
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, August 30, 1995                   TAG: 9508300058
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: RICHARD FOSTER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

ADVOCATES, FOES MAKE THEIR POINTS

If the Nov. 7 referendum on the merger of Bedford and Bedford County passes, Bedford County would become a city. The present city of Bedford would become a shire, a semi-independent government similar to a town.

City and county officials have pledged that taxes would not go up because of the merger.

Advocates say consolidation would have many benefits:

It would permanently protect Bedford County's tax-rich Forest neighborhood from annexation by Lynchburg. (That's not a threat for now, though, because there is a statewide ban on annexation by cities.)

The shire would be able to annex land, by ordinance, from Bedford. That would save taxpayers costly court battles and allow the shire to grow and provide more services to more residents.

Taxpayers would save money by the merger of some agencies, such as the school boards and fire and rescue dispatch centers.

It would eliminate city-county competition for new industry. Both jurisdictions would benefit from taxes from new industry, regardless of where it locates.

Consolidation opponents say the merger is a not a true merger because there would still be two governments. They also say not enough services and agencies would be merged to make consolidation financially worthwhile for voters outside the Forest area.

by CNB