The Albemarle Board of Supervisors will adopt a new budget on May 7 that is based on increases in the tax rate for real property and personal property.
On April 29, Republican Scott Smith rode his bike to the steps of the county office building and compared himself to Paul Revere with a warning.
“Right now behind the doors is a brewing tempest of tax increases,” Smith said. “As a citizen over the last five years, I’ve watched our property taxes essentially double.”
Smith is challenging Democrat Fred Missel, whose day job is as director of design and development for the University of Virginia Foundation, for the Samuel Miller District seat covering southwestern Albemarle.
A Republican has not been elected to the Board of Supervisors since 2011 when the late Ken Boyd won a third term with just over 56 percent of the vote against Democrat Cynthia Neff.
Two years prior, Republicans won seats in the Samuel Miller and Rio districts, which gave them a majority on most votes due to a conservative-leaning Democrat in the Scottsville District. Both Duane Snow and Rodney Thomas lost their reelection bids in 2013 to Democrats.
Since then, the political makeup of Albemarle has steadily grown more Democratic. Barack Obama carried the county with 55.2 percent of the vote in 2012. Hillary Clinton increased that to 59.3 percent in 2016 and Biden received 65.7 percent in 2020. Kamala Harris had a similar showing last year.
That means the Board of Supervisors has been more willing to increase taxes to bring in more revenue for government services. In 2007, the Board lowered the real property tax rate from $0.74 per $100 of assessed value to $0.68.
The rate gradually grew to $0.854 in 2019 where it has remained until this year. County Executive Jeffrey Richardson proposed a four cent increase, with most of that new revenue going to cover the cost to hire dozens of new firefighters and medics in a growing county.
Property assessments have also increased over that time, particularly since the pandemic. Elected bodies in surrounding counties often reduce the real estate tax rate, but both Albemarle and Charlottesville have increased spending.
Smith is a retired businessman in the software industry who moved with his wife to Albemarle five years ago.
“We need someone sitting at the table,” he said.
Incumbent Democrat Ned Gallaway is seeking a third term to represent the Rio District. Diantha McKeel is not seeking a fourth term, while two Democrats are vying for the nomination in the June 17 primary. Sally Duncan is a history teacher and David Shreve is an economist and former member of the Albemarle Economic Development Authority. The Free Enterprise Forum will hold a candidate event at Journey Middle School on May 21.
June 17 is also the deadline for Republicans to get candidates on the ballot. A total of three seats are up this November.
So far, Smith is the only Republican in the race, but Albemarle Republican Committee Chair Nancy Muir said the party is seeking to add two more candidates in order to provide voters a choice.
“We are truly entertaining one of those seats right now,” Muir said, but did not want to identify a name.
Only one Republican ran in 2023, when T.J. Fadeley challenged incumbent Democrat Bea LaPisto-Kirtley. She received just over 60.5 percent of the vote to clinch a second term.
