Landowners along Dominion Energy's Line 514 corridor near Leesburg had a deadline in their favor. Under the State Corporation Commission's order in Case No. PUR-2026-00076, landowner notices had to go out on or before July 27, 2026. Twenty-some miles northwest, a buyer touring a farm near Lovettsville or Taylorstown this month gets no such letter. The project being studied there is a 765-kilovolt line. It has no preferred route yet and no filing with the SCC, so no statute requires anyone to mail the buyer anything.
Three high-voltage projects touch Loudoun County this fall, and each one is at a different stage. Formal disclosure grows as a project firms up. The line with the least certain path is the one where a buyer depends entirely on their own homework.
Who Gets a Letter, and When
Virginia's notice rule for big transmission lines is in Va. Code § 56-46.1. Before the SCC can approve a line of 138 kilovolts or more, the public must get at least 30 days' advance notice in three ways. It runs in a newspaper. It goes to each affected local governing body. And it goes by first-class mail "to all owners of property within the route of the proposed line, as indicated on the map or sketch of the route filed with the Commission." Those letters go to the addresses listed in the county land books. The SCC must also post the utility's GIS route map on its website.
Every one of those triggers depends on a route that has already been filed, and the mailing goes only to owners inside that route. A buyer who is under contract isn't yet the owner the land books list. A neighbor across the road from the route is outside it. A study corridor that hasn't become an application doesn't trigger the statute at all.
Here is where each project sits as of mid-October 2026:
| Project | Sponsor and voltage | Stage | Next public date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valley North | Valley Link Transmission Company, 765 kV | Study segments in northwest Loudoun, no preferred route | 12 open houses in November 2026; preferred route expected early 2027 |
| Line 514 Corridor Upgrade, PUR-2026-00076 | Dominion Energy, 500 kV and 230 kV | Filed May 21, 2026 | Public comments due by December 30, 2026; hearings January 6 and 12, 2027 |
| Morrisville–Wishing Star, PUR-2026-00021 | Dominion Energy, 500 kV plus a new 230 kV Fauquier line | Filed February 27, 2026 | Public comments due October 30, 2026; evidentiary hearing begins November 16, 2026 |
The Two Lines That Already Have a Docket
The two Dominion projects are the most documented and, in some ways, the easiest to evaluate.
Line 514 runs from the Potomac River crossing to existing substations about 3.5 miles south near Leesburg. Today the corridor carries a 500 kV lattice structure and a double-circuit 230 kV monopole. The revised design calls for two 500/230 kV monopoles plus another 500 kV monopole. Dominion says the work will stay within the existing right-of-way, with one possible exception: a small, non-residential area near an existing substation. Its timeline shows SCC approval anticipated in spring 2027, construction from mid-to-late 2027 through 2030, and the line in service in 2031. For a property along that corridor, the open question is how a taller, denser set of structures will look from the porch, not whether a line will arrive. The full application is public, along with the map volumes.
Morrisville–Wishing Star pairs a 500 kV line with a new 230 kV line in Fauquier. The 500 kV line runs along or near 36.5 miles of existing right-of-way, from the Morrisville Substation in Fauquier through Prince William to Wishing Star near Arcola in Loudoun. Its route history shows how much a map can move before anything is final. In May 2025, the Piedmont Environmental Council described Loudoun alternatives along Northstar Boulevard, Braddock Road and Tall Cedars Parkway, among others. Dominion later said it had eliminated all three Loudoun alternatives. Anyone who read the 2025 maps and stopped there would have the wrong picture now. The current alignment is in the application maps.
At the September 30 public-witness hearing, Newsline Local reported that Loudoun Supervisor Laura TeKrony questioned whether data center forecasts still justify the line. Landowners along the route also testified about how a second corridor could affect their property. Those objections are on the record because the case is filed. At this stage, information is available to anyone who goes looking for it.
The Line That Only Has a Study Area
Valley North is a different situation. Valley Link Transmission Company is a joint venture of Dominion Energy, Transource and FirstEnergy Transmission. It is proposing an extra-high-voltage line of about 260 miles that would end in Frederick County, Maryland. The Loudoun Times-Mirror reported that every potential route under study runs through northwest Loudoun, with organized opposition in the Lovettsville and Taylorstown areas.
Lovettsville Mayor Christopher Hornbaker told the Times-Mirror that "what makes Western Loudoun special relies on the viewsheds, the ability to attract tourism." The Lovettsville Town Council adopted a resolution opposing the project on August 11. The town and the Coalition of Loudoun Towns both asked Valley Link to consider burying the line, and a volunteer group, Block Valley Link North, has been knocking on doors to spread the word. On September 15, 2026, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution opposing Valley North. In the same release, the county noted that it has no formal role in approving transmission lines and can only testify before the SCC.
