Coraggio Consulting
Loudoun County Board of Supervisors, Business Meeting, Wednesday, September 4, 2024

Date: Wednesday, September 4, 2024
Place: Board Room, First Floor, Government Center, 1 Harrison Street SE, Leesburg, Virginia
Length: 6h 1m (video)
Official meeting video (county, Granicus): https://loudoun.granicus.com/player/clip/7738
Agenda (Granicus): https://loudoun.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=73&clip_id=7738

Machine transcript (speech-to-text) produced by Coraggio Consulting. Not an official county record. Names and numbers may be misspelled; check the video at the timestamp before quoting.
Speech-to-text: whisper.cpp, model large-v3-turbo. Produced 2026-10-18. Timestamps are [HH:MM:SS] into the meeting video.

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[00:12:59] Good evening, supervisors. Good evening, staff. Good evening, Loudoun. Welcome back from the August break, everyone. I'd like to call to order the September 4th, 2024 Loudoun County Board of Supervisors business meeting. This room has a hearing loop. Mr. Sains. Thank you, sir. This room has a hearing loop. If you need hearing assistance, please switch your hearing aid to the telecom mode.

[00:13:17] If you need a headset, we have those available as well. Please see the clerk to request one. Before I pass it to Mr. Kirshner for words of wisdom or prayer and then the Pledge of Allegiance, I want to say that today we had, unfortunately, a school shooting in Athens, Georgia.

[00:13:35] We know we have lost four young, beautiful souls. We do not know if we have lost others. From what I understand, 30 people have been injured. So we're going to have a moment of silence for those lost and a hope for all that were injured to recover.

[00:13:53] So if you join me in a moment of silence, please. Thank you.

[00:14:12] Mr. Kirshner. Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Gad, we just thank you for this opportunity to gather together as a board. Our different constituents have selected us. Please give us wisdom as we proceed forward. There's many things going on in the world, Lord, that are heavy on our hearts and our minds.

[00:14:32] And we certainly think of the families and those who have been injured in Appalachia high school shooting. We do pray for them. We pray that you would, those treating those who have been injured, and we just ask for your grace and your mercy to fall upon them. And the only way we know how to ask.

[00:14:48] Lord, we do pray concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and what's going on there, Lord. We ask for your hand to resolve that and to bring peace to the Middle East. And Lord, we do thank you that we have, as we approach Constitution Week, and we have this tremendous document that, although imperfect at times, has served other countries so well.

[00:15:08] And Lord, we're so grateful that we have this Constitution that our founders put together and has preserved us as a people for so many years. And we pray you'll continue to preserve us as a people here in this county and throughout this nation. And we ask this all in Jesus' name. Amen.

[00:15:37] Okay Supervisors, I'm going to read the consent agenda, the consent agenda, Mr. Turner by the way is running late but he will be here as soon as he can.

[00:16:00] The consent agenda is as follows, item R1, Resolution to Honor the Life in Service of Mr. John Roseman, that is for approval and presentation, Mr. Kirshner are you bringing that resolution? Oh, Ms. Glass is, so Ms. Glass will join me down front for that.

[00:16:20] for appreciation for Courtney Sidnor, the Deputy County Administrator. That is for approval and presentation. We're going to do that shortly. Mr. Kirshner and Mr. Sains will join me down front for that. Resolution to recognize Polycystic Kidney Disease Awareness Day. I believe that's also Ms. Glass and that will, is that your, no, well that's yours and mine actually. So you and I are going to go down front for that one. Resolution to recognize 2024 as childhood cancer Awareness Month, that is Mr.

[00:16:52] Mrs. Eternal will join me down front for that one. Resolution to recognize September 24th as Recovery Month in Loudoun County. That is for approval only. If anyone would like to join me for that, I will be presenting that later in the month. I'll let you know when and you can join me at the location for that. Resolution to recognize and celebrate September 17th through 23rd as Constitution Week.

[00:17:18] We are going to go on and do that one tonight because it is my understanding that the organization is going to have their event on the 15th. And so although the week is not until the 17th through the 23rd, if they're going to do their event on the 17th, we're not going to be back on the days before the 17th. So we will do that one tonight. And that would be Mr. Kirshner and myself.

[00:17:41] Item two, Administrative Islands Report of September 4th, 2024. Item three, the invasive species plant removal pilot projects item 5a 2023 animal advisory committee annual report item 5b amendment to existing homeownership loan programs and creation of a new homeownership loan program yay item 5d lexus community center structure renovation supplemental funding request item 5e location design endorsement route 7 and route 28 interchange improvements item 6a

[00:18:15] environmental commission 2024 annual report and bylaws um is there i will make a motion to approve so a second motion made and seconded by vice chair richmond discussion on the motion um just a couple things i do want to commend the animal advisory committee and the animal advisory staff last week was international dog day and they actually celebrated that by having every single dog And our animal shelter was adopted out that day.

[00:18:46] So that was pretty amazing, pretty amazing, yay. I also want to commend staff and thank the staff for the existing homeowner and loan program, creation of new home loan ownership programs. I say all the time that we absolutely want to have the full plan of housing, but you want to have homes that are available for purchase because home ownership is how you create generational wealth.

[00:19:15] And so, you know, you do not want to, if you don't have to, you don't want to, you know, stay in a rental situation unless you want to for years and years because generational wealth is not being created at that time. And, of course, we always want to thank the Environmental Commission for all the good work they have done. Anybody else comments on the consent agenda?

[00:19:33] Ms. Glass. Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to voice my support and thanks for the funding of the Invasive Species Removal Pilot Programs. work of the Loud Invasive Removal Alliance has been enormous at both the state and local level. And I look forward to continuing to see the goals the county and this group can accomplish together.

[00:19:53] Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. Mr. Kirshner. Madam Chair, I just wanted to verify that item 5C was not called out. I was trying to follow up. It was not called out. Okay, great. The only other comment I had, Madam Chair, is I wanted to follow up on the invasive species funding that we're recommending here.

[00:20:10] I will tell you that I have met with a number of those folks very involved in that, and I continue to realize what a big problem this is, especially for our wine and grape industry. I will tell you that even on my little farm, I had never seen the spotted lanternfly, but I will tell you that they are out in force right now on my little farm.

[00:20:31] And I'm like, what is that? And I used to do entomology as a young man in 4-H, and I had never seen that particular fly before. So they are definitely out, and they are a big problem, and I continue to think that we as a county, this is very important to a very important industry to our Western Latin economy. So thank you for that.

[00:20:48] Ms. Bricksman. Thank you, Madam Chair. I'll associate myself with my colleagues' comments about the invasive species. Really proud to support that and proud to have that program starting. Also wanted to highlight something in the Environmental Commission report, which was the subject district energy.

[00:21:06] And I may have shared with my colleagues that down at NACO, I visited the Hillsboro Waste Energy Plant, which basically is producing 46 megawatts of power by burning trash.

[00:21:22] And that could power 25,000 homes. It recovers 21,000 tons of metal a year. It diverts 444,000 tons of waste from their landfills, so thereby extending the life of a landfill, and it also reduces greenhouse gas by 446 tons or 86,000 cars a year.

[00:21:46] So I was happy to read that district energy is a subject in the environmental commission report. And I did approach our general services director, Mr. Brown, about that. And he said they're already studying it and they'll be bringing something to us, I think, in the fall along those lines.

[00:22:05] And so I'm very excited to hear that we are considering this because as a growing county, we really do need to think about the lifespan of our landfill. And also, if we're to be energy and environmentally conscious, this is a great opportunity for us to recover metal, to, you know, use our waste to create energy and take tons of greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere.

[00:22:29] Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. I would also associate myself with the comments on our evasive removal program. Mr. Lippman, I don't know if you're in the audience today or if you're listening, but you have done a magnificent job. Next week, PBS is coming to do an entire broadcast series on invasive species, and they're going to be in Loudoun County for the entire day because it's been such a huge issue, but also because Lyra has done such a good job highlighting this issue, why it's a problem.

[00:22:59] The fact that when we say invasive species, we're talking mostly about bushes and trees and horticulture, greenery, foliage, but those invasive plants also bring invasive bugs, which is what Mr. Kirsten was talking about, the spotted lanternfly is an invasive bug that is completely destroying or starting to really destroy our wineries and breweries. Having said that, we are absolutely putting this issue on consent tonight, the invasive species issue.

[00:23:28] We are bringing funding. You do not have to send me pictures of your tree covered with bugs anymore. I believe you. I do. I don't need any more bug pictures in my email, please. They just make me itchy so please stop sending me pictures of your bugs we will get this done we promise all right on the paper please say aye any opposed that meant that motion will pass 801 with mr uh turner being off the um um off the deus for right now um the only addition i delete does anyone else have any

[00:24:03] additions or deletions the only addition i have supervisors and and i will um apologize because the supplement was supposed to go out last night for reasons that were some miscommunications.

[00:24:20] It did not go out until today, but there was a supplement letter in the item on voting, which I think is item number four. And so if you look at your supplemental package, and it did go out, but the letter had a couple of typos in it and a couple, and we wanted to cite the Virginia code that we were speaking about.

[00:24:43] So they're really fairly minor changes, but there were changes in that letter, and so it went out today. And so I wanted to say that right now so all of you had a chance to take a look at that letter before we get to the item. Like I said, there were fairly minor changes, but I did want you to see it before.

[00:24:59] At one place, it said the word "we" instead of saying "the Board of Supervisors," which just the we we were talking about and so we went back and added the board so things that were minor but but I did want to let you guys know that before the item comes up okay no other additions or deletions all right I have we I did quite a few quite a bit over the past August break I won't go through everything because would be up here for a long time but I do want to go through through a couple of things that happened. On August 14th, the board of directors for the MWCOG

[00:25:38] Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments had our leadership summit. We discussed many things, and if anyone would like to see the leadership summit agenda, I'm happy to send that to you. The main thing we discussed was how the capital metro region, so Virginia, D.C., and Maryland can come together to create more efficiency in our transit system, both our metro system, our rail system, and our bus system.

[00:26:09] I am, of course, one of the four Virginia elected officials who is on the DMV Moves Task Force, and so I will continue to keep you all aware of what the DMV Task Force is doing, But really the goal is to put more effort and thought into our transit systems.

[00:26:30] And so it's not just with, you know, cars on roads, but a transit system and moving people throughout the DMV on transit much more seamlessly. So I'll keep you informed about that. August 17th, the Virginia Association of Counties Board of Directors had our summer conference.

[00:26:47] I am on the Health and Resources Subcommittee. There's an issue I'm going to make everybody aware of. It is coming up at the finance meeting next week. Next week? Finance next week, right, Ms. O'Learno? Finance next week? Okay. Finance meeting next Tuesday. But I did want to just kind of give you a really cursory discussion of what is going on.

[00:27:10] There is something called the Drug Kit Program. It is, in my opinion, a well-intended and yet ill-advised effort from the FDA and DEA to track and trace where opioids are going.

[00:27:28] Now, that's a good thing. You want to know where opioids are going. But the problem is this. Right now, the way it works is if fire and rescue or rescue picks you up and you have a serious injury that requires an opioid before you are transported, so you've broken a hip or something, and so to transport you in that much pain would not be the most effective thing to do, So they will administer an opioid to you before they transfer you.

[00:27:55] They transfer you to the hospital. You get to the hospital. You report to the hospital that you use whatever ex-opioid out of your stock. That's what the transport would do, the fire and rescue would say that.

[00:28:11] The hospital then gives that back to that fire and rescue system. They give it back, so they replenish them. That's how it works right now. I do not know why that's not working very well, but for some reason, some people have decided that that's not working well and what they want to do instead is have each and every county keep their own pharmacy of opioids and replenish them for each and every county.

[00:28:40] Well, that's a problem for a lot of reasons. Truthfully, it might be easier for some of the larger counties, for Prince William, Loudon, Fairfax, it might not be as hard for us because we have our own health departments, but especially for smaller counties. It's a very bad idea. One, you have to literally hire staff to do that, because not every staff is trained to dole out opioids. You can't just, well, you're not supposed to, just be handing out opioid medications. So you're going to need more staff. You're going to need to stock those substances yourself, those medications yourself. You don't know how many to stock, because you don't know how many you're going to need. So you're going to have some that

[00:29:18] are going to expire on your shelf, which is a waste of money, in my opinion. If you really want to start not knowing where substances are, where these medications are, have every single county putting those out instead of just the hospitals.

[00:29:35] It would be much harder to track. And so the Virginia Association of Counties has weighed in on this and said that they did not think it was a good idea. The Virginia Board of Pharmacies have weighed in on this as well. Loudoun County was the first county to bring this to the attention of our federal delegation.

[00:29:54] I myself met with Congresswoman Jennifer Wexton. We have also met with Senator Cain, Senator Warner to make them aware of it. So what we'd like for them to do is basically just drop it and go back to what's working right now because it's really working just fine right now, to be honest.

[00:30:12] And so that's one of the things that we discussed at VACO. And we will keep you informed of this. If this does go into effect, it goes into effect, I think, November 27th, so very, very soon. And so we have an item coming to the Finance Committee next week to talk about this further, but that was one of the issues.

[00:30:31] The other issue that was discussed in some great detail at VACO was the issue of housing And the fact that we know that we need more homes that are attainable at every AMI, especially the lower AMIs, 30%, 40% of area median income.

[00:30:50] It was, for me, a bit of a frustrating meeting because the question was asked if the legislators in Virginia could refrain from doing local zoning. The answer was, well, if we do local, to an entire room of local elected officials, the answer was, well, if we do local zoning, we're doing it for a reason.

[00:31:12] You all should ask us why. And we were like, yeah, that's a very bad answer. That's a very bad answer. And one of the state senators has actually said that her goal is to see attainable housing throughout the whole community and not just in one building.

[00:31:29] And I'm looking at her and I'm like, really? So I caught her afterwards and I said to her, you do know that oftentimes the reason attainable housing is all in one building is because of how LIHTC funding works, and you do know that you all are the ones that control LIHTC funding, and you do know that we put a bill down there to change that, and you do know that that bill did not make it out of subcommittee.

[00:31:51] And she was like, oh, okay, well, that's interesting. So I am very concerned, very concerned at the state level and to some degree at the federal level, there will be people who will be dipping into local zoning to create more housing opportunities. I have pulled the names of everybody on Virginia's Housing Commission to sit and talk to them. I am more than happy to meet with them, talk with them, explain things. But when the state starts doing zoning, we have no control over where houses go. And Western Loudoun County could

[00:32:29] very quickly become Eastern Loudoun County if we are told we have to put homes everywhere. And so we are working on that. We are working on that. I think, was that all? I think that might have been all. Hold on one second. Yeah, I did some more stuff, but anyone who wants to find out about all the other stuff that I did, the boring stuff, give me a call. I'm willing to talk about this stuff all day long um okay thank you for um letting me give you that update and now we're

[00:33:08] going to do the voice for a cause my voice for a cause today is the love kk foundation the love kk foundation is a non-profit that was established in 2018 and then in the memory of kylie kk bradley loves kk's mission is to empower local and small business farmers and others throughout the community with the entrepreneurial spirit by providing awareness educational assistance resources and learning experiences to those in need we have members of kk's family who've come

[00:33:42] with us today her sisters and her mom thank you all for being here if you would like just to talk just very briefly about your sister how who she was and and how you lost her and then you want to introduce everybody else who's with you and then i got a couple questions for you yep i think we're are you on are they on yeah hi okay everyone my name is Shay and I am here today with my two sisters Shannon and my mom Laurie and on behalf of love KK and us right here today we just want to say thank you madam chair and the board for just choosing to listen to us today and learn

[00:34:21] more about us and so KK passed away in 2018 due to influenza she was a pillar in a small way kind of in this downtown Leesburg community. She was a co-owner of Cowbell Kitchen, a cafe just down the road, and a champion of local small businesses and farmers. When she passed away, it was very sudden and kind of unexpected for everybody, and everybody at Cowbell too, but we were inspired by

[00:34:54] Kaylee's life and how she lived and how she kind of worked at Cowbell and brought together her own small community down, down here. And, um, inspired by KK, um, our mission is to empower small local businesses, farmers, and the people in the community with entrepreneurial spirit, um, and just providing awareness to local. Um, yeah. Thank you. Thank you so much. And thank you for being here today and, um, keeping her memory with us all and telling us about her.

[00:35:24] Um, tell me one more time, why do you, um, partner and then what ways do you partner with local businesses yeah so um one of the big ways um love kk partners with our local businesses one of them is cowbell kitchen um and we that we partner with them for our farm to food pantry program um and love kk raises the funds and cowbell kitchen uses its connections with local farmers to place and receive food orders and twice a month the food is picked up at cowbell kitchen and then delivered to the luckets food pantry um and then we also work closely with the food pantry

[00:36:00] to ensure that the like like the correct quantities of food are delivered as well as the food is familiar to the people that are picking them up at the food pantries um we had a like i think it was like a three pound like squash or be delivered and everyone was like elated that we have all of these like great farmers giving amazing foods over to the pantry um and since april 2020 we were proud to have donated over 28,000 pounds of local produce, dairy, cheese, bread, other specialty items from local businesses and farmers here. Thank you. Yeah. You guys give out college

[00:36:37] scholarships? Yeah. Can you talk about that a little bit? Yeah, for sure. So we give out a few different kinds of scholarships. We award several thousand dollar scholarships yearly to the students at the schools KK attended. And these scholarships are intended to support students in the community with entrepreneurial spirit just like kk had and the entrepreneurial spirit scholarship is awarded to potomac falls high school graduating seniors also at george mason we award students participating in the italian media society and cultural in milan program that kaylee also did when she

[00:37:13] went to mason and then we also have done paid internship program which is provided at cowbell kitchen and it's open to anybody um and our first intern studied uh pastry arts at strafford university and we had a second intern that did um that was a baker at blue ridge community and technical college and both were able to fulfill their like programs required internship hours and all that but at the same time cowbell was able to give them like hands-on learning skills as well as food production skills, customer service, and business administration.

[00:37:49] And tell me a little bit about Random Acts of Kindness. Yeah, we love Random Acts of Kindness. That's my favorite. And so our Random Acts of Kindness, we create locally sourced gift baskets, and we'll deliver them to people in the community who are in need of just love and kindness at the time.

[00:38:09] and our goal with this project is to spread kindness while promoting some of our favorite local small businesses and that'll be here in Leesburg or if someone's kind of located out more towards DC we'll kind of shop a little local around there so that way they can go back to those local shops or farms and kind of be closer with their community as well out there and anyone can nominate someone for a random act of kindness if you go onto our website you can find a little form you can fill out. And we often get nominees who are struggling with an illness, loss of a loved one, but we believe anyone can benefit from a random act of kindness. And we've given them to

[00:38:49] teachers who are in need of support during the pandemic, parents who are caring for children alone. And we've also started partnering with schools to deliver gifts to kids in need as well. Oh my gosh, thank you so much for that. And then my last question is, if someone wants to help or know or give how do they can how they contact you um you can of course go to our website that's kkbrady.com and then we also have instagram facebook um and then we have a main annual fundraiser and that's our 5k or we call it our 5kk race and that's at far bungalow farm in

[00:39:24] leesburg and we're really excited for the sixth annual 5kk that's in may and it really brings the community together and we're able to kind of reach out to everyone that's there and be able to talk to them about our mission one-on-one and it gives us time just to tell people about the success story we've seen across our community and of course share like a beautiful farm with everyone on that day and we're really lucky to have Rockland Farm and Far Bungalow Farm for allowing us to use their space every year. KK sounds like she was an amazing human being and I think that her sisters

[00:40:01] and, of course, her mom carrying on her legacy is phenomenal, and how you're giving back through her is just astounding. So thank you. Thank you for sharing her with us. Thank you for coming here today. Thank you for having me. We really appreciate it. Thank you. Mr. Hemstreet, do you have any comments for today?

[00:40:24] Thank you, Madam Chair. I have five comments for this evening, actually. First is welcome back. I'd like to officially welcome back board members from the August recess. The first one involves an email that County Attorney Leo Rogers sent to you just as this meeting was starting.

[00:40:43] So do you want to defer to him since it's a product of his hard work? Thank you, Mr. Hemstreet. We did receive a press release from the State Corporation Commission about an hour ago.

[00:41:00] The press release indicates that the county has prevailed and that the State Corporation Commission denied the toll rate increases to Trip 2 on the Greenway. I don't normally allow clapping, but I'm going to let this one go.

[00:41:18] I'm going to let this one go. I actually just got a copy of the order as I was sitting here, sitting here right now, and we'll forward that to the board. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. All right. That was great news. That was great news. The remainder of my comments are since your last business meeting, the county has received some major awards.

[00:41:37] The Virginia Association of Counties has recognized the innovative launch Loudon program, which supports small and minority-owned businesses with a 2024 Achievement Award. Loudon earned the 2024 Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award from the National Procurement Institute. The Government Finance Officers Association recognized Loudon for excellence in financial reporting for the fiscal year 2023 annual comprehensive financial report and the FY 2023 popular annual financial report.

[00:42:05] And finally, Loudon's video for the county's fatherhood initiative featuring powerful testimonials from participants was recognized by the National Association of Counties Information Officers with a 2024 Award of Excellence. Details about the county's award-winning programs can be found at loudon.gov slash awards.

