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CURRENT=20 STORIES FROM THE MOUNTAIN MESSENGER - October 15,=20 2005
(Click on headline for = article)

Mountai= n=20 Messenger Op/Ed Page - 10/15/05=20
County votes today on school=20 bond=20
Citizens concerned about state = of=20 Greenbrier River Trail=20
Alderson to negotiate study of = water=20 system=20
Episcopal School shows = interest in White=20 Sulphur Springs land=20
=91The Hills Are Alive=92=85 = with the sound of=20 windmills?=20
Tradition, technology blend in = design=20 for new library=20 =

Focus on the Greenbrier Valley - = Business=20 Supplement - = Updated 7/12
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County votes today on school=20 bond

By David Cottrill

Will Lewisburg get a new elementary = school at=20 a $12.5 million cost? County voters will make that = decision=20 today. Lewisburg=92s school, whose first building = dates to 1915,=20 is the county=92s oldest and most populated. It sits = in a=20 residential neighborhood on 4.5 acres.

If the bond passes, a new = handicap-friendly,=20 single story structure will be built on 15 acres of = flat land=20 just outside city limits, a little over two miles from = the=20 present site.

Superintendent John Curry told the = Lewisburg=20 Rotary Club recently, "Every decision we=92ve made is = about how=20 best to provide educational opportunities for our = kids." He=20 said that remodeling the old school would be = problematic, that=20 students would have to be housed in temporary = classrooms=20 without access to such amenities as library and gym = during a=20 two-year renovation. He said the building cannot = support=20 wiring and rooms for computer labs and will be too = small to=20 accommodate pre-schoolers.

Opposition to the bond issue comes = primarily=20 from the west end of the county where the population = is=20 smaller and the perception expressed is that the east = end gets=20 the better facilities. Observers have pointed out that = schools=20 on that end are likewise old and in need of renovation = and/or=20 replacement. They also express fears that their = neighborhood=20 schools will be consolidated.

Curry said the board has to take = one step at=20 a time. He said the board=92s policy is to preserve = neighborhood=20 schools and that the needs of the western end will be=20 addressed.

County activist Joan Browning said = she=20 opposes the bond issue in favor of finding a way to = address=20 the needs of the entire county. "Those schools on the = west end=20 are in desperate need of upgrades," she insisted.

Curry said the cost to the average = taxpayer,=20 if the bond issue passes, would be $40-50 dollars = annually=20 until the bonds are retired. The figure is based on a = $100,000=20 property assessment.

Citizens concerned about state of = Greenbrier=20 River Trail

By Stacy Glick

At a meeting of the Greenbrier = County=20 Commission on Oct. 11, Gerry Manspile and Virginia = Hudkins=20 made a presentation about the condition of the = Greenbrier=20 River Trail. They asked the commission to do something = about=20 the abandoned cars and trash that they witnessed along = the=20 trail. Hudkins commented that they had contacted the = Division=20 of Highways and Gov. Manchin about their concerns.

According to Hudkins, a reply to = the letter=20 they wrote to Gov. Manchin applauded them for their = efforts to=20 improve the condition of the state, but remarked that=20 currently there were no programs in place to help with = this=20 situation. According to the commission, the only = county=20 ordinance in place that would address any problem like = this,=20 is their abandoned building ordinance. This ordinance, = however, doesn=92t address abandoned vehicles or other = items.

The commission passed a motion to write a letter to = Gov.=20 Manchin, asking him to expedite the process of putting = in=20 place a program to deal with this problem. In = addition, during=20 the Tuesday meeting, a public hearing on a proposed = land=20 transfer tax was scheduled for Nov. 8. The tax would = support=20 farmland preservation in Greenbrier County. This = matter had=20 been voted on previously, but the commission had not = given the=20 mandatory 30-day notice before the previous public = hearing=20 took place.

Alderson to negotiate study = of
water=20 system

By David Cottrill

The Alderson Town Council voted = Thursday to=20 authorize Mayor Luther Lewallen to negotiate with = Stafford=20 Engineering to study the town=92s antiquated water = system. "They=20 will prioritize our needs and then go to funding = agencies for=20 us," Lewallen explained. "They only do water projects, = and=20 they are already familiar with the town." Stafford was = chosen=20 from among eight firms submitting credentials.

