By Stephen Smoot
Elections for Town of Franklin officials were held in May.
Last week, the new town government gathered together for the first time. New faces on the Franklin Town Council included Larry Thompson, Therese Thompson, and Andrea Bodine.
Jarred Rawson and Kristin Dingess, council members, Bruce Minor, town recorder, and Bob Horan, town mayor, remained in office.
Prior to the meeting, mayor and council met with Frank Wehrle, town administrator, for a preliminary session that covered town finances, issues, and government. Wehrle specifically covered the water and sewer projects and the various aspects of state requirements of the town concerning those. Newcomers also learned about public meeting laws and the use of Robert’s Rules of Order.
The mayor concluded the talk with assurance that the group always works to “serve best the community. We keep the best interests of the Town of Franklin in mind.”
The meeting started directly after. First the council considered the financial statement provided by Wehrle. Horan explained that “we started that several years ago,” providing a detailed financial statement “showing where the money goes” at the start of each regular meeting.
Once that discussion concluded came the second reading for a water ordinance that will raise rates 10 percent per year for three years. Wehrle explained that these increases struck the balance between meeting guidelines for what a municipal water utility needs in a period of rising costs and also recognizing that “all at once” rate hikes can create hardship for residents and other customers.
He explained that the last rate increase came in 2019 and that “a lot has happened in the years since then.” Wehrle added, “Three years from now, we won’t know what inflation will look like” and that establishing a series of rate increases serves as good public policy “instead of falling behind.”
Reluctance of elected officials to raise rates has left municipalities across West Virginia with costly issues and declining quality of service. Once the three years of 10 percent increases runs out, a regular two percent increase, when needed, will “keep the town from getting too deep.”
Also, the ordinance came after Wehrle negotiated with the West Virginia Public Service Commission to reduce what they encouraged the town to undertake.
The Town of Franklin also has a mandate to continue staying current with bond payments. Council members learned that the West Virginia Public Service Commission takes bond payments seriously and will take over and impose rates on its own if a municipality gets behind.
The mayor added, “The state mandates it. We don’t have any choice.”
After a thorough explanation of the need for the ordinance, council members voted unanimously to pass it on second reading.
Next came a vote to approve a budget revision that moved a $58,104 carryover into the new fiscal year budget.
Council members then took up a discussion of parking in front of the Pendleton County Courthouse. Concerned residents had shared that they found the intersection dangerous because parked cars impeded visibility to drivers trying to turn from Walnut Street onto Main.
Rawson inquired if a large number of accidents happened there and stated that he personally had not had problems turning there. He stated at the start of the discussion that “I am not personally in favor of losing those spaces.”
Larry Thompson shared that “it’s dangerous. Someone will get hit there.” Minor added “there’s no line of sight.” It was also noted that trucks pulling trailers have significant problems at that intersection and that cars coming in the northbound lanes of US 220 often fail to slow down in time as they come into town.
Horan asked, “Should we be proactive or reactive” and wait to see if accidents occur.
Rawson spoke to Larry Thompson and stated that his input changed his mind. Rawson made the motion to open the process to eliminate the parking spaces. That will involve a written ordinance and two readings before council can vote.
Tim Thompson came to speak about the town’s one percent sales tax and its uses. “I agree with the one percent” but “the public would like to know . . . exactly what it’s getting.”
In the May Town of Franklin meeting, outgoing Russ Sasso, council member, suggested that the town create a distribution plan to share with the public. Minor produced a template of six categories that the tax funding could address, including town roads, contingency, recreation, grant writing, town promotions, and cemetery maintenance.
Sasso moved that the categories be accepted with the change of taking five percent from what was suggested for town promotion and move it to a seventh of “miscellaneous.” The motion passed.
All that said, Rawson described the slate of categories as “a living document” and that future needs may require flexibility in that.
The mayor closed the meeting by sharing his appreciation, “For you participating in the government of the Town of Franklin.”
