March board highlights

 

D. E. "Eddie" Ferguson, Jr, 2025 Virginia Fire Chief of the year 

Monthly Goochland Supervisors’ meeting agendas include a mix of recognitions, information, and routine business.

The March 3 meeting began with an eloquent invocation given by Rev. Adlai Allen of Chief Cornerstone Baptist Church. He mentioned the Board’s diversity of opinions and perspectives and asked the Lord to help them appreciate the richness that each member brings to the board and bind them together with cords of respect to recognize that their differences can be a source of strength rather than division.

Board Chair Jonathan Christy, District 1 asked for a moment of silence and personal prayers for our troops in harm’s way.

County Administrator Dr. Jeremy Raley recognized Angelia Miller who was recently named young professional of the year by the Goochland Chamber of Commerce. Miller, Assistant Director of Recreation, has worked to expand special events and strengthen relationships with community organizations.

Raley also commended D. E. “Eddie” Ferguson, Jr. Chief of Fire-Rescue and Emergency Services, who was recently named Virginia Chief Officer of the Year 2025 at the 2025 Fire Service Awards Ceremony in Virginia Beach. Ferguson began his fire service career as a volunteer at Centerville Company 3 when he was sixteen. He was a career fire-medic in Chesterfield County for 17 years before being hired as Goochland Deputy Chief-EMS in 2004 and named Chief of the Department in 2019. Ferguson continues to serve, on his own time, as a flight medic for Virginia State Police MedFlight.

The award was created in 2002 to honor a chief office who exemplifies exceptional leadership, integrity, innovation, and commitment to both their department and the broader Virginia Fire Service.

Among new employees welcomed to Team Goochland was Denise Sandlin, our new Director of Financial Services, who brings a wealth of experience in governmental finance at the state and local level to the position. Raley thanked Dave Wilson, who served as interim director for keeping the budget process on track.

Carol Taylor, executive director of the Goochland Chamber of Commerce, gave a preview of Goochland Day 2026, on May 16. The Chamber has assumed oversight of the iconic local festival from the group of intrepid citizens who began its rebirth just before Covid.

Goochland Day 2026 will not have a specific theme but rather will be a celebration of the entire county.

In addition to the parade, this year’s festival will feature “zones” for different age groups from littles to seniors. Only Goochland-made potent potables will be offered at the wine and beer zone to highlight local businesses. The festival, which follows the parade, will be entirely on one side of Sandy Hook Road.

Taylor said that high school students were polled to find out what they wanted on Goochland Day, which resulted in demonstrations and a clinic at the skateboard park.

The event is so big, said Taylor, that it cannot be micromanaged, which resulted in creation of a 12-member committee representing the county, fire-rescue, the Sheriff’s Office, churches, and civic organizations to collaborate on the celebration. Go to https://goochlandday.com/ for details and don’t forget to mark your calendars for this slice of hometown celebration. The parade is not to be missed.

VDOT

Phillip Frazer P.E., Administrator of the VDOT Ashland Residency, gave a brief overview of the VDOT resurfacing program in Goochland. Go to the county website, click on watch county meetings, select BoS for March 3. His comments begin at about the 34-minute mark to watch his excellent insights about road maintenance, including pothole repair.

Consent agenda

Among the items approved in the consent agenda was a reaffirmation of the December 3,2019 resolution approved by the Board of Supervisors supporting the Second Amendment to the United States’ Constitution. See page 142 of the March 3 board packet for details.

Authorization to advertise proposed local tax rates for calendar year 2026 was approved. These rates, with the exception of that for data center personal property, which was increased from .40 to $3 per $100 of assessed valuation, are the same as last year. Rates will be adopted in April and will not be higher than advertised.

Approval of an amendment to the FY26 Sheriff’s Office budget to budget and appropriate $350k for grant revenue to be received as reimbursement of expenses for updates and upgrades of the county 911 emergency call center.

Approval of resolutions requesting acceptance of several new subdivision roads in into the state system for maintenance.

