Policy on the #NNK

Lancaster County The Lancaster County Board of Supervisors is holding a special meeting Tuesday, August 1 at 5:30 pm at the Lancaster County Administration Building (8311 Mary Ball Rd, Lancaster in the Board Meeting Room). The board will hold a work session on the proposed Emergency Services/Emergency Medical Services Building with the project architect and staff. The Rappahannock Record story Lancaster school board increases lunch fees; unpaid meal policy under review provides the broad strokes of the issues. Details are on the LCPS School Board website: Lunch Price increases (PDF) and Unpaid Meal Charge Policy (PDF). ICYMI, Lancaster Supervisors Approve Tax Plan . Read the MiddleNeckNews.com story for the highlights and the FY 2018 County Budget for the details. The proposed agenda for the August 1, 6:30 pm Irvington Planning Commission meeting: Call to Order by Chairman Determination of a quorum Approval of minutes Public Comment Report of Chairman/Secretary Repo...

As was explained in Flooding risk on the Northern Neck , flooding is a risk to many on the Northern Neck. It negatively effects individuals, communities, businesses, infrastructure, and government. Thus it's no surprise that there were 1,940 flood insurance policies in force with a value of $558 million on the Northern Neck — Lancaster, Northumberland, Richmond, and Westmoreland counties — as of March 31, 2017. The premiums for these policies amounts to $1.6 million. Northumberland County residents hold the most policies (737), followed by Lancaster County (600), Westmoreland county (520), and Richmond County (82). Additional information about these policies is shown in the image below; it is also in the Google spreadsheet Flood Insurance Policies in Place on the Northern Neck as of 3/31/17 . These policy numbers make sense given the property damage costs from flooding and coastal flooding from January 1, 1950 to April 30, 2017. The NOAA Storm Events Database reports: Lanca...

[ View the story "Virginia Register of Regulations, Vol. 33 Iss. 24 - July 24, 2017, tweeted" on Storify ]

Flooding on the Northern Neck is inevitable given the 1,100 miles of shoreline and proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. Here, flooding results from rain storms, Nor'easters, tropical storms, and hurricanes. In other parts of the country, it also results from ice/debris jams, snowmelt, and dam breaks/levee failure. ( Flooding in Virginia ) And as FEMA points out , "flood risk can also change over time because of new building and development, weather patterns and other factors." Flooding has cost individuals, communities, counties, and the state and federal governments in the billions of dollars. Damage caused by flooding and coastal flooding from January 1, 1950 to April 30, 2017, per the NOAA Storm Events Database , by county, was: Lancaster County : A total of $1.87 million in property damage from five of 12 flooding events including a Nor'easter in November 2009, Tropical Cyclone Sandy in 2012, and Hurricane Joaquin in 2015. Northumberland County : A total of $20.43...

WBUR 's Science Shortfall: Why Don't We Know How Best To Fight Ticks And Lyme Disease? explains exactly what the title says. The short answer: good science is expensive and adequate funding has not been made available. Now, however, there is a chance to make headway. Richard Ostfeld from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies and Felicia Keesing from Bard College have designed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The study will look at the effect of two interventions: a sprayed fungus that kills ticks, and bait boxes that drop a tiny amount of tick poison on small mammals. Because ticks don't respect property boundaries, the study examines whole neighborhoods instead of just treating single yards. Ostfeld and Keesing have secured $5.5 of the $8.8 million they need for the study. State funding is a no-go as is federal funding for large, well-designed, and expensive studies. The takeaway: To sum it all up: "With over 300,000 new cases each yea...

Here's your weekly dose of TA. Enjoy. July 24-28 , 10 20-minute power social sessions. What?! Sprout Social is offering ten short sessions on topics such as Next Gen Storytelling: Creating Personal Connections through Social Technology, Game Day Engagement: Remaining Agile During High-Profile Events, and Now Trending: Integrating New Social Platform Functionality Into Your Strategy. Learn more and register . Free. Creating a Social Media Policy , a free webinar, will take place Thursday, August 3, 1:00-2:00 pm . Participants will leave with clear guidance to protect their nonprofit from damaging mistakes. They'll learn the steps needed to create a policy including ensuring all are on board. The webinar Challenges and Opportunities to Build a Chesapeake Regional Food System is scheduled for Tuesday, September 12, 1:00-2:00 pm . The webinar is sponsored by CFN and Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology, Inc. and features Joseph Tassone and Greg Bowen. Free. What's the ...

