Town Crier Articles

Pool Season Ramping Up
Posted on May 1, 2026 7:00 AM by John Stratton, Director
 
The New Town 2026 pool season is fast approaching! The New Town community pool will open Memorial Day weekend on Saturday, May 23, 2026, and remain open through Labor Day, Monday, September 7, 2026. We are looking forward to another fantastic summer and would like to highlight a few important items.
 
First and foremost, we are excited to announce extended weekend pool hours for the 2026 season. Many residents expressed interest in earlier opening times to take advantage of generally better weather and cooler temperatures in the late morning, and we were able to make that happen. The following pool hours will be in effect for the 2026 season:
 
  • Monday:       11:30 a.m. -7:30 p.m.
  • Tuesday:       Closed
  • Wednesday:   11:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.
  • Thursday:     11:30 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.
  • Friday:          10:00 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.
  • Saturday:     10:00 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.
  • Sunday:       10:00 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Holidays (Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, & Labor Day): Pool opens at 10:00 a.m. (When in doubt, consult the website calendar!)
 
In order to take advantage of the New Town pool as soon as it opens, please ensure your 2026 pool pass is up to date. Hopefully you are familiar with the pool pass process as it is the same as last year. You should have received an email from Chesapeake Bay Management on April 6 entitled “Important 2026 Pool Pass Information.” In addition, CBM mailed a bright yellow envelope via USPS to all owners with instructions and important pool documents enclosed. As always, instructions for both owners and tenants are also available on the NTRA website Pool & Clubs Page found under the “Residents” dropdown menu. All communications outline the steps required to obtain your pool pass, ensure it is activated and has the new 2026 green decal.
 
We are excited to continue our partnership with Clearwater Pool Management, LLC, for another year. Clearwater is responsible for many of the essential tasks required to ensure our residents have a safe and enjoyable pool experience including managing the lifeguards, monitoring the water quality, keeping a keen eye on the weather, and ensuring compliance with safety and management policies. As a reminder, we ask that all pool patrons and their guests conduct themselves in accordance with the NTRA Pool Rules and also ask you to respect that the lifeguard on duty has absolute authority and control over the operation of the NTRA pool. Our lifeguards have a big job ensuring the safety of our pool users, and especially the safety of the children in and around the pool. Please support them and also get to know them as they truly appreciate getting to know our New Town residents and developing positive relationships within the community.
 
The NTRA Board of Directors would like to give a special thanks to the NTRA Pool Committee for continuing to make our pool seasons a special part of living in this community. They continue to ensure the pool is well appointed and the pool facilities are well maintained for opening and throughout the season. Their efforts are important to this community, and we all appreciate and benefit from their hard work.
 
Please also mark your calendars for two special pool events organized and hosted by the NTRA Activities Committee:
 
•        June 6th: Noon Pizza Pool Party
 
•        August 7th: Evening Poolside Social
 
We look forward to kicking off the 2026 pool season on May 23 and we hope to see you at the pool many times throughout the summer.
 
What Did You Do During World War II, Mommy?
Posted on May 1, 2026 6:50 AM by NTRA Activities Committee
Categories: General
 
At our April Noon Time talk, resident Liz Fones-Wolf, a retired West Virginia University Professor of History, explored the experiences of American women in the armed services during World War II. 
 
She pointed out that during the war 16 million men entered the military. This created a huge demand for labor and encouraged by the government, 4 million women flooded into the new defense industries and other traditionally male jobs. Indeed, the most common image today of women contributing to war effort is Rosie the Riveter. Rosie challenged gender norms, but her work was seen as necessary and generally applauded.
 
At the same time, powerful military leaders like General George Marshall urged women to join the armed forces to free up men for combat. Due to the military's bureaucratic structure, almost one-third of Army personnel were assigned to clerical work. Marshall wanted to get soldiers out from behind desk and into field. Despite strong resistance, Congress established the WACS, (Army), the WAVES (Navy), the SPARS (Coast Guard) and even female marines, who had no special name because the Marines believed a marine was a marine.   
 
