Potomac News Online | Guide to Moving in
Moving to a new town can be an exciting but exhausting task.
Where do you go to turn on your utilities or cable? Where do you go to register your child for school or to update your license? As a new resident of Prince William County, these are probably a few of the questions that have crossed your mind. The following provides the answers to these questions, as well as many other useful tips on settling into this area.
WHERE YOU LIVE
Prince William is a mixture of sprawling subdivisions and farms separate from the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park and, in many ways, the towns of Dumfries, Haymarket, Occoquan and Quantico.
Though residents in many other states live in a city that is part of a county, Manassas and Manassas Park are independent of Prince William County. The cities, in fact, have their own school systems, police departments and taxing structure.
Towns are jurisdictions within the county, but use services such as Prince William’s school system.
Where you live determines whom you need to contact for services including automobile tax tags and water hookup.
The jurisdictions, primary office locations and main phone numbers are:
• Prince William County:
McCoart Administration Center off Davis Ford Road, One County Complex Court, (703) 792-4660. http://www.pwcgov.org.
? Manassas: City Hall, 9027 Center St., (703) 257-8200.?http://www.manassascity.org.
• Manassas Park: City Hall, One Park Center Court, (703) 335-8800. http://www.ci.manassas-park.va.us.
• Dumfries: Town Hall, 101 S. Main St., (703) 221-3400.
• Haymarket: Town Hall, 15025 Washington St., (703) 754-4816.
• Occoquan: Town Hall, 314 Mill St., (703) 491-1918.
• Quantico: Treasurer-clerk’s office, 507 C St., (703) 640-7411.
ELECTRIC SERVICE
• Dominion Virginia Power provides electrical power to Prince William County residential and business customers. For service and information, call (888) 667-3000.
• Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative (NOVEC) serves portions of Clarke, Fairfax, Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William and Stafford counties and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park. From Prince William County and Manassas Park, dial (703) 335-0500. All others call (888) 335-0500.
• The City of Manassas Utilities Department owns and operates its own electric company. The customer service number is (703) 257-8219.
TELEPHONE
• Verizon provides telephone service to Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park customers, both residential and commercial. For information, call (800) 660-2215.
You must dial the area code for all local calls.
• Comcast provides digital telephone service to portions of the area, including Manassas, Woodbridge, Dale City and Haymarket. For more information, and to find out if Comcast telephone service is available in your area, call (703) 567-3000 or visit the Comcast digital telephone service Web site at www.comcastphone.com.
GAS SERVICE
• Columbia Gas provides natural gas service to Manassas, Manassas Park, Dumfries, Triangle and Quantico. For service, call (800) 543-8911.
• Washington Gas provides natural gas to Prince William County residents. For service, call (703) 750-1000 or (800) 223-9452.
WATER & SEWER
• Prince William County Service Authority provides water and sewer service to county residents. For service, call (703) 335-7900.
• Virginia American Water Co. provides water to Dale City residents. For service, call (703) 491-2136.
• Dale Service Corp. provides sewer service to Dale City residents. For service, call (703) 590-4495.
• Manassas residents need to call the city for sewer, water and electrical hookup and garbage pickup at (703) 257-8219 or (703) 257-8245.
• Manassas Park residents need to call the city for more information about sewer and water hook-up and garbage pick-up at (703) 335-8805.
GARBAGE COLLECTION
• Prince William County: No public collection service.
Use of county landfill, 14811 Dumfries Road, is free for Prince William residents, who have already paid for it through their property taxes. But residents of Manassas and Manassas Park pay a fee. Call (703) 791-3660. Landfill hours are 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Sunday.
Check the phone book for private haulers.
• Manassas: Trash pickup and recycling pickup for single-family homes is once a week. Trash pickup for town houses is twice a week and once a week for recyclables. Yard waste pickup for single family homes and town houses is once a week on Monday. Call (703) 257-8252.
• Manassas Park: Collection on Wednesdays by a private company. Call (703) 818-8222.
• Dumfries: Regular trash collection and recycling are scheduled on Tuesdays and Fridays. Generally, east side trash is collected Tuesday and west side is collected Friday. Call for bulk collection. For information, call (703) 221-3767 or call the ABC Trash Company at (703) 361-5151.
