Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

The Connaughton Legacy

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by

James A. Bacon
in

Sean Connaughton, chairman of the Prince William County board of supervisors and a rising light in the state Republican Party, has been nominated by the Bush administration to run the U.S. Maritime administration — a position that he is almost certain to accept. Although Connaughton lost the GOP nomination for lieutenant governor last year, he has established a track record as one of the most effective local government leaders in Virginia. As the Washington Post recapitulates:

When he became a supervisor, the county had 280,000 people, an annual budget of about $400 million and one of the highest tax rates in the region.

He leaves an increasingly diverse county of about 364,000 people, a budget of $857 million and Northern Virginia’s lowest tax rate, which he and his board colleagues accomplished by cutting the tax rate as property values soared. The county also earned a AAA bond rating during Connaughton’s tenure, a gold star for local governments.

Developers are now paying more in proffers, voluntary funds used to offset the costs of schools, roads and other public services. Rather than wait for state transportation money to trickle down, the county used its money to build hundreds of miles of roads. And Prince William recently became one of a handful of municipalities in the state to propose creating a transportation department.

Frankly, I don’t know Prince William County well enough to judge Connaughton’s accomplishments. Prince William County stood in the path of growth, and there was no way that anyone could have tamed it. One can’t help but admire Connaughton for taking a proactive approach, raising local money for roads rather than whining that the state wasn’t doing enough. But is the county using those funds wisely? Is it coordinating its transportation projects with its zoning policies to create more balanced, better connected communities? Or is the county just playing catch-up with developers who convert vast tracts of farm- and woodland into a dysfunctional mess?

The abominable development taking place around the Gainesville interchange does not bode well for Connaughton’s legacy, although responsibility for that disaster cannot be fairly ascribed to any one individual. Tax rates in Prince William are low, that is clearly a bonus. But how well does the county work? Does it have a sense of community, a sense of place? Does it inspire loyalty — “I live in Prince William, and I love it!” — or is it a collection of stepping-stone subdivisions where people reside until they find somewhere else they like better?

Readers, please weigh in.

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11 responses to “The Connaughton Legacy”

  1. NoVA Scout Avatar
    NoVA Scout

    Jim: Your last cluster of questions describes Prince William before Connaughton was first elected. One of the many things I very much like about him is his tireless effort to build a sense of community in a large and rapidly changing jurisdiction. He spends a lot of time on historic conservation projects and community events. He has been diligent in reaching out to the fast-developing ethnic communities in the County. Recently, he maneuvered through a 9/11 Memorial to honor the 20+ Prince william residents who died on Sept. 11, 2001, despite opposition on fiscal grounds from three of his Supervisors. Big Counties are difficult beasts, but Connaughton has done more than the average elected official to try to build and instill a sense of community that carries across the County. I’m not sure what the landmark for perfection is for managing growth in counties like Prince William. I am sure Connaughton didn’t achieve perfection. But I can’t think of anyone who handled all the currents more deftly over a longer period of time. The place is in far better shape than he found it. Maybe that’s the standard we ought to apply to elected officials.

  2. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    I don’t live in PW County. I do, however, drive through it almost every day.

    PW County is, for the most part, a bedroom community for all points eastward to DC. Like Loudoun County to the north, it’s ground zero for where city meets country.

    The Gainesville I-66/Rt 29 debacle will cost the county for years to come. They will never be able to engineer the roads to satisfy the traffic demand.

    PW is, in the end, “a collection of stepping-stone subdivisions”.

    Sean has played the hand he was delt well. For that, he should be commended.

  3. MOM Avatar
    MOM

    NOVA Scout, at least you are remarkably consistent in your absolute defense of all things Sean but once again you paint a far rosier picture than the reality of Prince William today.

    Anon has it right, the county is a bedroom community a true “a collection of stepping-stone subdivisions” with little sense of community beyond that developed in a few small towns and select subdivisions. To suggest anything greater than that is laughable given the poor turnout to county events or hearings.

    Similarly, your arguement regarding the Memorial is specious as you have left out the reasons underlying opposition to its funding as well as Sean’s personal connection to the project. Funny how your sycophancy blinds you to certain aspects of all things Sean.

    As to the interchange, it will indeed be a debacle (potentially uncorrectable) for decades, not years, to come. No, Sean does not bear all the blame for it but he does bear the blame for exacerbating the situation through his support of projects such as Wentworth Green or the development on Linton Hall. Don’t get me wrong, he didn’t act alone but his role was more substantial than others as he has in essence ceded land use authority to the needs of the County Executive, School Board and Park Authority, needs brought about by their failure to adequately plan for the development approved by the current and past Board of Supervisors.

