‘Huge undertaking’: James City County supervisors clear the way for construction of $238M government center with approval of special use permit

JAMES CITY COUNTY – A $238 million proposed James City County Government Center is one step closer to reality following the Board of Supervisors’ approval of a special use permit for the project.

At its meeting on June 10, the supervisors greenlighted a request to make way for the construction of the 177,000-square-foot building, which is the size equivalent of about three Williamsburg-area Harris Teeter supermarkets.

Previous zoning regulations limited buildings to no more than 30,000 square feet.

Last month, the board voted to approve a $389.5 million budget for fiscal year 2026 that includes funding for the new center. The decision was made in spite of pushback from dozens of vocal residents who spoke during public meetings over the span of several months.

A few speakers at Tuesday’s meeting urged the board to allow the county’s citizens to vote on the proposed building via a referendum, a request that has been echoed by citizens throughout this year’s budget process.

“Put this on a ballot… because that’s how you find out if the public is willing to financially support this,” resident Chuck Colegrove said.

Residents have raised a range of concerns about the center, including the costs, traffic impacts and potential environmental effects.

Chris Henderson said the project – expected to cost nearly a quarter of a billion dollars – has become excessively expensive.

“We were originally told that this was an $80 to $90 million project. Well, today, it’s $190 million, plus potentially $50 million for a library, plus untold millions in road improvements,” Henderson said. “You are going to put our taxpayers in a situation where our tax rate will have to increase dramatically in order to pay for these improvements.”

Karen Rollins said that while the county’s current government office buildings are indeed becoming outdated, they can and should be renovated.

“I haven’t heard anything that convinces me this [new center] is essential,” Rollins said. “I, for one, am totally against what appears to me to be unnecessary development.

Despite the feedback, the supervisors voted 4 to 1 in favor of the special use permit, with Supervisor Null abstaining.

“I’m torn on this,” Null said. “I’ve had a lot of pushback from residents upset that that they didn’t get to vote on it.”

Null said she would ideally prefer a more conservative approach, such as renovating the current county government buildings with construction of additional offices on the existing land.

Null also seemed uncomfortable with the lack of public awareness surrounding the project. She said that while numerous public hearings on the new government center have been held, too many residents are still unaware of construction plans and will wonder “what the heck happened” when they see that it is being built.

The county’s comprehensive plan states that all public facilities should “reflect what the citizens, need, desire and are willing to financially support,” Null stressed.

“A lot of people don’t think that we should be taking on this debt,” Null said. “It’s a huge undertaking. It’s a huge building.”

Supervisor Ruth Larson clarified that the “yes” vote on Tuesday did not automatically mean that the new site will be built– it simply clears the way for the project, should it be fully approved later.

Larson noted that the board was opposed to allowing county residents to vote on the center via referendum because it would be a no-win situation for the supervisors.

“If you put it into a referendum, if that were possible, it’s going to be defeated,” Larson said. “People are going to work very hard, probably several of you that spoke this evening, to make sure that it’s defeated.”

In that case, she said, the board still would have “no choice” but to move forward with a plan to construct a new office building.

“We need more space, and we are not meeting the needs of our county. We’re going to have to come back and we’re going to have to vote to do something anyway, and then we’re going to get accused of not listening to the referendum,” Larson said.

The county’s existing government offices are located on Mounts Bay Road. Under the new plan, all of the departments currently housed there would be relocated to the new center, bringing the offices under one roof. 

While Virginia is one of 24 states in the nation that allow localities to hold referendums, state law does not permit voting to take place for proposed budget projects. The county can, however, allow citizens to vote on whether or not a bond should be issued to fund the project.

The proposed government center is set to be built at 5231 Longhill Road, which is near the James City County Recreation Center. Supervisors say the location itself is a selling point because it is central to many residents. 

The cost to construct the new office building itself is expected to be about $189.5 million, according to the most recent estimates. The site will also include a 25,000-square-foot library addition, which is expected to add $49.6 million to the total price tag.

The building is still in the design phase, and a final cost estimate is forthcoming.

Supervisor John McGlennon said that while some residents seem to be reeling from the sticker shock of the project, the price is a reflection of soaring costs amid inflation.

“I think we do have to understand that costs today are not what they would have been in 2000,” he said.

Supervisor Michael Hipple defended the county’s approach to spending, saying the board has a solid track record of fiscal responsibility.

“The staff in this board has worked very hard to make sure we are careful in how we spend the citizens’ money,” Hipple said. “I don’t do anything for my benefit. I do this job because I love James City County and I want to see it the best it can be.”

A final vote on the project is expected to be held sometime in the fall.