Pam’s Picks Questionnaire 2024 General

Sue Sweeting, Commissioner District 5

1. What unique qualifications/experience will you bring to the table if you are elected to the Watauga County Board of Commissioners?

I am the daughter of a naval officer and my mother was born and raised in Charleston, South Carolina. Both of my parents are buried at Arlington National Cemetery. I was raised to work hard and respect others. That has been my motto all my life.

As a registered nurse, I research a problem, make an assessment and find a solution or plan to the problem. This is the same approach I will use when I am a Commissioner.

I am currently on the Watauga County Board of Adjustments and I am active in my church with Sunday School, Vestry and Altar Guild.

My service to Watauga County includes four years on the Watauga County Commission where I successfully worked to name the new Highway 421 “Doc Watson” Scenic Byway. No billboards are allowed to honor Doc even more. During my time on Commission, I increased funding for special education needs in the school system. As the Fire Commissioner, I continued Fire Department supplements that are used for training and equipment.

As a Blowing Rock Town Commissioner for eight years, I helped secure a $13 million bond to improve our Town infrastructure and Park and milled and paved every road in our Town. I was dedicated to completing the sidewalk from Main Street to the Bass Lake parking area, and I did. My recommendation to change our police vehicles to a Hybrid model saved the Town $40,000 in fuel costs.

I am fiscally conservative and believe each taxpayer should know where and how their tax dollars are being spent.

My service record is proven. Not only with my family, my patients but also in service to public government. For these reasons and my past experience, I know I am the most qualified in this election.

2. What is the first proposal you plan to put forward for action by the Board if you are elected to the Watauga Board of Commissioners? Please explain.

I will work to improve the emergency response system. The EMS advisory Committee is reviewing the current for-profit emergency system versus a county system. The County will need to do a cost analysis to see what the price tag will be. The committee is also looking at the practice of our County ambulance service transporting patients out of the county from WMC to a tertiary care hospital. This can leave our residents without an ambulance for 3-4 hours.

The Hwy 421 corridor is about to receive an ambulance bay and hopefully an ambulance. The next corridor should be Hwy 321. This ambulance will serve the people of Blowing Rock and the Blue Ridge precinct.

Fire Departments are frequently having trouble with communication through the new VIPER system and the old VHF system. Will Holt, the emergency services director, is aware of the problem and hopefully will work with the Fire Chiefs to find a solution.

3. If you could eliminate one line item in Watauga County’s budget, what would it be and why? If you could add one line item to the County budget, what would it be and why?

I have reviewed the current County 2024/2025 budget. The budget doesn’t have much fluff in it and is well thought out. When you talk about eliminating one line item, you are talking about reducing areas that aren’t line items. Line items tend to be your personnel COLAs, employee raises and Human service agencies. These are your public and mental health costs, equipment needs, and school support. The items you could eliminate would be in the Future Projects, economic development, cultural and recreational maintenance items or special appropriations detail.

As a community, we must maintain our county and school buildings. If we don’t continue giving money to renovate the county and school facilities, we can expect children to remain in trailers, have no air conditioning and have leaky roofs, that could jeopardize their health.

The Raleigh mandated voucher system is taking public tax dollars and giving it to private schools away from Watauga County. This money, that is being taken out of our county, could be used to fund our schools, provide needed pupil supplies and increase teacher supplements. The return of the voucher money to Watauga County would reduce how much money the County must give education to make up the shortfall from the State.

Your nonprofit organizations have also received less money from Raleigh. Less State money puts the burden on the County to provide more funding. We need to encourage those we elect to the State Government to return the funding to Watauga County.

4. Do you support or oppose a return to a revenue neutral County budget to lower County property tax rates. Please explain.

I am a fiscal conservative, personally and politically. Revenue neutral budgets require that we have a revenue neutral economy. The rising cost of gas, electricity, paper goods, building costs and maintenance supply costs means we pay more for the same items. Since we don’t have a revenue neutral economy, the services to the people, wages to the employees, money given to nonprofits, must be cut. During election years, a revenue neutral budget is often used by candidates to win votes.

