This week in county government; Planners to consider Capital Improvement Plan, hold three other public hearings; 5th Congressional District race takes shape
Engage Louisa is a community newsletter aimed at keeping folks informed about Louisa County government. It’s free, non-partisan, and powered by volunteers. We believe our community is stronger and our government serves us better when we increase transparency, accessibility, and engagement.
This week in county government: public meetings, Feb. 7 through Feb. 12
Wednesday, February 9
James River Water Authority, Fluvanna County Public Library, 214 Commons Blvd., Palmyra, 9 am. (public notice) (agenda packet) The James River Water Authority is expected to consider taking formal action to begin the permit application process for its water pump station at a new site along the James River. At its December meeting, JRWA appeared poised to move the pump station from the location originally proposed for its construction to a new site slightly upriver, dubbed the 1C Forsyth alternative. The original site, believed to be Rassawek, the ancestral capital of the Monacan Indian Nation, has faced strong opposition from the Monacan and their allies. The meeting materials include a proposal from Timmons Group that outlines a budget and plan of action for submitting a joint permit application for the Forsyth site.
Louisa County Electoral Board, Louisa County Administration Building, 1 Woolfolk Ave., 10 am. (agenda)
Louisa County Water Authority, Public Meeting Room, Louisa County Administration Building, 1 Woolfolk Ave., Louisa, 6 pm. At publication time, an agenda was not publicly available. (public notice)
Thursday, February 10
Louisa County Planning Commission long-range planning work session, Public Meeting Room, Louisa County Administration Building, 1 Woolfolk Ave., Louisa, 6 pm. (agenda, livestream) Planners will gather for a work session at 6 pm to discuss updates to the Comprehensive Plan, focusing specifically on supplemental and small area plans. The commission will also discuss “agricultural use definitions” in the county’s land development regulations. The meeting materials don’t include any additional information about either topic.
Louisa County Planning Commission, Public Meeting Room, Louisa County Administration Building, 1 Woolfolk Ave., Louisa, 7 pm. (agenda packet, livestream) The Planning Commission will meet for its regular monthly meeting and consider an agenda that includes four public hearings and one discussion item. See below for more information.
Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission, Virtual Meeting, 7 pm. (meeting materials) After delaying its regular monthly meeting for a week due to a scheduling conflict, TJPDC will meet virtually for its first meeting of 2022. A Zoom link is available in the meeting materials.
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.
Planners to consider Capital Improvement Plan, hold three other public hearings
The Louisa County Planning Commission will convene for a busy meeting Thursday night including four public hearings and one discussion item.
Agenda highlights
Planners to hold public hearing on Capital Improvement Plan as part of FY23 budget process: The commission will hold a public hearing and consider the county’s Capital Improvement Plan as part of the Fiscal Year 2023 budget process. The plan serves as a roadmap for county government’s short and long-range capital investment priorities, defined as high-cost and long-lasting tangible assets for purchase or construction.
Planners are tasked with reviewing the CIP to ensure each proposed project conforms with the Comprehensive Plan. They then forward their recommendation to the Board of Supervisors.
A project’s inclusion in the plan, which covers 20 years of projected capital spending, doesn’t guarantee it will receive funding. The board considers the plan as part of its annual budget process and appropriates money for specific projects as it deems appropriate.
During a January work session, department heads and other county officials pitched planners on their capital investment priorities, focusing mainly on projects they hope to undertake in the next several years.
