Culpeper’s Top 10 list of 2011 [Culpeper Star-Exponent, Va.]

Dec. 26--1) Shake, rattle and roll: quake

Tuesday, Aug. 23 began as a normal end-of-summer day. Area children prepared to return to school that following Wednesday, and Sen. Mark Warner was in town to tour the Library of Congress Packard Campus on Mount Pony.

Just minutes before he reached his destination -- at 1:51 p.m. -- all hell broke loose as "the Central Virginia Seismic Zone" suddenly became very active. Centered in Mineral in Louisa County, just 36 miles away down U.S. 522, the 5.8-magnitude earthquake cracked historic buildings, toppled chimneys, shattered windowpanes and generally put everyone on edge for weeks.

At first, local residents -- unaccustomed to earthquakes of that magnitude -- alternately thought a plane had crashed, or a freight train. Others described violent shaking, reporting falling bricks and collapsed roofs. Miraculously, no one was hurt during the most substantial Virginia quake in more than a century.

Several buildings downtown, however, were condemned, and the county declared a state-of-emergency as Hurricane Irene prepared to bear down. Downtown suffered the most extensive damage by far totaling in the millions of dollars. County and town officials, fearing for public safety, ordered the old 19th century Levy Building on Main Street torn down.

Culpeper, thankfully, was spared hurricane-force winds in the days following, causing some to question if that decision was made too hastily, or in a panic. Litigation is brewing in that regard.

More than four months later, downtown continues to clean-up, several buildings wrapped in scaffolding as property owners, lacking earthquake insurance, try to figure out how to pay for repairs.

The August 23 earthquake toppled the economy from its No. 1 spot three years running, though it came at an inopportune time, forcing storefronts to close even as the financial situation continues to sputter along.

2. Incumbent sheriff, senator ousted

November's election results brought with them a political shakeup to Culpeper.

Incumbent Culpeper County Sheriff Jim Branch and longtime state senator Edd Houck were ousted from their positions in shocking fashion.

Scott Jenkins was successful in his second bid for sheriff and will begin his term Jan. 1. After a mudslinging matchup by both camps in 2007, the candidates refreshingly kept 2011's race to the issues. Branch turned heads when he fired five deputies in August following an inmate assault incident in the jail. While he was open to broadly discussing the incident when asked during his campaign, he never discussed the specifics of his decision saying that it was a "personnel issue."

In early December, Jenkins announced that he would be retaining only 86 of 111 sheriff's office employees that reapplied to work under his administration.

Relatively new to the political scene, District 17 Senator-elect Bryce Reeves, shocked Houck when he won the election by about 200 votes in a race that tallied about 45,000 votes. The 28-year incumbent, Houck, conceded defeat and did not request a recount.

The 17th District now includes most of Culpeper, all of Orange County and the city of Fredericksburg, parts of Albemarle, Louisa and Spotsylvania and Culpeper counties. Houck lost all but Albemarle and Fredericksburg.

With Reeves' victory, the GOP now has control in the Virginia General Assembly.

3. Violent crimes rock Culpeper

Unfortunately, Culpeper County was no stranger to violent and serious crimes in 2011.

In March, a Piney Forest Lane house fire led to the death of a 56-year-old man. Russell Zuch, who had previously been convicted of a different arson charge, pled guilty in November to purposely setting the fire. As part of the plea agreement, Zuch received of 22 years and 3 months in prison, down from an 80-year maximum sentence.

Ryland Jones in October pled guilty to shooting a 28-year-old man in the ankle at a house on Willis Lane in June after allegedly catching the victim in an affair with his wife. As part of a plea deal he received a 5-years and 8 months in prison.

A 12-person jury earlier this month found Anthony Simpson guilty of voluntary manslaughter for the June 2 shooting death of his 22-year-old son, Mark Simpson. The prosecution portrayed the defense's self-defense claim as a cover-up. The jury recommended a 10-year prison term. Simpson awaits sentencing scheduled for Feb. 6, 2012.

In a bizarre October incident, Gary Willie, of Catlett, allegedly went to his ex-girlfriend's Willis Lane apartment with an unnamed man. Police said Willie shot the woman, Patricia Adams. Afterward he then shot the other man and turned the gun on himself. Both were taken to UVa. Hospital. The outcome of this case is still pending.

