OPINION - Line By Line Review of Department Budgets

by Neil Richard

On January 31, 2019, the Board of Supervisors and most of the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee met for their second Budget Work Session. Just like the previous Work Session, Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, repeated much of what was covered last year. While he and the Supervisors may have remembered the information from last year, it served as a good education for the citizens.

Dr. Young's review covered the differences between charities and outside agencies, mandated and unmandated agencies, and a table comparing the amounts requested by outside agencies last year and the actual amounts funded by the Board. Dr. Young also assured the Board that neither he nor his staff removed any funding requests as it was the Board's decision on what was ultimately funded.

As in previous years, the Board agreed to not fund unmandated agencies with only a few exceptions. There was a general consensus to fund the disAbility Resource Center and the Thurman Brisben Homeless Shelter again this year. Bill Doyle, the Vice President of Finance at Rappahannock Community College (RCC), gave a short presentation explaining their funding request this year and why it was different. RCC asked for an additional $113 dollars this year compared to last year. While the Board listened, the general mood was that they saw no reason to pick apart his request but did appreciate his time and effort in presenting his request.

There was some discussion over King George County being a member of the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance (FRA) and how much that membership gave back to the County. There seemed to be some concern over the return on investment but the discussion somehow turned into another discussion on the defunct plan to bring natural gas to the Industrial Park. There was also some discussion of the large increase in funding requested from the Rappahannock Area Community Services Board (RACSB). At just over an extra $7,500 from last year, the Board felt like a presentation was in order to get a better understanding of why the request was so much larger and to learn more about what services they offer and how they benefit King George residents.

Dr. Young also reviewed the various line items that could, and would, impact the budget. The mandatory items included an unknown School Board budget, unknown health insurance increases, the Virginia Retirement System (VRS), and more. He also shared his desire to include optional items, such as the planned increase in County employee pay, four new employee positions, and a potential increase to the Supervisors salary. Much of this discussion was around the request for a truck inspector at the landfill to ensure trucks leaving the facility had no loose trash remaining in their trailers. Young said this used to be an existing position but was never back-filled when the previous employee left. He said he added this position due to the frequent complaints about trash along the roads near the landfill as well as main roads that trucks use to transport trash to the landfill. The Board balked a little bit and was more interested in looking to see if Waste Management could foot the bill. Dr. Young said he has already discussed the matter with them and it sounded like Waste Management felt the County should pay for it. In the end, the general consensus from the Board was to look at some way to share the cost of the inspector's salary between Waste Management and the County.

Next on the Agenda for the evening was a line-by-line review of three departments. Because the Social Services Director was on vacation, the only departments reviewed were Information Technology (IT) and Parks and Recreation. Chris Dines, Director of the IT Department, reviewed his budget page by page, line by line, and answered questions from the Board. When asked why there were so many licenses for Microsoft Office 365, Dines said it was for every County employee, not just the employees in the IT Department. The Board also questioned why he was paying for an air card for Travis Quesenberry, County Engineer. Dines said he needed a mobile connection when he was working in the field and didn't have a tablet that could do so.

Next up was Chris Clarke, Director of Parks and Recreation Department. His budget was split into four major sections; Administration, Citizen's Center, Athletics, and Programs. Clarke explained that because Athletics and Programs were self-sufficient with their funding, he wasn't going to review them. Under the Administration umbrella fell the majority of Clarke's budget. While nobody on the Board called attention to it, I noticed that of the fleet of vehicles used, only one was relatively new; a 2017 van. The other three vehicles used included a 2009 Ford Explorer and two vehicles from 2000. With half of his fleet nearly 20 years old, I predict a need for a new van next year.

