Saturday, August 31, 2019
Friday, August 30, 2019
Thursday, August 29, 2019
OPINION - 2019-08-22 - Ruby Brabo Town Hall Notes
by Neil Richard
Ruby Brabo, At Large Supervisor, held her first Town Hall in some time Thursday night. She invited Mike Bennett, Chairman of the Service Authority Board of Directors, and Jonathon Weakley, General Manager of the Service Authority, to speak a little bit at the start of things.
Bennett and Weakley touched on several high-level topics impacting the Service Authority, the impact of development on them and the County, and the current and pending rules from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). If you have read any of our board meeting reports from the last year or two, nothing either of them said was new or concerning. Some of the newer residents in the audience though were unsure of what the impact was of the current Consent Order and the planned debt restructuring.
After Bennett and Weakley spoke, Brabo then gave a run-down of some of the things she's accomplished in office as well as existing issues the County faces. Again, anyone that has read coverage of the Supervisor meetings would not be surprised by anything mentioned. Brabo did touch on her extensive travel. I won't go into details here as I have written extensively about it already. If you're new to the area or want to know the facts, start here with Part 1 of 9.
Some newer residents were taken aback by Brabo's aggressive and loud answers to their questions while others were taken aback by her lack of answers. Having known Brabo for several years, I'm familiar with her volume and passion so I never took her answers to be mean or hateful towards the residents. But I did find her lack of professionalism in taking ownership of her actions disappointing.
The majority of her presentation during the Town Hall was similar to, or exactly the same as, her radio interview earlier in the day. There were a few additional items and topics she covered in the radio show that were not mentioned at the Town Hall. Although we rarely link to other news organizations, I think listening to the interview would give residents a fair approximation of what was covered during the Town Hall, less the public comments and questions of course.
After nearly an hour of answering questions, and nearly two hours overall, Brabo wrapped up her Town Hall. For those that didn't attend this Town Hall or can't make it to the various Board meetings, I recommend visiting the County's website for more information or contacting your representative directly. Although the Supervisor meetings are broadcast live through the County's website, Brabo also typically live streams meetings via her Facebook page. Although I have yet to see a video from her Town Hall, she also tries to live stream work sessions and committee meetings she attends as well.
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You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Ruby Brabo, At Large Supervisor, held her first Town Hall in some time Thursday night. She invited Mike Bennett, Chairman of the Service Authority Board of Directors, and Jonathon Weakley, General Manager of the Service Authority, to speak a little bit at the start of things.
Bennett and Weakley touched on several high-level topics impacting the Service Authority, the impact of development on them and the County, and the current and pending rules from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). If you have read any of our board meeting reports from the last year or two, nothing either of them said was new or concerning. Some of the newer residents in the audience though were unsure of what the impact was of the current Consent Order and the planned debt restructuring.
After Bennett and Weakley spoke, Brabo then gave a run-down of some of the things she's accomplished in office as well as existing issues the County faces. Again, anyone that has read coverage of the Supervisor meetings would not be surprised by anything mentioned. Brabo did touch on her extensive travel. I won't go into details here as I have written extensively about it already. If you're new to the area or want to know the facts, start here with Part 1 of 9.
Some newer residents were taken aback by Brabo's aggressive and loud answers to their questions while others were taken aback by her lack of answers. Having known Brabo for several years, I'm familiar with her volume and passion so I never took her answers to be mean or hateful towards the residents. But I did find her lack of professionalism in taking ownership of her actions disappointing.
The majority of her presentation during the Town Hall was similar to, or exactly the same as, her radio interview earlier in the day. There were a few additional items and topics she covered in the radio show that were not mentioned at the Town Hall. Although we rarely link to other news organizations, I think listening to the interview would give residents a fair approximation of what was covered during the Town Hall, less the public comments and questions of course.
After nearly an hour of answering questions, and nearly two hours overall, Brabo wrapped up her Town Hall. For those that didn't attend this Town Hall or can't make it to the various Board meetings, I recommend visiting the County's website for more information or contacting your representative directly. Although the Supervisor meetings are broadcast live through the County's website, Brabo also typically live streams meetings via her Facebook page. Although I have yet to see a video from her Town Hall, she also tries to live stream work sessions and committee meetings she attends as well.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
OPINION - A Worksession On Waste Water and Dahlgren
by Neil Richard
The Board of Supervisors held a short work session on the Comprehensive Plan on August 21, 2019. They had a short Agenda and focused most of their discussion on the updated Comprehensive Plan and to review the changes that were made from their feedback at the previous work session.
Water and Waste Water Capacity
With Jonathon Weakley, the Service Authority General Manager, present for the meeting, the Supervisors were looking to create a better partnership between the County and the Service Authority going forward as it concerns the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) service area. With several proposed developments on the table, the Purkins Corner WWTP is near the end of its capacity and is also on the radar of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for closure. The general feeling between the two boards is to replace the existing WWTP facility with a new one to allow for future growth.
Additionally, there was some discussion on how the unused water storage tank in Cleydael could be used by the Service Authority for both water needs and fire suppression needs. Warren Veazey spoke during Public Comment before the meeting that he felt removing Cleydael as a primary settlement area from the Comprehensive Plan was a bad idea. Veazey said that as a partner, he was willing to allow the Service Authority to access the water tank as needed. Weakley said he would reach out to Veazey as soon as possible to see what kind of agreement could be made but did say that other aspects would need to be considered before it could be used. Primary among these is that the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) would need to approve the tank for drinking water use.
Dahlgren Settlement Zone
Another primary discussion point for the Supervisors was the exact layout of the Dahlgren primary settlement area. During the discussion there was some confusion at the start about the difference between the settlement area, what message it sends to developers, and the military overlay district. The Board decided to keep the military overlay district as it was, allowing the Navy to provide an opinion for potential development within that area. Some Supervisors also felt that the message a designated settlement area would send to a developer is that the Supervisors would be more amenable to rezoning requests within that area. This was important when they discussed the layout of the settlement area as Brabo suggested moving the line away from the main gate but it was pointed out that many of those homes are zoned commercial and any rezoning to a residential designation would be more difficult outside of the settlement area. The biggest changes to the settlement area was the boundary lines off Owens Drive and Windsor Drive. There was also a small change to the Courthouse West Settlement Area to include the former King George Elementary School.
By the end of the meeting, the Supervisors approved sending the drafted Comprehensive Plan to the Planning Commission for a Public Hearing.
The Board of Supervisors held a short work session on the Comprehensive Plan on August 21, 2019. They had a short Agenda and focused most of their discussion on the updated Comprehensive Plan and to review the changes that were made from their feedback at the previous work session.
Water and Waste Water Capacity
With Jonathon Weakley, the Service Authority General Manager, present for the meeting, the Supervisors were looking to create a better partnership between the County and the Service Authority going forward as it concerns the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) service area. With several proposed developments on the table, the Purkins Corner WWTP is near the end of its capacity and is also on the radar of the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) for closure. The general feeling between the two boards is to replace the existing WWTP facility with a new one to allow for future growth.
Additionally, there was some discussion on how the unused water storage tank in Cleydael could be used by the Service Authority for both water needs and fire suppression needs. Warren Veazey spoke during Public Comment before the meeting that he felt removing Cleydael as a primary settlement area from the Comprehensive Plan was a bad idea. Veazey said that as a partner, he was willing to allow the Service Authority to access the water tank as needed. Weakley said he would reach out to Veazey as soon as possible to see what kind of agreement could be made but did say that other aspects would need to be considered before it could be used. Primary among these is that the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) would need to approve the tank for drinking water use.
Dahlgren Settlement Zone
Another primary discussion point for the Supervisors was the exact layout of the Dahlgren primary settlement area. During the discussion there was some confusion at the start about the difference between the settlement area, what message it sends to developers, and the military overlay district. The Board decided to keep the military overlay district as it was, allowing the Navy to provide an opinion for potential development within that area. Some Supervisors also felt that the message a designated settlement area would send to a developer is that the Supervisors would be more amenable to rezoning requests within that area. This was important when they discussed the layout of the settlement area as Brabo suggested moving the line away from the main gate but it was pointed out that many of those homes are zoned commercial and any rezoning to a residential designation would be more difficult outside of the settlement area. The biggest changes to the settlement area was the boundary lines off Owens Drive and Windsor Drive. There was also a small change to the Courthouse West Settlement Area to include the former King George Elementary School.
 |
| A rough sketch of the two main areas the Supervisors want to remove from the Proposed Dahlgren Primary Settlement Area. |
 |
| The western half of the Courthouse area would include the current School Board Office building. |
By the end of the meeting, the Supervisors approved sending the drafted Comprehensive Plan to the Planning Commission for a Public Hearing.
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You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Tuesday, August 27, 2019
2019-08-20 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes
by Neil Richard
At 8:06 pm, just six minutes after the Service Authority adjourned their meeting, Jeff Bueche, Chairman, said the Board of Supervisors would delay their meeting so a "side meeting" could be held beforehand. Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, met behind closed doors with Joseph Jagdmann, the Senior Assistant Attorney General for Virginia, and two representatives from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Marcie Parker, the District Administrator for the Fredericksburg area, and Michelle Shropshire, the Assistant District Engineer.
Editor's Note: Although very strange, we could find nothing that would prevent County staff from holding a private meeting. All of the Supervisors remained at the podium.
The Supervisors began their meeting at 8:24 pm.
There was an amendment to the Agenda to remove the broadband grant presentation. It was approved.
Public Comment opened with Peter Karabots. He spoke against the proposed Wayside replacement plan that would take his neighbor's house. He said he and his neighbors on Roseland Road were worried about increased traffic, environmental issues, and trash. Karabots said he and his wife moved there 14 years ago and decided to live there the rest of their lives. His wife is working in Hong Kong now and is coming home to determine what to do now. He said he was confused at how the County could choose a property in the middle of a neighborhood, in the middle of million dollar homes. Karabots said he really just wanted to ask each of the Supervisors if they'd want the same thing to happen to them. He said a public park would reduce their privacy and property value and they may never be able to sell their home because of it. He then presented a petition signed by several of his neighbors that opposed the property being used as a park as well as the adjacent property across the street being used for a parking lot.
Next to speak was Yvonne Richard who dialed into the meeting remotely. She said the Wayside Park replacement plan shows immediate improvements being made and she found that troubling since there were already other buildings int he County's inventory that needed attention. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the spouse of Yvonne Richard.]
John Jenkins said he appreciated the comments regarding the land issue. He said he would save his comments for when the Board moves forward but wanted to say the Supervisors have looked at the issue for some time. He also wanted to reiterate that there is no actual plan currently. He said that when Karabots mentioned water access and kayak rentals it was news to him.that there would be a Kings Dominion on the water there. He then apologized for joking about it but repeated that there is no current plan and that the County doesn't own the land. On the 15th, Jenkins attended a Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) summit where they discussed fuel taxes. Jenkins said that vehicle traffic has increased three percent while revenue from fuel taxes has decreased by half a percent. He said the reduction in funds is an issue that needs to be addressed at all levels. On the 19th, Jenkins said he attended the George Washington Regional Commission (GWRC) meeting with Brabo and the group had come to an understanding with the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO).
Richard Granger thanked everyone for their comments and said the Supervisors have been looking for years for a property to replace Wayside Park. He said they're working through that still and hopefully will come to a conclusions soon.
Cathy Binder said she would be brief but would continue as long as her voice held out. She said she didn't go to the VACo conference because she was busy taking her son to college and wanted to wish everyone going back to college good luck. She began to comment on the meeting she attended with Wiley Wilson regarding the decision to decommission or upgrade the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant but her voice gave out.
Ruby Brabo met with the Spotsylvania Hospital Board on the 7th and was present for the My Place groundbreaking on the 8th. She said Binder was also present at the groundbreaking in Dahlgren for the new extended stay hotel. Brabo added that many people may question the need for another hotel but said the current hotels are at capacity and that many have to stay in Fredericksburg. On the 14th she attended a workshop at Fort A. P. Hill where she learned more about how communities can work with military installations to form better partnerships and save money in the procurement process. She said she had a good discussion with a VDOT representative there and shared that maybe they could help VDOT by taking over the mowing of medians if VDOT paid them. Brabo also attended VACo meetings on the 15th and 16th where there was some discussion over the plans by Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to implement stricter standards than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). She repeated some of what she said earlier in the evening at the Service Authority meeting and said that the goals were not achievable and too expensive. Just like the Service Authority Board, she asked for consensus to send a letter to the Virginia Governor Ralph Northam as well as Virginia Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew Strickler. With consensus given, Brabo continued with her report stating she attended a GWRC meeting on the 19th where they voted to approve a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with FAMPO. On the 20th she was asked to visit the Thurman Brisben Center where she learned that the center had served twenty King George County residents and used 718 days at the center for about $23,000. Brabo said King George contributed $7,000 to them last year and that she opposed an increase in their funding largely because she never knew the true numbers. She said that during the next budget cycle she would like to see the information she had brought back up again as a reminder that the center requests less than it actually costs to run.
Jeff Bueche thanked everyone for their comments. He said one of the first things he was given when he took office was a list of options for the replacement of Wayside Park. He said the County isn't paying for the land and that it's an arrangement to mitigate what the County is losing. Bueche said they negotiated with VDOT and stressed that they were not willing to compromise on the ability to access the Potomac River. He said the County hasn't taken over any property yet but they have looked at property that was on the open market. Bueche said that as a county between two rivers, the focus was water access. On the 13th, Bueche attended the funeral of Gene Clift. Bueche said Clift served as a volunteer for the fire department for over 70 years and was driving the relief truck as recently as last month. He said the County has lost a hometown hero. That same day, Bueche attended the Career and Technical Education (CTE) expansion committee meeting as well as a Social Services meeting. On the 14th he attended the workshop at A. P. Hill and participated in the education break out group. He said he took advantage of that time to speak to Caroline County School officials about potential partnerships with them.
