| By Bob Weaver
The ongoing issue over Grantsville's town hall property is up to bat again.
The Town Council will decide Monday evening whether to approve a proposal by
the Morris family business interests to appoint a Morris committee to explore a
solution to the town hall problem.
The Morris solution is to keep town hall where it is.
Mayor Neil Blankenship apparently agrees, according to an interview in the Parkersburg News yesterday. The interview indicates the Morris proposal is the only one on the table, and the town has nothing to loose.
Mayor Blankenship told the Parkersburg News a new town hall must be built, because of its crumbling condition.
While Grantsville businessman James Morris has said he just wants to create more options, the auctioning of the town property is dead.
Behind the issue are proposals regarding a new convienence store in the town. The Morris family wants to start one, and so has businessman Steve Satterfield.
The Morris' have yet to go public regarding their plans to build their
convenience store on property they own across the street from town hall.
Documents obtained under the Freedom of Information act said the West Virginia
Department of Highways had agreed to sell public right-of-way adjacent Route 5 to
the Morris store project.
The documents indicated that the DOH deal by negoiated by Del. Bill Stemple, an employee of the Morris;.
Morris ownership of the right-of-way is essential to establishing the Morris store. The Route 5 right-of-way goes close to the front door of Smith's Service Center, a building already owned by Morris.
Businessman Jim Morris declined a request from the Hur Herald to confirm his own
interests in a convenience store, which directly or indirectly involves taxpayer
owned properties.
Morris' newspaper, the Calhoun Chronicle, complained town council had adopted a
resolution "with one option, to place the building and property for sale at public
auction," and they would like other options, like forming an exploratory committee
to seek assistance to build a new town hall.
During an injuction hearing brought by the Morris', it was indicated a public auction was the most viable way to look at the disposition of the town property.
Mayor Blankenship said a resolution passed by council in October to explore
the auctioning of the town property, was not legal and is null and void. Blankenship
said the resolution was placed on the agenda too late for a legal vote.
"I was not aware it was on the agenda, until it came up," he said.
This is the second time this year the council's actions have been declared illegal.
Council had voted four with one abstention to move ahead to see what the property might bring at
auction, since a appraiser hired by the Morris' said it was valued at $160,000.
Council would have had the right to reject bids.
During the October meeting, reporter Lisa Minney of the Morris owned Calhoun
Chronicle, offered her own written and spoken revisions to the auction resolution,
later saying she was being responsible by engaging public issues.
She said a good
reporter should "participate and become involved," even during an official
meeting.
Blankenship said if council wanted to pass such a resolution to place the property at auction, they would have to
put it on the agenda a week before the meeting.
Morris' attorney Frank Venezia told the council during the November meeting that
the Morris group would form an exploratory committee to research financial
possibilities for the construction of a new town hall or the repair of the existing
one.
Venezia said the exploratory committee would offer free research, free review of
funding sources, free grant writing, free clerical staff, free quarters and free
demolition by Jim Morris if a new town hall is constructed.
The committee would
include Jim Morris, Lynn Gilbert (his wife) and Venezia and his office staff, although
other members could be added.
"We are concerned citizens who want help the mayor and the council restore civic pride by restoring and improving the center of town," Venezia was quoted in the Parkersburg News.
Venezia said the Morris group would work with Delegate Bill Stemple and others in
Charleston to obtain funding, including approaching the Mollohan Foundation.
The attorney told the Parkersburg News the town has nothing to lose with the Morris proposal, the committee will be successful or not.
Other parties interested in the town property contend the action is to stall decision making, so the Morris' can get their convienence store on the map.
This is the second time this year the Morris family has used attorney Venezia
regarding the disposition of town hall property.
Through their reporter Minney and Grantsville resident Don Harris, the Morris
business interests obtained an injunction stopping the trade of town property with
businessman Steve Satterfield last May.
Minney had also charged the town had failed to comply with the open meeting
laws, which Mayor Blankensnhip says "We are now taking to heart."
Satterfield had proposed to build a $750,000 convenience store on the town
property, offering to build a new town hall on Main Street in trade.
Judge David
Nibert declared the council's approval of the Satterfield proposal illegal.
Attorney Venezia, during the injunction hearing, said the Satterfield's proposal
was a "pig in a poke," although businessman Morris was offering to the trade two
buildings he owns on the flood plain for the town property. He said offering of his buildings was to give the town more options.
At that time Morris was wanting to build a professional office building on the town hall property. Now he indicates it is his civic responsibility to maintain the municipal building.
Businessman Steve Satterfield said he has backed away from building a store in
Grantsville, although other parties have expressed interest in the town real estate.
SEE earlier Herald stories under ARCHIVES 10/13/03 and 4/9/03
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