During the war 350,000 women joined the military, far fewer that Marshall wanted because except for the 76,000 nurses, many Americans were alarmed by women in uniform, seeing them as a serious threat to traditional sex roles.
 
Liz then discussed the experience of nurses, which was much less controversial because nursing was a feminized profession and there was already an established military nursing corps. Of all the women in uniform, nurses had the least sheltered experience of war and often the most brutal. Nurses served in every theater of operation around the world, wading ashore during the invasions of North Africa and Italy and were in France four days after D-Day. Nurses served close to the front lines, risking their lives alongside male doctors and medics - 230 were killed in action and many others wounded. Military nurses were celebrated by the public for their dedication and bravery.
 
Liz noted that the recruitment of women did not mean that the United States underwent a social or sexual revolution because the military retained traditional views of gender. Indeed women were treated with little respect and often described as ditsy. Only 33,000 WACs served overseas, mostly in England, but also in North Africa, the Pacific and Burma theaters. Both General Douglas McArthur and General Dwight Eisenhower sang their praises.
 
At home and overseas, most women were restricted to typical female work. A wider variety opened up as the war progressed and women demonstrated their abilities. Women became mechanics, truck drivers, parachute riggers, and sheet metal workers and more. Skilled women even trained male soldiers. General Marshall was so pleased with their performance; he wanted to increase the number of WACs to 600,000.
 
But in 1943 recruitment stalled due to an orchestrated slander campaign in which female members of the military were accused of being sexually promiscuous. Although it was first suspected the rumors were planted by Nazi agents, the military discovered that the source from its own male ranks, with soldiers writing home that 90 percent of WACS were prostitutes and demanding that their sisters, wives and girlfriends refuse military service.
 
Members of the audience were fascinated when New Towner Mike Sachse shared that both his parents were in the Navy and that his mother was so adept at gunnery she taught men in the Army Air Corps how to operate their machine guns. When she discussed joining the military, her father threatened to disown her, saying only whores joined the military. She still joined.
 
Field Hospital Nurses Arriving in France
 
Save the Dates - Future New Town Talks
Posted on May 1, 2026 6:47 AM by NTRA Activities Committee
Categories: Life in New Town
 
Here's a peak at some of the upcoming New Town Talks featuring some of your New Town neighbors.
 
May 26 (Tuesday)  - Home Maintenance and Safety - Jack Espinal, will talk about the basics of home maintenance, from safety (how to turn off the gas) to replacing filters and simple home repairs.   

June 18 (Thursday)- My Time with General Colin Powell - Leslie Lautenslager, aide to Colin Powell for twenty-five years, will talk about working with Powell.  She  has  also published a memoir about that experience.
Home Inspection Season is Upon Us
Posted on May 1, 2026 6:45 AM by Town Crier Staff
 
May begins NTRA’s season of home exterior and landscaping inspections for owners who have opted for less than full NTRA provided landscaping services (i.e. packages C, D, or E). Our community manager will visit these properties roughly every 3 weeks. The inspection will be done from the sidewalk or street and will identify obvious deficiencies using NTRA's Landscaping Standards (adopted August 2025.)  Then each neighborhood will be visited every 6 weeks by a team – CBM, landscaper, and Landscape Advisory Committee representative (and Board liaison). These walks are similar to what was done in 2025 to identify areas that may need improvement and look generally at all owner lots.
 
Home exterior inspections this year will cover three neighborhoods: Abbey Commons, Chelsea Green and Village Walk. Remaining neighborhoods will be inspected next year.  Be sure you are familiar with the exterior inspection checklist  and have kept up to date with your power washing and painting.
Spring Concert Season Starts Wednesday!
Posted on May 1, 2026 6:40 AM by New Town Commercial Association (NTCA)
Categories: Life in New Town
 
The fun starts this week in Sullivan Square!
 
