Inside A3 Board tries to make dent in debt
Powhatan, Virginia B1 Powhatan completes rally to defeat Cosby
Vol. XXX No. 14
April 5, 2017
Board advertises 90 cent tax rate By Laura McFarland
ery and tools (M&T) tax rate. Leaving the M&T tax rate the same meant the board had $170,789 less that it needed to find in cuts to fund the real estate rate they said they want. OWHATAN – The Powhatan County Board of SuDuring the March 29 meeting, county administrator Pat pervisors voted last week to advertise the county’s Weiler had to informally poll all five supervisors to learn what real estate tax rate numbers the majority of the for fiscal year 2018 board members wanted to at 90 cents with several board advertise. members saying they wanted Advertising the rates to use the time before the rate does not bind the board to is scheduled to be adopted on ultimately choose those April 24 to figure out how to numbers. However, once a reduce it by 1.5 cents. rate is advertised, the superThe board spent almost visors can still vote to go two hours on Wednesday, lower than that amount, but March 29 discussing which they can’t go above it. parts of the fiscal year (FY) A public hearing will be 2018 budget they were in held at the board’s meeting support of funding and where on Monday, April 17, and they might want to make the supervisors are set to PHOTO BY LAURA MCFARLAND cuts. The budget was adver- Powhatan County Board of supervisors members and vote on them on April 24. tised at $81 million, which is county staff discuss the fiscal year 2018 budget numThe informal vote on dethe total including schools bers the supervisors want to advertise to the public. ciding to advertise the real but without transfers. estate tax rate at 90 cents The board started talking was four-one in favor of it, last fall about trying to adopt a budget that could handle an 88.5 with only Larry Nordvig, who represents District 2, voting cent real estate tax rate and a 50 percent reduction in the coun- against it. He proposed advertising an 89.5 cent tax rate since ty’s machinery and tools tax rate to attract more businesses. the board knew it wasn’t going to be offsetting the M&T tax However, the board voted unanimously on Monday, March rate decrease, but none of the other supervisors supported that 27 to adopt the calendar year 2017 personal property tax rates proposal. see TAX, pg. 5 at the same amount they were in 2016, including the machinNews Editor
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Powhatan hires new county administrator By Laura McFarland News Editor
Mary Franklin, center, holding her son, was honored as the county’s first Telecommunicator of the Year by the board of supervisors.
911 dispatcher recognized for her service By Laura McFarland News Editor
POWHATAN – Powhatan County emergency 911 dispatcher Mary Franklin was honored last week as the county’s first Telecommunicator of the Year. Franklin and some of her peers in Powhatan’s 911 center were already honored by the board at its meeting on Monday, March 27 as part of recognizing National Telecommunicator Week, which is held from April 9 to 15. However, Franklin was then singled out for her dedication and commitment to her profession in 2016 in a resolution read by Angie Cabell, who represents District 3. Franklin, who has been a county employee since January 2008, acceptsee DISPATCHER, pg. 2
Development approved for Manakintown Ferry Road
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POWHATAN – Ted Voorhees was named on March 30 as the new county administrator for Powhatan County and is set to begin work on May 1. Voorhees will succeed retiring county administrator Pat Weiler, who will work until April 30 and then retire to spend more time with family. Voorhees brings more than 25 years of local government experience in Virginia and North Carolina, having held leadership positions in both large municipalities and small towns. He has worked in the private sector for the last eight months, but before that he worked
about four years as the city manager of large and small jurisdictions. Fayetteville, North Carolina. Although “I think the idea is I can use my exhe said he has enjoyed his perience in smaller places to work in the private sector understand how important it with a consulting firm, he reis to build strong relationally missed working in local ships and how we honor government, which has been where we are and the heritage his passion his entire career. of our communities,” he said. So when he began looking “At the same time we can apfor opportunities in Virginia preciate what may be down and the position in Powhatan the road for us and underCounty became available, he stand the changes that face and his wife thought it would the region, particularly from TED VOORHEES the much larger and higher be a good fit for their family. He also felt he could bring growth counties to our east to Powhatan a significant body of work and north. and experience in the local government “I think that blend of experience and over more than 20 years, including both see ADMINISTRATOR, pg. 10
PHOTO BY LAURA MCFARLAND
CAMERON PALMORE
By Laura McFarland News Editor
POWHATAN – The Powhatan County Board of Supervisors last week approved in a split vote the development of a new 90-acre private gated community on Manakintown Ferry Road that also drew opposition from some of its future neighbors. During the board’s meeting on Monday, March 27, the supervisors voted three-two in favor of the rezoning of a 90.4-
DAVID GEORGE
TOM SPEVAK
WILL BRAITHWAITE
acre parcel owned by Huguenot Woods LLC from agricultural to rural residential. The developer has proposed dividing the land into 14 lots ranging in size from 5 to 9 acres. Chairman Bill Melton, who represents District 4; David Williams, District 1, and Angie Cabell, District 3, voted to approve the rezoning. Larry Nordvig, District 2, and Carson Tucker, District 5, voted against it. Cameron Palmore with Balzer and Associates repre-
sented the applicant at the meeting. Additionally, nine members of the public spoke during a public hearing on the matter, either directly opposing the development or voicing concerns about problems that could be associated with it. Many of them were from the King William Woods subdivision, which is adjacent to part of the land approved for rezoning. The split vote among the board members came after 80 minutes of discussion, ques-
tioning and debating the different points on the issue, with input from the supervisors, county administration, the public and representation for the developer.
Issue at hand Bret Schardein, the county’s director of community development, presented the application to the supervisors, which was recommended unanimously by the Powhatan see DEVELOPMENT pg. 9
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