Jim Ingle and Lindsey Dougherty are running against each other for the Bermuda seat on the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors. (Jack Jacobs photo)
Editor’s note: This is the final installment in a series of discussions with the candidates vying for seats on Chesterfield County’s Board of Supervisors. Four of the five districts are contested going into next month’s election.
Vying for the Bermuda District seat on the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors is incumbent Jim Ingle and opponent Lindsey Dougherty.
Ingle said if reelected he would continue to be supportive of new development to revitalize the U.S. 1 corridor between its interchange with state Route 288 up to the city limit.
“That area has been left behind,” said Ingle, a Republican who is employed at construction firm RJ Smith Cos. “We have had some density but we haven’t had density with income in that area.”
He said that while he would like to see more market-rate residential development in the area, he’s mindful of not fostering an evolution there that pushes out existing residents.
Jim Ingle
“I’m not trying to run anyone out, but I’d like to see the income come up,” he said. “I’m trying to revitalize that area because it was really, for a lack of better term, neglected for 20 years.”
His opponent, Dougherty, a Democrat who previously worked in the county budget office, would like to see the tempo of development decreased because she thinks it has outpaced road and school facilities construction in Chesterfield.
“We have too many people trying to access too many pieces of what the county is offering,” she said.
Dougherty said that the board approves exemptions too frequently when it reviews zoning applications, and that a shift away from the practice would help make growth more manageable.
“A decent number of cases that come before the Planning Commission and the board have a variety of exemptions. Some of which are necessary but other ones that may not be necessary for the community but beneficial for the developer for the project,” she said.
If elected, Dougherty said she would support stronger advocacy efforts by county officials to secure state money for road projects in Chesterfield.
“I feel like the county has done a really great job of going after bright, new, shiny projects whether residential, mixed-use or commercial, but hasn’t done a great job of keeping up the current infrastructure,” she said.
She also supports the creation of a meals tax to finance school facilities.
“On the schools side of infrastructure, we can be looking at a meals tax,” she said. “Other localities around us have implemented a meals tax and have been able to reap a lot of dollars.”
Ingle doesn’t support the creation of a meals tax, saying that amid inflation and economic uncertainty he doesn’t think it’s a good move to introduce new taxes. He said a better route to new revenue is major economic development projects along the lines of projects recently announced in the county by toymaker Lego, indoor farming company Plenty and drugmaker Civica.
Dougherty said she would support small-business development along the county’s major roads as well as more pedestrian, bike and bus infrastructure on Midlothian Turnpike and Hull Street.
Lindsey Dougherty
Ingle said Chesterfield has a reasonable level of growth. He said developers frequently pitch ideas that are shot down by the county in informal meetings that precede the formal rezoning processes, so a fraction of development proposals actually get to the stage of formal consideration by the board.
“I say no to more apartment projects than people will ever know, but we can’t say no to all of them. We need some growth,” he said.
Ingle said he favors a sequence in which infrastructure improvements follow development as a means to keep the two mostly in sync but also not overbuild infrastructure like roads where they aren’t needed.
“If we put in infrastructure to support something that might be coming in 20 years, we might be using valuable infrastructure dollars in the wrong place in the county,” Ingle said. “The balancing act there isn’t easy and quite frankly we don’t always get it right.”
In regard to Chesterfield’s ongoing update to its zoning ordinance, Ingle expressed general concern about the direction of the effort, which he also said was a necessary one.
“I don’t want to get into particulars but big picture we have a consultant in place and staff seems to be following the thought process of the consultant and I’m not sure the consultant’s understanding of Chesterfield is the same as (mine),” Ingle said.
“We have a lot of cases that ask for a lot of exemptions and the reason is that much of our zoning ordinance is so old. At the same time, I’m not sure we’re in the right place at this time. But I want to withhold judgment until they have a completed product.”
Dougherty is supportive of the county’s update of its zoning ordinance but said she felt there could be more effort spent on community outreach associated with the project.
“I definitely feel like it’s needed but I also feel like there have been plenty of opportunities where the community could be more engaged and be more educated about what’s going into this,” she said.
Ingle is supportive of the ongoing county effort that seeks to loosen residential development rules in rural parts of Chesterfield. County staff is expected to come back to the board with a tweaked but largely similar proposal to give the board the ability to allow developers to build public roads that would be primarily used by a housing development with lots of a minimum of 5 acres in areas zoned for agriculture. A previous take on the idea was recently voted down by the board.
“It’s an option to keep rural areas rural without eliminating the possibility of some people moving out there,” he said.
Dougherty said she doesn’t support the idea because she doesn’t think the county has sufficient schools infrastructure to handle the development that would follow.
“It’ll be great for developers for sure, but our current infrastructure can’t support that,” she said.
