Energy is everyone's business
Energy is everyone's business Fauquier County is literally split down the middle when it comes to electricity. NOVEC customers enjoy free “peak demand management equipment” along with many other effective energy-conservation equipment. Dominion Virginia Power does not offer the same or similar products to its customers in the same county.I ... | 0 comments
Left high and dry
Left high and dry I have long been a critic of the Town of Warrenton's $30 million investment in the WARF (Warrenton Aquatic Recreation Facility), but since the deed was already done, I had enjoyed exercise classes at the facility. Year to date, I have spent almost $1,000 in fees to ... | 0 comments
Erasing honors is big mistake
Erasing honors is big mistake I am currently an English teacher in Southwest Virginia. I was a student of the Fauquier County School System for eight years, and I am proud to say that my success today as an educator is due to the excellent teachers I had in Fauquier ... | 1 comment
School daze
School daze It has been with absolute incredulity that I’ve watched Highland School deforest what was previously a beautiful, park-like campus. The trend toward what now appears to be a clear cutting began with a border of mature white pines along Oak Springs Drive. Today I noted that practically the ... | 0 comments
Open to all
Open to allIn response to Edward Burke's letter to the editor in the July 22 edition, the grassroots supporters of Sen. Barack Obama would like to notify all residents of Fauquier County that the official barrier-free campaign office will be located in Vint Hill. As Mr. Burke indicated in his ... | 0 comments
Relapse
Relapse Once again, I feel compelled to voice my unadulterated opinion. I last wrote in May to express my extreme disappointment and frustration regarding the plans for a Costco in New Baltimore. Now, to add insult to injury I read in the July 23 edition of the Times-Democrat of another ... | 0 comments
Executive Director, Prince William Conservation Alliance
In September the Virginia Master Naturalist Program will open at Merrimac Farm. This is a great opportunity for people to learn more about nature close to home. It also should be lots of fun, with opportunities to catch dragonflies, trap small mammals, bird local wetlands, tour stream restoration projects and ... | 0 comments
Congratulations
I would like to congratulate Karen Henderson, CEO and President of the Chamber of Commerce, for being awarded the commonwealth's Executive of the Year by the VA Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (VACCE) on July 10th. There are over 130 Chmambers in Virginia, and this award normally goes to ... | 0 comments
Commuter rights
Commuter rights I received a notice regarding downzoning due to steep slopes on part of my land, so I presume that I am on the losing end of the latest debate regarding downzoning. I do not, however, consider this a total loss. In the debate on the downzoning of property ... | 0 comments
Friends in need
Friends in need I would like to praise the Fauquier County SPCA. They are a professional and caring group of people who do a wonderful job working with the homeless dogs and cats in our county.Citizens in our county should be aware that there is currently an abundance of wonderful ... | 0 comments
What'll it be?
What'll it be? Every year, we seem to witness homes built in inappropriate locations being flooded, swept away, or sliding down hillsides somewhere in the country.Fortunately Fauquier County ordinances have precluded construction of homes in floodplains in all zoning districts since 1979. The outcome of the current consideration to eliminate ... | 0 comments
Enough is enough
Enough is enough Just last fall, Fauquier’s supervisors ran for election (or re-election) promising fiscal restraint and to keep taxes as low as possible. What did we get? An 18.6 percent increase on our real estate tax with promises of more to come. And now a proposal for a four ... | 0 comments
How about access for a change?
How about access for a change?Like many of the curious, I paid a visit to the new “Obama for President” headquarters in Warrenton this past Saturday. I was amazed to find that it was located in one of the most physically inaccessible locations I have encountered in a very ... | 0 comments
McCain a good but not the best choice
Sir,I must say, I haven’t been more pleased with a Republican presidential candidate since Eisenhower threw his hat in the ring. Like Ike, John McCain has refused to pander to religious and racial bigotry. He's never resorted to hounding harmless minorities who are guilty of nothing more than trying to ... | 0 comments
Community spirit survives
Community spirit survives I grew up in the southern end of Fauquier County. It was a close-knit community that cared about each other. Your neighbors brought over food when you were sick, watered your plants while you were on vacation, and had a spare key in case of emergencies. Everywhere ... | 0 comments
Commendable effort
Commendable effortThe county supervisors proposal to eliminate density credits for floodplain and steep lopes is fulfilling their duty as good stewards for all the taxpayers.Paying for unusable land under the Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) program is equivalent to cooking the books, and should be considered illegal. Although only farmers ... | 0 comments
School is not proper use of agricultural land
School is not proper use of agricultural land As a citizen of Fauquier County, I want to address the Christian high school application by Donna Andes on Germantown Road in Midland. • We already have an elementary school a mile or so down the road from this location which already ... | 0 comments
Wheels in motion
Wheels in motion Virginia Palmer-Fueschel makes many astute observations regarding the current state of trails and road markings throughout the Town of Warrenton and Fauquier County in her July 9 letter, "Re:cycling."She might be interested to learn that not only the Warrenton Town Council, but also the Fauquier County Board ... | 0 comments
Ordinance is too open-ended
Ordinance is too open-ended This week, the board of supervisors will consider whether to create a new mixed-use special district under our county’s zoning ordinance. As currently drafted and without amendments to include detailed restrictive covenants in the ordinance, the mixed-use special district has the potential to dramatically change the ... | 0 comments
On the right track
On the right track President George Bush has just scored a major foreign policy victory over the Democratic-controlled Congress and many who wanted the war in Iraq and Afghanistan to fail simply for political power-grabbing reasons. Last Monday, he signed the $162 billion war funding bill without the Democratic-mandated troop ... | 1 comment
Opticom clarification
Opticom clarificationI would like the opportunity to provide some clarification to the article regarding the 3M Opticom Traffic Preemption system recently installed in the Town of Warrenton. The motivation for my letter is to make certain that our citizens are properly informed so as to prevent confusion and ensure their ... | 0 comments
Re: cycling
Re: cycling During the past few weeks, I took out my long-unused bicycle, and per doctor’s orders, cycled around Ivy Hill and adjacent neighborhoods, only to find out how bicycle unfriendly Warrenton is. Yesterday, for example, I decided to bike over to Rady Park and try out the trail that ... | 1 comment
New spin on old technology
New spin on old technologyAs a concerned area resident, I would hope that Dominion shows a little more creativity and willingness to embrace newer proven technology in its upcoming design considerations, instead of gross attempts to grab more private property and viewscape disruption.A newly patented scheme (2004) called Tripole is ... | 0 comments