Goochland supervisors hold meeting on proposed Valley Link power line
Goochland residents will hear details on the Valley Link power line and speak directly to supervisors before the county sets its next move.
A 115-mile transmission line that could carry steel lattice towers nearly 160 feet high is now a local land-use fight in Goochland, where supervisors will hear from residents and Valley Link representatives at a special meeting in the Goochland County High School Auditorium.
The Board of Supervisors will meet Thursday, May 28, 2026, at 6 p.m. at 3250-A River Road West in Goochland to discuss the proposed Valley Link Joshua Falls-Yeat 765kV transmission line. County materials say residents will have an opportunity to share their thoughts during the session, and Valley Link representatives are expected to attend to hear concerns and answer questions.
For property owners along the route, the stakes go beyond the utility line itself. Goochland County documents say the project would require significant permanently cleared right-of-way, a change that could affect viewsheds, farming operations, forested land and the broader character of rural acreage that has shaped development patterns in the county for decades. County leaders have argued that those impacts fall on Goochland even though the line would not directly benefit local residents.
Valley Link is described by Goochland County as a joint venture of Dominion Energy, FirstEnergy Transmission and Transource Energy. The project would move electricity from Joshua Falls in Campbell County to Yeat in Culpeper County, crossing numerous Central Virginia counties along the way. County materials describe it as a regional transmission project serving areas with higher electrical demand north of Goochland.
The county board formally opposed the proposal on April 7, saying the line as currently designed should be abandoned or redesigned to avoid impacts to Goochland County. Supervisors said the project would not directly benefit residents and could harm agricultural, forestry, environmental and scenic resources. In mid-April, the board also set aside $250,000 from the county’s unassigned general fund to advocate against the project.
The May 28 meeting follows earlier public outreach, including a March 23 community meeting at the Central High Cultural and Education Complex. With the project still under review, the coming hearing gives residents one more chance to press their concerns before the county hardens its position and Valley Link, along with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, moves deeper into the decision-making process.
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