Town of Purcellville Candidates for Mayor

Town of Purcellville mayor candidates Stan Milan and Joel Grewe
Town of Purcellville mayor candidates Stan Milan and Joel Grewe

Stan Milan

Stan Milan has seven children and lives in the Dominion Valley neighborhood with his wife, Jona, and their daughter. Following over two decades of military service in the U.S. Navy, and serving on the USS Simone Bolivar, USS Alaska, and the USS Georgia, he served the Kitsap County, Washington community as a Reserve Deputy Sheriff. He also served as a Fairfax County Sheriff Reserve Officer. His employers have included the top five defense contractors. Milan currently serves on the Purcellville Town Council and is the Council liaison on the Planning Commission. He also serves on the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority.

Blue Ridge Leader: Does the Town of Purcellville need to raise their water rates higher than the 3 percent for water and 5 percent for sewer? What would raising rates achieve?

Stan Milan: The Town of Purcellville does not need to raise the water and sewer rates higher than the 3 percent and 5 percent.

Just a few years ago, the town’s utility consultant recommended raising the water and sewer rates each by 9 percent per year. At that time my opponent claimed that if we did not raise each by 9 percent, we would fall off a fiscal cliff. Mayor Kwasi Fraser rejected this recommendation and opted for 3 percent water and 5 percent sewer increases, and today our debt payment profile is better than it was before, and we have not fallen off the so-called fiscal cliff.

 These consultant recommendations are based on imprecise estimates and a financial model which produces inconsistent results.  

The current annual increases of 3 and 5 percent were supposed to remain at this level for several years per our consultants, then a year later they are saying it should be raised to 7 percent each based on management estimates.

The only unknowns between the last two years were operational expenses,
residents curtailing their water usage to save money, $10.5 million in ARPA funds, and over $900,000 in net revenue from nutrient credits. 

My opponent is in support of a 7 percent rate increase even though at the current scheduled water rate increase of 3 percent, the town’s water revenue is over 4 times the annual water debt payment. And at the current scheduled sewer rate increase of 5 percent, the town’s sewer revenue is over 2 times the annual sewer debt payment.  

This tells me that with the refinancing and restructuring our debt is known and is being addressed. However, operational spending is the challenge we need to address, and we are doing that with long-and short-term solutions.

With hundreds of billions of dollars available for localities with the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, our manager needs to focus on applying for some of these funds to pay for our Capital Improvement Projects needed throughout our town. 

Receiving these funds would contribute to keeping rates lower. My opponent seems to dismiss going after grants. I need to remind him that the vast majority of our road projects are funded by grants, and that our taxpayers do not have unlimited funds.  

There are also available funds that the Town has that could be applied to the current utility debt. 

I will work with my colleagues to set a policy to use the nutrient credit funds, use 1 to 2 percent from the Town’s Meals Tax, use recurring revenues from the cell towers and fiber optic cables, and reduce the close to $1 million annual charge backs (time charged by staff working in the General Fund to do work for the Utility Fund).

Raising the rates would put a greater burden on the taxpayers, and my opponent is proposing that we blindly follow a model that has been inconsistent without looking on right sizing Town operations and pursuing innovative solutions.  

He claims that the $900,000 net revenue from the nutrient credits is one time, but he fails to acknowledge that his pursuit of availability revenue from growth is also one time, but comes with long term costs and government expansion. 

For example, the taxpayers were told that the millions in availability revenue from the Mayfair development would pay down debt, however, that money is still in our reserves. My opponent is peddling misinformation again that we are eating away at our reserves.

 BRL: How important is the Town of Purcellville’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance?

SM: The Town of Purcellville’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance are very important because the Comprehensive Plan is the vision of the citizens, and the Town’s Zoning Ordinance implements that vision by determining what neighborhoods, commercial, and residential areas should look like. My opponent voted against the Town’s Comprehensive Plan.

 The Planning Commission is currently in the process of updating the Zoning Ordinance which controls density in areas around town, determines lot setbacks and sizes, regulates building heights, and determines what uses can go where – to name a few.  

