By Frank Ruggiero
The new Watauga High School may not make the grade, as
far as fee waivers are concerned with the town of Boone.
At its annual retreat Feb. 15, the Boone Town Council agreed to
deny a request from Watauga County to waive water availability,
permitting and inspection fees for the new high school project.
In a Dec. 20, 2007 letter addressed to Mayor Loretta Clawson and
the council, the county commission refers to an earlier request
for a waiver that the council had denied. Water availability fees
amount to $76,279, while permitting and inspection fees are projected
at $48,750, the total for which exceeds $125,000.
The letter mentions town attorney Sam Furgiuele’s interpretation
of stage general statute, in which he said the town could not
waive the associated fees, and continues to say a new high school
will benefit generations of children, while offering a state-of-the-art,
environmentally friendly venue for education “that will make
all our citizens proud.”
“The county believes that it is both appropriate and legal
for the town to do so,” the letter reads.
In their letter, the commissioners note that the high school campus
will feature numerous athletic facilities available to the general
public, addressing the council’s concern that waiving fees
would not benefit the public.
“The county is amenable to forwarding the required fees in
a timely manner and, in turn, the town will donate these funds
to the project and so designate for a specific purpose,”
the letter reads.
Furgiuele told how the county referred to a 1992 N.C. Court of
Appeals case, Watauga County Board of Education v. Town of Boone,
in which the court determined that the town can only spend money
for reasons constituting a public purpose.
“As I read that decision, it is not appropriate for the town
to do it,” Furgiuele said, adding that commission chairman
Jim Deal, county manager Rocky Nelson and county attorney Tony
di Santi strongly disputed his opinion. “Even if you accept
their interpretation of what constitutes public purpose under
state law ... we have no provision in our own ordinances for the
waiver of fees, beyond hardship waivers for small amounts of money.”
Like so, the council is bound by its own ordinances, which it
could amend should members chose to do so. As it stands, “There
is no provision to waive development fees now,” Furgiuele
said.
Council member Stephen Phillips asked if the council could waive
fees for a specific entity for a specific purpose – solely
Watauga County for the development of a new high school, and Furgiuele
said he did not see how it would be possible, as that would not
change the public-purpose aspect.
Council member Janet Pepin said she agreed with Furgiuele’s
interpretation, and, “I also see that what’s being requested
of us is a fancy version of ‘We’ll pretend we’re
paying and give it back to us,’ which tells me in my mind
it’s not a legal thing to do or an ethical thing to do.”
Pepin said she’d like to see a list of “everything the
town of Boone ends up giving Watauga County and how much Watauga
County is giving Boone.
“Until we start seeing more stuff coming our way, that’s
the feeling I have,” she said. “It has nothing to do
with legality; it’s that we’re constantly being asked
of requests, and I don’t see it coming back from the other
way.”
Council member Lynne Mason mentioned that the town is already
being held responsible for the installation of sidewalks by the
high school property, and council member Rennie Brantz said he’d
feel more sympathetic toward the county’s plight, were the
town already not assuming such costs.
Furgiuele then referred to the state general statutes, particularly
Sec. 160A-209, concerning joint undertakings. The statute reads,
“To cooperate with any other county, city, or political subdivision
of the state in providing any of the functions, services, or activities
listed in this subsection,” none of which include education.
Council member Stephen Phillips expressed concern about public
perception, in that the council could be labeled “anti-high
school” were it to deny this request.
“I have a hard time justifying the use of town funds,”
Mason said. “The town is paying extra than every other county
resident, and I think we are in full support... At the same time,
I don’t think the Boone taxpayers ... should bear any more
responsibility for the cost of the high school.”
Boone Development Services director John Spear added that the
high school property amounts to 73 acres off the town tax base.
“It’s not vindictiveness; it’s not meanness,”
Mason said. “I want to work with the county. We are working
with the county.”
In September 2007, the council amended the water and sewer ordinance,
regarding the transfer of availability fees for government entities.
Under the new language, the county could request usage credit
from the old high school property (for 10,480 gallons per day),
adjusting the availability fees to 3,389 gallons per day and lowering
the cost to $18,639.
According to Rick Miller, director of Boone Public Utilities,
the county has not yet made such a request.
“I don’t think the Boone taxpayers ... should bear
any more responsibility for the cost of the high school.”
— Lynne Mason, mayor pro tem, Boone Town Council
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