[00:42:26] Third, our emergency management officials would like to remind everyone that September is National Preparedness Month. This year's theme is Start a Conversation, which promotes talking with family members and others about the steps necessary to prepare for disasters. Throughout the month, the county will be posting preparedness information on our social media platforms.

[00:42:46] Information also is online at loudon.gov slash ready. Fourth, in observance of Workforce Development Month, the Loudoun Workforce Resource Center is holding special events throughout September for job seekers and people who are considering a career change.

[00:43:01] Visit loudoun.gov slash workforce month for detailed information about each event and how to register. And then finally, Loudoun County pet owners have a new online resource to help them find a range of services for their animals. An interactive map has been added to the Loudoun Geo Hub, providing locations and information about parks and trails in Loudoun that allow pets, pet-friendly lodging, and restaurants, as well as veterinary clinics.

[00:43:29] The map is online at loudoun.gov slash pet-friendly. Those are my comments for this evening, Madam Chair. Thank you, Mr. Hemstree. And I want to actually thank the staff and whoever designed the lighting in here. It looks amazing. It looks absolutely amazing. supervisors each of you have your own spotlight on you so if you want to change how much light you're sitting in you can do that by just asking so it looks great so I know you guys have been working ever since for the entire August break so thanks thanks to the staff as always okay supervisors we're going to actually do one resolution right now we're going to do the

[00:44:06] resolution for Courtney Sittner and for the first time none of us are going to read the resolution I'm going to ask Mr. Rogers if he wouldn't mind reading the resolution for Ms. Sittner. I'm going to ask Mr. Kirshner and Mr. Sains to join me and Mr. Rogers down front.

[00:44:54] Thank you, Madam Chair.

[00:45:26] I appreciate the honor of reading this resolution. It's for Courtney R. Sittner, Senior Deputy County Attorney. Courtney Sittner began her service with Loudoun County on March 15th of 2010 as an Assistant County attorney, and since February 6th of 2014, has served as a deputy and senior deputy county attorney, providing leadership and expert legal advice in matters pertaining to litigation, land use, real estate transactions, economic development, and finance in Loudoun County.

[00:46:02] Whereas Courtney served as primary counsel to the Economic Development Authority and the Planning Commission, and throughout her tenure has served and given legal advice to various departments and offices, including building and development, county administration, economic development, elections, finance and procurement, general services, management and budget, mapping and geographic information, parks, recreation and community service, and planning and zoning. And whereas Courtney advised and represented the Board of Supervisors and county

[00:46:36] staff on critical projects, including the extension of the Silver Line to Loudoun County, the 2022 redistricting, creation of the Ravonna Innovation CDA, the Zoning Ordinance Rewrite, and SEGRA Field, among many other projects. Whereas Courtney's leadership has extended to her participation in statewide organizations, including local government practice and general practice of law, through her service on the LGA Board of Directors, where she is becoming an officer next year, and on the Boyd-Braze Commission. Now, therefore, be it resolved that

[00:47:14] on September 4th, 2024, the Board of Supervisors of Loudoun County extends its sincere appreciation to Courtney R. Sidner for her more than 14 years of service, professional dedication, and enduring contribution to Loudoun County. Congratulations. For those of you who don't

[00:47:51] know, Courtney will be Hampton City Attorney. I think I'm going to save it for her. Say something briefly. Courtney, we're going to really miss you. As an attorney to an attorney, I've worked with a lot of attorneys in my 25-year career, whatever it is, and you are definitely in the top 10 in terms of just your capacity and your ability, and I know they're going at your new location.

[00:48:25] We're going to be very jealous that they're going to have you, so thank you for all the service you gave to Loudoun County. I didn't even know that full list. That's pretty remarkable. So thank you for all your service that you've given to us, to my office, to this board and previous boards, and God go with you. I'll just say congratulations on your new assignment and your new chapter in your career, good luck. Look forward to hearing great things about you down there. I would say from a board of supervisors perspective, especially for me, you're always available, easy to reach,

[00:49:00] and you're able to break down complex things to make sure I understood exactly what's being presented to us, what there are avenues and approaches to complex issues. So, appreciate it. So, I will say to you directly into the whole room what I've said to you many times, which is how proud I am of you.

[00:49:19] I've told you that many, many times already. And it's true. You are absolutely brilliant. You just are. You're absolutely brilliant. And the span of work you do and the different ways that you do it proves that out. I will also say you are incredibly humble.

[00:49:37] You are, when people get to know you, you're very funny, but people might not know that until they get to talk to you. You have this gift of telling people something that they absolutely need to know and making sure they follow without making them feel like you're talking down to them.

[00:49:55] So you're just like, well, I think a good idea might be, but what you're really saying is, this is how you got to do this. Without saying, this is how you got to do this. I know that this wasn't a hard decision, was not an easy decision for you, that you went back and forth and you thought about this.

[00:50:12] But I also know from just hearing your story that you make good decisions for yourself. And they may not always feel, you may not always be sure right away, because sometimes it takes a long time to realize this was a good decision. But you have over and over again. You've made good decisions for yourself. You've made good decisions for the county, and you're going to be fantastic down there.

[00:50:31] We're going to get a little bit of BGM's got to go away, and I hate that very much. But I am super, super proud of you. And now that you're not going to be my attorney anymore, we can actually talk in different ways now. So I'm going to appreciate that a lot, too.

[00:50:48] So thank you very much. So I want to thank the board for this resolution. Thank you for my office, for coming out and supporting me here this afternoon.

[00:51:05] And thank you to all of my colleagues in the room, those who are not here in the room today, those who have come and gone through the county in the last 14 and a half years. I think all of you have contributed to my success and professional and personal growth here at laden county and are a big part of the reason why it is not easy to leave um but honestly i i wouldn't really want it any other way i would hate to be leaving a job and being anxious and not you know ready to leave you know um and certainly even more so i would hate to be leaving a job

[00:51:41] where the people are happy to see me go or maybe even worse indifferent you know to seeing me go So I've really been moved and humbled by all of the really comments and very kind words that I've received over the last few weeks.

[00:51:59] And so thank you to everyone for that. And I would like to say, hopefully I can make it through this, to Mr. Rogers here in this room, a special thank you. You know, Leo came here almost exactly 10 years ago, which is mind-blowing to me that it's been that long.

[00:52:18] And I would say pretty early on, I think Leo saw something in me that I didn't necessarily see in myself. And from almost the beginning, he consistently and repeatedly gave me opportunities. He pushed me.

[00:52:34] I shouldn't say, see, I say you. You know, you pushed me. You encouraged me. Early on one day, I was in my office one morning, and he dropped by and said, yeah, you know, it's a public hearing today, but I can't make it, so I need you to go. and that was my first time covering a public hearing and I'm not really sure that he had a real conflict I'm still thinking he might have just been hazing me you know and you know I got through that um and then he decided you know Ron Brown decided he was going to retire and Leo said you know um land use in Loudoun County I think you should do that and I I fought you for a while

[00:53:14] on that and I'm not sure why maybe I think it was um because it was very comfortable with what I was doing um but I think you know and Mr. Hemstreet said the same thing to me at the time you know I needed to make that change and I wasn't going to grow um staying in that comfort position so I thank you Leo for pushing me and you Tim for your encouragement um to the members of the board for their uh support and graciousness and having me up here uh when when leo was not here or sitting with you through redistricting and is there any ordinance rewrite and i think you know the last

[00:53:53] thing i really what i really want to say leo is you know you've been a really fantastic mentor to me um and the irony is if you hadn't done all of that i wouldn't be ready to leave and more importantly I wouldn't know that I'm ready to leave so and I really appreciate that so thank you I'm going to take two pictures we're going to take a picture right now and then all the staff

[00:54:33] from the county attorney's office we're going to leave and Leo and Courtney and the staff is going

[00:54:46] to come up and take a picture while we stand back there okay thanks will you stand or sit

[00:56:44] Okay, if we have other people who have resolutions and you can see that people are here tonight, let me know, right?

[00:57:10] Because if they're here, we can go in and do them, but I don't know that there's anyone here yet because it's a little bit early. So in the meantime, we're going to go on and do our first information item, which is the significant incident report from our fire department. We'll do that, and then if while we're doing that, after that, you see anybody come in the door for your resolution, let me know.

[00:57:30] Mr. Rogers, this is actually your copy. Good evening. How are you all doing? Good evening, Chair Randall, and welcome back. I hope you enjoyed, had some time away and enjoyed your August recess.

[00:57:50] I'm joined by Assistant Chief Williams tonight. Chief Pro is planning on joining us. He's finishing teaching a class at the academy, so he may pop in, but he was delayed teaching that class. Tonight, we're going to go over our quarter four significant incident report for fire and rescue and start off with some statistics about our call volume.

[00:58:09] Again, this is for the entire fiscal year since we're at the end of the year. So we responded to a total of 38,013 incidents in fiscal year 2024. So that's between July 1st, 23 and June 30th, 24. 28,733 were EMS incidents and 9,280 were fire-related incidents.

[00:58:28] I will point out that this year's call volume has increased by a total of 2,247 over the previous fiscal year of 23, which is a 5.9% jump, and a 4,313 over incidents over fiscal year 22. So we have noticed, not in any particular area, but we have noticed our call volume increasing, and that's probably one of the biggest significant increases in the past several years.

[00:58:53] You can look at the chart. As I know you reviewed, the chart in your board item displays a breakdown of the various types of incidents for the battalions and stations and things of that nature. I'll be brief in my presentation. I know you have time to review the quarterly report. We had a few significant fires during this last quarter.

[00:59:10] Of note, on April 6th, a significant fire occurred at a historical property in Loudoun County at the Cortland Farm Manor Inn. single fire causing over 2.8 million dollars in damages and that was due to combustible liquids being Stored too close to a heating source - and that was a significant being historical lots of void spaces Fires hidden in void spaces it took a considerable amount of time to get and extinguish all that fire and maintain the historical property of the Cortland farm manor in Two large other two large other fires occurred due to improperly discarded smoking materials a familiar cause that we have

[00:59:48] spoken about many times. One was at a residential property and another at a commercial property in Sterling. The residential property was on a balcony, discarded cigarette into a planter or some type of combustible material causing a small fire on the balcony. The other one was not so small at a commercial warehouse fire in Sterling where a single cigarette or single discarded smoking material caused over 2.2 million dollars in damage. It started on the outside of that structure, Worked its way inside, and I think that smoke could be seen throughout pretty much Loudoun County.

[01:00:22] It took over two hours to get that fire under control, which pretty much the warehouse was a total loss. Another residential fire in Ashburn caused 128,000 damage due to an unattended candle left burning without supervision. And another fire in Leesburg in an apartment building was caused by unattended food on the stove.

[01:00:40] You get the theme of unattended and discarded materials, so that's kind of the theme. had a couple of fires involving electrical malfunctions, most of which were extension cord related. Always extension causes problems, especially if you'd use an undersized extension cord or something not designed for extension cord. Loudoun County Fire and Rescue continued our professional development, as always, graduating six members of our EMS supervisor school.

[01:01:07] Those supervisors now possess advanced life support skills, most importantly several skills, but most importantly has been the administration of whole blood, which continues to be a very successful and life-saving program, one that's mirrored throughout the state nowadays. As an example, our blood program, what we call FACTA program, in FY24, our EMS supervisor administered 25 units of whole blood to 21 patients. Four patients were critical enough to require two units of blood, and I can assure you that many of them probably would have not survived without the administration of whole blood. Our Loudoun County Fire and Rescue

[01:01:46] Communications Center has seen many improvements over the past year or years, and during this last quarter was recognized by the International Academy of Emergency Dispatch at our Navigator Conference, or their Navigator Conference, for the outstanding work as an accredited center for excellence. It's called ACE, for emergency medical and fire dispatching. Loudoun County is the 328th medical ACE, and only the 72nd fire-accredited ACE in the world.

[01:02:15] So a great accomplishment that was presented to the ECC leadership at their commemorative conference of the Navigator Conference. During the last quarter, you as a board recognized through proclamations our Loudoun County Volunteers First Responders National Volunteer Week, our Public Safety Communications Center personnel, and our Emergency Medical Personnel as part of EMS Week.

[01:02:38] and we always thank you for that recognition for the important work that they do. In June, we recognized 64 first responders that graduated from various fire and EMS training to include firefighter, EMS volunteer firefighter, EMS medical technician, advanced EMT, and our paramedic program.

[01:02:57] Our fire marshal staff continues to, with their investigations, continues to be very busy investigating our fire and explosive incidents. During this last quarter, fire marshal staff made two significant arrests to include a Leesburg man for his alleged involvement in two separate incendiary fires that occurred in the 800 block of Edwards Ferry Road, resulting in two counts of burning or destroying a dwelling house or another, or the dwelling house.

[01:03:24] That was where a gentleman set fire in a laundry room, obviously had some kind of beef with the residents or a resident there, and luckily those fires were pretty small, but they were intentionally set. Another one was a subject was arrested and charged with one count of burning or destroying another property or structure, one count of entering a dwelling house with the intent to commit murder, rape, robbery, or arson, and one count of conspiring to commit a felony.

[01:03:51] And that subject started a fire in an apartment hallway complex, again, most likely from a dispute with somewhat another party in the building. In addition, our fire and rescue members continue to be out in the community, checking smoke alarms, performing fire safety checks of homes, and participating in numerous public safety events throughout our communities.

[01:04:11] Not contained in your report, however, I wanted to highlight and provide an update on several ongoing fire and rescue station construction projects, which are pretty exciting to me and all of our staff and hopefully to you as well. I am pleased to report great progress on several projects overseen by DTCI and fire and rescue, and they include several.

[01:04:30] Sterling Park Station, as you know, the newly station was officially open for operations on October 11th of 2023. Due to, obviously, a busy year, we have an official grand opening being planned for October of this year. So that should be on your calendar, and we'll finally get the official grand opening for the Sterling Station.

[01:04:51] Round Hill Station 4, the replacement station for that fire station, is a new 20,500-square-foot station with a 2,500-square-foot community room. So it's our first really fire station that we're building that will have a community room on site. It's located on the nine-acre site along West Loudoun Street in Round Hill.

[01:05:11] It's adjacent to the West Loudoun Sheriff's Office. Notice the proceed has been issued with the general contractor. They're mobilizing as we speak. And final completion is scheduled for January of 26 with an in-service schedule for March of 2026. Aldi Fire Station 7, no issues with the project progressing very well and on time.

[01:05:33] Final completion is scheduled for February of 2025 with an in-service date of schedule for April of 2025. Lovettville Station 12, again, no issues. Progress is reporting on time and well. Completion scheduled for December of 2024 with an in-service scheduled date of February 2025.

[01:05:52] Both those stations, Aldi and Lovitzville, if you've been by them both, they are absolutely beautiful stations. They're on time and they're progressing very well and both intended to open sometime in early to mid 2025 next year. So that's very exciting for both of those.

[01:06:08] Our basic training facility down at our Fire and Rescue Academy, we had to relocate our extrication pad where we do our vehicle extrications. that is complete, and we have issued a notice to proceed, or DTCI has issued a notice to proceed for construction, or we'll issue that in September, and final completion of that facility is scheduled for April of 2026. The Philomont Station design is ongoing, and that station continues to be on time with design underway for that fire and rescue station. So those are some, you know, initial projects that we're doing. We have several others, but those are ones that you

[01:06:44] see coming out of the ground or on the way of construction and again we're very proud of those stations coming on board. In closing I want to again thank you for your continued support of your fire and rescue system here in Loudoun County and Chief Pro has successfully joined us after teaching and we remain available to answer your questions. Welcome Chief Pro and thank you to Chief Williams, Chief Johnson. We appreciate the supervisors. Do you have questions? Mr. Turner.

[01:07:14] Thank you, Madam Chair. Thanks, Chief, very much for that report. What's the level of incidence of lithium battery fires with cell phones? And what kind? Is it cell phones or is it things like scooters and garages and tools and equipment and that sort of thing? I don't have an exact number for you.

[01:07:32] We have separately in a part I could spend hours talking about. We have an exact Chief Williams has one of his battalion chiefs assigned to that project of lithium batteries and things of that nature. I don't have exact numbers for you. I would, off the top, say that we see some fires in vehicles, right?

[01:07:48] We've talked about that before of electric vehicles, but really haven't had many issues with that lately. Many of the things that we see, and Chief Williams, correct me if you think differently, is that it comes with charging of tools, right? So, again, my official answer would be check the manufacturer's recommendation.

[01:08:05] That's what I would say to everything. But I, for one, don't leave my DeWalt battery, drill battery uncharged. When it gets charged, I remove it and I unplug it. And that's the best advice I give. When you leave something plugged in, you're relying on that battery to be proficient in holding that charge.

[01:08:24] And that's just not the case, what we see with a lot of these batteries, especially on something that's maybe not a name brand or something off the market. We had the discussion before about chargers and using appropriate cords. I think I've got you all trained on that. Yes, you do. with that. But again, you can't just plug a lithium battery and keep it on charge forever.

[01:08:46] That's just not my opinion, and I think you agree, that's not how it's intended to operate. When they're charged, remove it from the charger, unplug it. I have a wife at home that worked in a fire marshal's office. She's paranoid about that. She unplugs everything. I finally got to keep the coffee pot plugged in. But it's just good practice. The other question I had on lithium batteries was I'm pushing pretty hard to get the data centers onto on-site power, which is going to involve battery energy storage systems. Are we confident of where that technology is and how to

[01:09:19] fight fires if they occur in, I don't know if this is going to be utility-scale battery backup, but it's going to be somewhere between individual batteries and full utility scale. You asked a pretty difficult question. This is the topic of many, many that we go to conferences.

[01:09:38] This is the hot topic, right, with the fire administration, with the U.S. fire, UL, and is the fire service ready? I would say that technology is outpacing the Fire and Rescue Department, our ability to handle these. We know that energy storage systems are coming to Loudoun County, right?

[01:09:55] We're prepared for that. We've done the research. We're prepared for that. But we also know that if one of these large battery storage systems, energy storage systems, catches fire, We're not putting that out with the, you know, what do we carry on a fire truck, 1,000 gallons of water or 3,000 gallons on a tanker.

[01:10:12] That's a long, prolonged operation that requires lots of water. Quite frankly, it may require letting things burn and contain it to that particular battery source and not leave that source. But that's where we are with that. You know, we hope that we continue to work on the code process.

[01:10:29] Codes can't catch up. Fire and building codes can't catch up. The codes that we have in Virginia, the new codes that come out have enhancements to deal with battery storage systems and things of that nature, but we're years behind when a new code comes out. It takes several years to get that code enacted in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

[01:10:48] So the 2020, you know, the 20, the latest codes might come out, but it'll take several years to get that enacted. That's just a product of, you know, getting it through the system. Thank you very much. Supervisor Glass. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you for the presentation and update.

[01:11:06] So I continue to receive questions regarding the investigation of the propane tank explosion that happened in February. Is there new information you can provide us on when the final report may be released? Sure. So I'll give you a little bit of update.

[01:11:24] The two things, remember, there's two things ongoing, the fire marshal's case and the case that we're working with the attorney's office. I really can't comment on that. That's working its way through the legal system now, and that's really in the Commonwealth Attorney's hands, working with our fire marshal staff of when and if anything will happen with regarding the charges in that case.

[01:11:46] So that's very much an active investigation at this point. With regards to the report, the report has, as you know, that night we assembled a team of 15-plus people of inside and outside. It was led by Chief Co. of Frederick County, Maryland. That report, the initial report, has been done.

[01:12:03] It has been sent to an editor. It has actually just been sent out for peer review and had come back. So that report is actually getting ready to be presented to the three of us. The three of us have not been involved in that report at all. And that has been my direction and intention. I didn't wanna sway that. So I have not even seen the report, have not been part of it, our staff has.

[01:12:22] And again, that was intentionally done. So that report will come to us probably in the coming week. And we'll finally put some eyes on that report and see that. It should be in a pretty final format, I think, when we see it. Barring any minor changes to that report or, you know, a clarification, the first step will be to obviously meet with the county administrator on that.

[01:12:43] And then also then our objective would be to meet with the families. The family of Laura Brown would be certainly entitled to receive that report and go over that with her as well as the other firefighters that were injured. At that point, we will coordinate with the Commonwealth Attorney's Office on the actual timing of the release of that report so we don't get ahead of their schedule on anything that they're planning.

[01:13:04] But once that's done, it will be a public report. I'll certainly communicate with the county administrator whether he wants a separate briefing to you with the board, and we can accommodate that. But I'm excited. We're near completion of that. I'm excited to read it for the first time and look for any recommendations that may a lot of time.

[01:13:21] Again, they started that report the night of the incident, and I'm excited to see it as well, to look for any recommendations. Thank you. Thank you, thank you. Mr. Sainz. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you, Chief and Assistant Chiefs for being here with us today. Can you give us an update on the incident that happened at the Cuisine Solutions and how's that investigation coming along?

[01:13:49] Sure. I'll turn this one, since you hear from me all the time, here, turn it over to Chief Williams because he's directed his staff to do a review of that incident. Good evening, board members. So 33 patients were transported that evening, as I think you're aware.

[01:14:05] The Chemical Safety Board came out to do investigation is probably a strong word, or review of the release. And then what we're doing within the operations section is completing a significant incident report.