For example, Vineyard Square – which was approved by the Lazaro administration as a six-story building with retail on the ground floor and 40 condos, as shown in the submitted designs – should never have been allowed because multi-family units are not allowed in the Historic District. Also, the six-story height is not appropriate for Purcellville.

This is one of the many differences between my opponent and me. He favors Vineyard Square, and supports the extension of O Street from 21 Street through to Hatcher Avenue. The representative of Vineyard Square has been before Council, and the Planning Commission asking the Town to extend O Street.

O Street currently dead ends behind Magnolias. With the traffic that would be generated by Vineyard Square’s footprint, the developers need this street extended to Hatcher which already has a lot of traffic, and would cost the citizens millions of dollars.

I am against hiring a consultant to advise the town that we need to extend O Street. My leadership team will not do backflips to justify this unwise change to our downtown.

BRL: How would you continue to lower the Town’s debt?

SM: I would continue with Mayor Fraser’s vision of finding solutions other than growth and raising taxes.

I would cut back on the amount of money senior management spends on consultants. Consultants are not incentivized to solve problems since this eliminates future consulting fees for the consulting firm.

We should, for example, implement stream credits on the watershed and Aberdeen property to generate revenue so we don’t have to go to the taxpayers. 

In addition, I will continue Mayor
Fraser’s efforts to reduce the burden of Capital Improvement costs on our citizens by pursuing the many State and Federal grant opportunities to finance improvements to our infrastructure.

BRL: There’s a saying that during town elections every candidate says they support slow growth. How do you plan to either manage, or change Purcellville?

SM: I will continue to fulfill my campaign promises which I have done during my time on council. I will seek consensus with other council members on implementing the Town’s Comprehensive Plan with the update of the Zoning Ordinance.

I will say no to special interests who want fewer zoning restrictions and more by-right uses. I will improve the business climate by working to reduce red tape and increase transparency, which will increase revenue from businesses, while keeping Purcellville’s residents and businesses informed. I will seek comprehensive public input on every project that impacts this town. 

My opponent voted for a 120-acre annexation that would have significantly extended the town’s footprint, with over 160 additional residences, and added disruptive commercial and industrial uses. The same project would have also increased the call for more town services, as some estimates show that for every tax dollar received from a residential home the town pays up to two dollars in services.

Unlike my opponent, I want the full impact to citizens to be understood before I will support developments that have historically saddled the taxpayers of this Town with traffic congestion and burdensome growth of the town’s government. 

BRL: Why should citizens vote for you?

 SM: I am not a politician. I am a principled man and will continue to preserve our small-town character, just as Mayor Fraser has been doing for eight years.

My mother taught me that my word is my bond, and it is important to give back. I ran for Town Council two years ago, after attending meetings and seeing firsthand how council members and developers tried to bully the mayor and tried to sway him from his commitments to the people of Purcellville, to no avail.

 Purcellville elections have traditionally been nonpartisan. Local issues like slow growth, low taxes, traffic calming, controlled spending, and zoning that protects our quality of life, belong to no single party platform. They are universal public goods.

 My opponent has sought a party endorsement. His record of supporting a 120-acre annexation that the citizens of this town did not support, his record of supporting higher water and sewer rates, his record of supporting expensive consultant studies, his record of voting against the Town’s Comprehensive Plan, was not even a consideration by those who endorsed him. My opponent wants celebrity endorsements. I want the endorsement and support of our citizens in resolving our local issues.

I am running with a team of dedicated citizens – your neighbors, your friends, or acquaintances. We want to preserve our town and continue to make it one of the best small towns in America. I ask for your vote for me, Stan Milan for Mayor, Ron Rise, Carol Luke, and Boo Bennett for town council.

Read the Town Council interviews on Milan’s slate

Joel Grewe

Joel Grewe moved to Purcellville in 2008. He is the Executive Director for the nonprofit HSLDA Action, and has worked in Purcellville for 15 years. He lives in the Branbury Glen neighborhood with his wife and their three sons. He has served on Purcellville’s Town Council for the last four years, and is running with a team comprised of current council members Tip Stinnette and Erin Rayner, as well as Caleb Stought, all of whom are running for town council.

