Monday July 3, 2023
COMMENTARY: This July 4, don't reflect - act | ADUs Dominate Recent Council Meeting | Fourth of July Events
COMMENTARY: This July 4, don’t reflect - Act
by Martin Davis
It’s easy to wax nostalgic and sing the merits of patriotism on July 4. It’s a holiday given to soaring rhetoric and high-minded ideals.
The hard work that animates democracy, however, happens out of ear-shot of the huzzahs. It happens in the local communities that collectively make America what it is.
In our local community in particular this July 4, it’s important that we spend our time thinking not about where we have come, but where we are heading. And we are heading for some difficult days if we don’t begin to act on the ideals of freedom, instead of simply singing their praises.
Spotsylvania County
Nowhere is this more apparent than in Spotsylvania. What we have watched happen over the past year is far more than a dispute between conservative and progressive approaches to solving problems. Rather, we are watching a full-throated attempt to impose a rigid Christian Nationalist worldview on the families of every school-age child in the county without regard for those who disagree.
In our local community in particular this July 4, it’s important that we spend our time thinking not about where we have come, but where we are heading. And we are heading for some difficult days if we don’t begin to act on the ideals of freedom, instead of simply singing their praises.
The issue over book bans and book burnings grab the headlines, but it’s the decidedly antidemocratic actions of Superintendent Mark Taylor and Board Chair Lisa Phelps that best demonstrates how dangerous what is happening in Spotsy is.
Blatant untruths - Taylor has actively run a campaign that undermines the reality in public education. His statements on America 180 about Virginia’s performance on the most-recent NAEP assessments were demonstrably false. Called out on it, he has refused to respond or - even more preferable - apologize.
Disenfranchising constituents - Lisa Phelps has shut down freedom of speech in school board meetings by silencing dissent whenever it appears. She further needlessly limits the time board members have to speak, and has removed the ability of minority board members to add items to the board agenda. In so acting, she has effectively disenfranchised voters in the Battlefield, Chancellor, and Salem districts. These moves are straight from the racist playbook of the 40s and 50s, when white leaders controlled Black citizens by terminating their ability to speak freely either in the public square or through their representatives in government.
From Republic to Empire - Lisa Phelps has managed to transform herself from board chair to emperor of Spotsylvania County Schools, in much the same way that Octavius elevated himself to emperor in Rome. Not only does she and she alone control the agenda and what gets on it (in direct contradiction to how this board - and any other healthy board - has historically done this), but she has consolidated still more authority to herself. She now has sole authority to approve what teachers are hired - a power that is abjectly totalitarian in its intent. She - along with her sycophantic colleagues - April Gillespie, Kirk Twigg, and Rabih Abuismail - flaunt their disinterest in the public by routinely getting up and walking out during Board comments and public comments when speakers are saying things she doesn’t want to hear. Worse, she alone controls access to the Superintendent, and the district doesn’t even try to hide what is happening. Every email to Taylor receives an auto response that makes clear she is his gatekeeper. From the auto response:
* Special Note to Spotsylvania County School Board Members: Please refer to policy BGR and directly relate your request to Board Chairwoman, Lisa Phelps.
These are but a sampling of the tactics and attitudes that this wholly incompetent board and superintendent have leveled upon the citizens of Spotsylvania.
Beyond Spotsy?
While Spotsylvania is rightly flagged for its antidemocratic leaders, there’s an argument to be made that Stafford County is flirting with the same behavior.
Stafford School Board member Alyssa Halstead last year introduced a change in classroom decor policy that some considered a direct assault on gay and transgendered youths. And there is growing concern among teachers and parents that this is just the start of the school board moving closer to what Spotsy is accomplishing, should the extremists gain control of the board.
The school board leaders and the school superintendent have made it clear that they are not interested in debating ideas, but in raising an authoritarian institution.
And in local political races, the same language that is animating identified extremist groups like Moms for Liberty is fueling races for everything from school boards to state senate.
Following Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s playbook, conservative leaders - not all whom adhere to the same extremist beliefs as Taylor and Phelps and Matt Strickland (the failed primary candidate for Republican Senate District 27 seat) - are appealing to extremist followers nonetheless by using their language and talking points: “Woke,” CRT, “grooming,” “Marxist/Socialist” in order to secure their votes and win an election.
Once in office, many will revert to a more-traditional conservative posture.
The problem for voters becomes, how do we discern the difference between extremists like those in Spotsy, and those using that language as part of the reality of winning elections?
Act
Perhaps the answer lies in playing close attention to what’s happening in Spotsylvania.
The school board leaders and the school superintendent have made it clear that they are not interested in debating ideas, but in raising an authoritarian institution. And there are clues in their behavior that can help us discern what others intend.
Do they create an alternative reality? Reasonable people can and do disagree about facts and what is happening on the ground. But they generally disagree using accepted sources and data - acknowledging when that information supports their point, and admitting when it doesn’t. Extremists do not follow these rules. They twist and distort, and never concede where the information they lean on contradicts their point of view. They are creating an alternative reality, where they, and they alone, control what is real.
Do they listen? People who are mature in their thought neither fear nor run away from opposing positions. They want to hear from those people with whom they disagree. Both to refine their own thinking, and to find places where compromise can be found and solutions can be found. Leaders who disenfranchise voters and avoid those they disagree with have no interest in a core element of democracy - mutual respect.
