Calhoun County Commission President Michael Hicks opened the Commission meeting by requesting Chief Tax Deputy Treva Fulks report on the current state of County taxes. According to Deputy Fulks the County Taxes will be late getting in the hands of citizens due to the WV State Tax department’s late issuing of ”tapes” with information needed to print the tax ticket. Those tapes were not received by the Calhoun Sheriff Department until the 6th of July, and with only two Sheriff Department employees in the office they’re currently still working on getting the tax tickets entered, printed and mailed.
Crystal Mersh asked the Commission and Jean Simers, County Clerk if there were copies of the financial receipts for the County made to be shared with the public, which had been requested at the prior meeting. Simers said there was not, but she quickly made copies and returned to the meeting with those in hand for everyone there. Multiple questions from the community attending were raised about the errors noted on the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Monthly Financial Statement with asterisks. A matter that Jean Simers turned over to Chief Tax Deputy Treva Fulks to answer. But there was no real answer.
A frustrated Fulks stated that this had been an issue for months with their multiple softwares not correctly functioning as they transfer to a new system. Data does not transfer correctly into the document provided to the Commissioners monthly, showing errors where totals do not match data entries.
For example. Monies entered into the concealed weapons funds are transferred out to the WV State Police fund but those are not a part of that line item.
The same is true with the Court Reporter line item, the Sheriff’s retirement fund and the Tax Clearing house funds with money from that account going to the library, town of Grantsville, and Calhoun School Board, yet not listed on paper, it is listed in the Sheriff’s Department Computer which has a correct balance shown. It’s no wonder the public was confused regarding the report.
According to Fulks the Sheriff’s office is having difficulty with the original software, CCSI, which informed them that they were going out of business, so they began conversion to another software company, SSI. Following that conversion the two systems would not communicate, requiring information to be entered by hand into each system separately. Then another software was added by the name of Compiled. Which also will not communicate with either CCSI or SSI. Each System is used for different data entries and then manually compiled into Treva’s main computer as I understood it. One is used to collect taxes, another is used for checks and receipts. Which as you can tell could be totally incorrect, because as of now, I don’t understand it a bit better than I did before she explained it. But Chief Deputy Fulks has assured me if I come in, she’ll show me how it works. So we’ll do that when the tax frenzy is over.
What I do know is that the Sheriff and the Commission have allowed the incorrect documents to be entered into record, which concerned several in attendance at today’s meeting. The computer company informed the Sheriff’s office that they were working on the matter but this has been going on for some time.
Julie Sears reported on the 911 calls that had been received for the County, reporting that there were a total of 320 calls for the month of June:
- Arnoldsburg Volunteer Fire Department – 11
- Grantsville Volunteer Fire Department – 13
- Upper West Fork Volunteer Fire Department – 9
- Department of Natural Resources – 4
- Calhoun County Sheriff – 96
- Calhoun EMS – 66
- West Virginia State Police 151
With regard to Calhoun EMS, she informed the commission that the average response time for the Calhoun EMS was as high as 64 minutes, with the cause being, the length of travel, vehicles refusing to yield right of way and the average ambulance speed of 42 miles per hour (with road conditions this is necessary for safety.)
When asked by Ridgeview News how many staff the Calhoun EMS currently has on the roster, Sears reported 7 full time staff and 2 part time staff who work possibly once a week or once a month. They have a new staff member, Shelly Stamen, who just recently passed the EMT test. She will still be riding assisted until fully trained on the truck. There are still 2 EMT’s slated to take their test as well.
Ms. Sears advised that the admin telephone lines (which do not interfere with 911 calls) were out of service once again. She said that the Frontier service issue has been reported and occurs at least once a month.
Donald Pitts, President of the Calhoun County Park Board reported that the newly built Stargazer’s Cabin has been rented 20 days. They are currently looking for a person to contract for cleaning the cabin between visitors. They’ve had very positive response on cabin stays and have recent Stargazing visitors from Maryland, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Calhoun Parks is now apart of Stargazing internet site discussions with comments comparing the current conditions between Cherry Springs in Pennsylvania and Calhoun County Park.
