OPINION - The Service Authority: A Counterpoint

by Sean Gates

Project94 was founded on principles.  Among these is the idea that the press should be as objective as possible, and that opinion should clearly be labeled as such.  With that said, I'm also a big believer in balance, and from the beginning I think the four of us who founded Project94 wanted to represent King George and its people in the most comprehensive way.  Perhaps on subjects where objectivity may be difficult to maintain, a variety of viewpoints will have to suffice.  So while I will attempt to be as objective as possible here, I cannot entirely guarantee that my point of view won’t creep in.

My views are primarily libertarian, meaning that I favor the individual over the organization, and I am suspicious not only of authority but of pulpits; whenever a reporter uses their position to further a narrative rather than reporting simple facts in evidence and giving both sides a fair shake, comparing the stories with observable reality, and allowing transparency for the reader to see how the journalist reaches his or her conclusions, well, I experience something akin to physical pain. 

But I also understand that humans are not the rational creatures we believe ourselves to be.  We all believe that facts are persuasive, because they are observable and measurable, but facts rarely convince people of anything.  This is because people usually accept only facts that support their point of view, and reject the ones that don’t.  And that’s true regardless of their political views or anything else.  There’s even a fancy name for it: confirmation bias.

This is why Cathy Dyson can interview Christopher Werle, the Chairman of the King George County Service Authority Board of Directors, and omit several salient points of testimony.  They simply don’t tell her anything she wants to hear, and so she rejects them as false or irrelevant.  It’s a kind of hallucination, and everyone suffers from it sometimes.  I suffer from it every time I try to read one of her articles on any subject at all: emphasis on the suffering.

So I won’t try to claim that I’m objective here, but I will attempt to be fully transparent about how I reach my conclusions, and I will keep my talking points brief and succinct.  Also, to be sure that Mr. Werle’s entire testimony is available to you should you wish to read it, I will be including with this article the full text of his statements from the Service Authority Board meeting this past Tuesday night.  You can’t get much more transparent than that.  Not only that, but I’m not going to ask you take Mr. Werle at his word.  I’m going to put his comments up against the timeline of the documents from the DEQ, the County, and the Service Authority, as compiled by my colleague Neil Richard through a series of FOIA requests.

So let’s deal with some facts.  In the first place, I imagine we can all agree that the Service Authority has an obligation to provide clean, safe water to its customers.  That, in fact, has to be the entire purpose of the organization.  So the fact of the problems with the system, the Notices of Violation from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and General Manager Chris Thomas’s failure to resolve the problems or communicate with the DEQ at all for a period of about two years, is likewise something we can all agree is a serious problem.

But let’s be clear: these problems started in 2015, and at that time the King George County Board of Supervisors did double-duty as the Service Authority Board of Directors.  However, the relationship was sort of incestuous, because the Service Authority is a separate entity from the Board of Supervisors, and even Cathy Dyson’s article mentions that fact.  This means that the Service Authority is likely under no obligation to report problems to the Board of Supervisors unless they’re asking for money or other assistance. 

The fact that the Board of Supervisors did not know about the violations dating back to 2015 proves that Chris Thomas didn’t bother to notify them.  In January of 2017 the Board of Supervisors decided to appoint a citizen to the Service Authority Board, and that was Mr. Werle.  A year later, in January 2018, a second citizen, Mike Bennett, was also appointed.  The other three members of that body are still members of the Board of Supervisors.  It seems reasonable, therefore, to assume that Chris Thomas kept his previous pattern of not telling anybody about the Notices of Violation from the DEQ.

Now, Cathy Dyson’s article notes that in 2017, after not hearing back from Mr. Thomas since 2015, the DEQ made an end-run around Thomas and reached out to Mr. Werle.  In fact, Neil Richard’s research supports that timeline.  He tells me that on June 13^th, 2017 the DEQ emailed Chris Werle about the violations. In his prepared statement during the Service Authority Board Meeting on June 5^th, 2018, Mr. Werle said:

“Upon learning about the non-responsiveness issue from Ms. Johnson at DEQ, I immediately discussed it at some length with Mr. Thomas, who confirmed that he had in fact stopped responding to what he felt was an unwarranted increase in inspections by the regional office inspectors. 

“During our discussion, I told Mr. Thomas that he could not just stop responding to regulators, I strongly suggested that he start doing so immediately, and that he also get caught up on all outstanding responses.  Mr. Thomas did so, and has continued to do so ever since.”

Werle’s statement is supported by the timeline emerging in Neil’s research.  On June 16^th, 2017, three days after the email from the DEQ to Mr. Werle, Chris Thomas contacted the DEQ, and by July 7^th had at last begun following up on the inspections and NOV’s dating back to 2015.  The fact that Thomas, who had simply ignored the communications from the DEQ for nearly two years, finally started responding to them corroborates Werle’s statements. 

Now remember, because the Service Authority and the Board of Supervisors are separate entities, at least on paper, the Service Authority is not beholden to the Supervisors.  This means the fact that neither Chris Thomas nor Chris Werle brought the series of Notices of Violation from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to the attention of the Board of Supervisors is, in fact, not a crime.  Since it’s not a crime, the only real issue is the quality of the water and the prolonged silence from Mr. Thomas.  It appears to me from the facts in evidence that Mr. Werle acted swiftly and decisively and whatever he said to Mr. Thomas was apparently an effective motivator.