Announced earlier this month, 13 defendants previously charged by a task force targeting PCP importers and sellers in Culpeper County had pled guilty to some involvement in PCP distribution. United States attorney for the Western District of Virginia, Timothy J. Heaphy, said the conspiracy had sold over 100 grams of PCP in and around Culpeper. During arrests, officers seized nearly 500 grams.

4. Voters approve CCHS renovation

Looking back at 2011, there's no question the biggest school-related news happened in November when Culpeper voters approved a $21 million bond referendum to renovate Culpeper County High School despite the ongoing sluggish economy.

There's no question the aging 42-year-old school needs necessary repairs to fix outdated plumbing, lighting, electrical, security features, windows and doors, roofing and handicap accessibility.

But the lingering question: Were local residents prepared to take on more debt to bring the school up to par. Apparently, they are.

But not before voters voiced their opinions in letters to the editor and online reader reaction polls for and against financing the project.

In the end, it was the school division's yearlong media blitz, educating the public with multiple meetings and a town hall that probably helped convince voters to approve the project.

In a 2-to-1 decision, voters agreed during the Nov. 8 election that it was time to fix the building that accommodates more than 1,000 high school students for $21 million ($20 million for construction costs and $1 million in bond expenses).

Before the bond referendum was even approved, the year started off with restoring the school's 1,298 auditorium seats for $123,310; repairing the central plant where chillers, cooling tower and pumps, HVAC system, electrical systems, piping and mechanical equipment were replaced for nearly $1 million; and fixing part of the roof for about $400,000.

After hiring an architect consultant early next year, school officials expect construction to take about two school years, including two summers.

5) The economy up and down

Culpeper, like the rest of the country, remained on shaky economic ground in 2011, experiencing triumphs and struggles though it seemed like more of the latter.

The unemployment rate declined through the year with the latest tally putting the county's rate at 6.4 percent in October down from 7.7 percent in January. Still, many local workers said good-bye to the 40-hour workweek in 2011, absorbing unpaid days off and taking second jobs to make ends meet.

Home foreclosures, meanwhile, keep on rising. On a recent day, Realtytrac listed 568 properties in Culpeper in some stage of default. In most cases, the houses were less than the original mortgage amount -- one new home in town had $215,000 negative equity.

Matt's ACE Hardware in Meadowbrook Shopping Center closed abruptly in May after more than a decade in business, and in September, the Virginia Employment Commission around the corner closed its doors due to budgetary constraints. A few weeks earlier, American Press in neighboring Orange County, which the Culpeper VEC office used to serve, announced it would close after nearly 40 years, leaving more than 100 jobless. Dee Dees'sFamily Restaurant on North Main Street closed quietly this year while strip malls town-wide struggled to keep tenants.

An unofficial spring survey of business vacancies conducted by the Star-Exponent found a 12 percent vacancy rate. Overall, business owners and citizens around town were unoptimistic about the future.

And yet there were some glimmers of hope, or at least proof the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in Culpeper. The Baker brothers opened The Smokehouse bar and grill in early 2011 at the end of East Davis Street while a husband-wife team partnered to open Taste Oil Vinegar a block up.

"Thyme" entrepreneur John Yarnall opened his third Davis Street restaurant, The Copper Fish, and is working on a large Main Street project, converting an old furniture store into a banquet hall, etc.

Target expanded its grocery section this year, Atheneans opened on the west side, and Verizon Wireless is just now converting the old Culpeper Motor Corp building on Bus. 29 into a sales location.

More and more people are attending the (free) movies in the theater on Mount Pony and gas prices, well, they are still too high considering the stagnant nature of local wages. Consider this, 10 years ago when gas was 99 cents a gallon, people complained it was too high -- if only.

6) Water and sewer saga over

County and town governments finally (finally) came together this year to get the deal done. That would be the water and sewer utility deal that locally elected officials have bickered about for decades.

An agreement, good for 30 years, was reached in May allowing equal access to the town's water and sewer to any customer who wants it in areas around the town's borders in the so-called water and sewer service district.

In return for sharing its utilities, the town will grow its geographic boundaries June 30, 2012 in the area around Target on Bus. 29, absorbing several big box stores and retailers and earning at least $500,000 in extra revenue the first year alone.