Although the Consent Agenda was approved, there was some discussion about clarifying why the Supervisors voted against funding the repairs at the Citizens Center. Brabo wanted to make sure everyone knew it was because tourism funds couldn't be used for regular repairs.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
David Howard and John Dottellis, both from Waste Management, presented their response to the odor study from the last Supervisor meeting. Regarding the suggestion to cap the waste sooner, Dottellis said there are 20 acres with a final cap and 40 acres with an interim cap. Another 17 acres are planned to be under final cap in 2020 as well as more acreage to be placed under an interim cap. Regarding the de-watering pumps, the more gas that can be collected, the more that can be sold to Dominion through the on-site power plant. Dottellis said the use of pin wells, another recommended action, could introduce oxygen into the landfill mass which would increase the risk of an underground fire. He said they've used them in other locations and found to be not very effective. In addition to that, they are placing larger wells faster than most locations. The suggestion to increase the vacuum on the gas collection system also presents the potential to increase oxygen levels. It could also introduce liquid into the gas well making it less efficient. Dottellis said they monitor the vacuum on a regular basis and have found the best level. He said changing it may have a negative impact. He said Waste Management currently monitors odor levels at the facility and attempted to set up monitoring stations outside the perimeter but could never find an amenable location. He also said that Waste Management collects data when a complaint is made and responds to that location as soon as possible. Dottellis said the landfill is also meeting nearly all of the drafted air quality requirements from DEQ even though they have not been passed into law yet. He said the use of modeling software does work when there is a specific location like a stack or vent but said a large landfill is much more difficult to pinpoint plumes from because of the large footprint. In addition to this, he said the modeling software would not be able to provide advance notice for when a specific area would be impacted by odor.
Granger asked for some clarity regarding the vacuum level and Dottellis went into a little more technical detail about how the pipes are laid out at the landfill and that 42 seemed to be the magic number. He said the vacuum is based on several variables including pipe size, length, and more.
Brabo asked if there were any takeaways from the study that could be used for improvements. Dottellis said that as with anything, improvements can always be made. He said they were constantly looking at the vacuum, gas collection, and de-watering systems to see what improvements could be made as well as new areas to place wells. He said that although they could cap the waste faster, there were logistical and engineering details that created challenges. He said the landfill meets all the requirements in their permit and that placing an interim cap could result in loss of access to certain sections of the landfill.
Granger asked about the blowers and flares and if there were plans to expand them. Dottellis said they were nearing their load capacity but they have already begun plans to add another flare and a larger blower to meet their needs. He said the improvements were planned for next year and would more than meet their needs.
Bueche commented that he wasn't an engineer but it sounded like Waste Management was being very proactive.
Next on the Agenda was the Sealston Convenience Center Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) presentation by Tim Hatch, Chair of the Landfill Advisory Committee. There was some awkward silence as Hatch stood at the podium expecting the Supervisors to ask questions and the Supervisors waited for Hatch to give a presentation. It was quickly determined that the Supervisors did not get a copy of the SOP in their Board packet before the meeting. Dr. Young had a staff member go make copies and asked Hatch to return to the podium after the SOP could be handed out.
With that, the Wayside Park and Barnesfield Park replacement was next on the Agenda. Dr. Young gave a brief overview of the plan for the additional land but was sure to caution everyone that it was non-binding and the more specific details of what went where in the new property was a "back of the napkin" plan. The Board approved the plan without any discussion.
Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, was next to present a request to amend and appropriate revenue and expenditures for Social Services. The Board approved.
Dr. Young presented the Tourism Advisory Committee's request to place an ad in the Virginia Travel Guide for the County's 300th anniversary. The Board approved.
Hatch then returned to the podium. Brabo asked if the County Attorney had reviewed the Sealston SOP. Upon hearing he had not, Brabo asked to delay the presentation until the next meeting to give Gregory time to review the document. Other Supervisors agreed, saying they wanted more time to review the document. Bueche thanked the Landfill Advisory Committee for their hard work and said it was greatly appreciated.
The Board then went on to address the appointment of the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC). Binder asked if it would be good to amend the TAC Charter so there's no specific category that limits them in making appointments. Brabo said that would need to be a conversation for a later time. Binder said that was fine but wanted to go on record that the Charter should be reviewed. With that, the Board approved the following individuals for the Tourism Advisory Committee.
Dr. Young then thanked Chris Dines and Mike Muncie for their hard work in getting the Board Room updated with new technology. He also presented a petition from the residents of Woodstock Road on Mathias Point asking the Board to help reduce the speed limit from the existing 45 mph and 35 mph to 35 mph and 25 mph. Brabo and Young discussed if the road was paved and what state rules said about unpaved roads and speed limits. All of the Supervisors were a little unclear on if Woodstock Road was paved although Granger did pull up Google Maps to look at the satellite imagery. The Board seemed amenable to proceed with reducing the speed limit as requested. Dr. Young also presented a request from Backporch Vineyard to waive their rezoning fees. Brabo said she wanted to incentivize and support new business but felt the request should go before the Economic Development Authority (EDA) to see if they could cover the costs.
The Board then went into Closed Session at 9:30pm and invited Dr. Young, Eric Gregory, Heather Hall, and Brad Hudson to attend. Hudson and Hall left at 10:12 pm and the Board returned from Closed Session, and adjourned the meeting, at 10:22 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on August 21, 2019 at 5:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.
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You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
At 8:06 pm, just six minutes after the Service Authority adjourned their meeting, Jeff Bueche, Chairman, said the Board of Supervisors would delay their meeting so a "side meeting" could be held beforehand. Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, met behind closed doors with Joseph Jagdmann, the Senior Assistant Attorney General for Virginia, and two representatives from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Marcie Parker, the District Administrator for the Fredericksburg area, and Michelle Shropshire, the Assistant District Engineer.
Editor's Note: Although very strange, we could find nothing that would prevent County staff from holding a private meeting. All of the Supervisors remained at the podium.
The Supervisors began their meeting at 8:24 pm.
There was an amendment to the Agenda to remove the broadband grant presentation. It was approved.
Public Comment opened with Peter Karabots. He spoke against the proposed Wayside replacement plan that would take his neighbor's house. He said he and his neighbors on Roseland Road were worried about increased traffic, environmental issues, and trash. Karabots said he and his wife moved there 14 years ago and decided to live there the rest of their lives. His wife is working in Hong Kong now and is coming home to determine what to do now. He said he was confused at how the County could choose a property in the middle of a neighborhood, in the middle of million dollar homes. Karabots said he really just wanted to ask each of the Supervisors if they'd want the same thing to happen to them. He said a public park would reduce their privacy and property value and they may never be able to sell their home because of it. He then presented a petition signed by several of his neighbors that opposed the property being used as a park as well as the adjacent property across the street being used for a parking lot.
Next to speak was Yvonne Richard who dialed into the meeting remotely. She said the Wayside Park replacement plan shows immediate improvements being made and she found that troubling since there were already other buildings int he County's inventory that needed attention. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the spouse of Yvonne Richard.]
John Jenkins said he appreciated the comments regarding the land issue. He said he would save his comments for when the Board moves forward but wanted to say the Supervisors have looked at the issue for some time. He also wanted to reiterate that there is no actual plan currently. He said that when Karabots mentioned water access and kayak rentals it was news to him.that there would be a Kings Dominion on the water there. He then apologized for joking about it but repeated that there is no current plan and that the County doesn't own the land. On the 15th, Jenkins attended a Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) summit where they discussed fuel taxes. Jenkins said that vehicle traffic has increased three percent while revenue from fuel taxes has decreased by half a percent. He said the reduction in funds is an issue that needs to be addressed at all levels. On the 19th, Jenkins said he attended the George Washington Regional Commission (GWRC) meeting with Brabo and the group had come to an understanding with the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO).
Richard Granger thanked everyone for their comments and said the Supervisors have been looking for years for a property to replace Wayside Park. He said they're working through that still and hopefully will come to a conclusions soon.
Cathy Binder said she would be brief but would continue as long as her voice held out. She said she didn't go to the VACo conference because she was busy taking her son to college and wanted to wish everyone going back to college good luck. She began to comment on the meeting she attended with Wiley Wilson regarding the decision to decommission or upgrade the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant but her voice gave out.
Ruby Brabo met with the Spotsylvania Hospital Board on the 7th and was present for the My Place groundbreaking on the 8th. She said Binder was also present at the groundbreaking in Dahlgren for the new extended stay hotel. Brabo added that many people may question the need for another hotel but said the current hotels are at capacity and that many have to stay in Fredericksburg. On the 14th she attended a workshop at Fort A. P. Hill where she learned more about how communities can work with military installations to form better partnerships and save money in the procurement process. She said she had a good discussion with a VDOT representative there and shared that maybe they could help VDOT by taking over the mowing of medians if VDOT paid them. Brabo also attended VACo meetings on the 15th and 16th where there was some discussion over the plans by Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to implement stricter standards than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). She repeated some of what she said earlier in the evening at the Service Authority meeting and said that the goals were not achievable and too expensive. Just like the Service Authority Board, she asked for consensus to send a letter to the Virginia Governor Ralph Northam as well as Virginia Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew Strickler. With consensus given, Brabo continued with her report stating she attended a GWRC meeting on the 19th where they voted to approve a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with FAMPO. On the 20th she was asked to visit the Thurman Brisben Center where she learned that the center had served twenty King George County residents and used 718 days at the center for about $23,000. Brabo said King George contributed $7,000 to them last year and that she opposed an increase in their funding largely because she never knew the true numbers. She said that during the next budget cycle she would like to see the information she had brought back up again as a reminder that the center requests less than it actually costs to run.
Jeff Bueche thanked everyone for their comments. He said one of the first things he was given when he took office was a list of options for the replacement of Wayside Park. He said the County isn't paying for the land and that it's an arrangement to mitigate what the County is losing. Bueche said they negotiated with VDOT and stressed that they were not willing to compromise on the ability to access the Potomac River. He said the County hasn't taken over any property yet but they have looked at property that was on the open market. Bueche said that as a county between two rivers, the focus was water access. On the 13th, Bueche attended the funeral of Gene Clift. Bueche said Clift served as a volunteer for the fire department for over 70 years and was driving the relief truck as recently as last month. He said the County has lost a hometown hero. That same day, Bueche attended the Career and Technical Education (CTE) expansion committee meeting as well as a Social Services meeting. On the 14th he attended the workshop at A. P. Hill and participated in the education break out group. He said he took advantage of that time to speak to Caroline County School officials about potential partnerships with them.
Although the Consent Agenda was approved, there was some discussion about clarifying why the Supervisors voted against funding the repairs at the Citizens Center. Brabo wanted to make sure everyone knew it was because tourism funds couldn't be used for regular repairs.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
David Howard and John Dottellis, both from Waste Management, presented their response to the odor study from the last Supervisor meeting. Regarding the suggestion to cap the waste sooner, Dottellis said there are 20 acres with a final cap and 40 acres with an interim cap. Another 17 acres are planned to be under final cap in 2020 as well as more acreage to be placed under an interim cap. Regarding the de-watering pumps, the more gas that can be collected, the more that can be sold to Dominion through the on-site power plant. Dottellis said the use of pin wells, another recommended action, could introduce oxygen into the landfill mass which would increase the risk of an underground fire. He said they've used them in other locations and found to be not very effective. In addition to that, they are placing larger wells faster than most locations. The suggestion to increase the vacuum on the gas collection system also presents the potential to increase oxygen levels. It could also introduce liquid into the gas well making it less efficient. Dottellis said they monitor the vacuum on a regular basis and have found the best level. He said changing it may have a negative impact. He said Waste Management currently monitors odor levels at the facility and attempted to set up monitoring stations outside the perimeter but could never find an amenable location. He also said that Waste Management collects data when a complaint is made and responds to that location as soon as possible. Dottellis said the landfill is also meeting nearly all of the drafted air quality requirements from DEQ even though they have not been passed into law yet. He said the use of modeling software does work when there is a specific location like a stack or vent but said a large landfill is much more difficult to pinpoint plumes from because of the large footprint. In addition to this, he said the modeling software would not be able to provide advance notice for when a specific area would be impacted by odor.
Granger asked for some clarity regarding the vacuum level and Dottellis went into a little more technical detail about how the pipes are laid out at the landfill and that 42 seemed to be the magic number. He said the vacuum is based on several variables including pipe size, length, and more.
Brabo asked if there were any takeaways from the study that could be used for improvements. Dottellis said that as with anything, improvements can always be made. He said they were constantly looking at the vacuum, gas collection, and de-watering systems to see what improvements could be made as well as new areas to place wells. He said that although they could cap the waste faster, there were logistical and engineering details that created challenges. He said the landfill meets all the requirements in their permit and that placing an interim cap could result in loss of access to certain sections of the landfill.
Granger asked about the blowers and flares and if there were plans to expand them. Dottellis said they were nearing their load capacity but they have already begun plans to add another flare and a larger blower to meet their needs. He said the improvements were planned for next year and would more than meet their needs.
Bueche commented that he wasn't an engineer but it sounded like Waste Management was being very proactive.
Next on the Agenda was the Sealston Convenience Center Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) presentation by Tim Hatch, Chair of the Landfill Advisory Committee. There was some awkward silence as Hatch stood at the podium expecting the Supervisors to ask questions and the Supervisors waited for Hatch to give a presentation. It was quickly determined that the Supervisors did not get a copy of the SOP in their Board packet before the meeting. Dr. Young had a staff member go make copies and asked Hatch to return to the podium after the SOP could be handed out.
