Supervisors Revisit Cross-County Chester Gap F&R Service, See Member-Staff Confrontation After Numbers Apology Offered

It was a change of pace for the Warren County Board of Supervisors at its regular meeting of Tuesday afternoon, April 7th. Recently the focus of the board has been on assembling a budget for Fiscal Year 2026/27, and the necessary revenue to support that budget in the best interests of all county citizens. And while as noted below there were some references to budgetary matters heard Tuesday, the agenda focused on a number of other topics.

Those included detailed service presentations from financial advisor Davenport Financial, and VDOT (Va. Dept. of Transportation), including the latter’s 6-year road plan for the county.

Road naming exchange ends politely

Then there was the now familiar “Unfinished Business” matter of the naming of a section off Buck Mountain Road to Jockey Hollow Road. During Public Comments impacted resident Andrew Heymann noted both he and his wife were military veterans with service backgrounds to the nation in raising constitutional issues regarding the road naming impacting them against their will.

After hearing the emergency services call and location-finding factor pushing the naming forward, the board approved the Jockey Hollow Road naming by a 4-0 vote, Supervisor Stanmeyer absent from meeting. But despite the failure of his argument, the board and Heymann appeared to end on reasonably good terms.

After Chairman Cheryl Cullers apologized for overruling Heymann’s argument against the naming for the cited public safety issues, he responded respectfully, “I understand your protocols — and thanks for listening to my complaint.”

The board and its Chair listened carefully to Andrew Heymann’s argument against being included in a Buck Mountain Road area name change. But based on public safety issues and guidelines approved the change to Jockey Hollow Rd. Heymann, seated below, took the denial of his exclusion well. Royal Examiner Photos Roger Bianchini

Unscheduled topic, an Apology & Closed Session

But perhaps the most interesting turn in county business was not even on the meeting’s agenda. That turn began with Dr. David Martin’s Interim County Administrator’s Report following Chairman Cullers below referenced report on Emergency Services access in her district in the Chester Gap area. Martin opened with an apology to North River District Supervisor Richard Jamieson for incorrect information cited at a previous meeting (1:42:00 linked County video mark). That information had to do with the supervisors’ budget debate over legal services costs largely propelled forward by Jamieson.

Dr. Martin said he had cited Jamieson generating in the $80,000 range in legal expenses. Those expenses were largely related to Jamieson’s stance against Closed Sessions being convened to discuss matters with a potential for legal actions the county government might become involved in. Martin cited his $80,000 range assessment as high, stating the actual number was “around $71,000”.

“Again, my apologies to you, Dr Jamieson,” Martin said before moving to his recommendation that the board continue on a monthly basis its cross county lines emergency services agreement and funding with Rappahannock County as the matter continues to be explored as indicated by Chairman Cullers during her report.

Following some discussion with County Attorney Jason Ham on the process and dates for adjusting the board’s meeting schedule to not interfere with citizens access to basic services, including tax payments on coming voting days, Dr. Jamieson asked to amend his earlier board report. His request granted by the chair Jamieson addressed Dr. Martin’s apology and gathering of data over the legal expenses issue.

Interim County Administrator Dr. David Martin, left, and County Attorney Jason Ham, contributed extensive staff feedback to board on several issues.

Jamieson accused the Interim County Administrator of applying different criteria regarding the generation of legal expense costs than was applied to other board members. Jamieson said he requested a variety of procedural information from Dr. Martin, all of which was provided other than the “methodology” Martin had used in assembling his remarks for the March 24th meeting regarding legal expense issues. Supervisor Jamieson said he was preparing a report on his findings on Dr. Martin’s procedures and conclusions regarding legal expenses that he would make available to the board.

“As I complete this report I will make it available for the record to be cleared,” Jamieson said in concluding his remarks on the issue.

Immediately upon the conclusion of Jamieson’s remarks Interim County Administrator Martin responded: “Madam Chairman, I’d like to request a Closed Session at the end of today’s meeting for personnel to review the Memorandum Of Understanding for employment for the Interim County Administrator,” Martin said.

Interim County Administrator Dr. Martin, seated at staff table to right, and Supervisor Jamieson to left on board dais, didn’t seem to be seeing eye to eye on Martin’s offered apology on a $10,000 miscalculation on Jamieson’s impact on County legal costs.

With only a Work Session presentation on the status of VDOT’s Secondary 6-year Plan for Warren County remaining on the meeting agenda, Board Vice-Chairman Tony Carter asked if it was preferable to adjourn to the closed session immediately or after the work session. The board consensus was proceed with the work session VDOT (Va. Dept. Of Transportation) report, so as not to hold the VDOT staff up for an unknown amount of time.

Following the work session’s conclusion, on a motion by Carter, second by Hugh Henry, the board voted 4-0 to adjourn to closed session. That closed session was convened at 3:28 p.m. and adjourned at 3:49 p.m. There were no announcements or motions out of closed session and the meeting/work session was adjourned without further personnel drama.

Chester Gap Fire & Rescue revisited

Right before Martin’s apology to Jamieson for the inaccurate legal fee cost assessment and consequent actions described above, in her board report Chairman Cullers reflected on doing best with what is, or could become available through revenue generating decisions like tax hikes or a reappraisal of budget priorities.

Cullers began reviewing geographical access issues that might indicate the necessity of revisiting the board’s decision not to continue the the cross-county Emergency Services funding to Rappahannock County. With a nod to County employees doing the best they can with the resources available, Cullers said this on the FY-27 Fiscal Year funding options and decisions impacting her South River District: “But we’re saying we don’t have enough and we can’t afford what we want or need. And to have that entity that’s sitting there and the one thing that I heard continuously was, ‘Gee, I didn’t know how close they (Rappahannock Emergency Services) were.’

Was County Fire & Rescue on the scene at WCGC to extinguish any personnel issue fires that might break out at Tuesday afternoon’s meeting? While that fire did break out, hosing down wasn’t required as board & staff appeared to extinguish that fire, at least for now, behind closed doors.

“You actually have to go up into Chester Gap (in Rappahannock County) to get to homes that are in Warren County. You can’t access them from the Warren County side,” Cullers observed, adding, “Not at this point at least unless another road is built there. And it’s just a matter of how we can best serve, to the best of our ability within the means that we have, this community,” Cullers told her colleagues before throwing the board and staff report “ball” Interim County Administrator Martin’s way, as noted above.

Other business

See these and all other meeting topic discussions in this linked County video.

Those topics included removal of a coming voting day closing that could impact citizen access to basic county services at the WCGC (Warren County Government Center); discussion of procedures for Supervisor Sponsorship Procedures related to Text Amendment requests. On this one it was decided to seek input from County Planning and Zoning members and staff before establishing any recommended changes.

Wells Bill was one of three citizens to speak during Public Comments. His topic had a negative impact on him from what he perceived as inconsistencies in the recent County Real Estate reassessment process. Other speakers were Mark Egger (anti-Samuels Library assertions), and Andrew Heymann, the latter regarding his family’s opposition to the Buck Mountain Rd. area name changing.

In a thinly attended meeting on the public side there were three Public Comments speakers. Those included the above referenced Andrew Heymann remarks concerning his family’s opposition to the Buck Mountain Road area street naming; as well as a resurfacing of Mark Egger’s anti-Samuels Library assertions regarding the stocking of books with LGBTQ themes; and Wells Bill on his perception of inconsistencies in the most recent real estate reassessments.