Susan Buckley

Discussions, debates and disagreements have already begun as Loudoun County's elected officials begin to grapple with the yearly budget process and an even more dismal financial forecast. The discussions began at the Joint School Board/Board of Supervisors Committee meeting on Thursday, Oct. 8, one day after the Board of Supervisors Finance Committee adopted fiscal guidance recommendations, which sent shock waves through the Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) administration building.

In August, former Sugarland Run planning commissioner Michael Keeney stepped down from the job over conflicts with his work schedule. During his time on the commission, Keeney missed some meetings due to travel related to his job.

The Loudoun County School Board is publicly advertising for land for three future school sites in western Loudoun County. The “request for public school sites” represents the efforts of the Joint School Board/Board of Supervisors Committee to develop a new and improved method for soliciting land from the public, including private landowners and developers. The deadline for submission of proposals is Friday, October 30, 2009.

The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors is currently reviewing a special exception that would allow for the construction of a baseball stadium off Route 28, opposite of the Dulles Town Center. If you have an opinion on the matter, it’s best to contact your supervisor now, as the decision will be fast upon us.

Supporters of a minor league stadium in eastern Loudoun hoping for early acceptance and a warm environment found a very different reality at the June 8 public hearing, where the land use application for a stadium off Route 28 met with a lukewarm reaction from some supervisors, and criticism from others. County staff did not recommend the application on environmental impact grounds, and because the application’s inconsistency with the Revised General Plan.

“Without funds to purchase the land in Wheatland for public school purposes, staff recommends that the School Board terminate the contracts with Mr. Cangiano and Mr. Burgess.” Such was the lone agenda item on the special meeting of the Loudoun County School Board held on June 1. It passed 9-0.