Tim Walker
AMR Reporter
The Pocahontas County Commission took up the issue of setting the distribution of the Hotel Occupancy Tax Revenues at its January 21 meeting. This revenue flow is more commonly referred to as Hotel/Motel Tax. Prior to determining which organizations will receive portions of the tax revenue, representatives of three organizations who receive funds made presentations to the commission.
Ruthana Beezley, Tim Wade and Bob Sheets appeared on behalf of the Historic Landmarks Commission. Beezley talked about some of the projects the Landmarks Commission did in 2024, including painting at the old Huntersville School; window work at the Opera House; a widow’s walk at the Pearl S. Buck House; porch repairs at the Pocahontas County Museum, and Archeology at Fort Warwick. Sheets expanded on the Fort Warwick work, stating that in addition to the actual archeology, they have had Pocahontas County High School students and students from other high schools come out and work with the archeologists to learn how that work is done.
Cynthia Gurreri appeared on behalf of the Pocahontas County Arts Council and delivered its financial report. Gurreri said Peggy Owens received an award from West Virginia Arts and Culture for her mosaic art. She also said the Arts Council did face painting at Durbin Days and works with the Convention and Visitors Bureau at the Visitor Center in Durbin, among many other projects. She showed the commission photos of some of the original art work from their artists.
Parks and Recreation Director Lauren Bennett presented the financial report for that entity and told about the installation of new bathrooms with flush toilets that have been built at Widney Park. Parks and Rec has also hired a new Program Director. Bennett said this year they will be opening a new park in Hillsboro, and will be repairing the covered pavilion at Stillwell Park, which, after 30 years, is in need of repairs.
After these presentations, the commission discussed, then approved the distributions of the tax revenues starting in February. They kept the same distributions as last year with one exception, which was Commission President Johnn Rebinski’s suggestion to lower the amount of money going to the Pocahontas County Ambulance from $275,000 to $225,000. He said they won’t need that additional $50,000.
This year’s distribution will be:
As mandated by West Virginia Statute, 50% of the Hotel Occupancy Tax revenue goes to the County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. Of the remaining 50%, fixed cash amounts go to the following:
PMH – $75,000; County Emergency Medical Services, $75,000; County Fire Board, $120,000; County Bricks and Mortars Fund (for courthouse maintenance and repairs), $20,000; and Pocahontas County Ambulance, $225,000.
The following organizations then receive the following percentage of the remaining revenue: 2.5% to Preserving Pocahontas, with a cap of $21,000; 3.5% to the Arts Council, with a cap of $28,000; 6% to Historic Landmarks Commission, with a cap of $50,000; 22% to Dramas, Fairs and Festivals, with a cap of $175,000; 31% to Parks and Recreation, with a cap of $250,000; 30% to Libraries and Visitor Information Centers, with a cap of $255,000; and 5% plus any excess above the other caps to the commission’s “Hotel Occupancy Fund.”
Rebinski said that no caps were reached last year. He also clarified that the commission’s Hotel Occupancy Fund is used to make donations to other worthy causes that come up during the year, such as the money donated to Marlinton and Durbin this year to be used as local matching funds for their Mon Forest Town grant applications.
The commission also approved the revised proposed deed for the purchase of the county landfill. The wording on this deed has been problematic ever since the commission agreed to purchase the landfill from the Fertig Family last fall. Every time a deal appeared to be close, one side or the other wanted the wording in the deed changed, or items like fencing and water rights removed from the deed and put into a separate written agreement. The Solid Waste Authority has now agreed to accept the newest revision of the deed, and a separate written agreement and informed the commission of that at this meeting. The commission also agreed with the wording of the deed, and said the separate agreement was between the Solid Waste Authority and the Fertig Family.
Only one issue remains that could still torpedo the purchase. As of January 1, the current lease payment for the landfill in the amount of $9,000 for six months was due and has not yet been paid. Both Commissioner Jamie Walker (who is also a member of the Solid Waste Authority), and all the other Solid Waste Authority members present said they do not want to have to make that payment since they are buying the landfill, and the sale has been being negotiated for more than two years. The commission and Solid Waste members both said the deal is good to go now except for receiving the approval from the Fertig Family to forego that last lease payment. The Solid Waste members and the commission agreed this lease payment is not negotiable, so if the Fertig Family insists that the lease payment be made, the purchase won’t happen. There was no one at the meeting representing the sellers to either accept or reject that condition, so it will be presented to them shortly.
Stephen Skinner, the attorney representing Pocahontas County in the opioid lawsuit against multiple pharmaceutical companies, informed the commission that they have just been sent a second settlement check in the amount of $80,000. He explained that there will be additional checks received over time, but the amounts will diminish. Skinner said the court placed restrictions on how the county can spend the opioid money they receive, meaning it can only be spent for things like substance abuse prevention and treatment, medical treatment of abuse victims, drug abuse education, drug related jail bills and law enforcement. He called them “guard rails” because they are general guidelines. Skinner said he is willing to advise the commission as to whether their proposals would be acceptable to the court.
Rebinski asked if it could be used to purchase an ambulance, and Skinner said he would have to get back to them with an answer to that. One way around the guard rails, he suggested, would be to use it to pay for jail bills or other clearly approved things, then spend the saved jail money or other saved money on anything they want to use it for.
County Prosecutor Laura Kershner asked the commission to approve for her office to hire a part-time Assistant Prosecutor to handle Magistrate cases, which will free her up to handle Circuit Court cases. She is hiring James Love IV at 20 hours per week at half the salary paid to the former Assistant Prosecutor and includes half the benefits of a full-time employee. The commission approved this.
Rebinski also talked briefly about his meeting with the Pocahontas County Emergency Medical Board about the County Ambulance Service. He said they want to hire a full-time director for the service as it expands to cover the entire county. He said this paid service will be incorporating the cooperation and assistance of four volunteer fire departments – BFD, Cass, Marlinton and Hillsboro, who are all willing to be a part of the county-wide service. Rebinski said he is also looking at county ordinances in Tucker and other counties that established a 1% to 2% tax to help cover ambulance service expenses.