School budget

Superintendent of Goochland Schools Dr. Andrew Armstrong presented the school budget for FY2027 as approved by the school board. Local transfer to schools is a significant part of the county budget. Armstrong made a strong case for each proposed expenditure, especially salary increases to keep Goochland competitive with our deep pocketed neighbors in recruitment and retention of the best teachers. The supervisors and school board will hold a joint workshop on March 17 on the FY budget. Money will be tight for FY27, stay tuned to see what makes the funding cut.

 

 

 

 

Spring is in the air

 

Winter seems to be over (cross your fingers), and spring is on its way.

For starters, go the Goochland-Powhatan Master Gardeners’ website https://www.gpmga.org/. These folks have very green thumbs and are happy to help others learn about all things growing.

To learn about the First Annual Garden Fair and Seed Share next Saturday, March 14 from 9:30 to 12:30 at the Goochland Parks and Rec Center behind the county admin building at 1800 Sandy Hook Road in Courthouse Village go to https://www.gpmga.org/2026-garden-fair-seed-share .

Other events of interest:

·         March 16, the Goochland County Residents’ Community Education Workshop to learn about the zoning process will be held at Goochland Baptist Church Goochland Baptist Church 2454 Manakin Road, Manakin-Sabot, Virginia 23103, from 6 to 8:30. Registration opens at 5. Go to https://www.goochlandcpc.org/ for details.

·         March 17, Goochland Supervisors and School Board members will hold a joint budget workshop at 6 p.m. in the admin building. The session is open to the public. Go to the county website https://www.goochlandva.us/ and click on “watch county meetings” to view.

·         March 24— county wide spring town hall beginning at 6 p.m. in the admin building, which will be live streamed and archived.

·         March 25 District 5 Town hall meeting from 6-8 p.m. in the great hall at Benedictine, St. Gertrude’s, 12829 River Road.

·         March 28 EggXtreme Egg hunt from 10 to 12 at Hidden Rock Park. “This egg-citing family-friendly event kicks off at 10:00 AM and features three separate egg hunts tailored to different age groups, ensuring thrilling fun and fair play for little ones, bigger kids, and everyone in between. Get ready for an "xtreme" twist on the classic tradition plenty of colorful eggs hidden throughout the park and lots of hopping good times! Bring your own basket (or bag) to collect eggs and come dressed in your springtime best. Whether you're a seasoned egg hunter or joining for the first time, this event promises laughs, friendly competition, and sweet treats for all.” Visit Parks & Rec at https://www.goochlandva.us/1391/EggXtreme-Egg-Hunt for details.

 For information about the proposed electric transmission line that could pass through western Goochland, go to https://vltransmission.com/joshua-falls-to-yeat/

 

 

Budget surprises

 

Budgeting can be tricky. No matter how carefully expenses and revenues are forecast, stuff happens. Goochland supervisors learned of unexpected expenses in the current fiscal year during the Mach 3. Later in the afternoon, they faced potential budget challenges from schools for FY27.

The supervisors voted to advertise tax rates for calendar year 2026, which remain unchanged, except for an increase from 40 cents to three dollars per hundred dollars of assessed valuation on data center personal property tax. Rates and fees will be approved next month. The supervisors are able approve rates lower than those advertised but cannot raise them without readvertisement.

In the next two months, the budget presented on February 17 will be heavily tweaked before final approval in May.

During the quarterly meeting of the finance committee, which preceded the regular monthly meeting Raley and Director of Emergency Services Robin Hillman, explained the fiscal impact of winter storm “Fern” on Goochland.

Raley said that the emergency declaration in January potentially makes the county eligible for reimbursement of expenses incurred during the storm from federal and state sources. The process is quite complicated.

He commended Hillman who “led us through this every step of the way from day one” by advocating recording time spent on storm related operations; keeping track of invoices; and all other costs. Raley estimated the unbudgeted cost to date at $478,009. This includes staff time and the significant cost of hiring heavy equipment, to remove accumulation of icy snowcrete at county and school facilities.

In addition to clean up, five public safety vehicles were damaged during the storm; 22 animals were taken to the shelter, two of which required emergency surgery; and a water main break on a weekend that required emergency repairs including to some roads. All were unanticipated costs to the county.

