IT’S VOLLEYBALL SEASON Fauquier, Liberty and Kettle Run are previewed on Page 18, 19
August 21, 2019
Our 202nd year | Vol. 202, No. 34 | www.Fauquier.com | $1.50
Fauquier’s first hemp farm will harvest this fall By James Ivancic Times Staff Writer
Travis Lane sees growing hemp as his future, so he spends a lot of time tending the sea of green plants outside his home in Marshall and working on his business plan. He’s got an acre of hemp growing this year for his first crop and plans to expand next year to put 5 acres in production. Cameras are trained on the field to prevent theft or other mischief; Crest Hill Road borders his field and home off Walsingham Lane. Growing industrial hemp is newly legal in Virginia. The federal farm bill in 2018 opened the door by removing hemp from the definition of marijuana on the controlled substance list. States individually regulate the growers, processors and dealers. Growers pay a $50 fee to register with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Applicants state where and how much land they plan to cultivate and then report how much they’ve planted. Growers must destroy any product that has more than 3% of THC – the
chemical responsible for most of marijuana’s psychological effects. Hemp processors and dealers must reapply every year to stay in business. Lane believes he’s the first to legally have a hemp farm underway in Fauquier. The state’s agriculture website lists Happy Family Ranch Inc. in Midland as a hemp processor and Northern Neck Hemp Company as a processor in Warrenton. Northern Neck Hemp is also listed as a dealer. SB Holding Inc is a registered hemp processor in Manassas. They and Lane allowed the state to post their names on the state website. They weren’t required to do so. Lane set up Northern Virginia Hemp and Agriculture with four partners. He spent “life savings and cash flow” to bankroll the business, but he didn’t want to say for the record how much he’s put into it. The partners have a website – northernvirginiahemp.com – that talks about the purported benefits of hemp for pain management and relieving See HEMP, page 4
TIMES STAFF PHOTOS/JAMES IVANCIC
Travis Lane is new to hemp farming and he describes it as a learning experience. Here he sniffs one of the Wife hemp plants on his farm.
Redevelopment firm wants to give old Vint Hill barracks a second life
TIMES STAFF PHOTO/ROBIN EARL
Barracks at Vint Hill have been standing vacant for more than 20 years.
Proposal would create apartments By James Ivancic Times Staff Writer
A proposal from a company experienced in rehabilitating old buildings and putting them to new uses wants to give two old barracks at the former Vint Hill Farm Station a facelift. Echelon Resources Inc., a Virginia-based historic property redevelopment firm, needs a zoning text amendment from the county to redevelop the buildings for rental and for-sale condominiums. The property is in a planned commercial industrial district. The two buildings Echelon proposes to rehabilitate served as men’s and women’s barracks. The county has submitted information to the See BARRACKS, page 13
INSIDE Business.............................................15 Calendar.............................................34 Classified............................................43 Communities......................................38
Faith...................................................36 Family.................................................27 Lifestyle..............................................21 Opinion...............................................12
Obituaries...........................................41 Puzzles...............................................14 Real Estate..........................................37 Sports.................................................17
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