false narratives and SPLC talking points.  Several neighbors of the landowner spoke of how they enjoyed the view of the flag, and a Louisa county resident and descendant of Richard Proffitt, the veteran buried at the site, spoke eloquently about the fact that the site was clearly a veterans’ memorial and should be treated as such. We believe that of the four that voted against us, two did so strictly based on their own personal bias, and the other two just wanted to pass the whole issue on to the Circuit Court so they did not have to be on record in the matter. Representatives from the county did their best to insist that the hearing had nothing to do with the fact that it was a Confederate flag flying, but it was obvious to everyone else in attendance that the ONLY reason we were meeting in that building was because of what kind of flag was flying and the First Amendment implications in this case have been well established. We were prepared for this ruling, but we expected it to be unanimous based on the fact that these kinds of boards usually side with county findings.  The fact that the denial was passed by such a slim margin gives us increased confidence heading to Circuit Court, which would be our next level of appeal.  We will be meeting with our attorney this week to discuss our options and will keep you all posted as we have new information. We have 30 days to file our appeal. In the meantime, we will be installing a new 4'x8' sign at the site this week... ...the flag is still flying, and we are receiving inquiries from Louisa residents about the possibility of installing more flags in the county.