Staunton News Leader 07/01/2014 Page : A01

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STUARTS DRAFT — A large warehouseoffU.S. 340once filledwith tulipbulbsandpremature flowers is now empty andready for expansion.

Joep Paternostre, co-owner of Bloo-maker USA Inc., gave as an example dur-ing a plant tour Monday of a farmer with25 acres generating perhaps $25 milliongross revenue. Within the next few years,Paternostre expects his flower growingoperation to produce that much revenueon just one acre. State and local officialslastmonthannouncedthat98newjobswill

be part of the Bloomaker expansion.Thecompany,whichhasdevelopedand

patented long-lasting flowers, plans to in-vest more than $2 million to build a newgreenhouse. The project is expected tomore than double sales from the current$10millionannually, saidPaternostre,whoowns the business with his wife, Lilian.

Bloomarker ships out bulbs ready forgrowing – either in vases or to be plantedoutside. By supplying amaryllis, Bloo-maker makes it possible for flowers tobloomeven in thewintermonths.Byusingthebestvarietiesofbulbsalongwithstate-of-the-art growing equipment, Bloomakeris able to provide flowers that last longerthan cut tulips or tulips in soil.

Duringoneof several stops in theShen-andoah Valley, U.S. Rep. Bob Goodlatte,

BLOOMAKEROWNERGIVES GOODLATTE TOUROF FACILITY

Joep Paternostre, co-owner of Bloomaker USA Inc., talks about the business he shares with his wife, Lilian Paternostre, right, as they take U.S.Rep. Bob Goodlatte, left, on a tour of their plant near Stuarts Draft on Monday.MIKE TRIPP/THE NEWS LEADER

Employment in bloomStuart Draft companywill be adding 98 jobsBy Laura Peterslpeters@newsleader.com

Local horticulturist Mark Viettedemonstrates how a flower bulb is checkedfor quality.MIKE TRIPP/THE NEWS LEADERSee BLOOM, Page A6

TUESDAY, JULY 1, 2014 • WWW.NEWSLEADER.COM

PROUDLY SERVING OUR COMMUNITY FOR 107 YEARSSTAUNTON, WAYNESBORO & AUGUSTA CO., VA.

VOL. 124, NO. 182 • COPYRIGHT 2014 • $1 RETAIL • FOR HOME DELIVERY PRICING,SEE INSIDE

U.S. ready for clash withyoung, talented Belgium » B1

ADVICE B6NATION/WORLD B4COMICS B5

DEATHS A4LOCAL A3LOTTERY A2

OPINION A5SPORTS B1-B3TV GRID B6

WEATHER92 ● 68CLOUDS & SUN

Motorists will need to givebicyclists more space whenthey pass, school children willhave fewer tests to take andthose who park in downtownStaunton will pay higher ratesas part of new rules and regula-

tions that take effect Tuesday.Bicycle advocates believe

the change in state law that re-quires drivers to pass bicyclistsby at least three feet will makeVirginia’s roads safer.

The increase in requiredclearance from 2 feet to 3 feetshould bring down injuries andfatalities by granting bicyclists

more spacewhen drivers pass –even if that spacedoesn’t neces-sarily amount to 3 feet, said lo-cal cyclist Laura Pyle.

“Just speaking practically…I’m hoping that it will give me2 feet,” said Pyle, a boardmem-ber for the Virginia BicyclingFederation, which lobbied forthe change. “That’s a little cyn-ical, but that’s been my experi-ence.”

July 1 is the annual start ofstate and local fiscal year, andlegislation passed by this year’sGeneral Assembly take effectalongside some ordinancechanges for cities an counties.

In Staunton, regular driversto downtown parking lots andgarages and those who keeptheir cars in reserved spaceswill see higher fees. The citywants to reduce the amount it

pays every year to maintaindowntownparkingandare look-ing to drivers to shell out moremoney to close what has been a$200,000 annual subsidy.