According to the preliminary CIP, FY23 capital requests total more than $14 million. Among other projects, it includes:
A $1.8 million ask from Economic Development Director Andy Wade to begin construction of an elevated water storage tank for the Shannon Hill Regional Business Park;
A nearly $1.4 million ask from Parks and Recreation Director James Smith to develop and upgrade county parks, save toward construction of an indoor aquatic center, and begin planning for construction of a sports complex;
A pair of $500,000 requests from Louisa County Public Schools to upgrade the spectator area at its baseball and softball complex and to begin planning for construction of a 36,000-sqaure foot career and technical education center;
A nearly $3 million ask for Firefly’s Regional Internet Service Expansion (RISE) project, part of the county’s plan to deliver universal broadband access by 2025. The Board of Supervisors formally committed about $9 million to the RISE project last September but hasn’t appropriated the funding. Two more roughly $3 million requests are slated for FY24 and FY25;
Two $700,000 asks from Louisa County Fire and EMS for the purchase of fire apparatus units and the replacement of a Lifepak Cardiac Monitor. FEMS is also asking for $500,000 to construct an addition for living quarters at the Louisa Volunteer Fire Department;
FY24 requests reach nearly $50 million. Big-ticket asks include:
About $15 million for construction of an addition to Louisa County Middle School that would accommodate some 400 students;
Nearly $14 million for construction of Louisa County Public Schools’ career and technical education center. The division is also asking for $700,000 to construct a parking area for the facility;
$1.35 million for completion of water storage infrastructure at the Shannon Hill Regional Business Park;
$8.2 million to complete construction of a multi-purpose sports complex and another $400,000 toward construction of an indoor aquatic center, currently slated for FY26;
$1.4 million for the purchase of fire apparatus units;
A second installment of nearly $3 million for Firefly’s RISE project;
Click here to read Engage Louisa’s coverage of the CIP work session. Click here to watch the work session. Click here to review the preliminary Capital Improvement Plan, which includes departmental requests but does not include County Administrator Christian Goodwin’s recommendations.
Commission to hold public hearing on regulations for small-scale solar facilities: Commissioners will hold a public hearing and consider whether to recommend to the Board of Supervisors approval of amendments to county land development regulations that would increase the ceiling for power generation from small-scale solar facilities and adjust buffering requirements, among other changes. The amendments would also allow for increased flexibility in screening such facilities.
A memo prepared by Community Development Director Robert Gardner asserts that, since adopting standards for ground-mounted, small-scale solar facilities last year, staff has received three applications. Based on those submissions, staff recognized a need to revise existing regulations. Gardner states that the purpose of the proposed amendments “is to change the current definitions and performance standards to create more responsive regulations to these kinds of solar facilities.” Ground-mounted small-scale solar facilities typically serve individual residences.
The amendments would increase the power generation cap for small-scale solar facilities from 15 kW to 30 kW and grant the Zoning Administrator power to determine appropriate buffering on a case-by-case basis. The administrator would consider the size of the parcel, its topography, distance from neighbors, adequacy of existing mature vegetation, and any planned plantings. Currently, the ordinance requires the installation of a 30-foot opaque buffer.
Among other provisions, the amendments would also alter the standards for installing required buffering, reducing the distance between evergreen trees from 20 feet to 12 feet and reducing their size at installation from five feet to three feet.
Of the three applications submitted for small-scale solar generating facilities over the last year, two exceed the current 15 kW cap. A third application proposes to install panels on property already surrounded by mature evergreens, negating the need for additional buffering.
Planners to hold public hearing to consider a Conditional Use Permit allowing agricultural activity on property zoned residential: Commissioners will hold a public hearing and consider whether to recommend to the Board of Supervisors approval of Nathan and Chelsea Newcomb’s request for a Conditional Use Permit to establish an agricultural operation on three adjoining parcels zoned General Residential (R-2). The Newcombs own the parcels via Farmhouse 5 LLC.
The properties (tmp 97 68A, 97 68 B, and 97 68 C) cover about 8.2 acres located along Owens Creek Road in the Mountain Road Voting District and lie adjacent to a larger parcel owned by the Newcombs. The land is surrounded by properties zoned Agricultural (A-1, A-2) and General Residential (R-2).
According to their land use application, the Newcombs hope to establish a farmette with a garden and some livestock. Louisa County’s land development regulations allow for passive agricultural activity on property zoned residential by-right including the cultivation of crops and silviculture. But, keeping and raising farm animals and fowl is specifically excluded, requiring a CUP on R-2-zoned property.
