Supervisors continue conversations to tackle bear problem
The regular meeting of the Floyd County Board of Supervisors on Aug. 26 included presentations from Chris Taylor, executive director of New River Valley Community Services, and Floyd County Building Official Mark Bolt.
Taylor, who has been director of NRVCS since March, provided the board with some statistics specific to Floyd County and told them about new programs that will benefit local residents. Both the statistics, which were a part of the 2024 Return on Investment report, and the new programs were highlighted in the spring 2025 edition of the NRVCS magazine.
The ROI stated a total of 12,091 individuals throughout the region were assisted by NRCVS in fiscal year 2024, and 741 of those were from Floyd. Of those lives touched, 352 were minors and 389 were adults. By program, 488 Floyd County residents utilized Mental Health services, 75 utilized Developmental Disabilities services, and 55 utilized services for Substance Use Disorders.
Overall, it’s estimated that the total impact of NRVCS on the regional economy came to more than $106 million.
Taylor added that the new Floyd Peer Center at 209 Fox St. served about 30 community members within a month of being open.
One of the new programs Taylor talked about with the Board is called the “co-response initiative,” in which a trained mental health clinician is dispatched with a law enforcement officer to help individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.
The program has been launched in Montgomery County, the towns of Blacksburg and Christiansburg, the City of Radford, and at Virginia Tech and Radford University.
He also told the Board about the Crisis Intervention Team Assessment Center in Radford, which Floyd officers have used when necessary. The facility allows officers to “hand off” individuals who are experiencing a mental health crisis and have been issued Emergency Custody Orders to trained professionals and provide them with resources, including access to the 21-day crisis center.
Board members took turns expressing their appreciation for Taylor’s presentation and inviting him to attend meetings more often.
Supervisor Levi Cox of the Locust Grove District, who used to work as a law enforcement officer in Christiansburg, said he has a “deep appreciation” for NRVCS’ efforts as both a Supervisor and as former law enforcement.
Chair Joe Turman (Burks Fork District), who is also a former law enforcement officer, said that he has always advocated that there needs to be more training for interacting with those experiencing a mental health crisis.
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In the next presentation of the meeting, Building Official Mark Bolt shared new ideas with the Board regarding the Willis Convenience Center site, which is planned to be fenced in, monitored and other precautions taken to address the bear problem that has plagued the county for years.
The property for the planned site was purchased by a unanimous vote of the Board in June 2023 for $47,965.01. It sits at Tax Map Parcel Numbers 60-136 and 60-137 along Floyd Highway S.
Bolt presented a trash compactor option, which would come with two boxes and cost $73,000 for installation and shipping. Each box could hold between 11 and 13 tons of trash, Bolt said, and the compactor itself would be bolted to the ground, while the boxes would be mobile and moved to the compactor when needed.
Bolt estimated that the Willis site, with purchase and set-up of two compactors, as well as all construction (including grading and fencing), would cost the county about $165,000.
Supervisor Linda DeVito Kuchenbuch of the Little River District said she’d like to see the new convenience centers around the same places that they’ve always been and near “somewhat major roads.”
Supervisor Kalinda Bechtold of the Indian Valley District said it’s very difficult to find solutions to the county’s trash problems when a lot of citizens have an attitude of “not in my backyard.”
(Many of the county’s green box sites have been put on private property, and land owners can request the boxes be removed either temporarily or permanently at their discretion. Some are temporarily removed on the call of county officials in the hope of getting bears to move on from the area.)
Supervisor Cox made the point that the county can’t make improvements to deter wildlife on privately owned land, as they can with parcels the county purchases specifically to develop convenience centers for county waste.
Supervisors instructed Bolt to continue with his research and searching for suitable sites for the county to purchase.
Additionally during the meeting, the Board recognized Constitution Week (Sept. 17-23), as it is the U.S. document’s 238th anniversary of being framed.
The resolution, unanimously approved by the board, states, “It is the privilege and duty of the American people to commemorate the 238th anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution of the United States of America with appropriate ceremonies and activities…”
Floyd Town Council also adopted a resolution to mark the anniversary at its Aug. 21 meeting, and Constitution Week is recognized nationally by Public Law 315.
Two other resolutions were approved by the Board of Supervisors Aug. 26, both in regard to the county’s participation in proposed settlements of Opioid Crisis-related claims.
The first specifically listed opioid manufacturers Alvogen, Amneal, Hikma, Indivior, Mylan, Sun, Zydus, and their related corporate entities, and the second specifically named the Sackler Family.
Supervisor Jerry Boothe (Courthouse District) voted against both resolutions to remain consistent, he said, with his votes on similar resolutions previously presented to the Board. He said he has “no doubt” the parties and people listed in the litigation hold responsibility, but that they’re not the only ones.
Both resolutions were approved by a 4-1 vote, and County Attorney Steve Durbin was directed to execute the documents necessary to participate in the settlements on the county’s behalf.
Following the approval of resolutions, the Board entered closed sessions to discuss four matters: One to obtain legal advice regarding a personnel matter and three related to manufacturing (consideration of property for a public purpose; about a prospective business or industry or the expansion of an existing business; regarding awarding a public contract).