by Neil Richard
The Supervisors began their meeting at 7:41 pm and the Supervisors voted to recognize and approve Ruby Brabo's remote attendance.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
First to speak during Public Comment was Miles Hastings. He said he was coming before the Supervisors as a last resort to attempt to solve ongoing issues with the unauthorized use of his private property. He said he spoke to Richard Granger last year about the same issue with large trucks using a right of way that no longer exists and that damage had been done to a bridge. He said that the state did put up No Outlet signs and that helped curb the issue. However he is now seeing a large number of cars use his property and private driveway to access the Rappahannock River. Hastings said that when people Google access to the river, they somehow find their way onto his property. He said he was concerned about safety and liability. While most of his interactions were good, he said some people get upset when told they're in the wrong place. As a farmer, Hastings said he was responsible for the bio-security of the crops. He felt that the policy of making a road a public road when there are three houses on it was not a good thing. He said when the information goes public, companies like Google use that information. Hastings said he has talked to the Sheriff about the issue but has yet to find a viable solution. Hastings said he was there to ask the Supervisors to consider having the County attorney draft a letter to Google to change their data before somebody gets hurts. He said there's no claim to fame for his property other than passing by the old 1720 Courthouse site and didn't feel that justified other people coming onto his property. He said in one instance he didn't feel safe on his own land because a passenger from a trespassing car confronted him. Hastings said he's asking for the Supervisors to help.
Next to speak was Peter Karabots. Similar to his previous comments to the Supervisors, Karabots voiced his opposition to the County's acquisition of the property next to him as part of the deal to replace the lost land at Wayside. Karabots said that he drove through the Wayside Park twice over the Labor Day weekend and collected some data. On the first day, he noted 60 cars were at Wayside with 48 cars from Maryland and only 11 from Virginia. When he visited the park a second time, he noted 14 out of 20 cars were from Maryland, the ground was littered with trash, and, the most disturbing part, was a man urinating in plain view of the road. Karabots asked why the County was maintaining and financing a park for out of state visitors. He said at the previous meeting, the Supervisors voted to accept the land as a replacement but that he still opposes the move. Part of the property the County will acquire sits between two homes worth over a million dollars each and the entire neighborhood of Roseland Road would be negatively impacted. Karabots asked if the County surveyed any citizens to see if they approve or who visits the County parks. He also asked what the benefit would be to the residents of King George when the park is largely used by people from Maryland. Karabots also asked if the petition signed by his neighbors to voice their disapproval was reviewed. He closed his comments by saying that his property may be sacrificed for the good of the many but that many are not from King George.
Michelle Darnell of the Belle Grove Plantation was next to speak. She was there to express her concern over the sign ordinance. She said she brought the ordinance issues to the Supervisors last March and was was told it would go before the Planning Commission. She said this has yet to happen. Darnell said she attended a Chamber of Commerce meeting recently that was about the sign ordinance and was told at the meeting that the sign ordinance likely wouldn't be addressed until Spring of 2020. She said she's been waiting four years for the issue to be resolved and even back when she was the Chair of the Tourism Advisory Committee she said she would work on the issues in the ordinance. Darnell said she recently found out that the new chicken ordinance was raised just a few months ago and that it's almost approved now. Darnell said that she, and other businesses, are waiting for the issues to be solved so they can legally place signs on their property. In the meantime, they're losing revenue. She asked if chickens or small business were more important. In closing, Darnell said she supported the permit request by the Estate at White Hall. Having gone through the process six years ago herself, she said she would love to see them approved as another event venue in the county.
Ruby Brabo began her report by saying she attended the work session on the drafted Comprehensive Plan on the 21st. She asked that anyone with comments on the plan should either attend the Public Hearing meeting or send an email to their Supervisor. On the 22nd she had an interview, a meeting with a construction company that was coming to King George, and a podcast interview. Later that evening she held a Town Hall with about 60 people in attendance. On the 23rd she participated in a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference call and has been on vacation in Germany since the 26th. Brabo took part in a conference call earlier in the day with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) regarding the pending impact of Hurricane Dorian and said the Governor is pre-positioning National Guard troops ahead of the storm. She said if the storm's track does not change, the Port of Virginia would be closed and all of the Middle Peninsula and the Northern Neck, except King George, would be evacuated. Because of the time difference for her, she asked that her peers keep an eye on the potential for a mandatory evacuation. Although Brabo didn't mention it, the time difference made it about 2 am in Germany while she was attending the meeting remotely. To Mr. Hastings, Brabo said that hopefully the County Administrator could follow up to see if there was anything that could be done to assist him. To Mrs. Darnell, Brabo said she was heartbroken to hear she had to wait until spring. Brabo said they were told that zoning and ordinances would be reviewed once the Comprehensive Plan was put to rest but concurred with Darnell that the Supervisors should be able to send the Planning Commission some direction to pull out the sign ordinance and address that first, especially since it impacts small business. Brabo said it was ridiculous that the issue has been kicked down the road and thought it said a lot when the Chamber of Commerce had to hold a meeting to address issues. With that, she asked the Board to give consensus to tell the Planning Commission to address the sign ordinance.
