Jamboree Locations?
Where will the Scouts camp after 2010?
The Boy Scouts of America's decided Tuesday it won't be bringing its national jamboree to Rockbridge County and turned its attention to a possible site in West Virginia.Jack Furst, a national Boy Scout chairman, said the Goshen site was "spectacularly beautiful," but "it came down to land use and economics. It just won't work.
A spokesman, Nicole Slater, described the issues in Rockbridge County as adequate water supply and sewer capacities, among other concerns. "Obviously these are issues of supreme importance," she said.
In a statement, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said, "After much discussion it became clear that the Goshen site in Rockbridge County was just not an appropriate location for an operation of this magnitude."
The jamboree, held every four years, attracts nearly 30,000 Scouts from around the U.S. and 12,000 staff and volunteers. Rural Rockbridge County has a population of approximately 32,000.
Slater said the BSA has signed a purchase agreement for a 10,600-acre property in Beckley, W.Va., which had been considered as a future high-adventure base offering horse riding, hiking and other activities.
Furst said the Beckley property scores "very high" on the availability of water and sewer services. "The challenges we have in West Virginia are elevation and topography," he said.
With Tuesday's decision, Slater said in an e-mail, "The BSA is moving forward with acquiring land in W.Va. for the high adventure base, and will now also evaluate the property to see if it can accommodate a jamboree. As we have seen with Goshen, that process can be thorough and extensive."
The site includes reclaimed coal mining property.
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