Valley Link says the study area "has been narrowed considerably." It plans 12 open houses in November and aims to name a preferred route in early 2027. The Times-Mirror reported that an application to state regulators would follow in early to mid 2027. The § 56-46.1 mailing comes only with that filing. So a farm in the study area can change hands this winter with no statutory letter at any point in the sale. We found no verified local sales data that measures how Valley North has affected prices so far. What a study corridor does to value is still an open question.
What the Disclosure Form Says About All This
Virginia's residential disclosure statement under § 55.1-703 works on a buyer-beware basis. In the version in effect through December 31, 2026, the owner makes no representations about matters on adjacent parcels, including their zoning or permitted uses. The owner also makes no representations about whether the property is subject to "conservation or other easements." In both cases, purchasers are advised to do whatever due diligence they consider necessary before settlement. The enumerated list doesn't mention proposed transmission lines. A revised version of the section takes effect January 1, 2027.
So the formal paper trail rarely reaches a buyer at the study stage. The SCC notice is tied to a filed route and to owners on record. The disclosure statement places the responsibility for adjacent land and easements on the purchaser. The other route is news coverage, open houses and a project's own maps.
An Upgrade on an Old Easement Is Its Own Question
"Existing right-of-way" sounds settled, and it often isn't. The FirstEnergy/Potomac Edison Gore–Doubs–Goose Creek project would upgrade an existing single 138 kV line to double-circuit 500 kV and 138 kV lines along about 44 miles of existing rights-of-way. Of those miles, 10.5 are in Loudoun. According to project information quoted by Loudoun Now, rights-of-way "may need to be expanded" in some limited areas. Potomac Edison would contact landowners about additional easements and temporary rights for access routes, tree clearing and laydown yards. Loudoun Now also reported that this proposal replaced an earlier NextEra plan for an all-new corridor through the heart of western Loudoun, which was withdrawn after public opposition. We couldn't confirm a Virginia SCC filing or docket for the FirstEnergy project. Its fact sheet still lists a fall 2025 filing plan, so its status is unconfirmed.
On a horse property, a wider clearance or a temporary laydown yard can land on pasture, fence lines or a tree line that shields a ring from the road. When a utility needs land, Dominion told Virginia Mercury that it would assess fair market value and try to negotiate an easement. The owner keeps title, and the easement restricts certain uses. If the parties can't agree, § 56-49 lets a public service corporation acquire the property interests it needs through eminent domain, subject to condemnation procedures. Before condemnation begins, the condemnor generally must make a bona fide but ineffectual effort to purchase. Survey crews entering land generally have to send notice at least 30 days ahead under § 25.1-203.
Here is where the information on a specific parcel can be found:
- Recorded easements. A title search shows any existing utility easement and the language that governs it.
- SCC GIS maps. For filed cases like PUR-2026-00076 and PUR-2026-00021, the SCC posts the route maps under § 56-46.1.
- Valley Link's interactive map. For Valley North, this is the only route information until a preferred route is named. Feedback can also be sent to [email protected].
- Docket schedules. The comment deadlines of October 30 and December 30, 2026 set when an owner's or buyer's concerns can still enter the record.
This is general information about how Virginia's notice, disclosure and easement rules work. It isn't legal, tax or financial advice, so please confirm how they apply to a specific property with a Virginia real estate attorney.
A Few Common Questions
Will a buyer under contract receive the SCC's mailed notice? The statute sends notice to owners at the addresses shown in the county land books. A buyer generally isn't listed there until after closing.
Does the SCC weigh scenic and historic impacts? Yes. Under § 56-46.1, the Commission must find that the line is needed. It must also find that the route avoids or reasonably minimizes adverse impact on dwellings, scenic assets, historic and cultural resources recorded with the Department of Historic Resources, and the environment.
Is a line inside an existing right-of-way always the same width? Not necessarily. FirstEnergy's own project information describes possible limited expansion and temporary construction rights.
A transmission corridor is one more line on the survey of a country property, and on a working farm it can decide where the barn, the ring and the turnout can go. If you're weighing a property near Lovettsville, Taylorstown, Leesburg or Arcola and want help reading the route maps and recorded easements before you make an offer, Horse Farms & Country Homes can walk the land and the paperwork with you. Book an Appointment.
