The Inter-Mountain photo by Amanda Hayes Craig Presar, WVU Extension agent for 4-H and youth development, presents a budget request to the Upshur County Commission.

The Inter-Mountain photo by Amanda Hayes
Craig Presar, WVU Extension agent for 4-H and youth development, presents a budget request to the Upshur County Commission.

BUCKHANNON — The Upshur County office of the Cooperative Extension Service presented its budget request of almost $12,000 less for the next fiscal year to the Upshur County Commission.

Craig Presar, WVU Extension agent for 4-H and youth development, said, “I’m going to do a thing that is not normally done in local government and agencies. I’m going to ask for less money this year.”

Presar said the switch to PEIA insurance means the county will be saving money on insurance for staff.

“We try to be really good stewards of what is provided to us and we try not to take advantage,” he said.

The request for fiscal year 20-21 is for $101,078.46 versus the current appropriation of $113,108.16.

Presar said his office was asking that their employees paid for entirely through the county, the program assistant and administrative assistant, receive the same increase in salaries that other county employees receive.

Recapping the last year, Presar said there were eight 4-H clubs in the county now. A large club in the southern end was absorbed by other clubs after the leader retired as a volunteer 4-H leader.

The shooting sports program continues to be huge in the county with about 188 participants.

“Just last weekend, we had eight kids from Upshur County in the state 4-H air rifle tournament,” Presar said.

One high school took first place and another high school team took fourth place.

“Our archery teams have the ability this spring to win state championships at both the middle and high school level,” he said. “We just have to get past Ripley and that is next weekend. We intend to do really well.”

Older and Younger Camp will happen the first two weeks of June and Cloverbud Camp the last week of June.

In April, Presar will attend a Sky’s the Limit training to teach third through fifth graders about drones.

“We are going to be designing models of flying technologies and we are actually going to be helping NASA collect area photographs,” he said. “It’s a program in conjunction with NASA. Kids are going to be designing things and we are going to go out and try to make them actually fly.”

Teen leaders this year will be required to do a community service project.

Presar also works with the CEOS program which provided a little over 44,000 hours of community service to the folks of Upshur County last year.

Tasha Harris, WVU Extension agent for agriculture and natural resource, works with the livestock programs.

“We expect about 90 projects this year,” he said of the youth livestock show and sale.

The youth livestock association is looking for a new home.

“That facility is wonderful but it is in a place where there is no parking,” he said. “There is not a lot of room to grow. We are actively looking for ground and spaces that are affordable for us.”

Presar said they need 10 to 15 acres for a livestock area, show barns and storage buildings.

“We will be able to grow even more,” he said. “We are just looking for land and possibilities at this point. If you have an idea, we are happy to listen to it.”

Commissioner Kristie Tenney said, “I just want to thank you for all that you do. I recently ran into a business owner who says he loves hiring kids that have been through your program. I think that is a testament to what you are doing for Upshur County.”

In other business, commissioner Sam Nolte moved to table a $5,000 request from Robert C. Byrd Corridor H Highway Authority until budget hearings. Tenney seconded the motion which passed.

Cutright read a letter from highway authority chair Robbie Morris which stated that Upshur County’s contribution helped make 2019 a historic year for Corridor H.

In 2019, Corridor H received $100 million towards completion of the Kerens to Parsons section, Governor Jim Justice announced an additional 3.4 mile contract to connect Weston to Parsons and a public comment meeting was held in Tucker County to restart the design/permitting process on the Parsons to Davis section which had been idle since 2007. In September 2019, Appalachian Development Highway System received a restored line item in the federal budget for an additional $13 to $16 million annual for Corridor H.

In other business, the commission:

• awarded a bid for groundskeeping to Stanton Lawn Service for $16,860. This was the lone bid received and Stanton Lawn Service previously held the contract. The amount is $1,000 increase from the last bid award in 2016 to Stanton Lawn Service.

• approved the employment of Jason Knicely as full-time animal control officer at the rate of $13.26 per hour effective March 1, 2020.

• approved the resignation of Sandra Williams, part-time deputy clerk, effective Jan. 14, 2020. Applications for a part-time deputy county clerk should be received by 4 p.m. March 23.