Army Corps green-lights James River Water Project; Youngkin blocks bills to give localities another tool to fund school construction; Fundraising tight in Good-McGuire matchup

Engage Louisa is a nonpartisan newsletter that keeps folks informed about Louisa County government. We believe our community is stronger and our government serves us better when we increase transparency, accessibility, and engagement.

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Quiet coming week for public meetings

For the latest information on county meetings including public meetings of boards, commissions, authorities, work groups, and internal county committees, click here. (Note: Louisa County occasionally schedules internal committee/work group meetings after publication time. Check the county’s website for the most updated information).

According to Louisa County’s website, there are no public meetings scheduled for the week of April 22 through April 27.

Additional information about Louisa County’s upcoming public meetings is available here.

Interested in taking your talents to one of the county’s numerous boards and commissions? Find out more here including which boards have vacancies and how to apply.

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James River Water Project gets permit from Army Corps of Engineers

A long-awaited water line linking the James River to Ferncliff took a major step forward last week. 

The James River Water Authority, a joint endeavor between Louisa and Fluvanna counties, on Monday received a key permit from the Army Corps of Engineers (COE), clearing the way for construction of the James River Water Project.

The project, which has been more than a decade in the making and riddled with controversy and delays, includes a raw water intake and pump station on the banks of the James and a four-mile stretch of pipeline to connect it to an existing water main just north of Route 6 in southern Fluvanna. 

When complete—likely by the spring of 2027—the infrastructure will enable JRWA to pull millions of gallons of raw water from the river, which will be channeled to a water treatment plant at Ferncliff and, for Louisa County’s purposes, on to development at Ferncliff, Zion Crossroads and Shannon Hill. 

The water line will relieve Louisa of its dependence on a handful of publicly owned wells, which have supported commercial and residential growth at Zion for more than two decades. It will also supply the water necessary to develop the Shannon Hill Regional Business Park.

The project is expected to cost $45.6 million, split between Louisa and Fluvanna.  Louisa has already spent some $40 million on the Ferncliff treatment plant and a 13-mile stretch of water line across Fluvanna. Both have sat idle as JRWA has struggled to secure the permits necessary to complete its portion of the infrastructure. 

County Administrator Christian Goodwin and JRWA Chairman D.D. Watson, who serves as Louisa’s citizen representative on the authority’s board, welcomed the news that the Corps had cleared the way for the project’s construction. 

“The permit is a significant milestone in the years of responsible effort by the JRWA to ensure that our region can rely on a much-needed and sustainable source of water for citizens,” Goodwin said in an email. “We enjoy a strong relationship with our neighbors in Fluvanna and look forward to completing the project with them.”

Watson said that both counties had put in considerable work to obtain the permit and he’s excited to see the project move forward.

“Everybody is so elated because it [took] so long and every corner we turned it was one more thing we needed, one more thing we needed,” Watson said. “You can’t make much of a move without the Corps of Engineers signing off on it, so once they did, we are ready to take the next step.” 

In securing the Corps’ approval, JRWA cleared a hurdle that has stalled the project for at least six years. In 2018, the authority applied to build the intake and pump station at the confluence of the James and Rivanna rivers—a site that’s believed to be Rassawek, the ancestral capital of the Monacan Indian Nation.  JRWA officials said they chose the site largely because it was the cheapest place to build the infrastructure. 

But the Monacan staunchly opposed the location, citing concerns that their ancestors are buried in the area. The tribe’s resistance stymied the permitting process and, four years later, prompted the authority to move the intake and pump station to a new location about two miles upstream and reroute the pipeline to connect to it. In August of 2022, JRWA applied for a COE permit at the new site with the support of the Monacan. 

Though the authority agreed to relocate the project to avoid a site sacred to the Monacan, it could still impact other historic and cultural resources including archeological sites connected to the tribe, who lived along the river for centuries prior to English settlement, and remnants of the James River and Kanawha Canal, a canal system that dates to the late 18th and early 19th century.

JRWA, the Monacan, the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and other stakeholders spent the last several months crafting a plan to mitigate the project’s impact. On April 8, the groups inked a Memorandum of Agreement, which provides a roadmap for how the project must proceed with respect to cultural and historic sites. The agreement cleared the way for the COE to issue its permit. 

Watson said that the authority has built a strong relationship with the Monacan after agreeing to construct the intake and pump station at the new site. 

“I think we did the right thing. [The Monacan] are now happy. We are now happy. I think our relationship is better because we made the decision to compromise,” he said.

With the COE permit in hand, the authority is poised to begin a lengthy construction process, which requires careful choreography to balance ongoing archeological work and federal restrictions aimed at protecting wildlife.

US Fish and Wildlife Service regulations, implemented to protect the habitat of the endangered Northern Long-Eared Bat, prohibit JRWA from tree-clearing between April 1 and November 14. The service also places limits on when work can be done in the riverbed, restricting access after mussel surveys are conducted. 

“Work is expected to begin in the next few weeks on portions of the project that are not subject to remaining archeological work or species-related time-of-year restrictions,” Goodwin said. “The construction schedule has been phased to efficiently incorporate any timing constraints necessitated by the permits.”

