Focused on the county’s growth and future development, Stafford appoints experienced replacement to vacant Supervisor seat

STAFFORD — The Stafford County Board of Supervisors was focused on the future Wednesday with the appointment of its new member.

As the county charts a course for growth and development for the next 30 years, the eight-member board, at least for the next nine months will be focused on how to manage that growth.

Their appointee, a veteran of the county’s Planning Commission, has also worked on the county’s comprehensive plan — the guiding document that serves as a roadmap for everything from land use to public utilities.

Thomas Coen, who works as a Stafford County high school civics teacher, was unanimously appointed to the Board of Supervisors at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. He will fill a vacant seat left open by Bob Thomas who was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates.

After he was sworn in, he took his seat on the dais and thanked his fellow Board members. “I have learned a great deal from many on the Board here,” said Coen.

He also recognized his predecessors Thomas, and Harry Crisp who served on the Board before Thomas. “They are friends, and I want to continue on in their legacy.”

Seven candidates volunteered to serve and submitted their resumes. Supervisors narrowed their choices down to three to include Coen, Anthony “Tony” DeTora, and Gordon Silver.

Coen, with his previous county government experience, appeared to be the obvious choice.

“We chose the candidate with the most experience and the one that can hit the ground running on day one,” said Rockhill District Supervisor Wendy Maurer.

Board Chairman Meg Bohmke said Coen would need those skills as Supervisors this year work to write new ordinances to permit cluster development — concentrations of homes in rural areas designed to preserve open spaces. Stafford officials last year scrapped plans for such developments, but new state law mandates the county write new cluster ordinances, said Bohmke.

“We don’t want to be Fairfax, so we have to manage growth in our identified growth areas,” said Bohmke.

Additionally, the Board this year will also work on its five-year financial management plan. Coen’s experience working on the public school’s capital improvement plan from 2012 to 2014 will serve him well in his new role, she added.

Coen will serve until a special election is held on November 7, when voters will head to the polls to choose a permanent replacement who will serve out the remainder of Bob Thomas’ old term which ends Dec. 31, 2019. The new appointee said he plans to campaign for the seat in the fall.