The town, in a recent month, = experienced a=20 near 50 percent failure in the water distribution = system. The=20 Mayor explained that the lines were not properly laid = in the=20 beginning. "The day they turned on the water in 1973, = the=20 lines leaked," he maintained.

"We=92re looking for the most = cost-effective=20 way to replace the lines," added Recorder Margaret = Hambrick.=20 "We need a long-term fix."

On another issue, Council passed on = second=20 and final reading an ordinance of cooperation with the = county=92s mapping-addressing initiative. The = ordinance gives=20 the county=92s 911 Center permission to survey the = town and=20 change street numbering to facilitate emergency = responders,=20 making residences and businesses easier to find in = emergency=20 situations. "It will cause some inconvenience = initially,"=20 Lewallen predicted, "but it has to be done."

Council received a report from a = committee of=20 council members and citizens to draw up safety rules = governing=20 bucket drives at the stop signs near the north end of = Memorial=20 Bridge. Safety vests, number and age of participants, = warning=20 signs, number of drives annually, and permitting = procedures=20 were debated. Regulations will come to a vote at = November=92s=20 council meeting.

Mayor Lewallen asked former Mayor = Tod Hanger=20 to initiate long-term emergency planning for the town = in=20 cooperation with the town=92s fire and police = departments. "We=20 need to have resources available and procedures = formalized for=20 potential threats," he explained. He listed floods,=20 snowstorms, extended power outages, tornadoes, and = railroad=20 accidents or chemical spills as possible = emergencies.

"We need people working on = shelters, feeding,=20 evacuation procedures, transportation, housing, = establishing a=20 command post, and interfacing with the county=92s = emergency=20 center," he said. Hanger=92s report was preliminary, = and no=20 action was asked of Council Thursday.

Members noted the recent passing of = Council=20 Member Mary Smith. "She was a real asset to this = council,"=20 observed Lewallen. "We=92ll miss her enthusiasm and=20 thoughtfulness," added Hambrick.

Episcopal School shows interest in = White Sulphur=20 Springs land

By David = Cottrill

Andrew K. Smith, head of Greenbrier = Episcopal=20 School, told the White Sulphur Springs City Council = Wednesday=20 that the school is looking for property on which to = build a=20 new facility.

The school currently has 75 = students through=20 grade 8. It uses the White Sulphur Springs Community = Center,=20 the old White Sulphur Springs High School, and is = satisfied=20 with the facility except for its lack of outdoor = space. "We=92re=20 looking for property for a permanent location," Smith=20 explained.

"Our dream is to expand to a = pre-kindergarten=20 through 12th grade school, and we=92d like to stay in = White=20 Sulphur Springs," he elaborated. "We would need = somewhere=20 between 20 and 50 acres." He said he hoped to start a = dialogue=20 with Council about acquiring a portion of city-owned = real=20 estate known as the Sterrett Property.

The property, 150 acres, was = acquired by the=20 city in the 1980s in a land swap with The = Greenbrier.

Council Member Chris Hanna said the = idea=20 appealed to him because he had hoped to see a housing=20 development on the tract and that a school would fit = there=20 perfectly.

Council agreed to hold a workshop = with school=20 representatives at 5 p.m. Nov. 1 to explore the = issue.

In other business, Council passed = on first=20 reading an ordinance regulating gambling = establishments of=20 every kind in the city (including video lottery). = Following=20 state regulations, the ordinance would not apply to = charitable=20 or public-service organizations that predated January=20 2001.

Council also approved a resolution = in support=20 of West Virginia Wildlife Coalition in its attempt to = have a=20 tract of the Monongahela National Forest designated a=20 Wilderness Area. "It is an isolated area," explained = Council=20 Member John King, "and is not on private land."

Mayor Debbie Fogus announced that=20 Trick-or-Treat would extend from 6 to 8 p.m. on Oct. = 31. "Turn=20 your lights on if you=92re participating," she = advised.

=91The Hills Are Alive=92=85 with the = sound of=20 windmills?

By David Cottrill

Over 200 Greenbrier County = residents looked=20 on as concerned citizens exchanged views in = Williamsburg=92s=20 Community Center Tuesday with an official from the = corporation=20 that intends to construct as many as 131 wind turbines = on the=20 county=92s northwest ridges.

