RONCEVERTE W.Va. (WVDN) – The Ronceverte City Council held its monthly meeting on Monday night, Dec. 9 and it lasted about 35 minutes.
Some highlights are as follows:
The panel first did the approval of minutes from the Nov. 4 meeting and with all yes votes, they were approved.
During the citizen’s comments part of the meeting, concerned citizen David Withrow complained of a couple of nondrivable cars near his property which he claimed are allegedly being used for drug deals.
“On my back door, I’ve got two vehicles sitting on my property all beat up, flat tires. It’s been going on for over a year. Maybe we should bring some old cars and let them deal drugs out here in front of City Hall.” After council member Leah Smith, who was filling in for Mayor Deena Pack who was out with an illness, told Withrow they would check with law enforcement about the issue, Withrow said, “Please do and don’t leave it up to me because you won’t like what I do. And I’ll probably go to jail, and I don’t look good in orange,” referring to towing the cars away himself with no authority to do so.
Resolution No. 6- Region Design of Ronceverte water upgrade phase No. 4 was passed.
A concerned small business owner wondered if the resolution pertained to Ronceverte Hill. Smith read the whole resolution from beginning to end out loud, but the citizen did not feel as if it answered his original question, but the panel explained that citizen comments were not to be taken at this time, and they moved forward.
Recognizable Ronceverte resident Joey Keene raised his hand and asked about setting up a neighborhood watch with cameras on Greenbrier Avenue to catch all the alleged “shady” people.
Kara Dense, the CEO of the Greenbrier County Convention and Visitors Bureau, went over some of their numbers and reminded everyone of their name change, Experience Greenbrier Valley. Formed in 2001, they want to make Greenbrier County and Ronceverte a premier tourist destination.
The issue of stray and roaming dogs through the town was discussed.
“We have rules against it. We are trying to come up with innovative solutions. Maybe sites to keep the stray dogs and have the owners pay or something like that,” Smith said.
Tanya Hazelwood added that she thinks the dog park opens an avenue for owners to dump their dogs.
“I’ve known people to do that just so they can leave the dog and then they leave them,” she stated.
There was nothing to review on code enforcement/citations.
Hazelwood is “super excited” about a new business coming to Ronceverte.
“I can’t say too much, but it’s a big deal and will be a great thing for Ronceverte.
Finally, there are grants approved to fix sidewalks and replace them near downtown where the old Rudy’s restaurant sits.
The meeting concluded at 7:36 p.m.
The next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 6, 2025, at 7 p.m.