 So why didn’t Mr. Werle notify the Board of Supervisors?  Well, of course I can’t read minds.  But since Mr. Werle appears to be a rational actor and not a moustache-twirling supervillain, from what I can see, I would surmise that he felt it would cause undue panic.  In his statement of the night of June 5^th, 2018, Mr. Werle said of the health concerns:

“[Dyson’s] article notes that too much nitrogen being released from a WWTP can kill fish and other aquatic life.  That is true, and it is also true that from time to time our plants have released nitrogen and other nutrients, such as phosphorous, in levels exceeding permitted limits.  However, none of those releases were at levels that would cause serious harm to human health or the environment.  In fact, total nutrient releases from our plants are well below the limits set forth in our Chesapeake Bay General Permit; so low actually, that we earned nutrient credits that we then sold to other parties to generate additional KGCSA revenue.”

Can the nutrient releases be above the limits allowed by the DEQ but fall well below the limits set forth in the Chesapeake Bay General Permit?  Probably.  Having been a food service manager at one point in my life, I had to be certified by the National Registry of Food Safety Professionals.  Every time you eat out at a restaurant, or buy prepared food from a supermarket, gas station, or drive-thru, you put your life in the hands of that clerk behind the counter.  One false move and he could give you a potentially fatal foodborne illness. 

Because of this, my employer’s standards were actually stricter than the law required.  It isn’t that there was anything wrong with the law.  It’s that my employer knew that equipment fails, people fail, and systems fail.  So the stricter your regulations are, the less likely a small violation is to pose a serious health threat.  I would suspect that the DEQ operates on much the same principal.  Likely this explains why they let Mr. Thomas get away with ignoring them for nearly two years instead of blowing up the phone of every county official, the EPA, and the CDC to boot. 

As Mr. Werle went on to say, in the future some guidelines ought to be set down regarding how much information the Board of Supervisors expects to receive from the Service Authority, and the Chairman of the KGCSA BOD should be briefed on what the expectations are for his or her position.  But as it stands, Werle did nothing against the law and I see no reason to think that his intentions weren’t noble in the actions he took.  After all, he uses the same water the rest of us do.

Another thing I feel that I should mention: I have heard from another source that many of the specific facts and figures mentioned in Ms. Dyson’s article were only ever discussed by the Board in closed session.  This means that someone on the Board of Supervisors leaked the information to Cathy Dyson.  This will come as no surprise to any thinking person who reads the Free Lance-Star’s attempts to “cover” King George County, but Cathy Dyson isn’t an objective party.  Like most modern journalists, she writes persuasively to advance her agenda but doesn’t offer a balanced look.  Consider this the counterpoint.

Christopher Werle did his job.  What this is really about is the King George County Board of Supervisors jockeying to take control of the Service Authority.  Cathy Dyson’s article as much as says it right in the headline.  Maybe you don’t have a problem with that, but for a governing body to walk all over a citizen appointee to achieve that end would be authoritarianism at its worst.  For any reporter to be a party to it is sheer propagandism.  I think I’ll pass.

2018-06-05 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

The King George County Board of Supervisors began their meeting at 8:05pm and amended their Agenda to add a Closed Session at the end of the meeting.

Public Comment opened with Howard Yarus reading the same letter he had Mike Bennett read during the Service Authority meeting earlier in the evening. He said that the letter was for the Service Authority's information and for the Board of Supervisors' action. Mr. Yarus' letter stated that the article by Cathy Dyson regarding the the Service Authority was embarrassing. He said that "the Board of Supervisors are responsible" for the inadequacies of the Service Authority and DEQ fines and asked to bring the sewer and water systems under the control of County Administration.

 Renee Parker was next to speak. She said she was there to speak about the recent recusals of Board members from voting on the Resolution related to the chem-bio move. She said her comment wasn't necessarily specific to the chem-bio move but rather the perception by the public that the Board won't vote or that they may be apathetic towards an issue. She said in the past, the Board has taken advantage of the County Attorney and asked the Board to do the public the courtesy of asking him for help with any potential conflict of interest.

John Jenkins began his report by thanking Yarus and Parker for their comments. He said he would defer to those on the Board that did recuse themselves to answer but he believed they did seek legal counsel. On June 3rd he attended the Some Gave All rally despite the terrible weather conditions. He said there was a good turnout and a really great event. He said it meant a lot to the community and the amount of money they gave to charity was unbelievable. On June 4th, he met with the YMCA to discuss upcoming programs. He thought there were some good things coming down the pike.

Jeff Bueche thanked Yarus and Parker for their comments and thanked everyone that came out for the meeting. He also thanked his colleagues on the Service Authority Board of Directors for making a hard and tough decision. He said he heard from many constituents about accountability and thinks it's been addressed appropriately. He said it won't be an easy way ahead but thinks the Board of Directors is taking it seriously and thinking about how it will impact customers. Bueche then addressed Parker's comments about his recusal and said spoke with both legal counsel and his ethics counsel and both said there was no conflict of interest bu there was the potential for a perception of such. He said while he did express concerns about the original language in the Resolution, he realized there may be a potential conflict of interest and then recused himself from further discussions. Bueche said he also attended the Some Gave All ride and it was very impressive. He said that while he has never been deployed or in a forward area or in combat, others have and it was very moving to see them. He also reminded everyone that he is hosting a Town Hall at the Company 1 firehouse on Route 3 on June 7th at 6:30pm. While his focus will be the James Monroe district, he did say it would be open to everyone and that he would give everyone a chance to speak.