The unanimous vote that put it all to rest was approval of the 32-page "Voluntary Settlement of Annexation and Utility Issues" -- drafted by Richmond attorney Carter Glass IV and containing at least 100 more pages of exhibits, maps, etc. The Commission on Local Government approved the agreement last month, and now it goes to a three-judge panel for final endorsement. Local officials say it is a done deal, and to that we say, amen.

7) State Theatre: the Phoenix rises

For more than a decade, the art deco State Theatre on Main Street sat mysteriously quiet under the ownership of The Finders, a secretive utopian society led by the late Marion Pettie, a Culpeper native whose reach was not limited to his home-town. Cryptic messages frequently appeared on the marquee during that time, beginning 1993, and the public was not allowed in.

Then, in 2004 another Culpeper native, developer Greg Yates, bought the by-then dilapidated movie house. He dreamed of transforming it into a modern lives arts center. Earlier this year, that dream started to take shape.

The nonprofit State Theatre Foundation broke ground on the $8.5 million project in January, and it's been nothing but progress since. Restoration and expansion of the circa 1938 theater will more than double its size, adding state-of-the-art production equipment and a fly tower.

The steel arrived on site this month, the building footprint materializing before our very eyes. Lynchburg-based contractor C.S. Lewis is heading the job using local workers from various trades. The revenue-generating project, which will ultimately create 200 construction jobs, has yet to receive any government support while its faithful supporters remain confident that Culpeper -- and surrounding communities -- will ante up needed funds ($3 million) to complete the project. The plan is have the 550-seat theater, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, open and ready to host its first show by spring 2013.

8) Abshire guilty

Emerald Hill Elementary School kindergarten teacher Justine Abshire epitomized the gentle soul. An animal lover and a homebody possessing a child-like innocence, the 27-year-old newlywed lived for her students, knowing at just 6-years-old that she wanted to be a teacher. So it was with utter horror that the community and her family learned of the discovery of Justine's mangled body on a rural Orange County road just before 2 a.m. on the frigid early morning of Nov. 3, 2006.

Her husband of just five months, Eric Abshire, of Greene County, reported her death as a hit-and-run accident, but from early on his story didn't add up. And yet there was not a single shred of physical evidence tying Abshire to his wife's death. Resolution languished for years. In spite of the circumstantial nature of the case, a special grand jury -- last December -- found enough evidence to bring Eric Abshire to trial in October this year. After eight days of witness testimony, an Orange County jury of four men and eight women found Abshire guilty of first-degree murder in less than two hours.

The jury recommended Eric Abshire spends life in prison for the crime. Sentencing is January 12.

9. Southridge fire displaces residents

Without a doubt, the Southridge apartment fire that displaced nearly 14 to 16 people in August was some of the saddest news this year.

Fortunately, no injuries were reported.

The Aug. 6 fire destroyed all eight units at 670 Southview Court. By the time fire fighters arrived, flames had engulfed one side of the two-story building and were spewing out from the roof.

It took nearly two hours for fire crews to extinguish the blaze.

According to neighbors, a man frying chicken in his apartment on the lower level reportedly caused the fire.

Meanwhile, the American Red Cross assisted residents with temporary housing at nearby hotels.

Property owner Bill Cannon vows to rebuild eight more units in the same location next year.

10. Wilderness wards off Walmart

The second battle of the Wilderness came to a close in January.

National retailer Walmart entered the year eyeing plans to build a Supercenter on acreage near the gateway to the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park in an area where the fierce Battle of the Wilderness occurred May 5-7, 1864.

Walmart had plans to build in Orange County and along with the Orange County Board of Supervisors were in a heated legal battle with preservation groups over the planned site.

But Walmart surprised many with their announcement Jan. 26 that they would no longer pursue the site, however they would buy the land and not develop it.

Preservation groups, including the Friends of the Wilderness Battlefield and the Civil War Preservation Trust, contended that developing on the land would spoil precious preserved battlefield.

Orange County contended nothing of historical significance happened on the Wilderness parcel.

However, Orange County will likely still be getting a Supercenter as Walmart then targeted a location along Route 3 at the corner of Somerset Ridge Road.

That plan, though, was met with opposition by the Memorial Foundation of the Germanna Colonies who contended that light and noise from the store would cause potential negative impact on their site across from the planned store.

Summaries compiled by the Star-Exponent staff: Allison Brophy Champion, Rhonda Simmons, Jeff Say, Steven Butler and Vincent Vala.

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(c)2011 the Culpeper Star-Exponent (Culpeper, Va.)

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