Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 9, 1992 TAG: 9201100415
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: E-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETSY BIESENBACH
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
VINTON'S WATER CUSTOMERS IN COUNTY GET HIGHER BILLS
Roanoke County residents and businesses who receive water and sewer service from the town of Vinton will see an increase in their water bills this month.A letter from Mayor Charles Hill, outlining the increase to water customers, was included in a packet of materials given to council members during their meeting Tuesday.
The increase is the result of a consumer utility tax ordinance adopted by the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors last June. The 12 percent tax will apply to the first $15 per month of utility service for residential customers and to the first $5,000 of service for commercial and industrial users. As the supplier of the service, the town is required to collect the tax for the county.
Roanoke County is collecting the same tax from users of its water service, but the tax will not apply to anyone living within Vinton's corporate limits. In his letter, Hill urged those with questions about the tax to contact the Roanoke County Finance Department or the Board of Supervisors.
In other action:
Council authorized Town Manager Brad Corcoran to proceed with the bidding process on a new refuse collection truck. Corcoran said the town owns two trucks - a 1984 model and a 1978 model. The older truck has been used during holidays and when the newer truck is being serviced, but broke down in December and had to be towed.
"It is old and no longer reliable," Corcoran said.
A new truck will allow the Public Works Department to use the 1984 truck as a backup and to sell the 1978 model at its annual equipment sale.
The town has $61,000 budgeted to buy the truck, Corcoran said. Additional funds for the truck were a part of a $1.1 million bond issue passed last year.
Council also gave Corcoran authorization to buy two water storage tanks for the Chestnut Mountain and Falling Creek Estates subdivisions. The town received a bid on the two projects from Mid-Atlantic Storage Systems of Washington Courthouse, Ohio, Corcoran said.
The two tanks will cost $75,420, but Corcoran asked council to increase the funds budgeted for the project to $105,000 to cover consulting work already done for the Falling Creek project, engineering costs and landscaping.
The figure also includes the $1,300 it will cost to have the tank's color changed to green or brown. The tank, as manufactured, is cobalt blue, Corcoran said, but residents of the area are concerned about the appearance of the tank. Ordering it in brown or green "will help it blend into the foliage," Councilman Don Davis said.
Hill appointed Phil Day, Bob Patterson and Councilman Roy McCarty to new three-year terms to the Highway Safety Commission.
Council also learned that the town is looking for a new senior citizens' activities coordinator. The current coordinator, Faye Strausbaugh, is retiring and moving to Florida.