The commission first considered the CUP request at its December meeting. After Cuckoo District Commissioner George Goodwin asked the Newcombs if they were willing to cap the number of animals they’d raise, the applicants requested a deferral to allow time to research appropriate limits. The Newcombs told commissioners that they aren’t looking to run an extensive livestock operation but want to get their three children involved in 4-H. A public hearing on the Newcombs’ request was rescheduled for the commission’s January meeting then pushed back to this month’s meeting.
According to an email from Chelsea Newcomb included in the meeting materials, the Newcombs agree to cap chickens to 50 per acre, goats and sheep to five per acre, and horses to one per acre. In addition, they agree to cap heifer/calf units to one per two acres. Chelsea Newcomb noted that she and her husband worked with Louisa County’s agricultural extension office to come up the limits.
Under a condition recommended by county planning staff, the CUP would prohibit the Newcombs from raising swine, apalcas or llamas on the portion of their properties zoned residential. The Newcombs also own land zoned agricultural.
Commission to hold public hearing to consider amendment to CUP for telecommunications tower: Planners will hold a public hearing and consider whether to recommend to the Board of Supervisors approval of an amendment to a Conditional Use Permit issued in 2006 that allowed National Communications Towers LLC to construct a telecommunications tower at 7383 Zachary Taylor Highway (tmp 16-7) in the Mineral Voting District. Samuel and Jean Bazzanella own the 141-acre agriculturally zoned (A-1) parcel.
The proposed amendment would remove the CUP’s 12th condition, which states that “the permit is not transferable to another applicant or tower owner and the tower shall be removed by the applicant/owner within six months from the date of the sale.”
According to a report compiled by county planning staff, NCT plans to sell the 199-foot tower to SBA Communications Corporation, but the sale has been delayed due to Condition 12. Staff notes that, over the last four years, similar conditions have not been included in other CUPs and it’s unclear why such a condition was included in this permit. Staff recommends approval of the amendment, noting that the CUP’s other 11 conditions will remain in place.
Commission to discuss retention period for family subdivision parcels: At the request of Mineral District Supervisor Duane Adams, the commission will discuss the county’s 10-year retention period for family subdivision parcels.
State code requires that localities provide reasonable provisions for family subdivisions. According to Louisa County’s land development regulations, landowners are permitted to subdivide properties in the agricultural (A-1), agricultural (A-2), residential limited (R-1), or residential general (R-2) zoning districts into two or more parts for the purpose of sale or gift to a member of their immediate family. Family divisions don’t count against the total number of lots allowed on a particular parcel and the family member to whom the property is sold or gifted must retain it for at least 10 years “unless the lot is the subject of an involuntary transfer such as foreclosure, death, divorce, judicial sale, condemnation or bankruptcy.”
According to a memo prepared by county planning staff, Louisa County adopted a one-year retention period for family subdivision parcels in 1990. That period increased to five years in 1997 and 10 years in 2010. Among surrounding localities, Louisa has the longest required retention period. During the board’s January 10 meeting, Adams requested that the Planning Commission examine the issue and “see if (a 10-year retention period) is still an appropriate length of time.”
In its memo, staff notes that there are pros and cons to decreasing the retention period. The memo points out that returning the retention period to five years “could provide a qualifying family member, who has received a family subdivision parcel, a quicker means of disposing such a parcel should life changes take place.”
On the flip side, the memo states that shortening the retention period to five years could increase the number of family subdivisions submitted by landowners seeking to “circumvent the provisions of the subdivision ordinance.” Staff suggested that property could be divided under the more generous family subdivision rules then sold just after the retention period expires.
Good, four other candidates ready for VA05 race
Louisa County will have a new representative in Congress come 2023.
As part of the decennial redistricting process, the Supreme Court of Virginia approved new maps for Virginia’s 11 congressional districts in late December that move the county from its present home in the 7th District to a newly drawn 5th. All 435 Congressional seats are up for grabs under new maps this November.
The shift separates Louisa from its representative since 2019, Democrat Abigail Spanberger, who plans to seek re-election in the new 7th, which retains less than a quarter of her current district. The district encompasses a swathe of central and northern Virginia, stretching from the outer Washington suburbs to rural areas farther south. The new 7th doesn’t include Spanberger’s Henrico County home, but members of Congress aren’t required to live in the district they represent.
