Tuesday’s Washington County Board of Supervisors meeting saw the conversation continue between board members about the correct path to securing a new communications building.

At their meeting August 21st, a resolution regarding a bond was tabled and a work session took place Monday, August 27th on the topic. During that work session and into the meeting on Tuesday, conversations included a total amount for a bond issue, the possibility of having a separate emergency operations center from the communications building that would be built in a second phase, and a rural urban renewal solution that would give the public recourse through a reverse referendum if the public chose to petition the board. During discussion and comments to those in attendance Supervisor Jack Seward Jr. shared his position on wanting to move forward with the rural urban renewal plan. “The people have already had their say in who they want to conduct their affairs for them and that’s us. I think that in proceeding with a rural urban renewal plan, that gives the people the petition power, like a referendum on whether or not the trust the job that we’re doing. They voted us into office to make the hard decisions on their behalf. In the time that I have gone around the county and talked about this project, at the end of the conversation I think without exception, the bottom line was this is a project that is needed, and they have no objections to it. I’ve got some constituents in my district that have told me a couple different times, ‘Man I didn’t know I had to tell you to exercise your common sense to vote for something or to do something’. I take to heart the people that voted me into this seat trusted me to do the right thing.”

Supervisors Abe Miller and Bob Yoder expressed their opinion on wanting to proceed with a bond vote by the public. Miller said, “We’ve created ourselves the situation we are in. I know it’s something that had to be done, but we kinda got the cart in front of the horse, we got the equipment coming before the building is ready, I understand that. It puts us in a dilemma. I also am a firm believer that when we spend this kind of money the public has a right to decide what we do because it’s their taxes that really does pay for it. I understand we are in a situation that makes it tough but the taxpayer didn’t create that. I would like to see us proceed with communications as an absolute necessity, and I understand the EOC is probably a necessity, but it’s a secondary necessity compared to the actual communications center. It might cost us more to build it later on but I think those are some things that we should consider.” Yoder added “I’m going to have to go along with Abe, I’m not real crazy about this idea of financing something without the public being able to vote on it. I still like the idea of letting the public vote then we’ll make a decision from there. If we are going to be transparent then lets let a vote happen.”

Supervisors Stan Stoops and Richard Young discussed their support for a rural urban renewal plan and moving the project forward. Stoops said “This is a benefit for the county, we can see that, I’ve been confident that it’s going to pass anyway, because people know where we are going to be at if it doesn’t. I don’t think it’s that important that it’s up to the people this time around. They can see what’s going on. They know we’re under the gun. We’ve got to make a decision. The temperature I’m getting now is how are you moving along on this? When are you going to get this done? Get this done, this is something we need.” Young added “What Jack has brought up with the urban renewal is, if we go this way, the people still have a right to come and petition to turn it on a vote. If we have public hearings and we go around the county and nobody says anything, and they say this is what we want done, then we do it. If they do the petition, we put it on a ballot. We’re being transparent either way we go.”

This was not an action item on Tuesday’s agenda, despite the continued discussion. If the board decides the matter would go to public vote, a special election would happen in March. If it is decided to pursue the rural urban renewal path, the project could move forward in as few as six weeks.