Last night I was sent to cover a meeting of the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors as they held a public hearing and vote on whether or not to join the Virginia Railway Express. It started at 6:30 and my deadline was 10pm. I figured that was plenty of time. I wasn’t expecting to make a particularly great picture but the decision to join has been argued back and forth for nearly two decades. A fair number of people turned out to support and oppose the county joining. Arguments included everything from opposition to a new 2% gas tax, to the morality of joining or not joining, that supporting VRE is just another example of socialism, that it would improve the quality of life, that it would bring revenue to the county and somebody even floated the idea that VRE is unconstitutional. The public comment portion wrapped right around 9pm and I was excited – plenty of time to get the vote in and beat my deadline. I’d be home in no time.

I should have started out by saying that I do not regularly cover local government meetings and I now have a new respect for my colleagues on those beats. After the public comment had ended, the supervisors started talking. And talking. And then another one would talk – no wonder this process has been going on for years.

9:30 rolled around, still talking.

9:45, more talk.

9:50, now I’m getting nervous.

9:55, and I am trying my best to employ a jedi mind trick on the chairman, “This is the time to vote. Vote now. Do it!”  Alas, it didn’t work.

9:58, I’m sending text messages to the office saying the vote will happen any minute if only these guys will stop listening to themselves talk. The crowd was kind of keyed up and I wanted a reaction picture so I held off on sending anything.

A couple of minutes after 10, they vote to join VRE but with the provision that the date be moved to February 2010, after any new supervisors take their seats, essentially opening the door to another vote and the possibility of NOT joining. Read reporter Dan Telvock’s story here. The reaction picture I was hoping for didn’t happen and the pictures I moved could have been sent a hour earlier. So, 4 hours and 3 mediocre pictures later I stood in the parking lot, transmitted pictures and contemplated punching myself in the face.

Fredericksburg City:

• 64 days on market – this is 107 days less than in July 2008
• Sellers received, on average, 89.65% of their list price when the home sold
• There is 7.48 months of inventory on the market
• 23 homes sold in July 2009 – this is 1 more than in July 2008
• The most popular price range was under $100,000 and $300,000-$349,999.   
• The median sold price was $218,000, compared to $317,950 in July 2008
• Financing Terms:  Conventional – 9, FHA – 5, VA – 2, Assumption – 1, Cash – 6

Orange County

• 155 days on market – this is 10 days less than in July 2008
• Sellers received, on average, 87.73% of their list price when the home sold
• There is 11.97 months of inventory on the market
• 36 homes sold in July 2009 – this is 10 more than in July 2008
• The most popular price ranges were $200,000-$249,999
• The median sold price was $209,000, compared to $202,950 in July 2008 
• Financing Terms:  Conventional – 13, FHA – 11, VA – 1, Assumption – 2, Cash – 6, Seller Financing – 1, Other – 2

Spotsylvania County

• 99 days on market – this is 44 less than July 2008 
• Sellers received, on average, 89.72% of their list price when the home sold
• There is 5.80 months inventory on the market
• 162 homes sold in July 2009 – this is 28 more than in July 2008 
• The most popular price range was $250,000-$299,999
• The median sold price was $218,450, compared to $252,500 in July 2008 
• Financing Terms:  Conventional – 47, FHA – 54, VA – 29, Assumption – 8, Cash – 21, Other – 3

Stafford County

• 74 days on market – this is 61 less than July 2008 
• Sellers received, on average, 94.32% of their list price when the home sold
• There is 5.06 months inventory on the market
• 156 homes sold in July 2009 - this is 13 more than in July 2008 
• The most popular price range was $300,000-$399,999
• The median sold price was $238,250, compared to $290,000 in July 2008 
• Financing Terms:  Conventional – 48, FHA – 42, VA – 37, Assumption – 11, Cash – 18

Prince William County

• 61 days on market – this is 51 less than July 2008 
• Sellers received, on average, 94.83% of their list price when the home sold
• There is 3.93 months inventory on the market
• 787 homes sold in July 2009 - this is 225 less than in July 2008
• The most popular price range was $300,000-$399,999
• The median sold price was $200,000, compared to $214,000 in July 2008
• Financing Terms:  Conventional – 181, FHA – 299, VA – 129, Assumption – 37, Cash – 133, Other – 7, Seller - 1 

Statistics provided and calculated using data supplied by MRIS.