Food and beverage vendors announced for May 6th: 
Bali Bali, Burgers on the Edge, Corner Pocket, Dominion Dogs, Polar Snow
 
Alewerks Brewing Co., Billsburg Brewery, Frothy Moon, The Virginia Beer Company, and Williamsburg Winery 
 
 
(Note the band change for June 3 below.) You can find the latest information each week on the New Town Commercial Association website events page. 
 
A Primer on the Network or Web that is “New Town”
Posted on April 9, 2026 8:00 AM by Everett Lunsford, Vice President
 
I suspect the majority of New Town residents think of our residential association as a stand-alone entity. Actually, there are multiple organizations and situations affecting actions taken by the NTRA Board of Directors and Chesapeake Bay Management Company. Among these parties are:
  • New Town Commercial Association (NTCA), especially the Shared Amenities Agreement
  • Atlantic Builders of Virginia (ABVA)
  • Settlers Market Shopping Center & Walmart
  • James City County
  • New Town Associates (the original developer)
 
NTCA and the Shared Amenities Agreement:
 
NTCA is the association for all the businesses, condominium properties, and apartment complexes within New Town. NTRA and NTCA share certain common areas and amenities under the terms of a 2015 agreement.
 
The 2015 Amenities Use Easement and Agreement (or so-called “Shared Amenities” Agreement) was written by the developer (Declarant), New Town Associates, as outlined in the original proffers for New Town. There is a Managing Committee for the agreement consisting of 3 members each from NTCA and NTRA, plus 1 developer representative.
 
In theory, there are efficiencies with sharing costs for services or items used by both associations. For example, maintenance of dog waste stations, banners, streetlights in the Chelsea Green neighborhood, etc.  In practice, the common execution of projects with two management companies has differed from the what the developer envisioned.  Due to the voting structure in the agreement, NTRA has had very little influence on the decisions made by the Managing Committee to date.  The first opportunity for NTRA to carry a majority vote will come after 2028 when the agreement specifies the chair position (seventh vote) starts switching each year between NTCA and NTRA.
 
Atlantic Builders of Virginia:
 
ABVA Development has been the primary builder in New Town for many years; Charlotte Park and Shirley Park are its most recent neighborhoods. Village Walk, built alongside these neighborhoods, was built by Eagle Construction of Virginia out of Richmond.
 
The Shirley Park neighborhood is nearly complete; a small number of townhomes and vacant lots for detached homes remain.  Transition to NTRA ownership of the common areas and our full neighborhood control is expected late this year or early 2027.  NTRA has already conducted a transition engineering study and formed a neighborhood transition committee to identify issues. (See related February 2026 and December 2025 Town Crier articles.) A list of issues is being worked with both ABVA and James City County.  JCC staff will inspect for compliance with the approved plans and county standards for water, sewer & roads, and for drainage management.  NTRA’s focus will be the deficiencies identified by the residents and the transition engineering study.
 
While ABVA is approaching the end of its construction within NTRA, the company will likely remain working in the area.  It is awaiting county approval for its Westwood Park development on the Eastern State Hospital land adjoining the Charlotte Park and Shirley Park neighborhoods. Discovery Park Blvd would be extended to provide access, and additional commercial/apartment buildings would be built near the extension. ABVA will remain a member of NTCA likely for many years ahead.
 
Settlers Market Shopping Center & Walmart:
 
The Settlers Market complex is Section 9 of the original New Town Master Plan. Management of the Walmart Market is separate from the rest of Settlers Market Shopping Center, but both entities drain into the retention ponds/BMPs located in Village Walk (also part of Section 9), along with NTRA neighborhoods. Thus, they remain connected to the web of New Town. These BMPs are referred to as A04 & A06; they are also BMP-PC258 and BMP-PC259 on the James City County property system. James City County considers Settlers Market Shopping Center the responsible owner for both BMPs, but NTRA owns the narrow finger section of the large BMP-PC259.
 
