Tuesday, December 6, 2022: Supervisors in Campbell and Goochland to review FY22 statements; Fluvanna to review Courthouse report
The second of three installments this week on local and regional government in Virginia's Fifth Congressional District
This is the second of three newsletters this week. The delay is caused by an overly long edition of the Charlottesville Community Engagement Week Ahead. I do not split that one into several installments, but I’ve gladly done that for this product in order to allow some flexibility each week.
Here’s a look at what’s happening on Tuesday and Wednesday. A third installment will come out tomorrow for Thursday’s meeting of the Lunenberg County Board of Supervisors, as well as more updates on what Supervisor races are going to be on the ballot next November.
If you have any questions, please let me know. I would appreciate any feedback about this newsletter, which I’m really enjoying doing to expand my knowledge of the Fifth District. If you’d like to support the work, do consider supporting my company Town Crier Productions on Patreon. Sometime in 2023 I will enable paid subscriptions for this newsletter and add additional content as I can. I’ll try to keep as much free content as I can.
Amherst Supervisors to get briefing on ARPA-funded sewer project
The five member Amherst County Board of Supervisors will meet at 3 p.m. at the administration building at 153 Washington Street in Amherst County. (meeting page) (agenda packet)
The meetings with the invocation, the Pledge of Allegiance, citizen comment, and consideration of the consent agenda. After that there will be a special presentation on the Gateway Sanitary Sewer Project. This project has cost overruns and the Amherst County Service Authority did not have the financing capacity to cover the difference.
“The Board assigned $1 million of [American Rescue Plan Act] funds to be spent on sanitary sewer for the Gateway Sanitary Sewer project and River Road,” reads the staff report.
The idea on Ridge Road is to extend sewer to areas where drainfields have reached the end of their useful life.
There are no public hearings and most of the meeting concerns the receipt of reports. They’ll also discuss whether they will hold a meeting on December 20, 2022.
One of the reports is from the interim County Administrator and this updates the Supervisors and the public on various projects. These include the Madison Heights Master Plan, build-out of broadband across the county, and the immediate future of the Amherst County landfill.
Danville City Council to convey property, release liens, and get results from pay study
The nine member Danville City Council meets at 7 p.m. for a regular meeting followed by a work session. (meeting info)
The meeting will begin with a presentation on neighborhood parks. Nothing in the packet in advance, I’m afraid. Instead, there are several public hearings. I’ve written about some of these items in the past.
Equitable Property Company, LLC seeks a special use permit to operate an automobile and light vehicle repair establishment at 216 Collins Drive. This would repurpose an existing structure. (staff report)
Hometown Sheds seeks a special use permit to allow for additional outdoor display space at 4750 Riverside Drive. (staff report)
The Wednesday Club seeks a tax exemption for their property at 1002 Main Street. (staff report)
The city is donating surplus property on Shelton Street to the Danville Redevelopment and Housing Authority. (staff report)
City Council will also consider releasing liens on property on both Cabell Street and Stokes Street to allow the land to be donated to the Danville Redevelopment and Housing Authority. (staff report)
Council will then be asked to amend an agreement related to the former K-Mart parking lot.
“In 1991, the City leased six parking spaces at the old K-Mart property on Riverside related to enforcement of the City’s anti-cruising ordinance,” reads the staff report. “This lease has long since expired and there are no plans to renew it.”
Now the Daniel Group, property owner, wants the city to stop being a party to the still-existing agreement.
Finally on the regular session agenda is a budget appropriation. (staff report)
The work session previews items that will be coming up at future meetings. These are:
Consideration of vacation of city-owned right of way on Lynch Street. (staff report)
Staff recommends Council amend city code to eliminate requirement that city department heads fill out an annual conflict of interest forum. State code does not require this. This one really interests me. (staff report)
The Berkley Group has conducted a study of the pay structure for the Fire Department following pay increases for the police department. (staff report)
Goochland Supervisors to take up meat processing facilities
The five-member Goochland Board of Supervisors meets at 2 p.m. at 1800 Sandy Hook Road in Goochland. (meeting info)
The meeting begins with an invocation, a pledge of allegiance, comments from the Board, citizen comment, and then the consent agenda.
The main item on the afternoon agenda is a presentation of the audit of the county’s books for fiscal year 2022. Goochland works with PBMares as their third party auditor.
There are several public hearings:
YWL Holdings LLC seeks permission to operate a portion of a landscaping supply business within the floodplain at 12290 Patterson Avenue in District 5.
Oliver’s Trail LLC seeks a rezoning of 89.5 acres of agricultural land to Residential Preservation in order to create a 20-lot subdivision in District 1.
The county is amending the zoning code to allow meat processing facilities in A-1 and M-2 zoning with a conditional use permit.
Hays Gottwald seeks a conditional use permit for a limited meat processing facility on a 25 acre land on Old Fredericksburg Road.
