Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, June 5, 1993 TAG: 9306050713
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Alcorn, who was chairman of the Planning Commission before his term expired May 31, said he was not warned of a problem with the unpaid taxes when the supervisors met behind closed doors to consider his and other appointments on May 24.
The supervisors replaced Alcorn with Harry Neumann of Blacksburg, a former commission member.
Alcorn said he doesn't believe he owes the taxes but said he was mailing a check Friday to County Treasurer Ellis Meredith along with instructions to apply the money to next year's tax bill if it's found he doesn't owe the back taxes.
"I'm paying them; I don't owe them, but I'm paying them," he said.
A portion of the bill - $32.88 - dates to 1990 and was for personal property tax on a car that was actually owned by his father, who shares the same name, Alcorn said. He said he thought that bill had been straightened out earlier.
The remainder of the bill was real estate tax on a residence on Garden Springs Drive that Alcorn sold in February 1988. The first he knew of that unpaid account was when his reappointment was denied, Alcorn said.
"I've never had a delinquency I'm aware of prior to that," he said.
Roughly two years ago, the Board of Supervisors began checking to see if people they were considering for appointment to county boards and commissions had registered to vote and had paid all of their county taxes.
However, when the supervisors have advertised for those appointments, they haven't included the fact that not voting and delinquent taxes could disqualify a candidate.
At least two supervisors feel that the county should include that information when it advertises vacancies in the future.
Supervisor Henry Jablonski of Christiansburg said he believes the advertisements should include the voting and tax requirements and that candidates should be alerted if the county finds a problem.
Jablonski said he pointed out to other board members that the amount Alcorn was said to owe was small and that the bill might not be accurate.
But, Jablonski said that Alcorn didn't have the votes on the board he needed to be reappointed. He said he didn't know if some supervisors had other reasons than the tax bill for voting against Alcorn.
"I'm sorry we lost Ray because he's a very good Planning Commission member," said Supervisor Jim Moore of Blacksburg. Moore, the board's liaison to the Planning Commission, said he's seen Alcorn keep order more than once during heated meetings of the commission.
At the May meeting, the supervisors voted for four different appointments to the commission as a package. The vote for all four was 6-1, with Supervisor Nick Rush the sole dissenter. Other members named along with Neumann were incumbents Malvin Wells, Joe Draper and Edward Green.
Alcorn was named to the commission in 1990 to fill the unexpired term of Larry Linkous, who is now a county supervisor.
Alcorn was vice chairman last year when the supervisors declined to reappoint Chairman Edwin Keith to the commission. He then succeeded Keith as chairman.
He enjoyed his time on the commission, Alcorn said. "If I had to do it over again, I'd do it again."
Alcorn was surprised that he wasn't reappointed, but added, "My opinions have not always been popular."
by CNB