[01:14:23] We have a draft of that report completed, which is spearheaded by the on-scene shift commander, Deputy Chief Aaron Jacobs, and I expect that briefing to be completed in the next couple of weeks and then kick it back and forth for any edits.

[01:14:40] All things considered, as you know, I was not personally there. We triaged a lot of patients, a lot of patients, and transported a lot of patients. It was a strain on the region.

[01:14:56] There are certainly probably lessons learned, but I couldn't be more proud of our entire system and our entire region for the way that incident was handled. As you can imagine, several hundred people evacuating a building all at once. They're wearing booties and things of that nature, all evacuating the building and coming at our units all at one time.

[01:15:15] Many of them didn't even speak English, and that was a difficulty in gaining dialogue with the folks. at what they injured, what was their injury and symptoms and things of that nature. So are they back up fully staffed and fully running their different shifts?

[01:15:31] No, I do not know that for a fact. I don't want to comment and say I don't know for a fact unless you do, Chief Lee. I do not know. All right, thank you. Mr. Crony. Thank you, Chair Randall, and thank you, Chief Johnson. I'm really pleased with the way the Aldi Fire Station 7 is going.

[01:15:51] I mean, that is going to be such a beautiful fire station for the community. And the whole design, if people haven't seen it, just fits right in with, you know, Aldi. So I think it's going to be great when it opens in 2025.

[01:16:07] And you said April? Yes. Okay. And I also want to say I was so pleased to see you guys out for Fill the Boot this past weekend. I whenever I saw your guys out, I had to stop and give. So I gave like three times.

[01:16:23] So I was really pleased to see. I was so happy. So this is an easy mark. I'm easy. If I see, you know, I just think it's a great program. I don't know if you ever released results on that or. Did not. Obviously, the local gets the results.

[01:16:39] I should have asked before I came. No, that's OK. But I was just so pleased to see that. So thank you for doing that. Thank you, Ms. Bricksman. Thank you. Thank you, Chief Johnson and Chief Pro and Chief Williams. And thank you for the update on the home explosion.

[01:16:56] That was one of my questions this evening as well. And I also just wanted to thank you for the briefing on the pharmacy issue. No surprise to me that we're working on it and we're on it. But, you know, as Chair Randall said earlier, it's not necessarily our county that's going to have the big issue with it.

[01:17:14] So with any luck, we'll have some action on the federal level. But it is very concerning to me that we are going to have to take on that responsibility. Yeah, and we just had a meeting. We left a meeting before we came here. I think, Chair Randall, you did a great job of kind of summarizing it.

[01:17:29] We'll see you on September 10th when we come before the finance government, where you'll get a bigger briefing on that with myself and Megan to talk about there are some needs that we're going to ask for in that. But we're on a time crunch. November 27th is the date. Yeah, we are.

[01:17:46] Yeah, and we have not a lot of time. We're fortunate that hopefully we'll be able to manage it, but thank you for that. So less than one year after I mentioned an emotional support dog, we already have Bertie the dog in the fire department. So that is wonderful.

[01:18:02] And I know that she, Bertie, went to the conference this past month, and there was a picture of all these firefighters put up in Bertie, and I was like, how's Bertie doing? Because really, she was the primary goal.

[01:18:18] So thank you for leading that effort. We are so happy to have Birdie the dog. These emotional support animals are really important. I also want to thank you all because our fire department, career and volunteer, does such a good job keeping the supervisors informed when something's happening.

[01:18:38] And we really do take your lead into what to say and what not to say. And normally I would just say something such as, please avoid this area or something like that. My only one question, and this kind of goes to the question Mr. Saines asked, when it is a hazmat situation versus a fire, is there anything different you want us to do or say to the public for a hazmat situation versus a fire situation or something else?

[01:19:02] Or is it the same thing, which is really just avoid the area for right now? Yeah, same thing. If there's any kind of significant hazmat incident or tanker or something of that nature where we had to do an evacuation, we would send that message out, right? We have means to, you know, reverse 911.

[01:19:19] We have means to EAN messages and things of that. We would do public messaging, work with OEM on that public messaging. That could happen, right? If an ammonia tanker truck rolls over and has a leak, that's a big deal, right? We had an ammonia leak at this building. We did, yeah.

[01:19:34] But it was isolated to the building in that particular tank. Okay, okay. If there's an ammonia tank going down the road, no return, that will require an evacuation. We do this all the time on a gas leak, right? One of the incidents you had in your packet this quarter was a gas leak, and it seems like we have more in Leesburg sometimes because it's a congested area.

[01:19:52] And we do evacuations all the time. We get that messaging out. We work with our PIO office and sheriff's office and a PD, Leesburg PD. So we do that periodically, but nothing different. We would tell you if there's something different. Well, you really do such a good job of keeping us informed as fast as you can, And we realize that you're busy and we're not, you know, you have to, you tell us when you tell us.

[01:20:13] But I get, we get, we get texts, we get emails, we get phone calls and very much appreciate it. Because normally somebody is already asking us within five minutes of something happening. People are sending us stuff, asking us what's going on. So you give us the tools to help you keep people out the area.

[01:20:28] So I appreciate that. I appreciate you all. Thanks so much. Thank you. All right. We have one more information item. It is our Zoning Ordinance Rewrite Technical and Procedural Newsletters. Wow.

[01:20:49] Wow. Hi. I am told that, let's see, am I missing somebody on this? No, I'm not.

[01:21:04] Okay, it's good. How are you all doing? We're ready when you are. Great. Good evening, Madam Chair, members of the board. I'm Laura Edmonds from the Department of Building Development. I am joined this evening, all the way to my left, that is Zeb Fultz. He is the Land Engineering Division Manager.

[01:21:22] Of course, you all know Betsy Smith, our director. And I'm also joined here by Ronald Dunbar, who is the Land Planning Division Manager. We also have a couple people joining us online this evening. We have Melanie Mason, who is the Natural Resources Division Program Manager, and Kevin Murray, who is the Facility Standards Planal Public Reading Committee Chair.

[01:21:44] We know Kevin. It is our distinct pleasure this evening to bring you the first three interim technical and procedural newsletters issued by the director to support implementation of the new zoning ordinance. So that's the purpose of this item. On December 13th, 2023, the board issued a resolution contemporaneously with the adoption of the new zoning ordinance that directed and authorized the director of building and development to issue interim technical standards to support the new zoning ordinance.

[01:22:17] zoning ordinance and to prevent any delays in processing land development applications that resolution is provided in your packet as attachment one and that resolution also required that the director provide you with a copy of each of these tech memos that we refer to them as as an information item once they have been issued so when the new zoning ordinance was adopted staff went through the document we identified a set of priority facility standards manual which is fsm amendments

[01:22:53] and land subdivision development ordinance which is lsdo amendments that could be adopted quickly we found it easiest to organize them by our three divisions so you'll see three tech momos in your packet attachments two through four and they're organized according to the land engineering division the natural resources division and the land planning division staff then presented those tech memos with the draft lsdo and fsm amendments to the fsm public review committee for review and

[01:23:25] input and then the director issued them on june 13th of 2024 effective july 25th of 2024 the tech Check memos address topics from the zoning ordinance, including items such as motorcycle parking, attainable housing, native plants, tree cover inventories, site plan requirements, and private roads.

[01:23:51] They also address additional items identified by staff that were applicable to the sections being amended. So if there was something in the section and we needed to make a clarification or address an item, we did that with this effort. so now we sent the fsm and lsdo amendments out on agency referral in july and we are anticipating a september resolution of intent to amend to be followed by october planning commission public hearing december board public hearing and that would be the adoption of the first zoning ordinance

[01:24:28] rewrite doam at the time that that's adopted the tech memos would then be rescinded now we are currently in the process of working on some additional FSM and LSDO amendments that are needed to implement the zoning ordinance.

[01:24:45] Those are going to take us a little bit of extra time to develop, but we do intend to implement them through the same procedure through tech memos followed by DOAMS. And that concludes the update. We would like to answer any questions that you have. Wow. Wow. Vegetables, I mean alphabet soup.

[01:25:01] No, that was really no, no. That was fantastic. I mean, the work you all do It's so specialized and so appreciated. So thank you very much. Do we have any questions? We're good?

[01:25:17] Yes. Oh, Mr. Turner. Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. So my understanding is the tech memos are interim guidance pending identified change in the zoning ordinance rewrite, correct? So they're legally binding? Yes. Okay. Yes, they are legally binding.

[01:25:33] One of the advantages in the fact that they're tech memos is it gives us a little bit of time to see how implementation goes And if we need to make adjustments before we bring formal amendments, that's a big advantage because we can make those adjustments. Okay, so people respond to the tech memo, and that may cause you to say, all right, we've got to tweak this and tweak that, and that goes into the final zoning.

[01:25:53] Absolutely. Okay, very good. Thank you. One clarification, Supervisor Turner. It is not a zoning ordinance amendment. It is an amendment to the LSDO and to the FSM in response to what you all approved in December.

[01:26:08] Okay, so this is a derivative change from the change, the zoning ordinance rewrite generated these derivative changes that you have to address by tech memo, and that once we change the source documents that were affected by the zoning ordinance rewrite, the tech memo goes away.

[01:26:25] Correct. Okay, great. They're DOAMs. Yep. Very similar to ZOAMs, but DOAMs. Okay, thank you. Okay, Mr. Crony. I had a question about the rural economy site plans and the tabulation of ADUs, unmet housing need units, and AHUs.

[01:26:50] I didn't think we were doing that in rural economy site plans. Supervisor Ticroni, usually the rural economy site plan is geared towards agricultural-based businesses. Right, that's right. we we wouldn't okay i can't think of a situation where we would be doing okay so maybe take get rid of that title i don't know it's 8.107 maybe just have site plans stpl what page what page are you on mr crony i'm getting in the weeds um i'm on page uh eight of nine eight of nine

[01:27:30] the first tech memo yeah the first tech i think it's attachment two okay i'm getting in the weeds But, yeah, I mean, rural economy site plans. Usually site plans are geared towards commercial-type development.

[01:27:48] For residential, we usually see subdivision applications and then the associated construction plan. The exception would be a multifamily development would come in as a site plan. But, like you said, that would not apply to the rest type.

[01:28:03] Right, the rural economy site plans. Okay, I just want to bring that up. And then also I noticed to get in the weeds too that, you know, we look at trees and shrubs and landscape plans. I would recommend that 100% be native, especially since we're doing, well, I see some time in proper statements that they don't do 100% natives.

[01:28:26] So I just want to make sure that, like it's 80%, that it's, you know, that we're requiring 100% natives. I thought we were. Is that not right? I'm going to ask Melanie Mason, who's online with us, to help clarify that. I know what we're doing is consistent with the zoning ordinance.

[01:28:41] Then we may need to change the zoning ordinance, because I thought it was 100% also. Well, it should be, yeah. It should be, yeah. Because we're actually having to remove invasives. Yeah. So it doesn't make sense to... In fact, I asked that question recently and was told it was 100%. Can we clarify? Yeah.

[01:28:57] Is she on right now? She's on. She's not on your screen, but she's... That's okay. It's Mason, right? Yes. Ms. Mason, can you hear us? Yes. i can hear you um i will need to check the ordinance to make sure but i believe it's 80 for the ordinance okay yeah we need to change the ordinance then yeah because we're removing the invasives so it wouldn't make sense to to allow any planting of invasives so it's not invasives it's only um species that would be non-native so we don't allow any invasive species but there are

[01:29:32] some species that you can plant that are non-native but they're not invasive if that so you mean like they're from oklahoma so i mean you know there's like um pencherries i think that are are native are not native to virginia but there there's some other species that are native to like china and japan that are fine to plant here but um they're not native to virginia they're also not invasive so they're not going to take over which is what invasives do invasives come in

[01:30:09] and they take over everything, and they out-compete all of the other species. So they can be planted just fine and not cause any issues, but they're just not native to this area. Madam Chair. I see you. I see you. Thank you. I see you.

[01:30:24] I vaguely remember the conversation, but I remember us approving or saying something to the effect that we're going to also follow a list from either Virginia and their federal government with the list of those evasive plants.

[01:30:41] I think that's how we ended up on 80% possibly. But I vaguely remember the conversation about looking at that following a list also. And to Ms. Mason's point, you mentioned cherry blossoms. Those are from China. They're not native, but those were planted and don't take over.

[01:30:59] I would say if we have plants that we have already here that we know that they're already here and have not been invasive, okay. But I would also say that we need to work to not add any more new invasive plants, whether we think they will – no new plants that are not native, unless we – no new plants that are not native, that are not already here.

[01:31:25] I don't think any one new tree of heaven was invasive for a long time. And then one time, and then we realized they were – not to mention, even if the plant's not invasive, they can still bring invasive bugs. You don't have to have an invasive – the plant doesn't have to be an invasive plant to bring invasive bugs.

[01:31:43] and then and then there's something different that happens. And so we may need to go back and take a look at the zoning ordinance and see how that is. Yes, it's the bugs. The insects. Okay, insects. Yes, that is my issue. That is my issue. We may have to go back and take a look at that zoning ordinance and how it reads because I am agreeing that it should be almost, you know, 100% native and have a list that says if these are already here and they're not invasive, okay, but nothing else is not here already.

[01:32:18] And so, you know, knowing what I know now, I would have done things very differently up to this point. And knowing what I know now, I cannot, in good conscience, you know, believe that we can bring in plants that are not native because we do not believe they're going to be invasive or bring invasive insects.

[01:32:37] And so that may be something we look at, and truthfully, no one was thinking about this during the zoning ordinance rewrite. I mean, no one. So we can take a look at that at some point. Madam Chair, we will reach out to DPZ and ask them to consider changes to the zoning ordinance, and we will look with the county attorney's office if we can go to 100% before they go to 100% and do it sort of in the backwards order before the DOAM comes to you.

[01:33:07] Yeah, all right. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you for all you do. This is hard work, and we appreciate it. It's not alphabet soup. It's really good work. We appreciate it. Thank you very much. Okay, supervisors, it is time for resolutions, actually. So do all of you who are in the room who have resolutions see the people you're giving resolutions to in the room?

[01:33:30] So, Mr. Kirshner, you're shaking your head yes for the constitutional resolution. Do you have that in front of you, or do I have that in front of me? I knew. Unless he handed it over to you. Oh, we have it over here. We have it over here. I'm going to pass these this way to be signed. Mr. Kirshner, would you like to join me down front for the Constitutional? Yes, thank you. Let's do that right now. And let's get these

[01:34:18] other ones signed. Come on up. Hello, Ms. Ballinger. How are you doing? There you go.

[01:34:53] Well, this is from Mr. Kirshner, and I am happy to let you read it. You want me to read it? Sure. All right. Welcome for coming to receive this. This recognizes celebrating the Constitution week September 17th through the 23rd of 2024. Whereas the Constitution of the United States stands as a testament to the enduring principles of freedom, democracy, and justice, and has served as a guiding framework for our nation since its adoption on September 17th, 1787. And whereas the

[01:35:29] observation, excuse me, the observance of Constitutional Week from September 17th through 23rd provides an opportunity for citizens to reflect upon the rights and responsibilities of citizenship and to gain a deeper appreciation for the legacy of liberty.

[01:35:46] And whereas the citizens of Loudoun County recognize the significance of the Constitution as the foundation of our government and the protector of our freedoms, and whereas promoting civic education and understanding of the Constitution among our residents strengthens the fabric of our community and our nation, and whereas it is appropriate to encourage schools, civic organizations, and the public to engage in activities and programs that enhance understanding and appreciation of the Constitution and its historical impact.

[01:36:22] Okay. Okay. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors hereby recognize a September 17th through 23rd, 2024, as Constitution Week. Question, so you all have a meeting on the 15th, is that correct?

[01:36:43] The 12th of September. Okay, would you like us to come and do this again at your meeting? The reason we did this today is because we knew you had a meeting on the 12th, and we're not back on the dais until the 17th, and so we wanted to do it before. But if you want it to come so we can talk to your whole group, we're happy to do that as well.

[01:37:03] Can we do it next year? Absolutely, absolutely. We can't do it next year. Would you like to say anything before you take a picture? I just want to thank you so much for your continuing support by trying to get people to read and reread and reread the Magnificent Constitution. Thank you.

[01:37:18] Thank you very much. Thank you very much. And I just want to thank you and the DAR and all the hard work that they do to make sure that our history and our Constitution and many of the things they do as a civic organization continue. So thank you very much for them. Appreciate it. And we love that we've always added rights to our Constitution.

[01:37:36] That's how it should be. All right. Here you go. We're going to do this. And we're going to take a picture.

[01:37:56] Here we go. One, two, three. More. One, two.

[01:38:11] Okay, thank you.

[01:38:12] I can hand them to you.

[01:39:57] There's all kinds of stuff on it.

[01:40:13] I think I'm just going to have to come to it. Oh, thank you. The problem is I'm in the middle of trial, and it's just going to be a pain. What I may do is try to come for just the things and leave.

[01:40:41] Okay, that's on.

[01:41:05] There we go. We have a new sound system here, so we're getting used to it. So thank you, everybody, for coming. We do this annually, and I always say that it's sad. But it's really also hopeful, and that's one of the reasons we do it. So this is a proclamation recognizing Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and I'll go ahead and read it.

[01:41:24] Whereas childhood cancer describes more than 12 types and many more subtypes of cancer affecting children, which typically cannot be attributed to environmental or lifestyle factors. And whereas many of these cancers are specific to children, with some affecting only those under the age of five, And there's no early detection model for childhood cancer, with cancer typically spreading to other areas of the body before it's identified.

[01:41:46] And whereas in the United States, nearly 17,000 children under the age of 19 are diagnosed with cancer each year. I do think that number actually went down this year for the first time, so I hope that's true. Making cancer the leading cause of illness and death for children in the U.S. And cases of childhood cancer have been on the rise for the last several decades.

[01:42:06] And whereas there's over 500,000 survivors of childhood cancer in the United States, many of whom suffer from late medical effects from treatment. And whereas we're fortunate to have so many wonderful local organizations and initiatives such as Ellie's Hats, I Promise 15, Hope Faster, Smashing Wallace, Walnuts, Team Matias, Sarah's Acts of Kindness, Raleigh Foundation Virginia, the Quinn William Gorman Scholarship Fund, and more.

[01:42:32] They're working to raise awareness of childhood cancer, support patients and their families, and fundraise for research. So, now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors does hereby proclaim September 2024 as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Chair Randall?

[01:42:54] Well, first of all, thank you all for coming. This is a hard day, and it always amazes me that you all come here and you stand here with the pictures of your beautiful children so that other parents don't have to stand here one day with the pictures of their beautiful children.

[01:43:10] And that is an amazing thing that you do. I didn't realize how little research was done on childhood cancer until you made me aware of that. And so I'm always looking to see if it's changed, if any more funds has gone to it, if anything has changed.

[01:43:26] And it's changing too slowly. It's changing too slowly. It's interesting how much I see you in the halls of Congress when I go down there. It's like, hey, how's it going? Because you're always down there or up there in Congress talking about your beautiful baby and this issue.

[01:43:45] So for all of you who have taken what most of us can't imagine and turned it into something so that nobody else has to deal with this or go through this, you all slay me every single day. You just, you amaze me and you slay me every single day.

[01:44:02] So thank you for being here. And now we'll pass the mic. Let's pass it this way. thank you so much for having us as you said this day is hard but it also means the world to us because we want our kids to be remembered we live we try to live every day by honoring them and saying their names so thank you for allowing us to be here and giving us this platform to say their names my son matias was diagnosed at the age of 11 and he passed away at the age of 13 He would have been 23 years old today, but who knows?

[01:44:41] He's in heaven doing his own thing. And his honor and memory, we have a Team Matthias Pediatric Foundation. As you drove in today, I'm sure you saw the gold ribbons on the meters everywhere. So September is Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month, and the gold ribbon represents pediatric cancer.

[01:45:00] So we try to do everything that we can in our power to raise awareness and let people know that every two minutes, a child is diagnosed with cancer. So it's only rare until a child that you love and you care for gets diagnosed. So we're all here. We all feel the pain, and we're trying to pay it forward in love and memory of our kids.

[01:45:21] So thank you for listening and giving us this platform. We appreciate it. I want to echo what Roy has said. Thank you all so much for having us, for doing this, for continuing to recognize September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

[01:45:38] My name is Emily Belcher. This is my daughter, Caroline. She was diagnosed with brain cancer when she was three and she passed away in April of 2023 at the age of 14. She would have been a sophomore in high school this year.

[01:45:54] So as Roya said, we do our best to continue going. Most of us have other children as well that were siblings to the kids that we lost. And as parents, we continue to work hard to keep them moving while also honoring their sibling and the child that we miss.

[01:46:13] But it does help so much that people recognize September and continue to recognize that childhood cancer is a very real problem among the health of our children. So thank you.

[01:46:28] - Hi, I'm Angie and this is Sarah. And I just wanna say thank you guys so much for always recognizing Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and remembering our children. Sarah would be 24 right now, which is wild.

[01:46:43] And her friends are getting married and, you know, starting to have babies. And so it's always, you know, hardest to think about all the things that they're missing. It's not just, you know, when they die that's hard. It's all of the time that keeps passing, and they still aren't here.

