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A former candidate for Stafford sheriff is challenging freshman Del. Mark Cole for the 88th District House seat.
Charles A. Feldbush, a police detective in Prince William County, is seeking the Democratic nomination to run against Cole in November's election.
Feldbush lives in North Stafford. He ran, and lost, a 1999 race for sheriff to Charles Jett. Feldbush ran as an independent in that race but said his "philosophies have changed" since then, pushing him toward the Democratic Party.
Cole, reacting last night to the news, said: "Any challenge, you've got to take it seriously and work hard and get your people out to the polls. If you don't do that, that's when you get [an] upset."
Feldbush said he has not seen the Republican-led state legislature take any action to slow development in the Fredericksburg area, a primary reason that he wants to run.
"I have seen nothing, absolutely nothing, in the way of trying to halt, stop, help the continuing sprawl," Feldbush said. "There appears to be no control by the state. The state doesn't give the locality the tools to handle this all I've seen is a lot of lip service, a lot of talk. I have not seen a lot of action being taken. So my question would be, when does it start? As an elected official, I would certainly make that a priority."
Feldbush said he supports the use of impact fees and proffers to make developers pay for the infrastructure their development creates.
"Builders have fought that tooth and nail because it makes them accountable. We have to make them accountable," Feldbush said. "We the citizens are forced to carry the brunt or the burden of paying for all of the infrastructure. The citizens out here want the control back. They want their local people, their local boards, to be able to do something for them, and right now the state has not given localities anything."
Feldbush said he also supports "adequate public facilities" legislation that would allow local governments to deny development permits if the localities determine they can't pay for the infrastructure--like roads, schools and water--to service a new development.
Cole introduced a bill during this past General Assembly session that would have allowed localities to suspend water and sewer connections during a drought, but it failed. Another bill, which would have extended for another year Stafford County's ability to assess road impact fees, also died.
Feldbush said he doesn't feel Cole has done enough to help local governments restrict growth.
Cole said localities already have some tools, such as zoning, to help combat growth and noted that Stafford County has the power to levy impact fees but does not.
"I'm not sure what more he would do that I haven't already not," Cole said of Feldbush.
Feldbush is expected to win the Democratic nomination at a caucus meeting on Saturday.
"I think he'll be an outstanding candidate," said Bob Woodson, chairman of the Stafford County Democratic Party. "He's in law enforcement. He has a sensitivity and a working knowledge from a law-enforcement perspective. I think he will be a positive force in the General Assembly."
Cole first won the 88th District seat in 2001, with 66 percent of the vote to Democrat Bill Jones' 34 percent.
According to campaign finance reports filed last month, Cole had about $30,000 in his campaign account at the end of March.