Lori Graham
Contributing Writer
MONTGOMERY COUNTY – Planning for continued growth such as housing and infrastructure, education, and rising property costs were topics discussed by candidates during the forum hosted by the NAACP and the League of Women Voters, Montgomery County, Virginia.
Candidates for Montgomery County Board of Supervisors are Meredith Hutton (R) and Derek Kitts (D) for District B, Anthony Grafsky (D) and Incumbent Darrell Sheppard (R) for District E, Incumbent Mary Biggs (D) for District F, and Incumbent April DeMotts (D) and David Shelor, Jr. (I) for District G. Current Supervisor Sheppard expressed his regrets that he was unable to attend the candidate forum.
Grafsky spoke on the importance of using a variety of resources to provide transportation, speaking specifically about the new housing expansion along Prices Fork Road of close to 700 homes.
“We like to complain about traffic, but we’re not doing anything to address other modalities of getting in and out of that neighborhood,” Grafsky said. “There’s no sidewalks, there’s no bike lanes, there’s no public transportation.”
Biggs spoke in agreement with Grafsky concerning the growth of the area. She stated that schools, law enforcement, and emergency medical services are among the many things that must be considered with Montgomery County’s growth.
“We have to plan for the county’s future,” Biggs said.
Shelor did not disagree with the statements of Grafsky and Biggs but felt that looking at fiscal responsibility is important.
“I think that means we need to look through and see where we’re spending our money and make sure we’re spending the money that you all have provided us in a very responsible manner,” Shelor said.
DeMotts spoke on the lack of agreement previously with the Board of Supervisors over school vouchers and the much-discussed tax rates in the County. The Supervisors ultimately chose to enact a 70-cent tax rate, when a middle ground compromise between 70 and 73 cents was not met.
“The biggest funding loser was, of course, our public schools,” DeMotts said. “We can do better, and Montgomery County citizens deserve it.”
Kitts spoke of the inevitable growth that is continuing in Montgomery County and specifically in Blacksburg, echoing DeMotts thoughts on a revenue neutral budget in the face of the county’s continued growth. This impacts tourism, parks and recreation, housing, and public schools.
“Every penny represents 1.2 million dollars off the budget. The 1.2 million would have funded the SRO program, four million was stripped from the schools,” Kitts said. “Why? Because I don’t know, we took three cents off of it and went to a revenue neutral instead of making sure that we prepared for a rainy day.”
Rising property values in the area have been a growing concern for current residents as well as those individuals and families moving to the area for work and starting businesses. Additionally, public schools saw a decrease in funding support from the state than they had anticipated receiving. However, Hutton disagreed that the schools were “stripped” of funds, as stated by Kitts.
“They asked for 6.4 million, we gave them 2.4 million dollars. So, we increased their funding from last year while providing our citizens, who are facing inflation and astronomical cost of their homes, a lower property tax rate,” Hutton said. “We also increased three SROs to the Christiansburg strand schools.”
On the issue of diverting public school funding for school vouchers and tax credits that would support private and homeschooling, Biggs, DeMotts, Shelor, Kitts, and Grafsky agreed that school vouchers and tax credits for private and homeschooling options should not be permitted.
Biggs emphatically said she has been a huge proponent in Richmond to prevent more funding being diverted from public schools.
DeMotts agreed with Biggs and additionally stated, “I am aware of the frightening and racist history of private school voucher programs and how they disproportionately impact our most vulnerable students.”
As a public-school teacher and also a former homeschool teacher to her children, Hutton stated that parents have the right to choose. Hutton addressed examples of bullied children that may not feel comfortable attending a public school and may need an alternative educational environment.
“I’ve seen the benefits of public school. I’ve seen the benefits of homeschooling. I’ve seen the benefits of private school. I’ve also seen the challenges,” Hutton said. “The parents and the teachers of all these students, care about their education and they all provide quality education.”
Kitts agreed with Hutton that each student needs a plan for education.
“The way we funded public schools right now, we can’t meet their needs,” Kitts said. “Right now, we are below average on paying our teachers. So, now is not the time to defund public education. I am against school vouchers and I’m for increasing the funding of education.”
“Public school, public dollars, not a supporter of vouchers,” Grafsky said.
Questions posed to the candidates concerning the need of affordable housing brought forward ideas of the use of grant money, collaboration with local contractors, and government involvement. DeMotts stated that representatives from the New River Home Trust presented to the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors recently. The New River Home Trust is part of the Community Housing Partners that supports opportunities for homes for the region’s middle-income families. Work being done through this organization involves Montgomery County and the town of Blacksburg.
Candidates Grafsky and Kitts repeated the need of improved transportation options. Additional collaborations between the town of Christiansburg, as stated by Biggs, and the Virginia Tech community, suggested by Grafsky, were also recommended.
The schedule for future candidate forums can be found on the League of Women Voters, Montgomery County, Va. page at my.lwv.org/virginia/montgomery-county-va.
