SHORE THING: A$K the Mayor

By GEORGE SOUTHERN
Cape Charles Wave

November 14, 2013

Before I started causing trouble in Cape Charles, I was causing trouble in Northern Virginia. Over the years we lived in the City of Alexandria, the County of Arlington, the County of Fairfax, and the City of Falls Church. Each of those municipalities offers many attractions, but there is one thing none of them has that Cape Charles does have: double taxation.

That’s right. In Virginia, if you live in a city you pay city taxes; if you live in a county you pay county taxes. Only in towns is there an opportunity to pay double taxes.

There is a little town in Fairfax County with the prestigious name of Vienna. One day I called the Town of Vienna’s information officer to ask: Why does it cost the taxpayer 22 percent more to live in Vienna than just outside the town line in Fairfax County? She immediately answered: “Access — you can call the Mayor on a Sunday afternoon.”

Vienna’s real estate tax rate is 22.88 cents per hundred dollars. Cape Charles, at 27.74 cents, is 17 percent higher. So – if you see where I’m going with this – shouldn’t my mayoral access be mighty good here in Cape Charles?

I had a question for Mayor Sullivan last July. The Town Gazette had just published a “Message from the Mayor” (click here to read) stating that “the Water and Sewer Fund broke even over the last three fiscal years.” I asked the Mayor how that could be, when the 2013 budget showed that the Water and Sewer Fund required a transfer of $172,500 from the General Fund. The Mayor deigned not to answer my question. (Perhaps I should have called her on a Sunday afternoon.)

So I asked our Town Manager, Heather Arcos. To her credit, she said she would check and get back to me. The next day – well, let the emails tell the story: [Read more…]

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Post 56 Raises $7,000 for Victim of Vicious Assault

November 14, 2013

The American Legion Post 56 dinner/fundraiser for a young woman assaulted in Oyster was a huge success. The Post will present the victim with a check next week for more than $7,000.

Post 56 held a spaghetti and seafood dinner November 9 at the American Legion Hall in Cheriton (click here for story) to support their “Neighbor from the 180th” who was brutally assaulted in October in Oyster.

The event drew a large and festive crowd of nearly 300.  More than 280 meals were served, and the kitchen staff reported over 48 pounds of dry spaghetti were cooked in addition to several gallons of red sauce and over 1,500 clams. [Read more…]

Chess Club Every Thursday at the Library — All Ages Invited

Chess Club: Thursdays, 4-5 p.m. upstairs at the Cape Charles Memorial Library.

Come learn and play chess! Free of charge, all skill levels welcome, basic sets and instruction provided. Adults welcomed too. Contact the Library at 757-331-1300 or Stefanie Hadden at [email protected] with questions.