Town Crier Articles

For those of us in Charlotte Park and Shirley Park with individual irrigation systems, I came across an interesting recommendation from the James City Service Authority (JCSA).

 

For whatever reason during July when we endured over 100 degrees for weeks, I did not adjust my irrigation, and the water bill hadn't increased. 

However, when I received the August bill, quite a bit more water was used, because the irrigation wasn't running properly following a power outage, despite the 9 Volt battery in our system to save settings. That's a lot of responsibility for a little 9 Volt battery. Another good reason to check your control panel for a low battery indicator, or to check your run schedules occasionally.

 

Anyway, battery and settings restored I did increase the run times a bit, hence more water.

 

Ok, here’s what JCSA recommended. When you submit your irrigation meter reading to HRUBS (which goes towards adjusting your sewer bill), jot down or note how many gallons used from month to month, this way, lest you forgot you adjusted your irrigation, you can determine whether there is a leak in your underground irrigation, or even with the home.

 

A bit late in the season now for sharing this tip, but starting next year, you might consider JCSA’s recommendation to perhaps catch a problem before it develops.

 

At any rate with aeration and overseeding now in progress, irrigation is key to the health of your lawn.

With slides and recorded bird calls, Paul Griswold succeeded in taking a rapt audience of New Town residents on a virtual walk through the Greensprings Interpretive Trail at the September 16 noontime talk.  

 

Upon retiring from Connecticut to New Town, Paul found a new passion, becoming a self-taught photographer and naturalist. Having grown up in an urban setting for most of his life if you said birds, he would say pigeons. His journey into the diversity of wildlife started in Williamsburg, where he began taking pictures of the birds and animals in New Town.  

 

Then he discovered the Greensprings, a landscape of wetlands, beaver ponds and forests. Often accompanied by his wife Lynn, he began walking the trails and boardwalks virtually every day, documenting what he saw and what he was learning about nature with his camera. Through observation and through research, Paul gained an intimate knowledge of the Trail’s wildlife and their habitats which he shared with his audience.

 

Paul began his talk by describing the preserve and discussing the history of Green Springs.  It is the site of an 1781 Revolutionary War battle as well as the site of Mainland Farm, which was founded in 1609 by the Royal Governor Sir William Berkeley and is the oldest continuously cultivated farm in America. Paul showed photos of a trampled circle in the farm’s wheat field, probably created by a group of sleeping deer, and of deer with their heads poking out of the wheat.

 

With fall nearly here, we see crews in the neighborhood aerating and overseeding. We all know about aeration right, opening up the soil with tiny openings to decrease compaction, reduce thatch in the lawn, and allow oxygen and nutrients into the lawn.

 

Wait. Thatch? Thatch is a build-up of living and dead grass and other organic material in the lawn. This can cause a variety of issues with seed germination and a healthy lawn in general, so sometimes you have to dethatch. Remove material. This often involves gentle raking and removal of excess material. You want to go lightly here, or you’ll create a whole other project.

 

Bottom line - if your lawn's failure to thrive is due to soil compaction, you will want to aerate it. If thick thatch is the problem, you will instead need to dethatch your lawn. Done together, you will want to dethatch first and then aerate.

October is a scary time of the year especially around Halloween, which is associated with black cats, vampires, flying witches and bats.  To many people bats have a bad reputation, evoking images of dark, scary caves and rabid blood-sucking creatures who spread rabies and other diseases. But is this really the case?

 

New Town resident and NTRA President Jack Espinal has long been intrigued by bats and has gained a deep understanding of one of the world’s most misunderstood creatures. Join us on Thursday, October 16 at the NTRA Meeting Room as he shares his expertise about the only flying mammal, which is critical to our environment and protects us from those pesky mosquitoes. And, please don’t worry; the talk will not be too scary. 

 

Place:  NTRA Meeting Room, 5118 Center St

 

Time:   Thursday Oct.16 at 12:00

At our August Noon time talk, residents met Scott Stevens who is the County Administrator for James City County. Many in the audience were already familiar with Scott not only because of his official position but because he and his wife, Monique, love sitting on their Center Street front porch chatting with neighbors and friends and warmly greeting dog walkers and others strolling past their home.  

Scott, who has been in his position for almost seven years, oversees the county's daily operations and departments while implementing, with the assistance of his staff, the policies and laws passed by the members of the Board of Supervisors, who are elected by county citizens.  