The state public assistance threshold for Goochland is $98,908, however Raley expects the to county to receive a lower amount. The possible federal reimbursement could be o$167k “if we get lucky”. The all-in budget hit to the county, assuming these reimbursements, is a bit over $200k.

The county may declare a state of emergency for any event it deems impactful to operations. In this case, the county followed the state declaration of emergency, which paves the way for reimbursement, which is calculated at approximately $4 per resident.

Hillman said that because the storm did not meet historic snow levels, the state contends it is not required to issue reimbursements even though the ice event was more difficult to mitigate. She expected to meet with state officials to obtain more clarity on reimbursement criteria. There is a lot of “pushback” on this.

Lessons from the 2022 ice storm, said Hillman, included asking for community volunteers with four-wheel drive vehicles to help with non-emergency citizen needs like delivering meals and medicine. Several residents helped with this.

Preparedness, having enough food, water, fuel, and other necessities to shelter in place for 72 hours is vital she said. Communication was also important. Hillman staffed the county’s emergency operations center (EOC) during the storm to ensure that needed resources were available.

Messaging, she said, was extremely important, especially during the cold that accompanied the storm. Urging people to stay off iced over ponds and keep their animals away from them avoided tragedy.

Raley commended team Goochland for its work in communications, especially as the county was in the process of switching from Code Red to Goochland Alerts (https://member.everbridge.net/77895137493098/login) to disseminate emergency notices.

Board Chair Jonathan Christy, District 1, noted that the special election referendum on mid-decade electoral redistricting, (https://www.goochlandva.us/359/Elections-and-Voter-Registration) will cost the county an estimated $45k and urged all citizens to vote. This is an example of an unfunded mandate imposed on localities by the General Assembly

During the afternoon session Dr. Andy Armstrong, superintendent of Goochland Schools, presented the division’s budget for FY27, approved by the school board, which reflects a 6.3 percent increase over FY26.

The county transfer to schools included in the FY27 recommended budget presented by Raley on February 17 was in line with the 3.7 percent expected increase in local tax revenue. The school budget presented by Armstrong requests a county transfer of about $2.5 million over the $31,429,844 recommended by Raley.

Schools also get revenue from state and federal sources.

The mechanism used to determine state funding, the local composite index, which is .80 for Goochland. That means that Goochland receives only 20 percent of cost from the Commonwealth.

Currently, the LCI formula takes three factors of a locality into account: adjusted gross income, which carries a weight of 40% in the calculation; the value of real property, which makes up 50% of the calculation; and taxable retail sales at 10%. Because Goochland has a small population, about 28,000, it takes few high-income residents to skew the income component away from reality. In comparison, the LCI for our neighbors with larger populations is Henrico 43; Chesterfield 35; and Hanover 50.

The state requires schools to adopt their budgets by June 30 even though sometimes state and federal budgets are finalized after this deadline making revenue projections like trying to hit a moving target.

The supervisors and school board will hold a budget workshop on March 17 at 6 p.m. in room 270 of the admin building, which will undoubtedly feature difficult conversations.

Our FY27 budget could also be hobbled by more unfunded mandates from the General Assembly in the next few weeks.

All budget discussions highlight the need for robust economic development to fund needs in Goochland. Stay tuned as the budget evolves toward approval.

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you live in the Riddles Bridge area . . .

 

Do you live in the purple?

If you live in the area shaded in purple in the above map and want internet read on.

Firefly Fiber Broadband is holding a Virtual Town Hall on Tuesday, March 3rd at 4 PM for the RISE Project Riddles Bridge service zone to learn more about Firefly, ask questions, and find out how you can sign up for service.  Firefly’s RISE Project Riddles Bridge service zone includes Goochland residents served by Dominion Energy who live in the Western area of Goochland as shown on the maps at https://www.fireflyva.com/dominion-energy-riddles-bridge/.  

Residents in this area should register online at https://www.fireflyva.com/town-halls/, there is an option to attend online or by phone.  A recording of the Virtual Town Hall will be made available to those who register. 

Goochland County understands that not all residents can attend the town hall virtually, and as such the County will offer the opportunity to watch it at the County Administration Building.  It will be live streamed in Conference Room 234 in the County Administration Building located at 1800 Sandy Hook Road, Goochland, VA 23063.   Residents are encouraged to still register online at https://www.fireflyva.com/town-halls/.  