With that, the Wayside Park and Barnesfield Park replacement was next on the Agenda. Dr. Young gave a brief overview of the plan for the additional land but was sure to caution everyone that it was non-binding and the more specific details of what went where in the new property was a "back of the napkin" plan. The Board approved the plan without any discussion.
 |
| The areas expected to be impacted by the new 301 Bridge construction. |
 |
| The two major land masses that will be added to the County's existing park land. |
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| The "back of the napkin" plan for the new property. |
Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, was next to present a request to amend and appropriate revenue and expenditures for Social Services. The Board approved.
Dr. Young presented the Tourism Advisory Committee's request to place an ad in the Virginia Travel Guide for the County's 300th anniversary. The Board approved.
Hatch then returned to the podium. Brabo asked if the County Attorney had reviewed the Sealston SOP. Upon hearing he had not, Brabo asked to delay the presentation until the next meeting to give Gregory time to review the document. Other Supervisors agreed, saying they wanted more time to review the document. Bueche thanked the Landfill Advisory Committee for their hard work and said it was greatly appreciated.
The Board then went on to address the appointment of the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC). Binder asked if it would be good to amend the TAC Charter so there's no specific category that limits them in making appointments. Brabo said that would need to be a conversation for a later time. Binder said that was fine but wanted to go on record that the Charter should be reviewed. With that, the Board approved the following individuals for the Tourism Advisory Committee.
- Agriculture - Caroline Phelps
- Arts - Justyn Cox
- Restaurants - Vacant
- Chamber of Commerce - Don Smith
- Civic Organizations - Vacant
- Cultural/Historical - Bob Baird
- Education - Dee Strauss
- Outdoor Recreation - Warren Veazey
- Lodging - David Zabelsky
- NSF Dahlgren Liason - Jeron Hayes
Dr. Young then thanked Chris Dines and Mike Muncie for their hard work in getting the Board Room updated with new technology. He also presented a petition from the residents of Woodstock Road on Mathias Point asking the Board to help reduce the speed limit from the existing 45 mph and 35 mph to 35 mph and 25 mph. Brabo and Young discussed if the road was paved and what state rules said about unpaved roads and speed limits. All of the Supervisors were a little unclear on if Woodstock Road was paved although Granger did pull up Google Maps to look at the satellite imagery. The Board seemed amenable to proceed with reducing the speed limit as requested. Dr. Young also presented a request from Backporch Vineyard to waive their rezoning fees. Brabo said she wanted to incentivize and support new business but felt the request should go before the Economic Development Authority (EDA) to see if they could cover the costs.
The Board then went into Closed Session at 9:30pm and invited Dr. Young, Eric Gregory, Heather Hall, and Brad Hudson to attend. Hudson and Hall left at 10:12 pm and the Board returned from Closed Session, and adjourned the meeting, at 10:22 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on August 21, 2019 at 5:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Monday, August 26, 2019
2019-08-20 - Service Authority Meeting Notes
by Neil Richard
The Service Authority Board of Directors began their meeting at 6:31 pm. Mike Bennett, Chairman, asked everyone to speak into their microphones so everyone could be heard.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
There was no Public Comment.
Christopher Werle and Richard Granger had no report.
Cathy Binder said she had a nasty head cold and apologized if she had to stop speaking early. She said she met with Wiley Wilson about the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) and the potential for replacing it. Binder said there was a new wrinkle with the nutrient credits for the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. She said there was a limited amount for each river and the Board will do the best they can for King George.
Ruby Brabo added onto Binder's comments saying that she and Penny Gross from Fairfax County raised the issue of nutrient credits and how it didn't make sense to overload one section of water and have no impact. On the 15th and 16th, Brabo attended a Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) meeting. She said the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has chosen to implement stricter requirements than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in regards to WWTPs in Phase III of the Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP). She said this would be costly to King George and others and that the reductions in Nitrogen and Phosphorus are not achievable nor realistic. Brabo said VACo has already sent a letter opposing the drafted plan. She asked for the Board's consensus to send a similar letter to Governor Ralph Northam and to send a copy of said letter to Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew Strickler. She said it took all of the voices to ensure that local targets were not set and felt this was a similar situation where a unified voice may help. Consensus was reached. [Editor's Note: The final Phase III plan was released 3 days later on August 23, 2019. Jeff Bueche mentioned Phase III in his May 7, 2019 Board report as well as in his response to our questions on his travel expenses.]
Mike Bennett began his report thanking Brabo as well as Binder and others for attending conferences and bringing information back to the rest of the Board. He appreciated the helpful info and said these are the things that they need to get ahead of. On the 13th he attended the meeting with Wiley Wilson with Binder and said they also discussed building a new WWTP at Purkins Corner instead of sending the waste to Hopyard Farm WWTP. He said that the more they talk with the engineering firm the more they realize how complex the issue is. On the 16th he met with Darrell Hertenstein who is proposing a development that would use the Purkins Corner WWTP. He said the Purkins Corner facility currently has a a capacity of about 200 more Equitable Residential Units (ERUs) and said the Service Authority wouldn't be able to sign off on any development that would need more than that. Bennett said that the 200 ERUs left did not include the 10 or 15 ERUs that were set aside for any potential need at a new Courthouse building. He said he talked to Supervisor Jeff Bueche about the two Boards meeting to work out their needs. Bennett said the presentation later tonight was the first part of that but there were many complex factors involved.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
Ryan Bogese, Senior Engineer for Wiley Wilson, gave the Board an informational presentation on the potential cost differential between decommissioning and upgrading the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). Bogese said that to decommission both Oakland Park and Purkins Corner WWTPs would cost $9.7 million. To pump the waste from just Oakland Park to Hopyard Farm WWTP is $5.1 million and the general feeling on the Board was that this was a predetermined solution as DEQ will eventually require the closure of the facility and there is no room to upgrade or expand the plant. With Purkins Corner WWTP however, the Board will need to decide which solution is best, decommissioning or upgrading. With enough property to build a new facility at Purkins Corner and to account for potential development in the future, the Board wanted price points on the options.
Bogese said that with a new plant in Purkins Corner, there is another choice to make with the size of the facility. Building a 250,000 gallon per day (gpd) WWTP has more cost up front due to the infrastructure needs but the 500,000 gpd WWTP would be cheaper in the long run. Bennett and Weakley said that if the larger facility is built, the Board should consider the amount of development. Essentially, they said that if the larger WWTP is built and the planned development doesn't happen, then the Service Authority would have wasted money on paying for the extra capacity. Brabo asked if the developments that have already been approved have been factored into the demand that would be placed on Purkins Corner and Weakley said he was working with Community Development to see which of the approved plans were within the Purkins Corner service area.
There was also some discussion about the nutrient loads for both the Potomac River and the Rappahannock River. Being bounded on both sides by Virginia, and being smaller, the Rappahannock River has fewer nutrient credits available and has an increased chance of less credits in the future. Bogese said the nutrient credits could not be purchased in advance and stockpiled and that the state was in charge of distributing them. With Purkins Corner WWTP being in the Potomac River watershed, the general feeling was that pumping waste to Hopyard would cause some potential issues since it is located in the Rappahannock River watershed. Bogese also said that the storm water credits the County had purchased were different than the nutrient credits being discussed.
The bottom line of the presentation from Bogese was the cost difference between the different options on the table. The first option, to pump Purkins Corner waste to Hopyard Farm WWTP, which would require an upgrade at the Hopyard facility, would cost between $7.4 and $8.6 million. The second option, to replace the Purkins Corner WWTP with a 250,000 gpd facility, would cost between $7.1 and $10.2 million. The third option, to replace the Purkins Corner WWTP with a 500,000 gpd facility, would cost between $9.9 and $14.1 million. Bennett said, based on the costs given, that regardless of which option they took it would cost between $7.1 and $8.6 million.
Jonathan Weakley then gave his General Manager's report. Weakley said the Purkins Corner water tank has been painted and is being filled with water. He said once the water passes quality testing, it will be placed back into service. Weakley said the Oakland Park tank is currently being painted. He said lead and copper sampling letters and kits had gone out to homeowners participating in the program and that the Walnut Hill developer has a few items to correct before the Service Authority took ownership of the infrastructure. He told the Board that the meter reading software and hardware will no longer be supported after 2021 so he would be submitting a capital request to replace those. Regarding the WWTPs, he said that Dahlgren is operating within permit requirements but is still not under the limit for the grant. The only other facility to be outside of the permit limits is Purkins Corner. Weakley said repairs had also begun on the UV system at Dahlgren. Bennett asked how many items were left on the Consent Order from DEQ and Weakley said only a couple of items. Bennett asked about closing out the Consent Order and opening a new one with just those remaining items and Weakley said that had been discussed with DEQ but wasn't sure if it was the best solution yet. Weakley also said he had a conference call with Davenport regarding the debt refinancing and said that Federal law required a $50,000 draw down. He apologized to the Board for the late notice on this unexpected draw down but said he only just learned about it.
With that, the Board then went into Closed Session at 7:23 pm and invited Gregory, Young, and Weakley to attend.
While they were behind closed doors, Supervisor Jeff Bueche noticed that the King George County flag was hung on the pole upside down. After some searching, he and IT Director Chris Dines found some tools to correct the issue. After some discussion with Deputy Shriver, they also rearranged all three flags to display them correctly.
The Board returned from Closed Session and adjourned immediately thereafter at 8:00 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on September 3, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.
The Service Authority Board of Directors began their meeting at 6:31 pm. Mike Bennett, Chairman, asked everyone to speak into their microphones so everyone could be heard.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
There was no Public Comment.
Christopher Werle and Richard Granger had no report.
Cathy Binder said she had a nasty head cold and apologized if she had to stop speaking early. She said she met with Wiley Wilson about the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) and the potential for replacing it. Binder said there was a new wrinkle with the nutrient credits for the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. She said there was a limited amount for each river and the Board will do the best they can for King George.
Ruby Brabo added onto Binder's comments saying that she and Penny Gross from Fairfax County raised the issue of nutrient credits and how it didn't make sense to overload one section of water and have no impact. On the 15th and 16th, Brabo attended a Virginia Association of Counties (VACo) meeting. She said the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has chosen to implement stricter requirements than the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in regards to WWTPs in Phase III of the Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP). She said this would be costly to King George and others and that the reductions in Nitrogen and Phosphorus are not achievable nor realistic. Brabo said VACo has already sent a letter opposing the drafted plan. She asked for the Board's consensus to send a similar letter to Governor Ralph Northam and to send a copy of said letter to Secretary of Natural Resources Matthew Strickler. She said it took all of the voices to ensure that local targets were not set and felt this was a similar situation where a unified voice may help. Consensus was reached. [Editor's Note: The final Phase III plan was released 3 days later on August 23, 2019. Jeff Bueche mentioned Phase III in his May 7, 2019 Board report as well as in his response to our questions on his travel expenses.]
Mike Bennett began his report thanking Brabo as well as Binder and others for attending conferences and bringing information back to the rest of the Board. He appreciated the helpful info and said these are the things that they need to get ahead of. On the 13th he attended the meeting with Wiley Wilson with Binder and said they also discussed building a new WWTP at Purkins Corner instead of sending the waste to Hopyard Farm WWTP. He said that the more they talk with the engineering firm the more they realize how complex the issue is. On the 16th he met with Darrell Hertenstein who is proposing a development that would use the Purkins Corner WWTP. He said the Purkins Corner facility currently has a a capacity of about 200 more Equitable Residential Units (ERUs) and said the Service Authority wouldn't be able to sign off on any development that would need more than that. Bennett said that the 200 ERUs left did not include the 10 or 15 ERUs that were set aside for any potential need at a new Courthouse building. He said he talked to Supervisor Jeff Bueche about the two Boards meeting to work out their needs. Bennett said the presentation later tonight was the first part of that but there were many complex factors involved.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
Ryan Bogese, Senior Engineer for Wiley Wilson, gave the Board an informational presentation on the potential cost differential between decommissioning and upgrading the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). Bogese said that to decommission both Oakland Park and Purkins Corner WWTPs would cost $9.7 million. To pump the waste from just Oakland Park to Hopyard Farm WWTP is $5.1 million and the general feeling on the Board was that this was a predetermined solution as DEQ will eventually require the closure of the facility and there is no room to upgrade or expand the plant. With Purkins Corner WWTP however, the Board will need to decide which solution is best, decommissioning or upgrading. With enough property to build a new facility at Purkins Corner and to account for potential development in the future, the Board wanted price points on the options.
Bogese said that with a new plant in Purkins Corner, there is another choice to make with the size of the facility. Building a 250,000 gallon per day (gpd) WWTP has more cost up front due to the infrastructure needs but the 500,000 gpd WWTP would be cheaper in the long run. Bennett and Weakley said that if the larger facility is built, the Board should consider the amount of development. Essentially, they said that if the larger WWTP is built and the planned development doesn't happen, then the Service Authority would have wasted money on paying for the extra capacity. Brabo asked if the developments that have already been approved have been factored into the demand that would be placed on Purkins Corner and Weakley said he was working with Community Development to see which of the approved plans were within the Purkins Corner service area.
There was also some discussion about the nutrient loads for both the Potomac River and the Rappahannock River. Being bounded on both sides by Virginia, and being smaller, the Rappahannock River has fewer nutrient credits available and has an increased chance of less credits in the future. Bogese said the nutrient credits could not be purchased in advance and stockpiled and that the state was in charge of distributing them. With Purkins Corner WWTP being in the Potomac River watershed, the general feeling was that pumping waste to Hopyard would cause some potential issues since it is located in the Rappahannock River watershed. Bogese also said that the storm water credits the County had purchased were different than the nutrient credits being discussed.
The bottom line of the presentation from Bogese was the cost difference between the different options on the table. The first option, to pump Purkins Corner waste to Hopyard Farm WWTP, which would require an upgrade at the Hopyard facility, would cost between $7.4 and $8.6 million. The second option, to replace the Purkins Corner WWTP with a 250,000 gpd facility, would cost between $7.1 and $10.2 million. The third option, to replace the Purkins Corner WWTP with a 500,000 gpd facility, would cost between $9.9 and $14.1 million. Bennett said, based on the costs given, that regardless of which option they took it would cost between $7.1 and $8.6 million.
