Info. about Consolidations.

[cats78]

Today their was a Board of Supervisors meeting and the vote was 8 to 0 against consolidations. And here are some phone numbers to call and give these people your opinion.

School Board Members

Office Phone # 328-8017

Michael Basham Home Phone # 328-3133
Robert Mullins Home Phone # 796-9018
Mark Hutchinson Home Phone # 565-0821
Margaret Craft Home Phone # 328-5182
Ann Gregory Home Phone # 762-7168
Wendell Caldwell Home Phone # 523-5126
Cecelia Robinette Home Phone # 523-4147
Kyle Fletcher Home Phone # 762-7720
Milas Franks Home Phone # 395-5604

Board of Supervisors

Ronnie Short Home Phone # 796-5619
Fred Lunsford Home Phone # 565-4101
Bob Adkins Home Phone # 328-6039
John Pease Home Phone # 523-3533
Steve Bates Home Phone # 328-2558
Robbie Robbins Home Phone # 395-3206
Virginia Meador Home Phone # 523-1158
Leland Branham Home Phone # 395-2653

Commissioner of Revenue Office # 328-3556

They told Mr. Basham they could not go along with this plan. And what does he do. Release it to the press. Now he has doomed his own try to do anything.
The SB may vote yes, but without the BOS, it will not go anywhere.
Mr. Basham can thank himself for that. He let the cat out of the bag, because he didn't get the response he wanted. And now it has come back to claw him.
Sometimes even when you have people on your side and they ask you to redo something, and they do what, go to the media, well figure it out.
He lost a lot of his support yesterday. And not only angered members of the BOS but many on the SB.
Hard to ask the BOS to back a figure of $54 million dollars to renovate 3 schools, when years ago, it was a price tag to renovate 4. Plus add in close to $500,000 for trailers, to use for classrooms.
All they ask for was for the plan to be revised with a better view, and less money, and looking at the idea of 3 new schools. Yet Mr. Basham ignores them and take this to the press.
An extra $160 dollars a year, may not sound like much based on an $80,000 dollar house. Well if your making mega bucks.
But not all of us work in the Central Office of Wise County School system.
That and going to the press, is what i think angered, most on the BOS. They ask for something that would work.
Yet our SB should be the one's telling Mr. Basham that, yet he dictates to them.
Now he himself has probably doomed his own plans.

[brasspig]

Flooding these people with phone calls is rediculous and plain childish. You will not change their minds, but only confirm their feelings. Would you want everyone in Wise county calling your house at all hours, day and night? What would you do? Turn your phone off? That's exactly what they will do.

Give them a break!

I'd probably expect to have to answer to my public , but I don't see me running for anything other than getting out of the rain. I'd probably kill off the phones after 8 or so.

[Jack_N_The_Green]

this is rediculously getting out of hand

70K a year- if you can't stand the heat ,don't run for office in the kitchen. [img]/LDPforum/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] I'd do it for that amount.

Many were told this was bigger. None seem to listen till now.
And now well you can see. It is a lot bigger. Many other counties are looking in. So they don't make the same mistakes.
Now who is to blame? We got a SB that will not make their employee do what is right. So who do you blame? I was astonished that he ask for the same amount of money to renovate 3 schools that he ask for to do 4 just in 2003.
Then add in almost $500,000 dollars for trailers and ask the BOS to accept that, and raise taxes on an $80,000 dollar house by $160 dollar a year?
Then them tell him the plan is unacceptable and unfeasible, give us something else to look at even possibly 3 new schools.
And Mr. Basham turn it over to the press. When it was not to be announced, till it could be studied further.
All i can say. He lost. And as far as i have read the BOS voted 8-0 against consolidation.

[brasspig]

That's NOT what the school board members or board of supervisors get from this. Don't take it all out on them.

No but many in the County School Central office do.
That was also in the CEPI study. Reduce central office staff.
I didn't see that outlined though in Mr. Basham's plan. But it was also highly recommended.

[brasspig]

Agreed.