It's important for interested residents in the Firefly Fiber Broadband project areas register for service at https://register.fireflyva.com/.  Residents can find the latest information for Firefly Fiber Broadband’s projects in Goochland at https://www.fireflyva.com/partners-goochland/.  

Economic development update

 

Since taking office in 2024, Goochland’s Board of Supervisors has focused on expanding the county tax base by attracting private sector investment. The board held a joint workshop with the Economic Development Authority in August 2024 to discuss goals and strategies. Another took place on February 25.

Goochland has long sought to attract commercial and industrial development to achieve a residential/commercial tax base ratio of 70/30, which currently is about 82/18. The “how” of achieving this has been somewhat hit or miss. Each year during its budget process, the county wrestles with balancing needs versus tax revenue to fund core local government services.

Deputy County Administrator Sara Worley and Deputy Director of Economic Development Chance Robinson presented a brief update on new, in the pipeline, or expanding local businesses. In 2025, based on building permits, new investment was $488 million, a record for Goochland.

These include the Amazon distribution Center and the speculative warehouse Axial Rockville facility both in the Ashland Road corridor, which has long been designated as a site for industrial uses.

Virginia Urology, which opened last year on Broad Street Road just west of Rt. 288, commended the county for its support and guidance through its expansion with efficiency that helped them become operational in about six months.

The supervisors gave the EDA $60k to incentivize expansion of existing local companies in 2024. Three, Seven Lady Vineyards at Dover Hall; R Tech Services for its new facility; and Strickland Manufacturing for a new office and warehouse in the Goochland Industrial Park, were awarded $20k each.

R-Tech Services, which repairs quarry vehicles, is moving from leased space in the Lanier Industrial Park to an owed site in the new I-64 industrial park on Pony Farm Road in Oilville.

Seven Lady Vineyard has broken ground on a tasting room to complement a vineyard that will open later this year.

In addition to repairing heavy equipment, Strickland has begun to manufacture items. After the recent snowcrete deluge Strickland quickly built 350 sets of snowplow teeth that were sold to area localities to aid in challenging cleanup operations.

All of these businesses are on track to realize a robust return on the county’s investment by adding jobs as the success of their companies enriches our tax base.

Tourism revenue generated $59.2 million in direct spending, a 15.1 percent increase from 2023 to 2024. Statistics for 2025 will be released in September. This added $3.3 million to the local tax base.

A program to help local businesses attract customers with VDOT signage made awards to Bandit’s Ridge Winery and Rockville Dunkin Donuts.

 

Unlike its regional competitors in economic development game, Goochland has few sites considered “tier 4,” most desirable, in its developable land inventory. To remedy that, last year the supervisors appropriated $500k to the EDA to pay for due diligence and data collection on select sites targeted for economic development. Some supervisors had reservations about spending tax dollars to help market private property.  However, when only a part of this money was instrumental in landing the $5 billion—with a B—Eli Lilly investment in West Creek in a matter of months, the robust and rapid return on investment justified the expenditure.

The $500k was used for:

·         Due diligence studies for site inspection, boundary surveys, wetland assessments, historical, cultural, and endangered species evaluation in West Creek, whose owners paid half of the cost.

·         A terrcaon vibration monitoring study, completed in 2025, quantified the geological vibration impact from quarry blasting sites on Ashland Road to better understand blasting impacts on various industries with current data to help business prospects determine if a site meets their criteria.

·         Evaluate the feasibility of supplying public utilities to land around the Oilville/I64 interchange to enable economic development. The county already has state wastewater permits there.

·         Provide match funding for the “Virginia Ready Business Sites” program to evaluate land at the intersection of Ashland and Three Chopt Roads south of I-64.

Availability of detailed site-specific data allows prospects to effectively and efficiently evaluate a location, because time is money in development.

Going forward, EDA goals and initiatives include a revolving loan program to help small businesses; façade grants; pitch competitions to assist micro businesses; expand medical provider services; tech business incubator; and tourism initiatives.

Having these funds—$241,000 remains unspent— available, said Worley, enables economic development to move quickly to provide specific data, making sites more attractive to prospects.

