On June 3 the Culpeper County Board of Supervisors approved a conditional use permit requested by Lindsay Ward to construct and operate a kennel and boarding facility on a 47‑acre A‑1 agricultural parcel off Yellow Bottom Road in the Stevensburg Magisterial District, subject to recommended conditions and two board modifications.

The permit was approved in accordance with Appendix A, Article 3, Section 3‑2‑20 of the zoning ordinance (kennels and boarding facilities) and Article 17 (conditional use permits), as read into the record by planning staff. The Planning Commission had unanimously recommended approval with seven conditions, including development in substantial conformity with the applicant’s concept plan, a vegetative buffer along Yellow Bottom Road, a VDOT land‑use permit, no commercial breeding, occupancy of the owner’s residence before kennel operations commence, dogs kept indoors after sunset, and installation of additional vegetative screening and noise‑abatement fencing around the exercise yard.

Applicant Lindsay Ward told the board she and her husband operate a dog‑training program in North Carolina and intend to return to the area to run a "luxury" boarding facility with suites rather than chain‑link runs. She said the proposed site is about 47 acres and that the nearest house is roughly 710 feet from the kennel site; the application estimated capacity at about 60 dogs served with 40 suites. Ward told supervisors she plans to reserve existing tree buffers, add screening, and use building construction and insulation methods aimed at limiting noise. "We do plan on keeping that vegetative buffer," she said.

Neighbors raised concerns about potential barking, buffer longevity and topography. William Jenkins, a Stevensburg District resident who identified his home as the one measured at about 710 feet from the proposed building site, asked how the board could be assured barking would not become a nuisance and suggested shifting the site to increase separation. Planning staff and the applicant responded that the selected site represented flatter topography that reduced grading impacts and that additional vegetative screening could be added along Yellow Bottom Road.

The board discussed operation and nuisance concerns and adjusted one Planning Commission condition: instead of an absolute ‘‘dogs kept indoors after sunset’’ requirement, the supervisors approved a modification requiring dogs to be kept indoors after sunset or 8 p.m., whichever is later, to accommodate winter hours and late‑evening animal needs. Supervisors also required that the existing vegetative buffer be preserved and that additional sound‑barrier plantings be installed around the training/exercise yard. The board emphasized that the conditional use permit remains valid only if the property owner also operates the kennel and resides on the same parcel, and that no commercial breeding is permitted.

An engineer in the audience, Lee Baines, provided guidance material from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and explained that EPA guidance on composting dog waste exists but that neither EPA nor the Virginia Department of Health directly regulates on‑site composting for kennel waste; he said common industry practice includes on‑site composting or bagging and landfill disposal and that applicants should follow best‑practice guidance for decomposition or arrange off‑site removal.

Supervisor (unnamed in the transcript) moved to approve the conditional use permit with the added requirements that the vegetative buffer be preserved and that an additional sound‑barrier vegetative planting be installed around the training yard, and that the nighttime outdoor rule be modified to "after sunset or 8 p.m., whichever is later." The motion carried on a voice vote.

Next steps: the applicant must meet VDOT and permitting requirements, obtain the owner‑occupancy certificate for the on‑site residence before commencing operation, and comply with the permit conditions (vegetative buffers, noise‑abatement fencing, vaccination requirements, and the owner‑operator residency requirement).