    And lets not forget the tax rates, as has been discussed ad nauseum, the rate has been lowered on his watch but the actual taxes paid have increased at a double digit rate during every year of his term and we all know that is the actual measure that should be used.

    Go ahead, put forth your usual smug, narcissistic responses that many have come to expect, tell us all how lucky we are to live in PWC and how are net worth has increased dramatically under Sean’s stewardship. It doesn’t address the fact that in order to take advantage of it, most would have to cash out and move out of the county. You probably also won’t address the schools, their trailers, their spending, lack of BOCS oversight or outrageous budget. Nor will you probably address the dearth of parks (finished ones that is not ones like the as yet unfinished Sudley Park which is not subject to the current bond proposal but has been tied by the BOCS and Park Authority to development proffers for as yet unapproved plans that will exacerbate the already untenable pressures on the local infrastructure), inadequate roads, need for more sewer and water capacity, etc. that have come largely under his tenure.

  4. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    I DO live in the Manassas area of Prince William County and have for most of my life. I must say that the county has changed drastically over the years, and we’re not viewed now as just a bunch of poor relations to our Fairfax cousins. We do have quality developments now that attract people from the inner burbs, but I mourn the loss of the countryside.

    Regardless, I think that these changes are market driven and that the Chairman of the Board cannot take too much credit for the shape the county.

    I must also say that Prince William is fortunate to have an innovative and energetic county executive, and he plays a major role in the provision of county services.

  5. NoVA Scout Avatar
    NoVA Scout

    Jim: you run a nice wonk-friendly blog here and this wonk apologizes if I attracted an element that likes to make everything personal. It wasn’t my intention. In any event I’m not certain enough of anything to be considered smug and I’m far too little to look at to be considered narcissistic (beats me where that comes from). I’ll try to lure MOM away to another site until she gets her manners under control. We’re working with her on that.

  6. MOM Avatar
    MOM

    NOVA Scout, just the type of answer I expected, no response to the substantive issues. This and other responses bear a striking resemblance to the style of a certain eminent “land lawyer” in NOVA, one tied closely to PWC development and private discussions with Sean. Funny how his bio seems to match all of the little personal details you’ve dropped over the past few months.

  7. James Young Avatar
    James Young

    To answer your question, Jim, I believe it’s the latter. And that is an assessment that I make independent of Chairman Sean’s (or any politician’s) influence upon it, which I believe to be minimal, in any case.

    Chairman Sean reminds me a lot of the old saw about a man eulogized as humble, with good cause to be. ‘Cept, Chairman Sean would be well-served with a mega-dose of humility, since he — and/or his apologists (I believe there to be a good chance that NoVA Scout IS Chairman Sean) — wrongly claims credit for things with which he has very little to do (rising home values), and misrepresents his record on taxes.

    According to the WaPo’s figures, PWC’s population increased by 30%, and Chairman Sean increased County spending by 114%. That alone speaks volumes about what kind of “Republican” he is. And why he’s so popular with the WaPo and Democrats. But I repeat myself.

  8. James Young Avatar
    James Young

    And BTW, NoVA Scout, “narcissism” is most assuredly appropriate if I am correct, and you are indeed Chairman Sean. After all, you survey all that he does/you do, and declare it “Good.”

  9. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Jimbo –

    When PWC builds $100 million worth of road and capital projects a year, it costs money that has nothing to do with population growth and inflation. Plus, in Virginia, the more affluent a county gets, the less state aid they get even if they get more people and kids. Then there is that pesky problem of land, construction, and other inflationary factors in hyper-markets of Northern Virginia.

    If only we could get you to actually do something positive for the world instead of always criticizing when you know better.

    Not a sermon, just a thought.

  10. NoVA Scout Avatar
    NoVA Scout

    Yes, James, if I were Sean Connaughton and publicly stated a high opinion of myself, that would be “narcissistic.” I was referring to MOM’s usage. She apparently has made me into a Prince William land use attorney. You two might want to schedule your conflicting misimpressions so they don’t bump into each other out in public.

    But this site isn’t for that kind of kiddy stuff. This is a serious blog. So let’s stop the trash-talk and try to salvage a point. How much should the overall PW budget increase in six-plus years with a population growth of 30%? What’s the right number? Is there a “Republican” number? Does the same number apply in any jurisdiction of comparable growth rate. What does this thing look like on a graph? Is it linear or parabolic? Will the Republican number for budget gorwth as a function of population increase vary at different threshholds of population? Is there a Democratic number? Let’s get down into the numbers, since you’ve raised the point.

  11. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    I live in Prince William and I love it.

    I am so proud I have “PW” stickers on my cars!

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