[01:47:01] And, yeah, it's hard to be a member of such an amazing group of parents. These parents have loved their children from, you know, while they were here and then afterwards. And we're all just here trying to love our children and remember our children in the best way that we know how.

[01:47:21] And so I thank you guys so much. Thank you. Hello. I'm Ellen Miller, my husband Mark. Our daughter Gabriela was 10 years old when she died from brain cancer in 2013.

[01:47:38] So we're actually coming up on 11 years since she passed. And she would have been 21, and she would have been a senior in college. And as everybody has been saying, you know, we see everybody else going on with their life, and we're caught in a time warp where whatever age our child was, we're trapped there.

[01:48:02] And yet we see, like, the last first day of school, and we didn't have that. And so, as was mentioned, you know, we are fighting to raise awareness for people to understand how common this really is.

[01:48:22] As Roya said, it's not rare. It's truly, you know, very prevalent out there. But we want to make a difference, and we do that in honor of our children. and so i would like to actually thank you chair chairwoman randall and all the members of the board for year after year just not forgetting our children it means more to us than we can possibly express thank you thank you for being here and thank you for sharing these stories because it's truly inspirational to all of us and also for the siblings i think about that when i

[01:48:57] see jake all the time and it wasn't easy on them either but you know from what i see the wonderful parents that you all are and the way that everyone is nurtured. Thank you so much for coming.

[01:49:40] Can you all take a step to your right? A little bit more.

[01:50:20] One more step to your right. There we go. Perfect. There we go. And one, two, three. One more. One, two, three. Thank you.

[01:51:05] For the polycystic kidney, yes, you are?

[01:51:23] Come on down, please. Can I have the resolution for the polycystic kidney? Can somebody hand it to me? And Ms. Glass, can you join me? And Mr. Crony, can you join me? Because I'm not going to have Mr. Turner stand up that long. Thank you. You're welcome. The polycystic kidney resolution, they're up here.

[01:51:49] Thank you. Hi, guys. How are you? Thank you for coming in. You want to stand on both sides of me? We have too many people coming down, though. Let me just give you one to start with so I can start reading. Thank you. Thank you. Would either of you like to read this?

[01:52:16] I'm happy to, unless you want to. Would you like to read this? You sure? Okay. We'll wait to kind of just calm down the back a little bit. This is National Recovery Month. You guys just handed me. This is not polycystic. Can somebody actually hand me? I'm reading them like that's not right. Okay. It has to be up here somewhere. Guys. Yeah, I know. Guys. I know

[01:52:54] what's up here. I saw what's up here. They're not under her stuff. Are you sure? Okay. Everybody take a second on the dais and look under all your stuff for the resolution for the polycystic because I know it's up in this dais because I've seen it already. Twice. I'm sorry. Okay. Hand me my

[01:53:51] iPad, please. Hand me my iPad, please. Okay. We have a resolution that is on the dais, but I will read it from here to recognize polycystic kidney disease. Polycystic kidney disease, or PKD, is one of the most common life-threatening genetic diseases affecting an estimated 600,000 Americans and 12.2, 12.4 million people worldwide. PKD causes numerous fluid-filled cysts to grow in the kidneys, leading to kidney failure and often resulting in need for dialysis or kidney

[01:54:29] transplant. And whereas there is no cure for PKD, and research is critical to developing treatments to improve the lives of those affected by this disease. And whereas the PKD Foundation, founded in 1982 is dedicated to finding a cure for PKD through funding research, advocacy, and education, support, and awareness, and whereas the PKD Foundation is committed to supporting individuals and families affected by PKD, offering them the resources they need to manage

[01:55:04] their condition, and whereas raising public awareness about PKD is essential to support research efforts, improve patient outcomes, and ultimately find a cure, and recognize the efforts of the PKD Foundation supporting its mission as vital to the well-being of those living with PKD and their families. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors does hereby proclaim September 4th, 2024, its polycystic kidney disease awareness day in Loudoun County thank you all for coming in who would like to speak on this on this item

[01:55:42] just like this PKD is a hereditary disease so it not only affects individuals it affects families if a parent has PKD any children that they have have a 50% chance of having PKD as was mentioned in the proclamation there is no cure for PKD there is only one FDA approved treatment for PKD and what What that basically does is slow down the progression of the disease.

[01:56:16] Each year the foundation has a walk, which is where they raise funds to fund research to find a cure for PKD. I represent the national capital community.

[01:56:32] Judy here is the national capital community, the community, I do the walk. I also am part of the Advocacy Council, and as part of that, we lobby our legislators to sign bills that will support research and funding for PKD and for other aspects that will affect the PKD community, like the Living Donor Protection Act, disparities in treatment for PKD.

[01:57:03] So we do a lot in the area, and we're very happy that you took the time today to declare this PKD Awareness Day in support of the National PKD Awareness Day. So thank you very much.

[01:57:18] I have a question. Here you go. I have a question. Is this a, it says it's not a curable disease. Is it, and I don't know any other word to use, but is it curable with a full kidney transplant? Yes. Most people either go on, when their kidneys fail, they either go on dialysis or they need a transplant.

[01:57:41] So I don't have PKD. Now, my husband's going to be embarrassed. My husband and Judy both have PKD, and they've had transplant. I've had kidney transplant. I'm a second-generation PKD, and I'm one of six family members that have had a transplant. And so now it's affecting our third generation with having to, ideally, everyone would have a transplant as opposed to being on dialysis.

[01:58:04] So we always encourage everyone to check organ donor on your license. So, yes. I have one more question. So for kidneys, you can be a live donor. You don't have to wait until you check it on your license. Everyone can live with just one kidney.

[01:58:20] Totally fine. I had a living donor. It's amazing. People that agreed to be donors, my living donor just heard about my need. And she's like, oh, I think that might be something I want to do. And I'm like, what? And so she's perfectly fine. She has a full life.

[01:58:36] She works. That's just good to know. Well, thank you. Yeah, I was just going to ask when the walk was. September 21st. Okay, great. Raising funds for people. All right. Thank you. And where's the walk? The walk is September 21st.

[01:58:54] It's at Nottoway Park in Vienna because our geographic area covers all of northern Virginia, D.C., and then the western parts of Maryland. So we have to have it kind of centrally located. So we have already raised $12,500, so if anyone would like to make a donation, feel free to do that.

[01:59:17] And we already have 80 walkers signed up. I love that. If you've got a microphone and a TV, ask for the money you need. That is right. I love that. That's very, very good. All right. We're going to take a picture. Somebody said website. Thank you.

[01:59:39] The website is, if you Google the PKD Foundation or National Capital, it's the National Capital PKD Walk. So I can give you the website, pkdcure.org slash national capital.

[02:00:10] We have one more resolution.

[02:01:21] Ms. Bricksman is going to join Ms. Glass down front to do a resolution for Mr. Rossman. Just after this last resolution, we're going to do public comments and then do the item on voting after this last resolution.

[02:01:45] I'm going to go ahead and read the resolution honoring the life and service of Mr. John Rossman.

[02:02:29] Whereas Mr. John Rossman, at the age of 19, as a part of the United States 1st Army, 4th Infantry Division, landed on Utah Beach, Normandy, France, during the World War II Allied Campaign to Stop Nazi Aggression, and whereas Mr. Rossman participated in the hedgerow combat against the Nazis as the armies advanced to Paris, where he was assigned to the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force and ultimately was honorarily discharged from military service in March 1946, and whereas

[02:03:09] Mr. Rossman thereafter, having obtained his bachelor's degree from New York University 1956 went on to again serve his country as a treasury enforcement agent for 21 years combat combating counterfeiting and truck drug trafficking and was awarded the Treasury's highest career service award the Albert Gallatin award and whereas mr. Rossman having recently celebrated his 100th birthday at his Ashburn, Virginia home, was honored with a celebratory program by the Sergeant

[02:03:46] Major John Champ Chapter Virginia Society Sons of the American Revolution, the Chariots of Honor, the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1177, the American Legion Post 2001, the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Veterans Last Patrol, the The quilts of valor, the Greenwich quilters, and joined by numerous family members, friends, and veterans.

[02:04:14] Now, therefore, being it resolved that the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors does hereby recognize and honor the life and service of Mr. John Rossman. Would you like to say something?

[02:04:35] My name is Laura Sardo, and I'm John Rossman's stepdaughter. He, unfortunately, could not be here today due to a medical procedure, but he's honored by this event and by the recognition. And I thank you all for being here.

[02:05:21] One, two, one more. One, two, three. Thank you.

[02:06:07] Okay, we have 15 speakers, and many of the speakers are going to actually be talking on the item, the voting item that we're going to do next. and so I'm going to let people speak before we do the item just so the board will have time to hear your comments if you want to speak before you do your item. I will call your name, three people in advance.

[02:06:22] Please come to the podium closest to you. You will have two and a half minutes to speak. We do not have any speakers today who are remote. When your time is up, please relinquish the floor to the next speaker. I'm also going to ask that as you are speaking, you face the front.

[02:06:40] you direct your comments primarily to me but to the board so no turning around and no facing the audience and no talking to anybody in the audience direct your comments to me as you were speaking I will ask that for everyone because that is that is the protocol of the room because as you're speaking you're speaking to to the body to to us so in this order we will have James Russell Russell, followed by Al Van Huyck, followed by Martha Hummer.

[02:07:11] Good evening, Mr. Russell. Good evening. Myself and a number of friends, Palestinian-American residents of Loudoun County, we've been reaching out to members of this board over the past half year, inquiring as to the nature of our local investments, inquiring us to the nature of these data centers, which it's become abundantly

[02:07:48] clear, are storing data that is being utilized for political persecution, for the targeting of airstrikes, for crimes against humanity. To say the human race is at a crossroad would be no exaggeration. Inconsistency in commercial and military logistics will inflame the long-standing

[02:08:22] contradictions upon which our society has compromised. History is staring at every single one of us. How does Loudoun County meet this unprecedented moment? We clear invaluable forest, we could build homes, we could expand agriculture, but instead we construct data centers, enormous facilities taking up space, consuming power, water, consuming our skylines, consuming our silence, consuming the identity of Loudoun County.

[02:09:00] When I see Palestinian children targeted by airstrikes, I know that Loudoun County has made its contribution to the world. When I see people imprisoned in concentration camps, when I see them sexually assaulted and brutalized on camera, when the world sees it, I know that Loudoun County is making its contribution to the world.

[02:09:36] Really am at a loss. we've been met with stonewall local state and federal nobody's answering any questions nobody's even acknowledging us but palestine will be free nonetheless thank you thank you mr russell al van hike followed by martha hummer followed by sarah hussein bazir good evening hi i'm al van hike and it's been a year and a half since i've been here for public input but i thought i'd drop by tonight to talk about the Loudoun Cemetery Conservancy information I sent to all of you last Friday

[02:10:15] and to let you know I'm still alive and ready to work on this new initiative. Under your leadership, the county already has a deep commitment to our historic cemeteries, which contribute to our heritage and sense of continuity in place.

[02:10:34] The cemetery zoning regulations are well done. The interactive map is a great resource, and there's over 200 historic cemeteries in Loudoun County, more than one in every one of your districts. And you have wonderful staff people in Heidi Sebenright, Stephen Thompson, and Jennifer Moore who have tremendous expertise in this subject as well as many others.

[02:11:01] And they have been a great help to us, the little group that we have, to put together this new 501c3. There is a great resource at Thomas Ball's Library. There are numerous individuals involved already in preserving cemeteries and maintaining historic cemeteries all over the county.

[02:11:29] So our Loudoun Cemetery Conservancy seeks to build on this solid foundation by bringing additional support to the African-American cemeteries and those connected with the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and the family cemeteries, which connect Loudoun's past with relatives and friends who are still living here today.

[02:11:46] Our program is to provide an information center, a roster of trained volunteers and professional resource persons that can be called upon by cemeteries to come and help them with actual projects. And we are going to have a regular training program for those interested in learning the skills of how to preserve cemeteries.

[02:12:10] And finally, we're having a grant program, so for those cemeteries which are owned by organizations that cannot afford it, we will be able to go in and help them with grant financing. So, as I said before, we're planning our kickoff in October 18th at the Oatlands Carriage House.

[02:12:33] You're all invited. You'll get personal invitations later, and thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Van Huyck. Martha Hummer, followed by Sarah Hussein Bazar, followed by Matthew Noonan. Good evening. Good evening. My name is Martha Hummer.

[02:12:50] My husband, three children, and I live in Percival. I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you tonight. I'm here to express my dismay over the lack of adult day programs and funding for adults with disabilities. My son, Owen, is 21 and is profoundly autistic.

[02:13:11] For his entire life, I have bathed, fed, advocated, and worried about my son. For more nights than I can count, I have stayed awake wondering what will happen to Owen. in july 2025 he ages out of the school system currently loudon county has one program appropriate for owen the community access program according to the county's website the current and projected level of funding through 2025 will support a maximum of 16 individuals public data also states

[02:13:50] 20 individuals are on the wait list 21 if you count owen if this is correct this means my son owen has no chance of receiving services with this program for at least 20 years. I ask the Board of Supervisors to increase the level of funding to give individuals, including our son Owen, a chance to continue thriving beyond school.

[02:14:17] For the last 21 years, Owen has been lifted and guided up a mountain by the public school system. In July, he will be pushed off a cliff. I cannot prepare or explain the fear my family is feeling in anticipation of this painful transition.

[02:14:39] He and others like him deserve better. I would like to thank the members of the board for allowing me to speak today. Again, I ask for your urgent attention to this crisis and our special needs community. Thank you. Thank you. Hold on one second.

[02:14:55] Matt, will you please talk to Ms. Hummer and make sure that she is aware of the meeting that is happening tomorrow on this issue? raise your hand so she knows who you are will you go talk to that gentleman about the meeting happening tomorrow on this issue on this issue thank you so much thank you sarah hussein bazir followed by matthew noonan followed by leticia taylor good evening good evening members of the board i stand before you today again with a heavy heart and a sense of urgency we continue to witness

[02:15:34] one of the most devastating humanitarian crisis of our time, live-streamed and all smart devices. What is happening in Gaza and the West Bank is not just a conflict, but a systematic genocide against the Palestinian people. You have seen entire families murdered, starved, displaced from their homes, and even bombed in their tents. New cases of polio have resurfaced due to the lack of access to clean water and basic hygiene products. You've seen videos of Palestinian men, gang-raped by the Israeli occupation forces, electrocuted, sodomized

[02:16:12] with hot metal objects inserted in their rectum in prisons worse than Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, where American soldiers did the same to Iraqis back in 2005. Haven't we learned "never again" means "never again" to everyone? Just yesterday, Amsa Hamid and Anas al-Sharif, along with other Other school-aged kids were killed while they were playing on their roller skates.

[02:16:37] The violence has now entered its 11 months, and the world continues to watch as these atrocities unfold. A week ago, the Israeli occupation besieged four cities in the West Bank, resulting in the death of more than 20 Palestinians, including an 82-year-old man, who bled to death because the occupation army blocked an ambulance from reaching him.

[02:16:59] These acts of brutality are not isolated incidents, but part of a broader campaign to erase the Palestinian people. It is beyond comprehension that our government officials have turned a blind eye to this ongoing genocide. I have been imploring you to take a stand.

[02:17:16] Not only do we demand a permanent ceasefire, an arms embargo to Israel, but we urgently call for a complete divestment from companies that financially support the apartheid racist regime called Israel. End the use of our county taxes to fund apartheid and occupation. We cannot allow our resources to contribute to the oppression and destruction of an entire people. Free Palestine.

[02:17:44] Thank you. Matthew Noonan, followed by Leticia Taylor, followed by Asli Othman. Good evening. Good evening. Hello, Board of Supervisors. We're now almost a year into this genocide, and while the majority of Americans disagree with the genocide on the Palestinian people, our government is silent at every level our elected officials have shirked responsibility joe biden and kamala harris have assured voters that they're working around the clock to ensure the end to the violence in gaza while they lick ice cream cones tim kane a sitting united states senator one of the most powerful people in the world said that he's only one person he only has so much influence what could he possibly do meanwhile he votes on sending 30 billion dollars

[02:18:24] and weapons to Israel and the Latin Board of Supervisors says that there's just not much desire to call for a ceasefire. Why? Calling for a ceasefire is a layup, a no-brainer. It's embarrassing to be asking you to vote on this almost a year into the genocide that has now moved to the Northern West Bank, an area that Hamas doesn't govern, by the way. It was never about Hamas or rescuing the hostages. It's about the lynching and the expulsion of millions of innocent civilians from their homes. After 11 months of brutality, I can only assume the silence of this board is an admission of their pro-genocide and pro-apartheid sentiments. Why do we let Israel,

[02:19:03] a foreign country, determine businesses and investments here in Virginia? If any other foreign country had the unique exemption that Israel does, we'd be running around with our hair on fire. Yet the Virginia-Israel Advisory Board, an entity fully funded by the Virginian taxpayers since 1996 received over 224 000 in subsidies just this year why aren't we in an uproar about that it's time for full transparency and divestment from the racist genocidal apartheid state we call an ally i find it hard to believe this board that presides over the citizens of one of the richest counties in the richest country in the history of the world can just say

[02:19:39] they're not they're not complicit in the worst atrocity of the 21st century do something thank Thank you. Leticia Taylor, followed by Ashley Othman, followed by Liz Crowdy. Hello. As a Lisbon resident, I am here to talk about the issue of Palestine and to present it as a Virginian issue, hoping that this honorable board adopts a ceasefire and an arms embargo

[02:20:15] resolution against Israel. Virginia is complicit in genocide and in ethnic cleansing because for decades, the Virginia-Israel Advisory Board has been using our taxes to entangle Virginia's businesses with Israeli companies who directly benefit from violating international law by enforcing apartheid on the Palestinian people. Because of these entangled relationships, companies like Elbit, Energix, and Celebrate have headquarters here in the state under a false pretense of bringing jobs to Virginia. Just to mention one example, Energix, Israel's largest

[02:20:52] renewable energy company has been listed in the UN's databases of companies operating illegally in Palestine. As Virginians, we must discuss what type of jobs and investments we want in our communities. Do we want jobs that are deeply rooted in perpetual wars, or do we want jobs with a positive impact in the community, like affordable daycare and fairly paid jobs for educators? I bring this up because I have an almost four-year-old. He's the soul of my soul.

[02:21:21] he's over there. Sorry, I shouldn't. And we pay, my husband and I, we pay over $18,000 a year to send him to daycare. We don't qualify for any subsidies according to the current state poverty guidelines. But in reality, we barely make ends meet. And this is because Virginia's daycare costs are among the 10 highest nationwide. Meanwhile, in Israel, daycare costs are around $12,000 a year, much of it subsidized and possibly free in the near future, thanks in part to our tax dollars.

[02:21:59] Also, in Israel, families are encouraged to move to settler neighborhoods, a.k.a. kid boots, dispossessing Palestinians of their ancestral lands, incentivized by benefits of affordable health care and education, rooted in ideas of collectivism and cooperation.

[02:22:15] I would love to see that spirit of collectivism and cooperation spread in Virginia as well, and expand day-care programs to allow more families to access them and incentivize the state economies that way. Yet our government keeps hiding behind the false narrative of self-defense to continue sending our tax dollars to further the economy of foreign nations instead of furthering our own.

[02:22:39] Just the last thing. I'm sorry, your time is up. I am confident that... Ms. Taylor, your time is up. Thank you very much. Ms. Taylor, your time is up. Thank you very much. Osley Uthman followed by Liz Crotey. Good evening. Good evening. I'm Osley Uthman, but I'm actually going to read a statement on behalf of another Loudoun resident, Rula, who couldn't be here tonight. Dear Loudoun County Government, I'm here to urge you to consider divesting from Israel and redirecting those funds to critical needs here in our own community. As a teacher in Loudoun County Public Schools, I constantly hear complaints from my fellow educators about how little they are paid

[02:23:16] compared to the high stress of the job. Additionally, it is disheartening to witness homeless veterans in one of the wealthiest counties in the United States. American citizens are in urgent need of better schools, improved health care, and robust support for our veterans. By reallocating these resources, we can ensure that our tax dollars are invested in ways that directly benefit the well-being and future of our residents.

[02:23:39] Prioritizing the needs of our local community over international investments is crucial for the prosperity and health of our nation. And then quickly, just for my own comment, I've heard people on this board say that this is not an issue that affects Latin County or this isn't an issue at the county level. And I just want to reiterate what my friends have been saying, that this does affect Loudoun County.

[02:24:00] We know because of Virginia-Israel Advisory Board that Loudoun County and throughout Virginia, there's relationships with the Israeli government. And we know that also other municipalities throughout the United States have passed divestment and ceasefire resolutions like Richmond, California. These resolutions specifically target companies that profit off of or create products and technology that are used by the Israeli military.

[02:24:22] I think that it's completely reasonable for us to expect that our county investments are ethical. So we will continue to come to these meetings and research and pressure you guys to do the right thing and only invest in ethical companies.

[02:24:39] So, thank you. - Thank you, Liz Crotey. And you will be followed by George Lambert, followed by Rhonda Powell. - Good evening. - Good evening. My name is Liz Crotty and I am the chair of our Special Education Advisory Committee in Loudoun County.

