Jeannie Ford led the campaign in Berkeley Springs earlier this month against the Morgan County school levy, which was defeated 56 percent (1,672) to 44 percent (1,323). <\/p>\n
When we interviewed Jeannie Ford after the vote earlier this month, she told us that she and her husband \u2013 Morgan County Commissioner Bob Ford — \u201care not on the same page on the levy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAs soon as I mention the levy, he leaves,\u201d she said. \u201cMy household has been in disarray ever since this levy thing started.\u201d<\/p>\n
In fact, Bob is against the levy and voted against the levy.<\/p>\n
Bob said that during the campaign, he told Aaron Close, Vice President of the Board of Education, that \u201cif somebody asked me about the levy, I would say I opposed it, but I wouldn\u2019t work on the campaign against it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy wife ran the campaign,\u201d Ford said. \u201cI had nothing to do with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Morgan County resident Mike Clement said that he saw Ford put in an anti-levy sign on Householder Road in the northern part of the county on April 26.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was driving by and the first thing I thought when I saw him was — that’s Bob Ford and what the hell is a County Commissioner doing way out here putting up anti levy signs?\u201d Clement said.<\/p>\n
Ford admits that might be true that he put up that one sign.<\/p>\n
\u201cA woman on Householder called my wife and said she wanted a sign,\u201d Ford said. \u201cJeannie didn\u2019t know where Householder Road was. We were going out to dinner, and we drove by there and delivered the sign.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut if he saw me put the sign up, it\u2019s the only anti-levy sign I put up,\u201d Ford said.<\/p>\n
There is talk that the Board of Education is planning on putting the school levy back up for a vote in December.<\/p>\n
Ford thinks the Board of Education doesn\u2019t have the legal authority to put it on the ballot again.<\/p>\n
\u201cI called the West Virginia Secretary of State\u2019s office today and asked them if the school board had the authority to put it up again,\u201d Ford said.<\/p>\n
Ford said he asked the Secretary of State for a written opinion.<\/p>\n
Ford says there is conflict between the West Virginia code sections — Chapter 18 and Chapter 11 — governing school levies, with one section requiring petitions from 40 percent of the registered voters (that would be more than 4,000 signatures in Morgan County) and another requiring 100 signatures to put the measure on the ballot.<\/p>\n
Problem is, Ford says, the school board didn\u2019t get 100 signatures or 4,000 signatures. They got no signatures.<\/p>\n
Ford says he knows of people in the county \u2013 he won\u2019t say who \u2013 who are planning to file a legal challenge against the school board if the board moves to put the measure on the ballot again this December.<\/p>\n
When asked why he\u2019s opposed to the school levy, Ford said \u2013 \u201cit\u2019s a waste of money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe school board should not be an economic engine,\u201d Ford said. \u201cThe superintendent makes $111,000 a year. The treasurer makes $83,000 a year. And she has a bureaucracy under her.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ford said that certain people in the community wanted to make Morgan County into an arts community and a bedroom community. And they did.<\/p>\n
He says real estate people became \u201cwealthy\u201d as a result.<\/p>\n
Instead, Ford would have brought industry to Morgan County to create a \u201creal tax base.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ford says that the property tax on industry is double that of residential property.<\/p>\n
\u201cResidential property taxes can\u2019t carry the load of the county,\u201d Ford said. \u201cThe tax base here is horrible.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ford says things are so bad here economically, that his catering operation \u2013 Bob\u2019s Big Beef \u2013 does only two percent of its business in West Virginia.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe do most of our business in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C.,\u201d Ford said.<\/p>\n
Ford said that a school board public hearing on the levy earlier this year \u201cwas a charade.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey had Connie Perry, Charles Trump, and Daryl Cowles answering questions,\u201d Ford said. \u201cWhere was the school board? Where were they hiding?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was a county commissioner for six years, and we sat right before the people and answered questions,\u201d Ford said. \u201cIf you are going to ask people to spend money, you need to answer questions. This county is lacking leadership. If I\u2019m making a decision, I will be the one to take the heat. I\u2019m not going to hide behind the county planner. People are fed up with this BS.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the issue of citizen participation at County Commission meetings, Ford said he didn\u2019t necessarily agree with Commission Chair Brad Close\u2019s recent decision to push public comments to the end of the commission meetings.<\/p>\n
\u201cI prefer to run them the way we ran them when I was commissioner with Glen (Stotler) and Tommy (Swaim),\u201d Ford said. \u201cWe had people come in occasionally with redundant ideas. But we let them have their say during the meetings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur meetings were always conducted pretty fair and upfront. The meetings never got out of control.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jeannie Ford led the campaign in Berkeley Springs earlier this month against the Morgan County school levy, which was defeated 56 percent (1,672) to 44 percent (1,323). When we interviewed Jeannie Ford after the vote earlier this month, she told … Continue reading