Town Administrator Martha Semmes announced that on July 18 that the Metropolitan Washington Transportation Planning Board had awarded Middleburg a technical assistance grant to develop a Washington Street Streetscape Improvement Plan. Middleburg's project was one of only two Virginia grants out of a total of nine awarded under the program to projects in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.

According to Semmes, "The Town, with the endorsement of Loudoun County, requested technical assistance for a streetscape improvement project for the town's main street...which was a recipient of the 2010 American Planning Association Great Streets Award."

The grant will cover the cost of developing a plan "for enhancing the safety and functionality of the street, while considering a host of unique factors such as historic preservation, aging street lights, and a succession plan for aging trees." "The challenge of this project," Semmes noted in a press release, "is to improve the streetscape without losing the character that was recognized by the Great Streets Award."

Middleburg Beautification and Preservation, Inc. was especially pleased at the news. Elaine Burden told the Eccentric the group "has been raising money for the past twenty years" to support just such efforts. "We are delighted," she said, not only because of the grants implications for ongoing beautification projects, but for technical improvements as well.