Honorable
John Peace, II - Chairman
Honorable
Fred Luntsford - Vice-Chairman
Honorable
Robert Adkins
Honorable
Steve Bates
Honorable
Ronnie Shortt
Honorable
Virginia Meador
Honorable
Leland Branham
Honorable
Robert Robbins - members of said Board and
Edward
L. Sealover - County Administrator
Shannon
C. Scott - Assistant County Administrator
Karen
T. Mullins - County Attorney
Annette
Underwood - Executive Secretary
PRAYER
Steve Bates led the Board in prayer.
PLEDGE
All led in the pledge of allegiance
to the flag.
MINUTES
Board member Ronnie Shortt noted
that an error in the minutes has been corrected as per his
request.
A motion was made by Ronnie Shortt,
seconded by Bob Adkins, to approve the minutes as amended.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE: APPROVAL
OF AGENDA
A motion was made by Fred Luntsford,
seconded by Bob Adkins, to approve the agenda as presented.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE: TRANE
ENERGY PERFORMANCE PRESENTATION
Bill Upthegrove, representing Trane,
an energy services company, presented an overview of the
proposed Energy Performance Contract for the courthouse.
A performance contract is a vehicle that allows a
customer to make necessary capital improvements by capturing
savings in operating and maintenance budgets.
Energy conservation measures are implemented to reduce
energy consumption, as well as building improvements jointly
agreed upon by Trane and Wise County.
The total cost to implement all the changes will
be $475,909.00. With
the project as it is currently defined, the energy savings
will produce $17,800 per year to offset Wise County's annual
payment. The
savings of $17,800 is guaranteed by Trane, based on both
parties fulfilling their responsibilities spelled out in
the contract.
IN RE: PUBLIC
HEARING/CDBG APPLICATION/NORTH FORK WATER PROJECT
A public hearing was duly advertised
for this date to receive citizens' input on the proposed
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application to
be submitted to the Virginia Department of Housing and Community
Development for the North Fork Water Project.
The North Fork Water Project's proposal will include
installation of 82,800 L.F. of 6", 4", and 2" waterline
and related appurtenances.
This project will provide approximately 150 households
with public water for the first time.
Chairman
Peace asked for any public comments.
There
being no public comments, the public hearing was closed.
IN RE: PUBLIC
EXPRESSION
Walter Crouse presented each Board
member with an article from the Times News regarding a means
of disposing of garbage.
He noted that this would save space in the landfill
and help reduce the landfill fee.
He also suggested cutting staff in the school board
offices, which would allow more money for teachers and further
bring consolidation in to play by building new schools so
there would be no conflict of being on anyone's territory,
so to speak.
Joe
Bolling, a private contractor living in the Wise area, asked
that allowance be made for white goods to be disposed of
at the convenience centers, which in his opinion would stop
the dumping of such items over the hill.
Kenneth
Mullins voiced his opposition to the proposed landfill use
fee increase.
Cathy
Selvage spoke briefly on jobs within Wise County.
She asked that the Board enforce recycling to save
space in the landfill.
There
being no further comments, the public expression period
was closed.
IN RE: ROADS
AND HIGHWAYS
Highway Resident Engineer T.G. Branson
informed the Board that patching of the roads would begin
as soon as the weather breaks.
Board
members presented Mr. Branson with needs in their districts.
IN RE: CONSENT
AGENDA
A motion was made by Robert Adkins,
seconded by Steve Bates, to approve the consent agenda as
follows:
IN RE: PUBLIC
HEARING/E911-ROAD NAMES
A
public hearing was set for April 1 at 6:00 PM to receive
public input on proposed E-911 road name additions.
IN RE: PUBLIC
HEARING/ CONDITIONAL ZONING/JERRY D. ATWOOD
A
public hearing was set for April 1 at 6:00 PM to receive
public input regarding a request from Jerry D. Atwood for
Conditional Zoning in the Riverview section of Coeburn for
the purpose of establishing a tanning salon.
