Board leaves Sweet Leaf Farm short‑term rental hearing open after posting affidavit not returned

Fauquier County supervisors declined to act Oct. 19 on a special‑permit request for Sweet Leaf Farm, a proposed category‑3 short‑term rental in the Cedar Run District, after staff reported the property posting affidavit required for the public hearing was not returned within the required timeframe.

Staff said the property is a 52‑acre parcel zoned agriculture, the application proposes using an existing two-bedroom house with a maximum of four guests, and the applicant identified a caretaker within two miles. Staff told the board that the planning commission had unanimously recommended denial and that prior enforcement actions had been issued for a tourist home and later for events, a firing range and occupancy of recreational vehicles. Because the posting affidavit was not returned in time, the board left the hearing open to be re-advertised and considered at a later meeting.

At public comment, a nearby resident, Joseph Allen, described multiple years of noise complaints and unauthorized rifle fire at the site and said he had filed violation reports and sought law-enforcement involvement. Allen said the activity had escalated and that the community was still affected by noise and safety concerns.

The board instructed staff to re-advertise the hearing properly and keep the public hearing open for action at a future meeting.