The Charlottesville Open Government Alliance held a press conference yesterday morning to protest a motion which the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority (RWSA) filed March 22 with the Albemarle County Circuit Court. The motion sought judicial approval for a bond which would provide funding for the construction of a new dam at the Ragged Mountain site near Fontaine Research Park.
The project, which City Council approved Jan. 17, would close down the current Ragged Mountain dam so construction could begin on a new dam, which would raise the reservoir's water levels by 42 feet.
Alliance spokesperson Joanna Salidis said the RWSA filed the motion to try to circumvent the claim lawyer Stanton Braverman filed March 23 challenging the legality of the dam contract.
"The bond validation proceeding is about getting a judge to legitimize the land use and water allocation agreements even though a legal challenge is pending," Salidis said at the conference.
Braverman's lawsuit does not seek financial compensation, instead challenging the legality of the City's decision to sell public lands to the RWSA and to the Albemarle County Service Authority on the grounds the agreement lacked the four-fifths majority vote of Council members required by the state constitution, and a referendum of City voters.
Salidis said the Alliance is concerned the rights to the dam water could end up being owned by a third party.
"We object because the collateral for the bond is the water supply," Salidis said. "This process should not be expedited. The financial institutions and the court should do their due diligence."
City spokesperson Joe Rice said in an email it was against City policy to comment on pending lawsuits, but said Council members had voted 3-2 to support the measure.
Alliance founding member Bob Fenwick said the organization sent a letter to RWSA executive director Thomas Frederick asking it to delay draining the Ragged Mountain Reservoir. The letter expressed concerns about a possible drought which could affect Albemarle County's emergency water supply.
"Since the Ragged Mountain Reservoir is a critical component of the emergency water plan, you are unnecessarily gambling with the health and safety of our community by prematurely removing an important source of emergency water," Fenwick said, reading from the letter.
Frederick was unavailable for comment yesterday.
The hearing for the RWSA motion will take place April 19.
Read More
Advancement Committee reports Honor the Future campaign milestone
By Nicolas Biernacki | 9 hours agoThe Honor the Future campaign was launched in 2019 with the pillars of sustaining education, securing democracy and driving research, and will officially end June 30.
Health System Board discusses two recent $25 million donations
By Nina Broderick | 2 days agoThe Board also discussed the goals and vision of the Paul and Diane Manning Institute of Biotechnology and voted to approve the fiscal year 2026 operating budget.
Honor Committee discusses fall Support Officer recruitment
By Bertie Azqueta | 2 days agoThe Support Officer pool is chosen by existing Senior Support Officers and the Selection and Recruitment Committee members through an application and interview process.