Ruby Brabo's report said that on May 16th she was part of a conference call with Senator Warner's advisor regarding the chem-bio move. She said after this call and after visiting Dahlgren, Senator Warner had even more concerns about the decision to move the department to Indian Head. From May 22nd to May 25th Brabo attended a National Association of Counties (NACo) conference where they worked on a new course for future leaders. She said NACo is willing to pay for a large portion of the cost of the class, but asked for the future leader to be somebody from within County staff and not somebody that's already a leader or ready to retire. In other words, they were looking for somebody that would benefit the most from the course. Brabo said the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), which regulates equipment for firefighters, has finally agreed to give the County some leeway in how it tracks equipment and when it should be replaced. As an example, she said a Fire Chief may not use their turn-out gear for a fire for years but is still required to replace them based on their manufacture date. Brabo said the County could save money by using the first issue date, or better the first use date, in determining when to replace equipment. She also said that during negotiations of this new language, the NFPA realized that having a local official serve on their Board would be beneficial. She also asked that Dr. Young review the fire equipment purchases to see if there were any potential cost savings that could be applied immediately based on the new language.

Brabo continued her report by saying NACo was updating their educational curriculum and that it was a great tool for schools to use in their Civics studies. On May 30th she met with NACo staff members as they toured the County and thanked Dr. Young, Ryan Gandy, and Annie Cupka for their help in hosting them. She also thanked Michelle Darnell of Belle Grove and Marcel of Bloomia for providing tours as well as Mike Bennett for his help in the tour of Fairview Beach. She said she also attended the May 31st meeting to adopt the budget. Brabo then nominated Rob Harling to the Economic Development Authority to replace James Hall who tendered his resignation. The appointment was approved.

Cathy Binder also thanked Yarus and Parker for speaking. She said she also spoke to the attorney about the conflict of interest and although there was none, she did not want there to be any perception of a conflict and therefore recused herself. She attended the Evening of Excellence and congratulated everyone that was honored. On May 24th she attended the Small Business Appreciation dinner, the budget meeting on the 31st, and the kick off celebration for Smoot Library on June 1st. She said it was great to see so many smiling faces. Binder said the turnout was larger than expected and they ran out of hot dogs. On the 5th she attended the Fredericksburg Area Association of Realtors meeting about affordable housing and finally wanted to give a shout-out to her son who graduated from high school. She then nominated Roger Knicely for reappointment to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board and it was approved.

Richard Granger thanked Yarus and Parker for speaking as well. He said he also met with Eric Gregory, County Attorney, and the Director of Public Communications. All agreed that there was no conflict of interest but because of a potential perception of such, they all felt it best that he recuse himself. Renee Parker interjected from the floor and said that although no back-and-forth conversation is really allowed, she would respond to them via email later. Granger said he also attended both special Board meetings regarding the budget and the Small Business Appreciation Dinner. He also said he was still working with the base to schedule a tour for the Supervisors.

The Consent Agenda was approved.

The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.

The Board then heard from T. C. Collins, Chairman of the Board of Equalization, and Judy Hart, Commissioner of the Revenue. Collins said assessments are done every four years and this recent round resulted in 50 appeals, of which 34 were residential. He said several were dismissed do to insufficient or incorrect information but that all could appeal to the Circuit Court.

Next, Annie Cupka, Grant Writer, gave the Board an update on the FY2024-2025 SMARTScale Projects. She highlighted the four projects being submitted for this round. The first project was a pedestrian crosswalk across Route 301 to allow passage of hotel guests from one side to the other along Commerce Drive. The second project was a new turn lane at the Route 206 and Route 218 intersection that would allow traffic leaving Dahlgren to make a right turn onto Route 218 towards Fredericksburg. The third project was the use of the new Median U-Turn (MUT) design at the Route 206 and Route 301 intersection. The fourth project was also the usage of a MUT design, this time at the Route 3 and Route 301 intersection. These last two projects were chosen based on feedback from the public at recent VDOT meetings as well as feedback from base leadership in Dahlgren. Cupka said in order to complete the SMARTScale application process, the Board need to approve a Resolution.

Granger asked about the 206/301 intersection and how it would impact those attempting to enter or leave the base. Brabo said that the base has been involved in all of the meetings and that VDOT wasn't willing to install the Captain's ideal solution of a fly-by. Bueche asked if they looked at the impact to Owens Road and access to B-Gate. Brabo said that VDOT studied all of the impacts and that this was the best scenario. Cupka added that the Route 301 intersections were all studied in detail as part of the Route 301 and Route 207 Corridor Study and that everything, including each cross-over, was part of their final presentation. Brabo said that there was even a fairly large turnout at their informational meeting in April. Binder asked if any land would need to be acquired to which Cupka said if any, it was much less than the alternatives. She said some of the VDOT proposals included taking large swaths of land to make traffic flow easier and that the projects she presented would cost much less, even without factoring in the purchase of land.

The SMARTScale Projects and Resolution were approved.

