‘UGLY AND EXPENSIVE’

Firing Back Shown in these screenshots, District Two Supervisor John Roark last week went Live on Facebook and accused a “handful” of critics of suffering from “RDS,” believed to be Roark Deranagement Syndrome. Roark said some officials are already discussing who should serve as Board Chair next year, and he said he’ll continue to be “the bad guy” if it means asking tough questions and holding the Board accountable. Roark said the current Board “is a good Board” but is “teetering” toward a clique and possible return to the “good ole boy system.” Roark also denied claims that he’s behind the fake Facebook profile, “Johnny Walker,” who has been critical of specific County and town officials. Roark said he would never resort to a fake

ROARK SAYS MORE TAX INCREASES ARE PLANNED

Supervisor John Roark is pushing back against criticism of his proposal for the County to find ways to eliminate the car tax, which generates about $4.5 million per year.

A Courier-Record Facebook Follower, Anmarie Volta, pointed out on the C-R page — in response to Roark’s suggestion — that car tax revenue funds “schools, police departments, fire departments.” She also told Roark, “If you don’t have a logical or possible solution, don’t start the discussion.”

Responds With Go Live That criticism didn’t sit well with Roark, who went Facebook Live last Thursday for the first time in months. “This one individual in particular wants to shame me for having discussions….I thought that’s what elected people do — they have DISCUSSIONS to see what SOLUTIONS they can come up with to help the citizenry.” Anmarie Volta is believed to be the wife of another Supervisor. Roark on FB responded to her, saying that great leaders ask tough questions. He also said he had always believed Nottoway is a conservative county, yet its elected leaders continue to raise taxes and, he warned, more hikes are being planned.

‘RDS’ During his 76-minute Facebook Live, Roark said a handful of his critics “suffer from RDS” (Roark Derangement Sydrome), see related story. Roark defended his suggestion to look for ways to eliminate the Personal Property tax and also said the Board should set a price limit on court-ordered improvements for Nottoway’s court facilities. Roark has suggesting a ceiling of no more than $10 million. “We are giving contractors an open checkbook if we don’t establish any parameters,” Roark said. He recalled that financing reps from VACo (Virginia Association of Counties) already have thrown-out a possible price tag of $25 million and want to charge the County $15,000 to secure financing. “Can you imagine how many hundreds of thousands in interest this County will pay over the next 30 years?” Roark said Circuit Court Judge Joe Teefey “never said we had to build a new building. The Judge said we need to make it safe.”

Brace Yourselves Roark said some County officials have changed previous conservative positions and now are prepared to raise taxes for five straight years, saying “there’s no choice.” Roark voted against the last two budgets that raised real estate taxes by more than 20%. He said the County needs to reduce spending by 15% and also look for recurring streams of revenue other than one-time cash gained by selling timber and real estate. Possible reductions could include “trips back-andforth to VACo and stuff like that — just ridiculous nonsense money.” Roark briefly touched on the controversial topic of solar farms but didn’t offer an opin-

ion. He did, however, specifically tout a possible stand alone emergency room. Roark said he actually spoke to officials of Sheltering Arms about such a venture here, while he was undergoing physical therapy after his Feb. 9th stroke.

“But discussions are bad,” Roark whispered, mocking Anamarie Volta’s criticism. “Discussions are bad. Don’t have no discussions…I guess somebody feels like someone’s grandstanding for bringing up ideas.”

Roark said a stand alone ER with 15-20 beds would also attract other facilities and, just as importantly, reduce travel time for Nottoway County ambulances that currently take patients to Farmville, South Hill, Petersburg, and Richmond.

Roark recalled bringing up the issue at the Board’s Aug. 21st meeting and all he got was “crickets.”

“I don’t mind being the bad guy,” Roark declared, “as long as something’s getting done…those of you with RDS continue blaming me. That’s fine.”

Roark said that when he campaigned in 2019, “I said it was going to be ugly and expensive… And I was right. I’m gonna say it proudly, I was right — not bragging, it’s just a fact.”

Roark called the landfill “the severed arm of Nottoway County” because it continues to bleed financially. Roark said consultants last year said building a transfer station and having a private company haul trash would save the County money. But now those same consultants, Roark said, have changed course. He said that if he hadn’t been recovering from his stroke, “I would have asked for our money back.”

Roark said he gets “excitable working for the people…but right now I feel like I’m in the ‘Twilight Zone.’”

If Nottoway County continues to bury its own trash, it will continue to lose money, Roark predicted. “We should have had a transfer station built already… They misinformed us.”

Roark also said there are talks of stacking more trash on top of current cells, but he said that will require more money and more money having to be set aside for future cell closures.

Roark also said citizens are paying “historically higher taxes” but have limited hours for use of County dumpster sites. “You can’t even dump your trash when you want to.”

Addressing public safety and concerns cited by many in the community about light sentencing, Roark said, “It’s not the police officers’ fault. Y’all know whose fault it is, and that’ll be changed in two years…if you create a culture of no accountability once they get in court, you’re going to create chaos on the street. And, damn it, our law enforcement is going to suffer for it….if I’m wrong for fighting for y’all, then I’ll be wrong. Maybe they’ll find a pill for RDS for the handful who have it.”

Roark said he’s not backing down. “I’m okay with being the bad guy and poked at and picked on and degraded. That’s okay, as long as the conversation is being had for the citizens of Nottoway County.”