When the flyers and brochures came up, most of the discussion focused on how the school system no longer allowed flyers to be sent home because of their use of the Peachjar tool. Peachjar is  a system by which school systems, including King George County, can electronically distribute flyers. In other words, instead of sending flyers and newsletters home with students, they can be sent in a more environmentally friendly way. There was also a lengthy discussion regarding the need for a PO Box versus a mailbox outside the building. The general consensus seemed to be that simply installing a mailbox would save the County $200 per year. The Board questioned the need for so many cell phones but Clarke explained that those employees that needed to be contacted on evenings or weekends had them as well as those employees that were often in the field because of athletic programs.

One discussion that both departments shared was the travel and conference expenses. Similar to her question last year, Ruby Brabo questioned why Dines had such a small budget for conferences. Dines said that because his staff is so small, he rarely attends them unless they are nearby. When the Board asked Clarke about the conference fees that Dr. Young had removed from his budget, Clarke said Dr. Young made a fair point that as a very new employee he should maybe wait until next year to attend more events.

Clarke then moved into the Citizen's Center budget, noting that with recent bathroom renovations, there was a significant drop in revenue. He also said the construction at the King George Middle School and a leaky roof at King George Elementary School have impacted their athletics programs as well. Although Clarke didn't go into detail about it, his budget paperwork did explain that the Citizen's Center was frequently rented by various groups. Because of this, cleaning staff often worked odd hours, including past midnight on weekends, to clean the building immediately following an event.

Although not a part of the presented budget, it was brought up that the Old King George Middle School currently had no heat. Because of this, the water was turned off to prevent pipes from freezing. Due to the lack of water, Dr. Young said a porta-potty was brought in for those that still rent the building. He said although it wasn't ideal, it was a stop-gap measure until heat and water could be restored.

Future work sessions are scheduled for February 13th and 26th with the first meeting covering a line-by-line review of Social Services and expenditure reports and the second meeting will include a briefing from Davenport. Future work sessions beyond those will include a budget from the School Board and revenue reports.

Further Reading:

January 29, 2019 - A View From Outside The Citizen Budget Advisory Committee

OPINION - Citizen Budget Advisory Committee - Capital Improvement Program

by Neil Richard

The King George County Board of Supervisors met with the Citizen Budget Advisory Committee On September 11, 2018. Unfortunately, I was the only Committee member to show. I would guess the rest of the Committee thought the last meeting was the end. Thankfully, those that presented to the Board all had solid cases for their future improvement projects with data and personal stories to prove their needs.

The meeting began with a brief detour from the planned Agenda when Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator asked the Board to consider declaring a local state of emergency. There was some discussion as to if it needed to be done now and what the implications were for such a declaration. Dr. Young said that he could declare a local emergency without Board approval but preferred that the Supervisors make the decision since they were already in a meeting together. As for what it meant to the residents of King George, Young said it gave him some extra purchasing power for equipment as well as the ability to determine what staff was necessary to have on duty but that he would still need to answer for his actions to the Board within 15 days. With the Supervisors planning to meet at a regular Board meeting on the 18th, they felt comfortable with voting to declare a local emergency.

Dr. Young then went into the meat of the meeting by giving an overview of the topics for the evening. Each department with a Capital Improvement Program (CIP) project was there to present why there was a need, how much it was projected to cost, and what the planned timeline was for the project. Young said each department head had already presented their requests to the Planning Commission and the Finance Department. Both groups ranked the severity or level of need for each project and it was now time for the Board to hear the same presentation.

The first presentation was the proverbial elephant in the room; the Courthouse. Each of the seven individuals that spoke on the topic were in favor of a new building for the Courthouse. Three judges spoke about the need for increased security for themselves, witnesses, jury members, and attorneys. One Judge said he sentenced a man to prison and when he left the Courthouse, the man's wife was smoking a cigarette next to his car. He said while there was no incident that occurred that day, he worried that something could happen in the future. Another Judge said that when he started working in King George, he found mold growing on the law books in his office. There were also concerns about prisoners walking down a hallway past the judge's office, witnesses sharing a hallway and lobby with defendants, and that victims of crimes, including children, didn't have the necessary privacy to consult with their attorneys.