Ingle said he’s in favor of a return of auto racing to the county-owned Southside Speedway, a possibility the county is considering through its search for an operator. The county’s recent request for proposals that sought pitches from potential operators closed this week.
“I support the opportunity for the track to come back. I need a plan that brings back a viable and sustainable business plan to ensure we don’t end up in the same place in a couple years,” Ingle said, referring to the venue’s shutdown.
Dougherty supports a reopening of Southside Speedway as a racing venue. However, she believes the county made a mistake in acquiring the property.
“I think there’s been significant blowback by the racing community, locally and regionally, and I think the county was not expecting that,” Dougherty said. “There was significant county overreach and we shouldn’t be in the business of buying a speedway.”
Dale District
Over in the Dale District, incumbent Supervisor Jim Holland is running unopposed.
Holland, a Democrat and accountant who has served on the board for 16 years, said Chesterfield is on a strong trajectory thanks to recently announced major projects such as the new Lego and Plenty facilities.
“We’ve done a stellar job in terms of economic development,” he said. “When you look at job creation, we’ve done a tremendous job and that’s not to mention the small businesses enhanced by having those companies in the county.”
Holland also pointed to the opening of the new Beulah Recreation Center and the Nash Road extension project, which broke ground this week, as positive developments in Dale.
Jim Holland
On the question of taxes, Holland said he doesn’t have plans to support changes to existing rates. He said further study would be needed before any discussions about altering taxation.
“We have to evaluate our needs before we make those kinds of decisions,” he said.
Holland is supportive of the county’s zoning ordinance update and feels the effort, which he noted was still a work in progress, is headed in the right direction.
“It appears to be on track. We’re moving forward with that project and continue to evaluate it,” he said.
Broadly speaking, Holland is in favor of the county’s exploration of loosened development rules in rural areas. He said one concern he has about the proposal, should it be approved, is how it would affect the county’s ability to offer services such as utilities and public safety in those areas.
A return of auto racing to Southside Speedway is something that Holland is open to, though he said he would need to see a viable plan to reopen the racing venue to support a relaunch of the track.
“I have been listening and looking at proposals. If there’s a proposal that merits our review, I’ll evaluate,” he said. “There has to be a degree of financial stability.”
Jim Ingle and Lindsey Dougherty are running against each other for the Bermuda seat on the Chesterfield Board of Supervisors. (Jack Jacobs photo)
Editor’s note: This is the final installment in a series of discussions with the candidates vying for seats on Chesterfield County’s Board of Supervisors. Four of the five districts are contested going into next month’s election.
Vying for the Bermuda District seat on the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors is incumbent Jim Ingle and opponent Lindsey Dougherty.
Ingle said if reelected he would continue to be supportive of new development to revitalize the U.S. 1 corridor between its interchange with state Route 288 up to the city limit.
“That area has been left behind,” said Ingle, a Republican who is employed at construction firm RJ Smith Cos. “We have had some density but we haven’t had density with income in that area.”
He said that while he would like to see more market-rate residential development in the area, he’s mindful of not fostering an evolution there that pushes out existing residents.
Jim Ingle
“I’m not trying to run anyone out, but I’d like to see the income come up,” he said. “I’m trying to revitalize that area because it was really, for a lack of better term, neglected for 20 years.”
His opponent, Dougherty, a Democrat who previously worked in the county budget office, would like to see the tempo of development decreased because she thinks it has outpaced road and school facilities construction in Chesterfield.
“We have too many people trying to access too many pieces of what the county is offering,” she said.
Dougherty said that the board approves exemptions too frequently when it reviews zoning applications, and that a shift away from the practice would help make growth more manageable.
“A decent number of cases that come before the Planning Commission and the board have a variety of exemptions. Some of which are necessary but other ones that may not be necessary for the community but beneficial for the developer for the project,” she said.
If elected, Dougherty said she would support stronger advocacy efforts by county officials to secure state money for road projects in Chesterfield.
“I feel like the county has done a really great job of going after bright, new, shiny projects whether residential, mixed-use or commercial, but hasn’t done a great job of keeping up the current infrastructure,” she said.
She also supports the creation of a meals tax to finance school facilities.
“On the schools side of infrastructure, we can be looking at a meals tax,” she said. “Other localities around us have implemented a meals tax and have been able to reap a lot of dollars.”
Ingle doesn’t support the creation of a meals tax, saying that amid inflation and economic uncertainty he doesn’t think it’s a good move to introduce new taxes. He said a better route to new revenue is major economic development projects along the lines of projects recently announced in the county by toymaker Lego, indoor farming company Plenty and drugmaker Civica.
Dougherty said she would support small-business development along the county’s major roads as well as more pedestrian, bike and bus infrastructure on Midlothian Turnpike and Hull Street.