Goodwin added that the authority is “in the final stages of obtaining a few remaining local and state approvals,” which it expects to receive in the next couple weeks. Fluvanna County Administrator Eric Dahl told his Board of Supervisors at its March 6 meeting that JRWA still needs an erosion and sediment control permit from Fluvanna County and a stormwater management permit from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. 

JRWA and Louisa County expect water to flow to Ferncliff and beyond by April 2027.

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Youngkin blocks bills to give localities another tool to pay for school construction

The Louisa County Board of Supervisors won’t get a chance to send to voters for approval a referendum to hike the local sales tax to fund school construction after Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin vetoed a pair of bills that would’ve given localities that power and the Democratic-controlled General Assembly failed to muster the votes to override the move. 

During the legislature’s reconvened session last Wednesday, the Senate fell just two votes short of the two-thirds majority required to override the governor’s veto of SB 14, carried by Sen. Jeremy McPike, a Democrat from Prince William County. After the measure faltered in the Senate, the House didn’t take up its version of the bill, patroned by Del. Sam Rasoul, a Democrat from Roanoke. 

The bills, which passed with solid bipartisan support earlier this year, would’ve empowered localities to increase the sales tax by up to one percent to fund school construction if voters approved the tax hike at the ballot box.

They were supported by a broad coalition of lawmakers from rural and urban areas, who argued that financially strapped localities need another way to raise revenue to modernize schools. A 2021 report by the Commission on School Construction and Modernization found that more than half of the state’s school buildings are at least 50 years old and replacing them would cost nearly $25 billion.

In his veto statement, the governor said that the measure could “result in a nearly $1.5 billion a year tax increase on Virginians.”

“The Commonwealth should pursue a tax policy that unleashes economic development and prioritizes job and wage growth through innovative reforms. These reforms must allow hardworking Virginians to keep more of their money, not less; any proposal that increases the cost of living and the cost of business is not a policy we should pursue,” the statement said. 

Members of Louisa’s Board of Supervisors had hoped to place a referendum on the ballot this November asking voters if they want to tack a penny on the sales tax to help cover the cost of some $62 million in school construction projects that the board plans to fund in the coming fiscal year. Those includes $29.4 million for a 500-seat addition to Louisa County Middle School and an accompanying alternative education center and $31.6 million for a 54,400-square foot career and technical education center adjacent to Louisa County High School.

County officials have said that the projects are needed, in part, to keep pace with growing enrollment. For the last two years, Louisa has ranked as the third fastest growing locality in the state, according to the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center, and it now has a population of more than 40,000. Between 2022 and 2024, the school division added 43 students, according to the Virginia Department of Education.

At a budget work session in February, Jackson District Supervisor Toni Williams, a Republican who serves on the board’s finance committee, said that the committee was considering recommending that supervisors send a referendum to voters if the legislature and governor gave them that power. He said “the people” could then decide if they want to hike the sales tax to pay for new school buildings and argued that tapping revenue from the tax could lessen the burden on local residents. 

“[The sales tax] is mostly paid by people who don’t live in the county who shop at Walmart and Lowes and those places that we collect a lot of sales tax from. Some of it is from people in the county, but people who pass through here and don’t live here [pay sales tax],” he said. 

In a brief interview on Thursday, Williams expressed frustration with the governor’s decision to block the bills. 

“It was unfortunate that Governor Youngkin missed an opportunity to give the citizens a chance to control their own destiny with the ability to fund school capital improvement projects,” Williams said. “And, unfortunately, the legislature was not strong enough to overturn this decision.”

He added: “It’s unfortunate partisan politics has trickled its way down to affect local government.”

To fund the middle school addition and CTE center, Louisa County plans to issue some $62 million in debt via the Virginia Public School Authority’s (VPSA) Pooled Bond Program, according to Finance Director Wanda Colvin.

Without additional sales tax revenue as an option, the board will have to draw on other funding sources including real estate and personal property taxes. 

The county is expecting a significant influx of tax revenue in the coming years as Amazon Web Services develops a pair of data center campuses in its Technology Overlay District. Though AWS plans to build the campuses over the next 15 years, Economic Development Director Andy Wade has said that the company could have a data center on-line by late 2025. He’s said that one data center could generate, on average, about $2 million in revenue annually, mostly from business personal property and real estate taxes. 

AWS initially signed on to build 11 data centers in the county, but Wade told Engage Louisa in March that the company now intends to build at least 17 facilities across its two campuses.

Supervisors are already eyeing the data center revenue to pay off other debt including $20 million in bonds they’re issuing through the Virginia Resource Authority (VRA) this spring to bring water and sewer infrastructure to the Shannon Hill Regional Business Park and build two turf fields adjacent to Louisa County Middle School. 

Williams said in February that the finance committee, which includes himself and Mineral District Supervisor Duane Adams, hope to set aside revenue from the data centers to call the bonds early, paying them off in 10 years. 

Though VPSA’s pooled bond program offers lower interest rates than other funding options, it doesn’t allow localities to pay the debt off early, so the school debt will be paid off over the next 30 years.

