On Wednesday, June 10, Goochland supervisors held a
special called meeting.
County Administrator John Budesky welcomed the public.
“We missed you,” he said. “While our doors were closed, we were working hard.
Now in phase two (of Covid 19 restrictions) things look different. We are in
the people business. Our work is much more rewarding when we can see who we are
dealing with.”
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| Distancing and masks are "the new normal" for public meetings in Goochland. |
He commended Commissioner of the Revenue Jennifer
Brown and her staff for keeping Goochland’s DMV Select open during the
lockdown. Our DMV Select was one of a handful statewide that remained
operational, crafting work around procedures to serve the public while observing
Covid 19 precautions.
Budesky announced that on Monday, June 15, the new
animal shelter will open to the public. The facility contains tributes to
the old shelter and the late Rebecca T. Dickson, who envisioned the public-private
partnership with Goochland Pet Lovers that made the shelter a reality. The old building,
said Budesky, served the county for over 33 years in a space about the size of
the new shelter’s lobby.
The Animal Protection Department, explained Budesky, expected
to be in temporary quarters at the Central High Complex for only 6 months and
has been there for about a year and a half. The rise in adoptions during the
Covid 19 quarantine nearly emptied the shelter of adoptable pets, which will
simply the move to the new home. A
second dog park at Hidden Rock Park will soon be open too.
A virtual tour of the new shelter will be available on
Monday as well as a 360-degree tour. Social distancing and limited capacity
will apply to visitors.
Derek Stamey,
Deputy County Administrator for Operations, was appointed Interim County
Administrator and Clerk of the Board effective July 1. He will act as the
county’s chief executive officer while the supervisors conduct a search for a
successor to Budesky, who leaves Goochland on June 30. Stamey will be vested
with all powers and duties of a county administrator as described in state law.
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| Derek Stamey |
Stamey began his employment with Goochland as Director
of Parks, Recreation, and Facilities Management in 2009 as the county sought to
consolidate and streamline operations during the great recession. In December
2016, he was named Deputy County Administrator for Operations. In that role, Stamey
oversees animal protection; general services; parks and recreation; the
Goochland Extension Office; and major capital construction.
In June 2019, Stamey was awarded the Marcia Mashaw
Outstanding Assistant Award by the Virginia Local Government Management
Association (VLGMA) in recognition of several accomplishments. VLGMA is a
non-profit, non-partisan organization composed primarily of city, town, and
county managers and key members of their management teams. These include his leadership
role in renovating and restoring the Central High School Cultural and
Educational Complex.
Board Chair Susan Lascolette, District 1, said that
the supervisors have confidence that the county is in good hands with Stamey’s
leadership.
Stamey said “I want to express what an honor and privilege
it is to serve this board and citizens. I’ve come to know this county as a wonderful
place to serve. We have an unbelievable staff of wonderful talented individuals.
I look forward to work with this staff, our constitutional officers and our counterparts
in the schools to keep Goochland steady and on the right track.”
The supervisors authorized the county administrator to
execute a contract with Blakemore Construction for a change order not to exceed
$268,000 to finalize construction on roads in the Bridgewater
subdivision.
May this be the final step on a long road to correct
issues resulting from an oversight that allowed a road bond for the subdivision
to lapse before construction was completed. According to staff, many “robust discussions
have been held about the situation with VDOT—the state agency whose motto is
“Oops!—, which was likened to “Lucy with the football” refusing to accept
changes it required. In addition to county funds, a service district was
created to collect part of the cost to bring the roads into the state system on
all Bridgewater property owners. Policies and procedures have been put into
place to ensure that such a lapse will never again occur.
Announcement of a new broadband initiative for western
Goochland, the main event, was moved to the back of the agenda because a
presenter was caught in traffic.
Last September, Goochland County announced a ten-step
initiative to bring hi speed internet to the entire county, which was never considered
to be a “one size fits all” endeavor. (See broadband
initiative focusing on 10 Steps to Broadband Internet Initiatives (PDF) for details.)
