Virginia Tech wide receiver Marlion Jackson runs a route against cornerback Thomas Williams during Thursday’s practice in Blacksburg.
Virginia Tech wide receiver Marlion Jackson runs a route against cornerback Thomas Williams during Thursday’s practice in Blacksburg.
Project Flash, a data center proposed last year for Summit View Business Park, is no longer moving forward in Franklin County.
Boone District Supervisor Mike Meredith made the announcement during a community meeting held Sunday to discuss the proposed data center. He addressed the more than 200 in attendance at the Scruggs Volunteer Fire Department.
"We just got verification last week," Meredith said. "Project Flash is not proceeding."
Franklin County Board of Supervisors Boone District representative Mike Meredith announced at Sunday's community meeting that Project Flash was no longer moving forward.
Secretive negotiations between Franklin County and data center developer Crusoe have been ongoing since before November, according to documents county residents obtained through the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. References and details about Project Flash were uncovered by the Franklin County Community Coalition, which organized Sunday's meeting.
Meredith spoke halfway through the two-hour meeting where members of the Franklin County Community Coalition answered questions and responded to comments from concerned residents. The crowd burst into cheers following the announcement by Meredith and many attendees started exiting the meeting after hearing the news.
When questioned about why the project is no longer moving forward, Meredith said it was a variety of reasons. He alluded to negotiations possibly stalling between the developer and the county, as well as some of the pushback from county residents.
Meredith added that another developer could reach out to Franklin County in the future in a response from another question from the audience. He said it is only Project Flash that was not moving forward.
Concerned citizens and local groups like the Franklin County Community Coalition have spent the past month pushing for more information on Project Flash since the information first came to light in late June. The meeting Sunday was the second community meeting leading up to Tuesday's Franklin County Board of Supervisors meeting.
At last month's supervisors' meeting, a crowd of more than 200 citizens packed into the board room during the meeting carrying signs showing their opposition to data centers. More than 40 people addressed supervisors during the public comment period with all stating they were against data centers.
Laura Carter was one of the individuals who addressed the crowd Sunday. She filed the FOIA requests that led to the Project Flash discovery.
Laura Carter stands outside the Franklin County Government Center in Rocky Mount in July holding close to 500 pages of Freedom of Information Act printouts that detail the county board's communications surrounding Project Flash and Summit View Business Park.
Carter said she is not for or against data centers. Her concern is a lack of transparency from the county. She called for the county to do better in providing information to the public to allow citizens to make their own decision.
"I don't think that we have enough information as people to say what we are for or against without knowing all the details," Carter said.
Christina Sizemore with the Franklin County Community Coalition said she is against data centers. She added that a large data center does not fit what was originally envisioned for Summit View Business Park, and she questions why the county seems to be hiding important information from the public.
Christina Sizemore addresses a crowd of more than 200 people during a community meeting held Sunday to discuss concerns with a data center potentially coming to the county.
With Project Flash no longer moving forward, Sizemore said there is still more work to be done. She said county residents should work to make sure the same concerns don't return in the future.
"Project Flash going away is wonderful, but now we have an opportunity to change what protections are in place that are non-existent," Sizemore said.
Jason Dunovant (540) 981-3324
Boone District representative Mike Meredith informs a crowd of more than 200 Franklin County residents Sunday that a proposed data center know…
A Henry County man faces nine charges after Franklin County investigators said they seized nearly 2 pounds of methamphetamine, several other controlled substances and a firearm during a February investigation.
Plaster
Drew Conner Plaster, 47, was served with the charges Aug. 11 and remained in custody at the Henry County Adult Detention Center, according to a Franklin County Sheriff’s Office news release. The release did not provide information about bond or an upcoming court date.
The investigation began Feb. 20, when members of the sheriff’s office Special Operations Division were conducting surveillance related to suspected drug activity in the Boones Mill area.
Investigators encountered Plaster driving a truck that was towing another vehicle on a car dolly, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies began investigating the vehicle on the dolly and used K-9 Vito, who alerted to the possible presence of narcotics.
