Middle school plan referendum is Ok'd

Following a 4-1 vote at a special called meeting Tuesday, the Alleghany County Board of Commissioners agreed to send the issue of a school bond to the voters this fall.

The commissioners and school officials are set to head to Raleigh on May 23 to discuss the county's ability to pay for such a bond with the Local Government Commission (LGC).

The LGC oversees local government finances in North Carolina. The proposed school package, estimated at around $10.5 million, includes upgrades at all local schools as well as the school system's central office building and a new countywide middle school building. More concrete figures will likely be available as the county and schools prepare to go to the LGC. A fully detailed plan of how all the funds would be spent will be released to the public in the near future. A summary of the costs has already been released.

Such a large project would push the county's ability to borrow further funds for other needs for several years, said County Manager Don Adams. He noted that the county's borrowing power would be seriously depleted by the move and that other revenue sources would be needed.

The commissioners have discussed costs before, noting that such a building project also would lead to significant tax increases, possibly raising taxes by 18 cents or more.

Commission Chair Eldon Edwards said the increase in taxes and the hit to the county's borrowing power, along with the tough budget year the county is already facing, lead him to be the lone vote against the plan, he said.

As for the referendum, he said, "I did not support it. I think the amount is excessive." He said he wants to help the schools with their needs, but only if the county can afford to pay for it.

He suggested giving the schools $5 million to do what they need to do to improve school facilities.

Edwards said the emergency meeting was called so the board could take a vote on the issue with all members present. The day prior at the regularly scheduled day meeting, Commissioner J. Warren Taylor was absent.

Speaking in favor of a referendum, Commissioner Graylen Blevins said the commission's number one job is to do the best they can for the citizens. He said the referendum will give the voters the chance to agree or disagree with the facility plan— with the full knowledge of its costs. "If we don't go with a referendum, the board of commissioners and the board of education are taking responsibility" for the school building plans and related tax increases, he said.

Those who want quality schools and quality education will vote for the plan, those who vote no will know the consequences to education, he said.

He said stressing the benefits of the plan is more important than the bottom line, or cost, of the plan.

Taylor, who was not at the earlier meeting, said he favors the referendum, although the high costs concerned him. He asked when the final figures for the school building plans will be made available. County Manager Adams said the numbers cannot be significantly different than those that will be prepared for the LGC to be taken down on May 23. "Hundreds of thousands might not make a difference," he said, noting that some changes could be made if necessary. He also said that the figures could be decreased after the LGC meeting if necessary, but they could not increase by a significant amount. "I would think you could always go down, I just don't think you could go up," Adams commented. He also pointed out that three further meetings will need to be held on the referendum, along with two public hearings on the issue.

Taylor said, "I had hoped we might get middle school expenses down below the figure that was presented. The figure you said you need is $10 million and below that it is not possible to get a middle school plan."

He added, "I would support a bond referendum....if the citizens and the commissioners can afford that, I don't know. The decision has to be made by the citizens of the county."

Commissioner Sandy Carter Herndon commented, "I said yesterday that I will support the middle school if the voters and residents of the county are willing to support the middle school. If they are willing to pay the financial price, I can't tell them they can't do that."

Get the rest of this article in this week's issue of the Alleghany News! Back