Currently, Virginia levies a 5.3 percent sales tax statewide with one percent going to localities’ general fund. The state allows nine localities to tack on additional sales tax to pay for school construction if supported by local voters: the counties of Charlotte, Gloucester, Halifax, Henry, Mecklenburg, Northampton, Patrick and Pittsylvania, and the city of Danville. 

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Fundraising tight as Good, McGuire battle for Republican nomination in VA05

Rep. Bob Good and State Senator John McGuire racked up similar fundraising totals in the first quarter of 2024 in a hotly contested battle for the Republican nomination in the 5th Congressional District. 

According to campaign finance reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on April 15, Good, a two-term incumbent from Campbell County, raised $307,616 from January 1 to March 31 while McGuire, a former Navy SEAL from Goochland, pulled in $290,326 through his campaign committee over the same timeframe.

McGuire said in an email to supporters that his campaign raised $325,000, an apparent reference to additional contributions he took in through the McGuire Victory Fund, a joint fundraising committee connected to his campaign.

Good enters the race’s final stretch with a narrow advantage in cash on hand. As of March 31, his campaign committee had $427,342 in the bank to McGuire’s $351,812.

Good and McGuire will square off in a state-run primary on June 18. Early voting starts May 3.

Though their fundraising numbers are relatively modest compared to the millions hauled in by some congressional candidates, the Good-McGuire matchup has emerged as one of the most closely watched primaries in the country, pitting two hard right candidates against one another in a Republican-leaning district that stretches from Louisa County to the North Carolina border. 

Good is the chairman of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus and has ruffled feathers in Washington as one of eight Republicans who joined with Democrats last fall to oust former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA).  

McGuire, a newly elected state senator who announced his plans to challenge Good just eight days after winning his Senate seat, is a staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump who has centered his campaign on his loyalty to Trump and all things “MAGA.” He has sharply criticized Good for endorsing Florida Governor Ron DeSantis early in the Republican Presidential Primary, tagging him as a “Never Trumper.” Good endorsed Trump after DeSantis dropped out of the race. 

McGuire has drawn notable support from McCarthy and his allies, who have mobilized to exact revenge on the Republicans who orchestrated his ouster. His campaign pulled in $10,000 from McCarthy’s leadership PAC and $2,000 from a PAC affiliated with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, a staunch McCarthy ally who campaigned with McGuire in the district late last week.

Of the $290,000 in donations to McGuire’s campaign committee, about $113,000 came from individuals, $17,000 came from PACs and other political committees and just under $6,000 came from unitemized contributions, typically gifts of $200 or less. McGuire transferred $160,000 from the McGuire Victory Fund. His campaign committee has raised $502,747 since forming in November.

For his part, Good has garnered considerable support from his colleagues in the Freedom Caucus and other Republican hardliners in the House, collecting $5,000 from a leadership PAC affiliated with Rep. Chip Roy of Texas, a Freedom Caucus member, and another $5,000 from a PAC tied to Rep. Jim Banks of Indiana, who founded the House “Anti-Woke” Caucus. Good also pulled in nearly $38,000 via the House Freedom Fund, a group dedicated to electing strong conservatives to Congress.

Of the roughly $307,000 Good raised in the first quarter of 2024, about $259,000 came from individuals, roughly $49,000 came from PACs and other political committees and just over $51,000 came from unitemized contributions, according to his FEC filing. He’s raised $860,332 over the course of his campaign.

In a Facebook post last week, Good said that his campaign drew most of its support from “small dollar donors across the fifth district.” He accused McGuire of relying on McCarthy and the “DC Swamp Cartel” for the bulk of his money. 

“My opponent takes in nearly 75% of his donations from DC lobbyists and California Special interests—taking 10k directly from McCarthy's PAC,” Good wrote. 

Check out the FEC filing for Good’s campaign committee here. Check out McGuire’s here.

Good garners support from Louisa officials

The battle between Good and McGuire has prompted Republican officeholders across the Fifth District to choose sides in the race. And Louisa County is no exception. 

Though McGuire has deep political ties in Louisa—he currently represents most of the county in the state Senate and spent six years serving as its representative in the House of Delegates—most of the Republicans holding local office are backing Good.

In early April, Good announced endorsements from all four Republican members of the Louisa County Board of Supervisors: Board Chair and Mineral District Supervisor Duane Adams; Jackson District Supervisor Toni Williams; Green Springs District Supervisor Rachel Jones; and Cuckoo District Supervisor Chris McCotter. Adams, a strong Good ally, lost to McGuire last year in a bid for the Republican nomination in the 10th Senate District.

Good also garnered support from Republican Sheriff Donnie Lowe and two elected officials who run in nonpartisan races: Louisa Mayor Garland Nuckols and Mineral Mayor Ed Jarvis. 

The only Republican officeholder not to endorse Good is McGuire’s brother, Louisa County Commonwealth’s Attorney Rusty McGuire. 

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Click here for contact information for the Louisa County Board of Supervisors. 

Find agendas and minutes from previous Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission meetings as well as archived recordings here. 

Click here for contact information for the Louisa County School Board. 

Click here for minutes and agendas for School Board meetings. Click here for archived video.

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