Richard Granger said by doing so it would tell the Planning Commission to make it a priority and he was concerned about the impact on the county staff and the amount of time it would take away from other issues. Brabo said the Board has been telling the community for four years it's a priority so it should be one. Dr. Young, County Administrator, said that he hated to put Brad Hudson, Director of Community Development, and Heather Hall, Zoning Administrator, on the spot but asked them to come forward from the audience to maybe provide some more information about the projected timeline. Hudson said that, as directed to do so last time, they sent the sign ordinance to the Planning Commission to be addressed. He said the Planning Commission determined that the Comprehensive Plan needed to come first so they tabled the sign ordinance. Hall added that because of the complexity and length of the ordinance, the Planning Commission decided it would take extra time to address the issues and therefore felt the additional time was necessary.
Brabo said there was a motion on the table to send it to the Planning Commission and Jeff Bueche said they were still discussing it. Bueche said that he had concerns, especially how long the ordinance is and how complex it is. Brabo then amended her motion to make the sign ordinance a priority over the rest of the zoning ordinances. Granger clarified that the plan was to have the Planning Commission address signs after the Comprehensive Plan. Cathy Binder asked how many parts were in the zoning ordinances related to signs and Hall said 14 sections. Binder asked if they could be done separately or if they had to be done all at once. Hall said either but it is a lot of work and would take time. Brabo said that if the chicken ordinance rose to the top and was addressed quickly, then addressing signs first shouldn't cause a problem. Binder said she just wanted some clarification as she hasn't had time to digest everything yet and just wanted the proper information from the people that know it best. With a few other complaints about the length and complexity of the ordinance, the Board approved making the sign ordinance a priority for the Planning Commission.
John Jenkins then began his report by thanking everyone for their comments. He said he was glad to be able to move forward on Darnell's issue. He also wanted to echo what Brabo said about Mr. Hastings and his issues. On the 28th Jenkins attended the Comprehensive Plan meeting and on the 29th he attended the YMCA Board meeting.
Richard Granger also thanked everyone for coming out to speak. To Mr. Hastings, he said he remember speaking to him a year ago on the issue and it sounded like the signs installed by Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) helped solve the issue with the trucks but not the cars. Granger said he would need to talk to Community Development about the information that's released regarding public versus private roads and hopefully there can be a delineation between them. Regarding his request to send a letter to Google, Granger wasn't sure how much leverage they would have to make an impact on their official listings. Jenkins interjected and asked if that would be the right solution and Granger said he didn't know and wasn't sure how seriously Google would take their input. Consensus was reached to send a letter. Granger then addressed Mr. Karabots and said he appreciated him coming out to speak as well. He deferred to Binder and her upcoming report for more details and information. Granger ended his report by saying he attended the work session on the Comprehensive Plan.
Cathy Binder addressed Mr. Hastings first and said she commiserated with him and hoped that there was something that could be done to address his issue. To Mrs. Darnell, Binder said she loves visiting Belle Grove and hoped that a new sign ordinance could be in place soon. To Mr. Karabots, Binder said that a lot of people don't like to do the historical research on issues but she's a bit of a geek and loves it. She said the Barnesfield land was given to King George by the Federal government and that there were a lot of rules placed on the property. She said the County isn't paying anything for the land and that they've had discussions on what will happen in the park but nothing has been determined yet. Binder said she also attended the Comprehensive Plan work session and visited Kilmarnock recently. She said the town has a cool park there and that maybe there parts that King George could incorporate here. Binder said that earlier in the day she held her first "Coffee with Shiloh" event at the Smoot Library and even though only one citizen turned up, she said they had a great discussion about broadband. She said she plans to continue holding the informal meetings in the library on the Tuesdays this month in the cafe area. Binder said last week she attended the historical reenactment of the march by the Fredericksburg League of Women Voters and that they expressed an interest in participating in the County's 300th Anniversary celebration.
Jeff Bueche began his report by saying he attended the work session on the 21st and the School Board meeting on the 27th. He was happy to attend the Fairview Beach Day festivities on the 31st as well. Bueche thanked Hastings for bringing the issue to their attention. To Karabots, Bueche also thanked him for his comment and echoed what Binder said that the County isn't funding the purchase of the land. He said he appreciated the information about the users of the park and said maybe a County sticker program like the landfill would be a good way to make sure access is limited. Regarding the sign ordinance, he said that it's something that needs to be addressed and that it's his personal opinion that it's too long. Bueche then nominated Jean Fraysse to the Bay Consortium Workforce Development Board and the Supervisors approved it.
Bueche then introduced the new Director of Economic Development for the County, Nick Minor. Bueche said that Minor, formerly of the Fredericksburg Regional alliance (FRA), is a Navy veteran and has experience in the economic development field. Minor stepped to the podium and said he was excited to be here and honored to be chosen as the new director. Minor said he looked forward to working with everyone and was excited to bring success to the county.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, echoed much of his report from the Service Authority meeting earlier in the evening. In a nutshell, Gregory said that the new Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Phase III Watershed Improvement Plan (WIP) would impose stricter limits than proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Gregory said the financial impact to small localities like King George would be hard as well as the draw on resources to meet the new requirements. Because of this he asked the Board to authorize him to pursue any and all legal action necessary to protect the Service Authority and the County. Bueche added that this is not the first time the Phase III WIP has been on their radar and said that other colleagues have spoken about it in previous months as did he. Bueche said there's a difference between regulation and over regulation and he felt this was over regulation. With that, the Board approved Gregory to take action as needed.
