Possum Point Road

Possum Point in the News

Raising a stink
Editorial, Potomac News; May 21 2005
An electrical malfunction at a pumping station caused more than 600,000 gallons of raw sewage to flow into Quantico Creek during a March rain storm. Most county residents didn't hear about it until it was reported in this newspaper yesterday. Informing the public of a sewage spill that doesn't occur near a water supply or public beach is not required by law, but the courtesy would have been appreciated by the public. Public notification may be among the least of the Prince William Service Authority's problems. The state Department of Environmental Quality notified service authority officials that the commonwealth's clean water laws may have been violated. It's illegal to discharge raw sewage into a waterway, but whether this mechanical failure could have been prevented remains to be seen.

Authority warned of violating water laws
Aileen Streng, Potomac News; May 20 2005
The Prince William Service Authority was warned last week that it might have violated state clean water laws when 642,000 gallons of raw sewage flowed into the Quantico Creek.

Development leads to property damage
Tim Horn, Gainesville Times; May 20 2005
" ... public testimony related to problems visited on existing residences on Possum Point Road associated with a similar development in Wayside Southbridge has shown that even application of well-understood erosion control techniques proved inadequate for this combination of topography and soil types. " T his comment from Planning Commissioner Fred Penar in December 2000 has proven prophetic. Possum Point Road has been inundated with soil run-off from the construction of area developments for several years.

Possum Point could benefit from surplus
Chad Umble, Potomac News; April 27 2005
County officials may have found a new solution for an old problem on Possum Point Road . Flooding and mud on Possum Point Road -- which runs along the southern end of the Cherry Hill Peninsula -- have long been a concern of residents, and while local officials agree there is a problem, the money to fix it has been scarce. Last week, Supervisor Maureen S. Caddigan, R-Dumfries, proposed using $500,000 of a budget surplus to help clean up the situation. … A "good portion" of the money could be spent fixing Possum Point Road , Caddigan said. The money could also be used on "stale zoning"-- areas of the county that are zoned for development but don't require developers to pay extra money for problems they may create.

Dumfries to take action on creek erosion
Aileen Streng, Potomac News; April 8 2005
Elsie Garrison has been watching her backyard slowly slip into the Quantico Creek for about 20 years. Over the last two years, however, it's been disappearing more quickly. "We used to be able to walk around that tree and that tree over there," Garrison said, pointing to the waterlogged branches about eight feet downhill from her yard and in the creek. Another several more feet of her backyard, which once was flat, is now sloped down toward the creek. Garrison has lost about 25 feet of her property to the creek.

Quantico Creek gets a clean-up
Keith Walker, Potomac News; April 3 2005
Environmentalists are a hardy lot and 33 of them showed up at Dumfries Town Hall on Saturday to help clean up Quantico Creek. A little bit of bad weather doesn't bother them. "People who are interested in a project like this, rain's not going to scare them," said Cathy Lambe, project coordinator. The project at Quantico Creek, which flows from Mine Road to the Potomac River, was part of the 17th Annual Potomac River Watershed Clean-up.

County planners want more money for streams
Lillian Kafka, Potomac News; March 18 2005
Prince William County Planning Commissioners have recommended taking a closer look at funding stream improvement efforts as part of the county's annual capital improvement program review. In addition to the $197 million already programmed into the 2006 plan, the county should find another $500,000 to clean up storm water management ponds to improve water quality, the commission suggested Wednesday. ... Dumfries residents asked the Planning Commission to provide money to fix the growing flooding problem caused by recent residential development approved by Prince William County next to Possum Point Road, where Claudia Smith said she's lived for 50 years. Only in the past four years have quick rainfalls held her hostage in her own home, she said. Even a 20-minute downpour, coupled with the Potomac River's high tide, can cause a flood that shuts down Possum Point Road, she said

Quantico bridge construction progressing
Keith Walker, Potomac News; Dec 4 2005
A railroad bridge across Quantico Creek to help ease commuter train traffic between Fredericksburg and Washington, D.C., is scheduled to be finished in early 2007. Crews finished pouring concrete to form the south abutment of the bridge at the edge of the creek near the town of Quantico Friday, said Mark Roeber, Virginia Railway Express spokesman. The bridge will span the creek between the Town of Quantico at the south side of the creek and the Dominion Virginia Power Possum Point Plant on the creek's north side.