EAGLES SWEEP DOUBLEHEADER: The Fauquier-Liberty rivalry renewed with two spirited hoops games last week.
Sports, Page 11
December 26, 2018
Our 201st year | Vol. 201, No. 52 | www.Fauquier.com | $1.50
Planning Commision backs addiction recovery center By Robin Earl
Times Staff Writer
Ali, as Shirley. It’s been nominated for five Golden Globe awards. The 6 ½- by 5-inch, 82-page, paperback Green Book was first published in 1936 by New Yorker Victor H. Green (1892-1960), hence the name. Green gave up his job as a mailman to print and sell the popular annual directory, which offered a valuable and occasionally life-saving information in an era of Jim Crow prejudices and practices, particularly in the South.
The Fauquier County Planning Commission voted unanimously Thursday to recommend the board of supervisors approve a special-exception permit to allow a “spiritual wellness retreat” focused addiction recovery to operate in a home near Airlie. To be known as the Herren Wellness Retreat at Twin Oaks. The retreat would host a maximum of 24 guests and a staff of 20 in a 11,700-square-foot, nine-bedroom, single-family home and adjacent two-bedroom guest cottage at 6791 James Madison Highway, two miles north of Warrenton. Chris Herren, a former NBA basketball star and recovering addict, has a nonprofit – the Herren Project – and runs a similar recovery-treatment facility in Massachusetts. PATH has a contract to purchase the property; Herren Wellness would operate the facility. The location allows access to walking trails, a tennis court and pool. Licensed and certified holistic practitioners would offer meditation yoga, reiki, mindfulness, exercise and individual and group life-coaching. Herren focuses on “spiritual and personal growth as part of the path to recovery, employing innovation, prevention, treatment and recovery solutions that empower individuals,” according to its permit application. Most speakers at the planning commission’s Dec. 20 public hearing spoke in favor of the project. Most said they agreed an addiction-recovery option in Fauquier is necessary and desirable, but some who live adjacent to the proposed center expressed reservations. Leon Bushara, who lives on 150 acres adjacent to the property, said he is concerned the move would “create a precedent” of embedding a commercial activity in the area. “It’s not about the mission, it’s a zoning and planning issue,” he said. Kimberly Head, who lives on 40 acres near the proposed center, said she was not informed about the plan and has concerns about water issues and traffic safety. “We have worked hard to keep the area open and rural,” she said. Head noted the center would be a selfpay facility, would be “expensive” and its services not covered by insurance. “I’m not sure how it would immediately benefit our community,” she said.
See GREEN BOOK, Page 4
See RECOVERY CENTER , Page 4
From the pages of the ‘Green Book’ PHOTOS BY VICKY MOON
Robert Walker, 85, maintains his father’s barber business now at 23 S. 3rd St., which was listed in the Green Book. At right, copy of the 1954 Green Book.
Movie shines a spotlight on businesses in the segragated South – including Warrenton By Vicky Moon
Contributing Writer
The current hit movie “Green Book” has high-octane Golden Globe and Oscar buzz. The film, based on a true story, also has a little-known connection to Warrenton. “Green Book” is the story of Dr. Don Shirley, an eccentric and talented black concert pianist based in New York City. In 1962, he set out on a performing tour in the Deep South, accompanied by his white, wise-cracking, Bronx-born Italian-American driver known as INSIDE Business...............................................9 Classified............................................28 Communities......................................22 Faith...................................................20
Tony “Lip” Vallelonga. They use the real-life Green Book,“The Negro Traveler’s Guide to Travel and Vacations,” to find restaurants, lodgings and businesses that served African-Americans, as many did not at the time. Along their journey, the two companions’ initially stand-offish relationship transforms into a deep and eventual friendship that transcends race, class and the Mason-Dixon line. Currently screening in theaters, the film is directed by Peter Farrelly and stars Viggo Mortensen, as Vallelonga, and Mahershala
Health and Wellness............................15 Lifestyle..............................................17 News....................................................2 Opinion.................................................7
Obituaries...........................................25 Puzzles.................................................8 Real Estate..........................................21 Sports.................................................11