Lavita Cobb, Purchasing Manager, was next to present, requesting to renew the contract for planning and zoning purposes. She said that due to the continued surge in their workload, this would allow the department to continue to provide services while updating the Comprehensive Plan, Zoning Ordinances, and Subdivision Ordinances. Brabo said she was trying to understand why there was a need for this change order and why there was a need to take money away from a position that was just added to the budget. She said the Board was told the position was needed but now we're being asked to eliminate it. Cobb said not exactly. She said the $75,000 that was earmarked for the Comprehensive Plan update would cover part of the $163,800 she was asking for. She said the remaining amount, $88,800, would come from the $93,000 that was earmarked for the new planner position. Brabo suggested hiring two individuals with the requested $163,800 instead but Granger said one would need to be let go next year because the $75,000 for the Comprehensive Plan update won't be in the budget next year.

Dr. Young then chimed in to clarify the situation. He said the County would in fact be saving money by doing this to the amount of roughly $68,000. He explained that the $163,800 that was being asked for would be funded as previous explained with $75,000 from the Comprehensive Plan update funds and $88,800 from the planner position funds. This was a savings of $4,200 because the position was slated to cost $93,000. In addition to this, the contracted firm, Bagby, Foroughi and Goodpasture, would also update the Zoning and Subdivision Ordinances which were required to be updated in the coming budget year at an estimated cost of over $60,000. He also said the firm has a good working relationship with the County and has said they enjoy working in the County. Granger said that it would be good to revisit this next year when only the planner position needs to be worried about. Brabo thanked him for his clarifications. The Board approved the request.

Next, the Board approved the Resolution for Appropriation and Categorical Appropriation of the FY2018-2019 budget along with authorizing the County Administrator to approve payments of July warrants. This was done because the Board of Supervisors will not meet in July.

The Board then discussed the increased speed limit along certain King George County corridors. Dr. Young said the state approved a bill raising the speed limit on certain roads from 55 miles per hour to 60. Brabo said she spoke with Sheriff Dempsey about this previously and that he had no concerns as to the increase. Dr. Young said that in order for the increase to occur, a speed study would need to be conducted by VDOT. He said VDOT was willing to shoulder the cost of the study as it wouldn't be very expensive. The Board approved the request. Binder added a question regarding Kings Mill Road and if it would be an issue. Brabo said only the identified sections would be studied and Dr. Young said VDOT does track accidents and discusses them with County staff. Based on the bill that was passed, only certain portions of Route 3 and Route 301 would be eligible for the increased speed limit. According to the Agenda for the meeting, only Route 301 south of Office Hall and Route 3 west of Hopyard would be potentially eligible.

Dr. Young then began his report by informing the Board that VDOT and Maryland Transportation Authority would begin pre-solicitation of contractors for the Nice Bridge replacement project. Young then gave an update on the Ralph Bunche project stating that Echelon Resources has decided to back out of the development, citing an "overly onerous rezoning process." Young said he met with Echelon, Brad Hudson and Heather Hall of Community Development, and Josh Colwell of the Planning Commission and compared the King George County process with the one in Culpeper where Echelon is currently working on a similar development. Young said that both localities had similar requirements and processes and that King George had a more than fair rezoning process. Unfortunately, Young said that Echelon still decided to back out of the project. He did offer a glimmer of hope by saying he has discussed the project with local developers and hopes to find a local solution.

Brabo asked if the money that was voted on to be set aside for a new public well at Ralph Bunche should remain appropriated as such and if it was advisable to proceed with the well upgrades or to wait. Dr. Young said it would be best to keep the money appropriated but to not move forward with the well upgrades just yet.

The Board then went into Closed Session at 9:06pm and invited Dr. Young and Eric Gregory to attend. They returned from Closed Session at 9:19pm.

Dr. Young apologized for not mentioning it earlier but he had received correspondance from NACo about appointing a voting member and an alternate. Brabo said that because she and Young were the most active she would volunteer and Dr. Young could be the alternate. The Board approved.

The meeting adjourned at 9:20pm.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Chairman, 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 June 12, 2018 at co 1 for 2 year budget at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.

2018-06-07 UPDATE: A previous version of this article had an incorrect date for Jeff Bueche's Town Hall. The correct date is June 7, 2018.

2018-06-05 - Service Authority Meeting Notes

The King George County Service Authority Board of Directors began their meeting with the normal call to order, brief invocation, and recital of the Pledge of Allegiance. The Board then made a sharp deviation from the normal agenda by going into Closed Session at 6:36pm. In addition to the Board of Directors and General Manager, John Jenkins and Jeff Bueche were invited along with Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, and Eric Gregory, County Attorney. Jenkins wasn't present at the time but arrived a few minutes later. Bueche, Jenkins, and Chris Thomas, General Manager, left the Closed Session at 6:57pm.

The Board returned from Closed Session at 7:23pm. Prior to opening the floor for Public Comment, the Board announced that Chris Thomas, General Manager, had submitted his resignation. The Board unanimously accepted his resignation. It will take affect on July 5, 2018.

Ruby Brabo then made a motion to censure Chris Werle, Chairman. The motion was seconded by Cathy Binder and again approved unanimously with Werle abstaining from the vote. Werle did make a brief comment that he accepted the Board's decision and strives to not repeat his past actions in the future.

There were no amendments to the Agenda.

Public Comment began with Renee Parker speaking from the podium. She said she came to the meeting hoping that Thomas and Werle were no longer going to be in place and knows that she's not alone with this feeling. She said there is an accountability to make decisions by being on the Board. She said if it were simply a financial decision based on DEQ fines that would be one thing but this was more than that as it's the "health and well being of the County" that uses the water sources. Parker said she applauds the Board for removing Thomas but finds it disturbing that the removal of Werle has not happened. She said they nominated him as a Board member and need to hold him accountable.

