I have been collecting articles from The Enterprise concerning the financial state of Patrick County for 6 months. With the county Fiscal year just getting under way this is a really bad start. I am livid that the county has spent money on a LOVE sign that no one can see unless they are at Dehart Park, it is hidden behind the Library and can’t be seen from the bypass where most of the through traffic is and it certainly can’t be seen from Blue Ridge Street. We have a caboose that serves no purpose, has no connection to the Dick & Willy railroad. It is not a tourist attraction and is just being vandalized. If I may speak for the many people who feel the same as I do. We the people didn’t ask for these extravagant expenditures. Matched funds are no deal if you don’t have the money in the first place. What would the public think if they knew how much money you spent on these useless items. The rail trail was a statewide plan and I have seen a handful of people actually using it, and it really doesn’t have any scenic views unless you are into the back side of business. But again did we really have the money to splurge on that. None of these great ideas have brought tourism or revenue to our County. Now the county is going to take out a Revenue Anticipation Loan with interest to make ends meet and I suppose we the citizens are going to pay for that with higher property taxes. Since I purchased my property the taxes have doubled and I can barely afford them. The county doesn’t have money to make payroll for the county and the School Board is deferring payment of Electric bills to make payroll. This has been a problem since at least May and nothing has changed. Matched funds are NO deal when you don’t have the money or the need. Get some business in the county to increase tax revenue and leave our property taxes alone. It is not the responsibility of the public to pay for your mistakes. I sure hope the County can be more careful with our finances and remedy this problem without costing us the public you serve.
Murphy Brown
(Editor’s note: The LOVE sign was paid for by the Patrick County Tourism Advisory Council and the Virginia Tourism Corporation, according to Sandra Belcher, director of tourism. The caboose was paid for by the Town of Stuart and a $10,000 donation was received from the Patrick County Tourism Advisory Council, according to Susan Slate at the Town Office.)