Friendly, modest but clearly well versed in all the intricacies of local government, Scott hails from North Carolina, where he studied civil engineering.   He then moved into public service and gained expertise in areas that might seem mundane but are critical to the success of every municipality including developing budgets, dealing with waste, stormwater, and public utilities and improving citizens’ lives through robust parks and recreation programs and effective transportation systems and much more.

 

Scott plays an important role in new development projects and described to attendees the status of the proposed JCC Government Center complex, which will consolidate all county offices, as well as the new Greater Williamsburg Sports and Event Center project, which is scheduled to open in July 2026. It will provide a massive indoor setting with a rolling turf system that will host sports tournaments and trade shows and is already booking events. Scott noted that the sports center is being funded through hotel taxes.  Residents were pleased to hear that it will include a large indoor playground and will be open to JCC residents.

 

 

New Towners were also keenly interested in Scott discussion of the two proposed new housing developments to be located on the Eastern Hospital grounds, which still need the Board of Supervisors approval. Westwood Park, the smaller one with 172 units, would be accessed through Discovery Park Boulevard. Scott observed that the county cannot absolutely stop future development but can try to mold it so that it is most beneficial to the community. He also noted that the Board of Supervisors will likely be discussing the Eastern State Hospital project at a public hearing on October 14 and encouraged New Towners to attend. For more information on the status of the developments see the August Town Crier article.

 

Scott fielded questions from the audience about these projects and other issues such as those associated with traffic in New Town. Multiple times he expressed his willingness to talk with residents about their concerns and shared his phone number, 757-253-6600. After the talk ended, several residents were already taking him up on his offer.

 

Our next  New Town Talk is Tuesday, September 16 at 12:00 at the NTRA Meeting Room when Paul Griswold will take us on a Walk Through Greensprings Nature Trail.

 

 

Unfortunately, crime is on the rise right here in our community. We have all received emails from Chesapeake Bay Management to safeguard our homes by locking doors to our homes and vehicles. Well, if you are not doing this, then perhaps now is the time to begin doing so.

 

At the end of June and mid-July there were three incidents of theft and vandalism right here in New Town. These occurred on Casey Boulevard and Center Street.

 

You can sign up for free at  www.neighborhoodalerts.com to receive Neighborhood Alerts after the incidents are reported to the police and police have been dispatched to the scene. While this is after the fact it is a resource to see where things are happening in our back yard, or in our front yards!

 

You’ll need to enter your address and select the types of alerts you want to receive by email. Alerts can include crime alerts, but also missing pet and weather alerts, even building permit alerts. Be sure to deselect any alerts you do not wish to receive. You can see the crime report once you receive an email from Neighborhood Alerts, and you can update your preferences or unsubscribe anytime from the email you receive. (James City County also offers an alert system: www.jccalert.org for emergency notification of flooding, weather or other emergencies in our area.)

 

According to James City County’s Crime Prevention website’s FAQ section, to Report a crime in progress call 757-566-0112 or 911 if an emergency, never via email or social media. For a crime not in progress, call the James City County Police Department at 757-566-0112 to speak with an officer.

 

Remember, common sense crime prevention includes being aware of your surroundings, securing your property, and trusting your instincts. If you have an alarm system and cameras, be sure to use them. Simple actions like locking doors and windows, being cautious of strangers, and reporting suspicious activity can significantly reduce your risk of becoming a victim. 

Have you ever wondered how James City County operates and how policies made by its Board of Supervisors, often affecting all of us, are implemented? From decisions about filling potholes to policies governing building new housing developments or solar facilities and much, much more, it is County Administrator and New Town resident Scott Stevens who plays a critical role in getting all this accomplished.

 

Please join us on August 21 at 12:00 at the NTRA meeting space to learn more about how Scott serves James City County and his job’s challenges and joys. Feel free to bring your questions and even complaints are welcome.  

     

If you choose, bring your bag lunch, and we will provide water, and cookies.

             

Place:  NTRA Meeting Room, 5118 Center Street

Time:  Thursday, August 21 at 12:00.

 

And look for more information in September and October about other upcoming Noontime talks, including a view of Greenspring Trail by Paul Griswold, Photographer and Naturalist, and Jack Espinal talking about bats just in time for the Halloween season!

 

On June 5 and June 27, during talks at the NTRA meeting space, Williamsburg resident Grace Konar (Konarkowski) and New Town resident Aneta Leska spoke about their lives in Poland. They captivated their audiences with vivid family stories. At the first talk, drawing on her parents and grandparents’ memories, Grace described the impact of the German invasion of Poland and the Holocaust on her family, including her father and mothers-in-law’s experience in concentration camps. At the second talk, both Grace and Aneta shared stories from their own memories of state surveillance, escape and resistance in postwar Communist Poland.  Family photos and documents from the concentration camp archives provided vivid images, complementing their stories.  