Jonathan Weakley then gave his General Manager's report. Weakley said the Purkins Corner water tank has been painted and is being filled with water. He said once the water passes quality testing, it will be placed back into service. Weakley said the Oakland Park tank is currently being painted. He said lead and copper sampling letters and kits had gone out to homeowners participating in the program and that the Walnut Hill developer has a few items to correct before the Service Authority took ownership of the infrastructure. He told the Board that the meter reading software and hardware will no longer be supported after 2021 so he would be submitting a capital request to replace those. Regarding the WWTPs, he said that Dahlgren is operating within permit requirements but is still not under the limit for the grant. The only other facility to be outside of the permit limits is Purkins Corner. Weakley said repairs had also begun on the UV system at Dahlgren. Bennett asked how many items were left on the Consent Order from DEQ and Weakley said only a couple of items. Bennett asked about closing out the Consent Order and opening a new one with just those remaining items and Weakley said that had been discussed with DEQ but wasn't sure if it was the best solution yet. Weakley also said he had a conference call with Davenport regarding the debt refinancing and said that Federal law required a $50,000 draw down. He apologized to the Board for the late notice on this unexpected draw down but said he only just learned about it.
With that, the Board then went into Closed Session at 7:23 pm and invited Gregory, Young, and Weakley to attend.
While they were behind closed doors, Supervisor Jeff Bueche noticed that the King George County flag was hung on the pole upside down. After some searching, he and IT Director Chris Dines found some tools to correct the issue. After some discussion with Deputy Shriver, they also rearranged all three flags to display them correctly.
 |
| Despite being displayed right-side-up two weeks ago, the County flag was upside-down. |
 |
| Chris Dines and Jeff Bueche work to correct the error. |
 |
| The County flag now facing the right way. |
 |
| All three flags now properly displayed. |
The Board returned from Closed Session and adjourned immediately thereafter at 8:00 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on September 3, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Friday, August 16, 2019
2019-08-06 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes
by Neil Richard
The Board of Supervisors began their meeting at 7:12pm much to the delight of Jeff Bueche.
There were amendments to the Agenda to shuffle the order of the meeting in order to move the Service Authority resolution out of the Action Items to just before the County Attorney's report.
Public Comment began with Jim Lynch giving the Supervisors an update on the recently held 50k and half marathon races on the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail (DRHT). Lynch said everyone was happy that the weather cooperated and that none of the runners got "cooked" out there. He said a total of 121 runners, the largest for the event, participated and some came from as far away as California. He said Steve DeSantis finished his 11th year running the 50k this year. Lynch also said he had never seen a woman outrun the male competitors to win a race but this year's half marathon winner, Leigh West, was able to do just that by about two minutes. He also thanked all of the volunteers that helped make the event possible, including King George High School Cross Country Coach Paul Koepfinger and his team as well as Jack Deem and the King George Radio Operators. Lynch also thanked Don Kirkpatrick and the Fredericksburg Railroad Historical Society, the neighbors in the Meadows and Indiantown Road, as well as sponsors High Mark Brewery and River Rock Outfitters. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Treasurer of the Friends of DRHT.]
Next to speak was Justin Grimes who came to voice his concerns over the special exception request from the Estate at Whitehall. Grimes, a neighbor of the Estate, said that wineries in Lake Anna and other parts of the state hold weddings and events but they are not held in subdivisions like his. He said he would be the figurehead of the opposition even though he has been threatened by patrons of the Estate. Grimes said he could not enjoy a peaceful weekend at home when over 350 people attend events. He said his children can't ride their bikes or go for walks because of the increased traffic on the road. Combined with alcohol being served, he felt it was a recipe for disaster. Grimes said that large and wide party buses frequently miss the entrance and have even run a neighbor off the road. He said he can hear the music in his daughter's bedroom when putting her to bed at night. Grimes said that the evidence is there to prove the Estate holds more than what the owners have stated while under scrutiny from the County. He said he moved to Whitehall Road for the peace and quiet. While Grimes has no problem with people running a business, he said ruining a neighborhood isn't right. Grimes said the discrepancies between the application and the documents is easily seen and asked the Supervisors to imagine living across the street from this event venue.
John Jenkins opened his report by thanking Lynch and Grimes for speaking. To Lynch he said it was good to hear about the trail and the events hosted there. He said it was a great reflection on the community bringing people in. He hoped some of those people spent money in the County. To Grimes, he said he appreciated his comments and concerns. On June 20th, Jenkins attended a joint meeting with the Service Authority and the Economic Development Authority (EDA) to discuss the small business incentives and was glad that the discussion is still continuing. On June 24th he attended the Comprehensive Plan meeting and on the 26th he was honored to swear in the newest class of fire and rescue personnel.
Richard Granger thanked Lynch for his report and told Grimes he appreciated him coming out early. He said there was no vote before the Board tonight to approve the Special Exception but instead it's a vote to send it to the Planning Commission. He thanked Grimes for his input and said the more info, the better. He encouraged him to continue to be engaged and that he valued Grimes' input. On June 20th, Granger attended the same joint meeting previously mentioned as well as the one on the 24th. On June 27th he said he attended the Northern Neck Tourism Commission meeting and said the group is trying to get the Northern Neck designated as a National Heritage Area. He said the first step, a study, has already been completed but they still need approval from the Secretary of the Interior and Congress. On July 15th he attended the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) work session and said an upcoming meeting would focus on Amazon's new Headquarters and how surrounding communities worked together as regional neighbors to help each other.
Cathy Binder thanked Lynch for his update and said she wishes she could still run that far. She thanked Grimes for voicing his concerns. Binder attended the County Employee picnic on June 27th and visited Belle Grove on July 4th. She said because of the rain she managed to avoid the crowds and got a great tour of the house. On July 1st she attended a joint meeting with the base in Dahlgren, the County, and the Service Authority about joint purchasing needs. On July 18th and 19th she attended a conference and on the 24th she met with Wiley Wilson regarding the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant. Binder also attended a Dahlgren Heritage Foundation meeting in July. Binder said she also attended the welcoming event for teachers and loved talking with teachers that taught her kids and those that she had worked with. Just prior to the meeting, Binder went to the National Night Out event at the High School and mentioned the Sheriff's Office had an internship that may be beneficial to students. She ended her report by saying she would be doing a trial run on Tuesdays in September at the Library from 11am to 1pm where residents could come and talk to her. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is an employee of the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation.]
Ruby Brabo gave a lengthy report beginning with the work session meeting on June 24th. On June 25th she participated in a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference call. Brabo attended the County picnic on June 27th and a conference call on veteran suicide later in the day. On July 2nd she met with Dr. Young and others regarding the potential annexation of Lake Caledon as part of Caledon State Park. Later in the day she met with the owner of Mary's Cakery regarding the limitations of the sign ordinance. On the 9th she participated in another NACo conference call and then attended the NACo annual conference from the 11th to the 16th. On the 22nd she attended the Virginia Rural Center's Board of Directors meeting and had another NACo conference call on the 26th. On August 3rd she visited the DRHT 50k and half marathon race. Prior to tonight's meeting, Brabo also attended the welcome back lunch for teachers and the National Night Out event. She thanked Grimes for coming out and then asked Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, what it means to the County if the Estate at Whitehall is just now filing for a Special Exception but has been operating in violation prior to that. Eric Gregory, County Attorney, said the matter is currently in enforcement and part of the agreement was to require the Estate to apply for a special exception. He said the Supervisors have been informed during the process.
Jeff Bueche began his report by addressing Dr. Young and saying he was pleased to notify him that he was awarded the Distinguished Budget Award along with certificates of recognition for those being primarily responsible for achieving the award. With that, he called Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, and Barbara Howard-Johnson, Accounting Manager, forward to be recognized.
After photos, Bueche thanked Lynch for the update on another successful trail run. Bueche said "that's tourism." He said he's never run the trail and never will but he enjoys going there and thinks the caboose is awesome. With the majority of the trail running through his district, he said the trail was a treasure. To Grimes, he said thanks and repeated earlier comments to come out early to speak on issues. Bueche said he appreciated Grimes putting it on their radar. On June 20th Bueche attended the joint meeting. On the 21st he attended the Friends of Caledon picnic. After the Comprehensive Plan meeting on the 24th, Bueche went to the County picnic on the 27th before hosting a Town Hall at Caledon. Bueche went to the CTE Expansion Committee meeting on July 2nd and was happy to report that over the Fourth of July weekend, the Sheriff's Office and Fire and Rescue Department kept Fairview Beach safe and secure. Bueche said he posted to his Facebook page on July 12th about making improvements to Route 206 (Dahlgren Road) and three days later Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) began their repaving project. He said he couldn't take credit for VDOT coming out so quickly and that it was just a happy coincidence. Bueche said that while the repairs are inconvenient, they are necessary. On July 15th he attended a Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO) meeting. On the 18th he received approval from the Coast Guard to retire effective December 1st, 2019. On the 27th he attended the Fairview Beach Residents Association and reminded other local groups and homeowner associations that he is willing to meet with them as well. Prior to the night's meeting he also attended the welcome lunch for teachers and thanked Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, for the opportunity to speak. Bueche said he has a good working relationship with the School Board and the County has an outstanding school system. He also stopped by the National Night Out event and thanked law enforcement for doing an amazing job protecting and serving the community. Bueche ended his report by saying he was going to begin a community outreach program by walking around neighborhoods. He said his retirement would give him plenty of time to get fat and that he was also planning to quit smoking so he wanted to get some exercise while meeting with local residents. He said he would post details on these events via social media.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
As amended earlier in the evening, the next item on the Agenda was the Line of Credit Resolution in support of the Service Authority. The Board approved it.
Next on the Agenda was VDOT's Steve McKeever to discuss the Speed Limit Increase Study. McKeever was absent so Dr. Young said he would see if he would be available for the next meeting. Brabo added that the request was for the section of Route 3 (Kings Highway) from Hopyard to the Stafford County line and the section of Highway 301 (James Madison Parkway) from Tractor Supply to the Caroline County line.
Next was a detailed presentation by Bob Dick, Vice President of SCS Engineers regarding the Landfill Odor Study. Dick detailed the primary odor sources as being the waste being received, landfill gas emissions, and leachate. He said when waste was received, handled, and placed at the landfill, it mostly arrived via truck with about one third arriving via train car. He said the smell generated from this was fairly obvious and could be compared to what people would experience in their own kitchen garbage can. He said the landfill gas was being collected via wells throughout the facility but it was fugitive gases, the gas that wasn't collected, that led to the smell. He said Waste Management has more gas wells than is required by law, more than is required by their permit, and is installing them sooner than most other landfills. The leachate, the liquid runoff from the waste, was also a source of odors and was being collected and processed. Dick said that his company found that the landfill was operated just as comprehensively as others. He said they felt like the Supervisors would want recommendations and listed several, including accelerating the final cap installation, increasing the vacuum on landfill gas wells, and using air dispersal modeling software. In conclusion, he said the landfill meets all requirements and standard industry practices. He said it was operating consistent with other landfills and was progressive enough to meet nearly all of the requirements in the Draft Odor Guidance from DEQ. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Secretary of the Landfill Advisory Committee.]
Granger said he appreciated the presentation and had already sent his questions earlier. He asked Dr. Young if it would be good to have Waste Management come and give their feedback on the recommendations from SCS Engineering. Dr. Young said he would invite Waste Management to the next meeting. Brabo said she was interested in the modeling software because she and other Supervisors have been contacted multiple times by residents living in Oakland Park about the smell. She said the answer she has heard Waste Management give is that they can't smell anything but thought the software would be great because it would help understand how weather impacts the dispersal of the odor. She said it may also help so that residents don't feel like they're being called a liar when in reality it may have smelled bad earlier due to the weather. She said that if residents know the odor is coming they may not be as upset about it. Dick clarified that there is no meter than can be used to measure odor. He said each individual has different sensitivities and everyone has a different opinion on what smells bad. He said some people may like the smell of a certain flower but others may not. Brabo said she had heard Waste Management responds to odor complaints with a meter. Dick said this was a Jerome 631-X meter that measures hydrogen sulfide which is commonly referred to as a "rotten egg" smell. He also said there's no such thing as a zero odor landfill yet.
Next on the Agenda was Heather Hall from the Department of Community Development who presented the request from the Estate at Whitehall for a Special Exception Permit. Hall stated that the County had received complaints about the venue and issued the Estate a notice of violation in June 2018. With no response from the owners, David and Bethany Cassell, another violation notice was sent in July 2018. This finally prompted a meeting between the owners and the County in August 2018 where Hall said the Cassells felt they were exempt from the requirement to get a permit because they were a winery. At that same meeting it was agreed that the County would cease issuing violation notices and the owners would cease holding events until a permit was approved. Hall stated the Estate continued to host events for all of 2018 and 2019 and didn't obtain a Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) Authority License until May 2019.
Granger said he felt like the Public Hearing should go before the Planning Commission first. He said he spoke to Grimes and the Cassells before and he was under the impression that the Estate would stop holding events and would respect the County's ordinances. Gregory said there were some flaws in the violation notices and the County encouraged them to file for the Special Exception Permit. He reiterated that the County agreed to suspend further notices until they got the permit but that the enforcement actions were still outstanding and that each additional event was another infraction that potentially exposes the owners. Bueche said "that's bullshit." Granger gently chided Bueche on his language before stating it was upsetting to him that the owners want to move towards compliance but the continue to not care. Granger asked rhetorically what that does for the County trying to enforce ordinances with others. Bueche asked what good an ordinance was if it wasn't going to be enforced.
Gregory said the issue with farm wineries is a matter of great controversy and that other localities are in litigation over the issue. He said there are ordinances on the books and that action of the owners to continue to hold events has an impact on the Supervisor's decision. Gregory said he hesitated to offer further commentary because of the sensitive nature of the topic but would be happy to discuss it further in Closed Session.
