Dec 12 2022
County Commission gathered for their first public meeting of
the month on Dec 12th beginning at 10am. All three
Commissioners were present with a dozen or so spectators in
the peanut gallery. All business was taken care of in just 24
minutes.
From the Gospel of Dustin Fitzwater, there's Town Christmas Festival coming our way Dec 17th from 5 to 8pm. Activities include hot chocolate, Christmas Carolers, vendors, cup cake decorating at the old Lion's Club building. The big parade gets underway around 8pm with Santa the featured guest. Free stuff to the kids too!
FYI: It is Dustin that promised to get sent over to the County's only locally owned and operated newspaper the announcement, flyer, info sheet. As of Dec 15th, 1:30pm, we ain't seen the promised info
From the Gospel of Dustin Fitzwater, there's Town Christmas Festival coming our way Dec 17th from 5 to 8pm. Activities include hot chocolate, Christmas Carolers, vendors, cup cake decorating at the old Lion's Club building. The big parade gets underway around 8pm with Santa the featured guest. Free stuff to the kids too!
FYI: It is Dustin that promised to get sent over to the County's only locally owned and operated newspaper the announcement, flyer, info sheet. As of Dec 15th, 1:30pm, we ain't seen the promised info
Angela
Brown (above left) before the CCC gathering. During the
meeting, Ms Brown informed all, COVID cases are increasing in
County Clay.
For five months we've been mentioning the Roger Hanshaw free money grants during his election year. The County Commission has had real trouble submitting a grant request for ANY project. According to Chair Fran King, they have yet to receive the correct application despite Hanshaw being the guy handing em out.
For this meeting, in response to: Have you talked to him? Fran King, "He has never called me back."
One of the proposed projects was to use the grant funds to turn the old Courthouse into a Welcome Center.
FYI: It's our understanding, the $250 million grant fund is now spoken for, all the $$$ has been earmarked according to our sources. That's $250 million that we don't get.
Bernie Howe presented a county economic development plan a couple weeks back to the Commission. Howe returned this time around where all three Commissioners expressed, it's a darn good plan. The plan or at least the draft plan is to be approved during the next CCC meeting.
Comments from Howe included something along these lines: we're going to need zoning ordinances for the plan, clean ups, river clean ups, to work. Mr Howe has been active in this County for a couple years. He was not around the last time adoption of ordinances were brought front and center. Back then the public spoke out in no uncertain terms: keep your grubby fingers off my property!!!
For five months we've been mentioning the Roger Hanshaw free money grants during his election year. The County Commission has had real trouble submitting a grant request for ANY project. According to Chair Fran King, they have yet to receive the correct application despite Hanshaw being the guy handing em out.
For this meeting, in response to: Have you talked to him? Fran King, "He has never called me back."
One of the proposed projects was to use the grant funds to turn the old Courthouse into a Welcome Center.
FYI: It's our understanding, the $250 million grant fund is now spoken for, all the $$$ has been earmarked according to our sources. That's $250 million that we don't get.
Bernie Howe presented a county economic development plan a couple weeks back to the Commission. Howe returned this time around where all three Commissioners expressed, it's a darn good plan. The plan or at least the draft plan is to be approved during the next CCC meeting.
Comments from Howe included something along these lines: we're going to need zoning ordinances for the plan, clean ups, river clean ups, to work. Mr Howe has been active in this County for a couple years. He was not around the last time adoption of ordinances were brought front and center. Back then the public spoke out in no uncertain terms: keep your grubby fingers off my property!!!
Stacy King
Item 13 on
the agenda was to vote a massive pay raise for Stacy King who
serves as OES Director, Flood Plain Manager, Address
Coordinator, and Building Permit Manager. Put all those titles
together, sure sounds like she should be a very busy person.
We haven't seen that during our many trips to the Courthouse.
After questions from Commissioner Fran King, the motion passed to move Stacy King from $15 / hour to $18.00 / hour. That's a hefty raise in anybody's book. Keep in mind, McDonald's is now starting workers at $21 per hour in the Beckley area.
Some departments at the Courthouse make lots of money from various fees, taxes, etc. Those departments build up huge cash reserves while other departments like county and circuit clerk offices take in few dollars, very few dollars.
For one type of paper pusher to make $18 / hr while others are working for starvation wages in the same public building, that creates hard feelings and rightly so.
AW
After questions from Commissioner Fran King, the motion passed to move Stacy King from $15 / hour to $18.00 / hour. That's a hefty raise in anybody's book. Keep in mind, McDonald's is now starting workers at $21 per hour in the Beckley area.
Some departments at the Courthouse make lots of money from various fees, taxes, etc. Those departments build up huge cash reserves while other departments like county and circuit clerk offices take in few dollars, very few dollars.
For one type of paper pusher to make $18 / hr while others are working for starvation wages in the same public building, that creates hard feelings and rightly so.
AW