[02:24:58] I am also the parent of three children with disabilities. I am here tonight to advocate for two significant and longstanding areas of need that impact our children with disabilities. The first is inclusive playgrounds. I would like to thank the board for building incredible inclusive playgrounds around our county.

[02:25:16] Playgrounds are fundamental to developing children's motor, social, and communication skills. School playgrounds serve an important function in our communities and are available to our students during the school day, but playgrounds are also easily accessible to all Loudoun County residents since they are open to the community when school is not in session.

[02:25:33] Our SEAC spent a year visiting the playgrounds at our elementary schools and coming up with recommendations to increase the accessibility and inclusivity for our children. Currently, most playgrounds have a mulch-like surface and equipment that makes it impossible for wheelchairs to navigate and creates difficulty for students with disabilities to play with their peers.

[02:25:54] In fact, most special education program classes are not even allowed on the playgrounds. Instead, they must spend their recess separated from peers in interior courtyards which do not have permanent playground equipment. LCPS has now begun to convert playgrounds to inclusive designs, but inclusive playgrounds are expensive, costing between $200,000 to $300,000 each.

[02:26:15] And in the meantime, we have reports from teachers and families of students in wheelchairs who play on blankets on the grass because the playgrounds are inaccessible to them. We are asking the Board of Supervisors to consider accelerating the replacement of these playgrounds as a one-time expenditure to help LCPS remedy the lack of accessibility and expand inclusive playgrounds to all of our students in Loudoun County.

[02:26:39] The other need for our students with disabilities is a transition center. For more than five years, parents have repeatedly identified transition as an area of significant concern and don't feel their children are prepared for life after school. Our students with disabilities have great potential to contribute through meaningful employment within our Loudoun County community, but we need to begin working early on with students to identify career paths, provide specialized instruction on job skills, and partner with a diverse array of businesses that meets the interests and needs of both students and business the business community to provide internships and experience we are very excited to see that the school board and the board of

[02:27:17] supervisors will be meeting in November to discuss this need there is not a lack of economic opportunities in Loudoun County but we need to prepare our entire population to fill these roles and to do it in a way that leads miss Cody thank you very much thank you your time's up thank you George Lambert followed by Rhonda Powell followed by David Milam good evening sir good Good evening, Chair Randolph and also members of the Board of Supervisors.

[02:27:46] I am George Lambert. I'm a resident of Loudoun County since 1999, and for the record, I do want to say that I am testifying and certainly representing myself. I am here to address the recent decision by the Election Board to remove October 19th as one of the county's three Saturdays for early voting.

[02:28:07] There is a relentless campaign in our country of voter suppression, moreover, making it more difficult for eligible citizens to exercise their voice and also impeding the path to the ballot box. For me, the true measurement of an election board is a governing body that is fair and impartial. Frankly, a governing body that is committed to empowering communities to make their voice heard rather than making their voice in the voting process harder and more difficult.

[02:28:44] The election board action to retreat from its responsibility to protect access to the ballot box simply is one that is concerning to this community. There is ample evidence that these kinds of laws fall hardest on black, brown, and working class communities.

[02:29:07] In all candor, this is a sledgehammer. I will say it again. This is a sledgehammer to communities of color as well as elderly and our fragile citizens. The decision by the board, and certainly the election board, will certainly embole other jurisdictions to pass suppressive laws, hence a sad commentary for our county and also our Commonwealth.

[02:29:34] This is a defining moment for you. You must be intentional about removing built-in biases and long-standing patterns that impede progress. Each of you have the opportunity to be a leader, not just mirror what is, but in fact to model what ought to be, and certainly what ought to be, is a process of protecting our voting rights.

[02:30:00] In closing, I respectfully urge you to use your bully pulpit and your influence to rise above partisan politics and certainly ensure that our democracy works for all citizens. Thank you. Thank you, sir.

[02:30:16] Thank you. Rhonda Powell, you're followed by David Milam, followed by Robert Griffin. And I will remind everybody one more time as you address the board to make sure you address the board and not to turn around. Thank you, Ms. Powell. Thank you for being here.

[02:30:32] Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak before you tonight. As you said, I'm Rhonda Powell, owner of Old 690 Brewing Company in Hillsborough, Virginia. I'd like to give you just a little brief history about breweries in Loudoun. In July of 2014, the state of Virginia passed a bill that allowed limited breweries to operate on 10 acres or more.

[02:30:55] By late August of 2014, Old 690 had opened its doors to the public, thus allowing other breweries to follow suit. Within five years, we had eight breweries open in Loudoun, with many more to follow.

[02:31:11] And now, ten years later, we just celebrated Virginia Craft Beer Month, and we also celebrated the anniversary of Old 690, operating here in Western Loudoun. By allowing breweries to operate in Loudoun, we've created opportunities.

[02:31:28] For instance, we hire musicians that play all types of genres of music in our tap rooms. We provide a space for food truck operators that can't afford a brick and mortar. We put Loudoun residents to work, from working on our grounds, to our beer tenders, to our brewers, to every person that helps us behind the scenes.

[02:31:49] We give everyone an opportunity to work in our industry. We purchase local products, including fruits and vegetables, and more from local vendors and farmers. We give our customers an opportunity to see Western Loudoun for its beauty, its open space, its farms, its dirt roads.

[02:32:12] Loudoun craft beverage industry has welcomed more than 1 million visitors and residents with a 25% growth since 2018, according to the most recent survey done by the Loudoun Wine Growers, the Loudoun County Brewers Association, Visit Loudoun, and Economic Development.

[02:32:29] The craft beverage industry has seen a 58% increase of revenue since 2018, coming in most recently at $48.6 million. We are a vital industry to not only the economy of Loudoun, but to its residents, its visitors.

[02:32:48] But most importantly, we as an industry help to preserve our open space and our beautiful views. Thank you. Thank you very much, Ms. Powell. David Milam, followed by Robert Griffin, followed by Vicki Fishman. Good evening. Thank you, Chair Randall.

[02:33:04] And the board, it's very nice to be able to speak to you. A while ago, my sister had posted something on Facebook that it was a great privilege to be able to vote. And I know she was doing that as a way of registering her enthusiasm.

[02:33:20] But as I thought about her post, I thought, it's not a privilege, it's a right. And that's fundamentally different. The driver's license is a privilege, but voting is a right. I came here from Michigan almost 20 years ago, and I had an experience there that stayed with me.

[02:33:43] The governor at the time, John Engler, a Republican, decided that college students could only vote in their home district when they voted the first time, in essence disenfranchising all college students of Michigan so that it would skew the vote towards him. I think this is a really fundamental wrong that is done. I experienced that very personally this year. My mother had a stroke not quite four years ago and she had been able to live in her own apartment with this with help that came

[02:34:18] in and then she was moved this last October to the skilled nursing unit in in her senior living place. It meant a move of her post office box. And she lives in Texas, and my mom is a Tea Party member. She wants to vote for Ted Cruz and Greg Abbott in her state of Texas. And, you know, it would be really, really horrible if she couldn't vote. Even though she would vote on the other side of the things that I want her to vote on, she still gets that

[02:34:55] right to vote. I hope you as a board can support what efforts are being done with the electoral board to have not only voting on October 19th, but also on Sundays so that there could be a souls to the poll kind of movement because voting is so essential to our American democracy. People have died in wars so that we could have the right, not privilege, the right to vote.

[02:35:27] you very much thank you sir thank you very much um robert griffin will be followed by vicky fishman followed by trefilia parker good evening mr griffin good evening good evening madam chair i'm here to ask you democrats why are you democrats look at all the chaos that's gone on in our country you call president trump a racist and a nazi the party does if you if you don't

[02:36:04] you you blame them for blame trump for everything That's the party, and you all choose to be Democrats, choose to be in the Democrat Party. And even during the primaries, Mr. Suhas, your candidate for replacement for Wexton, promised to get mega, going to get mega, like you're going to hunt us down, mega.

[02:36:29] That's so obscene, so obnoxious. And I understand, Mr. Turner, that you endorsed Suhas, but that doesn't surprise me, doesn't surprise me at all. because you're the one in a town hall meeting a few years ago, stood up and waved a copy of the Constitution. Mr. Griffin, I'm going to need you to force a space for it, sir. We'll address that too, madam. Can I have my time back? You stood up in a town hall meeting and waved your constitution

[02:37:03] just after Trump took office and said, all of my years of military experience, I've never seen a worst threat to our Constitution than this president. That's what you said. Look what happened there in Pennsylvania, Mr. Turner. That is all the result of you, Democrat, maybe not you, but your party that you choose to be a part of, calling him a racist, inciting him to, well, incite an assassination attempt. That is just abysmal. You know what the Bible says about that?

[02:37:43] Well, in 1 Peter 3.15, Peter says, always be ready to give a hope, give an excuse and a defense for your hope in the Lord. And some of you, I know two of you that claim to be Christians.

[02:38:00] What hope do you provide to everybody, to our country, sir? You and I stood next to each other in church, and you would betray our country. You have no business sitting here. You have no ethical right.

[02:38:18] And as to you, madam, your time is up. I'm sorry, your time is up. Mr. Griffin, your time is up. Mr. Griffin, your time is up. Mr. Griffith, your time is up. Mr. Griffith, your time is up. Okay, Mr. Griffith, your time is up. If you keep talking, I'm going to call you out of order. Mr. Griffith, I will call you out of order.

[02:38:39] Good evening. You will be followed by Jefilia Parker and Cherie Nagareti. We're ready when you are.

[02:39:00] Good evening. I'm Vicki Fishman of the JCRC. Thousands of members of the Jewish community gathered last night to mourn the cold-blooded murder of a young American and five others held captive in Gaza by Hamas for almost 330 days. Hirsch Goldberg Poland spent his childhood in Virginia. He was kidnapped from a musical festival celebrating peace and unity that came to an abrupt and bloody end on October 7th. Hirsch spent his life building bridges between people of different faiths and upbringings who strove for coexistence between Jews and Arabs, Israelis and Palestinians.

[02:39:35] His left arm was blown off by a grenade before he was taken from the world of light and stolen into the terrorist tunnels that run under Gaza. Hamas built the tunnels with the international aid it received over the course of 20 years, aid that might have built a thriving home for millions of Palestinians if Hamas had actually wanted to provide for its people.

[02:39:58] For 11 months, Hirsch Goldberg-Pollen survived with limited oxygen, suffering tortures that we can only imagine. His captors could have released him at any point, but they held him as a cynical bargaining chip. And then this weekend, he was shot multiple times throughout his body before finally at last being shot in the head.

[02:40:20] He was executed. Hirsch was part of the fabric of the Jewish community of Virginia. His family is here. His friends are here. His values are here, and we are all shattered. Loud voices in our region have been calling for you to take up a cease-fire resolution.

[02:40:37] Many of those voices simply don't want Israel to exist. Giving heed to those voices now and considering a cease-fire resolution will do nothing to advance peace. As you surely know, Hamas breached a cease-fire on October 7th. Hamas also breached a cease-fire deal last November when it reneged on its commitment to release Carmel Gat and Eden Yerushalmi, who were on the list that had been agreed to by Israel and Hamas.

[02:41:04] Hamas changed its mind in November. Carmel and Eden were shot alongside Hirsch this weekend. It is not Loudoun County's role to weigh in on international affairs. Loudoun County needs you focused on building Loudoun County, ensuring good schools, good roads, good communities.

[02:41:22] You are close to the ground on those issues. You have expertise and advisors on those issues. You know this community better than anyone else, and you are best situated to ensure that it thrives in these concrete ways. Unlike you, our federal representatives receive security briefings.

[02:41:40] Ms. Fishman, I'm sorry your time is up. Thank you. Thank you. Dr. Philia Parker, you're going to be followed by Sri Nagareti. Mr. Nagareti, could you step back for a second while Dr. Philia Parker steps up? And then you will be followed by Buda Biberi. Good evening.

[02:41:57] Good evening. Before I start my comments, I just want to say that thank you for acknowledging Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Today marks my husband and I our 25th wedding anniversary. And our nephew, Marcus Parker, his journey ended with childhood cancer.

[02:42:16] And he would have been 30 years old today. So it was unexpected to come in and see that acknowledgement. But thank you for that, and thank you for what you do for those families who have had to walk that journey as well. Thank you. Good evening. I stand before you today as a concerned citizen, deeply troubled by the recent decision to remove Saturday, October 19, 2024, from Loudoun County's early voting calendar.

[02:42:39] This decision, which was made without prior public notice, reduces our early voting options to the bare legal minimum, leaving just two Saturdays and no Sundays for early voting. Why does this matter? Because our democracy thrives when we ensure that every voter has ample opportunity to cast their ballot.

[02:43:01] Historically, as recent as last year, 35% of Loudoun voters have chosen to vote on Saturdays, many of whom face barriers to voting during the workweek. By removing this crucial voting day, we risk creating longer lines, particularly in a high turnout presidential election year.

[02:43:21] and we effectively disenfranchise those who depend on weekend voting. I want to emphasize that the Department of Elections is fully funded and prepared to conduct early voting on all previously scheduled Saturdays, including October 19th.

[02:43:37] There is no financial or logistical barrier preventing us from offering this essential service. By limiting early voting days, we make it harder for working families, students, and those with limited transportation options to exercise their right to vote. We must do everything in our power to provide accessible and equitable voting options for all members of our community.

[02:43:57] I urge you to reinstate Saturday, October 19th, and to restore Sunday voting. Let's put the needs of our voters first, ensure broad participation in our democracy, and uphold the principles of fairness and accessibility that define our county.

[02:44:13] Thank you. Thank you, and happy anniversary to you and the guy in the bow tie. Sree Nagareti, you're going to be followed by Buda Bivarai, followed by Kenya Savage. Good evening, sir. Good evening, Loudoun County Board of Supervisors and Madam Chair, Phyllis Randall.

[02:44:32] My name is Sree Nagareti. I'm a resident of Loudoun County, Sterling District. I'm here to advocate reinstating early voting on October 19th, unfortunately removed by the Loudoun County Election Board.

[02:44:49] As David was mentioning, voting is the fundamental right in our democracy, and it should be accessible to everyone. Many people in our community face challenges voting during the week due to work, family responsibilities, and other commitments.

[02:45:09] Restating early voting on October 19th will provide a crucial opportunity for those who cannot vote on weekends, including my son, who is the first-time voter. He just voted these elections. This additional voting day is particularly important for youth, voters, elderly residents, and individuals with disabilities.

[02:45:35] For many, this will be their first time voting or a chance to vote without barriers. Ensuring that October 19th is available will help these groups particularly more fully in the democratic process. The election board should focus on providing more choices than taking away, so better if they can extend times or even on Sundays.

[02:45:59] So Loudoun County has always strived to be inclusive and engaged by reinstating early voting on October 19th. We ensure that more of our neighbors have the opportunity to participate in the upcoming presidential elections, making our community stronger and more representative.

[02:46:24] I urge the board to support, reinstate on Saturday, third Saturday voting. Let's make voting accessible to everyone in our county. Thank you for your time, and I want to thank you also, the Cancer Awareness Month.

[02:46:40] My dad passed away with cancer as well, so until now, I think there doesn't know the reason for the cancer. So I think if something can be, instead of educating, we can come out with a root cause, mostly the health and habits, natural ways.

[02:46:57] So some of the things county can do, the natural farming might help. Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Buta Biburai, you will be followed by Kenya Savage, followed by Bannon Malka.

[02:47:12] Good evening. Good evening, all. Good evening, Board of Supervisors, and thank you for the opportunity to speak before you and the community this afternoon. As the most affluent county in the United States, we witnessed the greatest theft on our citizens on August the 15th. That was when the Electoral Board stole a Saturday from the schedule of early voting.

[02:47:34] I intentionally use the word stole because it was done surreptitiously and without consideration to the victims of that crime, and that is the voters of Loudoun County. If we, one of the most respected and affluent counties, fail to secure and ensure that anyone who wants to vote, that is eligible to vote, can't vote, we have done a huge disservice.

[02:47:55] And as an elected board, it is incumbent upon the Board of Supervisors to do all that they can to ensure that the vote is protected for each of our residents. I attended the August 15 meeting, and at that point in time, the Board of Elections presented certain factors before the Electoral Board, and that was the following.

[02:48:21] It indicated that Loudoun County has over 300,000 registered voters, that there has been an increase in registered voters, and this year the expectation is that there will be the most voters voting in all of the history of Loudoun County. That they expect to have at least an additional 10,000 voters registered by this November, so that will be in the amount of 310,000.

[02:48:44] The expectation is that approximately 80% of the registered voters will actually participate in this election in one form or the other, either by voting early in person, mail-in ballots, or on election day. As we know, this is a very close election, and the issue is going to have to be as to making sure that anyone who is able to vote can vote.

[02:49:07] The further breakdown was that the prediction was that 30 percent of those eligible to vote will vote during early voting. That's seventy four thousand four hundred male voting is forty nine thousand six hundred and the election day is going to be one hundred twenty four thousand.

[02:49:22] So if we look at it from a resource perspective, if we don't reinstate the Saturday and I would recommend Sunday as well, is the fact that what we're doing is we're pushing people to election day. And as we know, the longer the lines, the more inclement the weather, the tighter the schedule, the fewer the people going to stay on those lines.

[02:49:38] and we will not capture every person's interest in voting. That is our duty and our obligation to our society is to allow everyone that opportunity. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much. Kenya Savage, you will be followed by Bannon Malka, followed by Mary Hayes.

[02:49:54] Good evening. Good evening, board. I rise in strong opposition of the local elections office decision to roll back October 19th as a Saturday voting day.

[02:50:11] For years, our Board of Supervisors, you all, have shown tremendous support through your resources, your presence, to our local county election office. And we thank you for that.

[02:50:28] As a resident of Loudoun County for more than 20 years, kids in college, we depend on the Saturday availability of our local office to be an additional resource for colleges, college students coming in, taking that time to show up and to vote, even if it is for their first time, just the joy and the experience of

[02:50:56] coming into the office. So I urge you, each of you, Madam Christian, Caleb, Ron, Matt, Julie, Phyllis, Laura, Mike, Sylvia, Leo, because you're there, and Tim Hempstead, because you're there too.

[02:51:22] join in with us. Join in with me and the kids in the community. Ask our local election office to reinstate October 19th because they have the money. Join us. Thank you for your time and thank you for your service. Thank you, Ms. Savage. Thank you. Bannon Malka followed by Mary Hayes followed by Gary Katz. Good evening. Good evening. My name is Banan, Loudoun County resident and parent of LCPS students, I'm here to reiterate how our county and our community

[02:52:02] can ensure that we are not complicit in war crimes and genocide being committed by Israel against the Palestinians. You are local elected officials, and me as your voter and constituent, I am not asking you to be pro-Palestinian, but I am demanding of you and holding you accountable to be anti-genocide. How to know whether you are anti-genocide? Put a finger down if you first are willing to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and in the West Bank,

[02:52:35] where Israel has launched a new onslaught 2.0 this past week. Two, are you willing to vote to disclose and divest Loudoun County funds from any investment in companies that are complicit in aiding Israel's war crimes in Palestine? And three, are you willing to reject any effort to attract Israeli businesses into Loudoun County via any economic board, such as via the Virginia Israel Advisory Board? And four, are you willing to reject any data centers in Loudoun County belonging to corporations, especially big tech companies, that are complicit in providing Israel

[02:53:11] with cyber and intelligence technologies that enable war crimes, human rights violations, and outright genocide in Palestine? And five, are you willing to acknowledge that this issue is not an international issue. Rather, it is a very local issue in Loudoun County that affects us as your constituents and is enabled by your decision-making prerogative. I hope that all of you have the moral and political imperative to get a full score, five out of five. My final bonus question is three Palestinian Americans were killed by Israel in Gaza and in the West Bank. American citizens of

[02:53:47] Palestinian dissents are being held illegally in Israeli prisons. Are you willing to wear ribbons to honor their lives and their freedom. Thank you. Thank you. Mary Hayes, you'll be followed by Gary Katz, and you will be followed by our last speaker, Vanessa Richardson. Good evening, Ms. Hayes. Good evening, everyone. Good evening to the board. First, I just want to say to each one of you up there, I don't know how you do what you do, but I respect what you do.

[02:54:25] It's amazing to just be able to sit there and take what comes across this desk. So I just want to say thank you for that. While we're quoting scripture, 1 Corinthians also says, let all things be done in decency and in order.

[02:54:41] And the removal of October 19th wasn't done in decency, nor was it done in order. Weekend hours are needed to ensure equitable access to the polls for all citizens.

[02:54:58] Many voters face work, family, and personal commitments. Some students even come home from college to vote. They can't do that during the week. They drive home on the weekends to do that.

[02:55:14] So that's why it's important. Weekend voting is critical for those who cannot take time off from work because they face other responsibilities, such as taking care of their elderly parents, taking care of disabled children.

[02:55:30] There are many reasons why weekends become important. In a time where voter suppression remains a concern, it is vital to make voting as accessible as possible, particularly in Loudoun County. Advocates and activists have been working tirelessly, working on promoting early voting, myself included.

[02:55:56] It's all over the internet that many of us are out there promoting early voting. And to have it taken just one day, it may not seem like a lot, but it is a lot. If we allow this now, what will it be next?

[02:56:17] I thank you for your time. And I left you with 23 seconds. Thank you, Ms. Hayes. Gary Katz, you will be followed by Vanessa Richardson. Good evening, Mr. Katz.

