Dear Friends and Visitors,

Welcome to Chesterfield County, a FIRST CHOICE community for residents, businesses and visitors.

If you are a Chesterfield County resident, you can take pride in the recognition we have already received, such as "The 17th Best Place to Live in America;" "One of the 100 Best Communities in America for Young People;" the lowest crime rate in the Richmond Metropolitan region and many other accomplishments. Providing you with the best possible quality of life is our main mission as a local government.

If you operate, or are contemplating operating, a business in the county, you’ll find that we are business friendly, from fast tracking new business site development to support of existing business programs of all sizes. We also have one of the lowest machinery and tools tax rates of any developed community in Virginia.

And, if you are visiting us, you’ll find that Chesterfield County is a historic treasure. Early English settlers established the 1611 Citie of Henricus here along the James River just four years after founding Jamestown, making Henricus the second-oldest English-speaking settlement in the New World. Here they established the first hospital, the first commercial production of tobacco, the first chartered college and the first iron furnace in the New World, and much more.

For residents, businesses and visitors alike, what makes us such a special place is our people, both in our communities and in our local government, and the way in which everyone works together. It's that teamwork that makes us what we are, and that will carry us into the future as we mold the Chesterfield County of tomorrow. I welcome your comments on our Web site, and your suggestions for how we should move forward as a community.

James J. L. Stegmaier
County Administrator

Biography

James J. L. Stegmaier is Chesterfield County Administrator. Prior to being selected by the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors in July 2007, he had served as Deputy County Administrator for Management Services since 1997, and was previously director of the county’s Budget and Management Department from 1986 until that time. He earned his baccalaureate degree from the Catholic University of America in 1976 with scholarships in Engineering and Psychology.

He holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Virginia with a Public Service Education Program fellowship. He also attended the Government Finance Officers Association Executive Finance Institute at Georgetown University; Leadership Metro Richmond; and the Senior Executive Institute at the University of Virginia.

Stegmaier is a Credentialed Manager with the International City/County Management Association and is a member of the American Society for Public Administration, among other professional affiliations.

Mr. Stegmaier also serves on the St. Francis Medical Center Advisory Board and on the advisory board of the Consolidated Bank and Trust, the historic bank founded by Maggie Walker, and on the boards of the Metro Richmond Convention Center and the Virginia Institute of Government.

Stegmaier and his wife, Margot, have three children who attended Chesterfield County schools.