In September, Fotheringay, LLC, submitted a request to Montgomery County to rezone more than 260 acres of land in the village of Elliston. This would allow a local developer to build nearly 350 homes on the historic Fotheringay property behind Eastern Montgomery Elementary School and High School. The Montgomery County Planning Commission approved the rezoning on a 6-1 vote in early September, sending the request to the Board of Supervisors for final consideration on October 13.

The Blue Ridge Land Conservancy opposes this rezoning because of the detrimental effect it would have on the village of Elliston and the beautiful, rural character of the Elliston Straightaway, one of Virginia’s most scenic mountain valleys. The homes would be built on some of Montgomery County’s best farmland, even though Montgomery County already lost more than 60 farms and 16,500 acres of farmland between 2017 and 2022.

This development would likely more than double the population in the Elliston community, destroying the rural way of life of the community. And additional residential development would dump more pet waste and lawn chemicals into the Roanoke River, a stream that is already impaired despite being an important source of drinking water.
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Finally, Montgomery County’s own newly-approved 2026 comprehensive plan does not support this project. It calls for retaining the rural village character of Elliston, protecting the rural landscape, and not creating a bedroom community for Roanoke, Salem, Blacksburg and Christiansburg.
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The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors will meet to consider the rezoning request on October 13, 2026 at 7:15 PM at the Montgomery County Government Center, 2nd Floor Board Chambers, located at 755 Roanoke Street in Christiansburg. You’re encouraged to attend this meeting and voice your opposition to the rezoning request. You can also contact the Board of Supervisors ahead of the meeting by phone or e-mail here: https://montva.com/1/government/board-of-supervisors . 
Visit the Preserve Eastmont website for more detailed information and to stay up to date.

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