By KELLY HANNON
WOODBRIDGE
--The Virginia Railway Express Operations Board has agreed to Spotsylvania's conditions to join the train system.VRE's Chief Executive Officer Dale Zehner said, "Everything they wanted, they got."
Spotsylvania will have a passenger train station in two years, and a third track extended to the station.
VRE will try to keep Spotsylvania's subsidy at a rate not exceeding proceeds collected through a 2 percent gasoline tax at the county's gas stations.
And it will let Spotsylvania defer payments to VRE and the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission the first three years it belongs to the organizations.
"I think we've got an agreement we can live with," said Matt Kelly, a Fredericksburg councilman and Operations Board member.
Stafford supervisor Paul Milde said most of the board's closed-session debate Friday morning was about legal requirements, not the policy substance of the county's conditions.
With about 1,000 Spotsylvania residents riding VRE already, the county has been a user of the system for a long time, Milde said. "We're just trying to make it official," he said.
Spotsylvania's joining VRE involves three legal documents: A membership agreement between VRE and Spotsylvania, an amendment to VRE's master agreement governing the entire system and an amendment to a Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission agreement.
All of the approved agreements are effective Feb. 15.
That date was chosen after the Spotsylvania Board of Supervisors voted 4-3 Tuesday night to make its membership with VRE effective that day.
Two county supervisors that voted to join VRE are up for re-election in November, and are facing opponents who oppose membership.
D.J. McGuire, a Republican who opposes joining VRE, is challenging Spotsylvania board member Gary Skinner, who was instrumental in getting the agreement approved on a 4-3 vote.
Spotsylvania supervisor Benjamin Pitts, who voted for the VRE agreement, is being challenged by Chris Yakabouski, a Republican who opposes joining VRE.
The Feb. 15 date allows Spotsylvania's board to reverse course, if it chooses.
A few technical details must be carried by Nov. 30. The agreements must be approved by the boards of the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission and Northern Virginia Transportation Commission. Every locality that belongs to VRE must approve the new master agreement. And the Secretary of the Commonwealth has to certify all the agreements, and it must have Spotsylvania's Board of Supervisors include that certification in its meeting minutes.
Spotsylvania supervisor Jerry Logan, who voted for membership on Tuesday, said the Operations Board vote was "fantastic news."
"I'm just delighted they chose to accept it, and look forward to next year when it becomes official," said Logan, who was the fourth supervisor on the board to declare support for VRE membership, creating a majority in favor of joining.
Skinner said the county will benefit from the proceeds of the 2 percent gas tax, which can be used for transportation projects after paying the VRE subsidy.
"It's money out there that we've not accepted for many years," Skinner said.
Yesterday, Zehner said he would start to work on the logistics of building the station and adding a third track, a less complicated task now that Spotsylvania officially wants to join.
It is easier to find funding for a member community than a non-member community, Zehner said.
"I've always told Spotsylvania once you join, things start coming together real quickly," Zehner said.
Kelly Hannon: 540/374-5436
Email: khannon@freelancestar.com