Edward Leonard | Clarke Daily News

Articles written by Ed Leonard

School Board Divided Over Renovation Approach

Last night the Clarke County School Board split over how best to handle yet another pro-bono offer to evaluate renovation options for several Clarke County education buildings. However, the “free” proposals, that vendors say will allow the school division to generate cost estimates for use in a future request for proposals to renovate the former [...]

Apr 24 2012 | Posted in Feature,Schools | Read More »

Second Graders Leverage Lemons to Learn About Life

There are standards of learning used to test student comprehension in subjects like reading, writing and arithmetic. But there are other subject areas – like citizenship, compassion and community support – that carry similar importance, but can’t always be measured through standardized testing. The students of D. G. Cooley Elementary in Berryville, Virginia may have [...]

Apr 22 2012 | Posted in News | Read More »

VDOT Offers Mosby Schedule, Bridge for Sale

The Old Winchester Road bridge connects Frederick and Clarke Counties (Click to enlarge)
Virginia Department of Transportation program manager Edwin Carter told Clarke County’s Board of Supervisors on Tuesday that plans are in place to complete the Mosby Boulevard extension by early 2013. Carter also said that VDOT is offering a County bridge, currently under consideration [...]

Apr 21 2012 | Posted in Community,Feature | Read More »

Supervisors Approve One-Cent Tax Hike

April, 18, 2012 – 8:30pm
The Clarke County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed a one-cent property tax increase tonight bringing the County’s new tax rate to $0.63 per hundred dollars of assessed property value. While the Supervisors deferred adoption of the County’s proposed $38M expenditure budget pending action by the General Assembly on state spending plans, [...]

Apr 18 2012 | Posted in Feature | Read More »

Supervisors Consider Using School Funding to Reduce Property Tax Hike

Uncertainties caused by the Virginia General Assembly’s inability to reach a budget agreement has caused the Clarke County Board of Supervisors to delay its final budget decision and may also result in elimination of all or part of a proposed two-cent County real estate tax hike. On Tuesday the Supervisors reached consensus to delay any [...]

Apr 18 2012 | Posted in Feature | Read More »

Clarke’s Bell to Lead Cavalier Marching Band

The University of Virginia’s 300 member Cavalier Marching Band has announced its 2012-13 student leadership cadre and a Clarke County High School graduate’s name is at the top.
Former Clarke County Screamin’ Eagles drum major Stefani Bell of Boyce, Virginia was one of fifteen students who auditioned to be a Cavalier Marching Band drum major. Bell [...]

Apr 17 2012 | Posted in Feature,Schools | Read More »

Local Officials Say Biosolids Safe to Use

Biosolids are widely used in Clarke County and viewed as a safe and cost-effective agricultural fertilizer by many Berryville and Clarke County officials. Even if Clarke County and Berryville officials held biosolids health concerns, it is widely accepted that the Commonwealth of Virginia has the authority to prevent localities like Clarke County from prohibiting biosolids [...]

Apr 15 2012 | Posted in Feature | Read More »

Tax Hike Receives Mixed Support at Public Hearing

A public hearing on Wednesday night for Clarke County’s proposed $38M spending budget saw a sizeable turnout, however, most of the people in attendance were school and law enforcement personnel rather than members of the public at large. Three citizens spoke in favor of the budget’s proposed two-cent property tax hike while Berryville resident George [...]

Apr 12 2012 | Posted in Feature | Read More »

Local 4-H Club on Target for Young Adventurers – Video Feature

Just mention the term “4-H” In any farming community and you will surely conjure up images of young men and women raising livestock or poultry that then is judged at the county fair. But in Clarke County, Virginia 4-H extends to other activities beyond traditional animal husbandry; namely archery and gun shooting.
Kaycee Davis takes aim [...]

Apr 12 2012 | Posted in Feature | Read More »

Patience Wearing Thin Between Town, County and Barns of Rose Hill

Clarke County and Berryville elected officials say that they really do want to work with the Barns of Rose Hill. However, a lack of responsiveness from the Barns appears to be beginning to put a damper on just how much farther both governments may be willing to go.
At last week’s Joint Government Center (JGC) building [...]

Apr 10 2012 | Posted in Feature | Read More »