A motion was made and seconded to table the decision until a Closed Session discussion could be held. Before approving that decision, there was more discussion. Brabo said she found it disturbing that the County is encouraging small business and entrepreneurs when it appears someone has a blatant disregard for zoning, ordinances, and the health and welfare of neighbors. Jenkins added that he may not have the legal background but felt it was setting a precedent. He said he was a pretty fair guy but felt this was insane. Binder said she knows another winery is looking to get a Special Exception Permit and they were doing all the right things and wondered what kind of message this sent to them. Brabo said there needed to be a serious course of action taken. Bueche said there are things everyone would like to see or not like to see but there was a process to go through and it can be time consuming. He said it wasn't right they should be able to take a short cut, especially with a special exception.
Heather Hall stayed at the podium and presented her next item, an amendment to the County's Erosion and Sediment Control Ordinance. Hall said this was mostly a housekeeping change to stay in line with state code. The Board approved putting it before the Planning Commission as a Public Hearing.
Next was a presentation by the Department of Economic Development for the approval of tourism funding through the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC). Dr. Young said that Kim Young was scheduled to present but was celebrating the birth of her first grandchild who was born earlier in the day. Bob Baird was there to present on behalf of the TAC. Baird gave a summary of the four applications that included:
Baird and Young said the TAC and County staff recommended full funding for both requests from Parks and Recreation. Brabo said she appreciates that it's tourism related but wanted to know if it was part of regular maintenance or not. She said the Citizen's Center was not something used by tourists all the time. Binder said she was torn on that one because the Historical Society could use that $1,000 to improve the electrical connection but it could also fall under maintenance. Brabo said she felt the electrical request was an upgrade, not regular maintenance. Granger asked how many events were held at the Citizen's Center that brought in people from outside the county. Young said he wasn't sure but that four events were scheduled to be held there for the 300th anniversary. Baird added that David Zabelsky, the manager at the Holiday Inn Express in Dahlgren, was looking forward to an improved facility to recommend his clients to that need a larger space. Bueche asked if it was an enhancement or a repair to which Baird said a little bit of both. Young agreed and said the electrical request was more of an upgrade while the Citizens Center request was due to a lack of maintenance. Binder asked if there was enough money in General Properties to cover the costs and Young said there were other properties to maintain as well. Brabo said that issues were created in the past when tourism funds were used to cover regular maintenance and repairs instead of using general funds. With that the Supervisors approved the request to make electrical improvements and denied the request to replace and repair ceiling tiles and lights.
The Board then tackled the large request from Jazz in the Country. Baird said the TAC recommended funding only $5,000 for advertising but also recommended a second tier of funding of $15,000 to cover expenses only if the event did not meet first year attendance level goals. He said the TAC wasn't keen on adding to the profit margin of the group but felt the first year of any event was risky and felt that covering some expenses was good. Young said that staff recommended funding only $1,000 and had severe reservations on giving so much money, especially to one without a proven concept. He said staff couldn't see giving twice as much to a brand new event than what is given to something with a long history like the Fall Festival. The Supervisors approved $1,000.
Regarding the Backporch Vineyard's request, Baird said the TAC recommended $2,500 while Young said staff recommended tabling the decision until more information could be gathered. Young said some of the information in the application appeared to be related to start-up costs instead of advertising. Brabo asked if their special exception permit had been approved yet and said she didn't feel comfortable giving money if they haven't gotten their permit yet. Young said they didn't have a lot of information on them yet and would rather wait. With that, the Supervisors tabled the decision.
Brabo added that she was excited about the Jazz in the Country event but said that there needs to be some caution used when dealing with a new event. Bueche said that the KG Que Fest lost a lot of money from outside investors but the TAC didn't put money into it.
Next to the podium was Lavita Cobb from the Department of Finance who presented a request for a $246,973 change order on the Middle School expansion project. Binder said she was a little upset about this because the building is old and there should have been some forethought used when considering the upgrading of communication lines. Brabo agreed and said that some things can't be controlled like the discovery of the power line or the price of asphalt but the upgrade to existing communication lines should have been planned for. After some side discussions and commentary, Young added that the project is large and complex and that change orders are to be expected. He added that this wasn't a "bait and switch" and that the contractor has found ways to save money along the way. Bueche said that while he would normally like to see something like this go through the Capital Improvement Process (CIP), he felt the best decision for the taxpayer was to do the work now while the building is under construction rather than wait until later. The rest of the Board agreed and approved the request.
Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, then presented a grant for the School Resource Officer that required a local match of $22,853. The Board approved.
Next on the Agenda was a discussion on work session dates for the Comprehensive Plan and the CIP. The Board settled on August 21, 2019 at 5:30 pm for the Comprehensive Plan meeting. For the CIP meetings, the Board agreed to meet on September 10, 2019 and September 18, 2019 at 5:30 pm and planned to include the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee members.
Dr. Young then gave his County Administrator's report giving the Board short updates on the 98th Civil Affairs bringing in a small team in August for an exercise. Young also said that all of the positions on the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC) would expire at the end of August and that he recommended Kim Wilson replace Ryan Gandy on several tourism related seats, which the Board approved. Brabo noted that there were several empty seats on the TAC and suggested her peers come with recommendations at the next meeting. Young added that the County had published their Economic Development Strategic Plan and said printed copies were available as well as electronic copies online. He said printed copies were limited and when they ran out, he would need to talk to the Board before printing more as they cost about $13 per copy to print.
Young also gave kudos to the Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Services Department. He said dividends had paid off in their purchasing a drone. Young said a boat went missing on the Rappahannock River and both the Coast Guard and Caroline County emergency services were unable to locate it. He said they called in King George to assist with their drone and the boat was quickly located.
Young also updated the Board on the recent request for a broadband grant. Young said two businesses came forward but only one, KGI Communications, was a good match. He said that the proposal from KGI was much better than their proposal in previous years and had addressed previous concerns. The Board gave consensus to move forward.
The Board then went into Closed Session at 9:17 pm with Dr. Young and Eric Gregory invited to attend. They returned from closed session at 10:11 pm. The Board then approved a third amendment to Dr. Young's employment agreement.
The meeting adjourned at 10:12 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on August 20, 2019 at 7:00 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
The Board of Supervisors began their meeting at 7:12pm much to the delight of Jeff Bueche.
There were amendments to the Agenda to shuffle the order of the meeting in order to move the Service Authority resolution out of the Action Items to just before the County Attorney's report.
Public Comment began with Jim Lynch giving the Supervisors an update on the recently held 50k and half marathon races on the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail (DRHT). Lynch said everyone was happy that the weather cooperated and that none of the runners got "cooked" out there. He said a total of 121 runners, the largest for the event, participated and some came from as far away as California. He said Steve DeSantis finished his 11th year running the 50k this year. Lynch also said he had never seen a woman outrun the male competitors to win a race but this year's half marathon winner, Leigh West, was able to do just that by about two minutes. He also thanked all of the volunteers that helped make the event possible, including King George High School Cross Country Coach Paul Koepfinger and his team as well as Jack Deem and the King George Radio Operators. Lynch also thanked Don Kirkpatrick and the Fredericksburg Railroad Historical Society, the neighbors in the Meadows and Indiantown Road, as well as sponsors High Mark Brewery and River Rock Outfitters. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Treasurer of the Friends of DRHT.]
Next to speak was Justin Grimes who came to voice his concerns over the special exception request from the Estate at Whitehall. Grimes, a neighbor of the Estate, said that wineries in Lake Anna and other parts of the state hold weddings and events but they are not held in subdivisions like his. He said he would be the figurehead of the opposition even though he has been threatened by patrons of the Estate. Grimes said he could not enjoy a peaceful weekend at home when over 350 people attend events. He said his children can't ride their bikes or go for walks because of the increased traffic on the road. Combined with alcohol being served, he felt it was a recipe for disaster. Grimes said that large and wide party buses frequently miss the entrance and have even run a neighbor off the road. He said he can hear the music in his daughter's bedroom when putting her to bed at night. Grimes said that the evidence is there to prove the Estate holds more than what the owners have stated while under scrutiny from the County. He said he moved to Whitehall Road for the peace and quiet. While Grimes has no problem with people running a business, he said ruining a neighborhood isn't right. Grimes said the discrepancies between the application and the documents is easily seen and asked the Supervisors to imagine living across the street from this event venue.
John Jenkins opened his report by thanking Lynch and Grimes for speaking. To Lynch he said it was good to hear about the trail and the events hosted there. He said it was a great reflection on the community bringing people in. He hoped some of those people spent money in the County. To Grimes, he said he appreciated his comments and concerns. On June 20th, Jenkins attended a joint meeting with the Service Authority and the Economic Development Authority (EDA) to discuss the small business incentives and was glad that the discussion is still continuing. On June 24th he attended the Comprehensive Plan meeting and on the 26th he was honored to swear in the newest class of fire and rescue personnel.
Richard Granger thanked Lynch for his report and told Grimes he appreciated him coming out early. He said there was no vote before the Board tonight to approve the Special Exception but instead it's a vote to send it to the Planning Commission. He thanked Grimes for his input and said the more info, the better. He encouraged him to continue to be engaged and that he valued Grimes' input. On June 20th, Granger attended the same joint meeting previously mentioned as well as the one on the 24th. On June 27th he said he attended the Northern Neck Tourism Commission meeting and said the group is trying to get the Northern Neck designated as a National Heritage Area. He said the first step, a study, has already been completed but they still need approval from the Secretary of the Interior and Congress. On July 15th he attended the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) work session and said an upcoming meeting would focus on Amazon's new Headquarters and how surrounding communities worked together as regional neighbors to help each other.
Cathy Binder thanked Lynch for his update and said she wishes she could still run that far. She thanked Grimes for voicing his concerns. Binder attended the County Employee picnic on June 27th and visited Belle Grove on July 4th. She said because of the rain she managed to avoid the crowds and got a great tour of the house. On July 1st she attended a joint meeting with the base in Dahlgren, the County, and the Service Authority about joint purchasing needs. On July 18th and 19th she attended a conference and on the 24th she met with Wiley Wilson regarding the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant. Binder also attended a Dahlgren Heritage Foundation meeting in July. Binder said she also attended the welcoming event for teachers and loved talking with teachers that taught her kids and those that she had worked with. Just prior to the meeting, Binder went to the National Night Out event at the High School and mentioned the Sheriff's Office had an internship that may be beneficial to students. She ended her report by saying she would be doing a trial run on Tuesdays in September at the Library from 11am to 1pm where residents could come and talk to her. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is an employee of the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation.]
Ruby Brabo gave a lengthy report beginning with the work session meeting on June 24th. On June 25th she participated in a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference call. Brabo attended the County picnic on June 27th and a conference call on veteran suicide later in the day. On July 2nd she met with Dr. Young and others regarding the potential annexation of Lake Caledon as part of Caledon State Park. Later in the day she met with the owner of Mary's Cakery regarding the limitations of the sign ordinance. On the 9th she participated in another NACo conference call and then attended the NACo annual conference from the 11th to the 16th. On the 22nd she attended the Virginia Rural Center's Board of Directors meeting and had another NACo conference call on the 26th. On August 3rd she visited the DRHT 50k and half marathon race. Prior to tonight's meeting, Brabo also attended the welcome back lunch for teachers and the National Night Out event. She thanked Grimes for coming out and then asked Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, what it means to the County if the Estate at Whitehall is just now filing for a Special Exception but has been operating in violation prior to that. Eric Gregory, County Attorney, said the matter is currently in enforcement and part of the agreement was to require the Estate to apply for a special exception. He said the Supervisors have been informed during the process.
Jeff Bueche began his report by addressing Dr. Young and saying he was pleased to notify him that he was awarded the Distinguished Budget Award along with certificates of recognition for those being primarily responsible for achieving the award. With that, he called Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, and Barbara Howard-Johnson, Accounting Manager, forward to be recognized.
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| Wilma Ward, Jeff Bueche, and Barbara Howard-Johnson pose in front of John Jenkins, Richard Granger, Cathy Binder, Ruby Brabo, Dr. Neiman Young, and Eric Gregory. (l to r) |
After photos, Bueche thanked Lynch for the update on another successful trail run. Bueche said "that's tourism." He said he's never run the trail and never will but he enjoys going there and thinks the caboose is awesome. With the majority of the trail running through his district, he said the trail was a treasure. To Grimes, he said thanks and repeated earlier comments to come out early to speak on issues. Bueche said he appreciated Grimes putting it on their radar. On June 20th Bueche attended the joint meeting. On the 21st he attended the Friends of Caledon picnic. After the Comprehensive Plan meeting on the 24th, Bueche went to the County picnic on the 27th before hosting a Town Hall at Caledon. Bueche went to the CTE Expansion Committee meeting on July 2nd and was happy to report that over the Fourth of July weekend, the Sheriff's Office and Fire and Rescue Department kept Fairview Beach safe and secure. Bueche said he posted to his Facebook page on July 12th about making improvements to Route 206 (Dahlgren Road) and three days later Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) began their repaving project. He said he couldn't take credit for VDOT coming out so quickly and that it was just a happy coincidence. Bueche said that while the repairs are inconvenient, they are necessary. On July 15th he attended a Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO) meeting. On the 18th he received approval from the Coast Guard to retire effective December 1st, 2019. On the 27th he attended the Fairview Beach Residents Association and reminded other local groups and homeowner associations that he is willing to meet with them as well. Prior to the night's meeting he also attended the welcome lunch for teachers and thanked Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, for the opportunity to speak. Bueche said he has a good working relationship with the School Board and the County has an outstanding school system. He also stopped by the National Night Out event and thanked law enforcement for doing an amazing job protecting and serving the community. Bueche ended his report by saying he was going to begin a community outreach program by walking around neighborhoods. He said his retirement would give him plenty of time to get fat and that he was also planning to quit smoking so he wanted to get some exercise while meeting with local residents. He said he would post details on these events via social media.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
As amended earlier in the evening, the next item on the Agenda was the Line of Credit Resolution in support of the Service Authority. The Board approved it.
