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Colonial Beach • Westmoreland
Page 6 Volume 37, Number 40
Wednesday, October 2, 2013 50 Cents
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Westmoreland Officials Anticipating Low Turnout
Carol Chandler is Montross Festival’s Grand Marshal
Richard Leggitt Westmoreland County Registrar Kristin Hicks is anticipating a low turnout for the Nov. 5 general election, but is hopeful that the turnout will exceed the 37 percent of registered voters who participated in 2009, the last Virginia gubernatorial election. “Based on the absentee voting we have seen already, maybe we will do better,” Hicks said. “I hope so.” Westmoreland County has almost 12,000 registered voters. Westmoreland County voters who wish to vote absentee can do so now either by mail or in person. Those wishing to register or update their registration have until Oct. 15 to do so. Voters can check their registration status online at www.sbe.virginia. gov. Voters who need to update registration information may complete a Virginia voter registration application available from that State Board of Elections website or contact the state board directly to check registration status at (800) 552-9745. Another convenient local option is for voters to contact or visit Westmoreland Registrar Hicks’ office at 105 Court Square in Montross with questions. Hicks’ phone number is 804-493-8898. ABSENTEE VOTING IN PERSON – NOW Absentee voting is available now which enables voters to cast their ballots in advance of Election Day. There are numerous reasons that make voters eligible to vote absentee. It’s an effective choice for those who expect to be out of the county on Election Day for any reason, including travel, appointments, long commutes,
NNPC will help CB build a strong grant application
Westmoreland County Registrar Kristin Hicks, standing, and her assistant, Anita Davis, are preparing for the Nov. 5th general election. or those with unpredictable work hours. Any Westmoreland voter with a question about whether they qualify to vote absentee should contact the registrar’s office. Absentee voting can be done in one of two ways, either by mail or in-person at the registrar’s office. The easiest way to vote absentee in advance of the election is to go to the Westmoreland Registrar’s office. There you may fill out an application for absentee voting, then vote on the spot. The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot by mail is Oct. 29. The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot in person is Nov. 2. The Westmoreland Registrar’s office is located on the square across from the Westmoreland County Courthouse. It is open on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and will be open two Saturdays,
Oct. 26 and Nov. 2, to accommodate absentee voters. CANDIDATES HOUSE OF DELEGATES, 99th DISTRICT Margaret Bevans Ransone is the Republican candidate. She is unopposed in this year’s election. GOVERNOR Terry R. McAuliffe is the Democratic candidate, Ken T. Cuccinelli II is the Republican candidate and Robert C. Sarvis is the Libertarian candidate. LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR Ralph S. Northam is the Democratic candidate, and E. W. Jackson is the Republican candidate. ATTORNEY GENERAL Mark R. Herring is the Democratic candidate, and Mark D. Obenshain is the Republican candidate.
Courthouse Construction
LINDA FARNETH Jerry Davis, Executive Director for Northern Neck Planning Commission (NNPC), visited the Colonial Beach Town Council and met with the revitalization management team to offer the town help with their Department of Community Housing and Development (DCHD) block grant application for this spring. Currently, the NNPC is involved in three DCHD grant projects in Northumberland County, Lancaster County and the Town of Montross. They have helped these localities secure the grants and administer them. Davis outlined the shortfalls that caused Colonial Beach to score low. He explained that the town scored a 620 on the grant application, and winning localities are scoring between 780 and 800. Previously, in order to be considered and awarded grant money, a locality’s DCHD block grant project must meet one of two criteria. Simply put, the project must either benefit low-to-moderate-income individuals, or eliminate slum and blight. Davis explained that with the competitive nature of these grants today, localities must meet both criteria to be considered. Blight is not necessarily restricted to physical, Davis explained. In The Town of Montross, where they successfully won their grant last year, they did not originally have many rundown buildings in their project area to meet the physical See GRANT, page 2
Construction on the new Westmoreland County Judicial Center in Montross is in the home stretch. The building is scheduled for completion in February and county officials will begin moving into their new offices in March.
