Considering when and where our schools are improved
0Chesterfield County was the place to send your kids to school in the 1990s. However, it’s become painfully clear that all parts of the county are not created equal. Although Chesterfield County has an overall budget for schools, how it’s divided is based largely on new residential development. When new builders come into an area, they’re required to make contributions to the improvement of local schools and roads to accommodate new residents. Chester Village has been pretty well established and developed for a couple decades now, and without new development, we aren’t seeing an influx in school improvements. Many residents…
Tannerite explosions rattle community: Women, children, dogs and horses react to shootings
3A horse runs on property next to Hickory Road. A group of five neighbors came to a Chesterfield Board of Supervisors meeting last month after having heard some rather loud explosions in their neighborhood near Hickory and Matoaca roads. Two of the five spoke during public comment at the Feb. 27 meeting. Kathleen Jones, a Chesterfield school teacher, said that a home she shares with Mary McKinley has suffered from loud and frightening explosions that have gone on as late as midnight. Jones, who lives on 14.6 acres at 6230 Hickory Road, is adjacent to a home at 6217 Matoaca…
Rise up! TDHS senior heading to Hollywood
0“You’re a reminder of just how blessed we are.” With those words, Lionel Richie helped send Thomas Dale High senior Shayla Winn to Hollywood, Calif. Winn is headed to her fourth “American Idol” audition after winning her Golden Ticket during her most recent audition, which was held in Louisville, Ky. Winn’s performance aired on ABC-TV Wednesday evening, March 6, in which she wowed Richie and the show’s two other judges, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan. Winn, an 18-year-old Midlothian resident and student in Thomas Dale’s Specialty Center for the Arts, sang Andra Day’s “Rise Up” in a 4-minute, 45-second segment.…
Rift in Chesterfield’s NAACP chapter followed November election
0A rift in the Chesterfield chapter of the NAACP became evident in December and culminated with the organization’s president calling the police during a meeting. Tavorise Marks said the organization’s president, L.J. McCoy Jr., called the police shortly after the Dec. 18 meeting at Second Baptist Church of Chester started. Two officers responded, and the meeting ended after McCoy called the church’s pastor, Johnny Fleming, and he came to the church. “We were asked not to utilize the church,” Marks said. No arrests were made, according to police spokeswoman Liz Caroon. Last week, McCoy said he called the police because…
HD62: NAACP official, newcomer vying for Democratic nod
0Those who want to vote in the Democratic Party’s House District 62 primary June 11 will have a choice. Local NAACP official Tavorise Marks and Chesterfield County budget official Lindsey Dougherty are running. Marks has worked for the state Department of Health for six-plus years, he said, noting that he began as regional coordinator of the Virginia Family Fatherhood Initiative in January. The program is geared toward men ages 16 to 24. Marks is also a member of the Army Reserve and is pursuing a doctorate in organizational leadership from Regent University of Virginia Beach. “I don’t want to be…
County proposes FY2020 budget
0County administrator Joe Casey presented a Fiscal Year 2020 budget on Friday, which the supervisors were scheduled to consider during their March 13 afternoon work session. The $733.5 million budget represents a $22 million increase, or 3 percent, over the Fiscal Year 2019 budget. It would leave the real estate property tax at 95 cents per $100 of assessed value, although property assessments are rising an average of 3 percent. Schools represent 40.8 percent of the budget, with public safety the second largest area at 26.6 percent. Other areas include: capital, 8.2; health and welfare, 6.9; general government, 6.8; community…
Cox named Kiwanis Club’s ‘Person of the Year’
0House Speaker Kirk Cox holds a plaque that he was given last week. State Del. Kirk Cox thinks it’s “pretty cool” being House Speaker. Cox – who’s in his 30th year serving in the General Assembly – was honored last week as the Chester Kiwanis Club’s “Person of the Year.” The Colonial Heights native said that, despite being tentatively redistricted into a district that favors Democratic voters by 6.5 percentage points, he plans on running for re-election in November. He spoke March 4 before the club about the recently-concluded legislative session. He noted that because of a U.S. District Court…
Dog park to open in mid-April
0http://data.richmond.com/salaries/ County employee, Joe Stovall, on right, talks with local contractor Simon Green last week at Goyne Park. The first phase of a dog park at Goyne Park is almost finished. The first phase will feature a small dog run, said Joe Stovall, construction services manager at county parks and recreation. The first phase will also have an 8-foot-wide, 220-foot long walking path and an 80-foot-long release foyer area, he said. The second and third phases will include an agility course and large dog run. Work on the dog park began in February and has involved clearing diseased and dying…