Budesky said that Covid 19 made providing access to
broadband for the entire county more urgent than ever. In recent months, local enterprises
have been brining broadband to underserved parts of Goochland. These include
Evan Weiner of Hosted Backbone (https://www.hostedbackbone.net/) who
brought internet to the Crozier area and
continues to expand service, and Stan Corn of BOIP (https://myboip.com/) who is helping residents in
other parts of the county get wireless internet access.
Goochland recently joined Central Virginia Electric Coop
(CVEC) with an announcement that the utility will bring broadband to about 800
of its customers in the west end of the county in the very near future. For
some time, Goochland has searched for solid partners to bring affordable high-speed
internet to underserved rural areas.
Gary Wood of CVEC and Melissa Gay, Dennis Reese general
manager of Firefly Fiber Broadband were in attendance. Wood thanked the county
staff, supervisors and Economic Development Authority for their input and
cooperation.
Wood explained that CVEC was formed in 1937 to provide
essential utilities in rural and sparsely populated markets. It touches parts
of 14 counties, does not seek to make profits, but must break even in its
operations. (see https://www.mycvec.com/)
To deliver better electric service CVEC, needs hi-speed
internet communication throughout its service area, but cannot afford to build
it only for that purpose. Offering internet to its customers improves electric service
and helps offset cost of infrastructure, which Wood estimated at $120 million.
All CVEC customers will have internet access by the end of 2022, if all goes
well. These include Goochland customers
in the Carterville and Shannon Hill areas. (See the video for a map of the proposed
expansion areas. These fall into different categories, depending on funding
sources. GOMM will share this when it becomes available.)
Under Virginia law, electric coops are not permitted to sell
internet services or own fiber outside their service areas but may form
subsidiaries to do so. A wholly owned subsidiary of CVEC, Firefly (https://www.fireflyva.com/) fills that
role outside CVEC service area.
(See https://www.cooperative.com/news/pages/new-virginia-law-aids-electric-co-ops-building-broadband.aspx
for an article discussing how removal of regulatory road blocks helps this expansion.)
The proposed grant application partnership between Goochland
and Firefly will create a mechanism to bring broadband to approximately 75 to
80 percent of unserved areas. This is a massive project projected to cover
about one quarter of Goochland homes.
Budesky said that a lot of time and effort, especially by
Paul Drumwright, who runs point on the issue, has been put in by staff to
identify solid partners for broadband expansion. Goochland was careful in this
process.
To view the entire presentation, go to https://www.goochlandva.us/943/Video-of-Past-BOS-Meetings
beginning at about the 18 minute mark.
Wood said that there is a “plan B’ to secure financing for
the project if the grant is not secured, which could delay buildout beyond the
current time frame.
Firefly has no service contracts, no exit fee, costs per
month are 100 megabit per second up and down $49.99; 1 gigabit per second,
$79.99. Wood said it is important to keep the monthly costs in the $50 dollar
range to serve the rural demographic. It will also offer voice over internet
(VOIP). A $100 installation fee will be waived for customers who sign up during
construction. CVEC customers will have no additional cost to bring service to
the house. If the grant is secured, Firefly customers will not have a
connection cost. Wood said that the presence of fiber backhaul can also improve
cell phone service.
In Goochland, Wood explained, there will be different
funding sources including grants, loans. Firefly will need to finance
approximately $2.5 million. Wood said he wants to explore this with the EDA,
which has met in closed session at its recent meetings, presumably to discuss
the Firefly proposal.
Wood asked residents who want to support the grant to visit https://www.usda.gov/reconnect and weigh
in on the matter. “We believe that there are fewer than ten percent of homes in
western Goochland served by hi speed internet, but it never hurts to have
people who need the service confirm the need.”
Stay tuned, this looks like the real deal, at long last.
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