Next was a presentation by Tim Hatch, Chair of the Landfill Advisory Committee, on the Sealston Convenience Center Standard Operation Procedure (SOP). Bueche joked that the Board was ready for him tonight to which Hatch said he was glad to hear. Dr. Young added that the County Attorney had reviewed and approved the SOP. Brabo said she had questions on certain areas of the SOP, specifically related to how it states the location of the sticker should be next to the state's inspection sticker but rather than above. Brabo said the Commissioner of the Revenue, Judy Hart, told them previously that it should be above the state inspection sticker. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Hart actually stated "they do go beside the inspection sticker" in her report to the Board on April 2, 2019.] Brabo said the SOP also needed to be clarified where is referenced land owners in one section and residents in another section. She felt the language needed to match because if somebody owned 20 acres but lived in another county, it would just invite people to bring their trash from another county. Brabo then asked about the responsibilities of the attendants and Hatch responded that the purpose of the section was to provide a little leeway for the employees to have some authority. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Secretary of the Landfill Advisory Committee.]
With that question clarified, thus began a lengthy discussion on how a resident or user of the convenience centers was defined. Dr. Young felt that anyone paying taxes to King George County should qualify to use the convenience centers. Brabo seemed to feel that only those that live in King George should be allowed to use them while Hatch tried to explain that even if somebody lived outside of King George, they could still bring brush from their 20 acres in King George.
Brabo also asked about the reference to paint being listed as a hazardous waste item because she said she saved paint over several months to take to the Hazardous Waste Day. She was told by the attendant that it could just go in with the regular household waste. Hatch said that the list of hazardous material was vetted by the Director of Solid Waste and Young added that in looking online it said latex paint wasn't hazardous but oil based paint was. Brabo again circled back to making sure it was clear who was allowed to get a County sticker and who could use the convenience centers. Hatch asked if it was the job of the Landfill Advisory Committee to determine who got stickers to which Bueche said that maybe it should be a separate discussion item for the future instead of trying to solve it that evening. With Dr. Young assuring everyone that they would work with the Landfill Advisory Committee to amend the SOP to reflect the policy on how convenience center users would be defined, the Board approved the SOP.
Curry Roberts of the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) was next to present to the Supervisors. He said that while it wasn't in his purview to speak on it, he felt obligated to tell Gregory that there was a similar issue to the earlier speaker, Mr. Hastings, in Thornburg where the Waze app was sending drivers onto private property. He recommended Gregory reach out to the state's attorney general's office. Roberts then congratulated the county for hiring Minor and said he had been a great asset to the FRA. Digging into the update itself, Roberts said that out of 91 leads on potential economic development came 43 projects, 23 of which were submitted to King George to respond to. He said these projects ranged from a small $1 million dollar business to much larger $1.2 billion. He said the average is about $40 million. Roberts said there has been a significant jump in data center inquiries due to increasing real estate costs. Data centers require a lot of power and typically place heavy demand on the water supply. They also require close proximity to fiber optic lines. Roberts said the FRA has also been working on the Dahlgren Tech Transfer, a partnership with the Naval base to commercialize their patents. He said in the past only one patent had been commercialized but they are now working on 21 patents and have talked to five scientists and engineers. Roberts ended his report by saying the arrival of the Amazon HQ2 in northern Virginia should have little to no impact on the household needs here but could increase demand for technical talent.
Brabo said she meant no disrespect but felt it was wrong to not mention Linwood Thomas and Bob Fuscaldo for their role in working on that first Dahlgren Tech Transfer. She said that the FRA took the template and sought things on their own instead of working with King George and that it created a lot of heart burn in the process. She said it took two years to make it happen and said it was wrong that they don't get the recognition. After a moment of stunned silence from the Supervisors, Roberts said his only response to that was Linwood Thomas asked the FRA to step in and help when he was leaving so the FRA was only doing what it was asked to do.
Next on the Agenda was Heather Hall from the Department of Community Development and the request for a Special Exception Permit from the Estate of White Hall. The Board approved sending the matter to the Planning Commission.
Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, was next to present. She asked the Supervisors to approve the appropriation of the school's Phase II Phone System from the FY2019/2020 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Budget. Ward said this was basically approving the funding for $188,763.93 early due to the current safety concerns with the phone system. Granger asked that Dr. Young make a note of the amount so that when the upcoming CIP work sessions were held, the funds were ear-marked. Binder added that she was at Potomac Elementary School on the first day of school and noted that nobody could hear anything through the phones. The Board approved the funding.
Lavita Cobb from the Finance Department was next to present the request to approve the fifth change order for the Middle School Expansion Project. Cobb said the change order was for $90,532 and that she brought Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, to answer questions since she didn't have the answers. Brabo said she only had two questions on her list, the connecting track road and the new softball field dugouts. She said that it appeared these were new additions and not an unforeseen circumstance. Benson said he wanted to clarify that this was not his list but he was in attendance during the update meetings. Regarding the connecting road, he said there's a service road in the plan behind the cafeteria and kitchen but the only way to access the track with an emergency vehicle is to add the connecting road. Regarding the dugouts, Benson said that he felt it would save potential future Title IX litigation if both baseball and softball fields had equal amenities.
