Staff reports
The top local stories of 2008 as selected by the Bluefield Daily Telegraph Editorial Board.
1. Pocahontas High School closed amid widespread protests
School consolidation was a predominant issue in the two Virginias during February. While Mercer County residents mulled over the proposal to consolidate four county middle schools into one new facility, Pocahontas, Va., residents fumed over a surprise decision by the Tazewell County School Board to close their school. The issue of closing the school was not on the board’s agenda provided to the press before the meeting. As Telegraph reporters covered the hot-button issue step-by-step, residents flooded the paper with letters opposing the closure of the school.
Pocahontas, Va., residents fumed over a surprise decision by the school board to close their school. In mid March, the Tazewell County School Board voted 4-1 to close Pocahontas High School in a contentious meeting where several angry parents had to be escorted out of a school auditorium by police officers. Although more than 800 people showed up to protest the school closure, the School Board still voted 4-1 to close the 100-year-old school prompting a bitter fight that continued through most of the year in the Pocahontas community. Shortly after the School Board’s controversial decision to close Pocahontas High School, the governing body of Tazewell County - the Board of Supervisors - voted 4-1 to order a meals tax referendum with revenue generated from the meals tax being used to keep Pocahontas High School open. The motion was a direct challenge to the earlier School Board vote to close Pocahontas High School. The decision by the Tazewell County School Board to close Pocahontas High School remained in the headlines throughout most of the year. The meals tax plan proposed by the Board of Supervisors was ultimately rejected by the School Board - effectively nixing it. Later in the month, parents of Pocahontas High students filed a lawsuit against the school board. The lawsuit was rejected by a judge, and the school was ultimately closed. Plans by the community to convert the school into a community center and multi-purpose facility continue.
2. Soaring gasoline prices shuts down many plans for vacation trips, creates limited driving anywhere.
Like other Americans, residents of the two Virginias were hard hit in May by rising fuel costs, with per-gallon prices reaching $4, and fears spread that costs could reach as much as $5 per gallon. Many families parked their vehicles, except for essential trips to stores and work. Vacation plans were drastically reduced.
The skyrocketing costs angered motorists across the country, particularly when energy companies such as Exxon-Mobil reported record profits.
In early June, soaring gas prices prompted the Tazewell Police Department to replace a gas guzzling SUV with a new fuel-efficient golf cart. The police department used the golf cart to help regulate parking on Main Street, and to assist with patrolling at area fairs and festivals.
Higher gas prices forced many people to take the bus. However, the Bluefield Area Transit announced in late July that it would raise bus fares by a quarter due to rising gas costs.
Fortunately, per-gallon costs were lowered substantially by the end of the year, with some gas stations posting prices as low as $1.75.
A drop in crude oil prices contributed to a slowing of gasoline prices, with average local per-gallon prices around $3.50 by the end of September. Gas prices dropped to a low of $1.55 per gallon in Bluefield, Va. by late December.
3. Local, state and national elections: Obama vs. Hillary; Manchin re-elected
In an election showdown closely watched by the national media, Barack Obama carried traditionally Republican Virginia, and West Virginia, which heavily favored Sen. Hillary Clinton in the May primary, went for John McCain. McCain also won in the southwest counties of Virginia. Obama was the first Democrat to carry Virginia since the Old Dominion favored Lyndon Johnson in 1964. Sen. Clinton’s primary election win in Pennsylvania put West Virginia on the map as a potential player in choosing the outcome of the Democratic presidential nominee.
In important statewide races, Gov. Joe Manchin was overwhelmingly elected for a second term, easily defeating Beckley contender, former state senator Russ Weeks. Margaret Workman, a former Supreme Court Justice, and Huntington lawyer Menis Ketchum won two seats on the WV Supreme Court of Appeals. Beth Walker, the lone Republican candidate, was defeated.
Mercer County voters were surprised by the resignation of Mercer County Clerk Rudolph Jennings following the announcement of a pending audit of his office by West Virginia Secretary of State Betty Ireland. Mercer County was one of the last counties to report election results in the May primary contest. Verlin Moye, a veteran employee of the assessor and mapping offices, was appointed in late June as the new interim County Clerk.