Addressing citizen concerns, David = Groberg,=20 project developer for Invenergy Wind LLC of Chicago, = said the=20 company would attempt to keep the giants a distance of = one=20 mile from any given residence. He said noise and = strobe=20 lighting effect (a sunrise and sunset phenomenon) = would not be=20 issues at that distance.

He also maintained that customary = access to=20 the area for hunting, berry-picking, etc., would not = be=20 curtailed by his company. The land is owned by = MeadWestvaco;=20 they determine access.

He said the wind factory would = occupy 500=20 acres and that each tower requires a "footprint" that = occupies=20 a circle with a 130-foot radius.

He claimed economic benefits for = the area,=20 including temporary construction jobs during the 6-8 = month=20 erection period, and 10-20 permanent jobs paying = around=20 $35,000 with benefits, and that Invenergy would be one = of the=20 top five tax payers in the county.

Groberg promoted the virtues of = wind energy:=20 no waste or pollution. He said his company has the = resources=20 to build and operate the facility over its lifetime = (about 20=20 years), and that the company would either retrofit or = take=20 down the towers when the time came, and would post = bonds to=20 that effect.

Groberg invited attendees to "go = and see a=20 wind farm for yourselves" to judge its nuisance = factors.

County resident John Stroud, whose = property=20 abuts the proposed project, spoke for Mountain = Communities for=20 Responsible Energy (MCRE). "They=92re not building it = to provide=20 green energy," he charged, "they=92re building it = primarily for=20 the tax subsidies.

"Properties that we own are taxed = at 60=20 percent of assessed value. In 2001, the State = Legislature gave=20 away the cookie jar. The wind company will pay taxes = on=20 five percent of assessed value."

He said the company claims it will = pay the=20 county an average of $400,000 a year over 20 years. He = noted=20 that the county assessor=92s office said it would be = closer to=20 $235,000. "It would be $3.5 million annually if they = were=20 taxed the way we are," Straud insisted. He said that = was an=20 important consideration in light of the county=92s = current=20 efforts to raise money for new schools.

Another financial windfall for the = company=20 would be its opportunity to sell green credits. Area = resident=20 Aaron DeHaven said reduced pollution (as in wind = energy) is a=20 commodity that can be exchanged. Another industry or = utility=20 can buy green credits to help meet environmental=20 standards.

Utilities or factories buy them so = they don=92t=20 have to completely meet environmental regulations. = DeHaven=20 said he suspects the wind company will use green = credits as=20 part of their land lease agreement with MeadWestvaco, = which=20 would allow the paper company to "pollute even more." = Groberg=20 denied his company would exchange green credits with=20 Westvaco.

A real estate appraiser conjectured = that land=20 values in the vicinity of the project would decline=20 significantly. He projected that tourism would suffer. = He=20 noted that all of the area=92s tourism promotion = literature=20 touts the county=92s viewsheds. "People won=92t come = here to look=20 at an industrial site," he assured.

Many present were concerned about = the effects=20 of the turbines on wildlife and hunting. "Turkeys and = bears=20 are affected by the noise," Straud observed. "Deer are = probably not." He claimed that two endangered bat = species=20 (insect eaters) have been seen in the region even = though=20 Groberg claimed that company studies have found none. = The=20 windmills are known to kill numerous bats.

Although Groberg held that noise = would not be=20 a problem due to the one-mile setback of the towers, = one=20 attendee pointed out that they really wouldn=92t know = for sure=20 until the turbines are in place and operating. "These = hollows=20 don=92t diffuse noise," he contended, "they amplify = it."

Another attendee said this whole = debate would=20 be academic if, after the towers are built, their=20 low-frequency noise interferes with the Green Bank=20 Observatory. "They=92ll shut you right down," he = claimed.

European nations are backing away = from wind=20 power, Stroud pointed out, because wind farms are = proving=20 inefficient and expensive. He said there is an = abundance of=20 information on the Web about the problems European = countries=20 have encountered.

At a Williamsburg Ruritan meeting = the=20 previous evening, MCRE showed a video about quality of = life=20 issues experienced by residents living near towers at = two=20 projects in other states. The continuous noise and = strobe=20 light effects caused sleeplessness, nervousness, = irritability,=20 and steep declines in property values, they = testified.

State Senator Jesse Guills and = Delegate Ray=20 Canterbury said they were there to look at both sides = of the=20 issue, as was Delegate Tom Campbell, who added, = "I=92ll make=20 sure your concerns are heard." No County Commissioners = were=20 present.

