HILLSBORO, Va. — The Blue Ridge Mountains provide a majestic backdrop to the drive along busy Route 9 in western Loudoun County, Va. Farms and vineyards are common sights.
But there is a strange sight on a hill: seven tiny houses all in a row. They've sprung up over the past year about 2.5 miles west of the Town of Hillsboro and they’re causing concern.
“He has seven houses today and he could go to 40," said Alta Jones, chair of the Loudoun rural economic development Council.
“He” is the property owner and developer John Robic who lives in a large house on the property. Loudoun County approved his Blue Ridge Country Inn last September.
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Under the Country Inn ordinance, a property that’s on at least 20 acres can rent out up to 40 rooms. At the other country inns, such as the Goodstone Inn and Restaurant, rooms are rented from existing buildings.
"No one thought about that you could build little cabins," said Jones.
She also runs a bed and breakfast in her home. Jones said the tiny houses are not in keeping with the rural feel of the community and might pose environmental concerns.
WUSA9 drove onto John Robic’s property to ask him about his tiny houses. Robic was very cordial but would not comment.
A Loudoun County spokesman said the tiny houses are legal and break no rules.
Alta Jones believes they slipped through a loophole in the ordinance. She wants to get that ordinance changed to stop further development of tiny houses to keep from "looking like a subdivision. That's not the reason our visitors come out."
The Loudoun Now, which first reported the story, names one other tiny cottage project in the conceptual stages in western Loudoun.