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Colonial Beach • Westmoreland
Volume 38, Number 16
helping you relate to your community
W&L's Andrea Roane granted a continuance on DWI charges
Batten down the hatches buddy!
The principal of Washington & Lee High School has requested and received a continuance of her Westmoreland County General District Court appearance on charges of drunk driving and use of a handheld device while driving. Andrea Roane, 40, had been scheduled in court to answer the charges on April 28. But Friday, her attorney, Fleet Dillard of Tappahannock, requested a continuance of the case against her, and she was given a new court date of June 24. Roane was charged after the Nissan Altima she was driving skidded off the road during a snowstorm just before midnight on Feb. 12. One of Westmoreland County's highest paid officials, Roane was charged with driving while intoxicated and use of a handheld device while driving. Westmoreland County Commonwealth's Attorney Julia Sichol announced that she had requested a special prosecutor to handle the two charges, and Northumberland Commonwealth's Attorney Jane Wrightson was selected. Wrightson did not oppose Roane's request for a continuance. Roane's car skidded off the road in February at the corner of Templemans Road and Neenah Road near the intersection of Route 3 and Route 202 in Westmoreland County. Sheriff 's officers said Roane was cooperative with officers when they arrived on the scene. Deputy Sheriffs Kim Simon and
Rafael Torres arrested Roane at the scene, and she was taken to the Northern Neck Regional Jail in Warsaw, where she was held overnight before being released on her own recognizance. Because of the message it sends to students and the community, Roane's arrest has caused a stir among parents and officials in Westmoreland County. There were seven high school principals convicted of the charge nationwide last year. All of those school principals were suspended, placed on leave while attending rehabilitation, or terminated. Roane, however, has remained on the job. Roane, a native of Westmoreland County who graduated from W&L in 1993, was named Principal of the high school at the beginning of the 2012-2013 school year. Previously, she was Principal of Essex Intermediate School in Tappahannock, where she also served as Assistant Principal for three years. Roane is a graduate of Hampton University and has a Masters Degree from George Washington University. She began her career as a special education teacher in Virginia Beach. In November 2011, Roane was elected to the Westmoreland County School Board, but she resigned her post after just six months to accept the W&L principal's position. —Richard Leggitt
Council moves ahead with $2 million bond On April 10, the Colonial Beach Town Council spent a very productive 10 minutes discussing and voting on agenda items after a 3½hour meeting. The council heard over three hours of public comments, receiving input on what the Town should do with town-owned properties, as well as a large crowd who showed up in support of fully funding the Colonial Beach School System. After the crowd thinned out and public speakers were heard, the council took care of three resolutions with uncharacteristic speed. First up was Resolution 30-14 Funding Commitment for the 2014 Jet Ski Event. The Chamber of Commerce has hosted the event for the last four years, paying the majority of the costs and the Town has kicked in $5,000 each year plus services such as police patrol, portapotties, when needed, and cleanup. Last year, the Town passed Resolution 06-13, authorizing the contract between the Chamber and Upstate Water Promotions, but the resolution did not address the Town’s portion of funding. At the April 10 council meeting, Councilman Pete Bone motioned to table the resolution, which would kick in $5,000 again this year towards the event, until the April budget work session. However, Councilman Jim Chiarello argued that, “The Jet Ski event has been building up a lot of momentum, the after effects of which are really important. What the Chamber does and how it works the network of people and the following
that goes through with the Jet Ski event; we’re broadcast on a number of TV channels all across the country. That is worth its weight in gold. You can’t always equate things to dollars and cents. It’s something that we should do.” Chiarello added, “We don’t invest in tourism, and this is a good way to do that.” The motion passed with a vote of five to one, with Councilwoman Linda Brubaker voting against. Councilwoman Wanda Goforth was unable to attend the meeting. Resolution 31-14 amends the fiscal year 2013-2014 Town budget. The school system received an insurance payment from Vacorp of $100,000 to help with moving expenses and cleanup at the elementary school campus after the fire on Jan. 5. Since all money must flow through the Town’s budget and bank account, the money must be appropriated into the budget by an amendment. It can then be allocated to the School to be used. Resolution 32-14 authorized the Town Manager to continue to seek funding for a bond totaling $2,121,163. The Council has been discussing securing a bond to cover School expenses for the elementary school move, as well as repairs to the high school and campus. A majority of the Council has insisted the School put up unused property as collateral. At the April 9 School Board meeting, the board voted to pass a resolution that would transfer deeds to the large property See Bond, page 5
Wednesday, April 16, 2014 50 Cents
Town Council considers a .25 cent increase in real estate taxes
Leonard Banks
With safety in mind, members of a Westmoreland based softball team attempt to safely secure a player’s catcher’s mask prior to a baseball game during the Westmoreland Little League opening day festivities.
