Trolley Bus Service Now Available
Buchanan County Residents Offered Free Commute

  Buchanan County residents by now might have noticed a new addition to Four County Transit's fleet of vehicles -- a blue trolley bus.
  On Monday, the trolley began circling the Town of Grundy on a fixed 10-hour schedule that includes seven stops.
  The trolley's route begins daily at 7:30 a.m. at the downtown Comfort Inn. From the hotel, the trolley travels to the courthouse/post office, the Appalachian School of Law, the parking lot of the former downtown Food City, the Grundy Community Center parking lot, the Church of Christ parking area, and then concludes with a stop at the old downtown parking lot.

For more of the story, see the print edition of the Mountaineer, on sale at newsstands now.  For more information on how to subscribe to the Mountaineer, call 276-935-2123 today.

Board Actions 'Approved as Presented'
Little Discussion Precedes Voting

   “Approved as presented” were the key words at last Wednesday’s meeting of the Buchanan County School Board as very few items elicited much discussion from board members.
  The meeting ended less than an hour after it started.
  “I feel like I’ve been in a tornado here at this meeting,” Prater School Board Member Bill Crigger remarked at one point about two-thirds of the way through the meeting.
  From retirements to hirings to transfers and resignations, to sweeping changes to a school system-wide attendance policy, none were detailed, discussed or explained in any detail.
  In fact, as the personnel matters were being approved, none of the names of those being approved were spoken.   However, after this newspaper suggested to the board that members of the public attending Wednesday’s meeting, who did not have the benefit of a detailed agenda packet, might like to know a little more detail on the personnel matters presented, board members did agree to make that information available in list form for the public after the matters were approved.
  Chairman Steve Hamro III said after the meeting that while it is customary to approve many agenda items, swiftly, “it does a disservice to the public to hurry through, without discussion from administrators, some of the agenda items.”
  He further noted, “I need to do a better job of controlling the tempo of the board meetings and allowing administrators to make their presentations. It is important that we do not waste time or talk too much, but not at the expense of the public’s participation and knowledge of the information being approved or discussed.”
  At last Wednesday’s meeting, limited discussion was heard as the board decided in a split vote 4-3 to award a comprehensive business policy --  not to the low bidder, but to another bidder whose bid was $144,249 higher. That decision was reversed on Monday during a special called meeting of the board (see related story, this issue).
  In other business, board members heard briefly from Buchanan Education Association President Edgar Childress, who asked board members to consider digitizing the policy manual, adding it might make research on school policy easier.

For more of the story, see the print edition of the Mountaineer, on sale at newsstands now.  For more information on how to subscribe to the Mountaineer, call 276-935-2123 today.