The approved FY 2018 budget for Northumberland County (PDF) reflects changes from the proposed FY 2018 budget (PDF). Here's a list of the notable changes: Schools budget : Was reduced slightly in the June approved budget to reflect the NCPS elimination of the Kids First program. 2 cent increase on real property taxes : This is still needed even without all the proposed increases. Part-time wages for Sheriff's Office (20-3102): The Sheriff's Office requested $86,000 (up from the approved FY 2017 budget of $70,000) for part-time wages at the same time that they added the new activity Courtroom Security (1004) to their budget. Sheriff Doc Lyons explained to the supervisors in a budget work session that the new activity pulls out of Wages - Part-Time (1002) the cost of providing courtroom security. Based on that, the Board of Supervisors level-funded Wages - Part-Time (1002) and fully funded ($29,000) the new activity. Telecommunications for Sheriff's Office (20-3102):...

Lancaster County The Lancaster County School Board will hold a special meeting Friday, July 28 at 5:00 pm in the Lancaster County Public Schools Annex. The agenda includes a closed session on real estate matters. Irvington's planning commission will meet Tuesday, August 1 from 6:30 to 7:30 pm at Town Hall (235 Steamboat Rd, Irvington). Richmond County The Richmond County Board of Zoning Appeals will meet Tuesday, July 25 at 7:00 pm in the county building (101 Court Circle, Warsaw, in the Richmond County Public Meeting Room). This will be a continuation of the May 23 meeting. Westmoreland County The Westmoreland County Planning Commission will meet Monday, August 7 at 1:30 pm at the George D. English, Sr. Memorial Building (111 Polk St, Montross). The agenda (PDF) includes: CASE # 1708-CBAE-04 ~ Request by Leanne Martin, 1030 Shore Drive, Colonial Beach, VA 22443 for a Chesapeake Bay Act Exception to allow land disturbing and construction within the 50-foot and 100-f...

Do you spend a lot of time on Facebook? You can now find content from Policy on the #NNK on Facebook: @policyonnnk . In addition to blog posts, we'll be posting additional content, some specific to the Northern Neck and some not. So like the page and encourage others to as well and comment on posts. Would love to chat.

Tide rise and storm surge are responsible for a significant portion of tornado- and hurricane-driven damage. Even with that, though, the vast majority of the Northern Neck—Westmoreland County, Richmond County, Northumberland County, and Lancaster County—are not in any of the four "Know Your Zone" risk zones (shown in the image above). This includes the coastline. Of land and water zoned in the new #KnowYourZoneVA schema, very little of the Northern Neck is in the highest risk zone (A, blue). More land is in Zone B (green). The majority of Northern Neck land and water is not zoned at all. Westmoreland County Starting at the north end of Westmoreland County and going south, communities from Potomac Beach to the north and south to Mattox Creek are in Zone C, meaning they are at modest risk of having to evacuate in a hurricane. The communities have residential, commercial, county infrastructure, and river-related and tourism commercial ventures—marinas, river tours, campgro...

Here's your weekly dose of TA. Enjoy. 3 Tips You Can't Ignore in Connecting with Gen Z provides actionable advice and explanations. Good information for communications, development, and volunteer management staff. Got donors? Read 20 Unique Donor Thank You Ideas for interesting ways to thank them. Some ideas shared are: handwritten notes, invitation-only receptions, videos, and using social media. Share your ideas in the comments. Would video interviews bring attention to your organization or cause? Check out the How to Do a Facebook Live Split-Screen Interview tutorial. 10 Social Video Statistics That Will Make You Rethink Video is a must-read. That said, not all organizations are ready for video. The latest from the U.S. Census Bureau: American Community Survey statistics for detailed race, Hispanic origin, ancestry, and tribal population groups. Specifically, 2011-2015 ACS 5-year Selected Population Tables and 2011-2015 ACS 5-year American Indian and Alaska Native ...

Lancaster County The Lancaster County Economic Development Authority will meet Thursday, July 20 at 10:00 am in the conference room of the Chesapeake Bank (97 North Main St, Kilmarnock). Irvington's planning commission will review the draft PUD Tuesday, July 18 at 3:00 pm at the Town Office (235 Steamboat Road, Irvington). The public may attend but may not participate in any discussions. The Irvington Village Improvement Association will meet Tuesday, July 18, 6:00-7:00 pm at the Tides Inn (480 King Carter Drive, Irvington). More information is available by calling (804) 577-7501 or (804) 438-6230 (Town Office) or emailing dermotmcnulty@verizon.net . The Lancaster Middle School Fall Volunteer Tutoring Program Training takes place Wednesday, September 20, 8:30-11:30 am . Contact Sandy Armstrong, Volunteer Coordinator, for more information: (804) 462-5100, sarmstrong@lcs.k12.va.us . Richmond County Rappahannock Community College announced Dayle Collins has stepped down...

