Jeff Bueche, King George County Board of Supervisors, held his second Town Hall of 2018 at the Fire Department's Company 1. Unlike his last Town Hall, which was standing room only and lasted nearly four hours, Bueche saw very few citizens turn out to participate. The general consensus among those present was that the recent actions by the Service Authority Board of Directors to accept the resignation of Chris Thomas, General Manager, and to censure Chairman Chris Werle was enough to quell many complaints from the community. With barely ten citizens in the audience, this made for a much more intimate conversation among those present.
T. C. Collins, the James Monroe District representative on the School Board, started things off with a short overview of how well the school system is doing with accreditation and teacher retention. In answer to a question from the audience, he said making teacher pay competitive has helped keep talent in King George. Collins said when he first attended orientation for new teachers at the beginning of the year, there were large groups of new teachers. More recently, he said the group of new teachers is much smaller, giving proof that the teachers are staying on the job longer.
He gave a brief update on the Middle School track saying it should be done soon and that progress is being made on the modular buildings at Potomac Elementary School. He wasn't sure if they would be ready by the start of school this fall but hoped they would be. There were also some unanswered questions about if the bathrooms inside would be plumbed and usable. Bueche also added that the fact that some teachers are moving up to administrative roles, even if they move out of the County, is a sign that professional development is occurring.
There was a question about the orange fencing up at the Middle School and it was explained that it was part of the preparation for staging equipment for the expansion project. The King George County Registrar's Office issued a notice about voting for June 12th, stating that voters will need to park in the Staff Parking Lot and use the front or side entrances to access the polls. For those unfamiliar with the Middle School, the front of the school and a large portion of the rear is blocked off. Citizens will need to park where the Farmer's Market is located and use the doors either at the front of the building or those nearest the Sheetz.
To add to the construction discussion, Collins said the plan was to expand the Middle School to give more room at the Middle School and all three Elementary Schools. He said this is part of a long term plan to meet needs. He credited Dr. Benson, Superintendent, for being a great leader during this process.
Answering another question from the audience, Collins said there is a plan to have a security audit done to ensure the school system has the resources in place to keep students and staff safe. Because of a previous family commitment, Collins had to leave early.
Jeff Bueche then gave a brief introduction for tonight's Town Hall and a short overview of his previous Town Hall. He said that while the location for the evening's Town Hall at Company 1 wasn't exactly in his district, it was right across the street. He read a comment from a citizen that was on Facebook and gave a rebuttal. In short, he said that while Werle was key in getting the shoreline stabilization grant for Fairview Beach, he did not agree with his unilateral decisions and should step aside as Chairman of the Board of Directors. However, he did feel that the Board of Directors made a rational, measured, and unemotional decision at their last meeting. He said he felt that there is a change of culture coming to the Service Authority and considers the personnel matters resolved. He also added that in his personal opinion, a government takeover of the Service Authority was not the best choice.
Mike Bennett, Vice-Chair of the Service Authority Board of Directors, then gave a few qualifying statements before speaking. He said that while the Notices of Violation (NOVs) issued by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) are subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and therefore public information, the current negotiations with DEQ are under an enforcement order, meaning it is not public information. He said that he does want to share information with the public but that until the negotiations are over, he's not able to do so.
With that caveat said, Bennett said he was very impressed with the County's ability to draft and publish a Request For Proposal (RFP) within hours of Thomas' resignation. He also said that both the Board of Directors and Chris Thomas agreed to a non-disparagement clause, meaning that neither side could say anything negative about each other. Bennett and the audience then had a long discussion on NOVs and enforcement issues with a lot of questions and suggestions from the audience. Bennett said there was already a plan to be more transparent in the future, not just with the Board but also with the public. He said that they were really looking to get the best solution for the customers of the Service Authority.
With all of this positive news though, Bennett did say that things may get worse before they get better. Using an analogy about surgery to help explain it, he said that typically when you get a diagnosis, you still have to go through recovery after your surgery. He said the Service Authority has had their diagnosis and is in the middle of treatment right now. Recovery will be coming soon but it will take time. His best advice came after the meeting was over though, when he said give "us a chance," meaning the Board of Directors.
In other news, Bueche said he has been working with Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, on a long term plan to make the Fall Festival self-sufficient. He said they had hopes to bring in a larger audience with a concert, barbecue festival, and other activities. Dr. Young also took some constructive criticism from the audience on how to improve the County's website and how to make it easier to find information.
Bueche arrived at the Town Hall at 6pm but the majority of the small crowd didn't arrive until 6:30pm. By 8pm the gathering had begun to break up as everyone had a chance to speak.
[All photos (c) 2018 by Yvonne Richard. Used with permission.]
2018-06-14 UPDATE: A previous version of this article had an incorrect quote from Mike Bennett. Instead of saying "give peace a chance" he said "give us a chance." To quote his clarifying email, Bennett stated: "I said give us a chance, meaning the whole Board, to straighten things out."
