Augusta County residents organize against pipeline

By David Karaffa
Supervisor, Beverley Manor District, Augusta County

Saturday, September 6th, saw a great number of Augusta County residents at the Verona Government Center. The topic of discussion was the Dominion Virginia Power Natural Gas Pipeline that ... (continue reading here)

Karaffa: Augusta County's real estate assessment

By Supervisor David Karaffa
Beverley Manor District
Augusta County Board of Supervisors

Augusta County, like all counties in the Commonwealth of Virginia, must conduct an assessment of all real estate. According to the Code of Virginia this must be done every four years for a county of our size. However, Augusta County has a special provision in the code that allows for us to assess every fifth or sixth year if the Board of Supervisors desire.

Most folks in Augusta will remember the reassessment of 2009. Some didn’t mind the assessment. Many did, so much so that it became a part of my campaign when I ran for supervisor. I told folks that I would engage in the reassessment and work to get a new one off the ground as soon as possible. That is exactly what the new board did when we took office in January 2012.

That first month that the new Augusta County Board of Supervisors was seated, we voted to begin the reassessment process and put together the reassessment committee. I was one of the supervisors selected. As a committee we were responsible to select the next company that would conduct the county assessment.

The committee met for the first time in February of 2012 and a request for bids was sent out. In March of 2012 bids were submitted by companies across the Commonwealth and interviews took place later that month. Some options were good, others not so much. In April of 2012 the committee decided on Wingate & Associates of Roanoke to perform the reassessment of Augusta County. (Click here for the Frequently Asked Questions that the Board responded to about the new assessment.)

Wingate & Associates went to work immediately setting up an office inside the Government Center with space for meetings and files. Field work began on July 1, 2012, and finished up in August of 2013 (11 months). Then the company went to work with their calculations and verification.

The process would take more than a year to complete.

As a member of the reassessment committee, we had monthly meetings that kept us up to date with their overall progress and they were able to demonstrate their process for evaluating and setting a value to property. We discussed property types and county ordinances that would affect property. We discussed federally owned land, state owned land, county owned land, non profit land (schools, hospitals, churches, etc). We as supervisors also asked about random properties to evaluate the company’s process and procedure. This all went very well. The company also gave a number of updates to the entire Board of Supervisors during their work and met individually with supervisors to discuss and explain what the real estate market was doing in their districts. I found this information extremely helpful.

The total reassessment process wrapped up in November of 2013 (16 months in total). The new real estate assessments were compiled and submitted to the county (the Land Book) and on January 1, 2014, they became the official values of real estate for taxation in Augusta County.

We are currently going through the Board of Equalization process. This process is set forth in the Code of Virginia to allow for property owners to appeal the value placed on their property by Wingate & Associates. If you have any questions about your assessment you should contact the Government Center at (540) 245-5600 and ask to speak with the Commissioner of the Revenue’s office.

I hope this post has shed light on the issue of reassessment and what the current Board of Supervisors did in response. I am proud to have been on the reassessment committee that selected Wingate & Associates and am satisfied with the work they performed. As always, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me.
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David Karaffa, 30, represents the Beverley Manor District of Augusta County on the Board of Supervisors. A registered nurse, he is the Director of Nursing at Stuarts Draft Christian Home. He and his wife, Katie, have three daughters. Supervisor Karaffa can be reached at DavidKaraffa@comcast.net or by contacting the government center in Verona at (540) 245-5600.

Photo by Lynn R. Mitchell 

Karaffa: Augusta County supervisors will begin staggered terms

Beverley Manor Supervisor David Karaffa 

By Supervisor David Karaffa
Beverley Manor District

Voters always wonder if someone who has been elected has lived up to their campaign promises. When I ran for the Augusta County Board of Supervisors, one of my campaign promises was to push for and support changing the way we elect our local board.

Traditionally, the board was elected all at once every four years. That is seven districts all going to the polls every four years to elect seven representatives to the board.

I didn’t believe this was a good system for electing representatives because it left open the possibility of electing a completely new board all at once, wiping out any institutional memory from the board. Now that I am on the board and have had daily dealings with past issues, I am even more convinced that this was a vulnerability for the board and the county.

Additionally, electing the whole board every four years meant that the public couldn’t have any direct control over the board except for every four years at election time. I believe that is too long for the public to be disconnected from the board in terms of election.

During my first year on the Board of Supervisors, I voted to institute staggered terms, as allowed by state law, for our board. That change passed and three board members, including myself, volunteered to start the process at our next election.

That means that in 2015, when all of the county goes to the polls to elect representatives from their districts, three districts, mine included, will have supervisors running for a two year term. The other four supervisors will be running for four year terms.

In 2017, the three members who ran for two year terms will be up for election. Those who prevail will serve a four year term, thereby beginning the new tradition of staggered term elections for our Board of Supervisors.

This change will allow the citizens of Augusta to make their voices heard through elections every two years, will maintain institutional memory for each board from now on, and will begin the staggered term process for the Augusta County School Board, as well.

I am very proud that, with the support of the current board, we were able to bring this very important change to the Board of Supervisors and School Board in Augusta County.

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David Karaffa, 30, represents the Beverley Manor District of Augusta County on the Board of Supervisors. A registered nurse, he is the Director of Nursing at Stuarts Draft Christian Home. He and his wife, Katie, have three daughters. Supervisor Karaffa can be reached at DavidKaraffa@comcast.net or by contacting the government center in Verona (540) 245-5600. 


Photo by Lynn R. Mitchell

Saturday: Karaffa announces candidacy for BOS

David Karaffa of Augusta County has decided to run for the board of supervisors, and reporter Calvin Trice at the Staunton News Leader writes about it:

Last year, David Karaffa was upset about higher property assessments and went before the Augusta County Board of Supervisors to let the local government know about it.

The crowds that joined him are gone; the issue was ultimately decided in court, and the assessments stand.

But Karaffa never stopped attending the board meetings.

A press announcement will be held Saturday, January 8, at 10:00 a.m. at the Augusta Government Center in Verona when Karaffa will officially announce his candidacy for the election to be held November 8th.