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Brooke County Commission re-organizes for 2025

WELLSBURG — The Brooke County Commission re-organized for the new year, Tuesday, electing a president and claiming certain seats as liaisons to various county and regional boards.

Commissioner A.J. Thomas was re-elected president, a position he’s held since 2021, while Commissioner Tom Diserio, as president pro tempore, will preside over commission meetings in his absence.

Thomas will represent the commission on the county’s Ambulance Authority, created last year to oversee the ambulance service’s operations; the Brooke County Committee on Aging, which oversees the senior center in Follansbee; Brooke County Public Library Board of Trustees; Business Development Corp. of the Northern Panhandle and Brooke-Hancock-Jefferson Metropolitan Planning Commission.

Commissioner Stacey Wise will serve on the Northern Panhandle Workforce Investment board, Northern Panhandle HOME Consortium, which oversees the First-time Homebuyers Program; Northern Panhandle Community Criminal Justice Board, which oversees the Lee Day Report Center and other operations; and the Top of West Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureau board.

Diserio will serve on the county’s Health Board, Park and Recreation Board, which oversees Brooke Hills Park; museum board, and the Brooke County West Virginia University Extension Service Committee.

All three will represent the commission on the Brooke County Local Emergency Planning Commission.

In other business:

• Brooke County Sheriff Rich Beatty advised he will amend his department’s towing policy for call-outs for emergency towing. Because one of three Brooke County-based towing services in the sheriff’s department rotation has asked to be removed, he will seek the services of one outside the county.

• The commission heard from David Holden, the county’s compliance officer for matters involving dilapidated structures and other property violations.

Thomas said Holden’s efforts have been very successful, leading to an agreement to have a collapsing building near state Route 67 torn down and a malfunctioning septic system near Rabbit Hill Road addressed.

The commission received a letter from Alice Maglione thanking Holden for his efforts with the latter issue and the commissioners for their support.

• Jim Andreozzi, the county’s dog warden, reminded residents to bring their pets inside during the current spate of freezing temperatures.

A county ordinance prohibits dog owners from leaving them tethered outside when the temperature is less than 32 degrees Fahrenheit or greater than 90 degrees Fahrenheit or during other severe weather.

Violators may be fined between $100 and $500 or have their dogs taken by the county.

• County Clerk Kimberly Barbetta announced board of equalization hearings, for those who dispute their property assessments, will be held from Feb. 3 through Feb. 19, with those involving oil and gas issues reserved for Feb. 4.

Appointments should be made by calling her office at (304) 737-3661.

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