The list of issues grew when several stated that humidity was an issue inside. One attorney said she emptied the five dehumidifiers in her office daily while a court clerk said she had three dehumidifiers and had to empty them just as often. They said running reports in the morning was an issue because the increased humidity made the printers not feed paper correctly, sometimes causing delays.

Vic Mason, Clerk of the Circuit Court, summed up the Supervisor's dilemma nicely by stating that it "isn't politically popular to spend money." At a projected cost of $32 million or more, it is a lot of money to spend. But it was clear that there was a need for a new building, and several that spoke, including Sheriff Dempsey, said the Courthouse was a symbol of the County and its citizens.

Of those speaking about the current situation at the Courthouse, none mentioned that the current building was built nearly 100 years ago and has been modified and expanded several times. It is also the third Courthouse in the history of the County and, as one person stated, it has served its purpose and lived well beyond its useful life.

Dr. Young said that he regretted his failure to inform Dr. Benson, Superintendent of King George County Schools, about the CIP Meeting but would make sure he was given time to present his requests in the future.

Next up was Sheriff Dempsey who had a laptop replacement, radio communications system, and the tail end of a lease contract on his CIP request. Ruby Brabo asked if Dempsey could begin a staggered purchasing plan going forward so the expense could be spread out over several years. The Sheriff also gave some extra detail on the communications system he was asking for, saying that King George was one of the last counties in the area to use the older system. He said the new setup, a trunking system, would allow King George to better communicate with surrounding localities.

Chief Moody of the County's Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Services followed the Sheriff and asked for a new Ambulance, new fire stations, a new brush truck, and new AED units. This is a perfect time to remind readers that these are future requests and not set in stone. So when I say Chief Moody asked for new fire stations, he was simply telling the Board of Supervisors that there would be a need in the future to replace the station house in Dahlgren and to build a new station house in the Shiloh District. The idea behind the CIP discussion is to be forward-thinking and to plan ahead. Jeff Bueche asked for more details on the brush truck, as well as other vehicles in the Chief's fleet. Bueche said he had heard questions from constituents regarding the need for mini-vans or cars that didn't appear capable of responding to emergencies. Moody said those were purchased with grants or left over funds and were used by volunteers for official business, such as going to training sessions. Moody said his goal was to reduce the financial burden on volunteers.

Tim Smith, Director of Parks and Recreation, then gave his presentation on the five projects he was looking at in the future. His first project, revitalizing the old animal shelter at Brooks Park, met with some resistance. However, it appeared by the end of discussion, the minor cost of $50,000 to turn the building into an education center met with approval. The tennis courts, located between the Middle School and High School, was also subject to discussion as to how it would be repaired. Lighting at Barnesfield Park, infrastructure improvements at Brooks Park, and an expansion at Sealston Sports Complex rounded out the list. Although those projects were slated for funding far into the future, the desire for a new Community Center, or Citizen's Center, was also on the list but not given a time frame. Smith said it was certainly needed and several Supervisors said they had heard complaints by residents not being able to use it because it was already booked.

Next up was Chris Dines, Director of Information Technology. His CIP list included new cabling and fiber optic lines, a new server, and a future switch for cloud-based functionality. Dines said the cabling improvements were to avoid leaks and the fiber optic lines would provide a redundant system for emergency operations. The new server would provide an off-site storage location with cloud-based access. All of these improvements would help County offices continue to function in the event of an emergency or disaster.

Dr. Young was the last to present, telling the Board that the County's current financial software would not be supported in the future and would need to be replaced. There was also discussion about the decommissioning of the Purkins Corner and Oakland Park Wastewater Treatment Plants. The Board felt like these facilities may not be as bad off as they were told in the past. Dr. Young also said the proposals came in too late to be included, but he was making progress in locating a company to digitize the County's records.

