Mayor Ricky Draughn said if the town is forced to spend $298,000 per year to buy water from Mount Airy that it does not need, everyone in the county will see an increase in their taxes if the town has to start raising the water rates on the government buildings in the city limits.
“You’d be hard pressed to find a town with 1,500 people that have four schools using water, a college and all these government buildings. I just look around at the county seats around us and none of them have the things that we’ve got. So in other words, if we go up on the water rate, (the citizens of Surry County) are going to have to pay for that, too,” said Draughn.
The mayor pointed to the economy as a factor as to why the town is resisting purchasing water from Mount Airy.
“I think we thought probably the economy would be better. The thing I can’t figure out is — even if we are wrong and they are 100 percent right, why would they make us take on a burden that we don’t have to have? We do not have to have that burden on us. All this is going to do is help them. It’s not going to gain us anything,” said Draughn.
“We want to be neighbors and get along with people, but I just can’t believe that they just can’t see that this is a situation that is a little different than we thought it was going to be a few years back,” Draughn said.
The town has agreed to purchase 50,000 gallons from Mount Airy, however, officials with the city of Mount Airy contend that a contract signed in 2008 states that the town would purchase 300,000 gallons a day when the water line connecting the two was complete. The water line connecting the two municipalities is 25 feet from being completed. Mount Airy stipulated that the agreement begin on July 1, 2010, which is in its budget for their next fiscal year. However, Draughn said there is no date specified in the contract.
Mount Airy officials have offered to compromise by selling Dobson 200,000 gallons daily for two years before moving to the 300,000 gallon level. But they have hinted that legal action could result against the town if it fails to buy a suitable amount.
Draughn said while the town can only afford to purchase 50,000 gallons a day now, he hopes the economy will bounce back making it feasible “one day” to purchase the full amount.
Paul Nordin, complex manager for Wayne Farms LLC, said it would be in the best interest of the company for its water rates to remain the same. Town commissioners have expressed fears that a water rate increase could put Wayne Farms out of business, or at least result in the company moving.
Wayne Farms is the largest water buyer from the town of Dobson and with 900 employees, it is the second largest employer in the county.
If rates increased, Nordin said, “it would have a significant impact on our business by increasing our input cost.”
While he hopes the town of Dobson will not go up on its water rates, if it does, then the company would have to find ways to reduce its costs.
Nordin said a water rate increase would not mean a loss of jobs.
“We have to stay competitive and we have to control our costs so we would have to find ways to reduce costs in other areas,” Nordin said.
Wayne Farms pays more for water than the poultry industry average, Nordin said.
“We certainly don’t need to get that cost more out of line,” he said. “We use a lot of water and that’s a significant cost to us and we certainly need a competitive rate to help us stay competitive.”
Tim Snow, owner of First Choice Car Wash in Dobson, said water is the biggest cost in running his business. He said he would always chose to pay a lower water rate whether the water is coming from Mount Airy or Dobson.
Ray Southard, co-owner of Sue’s restaurant in Dobson, said his business uses a lot of water. He said he hasn’t kept up with the issue, but is against his water bill going up.
“If Dobson don’t need it then I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Southard said.
Ed Shelton, co-owner of Shelton Vineyards, said he didn’t have an opinion on the issue either way. According to Paul Hensch, interim town manager in Dobson, the Sheltons use water for their hotel, gas station and the Dairy Queen located at the Dobson exit off Interstate 77, but do not use water from the town for their vineyard and restaurant.
Former town commissioner Kermit Draughn is adamantly against raising water rates in town.
“We support these people with everything we’ve got over here. If you got up on these people $10 or $15 a month for the residential folks, then you’ve got to go up on everybody else. This is what makes Dobson. This is the county seat of Surry County. Why shouldn’t we want to make it better each day? Going up on the water bills sure won’t make it any better, I can tell you that much,” he said.
Dobson resident Jonathan Snow, who makes a point to attend most of the town meetings, said he was upset with the town board for not looking into the issue further before signing the contract.
“No one asked how much this was going to cost. If Dobson has to buy that much, then it’s probably going to double my water rate. I wish Mount Airy would consider being a good neighbor and maybe re-negotiate something. I don’t know why they put it in their budget if there is not a date in the contract,” Snow said.
Contact Mondee Tilley at mtilley@mtairynews.com or at 719-1930.
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