Supervisors Tackle Tax and Revenue Issues, Approve Comp Plan Update Option 1, Before Being Ripped Over Library

With only one Public Hearing scheduled and two action items following approval of a six-item Consent Agenda on future business arrangements it wasn’t a lengthy agenda for the Warren County Board of Supervisors for its regular meeting of Tuesday, April 1st. However, there were several items of high importance to be dealt with.

Those included the lone public hearing on approval of a final draft of the County Comprehensive Plan update that will guide future development patterns throughout the county. Also under the New Business category was final approval of a proposed “Equalized Tax Rate” adjusted to prevent last year’s Real Estate Reassessments from increasing the tax liability of homeowners countywide.

County Administrator Ed Daley explained that no public hearing would be required on the tax rate adjustment if the supervisors approved the staff recommended real estate tax rate adjustment down from 53-cents on $100 dollars of assessed value to 47.9-cents. And after some discussion later in the meeting (starts 1:09:55 linked County video mark), the board unanimously, on a motion by Cook, second by Stanmeyer, approved that tax rate adjustment as recommended by staff.

Supervisors tackle tax and revenue issues, approve Comp Plan Update Option 1, before being ripped over Library

Cheryl Cullers prefaced her yes vote by noting her support of the County budget and tax rate adjustment was dependent on board approval of the discussed revenue to County Public Schools necessary to be able to retain and/or recruit requested “Reading Specialists” to help improve younger student reading skills. Discussion indicated problems developing on the reading front in the wake of the COVID-19 limitations on school operations several years ago. Chairman “Jay” Butler commented on his perception of “cultural” issues impacting student performance nation-wide in recent years. He appeared to indicate the opinion that such learning issues as those being discussed were not indicative of problems specific to Warren County Public Schools, but of broader national educational issues.

And Butler reminded his colleagues of his support for a cigarette tax county-wide to help offset predicted revenue shortages. Butler has noted that such a personal-use tax wouldn’t be directed solely at tax-paying county citizens who smoke, but also passers thru, including tourists.

While it appeared there was no direct opposition to Cullers’ Public Schools Reading Specialist funding priority expressed during discussion, there was a considerable amount of dancing around the board majority’s often-stated opposition to a tax increase to balance its FY-2026 budget, despite projected across the board revenue shortages. And several supervisors restated a prioritization of directing any budget request increases to public safety departments, specifically Fire & Rescue and the Sheriff’s Office.

Perhaps related to that latter budget priority, on a motion by Cook at the outset of the meeting, Item 6 on the Consent Agenda “Volunteer F&R Fiscal Policy” was entirely removed from the meeting agenda.

Comp Plan Update

At 7:30 p.m. on the suggestion of County Attorney Jason Ham the board moved to its lone Public Hearing of the evening. That began with an overview introduction by Planning Director Matt Wendling, who introduced County Planner Kelly Wahl (29:47 video mark). Shortly Wahl took the lead in presenting a graphics assisted review and staff summary of the various options in finalizing approval of the update to the County’s Comprehensive Plan. As noted above, such updates mandated by the state every few years are a guide to future development patterns throughout counties statewide.

County Planning Director Matt Wendling and Planner Kelly Wahl prepare to open the graphic support of the Comp Plan options staff summary. Below, both point to the red area that would be allowed to be rezoned from Ag to Commercial or Industrial in Option 1.

Following that presentation and subsequent board-staff discussion during which there was some confusion over zoning parameters, Supervisor Jamieson, first attempted to withdraw his initial motion to approve Option 2. That came after Jamieson and his colleagues were informed that Option 2 would have maintained an approximate 7 to 10-acre parcel currently zoned Agricultural, so zoned against future Commercial or Industrial zoning and development. That parcel’s location was just west across Route 340/522 North from Family Dollar at the Fairgrounds Road intersection. But on County Attorney Ham’s recommendation the vote on that first motion proceeded to a majority consensus against it.

