Author: Rick Horner

Originals

Rappahannock regional libraries embrace technology, expand resource catalog

By Rick Horner
Central Rappahannock Regional Library Howell Branch in Stafford County.

The Central Rappahannock Regional Library has released its quarterly report and according to that report, more patrons have been coming to the library due to the agency's embrace of technology.

To help with this, the library recently received a grant from Transurban, the operators of E-ZPass Express Lanes on Interstate 95, that will be used to extend wifi access in the neighborhoods surrounding the Howell and Salem Church library branches in Stafford and Spotsylvania counties, respectively.

The library will receive $5,500 through Transurban's Express Lane Community Grant Program. The grant falls under the community category of the project's guidelines which would support applications that support the health, economic development, or well-being of communities within the I-95 and I-495 corridor.

Transurban is currently partnered with the Virginia Department of Transportation in the Express Lane extension project that will extend the express lanes closer to the Fredericksburg, extending them south from Route 610 to Route 17.

The report also spotlights the library's expansion of online training platforms after the library had transitioned from Lynda.com to LinkedIn Learning for their video-based online offerings. As a result, thousands of additional online courses have become available to library patrons that come in seven different languages including English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Chinese, and Portuguese.

The library has also been able to expand its magazine offerings by transitioning over to the Overdrive eMagazine application. The transition allows for access to more than 3,000 magazines in several different languages from the previous physical collection of fewer than 200 magazines offered.

The library is also continuing its IdeaSpace program, since March the library has circulated media technology equipment through IdeaSpace for those interested in learning how to use and operate items such as camcorders, audio equipment, digital drawing tablet, lighting, and other media related accessories.

IdeaSpace is currently located at 1616 Princess Anne Street in Downtown Fredericksburg.




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Features

Fredericksburg Jazz musician going strong after 30 years

By Rick Horner

Harry Wilson has been a fixture in the Fredericksburg Jazz scene for the last 30 years and is still going strong.

Wilson brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the jazz world as the bandleader of the Harry Wilson Quartet. Wilson is also the vice-president of the Fredericksburg Jazz Collective, which since 2011 has continued to promote the awareness of jazz music and the impact the genre has had on modern culture.

Wilson is also unique as he plays the vibraphone in his quartet which is not a typical lead instrument compared to the piano, the trumpet, or the saxophone when one thinks about Jazz. In going this route, Wilson has forged a very recognizable sound that can be enjoyed by even a novice looking to find their way into the genre.

The current iteration of the quartet includes many promising and upcoming musicians from the area which includes Jazz student Kyle Smith on drums, bass player Luke Gray, a teacher with the Fredericksburg Area Young Musicians group, recent the University of Mary Washington graduate Ben Peters on saxophone as well as more experienced musicians such as Steve Rathson on piano.

Wilson spoke to Potomac Local News about his experiences and how he and his band weathered the recent coronavirus pandemic.

What inspired you to pursue playing Jazz as a professional?

I learned Jazz at an early age playing on the streets ofNorth Philadelphia, I listened to people like John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and Sun Ra. Sun Ra took me under his wing and I played with him on the road for four years and recorded a couple of albums with his band. There's a spirit in Jazz that I've grown up with, it's one of those things you have to dig deep in your soul to see where you're coming from because there's a spirituality whenever I play and I try to draw the cats in with what I do.

What attracted you to the vibraphone?

Milt Jackson, listening to Milt Jackson play the vibraphone on his albums inspired me. I got a set of vibes when I was 21 and I've been self-teaching myself to play the vibes ever since. I did have some teachers like Bill Lewis in Philly and other players. Another person who helped is my friend and mentor Marshall Allen, he's 97 and he's still playing, he's one of the angels of the story.

How did the coronavirus pandemic affect your ability to play live as well as any other projects you may have had?