Garage, the Wharf lot andthe Augusta Street lot will nowcost $1 per hour and $6 for theday. Monthly spaces will be $24at theWharf, $30 at the garages

New laws, regulations take effectBike safety, local parking rates among changesBy Calvin Tricectrice@newsleader.com

See LAWS, Page A6

State Senate candidate Mar-shall Pattie said he wants tobring innovative conservativesolutions to some of the state’sproblems without growing gov-ernment.

Theone-timeleaderofa localDemocratic organization onMonday formally announcedhisbid for theRepublicannomi-nation for next year’s electionfor the24thDistrict senate seat.The seat is held by long-time in-

cumbentEmmettHangerJr.,R-MountSolon,who intends to runfor another term.

Pattie said he wants to re-move government barriers tofamily and business successand fight wasteful spending, in-cluding the unchecked growthof what he called inefficientprograms like Medicaid.

Hebelievesthefiscalconser-vatism reflected in his staunchopposition to local tax increasesas a supervisor will bolster hisnomination bid within theheavily Republican 24th Dis-trict.

“If you look atmyvoting rec-ords the last two and a halfyears, it’s been very conserva-tive,” Pattie said.

Pattie is a former head of the

county Democratic Party Com-mittee who ran as an indepen-dent in 2011 to win a seat on theAugusta County Board of Su-pervisors.

Frank Nolen, the currentchairman of thecounty Democrat-ic committee, re-sponded negativ-ely to Pattie’s bid.

“People whoswitch partiescannot be trustedand do not makegood representa-tives,” said Nolen,

who represented the area in thestate senate for 20 years until1995.

Pattie said he’s always har-bored conservative principles.

He was raised a Southern Dem-ocrat but eventually came torealize that his values no longeraligned with those of the party.

His election to represent theNorth River District, one of the

county’smostcon-servative areas,shows that hisconservative cre-dentials are legiti-mate, he said. Vot-ers in the ruraldistrict knew ofhis background inthe Democraticparty, Pattie add-

ed.“I think the people in the dis-

trict realized I had a change ofheart,” he said.

Improving education

through accountability andmaking Internet access betterfor rural Virginians are also toppriorities, Marshall said inspeech written for his an-nouncement.

Hanger said he expects torun for another four-year termfor the senate, and figured hissupport forMedicaidexpansionwith the proper reforms inplace would attract right-wingnomination challenges.

“I wouldn’t say it makes mevulnerable,” Hanger said. “Itmakes me a target.”

He had hoped the campaignfor November 2015 electionswouldn’t begin so early sincethe GOP needs to focus on fed-eral elections this fall, Hangersaid.

Senate hopeful Pattie touts ‘innovative’ conservatismCounty supervisorformally announceschallenge to HangerBy Calvin Tricectrice@newsleader.com

Pattie Hanger

BLACKSBURG — Throughoutit’s 90-year history, very littledata has been gathered aboutthe Appalachian Trail and theeffect hikers and campers haveon its trails and campsites.

With 2 million people tra-versing the trail each year, thecurrent conditionof theAppala-chianTrail is something that re-searchers want to better under-stand.

In 2015, a U.S. GeologicalSurvey researcher from Vir-ginia Tech will lead a team ofstudents from Tech and NorthCarolina State University tocreate a comprehensive set ofdata about trail and campsiteconditions, according to a pressrelease from Virginia Tech.

Jeff Marion, an adjunct pro-fessor of natural resource rec-reation at Virginia Tech, and arecreation ecologist with theU.S. Geological Survey, has re-ceived a $300,000 grant fromthe National Park Service tocharacterize visitor impacts onplants and soils and to develop aplan to minimize impacts.

