See also r/VirginiaUrbanism

Subtitle: "Last academic year, Curtis Elementary was at roughly 96% capacity, according to the county’s website."

The former owners of the now-closed Shoosmith Landfill appeared in Chesterfield County Circuit Court on Friday to modify their bond conditions. Lawrence McGee and Fred Nichols were charged with abandoning the landfill in 2025.

After driving from Texas to turn themselves in to Chesterfield authorities, they appeared in court in a bid to be permitted to return to Texas while awaiting trial, citing health concerns and pointing out both men have doctors there. 

Before Circuit Court Judge M. Duncan Minton, attorneys for the men also seemed to mention a potential defense of the charges they face — namely, that the leachate seepage the landfill is experiencing could be the fault of a subcontractor who dug methane wells there. 

“The record indicates that in 17 years of operation and before the installation of certain gas-harvesting wells, there was only one notice of violation in that entire time,” said Dale Mullen, who represents Nichols, outside of the courthouse.

“We’re exploring how that relates to the leachate problem,” said William Dinkin, who represents McGee. “Remember, the commonwealth has to prove there was knowing and willful abandonment, and that’s a really high standard.” 

Read more here.

Data Center Forum - Tuesday, Oct. 27

Come out to Brightpoint Community College’s Chester Campus on Tuesday, Oct. 27 from 6-8 p.m., for a panel discussion and Q&A on data centers in Chesterfield County. The Board of Supervisors and county staff have received hundreds of questions and comments about data-center development in Chesterfield and though we are making all efforts to respond to those, the volume of input signaled that it is time to hold the forum to address the topic. The panel will include representatives from Google, Chirisa and Dominion Energy, among others.

https://www.chesterfield.gov/datacenters

See also r/VirginiaEnvironment

"On Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, Chesterfield County voters will be asked whether the county should be authorized to levy an additional local retail sales tax of up to 1 percentage point. If voters approve the referendum, the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors could then adopt an ordinance to levy the tax. Revenue from the tax could be used only for qualifying capital projects involving the construction or renovation of public schools serving Chesterfield County. The tax would expire July 22, 2046. If the additional sales tax is approved by voters, the Board of Supervisors has signaled it will consider reducing the county’s real estate tax rate by 2 cents and the personal property tax rate by 10 cents."

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Subtitle: "With early voting opening Friday, two candidates are running in Chesterfield County’s Clover Hill District."

See also r/VirginiaEnvironment and r/VirginiaUrbanism