[02:56:33] Good evening, Chair Randall. You know, maybe I should add to the list that was before. I wonder if this board might be willing to go and require Jews to wear yellow stars. Maybe we should put no Jews allowed on the businesses that we have. Perhaps we should have folks greeting Jews, saying, go home Jew, goodbye Jews.

[02:56:50] We all remember that part of Schindler's List, right? What I've heard tonight has been worse than I actually thought this would be. This is astonishing. You know, there's a saying that the anti-Semite doesn't accuse the Jew of being a thief because he believes he stole something. He does it so that he may watch the Jew turn out his pockets.

[02:57:07] You see, it's the humiliation of it. It's the having to rebut and defense against the lie. It's the ensuing doubt. That's what actually matters. And it's the gaslighting, truly, that the anti-Semites enjoy. And that's what's happening here. The people who are coming out to lobby for a ceasefire resolution or for BDS resolutions to divest from any Israeli, really, let's just call it, Jewish business of any form, they're trying to bring this to the board as though this is a local issue.

[02:57:37] and they say that we know that you're local elected officials and that you have no say, but it really is a local matter. It's not. What they're trying to do is get a win, right? What they want to do is they want to get the joy of being able to say that we did something against the Jews in Israel.

[02:57:55] That's what this is about, right? There's no other way to say it. You know, it's astonishing that this can happen after Hamas executed six hostages, including one American, Hirsch Goldberg-Pullen, who was a peace activist and former Virginia resident of all things. He had his arm blown off by Hamas. Can someone get her a cough drop?

[02:58:16] Because whenever the Jews are talking, she coughs or makes a noise. I'd appreciate that. The reality is no one will forget his parents' speeches at the DNC, which were powerful. And then a week later, they executed him, shot him multiple times, and then finally in the back of the head. It was gut-wrenching. So here we are, vilifying Israel, but not Hamas. And by the way, those hostages were stored in a tunnel beneath a child's bedroom. And if you see the picture,

[02:58:50] the tunnel is right there underneath Snow White on one side and Mickey Mouse on the other. That's where they're hiding hostages. So beyond that, my purpose here is to set the record straight. If you want a ceasefire of any kind, then call on Hamas to finally agree to one because they've Thank you, Mr. Katz. Thank you very much. Time is up. Vanessa Richardson, you will be our last speaker for this evening, and then we are going to do item number four, which is the voting item.

[02:59:20] Good evening. Good evening, board. My name is Vanessa Richardson. I am a 26-year resident of Loudoun County. Most of you know me from serving on the Leesburg Town Council. First black woman to ever sit on the Leesburg Town Council, by the way. I would like to, well, first of all, I wasn't going to speak tonight because I'm terribly exhausted from my stressful work day, but I was compelled to come up because I want to talk a little bit about how important voting is and how important it is for us to get those days back that were stolen from us, as my friend said earlier.

[02:59:59] I'm not friends with anybody that doesn't vote. I don't let my children be friends with anybody whose parents don't vote or they don't vote. That's how important voting is. So I just wanted to say that to express how important it is for us to get those days back that were stolen from us.

[03:00:22] One of my friends back here told me we shouldn't even be here because, you know, the board can't do anything about giving us our days back. But I disagree with that because I think you all can do something about it. So, it is my wish and my sentiment to you all, to whatever is within your power and influence, to get our voting days back because it's critically important to our community.

[03:00:49] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much. All right. Thank you, everybody, for coming out to speak this evening. Would the staff please come to the table so we can do this item? Good evening, Mr. Kroboth.

[03:01:05] Good evening, Madam Chair and board members. Good evening. Joe Kroboth with the Department of County. Give me one second, Mr. Kroboth. Okay, we're ready when you are. Thank you. Good evening again. Joe Kroboth with the Department of County Administration.

[03:01:37] I have with me Senior Assistant County Attorney Nick Lawrence with the Office of the County Attorney. Hello, Mr. Lawrence. Hello, ma'am. How are you this evening? I'm well. How are you doing? We have an item before you this evening seeking your guidance to consider a draft letter for transmission to the Loudoun County Electoral Board regarding the decision to eliminate a Saturday date of early voting.

[03:01:59] So we are happy to answer any questions that you have as best we can. All right. Thank you very much, Supervisors. If you have questions, please put your light on, and then we will go to a motion after questions. Mr. Sainz. thank you madam chair what in 2020 how many saturday votings did we have with the three if you know mr saynes i'm i'm not 100 sure but i think it was three okay and i'm getting a head

[03:02:32] nod from um one of the representatives on the election board that did show up and thank you for coming um so that was a presidential election correct yes sir and i think it's well i'll just ask. Do presidential elections usually tend to have higher voter turnout than, say, when we're going to the polls to vote for the governor or when we're going to the polls to vote for the General Assembly and Board of Supervisors and Town Council seats? I believe that's what

[03:03:07] the registrar's data would show, sir. Okay. So to take away a day of voting during an election that will go to the polls and vote for our president and House of Representatives and U.S. Senate, when we know the voter turnout will be at a maximum, is definitely not the right thing to do. I'll just call it what it is. It's modern day voter suppression, plain and simple, in my opinion. I can't speak for the rest of my colleagues, but I'll speak for myself and say that.

[03:03:46] I think, I hope, I pray that the Board of Elections reconvenes and brings back this extra Saturday. We heard from a number of residents and the reasons why, and they're all valid reasons. I know we received one email from one of the members who decided not to come saying that over meeting the minimum requirements per the code, well, I always taught, and I'm assuming a lot of other folks were taught, you don't just do the bare minimum. You go above the bare minimum.

[03:04:20] And we were above the bare minimum, and we should stay above the bare minimum, especially during a presidential election when we know voter turnout will be at its maximum and not everybody has the luxury to vote just on the election day so again i encourage the the election board to reconvene and re-establish the the date that was taken away uh thank you thank you mrs glass thank you madam chair um you know i do have questions for the electoral board i mean i appreciate um staff

[03:04:58] coming here you know wish they had come here so that we could you know have those questions answered from them but I do have a couple what was the electoral boards stated reasoning for eliminating Sunday voting last year the Sunday voting issue I think was taken up in in January of 23 and I'm going to be candid I did not go back to to look at the at the reasons for that but my recollection is that some of the board members expressed a concern about the

[03:05:37] election cycle in Virginia we have elections every year this year we've we've actually got three because we had the two primaries and we have the general and the expressed concern from some of the board members was that there be some kind of a break during the 45-day early voting period so that the electoral staff could could have a day with their families and just recharge is that a similar reasoning that they gave for eliminating this Saturday October 19th

[03:06:12] voting schedule I don't recall hearing that expressed ma'am the the meeting was recorded the video is archived on the county's website and anyone who wants to see what the what the board members said about their decision it's it's there to to be seen so the resource requests that the from the elections office which the board funded to the staff over the weekend days was that removed or what what happened to that funding is it I don't know that that anything has

[03:06:51] happened to the funding I know that when you talk about resources and connection with the elections part of it of course is money but I think I think the registrar would be disappointed in me if I didn't make a plug for the volunteers who come out and serve as election officers. And certainly anybody who's interested in the elections should contact the registrar, offer to serve. The training starts next month, and they'd be delighted to have the help. So it's both the financial resources, but it's also the actual physical people who work the

[03:07:26] polls. Thank you. Mr. Turner. Thank you, Madam Chair. Is there any indication or has been there Any indication of the Department of Elections staff that we are under-resourced for the last two years? In terms of money, no, sir, not that I'm aware of.

[03:07:43] Is there any indication from the Electoral Board that volunteers have been frightened away because of the national rhetoric associated with this election and created a resource drain on volunteers? I don't know that I can say anyone's been frightened away.

[03:08:01] We have had inquiries from election officers about various things that concerned them in terms of perhaps being personally sued, things of that nature, and I don't recall seeing those types of issues come up in past years.

[03:08:23] I'm not sure that we have folks who are worried about their personal safety. There was a concern about a bomb threat during one of the primary elections that we've gone through. That turned out to be completely unrelated to the elections.

[03:08:39] It appears to have been related to the school where the polling place was located. So as far as I know, sir, the staff is safe and feels safe, and they're doing their work. And in your opinion, does the staff believe that they are fully resourced in both finances and volunteers to conduct this election that's coming up?

[03:09:00] I believe they're well resourced in terms of finances. As I said, they can always use more help, and anybody who's willing and able to serve as an election officer should contact the registrar, and as I said, the training starts next month. And do you think that's an accurate assessment all the way back to when they eliminated souls to the polls on Sundays?

[03:09:21] I wouldn't want to answer that without actually going back and looking at the numbers, sir. Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Turner. Mr. Kirshner? Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you for being here. I've just got a couple of questions. When did early in-person voting actually start in Virginia? When does it start?

[03:09:38] When did it actually start? Was it 2020? We didn't have it before 2020. Isn't that correct? I believe 2020 was the first year. Okay. And since 2020, we've had, has it October? That's not correct. You can stop Mr. Kirshner's time. I don't know when it was.

[03:09:53] I'd not be happy to try to check, but it was before 2020. Early in-person voting. Absolutely. Okay. Oh, for sure. Okay. But it hasn't been, it's been a more recent phenomenon, I believe. That was my question. I remember it as a COVID sort of a combination.

[03:10:09] That's what I recall as well, so that's why I'm asking. Those of you who make your living getting elected. Is it fair to say that anyone can request an absentee ballot, is that right? Yes, sir. Anyone can. And that can be, when can the absentee ballot start, request starts and get sent?

[03:10:26] Well, you can request them any time. The mail ballots will go out on Friday, September 20th, and the deadline, the last day to request a mail-in ballot, is October 25th. And they can be dropped off 24-7 once voting begins at a number of different locations, is that correct?

[03:10:43] They can be returned by mail, they can be returned to one of the drop boxes, or they can be returned in person to one of the election offices. Okay. So I don't have a, I guess I can talk within the motion, but I don't really have any other questions for staff but a lot of what was said tonight quite frankly in my opinion is a little bit of hyperbole we're talking about voter suppression and these sorts of things and I think it's reasonable have a debate whether the this or have a discussion or whatnot whether or not the um board should keep and again it's not our it's not our decision election board it's outside of our purview whether or not they should keep an extra Saturday open or

[03:11:21] not whether or not you know that's that that's the right choice I think Mr. Turner made a lot lot of really good questions and asked about resources I think in large part as I understand it in part that's some of the decision what the decision was made here but not entirely but to suggest that somehow this is modern day voter suppression and this makes this is criminal this is criminal against the voter I think as certain people mentioned that that spoke is just shocking to me given what I'm aware of now we can have a debate whether we should have more Saturdays or not but in part this is a resource thing and it's it's outside our purview you don't

[03:11:57] like it that's fine I'm not going to support this this letter in any form at all especially given what I've heard here tonight and what I understand the number of days that are voting how many days are actually how many actual hours have we figured are available to vote in Loudoun County now I can't tell you over 45 days I can tell you subtracting the Saturdays and Sundays where the offices are closed I count 33 days of early voting starting Friday September 20th 12 of those are days when the elections office over on Miller Drive and all three of the satellite locations. So really this is a discussion about convenience or not

[03:12:36] convenience and obviously going online everybody has that access to internet typing in your it's I've gone online and looked at it it's very simple it'll come to your door you can cast your vote. Suggest this is a vote. It is an issue of convenience there's one Saturday that's been eliminated and quite frankly I think any argument to the contrary is more of a political statement that's being made tonight thank you mr kirschner miss brixman with all due respect to my colleague that that was spoken just like someone who never had their ancestors subject to jim crow laws and voter suppression across this nation to say that this is not voter suppression is in fact ridiculous

[03:13:14] this electoral board took away sunday voting then they tried to take away early voting from across the entire county to make it equal to one side of the county and now they've taken away saturday voting can you please tell me why nobody is here from our registrar's office can i tell you that can one of you tell me that please and tell everyone why they're not here all we know is that an invitation was extended and they indicated they were not available to attend that's all we

[03:13:45] know we also know that the electoral board gives them direction and employs them madam chair may i that that's a clarifying question for supervisor brisman did you imply why is the electoral board staff not here? No. I'm wondering why our registrar and our deputy registrar are not here.

[03:14:12] They are not here because their board members were unable to attend and therefore they report to and support that electoral board. So let me just stop Ms. Brickson's time for a minute. It might be helpful Mr. Kroboth to describe the difference between the Department of Election and the electoral board and how that works because I'll stop her time where she's at but I think there might be some confusion of what a Department of Elections is versus what an Electoral Board is, how they get to be there, who they are, and how that works.

[03:14:45] So let's do that, and then I'll start our time back. Thank you, Madam Chair. Sure. I'll be right back, by the way. Yeah. I'll take that if it's okay, ma'am. The Electoral Board consists of three members. The two political parties, the Loudoun County Democratic Committee, I think it's called, and the Loudoun County Republican Party have the right to nominate persons to serve on that board.

[03:15:10] The ultimate decision and the appointment is made by a majority vote of the circuit court judges. The Electoral Board is supervised in its work by the State Board of Elections and by the State Commissioner of Elections. One of the duties of the Electoral Board, the County Electoral Board, is to appoint the General Registrar.

[03:15:33] She, in turn, has the power to appoint deputies. Those are the folks that you all might think of as the Elections Department, and she has the duty to assign them their tasks and to supervise them and to remove them if they're not performing appropriately.

[03:15:51] Good. Okay, let's start our time back and keep going. Thank you. The public can surmise why they're not here based on that structure that you just described. Was the early voting calendar on the July meeting agenda for the Electoral Board? There was, as I understand it, discussion about that being on the agenda.

[03:16:10] Ultimately, it was not placed on the agenda for July. Okay. And then for the August meeting, was the early voting calendar adjusted before it was put on the agenda, and why was it adjusted before it was put on the August agenda?

[03:16:27] So, I can't speak to why, ma'am. I did go back and look at the minutes. the the calendar was originally presented to the electoral board by the registrar and her staff in the December 2023 meeting that proposal remained basically unchanged as I said there was consideration I can say that in their minutes after the meeting it was stated that it was removed the Saturday 19th of october was removed at the request of the then vice chair of the electoral board before that

[03:17:06] calendar then came finally to the august 15th meeting is that correct i don't think the minutes have been published yet but i believe that's correct based on the agenda item okay okay so originally there were three saturdays it was taken off the july agenda and then it was changed and brought to the august agenda with that saturday missing have we has this board ever not funded what the Registrar and the Electoral Board has asked for.

[03:17:31] I couldn't answer that question, ma'am, but I'm not aware of this board not meeting the Registrar's needs financially. Thank you. Let me clear up some of the questions that have been asked today. Ms. Glass, the reason the then Vice Chair and now Chair of the Electoral Board said that they took this Sunday off is because they never had a chance to vote on this calendar.

[03:17:52] That's what she said, which is not true because the party, And to be clear, the way the electoral board works is the governor's party has two positions on an electoral board, where the party out of the governor's mansion has one position.

[03:18:11] So at this moment, the fact is the electoral board is a two-to-one Republican board. It has been a two-to-one Republican board for quite a while, and they had all the time in the world to change this voting if they wanted to, and they waited to now or to the August meeting to do it.

[03:18:26] That is absolutely just the fact. That's why she said it, and that's just a fact. And so I understand the staff has to be very careful, but I don't. And, oh, by the way, I'm pissed off. I am just pissed off. When they took away Sunday voting, I said, they're not finished.

[03:18:44] And they tried to mess with voting precincts, and I said, they're not finished. And then Ms. Bricksman is right. It came off the July agenda, and then before it went on the August agenda, the staff reported actually says that Shelly Obelander took it off, that this day came off at her request before it ever went to the full electoral board to be voted on. She had taken it off. And then we asked her to come here and gave her plenty of time. She couldn't find her way here.

[03:19:15] Are you kidding me? I have no tolerance for this right now. None. We have given the electoral board or the election department everything they've ever asked for. And oh, by the way, let me ask this question. Did anyone in the elections department ask for this day to be removed?

[03:19:38] From the public agenda item? No. Did anyone in the elections department ask for October 19th to come off the early voting schedule? The only thing I can tell you, ma'am, is what's on the item, which is that it was at the direction of one of the electoral board members. Yes, the electoral board members, not the elections department. Second question. Is it not true, According to the elections department, the 35% of people that vote vote on Saturday, 35%.

[03:20:06] Is that not a true statement? I would have to check that number, ma'am. You should go check that number before, because that is also a true statement. I'm going to make a motion, and then I'll say everything else that I need to say or want to say within the motion.

[03:20:24] I'm with the board supervisor to endorse the draft letter addressed to the Loudoun County Electoral Board, provided as attachment one, by the way, I'm in the supplement, provided That is attachment one to the September 4th, 2024 Board of Supervisors Business Meeting Action I am requesting to reinstate October 19, 2024 on the early voting schedule for the November 24th, for the November 2024 general election.

[03:20:48] Motions made. I'm going to give that second to Mr. Letourneau. These elections, presidential elections, are the largest voting turnout of all of the elections we have, by far. To remove a Saturday voting from a presidential election makes absolutely no sense.

[03:21:08] What it will do is cause longer lines on Election Day. And who knows what could be happening on Election Day? It could be inclement weather. It could be a lot of things. After Bush v. Gore, there was something created in every state called the HAVA Committee, the Help America Vote Act Committee. I was actually on Virginia's HAVA Committee board.

[03:21:26] But I know the election laws and the election rules probably better than anybody, because I helped write them in Virginia. I literally helped write them in Virginia. I know that we have curbside voting. I also know it's much harder for somebody with a disability to get somebody to come out and help them with curbside voting when you have a line down the street, which is what you're going to have when you take away Sunday voting and Saturday voting.

[03:21:52] I know that. I know that it's harder for people who are elderly or disabled to stand in line. I know that. I know the students come home on the weekends to vote, and you've just taken away one of those from them. I know that. There was absolutely no reason to do this.

[03:22:09] And my question, and I am calling her out, my question to Ms. Oberlin there is this. Who are you serving? What problem are you fixing? The elections department didn't ask for this and, quite frankly, didn't want this. Constituents that came to talk to you, by far, the majority of them didn't want this.

[03:22:31] You are a public servant. you took an oath. Who are you serving? What problem was there that you were fixing? This is not service. This is suppression. Creating longer lines is voter suppression. This is not clarity. This is confusion. This is not progress. This is partisanship. This is partisanship because you can, which is the most ridiculous reason to do something because you can. You know why? Because the will always comes back around. Right now, yes, the governor in office

[03:23:07] is a Republican, but that won't always be. The will will come back around. One day, there'll be a Democrat in that office. And you know what will happen? They'll put all these voting days back and then more. And you know what that's going to affect? That's going to affect local elections. That's going to affect state elections. So when we get to 2027, when all these days are put back if there's a Democrat in office and more. How many people do you think in your party will win an election? This is an illogical thing to do as well as a partisan thing to do.

[03:23:43] This is shameful. This is not service. This is shameful. And it's partisan shameful because she can, which is the exact wrong reason to do anything at all. Ms. Umstead.

[03:24:01] Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chair. And I appreciate the supplemental letter, and I am very comfortable supporting it. Mayor Burke wanted to let the board know that the Leesburg Town Council at its special meeting this evening voted to support putting the October 19th Saturday date back in to the mix.

[03:24:27] I want to say that there could be an ironic result of removing October 19th because, in general, Republicans tend to come out in larger numbers on Election Day.

[03:24:46] And because removing an early voting Saturday forces more people into Election Day, it could well be that it is Republican voters who will bear more of the brunt of the removal of this day than Democrats who tend to vote early.

[03:25:09] I'm very happy to support this, and I would hope the electoral board, the two members of the electoral board who voted to remove it, and thank you to the third who voted to keep it, but I would hope that the two who voted to remove October 19th would reconsider and put it back on the calendar.

[03:25:30] Thank you. Mr. Crony. Thank you, Chair Randall. I am proud to support the letter. I think it's ridiculous to remove October 19th in a presidential election year.

[03:25:47] Last year, Saturdays were full with voters. I was at the polls last year. So to remove it in a year when we're expecting even more voters is just lunacy. My daughter comes home from Virginia Tech to vote on a Saturday.

[03:26:07] She'll have limited Saturdays to come home now. And I think it's a fairness, an equity, an inclusion issue. I think some people don't want to be in lines. Some people can't be in lines. And having more Saturdays provides an opportunity for them to vote.

[03:26:27] I agree voting is a right, and we should give that right to more people. Give them the opportunity to come out on a Saturday and vote. So I think it is partisan. I agree with Chair Randall. And, you know, to do this right before early voting starts, it really is not fair to our residents. So I'm happy to support this letter. Thank you.

[03:26:54] Thank you, Mr. Crony. Mr. Letourneau. Thank you, Madam Chair. So Loudoun County did not always have satellite voting locations. And I would need to check the exact record or date. But in my first term, we didn't.

[03:27:11] and I brought an item to the board to create satellite voting locations at Dulles South and Algonquian. We worked with the registrar at the time. I worked with my colleagues, I believe my first term, all Republican board, and we funded it. Back then, it didn't feel like access to vote was a partisan issue, and I don't know why it suddenly seems to be, because it really shouldn't.