The county will hold a public hearing to change the real estate affidavit submission time period.
Campbell Supervisors to review surplus, legislative agenda
The seven-member Campbell County Board of Supervisors meets at 6 p.m. in the Haberer Building in Rustburg. (meeting info)
Supervisors will begin their meeting with a review of the unaudited financial statements for fiscal year 2022. The preliminary analysis recommends that “reverted dollars” go to various places:
$1.677 million for future school maintenance
$786,386 to future economic development incentives for businesses
$786,386 to the Health Insurance Fund
$1,834,900 to future debt service payments
The 2023 General Assembly is fast approaching and Supervisors will review the county’s legislative agenda.
“Campbell County believes that the best government is limited government and that government is best exercised when closest to the people it serves,” reads the first line of the draft legislative agenda.
The first priority is more funding for law enforcement related to the “mental health hospitalization crisis.” The agenda seeks more revenue to hire more Sheriff’s deputies, specifically tied to what is described as the State Hospitals’ failure to accept patients ordered into those hospitals on a timely basis.” They also want to stop the requirement that a law enforcement officer be present the entire time a committed patient is transported to a mental health bed.
Other positions of Campbell County. These are all quotes:
Supports requiring political parties to pay the costs of local primaries
Supports additional funding of K-12 facilities maintenance, capital improvements, and modernization of existing school buildings
Supports funding and support for full provision of broadband services to rural areas
Opposes any efforts to reduce or inhibit the Second Amendment rights of citizens to keep and bear arms as described in the Constitution
Supports the free market system and opposes forcing businesses to pay a substantially higher minimum wage, believing it will result in a reduction of job opportunities for our most needy and vulnerable citizens, and ultimately result in higher costs passed on to and paid by the citizens.
Supports the sanctity of human life from conception and opposes any efforts to further relax current abortion restrictions or expand access to publicly-funded abortion
Supports legislation that would authorize counties to regulate the use of restrooms in County-owned buildings
Supports legislation that would allow homeschooled students to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities available in public schools subject to satisfaction of academic standards required by the State Board of Education
Supports legislation that provides local flexibility to legislate over issues of local concern
There will also be the following public hearings:
A landowner is requesting a rezoning at 5862 Colonial Highway in the Spring Hill District to allow for placement of a second manufactured home on the property.
A couple on Beech Tree Lane seek a special use permit to use their single-family home as a rooming house.
There’s an emergency extension of the tax date from December 5 to January 6 related to a delay in the printing of bills.
Wednesday, December 7, 2022
Albemarle Supervisors to meet with School Board to discuss capital funding
The Albemarle Board of Supervisors begins their regular meeting day with a joint work session with the Albemarle School Board at 1 p.m. This will be held within Room 241 in the county’s office building at 401 McIntire Road. This will be followed by a regular business meeting at 6 p.m.
Let’s start with the work session, which allows both bodies to review the five-year financial plan for Albemarle County. (agenda) (meeting info)
“A long-range financial plan is different from the annual budget in that it emphasizes where the County may be headed at the end of the plan rather than the coming fiscal year,” reads the staff report. “This planning can provide a helpful framework to inform the annual budget to ensure funding recommendations are aligned with County priorities.”
Supervisors had a look at the current five-year plan at their meeting on November 2. The materials in the packet document the conversation held this year between the two boards beginning with a March 11 letter from the School Board to Supervisors known as the Long-Term Funding Strategy Memo.”
“In good times and in bad times, the need for capital improvement projects does not slow down,” reads that letter. “We are still trying to dig out from the starvation of the Capital Improvement Program] during and after the Great Recession. None of us wants to go through that unfortunate exercise again.”
The letter refers to decisions made by the Board of Supervisors when a majority sought to impose a “zero-based budget” philosophy when every county expense had to be justified in each budget. There was also a six center real property tax cut in FY2007 from $0.74 per $100 of assessed value to $0.68 cents.
The rest of the 145-page packet follows this story A September 8, 2022 letter from the Board of Supervisors to the School Board sets the stage for this work session.
“During the December 7 Board-to-Board work session, the School Board and its staff is requested to present a balanced five-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), along with a balanced five-year financial plan that considers both operating and capital priorities,” reads that letter. “This information should include a review of significant revenue and expenditure drivers and related assumptions/ the School Board's priorities to be funded with any new revenue/ and how the plan aligns with the County's draft Fiscal Year 2024 - 2028 Strategic Plan.”
The Strategic Plan is included in the packet.
Albemarle Supervisors to hold six public hearings
The six Supervisors will reconvene at 6 p.m. in Lane Auditorium. There are six public hearings. One for each member? (meeting info) (agenda)
The first is for several budget appropriations. One is $177,372 from Albemarle’s settlement of the National Opioid Settlement. This funding will go to the Human Services Alternative Response Team intended for “training on behavioral health symptoms & community resources peer support, coordination with community-based service providers, and clinical consultation.” There’s a lot more in the staff report as that one of 21 appropriations. Another is to complete the review of the wireless policy.