Bueche took issue with the parents of the baseball team being asked to take on the cost of reconditioning the fields while Binder asked about the bricks that used to be along the old vocational building. She said the bricks were donated by parents for future softball dugouts. She was also confused about where the connecting road in question would be located. Benson said the blocks that were donated were used in the construction of the dugouts and did provide a small credit toward the schools. As far as the road, Benson said it may be better so show everyone in person to get a better understanding.
Binder also mentioned the electrical lines being an issue and that they should have been a known thing but Benson said they were digging and struck the lines since they were no more than six inches in the ground. Jenkins said what bothered him was that there was all this talk about fields being ruined by the project but he recalled being told it wouldn't be a problem. He said it felt like things were being added to the project after the fact. Benson said that no one is being cavalier about it and that he felt equality with the dugouts was a way to save the county money from any potential legal battles. He said he wasn't trying to fault the architect but things will continue to arise. Jenkins said he knew that and was just venting some and said he knew Benson wasn't going around adding things. Jenkins said he just felt like some things should have been obvious. Granger asked about how the change order listed some things as being requested by the school division and Benson said that jumped out at him too. He said it was something jointly decided by the architect and project manager and school system. Granger asked if the School Board requested things and Benson said no. Granger then asked about the increased size for the guidance waiting area and Benson said that during a tour of the building, Mrs. Collins, the Principal, noted that the existing room wasn't big enough. He said it was a minor adjustment to just a few metal studs. Granger then asked about the food service racks and Benson said it was a similar scenario where the food service supervisor noted something was necessary and they requested it. He said the general idea was to not spend money up front for something that wouldn't work and would need to be fixed later at a greater cost.
Granger asked how much was left in the contingency fund and Cobb said she didn't have that figure on her. Dr. Young said he recalled it being near $800,000, "but don't quote me on that." Bueche said there will still be major things to be discovered during the project and said "we could have an oh heck moment" where contingency funds are eaten up. Bueche said that just because the funds are there doesn't mean they need to be spent. Binder added that the project hasn't even gotten to the old section of the school yet. She apologized to Benson if it sounded like they were beating him up over the change orders. Benson said he didn't feel beaten up at all and added that everything they discuss at the project update meetings is how it would suit the needs of the school and county for years to come. He said this way there's no need to go back later and redo something or add to something. Benson said some things were brought up in the meetings, like paving the parking lot, and they were dismissed as not being part of the overall project.
Bueche said he felt like he was being "nickled and dimed" a little bit. Brabo asked if the County Engineer has been involved in the process and Dr. Young said he has as well as the county inspectors. Young said they've negotiated to get the best price. Brabo asked about the disposal of the light poles and there was some discussion as to why that wasn't thought of to begin with as well as the possibility of selling them for scrap. After a little more discussion, Brabo asked that the dugouts and access road be removed from the change order for further discussion at a later date. The Board approved the rest of the change order.
Lavita Cobb stayed at the podium to as the Supervisors for approval on an agreement with
Do It Right LLC to provide engineering and planning services for storm water issues. Brabo asked if the contract was for an entire year and Cobb said only nine months as this firm would replace Bagby, Foroughi, and Goodpasture. The Board approved.
Next, Dr. Young presented a request for funding from the tourism funds to pay for four main events that the county would host for the 300th anniversary celebration. Young said he was asking for $21,853.35 to help with Founder's Day, the Christmas Tree Lighting, President's Day, and Garden Week. Binder asked Young if the Dahlgren Heritage Museum contacted him about showing their Dahlgren video prior to the Founder's Day event. Young said they did not but they would be welcome to show a portion of it. The Board approved the funds. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is an employee of the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation.]
Dr. Young then informed the Board that there was a possibility for the County to refinance some of its debt. He said interest rates had dropped to 1.5%, well below the current 4% on the debt, and said quick action was needed to refinance and take advantage of the lower rates. Young asked if the Supervisors would allow a presentation from Davenport at the next meeting and be willing to take action directly afterwords. Brabo said this seemed like a no-brainer and asked if a presentation was necessary from Davenport. Bueche said he didn't need a presentation and Young said he would advise the Board to have a presentation, though not necessarily a long one. Young said he could instruct them to "cut the fluff" and get to the numbers to make the presentation shorter. The Board approved.
Next was a discussion on microbreweries. Dr. Young said the Board was asked what it would take to bring a microbrewery to the county legally and he said the zoning ordinance was silent on it which meant it wasn't allowed in commercial areas. However, he did say that should a business want to grow their own hops and wheat and then sell the byproduct, that would be allowed under agricultural uses. Young said from proposals he's seen, if the Supervisors would like to allow a storefront to be legal, a text amendment would be needed to the ordinances. The Board gave consensus to do so and Brabo added that the county had already lost a microbrewery to Stafford because they weren't allowed here.
Dr. Young then gave a short report that the Service Authority Board had requested a joint meeting with the Supervisors on September 19, 2019 at 6:30 pm at Company 1 to discuss the future of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant. The advertisement of the special meeting was approved. Young then congratulated the Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Services Department for their Heroism Award related to the fire at the JC Bean Sprout Plant. Young read the commendation and noted that it was great to see King George crews being recognized.
The meeting adjourned at 9:58 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Remote:
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on September 10, 2019 at 5:30 pm at Company 1 Headquarters.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.
The Supervisors began their meeting at 7:41 pm and the Supervisors voted to recognize and approve Ruby Brabo's remote attendance.
