It is more than just losing a layout - it is a realization that another generation of model railroaders is reaching their golden years. In a way, the V&O can be considered a "second generation" model railroad...
I look at it this way - in the early days of the hobby, people were trying to distance themselves from the stigma of "toy trains". But it was still a kit and scratchbuild era, disposable income was less, and therefore layouts small, and the focus was on trains going around in circles. Locomotive control was poor, and details were crude.
The V&O falls into a second generation - power packs had gotten better with transistorized controls and walk-arounds. Detail was better and there were more products on the market. People soon started building their layouts as a "slice of the real world", and operating their layouts accoordingly.
Now we are in a third generation - detail is ten times better than 20 years ago, the amount of products available to us is huge, people have bigger houses, and lots more money to spend (or just more cretit). DCC has invaded, and people are designing layouts to utilize this new technology.
In that sense, the dismantling of the V&O is the end of an era.
Kevin