By Heather Michon
Correspondent
The Board of Supervisors had a full agenda of presentations and board appointments at its regular meeting on Wednesday (June 1).
Only one item was up for vote: a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the county and the Fluvanna Performing Arts Council laying out a sharing arrangement for the use of the Carysbrook Performing Arts Council.
Discussions over a new MOA began before the pandemic and were put on the backburner while the Carysbrook facility was mostly closed during the height of the pandemic.
Last fall, the Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commission began to use the facility for their public meetings, after losing their traditional meeting space in the county courthouse and their alternate space at the public library.
However, with the Arts Council moving to a more regular performance schedule, there was some friction over the county’s use of the meeting space. The new MOA outlines a compromise that will allow the space to be shared between the two parties.
Presentations galore
Over the course of the two-hour public meeting, the board heard five different presentations on issues ranging from natural disasters to noise complaints:
Ian Baxter of the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) gave an overview of the Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan for 2023. This planning document, which is required by law to access some forms of post-disaster funding, looks at the potential natural disasters that could impact the region and what localities can do to mitigate some of the impacts. The completed plan will come back to the board for a vote later this year and the TJPDC will submit the final product to FEMA by the end of the year.
Mel Sheridan, who serves as a reserve officer for the Fluvanna County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO), came before the board with a request for funding for lighting and electricity at the FCSO firing range at the County Convenience Center. Firearms training at the range can last up to 12 hours, which is fine during the summer months, but can be a problem at other times of the year. Running some basic electricity to the site would cost about $6,000 and would allow “a lot of creature comforts” like lighting for the range. Supervisors will vote on the transfer of funding from the contingency fund at a later meeting.
Bryan Moeller, the coordinator of the Children’s Services Act (CSA) program in Fluvanna County, gave a brief mid-year budget update. The department, which helps families with children who have emotional and behavioral challenges access services and educational programs, receives part of its funding from the county. Moeller said the department was on target with funding so far this year.
Aaron Spitzer of Parks & Recreation said that the University of Virginia had reached out with an offer to donate two light poles and fixtures that were being decommissioned from a campus office building. The two poles, which each hold 12 high-powered lights, are worth about $70,000. However, Spitzer said “it’s not a free donation,” as getting them placed in foundations and hooked up to electrical would cost up to $50,000. His plan is to use them to illuminate the soccer field’s parking area, as this was not included in the $685,000 project to bring lights to the soccer and softball fields. After some discussion, the supervisors indicated they will approve the donation and the funding to get them connected.
Major David Wells of the sheriff’s office gave a brief presentation on the need for an updated noise ordinance. After a 2009 Virginia Supreme Court decision on standards of proof for noise violations in a Virginia Beach case, Fluvanna began using sound meters. But these have proven unusable in the field because they require precise conditions to get good measurements. This has left the county’s noise ordinance nearly unenforceable. Wells said they were looking to draft changes to the ordinance that would allow them to deal with habitual noise offenders. They will bring a draft to the county later this year