Safety on the minds of students Several citizens, teachers and school staff turned out on Tuesday to speak at the Town Council meeting on April 10 to compel the council to approve funding for the high school repairs. School Superintendent Kathleen Beane announced to the council that the School had a large contingent of parents and staff. Beane said the council’s budget work session scheduled for Tuesday, April 15 would run during spring break. She asked the council to keep that evening’s comments in mind during the public hearing on budget matters when they discuss the School. Many of the speakers focused on maintenance funding to bring the school’s safety features up to date, as well as repairs to doors and windows that pose a safety risk. See safety, page 5
Linda Farneth
During a long budget work session held on April 15 the council wrapped up discussions after almost five hours by discussing the possibility of advertising a 25-cent real estate tax increase. The council has the option to reduce that amount, but by law cannot go higher than advertised. The council recessed the budget work session until April 23 at 10 a.m. to allow for public input and to try to find other funding sources to reduce that amount. The matter will have to be duly advertised, public hearings conducted and an official vote taken before the increase will take effect. The increase is in response to the school needs created by the recent fire and several maintenance issues at the high school. The increase will help to also fund the school which has been hit hard this year with an almost $400,000 revenue shortfall from government sources. The local jurisdiction must pick up the costs or the school system will be forced to cut its budget further. The schools budget is already cut to the max according to school officials and the added expenses of moving the elementary campus to the high school campus along with repairs is putting a strain on the town’s budget. According to Town Finance Director Joan Grant the council had not given the Town Clerk instructions to place the advertisement yet, holding off the official decision to advertise the increase. —Linda Farneth
Veronica Reynolds holds up a poster from her students who are concerned with safety in the school.
School Board agrees to turn over school property
In case you missed it
Linda Farneth
The lunar eclipse, the first of four consecutive lunar eclipses, began around 1 a.m. and lasted well into the morning past 5:30 a.m. The moon turned a bright red between 3:07 a.m. and 4:25 a.m. The total eclipse lasted more than 70 minutes. The eclipse is the first of four “blood moons” which will be visible in North America. The next events will be Oct. 8, April 4, 2015 and Sept. 28, 2015.
At their Regular School Board Meeting, the Colonial Beach School Board voted to pass a resolution that would transfer the deed to the large property at 315 Douglas Ave, currently known as the elementary school campus. The deed resolution will transfer the property to the Town of Colonial Beach on or before September 30, 2014, after all Virginia Code requirements have been met, and with the stipulation that any and all insurance settlements from the elementary school building fire of January 5, 2014 are complete. The resolution is in response to the Colonial Beach Town Council’s demand for collateral in exchange for funding costs associated with the elementary school’s move to the high school campus and
To sell or not to sell? That was not the question Several members of the public turned out to speak at the April 10 Town Council meeting giving their approval or disapproval concerning the sale of town-owned properties. However, after a long meeting, Councilman Pete Bone told the public that that was not the question. The Colonial Beach Town Council solicited “public input” by newspaper advertisement and emails on the issue of “marketing the following town-owned properties: Eleanor
See School, page 5
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May 3rd, 2014
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See sell, page 5