In a press release by the president of New River Community and Technical College (NRCTC), Dr. L. Marshall Washington reiterates a suggestion by Christine Atwell of Alderson’s letter to the editor of the Mountain Messenger on Mar. 29.
Atwell has gathered from press coverage of the pool funding project woes, that the legal issue of inappropriate use of money to fund the project stems from Greenbrier County not owning the property on which Hotel Occupancy Tax money was being spent to build the project. Atwell’s suggestion was for NRCTC to give or sell the building which houses the pool to the county to solve the dispute over the money use.
Washington expresses, “In fact, what has largely been overlooked in ongoing coverage of the issue is that the College did exactly what Ms. Atwell suggested. New River offered to issue a “condo deed,” giving ownership of the pool portion of the building to the county so that the project could proceed.” He added that the commission did not accept this offer.
With ongoing litigation over the $1.3 million in question fueling ever-rising legal fees for both the county and the college, Washington holds onto hope that the project yet has the potential to be a model partnership benefiting people across Greenbrier County.
A mediation session agreed to by both parties and scheduled for May 5 brings Washington’s hope to the horizon. “We have every hope for a resolution at this mediation, and it is tragic that a project that began with such excitement and promise, has produced such dissension.”