These studies and other initiatives are being used to upgrade some parcels and create a tiered site inventory to entice investment.

Charlie Vaughers, District 4 supervisor, impressed with the short-term ROI, urged economic development to put money out at a faster pace to move Goochland closer to the 70/30 split.

Neil Spoonhower, District 2, said he was initially skeptical about using tax dollars to improve the marketability of private property like the Markel Corporation West Creek parcel used as a soccer field, where Eli Lilly will be located. “It didn’t feel comfortable stroking that $500k check. We thought the returns would be worth is and they’re paying off huge.”

Spoonhower also admitted skepticism about the statement that Jonathan Lyle, District 5 made in 2024 that he wanted to see $2 billion in new investment in Goochland. “It’s already hit and it’s probably going to double or triple. I’m thankful to be on a team like this.”

Many thoughtful comments about economic development and how Goochland can take advantage of looming opportunities created by onshoring manufacturing and other macroeconomic trends followed.

To listen to the entire conversation go to the county website https://www.goochlandva.us/ click on watch county meetings. Under BoS select February 25. Go to https://www.goochlandforbusiness.com/ to explore more about Goochland economic development.

Goochland competes with other jurisdictions in Virginia for investment. We do not have the deep pockets to fund membership in the big regional development organizations like the Greater Richmond Partnership whose annual “pay to play” fee is about $350k. While we are on the edge of the Richmond region, our goal of keeping rural character is at odds with our neighbors to the east.

To get a more visible seat at the development table, Goochland is exploring the value of creating a rural economic development organization (REDO) with neighboring counties to our south.

 

REDO

Principals of Rural Resilience Advisors, (https://rural-advisors.com/) David Denny and Liz Povar, with decades of hands on economic development experience at the local and state level, described how they could help Goochland partner with jurisdictions to our south to get a more visible seat at the development table.

REDOs, they explained, allow counties with similar and complementary resources and goals, work together.

While Goochland has had good success with landing Eli Lilly, attracting more big fish does not happen by chance.

RRA contended that Goochland, Powhatan, and Amelia counties sit at the edge of the Richmond region and are seeking the sweet spot to grow their commercial and industrial tax base while remaining rural.  

Economic development, which they characterized at a “contact sport” is all about relationships. Povar displayed a map of existing REDOs in Virginia. Goochland, Powhatan, and Amelia sit alone, just outside the Richmond region surrounded by other REDOs.

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (https://vedp.org/)  markets Virginia, all 133 counties and cities, as a whole. As a practical matter, contended Povar, it is easier for the small VDEP staff to work with REDOs, which are better able to promote their areas and guide prospects to areas that best fit their criteria.

Partnering with counties to create a regional brand, share resources, and present a unified profile will improve visibility and credibility among state, national, and international prospects, contended RRA. Small jurisdictions like Goochland who have modest economic development staff do not have the bandwidth to provide these things on their own.

Goochland could use some branding to overcome the tendency of new businesses in the Broad Street Road corridor to label themselves as “Short Pump”.

RRA deliverables seemed to include research, feasibility studies, marketing activities that include “fam”tours—hands on in person visits—for a location; crafting strategies to connect with emerging technologies; and amplify economic development resources. Their “ask” for two-year trial period was $10k per year, total $20k. (The county is currently recruiting an economic development coordinator for tourism with a starting salary of up to $82k not counting benefits.)

Other research could explore what companies that want to be near Lilly will need and look at areas with development profiles like Goochland’s to see what works.

Director of Economic Development Nora Amos said that during her eight weeks in Goochland, she has not seen the same kind of interaction between VDEP and the county as she was accustomed to at her previous post in Hanover County, a member of the Greater Richmond Partnership. “They (VDEP) will help us if we call, but we aren’t at the big boy table.” She said that the RRA proposal would give Goochland a seat at that table and supported adding its resources to the economic development tool kit.

Povar explained that while RRA would act as a contractor, it would be subject to FOIA, a memorandum of understanding (MOU), and financial disclosure rules.