The group will also provideworkshops on trail design for

Jeff Marion, right, and HollyEagleston do research on theAppalachian Trail. SUBMITTED

Va. Techprofessorto launchtrail studyResearch to be doneon hikers, campersByMeganWilliamsmwilliams@newsleader.com

See TRAIL, Page A6

INSIDE SPORTS

Staunton News Leader 07/01/2014 Page : A06

Copyright © 2014 Staunton News Leader 07/01/2014 July 1, 2014 12:38 pm / Powered by TECNAVIA

WEATHERA6 • THE NEWS LEADER • TUESDAY, JULY 1, 2014

5-day Forecast for Staunton & Waynesboro

Almanac

Kid’s Corner

-10s

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National Forecast for Tuesday, July 1

NationalExtremes

Regional Forecast

WW shingtonshhh7777777792/7777

eweeeeeeNeNNew York8/748/8/88/88/88/8888888

MiamiimiaM88/77778/788

Atlanta95/75

itititititoo titrDe oDeD666686/6/666/666/666/666

ustonustonoustonououHoHoHoHoHo93/7593/93/939393

ChicagogcaCChC82/60

Minneapolispapolisea68/5268

Kansas Cityy83/5783/577/583

PasoaPPasoso100/78100100/7888/70/0

DenververDD77/544777

BillingsBillin sg77/557/55

Loo AnAnAngelesgelesgeleseAA80/66636363636363363

SannSa coranciscF anranci7777272727272//554472

eeaSSea86/62

Washington92/77

New York88/74

Miami88/77

Atlanta95/75

Detroit86/66

Houston93/75

Chicago82/60

Minneapolis68/52

Kansas City83/57

El Paso100/78

Denver77/54

Billings77/55

Los Angeles80/63

San Francisco72/54

Seattle86/62

City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W City Hi Lo W Hi Lo W

Statistics for Staunton are compiled using hourly information fromthe Shenandoah Airport and radar estimates as of 5 p.m. yesterday.Precipitation is supplemented with the information from the NationalWeather Service the following day. Statistics for Waynesboro are as of8 a.m. yesterday and are supplied by the National Weather Service.

Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highsfor the day. Forecast high/low temperatures are for selected cities

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

Yesterday for the 48contiguous states

For current radar, updated forecasts, go to www.newsleader.com

Major today 3:03 a.m. 3:24 p.m.Minor today 9:13 a.m. 9:35 p.m.Major Wednesday 3:51 a.m. 4:12 p.m.Minor Wednesday 10:01 a.m. 10:23 p.m.

TEMPERATURE Staunton Waynesboro

High/Low 84°/60° 78°/64°Normal high/low 84°/63°Record high 97° in 2012Record low 47° in 1988

24 hrs 0.00" 0.00"Month to date 2.78" 3.23"Normal month to date 3.61"Year to date 18.10" 19.06"Normal year to date 18.97"

Solunar TablesThe solunar period indicates peak feeding times for fish and game.

Night Sky

– Morrison Planetarium, California Academy of Sciences

Tonight, the waxing crescent moon and the star Regulus areabout 5 degrees apart, low in the west after sunset. Regulusis so far away that its light took 79 years to reach Earth, soastronomers say that it's 79 "light years" away. Venus risesat 3:54 a.m. Mars sets at 1:19 a.m. Jupiter sets at 9:38 p.m.Saturn sets at 2:49 a.m.

Albany 90 73 t 89 68 tAnchorage 62 52 sh 71 56 sAtlanta 95 75 t 95 73 tAustin 96 72 pc 94 68 sBaltimore 91 74 t 93 74 tBoise 92 64 s 99 66 sBoston 87 70 pc 86 71 tBuffalo 87 69 t 81 60 tBurlington 91 72 t 88 64 cCasper 72 44 s 83 51 sCharleston, WV 93 70 pc 88 66 tChattanooga 95 72 s 93 70 tChicago 82 60 pc 74 54 pcCleveland 86 67 t 81 62 pcDallas 94 76 s 94 75 tDenver 77 54 t 83 59 tDetroit 86 66 t 80 58 pcDuluth 62 47 sh 70 46 pcEl Paso 100 78 t 95 75 tFairbanks 68 58 t 72 54 pcHouston 93 75 s 95 73 pcIndianapolis 86 64 t 82 57 pc

