After its marathon September 3 session, Goochland supervisors
gathered at the Central High School Cultural and Educational Center on Monday,
September 9 for a mix of activities.
Broadband expansion initiative
First up was County Administrator John Budesky’s announcement
of the Goochland Broadband initiative. Go to http://www.goochlandva.us/1012/Goochland-County---Broadband-Internet
the new county website dedicated to the subject.
You will find a wealth of information, including debunking widely held “truths”,
FAQ section, and all work done to date on broadband expansion. The task is not
a one size fits all proposition and may well include a combination of methods
to get everyone connected.
The county will commit approximately one half million
dollars in investments for long and short-term initiatives to expand broadband
access and leverage a previous $1.6 million investment in fiber and towers to
make this happen. Potential providers will be asked to prioritize their efforts
in areas currently not served by broadband.
In the short run hot spots will be expanded at soon as
January 2020 at all fire-rescue stations; the Central High School Complex; the
library, and Reynolds Community College. Locations will be mapped to help
citizens find them. Efforts will also be made to partner with local businesses
to “promote hot spot sites and expand internet accessibility.” (We miss Java
Jodi’s.)
Budesky pointed out that in Virginia, broadband internet is
not regulated, therefore the county cannot regulate its delivery to citizens.
Indeed, the Code of Virginia has more references to telegraph than internet.
Goochland, declared Budesky, has an open-door policy to all internet providers.
It is not true, he said, that the county stopped Verizon and Comcast from
expanding. Those companies are partners in the expansion and representatives
were in the room as the announcement was made.
A list of broadband and cellular providers and contact
information and an interactive forum to share problems with these providers
with the county is also on the broadband website.
One third of the time of Administrative Services Manager Paul
Drumwright will be devoted to the task. He will be liaison with providers and address
and partner with others in county administration, including community and
economic development, to explore any and all opportunities to expand broadband
to all parts of Goochland through partnership with providers as soon as
possible.
The county will “invest” $50,000 in a comprehensive study to
define focus areas and time frames to accomplish explosion efforts. The
Governor’s Chief Broadband advisor Evan Feinman
was present for the announcement.
Accurate mapping and speed
tests to determine which areas have service of adequate speed will help
possible provides determine if their proposed solutions will work in a
particular place, explained Budesky. Broadband expansion will not be a “one
size fts all” proposition. There are no easy answers or quick solutions.
Budesky also announced that
the county Economic Development Agency (EDA) will provide up to $200,000 for
grants, matches, or provider incentives. Other monetary incentives and tax
rebates—paid only after infrastructure is in place and active—will be
available.
Why now? New technologies
and providers, including a subsidiary of Central Virginia Electric Coop that is
expanding broadband throughout its service area for company use and proposed a cost
share with localities that includes broadband access. This would serve Goochland
in the Cartersville Road area and the Broad Street Road corridor roughly
between Shannon Hill Road and east of Hadensville (see page 107 of the September
3 board packet for a map)
The supervisors have long rejected the notion of the county getting
into the internet business, contending that private providers are better able
to keep up with changing technology. They have also carefully vetted proposals
to bring broadband to underserved parts of Goochland to avoid making significant
investments with no return as has happened in other jurisdictions.
This is a complicated subject. Please take the time to visit
the broadband website and explore all its details.
Legislative Agenda
Virginia is a Dillon Rule state, which means that localities,
like Goochland, have only those powers specifically ceded to them by the
Commonwealth. The General Assembly wades
through a lot of legislation during its short sessions and far too often crafts
laws that are difficult to understand and apply. A good relationship with our
delegation to the General Assembly—22nd District Senator Mark Peake;
and Delegated Lee Ware, 56th District, and John McGuire, 65th
District—helps makes sure that Goochland’s voice is heard in the legislature.
Each year, the county compiles a “legislative agenda” listing
issues they would like addressed. At the top of the 2020 agenda is broadband expansion
Peake said that he and Ware carried successful licensure and
other education related bills to put the decision under the control the school
division and worked on bills to return tax dollars to citizens.
Ware appreciates the “early start” that Goochland gives them
before the legislative session. Recent actions tweaked the proffer legislation
to let localities go forward.
He explained that Virginia needed to fine tune
things to calibrate with federal tax cuts. Strong economy revenues increase thanks
that natural growth of private business. Sales tax and private income tax are positive
signs of a strong economy. Funding for the state’s share of the five percent
raise for teaches we significant and going forward, funding for support positions
needs to be restored to prerecession levels. Casino and online gambling, he
explained, could reduce state income derived form the lottery, which is distributed
to state schools.