A search of the vehicles allegedly yielded about 889 grams of methamphetamine; 16 grams of a mixture containing fentanyl, xylazine and ortho-methylfentanyl; 9 grams of cocaine; and 8 grams of a mixture containing heroin, fentanyl and xylazine.
Investigators also reported finding oxycodone, alprazolam and a firearm.
The sheriff’s office said forensic testing later confirmed the composition of the seized substances. Warrants were issued Aug. 10, nearly six months after the search.
Plaster is charged with possession with intent to distribute more than 200 grams of a mixture containing methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and ortho-methylfentanyl.
He is also charged with possession of oxycodone, possession of alprazolam, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon within 10 years and possession of a firearm while possessing a Schedule I or II controlled substance with intent to distribute.
The release did not say whether the firearm was found in the truck or the vehicle being towed, or provide additional details about vehicle ownership.
The charges are allegations. Plaster is presumed innocent unless proved guilty in court.
Anyone with information about suspected drug activity may contact the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office at 540-483-3000.
Virginia is on the hook for roughly $266 million in annual food assistance benefits, part of the aftermath of Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act that continues to ripple across the country.
The law, signed in July 2025, set new guidelines for state contributions toward Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit costs based on rates that measure how accurately each state determines eligibility and benefits. At the start of the 2028 fiscal year next October, those guidelines require most states whose Payment Error Rates (PER) are above set limits to contribute up to 15% of program benefit expenses.
Virginia is one of them, and it would owe the full 15%.
Right now, the federal government covers all SNAP benefit costs. This added state expense likely will pull money from other state-funded projects, according to the director of No Kid Hungry Virginia, a campaign by national nonprofit Share Our Strength that seeks to address hunger and poverty in the U.S.
“Whatever it is that we care about, we’ll have less money to do so in Virginia, because we’re being hamstrung by the federal government in that way,” said Sarah Steely, director of No Kid Hungry Virginia.
The expense comes as House Resolution 1 (Trump’s “One Big Bill”) adds other costs to the states' plates, including a likely $1.75 billion for K-12 schools and Medicaid.
In terms of SNAP, the bill transfers 5% of SNAP benefit costs to states with lower-range PERs, 10% of costs to states with mid-range PERs, and 15% of costs to states with higher PERs — an error rate of 10% or more.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees SNAP at the federal level through its Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), Virginia tallied a 12.32% Payment Error Rate in FY2025.
Coming in above the 10% mark set in H.R. 1, Virginia would be required to foot 15% of SNAP benefit costs — an estimated $266 million — in accordance with the bill, a condition that is scheduled to go into effect next October. However, the law allows Virginia to choose between basing its benefit cost match on FY2025 or FY2026 — which ends Sept. 30 — giving the state a few more months to lower its PER and potentially decrease the percentage of SNAP benefit costs it would owe.
Aside from the commonwealth, 13 other states will contribute 15% of SNAP benefit costs based on FY2025 PERs, leaving “less money for other important priorities,” according to Steely. Only nine states and the Virgin Islands had error rates below 6%; therefore, they are exempt from paying any percentage of SNAP benefits.
Adding to the impending expenses, H.R. 1 delivered another hit to states for SNAP funding effective this October, this time in the form of a larger share of the administrative fees. The bill requires states to contribute 75% to the program’s administrative costs — a price that sat at 50% previously.
Even more, Rebecca Morgan, director of Middlesex County Department of Social Services and third vice president of the Virginia League of Social Services Executives (VLSSE), said Virginia's localities could owe up to roughly $45 million statewide for additional administrative costs, on top of the administrative costs to the state.
When combined, the increased administrative fees and the estimated state benefits contribution amount to roughly $400 million in new costs to Virginia and its localities each year as a result of H.R. 1, according to Morgan.
“These provisions could risk more people losing access to the food that they need,” Steely with No Kid Hungry Virginia said, potentially putting added strain on Virginia’s schools, healthcare system and local economies.
The two-year budget adopted by the General Assembly on June 29 includes $135 million in the second year to help pay for the state’s share of SNAP benefits. It also includes $100 million to pay for the higher state administrative costs.