Next on the Agenda was VDOT's Steve McKeever to discuss the Speed Limit Increase Study. McKeever was absent so Dr. Young said he would see if he would be available for the next meeting. Brabo added that the request was for the section of Route 3 (Kings Highway) from Hopyard to the Stafford County line and the section of Highway 301 (James Madison Parkway) from Tractor Supply to the Caroline County line.
Next was a detailed presentation by Bob Dick, Vice President of SCS Engineers regarding the Landfill Odor Study. Dick detailed the primary odor sources as being the waste being received, landfill gas emissions, and leachate. He said when waste was received, handled, and placed at the landfill, it mostly arrived via truck with about one third arriving via train car. He said the smell generated from this was fairly obvious and could be compared to what people would experience in their own kitchen garbage can. He said the landfill gas was being collected via wells throughout the facility but it was fugitive gases, the gas that wasn't collected, that led to the smell. He said Waste Management has more gas wells than is required by law, more than is required by their permit, and is installing them sooner than most other landfills. The leachate, the liquid runoff from the waste, was also a source of odors and was being collected and processed. Dick said that his company found that the landfill was operated just as comprehensively as others. He said they felt like the Supervisors would want recommendations and listed several, including accelerating the final cap installation, increasing the vacuum on landfill gas wells, and using air dispersal modeling software. In conclusion, he said the landfill meets all requirements and standard industry practices. He said it was operating consistent with other landfills and was progressive enough to meet nearly all of the requirements in the Draft Odor Guidance from DEQ. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Secretary of the Landfill Advisory Committee.]
Granger said he appreciated the presentation and had already sent his questions earlier. He asked Dr. Young if it would be good to have Waste Management come and give their feedback on the recommendations from SCS Engineering. Dr. Young said he would invite Waste Management to the next meeting. Brabo said she was interested in the modeling software because she and other Supervisors have been contacted multiple times by residents living in Oakland Park about the smell. She said the answer she has heard Waste Management give is that they can't smell anything but thought the software would be great because it would help understand how weather impacts the dispersal of the odor. She said it may also help so that residents don't feel like they're being called a liar when in reality it may have smelled bad earlier due to the weather. She said that if residents know the odor is coming they may not be as upset about it. Dick clarified that there is no meter than can be used to measure odor. He said each individual has different sensitivities and everyone has a different opinion on what smells bad. He said some people may like the smell of a certain flower but others may not. Brabo said she had heard Waste Management responds to odor complaints with a meter. Dick said this was a Jerome 631-X meter that measures hydrogen sulfide which is commonly referred to as a "rotten egg" smell. He also said there's no such thing as a zero odor landfill yet.
Next on the Agenda was Heather Hall from the Department of Community Development who presented the request from the Estate at Whitehall for a Special Exception Permit. Hall stated that the County had received complaints about the venue and issued the Estate a notice of violation in June 2018. With no response from the owners, David and Bethany Cassell, another violation notice was sent in July 2018. This finally prompted a meeting between the owners and the County in August 2018 where Hall said the Cassells felt they were exempt from the requirement to get a permit because they were a winery. At that same meeting it was agreed that the County would cease issuing violation notices and the owners would cease holding events until a permit was approved. Hall stated the Estate continued to host events for all of 2018 and 2019 and didn't obtain a Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) Authority License until May 2019.
Granger said he felt like the Public Hearing should go before the Planning Commission first. He said he spoke to Grimes and the Cassells before and he was under the impression that the Estate would stop holding events and would respect the County's ordinances. Gregory said there were some flaws in the violation notices and the County encouraged them to file for the Special Exception Permit. He reiterated that the County agreed to suspend further notices until they got the permit but that the enforcement actions were still outstanding and that each additional event was another infraction that potentially exposes the owners. Bueche said "that's bullshit." Granger gently chided Bueche on his language before stating it was upsetting to him that the owners want to move towards compliance but the continue to not care. Granger asked rhetorically what that does for the County trying to enforce ordinances with others. Bueche asked what good an ordinance was if it wasn't going to be enforced.
Gregory said the issue with farm wineries is a matter of great controversy and that other localities are in litigation over the issue. He said there are ordinances on the books and that action of the owners to continue to hold events has an impact on the Supervisor's decision. Gregory said he hesitated to offer further commentary because of the sensitive nature of the topic but would be happy to discuss it further in Closed Session.
A motion was made and seconded to table the decision until a Closed Session discussion could be held. Before approving that decision, there was more discussion. Brabo said she found it disturbing that the County is encouraging small business and entrepreneurs when it appears someone has a blatant disregard for zoning, ordinances, and the health and welfare of neighbors. Jenkins added that he may not have the legal background but felt it was setting a precedent. He said he was a pretty fair guy but felt this was insane. Binder said she knows another winery is looking to get a Special Exception Permit and they were doing all the right things and wondered what kind of message this sent to them. Brabo said there needed to be a serious course of action taken. Bueche said there are things everyone would like to see or not like to see but there was a process to go through and it can be time consuming. He said it wasn't right they should be able to take a short cut, especially with a special exception.
Heather Hall stayed at the podium and presented her next item, an amendment to the County's Erosion and Sediment Control Ordinance. Hall said this was mostly a housekeeping change to stay in line with state code. The Board approved putting it before the Planning Commission as a Public Hearing.
Next was a presentation by the Department of Economic Development for the approval of tourism funding through the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC). Dr. Young said that Kim Young was scheduled to present but was celebrating the birth of her first grandchild who was born earlier in the day. Bob Baird was there to present on behalf of the TAC. Baird gave a summary of the four applications that included:
- $1,000 - Parks and Recreation - Electrical improvements for the Christmas tree lighting ceremony
- $11,500 - Parks and Recreation - Ceiling tile and lighting replacement and improvement at the Citizen's Center
- $40,000 - Jazz in the Country - Expenses
- $7,500 - Backporch Vineyard - Advertising expenses
Baird and Young said the TAC and County staff recommended full funding for both requests from Parks and Recreation. Brabo said she appreciates that it's tourism related but wanted to know if it was part of regular maintenance or not. She said the Citizen's Center was not something used by tourists all the time. Binder said she was torn on that one because the Historical Society could use that $1,000 to improve the electrical connection but it could also fall under maintenance. Brabo said she felt the electrical request was an upgrade, not regular maintenance. Granger asked how many events were held at the Citizen's Center that brought in people from outside the county. Young said he wasn't sure but that four events were scheduled to be held there for the 300th anniversary. Baird added that David Zabelsky, the manager at the Holiday Inn Express in Dahlgren, was looking forward to an improved facility to recommend his clients to that need a larger space. Bueche asked if it was an enhancement or a repair to which Baird said a little bit of both. Young agreed and said the electrical request was more of an upgrade while the Citizens Center request was due to a lack of maintenance. Binder asked if there was enough money in General Properties to cover the costs and Young said there were other properties to maintain as well. Brabo said that issues were created in the past when tourism funds were used to cover regular maintenance and repairs instead of using general funds. With that the Supervisors approved the request to make electrical improvements and denied the request to replace and repair ceiling tiles and lights.
The Board then tackled the large request from Jazz in the Country. Baird said the TAC recommended funding only $5,000 for advertising but also recommended a second tier of funding of $15,000 to cover expenses only if the event did not meet first year attendance level goals. He said the TAC wasn't keen on adding to the profit margin of the group but felt the first year of any event was risky and felt that covering some expenses was good. Young said that staff recommended funding only $1,000 and had severe reservations on giving so much money, especially to one without a proven concept. He said staff couldn't see giving twice as much to a brand new event than what is given to something with a long history like the Fall Festival. The Supervisors approved $1,000.
Regarding the Backporch Vineyard's request, Baird said the TAC recommended $2,500 while Young said staff recommended tabling the decision until more information could be gathered. Young said some of the information in the application appeared to be related to start-up costs instead of advertising. Brabo asked if their special exception permit had been approved yet and said she didn't feel comfortable giving money if they haven't gotten their permit yet. Young said they didn't have a lot of information on them yet and would rather wait. With that, the Supervisors tabled the decision.
Brabo added that she was excited about the Jazz in the Country event but said that there needs to be some caution used when dealing with a new event. Bueche said that the KG Que Fest lost a lot of money from outside investors but the TAC didn't put money into it.
Next to the podium was Lavita Cobb from the Department of Finance who presented a request for a $246,973 change order on the Middle School expansion project. Binder said she was a little upset about this because the building is old and there should have been some forethought used when considering the upgrading of communication lines. Brabo agreed and said that some things can't be controlled like the discovery of the power line or the price of asphalt but the upgrade to existing communication lines should have been planned for. After some side discussions and commentary, Young added that the project is large and complex and that change orders are to be expected. He added that this wasn't a "bait and switch" and that the contractor has found ways to save money along the way. Bueche said that while he would normally like to see something like this go through the Capital Improvement Process (CIP), he felt the best decision for the taxpayer was to do the work now while the building is under construction rather than wait until later. The rest of the Board agreed and approved the request.
Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, then presented a grant for the School Resource Officer that required a local match of $22,853. The Board approved.
Next on the Agenda was a discussion on work session dates for the Comprehensive Plan and the CIP. The Board settled on August 21, 2019 at 5:30 pm for the Comprehensive Plan meeting. For the CIP meetings, the Board agreed to meet on September 10, 2019 and September 18, 2019 at 5:30 pm and planned to include the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee members.
Dr. Young then gave his County Administrator's report giving the Board short updates on the 98th Civil Affairs bringing in a small team in August for an exercise. Young also said that all of the positions on the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC) would expire at the end of August and that he recommended Kim Wilson replace Ryan Gandy on several tourism related seats, which the Board approved. Brabo noted that there were several empty seats on the TAC and suggested her peers come with recommendations at the next meeting. Young added that the County had published their Economic Development Strategic Plan and said printed copies were available as well as electronic copies online. He said printed copies were limited and when they ran out, he would need to talk to the Board before printing more as they cost about $13 per copy to print.
Young also gave kudos to the Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Services Department. He said dividends had paid off in their purchasing a drone. Young said a boat went missing on the Rappahannock River and both the Coast Guard and Caroline County emergency services were unable to locate it. He said they called in King George to assist with their drone and the boat was quickly located.
Young also updated the Board on the recent request for a broadband grant. Young said two businesses came forward but only one, KGI Communications, was a good match. He said that the proposal from KGI was much better than their proposal in previous years and had addressed previous concerns. The Board gave consensus to move forward.
The Board then went into Closed Session at 9:17 pm with Dr. Young and Eric Gregory invited to attend. They returned from closed session at 10:11 pm. The Board then approved a third amendment to Dr. Young's employment agreement.
The meeting adjourned at 10:12 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on August 20, 2019 at 7:00 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Thursday, August 15, 2019
2019-08-06 - Service Authority Meeting Notes
by Neil Richard
The Service Authority Board of Directors began their short, but productive, meeting at 6:31pm in the newly upgraded Board Room.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
There was no Public Comment.
Christopher Werle began his report with information from his meeting on August 5th with Schnabel Engineering to get an update on their progress on the Environmental Assessment (EA) report for the Fairview Beach Riverbank Stabilization Project. Werle said that consultations are still being held with various authorities, primarily regarding the potential impact to the Shortnose Sturgeon, the Northern Long-Eared Bat, and the Joint Vetch, a plant frequently consumed by deer. Earlier in August, Werle said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) determined there would be no impact to the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). Werle said that because no trees were due to be removed in the project area, there should be no impact to the Northern Long-Eared Bat. He was hopeful the same would be true with the Joint Vetch. Werle said an additional concern was the impact to the floodplain but said Schnabel is already working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) since floodplains fall under their jurisdiction. Werle said that Schnabel has already coordinated with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources to determine there are no historic sites within the project area. He ended his report by saying that there was one Wetlands area noted within the project area and that Schnabel is working on the appropriate permits.
Richard Granger had no report.
Cathy Binder said that she felt the restructuring of the Service Authority debt and the line of credit was being done right. On July 24th, she met with Wiley Wilson to discuss the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). She said the Courthouse and much of the impacted area is in her district and felt it was important to look at the impact to determine what was best. She said King George is in a heavily regulated area because of the Chesapeake Bay and the two rivers. She also said she recently spent two days at a conference where she was able to learn more about the potential impact.
Ruby Brabo had no report.
Mike Bennett attended the same meeting on July 24th with Wiley Wilson and added that they also discussed building a new WWTP at Purkins Corner instead of decommissioning it. He said they would meet with Wiley Wilson again in the future to continue to review potential solutions. He said that waste sent to Hopyard results in a discharge into the Rappahannock River while waste sent to Purkins Corner results in a discharge on the Potomac River and that the Potomac seems like the better place at the moment. On July 31st, Bennett had a conference call with Davenport to discuss the restructured debt and the line of credit. Regarding the contamination issue at Fairview Beach, Bennett said the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) took samples the same day the Hampton Roads Sanitation District took their samples. He said the VDH tests resulted in a swimming advisory while the Hampton Roads samples found no evidence of human waste. He said they did take a sample from one of the sewage manholes and it tested positive for human waste so the tests were working appropriately. Bennett said it has been dry lately and because there is a theory the contamination is related to wet weather, Hampton Roads would wait for a wet weather event before testing again. He ended his report by saying that there are no trees on the cliffs that need to be stabilized in Fairview Beach so there should be no impact to bats. He also said there shouldn't be any deer impacted because they've been busy eating his hostas.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
Jonathon Weakley, General Manager, then presented a summary of the debt restructuring plan. He said the final numbers had changed from what was in the Agenda. Weakley said the amount of debt being restructured was $15.6 million out of the total $25 million debt. He said the current debt service payments were $2.2 million and that would be reduced starting in October. From FY2020 to FY2025 there would be $4.2 million in cash freed up. Bennett said this was about two-thirds of the total debt and that about $8 million of the total debt had a really good interest rate so they decided not to mess with it. Weakley said the freed up cash was a real game changer. He said the Board could put it all in reserves or decide to cash fund other projects like the Nindes Well house. He said it was "immediately putting breath into the Service Authority." He thanked the Board of Directors, the Board of Supervisors, the County Administrator, the County Attorney, Davenport, Sands Anderson, VRA, and others for all of the hard work. Bennett said he appreciated everyone getting it done so quickly. He said it allowed them to get into the summer pool of money and would have otherwise had to wait six months.