Kansas City 83 57 s 75 55 sKnoxville 93 71 pc 91 69 tLos Angeles 80 63 pc 80 63 pcLouisville 92 70 t 88 63 pcMemphis 94 74 s 91 67 cMiami 88 77 t 90 78 tMorgantown 90 71 pc 85 66 tNashville 95 72 pc 90 65 pcNew Orleans 93 78 s 94 78 tNew York City 88 74 pc 88 75 tOrlando 92 75 t 91 75 tPhiladelphia 92 75 t 92 76 tPhoenix 110 86 s 110 84 sPittsburgh 91 68 t 86 64 tRaleigh 94 73 t 96 73 tSt. Louis 87 65 pc 78 57 pcSalt Lake City 86 63 s 98 70 sSan Francisco 72 54 pc 68 54 sSeattle 86 62 s 81 56 pcTucson 105 78 s 105 80 sWest Palm Beach 86 76 r 90 76 tWheeling 90 68 t 84 63 t

TODAY WEDNESDAY TODAY WEDNESDAY

In the Sky

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2014

Moon Phases

First

July 26July 18July 12July 5

Full Last New

TODAY TONIGHT WEDNESDAY

92° 68°

A thunderstormthis afternoon

A shower ort-storm in spots

THURSDAY FRIDAY

92°/68° 85°/66° 82°/58° 85°/60°

Partly sunny, at-storm; hot

Variable cloudswith t-storms

Partly sunny andless humid

SATURDAY

Sunny andcomfortable

HIGH:110° in Needles, CALOW:26° in Stanley, ID

RF: 99° RF: 68° RF: 105°/70° RF: 96°/64° RF: 87°/59° RF: 93°/61°The patented AccuWeather.com RealFeel Temperature® (RF) is an exclusive index of effectivetemperature based on eight weather factors. Shown is the highest and lowest values of the day. The higher theAccuWeather.com UV Index™ (UV Index) number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.

UV Index: 8

A thunderstorm this afternoon; warm and humid. Ashower or thunderstorm around tonight. A couple ofshowers and a thunderstorm tomorrow, mainly later.

PRECIPITATION Staunton Waynesboro

Alexandria 93/76/pcArlington 91/74/tBlacksburg 89/67/tBluefield 88/69/tCharlottesville 92/71/tDanville 93/71/tElkins 89/65/tFairmont 90/69/pcFredericksburg 94/74/pcHarrisonburg 92/68/tLewisburg 88/67/tLexington 89/68/tLynchburg 91/70/t

Marion 91/66/tMartinsburg 92/70/tMartinsville 92/68/tMoorefield 94/68/tNewport News 92/76/pcNorfolk 90/75/pcPetersburg 96/74/pcRichmond 93/74/pcRoanoke 91/70/tVirginia Beach 88/75/pcWashington 92/77/pcWinchester 92/69/tWytheville 89/66/t

City Hi/Lo/W City Hi/Lo/W

Sunrise today 5:57 a.m.Sunset today 8:43 p.m.Sunrise Wednesday 5:57 a.m.Sunset Wednesday 8:43 p.m.Moonrise today 9:59 a.m.Moonset today 11:10 p.m.

Makayla Klein, Stuarts Draft Elementary

Partly sunny, hot and humid, a thunderstorm thisafternoon. High 90 to 94. Winds south-southwest6-12 mph. Expect 6-10 hours of sunshine with a 55%chance of precipitation and average relative humid-ity 65%. Drying conditions fair. Humid tonight with ashower or thunderstorm around. Low 66 to 70.

Agriculture Forecast

Source: Virginia Adult & Pediatric Allergy & Asthma

PollenTrees AbsentGrasses Low

Weeds LowMold Low

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and $60 on the AugustaStreet lot.

Also included in legis-lation passed earlier thisyear by the General As-sembly and signed byDemocratic Gov. TerryMcAuliffe is a repeal ofthe ban on Sunday hunt-ing.

Virginia lawhad previ-ously deemed Sunday aday of rest for wild birdsand animals. Proponentsof the measure allowinghunting said Virginia’sold law was outdated andunnecessarily hurting thestate’s economy.

