05/28/2026
May 26th Board Meeting Review:
Opening Board Comments:
• Question about school grants will come later.
Presentations:
Welcomed Dr. Tashika Griffith as the new President of Germanna Community College. Dr. Griffith is the seventh permanent president of Germanna and was selected over 80+ candidates to replace Dr. Gullickson who retired last year after eight years of service. Dr. Griffith mentioned several academic programs, including a CTE focus in the future. That may create an opportunity to bring Germanna back to Caroline. Previously, Caroline had a satellite campus in front of Belmont.
Appointments:
Middle Peninsula Juvenile Detention Commission – reappointed Deputy County Administrator Alan Partin.
Rappahannock Area Community Services Board (RACSB) - Confirmed Susan Gayle is eligible for reappointment.
Social Services Advisory Board -
A replacement appointment is needed for the Reedy Church District representative to the Social Services Advisory Board.
Consent Agenda:
Approved minutes, warrants and a change order to the Pendleton Wastewater Pump Station.
Public Comment:
Kathie Belrose-Ramey, Mattaponi District complimented the County on its quick response to setting up small business resources. Gary Wilson, Economic Development Director, is working on a page, a small business forum and a directory.
Public Hearing(s):
Budget Public Hearing presented by the County Administrator.
Approximately 13 speakers came forward to speak. Many spoke about specific positions or programs within the school system. Unfortunately, the Board of Supervisors cannot fund specific programs or positions. The Board provides $20M+ to the Schools and the School Board determines how those funds are spent. Legal Aid Works, who provides free legal assistance for low income residents of Caroline, asked for level funding. The Board will discuss the budget at its next meeting and move toward a June 30 adoption, at the latest. This is later than normal because the State has not approved its budget yet. We expect additional funding from the State for Schools and a possibility of a County match for salary increases. In an emergency (no budget), the County could have to fund all departments for a month or two. Luckily, we are in a position to do so.
Capital Improvement Program Public Hearing:
No speakers came forward. The current 5-year CIP totals $92M, with $6.7M planned for 2027.
Unfinished Business:
Approved $1.1M in FY2025-26 grants for the Schools. According to the presentation by the Schools, some of the grants can be carried over to the next fiscal year and some must be encumbered right away. Approval of the grants was never in question. The process and if the County would be responsible for any grant payback were valid questions. As our discussion showed, some of the grant programs had already been underway. In that case, they were funded with local funds. After grant awards, the local funds would be replaced, for accounting purposes, with grant funds. My question was, what happens to those local funds now and what does the budget reflect for local funds? The answer was possibly used in the current budget or returned at year end.
New Business:
Prepared for a change to the County’s Solar Ordinance to match the new State Ordinance that takes effect July 1. I expect a Public Hearing at the June 23rd meeting. The General Assembly has created new approval requirements.
Approved a letter of commitment for a local match if the County is awarded a $10M Federal grant to improve the Exit 110 interchange. The local match is set at not to exceed $2.5M. This is not close to enough funding for a new bridge but would include a modified off ramp, restriping the bridge lanes and adding traffic lights. Additionally, the County has a VDOT(no local match) application in for $14M to improve the intersection.
Closing Board Comments: none