At county direction, the Settlers Market owners renovated the BMPs a couple of years ago. However, the shopping center has not completed routine BMP maintenance, except when cited by James City County. NTRA has performed routine mowing of the BMPs as part of keeping up the appearance of the Village Walk neighborhood.
 
James City County:
 
James City County approves developments like New Town and Westwood Park. Building standards are set by the county, along with maintenance standards for some items. For example, there is a JCC BMP maintenance handbook.  
 
In the middle of downtown New Town, James City County owns Legacy Hall; it is an available rental facility.
 
The NTRA Board works with the county on routine BMP inspection and maintenance, impacts from the Westwood Park development and on neighborhood transitions from developer control.
 
James City County & New Town Associates:
 
At the beginning of New Town, JCC and New Town Associates established design guidelines and a Design Review Board that approved developer plans for the New Town area. JCC appoints 2 members to this board for indefinite terms. There is a set of standard house colors and other features outlined for each New Town neighborhood. 
 
NTRA’s role in design review is the Architectural Review Committee (ARC) established by NTRA’s governing documents. The ARC has the authority to enforce the design standards and ensure changes requested by owners are in keeping with the general appearance of a neighborhood. In addition to the design standards, the ARC has an additional set of guidelines for covering items like mailboxes and trashcans. Some situations, like solar panels, are also influenced by Virginia statute that allows for panel placement that conflicts with the previously established New Town design guidelines.
 
New Town Associates:
 
New Town Associates (our original Developer) has had an outsized impact on the New Town Residential Association. Our governing documents, Shared Amenities Agreement, other sharing agreements, and extensive cross-easements are New Town Associates’ legacy to NTRA.
 
As time goes on, NTRA continues to discover long-standing agreements that impact us in ways we hadn’t been aware of. These agreements were made between New Town Associates, the NTCA, and JCC; however, NTRA inherits the responsibility and conditions of the agreements when control of an area passes to us. We recently learned of an agreement impacting one or both of the 2 large trail bridges. The agreement calls for performing routine inspections and sharing the costs of inspections and repair/replacement. The bridge near the pool between Charlotte Park and Shirley Park carries a sewer line under the walking deck, thus bringing in the shared responsibility with the county.
 
While our annual budget reserve contributions sometimes seem large, they are necessary and make for smooth handling of ‘surprise obligations’ like these maintenance agreements.
 
Going Forward:
 
The web of New Town and the number of related entities make managing NTRA much more complex than most Virginia homeowner associations. The NTRA Board remains committed to serving its owners and residents in the best way possible and also to continuing to maintain and strengthen the partner relationships that make New Town the unique and vibrant community that it is.
Westwood Park Rezoning Hearing Moving Forward on April 14th
Posted on April 9, 2026 7:55 AM by Mary Cheston
 
The twice postponed public hearing on the Westwood Park Development to be built adjacent to New Town on Eastern State Hospital land will be held during the Board of Supervisors (BOS) April 14th meeting which starts at 5PM. (The meeting will be held at the County Government Center Board Room, 101 Mounts Bay Road.) Westwood Park’s rezoning is scheduled as the fourth public hearing of the evening, following a hearing on the proposed property tax rate increase and another on the JCC 2027-28 budget.
 
According to the latest JCC Staff report, ABVA has not submitted any changes to its application since the February 2026 BOS hearing deferral. However, the hearing package includes a letter from AES Consulting Engineers, ABVA’s engineering firm, in response to comments submitted for the February hearing by the NTRA Board of Directors. The Board had asked the county to significantly improve the planned stormwater prevention mechanisms for Westwood Park. Per the AES reply, “ABVA stands ready to fully complete the work associated with Shirley Park and to ensure the development of Westwood Park does not negatively impact the residents of New Town.”
 
No BOS agenda item is planned in April related to D.R. Horton’s Cardinal Ridge development on the remaining larger parcel of Eastern State Hospital land.
 
