Prince William County’s Geographic Information System (GIS) division has created a new online map tool that will allow residents to learn more about the county.
In order to create the new map, the GIS team pulled information and images from aerial photographs, developer’s surveys, and satellite data, said a county release.
The gallery is broken down into development, environment, public safety and public services, so residents can narrow down what they want to see, and get the most accurate and up-to-date information on sites in the county.
Speaker Bill Howell, long-time incumbent delegate in Virginia’s 28th district has raised more than three times his primary challenger, former Stafford County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Susan Stimpson.
According to the State Board of Elections, Howell has received $165,738 in contributions this quarter. Stimpson has raised $46,135.
“The numbers are pretty one-sided. Howell has raised a lot more money than Stimpson,” said Stephen Farnsworth, professor and director of the Center for Leadership and Media Studies at the University of Mary Washington.
Farnsworth stated that for Stimpson, raising a comparable amount of funds during the primary is going to be paramount.
“Money is a really important issue for a challenger especially. Challengers really struggle to get their name out in primaries. And so successful challengers need to raise a significant amount of money to participate in a primary contest that generally calls very few voters to the polls,” said Farnsworth.
In the past, Howell has faced few primary challengers or serious opposition for his delegate seat, and this large amount of fundraising shows that he is taking Stimpson seriously as a challenger.
“The main thing that Howell’s fundraising advantage shows us is that he is taking this challenger very, very seriously. One of the consequences of Eric Cantor’s defeat in the primaries last year is that Republican incumbents are very careful not to be surprised by challengers…It’s clear he sees himself having to work much harder in this contest than in previous ones. A lot more door knocking – a lot more signs in town,” Farnsworth commented.
The Republican primary between Howell and Stimpson will take place on June 9.
Moody’s Investors Service, a company that assesses bond credit ratings, has upgraded Stafford County’s bond rating from an Aa2 to an Aa1.
The higher a counties bond rating, the lower the cost to borrow money. This means that Stafford County will be able to borrow funds at a lower cost, which will save residents money.
Bond rating agencies look at four criteria when assessing a locality’s financial standing, including finances, the area economy, debt and financial management and governance.
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Following the adoption of the county budget by the Prince William County Board of Supervisors, the Prince William school board will meet to revise and adopt their own budget.
The Prince William County School Board has an operating budget of around $1.3 billion.
According to school board Chairman Milt Johns, the budget will be revised and adopted at the May 6 and May 20 meetings.
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During a ceremony last week at the Edward L. Kelly Leadership Center, Prince William County Public Schools was honored for their energy savings program.
Brian Gorham, Energy Management Administrative Coordinator for Prince William schools stated that since the program began in all county schools, he’s seen a huge savings - $11 million to be exact.
“In 2011, we actually spent over $23 million dollars on utility expenses as a school division...since instituting the energy management program…I’m proud to report that through the efforts of [school employees] we’ve been able to reduce our utility expenses down to $19.5 million dollars on an annual basis,” said Gorham.
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The first company to open a space at the Prince William Science Accelerator – ISOThrive, LLC – has announced they will be moving into a larger space on the site.
The Prince William Science Accelerator is a facility located in Innovation Park – a collaborative effort between the Prince William County Economic Development department and George Mason University, to bring jobs and industry to Prince William.
ISOThrive is currently working on a probiotic nutritional supplement, and plans to enter the commercial market this year. They have received $1.4 million in private investments.
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On June 9, two candidates for Virginia’s 2nd House district – former delegate Mark Dudenhefer and Tim Ciampaglio – will be facing off in a Republican primary for the delegate seat.
The incumbent, Delegate Michael Futrell, is currently running in a three-way Democratic primary for the 29th senate district, and will not be seeking re-election.
In order to establish their viewpoints prior to the primary, Ciampaglio and Dudenhefer have both announced their plans for the district if elected.
Lean government proposal
According to a release, Dudenhefer has a three-point plan to cut taxes in the district, and reduce the size of government.
“Lean government models have been used in other states to cut down backlogs, use taxpayer money more effectively, and improve governmental processes to ensure peak performance,” said Dudenhefer in a release.
Dudenhefer stated that he would direct the Inspector General to implement a ‘lean government philosophy’ in state government, train state government managers to learn and use the lean government model, and target government processes to simplify and streamline processes in government that will reduce waste.
Additionally, Dudenhefer referenced his track record during his time as a delegate, where he stated that he was able to cut taxes and reduce the size of government.
Peak operating efficiency plan
Ciampaglio stated in a release that he has a plan to increase the efficiency of state government with his own three-point plan.
“The plan begins by asking if an expenditure is necessary to the agency mission and then derives a method to drive all expenditures towards only core operating service requirements,” said Ciampaglio in a release.
In his operating efficiency plan, Ciampaglio stated he would teach “agencies and the Inspector General to create strategic metrics that measure the efficiency and effectiveness of agency spending.”
By doing so, Ciampaglio said that the agencies would be able to stretch their budgets, be more transparent in their decision making, make recommendations on improving spending, and provide Virginia tax payers with a way of tracking the state’s efficiency and effectiveness.
According to Ciampaglio, following an editorial he authored, comments were made asking for a release of his peak efficiency-operating plan, in response to the editorial. Ciampaglio stated he is seeking clarification as to whether these comments were made by district voters or by other sources.
On May 1, the Prince William County Department of Parks and Recreation will be hosting a grand opening and ribbon-cutting at the Lake Ridge Golf & Marina.
The ceremony will take place at 11 a.m.
According to a Prince William parks and recreation release, the floating dock and boat launch is being completed as part of the Occoquan Water Trail Access Enhancement project. The project is being funded by the National Park Service and the Chesapeake Bay office with a matching grant.
Future projects in the area will include bank stabilization using bio-socks and a beach launch area, as well as a pathway, mile markets and signage on the water trail, said a Prince William parks and recreation release.
On May 15, the Baldwin Elementary School PTO will be hosting their annual Family Movie Night on the Manassas Museum lawn.
The movie - Paddington Bear - will begin at 8:15 p.m.
Entry to the movie is free for all participants.
