AT THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS HELD ON THE 4th DAY OF FEBRUARY, TWO THOUSAND AND EIGHT AT TWO O’CLOCK P.M. AT THE COURTHOUSE IN WASHINGTON, VIRGINIA

Present	Present	Absent
Robert P Anderson, Chairman Ronald L Frazier, V-Chairman S. Bryant Lee Roger A Welch Edward D. Wayland	John McCarthy, Co. Adm. Peter H. Luke, Co. Attorney Diane Bruce, Clerk	None

Chairman Anderson called the meeting to order.

MINUTES: On motion of Mr. Welch, seconded by Mr. Lee, the draft minutes of the January 7, 2008 meeting were unanimously approved as corrected. The vote was recorded as follows: AYE: Anderson, Lee, Welch, Wayland, Frazier. NAY: None.

AGENDA: On motion of Mr. Welch, seconded by Mr. Wayland, the Board voted unanimously to adopt the amended Final Agenda. The vote was recorded as follows: AYE: Anderson, Lee, Welch, Wayland, Frazier. NAY: None.

SCHOOLS: Dr. Robert Chappell, Superintendent of Schools, distributed the monthly RCPS school report, calling attention to several items in the report and to the inclement weather make-up schedule, but reserved further comment until later in the agenda when the School Board will hold a joint meeting with the Supervisors.

VDOT REPORT:

The report of David Cubbage, Residency Engineer, follows:

(1) Piedmont Avenue, Keyser Run and Old Hollow (Rt 612) projects are complete.

(2) Slate Mills Rd is zero priority at this time. Right of way issues must be resolved.

(3) Secondary Road 6-Year Plan: The budget resolution from last year was distributed. (copy with papers of meeting.) No additional projects are being proposed. A public hearing will be advertised for the March meeting.

FIRE LEVY BILLS: On motion of Mr. Anderson, seconded by Mr. Wayland, the Board voted unanimously to approve payment of fire levy bills in the total amount of $185,485.53 as more specifically set forth in Exhibit A attached hereto and made a part of these minutes. (Detailed accountings filed with papers of meeting.) The vote was recorded as follows: AYE: Anderson, Lee, Welch, Wayland, Frazier. NAY: None.

PUBLIC COMMENT:

Scrabble School: Bob Lander updated the Board regarding the Preservation Foundation and offered thanks to John McCarthy who has been closely involved since the beginning of the project. He introduced Dorothy Butler who with Frank Warner, now deceased, started the project. Also introduced were Dorothy Warner, Lillian Aylor and Irene Timbers. There are five alumnae on the Board. The entire projected $450,000 and a management team are in place. He asked the Board to adopt the resolution (later on the agenda), and added that if adopted, the rehabilitation process could be finished as early as the spring of 2009.

There being no other comments, the public comment session was closed.

OLD BUSINESS:

Rappahannock County and School Funding Committee: Supervisor Welch and Frazier and School Board members Crocker and Gorfein are members of this committee.

Joint Resolution to the Virginia General Assembly: Mr. McCarthy read the proposed joint resolution that will go before both houses of the General Assembly on February 5, 2008.

Aline Johnson, Vice-Chairman of the School Board, called to order a meeting of the School Board. Members present were Aline Johnson, Rosa Crocker and Meredith Gorfein. Absent were Wes Mills and Ken Marlor. Superintendent of Schools Robert Chappell was also present. Mrs. Johnson requested the Supervisor's approval of the proposed joint resolution, attached hereto as Exhibit B and made a part of these minutes.

On motion of Ms. Crocker, seconded by Mrs. Gorfein, the School Board voted unanimously of the members present to approve the aforementioned joint resolution.

On motion of Mr. Welch, seconded by Mr. Lee, the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve the aforementioned joint resolution. The following roll-call vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland NAY: None.

On motion of Mrs. Gorfein, seconded by Mrs. Crocker and the unanimous vote of the School Board members present, the School Board adjourned its meeting.

Mr. Anderson lauded Mrs. Johnson for obtaining a letter of support from former Senator Byrd and many Rappahannock residents.

The resolution will be delivered to the House subcommittee on Appropriations and the Senate Finance Committee on February 5, 2008.

Farm Wineries, HB 463: Mr. McCarthy described the pros and cons of proposed HB463 which defines what "usual and customary" activities will mean in the future. Some portions of the bill warrant objection as they would undermine certain regulations already regulated under the agricultural provisions of the county ordinance. Particularly disturbing were provisions that would remove most activities of 200 or fewer persons from every situation regarding conferences. As an example, a property owner could purchase a permit, plant a few grapes and operate as a vineyard.

On motion of Mr. Wayland, seconded by Mr. Lee, the Board voted unanimously to authorize Mr. McCarthy to convey the county's opposition to HB No. 463. The following recorded vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland. NAY: None.

Landfill Report: Three (3) clean reports have been received since closing of the cell at the Amissville landfill site.

Scrabble School Project: Mr. McCarthy reported that the project budget total in the amount of $450,000 is in hand. The county has contributed $50,000; a CDBG in the amount of $200,000 was received last month. The remaining funds were raised over several years and from various sources.

The following resolution and documents, relating to the Scrabble School project, were considered and approved by the Supervisors.