Weakley then presented a summary of the Line of Credit (LOC). He said that several banks presented proposals but Atlantic Union had the best offer. The LOC would be for funds up to $15 million at an interest rate of 2.399% that would be fixed through the maturity date in June of 2025. Weakley said the Service Authority could draw down on the amount as needed and that it could be prepaid at any time without a penalty. He said the plan would be to convert it to a term loan in 2025. Weakley said they would still continue to look for alternative funding methods, such as the Water Quality Improvement Fund (WQIF) grants, and again thanked those involved in making the LOC happen.
Bennett added that there is a lot of debt but there's also a lot of needs. Bennett said these are not wants or desires but instead needs that are mandated by Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). He said there is no choice to decommission the WWTPs and that it's just a question of when it will happen. Bennett said they wanted to do it on their terms and reiterated that DEQ is making the Service Authority do what the law requires. With that, the Board approved the Line of Credit Resolution.
Next, there was a discussion about scheduling joint work sessions. Bennett said that it will cost a lot of money to decommission the Oakland Park and Purkins Corner WWTPs and pipe the sewage to Hopyard WWTP but it would likely be even more money to build a new plant at Purkins Corner. Despite this, Bennet said the Board will need to consider how best to move forward and needed the Supervisors at the table to give their input since it would impact the County. Bennett said there wasn't necessarily a rush to meet but that development seemed to be in a rush to happen in the County. He said about 1,400 housing units are proposed to be built and that was a lot of WWTP capacity to consider. He said they also needed to be cautious with the water capacity. Brabo added that there's already 1,200 homes that are approved but have yet to be built. Bennett said if we could build them all, then that's a lot of connection fees but there's a need to make sure they actually build what is planned so the Service Authority doesn't build for a capacity that never materializes.
Weakley gave one of his shortest General Manager's reports next with a brief update on some pump blower issues and pump station repairs that are scheduled to be completed by September. Weakley also said that the Purkins Corner water tank has been painted and is curing right now. He said once it has cured, it can be placed back in service but until then, water would be supplied from Arnold's Corner. He expected it to be online within a week or so. Weakley said he had a great meeting with Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, and they were continuing to work on an owner/agent agreement. Bennett said the water tank painting has been talked about forever so it was good to finally cross something off the list.
The meeting adjourned at 7:04pm.
Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on August 20, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
The Service Authority Board of Directors began their short, but productive, meeting at 6:31pm in the newly upgraded Board Room.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
There was no Public Comment.
Christopher Werle began his report with information from his meeting on August 5th with Schnabel Engineering to get an update on their progress on the Environmental Assessment (EA) report for the Fairview Beach Riverbank Stabilization Project. Werle said that consultations are still being held with various authorities, primarily regarding the potential impact to the Shortnose Sturgeon, the Northern Long-Eared Bat, and the Joint Vetch, a plant frequently consumed by deer. Earlier in August, Werle said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) determined there would be no impact to the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). Werle said that because no trees were due to be removed in the project area, there should be no impact to the Northern Long-Eared Bat. He was hopeful the same would be true with the Joint Vetch. Werle said an additional concern was the impact to the floodplain but said Schnabel is already working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) since floodplains fall under their jurisdiction. Werle said that Schnabel has already coordinated with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources to determine there are no historic sites within the project area. He ended his report by saying that there was one Wetlands area noted within the project area and that Schnabel is working on the appropriate permits.
Richard Granger had no report.
Cathy Binder said that she felt the restructuring of the Service Authority debt and the line of credit was being done right. On July 24th, she met with Wiley Wilson to discuss the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP). She said the Courthouse and much of the impacted area is in her district and felt it was important to look at the impact to determine what was best. She said King George is in a heavily regulated area because of the Chesapeake Bay and the two rivers. She also said she recently spent two days at a conference where she was able to learn more about the potential impact.
Ruby Brabo had no report.
Mike Bennett attended the same meeting on July 24th with Wiley Wilson and added that they also discussed building a new WWTP at Purkins Corner instead of decommissioning it. He said they would meet with Wiley Wilson again in the future to continue to review potential solutions. He said that waste sent to Hopyard results in a discharge into the Rappahannock River while waste sent to Purkins Corner results in a discharge on the Potomac River and that the Potomac seems like the better place at the moment. On July 31st, Bennett had a conference call with Davenport to discuss the restructured debt and the line of credit. Regarding the contamination issue at Fairview Beach, Bennett said the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) took samples the same day the Hampton Roads Sanitation District took their samples. He said the VDH tests resulted in a swimming advisory while the Hampton Roads samples found no evidence of human waste. He said they did take a sample from one of the sewage manholes and it tested positive for human waste so the tests were working appropriately. Bennett said it has been dry lately and because there is a theory the contamination is related to wet weather, Hampton Roads would wait for a wet weather event before testing again. He ended his report by saying that there are no trees on the cliffs that need to be stabilized in Fairview Beach so there should be no impact to bats. He also said there shouldn't be any deer impacted because they've been busy eating his hostas.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.
Jonathon Weakley, General Manager, then presented a summary of the debt restructuring plan. He said the final numbers had changed from what was in the Agenda. Weakley said the amount of debt being restructured was $15.6 million out of the total $25 million debt. He said the current debt service payments were $2.2 million and that would be reduced starting in October. From FY2020 to FY2025 there would be $4.2 million in cash freed up. Bennett said this was about two-thirds of the total debt and that about $8 million of the total debt had a really good interest rate so they decided not to mess with it. Weakley said the freed up cash was a real game changer. He said the Board could put it all in reserves or decide to cash fund other projects like the Nindes Well house. He said it was "immediately putting breath into the Service Authority." He thanked the Board of Directors, the Board of Supervisors, the County Administrator, the County Attorney, Davenport, Sands Anderson, VRA, and others for all of the hard work. Bennett said he appreciated everyone getting it done so quickly. He said it allowed them to get into the summer pool of money and would have otherwise had to wait six months.
Weakley then presented a summary of the Line of Credit (LOC). He said that several banks presented proposals but Atlantic Union had the best offer. The LOC would be for funds up to $15 million at an interest rate of 2.399% that would be fixed through the maturity date in June of 2025. Weakley said the Service Authority could draw down on the amount as needed and that it could be prepaid at any time without a penalty. He said the plan would be to convert it to a term loan in 2025. Weakley said they would still continue to look for alternative funding methods, such as the Water Quality Improvement Fund (WQIF) grants, and again thanked those involved in making the LOC happen.
Bennett added that there is a lot of debt but there's also a lot of needs. Bennett said these are not wants or desires but instead needs that are mandated by Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). He said there is no choice to decommission the WWTPs and that it's just a question of when it will happen. Bennett said they wanted to do it on their terms and reiterated that DEQ is making the Service Authority do what the law requires. With that, the Board approved the Line of Credit Resolution.
Next, there was a discussion about scheduling joint work sessions. Bennett said that it will cost a lot of money to decommission the Oakland Park and Purkins Corner WWTPs and pipe the sewage to Hopyard WWTP but it would likely be even more money to build a new plant at Purkins Corner. Despite this, Bennet said the Board will need to consider how best to move forward and needed the Supervisors at the table to give their input since it would impact the County. Bennett said there wasn't necessarily a rush to meet but that development seemed to be in a rush to happen in the County. He said about 1,400 housing units are proposed to be built and that was a lot of WWTP capacity to consider. He said they also needed to be cautious with the water capacity. Brabo added that there's already 1,200 homes that are approved but have yet to be built. Bennett said if we could build them all, then that's a lot of connection fees but there's a need to make sure they actually build what is planned so the Service Authority doesn't build for a capacity that never materializes.
Weakley gave one of his shortest General Manager's reports next with a brief update on some pump blower issues and pump station repairs that are scheduled to be completed by September. Weakley also said that the Purkins Corner water tank has been painted and is curing right now. He said once it has cured, it can be placed back in service but until then, water would be supplied from Arnold's Corner. He expected it to be online within a week or so. Weakley said he had a great meeting with Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, and they were continuing to work on an owner/agent agreement. Bennett said the water tank painting has been talked about forever so it was good to finally cross something off the list.
The meeting adjourned at 7:04pm.
Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Board of Directors)
Jonathon Weakley (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (Chairman, Citizen)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Service Authority will next meet on August 20, 2019 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.
SUBSCRIBE OR DONATE
You can subscribe via email here. You can make a charitable donation here.
Wednesday, August 7, 2019
Monday, August 5, 2019
An Interview With Jonathon Weakley - Local Leaders #8
by Neil Richard
Introduction
The basic idea behind this interview series is to interview local leaders that live, work, or have an important impact on King George County. We have asked various citizens for recommendations on who they see as a local leader. Additionally, we feel that everyone has a story and it deserves to be told. So we want to know their story. As you can see with the questions below, we want to share their story with the rest of the citizens in King George County. If you have somebody you would like to nominate for a future interview, please contact us.
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| Jonathan Weakley, General Manager of the King George County Service Authority. |
Editor's Note:
As I told Mr. Weakley after our interview, I found quite a few similarities between our pasts. However, during the interview itself, I did my best to not let these similarities interfere with my questions or the conversation. I also told Mr. Weakley that one of the driving factors behind these interviews is to help citizens get to know important people in the community on a more personal and human level.
Basic Biographical Information
As far as my educational accomplishments, I was a 1997 graduate of Madison County High School. That is in Madison, Virginia. After graduation I went in and I'd say I had a first successful year at Germanna Community College then like some young adults decided that college may not be the perfect time and left to enter the workforce full time. I came back after having married and having kids and got my Associate's Degree [in Applied Science] at Germanna Community College. I took a couple, about a year or so, hiatus between that and putting an addition on our home. And then our daughter was born. I went back for a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration [from Ashford University Forbes School of Business]. Truth be told if I could go back and change some of the past, I probably would have went down the path of engineering. I love how things are built. I like how things start from a raw resource and how it's taken to a finished product, whether it's a building or a piece of machinery. Realizing the only pathways for advancement to a director or a general manager or some type of management position, would either be an engineering or public administration or business administration degree.
As far as special certifications, I am licensed in water and waste water which is through Department of Professional Occupation and Regulations (DPOR). I'm a Class I Waste Water Operator and a Class II Water Operator. Just real brief, that gives you permission to run those class facilities in the state of Virginia. If you want a Class I license you need to work at a minimum of a Class II facility. And you can substitute some experience to get that Class I if you don't have anything at that level. So that's why I never went on to a Class I water.
No military service.
Decided to enter politics. I was elected to office and started my first term on the Madison County Board of Supervisors in 2012. Reelected in 2015 for a second term. On the Board level I've held position of Vice Chair for the last three years. Never sought Chairman because of work schedule and duties. I believe you've got to have the time if you're going to commit. Several committee assignments in that. Member of the Blue Ridge Committee. They're the 8 counties that make up Shenandoah National Park. Each have representatives so I was the representative for Madison County. Also sit on the Rappahannock River Basin Commission. I've actually been their Vice Chair. That's made up of local and state elected officials plus other folks that are in the soil and water conservation district. You learn a lot. I love it because of the work I do. But it gives you an opportunity. Of course King George, Mr. Granger is the representative for King George. You get an opportunity what is going on. Some of the things like Ms. Brabo talked about like House Bill 1822, the Deputy Secretary was there talking about programs. So it's just various committee assignments. I don't want to list them all.
I don't know if you'd consider it a civic position but I've been a Sunday School teacher since roughly 2009. I think I took about a year and a half away from that when I changed churches. Really enjoy that. I wouldn't say that makes me a high school teacher or I'm jumping into the academia realm but I do enjoy working with children whether it's coaching youth basketball or any kind of position in the church.
Personal Questions
What do you remember about your grandparents?
I'm going answer that question from a two point view. Obviously I have two sets of grandparents, my mom's side and my father's side. So I'll start with my mother's.
On my mother's side there was a real, real closeness there. A lot of my first cousins we would always congregate at my grandmother's house on my mother's side. That's stuck with me growing up because that's really unique. In today's time you don't really have a lot of closeness. We're still dealing with times then where in a rural county a lot of families live close together. That trend is going away. I do remember family gatherings. We'd have a cook out. I just remember family and the closeness and the laughing. Whether they were gathering to play cards, throwing darts, whatever we did it brought the cousins together, we got that chance to grow up together and share experiences. You become more like best friends than like family.
On my father's side, I'm not saying religion doesn't exist on my mother's side but on my father's side my grandmother was very, very, I don't want to profile her, but very strict Pentecostal. Loving, wasn't judging there, but you literally went to her house and there was no TV, they had a radio that very seldom came on. But when you were there you enjoyed your time because you talked. You didn't have gadgets like your phone and stuff. IF cousins showed up there, you were either talking to your aunt or uncle when you were spoken to but it was family centered. But that generally happened on Sundays. You generally hear about going to grandmas on Sundays after church, that was the side of the family we did that on. I really, really take away from my grandfather that he didn't speak much but when he did it caught your attention. For one, he had a voice that had a bass with it that would roar but he got your attention. He didn't speak a lot but when he did, it was more getting kids in line if you were cutting up at his house. You could sense he was a hard worker.