I did some virtual classes for elementary schools, we now have a clubhouse where we'll start having lessons, and I also did some work with the Fredericksburg Jazz Collective honoring some upcoming musicians like Kyle. We also played at the Pig Pitt, they have a nice patio outside and the owner gave us the opportunity to play there and it blew up with other gigs starting out solo and later with the band.

Over the last few years Jazz has had a resurgence with artists from the Hip-Hop world influencing the genre, what do you think of this resurgence?

I think it's good, I think it's very good. Sound Fusion (a group that Ben Peters plays with) just cut an album with the Coltrane song "Impressions" that has those kinds of influences.

Which local Jazz artists should listeners be paying attention to?

Me, and Sound Fusion.

The Harry Wilson Quartet will play their next show at the Pig Pitt at 1017 Sophia Street in Downtown Fredericksburg on Saturday, June 19 at 6 p.m.

Editor's note: This interview was condensed for length and brevity.

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News

Stafford leaders approve Downtown Stafford concept, while residents wary of more traffic

By Rick Horner
A rendering of Fountain Park, located next to the Stafford County Courthouse (lower right), a development that could have nearly 1,000 new apartment homes in buildings as tall as five stories.

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors moved closer to making Downtown Stafford a reality.

Supervisors held a public hearing on Tuesday and then voted four to three to adopt a plan that would conceptualize what the downtown project would look like as well as changes in the plan that would support the development. Also included were revisions to the zoning that would support the project's development.

The project site is located near the county's iconic courthouse, and across from Stafford Hospital.

However, residents continue to be wary of potential problems such as traffic and higher taxes.

Stafford County residents spoke their minds, and most said they were unsupportive of the project as it is. The goal of the Downtown Stafford project is to create an area that would be a mix of retail, residential, and government buildings that would attract people, similar to Downtown Fredericksburg.

They plead with the board to vote no on the matter due to the possibility of increased traffic in an area that -- located on Route 1, a major county thoroughfare -- already has many traffic issues. Drivers said two signal lights on Route 1, near the county's courthouse, continuously slow traffic in that area.

Many who spoke said the downtown project would make traffic worse.

Others were concerned with the potential for a high tax burden that could potentially be placed on the shoulders of residents. One resident, Mike Rodriguez, was concerned that the funds used to develop the project could be put to better use in improving county roads and building more schools.

Some were in favor of the project, such as Hank Scharpenberg who acknowledged that there were some issues to work out which included concerns with traffic.

After the assembled residents had spoken, many on the board made their thoughts on the subject known. Falmouth District Supervisor Meg Bohmke expressed reservations due to the fact that when the issue was brought to the county's Planning Commission the result was an approval of the comprehensive plan but by a four to three vote which Bohmke considered a red flag.

"I would really like to have a Downtown Stafford but I don't think this plan is ready for a vote. We may be getting a little too ahead of ourselves."

Hartwood District Supervisor Gary Snellings also decided to oppose the resolution citing that no traffic impact study had been made by the Virginia Department of Transportation nor was there a report on how it would affect county services. The lack of these reports and other issues were enough to convince Snellings to oppose the measure.

George Washington Supervisor Tom Coen, who declared being skeptical of the project, reiterated that the vote would be about a concept which could be changed at any time. Because of this, Coen felt that the plan could be voted on and adjusted going forward should things not work out.

"We have a lot of control over this, it's in a conceptual phase. I plan to keep an eye on this and we'll take things out if they're not working."

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News

Residents to speak out Wednesday on plan to expand Vulcan Quarry

By Rick Horner

The Stafford County Planning Commission will hold a special meeting regarding a proposed expansion of the Vulcan Quarry.

Residents of the Eastern View neighborhood, located across from North Stafford High School, have voiced concerns over the proposed 23-acre expansion of the Stafford quarry just off Route 610 in North Stafford, on which additional mining will take place. Originally opened in 1976 2001, Vulcan now plans to build a concrete manufacturing plant on the grounds to go along with an already existing asphalt manufacturing plant.

