Ron vs. Ron standoff

Board of Zoning Appeals Chairman Ron Makela confronted Jackson Supervisor Ron Frazier during a public comment portion at the Board of Supervisors meeting on Monday, addressing claims Frazier made about the BZA at March’s Board of Supervisors meeting.

Last month, Frazier attended a

BZA public hearing for a dog training facility, and after questioning Makela’s authority for having an attorney present, Frazier was told to “sit down” because his comments were not relevant to the hearing. Following the altercation, Frazier said during a Board of Supervisors meeting that he would write a letter to a Circuit Court judge about Makela’s behavior at the public hearing, and said all BZA members should have formal training.

On Monday, Makela confronted Frazier, saying he did complete the formal training and so have most members of the BZA, and Frazier’s “uncontrolled tirade” interrupted the public hearing. Makela provided the Rappahannock News with a certificate he received upon completion of the training program.

Frazier interrupted Makela’s comment, calling them falsehoods, and Wakefield Supervisor and Chair Debbie Donehey told Makela that his comment could not single out a member of the body and had to address the entire body.

“At this meeting, the members of the BZA were accused of being the worst members that have been with service for 40 years,” Makela said. “... We take our job very seriously. The members take the time to do their homework oevery item that comes before us. We conduct our meetings according to the local and state code. We make our decisions based on applicable codes, not who's making the application.”