Both sides of my grandparents were hard workers. Both grandmothers were stay at home. Both grandfathers just worked up until their late 60s into their early 70s. So I remember hard work and family values on both sides of the family.
My grandfather on my mom's side loved fishing. So it gave us something to talk about, the outdoors. My grandfather on my dad's side a lot of the family there, it was a big age difference, gap in generations. If you put a 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, year old in a room with folks that are very late 60s, into their 70s, not a lot of communication. Right or wrong or indifferent. There was a lot of closeness in age and generations on my mother's side. Not too much interaction other than maybe they would ask how school was going but not a lot of other memories of either grandfather.
What historical events influenced your life the most?
Obviously growing up in the 80s and maturing in the 90s, I can remember things like the fall of the Berlin Wall. Tragically the Challenger event. I remember watching that on TV in elementary school. That was just something that I can remember talking to my parents about what happened and had to have death explained to you. It's still hard to fathom that event. I remember at, I think it was the 200th anniversary of the Bill of Rights, going to Montpelier, President George H. W. Bush came and gave that address. I was a member of the student government council at that time so I had the pleasure to go with a couple of other students.
Obviously you mentioned some past wars and events. I remember the wars or operations going on at the time like Desert Storm. Sense of country was big in my family. My father was Air Force, uncles were Army, so definitely I would say that family values and love for country was demonstrated through family or things that I saw on TV. Those events brought people together, even though the fall of the wall was more another country but it showed our country coming together. The disaster of the Challenger brought people together. Similar was 9/11, but in a different way, but it brought people together. Being proud, also not forgetting those dark periods in history. We know we have those dark periods in our country's history and it's uncomfortable to talk about them but I don't believe in rewriting history. I believe in learning from history and hopefully that learning will shape a better future.
I wouldn't say any one of those may have directed me down a certain path but it's given me an appreciation of life, an appreciation of commitment of our people in this country that when times are bad to truly love one another as we should each and every day.
Outside of work and home, what is your favorite place in King George?
So in King George, obviously, my time here is has been short but that will grow as my tenure grows here if my family makes a decision to relocate. I put this down here as a joke but right now Sheetz. It's the closest "restaurant" to my office. But honestly the draw is probably, as many have come here, I enjoy the time I get to go down to Fairview Beach. I love the water. I think it's beautiful there. I know folks think beach and are probably thinking about 25 or 50 yards of beachfront. That's not the case there but I love the water. I think the marina in Dahlgren is a beautiful place. Anytime you can go out to, I know boats will start running on the river soon, but there is some tranquility about it, beauty. Coming through Port Royal a few weeks ago coming into King George, I just like being by the water. Fairview Beach is where I've been the most but I think you have a beauty in both the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers. You're in a very unique geographical area. I think you're going to continue to draw folks but I love the water front areas that you have in King George.
Now if you're asking me as a kid what was my favorite, anything outdoors, sports, ripping and running with cousins that lived close by. Enjoyed a lot of outdoor sports. Any of those kind of family functions.
But definitely thinking about a membership here at the YMCA. That is in my near future. I've been impressed with your facilities. The Y could potentially be a new favorite place for me. Definitely the water front that you have here, it's definitely peaceful.
What person, place, or thing do you think is the most underappreciated in King George County?
I don't want this to be too much of a theme but it's pretty self explanatory that I need more time and tenure here to answer some of these questions. It may change but for right now, coming from a rural county and working in a rural county, that was one of the things that attracted me. I'm hoping folks appreciate that. I know growth is expected with the adding additional lanes to the Harry Nice Bridge but hopefully through planning and public hearings and public input through your Comprehensive Plan and zoning, that will track with what the public wants. Because once you develop land, you don't gain that back. So the rural character. Obviously I don't know the population here like you so I don't know if that's underappreciated but it can be if you think it's going to be rural forever. But when you have development come in so, obviously from the Service Authority side I want customers, but you have to stay true to what your Comprehensive Plan states. The ruralness of this county could be underappreciated.
Person, place, I'm not sure. Again, you do have history here. Something I've talked to a couple of staff members about the history. I don't think folks want to talk about John Wilkes Booth for example, but there are other folks that have traversed the county here. Maybe embracing that heritage more. I don't know if you have any heritage days that outline things or a heritage tour that talks about those leaders or influential people that have been born in the county or traversed the county. But I think those can be underappreciated.
Professional Questions
Who is your inspiration or mentor?
Well, I've got a few listed down here. First and foremost, not to turn this into a sermon, but Jesus Christ. I don't go out and wear it on a sleeve or try to indoctrinate folks but as a Christian I do look to faith and scripture. My father, he was a single parent. My parents got divorced when I was around ten. It's probably uncommon to have a father as a single parent in that situation but praise God that worked out well. Anything from hard work to sportsmanship to how to be a gentleman. Your manners. How to treat elders. All of that I learned from my father. Politics, on the Sundays we didn't go to church, I remember watching the McLaughlin Group. Meet the Press back in the good days with Tim Russert. Those were all inspirational moments. Naturally if your parent is interested in something then you may be interested. But why are you interested? He would take time out to explain things. I also have an uncle. My father is deceased. He passed in 2004 of skin cancer. I have an uncle who I think of as a second father. I had some rough teenage years and he helped guide and direct me. He wasn't necessarily there to be your friend but he'd give you that advice. Like hey, I've noticed behaviors and you've got some choices. Kind of like the old cliche of continuing down this path or make a right and make better choices. So he's been there for me in the mentor role. Obviously as my father is gone I look to him a lot more for guidance. He continues to build off of the qualities that my father instilled in me. He's provided a lot of professional advice for my career. He worked in local government for probably 24 years, a lot of it in the utility. I've learned a lot from him like utility inspections, distributions, water systems, things of that nature. But he had a real mind for it. He's a lot more intelligent than he gives himself credit for. He could probably crunch numbers with the best mathematicians or engineers.
I had some other folks along the way. So maybe a laundry list that may be too long. Again, from my a single parent home. My father worked long hours. He worked as a plumber. The company out of Northern Virginia. A lot of his jobs would be Northern Virginia or Maryland. So it would be early mornings and late evenings. My sister is five years apart so she had a lot of hand in making sure food was on the table. Homework was done. But then there were my close friends parents who, when I look back I don't think they treated me as a sympathy case but they realized the situation and were always loving and included you on things. Whether it was family picnics or family trips.
I've had a lot of folks along the way. On the professional side, I've had two folks I'd like to mention to give some kudos. Actually three people. Don Hearl is a professional. He's still in the utility business. I think his title is currently Vice President for Environmental System Services. They've got a headquarters out of Culpeper County but they have some satellite facilities across the state. They handle anything from consulting in the utility businesses to running a commercial lab for water and waste water testing. They will run the system for you. They have contracted services. But he's been a gentlemen that has worked his way through and fully understands water and waste water. He sits on various boards. The DPOR board that creates the exam that operators have to take, he provides questions for the board. He's on many other sounding boards and national organizations. I've been able to look to him for advice and questions along the way.
Wayne Staples, he's out of the training office of the Department of Environmental Quality. I'm not sure if his main office is in Richmond or Woodbridge. Wayne I met early on when I started this profession in 2000. As a trainer you go to different sites, you get to see different treatment, you get to ask different questions. That's the main thing, not being too prideful to ask questions, those folks are there to help and Wayne has always been one of those folks that I've had a dialog with. He's been able to provide some advice.
Lastly, Paul Howard. Technically Paul Howard Jr. He's director of Environmental Services for Culpeper County. He's been there since 1995 I think. I was young to the position of Chief Operator of water and waste water of Culpeper County and that kind of morphed into more and more as to what I'm doing now. You think you're just handling treatment then it goes to utility inspections, maintaining the collection and distribution system and so forth. A lot of training and guidance along the way of things just simply keeping your notes and how you keep them in order and how you track projects. Holding you accountable if you're not meeting the expectations or if you misunderstood something. Whatever the situation was, you would have these 360 or 180 degree review periods. So it provided a lot of growth. If you showed interest in learning something new, he provided that. So looking back, any of those good or bad situations, I think he was fair and he definitely fostered a learning environment. He'd always tell you "I don't know where the pay is going to shake out" because that was controlled by a Board but he always said we'd have the opportunity for education and he's done that for many folks over the years. So been a lot of folks that have left that organization that have gone on to bigger and better things but I think the credit he is due should be mentioned. I worked for him for almost 12 years.
What is your ideal vision for King George County in the future?
Generally, from the Service Authority's perspective, financial stability. We've got a lot of ways to work towards that, not only to be financially stable but to let this be a sustainable business model. I truly believe to my core, this isn't fluff, that we can get there it's just that we really have to dig out of the crater. Being financially stable and sustainable, reliable infrastructure. Some of these are going to morph together with the next couple questions but I'd also say being fair to our customers. Not necessarily from a customer service standpoint, that should go without saying. But fair with our rates and being competitive as well. You can't do a lot of the stuff with the infrastructure until you're financially sound. We're trying to work through that right now. Part of the debt restructuring is to give us head room. That is one of the main advantages in this loan is that you will restructure debt and you will get anywhere from probably, hopefully $500,000 to as much as $700,000 in head room between the existing debt service of $2.5 million. You could get it down to $1.5 million. You're probably going to be at $1.6 or $1.7 million. That will give us some operational money to address the backlog. But, again, not to get too far off task, to get financially stable and sustainable and to have reliable infrastructure for current and future customers.
What do you feel are the top 3 issues to address in King George?
From the Service Authority perspective, lowering the debt. We've got to do that. It's the only fiscally responsible thing to do. I know that's probably tongue and cheek because we're looking to borrow more but as we get more connections and things continue to shape up maybe we can look at a debt mitigation plan similar to the County's. Obviously our revenue streams are different. Lowering our debt.
Reviewing and revising connection fees and being competitive and fair. So some of this we're going to have discussions starting in mid-June of this year but it's all got to be based on equity, fairness, and what folks around us are doing. We should be able to at least quantify, qualify what we're charging and we're not there yet. I believe we can get there but we need to be competitive.
The plan for growth, as I've mentioned, the construction of the bridge is expected to double traffic. I've heard some in the County mention that it may be as much as triple. That's a lot. From an infrastructure standpoint, you can't serve those customers by cutting a light switch on and off. You've got to have pipe in the ground. But you don't put pipe in the ground until you've had these long and lengthy discussions and public hearings and things of that nature. We're sensitive to that growth. We don't want to be ahead of the County meaning that we don't want to be ahead of its desire and plan for growth. Those areas that the Board of Supervisors have deemed for growth, those need to be the areas that we need to serve. Let's say there's a 50 home development going in, we need to look at the whole area of defined planned growth and what can be the maximum potential to serve.
So I think those are our big three issues right now. Some of those, actually all three of those, we're starting to look at right now and work. Reviewing and revising connection fees will be this month [May 2019]. My recommendation would be to not implement anything until next fiscal year because our rates are set. Planning for growth is something we're doing as part of the decommission plan consideration.
What do you feel are the top 3 successes in King George?
I don't want to try to give a "no answer" or a blank comment if you will. Just in the six months of being here, what I've reviewed in paper and some of the stories you get from your Google machine, I would say hiring a competent and professional County Administrator. I'll back that up by saying you can walk through the building over there and it's apparent that the operation he runs, the respect he commands, but I believe I would say he's earned. The way he runs the meetings. No disrespect to the Chair, I just mean the Agenda, the structure, and the flow. I think that's helpful because you have to have good leadership.
I'm going to struggle to give you a couple more. I don't know if you want to give us [the Service Authority] a success story yet, we've got still a lot of ways to go. We've turned a page as far as being responsible and replying and doing things that the state has required we should be doing. I'm not sure I'd call that a success, that should be a plain expectation. So I honestly am going to struggle for the other two just due to my lack of time here and my knowledge.
I'm pulling for teeth here but your facilities are phenomenal. It gives space for the community, every community, especially rural communities, can come out and enjoy and promote some of the business community. You can use any of these rooms at the library. It provides for meetings or consulting firms or potential business clients to come in and meet. It gives a good impression of the County. I'd just say the planning and the facilities. Beyond that, I would be stretching to give you the full three.
What person, place, or thing do you think we lack in King George?
I thought about that a little bit and I need to become a little more familiar with the area. I'm not sure the residents here want to do this but going back to one of your biggest draws, other than the low tax rates, would be waterfront. Your Potomac. Are we utilizing that to draw people here? When I say draw people here, I mean more from a transient stand point so you're getting that tourism fund but not the impact on your infrastructure, first responders, or other services. More of a draw from a tourism standpoint and utilizing the water. I'm not saying to start bringing twenty charter services out to the Potomac like a taxi cab. But things like kayak rentals or canoes. I think of a place in Culpeper where they allow paddle boats, stand up paddle boards. They have all this activity and it's a great draw because it's rental fees coming in. You're getting more money than you're paying the person to sit there to manage it. So more tour promotion, more tourism because that's less impactful on services.
Promote more of what you have. I keep going back to heritage tours or whatever the proper name is, but embrace the history here. You've got a state park that I've got to go visit that I didn't know was here. Caledon State Park. I learned that there was a railroad at one time but other than that I don't know what it's claim to fame is. Basically embracing what you have here. Any of these little brochure centers or kiosks have a place to put your information. Do you have a tourism center that promotes King George? Do you have an economic development that's doing that, that's promoting King George? Are you part of an economic development partnership? There are organizations that are out there like GO Virginia that have funds. They go around the state and look at shovel ready sites for potential business. I think embracing tourism and advertising and getting the word out about what is unique about King George. The history. You see a lot of founded in 1700s or 1800s but you don't see the older history that you do here in King George. Just highlight that. That basically sums up what I have.
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