• Occoquan: Trash collection is on Mondays and Thursdays, recycling on Thursdays. Call (703) 491-1918.
CABLE TV
• Comcast Communications provides cable television services to subscribers in Woodbridge, Montclair, Triangle, Quantico, Lake Ridge and Fort Belvoir. For service, call (703) 730-2225. On the western side of Prince William, Comcast serves subscribers in Manassas, Manassas Park, Gainesville, Independent Hill, Haymarket, Nokesville and Lake Jackson. For service, call (703) 368-4227.
DRIVER’S LICENSES
Within 30 days of establishing residency in Virginia, you must obtain a Virginia driver’s license, title and register your vehicle in Virginia, take your vehicle for a state inspection and emissions test. Vehicles must meet state insurance requirements. Virginia drivers must pass written and behind-the-wheel tests, which may be waived for some people presenting a valid driver’s license from another state. All applicants also must pass a vision exam.
VEHICLE INSPECTIONS
The state requires annual safety inspections to register a vehicle or to renew a registration. Emissions tests are required every two years.
Many service stations and garages are authorized to perform the tests. They post signs to indicate that they are state-approved.
VEHICLE REGISTRATION
Vehicle registration costs range from $26.50 to $31.50, depending on weight.
Both vehicle registration and driver’s licenses can be obtained at any Department of Motor Vehicles office.
• Western Prince William, Manassas and Manassas Park: 9800 Godwin Drive, Manassas. Phone (703) 761-4655.
• Eastern Prince William: 2731 Canton Hill Road, Woodbridge.
• Call 1-866-368-5463 or 1-800-435-5137 for recorded information on branch office hours and locations, obtaining a driver’s license, identification card or a copy of driving records, registering or titling a vehicle, emissions or state inspections and insurance requirements. Watch out – the line is often busy especially at the end of the month. The same information can be found on the Department of Motor Vehicle’s Web site at http://www.dmvnow.com.
PERSONAL PROPERTY TAX
Cities, counties and towns assess a tax based on the value of personal property of motor vehicles and boats. Vehicles must be registered in each jurisdiction within 30 days of moving to Virginia or purchasing a vehicle. To register, you must purchase a tax decal to be displayed on the vehicle’s windshield. The towns of Quantico and Haymarket issue town license plates that are attached to the bottom of state plates.
Failure to display a tax decal can result in a fine. Tax decal fees and locations to purchase them are:
• Prince William: $24 for cars and trucks, $12 for motorcycles, McCoart Administration Center.
• Manassas: $24 for cars and trucks, $9 motorcycles, City Hall.
• Manassas Park: $25 for cars and trucks, $10 for motorcycles, City Hall.
• Dumfries: $22, Town Hall.
• Haymarket: $15 for cars, $10 for motorcycles, Town Hall.
• Occoquan: $20 for cars and trucks, $10 for motorcycles, Town Hall.
• Quantico: $18, Town Treasurer’s office, 507 C St.
SCHOOL REGISTRATION
Under Virginia law, enrollment in kindergarten is optional for a child 5 years old on or before Sept. 30, but parents must notify the school system if they do not intend to enroll their child. Enrollment is mandatory for children 6 years old on or before Sept. 30.
Virginia requires each new student to be immunized against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, mumps, measles and rubella. A second measles shot is required for students entering the system for the first time. One of the doses for polio vaccine and diphtheria, chicken pox, tetanus and whooping cough is required after age 4.
Students must also receive a complete series of the hepatitis B vaccine prior to entering the 6th grade.
Students who do not have all of the immunizations and a physical examination will not be allowed to attend school. However, students may be conditionally enrolled if they provide proof of having received at least one dose of the immunizations along with a schedule for completion of the required doses.
Prince William requires parents or guardians of a new student to present an official copy of the student’s birth certificate, Social Security number, proof of immunizations and a transfer slip or report card from the student’s previous school upon registration. A certificate of physical examination within 12 months prior to the start of school is required for students enrolling in kindergarten through grade seven. Students must either graduate from high school or attend school through their 18th birthdays. To register a pupil, parents should contact the school. Call to determine the correct school:
• Prince William and all towns: (703) 791-7200.
• Manassas: (703) 257-8800.
• Manassas Park: (703) 335-8850.