Mr. Pitts also reported on the great turn out of community for the July 4th park event where music, village tours, water slides and fireworks attracted a good crowd. The park was able to purchase the fireworks from locals, Paul and Lori Parsons, which Commissioner Hicks comment on what a great how it was. Proceeds from the event following expense paid was $500-600. They’re hoping for another well attended event on August 5th when they’re hosting a Ronnie McDowell Concert, with cost assistance by Calhoun Banks and Minnie Hamilton Health System allowing the tickets to be only $10 each.
Another Star party event with the New Era Kite Club has been planned for the fall.
Shelia Burch, Director of the Little Kanawha Area Development Corporation reported that the Business Enhancement Project (also known as the Incubator project) had received funding with the amount to be announced later via press release.
Anita West appeared on behalf of the Mt. Zion PSD requesting funding assistance from the Calhoun County Commission for the purchase of a new Software, training and metering system that will cost $174,000 to install. Master Meters, their current metering company, has been a constant problem with the failure of their refusal to replace dying meters saying they’re out of warranty after 5 years, in not only Calhoun but other Water company as well. Commissioner Hicks asked if there were any other funding sources that they were requesting, to which Shelia Burch responded, that they had contacted Mid Ohio Valley Regional Counsel for assistance as well as other grant applications but that funding was for 2023. She further stated that because of the court ordered manual reading of meters by the West Virginia Public Service Commission there was an urgency of this request. The Mt. Zion PSD, Pleasant Hill PSD and Grantsville Municipal Water Company have been considering consolidation but the attorney for Mt. Zion, Jim Kelsh, did not think it was in their best interest because it would have an adverse effect on their customers. The Planning Commission appointed by the Calhoun County Commission then requested that Griffith and Associates provide a cost analysis on how much it would cost customers based on consolidating all three entities. Griffith and Associates is a firm hired for the Infrastructure study in the amount of $135,000. That analysis has not been provided, nor responded to.
Shelia Burch further conveyed her frustration in that the three water agencies of Mt. Zion, Pleasant Hill and Grantsville had been given no choice but to consolidate by the Infrastructure Project Committee regardless of the outcome. The study that was provided looked at an area involving the tie in of water lines from Stinson to Clay county, but no other locations were recommended.
Crystal Mersh requested that the Calhoun County Commission address the matter by putting a meeting together with all parties concerned, stating that broadband was not the only issue preventing business development. The lack of water and sewer in multiple areas of the county will stop the progress of businesses coming in. Mersh recently acquired the 200 acre Stump farm east of Grantsville on Route 5 with the intention of developing it, but it does not have access to city water or sewer.
After Shelia Burch asked the Commission to take lead on the issue Commissioner Hicks noted that the mandating of consolidation and the failure to consider other areas required solid answers from Griffith and Associates as to what cost analysis proved. He agreed and requested that the meeting be organized.
At the past few Calhoun Commission meetings a matter of discussion was what to do about dilapidated property in Calhoun County bringing down property values and discouraging property sales. Commissioner Matthew Walker had taken the lead on this project and had sent out about 15 letters to area property owners regarding property clean up. They received response from only one home owner who stated that due to an issue of asbestos on the property, they couldn’t afford to tear it down.
Cameron Spaur recommended that the Commission look at tax breaks or other incentive to encourage homeowners to comply.
Commissioner Hicks also said that he was concerned with the recent failure of the levy and the need to have the Fire Department involved in such matters, thinking that it might deter people further from passing the levy in the fall.
Another project of Commissioner Walker’s was to address the creation of boat launches on the Little Kanawha river. He has been working with the West Virginia DNR toward possible locations of new carry in sites in the Route 7 area of the Little Kanawha.
The next regular County Commission meeting will be held Monday, August 8th at 9 a.m.
A community work meeting with the Calhoun County Commissioners will be on August 4th at 6 p.m. in the Little Courtroom.
