Reading The Fine Print Nottoway Supervisor Daphne Norton (right) questioned a January 30th invoice to Ingram’s Concrete Finishing for work at County-owned Nottoway Lanes. County Administrator Steve Bowen said the bill was for work by Tony Ingram who had been granted a lease for the facility before the County withdrew after backlash from citizens.
Nottoway County in January paid a contractor $3,675 to pour a concrete pad behind the Nottoway Lanes bowling alley.
That expense was brought to light by District Three Supervisor Daphne Norton, who inquired about the transaction during the Board’s March 19th regular meeting.
“Ingram’s Concrete Finishing — ‘Facilities Repair,’ what’s that for?” Supervisor Norton asked, referring to the County’s list of bills included in the Board’s monthly “Consent Agenda.”
County Administrator Steve Bowen said the project included pouring a concrete pad for a grease trap behind the Countyowned bowling alley.
The invoice is dated January 30th — the same date that Tony Ingram of Burkeville agreed to withdraw from a lease for the bowling alley. The company’s address is Deerfield Acres Drive, Burkeville — the same address as Ingram.
Administrator Bowen told Mrs. Norton that when he approved the work, “We had told him (Ingram) that we were moving forward with the bowling alley rental.”
Supervisors on Dec. 18th, 2025 authorized Bowen to sign a contract with “a person” for the bowling alley. After word spread that the “person” was Mr. Ingram — a registered sex offender — Supervisors received criticism from speakers at their Jan. 15th Board meeting.
It was reported — and Supervisors have not refuted the claim — that the entire Board knew about Ingram’s history as early as December 11th — one week before their vote in open session authoritizing Bowen to move forward with the clandestine bowling alley deal.
The Board later held a special meeting on Jan. 22nd and voted 5-0 to withdraw from the lease. That special session lasted only 47 seconds. Nine citizens held signs in the Emergency Operations Center urging Supervisors to abandon the deal.
Ingram and his wife signed papers withdrawing from the lease on January 30th — the same date as the $3,675 invoice. Their signatures and Bowen’s were made that same day.
Bowen told Supervisor Norton on March 19th: “To get him to sign the release, he would like to get his money for that pad. I thought that was very fair because of his improvement to the bowling alley and the grease is no longer on the ground.”
Supervisor Norton apologized March 19th for not asking Bowen “sooner” about the bill, “but I didn’t finish looking at this until two o’clock in the morning.”
Ingram had offered to buy the idle facility for $410,000 — after a lease period of up to 30 months, during which he would have paid the County $2,700 per month rent.
Ingram was one of five bidders who had submitted proposals last year before Supervisors in October rejected all bids. One of those offers was $350,000 — up front — from Blackstone native Winnie Moss of Midlothian.
After those bids were rejected, Ingram approached Co. Adm. Bowen and the two began talking, with Bowen bringing Ingram’s new offer to the Board.
The debacle with Ingram wasn’t the Board’s first letdown with the bidding process.
In December 2024, the Board awarded a $430,000 bid to Kyle Houts of Blackstone, but that deal fell through.
Supervisors now are once again re-advertising for bids, with proposals due before 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 23rd. The bowling alley has been a source of unusual events — including a car being driven through the side of the facility in 2018 and an “American Studs” male stripper show in 2023 — causing headaches, embarrassment, public outcry, and legal costs for the County.
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