[03:27:42] So I appreciate the chair bringing this item forward, opportunity we had to talk about it, opportunity I had to work a little bit on the letter myself, and I think it's important that we do do it as the county's representative of the citizens.

[03:28:00] I have several objections. I object both to the outcome of what the Electoral Board did, but also the process. So this was not an item that was placed on the agenda ahead of time with a stated intent to remove October 19th as a voting date.

[03:28:19] Therefore, there really was not notice given to anyone who might want to go and speak on the subject. Not that that may have made a difference, but nevertheless, it was not following the right process. and waiting until really the last minute when we had had discussions up here about how to handle the upcoming election during the budget process and with the electoral board itself. It's pretty clear what happened, which is that the current chair, the chair of the electoral board had to resign for other reasons, and somebody new came in and just wanted to make a different decision.

[03:28:58] But that's not a good way to run a government service, which voting is. It's one of our most important responsibilities that the county does, which is to run free and fair elections, which we do and always have done in Loudoun County. So, number one, I object to that. Number two, it just doesn't, it's not a smart thing to do, because all it does is place more burden on staff on the remaining two Saturdays than on the other days, and it's really a solution in search of a problem.

[03:29:27] Now, I could understand some of the discussion around Sunday and giving staff a rest, but in this case staff explicitly wanted the Saturday this Saturday because they knew this is going to be a high turnout election and it actually evens out the staff work in addition to giving voters more opportunities. So I will support and vote for the letter and sign it. I do sincerely hope the electoral board listens and reverses course on this and adds the October 19th date back.

[03:29:59] Thank you. Mr. Turner. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to very briefly address whether this is voter suppression or not. If you establish a number of days that you allow voters to go out and vote, whether that changes or not is really kind of immaterial.

[03:30:18] If you've established a number of days that people can go out and vote, and you're going into a period of time where turnout is going to be abnormally high, And your staff has said, we have enough resources, or they have said, we need more resources, and they've gotten those resources.

[03:30:35] And you delay action until you get a couple of months out from one of the highest turnout elections probably on our history. And for a reason that nobody, nobody in Loudoun County can discern, we really know what the reason is. But for ostensibly what nobody can discern, you simply eliminate souls to the polls on Sundays, which is predominantly an African-American cultural thing, and that's predominantly a Democratic thing.

[03:31:02] And you eliminate a Saturday to vote when you know that 35 percent of the votes come early and Democrats vote early. To stand there and say that that's not willful voter suppression, to emphasize Chair Reynolds' point, there is no problem here that we're trying to solve. to say that is not voter suppression is to be a hunter that just shot a turkey and when people around him say no that was a duck and he's no it was a turkey and everybody has said it quacked like a duck it flew like a duck it swam like a duck trust me everybody in the universe knows it's a duck except you that just shot the turkey this is voter suppression thank you madam thank you

[03:31:42] Mr. Kirshner. Thank you, Madam Chair. So prior to 2020, we did not have early in-person voting in Virginia. So I guess for the 250 years of our existence, we had voter suppression. So we had absentee and we still have absentee and we have absentee 45 days out. So the truth of the matter, this whole talk about voter suppression, again, if you talk about political, it walks like a duck, it talks like a duck. This whole thing is political. Now we can talk about whether the Saturday removing is good or not a bad idea. I don't disagree that probably the process could have been significantly better. And quite frankly, I don't think removing the

[03:32:20] Saturday is the best idea, honestly. But this whole concept of voter suppression, and this is, we know this is a partisan thing. Well, this whole thing going up on here is a partisan thing. Guys, come on. Let's just be honest. We don't like what they're doing. We don't like it. We want it this way. But it ain't so voter suppression. Let's be quite frank. It's not voter suppression. Yeah.

[03:32:43] Voter suppression is we don't let people go to the polls. And a lot of this is surmised. Anyone 24 hours a day can ask for a ballot, Mr. Turner, can ask for a ballot. There will be no crosstalk. I mean, if you can't get in to vote when you have 30 days to vote and you have 24 hours a day over a 45-day period to request the absentee ballot and it's just the one day, that is just not voter suppression.

[03:33:08] That's like saying, listen, the park's open all but one day, but we're going to close that one day, so you've been suppressed from going to the park. That's just silly. So anyway, with that said, I'm going to abstain from this vote. I don't disagree with a lot of the material that is in here, that the process should have been done differently. But because of all this voter suppression vote, I think that's the way this whole concept and this thrust is going.

[03:33:30] And I just don't want to be a part of that because that is not true. This is a separate entity. The General Assembly says you have to have X number of days. This board actually gave more than those particular days. So I guess the General Assembly is suppressing votes. And so maybe we should talk to the General Assembly about that as well.

[03:33:47] Now, again, process could have probably been done different. It should have been done earlier. I don't disagree with that. This late in the game is probably not the best idea. But let's call it what it actually is in a bad process. My understanding, it was in part a resource issue. That's in part what I was told as to why they removed some of this.

[03:34:06] But I hear differently tonight, but that was not what my understanding was. So we can have this argument and debate on limited information up here. But let's just talk about what the real problem is and do we want more time voting? We can say that. But don't call it voter suppression. That's just silly. Ms. Glass?

[03:34:25] Thank you, Madam Chair. I will absolutely be supporting this letter, and I wish that we could do more to reinstate more voting days for the citizens of Loudoun County. Simply put, we should be expanding access to voting in all ways, and I'll continue to support requests for funding and access enhancements for our voters in Loudoun.

[03:34:46] You know, my dad was part of the civil rights movement, and I've talked about this several times being up here on the dais, and I've heard stories about what they went through, what my family went through, what, you know, folks who were looking to have the vote, what they went through. And I, to our older people who have been through that

[03:35:20] that life been through that that experience of not being able to vote i'm pretty sure this feels like okay so they're doing little by little just you know certain little things it doesn't look that big but you know we're just going to take this right we're going to take this one away and so finally you have those things you have just that certain amount of days for folks to come in to vote. We should be expanding. We should be letting folks who want to vote have the opportunity to

[03:35:56] vote. That's what we're here for. That's what we're here for. So I'm going to do everything that I can to make sure that our citizens are able to vote. And I implore the electoral board to reinstate the weekend voting days that have been removed. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. Ms. Brixman.

[03:36:24] Thank you, Madam Chair. I fully support the letter, and I would like to see Sunday voting return. I think what some people on this dais may not understand is that sexism, racism, white supremacy evolves. It evolves. This is just the new iteration, taking away what people have fought so hard to gain, what we fought so hard to gain in the General Assembly with the early voting and the mail-in ballots. It evolves. That's why we still have a civil rights movement, basically.

[03:37:00] That's why we still have court cases today that talk about these things. It evolves, and it changes. And what we need to do as a society, as a board, and as residents of Loudoun County and elected officials is to recognize it when it's happening. It is happening. This is voter suppression. This is modern-day Jim Crow, and it comes straight down from the top, from an administration that unilaterally pulled us out of Eric, trying to say that that's going to make our elections more

[03:37:33] secure. That does not make our elections more secure, not by a long shot. And then this board took away Sunday voting like that, like that. And then they tried to constrain voting in the county, in the precincts. Luckily, they changed their minds on that, and I hope they change their minds on this. And now they're taking away a Saturday. It comes straight from the top, disenfranchising people, messing with our elections, disparaging our public school system. This is Project 2025

[03:38:11] stuff right here. And it happens piecemeal by piecemeal. And what we need to do in our democracy is to recognize it when we see it. And thank goodness this board recognizes this. The majority of us is recognizing this as we see it.

[03:38:28] How do we know that this is voter suppression? It was a backroom deal. It was done in the shadows. They waited until the very last minute, and then it was done in the shadows with a little change to an agenda with no real justification.

[03:38:44] That's how we know. One thing that this board can do, and I'm going to preview this for my colleagues, we are lower than any of our counterparts on the number of early voting locations that we have in this county. We talked about it before. I will be bringing an item where this board and our staff figure out sites because we can tell the elections office what sites we want to have for early voting.

[03:39:09] The city of Alexandria has four total locations, Arlington, four total locations, Fairfax County, 17 total locations, Prince William, six. We do not have a great ratio. We have one location for 109,000 residents.

[03:39:26] Prince William has a location for every 81,000. I'm going to be bringing that item so that we can have more early voting opportunities in the county. Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Kirshner, my father died in 2014 on Halloween. Before I got on the plane to go bury my father, I went to the electoral board and I voted in person.

[03:39:46] So do not tell me that early voting started in 2020 because I walked in there crying like an idiot, snot flying all over the place. Judy Brown said, what is wrong? And I said, I got to go bury my father, but I cannot go bury my father if I don't vote first.

[03:40:06] So I know absolutely that I walked in the voting booth and voted in person in 2014. So I'm not sure who's giving you that information, but it is incorrect. I'm not finished. There's a letter going out that will go out today, tonight, that is signed by multiple organizations.

[03:40:29] The League of Women Voters, New Virginia Majority, SEIU, most of the Divine Nine, if you don't know who the Divine Nine is, you're going to be knowing real soon, so we'll get to that later on, the Loudoun County Boulay and others supporting this. All organizations that are nonpartisan in nature, that are supporting this letter, literally this exact letter, that know that this is wrong.

[03:40:53] And I'm going to ask this one more time, because this is the most important question I can ask. Who are we serving? The electoral board took an oath. Who is this helping? Who asked for this? Who wanted this and why?

[03:41:10] What problem is being solved? This is partisan. Absolutely it's partisan. And whenever you work to create harder time for people to vote and lower the voter lines, that by its very nature is voter suppression.

[03:41:28] This is voter suppression and it's partisan and it's a silly thing to do. And it will come back around because the will always does. It just does. Play stupid game, win stupid prizes. Give it a couple years. All right.

[03:41:45] When I was about seven years old, my grandmother took my hand. I live in Denver, Colorado. Denver's cold in November. And walked me probably about seven blocks, to be honest. But when you're little, it feels like longer. And we walked in the snow to vote. I whined all the way there, and I whined all the way back.

[03:42:03] We got back. My grandma sat me down, took my shoes off, gave me something to eat, and told me to stop crying. And I asked her, it's cold outside, why did we do this? And she explained to me what this was and why, and who died as an African American and as a woman so that I can die.

[03:42:24] Voting for me is sacrosanct. With the exception of worshiping Jesus Christ, there's not a whole lot of things more important than voting. Not a whole lot of things. And I will fight for this with my life. Be sure about that, Ms. Openlander, because I am talking directly to you.

[03:42:46] Supervisors, I made the motion. Mr. LeTerno seconded the motion. All in favor, please say aye. Opposed? Abstain? That motion will pass, 801, with Mr. Kirshner abstaining on the motion. Thank you. We're going to do the last item before the last action.

[03:43:05] We only have one more action item. Let's do the last action item before we go to... We'll do the last action item, action item, Mr. Kirshner's item before we go into closed session. And then we'll come back and we will do nominations and such.

[03:43:26] So we're going to do item number 5C. You too.

[03:43:53] Just give us one second.

[03:44:34] All right. Listen.

[03:45:03] All right. Good evening. Good evening. This is item 5E that Mr. Kirshner took off of consent. I'm really the odd man out. That's a, yeah. do you have a staff report before me do you have a staff report no we're just here to answer questions or any comments that you might have okay then if you have questions mr. Kirshner would you like to I'll go to you just go to the motion I madam chair unless people have questions about it what is it not the motion in the package it's it's the green piece of paper okay that we're

[03:45:40] removing just if I can speak madam chair briefly how about you do that real quick. All right. This motion basically would pass the item with the removal of two of the signs that are on Route 7 in Western Loudoun. And the reason I'm basically doing that, and I can again speak within the motion, is I just don't believe it's really a context-sensitive design. It would be, I think there are two locations, and staff can speak more to it, but it's Route 7. All the Route 7 is a 7-4 lane. They put these signs, which are electronic signs, which really are kind of

[03:46:15] out of, I think, context and not compatible with what we're trying to do in Western London County. We'll sit right in the middle of the median and seven as you're, I think they're both west and mostly eastbound at the Hamilton and Percival and Round Hill locations. There's locations between Percival and Hamilton and then Percival and Round Hill. And I'm asking that they remove those two signs from the item. That's all. Going to make the motion. I will. Thank you, Madam Chair. I move The Board of Supervisors approve the installation of traffic cameras and variable message signs at three of the five proposed locations

[03:46:52] along the Route 7 corridor as outlined in the action item, removing Location 1 at Route 7 adjacent to the Simpson Creek Road and Location 2 at Route 7 between Berlin Turnpike and Ivondale Road and direct staff to develop a project agreement with VDOT for the three approved locations, allowing VDOT to install the equipment utilizing the funding available in the Intelligent Transportation System Project and Capital Improvement Program.

[03:47:16] Okay, motions made and seconded by Ms. Amstead. Okay, I want to open, because I have a lot of questions for you, actually. For me? Yeah. Okay, I don't mind answering them. So maybe I'll answer them. So basically, I thought this was going to be easier than it apparently is.

[03:47:34] These recommendations, I think, largely came out of 2017, and I don't know how much stakeholder input was put in, and so I did an actual survey within my office, sent it out to my constituents. We got over 60 percent of the people who did not want to see these signs put in on the western Loudoun County corridor because, you know, they're the big kind of electronic signs that flash around.

[03:47:58] And then about, I think, 15 percent of the people were kind of neutral, and then there was a much smaller percent that said, oh, yeah, they might be helpful. And so we obviously have worked very hard trying to make our western Loudoun context sensitive. Yes, it's a four-lane road. Yes, it's Route 7.

[03:48:14] And in some places it is controlled access. not all places on Route 7, but it is a beautiful, scenic highway. We're trying to keep it as a beautiful and scenic highway. Signs are not, especially now, an electronic sign that would kind of flash this up and tell you where you're going.

[03:48:31] I think this is something you see much more in an urban or an area of a city, not in the western Loudoun area, and so I just don't think it's going to be that useful. People can get a lot of this information in other ways that this sign may provide, And so the idea would be just to remove these two signs.

[03:48:50] That's all it does. Hopefully that answers your question. It didn't. Do you mind if I ask you a question in your time? No, go for it. You said 60% of the people, 60% of how many people? I don't remember what it was, but we had a couple hundred people who wrote back to us. It was just an informal survey because I was trying to get some sense of what people felt.

[03:49:07] Because my first reaction, honestly, Madam Chair, was, I don't know if this is really going to fit within Western Loudoun. And so we kind of sent out a survey. It was very informal. It wasn't run by an official pollster or anything along those lines. No, I know that. I realize that. But I would say we had over a couple hundred people email us back.

[03:49:22] A couple hundred people? Yeah. Okay. So it's a small sampling, but I think it's probably a pretty accurate sampling. Okay. I'll ask you the rest of the questions in my time when I get to my time then. Thank you, Madam Chair. Anybody else have questions? Because I'm saying questions for you mostly because you put it off consent.

[03:49:39] It's kind of your, okay. Because it's not really staff's recommendation. That's why we're asking. Okay. Was there any public input for this? Can you ask that a little bit louder? Yeah, was there any public input for these signs?

[03:49:56] So as the board item states, the original ITS plan came out of the 2017 Transportation Summit, and the direction of the board at that time was to proceed with the action plan that we had put in there, which is a phased approach in which there is money allocated in the CIP every other year to add to the inventory of ITS signs. So our first round was along Route 50 and you had one on Route

[03:50:31] 28. And then as that original 2017 plan outlined, then we moved on to the next corridor, which was route seven so we were essentially just following the board's direction coming out of the 2017 transportation summit do you did the route 15 signs go into western loudon the route 50 signs sorry they were in the dullest district okay so yes so these would be the first in western loudon correct these signs on route seven there is one sign in leesburg uh just west of uh south king

[03:51:10] street on the 715 bypass that's the furthest west sign right now okay so I don't know that that's west but yeah I'll let you guys determine what is west okay all right thank you I think it's a fair statement it's the only fair statement for me all right Ms. Glass thank you Madam Chair are the screens on both the east

[03:51:47] bound and the west bound approaches of each pole or is it just on one side they are two-sided it's on both the east and west bound and north and south bound where it goes north and south yes thank you okay um miss bruxman thank you uh how was it determined where the signs would go i know you said that it was a 2017 board directive but were there like actually engineers and you know DTCI people who analyzed this and decided where the signs should go

[03:52:21] based on traffic and safety, things like that. So there was the original study, again, done prior to the 2017 Transportation Summit, which outlined a plan and outlined the general areas in which the ITS equipment should be installed.

[03:52:43] And then, again, based on that plan, When the funding came in in 2014, we then began that round of ITS implementation by actually meeting with VDOT, going in the field to specific spots.

[03:53:00] Mr. Pozzoli here is our project manager. He was actually out at the spots. Yes, so after that planning effort, then we go and actually do field visits and coordinate with VDOT to pick specific locations. DTCI, VDOT professionals gather data, determine the best place for these signs to go because they're the experts on safety and traffic patterns and those sorts of things.

[03:53:27] The answer is yes, I guess is what I'm hearing. Yeah, the answer is yes, with the caveat that part of that site review is to ensure that we can install them in places where it's going to be cost effective, that we're not in the middle of utilities and that sort of thing.

[03:53:42] I got you. And then if I might ask Supervisor Kirshner, and your reasoning for eliminating them over there is, again, what's the reason? So, first of all, there was some stakeholder input in 2007. I heard that. Oh, go ahead, sorry. But there was no public input. That's number one.

[03:53:58] Okay. I don't think they really go with what we're trying to do in Western Loudoun, and that is try to eliminate. I mean, you've seen these signs before. They're big. They flash. Right, right. I mean, it's like if you're going to stick up one of them temporary signs that VDOT puts out on a full-time basis.

[03:54:16] This is just – this is not what I understand that we're trying to do in Western Loud. And it's a beautiful, scenic commute. You've got farms all around, and then you've got this big flashing. So it's just the view. Yeah, I think large part. And I don't think it's – I mean, yes, probably it has some helpful information, but I don't – I'm not aware of any significant safety issues.

[03:54:38] The traffic engineers said that that's what they're going to help with safety, and they did the studies. Do we know what kind of safety is going to help with? Okay. Anyway, I mean, well, I won't be snarky. I'm not going to support this motion.

[03:54:54] I would rather see all five of them up. Thank you. So how large are the signs? They're pretty – I've seen flashing signs, but I don't know how – listen, how big – I mean, what's big?

[03:55:13] So if you can imagine the typical – Are they really big? they're about the size of that screen oh that's big the whole screen can we make them smaller or instead of making them less they have to be they have to meet certain sizing requirements for the size of the letters oh okay so they're like those those roadside signs that you sing yeah yeah they're also that big you don't realize it when you're driving by but they are very big signs the other thing that we can't forget in this process is we are utilizing surplus signs that vdot has in storage and that's how we can do this quite cost effectively so we're not customizing

[03:55:52] the size of the signs these are signs that are just sitting in storage doing nothing and we're able to obtain those from vdot and i for reuse i listen i am loathe to not support mr kirschner and you know some but but i said i've said this all the time my number one issue is always and has to be safety do you believe or maybe there's somebody else I should be asking that this that that having five signs and I wish they could be smaller I would agree with that is the best thing for safety that's all I care about to be honest yeah so um that's not all I care about but that's

[03:56:30] my primary thing I care about so I'll address a few of the benefits so a lot of times the benefits So having five or three? Pardon me? Which benefits are you addressing? Safety and roadway operations benefits. To having five signs?

[03:56:46] To having any signs. Well, I'm going to stop you because he's not saying don't have any. He's saying decrease the number. So I'm asking about the safety benefits of what is suggested versus what Mr. Kirshner's motion is. We know we're going to have some.

[03:57:02] We're trying to get to the right number. And so what would be missing if those two were not provided is real-time information about roadway conditions. So a lot of times, so VDOT manages these signs at their central operations center.

[03:57:17] And so they are a way of communicating with the public about roadway conditions, accidents, collisions, weather-related events, significant things that impact traffic are communicated through these. Do the other signs do the same thing?

[03:57:34] All five of signs are doing just that? They would be direct. So VDOT would be operating the signs based on what needed to be communicated to those individual roadways. Ah, so the different signs would say different things depending on where the signs are.

[03:57:50] And it's based on the route and what's happening that's influencing the traffic that's on that route. And I'll add that in the item we mentioned, it's equipment, because in addition to the signs, there are closed-circuit TV cameras on all the monopoles where these signs are that are doing the monitoring of traffic conditions.

[03:58:11] So that's what's being used to goes back to the Traffic Operations Center in Fairfax that then would go and send out any alerts if there is an incident in any of those areas that the traffic cameras are picking up.

[03:58:29] Mr. Kirsten, you want to have a closing in, because right now I'm pretty torn. I really don't want to vote against you, but I really feel like this. All this is going to accomplish is put a big, ugly sign in the middle of the seven corridor where we have beautiful bucolic drives, and what it's going to tell you is, hey, there's traffic up ahead, and everybody knows who travels that corridor that there's traffic up ahead on certain times of the day.

[03:58:53] That's all it's going to accomplish. So you're going to put a big, ugly sign just to tell people there's traffic up ahead, and when it tells them there's traffic up ahead, guess what they're going to do? They're going to take all our little byways and highways all around. They're going to go down through Hamilton. They're going to go up through Waterford and that sort of thing rather than waiting in line to get through the traffic.