(1) Resolution and Notice of Sole Source and Emergency Procurement (§2.2-4303):(Exhibit C) This resolution was unanimously adopted on motion of Mr. Welch, seconded by Mr. Wayland and the unanimous vote of the Board. . The following recorded vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland NAY: None

(2) Residential Anti-Displacement and Relocation Assistance Plan: (Exhibit D)

(3) Fair Housing Certificate: (Exhibit E)

(4) Local Business and Employment Plan. (Exhibit F)

(5) Non-Discrimination Policy. (Exhibit G)

(6) Section 504 Policy & Grievance Procedures. (Exhibit H)

The above-enumerated certificates, plans, policies and procedures, labeled 2 through 6 and attached as Exhibits D through H, were unanimously approved and adopted by the Board on motion of Mr. Frazier, seconded by Mr. Welch and the unanimous vote of the Board. The following roll-call vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland NAY: None.

Immigration Coalition: Mr. Wayland and Mr. Luke reported that only six of the original 20 localities continue to be involved. Rappahannock County does not have the kinds of problems that some jurisdictions have and joining the coalition will not likely benefit the county in any way at this time. Further, legislative proposals are not likely to receive much attention because there are so few localities remaining in the coalition. Mr. McCarthy will monitor the progress of the coalition and place it back on the agenda if necessary.

Emergency Communications: Word has been received that the Fire and Rescue Association has received a $262,000 grant for acquisition of an emergency communications system. (See letter with papers of meeting.) These funds must be expended by December 31, 2008. The entire system will cost $1 million. Funds have been accumulating in surplus for several years. Thanks were extended to James Carter, Richie Burke and Jack Atkins for pursuing the grant.

Stuart Field: The lease and deed will be ready for approval and recordation within the next month or two.

NEW BUSINESS:

Rail Line Proposal: The proposal is part of the I-81 VDOT study to regulate truck traffic. Included in the study is a rail spur from Culpeper to Linden that would involve a 4-mile tunnel through the mountains. There is no absolute track or path proposed; PEC, however, has a proposed path on its website. The report will be released in June.

Uranium Mining: SB 525 before the General Assembly seeks to lift the 1982 ban on uranium mining. It is unknown if there is uranium in Rappahannock County however there are known deposits in Warren, Fauquier and Madison counties. The concern is that mining in densely populated, higher-precipitation regions can create health hazards caused by radioactive wastes known as "tailings." Dust from tailings piles and mine sites would contaminate the air, and leachate would threaten our groundwater, wells, streams and pristine rivers.

On motion of Mr. Wayland, seconded by Mr. Welch, the Board voted unanimously to authorize Mr. McCarthy to convey the county's opposition to SB 525. The following recorded vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland NAY: None.

High-Mileage Vehicle Allowance: Beverly Atkins, the Commissioner of the Revenue, reported that there have been requests for high-mileage vehicle adjustments to personal property taxes. Some neighboring counties offer such an allowance. The allowance, which would be a flat amount, depends on the class of vehicle. Such an adjustment will negatively impact tax revenues. It will not affect the current budget but would take affect in 2009. Mr. McCarthy asked that the Commissioner check with neighboring counties.

Ms. Atkins also informed the Board that the PPRTA (car tax) will be reduced to 62% this year; it has previously been 70%.

APPOINTMENTS: None.

CORRESPONDENCE: None.

INFORMATION:

Building Office Report: Total construction from December 22, 2007 to January 21, 2008 was $996,500.00. Year to date totals: (See papers of meeting for more detail.)

Year to date totals:	2007	2008
New Home Construction	2	2
Commercial Buildings	1	0

ACCOUNTS: On motion of Mr. Lee, seconded by Mr. Welch, the Board voted unanimously to approve the Accounts Payables dated February 4 , 2008. The vote was recorded as follows: AYE: Wayland, Welch, Frazier, Lee and Anderson. NAY: None.

INTRODUCTIONS: Sheriff Connie Smith introduced the new Chief Deputy, Major Scott Jenkins.

EXECUTIVE SESSION: (3:50 pm) On motion of Mr. Welch, seconded by Mr. Wayland, the Board voted unanimously to retire into executive session pursuant to Virginia Code §2.2- 3711A.7 to consult with legal counsel or to receive a briefing by staff members or consultants pertaining to actual or probable litigation where such consultation or briefings in open meeting would adversely affect the negotiation or litigating position of the Board of Supervisors under §2.2-37llA.7 et seq. The subject matter of the closed meeting was discussion of actions in the Dominion Power case. The following roll-call vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland NAY: None.

Open Session: On motion of Mr. Lee, seconded by Mr. Wayland, the Board voted unanimously to reconvene into open session. The following roll-call vote was taken. AYE: Wayland, Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch. NAY: None.

Certification: The Chairman polled the members of the Board as follows “To the best of your knowledge, do each of you certify that only public business matters lawfully exempted from the open meeting requirements under existing Virginia law, and only such public business matters as were identified in the motion by which the executive meeting was convened, were heard, discussed or considered by the Board in the executive meeting just held?” The following roll-call vote was taken. AYE: Anderson, Frazier, Lee, Welch, Wayland. NAY: None.

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 4:15 o'clock p.m.

_________________________________________

Robert P. Anderson, Chairman