Excerpt from latest Westwood Park JCC Staff Report:
 
“CHANGES MADE SINCE THE FEBRUARY 10, 2026, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING
None.
 
CHANGES MADE SINCE THE OCTOBER 14, 2025, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING; these changes represent the most current application information 
On December 9, 2025, the Board of Supervisors approved Case No. LU-20-0002 to change the Comprehensive Plan Land Use Map designation of the subject property from Federal, State, or County Land to the Mixed Use Level 1, Small Town or Suburban Center, designation.
 
The applicants have reduced the proposed residential density of the development from 176 units, comprised of 86 single-family detached and 90 single-family attached and multifamily units, to a total of 155 units, comprised of 82 single-family detached units and 73 single-family attached and multifamily units.
 
Adjusting for the reduction in the number of units, the applicants adjusted Proffer No. 8 to increase the per unit cash contribution from $1,276.81 to $1,451.61 so that a total cash contribution of $225,000 will be provided to the County to be used for a stream restoration project on or near the property.
 
The applicants have also revised the proposed design guidelines to specify that commercial and mixed use buildings shall be two to three stories in height to align with the Mixed Use Level 1 description.”
Upcoming W&M Baseball Game and Lunch
Posted on April 9, 2026 7:50 AM by NTRA Activities Committee
Categories: Life in New Town
 
Stories From the Life of a U.S. Secret Service Agent
Posted on April 9, 2026 7:45 AM by Liz Fones-Wolf
 
At our March Noon Time talk, New Town residents got the inside scoop about life as a Secret Service agent from Tony Zotto.  His friendly, modest and easy-going manner hardly suggests that he spent a career involving tremendous responsibility for the safety of our country’s leaders and constant vigilance.
 
After early stints with the FBI and State Department’s diplomatic security program, Tony Zotto was a member of the United States Secret Service for 21 years, serving in a variety of capacities. He served on and led the personal protective teams guarding presidents and vice-presidents, including Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Al Gore, and Dick Cheney, and presidential candidates, including Bob Dole.  Indeed, he spent almost five years guarding Reagan.
 
Rather than giving a formal talk, Tony shared a series of reminiscences and stories as well as fielding questions from New Towners.  For instance, he provided fascinating details about his job.  He noted that in public situations agents always kept a hand on the principal, that is the person they are guarding, in order to immediately be able to pull them to safety.
 
Tony recalled that the political campaigns were particularly “brutal” for the  Secret Service agents.  He spent so much time in Iowa, site of one of the important early primaries, that he knew every city in the state, and he shuddered recalling standing in the cold during rallies in the midst of New Hampshire winters.  
 
Tony also worked with the Secret Service advance teams that made security preparations whenever the president or vice-president traveled. For him, this was one of the most important parts of the job.  Every movement of the president requires intricate planning, involving at least a week’s work on site before trips within the U.S.  Overseas trips required a month’s preparation, in coordination with local police and security units.  In 1988, Tony worked closely with the KGB in planning Reagan’s meeting with Gorbachev.
 
It was failures in advance work that resulted in successful attacks.  He noted that before President Reagan was shot in March 1981, the press was allowed to get close to the president and there was little effort to separate the press from the public. By mingling with reporters, would-be assassin John Hinkley Jr. was able to shoot Reagan.
 
Tony was with Vice President Dick Cheney on September 11, and he will speak again at a Noon Time talk in early September as part of a panel exploring that event.   
 
Our next New Town talk is Thursday, April 16.  Liz Fones-Wolf, Professor of History, emeritus, West Virginia University, will discuss the history of American women in the U.S. military during World War II.
Easter Egg Hunt - A Spring Success!
Posted on April 9, 2026 7:40 AM by NTRA Activities Committee
Categories: Life in New Town
 
The 2026 Easter Egg Hunt was a lot of fun. Beautiful weather, about 1,000 hidden eggs, bubbles wands and photos with the Easter Bunny. Approximately 100 people attended.  What a great time!
 
 
   
 
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