Valley North Power Line: What Lovettsville Buyers & Sellers Should Know

Two hundred seventy-five people packed a standing-room-only meeting in Lovettsville to oppose a power line. On September 15, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors voted to oppose it too.

Here's what almost nobody at that meeting could answer: where, exactly, the line goes. That's because it hasn't been decided. No application has been filed. No route has been picked.

For anyone buying or selling a home in northern Loudoun right now, that uncertainty is the real story. Not the towers. The not knowing.

What is the Valley North transmission line?

Valley North is a proposed 765-kilovolt transmission line running about 260 miles from Putnam County, West Virginia, to Frederick, Maryland. Roughly 30 of those miles would cross Virginia, through northwestern Loudoun County.

Who's building it: Valley Link Transmission Company, a consortium of Dominion Energy, FirstEnergy Transmission, and Transource Energy.
Why: PJM Interconnection, the regional grid operator, initiated the project to bring more power into the region.
How big: Proposed towers stand about 185 feet tall. For scale, that's taller than a 15-story building.
When: The developers are targeting operation by May 2031.

It's not the only line in the conversation. FirstEnergy's separate Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek project would upgrade an existing line through the same part of the county, mostly within its current right-of-way. Don't confuse the two. They're different projects with different routes and different timelines.

Where does the Valley North project stand right now?

It's early. Earlier than the headlines suggest.

No SCC application yet. Virginia's State Corporation Commission decides whether the line gets built and where. The developers have said they plan to file with a preferred route next spring, with public hearings to follow that summer.
The county is on record against it. The Board of Supervisors' September 15 resolution opposes the project as currently proposed.
Residents want it buried. A common ask at the Lovettsville meeting: convert it to high-voltage direct current and put it underground.
State legislators are involved. Local delegates said they plan to introduce legislation in January addressing residents' concerns.
More meetings are coming. The consortium has said it will return to Loudoun in November with updated plans and a public comment session.

Existing corridor or new path: the question that actually matters

The routing options on the table aren't all the same kind of option.

One generally follows an existing transmission line. Others would cut new routes through rural land that has never had a power line on it.

That difference matters more for a specific property than anything in the headlines. A home that already sits near an existing corridor was priced with that corridor in mind. Bigger towers change the view, but the buyer pool already knew the line was there. A farm on a new path is a different situation. That's a change nobody priced in.

So the right question isn't "Is Lovettsville affected?" It's "Which study corridor is this property in, and is that corridor existing or new?"

If you're buying in Lovettsville or northern Loudoun

Virginia is a buyer-beware state. Sellers generally aren't required to tell you about a proposed power line, and a line with no filed route won't show up in a title search. The homework is yours.

Check the study corridor maps before you write an offer. Start with the county's Transmission Lines in Loudoun County page, then the developer's project maps.
Note which kind of route is near the property. Existing corridor or new path. See above.
Look at both projects. Valley North and Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek are separate. A property can be near one, both, or neither.
Ask your agent to pull sales near existing corridors. Recent comps along lines that already exist in northern Loudoun say more than any national study.
Plan for your timeline. A final route likely won't be known until well after a spring filing. If you're buying now, you're buying before that answer exists.

If you're selling a home near a study corridor

Buyers are going to ask. Many already know about the line before their first showing.

Get ahead of it. Know which corridor, if any, touches your property, and whether it's existing or new. A clear answer beats a buyer finding the map on their own.
Don't overcorrect on price. No route is final. Pricing as if the worst-case route were already approved leaves money on the table.
Lead with what doesn't change. Acreage, views from the rest of the property, school pyramid, commute to Brunswick MARC or Route 15. The things buyers came for are still there.
Think about timing. If you were planning to list in the next year, listing before a preferred route is filed means selling into uncertainty. Listing after means selling into an answer, good or bad. Neither is automatically better, and it depends on where your property sits.

What happens next, and how to weigh in

November 2026: The consortium returns to Loudoun with updated plans and a public comment session.
January 2027: Expected state legislation addressing residents' concerns.
Spring 2027: Planned SCC application with a preferred route.
Summer 2027: Expected SCC public hearings.
May 2031: Developers' target date for the line to be operating.

The county's transmission lines page tracks updates as they come. Comments carry the most weight at the SCC stage, once a route is actually filed.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Valley North power line going through Lovettsville?

Not decided. Several route options through northern Loudoun are being studied. A preferred route is expected with the SCC application, planned for spring 2027.

How tall will the Valley North towers be?

About 185 feet, based on the developers' current proposal.

Who approves the Valley North transmission line in Virginia?

The Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC).

Does Loudoun County support the Valley North line?

No. The Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution on September 15, 2026, opposing the project as proposed.

Do Virginia sellers have to disclose a proposed power line?

Generally, no. Virginia is a buyer-beware state, so buyers should check the study corridor maps themselves before making an offer.

Is Valley North the same as the Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek project?

No. Gore-Doubs-Goose Creek is a separate FirstEnergy project that mostly upgrades an existing line within its current right-of-way.

Buying or selling near a study corridor?

I've been selling homes in western Loudoun since 2006. If you're looking at a property near one of the proposed routes, or thinking about listing, I'll pull the corridor maps and nearby sales for your specific address.

Call or text 703-587-5403, or email [email protected].

Diana Geremia | Long & Foster Real Estate | Forbes Global Properties