Negotiations under way to keep White’s Ferry open
POOLESVILLE, Md. - After a legal dispute that shut down a centuries old ferry between Maryland and Virginia, a new buyer has stepped in to keep White’s Ferry open.
The Circuit Court of Loudoun County, Virginia ruled back in late December, in the case of Rockland Farm, LLC, et al. v. White's Ferry, Inc., that no public landing exists on the Virginia shoreline at White's Ferry Road and the ferry is prohibited from landing at that location in Virginia.
"My fear was that we were going to loose white’s ferry all together," said Poolesville resident, Valaree Dickerson Monday.
On Friday afternoon, Virginia businessman Chuck Kuhn, founder and CEO of JK Moving Services and his wife Stacy Kuhn, announced that they and Rockland Farm have come to terms on a purchase of White’s Ferry.
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In a statement to FOX 5’s Ayesha Khan on Monday, Margaret L. Brown with MLB Communications Strategies & Public Relations said:
"Rockland Farm, LLC welcomes Chuck and Stacy Kuhn as the new owners of White’s Ferry and is optimistic that it can negotiate a reasonable agreement with them for the use of its property on the Virginia side of the Potomac where the ferry landing is located. As we have maintained all along, Rockland Farm never wanted to see the ferry shut down and has only been interested in receiving fair compensation for the use of its property as a ferry landing point.
Mr. Kuhn has requested that neither side speak with the press while we negotiate to get White’s Ferry running again, and we are honoring his request."
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"It was just out of left field that it had closed," said one Poolesville resident who did not want to be identified.
"It would be like closing the Bay Bridge if we were on the Eastern Shore. It’s our heritage in this area."
Dickerson who also served as Poolesville’s town commissioner, said this is news that so many people in the town are welcoming with open arms.
"You can honestly believe that being a thoroughfare brings life to our community, it bring people, it brings interest," she said.
For the sake of their own livelihood businesses like White’s Ferry Grill are hoping they can once again serve commuters who stop in for a quick snack or a sandwich.
"We have only been open a year and a half and it takes a good year to get clientele and we were just starting to get to that point," said Devin Ramazon managing partner of White’s Ferry Grill.