There were no amendments to the Agenda.
First to speak during Public Comment was Miles Hastings. He said he was coming before the Supervisors as a last resort to attempt to solve ongoing issues with the unauthorized use of his private property. He said he spoke to Richard Granger last year about the same issue with large trucks using a right of way that no longer exists and that damage had been done to a bridge. He said that the state did put up No Outlet signs and that helped curb the issue. However he is now seeing a large number of cars use his property and private driveway to access the Rappahannock River. Hastings said that when people Google access to the river, they somehow find their way onto his property. He said he was concerned about safety and liability. While most of his interactions were good, he said some people get upset when told they're in the wrong place. As a farmer, Hastings said he was responsible for the bio-security of the crops. He felt that the policy of making a road a public road when there are three houses on it was not a good thing. He said when the information goes public, companies like Google use that information. Hastings said he has talked to the Sheriff about the issue but has yet to find a viable solution. Hastings said he was there to ask the Supervisors to consider having the County attorney draft a letter to Google to change their data before somebody gets hurts. He said there's no claim to fame for his property other than passing by the old 1720 Courthouse site and didn't feel that justified other people coming onto his property. He said in one instance he didn't feel safe on his own land because a passenger from a trespassing car confronted him. Hastings said he's asking for the Supervisors to help.
Next to speak was Peter Karabots. Similar to his previous comments to the Supervisors, Karabots voiced his opposition to the County's acquisition of the property next to him as part of the deal to replace the lost land at Wayside. Karabots said that he drove through the Wayside Park twice over the Labor Day weekend and collected some data. On the first day, he noted 60 cars were at Wayside with 48 cars from Maryland and only 11 from Virginia. When he visited the park a second time, he noted 14 out of 20 cars were from Maryland, the ground was littered with trash, and, the most disturbing part, was a man urinating in plain view of the road. Karabots asked why the County was maintaining and financing a park for out of state visitors. He said at the previous meeting, the Supervisors voted to accept the land as a replacement but that he still opposes the move. Part of the property the County will acquire sits between two homes worth over a million dollars each and the entire neighborhood of Roseland Road would be negatively impacted. Karabots asked if the County surveyed any citizens to see if they approve or who visits the County parks. He also asked what the benefit would be to the residents of King George when the park is largely used by people from Maryland. Karabots also asked if the petition signed by his neighbors to voice their disapproval was reviewed. He closed his comments by saying that his property may be sacrificed for the good of the many but that many are not from King George.
Michelle Darnell of the Belle Grove Plantation was next to speak. She was there to express her concern over the sign ordinance. She said she brought the ordinance issues to the Supervisors last March and was was told it would go before the Planning Commission. She said this has yet to happen. Darnell said she attended a Chamber of Commerce meeting recently that was about the sign ordinance and was told at the meeting that the sign ordinance likely wouldn't be addressed until Spring of 2020. She said she's been waiting four years for the issue to be resolved and even back when she was the Chair of the Tourism Advisory Committee she said she would work on the issues in the ordinance. Darnell said she recently found out that the new chicken ordinance was raised just a few months ago and that it's almost approved now. Darnell said that she, and other businesses, are waiting for the issues to be solved so they can legally place signs on their property. In the meantime, they're losing revenue. She asked if chickens or small business were more important. In closing, Darnell said she supported the permit request by the Estate at White Hall. Having gone through the process six years ago herself, she said she would love to see them approved as another event venue in the county.
Ruby Brabo began her report by saying she attended the work session on the drafted Comprehensive Plan on the 21st. She asked that anyone with comments on the plan should either attend the Public Hearing meeting or send an email to their Supervisor. On the 22nd she had an interview, a meeting with a construction company that was coming to King George, and a podcast interview. Later that evening she held a Town Hall with about 60 people in attendance. On the 23rd she participated in a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference call and has been on vacation in Germany since the 26th. Brabo took part in a conference call earlier in the day with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) regarding the pending impact of Hurricane Dorian and said the Governor is pre-positioning National Guard troops ahead of the storm. She said if the storm's track does not change, the Port of Virginia would be closed and all of the Middle Peninsula and the Northern Neck, except King George, would be evacuated. Because of the time difference for her, she asked that her peers keep an eye on the potential for a mandatory evacuation. Although Brabo didn't mention it, the time difference made it about 2 am in Germany while she was attending the meeting remotely. To Mr. Hastings, Brabo said that hopefully the County Administrator could follow up to see if there was anything that could be done to assist him. To Mrs. Darnell, Brabo said she was heartbroken to hear she had to wait until spring. Brabo said they were told that zoning and ordinances would be reviewed once the Comprehensive Plan was put to rest but concurred with Darnell that the Supervisors should be able to send the Planning Commission some direction to pull out the sign ordinance and address that first, especially since it impacts small business. Brabo said it was ridiculous that the issue has been kicked down the road and thought it said a lot when the Chamber of Commerce had to hold a meeting to address issues. With that, she asked the Board to give consensus to tell the Planning Commission to address the sign ordinance.
