Mathews Market Days chairman Dee Russell told the board of supervisors during a budget meeting Tuesday night that Mathews County Sheriff Mark Barrick had more than doubled the amount his office charges the annual festival for its security needs over the past four years.

Russell said that the cost for security between 2009 and 2012 had averaged $750 a year, while the cost from 2013 to 2016 had averaged $1,890.

Russell gave these figures in the context of asking the board to provide funds for security for Market Days as a permanent line item in the annual budget. She asked that the county at a minimum cover the full cost of security for the event.

In defending her request, Russell cited figures that she said showed the impact of Market Days on the county’s businesses, community organizations, and residents.

Each year, thousands of visitors come to Mathews for the festival, said Russell. She said the committee that coordinates the event puts in just under a thousand hours annual...