Brown and his wife warmly greeted a long procession of well-wishers. The line was more than 25 deep at one point, snaking all the way back to the tables set up with cheese, crackers and other snacks for the occasion.
Among the people in attendance were county employees, heads of business associations, county board members and other local business leaders and civic-minded folks, including:
Board Chairman Jay Fisette kicked off the meeting by welcoming Brown to Arlington.
“Thank you Mr. Chairman, it’s great to be here,” Brown reciprocated later in the nearly five hour meeting.
New County Manager Michael Brown has been so busy with staff briefings and catch-up readings this week that some county officials say they’ve barely seen him outside his office.
Residents will get their first opportunity to see Brown in person on Saturday morning, when he makes his debut at the county board meeting.
Iota Jam Session Reviewed — On Thursday night, The Infamous Stringdusters rocked Iota Club and Café in Clarendon. It may be the first time a band that includes a mandolinist, a dobro player, a fiddler and a banjo player started a performance with a “six-way fist bump.” More from jambands.com.
Endorsements for Berry, Murray — Conservative Virginia politics website Bearing Drift has endorsed Matthew Berry as the only GOP candidate who “has the capacity and wherewithal to give Jim Moran a run for his money.” Meanwhile, former Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi has endorsed former Army colonel Patrick Murray, Berry’s opponent in next month’s eighth district primary.
The $104.6 million project was fast-tracked by the school system and the county board in order to take advantage of more favorable bids from construction companies hurt by the recession. Originally, the county’s 2008 Capital Improvement Plan called for the school’s bond referendum to take place in 2012.
“By moving the project forward we will realize significant savings through reduced construction costs,” board Chairman Jay Fisette said in a statement.
Donnellan Proposes Capital Improvement Plan — Outgoing Acting County Manager Barbara Donnellan has proposed a six-year, nearly $1 billion Capital Improvement Projects plan. The plan would fund county projects, including critical maintenance at parks and aging county facilities, but it does not include funding for the new Wakefield High School (below). More from the Arlington County website.
New Wakefield High Moving Forward — The county board approved a use permit for the proposed new Wakefield High School. While the move theoretically clears the way for construction to begin, the county is still trying to figure out how to fund the project. More from the Sun Gazette.
Michael Brown, Arlington’s incoming county manager, was honored on Friday by the city of Savannah, where he’s spent the past 15 years as city manager. A who’s who of Savannah’s civic and political establishment was on hand to wish Brown well in Arlington.
Brown was presented with two parting gifts: a gift certificate to Bass Pro Shops (Brown is reportedly something of an outdoorsman) and a painting of Savannah, according to TV station WSAV.
Together with fee increases totaling about $71 a year, the tax burden on the average household will increase by about $346 per year.
Arlington’s residential property tax burden will now total $0.958 cents per $100 of assessed value, which is still lower than most neighboring jurisdictions.
A group of civic activists has formed the “Coalition for Arlington Good Government” (CAGG) to push back against an effort to change Arlington’s form of government.
The group’s goal is “to inform Arlington residents about the negative impacts of the proposal behind the petition drive.”
The committee just issued a strongly-worded statement (below) and pointed us to a memo from Ron Carlee, the previous county manager, which talks about the limitations of the County Manager Plan of government currently in place in Arlington.
Here’s the full statement:
In a memo to county board members, MacIsaac says the change would transfer some of the county government’s current powers to the state and would “compromise and even eliminate the County’s ability to achieve long established goals.”
The change-of-government proposal is sponsored by the Committee For a Better Arlington, which is endorsed by the Arlington Green Party, the Arlington County Republican Committee and the police and fire unions. The committee is currently trying to collect the 14,350 signatures necessary to put the proposal to a voter referendum.
Q: What are some of your immediate and long-range goals as county manager?
A: At this point, I really need to listen and learn a lot before I start saying what I want to do. I’ve already begun the process; I did that when I was [recently in Arlington]. I need to very carefully listen to the board, to spend time with them as a group and spend time with them as individuals, see what their views and their visions are. That’s first. It’s not my role and not my nature to come in and prescribe to people that are well along their way in many areas.