Richard Granger said by doing so it would tell the Planning Commission to make it a priority and he was concerned about the impact on the county staff and the amount of time it would take away from other issues. Brabo said the Board has been telling the community for four years it's a priority so it should be one. Dr. Young, County Administrator, said that he hated to put Brad Hudson, Director of Community Development, and Heather Hall, Zoning Administrator, on the spot but asked them to come forward from the audience to maybe provide some more information about the projected timeline. Hudson said that, as directed to do so last time, they sent the sign ordinance to the Planning Commission to be addressed. He said the Planning Commission determined that the Comprehensive Plan needed to come first so they tabled the sign ordinance. Hall added that because of the complexity and length of the ordinance, the Planning Commission decided it would take extra time to address the issues and therefore felt the additional time was necessary.
Brabo said there was a motion on the table to send it to the Planning Commission and Jeff Bueche said they were still discussing it. Bueche said that he had concerns, especially how long the ordinance is and how complex it is. Brabo then amended her motion to make the sign ordinance a priority over the rest of the zoning ordinances. Granger clarified that the plan was to have the Planning Commission address signs after the Comprehensive Plan. Cathy Binder asked how many parts were in the zoning ordinances related to signs and Hall said 14 sections. Binder asked if they could be done separately or if they had to be done all at once. Hall said either but it is a lot of work and would take time. Brabo said that if the chicken ordinance rose to the top and was addressed quickly, then addressing signs first shouldn't cause a problem. Binder said she just wanted some clarification as she hasn't had time to digest everything yet and just wanted the proper information from the people that know it best. With a few other complaints about the length and complexity of the ordinance, the Board approved making the sign ordinance a priority for the Planning Commission.
John Jenkins then began his report by thanking everyone for their comments. He said he was glad to be able to move forward on Darnell's issue. He also wanted to echo what Brabo said about Mr. Hastings and his issues. On the 28th Jenkins attended the Comprehensive Plan meeting and on the 29th he attended the YMCA Board meeting.
Richard Granger also thanked everyone for coming out to speak. To Mr. Hastings, he said he remember speaking to him a year ago on the issue and it sounded like the signs installed by Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) helped solve the issue with the trucks but not the cars. Granger said he would need to talk to Community Development about the information that's released regarding public versus private roads and hopefully there can be a delineation between them. Regarding his request to send a letter to Google, Granger wasn't sure how much leverage they would have to make an impact on their official listings. Jenkins interjected and asked if that would be the right solution and Granger said he didn't know and wasn't sure how seriously Google would take their input. Consensus was reached to send a letter. Granger then addressed Mr. Karabots and said he appreciated him coming out to speak as well. He deferred to Binder and her upcoming report for more details and information. Granger ended his report by saying he attended the work session on the Comprehensive Plan.
Cathy Binder addressed Mr. Hastings first and said she commiserated with him and hoped that there was something that could be done to address his issue. To Mrs. Darnell, Binder said she loves visiting Belle Grove and hoped that a new sign ordinance could be in place soon. To Mr. Karabots, Binder said that a lot of people don't like to do the historical research on issues but she's a bit of a geek and loves it. She said the Barnesfield land was given to King George by the Federal government and that there were a lot of rules placed on the property. She said the County isn't paying anything for the land and that they've had discussions on what will happen in the park but nothing has been determined yet. Binder said she also attended the Comprehensive Plan work session and visited Kilmarnock recently. She said the town has a cool park there and that maybe there parts that King George could incorporate here. Binder said that earlier in the day she held her first "Coffee with Shiloh" event at the Smoot Library and even though only one citizen turned up, she said they had a great discussion about broadband. She said she plans to continue holding the informal meetings in the library on the Tuesdays this month in the cafe area. Binder said last week she attended the historical reenactment of the march by the Fredericksburg League of Women Voters and that they expressed an interest in participating in the County's 300th Anniversary celebration.
Jeff Bueche began his report by saying he attended the work session on the 21st and the School Board meeting on the 27th. He was happy to attend the Fairview Beach Day festivities on the 31st as well. Bueche thanked Hastings for bringing the issue to their attention. To Karabots, Bueche also thanked him for his comment and echoed what Binder said that the County isn't funding the purchase of the land. He said he appreciated the information about the users of the park and said maybe a County sticker program like the landfill would be a good way to make sure access is limited. Regarding the sign ordinance, he said that it's something that needs to be addressed and that it's his personal opinion that it's too long. Bueche then nominated Jean Fraysse to the Bay Consortium Workforce Development Board and the Supervisors approved it.
Bueche then introduced the new Director of Economic Development for the County, Nick Minor. Bueche said that Minor, formerly of the Fredericksburg Regional alliance (FRA), is a Navy veteran and has experience in the economic development field. Minor stepped to the podium and said he was excited to be here and honored to be chosen as the new director. Minor said he looked forward to working with everyone and was excited to bring success to the county.
The Consent Agenda was approved.
The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, echoed much of his report from the Service Authority meeting earlier in the evening. In a nutshell, Gregory said that the new Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Phase III Watershed Improvement Plan (WIP) would impose stricter limits than proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Gregory said the financial impact to small localities like King George would be hard as well as the draw on resources to meet the new requirements. Because of this he asked the Board to authorize him to pursue any and all legal action necessary to protect the Service Authority and the County. Bueche added that this is not the first time the Phase III WIP has been on their radar and said that other colleagues have spoken about it in previous months as did he. Bueche said there's a difference between regulation and over regulation and he felt this was over regulation. With that, the Board approved Gregory to take action as needed.
