By Randy Arrington
LURAY, May 9 — Luray RV Resort and Campground on [the] Shenandoah River is gearing up for its first full season after adding 81 acres and 277 additional camp sites more than a year ago to the former Outlanders Campground along Route 211. An Open House on Thursday offered local officials and visitors to the campground live music and free food to mark a new era.
“I hope it’s the beginning of a long history of bringing people to the rich history and beauty of the Page Valley and Luray,” said Rafael Correa, president of the facility’s parent company Blue Water. The Ocean City, Md.-based company was founded about 15 years ago and now owns dozens of resort locations along the Atlantic Coast from Maine to Florida. Correa thanked both corporate and local staff members at the onset of the Open House and stated, “hold on to your seat belts because we are going to be rocking this summer.”
The Luray-Page County Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon cutting to mark the event. A crowd of around 75 local supporters and visitors gathered under a tent before the band Souled Out started performing and Hank’s BBQ started serving.
“It’s beautiful, and it aligns with what Page County is…an outdoor destination,” stated Chamber President Gina Hilliard. “Thank you for your investment and coming here.”
Hilliard told the crowd how the campground opened its facilities to both First Responders and families who fought or were affected by the March wildfires in the Page Valley.
“It really is a wonderful facility,” said Luray Mayor Jerry Dofflemyer, noting its proximity to Shenandoah National Park. “We are ready to host your guests in Luray…anything they need, we have…restaurants, shops and so on…and best wishes to your whole organization.”
Correa first discovered the site along the South Fork while searching for a camping site for he and his son. He noted that the campground was booked full and soon made a site visit. Correa immediately noted the surrounding natural resources, its setting along the Shenandoah, and proximity to international tourist attractions such as Luray Caverns and the Skyline Drive. That prompted conversations with former owner Yvonne Berezoski, who subsequently sold Outlander’s Campground to Blue Water on Dec. 29, 2021.
The deal closed some six weeks after the Page County Board of Supervisors and the Page County Planning Commission held a joint meeting to fast-track dual approvals to accommodate the campground expansion. On Nov. 17, 2021, the two boards took four votes on two issues after four public hearings in about two hours.
“I was blown away by how welcoming this community was and how quickly it went through,” Correa said on Thursday.
The new permits saw the campground grow from 100 acres to 181 acres, and from 73 camp sites to about 350. While the process proved somewhat controversial — prompting an update to the county’s campground ordinance — at least one person deeply involved in the process feels the county did its due diligence to protect neighbors while also promoting economic growth.
“I was on the planning commission when this went through…It took a lot of time and energy to make sure it was a good fit, and I think you can look around and see how beautiful it is and I think it’s a great fit,” District 4 Supervisor Isaac Smelser told Thursday’s crowd. “It’s an amazing investment and I think it’s what we need to see more of in Page County.”
The Luray RV Resort is Blue Water’s 17th RV resort, according to Correa, and their largest single investment “to date teetering on $40 million in total investment.” Around $3 million of that investment went into the construction of a high-tech wastewater treatment facility to assure that clean affluent is discharged into the river under the facility’s DEQ permit.
The local campground was expected to add 45 new jobs, generate more than $500,000 in additional Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT), and pay around $180,000 in annual real estate taxes.
Luray RV Resort and Campground on the Shenandoah River is located at 4253 US 211, Luray, VA 22835. For more information call 540-743-5540 or visit https://www.lurayrvresortshenandoahriver.com/
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Campgrounds are fine but I’m not looking forward to the “over 50,000 gallons per day” of treated sewage they will be dumping into the Sheandoah River. In addition, they are allowed to purchase pollution “credits” from the Town of Leesburg that give them the right to pollute our river more. This is not good for our valley or our residents.
Correction: The DEQ permit is for “up to” not “over” 50,000 gallons of treated sewage and the credit trade with Leesburg is required to offset all discharges. Not that this changes anything, it is still bad news for our river and those who use it.