IN RE: RESOLUTION
/ ALL HAZARDS EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN
Approved
the resolution on adopting the All Hazards Emergency Operations
Plan
RESOLUTION # 2004
(Said
resolution is on file in the County Administrator's Office)
IN RE: RESOLUTION/VIRGINIA
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT PROPOSAL
Approved the resolution authorizing
the County Administrator to execute documents relevant to
the VCDBG proposal and further that the Board of Supervisors
agrees to serve as legal applicant for this project.
RESOLUTION # 2004
(Said
resolution is on file in the County Administrator's Office)
IN
RE: RESOLUTION
SUPPORTING COAL MINER STAMP
Approved resolution encouraging
the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia to
give support the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee of the
US Postal Service in its effort to issue a commemorative
stamp honoring the coal miners and their contributions to
our nation and its citizens.
RESOLUTION #
2004
(Said
resolution is on file in the County Administrator's Office)
IN RE: DERBY
PROJECT APPLICATION
Authorized the Chairman to execute
application for purchase of property for the Derby Project
IN RE: BUDGET
AMENDMENTS
No. 19: Increase in ambulance and rescue services State 2-4 Life Funds
revenues and expenses $724.50 (State Funds)-No local match
No.
20: Increase
Social Services Federal and State revenues by $162,000.00 Increase Social Services Budget $162,000.00 - No
local match required
The
motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE: CNW
CONTRACT AGREEMENT
A motion was made by Leland Branham,
seconded by Robby Robbins, to approve an amendment to the
CNW Contract Agreement to increase the number of connector
terminals for conveyance of wastewater to CNW for treatment
on an as needed basis.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
PRO-ART FUNDING REQUEST
A motion was
made by Bob Adkins, seconded by Virginia Meador,
to approve the request from Pro-Art for $5,000 to be used
as matching funds for the Virginia Commission for the Arts
challenge grant. The
motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
ORDINANCE FOR ASSESSMENT OF FEE FOR DISPOSAL OF SOLID
WASTE
Ronnie Shortt made a motion to delete
from the proposed ordinance the provisions that relate directly
to imposing of the landfill use fee and further that the
County Attorney prepare a new ordinance with the new language
to be voted on at the 25th meeting if possible.
Bob Adkins seconded the motion.
Virginia Meador questioned whether
or not these changes would require a public hearing.
Attorney Mullins explained the proposed
changes, as she understood it to be and stated that said
changes would not require a public hearing.
There was some discussion on amending
the ordinance regarding the dumping of white goods at the
convenience centers and whether or not a public hearing
would be required for said amendment.
Attorney Mullins advised that she
would need to review the restrictions in the Solid Waste
Ordinance regarding white goods before she could make a
recommendation to the Board.
The motion was unanimously approved.
Robby Robbins made a motion to hold
a public hearing on amending the language in the Solid Waste
Ordinance regarding the white goods.
Attorney Mullins recommended that
this request be placed on the agenda for April at which
time she can have the appropriate language prepared for
the Board to review.
Mr. Robbins withdrew his motion.
IN RE:
RESOLUTION APPROVING NEW COUNTY PAY PLAN
A motion was made by Bob Adkins,
seconded by Fred Luntsford, to approve the resolution adopting
the new county pay plan.
The motion was unanimously approved.
RESOLUTION #
2004
(Said resolution on file in the
County Administrator's Office)
IN RE:
RESOLUTION APPROVING NEW COUNTY JOB CLASSIFICATION
A motion was made by Leland Branham,
seconded by Virginia Meador, to approve the resolution adopting
the new county job classification plan.
The motion was unanimously approved.
RESOLUTION #
2004
(Said resolution is on file in the
County Administrator's Office)
IN RE:
PROPERTY TAX RATE FOR FY 2004-05
Chairman Peace asked the County
Administrator for his response to the tax rate.
Administrator Sealover advised that
in a previous memo and in follow up on last week's power
point presentation
he had noted that if the Board was amenable to an
increase in general fund spending of approximately $2.4
million or 6% increase and if the Board was amenable to
funding a $2.0 million project related to the landfill (
5 years debt) the real property tax rate to meet those would
require an increase of 10 cents.
A motion was made by Bob Adkins
to increase the real property tax to 57 cents.
Fred Luntsford seconded the motion.
The motion was unanimously approved.
Chairman Peace asked County Administrator
for his response regarding the personal property tax rate.
