Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, February 23, 1994 TAG: 9402230292
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: By KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Someone stole 11 Neighborhood Watch signs from the Indian and Dry Valley road sections of Montgomery County earlier this month.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office has posted fliers offering a reward for information leading to the arrest of the people responsible for the thefts or for the return of the signs in a usable condition.
The signs were taken between 6 p.m. on Feb. 2 and 6 a.m. the following day. They were posted along Virginia 787 between the Bethel area near Radford and the Floyd County line.
Street and highway signs are popular among many people, especially the college-age set, as room decorations. But the thefts are costly to taxpayers. The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors learned Monday night that street signs are costing the county about $6,000 a year, and the bulk of that money goes to replacing stolen signs.
The county plans to spend $6,000 for street signs again in the fiscal year that begins July 1. According to public facilities director Randall Bowling, 85 percent of that amount is spent replacing stolen signs.
Two of the most popular signs are Pair O Docs Lane in Shawsville and Four Wheel Drive off Mount Tabor Road. During a Feb. 21 budget work session, the supervisors jokingly suggested making theft-prone signs out of cardboard.
Although the flier offers a reward for information leading to an arrest or the signs' safe return, there is a catch: "Conviction for their theft shall prohibit collection of reward." That means the person stealing the sign can't collect.
Anyone with information about the stolen Neighborhood Watch signs should call the Sheriff's Office at 382-2951 or Betty Strauss, 382-0779.
Brian Kelley contributed information to this report.
by CNB