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by Gary Bullis, Spotsylvania GOP Member

I attended the VRE Summit, hoping to learn the facts about VRE. Should Spotsy partner with the northern counties and join VRE? The panel members were all articulate and advocates for VRE. It was clear that the panel members representing the northern counties wanted Spotsy to join to spread the cost.

Many questions remain.
(1) What is the benefit to the 120,000 Spotsylvania citizens who do not ride the VRE? Potential to attract jobs to the area. The Fredericksburg rep was asked that question and he said that Fredericksburg was already built out and there was no measurable benefit for luring high paying jobs to the area. He noted that approximately 900 Spotsylvania residents ride daily, which one could argue takes 900 cars off the 95 corridors but still impacts local rush hour traffic.

(2) How is it paid for? According to the "Master Agreement," the cost of commuter rail service shall be borne by the PARTICIPATING JURISDICTIONS. A minimum of 50% recovery of operating cost will come from fare revenue. The difference will be funded from a gas tax of 2%, which is soon to be 2.1%. This means that non riders will be required to subsidize those who ride up to 50% of the cost. If this tax increase still proves to be insufficient the balance will be funded from the county general fund. Most employment in the area is with the federal government or contractors, who are already subsidizing their employees to ride VRE with federal tax dollars. In addition, the VRE COMMISSIONS seek funds from the taxpayers of the Commonwealth and federal government in the form of grants. That's a lot of subsidizing. The cost for parking lots, stations, and other capital cost items remain the responsibility of the PARTICIPATING JURISDICTION (i.e. Spotsylvania County taxpayers)

(3) What are the transportation options? According to a regional transportation needs study by the Fredericksburg Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (FAMPO), numerous options to VRE are available and are already in place.
a. Carpools registered - 130. This does not include unregistered carpools.
b. Vanpools Registered – 366. This does not include unregistered vanpools.
c. Private Commuter Bus Runs - 27.

The estimated total number of vehicles removed daily via a, b, & c already equals 5,462. This is at no cost for the taxpayers with the added benefit of thousands of dollars from fuel taxes paid.
Too often, mass transportation does not go where you need to go. If you don’t work within walking distance to the station, the public will choose another alternative. According to a regional study done by the FAMPO, "Transit is most effective in densely developed areas with concentrated development. In the George Washington Region, development is of a very low-density nature."

"Various research efforts have shown that productive, traditional; fixed-route transit requires at least 3 households per acre or at least 4 jobs per acre. In terms of how "transit supportive" areas are, those with 3 to 10 households per acre or 4 to 20 jobs per acre generally have a medium level of transit supportiveness, and those with higher levels generally have a higher level of transit supportiveness. In the George Washington Region, relatively few areas currently have these densities. As the Region's grow, some existing areas are projected to develop more densely, but most new development patterns are expected to be similar as at present and to sprawl into new areas."

According to The Heritage Foundation and The Political Economy Research Center, rail transit in Portland and St. Louis, which have been widely promoted as light-rail success stories, accounts for less than 2.5 and 1 percent respectively, of new travel. This light rail development has been heavily subsidized. Portland’s planners had predicted that development would increase along the transit corridor while growth slows outside the corridor. Does this sound familiar? The facts show that this did not happen. Rail transit is not a substitute for carpool, vanpool, or bus commuting because it is structurally incapable of taking enough people where they want to go. Rail transit is more costly, requiring subsidies from the more than 120,000 non-riders thru an additional 2.1% gas tax as well as other tax subsidies. I urge the Board of Supervisor to consider these facts and join together as our community leaders in opposition to joining VRE during these difficult economic times.