Area residents will have the opportunity to speak at the special meeting. Over the last few months, many residents have expressed displeasure with the idea of the expansion citing issues such as increased noise due to the removal of trees to make way for the expansion.

Other issues such as pedestrian safety for children were brought up as recently as March. The concern is that the extra mining would mean extra trips by heavy trucks that worry parents about potential accidents.

The special meeting will take place on Wednesday, June 14 at 6 p.m. at North Stafford High School.

Vulcan Materials, a Birmingham, Ala. based company, operates in 30 states as well as Washington D.C. with over 62 facilities located in the Commonwealth of Virginia including the Stafford Quarry which has been in operation since 1978.

The quarry mines Amphibolite, which is a common stone used in construction, paving, and building for residential, commercial, industrial projects.



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Fredericksburg councilor proposes 5-cent plastic bag tax

By Rick Horner
Fredericksburg City Hall [Photo: Fredericksburg Va. Government Facebook page]

Fredericksburg's At-Large City Councilmember Kerry Devine hopes to bag support for an effort to reduce plastic waste in the city.

Devine proposes to create a plastic bag tax in order to encourage residents to use reusable shopping bags. 

Fredericksburg has the authority to impose such a tax due to legislation that was adopted by the Virginia General Assembly in 2020. According to the language, the legislation allows any city or county by ordinance to impose a disposable plastic bag tax of five cents for each disposable plastic bag provided to a consumer by grocery shops, convenience stores, or drug stores.

This would not, according to Devine, apply to bags used to carry home produce or meats and poultry, or for plastic trash and pet waste bags.

During her presentation, Devine said that she had wanted to bring up the tax last year but refrained due to the pandemic since restaurants were trying to stay afloat and felt it wasn't the right time to bring the matter up. Devine also hoped that if this tax was implemented that it would encourage residents to start relying on reusable bags so that no tax would be collected.

Devine found support for the idea from some on the Council when Vice Mayor Charlie Frye asked Devine how to incentivize the use of non-plastic reusable bags in the local stores. Devine replied, stating it would require residents to develop new habits in using such bags.

Ward 3 Councilor Timothy Duffy also made his support known as he invoked his concerns of the negative environmental impact of plastics:

"Plastic is a big problem. Only 10% of plastic produced has been recycled, we were sold a bill of goods that plastic can be recycled but that isn't happening."

Plastic bag taxes have been a somewhat popular method by some localities to encourage the use of non-disposable bags in order to preserve the environment. California was the first to pass a statewide plastic bag ban known as Proposition 67 which was signed by then Gov. Jerry Brown in 2014 and imposed a 10-cent tax on single-use plastic bags. Ward 2 Councilor Bill Withers mentioned during the presentation that Roanoke had already passed such a tax in its area.

Fredericksburg is currently looking into the feasibility of the tax but wouldn't be able to implement it until Oct. 1 if leaders decided to move forward with it.

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News

Failing concrete to be repaired at two Stafford County water treatment plants

By Rick Horner

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors has authorized repair work to be done at two Stafford wastewater treatment plants, one located in the Aquia District, in the northern portion of the county, and the other at Little Fall Run Treatment plant in the George Washington District, near Fredericksburg.

Both plants have had issues with distressed concrete due to the stormwater sewage filtration systems that treat and sanitize sewer runoff. Two filtration systems at the Aquia plant and another at the Little Fall Run plant have issues with concrete distress which includes cracks in the concrete surface. 

The Aquia plant handles an average water flow of six million gallons per day while the Little Fall Run plant's average amount is three-and-a-half million gallons each day.

The county has retained the services of Denmark-based consultancy group Ramboll Engineering to design the repairs of the filtration systems which will address the issues of cracks, surface damage, and joint repairs. The company that will carry out the actual repair work, Wisconsin-based Creative Maintenance Solutions LLC, will be nearly $470,000 for their labor out of the County's Public Works Utilities Enterprise Fund.