In the May Primary, a glitch in the Mercer County electronic voting counting system early in the evening resulted in a domino effect that delayed final results of elections across the county and the region. Slightly before midnight, only 34 percent of the county’s votes had been counted - 20 precincts out of the county’s 61. Onlookers at the Mercer County Court House reported seven precincts had been counted early in the evening when the machine “locked up.” After this occurred, the county was instructed by the Secretary of State’s office to recount the votes.
Moye engineered an almost flawless general election vote count, and was elected to the office.
Local victories included former school board member John Shott to the House of Delegates. Shott, a Republican, defeated Democratic candidate Mike Vinciguerra for the seat vacated by Eustace Frederick, who died a mere three days after the election. He was a long-time member of the House of Delegates who did not seek re-election this year.
Several other county political positions were filled during the primary, including former judge John Frazier as a delegate in House District 25.
4. Utility rate increases puts heavy pressure on limited budgets.
Area residents learned of two utility increases during March. Water users in southern West Virginia discovered they would be paying almost 15 percent more for service due to an increase in water rates announced by the Public Service Commission of West Virginia, and residents in the city of Princeton learned they would be paying an additional $5 per month in sewer rates as a result of a rate increase proposed by the Princeton Sanitary Board. A number of additional utility rate increases, including proposals by Appalachian Power Company in both Virginia and West Virginia, were announced in 2008.
5. National economic collapse has limited impact on region.
The Wall Street decline that began Monday, Sept. 29, had little impact on local and state banks and markets. Contrary to the reactions on Wall Street and other financial centers, there were no indications of public panic here, although 401k programs and other national savings programs were hit hard. While West Virginia continues to weather the financial storm to a degree, Virginia began to experience financial hardships by late 2008 with a projected $25 billion budget shortfall.
6. Local troops begin deployment to Iraq, Afghanistan.
Southwest Virginia-based soldiers returned home from Iraq in mid-July. Members of the 1033 Engineer Support Company in Richlands, and the 189th Bridge Company in Big Stone Gap, returned home to Tazewell and Wise counties. The local troops were part of the 237th Engineer Company, which was tasked with conducting route clearance missions in Iraq and patrol searches for improvised explosive devises along main and alternate supply routes.
A Mercer County-based West Virginia Army National Guard squadron received its mobilization orders in early September and were to be deployed in the global war against terrorism within the next few months. The 150th Armored Reconnaissance Squadron headquartered at the National Guard Armory in Brushfork will be heading to either Iraq or Afghanistan.
Three local National Guard troops in Tazewell, McDowell and Mercer counties were deployed in November. Pre-deployment plans began in late November, and the troops began deployment in early December.
7. Police manhunt follows shooting of Virginia State Trooper.
A regional manhunt was launched in late March after a Virginia State Trooper was shot by an armed gunman in the small Giles County community of Glen Lynn, Va. A Virginia fugitive shot the state trooper after he was chased across the border into West Virginia. Although the suspect eluded capture initially, he was caught one week later in Texas and quickly extradited.
8. Copper/metal thefts.
Copper and other metal thefts continued in the news in 2008. In mid-January, Tazewell County officials reported the arrest of two employees from different scrap yards after officials conducted an undercover sting to investigative suspicious copper purchase practices.
Later in the month, a rash of thefts of catalytic convertors across the region was reported in a front-page story in the Telegraph. Authorities reported the car parts were stolen from parked cars by thieves selling the platinum and other metals in the converters.
9. Mathena Center opens.
In July, more than 700 area residents joined in the opening weekend celebration of the Chuck Mathena Center in Princeton. The lofty venue for the performing arts serves as a memorial for the late Chuck Mathena, son of Charles and Marquetta Mathena of Princeton, who died in an automobile accident in 1992.
10. Third judge position created for Mercer County.
Legislation that would create a third judgeship for Mercer County, along with the two other busiest circuits in the state, was passed by lawmakers in February. Studies have shown the docket in Mercer County requires more than three judges, and only two now cover the circuit. In May, Gov. Joe Manchin signed the new bill into law and in December, named Mercer County attorney Omar J. Aboulhosn of Princeton to fill the new seat.
Aboulhosn was admitted to the state bar in 1992. A Concord University graduate, he earned his law degree from WVU in 1992. He was elected as judge to the 12th Family Court Circuit covering Mercer and McDowell counties in November.
Manchin also is expected to appoint a new family court judge for the 12th circuit, which includes Mercer County.