Administrator Sealover stated that
it was his understanding that there has been discussions
on increasing the personal property tax rate for; (1) to
replace the landfill use fee in order to fund the debt service
in its final year's payment in FY 2005 to replace the landfill
use fee in the fully funded debt service requirement of
$887,000 which will require an increase in the personal
property tax rate of 29 cents and discussions have also
ensued that the total increase in the personal property
tax rate would be 34 cents.
Vice-Chair Luntsford stated that
in view of the information provided by the County Administrator,
he made a motion to increase the personal property rate
to $1.49. The
motion was seconded by Bob Adkins.
Virginia Meador questioned the mechanics
of the car tax reimbursement in regard to this increase.
Administrator Sealover advised that
to his understanding the State will only reimburse the County
for the personal property tax rate that was in affect at
the time that the reimbursement was initiated which means
that the proposed increase would not be borne by the State
but borne entirely at the local level.
He further noted that VRA has been contacted regarding
this stream of revenue to repay the loan and was told it
will be sufficient to meet the requirements for repayment
of said loan.
Ms. Meador voiced her opposition
to the unfairness of this proposed tax.
Mr. Shortt stated that it is his
understanding that the personal property tax has not been
increased for many years.
Some of this money will be ear marked for education
to do some capital outlay projects. The citizens complaints
regarding the unfairness of the landfill use fee have been
taken into consideration and this is an alternative to that
fee. This tax will have a 95% collection rate with a means of collection,
and no need for a mailing list.
Mr. Adkins read the tax table for other counties and in comparison,
Wise County was among the lowest.
He also believes this tax increase is a more fair
and equitable means to meet the County's financial obligations
including the landfill use fee.
Mr. Bates noted that the County's
personal property tax is next to the lowest and the real
estate tax is 92nd out of 95 counties.
The personal property tax hasn't been increased in
fifteen years whereas inflation comes in government and
the Board must be responsible to move ahead.
This tax increase will balance the budget and allow
the County to provide the needs of the citizens.
Mr. Bates further noted that the County has become
stagnated because the past Boards have failed to raise taxes
on a regular basis to keep the County financially stable
and the burden has fallen on this Board to make a large
tax increase to overcome the financial situation that the
County has fallen into.
Other counties have moved forward and been progressive
because they made the decisions to grow and be productive.
He asked that the citizens stand behind this Board
and work with them in moving forward.
Mr. Robbins stated that even though
he hates taxes, he feels that this tax increase is going
in the right direction.
Mr. Branham stated that the Board
is obligated to bring financial stability to Wise County.
Some of these funds are necessary to enhance education
and to move Wise County forward.
Chairman Peace asked for a vote
on the motion to increase the personal property tax to $1.49.
Aye- Bob Adkins
Nay-Virginia Meador
Steve Bates
Ronnie Shortt
John Peace
Leland Branham
Robby Robbins
Fred Luntsford
Motion carried.
IN RE:
PUBLIC HEARING/ TAX RATES FOR FY 2004-05
A motion was made by Fred Luntsford,
seconded by Ronnie Shortt, to hold a public hearing on March
25, 2004 at 6:00 PM to receive citizens' comments regarding
the tax rates for FY 2004-2005.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
TREASURER'S REQUEST FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDING
A motion was made by Bob Adkins,
seconded by Leland Branham, to approve the request from
the Treasurer for additional postage.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
PUBLIC HEARING/ ORDINANCE REPEALING ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING
A REAL ESTATE TAX DISCOUNT FOR EARLY PAYMENT
It was noted that the Treasurer
has made a request to repeal the Ordinance regarding the
discount for early payment.
A motion was made by Ronnie Shortt,
seconded by Bob Adkins, to hold a public hearing on March
25, 2004 at 6:00 PM to receive citizens' input regarding
an ordinance repealing the Ordinance Establishing a Real
Estate Tax Discount for Early Payment.
Treasurer Rita Holbrook addressed
the Board with a cost estimate to implement real estate
discount software changes for the 5% discount for early
payment.
After further discussion, the motion
to hold a public hearing on repealing the ordinance was
unanimously approved.
