The Mathews County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved the Mathews Broadband Advisory Board’s plan to develop high-speed internet for the entire county.

The plan includes construction of two communications towers—one at the Mathews Volunteer Rescue Squad building on Cricket Hill Road and the other at the Bohannon Fire Station on East River Road. It also includes the installation of 18 repeaters, nine for each tower, at various sites around the county.

No funding was designated for the project. Instead, the broadband board will search for ways to fund the project, including applying for Virginia Telecommunications Initiative grants and funding from the federal American Recovery Act.

The board also approved extending the county’s contract with Broadband Telecom Services, the company that developed the plan.

Public hearings

The board held two public hearings, one on scale-solar facilities and the other on amendments to the FY 2021-2022 budget.

Planning and Zoning Director Thomas Jenkins asked the board to consider which of two positions it would take on large-scale solar facilities that could at some point be proposed for the county. One would express support for such facilities, but would outline conditions for their approval, such as proximity to growth areas and installation of buffers, and would create a map showing areas of the county where such facilities might be acceptable. The other position would express disapproval of such facilities, providing language in the comprehensive plan saying that they should not be located in Mathews.

The Mathews County Planning Commission had recommended language expressing disapproval of such facilities, and supervisor Paul Hudgins agreed, saying, “I don’t think Mathews County can afford to give up any big tracts of land to allow solar companies to come in.” He cited decreasing acreage available for farming and the need for large tracts of land for housing development.

Supervisor Jackie Ingram agreed, saying that such development can be detrimental to adjacent property owners. During public comment period, Capt. David Callis raised the specter of possible health issues associated with solar facilities, questioning whether they might cause cancer, and David Jones argued that there could be run-off into tributaries, and that he believed chemicals were used for weed control at such sites. He said he could see no benefit to Mathews County, asserting that no local tax revenue would be produced by such facilities.

Supervisor Amy Dubois pointed out that if such a facility were proposed for Mathews there would still be a public hearing on a conditional use permit. She said that the comprehensive plan is a document that looks into the future at all possibilities, and that there is no way to know what might happen with solar. She moved to approve the supportive statement, along with conditions and mapping, but to include language saying that large-scale solar facilities are probably not appropriate for Mathews.

Her motion was approved on a 3-2 vote, with Hudgins and Ingram dissenting.

The second public hearing, on amendments to the FY 2021-2022 budget, was held because additional revenues coming in from the American Recovery Act, the CARES Act, and a Virginia Port Authority dredging grant will cause changes that exceed 1 percent of the adopted budget. There were no speakers during the public comment period and little discussion other than Hudgins asking what the money would be used for.

County Administrator Mindy Conner explained that the county will be receiving $858,000 in the first disbursement from the American Recovery Act and the same amount in the second disbursement, in five or six months. That money will be carried forward into next year’s budget, she said, and county administration will be working on a budget for expenditures.

Dubois moved to approve, and the vote was 3-2, with Hudgins and Ingram dissenting.

Hole in the Wall parking

Hudgins reported that he had met with the owners of Hole in the Wall restaurant about parking issues. He said the meeting had been congenial and that they had tried to find a compromise for boat ramp parking and restaurant customer parking that didn’t affect the business but gave boaters the access they need. He presented a plan to the board that would move trucks and trailers to the far left of the parking lot, and said the restaurant owners had agreed to designating those spaces as restricted to boat trailer parking only. He said a no parking sign is also needed at the boat ramp to prevent it from being blocked.

The board directed County Attorney Andrea Erard to work out the details in the county’s lease agreement with the restaurant owners, along with a request by the business owners to install dusk-to-dawn lights and a porta-potty for the convenience of boaters. A request by the restaurant owners to expand their dock so more customers can tie up will be handled by planning and zoning.

FY 2022 budget

The appropriation of the coming year’s budget was questioned by Hudgins, who asked whether there was anything in the budget about how the emergency public radio system would be paid for. Conner replied that the expenditure was accounted for in the operating budget, but that she didn’t have the exact figure on hand.

Chairman Mike Rowe said the details would be worked out with the sheriff and the contractor in the lease agreement and would be provided to board members. Dubois moved to approve the budget’s adoption, and the vote was 3-2, Hudgins and Ingram dissenting.

Meeting place and dates

The board approved changes to the board’s meeting place, dates, and time for the remainder of the year. Remaining meetings in 2021 will be held on the fourth Monday of each month at 6 p.m. at Mathews High School, except the July meeting, which will be held at 6 p.m. on the fourth Wednesday at the high school.

Hudgins objected to the proposed changes, saying the meeting schedules keep changing, and he questioned the reason for the proposal.

Dubois, who made the motion for the changes, said that she had been urged by an organization in the county to move the meetings to the high school for safety reasons.

Ingram said, “If the planning commission can meet there (at the historic courthouse), why can’t we?” and Melissa Mason emphasized that the reason was safety concerns. The vote was 3-2, with Hudgins and Ingram dissenting.

In other matters, the board:
—Denied a request by Ralph Motley to install a helipad on private property on Old Farm Road on Gwynn’s Island on a 4-1 vote, Mason dissenting;
—Unanimously approved a motion by Hudgins to explore the option to install an FAA-approved helipad at the Mathews Volunteer Rescue Squad building;
—Unanimously approved a request to install Watch for Children signs on a portion of Circle Drive in Bavon;
—Voted 4-1, Ingram dissenting, to update the small purchase policy to meet new state guidelines, and
—Approved a contract with Robinson Farmer Cox for the annual audit on a 3-2 vote, Hudgins and Ingram dissenting.