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BOS Agrees to Hire Part-time Park Employee

From staff reports

Scott supervisors rearranged their FY12 budget a bit after they received some last minute requests from a pair of local groups.

The Scott County Board of Supervisors held a public hearing last Thursday night in the county office building in order for concerned citizens to express their views and share their input on the proposed Fiscal Year 2012 budget.

The proposed $20-plus million budget is based on the current tax rates of 69 cents for real estate and manufactured homes and public service corporations, 72 cents for merchants' capital and machinery and tools and $1.40 for personal property taxes.

Nickelsville resident Betty Salyer, a member of the Keith Memorial Park board, requested enough funds to hire a part-time employee at the Nickelsville park in order to help maintain the facilities.

“We have a lot of volunteers who give their time to helping the park maintain the great facilities we have,” said Salyer. “But many of us are reaching the age where we’re not able to do as much as we used to. We would like for the board to approve more money in the budget in order to hire an employee to help keep the building clean after each use.”

Nickelsville resident Larry Vicars presented the board with some facts and figures that supported Salyer’s request for assistance.

“Last year, the building was used 113 times,” said Vicars. “There is an awful lot of volunteer work up there – cleaning the building and mowing the high school and little league fields. We feel like we give a pretty good return on investment, and the $3,000 proposed for this year’s budget is not much compared to some of the other parks in the county. We’re basically just asking for $50 each time the building is used.”

Scott County Administrator Kathy Noe noted that she had spoken with Salyer concerning the employment of a part-time employee and that position would require $8, 117 to be allocated for the wages of that employee.

BOS Chairman Dr. David Redwine advised that if the board did decide to appropriate the money for the position, there would have to be an official hiring process that would include advertising for applicants and conducting interviews.

Noe added that the new employee will be under the direction of Scott County Recreation Director Skip Sheets and the salary would pay for a 20 hour per week position.

District 3 Supervisor Danny Parks, who represents the Nickelsville area, reiterated the fact that many volunteer hours are performed at Keith Memorial right before he made the motion to approve the $8,117 for a part-time employee. District 6 Supervisor Chad Hood seconded the motion and all members voted to approve the funds for the new position.

Two representatives from Brain Injury Services of Southwest Virginia requested county funding in the amount of $550 in order to keep their line item open. The county has previously provided funding to the organization in past years.

“Right now we have two people in Scott County that we provide services to,” said Brain Injury Services representative Steve Haley. “We provide case management and life skills to those who have suffered from brain injuries, and if we can show that we are getting support from localities, it helps to gather funds from other sources.”

“I think $550 is pretty minimal,” said Redwine. “And if our support will help them obtain the funding they need to continue to provide their services, I don’t see a problem with their request.”

Hood motioned that the board approve the request by Brain Injury Services and District 1 Supervisor Paul Fields seconded the motion with all members voting to approve the $550 request.

Noe stated the board needed to consider some additional requests including some repairs at the Duffield tennis courts, repairs at the communications tower located on Powell Mountain and purchasing a new copying machine for the magistrate’s office.

“David and I have both received numerous phone calls concerning the tennis courts in Duffield,” said Hood. “We have determined that the reason for the disrepair is due mainly to the fact that corners were cut the first time, and the base was not put down properly.”

The asphalt is cracked on the tennis courts at Duffield Primary School and the nets have been missing for a while.

According to Noe, the estimated cost to get all three courts back in working condition is $4,838. Hood made the motion to provide the funding for the repair, while Parks seconded and the motion was unanimously approved.

The BOS also approved a request to transfer $7,500 from its 2010-11 budget to the 2011-12 budget in order to repair the communications tower on Powell Mountain. The board also agreed to give $784.19 for a new copier in magistrate’s office.

In other business, the board gave authority to the county administrator to write a letter of support to the Virginia Tobacco Commission for Larry Vicars’ request for a grant for lights to be added at the athletic fields at Keith Memorial Park.

Supervisors will meet Tuesday, June 28 at 4 p.m. to formally approve and adopt the new budget.