The second would extend a sign-on bonus for public safety employees. From the staff report we learn that the Department of Fire Rescue received 235 applications to fill 53 vacancies, 12 of which have been filled. The Police Department received 150 applications for 40 vacancies and hired 23 officers. The eligibility period would be extended to November 30, 2023. (staff report)
The third would amend one of the county’s Agricultural and Forestry Districts to add 82.43 acres. (staff report)
The fourth is for a special use permit for a daycaRe at Mountain Plain Baptist Church in the White Hall magisterial district. (staff report)
The fifth is a request from the Virginia Institute of Autism to amend a previous special use permit for their new operations on Hillsdale Drive. Specifically, they want to expand onto a parcel next door. (staff report)
The sixth is to create a program to make it easier for institutions to pay for conversion to mechanical systems that result in fewer or no greenhouse gas emissions. The Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing program would be “a financing tool that provides upfront capital to commercial property owners and developers to invest in energy measures related to energy efficiency, renewable energy, and climate adaptation at a reduced rate of interest.” This is called for in the county’s Climate Action Plan. (staff report)
In an action item, Supervisors will consider a rezoning and special use permit request for the expansion of the Clifton Inn and Collina Farm. Supervisors held a public hearing on November 17 but deferred action. (staff report)
On the consent agenda:
Albemarle Supervisors will consider the same amendment to the memorandum of agreement with the city of Charlottesville related to parking for the courts. (staff report)
Supervisors will approve an administrative plan for the Office of Housing that’s required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The office “manages 435 housing choice vouchers,105 mainstream vouchers, and 34 moderate rehabilitation vouchers to subsidize housing costs for community members in need.” (staff report)
Albemarle County will apply for a boundary line adjustment with Fluvanna County around Scottsville. Louisa and Goochland are in the midst of something similar. (staff report)
Supervisors will also approve an exception in which a landowner built a house that exceeded the size permitted by the terms of an easement co-held by the Albemarle County Easement Authority. (staff report)
There’s also a communication from the School Board. White Hall representative David Oberg has resigned effective December 31 and the Board will appoint a replacement on December 15. School Superintendent Matt Has will make his recommendation for whether a new name will be selected for Meriwether Lewis Elementary School. A committee has recommended retention. (Board to Board letter)
Fluvanna Board of Supervisors to consider funding for commercial kitchen coordinator
The five-member Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors meets at 5 p.m. in the Carysbrook Performing Arts Center at 8880 James Madison Highway in Fork Union.
There are several action items after the introductory period of the meeting.
One is a discussion of the position description for the county attorney. Fred Payne has notified the county that he plans to retire at the end of the year. Payne has worked for Fluvanna on a contract basis for that time and a staff report tells us that a decision has been made to proceed with an internal department.
The second is a discussion of a commercial kitchen in the Fluvanna County Community Center from the Parks and Recreation Department and the Economic Development Office. The county will fund a part-time position of Commercial Kitchen Coordinator at a cost of $12,480. This project had been in the works before COVID and is now moving forward. The Health Department issued a certificate in November. A ribbon cutting is scheduled for December 21, 2022 at 3 p.m.
Dewberry Engineers will discuss something called Project Agreement 17. This relates to a preliminary engineering report for the greater project to expand water and sewer to certain sections of Zion Crossroads.
The fourth item is a revision of the salary ranges for social services employees by three percent. This will come at a $17,503 cost from the county and $8,236 from federal funds.
The fifth is a request from the Economic Development Office for $21,300 in a budget carryover requests from FY22 to FY23. This would be used for professional services, marketing, and tourism.
The sixth is a request from the school system for carryover funds. This breaks down as $300,000 for staff bonuses, $250,000 for fuel offsets, and $244,000 for capital costs. Of that figure, $100,000 would go to upgrade the public address system at Fluvanna County High School and $144,000 would go to retrofit 12 school buses with air conditioning.
There are two presentations. One is a preliminary discussion of the FY24 budget for Fluvanna County Public Schools.
The other is a historic structure report for the Fluvanna County Courthouse prepared by John Milner Associates Preservation. The building dates back to 1830.
“The historic courthouse building occupies a central place in the history of Fluvanna County and its architectural excellence is recognized at the state and national levels,” reads the presentation. “Without critical repairs, the historic building will suffer progressive deterioration and lasting damage, leading to increased repair costs. A number of repairs are required to restore and maintain the integrity of this architectural masterpiece.”
Those repairs have a total cost of around $1.5 million and the intent is to work with the Fluvanna Historical Society on a capital campaign.
There is one public hearing on revisions to the Fire and Rescue Ordinance.
