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Fauquier County Board of Supervisors Chair Chris Granger plans to resign at the end of August, he announced Friday.
Granger鈥檚 resignation from the county board follows the disclosure on social media by his wife, Brandie Schaeffer, Warrenton鈥檚 former town manager, that she has been hired by Amazon Web Services. Schaeffer resigned as town manager July 12.
The couple鈥檚 resignations from their respective positions come several months after Amazon聽filed an application聽with the town for a special-use permit to build a data center on 33 acres at Blackwell Road and Lee Highway.
In June, Schaeffer announced she would聽resign聽as town manager citing concerns about her mental health and the 鈥渢oll鈥� the job had taken on her personal life. Schaeffer officially submitted her resignation the next month, and the聽Parks and Recreation Director Tommy Cureton was named interim town manager聽while Town Council began a search for a permanent replacement.
On Monday, Schaeffer updated her聽LinkedIn profile聽announcing she started a new position as a principal for Amazon Web Services鈥� economic development team 鈥� with a focus on 鈥淕lobal Infrastructure Expansion.鈥�
Over the past several months, dozens of residents have attended Town Council and Board of Supervisors鈥� meetings to聽express opposition聽to the Amazon data center because of its connection with Dominion Energy鈥檚 proposed聽Blackwell Substation聽that would include a transmission line through Fauquier to provide electricity to the data center.
The Warrenton Planning Commission is reviewing Amazon鈥檚 application and held its first work session to聽discuss the proposal聽last week.
Granger, first elected in 2011 to represent the Center District, told FauquierNow that he had decided not to run for re-election in 2023 long before Schaeffer was hired by Amazon. He noted it was becoming increasingly difficult to balance his personal life and duties as a supervisor with the demands of his job as a division chief with the Prince William County Department of Fire and Rescue.
鈥淏etween the extreme tolls that it’s taking to keep up with the 20 to 30 hours a week I put in with the board and my fire department鈥檚 work schedule 鈥� I mean, we’re like to up an 80- to 90-hour work week 鈥撀� it’s kind of staggering,鈥� Granger said.
鈥淢y appraisal of the situation: What’s best for my colleagues on the Board of Supervisors, what’s best for my family, and what’s best supporting my wife moving forward in her new roles is to go ahead and step out of my role on the board of supervisors,鈥� he added.
While family concerns are an issue, Granger noted his decision to resign now is because he does not want there to be the appearance of a conflict of interests because of his wife鈥檚 connection to Amazon.
鈥淚t’s primarily because I don’t have any time for my family,鈥� he said. 鈥淸Schaeffer] going to the private sector just makes it that much easier for me to step away because I don’t want any implied or explicit conflict.鈥�
The county board has no authority over the town鈥檚 permitting process, and the power to approve or deny Dominion鈥檚 proposal lies with the Virginia State Corporation Commission. But because proposals for more data centers are 鈥渋nevitable,鈥� Granger said it would be more practical for him to step down.
鈥淚 know what the law says is that if there’s an Amazon application in front of the county, I would have to recuse myself from any conversations of it,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut鈥 don’t want to be involved in that because I don’t want to be accused of advancing the industry.鈥�
A spokesperson for Amazon declined to comment on the details surrounding Schaeffer鈥檚 hiring but told FauquierNow she officially started working for the company in 鈥渓ate July.鈥� The spokesperson also noted that 鈥渢he company takes compliance with laws very seriously and has a robust process in place for screening for possible conflicts of interest.鈥�
Schaeffer could not be reached for comment.
In a written statement provided to FauquierNow, Granger said he was proud of his accomplishments over the past 10陆 years making Fauquier an even more desirable place to live, work, play and raise a family鈥� by increasing recreation and open space amenities, improving the local economy, increasing public safety services and putting tax dollars toward modernizing the public school system鈥檚 infrastructure.鈥�
But he noted the county 鈥渟till has much more to do,鈥� particularly in regards to public education, which Granger said 鈥渋s at a critical crossroad as our ability to attract and retain talented teachers is hampered by our small commercial tax base.鈥�
FauquierNow recently聽reported聽that Fauquier continues to struggle providing adequate wages for veteran public school teachers despite recent pay increases.
The next board election is not until November 2023. However, a special election could be held as early as May 2023 to replace Granger.
The remaining board members can appoint an interim supervisor to fill the Center District seat and appoint a new chair, which could happen as early as next week at the board鈥檚 regular monthly meeting.