Some supervisors questioned the selection of Powhatan and Amelia and wondered if it would make more sense of Goochland to join with Louisa and Albemarle. Worley said joining neighboring REDO had been explored. The Central Virginia Partnership, while less expensive, has goals and target industries that do not align with the Goochland’s. The two-year trial with RRA could act as an “on ramp” for Goochland to join an existing REDO.

The board voted 4-1 with Lyle in dissent, to appropriate $20k and authorize staff to work out operational details in an MOU that would need approval by the supervisors before the money can be spent. Lyle said that while he found the RRA proposal intriguing, he did not believe that it is warranted at this time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FY 27 budget first look

 

Goochland supervisors took the next step in firming up the FY27 budget as County Administrator Dr. Jeremy Raley presented his recommended budget on February 17. (Go to https://goochlandva.new.swagit.com/videos/375367 to https:

Raley began by introducing Denise Sandlin, newly hired director of finance, and commending interim finance director Dave Wilson, who “jumped in” last November to work closely with Raley on budget matters. The proposed budget is the product of many months of work and collaboration with department heads and constitutional officers who made compromises along the way but is just a milestone on the road to final budget approval in May. Tax rates will be advertised in March and set in April. The supervisors cannot impose tax rates higher than advertised but could lower them.

Between now and May, the budget will evolve. Economic development projects, whose assessments were not included in January 2026 values, may come online and provide additional revenue. Unfunded mandates imposed by the General Assembly could also result in changes.

As presented, said Raley, the recommended budget is balanced—revenues equal expenditures—and needs based. The total of $107,760,589 represents a 3.7 percent increase, or $3.82 million, from FY26, reflecting the expected increase in revenues, the majority of which, 51 percent, comes from general property taxes. The numbers are based on retention of the 53 cent per $100 of valuation real estate tax; 32 cent ad valorem tax for the Tuckahoe Creek Service District; and $2.99 personal property tax on vehicles.

Raley revisited the challenge of forecasting revenue streams 18 months in advance that require reconciling fiscal and calendar year assessments and tax collections. He said that there may be opportunities to consider other revenue streams including cost recovery and imposition of fees.

Every budget line was looked at and challenged to ensure that an expenditure was needed and used in the most effective way to achieve strategic goals. Raley said that $3,407,508 in “strategic abandonment” that included renegotiation of copier leases, contracted professional services, reduction in the number of parks and rec events, computer and equipment supplies. (See the presentation for complete list) Those funds were applied elsewhere.

People deliver local government services. New positions included are an information technology director and two dispatchers for the Sheriff’s Office: three fire-rescue positions. Requested but not funded in the proposal include 8 fire-rescue positions; a human resources analyst; a data integration and cyber security analyst for information technology; an environmental inspector and three parks and rec employees.

Personnel costs include a three percent summative raise and the county picking up the entire ten percent increase in health insurance increases; and overtime across all departments and pay raises for election workers.

The proposed local transfer to schools is $31,429,844 overall $46,510,052 pending action by the supervisors and General Assembly. Our school division will present its budget to the board on March 3. The school board and supervisors will hold a joint budget work session on March 17.

Strategic realignment of functions and departments for greater efficiency were also discussed.

Raley turned to the utility $43.5 million budget, which is separate from the county budget and funded with user and connection fees. $16.9 million in bond proceeds will be used to build the Ridgefield booster pump station. Proposed three percent increases in utility rates for residential and commercial and a 2.5 per cent in connection fees would cover increased costs.  New positions, capital improvements, and debt service are in the proposed utility budget. A chart comparing utility rates with those in neighboring counties showed that Goochland’s are in line or a bit lower. (Go to https://www.goochlandva.us/m/newsflash/home/detail/1373 for details.)

These excellent charts, graphs, and numbers tell us that houses do not pay their own way and the county needs more economic development to fund core services. This proposed budget illustrates the importance of the 70/30 commercial to residential revenue ratio.

The supervisors commented Raley on the thoroughness of his recommended budget. They asked that a list of items not funded be prioritized so that when an economic development project comes online revenue it generates can be put to a specific use.

In the coming weeks, pencils will be sharpened, citizen input will be solicited, and midnight oil will be burned to arrive at the final FY27 budget. Stay tuned and be involved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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