The evening wound down with some discussion of fund balances. While the audit is still in progress, there looked to be a little money left over at the end of the year. Dr. Young also told the Board that Wilma Ward, Director of Finance, had done a deep scrub of some old capital fund accounts and found some money left over. Ward said it wasn't a lot of money, but the capital projects had been completed so the funds were no longer needed. The biggest chunk of money was the funding set aside for a gas line into the Industrial Park that would no longer be pursued. This money, roughly $2.7 million, would be re-appropriated into the Capital Fund for future projects.

In the end, the biggest project, physically and financially, on the radar was a new Courthouse. Having been built decades ago and expanded and renovated numerous times, the general consensus from the Board was that repairing it again wasn't an option. While they still wanted to look at other options, such as using the old Middle School, they did understand the need for a new facility. And while the other projects may seem far off or smaller in scope, the Board appeared to be dedicated to being as fiscally savvy as possible while meeting the needs of as many as possible. With the old Middle School now belonging to the County, it was also considered as a future location for the Citizen's Center. While no final decision has been made on that building, or any future project, it felt good to see the Board looking at the current needs but also the future needs.

King George Education Foundation Opens FoxSmart Center

by Neil Richard

Thanks to an invitation from the King George Education Foundation (KGEF), I had the chance to learn more about their FoxSmart Center. The KGEF's center is designed to provide students in need primarily with school supplies, although they do offer personal hygiene products and have a small collection of clothing to choose from. School staff can also get supplies that they may need for their classroom. Everything inside is free of charge as their primary "customer" will be somebody without the funding to get the necessary supplies on their own.

The FoxSmart Center opened this month inside of what I affectionately call "the old vo-tech building." Despite my many years as a student of King George County Schools, I have never set foot inside the building that sits between the current King George Middle School and the tennis courts. While the building was still full of stuff left behind after the new high school was built ten years ago, it was in fairly good shape for being built in 1969. The presence of the FoxSmart Center clearly had a beneficial impact on the building.

A Splash of '91 - 1991 King George High School Yearbook, page 131

Despite a heavy wave of nostalgia whenever I go to my old stomping grounds, the current Farmer's Market combined with the Middle School Expansion Project quickly put me on track to focus on my tour. Greeted by Annie Cupka, KGEF President, and Caroline Phelps, KGEF Director of Communication, we first saw the unused portions of the building. The Parks and Recreation Department and the Middle School Wrestling Team use one room on occasion and we weren't sure if the High School's NJROTC cadets used another but their wall mural was still there. The back room was used primarily for storage for the Tennis Team, Middle School Athletic Director, and whoever forgot their gym shorts on the bench.

The NJROTC mural still stands.

Continuing down the hall, we got a tour of the bathroom. Unlike my previous bathroom tour at the Citizen's Center, my photographer felt it necessary to take pictures. Although I felt uncomfortable being in the Ladies Room, absent of anyone using it of course, I quickly learned how important a toilet could be. When the Foundation moved into the building, there was nothing but a hole in the ground. While some may dwell on how bad things were in the vo-tech building, it was clear during the tour that the Foundation's message was much more positive. And their hard work in getting a toilet installed was rewarded by numerous compliments from the mothers and athletes that used the building in the past, but without the toilet.

Many people expressed their joy over the new toilets.

One final note about the tour was the old metal shop portion of the building. Even though it was cluttered and full of everything conceivable, it had great potential on many levels. Some of the items stored there should be put into a museum. Some items can be re-used by the schools for education or athletic needs. Some items could even be sold for a major profit. But the room itself had potential to be used by future students in vo-tech, or CTE if you prefer. Other non-profits could also benefit from such a large space, or even any of the other vacant rooms in the building.

There were countless artifacts like this left in the metal shop.

The same cabinet as seen in the 1991 photo above.

While not all of the graffiti was appropriate, we found the tribute to Sgt. Nick Mason touching.