[03:59:08] That's all it's going to do. Would it say something like road flooded out, or would it say like... It would say you have a backup time of... I mean, you've seen them on the... Usually you see them around the Beltway. You see them down 95. You see them in major quarters. That's why I just don't think it's needed here. And it's really ugly just for a few times of the day.

[03:59:26] It's going to tell you, oh, traffic, you're... I don't know if it'll tell your estimated drive time or anything along those lines, but that's really, I mean, you can get that through Google. Everybody gets that through Google now or through Apple. You're going to see what your backup and how long it goes, and it can give you alternative routes. We don't need to put a big, ugly sign in Western Loudoun in order to make that happen.

[03:59:46] Sorry. That's my pitch. I just find it to be, I mean, I understand why staff's doing it. They were given direction to do it. This is the next logical step. His clock is not ticking. This is his closing, but his clock wasn't ticking. All right, this is my time. This was your time. That's what I have to say. I mean, if you don't want to support what we'd like to see happen in the district, that's kind of up to you.

[04:00:05] But I had my thought was, you know, let's see what the – and that's the feedback I got. And I was concerned the moment I saw it. So I didn't think this was going to be that controversial. Okay. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

[04:00:22] My time, like, I still got two minutes and 47 seconds. No, you do not. No, you're kind of, like, leaving the room and coming back. There's no citizen input on this. There was literally no citizen input. Yeah, darn it. I just, oh, gosh. Can I say something?

[04:00:38] No, no, no, guys, that was his closing. That was his closing. We have to, we have, that was his closing. Okay, motion was made by Mr. Kirshner to support what's on this piece of paper, his motion, and second, I think, by Ms. Umstadt.

[04:01:03] All in people who say aye, all oppose, and I don't know. I honestly don't know. I hate not voting. No, I'm just kidding.

[04:01:24] I'm going to abstain because I just don't know enough to say yes or no on this, so I will abstain. So I think that would be 7-1-1. I think I heard 7-1-1 with Ms. Bricksman voting, and I'm abstaining on that vote, okay? So, yeah, we're good. Okay, thank you.

[04:01:41] Mr. Turner, you're not going to be staying with us. You want to do your nominations right now before we go to closed session, correct? Yeah, really quickly because I can't go to closed session. I know. I nominate Priscilla Abar for reappointment to the Community Criminal Justice Board as the Ashburn District Representative.

[04:01:57] Disclosures on Wednesday, August 7th. My staff and I met with John Platino from Goose Creek Village, Packy Crown, Matt Leslie from Bowen Consulting, and Don Knudsen from Knudsen Companies to discuss the application of Goose Creek Village West. Monday, August 26th, my staff and I met with Randy Minshew and Mike Romeo from Wash Kalushi and applicants Clayton Tock, Anker Walia, Frank Hardesty, and Frank somebody to discuss the application for Hiddenwood Assemblage.

[04:02:22] On August 27th, 24th, and August 29th, 24th, my staff spoke with Brian Clifford from DLA Piper to discuss the application for the Cyrus One and Broadlands. On Thursday, August 29th, my staff and I met with Aaron Swishelm, Morgan Headlock from Wash Kalushi, Jeff Sykes from Capital Petroleum, Nick Jorgas from Bowler, and Les Atkins from Galloway to discuss the application for Lakeview Center Plaza.

[04:02:46] Friday, August 30th, my staff and I met with Roy Barnett and Denise Herover from Van Meter to discuss the application for ORM Commercial. Thank you, Madam Chair. Okay, thank you very much. And I will see you later. Ms. Brixman, would you like to read us into closed session, all three closed sessions? Supervisors, we'll come out of closed session and do anything that we need to do out of closed sessions, And then we would do nominations and report comments, and then we would be done.

[04:03:17] Ms. Bricksman. Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that the Board of Supervisors recess this public meeting and enter into closed session pursuant to Sections 2.2-3711A3 of the Code of Virginia to consider disposition of real property to the town of Leesburg.

[04:03:33] I further move that the Board of Supervisors recess this public meeting and enter into closed session pursuant to section 2.2-3711A3 of the Code of Virginia to consider acquisition of parcels of property for public use in the Catoctin and Little River districts.

[04:03:50] I further move that the Board of Supervisors recess this public meeting and enter into closed session pursuant to sections 2.2-3711A8 and A29 of the Code of Virginia to consult with legal counsel pertaining to the negotiation of a collective bargaining agreement where public funds are being expended and where negotiations in open session would adversely affect the bargaining position of the county.

[04:04:15] Motion is made. Is there a second? Motion is made and seconded. Ms. Ambassador Sainz. Discussion on the motion. All the people say aye. Aye. Opposed and abstaining. You want to abstain, Mr. Turner? You want to abstain? Abstain. You abstain. You abstain. Okay. All right.

[04:04:36] I thought, I thought you were, wait a minute, I thought you were going, oh, I'm sorry, that's an 801, thank you, and we are in closed session.

[04:59:43] What did he say?

[05:36:23] Okay, we're back in, and we're going to be read out of closed session. Ms. Bricksman, I'm sorry? Oh, for gosh sakes. Mike didn't read in the closed session with us.

[05:36:38] Turn off their light when they go. But Laura has to be back, though. Mr. Turner was not here, so he can be, he didn't read in the closed session. miss the question huh what so just a dark area did you uh mary francis i don't have anything

[05:37:08] after eight o'clock right now not yet i'm waiting for it to come through because it hasn't come through yet okay miss brixman would you like us to read out a closed session please miss brixman stop talking so much close session please i move that the closed session be adjourned that the board of supervisors reconvene this public meeting that the minutes of the public meeting should reflect that no formal action was taken in closed session

[05:37:48] and further move that the resolution certifying the closed session be adopted and reflected in the minutes of this public meeting. Motion is made and seconded. Discussion on the motion. All in agreement, please say aye. Aye. Any opposed? That motion passed and answered. Everybody, please affirm.

[05:38:04] Affirm. Affirm. Affirm. Affirm. And I affirm as well. Thank you very much. Supervisors, if you have nominations to be made, please put your lights on.

[05:38:31] Mr. Letourneau. Yeah, I nominate Ben Keithler as the Loudoun County HOA and Condominating Association representative on the ZOC. Wonderful. Thank you, Ms. Glass.

[05:38:46] I nominate Mr. John Honeycutt to the broad run seat on the Parks, Rec, and Open Space Board. I nominate Mr. Paul DeMay to the broad run seat on the Heritage Commission. I nominate Ms. Saniya Yamin and Ms. Amelia Lee to the student member seats on the Advisory Commission on Youth.

[05:39:13] - No, here it is, it's just-- - Mr. Crony. - Okay. - Thank you. - I nominate Nicole Rudinger to the Loudoun Health Commission as the Little River District Representative, and I nominate Jean Galland on the Heritage Commission.

[05:39:35] - Thank you, and I have a lot. Supervisors, let me remind everyone once again that we have a lot of boards, commissions, and committees that are not filled and that don't have your positions in them, so please make sure we start doing that. I nominate Phil Daly to the SME member of the Environmental Conservation Organization seat in the Environmental Commission.

[05:39:57] I nominate Sherry Conka to the SME Clean Transportation seat of the Environment Commission. I re-nominate Mike Taylor to an at-large seat on the Community Services Board. I nominate Eileen Candelara to an at-large seat on the Community Services Board.

[05:40:13] I nominate Amanda Brawley to an at-large seat on the Disability Services Board. I nominate Suzanne Mendo-Gibbon to an at-large seat on the Disability Services Board. I nominate Michael Kurtz-Zick to the at-large Metro Connection Rider seat on the Transit Advisory Board.

[05:40:31] He rides the Metro to work a couple times a week. I nominate Tracy Lacey to an at-large seat on the Family Service Advisory Board. Thank you very much. All right, let's do board comments. Board comments. Ms. Umstott.

[05:40:47] Thank you, Madam Chair. I had a meeting today, actually, with Packy Crown, Don Knutson, and John Paltaniano on Goose Creek Village West.

[05:41:09] On board comments, I'm just going to say the following because I think despite the fact that we lose people every day, I think someone has to say the names of the six hostages that Hamas took from Israel and then executed.

[05:41:35] Hirsch Goldberg, Poland, 23, an American citizen and Israeli citizen, Carmel Gott, 40, Alexander Lobanov, 32, Almag Sarusi, 27, Eden Yerushalmi, 24, and Ori Danino, 25.

[05:42:02] The tragedy was that Hamas knew there was an Israeli Defense Force rescue team on its way, and they decided to kill these people rather than allow them to be rescued. They videotaped the murders of these six and sent the tapes to the families.

[05:42:27] So when we talk about where the problem is in Gaza, it is clearly Hamas. And until that scourge is eradicated and taken off the necks of the Palestinians and the Israelis, I don't see there being any peace in the Middle East.

[05:42:50] Thank you. Supervisor Glass. Thank you, Vice Chair Briskman. I have several disclosures. On Wednesday, July 31st, my staff met with representatives from TriTech to discuss the Concora car wash application on Monday, August 12th.

[05:43:08] I met with Chuck Kuhn to discuss the Telos and Greenland Park applications. On Thursday, August 15th, my staff met with Morgan Hadlock to discuss the Lakeview-Cinor Plaza application. On August 22nd, my staff met with Matt Leslie to discuss Goose Creek Village West application.

[05:43:31] August 27th, my staff met with Mike Romeo to discuss the Hidden Wood application. September 3rd, my staff met with Amanda Williams to discuss the Arcola Town Center residential application. And I just want to welcome all of teachers, staff, and all the students that are going back to school.

[05:43:57] I wish them well, a very good beginning of the school year. And, you know, it's been a tremendous first week, as usual for for teachers and staff you know with all the kids coming in and and all things new but i think um you know we all enjoy our work and are glad to be there thank you thank you very much thank you madam chair for disclosures on july 25th i met with amanda williams of cooley colleen

[05:44:34] gillis of curata and james brothers and dave ramsey of westbrook to discuss our cola town center residential on august 6th i spoke with randy minchew of walsh kaluchi to discuss hidden and wood assemblage. On August 13th, I met with Randy Minchu of Walsh Kalusha to discuss hand and wood assemblage. On August 21st, I met with Amanda Williams, Colleen Gillis and James Brothers and Dave Ramsey to discuss our Colatown Center residential.

[05:44:56] Again, on August 22nd, I met with Chuck Kuhn, Charles Yead and Steve Kuhn of J.K. Land Holdings to discuss the status of approved and by right projects in the Dulles District as well as an active application at Greenland Park. On August 27th, I spoke in person to several applicants of the Hiddenwood Assemblage regarding their application.

[05:45:20] Just by way very quickly of a Metro update, it's been a good summer from a ridership perspective. We continue to gain ridership back. We're now at or close to our pre-COVID numbers on bus and we're at about 80% on rail.

[05:45:38] So we're making good progress there. couple of big things. We finalized a labor contract with ATU, 689, which was a great outcome with a contract that's fair to both sides. It was ratified by 88% of the membership.

[05:45:55] We now are getting close at our next meeting to adopting a fiscal reserve policy, which is something I've been working on for about six months here, where Metro will essentially be able to start using some of our surplus funding to establish a reserve to cover emergencies which we did not have and now we're taking on the holy grail of all issues which is our subsidy formula there's only about six people in the world that currently understand the metro subsidy formula we're trying to both simplify it and sort of future proof it and we're having great discussions

[05:46:30] and making progress on that so stay tuned on that front otherwise welcome back everybody appreciate all of our citizens exercising their first amendment rights this evening regardless of my my whether i agree or not but i know we have a we're going to have a busy fall so stay tuned thank you very much mr crony thank you chair randall on august 12th members of my staff attended the pre-meetings for Pippel Creek substation in the Banneker

[05:47:04] elementary school modification on August 14th I met with Gary Hamrick Randy Minshew and County staff and we toured the Cornerstone Christian Academy on August 12th I make I met with Frank Hartstie regarding the Hiddenwood data center application on August 27th I met with Paki crown Don Knutes Knutson John Planito, and Matt Leslie about Goose Creek Village West.

[05:47:34] So I want to thank some of the public who came out today. I really like the Loudoun Cemetery Conservancy idea that Al Van Huyck presented to get more funding to maintain our 200 historic cemeteries.

[05:47:53] And I also appreciate Liz Crotty from the Little River District coming to talk about the need for inclusive playgrounds to increase accessibility and to replace some of our playgrounds so that all children can play outside during recess.

[05:48:12] So I look forward to working with that on the joint committee. During August break, I was busy visiting sites. I toured the Goose Creek Bridge in Upperville, which is a 200-year-old stone bridge where the Battle of Upperville occurred. That's in need of some repair.

[05:48:30] I visited Hiddenwood and Briarfield Estate communities and saw kind of the surrounding area and some of the issues that they're facing. And I also took a tour of Cornerstone Christian Academy.

[05:48:47] They restored a beautiful school. and there are actually 550 students there so they have a big student population it's very popular and they have a huge waiting list wanted to let everybody know that there's a mickey gordon community meeting on tomorrow on september 5th from 6 to 7 at the middleburg community center staff will be presenting three concepts for the park and soliciting public feedback i'll be there And if you can't go, you can submit your feedback online at loudon.gov slash Mickey Gordon.

[05:49:26] And I'll be hosting a town hall focusing on the Dulles South Community Park on Monday, September 23rd at 630 at Light Ridge High School. So hopefully members of the community can attend that and give me their feedback on that new park.

[05:49:45] Thank you. Ms. Tacroni, I actually can't go to Mickey Gordon because there's the other town hall tomorrow about power lines in Lansdowne. I am going to send my staff, a staff member, and if you can let everybody know that I have a staff member there, and I'm at another meeting and give my best to them.

[05:50:02] I'm still very engaged. I just can't make it tomorrow because there's another meeting going on. Okay, thank you. Mr. Sains. All right, thank you, Madam Chair. Disclosures. August 1st, I had a conversation with Michael Capretti about the Innovation Gateway application. On August 30th, I met with Matt Leslie, Packy Crown of Bowman, regarding the Goose Creek of West Village application.

[05:50:25] Thank you, as always, to everybody who came out and spoke in favor or spoke in regards to an issue that was near and dear to your heart. Appreciate it. You could have chose to be anywhere with us on a Wednesday in the early evening hours, but you chose to be with us. So thank you again for coming to express your viewpoints.

[05:50:44] Today, we had another mass school shooting, which is very unfortunate. We just need to do better in America when it comes to our school children and the issues that are running rampant from a whole lot of issues and topics.

[05:51:12] But in regards to guns, we need to have a conversation, national conversation, to do better in that regard as well. Again, for the life of me, I still can understand in this whole world, we are the only one that continues to have this issue.

[05:51:29] I think we really need to stop and think about that for a second. In the whole wide world, yes, other mass casualty shootings happen here and there, but statistically, look at our numbers compared to everybody else.

[05:51:46] We are the number one in that category, and that's not a good number one to be in. So we need to do better, America. I'll just stop there and just say, again, thank you to everybody that came out to spoke, and we'll see you soon.

[05:52:05] Ms. Bricksman. Thank you, Madam Chair. By way of disclosures, on August 21st, I had a meeting with Aaron Swishelm and the applicant on the Lakeview Center Plaza application. On August 28th, I had a meeting with Paki Crown and Matt Leslie of Bowman and the applicant regarding Goose Creek Village West.

[05:52:26] And on September 3rd, I had a meeting with Colleen Gillis and the applicant regarding Arcola Town Center Residential. I want to say happy birthday to my fearless chief of staff, who turns 26 today. Unfortunately, he's not here for me to tease him. I want to say congratulations to Courtney Sidnor.

[05:52:44] I know that she will do a great job in her new role, and it's well-deserved. And I'm happy for her and proud of her for her growth. I attended during the August recess, the Vaco County Officials Summit, which the chair spoke about earlier. In committee, I just was making sure in the Finance and Elections Committee, making sure that we maintained our statement to have Virginia re-enter the ERIC system for voting credentials, or credentials isn't the right word, but for voting rolls, making sure that they're

[05:53:23] clean. One of the first things that came up, of course, was data centers. And as they relate to land use, the chair commented a little bit on the land use comments from folks in the General Assembly who didn't seem to understand that it's very complicated. And I will say that in regard to data centers, I'll just plug that I worked with Equinix Data Center and the VACO staff to produce a three-part podcast on VACO Pulse, specifically about data centers, the pros and

[05:54:03] cons of data centers, and trying to inform our counterparts across the state, really, that they can learn from Loudoun County, and to be sure to reach out to us if they have any questions, if the data center industry is knocking on their door.

[05:54:21] As Supervisor Sains was saying, we did once again have a mass shooting at a school today. I had to update my gun numbers right before I came down here. There have been 11,552 total gun deaths in this country this year with 386 mass shootings.

[05:54:45] the deaths have included 169 children under the age, 167 children under the age of 11, and 700 and actually 800 teens now, ages 12 to 17. It's a senseless, senseless tragedy once again in our country. And, you know, our children are not dying of mass book readings. They're not dying of mass drag shows. They're not dying of mass unisex bathrooms. They are dying in mass shootings.

[05:55:21] And the more we focus on, you know, those silly wedge issues and not on the issues that are killing our children, the worse off our country is going to be. Schools are now closed for a week in that jurisdiction, closed for a week, which often happens. I'd love to see who has examined the loss of learning for students who have to go through something like this, and not just because their school's closed for a week, but the trauma that they have to live with for the rest of their lives, the survivor guilt that many of them are going to have to live with, the staff and the

[05:56:01] school administrators and all the children. And, you know, once again, I hope that maybe in the new administration or the new congress they will have the spine to ban assault style weapons in our country and put more stringent controls and regulations on firearms thank you madam chair so i actually want to say miss brixman um sometimes i know you get people who are

[05:56:36] huffing and puffing and rolling their eyes when you get when you give your gun numbers every time we get in this dais but i've always admired that you do that because a lot of people tune in when there's a school shooting and then tune out five hours later after the school shooting is over and you are on these numbers all the time and i appreciate that very much um i know this is i want to tell you all something that i learned there was a a kind of start up as a funny tiktok thing that asked women um who would what would you rather encounter a bear in the woods or a man in the

[05:57:11] woods. It was kind of a funny thing when it started. 70% of women said a bear. 70%. No, listen. When asked then why would you rather encounter the bear, women said things like, I know what the bear might do to me. I don't know what the man might do to me. If I don't F with the bear, it might not F with me. If a bear attacks me, no one will blame me. If a bear attacks me, no one will ask what I was wearing. The worst a bear can do is kill me. A man can do so much worse. Those are the answers

[05:57:50] that women, 70% of women said that they'd rather have an encounter with the bear. And I remember when I was asked that without even thinking, I said the bear, just like that. It was the bear. And that's because every woman I know, without a doubt, I have not met a woman who has not received unwelcomed attention from men, unwelcome comments from men, and often someone who's put their hands on you. So you're walking by them and they're trying to get your attention or something and it's, you know, they're reaching out and they're grabbing you or they're pulling you and it's like, hey girl, hey, come talk to me while their hand is on you. That's not abnormal at all. In fact,

[05:58:29] that is the norm. We have a person running for president again who admitted, who bragged about bragging women by their genitals so in other words assaulting women and then we elected that person president and yes women voted for him but the vast majority of people that voted for not the vast but many more men voted for him than women what is the message we're giving our our girls what's the message we're giving when we when we completely continue to ignore this this issue of girls and

[05:59:08] women being talked to, touched, grabbed, assaulted, demeaned, because what happens often is when a woman says, like, no, thank you. I'm not interested. Thank you anyway. I'm married. I'm otherwise engaged, whatever. Sometimes a man will let it go, and sometimes a man then starts with the, I don't want to talk to you, no way, and then it becomes something completely else, right?

[05:59:33] So, you know, on September 13th, 1994, the Violence Against Women Act was signed, and it was signed by Bill Clinton, which is kind of ridiculous in and of itself, the fact that that was Bill Clinton signing that, because I've got a whole other set of issues about him, but we won't go there right now. This year is the 30th anniversary of that Violence Against Women Act, and I have been asked, would I like to come to the White House to commemorate the signing of that?

[05:59:58] And my invitation is non-transferable, but I can take one person with me. I'm going to take a woman in our community that is a DV, a domestic violence survivor herself, but also a domestic violence advocate and works with domestic violence victims.

[06:00:16] At first I thought, I don't feel like going down to the White House, I'm not going to do this, no. But then I started thinking about it and I started thinking about the number of domestic violence incidents that are on the rise and just the fact that women are so fed up with what we have to deal with, that 70% of us would rather encounter the bear. And so, you know, I always say every February, I'd be really happy when we no longer need Black History

[06:00:52] Month, because that would mean that Black History is incorporated in American history and we wouldn't need Black History Month. I would be really very happy when we don't have to recommemorate the Domestic Violence Against Women Act, because maybe that would mean that the domestic violence against women has decreased, but if we're going to elect a man who has bragged about assaulting women, and if we're going to have 70% of women say that they'd rather have an encounter with the bear, we know that we sadly still need the Domestic Violence, the Violence Against Women Act, to be re-signed, so I'll let you all know how it goes.

[06:01:31] Thank you. Anything else? No? Okay. Thank you very much. We are adjourned.

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