Hard At Work In Pit Row Officials from Nottoway County and the towns of Blackstone, Burkeville, and Crewe met last Monday, Dec. 29th with representatives of the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, including founder Ward Burton (third at left side of table). Supervisors agreed to sell the Foundation 183 acres of County-owned land along Darvills Road (Rt. 40) near Fort Pickett for $2,013,000. That move follows the Board’s 5-0 vote on Dec. 18th to sell the Pickett Officer’s Club for $240,000. Supervisors are also proposing to sell old barracks in the LRA and 55 acres for $700,000. Burton is a South Boston native who won NASCAR’s Daytona 500 in 2002. Seated to Burton’s left is his Foundation’s Executive Director, Tom Inge.
WILL COUNTY LEADERS GET VICTORY LAP?
After several “caution flags” and “re-starts,” the Nottoway Board of Supervisors went full throttle last week and crossed the finish line on a $2 million deal with the man who won the Daytona 500 back in 2002.
County leaders voted 5-0 last Monday night, Dec. 29th, to sell 183 acres to the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation.
The County-owned land sits along the north and south sides of Darvills Road (Rt. 40 east of Blackstone) near the Main Gate to Fort Pickett.
The sales price will be $11,000 per acre — for a total of $2,013,000.
The special meeting was held with members of the County’s Economic Development Committee (EDC), which includes reps from the towns of Blackstone, Crewe, and Burkeville.
Burton’s Foundation preserves land around Fort Pickett and other bases to prevent residential and commercial enroachment that eventually has resulted in reduced training opportunities at a number of U. S. installations.
Bumper-To-Bumper Ward Burton (left) makes point during Dec. 29th meeting of the Nottoway Board of Supervisors and the County’s Economic Development Committee, held in the Health Department basement which serves as the County’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC). Also shown are Tom Inge, Executive Director of the Ward Burton Wildlife Foundation, Supervisor John Roark preparing “track strategy,” and County Administrator Steve Bowen. Burton is a native Southside Virginian who won the Daytona 500 in 2002. He’s well-known in this area and served as Blackstone’s Christmas Parade Grand Marshal in 2021. Blackstone Mayor Lafayette Dickens (not shown) was among the officials present and, during the meeting, captured this image, which he posted on his Mayor of Blackstone VA Facebook page.
The Nottoway deal won’t include a Conservation easement, which would greatly restrict any future development. Any future industrial prospect, however, would require National Guard approval and therefore must be compatible with the mission of Fort Pickett.
‘HOSTILE DAMN PLACE’
Blackstone Town Manager Philip Vannoorbeeck said that more than likely, such an industry would be aviation or dronerelated due to the land’s proximity to Blackstone Army Airfield. The acreage being sold is zoned Industrial, and County officials are planning to add “Airport Overlay” to that designation on the property.
Burton’s Foundation has completed 150 projects around Pickett, preserving approximately 24,000 acres. Burton, a straight-talking South Boston native, attended last week’s special meeting and told officials, “Y’all can see on the news — the world is a hostile damn place.”
WILL PAY COUNTY TAXES
Burton called Pickett “the largest economic engine you’ve got in Southside Virginia….so you’ve got to take care of the ‘mother ship.’”
Burton was joined by his Foundation’s Executive Director, Tom Inge, who assured Supervisors that although the Foundation is non-profit, it will pay County real estate taxes.
County Administrator Steve Bowen confirmed Inge’s assurance. Bowen said that based on information from the Commissioner of Revenue’s office, the Foundation currently owns about 380 acres of land in Nottoway and pays $33,300 annually in County real estate taxes.
‘WIN-WIN’
Inge warned that another factor to consider in protecting Pickett is foreign actors. He said County-owned land near Pickett and also on base could be sold to an American company with strong credentials but which eventually sells to a foreign manufacturer.
“A foreign interest inside the base would be disastrous,” Inge warned.
Supervisor Dicky Ingram made the motion to approve the sale. He called the $2 million deal a “win-win. It’s a win for Pickett and a win for the County.”
Ingram said another “win” is possible if a military industry locates on the property and employs area residents, and such a new business also would pay taxes.
Ingram said that currently, the County gets nothing from that acreage and other properties it owns on and near the base. “In fact, we’re losing money, so I’m all in favor of this.”
MILLIONS NEEDED
Town Manager Vannoorbeeck said he initially was skeptical of the deal because he views those 183 acres as the Town’s de facto industrial park.
“But I’ve never looked down the barrel of having to borrow $25 million (for a new County courthouse) with no additional cash on hand. I don’t want to be the guy who comes to the podium and tells you all the problems without giving you a solution. And I don’t have a $2 million solution right now.”
Supervisors also are selling the Town 73 acres near the airfield for an additional $650,000. They also voted Dec. 18th to sell the 1942 Officers’ Club property (3 acres) to the Foundation for $240,000. And they’re also proposing to sell an old barracks property (55 acres) for $700,000 to the Foundation. The Foundation would keep the 183 acres but would transfer the O-Club and 55-acre barracks area to the Dept. of Military Affairs.
Altogether, Supervisors are hoping to invest those projected $3.6 million in sales proceeds into an interest-bearing account to help finance debt payment for the courthouse project — the details of which have yet to be publicly divulged.
‘UNETHICAL’
At their Dec. 18th regular meeting, Supervisors heard staunch opposition to selling County land near Pickett, some 3,000 acres of which was given to the County by the Dept. of Army after Pickett was realigned in 1997 by the federal BRAC Commission.
Retired County Administrator Ronnie Roark called selling the officers’ club an “injustice” and “big mistake.”
Doc McGhee of Blackstone, a former Command Sergeant Major at Pickett, said selling-off the former federal properties “may be legal, but it’s unethical.”
A speaker identified only as “Jed” said the County is losing money only because its properties at Pickett haven’t been properly maintained or promoted. “Willful neglect,” Jed charged.
Meanwhile, County officials are said to be eyeing several more millions from a potential siting agreement for a proposed 700-plus acre Ampliform solar farm along Rocky Ford and other nearby roads.
IN WRITING
Burton Foundation rep Stanley Reekes told the Dec. 29th gathering that he knows officials would like to receive, in writing, assurances of what type of industries are “compatible” and “non-compatible” with the military mission of Pickett. But Reekes said that’s “almost impossible” today because warfare technology is changing rapidly.
Burton agreed. “If we let down the military base, we might cost somebody’s life.”
Reekes said Pickett is one of the best training bases in America and not for its amenities. “The commanders don’t bring their troops to Pickett because of nice barracks or nice eating accommodations. They bring their soldiers here to train in a natural environment and to use those ranges out there. Those commanders don’t care if their soldiers sleep on the floor of a tent every night…”
Foundation Exec. Director Inge said the 183-acre tract outside the Main Gate includes a key feature — the rail spur that crosses Rt. 40. “The railroad track is ultra-important to the military base…They have to have that for readiness, for the next war.”
Supervisor Bo Toth asked if it’s possible to work-out a “profit sharing agreement” if the Burton Foundation sells the property to a military-compatible industry.
“I don’t mean to be rude or short — but no way in Hell,” Burton replied. “We’re a lot of things, and dishonest ain’t one of them.”
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