Letters to the editor for the week of July 10

Ferry Farm holds educational event
On July 4, 2009 my husband and I spent some time on an educational experience at Ferry Farm, George Washington’s boyhood home in Stafford County. This fun event included showing the visitors what life was like in the American colonies in the 1700s. There is so much history to learn from the “Father of our Country”, George Washington. George Washington moved to Ferry Farm at age six in 1738 and lived there until he was about sixteen.

I was just thrilled to learn so much about our American history and see how the colonists in George Washington’s era grew crops such as cotton, tobacco, corn and other fruits and vegetables, and how one lived in these times. I also saw how the Native Americans around Virginia lived, interacted, and helped the American colonists. What a great learning experience in correspondence with July 4, 2009, the 233rd year of the United States of America’s freedom.

Anna Victoria Reich
Stafford

Reader: ‘What are we to do?’
I was “razzle dazzled” by the sign on the 95 corridor, “Business Certified location,” and by the information supplied by the Economic Development Department in 2003. We purchased two lots to develop two projects: 1. One Stop Shop Chevron Station on Jefferson Davis Hwy and 2. Shopping Center on Perchwood Drive. We finished the first project, building a quality Stafford Chevron Service Center. No expense was spared and to view it you may visit staffordchevron.com. Multi-million dollars were spent.

Now I am having second thoughts of my decision to come to Stafford. I have put my shopping center project on hold. The winds of change from the current board of supervisors is not helping small businesses like me. Issues like: BPOL tax, vehicle property tax, commercial tax assessments and a real estate tax increase from 70 cents to 84 cents. Not only storm water management inspection fees (by the way, the first time we were hit by this in four years), but now I am hearing of expected water charges to increase again with a special fee for new “payment in lieu of taxes” (PILOT) that the board has just charged the utilities department. That $800,000 will certainly be passed on to us. With all these fees, taxes, charges being shoved down our throats, I can assure you that this business will not survive the year. Our doors will be shut. Our shopping center project would be scrubbed. We cannot pass on these excessive, unjust charges to our consumers and we cannot simply absorb them.

In trying to find ways to stay alive, we just added U-Haul truck rentals to our station to increase traffic to be able to pay our bills. Now we are told we have to get a special conditional use permit and the cost is a $10,000 application fee. There is no way we can afford this excessive fee. It is prohibitive and I cannot afford to expand my business. What are we to do?

Robert Varma, president
Stafford Chevron