IN RE:
APPOINTMENT/ IDA
A motion was made by Steve Bates,
seconded by Bob Adkins, to reappoint Bill Hunsaker to the
IDA for a term of four (4) years.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
APPOINTMENT / LENOWISCO SERVICES BOARD
Ronnie Shortt made a motion to table
this appointment until the April meeting. Leland Branham seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
APPOINTMENT / PLANNING COMMISSION
Virginia Meador made a motion to
reappoint J. Fred Tate to the Planning Commission for a
term of four (4) years.
John Peace seconded the motion.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
APPOINTMENT / VIRGINIA COAL COUNCIL
A motion was made by Ronnie Shortt
to table this appointment until the April meeting.
Bob Adkins seconded the motion.
The motion was unanimously approved.
IN RE:
LANDFILL COMMITTEE REPORT
Bill King representing Thompson
& Litton, Inc., addressed the Board primarily with the
technical and regulatory conclusions that the Committee
reached, basically on three main options.
Ron Flanary of LENOWISCO, representing
the Landfill Committee as a citizen of the Committee, gave
the Board a brief history of solid waste collection in Wise
County. He
suggested raising personal property tax as an alternative
to the landfill use fee since there is a built-in database
within the Commissioner of the Revenue and the Treasurer's
Offices for assessing that tax.
The committee considered the following options:
·
Expanding the landfill for
continued use by Wise County and Norton, with one five-year
expansion, followed by another.
In both cases, a loan from the VRA - serviced by
a dedicated source of revenue sufficient to service that
debt - was a requirement to cover an expected capital outlay
of $12 million.
·
Closing the landfill now, making
arrangements to ship the garbage to a private landfill (most
likely one of those in East Tennessee), or possibly to the
City of Bristol, Virginia's landfill if available, and using
the existing landfill for CDD (Construction Demolition Debris)
waste only. This
would require construction of a transfer station, estimated
to range from $500,000 for a temporary station (which could
be upgraded to permanent status later), to $1 M for a permanent
station. A
variation of this scenario would call for sending the waste
stream to another landfill and immediately move to closure
and reclamation of the County's landfill.
·
Expanding the landfill now,
but opening it to the waste of surrounding jurisdictions,
such as Lee County, and the Cumberland Plateau Solid Waste
Authority (Dickenson, Russell and Buchanan Counties).
This would be for a tipping fee, of course, which
could be used as the principal revenue source to incur debt
to finance the required expansion.
The Committee did not consider solid
waste incineration.
While this might appear appealing at first glance,
such a facility would be extremely expensive to build, and
even more expensive to operate.
All available technical and financial data suggest
an incinerator for Wise County alone would increase the
county's solid waste costs by a factor of two or three.
Even if such a facility could be constructed for
regional use, it would be difficult to site and permit,
not to mention the fact there is no identified use for the
waste energy (such as steam sales, or co-generation of electricity).
And, a landfill would still be required, since there
would still be up to 20 percent of the waste stream surviving
as ash, which might be considered "hazardous."
Disposal costs for such waste are extremely expensive.
The Committee did not seriously
consider a recommendation of closing the landfill permanently
now, since such an action would have immediately triggered
closure and reclamation costs the county couldn't afford.
Costs for closure are estimated to range from $5.5
million to $8.7 million.
Obviously, the county does not have the funds to
accomplish that at this time.
In studying these options, the committee
began to focus on these issues:
1.
The subject of an arbitrary "set back" limit at the
landfill severely limits its capacity.
Consultations between DEQ and T&L suggest a successful
engineering demonstration that would satisfy DEQ and DMME
could eliminate this constraint.
While there is no guarantee these regulatory agencies
will agree with the findings of such a study, there is optimism
that it would be a worthwhile exercise. The cost of such a demonstration is estimated to be $52,000.
It is recommended that if the County pursues this
option, that any fee be negotiated closely, with close examination
of the minimum scope of work that would meet DEQ's and DMME's
expectations.
2.
Presently, Cumberland Plateau Solid Waste Authority
is locked into a contract with a private landfill operator
in Tennessee until 2008, so it is a moot point to discuss
any opportunity for that waste stream (and revenue source)
to be available to Wise County. Cumberland Plateau officials would welcome the opportunity
to enter into a dialogue with Wise County, with an eye to
improving on its current contract rate, if there is interest.
