The Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday night was a rarity in that there was considerable discussion regarding the consent agenda — a list of items that are typically approved wholesale with little to no debate.
Supervisor Jacob Lane of the Livingston District requested further discussion on items Nos. 4 and 11, the adoption of the Fiscal Year 2027 budget that was approved in a previous meeting and the $5 million purchase of a sports complex to be operated by the county’s parks and recreation department.
Lane was uncomfortable approving the budget after several retired county employees voiced displeasure over the county changing their health insurance company to save $500,000 on the budget.
Following the public comments from the retirees, supervisors voted unanimously to approve the budget with a pledge to discuss the proposed switch to OneDigital Health and Benefits after informational meetings this week county officials conduct more research.
The board voted 6-1 to approve the real estate purchase agreement for New Post Sports Complex, which includes three parcels totaling approximately 234.2 acres. The purchase includes Ruffin’s Pond, but not the dam associated with the pond.
Lane cast the lone dissenting vote against the purchase of the sports complex.
“I don’t see, with all these folks in here, why we should be buying a sports complex,” said Lane, referring to the room full of retirees upset about the health insurance changes.
Lane also said he can’t justify the expenditure to residents in the Livingston District, which is on the opposite side of the county.
A third item on the consent agenda, a $268,000 purchase of a crime scene truck, also caught the attention of one public speaker who questioned the expense, while retirees are fighting to keep their same health insurance.
County Administrator Ed Petrovich explained that purchases like the truck and the sports complex are one-time costs that are budgeted in the Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), while health insurance is a continual cost in the operational budget.
He noted that the CIP calls for a $15.7 million investment in parks and recreation in 2030, so the purchase of the New Post complex allows the county to secure more fields for less money.
“When we talk about purchasing the soccer fields, we’ve got an opportunity to pick up fields that are already established, up and running, and meet the future inventory requirements of parks and rec,” Petrovich said.
Supervisor Chris Yakabouski of the Battlefield District said it’s “cost avoidance” to purchase the fields now rather than to wait years down the road when they’ll likely be more expensive. The county will have to purchase land, as well.
Berkeley District Supervisor David Goosman said he struggled with the idea of purchasing the fields but was convinced once Petrovich explained the funding source and the rationale.
“I’ve had folks reach out to me … New Post doesn’t interest them,” Goosman said. “There’s a lot of concern when talking about closing convenience centers and things like that and here we are at $5 million. I didn’t understand that myself, either.”
The supervisors expressed sympathy for the retirees, who said their health insurance costs will increase if the county follows through on its plans to switch to OneDigital.
Lane and other supervisors acknowledged that they took OneDigital and county staff at face value during an April 7 work session when company representatives stated that retirees’ health insurance coverage would remain the same and there would be no increase in costs.
Lane said communication to the 168 retirees impacted by the decision was ineffective; an April 20 letter requested that they call the county to get more information.
“This has been a horrible, horrible job at getting this information out to our retirees and our people, and I cannot accept the way this was handled as far as the information getting out to our retirees and the timing,” Lane said.
Former Spotsylvania Sheriff Howard Smith and former Commonwealth’s Attorney Bill Neely were two of the speakers concerned about the change to their health insurance.
Smith said when working for the county, he turned down pay increases in favor of health insurance and other benefits. He said under OneDigital his coverage would increase from $60 per month to $177 “if I’m lucky.” He said that, because he has diabetes, it could be as high as $277.
One retiree said they left a job paying $7,000 more annually to return to the county because of a promise that their health insurance would never change.
Neely expressed concern that there could be changes to the co-pay for his arthritis medication, which has a retail cost of $5,000 monthly.
Jane Reeve, who worked for the county for 32 years, said it should alarm the board that more than 150 retirees came together quickly to oppose the change.
“That’s unheard of,” Reeve said. “I’m simply here to tell you that we’re here front and center. We’re not going anywhere this time. We will be here if every one of us has to roll here in a wheelchair to make sure that we’re here to make this board accountable for the commitments they’ve made to retirees for 40 years.”
Lane said he’s not prepared to approve the budget until the retirees’ concerns are addressed. Open enrollment for health coverage begins in August. The motion the board approved states a decision needs to be made by July.
Petrovich said it’s too late to advertise a different real estate tax rate, so he and his staff must make $500,000 worth of budget cuts to keep the retirees’ insurance intact.
“Something is going to suffer from the level of service,” Petrovich said. “I said it before, but that’s the option. I don’t have any other option.”