Jean Fraysse was next to speak at the podium. She said she's a long time resident of King George and supports the Board's decision to keep Werle. She said he's put a lot of personal time into working on the Board and it sounds like the Board will work more closely with him in the future. She also said she knows she's not alone with this feeling.

Mike Bennett then read a letter from Howard Yarus. Mr. Yarus' letter stated that the article by Cathy Dyson regarding the the Service Authority was embarrassing. He said that "the Board of Supervisors are responsible" for the inadequacies of the Service Authority and DEQ fines and asked to bring the sewer and water systems under the control of County Administration.

Ruby Brabo then read a letter from Kym Shymansky. Shymansky said that Chris Thomas and Chris Werle have "lied, deceived, intimidated, belittled, slandered and insulted many of your constituents." She said she and her husband now face misdemeanor charges and have been forced to evict his parents from their home. She went on to say that Werle and Thomas have made inappropriate comments over the years and have mistreated and harassed her and her husband. She said the "recent discovery regarding the DEQ violations further proves they lack credibility." She closed by saying both Thomas and Werle should be removed. She asked the Board to lead by example and with integrity.

Bennett then read another letter, this one from Yvonne Richard [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the spouse of Yvonne Richard.] Though longer than the other letters that were read, Bennett was able to finish reading it without going too much beyond the suggested three minute time limit. In her letter, she again called for the removal of Mr. Werle and Mr. Thomas. She said after reading recent news articles, she has even more concerns over the current Service Authority leadership. She said Thomas' choice to not answer DEQ emails was unacceptable and his disregard in notifying the Board should be grounds for his termination. Richard said she was also disappointed in Werle's behavior and wondered how the Board could trust his statements going forward "when for the last year he has known so much, but shared so little." She then said that some in the community have questioned her qualifications to make these suggestions because of her gender or occupation. She said that being a Service Authority customer and having attended all of the recent Service Authority budget work sessions should qualify her enough. She also said she has been harassed because she asked for the Service Authority to test the water in Eden Estates in 2016. She said she has been treated as a second-class citizen by the Service Authority since then and all of her concerns have been dismissed, including those raised at a Town Hall in February of 2018. She said she "made several suggestions about ways in which to improve the public image of the Service Authority" but no action has been taken. She closed by saying that she understood serving on a Board may require hard decisions but the citizens were counting on them to make the right ones. Richard said a failure to act by the Board was in effect a sign of support for Thomas' and Werle's actions.It was clear that both prior to Public Comment and afterwards, those in the audience and speaking via written letters had no idea the actions the Board was going to take. In fact, when the Board immediately went into Closed Session before Public Comment, there were a few confused comments from the audience of roughly 25 people.

With Public Comment concluded, the Board began their reports.

Mike Bennett reported that on May 30th, he assisted with a group of National Association of Counties (NACo) staff that were visiting King George. He gave them a tour of Fairview Beach and spoke about the erosion control grant before getting lunch at Tim's II. He said the group of about 30 individuals were looking at economic development and various other successes and challenges faced by rural communities.

Richard Granger had no report.

Ruby Brabo said she also attended the NACo visit and also said that the grant for Fairview Beach took a long time and it would not have happened without Chris Werle's help.

Cathy Binder had no report.

Chris Werle began his report by saying he attended a COMREL meeting on May 23rd. He said he spoke to the Dahlgren representative at the meeting and discussed the potential for an inter-agency support agreement that would help both groups reduce costs on chemical supplies as well as support during emergencies. He said he hoped to schedule a joint meeting in the near future. The same day, Werle said he watched as Service Authority technicians made repairs to a broken transducer at the Hopyard Farms Waste Water Treatment Plant.

Werle then responded to many points in the recent article by Cathy Dyson that he felt were incorrect or incomplete. He said the article gives the impression that when Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) notified him of the lack of communication from Chris Thomas, that Werle did nothing. He said this was not the case and that upon learning of the issue, he discussed with Thomas at length that "he could not just stop responding" and suggested he do so immediately. He said in the past 11 months, there have been "no further notices of non-responsiveness." Werle said he has talked to DEQ and explained what was done and felt his response to the Board was adequate but in hindsight, he should have told the Board everything.

He went on to clarify that while Mike Bennett's response to Cathy Dyson was a joint response, Werle was not part of that joint response. Werle said he and Bennett agreed that Werle's response should be separate from the joint response from the Board of Directors. Werle then clarified that the burst sewer main mentioned in the article was in fact a lateral and fell under the responsibility of the property owner to notify DEQ and clean up. He said that despite this, Thomas mobilized his staff and cleaned up the spill. Werle said he felt Thomas' failure to mention this at a Board meeting was a minor oversight at worst. He continued his statement by saying that while it is true that too much Nitrogen can kill fish in the water, the amounts released in the past were not at the levels that would cause harm to plants, animals, or humans. He said that in fact the rate of chemicals being released was so low that the Service Authority has earned nutrient credits. Werle concluded his statement by saying he felt that the outgoing Chairman should meet with the incoming Chairman as well as the County Attorney and County Administrator to discuss any outstanding issues or unilateral actions that can be taken. He also suggested that at the first meeting of the year, the Board should compile a full list of routine and emergency action items, that way the full Board is aware of all the issues for the coming year.