Are they moving to consolidate power to themselves? Democracy, we have learned over the past 7 years, rests less on law than on mutually agreed upon guardrails that help us from taking a step too far. Those who jump the guardrails for the sole purpose of consolidating power - as Lisa Phelps is doing - are undermining the very glue that unifies us as a people.
If making these decisions sounds difficult, it is. That’s why another key cornerstone of American democracy is an informed and active citizenry.
This July 4, commit to becoming informed, and commit to being active in our democracy.
It’s messy and difficult, it’s also rewarding and critical to our stability.
The lessons of the past prove that. They also prove that We the People need “We” - all of us.
This July 4 - Celebrate. Reflect. And then - Act.
ADUs Dominate Recent Council Meeting
by Savannah Dunn
Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADUs, are not a new topic in Fredericksburg. That doesn’t mean, however, ADUs are an easy topic. So it’s little surprise that at the June 27 City Council meeting, a majority of the meeting was focused on this topic.
Principal Planner Mike Craig gave a presentation on the proposed ordinance allowing ADUs. He mentions that this housing strategy has been in motion since 2007 and gives an opportunity for older folks to age in place while also allowing younger individuals to get a start.
A document titled “(Nearly) Everything You Need to Know About Accessory Dwelling Units in the City of Fredericksburg,” is available on the City’s ADU planning page.
Craig said that substantial public dialogue has helped shape this ordinance into what it currently is: allowing for ADUs whether they be attached to or detached from the main home on the property.
The City is working to keep up with zoning and the housing demand in Fredericksburg, and this includes Accessory Dwelling Units on the property of single-family homes.
The City plans to maintain its enforcement of occupancy/overcrowding restrictions as well as property maintenance policies in regard to ADUs.
A document titled “(Nearly) Everything You Need to Know About Accessory Dwelling Units in the City of Fredericksburg,” is available on the City’s ADU planning page. This as well as an ordinance for allowing only internal ADU’s were the two proposed.
During an extended public debate, tensions over ADUs were on full display.
One resident who is against the ADU ordinance said that they are “sick and tired of Fredericksburg being overdeveloped.” One speaker recommended stepping back from the issue entirely and creating a citizen’s task force to look at all of the issues and come up with a solution that will best suit the needs of the City as a whole.
Other citizens disagreed with the ADU proposal, but not as stridently. They recommended amendments like requiring the owner to live on property in order to “protect the neighbors from problems that could arise with investor-owned properties with two renters and an absentee landlord,” one citizen said.
Not all were against, ADUs, however. One speaker advocated moving forward, saying, “Growth of the City is nothing to be feared.”
A vote on the ADU ordinance is planned for the July 11 meeting.
Other topics
A new tour option was proposed that would include a Model A 1928 Depot Car. The motion passed with a vote of 6-0, and tourists as well as residents can look for this new attraction to be opened on August 1 of this year.
In the Councilor Agenda portion, Councilor Graham proposed Solar Car Ports to be added to the parking lots owned by the City and by the schools. This will not only keep cars in the shade but will provide energy and create “a more sustainable future,” according to Graham. Graham received the support of the other councilors.
Councilor Devine proposed Shirley Eye to be appointed to Germanna Community College Board, and the motion passed with a vote of 6-0
On the City Manager’s Agenda, a “resolution to authorizing the City Manager to apply to the Virginia Resources Authority for financing for Rapahanic Regional Solid Waste Management Board Capital Construction cost and declaring intent to borrow those funds” was proposed and approved with a vote of 6-0.
The meeting concluded with the police chief giving an update on the effectiveness of the noise ordinance. While the department believes that the ordinance is effective, the council had doubts and plans to bring this topic back up at the next work session for more discussion.
Fourth of July
There are lots of interesting events happening this Fourth. Want to share your events? Send an email to the editor. We’ll get it in.
Stafford
Stafford has a number of events for the entire family. Learn more about Stafford’s Fourth of July Spectacular.
Also, the 4th marks the Grand Opening of the Patawomeck Museum and Cultural Center. Learn more.
Fredericksburg
There’s a lot of activities downtown. Click through here to learn about everything happening in the city.
Story Time & Family Fun | Rising Sun Tavern
Tuesday, July 4, 2023
11:30 am and 1:30 pm
Join us on the lawn behind the Rising Sun Tavern as costumed interpreters will read children’s books on the American Revolution and this historic day in our nation’s history. Bring the family for face painting and additional fun activities themed around the Fourth of July. This family event is free and open to the public. Tours are available at standard admission prices.
Public Reading of the Declaration of Independence | Hugh Mercer Apothecary Shop
Tuesday, July 4, 2023
11:00 am, 1:00 pm, 3:00 pm
Join WHM on the steps of the Hugh Mercer Apothecary Shop as we celebrate our independence with a live reading of the Declaration of Independence. This is a moving experience you won’t want to miss! This event is free and open to the public. Tours are available at standard admission rates.
Outstanding description of what’s going on in both Spotsylvania and Stafford County. Balanced, thoughtful and open to the idea that both conservatives and progressives can have mutual interests in solutions, but that the current extremists don’t.
I really appreciate this take.
One sentence jumps out though, "What we have watched happen over the past year is far more than a dispute between conservative and progressive approaches to solving problems."
I wouldn't say that it's 'far more than' that.
I'd actually say that it isn't that at all.
We're not seeing a dispute between conservatives and progressives.
We're seeing a dispute between giving in to corruption or having principles.
I lean pretty far left, but I've voted for the occasional conservative if I thought they were the best person for the job. Conservatism isn't the issue here; dishonesty, grift, and authoritarianism is.