The Stafford branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People held its third annual public forum last night for state, county and district elections.
All 20 candidates appeared to agree on what the major problems were, but not necessarily on how to solve them.
Transportation, quality of education, residential growth and how to handle the county budget were the topics that dominated the two-hour meeting.
In the race for Board of Supervisors, chairman Jack R. Cavalier, an independent, faces Democrat Bob T. Woodson. The two, who are running for the Griffis–Widewater District, disagreed over the new Aquia Center. Cavalier promised it would be “something different” in commercial–residential development, while Woodson criticized the residential part of the plan as a project that would add to the transportation backup in the area.
The other two seats on the board have new faces. Running for the George Washington District are Republican Thomas C. Coen and Democrat Harry E. Crisp II. Crisp said the board’s policies were “eating away our open spaces” by allowing “rampant development” and not improving “roads that were not designed for modern traffic. Coen, who ran unsuccessfully four years ago, agreed that Stafford “was losing its acreage.” He said “growth was our most important problem” and called for better planning.
In the competition for the Rock Hill District, Democrat Jerry D. Kirven, called for “responsible growth and solutions to our traffic problems.” Opponent Republican Cord A. Sterling said “a number of mistakes have been made in the past,” particularly in transportation and in area job growth.
Three seats are open for the School Board. Incumbent Patricia A. Healy is unopposed in the Rock Hill District. Incumbent Dana H. Reinholdt faces Gene D. Smith in the Griffis–Widewater District. Reinholdt said teachers had to be paid better or we would continue to lose them. Smith criticized what he called “the bare bones level” of the education budget.
Patricia M. Mancini faces Price Jett for the School Board seat in the George Washington District (he is a late write-in replacement for early candidate Bruce C. Gubser, who has been transferred to Kuwait City). Mancini called for smaller classes. Jett, “speaking as a father,” urged higher quality education.
The 25th District in the House of Delegates has 20-year incumbent Speaker Bill Howell, a Republican, opposed by Democrat Clyde Matthews, who did not attend last night’s forum, and Craig Ennis, Independent. Ennis said “the commonwealth is at a crossroads” and he promised change if elected. Howell, speaker for the last five sessions, said the state had “come a long way in such areas as transportation and cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay.
hmuir@freelancestar.com