The ferry that ran between Montgomery County in Maryland and Loudoun County in Virginia used to carry anywhere from 600 to 800 vehicles a day across the Potomac River.
On the weekends, the vehicles that use White’s Ferry could grow to as many as 1,000 vehicles.
But that stopped in December 2020, when the owner of the ferry and the property owner on the Virginia side couldn’t come to an agreement over landing rights.
Now, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich has contacted both parties to offer this: $3 million as a financial incentive to get the ferry running again.
It’s not the first time outside entities have tried to get Libby Devlin, of Rockland Farm LLC in Virginia, and Chuck Kuhn, of Potomac Crossing LLC, to come together to reopen the ferry.
But Link Hoewing, chair of the Fair Access Committee for the Western County in Poolesville, Maryland, told 91欧美激情, “This is the most generous by a long shot that the county has offered,” and for that reason, he’s hopeful that will “make a difference” in kick-starting fresh discussions about the future of the ferry.
After receiving the letter, Devlin sent the following statement to 91欧美激情, “Rockland Farm is grateful to the town of Poolesville and the State of Maryland for coming forth with this incentive to restart ferry services. We also thank Montgomery County for facilitating this arrangement and for their offer of continued assistance to resolve the matter. The Rockland owners will continue discussions with the Maryland owners in good faith to reach a fair agreement which gets a ferry running as soon as possible.”
“I implore you to look past the fraught history of this disagreement and take action to restore this vital service,” to Kuhn and Devlin.
The current owners of the ferry, JK Land Holdings, responded to Elrich’s letter, saying the company was “surprised and disappointed” that Montgomery County had not accepted its prior offer to donate the White’s Ferry business operation and equipment to the county. That offer was made last April.
The company said its donation offer had been accepted verbally.
“In terms of the county executive鈥檚 unexpected and unsolicited $3 million proposal, JKLH has never asked for or expected any funds from the taxpayers of Montgomery County,” JK Land Holdings wrote in a statement to 91欧美激情.
According to the statement, the company is reviewing the proposal and is in contact with Montgomery County and Loudoun County officials and Rockland Farm.
“Despite this major setback, JKLH remains committed to finding a resolution that will get the crossing open as soon as possible, but the hurdles are now much higher, as zoning regulations on the Virginia side have recently changed,” JK Land Holdings wrote.
Hoewing said he does think people, especially on the Poolesville side where White’s Ferry is, appreciated the convenience of the ferry, which cut the travel time for people heading to Dulles International Airport or job sites in Loudoun County. But he added, the area on both sides of the Potomac River has characteristics that residents and visitors alike enjoy.
Hoewing said the ferry was not only popular with commuters, but it provided a big draw to Poolesville and surrounding areas on the weekends and holidays.
“People come over to visit the C&O Canal, Sugarloaf Mountain” on the Montgomery County side, and head to Loudoun County for the breweries and wineries.
“It’s also culturally and historically important to our area,” Hoewing added.
The $3 million offer comes from $1.5 million approved by the Maryland General Assembly in the fiscal 2026 budget, and $1.5 million from a .
There are some potential hiccups: Zoning regulations that had allowed for the ferry operations in the past have expired, and would likely have to be modified to accommodate operations moving forward. And in his letter to Devlin and Kuhn, Elrich admitted the county has no authority or jurisdiction to require an agreement between the two parties, just that he hoped a solution could be found.
Elrich concluded his letter by stating that the county’s Department of Transportation would be available to provide technical assistance on the plans until July 1, 2026, and that, “This will be Montgomery County’s last attempt at trying to resolve your disagreements and restart White’s Ferry.”
Editor’s Note: This story was first published on April 11 and has been updated to include statements from JK Land Holdings and Rockland Farm LLC.聽
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