Brady Cody
Robbinsville – A settlement regarding a sanitation bill in excess of $23,000 has been finalized.
At June 17's Graham County Board of Commissioners meeting, county manager Brady Cody presented a May invoice for Robbinsville's past-due amount of $23,914.80. No explanation was provided as to how the bill accrued at the meeting, but Cody told The Star on Tuesday that the town agreed to add a line item to its yearly budget to avoid the amount building up in the future.
"I think talks between the county and the town have been great," Cody said Tuesday. "This has really turned over a new leaf."
Cody presented a projected figure of $14,630.40 at June 17's meeting, which he said was the average cost of billing the town a commercial rate of $80 per ton. Cody said Tuesday the town has already paid that amount to settle the past-due balance since the meeting, which covered 61.2% of what was owed.
Fitness center
Sara Coplai with the WNC Bridge Foundation provided some insight regarding funding for the planned Graham County Fitness Center during June 17's workshop session.
The idea for the center was first broached following a countywide health assessment in 2022, which spurned the creation of a local taskforce in the wake of the assessment revealing that many in the county had interest in a centralized fitness center.
One crucial step in the process came soon after the taskforce was formed, when Graham County earmarked property specifically for the fitness center.
"That gave this a head start," Coplai said. "That's often the biggest issue in any capital development."
Graham County Department of Public Health Director and commission chair Meggan Smith have both given separate presentations in the last two years before the foundation regarding the center, which led to a feasibility study that projected the center would carry a price between $30-31 million.
Coplai did not let the limited tax base or other needs of the county go unaddressed at the workshop, but did reveal that $14-$16 million of the funding has received interest from unnamed capital investors at the state level – once the county gets back up to speed on its audits.
"You're not asking for a grant to fix a problem; you're asking for a grant to prevent future problems," said Coplai.
Coplai added that the remaining 50% of funding has gained interested from Truist Bank, which views the potential fitness center as an ideal community location that could be utilized in the event of a disaster similar to what was experienced in surrounding counties during Hurricane Helene.