ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, April 8, 1996 TAG: 9604080097
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: TODD JACKSON
When county boards of supervisors talk budget, issues such as education and capital improvement plans move to the fore.
But in Franklin County, no line item has been left unturned this year.
The board, which includes a fiscally conservative majority buoyed by three new members, is meticulous when it comes to money matters.
Recently, at a work session to discuss the county's 1996-97 budget, a $10,000 request for grass seed from the Parks and Recreation Department caught the board's eye.
For 15 minutes or so, the supervisors put on their farming hats.
Board Chairman Wayne Angell runs a business that sells fertilizer, and Supervisor Jerre Lumsden is a farmer.
"That's a whole lot of grass seed," Lumsden said of the request. "What do they need that much for?''
Angell sat and added up price comparisons using brands he sells at his Callaway store.
The board decided it needed some clarification before it could approve the item.
But Supervisor Page Matherly had already drawn a conclusion. Other board members burst out laughing when he said:
"It's got to be a misprint. You could sow Franklin County with that much seed.''
LENGTH: Short : 34 linesby CNB