It does not include more than $50 million that the House of Delegates had included in its budget to help localities pay their higher administrative costs, but the Senate did not accept. The House budget had included $65.5 million in the first year and $87.3 million in the second to pay the higher share of administrative costs for both state and local governments.
Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s approved budget included $1 million from the General Fund and $1 million from the Nongeneral Fund for each of FY2027 and FY2028 toward decreasing SNAP payment error rates. And, given that Virginia doesn't see a reduction to its PER this year to drive down what the state will owe, the budget also allocates $135 million more in the second year of the budget toward the impending benefit costs.
With additional resources from Virginia's Department of Social Services, Morgan said Virginia's error rate has decreased "substantially" in recent months. However, its PER isn't less than 10% yet, but Morgan says there is a "good chance of getting below" that mark by the start of FY2026 in October, which would drop the state's benefit match cost from 15% to 10%.
With that in mind, No Kid Hungry Virginia is campaigning Congress to delay the start date of SNAP state benefit costs by at least two years to give states like Virginia even more time to decrease PERs below 6% and eliminate a state match cost, a request that Steely said has the potential to be added to the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026.
“In a perfect world, it would be a repeal of some of these really harmful provisions, but certainly a delay to give more states the time to do their due diligence to comply with all the new requirements,” Steely said.
The legislation has been passed in the House but is stalled while Congress is on a month-long recess. Prior to the break, Senate Democrats and Republicans went back and forth on how to handle a delay for state SNAP benefit contributions.
A proposal by Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., would give states like Virginia a one-year delay for benefit expenses. However, it would also increase the maximum share of benefit costs for those states that have a PER above 10%.
This would raise Virginia’s SNAP benefit contribution from 15% to 20% beginning in FY2031 if its PER was to stay above 10%.
Democrats blocked Boozman’s proposal on Aug. 6, sending the Agriculture Committee back to the drawing board and holding states’ SNAP benefit cost-sharing to the impending October 2027 start date set in H.R. 1.
Morgan, a leader with VLSSE, which represents 120 local departments of Social Services in Virginia, said she is "not confident at all" that a two-year delay will be approved. She added that the date the fiscal penalty is owed might be pushed back, but a delay to 2028 is "up in the air."
Regardless of whether the farm bill extends the deadline for states, both Morgan and Steely said using the PER measure, which captures both overpayments and underpayments, does not give a complete picture of how well SNAP is administered. Specifically, PER includes errors made not only by the local departments but also by their clients. It also does not account for forms of fraud like SNAP skimming — a method for stealing benefits by copying card information — or how quickly applications are processed.
"Many of these cases are not the fault of the local government," Morgan said, adding that "this is a new requirement of the federal government with a large financial penalty that states really haven't been held accountable for ever in history."
In addition to the new regulations shifting SNAP benefit costs to the states, H.R. 1 also introduced tighter eligibility requirements and slashed the program’s funding by roughly $187 billion through 2034, marking the largest cut in the program’s history.
Between July 2025, when the bill was passed, and this April, SNAP has seen a decline of over 4.5 million participants nationally, according to a Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) analysis. In Virginia, the program has decreased by over 106,000 people.
“This is a time when, with families being squeezed at the gas pump or the grocery store, with the cost of basic needs really skyrocketing for a lot of families … we would have expected to see more eligible families enrolled in SNAP,” Steely said, “not fewer.”
The new eligibility guidelines not only mean fewer citizens qualify for SNAP benefits, but they also make the enrollment process harder for those who are eligible, adding steps and paperwork that might discourage participation further.
This loss of benefit access can lead to “tough tradeoffs” for Virginians, according to Steely, especially as prices of other goods remain high.
“It could mean a parent or caregiver being forced to skip meals so their kids can eat,” Steely said, or “having to choose between buying food and paying a utility bill.”
On a broader scale, the loss of SNAP benefits also reduces money flowing through local economies. For every $1 in SNAP benefit spending, $1.54 is generated in economic activity as recipients use their benefits at local grocery stores and markets.
SNAP’s declining enrollment has driven more people to local food banks, like Henrico-based hunger relief organization FeedMore, in need of nutrition assistance. The agency’s chief development and health strategy officer, Aaron McClung, said it's seen an increase of more than 11% in people in the last fiscal year.