 

 

On June 27, Grace and Aneta spoke of how the Soviet Union imposed communism on Poland and how that control affected the lives of the Polish people.  The Polish Communist Party sought control of all aspects of government, economy and society. Under communism, Poles often experienced significant food shortages and limited access go consumer items.  To maintain  control  and suppress dissent, the regime had a widespread surveillance system to monitor what people were doing or saying. Opposition could lead to arrest and imprisonment

 

Grace remembered the propaganda expounded by government-owned newspapers, radio and later television stations, as well as how that propaganda shaped school curriculum.  From fifth grade on, all students studied Russian and there was constant veneration of the Soviet Union. Everyone was expected to vote, but there were no free elections. She recalled that the same Communist candidates constantly appeared on the ballot and there were consequences for failing to vote or for failing to attend the compulsory May Day parade.   

 

Both Grace and Aneta experienced the fears associated with living in a totalitarian nation. Seeking to hear the truth, Grace’s grandfather held the radio up to his ear when surreptitiously listening  to Radio Free Europe, which was illegal. She spoke of the constant surveillance as authorities listened to phone calls and opened mail, and the secret police monitored people’s activities, including her church youth group. Its popular priest was suspected of inculcating anti-government ideas. Students, including a frightened Grace, were interrogated at school by the secret police for evidence of subversion and the priest ultimately disappeared. 

 

Aneta, who is a generation younger than Grace, recalled how sugar, meat and milk were rationed and that during the food crisis of the 1980s, her mother brought her on smuggling trips to other Eastern bloc countries, during which they carried food and consumer items back to Poland. She remembered her intense fear of being caught.  As a child, Aneta was aware that her extended family included a member of the secret police and she shared her memory of standing on her family’s apartment balcony with her father as he pointed out the apartments of neighbors, who were government informers, who were reporting on his activities.

 

 

New Towners in the audience were captivated and moved by Grace’s account of her family’s escape from Gdansk, in the northern part of Poland. In 1974, her husband, Mike, who was studying to become a naval engineer, spent a summer in Sweden as an exchange student- worker in a shipyard, where he experienced the differences between east and west, especially greater freedom and a much higher standard of living.  Grace relayed how he came home  determined to escape. With a chuckle, she confessed that “it was all Mike; he was the one who wanted to leave.” Three years later, based on his exchange experience, Mike was allowed to take a short trip back to Sweden. But he left without Grace and their baby, Matthew, a government requirement to guarantee his return.  With directions from earlier escapees, Mike managed to get to West Germany, which welcomed him and assisted him in his immigration application as a refugee to the U.S.

 

Getting Grace and Matthew out of Poland took a lot of money and connections with the passport office, both of which were provided by  Grace’s Uncle Helmet, a ship captain.  Grace spoke with emotion as she declared that her family remains deeply indebted to Helmet for his critical assistance, given despite the danger it entailed.  But all did not go as planned.  Just before their departure date, toddler Matthew’s passport was cancelled.  Her uncle urged her to stick to their plans and leave her child with a relative.  Fearful of calling in advance and exposing her escape plans, she immediately rushed to the train station and hours later arrived at her mother-law, Balbina’s doorstep to drop off Matthew.   

 

Grace did not see her young son or have any direct communication with him for 15 months. Still emotional about this separation 50 years later, Grace said “I cried every night for 15 months.” Frantic, the family went without avail for help to the West German government and the Red Cross.

 

Grace’s uncle obtained approval for Matthew to travel to Sweden, but it was on the condition that Grace and Mike, who were then in West Germany, could prove they had permanent residency in Sweden. As a last hope, Grace’s mother, Janina, went to the Swedish Consul’s office in Warsaw, prepared to lie. While waiting, she began crying from the stress and a sympathetic Swedish staff member, upon hearing about Matthew’s plight, advised Janina to tell the truth and the sympathetic Consul authorized the necessary Swedish documents.   

 

In 1978, the Konarkowski family was reunited on a German dock, but only after yet more moments of sheer panic as little Matthew was initially refused admittance by German officials. Shortly afterwards they flew to New York City, almost penniless. Grace recounted how they had been given two telephone numbers by Polish friends, one of which connected them with a Russian Columbia University professor, who generously offered housing and helped Mike write his resume and apply for jobs. To this day, they remain grateful to this professor whose assistance helped facilitate the family’s move to Virginia, where Mike obtained a professional position and the family prospered, became citizens, and had two more children.