Creative Maintenance will use an epoxy-based composite product that has been found to be successful at addressing issues of concrete repair. The composite is created by United Kingdom-based company Belzona and can withstand pressures of over 10,000 pounds per square inch.

Another company, the Nokesville-based Keystone Waterproofing & Restoration, was also in the running for the repair contract but was underbid by Creative Maintenance. Creative made a bid of nearly $469,000 while Keystone's was higher at $657,800.

The repair projects at the wastewater treatment plants are being planned to occur in a way that will limit any interruption to the operations of both plants.

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Features

“Scarlett Awakening” from the pandemic, bringing back live rock music

By Rick Horner

"Scarlett Awakening" is something of an anomaly in the coronavirus pandemic.

While the situation has forced bands and musicians to adapt or die, one would be forgiven if they didn’t believe something in the music world could be born from the situation that birthed the band.

Formed in the Summer of 2020, the band plays a blend of classic rock ‘n roll that is inspired by bands such as Creedence Clearwater Revival, Chris Isaak, and Fleetwood Mac just to name a few. Pamela Meyer, the band's lead singer, is what makes Scarlett stand out from others.

While John Jewell and Scott Kordella on guitars, Albert Dodson on harmonica, Rigg Wagner on drums, and Jim Scrofani on bass, all have years of experience, the dynamic is a little different since female vocals in rock are rare. Of course, there are examples such as Heart, Joan Jett, Pat Benetar, and others that have made their mark, but those examples stand out due to the rareness of a lead female vocalist in the genre.

“We decided to go in a different direction with Pam,” says Jewell. “We’re always updating the setlist, looking for songs in her range that a female could sing.”

The band has been finding success in the shows they’ve played even in a world constricted by the pandemic. This is not a surprise to Meyer. As she put it, “women love watching other women in a band.”

Scarlett Awakening is a dream come true for Meyer, who works as an artist and as a bartender in Fredericksburg. She had never played in a band prior to Scarlett and her entrance into that world was helped by Jewell who discovered Meyer through a video of her singing given to him by a mutual friend. Soon after, Jewell invited Meyer to join him for a rehearsal at Rigg Wagner’s studio.

By July, the band had enough songs under their belt to start playing live, which made the dream for Meyer a reality.

“Meeting these incredible musicians and then letting someone as green as I join in is a dream come true. Before I was just singing in the car, the shower, at school, in choir, in the theater.”

Scarlett has had to make adjustments due to the pandemic, while it’s given them time to learn and gel with each other they’ve also had to adhere to the protocols of the time. Keeping a distance from themselves and from their audience while trying to reach out to them in song.

“Things are a little different, but the masks come off behind the instruments and the people in the audience were ready to get out and hear some live music,” said Wagner.

The future looks bright for Scarlett Awakening, they’re currently working on original songs for which Pam has a vault full of lyrics. The band is also booked solid through October, so as the pandemic begins to wind down the crowds for Scarlett Awakening will continue to grow.

Scarlett Awakening will next play at the Tucked Away Brewery in Manassas on Saturday, June 19 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.


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Originals

Another Stafford bridge to be rebuilt; VDOT vows to complete this one on time

By Rick Horner
Truslow Road Bridge over I-95 [Photo: VDOT ]

The American Legion Bridge in Stafford County -- a two-lane bridge that carries traffic over Interstate 95, just north of the Stafford Regional Airport -- is about to close for nine months.

The Stafford County Infrastructure Committee received an update from the Virginia Department of Transportation about the upcoming closure of the bridge and the detours that will be used during that period.

The bridge will be replaced to accommodate the construction of two reversible I-95 E-Pass Express Lanes, as part of a project to extend the lanes south from Garrisonville Road to Route 17 near Fredericksburg. The Truslow Road Bridge, about 10 miles south of the American Legion Bridge, was also replaced to accommodate the new lanes. It reopened in April, five months behind schedule.

The update, presented by VDOT Mega Projects Engineer Robert Ridgell, outlined how traffic will be diverted during the nine months that the American Legion Bridge will be under reconstruction.

