‘One Government’ hits snag

Consolidation lies in limbo.

Culpeper businessman Joe Daniel’s proposal to merge the town and county governments into a new county government hit a snag late last month when the town filed papers in court challenging the process.

According to Daniel, the town needs to have its consolidation plan ready by January before it goes before town and county voters in a special referendum.

But according to the town’s special attorney, Carter Glass IV of Richmond, that timeline is invalid because Daniel did not follow the correct procedure in initiating the process for “One Government.”

Either way, the town has already drafted “a consolidation agreement” that would, if approved by voters — among other things — turn the town of Culpeper into “a shire.”

Under the plan, Town Council would go away, as would the Department of Public Works and Police Department. The draft agreement proposes a reorganization of these functions so as to maintain the same level of services in the former town.

The Culpeper County Board of Supervisors is reviewing the town’s plan, as it too has to sign off on it before the measure for consolidation goes before voters.

In the meantime, the concept for consolidation sits on a shelf in the courthouse, awaiting a hearing to sort out the town’s allegations that the petition process was conducted improperly.

“No response to the Town Council’s motion has been filed,” Glass wrote in an e-mail Thursday. “We are working now on scheduling a date for a hearing.”

He said Daniel — or any other of the 992 town voters who signed his petitions — could file a response to the town’s motion to dismiss the consolidation initiative.