Our current tax rate is the lowest in North Carolina at 0.3180/$100 valuation and has remained at this rate for the last 2 budget cycles, which I support. Using a 2022/2023 tax schedule guide, the next lowest tax rate is Carteret County at 0.3300/$100 valuation. Counties surrounding Watauga have higher rates. Ashe is 0.510/$100 property value; Caldwell County is 0.630/$100 valuation and Avery is 0.400/$100 property value.

5. What are your specific ideas for providing more affordable workforce housing in Watauga County? Please explain.

There is Federal Grant money to repurpose old motels or refurbish abandoned buildings to help provide affordable workforce housing. These new apartments would be aligned with an employer. The housing would be rented monthly at a reduced rate as long as the employee continues working with the employer. If they leave the employer, they cannot stay in the apartment. Rent money will be given to the owner of the building or the motel.

Leasing to locals is an innovative plan that encourages VRBO owners of single family homes to return their homes into long-term rentals. It requires a financial incentive and would need to be in collaboration between the county and the towns.

6. Do you support or oppose a bond referendum to raise the necessary funds to build the proposed Brookshire workforce housing development? Please explain.

First: I would research what federal or state grant money is available to help build this project. Second: I would consider a partnership between the county and a developer. Third: I would review the cost of borrowing from a bank that offers a low interest loan versus a bond referendum with a low interest rate. Then, I would work with the other Commissioners to come up with a payment solution that is best for the people.

7. Do you support or oppose a rebate Homestead exemption for reduced property taxes for low income, elderly and disabled, and/or long-term local families living in Watauga County? Please explain.

We have a Homestead Exemption for low income, elderly and disabled, set by Raleigh. The qualifying income level is too low to help most of the families who need it. I support raising both that exemption and the income benchmark in order to qualify.

8. The State Legislature’s redistricting of Watauga’s commissioner districts left over 20,000 Watauga voters without the chance to vote for candidates they want to represent them in local government for two years. Regardless of Raleigh’s provisions regarding appointed representation for voters in these two districts, what is your personal opinion on how those two district seats should be filled for two-year terms?

There are 22,000 voters in Watauga County that are unable to vote for their County Commissioner during this election cycle. These disenfranchised residents are students who live in Boone but also the locals who live behind Earth Fare, the locals who live behind the Jones House, our founding black community in Junaluska, the professionals who live in Council Oaks, and the locals who live in part of Brushy Fork and New River precinct 1 and 3 and part of New River 2 precinct.

Waiting two years (per Senator Hise’s Bill) to vote on a Commissioner, doesn’t seem fair. These two district seats should be filled by having a special election, so these disenfranchised residents can exercise their right to vote.

9. According to a recent study, Watauga County is approximately 1600 slots short of available childcare openings in local childcare centers. What is your plan to address this problem?

The current shortage of openings in local childcare centers is caused by several factors. Low pay, limited classrooms and teachers, and rising costs for food and to maintain licensure. To address this issue, businesses who hire the most employees, should begin their own childcare centers or join together to provide their employees childcare.

Appalachian University has two childcare centers that help provide low cost child care for students and employees. Watauga Medical Center and Samaritan’s Purse are the next largest employers. What a recruitment/retention tool for the hospital, who is always short of nurses and nursing assistants to offer child care!! The Town of Blowing Rock has started a daycare so they have the information others may need.

During COVID, the school system provided day and child care to its employees. They should restart this program. The Children’s Council is eligible to apply for grants to help bring this idea to fruition. The County and Town leadership, EDC and the Chambers should be working together to make this plan succeed.

10. What ideas do you propose to bring to the table to commit the County’s support for sustainability and conservation protection of Watauga’s waterways in undeveloped areas of the County? Please explain.

The county had a preliminary study of water use completed by geologists and hydrologists at ASU. Unfortunately, there were Commissioners who opposed a follow-up study to assess the future availability of water sources. The Commissioners who wanted to continue studying the issue felt the residents should not have to incur the problems that the development, the Cottages, caused. As a County Commissioner, I will push to get the follow-up study done. We need to learn where development can occur that will not endanger the resources that we have.