Lindsey Dougherty
Ingle said Chesterfield has a reasonable level of growth. He said developers frequently pitch ideas that are shot down by the county in informal meetings that precede the formal rezoning processes, so a fraction of development proposals actually get to the stage of formal consideration by the board.
“I say no to more apartment projects than people will ever know, but we can’t say no to all of them. We need some growth,” he said.
Ingle said he favors a sequence in which infrastructure improvements follow development as a means to keep the two mostly in sync but also not overbuild infrastructure like roads where they aren’t needed.
“If we put in infrastructure to support something that might be coming in 20 years, we might be using valuable infrastructure dollars in the wrong place in the county,” Ingle said. “The balancing act there isn’t easy and quite frankly we don’t always get it right.”
In regard to Chesterfield’s ongoing update to its zoning ordinance, Ingle expressed general concern about the direction of the effort, which he also said was a necessary one.
“I don’t want to get into particulars but big picture we have a consultant in place and staff seems to be following the thought process of the consultant and I’m not sure the consultant’s understanding of Chesterfield is the same as (mine),” Ingle said.
“We have a lot of cases that ask for a lot of exemptions and the reason is that much of our zoning ordinance is so old. At the same time, I’m not sure we’re in the right place at this time. But I want to withhold judgment until they have a completed product.”
Dougherty is supportive of the county’s update of its zoning ordinance but said she felt there could be more effort spent on community outreach associated with the project.
“I definitely feel like it’s needed but I also feel like there have been plenty of opportunities where the community could be more engaged and be more educated about what’s going into this,” she said.
Ingle is supportive of the ongoing county effort that seeks to loosen residential development rules in rural parts of Chesterfield. County staff is expected to come back to the board with a tweaked but largely similar proposal to give the board the ability to allow developers to build public roads that would be primarily used by a housing development with lots of a minimum of 5 acres in areas zoned for agriculture. A previous take on the idea was recently voted down by the board.
“It’s an option to keep rural areas rural without eliminating the possibility of some people moving out there,” he said.
Dougherty said she doesn’t support the idea because she doesn’t think the county has sufficient schools infrastructure to handle the development that would follow.
“It’ll be great for developers for sure, but our current infrastructure can’t support that,” she said.
Ingle said he’s in favor of a return of auto racing to the county-owned Southside Speedway, a possibility the county is considering through its search for an operator. The county’s recent request for proposals that sought pitches from potential operators closed this week.
“I support the opportunity for the track to come back. I need a plan that brings back a viable and sustainable business plan to ensure we don’t end up in the same place in a couple years,” Ingle said, referring to the venue’s shutdown.
Dougherty supports a reopening of Southside Speedway as a racing venue. However, she believes the county made a mistake in acquiring the property.
“I think there’s been significant blowback by the racing community, locally and regionally, and I think the county was not expecting that,” Dougherty said. “There was significant county overreach and we shouldn’t be in the business of buying a speedway.”
Dale District
Over in the Dale District, incumbent Supervisor Jim Holland is running unopposed.
Holland, a Democrat and accountant who has served on the board for 16 years, said Chesterfield is on a strong trajectory thanks to recently announced major projects such as the new Lego and Plenty facilities.
“We’ve done a stellar job in terms of economic development,” he said. “When you look at job creation, we’ve done a tremendous job and that’s not to mention the small businesses enhanced by having those companies in the county.”
Holland also pointed to the opening of the new Beulah Recreation Center and the Nash Road extension project, which broke ground this week, as positive developments in Dale.
Jim Holland
On the question of taxes, Holland said he doesn’t have plans to support changes to existing rates. He said further study would be needed before any discussions about altering taxation.
“We have to evaluate our needs before we make those kinds of decisions,” he said.
Holland is supportive of the county’s zoning ordinance update and feels the effort, which he noted was still a work in progress, is headed in the right direction.
“It appears to be on track. We’re moving forward with that project and continue to evaluate it,” he said.
Broadly speaking, Holland is in favor of the county’s exploration of loosened development rules in rural areas. He said one concern he has about the proposal, should it be approved, is how it would affect the county’s ability to offer services such as utilities and public safety in those areas.
A return of auto racing to Southside Speedway is something that Holland is open to, though he said he would need to see a viable plan to reopen the racing venue to support a relaunch of the track.
“I have been listening and looking at proposals. If there’s a proposal that merits our review, I’ll evaluate,” he said. “There has to be a degree of financial stability.”
Ingle has voted “Yes” on nearly every housing project, development, and zoning issue that comes in front of him. He doesn’t care about the long term impacts to our infrastructure, schools, and the density problems that he creates. Chesterfield citizens are tired of the “Rubber Stamp” crew that are currently in office.
Normally I would agree, but having read the other articles in this series, sometimes a “yes” vote is simply that there is no legal reason to deny the approval.