INSIDE Alvarez honored for service as interim county administrator > page 5
Volume 66 Number 27 • July 14, 2022
New fee will cover electronic summons system By Roslyn Ryan Editor
Running afoul of the law in Goochland County is about to get a little more expensive. On July 6, county supervisors approved a local ordinance change that will allow for an additional $5 fee to be added to the costs faced by those convicted in any criminal or traffic case in which local law enforcement charges a violation of any statute or ordinance. The new fee will be used to support an electronic summons system that local law enforcement officials say will help increase both efficiency and accuracy for deputies in the field. The change was requested by Goochland County sheriff Steven Creasey, and mirrors the system already used by the Virginia State Police. While the ordinance change was approved unanimously by the board, board chairman Neil Spoonhower admitted he’d initially had a hard time embracing the idea see Fee > page 2
Inside the lines A look back at the county’s long, strange road to redistricting and why some local voters still feel left out By Roslyn Ryan Editor
I
t isn’t unusual for Goochland County general registrar Ryan Mulligan’s office phone to ring early and often on days when local voters head to the polls. The morning of June 21, however, was different: the residents on the other end of the line were upset because they had showed up to vote in the primary and were unable to cast their ballot. The reason for this was simple: Like many residents of Goochland, the voters calling Mulligan that day did not realize that the recent redistricting process, which concluded on April 15 when the new county voting maps officially took effect, had moved all Goochland voters from the 7th district into the 5th district, which did not hold a primary that day. But while the explanation given to those vexed voters was relatively straightforward—they had the right day, just the wrong district—the event was part of a longer and far more complicated narrative, one that begins with pandemic-related 2020 census delays and includes a post card mailed to all county voters that left many confused and concerned.
Looking for your notice? While all county voters received a postcard in June with recent voting changes, those cards did not reflect some voters’ new information. According to Goochland County registrar Ryan Mulligan, any resident whose precinct or polling place has changed will be getting a second postcard in the mail before this year’s November election.
see Redistricting > page 3
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County to seek input on plan for Centerville Contributed report Goochland residents will have the chance tonight (Thursday) to offer input on the future of Centerville and what changes they would—and wouldn’t—like to see moving forward. After postponing the meeting several weeks ago, the county is hosting the community input session at 7 p.m. at Grace Chinese Baptist Church, located at 850 Broad Street Road, Manakin Sabot, VA 23103. This meeting will include a short presentation of the initial draft concept of the plan. Interactive polling will also be conducted during the meeting. Attendees are asked to bring a smart phone or tablet to participate. For those unable to attend in-person, the meeting can be streamed via zoom at the following link: https://us02web. zoom.us/j/84022369819?pwd= UIPTcKhpGLum3TwKIhCeZ ad_bZUJMy.1. Zoom participants are encouraged to have two devices, one for streaming and one to participate in the interactive poll. For more information visit www.goochlandva.us/VillagePlans2022. For questions or comments on the Centerville Village, contact centervilleplan22@goochlandva.us or call (804) 556-5840.