ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, July 17, 1996 TAG: 9607170063
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: FINCASTLE
SOURCE: MATT CHITTUM STAFF WRITER
The Botetourt County School Board solved a few of its own budget woes Tuesday by persuading the Board of Supervisors to return $250,899 left from last year's school budget.
The School Board presented a list of six one-time expenditures it wanted to make in the hope that the supervisors, who approved a school budget $1.4 million less than the school board requested, would cough up a few extra bucks.
"It seems to me that we should reward thrift by rolling over what they had left over from last year," Amsterdam District Supervisor Robert E. Layman Jr. said in making the motion that the leftover money, plus $30,601, be appropriated.
The $281,500 is enough to fund the top three items on the School Board's list - five school buses, $30,000 in band equipment and $20,000 for a building trades project. But it's just over half the School Board's $500,000 request. Lost were the athletic field equipment, two extra large buses and some moveable walls for several schools.
Supervisors Wendy Wingo and Bill Loope tried to push the $281,500 up to $400,000, but were defeated.
"I think we should be pleased to get what we got," said Sally Eads, the School Board vice chairwoman.
"This was a good way to break me in," said Bob Reece, interim superintendent of schools in the county.
Reece, retired school superintendent in Pittsylvania County, was appointed last week to serve for about six months while the School Board finds a permanent replacement for Clarence McClure, who retired effective June 30.
In other action:
The supervisors voted unanimously to approve the purchase of $127,398 in computers and software to computerize the Sheriff's Department. The new equipment will provide mapping for dispatchers, connect with the state's incident reporting database, and digitize the department's mug shots and fingerprints. About $50,000 of the funding for the computerization will come from assets confiscated during drug arrests.
The board voted to amend the county's motor vehicle code and enter fully into a regional decal enforcement compact with the counties of Bedford, Craig, Franklin and Roanoke, the cities of Roanoke and Salem and the Town of Vinton. The compact allows police to ticket drivers for expired decals from anywhere in the seven participating jurisdictions.
The board unanimously approved the waiver of the building permit fee for Dynax America's automotive parts proposed $17 million plant in the county's EastPark Commerce Center. Tenaka Corp., contractor for the project, is required to retain a professional engineer, do its own inspections and report to the county building office. County Administrator Jerry Burgess said the waiver will actually save the county money because the county's inspectors will not have to be involved in the project.
LENGTH: Medium: 61 linesby CNB