Also, a series of mea-sures aimed at improvingthe state’s emergency

treatment of thementallyill goes into effect. Thelaws were passed afterthe suicide of Sen. R.Creigh Deeds’ son.

TheBath CountyDem-ocrat was attacked in No-vember by Gus Deeds af-ter the younger Deedswas released from anemergencycustodyorderhours earlier. A localcommunity servicesboard said it was unableto locate an available psy-chiatric bed in the areawithin the six hours allot-ted by law.

Under new laws, thetime allotted for finding abed was extended to 12hours. And after eighthours of searching, if noprivate beds can befound, a state hospitalwill now be required toadmit those under an

emergency custody or-der.

The state governmentalso reduced the numberof Standards of Learningtests middle and elemen-tary school students haveto take from 22 to 17.

And the state will nowrequire new textbooks tonote that the Sea of Japanis also known as the EastSea.

The legislationwas theresult of intense lobbyingby the state’s large Kore-an-American community,which the Japanese gov-ernment strongly op-posed.

Also going into effectTuesday is a repeal of the$64 annual license tax onhybrid vehicles.

The Associated Presscontributed to this

report

Continued from Page A1

Laws

maintenance staff andvolunteers, and provideeducationmaterials about“Leave No Trace” prac-tices and outdoor ethicsfor schools, youth groupsand trail users.

“Trails in the North-east — New Hampshire,Vermont, MassachusettsandMaine—were largelycreated by early hikers,not designed by trail pro-fessionals, so they tend togo straight up and downslopes rather than weaveacross the landscape,

which is a more sustain-able design,” Marion saidin the release.

“Withclimatechange, Ibelieve therewill bemorecatastrophic climateevents, such as heavy andextended rain events thatreally stress trails,” hesaid. “We need to createmore sustainably de-signed trails thatwill han-dle... increasing traffic.”

Marionhasbeenhiking100-mile sections of theAppalachian Trail mostyears for several decadesand has completed all but188miles of the 2,180-miletrail.

Heobservedduringhisearly hikes aspects of the

trail that raised questionsabout its future.

He will be joined byformer and current grad-uate students from bothVirginia Tech and NorthCarolina State to com-plete the field work nextyear.

“The research resultswill be able to be appliedimmediately to improvethe sustainability of trailsand overnight camping,”Marion said.

“The National ParkService wants to ensurethat [they] have the infor-mation they need for sci-ence-based trail andcampsite design andman-agement.”

Continued from Page A1

Trail

R-6th, visited Bloomakerfor the tour and to hearabout expansion plans.

The growing season isfinished at the plant. Todemonstrate the product,local horticulturist MarkViette sliced open a flow-er bulb stored in a largecooling room.

“The bigger the bulb,the better the product,”said Viette, who does pro-motions for Bloomakerand also has his own gar-dening radio show. “Youtest it to be sure that youcan guarantee it.”

With Goodlatte looking

on, Viette pointed outwhere the flower stemsare within the bulb.

Paternostre feared theCongressman wouldn’tunderstand the compa-ny’s vision looking at anempty warehouse. Bloo-makermade the last ship-ment aweekbeforeMoth-er’s Day so the green-house is empty.

Bloomaker ships toWal-Mart, Wegmans,Kroger and Martin’s —just to name a few.

During the growingseason, which starts inSeptember and goesthrough May, the facilityis filled with tulips, ama-ryllis anddaffodils.Work-erswalk on crates that fillthe greenhouse while

cleaning up loose leaves.Eachcontainer iswateredby hand, a process thatwill be changed once theexpansion is completed.

Paternostre said he’sexcited for the businessgrowth, construction forwhich broke ground lastweek.

Viette said Paternostrehas always been ahead ofthe curve in the flowerproduction.

“It’s perfect for thisarea,” Goodlatte said,adding that keeping pro-duction within the U.S.and in Augusta County iskey. “I think this is impor-tant – to find new im-proved ways to advanceagriculture in the Shenan-doah Valley”

Continued from Page A1

Bloom