News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | September 22, 2026
Local News
Truck collision, fire backs up traffic for 13 miles on I-64
A collision and fire involving two trucks shut down the westbound lanes of Interstate 64 in New Kent County for close to eight hours, resulting in a 13-mile traffic backup. Drivers of both vehicles sustained only minor injuries, but now both face charges. State Police information officer Sgt. Thomas Molnar said the crash occurred around 1 p.m. on Sept. 26 when the driver of a 2011 Freightliner box truck apparently lost control near the 205 mile marker, just west of the Quinton/Bottoms Bridge interchange. The box truck struck a 2009 Volvo tractor-trailer that had stopped on the right shoulder. Impact…
Read Full Story
New Kent County church camp faced with closing
Makemie Woods has been serving a variety of people from New Kent, Williamsburg, Charles City, and other localities for the past 40 years. The church camp, located in the Barhamsville area of New Kent County and operated by Presbyterian Church USA and the Presbytery of Eastern Virginia, has offered facilities to hold retreats, areas for outdoor recreation, and summer camps for youth. Now, Makemie Woods may not be an option in the future. The Rev. Mike Burcher, director of Makemie Woods, said that due to tough times in the economy coupled with lack of funding from Presbyterian sponsors, operations may…
Read Full Story
Kenwood Farms residents vent anger over Dunham plan
Faced with questions from angry residents up in arms over resurgence of a controversial housing subdivision proposed in the Quinton area of New Kent, county officials responded that little if anything can be done. At issue is the “Dunham” development, a cluster subdivision proposal calling for 75 homes on 130 agriculturally zoned acres bordering the existing Kenwood Farms, Deer Lake, and Essex Hills subdivisions. About 30 residents from Kenwood Farms attended a Sept. 20 neighborhood meeting held at Watkins Elementary School to voice concerns and vent frustrations to county officials. And most left the meeting far from satisfied with what…
Read Full Story
Chickahominy Festival
Chickahominy Chief Stephen Adkins is flanked by second assistant chief Reggie Stewart (left) and first assistant chief Wayne Adkins during the grand entry for the tribe’s 61st annual powwow on Sept. 22. Serving for another year (below) are Miss Chickahominy Kara Canaday, Junior Miss Chickahominy Tahlia Wynn, and Little Miss Chickahominy Kristiana Delaney.
NK grand jury indicts 12
A New Kent Circuit Court grand jury has indicted 12 individuals. Convening on Sept. 17, the grand jury indicted: –Shauna Evelyn Chapman, 25, of 10345 Racheal Diann Drive, Quinton, on one count of forging a check. The alleged incident occurred on Nov. 3, 2011 and April 30, 2012. –Jordan Brewster Jones, 23, of 633 Corapeake Drive, Chesapeake, on three counts of possession of a controlled substance. Jones allegedly possessed marijuana, heroin, and amphetamines last Jan. 25 and Feb. 28. –Justin Webster Mills, 24, of 5640 S. Garden Road, Providence Forge, on one count of possession of a controlled substance last…
Read Full Story
NK School Board nixes office move to high school
Last month, New Kent School Board members met with county supervisors in connection with temporarily relocating offices into high school classrooms while the New Kent Historic School is renovated. Now, that move seems unlikely. Superintendent of schools Rick Richardson spoke to school board members during Monday’s meeting and said that after thorough examination of available space and speaking with school board office employees, he recommended staying in the current school board building until completion of the renovation. Richardson said that current office employees would rather “gut it out” for one more year than move in and out of two buildings…
Read Full Story
Advanced placement, SAT, ACT scores on rise at NKHS
New Kent School Board members are pleased with the increased ACT, SAT, and advanced placement scores among the county’s high school students. Director of instruction and curriculum Nate Collins presented what are entitled as “indicators of college preparedness” at the board’s work session on Sept. 24. New Kent High School students’ scores in all three subject areas of the SAT improved. Reading scores improved from 477 to 496, as well as math from 481 to 500 and writing from 457 to 473. Composite scores of the ACT also increased from 22.3 to 22.4. Almost 71 percent of advanced placement students…
Read Full Story
Popular New Kent trail haunt entering ninth year
With the month of October comes the changing color of leaves, cooler weather, and Halloween decorations. And for Journey Haunted Trails, it’s another year for the annual “haunt event.” Journey Trails begins its ninth year of haunted trails this Friday in New Kent County. The trails have received two national awards from the National Haunters Convention in Pennsylvania. The trails also claim to be based on some of the most unusual, truth-based haunts. The trails are created by New Hope Family, a Christian-based organization that focuses its outpouring of support by communicating their message through a variety of modern means….
Read Full Story
Briefly… For October 4 – 17, 2012
Hearing set for NK fee waivers New Kent’s Board of Supervisors has agreed to hold a public hearing on a request to waive environmental and building permit fees for commercial projects. The November public hearing comes as a request from the New Kent County Economic Development Authority to entice more businesses into the county. According to acting county administrator Rodney Hathaway, previous boards have enacted the waiver fee, but more than a year has passed since the waiver has been in place. The waiver would exempt commercial projects from county planning, environmental, and building permit fees for new businesses, as…
Read Full Story
