DUMFRIES, Va. — The lights at Councilman Derrick Wood’s house on Seigel Court in Dumfries have been dark as of late.
The elected official says he no longer lives in the house after he made the decision to move out. A renter, his landlord wanted $400 more per month for his family to live there, said Wood. It’s a price he didn’t want to pay.
In Virginia, officials must live in the jurisdiction in which they are elected to serve. Dumfries Town officials currently have a Post Office Box address on file for Wood.
In an interview this morning, Wood said he plans to move his family into a home in the Port ‘O Dumfries neighborhood by July 1. He’s not lived in his old home on Seigel Court in two weeks, he said.
Dumfries Town Manager Daniel Taber said the issue of Wood’s residency has not been publicly discussed at any recent Town Council meetings.
Wood has been an outspoken member of the Council when it comes to parks and leisure activities in the town. He successfully advocated for creating a Parks and Recreation Commission during this year’s budget process.
The outcome: town officials approved $25,000 in funding for parks and recreation programs like a 5K run and an outdoor concert series to be held in Dumfries. Those programs, and ultimately how all the money is spent, must be decided by the Town Council as a whole, said Taber.
The Town Council will also choose from an interested pool of town residents who will serve on the Parks and Recreation Commission.
Though the town lies inside Prince William County, the county’s parks department does not program activities in the town.