Next was a presentation by Tim Hatch, Chair of the Landfill Advisory Committee, on the Sealston Convenience Center Standard Operation Procedure (SOP). Bueche joked that the Board was ready for him tonight to which Hatch said he was glad to hear. Dr. Young added that the County Attorney had reviewed and approved the SOP. Brabo said she had questions on certain areas of the SOP, specifically related to how it states the location of the sticker should be next to the state's inspection sticker but rather than above. Brabo said the Commissioner of the Revenue, Judy Hart, told them previously that it should be above the state inspection sticker. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Hart actually stated "they do go beside the inspection sticker" in her report to the Board on April 2, 2019.] Brabo said the SOP also needed to be clarified where is referenced land owners in one section and residents in another section. She felt the language needed to match because if somebody owned 20 acres but lived in another county, it would just invite people to bring their trash from another county. Brabo then asked about the responsibilities of the attendants and Hatch responded that the purpose of the section was to provide a little leeway for the employees to have some authority. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the Secretary of the Landfill Advisory Committee.]
With that question clarified, thus began a lengthy discussion on how a resident or user of the convenience centers was defined. Dr. Young felt that anyone paying taxes to King George County should qualify to use the convenience centers. Brabo seemed to feel that only those that live in King George should be allowed to use them while Hatch tried to explain that even if somebody lived outside of King George, they could still bring brush from their 20 acres in King George.
Brabo also asked about the reference to paint being listed as a hazardous waste item because she said she saved paint over several months to take to the Hazardous Waste Day. She was told by the attendant that it could just go in with the regular household waste. Hatch said that the list of hazardous material was vetted by the Director of Solid Waste and Young added that in looking online it said latex paint wasn't hazardous but oil based paint was. Brabo again circled back to making sure it was clear who was allowed to get a County sticker and who could use the convenience centers. Hatch asked if it was the job of the Landfill Advisory Committee to determine who got stickers to which Bueche said that maybe it should be a separate discussion item for the future instead of trying to solve it that evening. With Dr. Young assuring everyone that they would work with the Landfill Advisory Committee to amend the SOP to reflect the policy on how convenience center users would be defined, the Board approved the SOP.
Curry Roberts of the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) was next to present to the Supervisors. He said that while it wasn't in his purview to speak on it, he felt obligated to tell Gregory that there was a similar issue to the earlier speaker, Mr. Hastings, in Thornburg where the Waze app was sending drivers onto private property. He recommended Gregory reach out to the state's attorney general's office. Roberts then congratulated the county for hiring Minor and said he had been a great asset to the FRA. Digging into the update itself, Roberts said that out of 91 leads on potential economic development came 43 projects, 23 of which were submitted to King George to respond to. He said these projects ranged from a small $1 million dollar business to much larger $1.2 billion. He said the average is about $40 million. Roberts said there has been a significant jump in data center inquiries due to increasing real estate costs. Data centers require a lot of power and typically place heavy demand on the water supply. They also require close proximity to fiber optic lines. Roberts said the FRA has also been working on the Dahlgren Tech Transfer, a partnership with the Naval base to commercialize their patents. He said in the past only one patent had been commercialized but they are now working on 21 patents and have talked to five scientists and engineers. Roberts ended his report by saying the arrival of the Amazon HQ2 in northern Virginia should have little to no impact on the household needs here but could increase demand for technical talent.
Brabo said she meant no disrespect but felt it was wrong to not mention Linwood Thomas and Bob Fuscaldo for their role in working on that first Dahlgren Tech Transfer. She said that the FRA took the template and sought things on their own instead of working with King George and that it created a lot of heart burn in the process. She said it took two years to make it happen and said it was wrong that they don't get the recognition. After a moment of stunned silence from the Supervisors, Roberts said his only response to that was Linwood Thomas asked the FRA to step in and help when he was leaving so the FRA was only doing what it was asked to do.
Next on the Agenda was Heather Hall from the Department of Community Development and the request for a Special Exception Permit from the Estate of White Hall. The Board approved sending the matter to the Planning Commission.
Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, was next to present. She asked the Supervisors to approve the appropriation of the school's Phase II Phone System from the FY2019/2020 Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Budget. Ward said this was basically approving the funding for $188,763.93 early due to the current safety concerns with the phone system. Granger asked that Dr. Young make a note of the amount so that when the upcoming CIP work sessions were held, the funds were ear-marked. Binder added that she was at Potomac Elementary School on the first day of school and noted that nobody could hear anything through the phones. The Board approved the funding.
Lavita Cobb from the Finance Department was next to present the request to approve the fifth change order for the Middle School Expansion Project. Cobb said the change order was for $90,532 and that she brought Dr. Benson, Superintendent of Schools, to answer questions since she didn't have the answers. Brabo said she only had two questions on her list, the connecting track road and the new softball field dugouts. She said that it appeared these were new additions and not an unforeseen circumstance. Benson said he wanted to clarify that this was not his list but he was in attendance during the update meetings. Regarding the connecting road, he said there's a service road in the plan behind the cafeteria and kitchen but the only way to access the track with an emergency vehicle is to add the connecting road. Regarding the dugouts, Benson said that he felt it would save potential future Title IX litigation if both baseball and softball fields had equal amenities.