Storms are not uncommon on the Northern Neck. Westmoreland, Northumberland, and Lancaster counties in particular have experienced strong winds, unrelenting rain, and flooding since the 1600s. Richmond County experiences somewhat less harsh weather. What follows are some examples. EF-1 tornado, April 6, 2017 (Irvington, Kilmarnock) According to the National Weather Service, the maximum wind speed was 90 mph, the maximum path width was 200 yards, and the maximum path length was 2.7 miles. ( Tornadoes Confirmed On April 6, 2017 (PDF)) "The Virginia Department of Emergency Management said the storm, which touched down shortly after 12 p.m., impacted 45 structures in the area and caused $2.5 in residential damage and roughly $200,000 in commercial damage." ( EF-1 Tornado leaves trail of damage in Lancaster County ) Post Tropical Cyclone Sandy, October 2012 (NNK) The Virginia Department of Emergency Management reports total damages in the state, not including economic losses...

There's a new way to learn about hurricane and other emergency/disaster risks and the associated need to evacuate from the Northern Neck and other coastal areas of the state: "Know Your Zone" (#KnowYourZoneVA). The new campaign simplifies the information and advice residents get about hurricanes and other emergencies and disasters, specifically about evacuation. According to the governor's June 1 press release, Governor McAuliffe Urges Coastal Virginians to "Know Your Zone" For Safer Hurricane Evacuations (PDF), "The new evacuation zones were developed in coordination with local emergency managers by Atkins, a global engineering firm with deep experience designing hurricane evacuation plans for major metropolitan areas." The new system uses the colors used by the National Hurricane Center . Using the NOAA color scheme is one way Virginia is simplifying the messages residents get about hurricanes. Areas in blue are most at risk (Zone A). Zo...

Running low on blood is something that happens every year at blood banks near and far, and this summer is no exception. The American Red Cross has put the call out ( Emergency need for blood donations as Red Cross experiences critical blood shortage ) for donations of blood and platelets. From the release: "The decline in summer donations is causing a significant draw-down of our overall blood supply, and we urgently need people to give now to restock hospital shelves and help save lives," said Shaun Gilmore, president, Red Cross Biomedical Services. "Every day, patients recovering from accidents or those receiving treatments for cancer or blood disorders rely on lifesaving blood products regardless of the season." The blood shortage is compounded around Independence Day due to many fewer blood drives, which are hosted by volunteer sponsors. With many on vacation, sponsors hold fewer blood drives at their business, place of worship, or community gathering. Near...

On the Media's Brooke Gladstone took on the truth about poverty and the result is the five-part series "Busted: America’s Poverty Myths" .   Gladstone and her team "picked apart numerous oft-repeated narratives about what it's like to be poor in America. From Ben Franklin to a brutal eviction, Brooke gives us just a little taste of what she learned and shares a couple stories of the struggle to get ahead, or even just get by." The segments: #1: The Poverty Tour: "Welfare advocate Jack Frech has taken reporters on "poverty tours" of Athens County, Ohio, for years. But has media attention made any difference in the lives of the Appalachian poor?" #2: Who Deserves To Be Poor? "The notion that poverty stems from a lack of will power and a poor work ethic is as old as America. Why that needs to be dispelled." #3: Rags to Riches: "Confronting the myth that America is a land of equal opportunity and upward mobility for all....

The state kicked off hurricane season—June 1 to November 30—with a new hurricane and other disaster and emergency evacuation plan. "Know Your Zone" (#KnowYourZoneVA) tiers evacuation zones for areas on the coast. It "is designed to enhance current evacuation plans, boost public safety, and improve travel efficiency in the event of hurricanes or other disasters." ( Governor McAuliffe Urges Coastal Virginians to "Know Your Zone" For Safer Hurricane Evacuations (PDF)) #KnowYourZoneVA simplifies communicating with the public about storm and disaster risk and the need to evacuate across the 23 localities making up coastal Virginia. According to Jeff Stern, State Coordinator of Emergency Management, Virginia Department of Emergency Management, "The old system was a patchwork of instructions, Stern says. Each of the 23 localities that make up Hampton Roads, Northern Neck, Middle Peninsula and the Eastern Shore had its own designations, so it was difficu...