Since there is no zoning in the = county,=20 Stroud said, the only hurdle Invenergy has to = negotiate is the=20 state=92s Public Service Commission, a body of three, = appointed=20 by the governor for six-year terms.

Tradition, technology blend in = design for new=20 library

The Greenbrier County Public = Library has=20 launched The Great Expectations Campaign to construct = a new=20 12,600 square foot building in downtown Lewisburg. = This=20 article is designed to answer questions about how the = decision=20 came about to build a new library, and about the = improvements=20 patrons can expect in the new facility.

Once the decision was made to = construct a new=20 Greenbrier County Public Library (GCPL), the trustees = knew=20 that they had a big challenge on their hands. The = building had=20 to blend into the charming historic district of = downtown=20 Lewisburg, but it also had to be equipped to handle = the=20 constantly emerging new technologies that are = transforming how=20 patrons access information.

One of the features that patrons = love most=20 about the current library is its traditional style and = quaint,=20 cozy feel. Although the new building will have almost = 10 times=20 the space, the architectural firm of Kreps and = Zachwieja has=20 developed a design that retains much of the = traditional charm=20 of the old building while accommodating the = technological=20 needs of a 21st Century library.

The imposing two-story brick = structure will=20 be sited a hill above the campus of New River = Technical and=20 Community College. Beautiful windows along the front = of the=20 fa=E7ade will offer a spectacular view of the historic = district=20 and the mountains beyond.

The main level will feature two = reading areas=20 with fireplaces, ten stations for public access = computers, a=20 children=92s area, a small meeting room, a periodicals = section,=20 circulation desk and stacks for 50,000 volumes. (The = library=92s=20 collection currently numbers 34,000 volumes, so there = will be=20 plenty of room to grow).

Besides offering more than double = the number=20 of public access computers, the new library will also = have=20 wireless internet access through 15 laptop computers = that can=20 be checked out from the circulation desk.

An elevator will connect the main = level to a=20 lower level community meeting space with a kitchen and = restrooms close by. Since the current library=92s = meeting space=20 is limited to the tiny Annex next to the main = building, the=20 new meeting room, which will comfortably seat 100, = will be a=20 valuable new resource for community groups.

Both GCPL Library Director Ann Farr = and=20 Assistant Director Christy Carver hold master=92s = degrees in=20 Library Science. Because of their expertise, the West = Virginia=20 Library Commission has designated GCPL a service = center for 19=20 libraries in Monroe, Summers, Nicholas, Webster, = Poca-hontas=20 and Greenbrier Counties. The new meeting room will = also=20 provide training space for staff from those libraries, = who=20 receive administrative, fiscal and continuing = education=20 support from GCPL staff.

A major drawback of the current = library is=20 the lack of accessibility for handicapped and elderly = patrons.=20 The new building will not only have convenient = off-street=20 parking, but also will feature accessible entrances on = both=20 levels.

The new library could very well be = the only=20 public building constructed in downtown Lewisburg this = century. Its design reflects the important role it = will play=20 in the educational, social and cultural history of the = town=20 and surrounding county for generations to come.

Donations to the Great Expectations = Campaign=20 for the new Greenbrier County Public Library may be = mailed to:=20 The Greenbrier County Public Library Building Fund, = 301=20 Courtney Drive, Lewisburg, WV 24901. For more = information,=20 contact Ann Farr at 304-647- 7568, or visit the = Library=92s web=20 site, http://greenbrier.lib.wv.us/.

Carnegie = Hall

3D"The
The Greenbrier

The Pearl S. Buck=20 Birthplace


Here at the weekend = paper for=20 the Greenbrier Valley, the Mountain Messenger, = we are=20 exploring ways to make our newspaper and our online = publication ever=20 more beneficial to you, our readers. We welcome your = comments and=20 suggestions. Make yourself at home here. Drop us a note. We = will get=20 back to you right away. Let us know what is on your = mind:=20 Feedback=20 What You = Had To=20 Say Do you have photos that = you would=20 like to see printed in the Mountain Messenger and on our WEB = page?=20 (.jpg and .gif files preferred)=20 Submissions Some have asked if we accept = editorials=20 submitted to our WEB site. The answer is yes we do. We run = them on=20 the Editorial page in the Mountain Messenger. Submissions<= /P>

Last update Oct 17, = 2005
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