T. C. Collins, the James Monroe District representative on the School Board, started things off with a short overview of how well the school system is doing with accreditation and teacher retention. In answer to a question from the audience, he said making teacher pay competitive has helped keep talent in King George. Collins said when he first attended orientation for new teachers at the beginning of the year, there were large groups of new teachers. More recently, he said the group of new teachers is much smaller, giving proof that the teachers are staying on the job longer.
 |
| TC Collins, James Monroe District School Board |
He gave a brief update on the Middle School track saying it should be done soon and that progress is being made on the modular buildings at Potomac Elementary School. He wasn't sure if they would be ready by the start of school this fall but hoped they would be. There were also some unanswered questions about if the bathrooms inside would be plumbed and usable. Bueche also added that the fact that some teachers are moving up to administrative roles, even if they move out of the County, is a sign that professional development is occurring.
There was a question about the orange fencing up at the Middle School and it was explained that it was part of the preparation for staging equipment for the expansion project. The King George County Registrar's Office issued a notice about voting for June 12th, stating that voters will need to park in the Staff Parking Lot and use the front or side entrances to access the polls. For those unfamiliar with the Middle School, the front of the school and a large portion of the rear is blocked off. Citizens will need to park where the Farmer's Market is located and use the doors either at the front of the building or those nearest the Sheetz.
To add to the construction discussion, Collins said the plan was to expand the Middle School to give more room at the Middle School and all three Elementary Schools. He said this is part of a long term plan to meet needs. He credited Dr. Benson, Superintendent, for being a great leader during this process.
Answering another question from the audience, Collins said there is a plan to have a security audit done to ensure the school system has the resources in place to keep students and staff safe. Because of a previous family commitment, Collins had to leave early.
 |
| Jeff Bueche, James Monroe District Supervisor |
Jeff Bueche then gave a brief introduction for tonight's Town Hall and a short overview of his previous Town Hall. He said that while the location for the evening's Town Hall at Company 1 wasn't exactly in his district, it was right across the street. He read a comment from a citizen that was on Facebook and gave a rebuttal. In short, he said that while Werle was key in getting the shoreline stabilization grant for Fairview Beach, he did not agree with his unilateral decisions and should step aside as Chairman of the Board of Directors. However, he did feel that the Board of Directors made a rational, measured, and unemotional decision at their last meeting. He said he felt that there is a change of culture coming to the Service Authority and considers the personnel matters resolved. He also added that in his personal opinion, a government takeover of the Service Authority was not the best choice.
 |
| Michael Bennett, James Monroe District Service Authority Board of Directors |
Mike Bennett, Vice-Chair of the Service Authority Board of Directors, then gave a few qualifying statements before speaking. He said that while the Notices of Violation (NOVs) issued by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) are subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and therefore public information, the current negotiations with DEQ are under an enforcement order, meaning it is not public information. He said that he does want to share information with the public but that until the negotiations are over, he's not able to do so.
With that caveat said, Bennett said he was very impressed with the County's ability to draft and publish a Request For Proposal (RFP) within hours of Thomas' resignation. He also said that both the Board of Directors and Chris Thomas agreed to a non-disparagement clause, meaning that neither side could say anything negative about each other. Bennett and the audience then had a long discussion on NOVs and enforcement issues with a lot of questions and suggestions from the audience. Bennett said there was already a plan to be more transparent in the future, not just with the Board but also with the public. He said that they were really looking to get the best solution for the customers of the Service Authority.
With all of this positive news though, Bennett did say that things may get worse before they get better. Using an analogy about surgery to help explain it, he said that typically when you get a diagnosis, you still have to go through recovery after your surgery. He said the Service Authority has had their diagnosis and is in the middle of treatment right now. Recovery will be coming soon but it will take time. His best advice came after the meeting was over though, when he said give "us a chance," meaning the Board of Directors.
 |
| Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator |
In other news, Bueche said he has been working with Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, on a long term plan to make the Fall Festival self-sufficient. He said they had hopes to bring in a larger audience with a concert, barbecue festival, and other activities. Dr. Young also took some constructive criticism from the audience on how to improve the County's website and how to make it easier to find information.
Bueche arrived at the Town Hall at 6pm but the majority of the small crowd didn't arrive until 6:30pm. By 8pm the gathering had begun to break up as everyone had a chance to speak.
[All photos (c) 2018 by Yvonne Richard. Used with permission.]
2018-06-14 UPDATE: A previous version of this article had an incorrect quote from Mike Bennett. Instead of saying "give peace a chance" he said "give us a chance." To quote his clarifying email, Bennett stated: "I said give us a chance, meaning the whole Board, to straighten things out."
I hope that the SA will publish the NOVs on their web site in the future (and maybe publish the most recent ones, say from the past year).
ReplyDelete