In the 1960s, civic groups interested in orderly growth pressed for establishment of the Gloucester Planning Commission. The board of supervisors followed through, naming in September of 1964 a who’s who of upstanding citizens: Robert Hutcheson, G. Nelson Carter, Mrs. F J. Mellar, Mrs. James Thrift, William M. James, John Ward Jr., Robert W. Jordan and George Catlett. They first met in February 1965.

At the same time, seven stalwart men of Mathews County took the oath to serve: R. Otis Foster, E.L. Soles Sr., Herbert Taylor, W.I. Hudgins, L.L. Smith, Russell E. Armistead and Allen Moughon.

Since those early years, the commissions have grappled with subdivision ordinances, especially such important regulations as lot size and road requirements; comprehensive plans, which came into being in the mid-1970s; and many other topics dealing with land use.

Acting at the direction of county supervisors, planners in both communities spent years to develop zoning ordinances to meet t...