The Foundation's mission to "unite the community to enhance public education" was clear from the hard work they put into making the building usable again. Aside from getting a new toilet, they also worked on lobbying to get new LED light fixtures installed as well as refurbishing the room they occupy for their FoxSmart Center. And the Foundation's efforts were clear elsewhere as well. Being the first group to use the building on a regular basis in a decade, they've spent long hours working to make improvements. By the end of the tour, it was clear that having the building occupied again was a benefit. A benefit that was more subtle than the school supplies they give to students and teachers in need.

The Foundation's FoxSmart Center has an office.

In talking about the goals of the center itself, Cupka said she felt the Foundation had exceeded their goal of uniting the community to help the schools. Despite exceeding that goal, nobody there looked like they were resting on their laurels. While we toured the room, the Foundation's Treasurer, Christina Arledge-Buck, welcomed a student that was referred by a Guidance Counselor. The student was able to get the supplies they needed for school. There were also stories of students getting everything on their school supply list in one visit, or a student getting supplies sent to their school, or a teacher getting something that they ran out of.

Annie Cupka, KGEF President, beams with pride.

The FoxSmart Center is primarily open Mondays from 2pm to 5pm as well as Thursdays and Saturdays from 9am to 12pm. On Fridays, when school is in session for only a half day, the center is open from 1pm to 4pm (unless it's a holiday weekend). The center is open to any student that's referred by a school Guidance Counselor. If the student or their family is unable to travel to the FoxSmart Center, arrangements can be made to deliver the supplies to the student at school. The center is also open to any member of the King George County School staff without a referral, including nurses.

School supplies for students and teachers.

The FoxSmart Center also has personal hygiene supplies.

The Foundation has had numerous donations from private citizens as well as local businesses. Even as we toured the room, Amanda Zuker and her daughter Paige arrived with a donation of supplies. Companies like Access Eye, BB&T, and the United Way have also made donations, earning the honor of being a Partner In Education.

(l to r) Christina Arledge-Buck, Amanda Zuker, and Paige Zuker.

Cupka and Phelps said they wanted to "get the word out" about the FoxSmart Center and the supplies they offer. They also wanted to shine a light on the Foundation's other work, including their grant offerings and their Evening of Excellence. They also said they need volunteers to work in the FoxSmart Center and that it was a great opportunity for students that needed community service hours.

The King George Education Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that earns less than $50,000 annually in income. Their brochure and donation needs are below.

[All photos, except the yearbook photo, (c) 2018 by Yvonne Richard. Used with permission.]

Parks And Rec Wins With A Royal Flush

I hope you can tolerate the mild potty humor in the Title but I couldn't resist a little levity in a report on the new bathrooms at the King George Citizens Center. And if you've ever met Tim Smith, Director of Parks & Recreation, you know he always has a positive attitude and a good sense of humor. So when I asked to tour his bathroom, we both had a good laugh.

But to get a little more serious, the newly remodeled and expanded bathrooms are quite nice. Smith said that instead of expanding them into the existing offices at either end, they opted to extend the wall into the existing hallway in the front entry. By moving the wall six feet out, there was more room inside the bathrooms but it was also cheaper.

As for the bathrooms themselves, I decided to only tour the Men's Room to avoid any awkward encounters. Without going into details, I might have failed. But the new bathrooms are quite nice inside. Men will have two urinals and three stalls while the women will have five stalls. Although I probably haven't used the bathrooms since the Homecoming dance of 1993, Smith made it clear the old bathrooms were small and cramped.

In addition to the bathroom remodel, Smith also showed me the kitchen which sported a new look as well as a new range courtesy of Love Thy Neighbor. I think what probably impressed me the most out of my tour though wasn't the new toilets or stove, but rather the staff. Everyone was in a great mood and had a smile on their face. It was nice to feel welcome and that will stick with me longer than the fancy bathrooms.

One final note, I did not take photos inside the new bathrooms. I didn't want to ruin the surprise the next time you visit.