With The Montross Fall Festival set for this weekend Sisson’s Produce has stacks of pumpkins ready to add fall color to the festivities
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Richard Leggitt
arol Chandler, who has devoted her life to Montross and is one of the leaders of the Montross Revitalization effort, is the Grand Marshal of the parade at the Montross Fall Festival which begins this weekend. “I am humbled that the town which means so much to me has chosen me to represent them in my favorite event of the year,” said Chandler, the owner of the Carrot Cottage on Courthouse Square. “Carol was unanimously selected by the Fall Festival Steering Committee’” said Montross Town Manager Brenda Reamy. “Carol is very deserving of this honor.” Chandler’s business, which features gifts, collectables, flags, a garden center, home decor and pastel portraits drawn by Chandler, has served as an unofficial Welcome Wagon for visitors to Montross and a neighborhood gathering place for local residents
for more than 15 years. Chandler arrived in Westmoreland County in 1968 and began working as a teacher. She taught high school, elementary school and kindergarten and then opened Peter Pan Play School in Montross. She remains active in youth programs in the town and the county. Carol built her successful Carrot Cottage business on Montross’ Courthouse Square in a building that was once the home of the Harris Variety Store. She was a leader in the effort to build the new Montross Library building and in developing a volunteer program for the Westmoreland County Museum. Carol, who is currently aiding her husband, Bryan, in his valiant fight with cancer, is the mother of two grown children. She will ride in a convertible in the Saturday festival parade with her two grandchildren, Natalie 9, and Anthony, 6. She is a member of St. James Episcopal Church in Montross.
Who makes the best chocolate cake? The Third Annual Montross Fall Festival Baking Contest will award the title of “Best Chocolate Cake in Westmoreland County” to a fortunate baker Friday. The baking competition is being sponsored by Montross Attorney Peggy Garland. Entrants in the baking contest are asked to drop off their best chocolate cake at Garland’s law office at 15353 Kings Highway in Montross between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Friday. Any type or chocolate cake can be entered. Judges Billy Sydnor, Elaine Paphides, E.T.Tate, Mike Mahan and Anne Garner will taste and score each cake on taste, texture, presentation and uniqueness. Cakes will be numbered and the judges will not know who made which cake. The judging will be held at 6 p.m. Friday and the winner of the prestigious baking title will be announced at the Fall Festival Parade on Saturday. In 2011, Kim Zimmerman won the “Best Coconut Pie” title and in 2012, Janet Gallagher won the “Best Homemade Apple
Pie” prize. “It is kind of a fun activity,” said Montross Town Manager Brenda Reamy. “Interest has been growing this year because of the chocolate cake contest. We haven’t been able to keep flyers advertising the contest in stock at town hall.”
Project Flagpoles will help Baker make Eagle Scout
Joseph Baker, of Colonial Beach, is working for his Eagle Scouting badge as a Scout
Story and picture by Linda Farneth
For over a year, Joseph Baker has helped raise the American flag at Colonial Beach High School. So it was no surprise when Baker decided to make replacing the flagpole his Eagle Scout Project. Baker is no stranger to scouting or helping the community. Throughout his ten years in scouting, Baker has earned several badges, and in tenth grade, he won a philanthropy contest. His winning project resulted in a metal public bench being placed at the site of the World War I and II Veterans’ Memorial that houses the names of Colonial Beach residents who gave their lives serving their country. Baker’s current project entails replacing the current flagpole, adding a second pole, replacing the American flag and the Virginia flag, and adding a Town of Colonial Beach flag. Baker also is negotiating with school officials and the school’s art department to create a Colonial Beach Schools’ flag. The mechanisms that hold the rope are not working well, and are falling apart. On a few occasions, the rigging has come loose, leaving the rope blowing in the wind until he
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could repair it. Joseph has already obtained a new American flag and a Virginia flag, but needs to raise money for the rest of the project, which is estimated around $2000. Minor landscaping will be added around the poles, such as circular bricks with mulch, and maybe a few perennials. The Eagle Scout Board has approved his project, so he can begin fundraising and collecting donations. Baker began in Boy Scouts at the age of 7 as a Tiger Cub. He has come a long way, and is now a senior at Colonial Beach High School. Donations for Project Flagpoles can be dropped off at the Colonial Beach High School. Baker plans to conduct several fundraisers with his troop, #258, under the leadership of Scoutmaster Jim Musselman, to raise the money.