Note: any
future reduction in the solid waste tipping fee at the landfill
must also be extended to the City of Norton (which currently
pays $35 per ton).
For reference, Cumberland Plateau currently pays
$21 per ton (not counting shipping to Tennessee, which is
another $10 per ton).
Also, Cumberland Plateau is skeptical Wise County
can offer a rate that would be significantly better that
its current arrangement, even four (4) years from now.
Furthermore, Cumberland Plateau points out that several
attempts have been made in the Virginia General Assembly
(including the current session) to impose a $5 per ton surcharge
for any waste going into a Virginia landfill.
This will be introduced again next year, and probably
every year thereafter until it's finally approved in some
manner. Such
a surcharge would almost immediately render any Virginia
landfill as noncompetitive with the Tennessee landfills.
The committee agrees with Cumberland Plateau on these
points.
3.
Lee County has also recently renewed a contract to
ship its waste to Bristol, Virginia's landfill. Similarly, county officials there would welcome continued dialogue
with Wise County, but they cannot void their contract without
penalty.
4.
Wise County presently has an ordinance on the books
that prohibits solid waste from outside the county (excluding
the City of Norton).
The Committee offers these ideas
for the Board's consideration:
1.
Construct a temporary transfer station that can later
be modified to permanent status and enter into contract
negotiations (term, tipping fees, haulage options and prices)
with all available landfill operators who would be interested
in receiving Wise County's waste.
2.
Do not expand the landfill now, and convert it to
CDD waste only. This
will allow more time to accumulate the necessary funding
to close and reclaim the landfill (which must be done no
matter what option is selected).
3.
Consider a two to three-acre expansion (estimated
to be about $700.000) three years from now to Subtitle D
standards, but continue to handle CDD waste only.
4.
Consider an engineering demonstration to ascertain,
once and for all, whether or not the existing setback limit
can be extended at the landfill.
There is no certainty this can be done, but it does
appear to be a logical action.
Not doing it will always leave that question hanging
in the air, "could we have extended the life of our landfill?"
However, it is suggested that this not be initiated
unless the Board has some comfort in considering the landfill
as a host facility for the entire region.
Undertaking this study for Wise County's exclusive
use of its landfill is not advised, since a stand-alone
landfill operation is clearly not cost effective.
5.
Enter talks with the Cumberland Plateau Solid Waste
Authority, Lee County, and possibly Scott County (which
must close its landfill within four to five years) on one
of three regional possibilities.
One would see Wise County continuing to operate its
landfill, but also for other waste from adjoining Virginia
Jurisdictions. The
second option would see Wise County transferring ownership,
operation and responsibility of its landfill to a surviving
regional authority, in a manner similar to the regional
jail authority. The
third option would be a variation where a regional solid
waste authority, with Wise County as a member, might send
all its waste to a landfill out of its service region.
The benefits of this arrangement would be the "economies
of scale" such a heavy waste load would bring to rate negotiations.
Also, such an authority can issue its own revenue
bonds to pay for capital outlays.
6.
For any of the options that would require bringing
out-of-county waste into Wise County, consider repealing
the existing ordinance that prohibits this from happening
now. The Board
of Supervisors enacted the ordinance under a different set
of circumstances many years ago.
Then, the concern it addressed was the threat of
private landfills locating in Wise County.
The ordinance was one of several "fire walls" put
into place. However,
the most legally sound method of controlling such proposals
took longer to study and enact, namely a revised comprehensive
plan, and a zoning ordinance.
With those in place, and still enforced today, the
ordinance prohibiting the importation of out-of-county solid
waste is not necessary to prohibit the siting of a private
landfill in the county.
As June 30, 2005 approaches, the
longer-term options for the county should become clearer.
If initiated, the engineering study should have "erased"
the setback line, or not.
The existing landfill would continue to be used for
CDD waste only, which is a mere fraction of the total waste
stream. By "moth balling" the landfill until such time that (1) the
ordinance prohibiting outside waste is repealed (if necessary),
and (2) contractual arrangements with neighboring jurisdictions
appear promising, Wise County thus keeps all its options
open, while minimizing its short term costs, and avoiding
substantial new capital debt.
