|
|
|
| Tue, Dec. 08 - - Mobile - RSS | |
| YOUR TOWN: Caroline | Culpeper | King George | Fredericksburg | Orange | Spotsylvania | Stafford | Westmoreland | |
|
|
Regulators suspendex-Culpeper planner
Engineer disciplined by state regulatory board
Date published: 9/16/2009
BY CHELYEN DAVIS RICHMOND --A state regulatory board has suspended the engineering license of Culpeper's former town planning director for mixing his public position with design work he did on the side.Charles "Chuck" Stephenson, who resigned in March from his job as director of Planning and Community Development and as town engineer, will pay fines of $5,500, and his engineer's license is suspended for six months. He must also take an ethics training course. The Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, Certified Interior Designers and Landscape Architects found that Stephenson practiced architecture without a license, and that he was guilty of a conflict of interests. He operated a private design firm while he was town engineer and, in some cases, worked on projects for clients that had to be approved by town employees who were overseen by Stephenson. The board also sanctioned Stephenson for failing to properly seal and sign some engineering plans. Stephenson was at Tuesday's hearing but declined comment. His suspension could impact several proposed buildings in Culpeper. County Administrator Frank Bossio said the county has several building plans with Stephenson's stamp on them, awaiting approval. "If, in fact, his license is suspended, any of those plans requiring changes from the date of suspension will need to obtain the stamp of another engineer or architect," Bossio said. "This means that that engineer or architect will have to review the entire set of plans and take responsibility for its contents according to state code. We will do everything we can to ease the burden on permit holders who are obviously caught in the middle." The state board began investigating Stephenson about a year ago, after area architect Michael Lysczek filed a written complaint. Lysczek, a member of the Culpeper Architectural Review Board, wrote that he had referred his own clients to the town zoning office for advice, and Stephenson had marketed his private design services to them, taking business from Lysczek. He said town officials were "unreceptive" when he complained. Additionally, Lysczek wrote that there were times when the Architectural Review Board received applications for building work, and the plans submitted had no information on who drew them. He said he felt Stephenson was concealing his dual roles by not signing design plans.
Date published: 9/16/2009
|
 |
|||
|
|||