The Consent Agenda was approved.

The County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had no report.

Next on the Agenda was the adoption and appropriation of the Service Authority's FY2018-2019 Operating and Capital Budgets. Both were approved. Next was the approval and adoption of the amended Service Authority Regulations. The amendment was to clarify the rules around the unauthorized use charges and meter tampering charges. Chris Werle added a few comments about how this had been discussed at a previous Public Hearing and that the suggestions given were incorporated into the newly revised amendment. The Board approved the new changes. Mike Bennett then added for the benefit of those in the audience that the comments from the public were important enough to warrant a second look at the amendment and helped further define some of the language. He added that he wanted to let everyone know that the Board did listen and made changes accordingly. Next was the authorization to allow the County Administrator to approve payment of the July warrants. This was done because the Board will not meet during July. It was approved.

A discussion item was next on the Agenda to look into how to deal with the potential for lengthy closed sessions at Service Authority meetings. Werle said it appeared through early discussions that the only viable alternative was to delay the start of the Board of Supervisor meeting but he said he learned that it may cause issues with that Board. He felt that it would be best to delay any decision but to still keep it on the table for discussion. Ruby Brabo said maybe informally telling the public that the closed sessions would be first and therefore allow them to better figure out when to come to the meetings. Werle said he hoped that the sessions would be shorted in the future and Bennett apologized to the audience for how long it takes but that it was necessary. Brabo said that in the past, Service Authority meetings were very short and some citizens wondered how it was possible to even conduct business in such a short amount of time. She said maybe the meetings were longer now because the Board is actually taking care of business.

Chris Thomas, General Manager, was next and began his report with a follow-up of the pending lease agreement with KGI Communications. He said everything has been agreed upon but they were just waiting for the details on how the equipment was going to be installed on both towers. He expected to have that information shortly. His other update was regarding another lease, this time with Sprint, that was resurrected from the past. He said they have resubmitted paperwork to use the tower in Monmouth and have tentatively agreed upon a payment of $2,500 per month. He said he thought it would come forward for approval soon.

Brabo asked how long the contract was for and Thomas said it should be the same as the KGI contract.

Bennett then made a brief statement before the Board adjourned saying that as the newest member of the Board, along with Binder, that he may not know all the rules. He wanted to clarify that he was appointed and not elected and wanted to respond to those asking for Werle's removal. He said the Board has had some issues and that it's been more difficult than imagined. He said Werle has made mistakes and admitted to those mistakes and will do things differently going forward. Bennett said that the question for him was what is best for the Service Authority. He said for him, personally, it was best to keep Werle on the Board. With his negotiations with DEQ and ability to give more time than other Board members, Werle was an asset. Bennett said he has heard the complaints but disagrees.

The meeting adjourned at 7:58pm.

Meeting Attendees:
Christopher Werle (Chairman, Board of Directors)
Christopher Thomas (General Manager of Service Authority)
Richard Granger (Board of Supervisors)
Michael Bennett (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 June 19, 2018 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Service Authority Meeting.

2018-06-05 - Outdoor Burning and Unsafe Building Public Notices

2018-05-31 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

The King George County Board of Supervisors began their second Special Meeting of the month at 6:30pm.

Public Comment opened with Jim Lynch returning to the podium to find the microphone working normally. He commented that the presentation on the new Harry Nice bridge earlier in the year mentioned a noise analysis that was done. Lynch said he had asked for the report to learn more about it but had yet to receive a copy. Ruby Brabo interrupted and said that a copy was sent to him earlier today and apologized for it being sent late but the Board had only just received a copy themselves. Lynch said thanks and said that concluded his comments.

Next to speak was Nannie Mae Johnson Monk. She said she wanted to speak about the new tax assessments. She said she understood that there's a desire to help the School Board but was against raising taxes if possible. Monk said that the landfill was put in to help relieve the School Board's debt and the situation at the Oakland Park Waste Water Treatment Plant that doesn't work but she wanted to find another way to help the School Board. She said she wasn't against helping the County but still would not like to see a tax increase.

Kim Dodge then spoke against the new tax rate. She said we don't have to increase taxes this year and that we can use the equalized rate of 6.7 cents. She said according to her research that the new homes that come into the County's tax rolls aren't included in the budget. Dodge also said she knows using the surplus helps pay off the debt faster. She closed by saying she likes to talk about the total amount of the increase, not divided by day or month and she felt like the Board didn't even consider equalization.

Yvonne Richard spoke via the County's remote session option [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the spouse of Yvonne Richard.]. She said she was in favor of the tax increase and the budget as proposed. She said the new School Resource Officers (SROs) and funding for additional fire, rescue, and police staff would keep the community safe. Mrs. Richard also repeated her request to hold Chris Thomas, Service Authority General Manager, and Chris Werle, Chairman of the Service Authority Board of Directors, accountable for their lack of notifying the Board of Supervisors and the public about the issues with the King George County Service Authority.

John Jenkins began his Board Report by saying he appreciated everyone commenting as always. He also said he attended the Small Business Appreciation Dinner on May 24th. Jenkins said there was an excellent turn out and it was well put together. He offered congratulations to Love Thy Neighbor for being the non-profit of the year and Amir Patel's Subway as the business of the year.