Bueche took issue with the parents of the baseball team being asked to take on the cost of reconditioning the fields while Binder asked about the bricks that used to be along the old vocational building. She said the bricks were donated by parents for future softball dugouts. She was also confused about where the connecting road in question would be located. Benson said the blocks that were donated were used in the construction of the dugouts and did provide a small credit toward the schools. As far as the road, Benson said it may be better so show everyone in person to get a better understanding.
Binder also mentioned the electrical lines being an issue and that they should have been a known thing but Benson said they were digging and struck the lines since they were no more than six inches in the ground. Jenkins said what bothered him was that there was all this talk about fields being ruined by the project but he recalled being told it wouldn't be a problem. He said it felt like things were being added to the project after the fact. Benson said that no one is being cavalier about it and that he felt equality with the dugouts was a way to save the county money from any potential legal battles. He said he wasn't trying to fault the architect but things will continue to arise. Jenkins said he knew that and was just venting some and said he knew Benson wasn't going around adding things. Jenkins said he just felt like some things should have been obvious. Granger asked about how the change order listed some things as being requested by the school division and Benson said that jumped out at him too. He said it was something jointly decided by the architect and project manager and school system. Granger asked if the School Board requested things and Benson said no. Granger then asked about the increased size for the guidance waiting area and Benson said that during a tour of the building, Mrs. Collins, the Principal, noted that the existing room wasn't big enough. He said it was a minor adjustment to just a few metal studs. Granger then asked about the food service racks and Benson said it was a similar scenario where the food service supervisor noted something was necessary and they requested it. He said the general idea was to not spend money up front for something that wouldn't work and would need to be fixed later at a greater cost.
Granger asked how much was left in the contingency fund and Cobb said she didn't have that figure on her. Dr. Young said he recalled it being near $800,000, "but don't quote me on that." Bueche said there will still be major things to be discovered during the project and said "we could have an oh heck moment" where contingency funds are eaten up. Bueche said that just because the funds are there doesn't mean they need to be spent. Binder added that the project hasn't even gotten to the old section of the school yet. She apologized to Benson if it sounded like they were beating him up over the change orders. Benson said he didn't feel beaten up at all and added that everything they discuss at the project update meetings is how it would suit the needs of the school and county for years to come. He said this way there's no need to go back later and redo something or add to something. Benson said some things were brought up in the meetings, like paving the parking lot, and they were dismissed as not being part of the overall project.
Bueche said he felt like he was being "nickled and dimed" a little bit. Brabo asked if the County Engineer has been involved in the process and Dr. Young said he has as well as the county inspectors. Young said they've negotiated to get the best price. Brabo asked about the disposal of the light poles and there was some discussion as to why that wasn't thought of to begin with as well as the possibility of selling them for scrap. After a little more discussion, Brabo asked that the dugouts and access road be removed from the change order for further discussion at a later date. The Board approved the rest of the change order.
Lavita Cobb stayed at the podium to as the Supervisors for approval on an agreement with
Do It Right LLC to provide engineering and planning services for storm water issues. Brabo asked if the contract was for an entire year and Cobb said only nine months as this firm would replace Bagby, Foroughi, and Goodpasture. The Board approved.
Next, Dr. Young presented a request for funding from the tourism funds to pay for four main events that the county would host for the 300th anniversary celebration. Young said he was asking for $21,853.35 to help with Founder's Day, the Christmas Tree Lighting, President's Day, and Garden Week. Binder asked Young if the Dahlgren Heritage Museum contacted him about showing their Dahlgren video prior to the Founder's Day event. Young said they did not but they would be welcome to show a portion of it. The Board approved the funds. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is an employee of the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation.]
Dr. Young then informed the Board that there was a possibility for the County to refinance some of its debt. He said interest rates had dropped to 1.5%, well below the current 4% on the debt, and said quick action was needed to refinance and take advantage of the lower rates. Young asked if the Supervisors would allow a presentation from Davenport at the next meeting and be willing to take action directly afterwords. Brabo said this seemed like a no-brainer and asked if a presentation was necessary from Davenport. Bueche said he didn't need a presentation and Young said he would advise the Board to have a presentation, though not necessarily a long one. Young said he could instruct them to "cut the fluff" and get to the numbers to make the presentation shorter. The Board approved.
Next was a discussion on microbreweries. Dr. Young said the Board was asked what it would take to bring a microbrewery to the county legally and he said the zoning ordinance was silent on it which meant it wasn't allowed in commercial areas. However, he did say that should a business want to grow their own hops and wheat and then sell the byproduct, that would be allowed under agricultural uses. Young said from proposals he's seen, if the Supervisors would like to allow a storefront to be legal, a text amendment would be needed to the ordinances. The Board gave consensus to do so and Brabo added that the county had already lost a microbrewery to Stafford because they weren't allowed here.
Dr. Young then gave a short report that the Service Authority Board had requested a joint meeting with the Supervisors on September 19, 2019 at 6:30 pm at Company 1 to discuss the future of the Purkins Corner Waste Water Treatment Plant. The advertisement of the special meeting was approved. Young then congratulated the Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Services Department for their Heroism Award related to the fire at the JC Bean Sprout Plant. Young read the commendation and noted that it was great to see King George crews being recognized.
The meeting adjourned at 9:58 pm.
Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)
Remote:
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Meeting Agenda
Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on September 10, 2019 at 5:30 pm at Company 1 Headquarters.
Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.
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