“We're seeing more people, and they're also coming more often to get that assistance,” McClung said, citing job losses, transportation challenges and cuts to SNAP and other federal benefit programs as primary drivers.
McClung said he is especially concerned about the “most vulnerable” groups that receive SNAP benefits, including children and seniors, which made up over 55% of the program’s participants in Virginia as of last June.
FeedMore is purchasing more food to support its increasing number of visitors, but the agency might not be able to maintain its response, as community donations have declined in recent years, according to McClung.
“I hate to say the term ‘perfect storm,’ but it’s putting a lot of pressure on us,” he said. “We’re responding, but … it’s not sustainable.”
Lauren Holladay
Franklin County Sheriff Bill Overton and P&HCC President Greg Hodges shake hands after entering into an agreement to provide jail-based workforce training.
Patrick & Henry Community College will bring career training inside the Franklin County Jail under a new agreement intended to reduce repeat offenses and help incarcerated people move into steady employment after release.
Under the partnership with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, P&HCC will serve as the training provider for the county’s justice-impacted population. College instructors will teach on-site, coach students through programs that lead to industry-recognized credentials, and connect participants with employers and community support services.
The agreement’s primary goals are to reduce recidivism — repeat involvement in the criminal justice system — and promote financial stability.
“This is a bifurcated mission to instill hope and serve the community as well,” P&HCC President Greg Hodges said. “We have seen firsthand that when you give someone a pathway to a good-paying job that changes the trajectory of their lives, reduces recidivism and improves the circumstances of their family.”
The announcement did not specify when classes will begin, which courses will be offered, how many people may participate, eligibility requirements or how the program will be funded. It also did not say whether P&HCC will use its mobile electrical-training lab at the jail.
The college purchased equipment for that lab with a $129,527 grant from the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission. P&HCC said the trailer could provide hands-on electrician training away from its main campus and allow students to earn up to 11 Greenlee and NC3 industry certifications. The college initially planned to use it at the Henry County Adult Detention Center, the Franklin Center in Rocky Mount and its Patrick County site, serving about 40 students annually.
Sheriff Bill Overton said the agreement brings together resources that can help people in the jail prepare for life after release.
“With this partnership, I just believe we’re going to soar,” Overton said. “I’m so grateful that we are finding ways to help the gentlemen in our facility and cut their recidivism rate.”
Colleen Pendry, career and technical education coordinator for justice-impacted programs at the Virginia Community College System, said participants should have a role in shaping their education and career plans.
The partnership is intended to reflect students’ goals, experiences and aspirations, Pendry said. Listening to students can help build resilience and create stronger paths to economic mobility, while successful reentry can benefit families, employers and communities.
“When students are empowered to help shape their educational and career journeys, the benefits extend beyond the individual,” she said.
The Franklin County agreement expands work P&HCC already has underway in other regional jails. The college became the education and training provider for the Henry County Adult Detention Center, where classes began in April 2025. It signed a similar agreement with the Martinsville City Sheriff’s Office in November to provide on-site instruction, coaching, credentials and employment connections at the city jail annex.
The local expansion is part of a broader push by Virginia’s community colleges. As of October, 11 colleges operated programs in 20 prisons, jails and detention centers. Nearly 500 incarcerated students earned degrees, certificates or workforce credentials during the previous year, and more than 1,500 were enrolled statewide. The system has set a goal of increasing enrollment among incarcerated students by 25% by 2030.
A 2025 study by Virginia’s Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission found that people who participated in correctional education were more likely to be employed during the first two quarters after release than comparable people who remained on waiting lists. Participants in career and technical or postsecondary programs also earned higher wages.
The commission said national research links correctional education to lower recidivism, but it also identified obstacles, including limited staff, classroom space and technology, as well as security restrictions. In jails, shorter stays and transfers can make it especially difficult for students to finish a course before release.
Those findings support the Franklin County agreement’s emphasis on more than classroom instruction. P&HCC’s role will include coaching students through completion and helping them connect with employers and community services — support intended to turn a credential earned in jail into a realistic path to work after release.