The planned detour will use the Centreport Parkway interchange at milepost 136 to get around the bridge and get onto Ramoth Church Road. VDOT will also coordinate with school transportation officials in order to inform them about the detours as the closure date gets near.

VDOT is planning to use lessons learned from the Truslow Bridge experience and apply them to the American Legion Bridge project in order to avoid the same mistakes and getting behind schedule.

The Truslow project ran into several issues that caused delays leading to the additional five months before its reopening. Four of those months were spent on redesigns of the foundations and piling which would have affected the quality of the bridge. Those delays combined with the coronavirus pandemic interrupting the work of the design and bridge crews brought down the work rates that would have brought the bridge to completion on time, said Ridgell. 

Ridgell vowed to the committee that VDOT had created risk mitigation plans that were designed due to the Truslow Bridge issues, one such mitigation would be the imposition of lane rental charges that would be made to the construction crew if they fail to make the completion date.

The American Legion Bridge is scheduled to be closed by January 2022 for this reconstruction.

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Business

Meadery to expand into Fredericksburg following permit approval

By Rick Horner

A special use permit applied for by Haley's Honey Meadery has been approved by the Fredericksburg City Council.

Haley's, which is located in Hopewell over an hour south of Fredericksburg, will soon open a second location in the city. Haley's will be located at the old Pure Gas Station on Princess Anne Street and is currently under construction to be rebuilt as a tasting room and specialty restaurant.

The conditions of the special use permit will allow Haley's to operate a tasting room that will allow customers to sample ciders, mead, and wine which are made in Virginia. The permits also allow Haley's to sell those types of alcoholic beverages, none of those beverages will be made in the Fredericksburg restaurant but instead will be shipped up from their main location in Hopewell.

Haley's owner Tonya Haley told Potomac Local News that she was attracted to the area because of the upcoming breweries, wineries, and distillers that have come to the city over the last few years. The owners of those establishments and other members of the community brought the growing vibrancy and economic development to Haley's attention which encouraged her decision to open a new location in Fredericksburg.

Haley hopes to have the Fredericksburg location open before August.

Haley's will open in the Canal Quarter of the city which has been rezoned along with several nearby areas as a Creative Maker zone. The goal of the zone is to attract new and innovative businesses and allow them to create an identity that will make them unique and add to the charm and appeal of Fredericksburg.

"I'm looking forward to joining the Fredericksburg community," says Haley.

Haley's Honey Meadery will be located at 1600 Princess Anne Street in Downtown Fredericksburg and plans to operate from noon to 10 p.m. once it's open.

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News

Stafford will use stimulus funds for disaster preparedness consulting

By Rick Horner

The Stafford County Board of Supervisors has approved the use of funds obtained from the American Rescue Act, the latest round of federal stimulus money, to pay a consulting firm on how to better prepare for disasters such as the coronavirus pandemic in the future.

The county will pay $80,208 to IEM, an emergency management firm based in Morrisville, N.C. According to its website, IEM works with government entities and private sector organizations around the world to improve disaster preparedness. Their company's areas of focus are in response and recovery, homeland security and defense, public health, cybersecurity, and critical infrastructure.

The County's approval of the use of these funds to pay IEM was also an official acceptance of the funds which will be received in two separate portions for a grand total of $28.7 million. The first portion was received in May 2021 totaling $14.9 million from which the payment to IEM will come.

Stafford County Public Schools are also expecting to receive $14.9 million with the stipulation that 20% of that total be used to address the extended gaps in student's education due to the closing down of schools due to the pandemic.

The County has also set aside a total of $1,7 million which is to be used for one-time and pandemic supported projects.

The second portion of the ARPA funding which would be a sum of $13.8 million is expected to be received by Stafford County sometime later this year.

Stafford County has lost 82 residents to the coronavirus, while neighbors Prince Willaim and Spostylvanaia lost 501 and 124 people, respectively.

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