In Louisa’s new home, the 5th, Republican Congressman Bob Good is running to retain his seat. The new 5th stretches from western Hanover, Louisa, and Albemarle south to the North Carolina border. It encompasses many of the rural southside counties that anchor Good’s current district including Campbell County, his home.
A controversial figure who has positioned himself on his party’s far right, Good is attracting competition from both sides of the aisle. So far, one Republican and three Democrats have announced plans to challenge him. A fourth Democrat, who previously filed to run in the district, suspended his campaign late last month.
A Liberty University graduate and former member of the Campbell County Board of Supervisors, Good spent much of his career as a bank executive before joining Liberty’s athletic department as a fundraiser. In 2020, he ousted one-term incumbent Denver Riggleman in a drive-through convention to claim the Republican nomination in the district.
Drawn into the race by grassroots activists who deemed the libertarian-leaning Riggleman insufficiently conservative, Good criticized his opponent for officiating the same-sex wedding of a pair of former staffers. He branded himself as a “bright red Biblical and constitutional conservative.”
Good went on to defeat Democrat Cameron Webb, a Charlottesville physician, by five points in the General Election.
Since arriving in Washington, Good has aligned himself with firebrand colleague like Reps. Marjorie Taylor-Greene of Georgia and Lauren Boebert of Colorado though he hasn’t attained their national profile. He has repeatedly called into question the results of the 2020 presidential election, objecting to its certification in January 2021, and sharply criticized the government’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, railing against mask mandates and mocking the virus on social media.
On his campaign website, Good touts his conservative credentials. He emphasizes his strong opposition to abortion rights, noting his support for a “Human Life Amendment enshrined in the U.S. Constitution” and his avid support of gun rights, saying the Second Amendment puts a “critical check on our government.” He advocates for a merit-based immigration system “where immigration is granted to those based on our economic needs, including industries like agriculture right here in the 5th District” and a Law Enforcement Bill of Rights “that protects those who protect us.”
Good has attracted one Republican challenger from the district’s northern edge, Air Force veteran and University of Virginia lecturer Dan Moy. Fifth District Republicans will choose their nominee in a May 21 convention at Hampden-Sydney University’s Kirby Fieldhouse.
Moy spent 27 years in the Air Force, specializing in national and international security operations, strategic partnerships, and the defense acquisition, planning, and budgeting process, according to a biography on his website. He served in several high-level positions including as Deputy Military Advisor to the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.
Moy received a doctorate in history from the University of Oklahoma and recently earned a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He currently serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia’s Batten School of Public Policy.
Calling himself a “conservative Republican,” Moy’s website touches on similar themes as Good’s, emphasizing his Christian faith, his opposition to abortion rights, ardent support of gun rights, and commitment to “finishing the border wall.” He decries the rising national debt, paints himself as a champion for individual liberty who will “always stand between you and those who want to control your faith, livelihood, personal decisions, and businesses,” and touts his support of a “strong national defense.”
While he agrees with Good on many issues, in a press release announcing his candidacy, Moy suggested that he’d bring a different sort of leadership style to the 5th.
“The congressional district that was first represented by James Madison deserves to have a congressman who will not only vote right, but also care about people and lead right,” he said.
In an interview with CBS 19 just after launching his campaign, Moy, who serves as chair of the Charlottesville GOP, described himself as a “roll up your sleeves and get things done candidate.”
“I’m not a polarizer, I’m a fighter,” he said.
He went on to criticize Good for failing to hear the voices of his constituents.
“I think people feel like there’s a distance with my opponent, like he hasn’t heard their voices or concerns adequately, and that’s the kind of leader I want to be in the 5th District,” he said.
According to results from previous elections, the new 5th, like the current district, leans Republican. That hasn’t stopped a trio of Democrats from joining the race including small business owner and ordained minister Joshua Throneburg, farmer Warren McLellan, and gun law reform activist Andy Parker. The 5th District Democratic Committee hasn’t officially decided on a nominating method. Democrats chose Webb via a state-run primary in 2020.
