All Supervisors on 2023 ballot in Hanover County; Time running out on pandemic-related federal benefits
Four quick segments on what's happening in local government in Virginia's Fifth District
Welcome to the third installment of the newsletter for this week. The next two weeks will likely only contain one newsletter each as the volume of government meetings slows for the Christmas holiday.
If this is your first installment, Fifth District Community Engagement is an experimental newsletter intended to help educate myself and the audience about what’s happening in local government across Central and Southside Virginia. This is still in development, but so far it’s proving to be very rewarding for me as I get to learn more about how things work.
Albemarle Supervisors to review FY22 audit; hold five-year planning work session
The six member Albemarle County Board of Supervisors will meet at 1 p.m. There is no evening session and this is the final meeting of the year. (meeting info) (agenda)
In the first item, the Department of Social Services will make a presentation on their request for five additional “full-time equivalents” to help deal with anticipated work when federal benefits associated with the COVID-19 pandemic expire early next year.
“The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) was established to create a safety net of benefits and programs for community members during the COVID-19 public health emergency,” reads the staff report. “FFCRA directed states to maintain Medicaid health coverage for everyone enrolled on or after March 18, 2020.”
The public health emergency is winding down with no official date, and the Virginia Department of Social Services has a plan to assist localities with the change. At the date of the staff report, Albemarle County has 10,455 open Medicaid cases and 3,162 SNAP cases. When the emergency is over, every case will have to be evaluated to determine if the person receiving benefits is actually eligible.
“Current DSS staff are unable to take on the tasks of resuming normal enrollment and eligibility determination operations without additional support,” the report continues.
Next, Albemarle Supervisors will be presented with the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. That’s the official audit from Robinson, Farmer, Cox Associates. This is not available in advance but take a look at the staff report to get ready.
Then there will be a work session on the five-year financial plan. Last week the Supervisors met with the School Board to discuss the latter’s $318 million capital request for the next five years. I am in the midst of writing up that conversation and the first half can be seen here. The second half is here.
Finally, a year in review from Emily Kilroy. This year she gained the title Assistant to the County Executive. This review is not available in advance.
On the consent agenda is a special exception request from Piedmont Community for a wireless tower. (staff report)
All Hanover Supervisors on the ballot in 2023 election
Before we get to today’s Board of Supervisors meeting in Hanover County, let’s take a look at the election in 2023 as well as current demographics.
Hanover is the second largest jurisdiction in the Fifth District, but only the western half is included within its borders. The rest is within the First District. The U.S. Census counted a population of 109.979 people in 2020 and the Weldon Cooper Center projects that increasing to 140,133 in 2050.
There are seven members on the Board of Supervisors.
The Ashland District seat is held by Democrat Faye Oliff Prichard who won a contested election in 2015 and received 63.3 percent of the vote against Republican Weatherford Wallace Stokes. Prichard had no opposition in 2019.
Republican Joseph Robert Monolo won election this November to the Beaverdam District seat that had been vacated when Aubrey Mae Stanley, Jr died in late 2021. Stanley, a Republican, had held the seat since at least 2003 when he defeated a Democratic candidate.
Republican Angela Christine Kelly-Wiecek has held the Chickahominy District seat since 2011 when she won against an independent for an open seat. She got 62.9 percent of the 3,093 votes cast. The Virginia Public Access Project indicates Danielle Greishaber Floyd will make a challenge
Francis Michael Herzberg IV won a Republican primary against three other candidates in 2019 and went on to defeat Democrat James Patrick Doran II for the Cold Harbor District.
Republican Sean Michael Davis won election to the Henry District in 2019 with 57.8 percent over his Democratic challenger. He faced no opposition in 2015 but defeated an independent candidate in 2019 with 74 percent of the 5,850 votes cast.
Republican Canova Peterson IV was first elected to the Mechanicsville District in 2011 with 51.2 percent of the vote against an independent candidate. He defeated a Democrat in 2015 with 53.7 percent of the vote. Peterson faced a Republican challenger in 2019 and won the primary with 58.8 percent of the 791 votes cast. He faced no challenger in the general election that year.
The Virginia Public Access Project lists Ryan Hudson as a candidate in the Republican nomination contest.
Republican Susan Purvis Dibble won an open seat for the South Anna District in 2019 with 62.3 percent of the 5,645 votes cast. Democrat Clara James Scott was her opponent.
