FREDLINES
Claire Marshall Watkins, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Fredericksburg Free Press
Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. argues standing to appeal demolition of 204 Lewis Street
By Adele Uphaus 09/30/2026
Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc. and the City of Fredericksburg were back in court on Wednesday to determine something that the Virginia Supreme Court ruled should have been decided years ago: whether the organization has standing to appeal the demolition of a structure in the city’s historic district.
In four years, the case has moved from the Fredericksburg Architectural Review Board to the state Supreme Court, which in a December 2025 decision sent it back again, almost to where it started.
‘The first monument ever erected to a woman, by women’ is getting a makeover
By Lindley Estes 09/30/2026
The Washington Heritage Museums broke ground Tuesday morning on a major project that aims to make the Mary Washington Monument and surrounding grounds a place where the community can more easily gather and remember.
Between five shovels, 20 community members —museum staff, dedicated volunteers and officials current and retired — took a turn at turning the earth. Speakers noted that all those involved are part of the site’s unfolding story.
The Free Lance-Star
$401 million Spotsylvania bond package referendum on ballot (paywalled)
By Scott Shenk 09/30/2026
This year, Spotsylvania County residents have a chance to cast their votes for or against proposed bond referendums to help pay for a range of projects.
The $401-million referendum package covers four categories: schools ($237.3 million), transportation ($67.6 million), public safety ($62 million), and environmental and solid waste ($33.7 million).
Stafford Schools asks community to shape strategic plan (paywalled)
By Pilar Davis 09/30/2026
The district hosts 37 public schools — 25 elementary schools, eight middle schools, five high schools and three pre-k centers. With a combined total of more than 30,000 students to oversee, the district hopes to develop a plan that supports students’ needs and addresses the areas that matter most to the region.
The school district sent the anonymous survey via email and text message to parents and students, asking for their feedback. It is also soliciting the public’s feedback and has posted the survey details on its social media channels and website. Additionally, the superintendent shared the survey with his advisory committees, such as business partners and faith leaders.
Fredericksburg community cheers start of monument makeover (paywalled)
By Pilar Davis 09/30/2026
Washington Heritage Museums held a groundbreaking ceremony at the Mary Washington Monument in Fredericksburg on Tuesday.
The ceremony marked the beginning of planned improvements to make the space ADA-compliant and provide clear access to the Caretaker’s Lodge, Monument area, and Meditation Rock. The historic site is the final resting place of George Washington’s mother, Mary Ball Washington. She is buried near Meditation Rock on the property.
Man gets 20 years for seducing Stafford teen online (paywalled)
By Keith Epps 09/30/2026
man who was already a registered sex offender when he seduced a 15-year-old Stafford boy over the Internet last year was ordered Monday to serve 20 years in prison.
Timothy J. Bodenheimer, 38, of Fairfax Station, was sentenced in Stafford Circuit Court to a total of 60 years with 40 years suspended. He was previously convicted of enticing a minor to perform pornography and three counts of using a computer to solicit sex from a minor.
ADVANCE READS
Steve Watkins, Donnie Johnston, Phil Huber
Spotsy Supervisor Gives Non-Apology Apology for ‘Misogynistic, Racist, Homophobic, and Incredibly Demeaning’ Social Media Posts
Steve Watkins, ADVANCE EDITOR
Mullins’s account also contained homophobic posts about federal Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agents, derogatory posts about women professionals and local police, and conspiracy theory posts and reposts about FBI agents supposedly involved in the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol.
Mullins didn’t respond to The Advance’s questions about the posts, or about other comments he’d made at a recent data-center event. He blocked public access to his X account immediately after the questions were sent to his Board of Supervisors email.
Public concerns about Mullins’ posts didn’t end there, however, as two speakers called him out for them during public comments at the Sept. 22 meeting of the Board of Supervisors. The speakers also called on the Board to hold Mullins accountable for the offensive posts.
Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It…
Donnie Johnston, ADVANCE COLUMNIST
As with everything else in this country, Americans are divided into two camps when it comes to snow. There are those like me who say, “Bring it on! The deeper the better!” and others who are ready to move to Florida or the Arizona desert based on the predictions alone.