After a brief discussion to make sure everyone was on the same page on the difference between Option 1 and Option 2, Supervisor Jamieson made the motion to approve Option 1, seconded by Stanmeyer, which passed 4-1, Cullers dissenting. Option 1 allows that 7 to 10-acre parcel across Route 340/522 from Family Dollar to be Commercially developed in the future. And it was noted the location didn’t run it afoul of current northern county residential homeowners or Agricultural Zoned property owners who opposed such commercial development expansion further north in less Commercially friendly areas.

Here we get a better look at the red-highlighted Option 1 Comp Plan rezoning section in proximity to other existing commercial development in the area residents believe has been promised to be the northern-most future commercial development in the county’s north corridor. Option 1 appears to fit that promise.

Supervisor Cullers prefaced her lone “No” vote, reiterating her concerns that proposed “cluster development” suggested in that option could negatively impact her South River District. “I feel like I’m getting the cart before the horse,” Cullers said of an absence of specific potential impacts on her South River District’s existing structure.

Other New Business

The other action item on the agenda was appointments to the Board of Equalization. Those appointments were: Amanda Slate, Patricia Coffelt, and Wanda Himes. County Administrator Ed Daley noted the board need another appointment to bring the Board of Equalization to full membership.

Public Comments: Library & SHS tennis courts

During the second round of Public Comments on non-agenda items near the meeting’s conclusion the board heard from seven speakers who had waited for the approximately two hours of business preceeding their turn. Two topics were addressed, one familiar, one less so.

First two speakers, John Jenkins (1:46:04) and Samantha Good (1:49:13), were scathingly critical of the 4-person board majority’s actions regarding Samuels Public Library. They would be joined by three more speakers on library issues, Bethany O’Neill (1:54:10), Aileen Dierig (1:57:27), and Rebecca Althizer (2:02:36), all in defense of Samuels Library and its Board of Trustees.

Samantha Good questions the board majority’s motivation and honesty in pursuing competitive bids for public library services here. When will they admit money isn’t the real issue, operational control of reading materials to fit a certain group’s religious beliefs is, she and many Samuels Library supporters have publicly contended.

Commenting on County Administrator Daley’s earlier update on the board’s plans to take competitive bids for future public library services currently taken care of by Virginia’s Library of the Year 2024, Samantha Good had this to say: “So, you guys are going to draft an RFP (Request For Proposals) and post it on Friday. Then you’re only going to get seven business days for proposals? And then you’re going to only give the (WC) library board six days to review the proposals?

“Sounds like you guys already have somebody in mind. It sounds really suspicious,” she observed pointedly, possibly with an eye on the unsolicited proposal of Library Services & Systems LLC that guaranteed the supervisors operational control of its librtary operations were it to be selected at the end fo the competitive bid RFP process the supervisor majority of four chose.

Rebecca Althizer shows illustrations from one book she read passages from that was on the Clean Up Samuels book removal list in 2023.

Not to change the subject abruptly, but we will.

The other two speakers were Gabriel Tweeddi (1:52:12 video) and Carmen O’Neill (2:00:22), who addressed physical issues on the tennis courts at Skyline High School related to severe cracking of court surfaces related to water mixing with materials under the courts. Both, Tweeddi who is the captain of the Skyline High boys tennis team, and O’Neill who is captain of the Skyline girls tennis team, urged the board to approach the matter seriously, likely with competitively bid reconstruction as opposed to resurfacing, necessary for a permanent fix at the best available price. Present with and in support of these students were Skyline High Volunteer Tennis coaches Debra Ramsey and Jeff Browne. While not addressing the board directly, the coaches presented this reporter with an outline of the issues at play and the desired path forward addressed by Tweeddi and O’Neill.

The board heard from two speakers in the initial Public Comments section on agenda items not up for public hearings. They were Lewis Moten and Lee Meadows. Moten addressed an email he had sent to the board concerning issues with “the treatment of administrative issues with our fire departments” (6:37). He thanked the board for removing Consent Agenda item 6, wondering if that might have related to his message to them. “It makes me feel as if I’m being heard,” he said. Meadows addressed the Comprehensive Plan and tax rates (10:20).

Click here to Watch the Board of Supervisors Meeting of April 1, 2025.