Jeff Bueche said he also attended the Small Business Appreciation Dinner and echoed the same congratulations. He also thanked everyone for their comments and , even though they may not always agree, he appreciates the dialog. He said the Board worked hard on the budget and that during the process he learned that County departments were working understaffed. He said significant cuts were made by several departments, including the school system. He also said the school submitted a realistic budget. Bueche said he met his campaign promise of addressing the debt head on. He also wanted to make it clear it was not a tax increase. He said more money would be coming out of households but that the home values have gone up as well as the cost of services in the County. He said the rate of 70 cents is not an increase as it was the same rate as last year. He closed by saying he was here at the meeting instead of at his son's eighth grade graduation and wanted to congratulate him.

Ruby Brabo said she would give her full report at Tuesday's meeting. She said it was unfortunate that the public didn't attend the budget work sessions as they would have seen departments making cuts. She said services have increased in costs and that some are mandated. Brabo said it was clear that citizens felt there was a need for SROs and that adding them to the budget made up nearly one cent of the tax rate. She said she was proud that a citizen committee was included in the process and reminded everyone that the work sessions were open to the public. She said she's not sure what else to do to improve public participation in the process. Brabo said she thinks the Board will continue to keep things as transparent as possible in the coming years and hopes more citizens will turn out for the process next year.

Cathy Binder said she too would give her full report at Tuesday's meeting. She thanked everyone that has spoken to her in person and at meetings. She said being up on the bench is enlightening and she really learned what goes into the process but felt that everyone did their due diligence to do what is right for the community.

Richard Granger said he appreciated those that spoke and those that helped during the process. He mentioned that he forgot to tell the Board at the last meeting that he had received correspondence from Adam Black from the base in Dahlgren regarding the invitation for a meeting on June 14th.

Eric Gregory, County Attorney, had no report.

Next on the list was a series of Action Items regarding the budget. Neiman Young, County Administrator, began his presentation with a point of clarity. He referenced some of the comments from the public, specifically, about budget cuts, and said that on the March 15, 2018 budget work session, the presentation included cuts that he made prior to that day along with various cuts made by the Board of Supervisors. He said these cuts, along with those done by the schools, amounted to about a penny and a half of savings.

Dr. Young then presented his recommendation to the Board that they adopt a 70 cent per $100 of assessed value tax rate for the coming year. The Board approved the rate. Next, Young presented his recommendation to the Board that they adopt a 32 percent Personal Property Tax Relief Rate. This caused some discussion and consternation from the Board as it would mean a small increase for taxpayers but would not force the County to subsidize the program. The Personal Property Tax Relief Act, which allows for localities to determine the amount of tax relief, was signed into law in 1998. Historically, King George has had a rate of 34% in FY2016-2017 and 33% in FY2017-2018.

To give an example of this, back in 2016 if my car was valued at $1,825 and the Personal Property Tax Rate for 2016 is $3.50 per $100 of assessed value. My total tax due for the whole year was $63.88. However, Personal Property Tax bills are sent twice a year, so my bill for six months was $31.94. Because my car was worth more than $1,000 and less than $20,000, I was eligible for the 34% rate that was in place in 2016. Therefore, my $31.94 tax bill was reduced by 34%, or $10.86, so that my final bill that was due was only $21.08. At least the tax portion of my bill. When the license fee of $23 is added, I owe a total amount of $43.08.

Although my car is worth less now than it was in 2016, by using the same formula, same amounts, and newly adopted tax relief rate of 32%, I would see an increase in my bill of $0.64 or $1.28 per year.

Brabo said this was a tough call while Bueche asked if there would be revenue at the end of the year that would cover the potential $26,715 subsidy from the County should they adopt a 33 percent rate. Young said he had no idea if the cost would be $26,715 at the end of the year as it was just a projection. He said it could go up to $40,000 or down to $15,000 and that was why he recommended the 32 percent rate. Brabo asked the County Attorney if they could adopt the rate now and then change it mid year. Gregory said he did not know but could certainly research the question. Brabo asked if the decision could be tabled until later and Young said doing so would delay tax bills as this particular rate was applied to automobiles. Brabo then recommended moving forward with the recommended 32 percent rate and asked to revisit the rate later if it was allowed. The rest of the Board concurred and approved the 32 percent rate. Dr. Young then presented the Tax Rates, Operating Budget, and Community Development Fee Schedule for the next year, all of which were approved.

The next big section of the Action Items was related to the Harry Nice Bridge Replacement Project (Route 301). Dr. Young presented his recommendations to agree to and sign the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) for the project, to decline the installation of a noise wall, and to agree to the request for de minimus use of public land. Brabo asked if Jenkins had heard any comments from those in his district about the noise wall and Jenkins said most of the comments he received were against it. Brabo said that she had heard from some residents that it would be unsightly and not very helpful. Jenkins said he had also heard that it may pose a security issue as it would block the view of the Wayside Park area. As the Board was getting ready to vote, Dr. Young interrupted and said the MOA had been amended since they last saw it yesterday. Gregory said there was only a minor correction to Page 2, Paragraph 6 on the last line that would replace "... Federal Lands Planning Program..." with "... Federal Lands to Parks Program..." Gregory said the change was not substantive. The Board approved all of Dr. Young's recommendations.

Dr. Young had nothing further to report.

Ruby Brabo reminded the Board that Sunday, June 3, 2018 would be the 12th Annual Frazier-Mason Some Gave All Ride.

With no Closed Session, the Board adjourned at 7:03pm.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Chairman, 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 June 5, 2018 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.

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.