Ware also said that he has carried bills for years to
reimburse localities for expenses of the electoral board and registrar.
Peake said that funding for counselors who deal with an increase
in psychological issues and stronger funding for the Virginia Retirement System is important.
He commanded Goochland for being proactive bills during and before the General Assembly
session.
McGuire, who now lives in Goochland, said that he prefers
fewer regulations and less government. He said he take to heart the admonition
from Goochland Supervisors against unfunded mandates—actions required by the
Commonwealth that localities are forced to pay for—when he looks at legislation.
McGuire said that he was pleased that a five percent pay raise for teachers happened
last year and hoped for more in the coming year. He said that the germ of the
ideas he had for legislation came from Goochland.
A staff member from Abigail Spanberger, who represents the 7th
District, which includes Goochland, in the United States House of Representatives,
was also present and listened attentively to the discussion.
Budesky thanked the delegation for their access. He said
that Drumwright and County Attorney Tara McGee are “downtown” often to provide Goochland
input on pending legislation.
Over the years, county and schools’ staff have worked with
the delegation to get laws passed favorable to the county and helped the delegation
understand the unintended consequences of proposed legislation.
Broadband expansion the top of the county’s wish list. Less regulation
about things like easement for utility rights-of-way and greater cooperation will
help Goochland’s efforts in this area.
Restoration of funding for the extension agent—no agriculture,
no rural—to help farmers succeed was second.
Reimbursement for the electoral board and the registrar,
which the county has requested for a decade and, according to Electoral Board Secretary
Robin Lind, the Code of Virginia sates that the electoral board shall be
reimbursed for its expenses. Ware introduced a budget amendment to restore the reimbursement
to 100 percent, which was ignored. Lind also thanked McGee and her staff for obtaining
the court order to return misplaced voters to Goochland.
Ware said that elections are a fundamental enterprise of a
democratic republic it makes sense that they need to be reimbursed for making
it happen.
District 5 Supervisor Ken Peterson asked the delegation to support
fiscally responsible government. Businesses seeking to relocate, said Peterson,
look at a state first, then localities. If the state is managed badly, it has a
negative impact on localities no matter how well they are governed.
School Board Chairperson John Wright District 5 said that
Goochland wants to keep its state dollars home and do not want them redistributed.
It opposes creation of regional charter schools governed by a separate school
board appointed by the state board of education.
Goochland opposes creation of parental choice educational
savings account, which Wright believes are unconstitutional. He asked for legislation
that would require school divisions to report both a letter and a specific
numerical value earned by each student on all official transcripts.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jeremy Ramey said that Standards of Quality, which were established in 1974, do not
mesh with today’s realities. Revisions need to be made in scope and funding.
The 2020 GA session is hard to predict at this point because
no one knows who will be in control until after the November elections. Both
Peake and Ware opined that the cost of Medicaid expansion will be substantial and
a budget driver. Peake cautioned that an economic downturn is coming, and the
next state budget must take that into consideration. Ware expects the proffer
discussion to continue.
River Run Manor Decision
The supervisors reconvened their meeting to continue
deliberations about the conditional use permit for a place of public assembly
with transient lodging—event venue with bed and breakfast—for River Run Manor
in Maidens. They spent another couple of hours discussing the conditions with
the applicant River Run Manor, LLC represented by a principal Kim Moody, and
neighbors of the lavish estate.
John Lumpkins, District 3 observed that the application seemed
rushed. The county seems to have bent over backwards to accommodate the schedule
of the applicant, who needed the CUP before a closing originally set for the previous
week but extended until after September 9.
Moody contended that she and her family intend to be good
neighbors and that the county should essentially trust her. Susan Lascolette
District 1 pointed out that any condition not expressed in writing as part of
the CUP could be ignored, or not observed by subsequent owners.
As approved unanimously by the supervisors, in addition to originally expressed conditions, the CUP: prohibits discharge of firearms during all CUP activities; excludes activities
on Christmas Eve, Christmas, and Easter; limits outdoor amplification of music
to four hours that must end by 10 p.m. and be directed toward the river and
away from all occupied dwellings; and
limits the events to 40 per year, which may include accessory activities such
as a rehearsal dinner or post wedding brunch for up to 85 people.
No CUP activities may occur until a plan of development is
approved and the site is brought into compliance with health, building, and
fire codes.
Governing is complicated and detailed. Supervisors must act
in the best interest of all citizens.
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