A Henry County resident who spent much of his career as an executive recruiter, Parker has built a national following as a gun violence prevention advocate. In 2015, his daughter, Alison, was killed on live television while covering a story for a Roanoke news station. Her death inspired the elder Parker to push for what he has called "common sense gun control” including universal background checks and red flag laws. Under red flag laws, courts can issue special protective orders that permit law enforcement to temporarily confiscate guns from people deemed a danger to themselves or others.
Parker has also taken on large social media companies. In the wake of his daughter’s death, he implored YouTube and Facebook to remove videos of her murder. More recently, he’s advocated for reforming Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which largely shields social media companies from liability for content posted by their users.
Limiting the influence of big tech and billionaires compelled Parker to run for Congress, according to a January 27 news release announcing his candidacy.
“I’m running for Congress to limit the influence of giant tech companies and billionaires. To make the internet safer for kids and families and make the economy fairer for everyone,” he said.
In the release, Parker also criticized Good for embracing conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and the Covid-19 pandemic.
“He’s Virginia’s version of Marjorie Taylor Greene,” he said. “I don’t want, and I know the people of central and southside Virginia don’t want, someone in office that isn’t respectable enough to represent them. I want to restore decency and common-sense leadership to the job.”
Parker’s Congressional run isn’t his first foray into electoral politics. He served one term on the Henry County Board of Supervisors and unsuccessfully ran for House of Delegates in 2007. Parker’s Henry County home lies in the current 5th District but just outside of the new 5th.
Alison Parker’s fiancé at the time of her murder, Chris Hurst, was also inspired to run for office after her death. Hurst served two terms in the House of Delegates before losing his bid for re-election last November.
Throneburg, a Charlottesville pastor and small business owner, publicly announced his campaign in mid-January. His website says that he was inspired to run because of a desire to serve his community and the “fears of a father,” noting his concern for his two daughters’ future in the face of a planet in crisis, spiraling national debt, and other challenges.
An “Issues” page focuses on Throneburg’s commitment to bring green jobs to Virginia, improve the accessibility and affordability of healthcare, work toward racial justice, and invest in rural America.
Throneburg’s biography notes that he grew up in a small, rural farming community. The school in his hometown closed the year he graduated, and most businesses have shuttered. He emphasizes the need to revitalize communities that have been left behind.
“As we plan for a post pandemic future, there is opportunity to build broadband and remote work environments, to bring good paying jobs in green energy manufacturing and infrastructure, and to fix our healthcare infrastructure so that every one of us has access to a doctor when we need it. Rural communities feel left behind because they have been – now is the time to reinvest in those communities,” his website states.
McLellan, who earned a degree in economics from the University of Virginia and resides in Charlottesville, kicked off his campaign last year. A native of southside Virginia, he’s spent much of his career in agriculture and land management, raising livestock and managing vineyards and orchards in central Virginia.
On his website, McLellan describes himself as a “centrist Democrat” who’s running for Congress “to provide a bold voice for people in the political center of America.” He says he’ll strive “to clear away the divisiveness clouding our American spirit of optimism and cooperation” while promising to “bring civility back to the Old Dominion.”
McLellan says he believes in “fiscal responsibility” and will fight for “pragmatic solutions to the challenges facing our country, including controlling inflation and getting people back to work.”
Charlottesville attorney Lewis Combs announced his candidacy in the 5th last summer. In a statement in late January, Combs suspended his campaign. He said that he and his team analyzed the new district and met with stakeholders before determining that “there is not a viable path to victory for our progressive campaign.”
Voters will soon have an opportunity to meet the candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in the 5th. The Louisa and Goochland County Democratic Committees will hold a candidates’ forum on Tuesday, March 15 at 6 pm at the Goochland Recreation Center, 2415 Sandy Hook Road, Goochland.
Click here for contact information for the Louisa County Board of Supervisors.
Find agendas and minutes from previous 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.