HomeMy WebLinkAboutC.054.93009_2309Attorney Pope said he contacted the Institute of Government about the payment method used
by the city for reimbursement to Cool Springs. Pope said the Institute agreed with the city's
reimbursement or calculation method. Mr. Pope said, "the county did not have a dog in the fight,
due to the way that current annexation legislation was written." He said, however, there wasn't
anything that would prevent the board of commissioners from expressing an opinion.
Commissioner Bowles said that after municipalities annexed, they viewed the volunteer fire
departments as a temporary fix until they could provide fire service.
Commissioner Johnson said VFDs provided fire protection through a contract, and with this
being the case, the county could not manage the annexation dispute. Johnson said the county had
no authority in the matter due to fire protection being on a contractual basis.
Commissioner Stewart said the fire departments took the stance that they had a contract with
the county, and they still needed equipment on a rotational basis. She said that someday, the board
of commissioners might have to make a decision on whether to approve fire department contracts
if there was not a need for fire protection. Mrs. Stewart said the officials with Cool Springs felt "the
City of Statesville was not treating the county fair - - the city was not paying what should be paid
on debt service, especially after an agreement was made after the annexation."
Attorney Pope said his understanding of the matter was the same as what Stewart had
expressed - - the Cool Springs representatives felt the county was being cheated.
Commissioner Bowles mentioned individual fire districts. He said if this ever occurred, he
could envision a mapping nightmare and a constant struggle in the tax office in trying to determine
what properties were in a particular district. Also, some citizens might be forced to pay twice what
they were currently paying. Bowles said some areas of the county might only pay half a cent. He
said it would be sad because the people who had been supporters of the fire departments would
have to pay more. On the other end, the people who didn't even know where the fire departments
were located would get a break.
Commissioner Stewart said she was basically hearing from the board members that the
county contracted with the VFDs, and therefore, had no authority in the annexation dispute.
Commissioner Johnson said some of the fire departments did not have a shortage of money,
they had a surplus of debt. Johnson said some departments might say they didn't have enough
money to buy turnout gear and gas for their trucks. He said the reason was because the departments
had too much debt.
ADJOURNMENT: Chairman Haire adjourned the meeting at 9:15 p.m. NEXT MEETING:
December 7, 1999, 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., in the Iredell County Government Center, 200 South
Center Street. Statesville, NC.
Approved: ✓ Lc�r"eT% / /`/`/
re
erk to the Board