Hanover Supervisors to review Suburban Service Area policy
The Hanover County Board of Supervisors will meet at noon today for a work session on the Comprehensive Plan followed by a regular meeting at 2 p.m. The work session is in the 2nd floor Board of Supervisors conference room at the county administration building at 7516 County Complex Road. (meeting info)
The Comprehensive Plan update has been under review since October 2021. The title for go-round is Envision Hanover.
“The project team will seek guidance from the Board of Supervisors on concepts related to land use policies, along with updates for economic development and historic resources,” reads the staff report. “There will also be a status update and information provided regarding upcoming public engagement.”
The 1982 Comprehensive Plan introduced growth management concepts intended to prevent the county from growing too fast. New development was to be focused on the Suburban Service Area originally designated as the I-95/U.S. 1 and I-295 corridors but expanded westward to the U.S. 33 corridor. The last major expansion was in 2007. (view a .PDF of the evolution of the SSA’s)
“By accommodating future growth in these areas through provision of public services and facilities, development in Hanover is expected to be guided away from widely scattered sprawl to a more compact pattern,” reads the staff report (page 9).
This approach is similar to the one taken in Albemarle, Goochland, and James City counties.
At this work session, Supervisors will be presented with population forecasts, a heat map of vacant parcels, and data on growth management. An advisory body has recommended keeping the SSA approach but the county must do a better job of improving infrastructure in targeted economic development areas.
After the invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance, there will be a series of awards and public comment.
Then there will be three presentations but none are in the 550-page packet. The first is an annual update from Reynolds Community College President Paula Pando.
Next is a presentation on the 2023 reassessments.
“In early January, the Assessor’s Office will mail notices of assessment changes and
the review period will be January 3 through January 20, 2023,” reads the staff report (page 42).
That will be followed by the annual community development report. Then there will be a closed session to discuss the acquisition of real property and discussion of a potential business that will either relocate or expand within the county.
After a break, Supervisors will reconvene at 6 p.m. for four public hearings.
A property owner seeks an amendment to a previous rezoning on Mechanicsville Turnpike on a one acre property. This is to create a new curb but for a new entrance to a future restauarant. Currently that’s against the proffers of the original rezoning for the Creighton Crossing Shopping Center. The applicant has applied for a permit from the VIrginia Department of Transportation for an exception to their access management plan for U.S. 360.
A landowner seeks a rezoning of 25.2 acres of land on Cheroy Road zoned Agricultural to Agricultural Residential. The proposal is to build four residential lots at a density of one unit per 6.3 acres.
A property owner seeks an amendment to a previous rezoning of 22.6 acres at the intersection of Washington Highway and Sliding Hill Road. The request is to add two additional entrances and modify roadway improvements.
That same property owner also wants a special exception permit to allow for loading spaces where a front yard is required. They also want to reduce the width of a thoroughfare buffer.
Thursday, December 15, 2022
The Nottoway County Board of Supervisors will meet at 7 p.m. in the Nottoway County General District Courtroom at 328 W. Courthouse Road in Nottoway. (meeting info) (packet)
After the invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance, they will have their public comment period which is referred to as “Delegations from the Public” which has a nice ring to it.
There are three public hearings.
The first relates to the tax ordinance to reduce the late fee for filing personal property taxes. This is part of the modernization of the Commissioner of Revenue’s Office. .
The second relates to redistricting.Nottoway was not able to complete the process before the 2022 elections. Tonight’s vote will be on changes to various precincts.
“Workload at the state level prevented adjustments to be processed in time for last November’s elections which became more crucial due to the special election,” reads a memo from Administrator Ted Costin.
The third is for a special exception request to allow a property on Rocky Hill Road to operate a guest house within an existing structure.
Then there will be reports from various departments and state agencies.
Supervisors will end the meeting with a closed session to get legal advice about water service options and to discuss a legal case regarding land use regulatory enforcement. They’ll also discuss “personnel matters now pending in County Administration.”
Reading material:
Gold mining report sent to General Assembly: What happens next?, Brian Carlton, Farmville Herald, December 13, 2022
Construction on first splash pad in Danville to begin soon, John Crane, Danville Register & Bee, December 13, 2022
Supervisors to hear from organizations, Amelia Bulletin Monitor, December 15, 2022
Planning commission meets Monday, Amelia Bulletin Monitor, December 15, 2022