Robbinsville – The Graham Star hosted a candidate forum for the upcoming commissioner race Saturday, inside the Robbinsville High School Auditorium.
Even though the turnout was low, the candidates were passionate about the opportunity to share their thoughts and concerns with public attendees.
Lynn Cody, Thomas Menard, Connie Orr and Meggan Smith were on-hand to answer questions, share their thoughts and concerns about Graham County, and give residents an idea of how they plan to help the county if elected. Candidate Machelle Crisp was unable to attend, due to prior work commitments.
Each candidate began with a brief introduction before the evening’s moderator, Graham Star publisher/editor Kevin Hensley, began the question and answer session.
Library funding
* Cody: As the finance officer for the Fontana Regional Library, Cody expressed a desire to see the financials and see why this underfunding is taking place. He stated that the county funding for the library was increased this year. He said he had not been approached about the problem, but he would be interested in finding grants available for library.
* Orr: Stated she had made a request for the director to call her about the issue, but she has not received a call. She praised the late Mary Griffin for all of her hard work and dedication to making the library such a great place for the community, by creating new activities and doing things there that had never been done before. She has made contact with the original committee that was in charge of fundraising and construction of the library, and is willing to work with others to solve the problem. She wants to get the facts and move in the right direction and promises to support every effort made to improve the library funding.
* Menard and Smith: Both expressed concern with the lack of funding for the library, but as both of them are just beginning their journey in county government, they both shared that they did not have the prior knowledge to help them give an answer to this question.
Animal control
* Orr: Agreed that the animal population is a problem – and confessed that she was an animal lover – but she stressed that our leaders cannot lay another bill on our taxpayers for animal control. She shared knowledge of some volunteers in the county who took on the burden of caring for feral animals and paid for the care. She agreed that it was a good idea to have a program or process in place, but not at the expense of taxpayers. She suggested partnering with programs for quarterly or monthly spay and neutering clinics.
* Menard: Also expressed a love for animals, but agreed that a shelter was not feasible due to the expense. He shared his concern for the homeless community of our county and stressed the need to help that population above the need to help with animal control.
* Smith: Has spoken to volunteers in the community who are currently caring for some of these animals. She agrees the problem is expensive and time-consuming. She suggested forming a committee of these volunteers who are giving their time and have experience, and allowing them to brainstorm ideas and share what could be done with what is currently available. She wants to work toward a solution from there.
* Cody: Shared that Swain County is opening a new shelter and would be interested in partnering with Graham County in some type of control. He also shared his love of animals and shared the fact that some people pay a lot of money for their dogs and would not be appreciative of someone telling them what they could do with their animal. He also shared that there have been some new restrictions to the facility at Valley River. The shelter needs a lot of money for improvements and no funding is currently available. He promised to do whatever the commission could do to make the problem better for the community.
Sanitation
* Menard: Explained that he would have to see the numbers and said he couldn’t promise anything until he was aware of all the facts. He agreed it was a problem and stated that he felt that everyone should come together and talk about the problem. He shared that he had spoken to people who felt like they were not getting the service they should. He vowed, “I will be straightforward with the public in meetings and give them accurate information as to the cost of the resolution.”
* Smith: Stressed the need to do whatever it took to keep our county clean and the need to readdress the problem. She expressed the desire for transparency to the people and offering them a solution.
* Cody: Informed the group that at one time, Graham County had a landfill and it had been closed. The county has to haul and dispose of the garbage and pay for it. He shared that if a state inspector comes into Graham County and sees garbage on the ground at a dump site, it is an automatic $25,000 fine – per day. He said that over the years, garbage has taken a lot of taxpayer money. Trucks must be replaced and people throw anything in the dumpsters, which can damage the compactors. He said there was a public meeting to discuss the issue and 10 people showed up. People need to attend and have their voices heard over the issues and work together for the common goal.
* Orr: She shared, “Garbage is one of the most expensive things that counties have to deal with.” She suggested long-term discussions with accurate numbers. She stressed that a decision couldn’t be made until all the facts and numbers were available.
Opioid crisis
* Smith: She has attended several meetings that were held to discuss use of the opioid settlement money, and she was impressed with the peer support group and outreach programs that have evolved from the funding. She believes that the funding will help those programs remain. Looking into the future, she praised the efforts of the Celebrate Recovery Program. She feels that we need to do more outreach, and it should be an “all hands on deck” situation, where everyone does their part. From the commissioners’ point of view, she would ask for the support of the county and reach out to providers in the community to provide medication-assisted therapy to patients who want to recover.
* Cody: He shared, “I have seen overdose first hand.” He believes trying to educate individuals to step up and volunteer for programs will help. Money won’t help. The abusers have to decide to change their life. He has seen people recover from a Narcan two or three times, only to see them doing the same drug in the same shape days later. He stresses we have trained people who are providing information to help people. We can do our part as a community and give the resources, but it is up to the individual to make that decision and commit to recovery. They will have the support and resources to help them get back on their feet. He praised the health department for their help with the situation.
* Orr: She stated that mental illness is a plague on families. She has witnessed the problem first-hand. She shared there were a lot of programs and a lot of people working to solve the problem. She informed the audience that there has been additional money arrive from the opioid settlement. Several committees are working on the issue and she stated that saving one life would be worth it all. Orr said that the Graham County Department of Social Services was actively trying to provide housing, and she added that local officials are working tirelessly to see what works best.
* Menard: He shared that he would be willing to do whatever he could to see that the problem was addressed. He suggested working with the health department to find funding for programs that would encourage the users to attend classes and provide support to them to help them fight the addiction.
Justice center
* Cody: He explained it is a judge-mandated situation from seven years ago. He said that money is available. They have looked at designs and they were trying to make sure the design is cost-effective. The cost of the project has risen considerably since COVID. According to Cody, they have narrowed the decision down to three sites. He stressed the fact that the county was not doing away with the current courthouse. It will be used for an administration building, housing county offices. He said that the plan was moving forward, but slowly. He stated that the commissioners wanted to make sure it was done right.
* Orr: She stated that it may seem to the public that the commissioners were not looking at the problem. She said they are looking at properties and the price tag will get passed on to the citizens. The ballpark went from $16 million at the beginning of the project to $42 million after COVID. She wants to be mindful of the burden on taxpayers. She wants to look at the project every way to make it better. She shared that the current commissioners have been told by legal counsel that they could be held in contempt and locked up due to the current conditions of our courthouse. She wants to keep the courthouse and downtown Robbinsville vital to the county.
* Menard: He shared that he has been working with the county for the past year, and he is aware that they are working on the project. He agreed that a justice center must be a priority. Wherever the justice center is built, it will affect the area and he doesn’t want to lose the center of our county – which could happen if it is placed in certain areas of the county.
* Smith: She shared how thankful she was for the structure we have, considering the devastation to the surrounding counties. She asked the question, “How can we build a big fancy justice center when our kids are in an old school building?”
The forum can be viewed on the Star’s YouTube channel.