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The Land Management System (LMS) for the New River Parkway is currently under development in 2006. What is a LMS? Think of a the LMS as "zoning on steroids." For the New River Parkway will perhaps dictate the current and future use and value of ALL land in the view shed of the parkway (that is ALL land that is visible from the Parkway, not just land that is adjacent). In essence this means the entire Valley along the length of the Parkway from Sandstone to Hinton, and perhaps someday ALL the way to Princeton. The LMS is a governance system to manage all land use in the valley. It is being developed jointly by the Parkway Authority, National Park Service and local governments, namely Raleigh, Summers, and Mercer County government.
LMSs are fundamentally are counter to personal/private property rights and are very restrictive by nature. They can for example:
 | Control, restrict, or dictate what crops can be planted and what farm animals can be raised. |
| Control, restrict, or dictate the types, features, architecture, and shape of buildings, building materials and color. This can even be applied to EXISTING structures. |
| Control, restrict or dictate the vegetation (to include shrubbery, trees, grass, flowers, etc) that can exist on land in the management area. This can be applied to EXISTING fauna. |
| Control, restrict or dictate even simple changes to the contour the the land. |
| Dictate what property can and cannot be used for. For example land that is today pastureland could be prevented from becoming plowed farmland in the future. |
| Control, restrict or dictate an existing resident in the building new or improving his home in anyway. |
| Restrict, control, or prevent the sale or resale of property in the valley to private individuals. |
| Prevent a landowner from tearing down, modifying, or building, improving, or even maintaining structures on property such out homes, businesses, fences, barns, and sheds. Even modest every day changes can be affected. |
| Prevent or restrict the removal of trees or planting of new ones for even the most benign purposes. |
| Prevent the restoration of buildings and improvements damaged by fire or natural causes, even if the replacement entity is an exact duplicate. |
| Prevent the natural harvesting of timber and other resources owned by private individuals. |
| Prevent sub-division of acreage for development. |
| Force existing land owners at their expense to make costly changes to their current property to comply with new land management standards |
| Allow the government to seize or to turn over to conservation groups property which is deemed in violation of the land management system. |
In effect a strict land management system can be used to impose conservation easements on landowners in the valley and DECREASE property values. Such restrictions eliminate or severely regulate the ability of a landowner to reap the rightful value of the land he or she owns or to use the land in reasonable way as he/she sees fit. Land that you cannot sell, develop, sub-divide, or timber has less value than land with no or minimal restrictions on it.
Our position: Protect yourself and future generations from big government and outside influences. As a group we are not necessarily imposed to the implementation of a reasonable LMS. But no matter how innocuous the idea of LMS may seem today, keep in mind that its implementation and interpretation are key aspects to the impact on the land, landowners, and residents of the valley. We urge you to contact your county government, local representatives, and the New River Parkway Authority and get involved actively in the development of a LMS that does no harm, now or in the future. Attend Parkway Authority meetings and voice your concerns. Demand to see a draft of the LMS before it is finalized and provide feedback! Pay attention to every detail. Property rights are vital to a free America! Fortunately, as the LMS is not final yet, you have time to act! Do it now!