I’m not all that excited just yet. Predictions can be wrong. After all, NOAA predicted up to six Atlantic hurricanes this season and so far we haven’t had a single one, which is a record. Forecasters have a hard time getting the forecast right three days out, so I view predicting January blizzards three months in advance with some skepticism.
Still, I want to be prepared. I canned everything that was available in the garden this summer and last week I stacked up an extra load of wood just to be on the safe side. I like to be ready and not leave anything to chance.
Trump’s Communist Manifestation
Phil Huber, ADVANCE COLUMNIST
Donald Trump calls Democrats and other opponents communists with growing regularity. At the same time, he often speaks admiringly of authoritarian rulers—men who concentrate power, silence opposition, weaken independent institutions, and do not have to worry much about losing elections.
Captain Obvious has a question.
If communism and authoritarian government are as dangerous as Mr. Trump says they are, why does he sound impressed by leaders who have built governments around those very names and habits?
STATE OF THE STATE
VaNews/VIRGINIA PUBLIC ACCESS PROJECT
Virginia Democrats warn more healthcare strains loom after November election
By MARKUS SCHMIDT, Virginia Mercury
Christina Rivera kept her health insurance this year because she needed major back surgery. But maintaining coverage meant absorbing a monthly premium that rose from $235 in 2025 to $1,336 in 2026 — with a higher deductible. “That’s just not reasonable for anybody who is relying on the ACA for healthcare,” said Riviera, a Charlottesville-area resident and founder of the nonprofit Called to Justice. “I don’t have that sitting around. It’s not in the cushions of the couch.” Small nonprofits often depend on the Affordable Care Act marketplace because reasonably priced group coverage is out of reach, Rivera said. After enhanced federal premium tax credits expired last December, her insurance bill became another financial burden alongside groceries, gasoline and utilities.
Sabato ratings shift toward Democrats in 3 Virginia districts
By CLAIRE CARTER, Washington Examiner (Subscription Required)
Eleven House races shifted toward Democrats in Sabato’s Crystal Ball ratings Tuesday, another sign of the difficult political environment the GOP faces with just over a month until the midterm elections. The University of Virginia Center for Politics election forecaster moved all 11 contests in Democrats’ direction as the party continues to lead Republicans in national polling. ... Virginia saw the biggest changes as three incumbent Republicans saw their advantage slipping from their grasp. Reps. Jen Kiggans (R-VA), John McGuire (R-VA), and Rob Wittman (R-VA) all saw their races shifted to the left by the election forecaster.
Va. calls halt of talks on effects of Trump arch ‘indefensible’
By MICHAEL MARTZ, Richmond Times-Dispatch (Subscription Required)
Virginia is challenging what it calls the “premature and indefensible” decision by a federal historic preservation advisory council to halt consultation with the state over the harm that a triumphal arch proposed by President Donald Trump would pose to Arlington National Cemetery and surrounding historic resources. Roger Kirchen, director of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, said Tuesday that the decision by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation last week “will silence the voices of the States, consulting parties and the public at a point in the review of the undertaking when the (National Park Service) has barely begun to meaningfully address and consider those views.”
Past decade’s industrial focus benefits Southern Virginia
By CHRIS SUAREZ, Virginia Business
Work is ramping up on Berry Hill, more than a decade after plans for the super-sized industrial park were in early stages. Today, the Southern Virginia Megasite at Berry Hill, co-owned by the City of Danville and Pittsylvania County, is the site of the $1.35 billion Microporous battery separator facility under construction, and work on Stack Infrastructure’s data center campus is set to start before year’s end. And don’t forget Avio USA, which is set to build a $500 million, 865,000-square-foot rocket and missile factory at Southern Virginia Multimodal Park, owned by the Staunton River Regional Industrial Facility Authority, a collaboration among Pittsylvania, Danville and the Town of Hurt. Matthew Rowe, Pittsylvania’s director of economic development, calls the three projects a hat trick ...
By ERICK SOLORZANO, Cardinal News
Last year on Easter morning, a fire alarm jolted Virginia Tech student Zachary Gisser awake at 4:15 a.m. He’d been a Blacksburg Fire Department volunteer for a few months. Multiple smoke detectors at the Good Shepherd Church of the Brethren on Heather Drive activated, and due to the holiday, only Gisser and two other firefighters were available to respond.
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