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In Brief . . .
Highland County Supervisors
n Supervisors held a closed meeting April 21 for personnel issues related to salaries and duties of a county employee and to receive a legal briefing by staff on potential litigation related to installation of a surveillance system at the jail. Following closed session supervisors voted to add approximately $1,500 to the surveillance system contract. n On April 29, supervisors learned that Highland County earned an "unqualified" description for its financial reports for fiscal year 2007. Ken Prevete of the auditing firm Robinson, Farmer, Cox Associates told supervisors, "Highland County is in a very healthy condition with its fund balance and exceeds the 10 percent recommended." n Supervisors adopted the 2008-09 budget on April 29, and set the property tax rate at 40 cents per $100 assessed value and the personal property tax rate at $1.50 per $100 assessed value. Supervisors also set the enterprise fees and adopted the 2008-09 solid waste and collection disposal budget. Annual fees remain at $150 residential, $75 business low density, $150 business low-density medium; $225 business medium density, and $300 business high density. n The Highland County Planning Commission reviewed a conditional use application from Angela McNamara for a tourist court on Blue Grass Valley Road. The existing frame house would be rented out short-term on weekends. No additions will be made, parking is adequate and traffic volume is not expected to increase significantly, said Mike McNamara, speaking on behalf of his wife, Angela, who was unable to attend the meeting. The property is zoned A-2. Planners set a public hearing for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 22 with supervisors. n Highland County supervisors adopted a resolution of recognition and appreciation Tuesday night for the late Ronald T. Malcolm's service to Highland County as a member of the board of supervisors for 16 years. n The board adopted a resolution of recognition for Tom and Linda Jones' efforts to assist Glenn Botkin Jr., who was injured in a tractor accident in February. n The board accepted a proposal from Mary K. Earhart, PLLC, for accounting services. She will provide for a fee of between $3,000-$4,500, preliminary work for the fiscal year 2008 audit, the same amount she received for the work last year. Supervisor Jerry Rexrode abstained because Earhart is his accountant. n The board appointed Sharon Sponaugle, Gary Blair, Herb Lightner, Kim Bird, Catherine Halterman, and Robin Gum to the Community and Policy Management Team for a twoyear term beginning July 1 and ending June 30, 2010. n The board appointed Marty Leech to the Valley Community Services Board for a two-year term. n The board set a joint public hearing with the planning commission for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 22 to hear a request from Scott Smith, acting as agent, for a livestock marketing pavilion and animal processing plant on Potomac River Road. n Supervisors agreed it was time to reconsider the business, professional and occupational license tabled six months ago. "I think it is a tax that is needed," said Rexrode. "I'm not sure tax is the word for it. I think the information is needed." Supervisor Robin Sullenberger said, "We need to discuss people operating businesses from home … The last thing we want to do is eliminate people's ability to make money in this community." The board directed Lambert to set a date to review options. n Supervisors set 7:30 p.m. Tuesday May 27 as the first work session to review the comprehensive plan. Rexrode said it would take several months for the board to finish its review of the revision. n The board adopted a proclamation in recognition of Memorial Day. County administrator Roberta Lambert said a short ceremony, sponsored by the Mill Gap Ruritan club, would be held at the county's Walk of Honor at noon on May 26. She said no seating would be provided and recommended people bring lawn chairs if they want. Lambert said Mill Gap Ruritans sponsored this year's activities, but that a different community organization would sponsor activities in the future, with observances on Memorial Day and Veterans' Day. n Sullenberger said he met with the Mountain Waters Resource and Conservation Development Area committee April 11. "I'm not sure, quite frankly, I have a very good handle on this," he admitted. The board is investigating which conservation development area to join, the Mountain Waters or the Shenandoah group, or neither. "Several jurisdictions in addition to us have not officially joined," he said. "I don't know what the reasons are. It struck me as an advocacy group. There doesn't seem to be an umbrella feel to it, in that all the local governments are actively engaged in it." Sullenberger will provide Lambert a list of those not participating so that she can find out why they are not participating. n Lambert said that a recent update in Highland County statistics shows Highland has an unemployment rate that qualifies the county as "distressed for the governor's opportunity fund." Some of the uses of the fund are for grants and loans to economic development authorities. She did not say what the county unemployment rate is.
n Lambert said Harold Wingate of Wingate Associates was interested in putting in a proposal to do the next county property assessment. "If you switch to a four-year reassessment, it would have to start in the fall of 2009," she said. Virginia code requires a locality to do a reassessment every four years unless it decides to do it every five or six years. The state said county assessment in April was at 81.9 percent of true value. "I'd like Wingate to sit down with us," said Rexrode. "I have several questions, especially about the 81.9 percent value that the state has on us. How did they arrive at that? Our land (assessed value) might be 181 percent of what values are." Rexrode also asked, "Do you go to a four-year assessment if it doesn't help you? A reassessment is a redistribution of wealth. The last time it shifted the weight to the large landowners. We need to ask Wingate, do we have (land values) where we need them already? After looking at the state figures, land values at 82 percent, that may not be correct." Sullenberger noted the percentage is going to creep downward after a couple years elapse from the last assessment and true property values, presumably, continue to rise. "But it may not be right," Sullenberger said. "How are they getting that data? If it is based on what is actually selling, it may be skewed." Resident David Smith of McDowell said rules need to be established for reassessments that factor in land condition. For instance, he said, pastureland that is "good enough for a mountain goat, but that is about it," shouldn't be appraised at $3,000 an acre. "There ought to be some guidelines," he said. "Highland is unique in the slopes and terrain we have compared with other places," he said. "Conservation ground, some open, some wooded, some cut over, you value low on that compared with that which hasn't been cut. Some land you can't drive a four-wheeler up or down is valued at $3,000 and that's wrong." "Bath County has showed us how an assessment can go awry in a county," said supervisor David Blanchard. "Land changing from rural to other uses - we need more time to assess these things." The board directed Lambert to invite Wingate to the next regular meeting in June.
n Lambert said Theresa Wagner submitted her resignation to the recreation commission.
n Blanchard apologized to the re creationcommi pool steering committee for not expediting board action on financing the pool buildings. "The pool is a good project," he said. "We need to sit down and hammer out a plan."
n Patsy and Jim Armstrong of McDowell complained about McDowell public water quality. "We have terrible water in the south end of McDowell," said Jim Armstrong. The water has sediment in it that clogs hot water heaters, comes out of the faucet looking cloudy and causes iron stains on clothing washed in it, he said. He said it's not the fault of the water system operators Judy and Jim Ralston. "Sometimes it smells of chlorine and stinks so bad … I've gone through three water heaters in the house. A water heater I replaced a month ago was three-quarters full of mud. I can't afford $500 in coal every six months. Up U.S. 250, they don't have a problem," he said. Armstrong said he couldn't use his outdoor wood furnace due to the sediment buildup. The board promised to look into the problems with the water system.
n Supervisors held closed session to discuss personnel issues: personnel policy and employee vacation and sick leave. The board also held closed session to consider potential litigation regarding a zoning ordinance application. No action followed the closed session.
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