2018-05-24 - Board of Supervisors Meeting Notes

The King George County Board of Supervisors began their Special Meeting at 5:36pm.

There were no amendments to the Agenda.

Public Comment opened with Jim Lynch attempting to use the microphone at the podium only to find that it did not broadcast his voice. Staff attempted to resolve the issue before finally directing Mr. Lynch to the nearby dais where he used a different microphone. Lynch said he read the resolution that the Board would be voting on later and appreciated having the extra time to read it. He said he had been present when large groups of employees have been moved to one base or another and he felt that every time you lose people, you lose a part of the technical base.

Yvonne Richard experienced technical issues as well, although she was attempting to comment virtually through the County's GoToMeeting application [EDITOR'S NOTE - Neil Richard, a co-founder of Project94, is the spouse of Yvonne Richard.]. As she was unable to comment aloud, staff read her comments aloud. She was in favor of the proposed budget and was thankful for all of the improvements that are being made in King George as a result of the increased taxes.

Another resident came forward to the podium to speak but Richard Granger spoke and clarified that this was just for general comments and that comments on the budget would be allowed later during the Public Hearing.

John Jenkins, Jeff Bueche, Cathy Binder, and Richard Granger had no reports.

Ruby Brabo only had two brief items to report on. First, she said that she learned a lot using the webcam and hoped to use her experience tonight to help better educate citizens on how the process worked.  Second, she noted that King George won an Achievement Award from the National Association of Counties (NACo) for the use of a virtual meeting application. Brabo said that King George was again encouraged to compete in this year's award process for their implementation of a Citizen Budget Advisory Committee. She said NACo seemed very interested in how well it worked.

It should be noted that Brabo was attending the meeting virtually and had been previously granted permission to do so. She could be easily seen and heard during the meeting, however there was some obvious lag in the connection.

The Public Hearing on the proposed Budget for the coming Fiscal Year 2018-2019 then began. Dr. Neiman Young, County Administrator, gave a brief overview of the proposed budget. He highlighted that the budget is slightly more than a five percent increase over last year's budget. He said that no tax increase was needed but they will not be able to equalize the tax rate. Young said that two new School Resource Officers (SROs), mandated costs, and additional staff were just a few of the changes for the coming year.

Public Comment then opened and Jim Lynch again returned to the microphone at the dais. He said over half of the budget goes to support the schools and, as "an old-timey track athlete," he appreciated the support the Board gave to the schools, including the track upgrades. He then quoted an author referring to education and it's importance in democracy.

Next to speak was another resident, Mrs. Monk. She said she opposed the budget increase. Though she realized we're doing more for schools but felt consideration should be given to homeowners as their salaries are not increasing. She mentioned that the landfill did not pay down the debt as intended and that the Oakland Park Waste Water Treatment Plant had issues and that it would be nice to "lay off" the increases for now if we could.

Mrs. Richard, still experiencing technical issues with speaking aloud, reiterated her earlier comments through County staff again.

Jeff Bueche said he needed to address some of the misinformation that had been reported online and once again stated what has been clear from the beginning; the current and proposed tax rate is 70 cents per $100 of assessed value. Bueche said it was not seven percent, as that would equate to seven dollars. He also said it wasn't a tax increase, it was simply maintaining what was approved last year. Although he did understand that it will mean more money coming out of a household budget.

Brabo, Cathy Binder, and Granger all had no further comments.

Next on the Agenda was an Action Item regarding the Resolution that was proposed at the last meeting regarding move of the Chemical Biological Radiological Defense (CBRD) Division to Indian Head, Maryland. What then proceeded was one of the more interesting facets of the intricacies of Board policies and procedures. Richard Granger began by reading a prepared statement citing that although he felt he could participate in the discussions fairly, he wanted to abstain. He said due to any real or perceived conflict of interest, he would not comment or vote on the issue and in addition, would leave the dais and the Board Room entirely. He said he was doing this because he was an employee of the Naval Surface Warfare Center - Dahlgren Division (NSWC-DD) and asked the Board's Secretary to record his absence.

Jeff Bueche and Cathy Binder then read the same prepared statement except Bueche gave his reason as being an active duty member of the Coast Guard and Binder gave her reason as her husband's employment with NSWC-DD.

Binder, Bueche, and Granger then left the room at 6:01pm.

Dr. Young said that the County Attorney, Eric Gregory, had previously advised him that Ruby Brabo would be able to take the lead from here. Brabo said the Resolution had been amended since it was last released and then read the amended paragraph. She made a motion to approve it, John Jenkins, the sole remaining Supervisor physically present in the room, seconded the motion. Brabo made the only comment, stating that the vote was allowed in this manner per state code. The Resolution was then approved.

At 6:03pm, Binder, Bueche, and Granger returned to the Board Room. There being no report from the County Administrator and no Closed Session, the meeting adjourned at 6:04pm.

Meeting Attendees:
John Jenkins (Board of Supervisors)
Jeff Bueche (Board of Supervisors)
Richard Granger (Chairman, Board of Supervisors)
Ruby Brabo (Board of Supervisors)
Cathy Binder (Board of Supervisors)
Neiman Young (County Administrator)

Absent:
Eric Gregory (County Attorney)

Meeting Agenda

Next Meeting:
The Board of Supervisors will next meet on May 31 at 6:30 pm at the Revercomb Building.

Previous Meeting:
Read about the previous Board of Supervisors Meeting.