Blue Ridge Leader: Does the Town of Purcellville need to raise their water rates higher than the 3 percent for water and 5 percent for sewer? What would raising rates achieve

Joel Grewe: When the Town Council set the utility rates, we disconnected them from upcoming capital costs. Our financial advisor’s economic models were different than they are today. The 3 and 5 percent numbers were to keep up with inflation and the cost of operations. The cost of doing business has changed.

At the last meeting with our financial advisor, they recommended a 7 percent increase. I’d like to hold to the 3 and 5 percent number and find other ways to address the costs, than taking it from our taxpayers.

What is missing from our funding for the water and sewer systems is how we budget for necessary capital investment. Systems don’t run forever. We can always have unexpected issues like the fire at our utility plant a few months ago. We must have a plan to pay for our capital expenses that is not wishful thinking, or hoping someone else will pay for it.

BRL: How important is the Town of Purcellville’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance?

JG: The Purcellville Comprehensive Plan is a core document to guide Purcellville forward. It is part of how we guide the town forward, and its importance to the town is why I put many meetings and countless hours into its creation. Our goal is to safeguard Purcellville’s small-town charm and our rural “breathing space.” 

What it does not do, and what our town needs, is a plan to support these goals financially. Our current comprehensive plan is missing that key financial piece because that was not what it was designed to do. That fiscal part is where we need to focus. 

The goals are largely good, but the way to get there is what is missing.

BRL: How would you continue to lower the Town’s debt?

JG: First, we must focus on the core responsibilities and services the town must provide.

Second, we must stop the endless wild goose chases and get rich quick schemes.

Third, we must recognize the misleading statement that the town debt has been lowered. Some of our principal debt has gone down but refinancing and restructuring added 11 million dollars in interest payments.

Fourth, we need to focus on recurrent tax revenue, not one-time dollars. To put Purcellville on a better fiscal path we must stop playing shell games with tax dollars.

Bottom Line: Our expenses are not one-time, and our revenue must not be that either. Our revenue must cover the $2 million increase in annual debt payments we face in 2025. That’s when we start paying the principal on some of our debt. 

Purcellville’s future as a small town requires we recognize the challenges we face so we can act rather than ignore or deny them.

BRL: There’s a saying that during town elections every candidate says they support slow growth. How do you plan to either manage, or change Purcellville?

JG: That saying gets tossed around much, it seems it is more often used to obscure rather than enlighten the discussion. The better question is where do I want to lead us? 

We all recognize that Purcellville changes over time, I know much has changed since I moved here in 2008. Some of it has been excellent for the town. New businesses, new opportunities, and new services we enjoy here instead of needing to drive somewhere else. Some of it has not been good.

My goal is not to bring change to our town. Instead, I want to recognize that when change happens, we must try to make it fit Purcellville well. Change is part of life, but if we are careful, we can work to encourage the changes we want. 

I also believe we must put our town on a firm financial footing for our children and grandchildren. We don’t want to make Purcellville a place that is so expensive to live in that when our children grow up, they move away from here because they can’t afford to live in their hometown. Purcellville thrives when we see people in all stages of life call it home. 

We should encourage a town where grandparents and young families starting out can share a Cannons game or share ice cream on a hot summer day. That character is the best part of our small town, and what I am dedicated to preserving.

BRL: Why should citizens vote for you?

JG: I am running on a platform of good governance, which seeks to remove the current rancor between Council and Staff. I am running on the fact we share more values than not and are stronger together than apart. I am running on the idea of balanced leadership that listens and hears all voices, not just those that agree with me. Purcellville, tragically, has had some toxicity in its politics, that is not the sort of leadership our town deserves. 

Over the past four years, I have forged a team of people that disagree on some things yet found common ground in Purcellville’s good. That is the essence of small-town government, finding the places where we agree and building on them. 

 At the core, this election is all about good leadership and working together, and I can do that! If you want to build community like that I ask for your vote in November.

Read the Town Council interviews on Grewe’s slate

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