Selection of the best long-term option should be
driven primarily by economic feasibility for the taxpayers
of the County.
If it appears financially feasible
(and attractive) for Wise County to fully reopen its landfill
as a host for regional waste, that could be done sooner
than four (4) years from now.
If for whatever reason or combination of reasons
it is not feasible, the "temporary" transfer station can
be up fitted to permanent status, and Wise County can move
toward permanent closure of the landfill at whatever pace
the regulatory agencies and available funds allow.
It is suggested, however, that operation of CDD waste
only continue as long as possible into the future to allow
the county to generate sufficient reserve to cover the closure
and reclamation costs, which will be considerable.
Most of the committee members are
not optimistic that the regional landfill options are financially
viable. It
requires a leap of faith and maximum participation by as
many jurisdictions as possible to even be worthy of serious
study. Solid
waste is all about volume, and without it, any Subtitle
D landfill is quite literally a "money pit."
The Board should look no further
than Lee, Dickenson, Buchanan and Russell Counties (and
soon to be joined by Scott County) for examples of how local
governments have learned landfill operations for their counties
are not financially feasible.
All are now shipping their waste elsewhere, and have
saved huge sums of money for their taxpayers in the process.
Lee County found that it could ship its waste to
Bristol's huge landfill for $32 a ton vs. $95 a ton to continue
to operate its own landfill.
Fred Luntsford, Co-Chair of the
Landfill Committee, made a motion that the County immediately
enter into contract negotiations with all available landfill
operators that would be interested in receiving Wise County's
waste and also enter into contract negotiations for those
interested in constructing a temporary transfer station.
This is the recommendation of the Committee and he
asked that the Board honor their recommendation.
Mr. Robbins asked that the "tests
or demonstration" also be added to his motion.
Mr. Luntsford stated that doing
the demonstration drives toward keeping the landfill open.
According to the comments made, that may not be the
best direction. However,
if the landfill is made regional, then the demonstration
should be done.
Mr. Adkins asked that Mr. Luntsford
amend his motion to include holding a public hearing to
repeal the ordinance prohibiting out-of-county waste.
Ms. Meador made a substitution motion
that the Board proceed with Option #2 which includes building
a permanent transfer station.
Mr. Luntsford noted that is was
not the Committee's recommendation to build a permanent
transfer station because it was not the most cost effective
and would not leave open other options if needed.
There was further discussion on
clarification of the different options available to the
Board.
Mr. Luntsford restated his motion
that: 1) the County immediately enter into contract negotiations
with all available landfill operators that would be interested
in accepting Wise County's landfill waste; 2) enter into
contract negotiations with those who would be interested
in constructing a temporary transfer station; and 3) hold
a public hearing to repeal the ordinance prohibiting out-of-county
waste. Bob
Adkins seconded the motion.
Ms. Meador restated her substitution
motion that the County proceed with Option #2 whereby the
County's waste would be shipped out by means of a transfer
station and continue to accept CDD waste which will provide
the County additional time to accumulate the funding
needed for
closure and for reclamation costs.
Robby Robbins seconded the motion.
Chairman Peace asked for a vote
on the substitute motion as stated by Ms. Meador.
Aye- Virginia Meador
Nay- Bob
Adkins
Steve Bates
Ronnie Shortt
Robby Robbins John Peace
Fred Luntsford
Leland Branham
Motion
defeated.
Chairman Peace asked for a vote
on the main motion as stated by Mr. Luntsford.
Aye- Bob Adkins
Nay- Virginia
Meador
Ronnie Shortt
Robby Robbins
John Peace
Steve Bates
Fred Luntsford
Leland Branham
Motion carried.
BOARD COMMENTS
There were brief comments from Board
members.
Virginia Meador presented UVA Wise
50th year lapel pins to each of the Board members.
RECESS
There being no further business,
a motion was made by Virginia Meador, seconded by Robby
Robbins, to recess the meeting to March 25 at 6:00 PM.
The motion was unanimously approved.
ATTEST:
WISE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
_____________________
_____________________
Clerk
Chairman
Back
to Top
