By Peggy Shearin
Observer Correspondent

The Warren County Commissioner’s recent change to daytime meetings is still a topic of concern to some residents of the county, in a presentation by the Warren County Democratic Party.
After months of wrangling over the issue – and over the sometimes vehement objections from county residents, the commissioners last month opted to begin holding their monthly meetings during the day.
A number of groups and residents expressed concern over that decision, because now fewer people can attend the meetings because many people are working during those hours.
Last week, Joan Boyle, head of Warren County Democratic party, told the board she and the group she was representing have been distressed over the move, to the point where the county’s Democratic party discussed the matter at its annual convention held in April.
There, the party adopted a resolution calling upon the board to change the meeting back to evenings.
“… A viable democracy requires the active participation of an informed citizenry; and … we believe that our commissioners should not be taking actions that will make that goal more difficult to achieve,” the party said in its resolution.
The resolution went on to say the decision, which moved the regular meetings from 7 p.m. on the first Monday of the month to 10 a.m., has resulted in some public hearings being held as early as 8:45 a.m.
“Anyone who works for a living cannot easily attend board meetings at 10 a.m. and are thereby deprived of the opportunity to be informed of and promptly respond to either an individual commissioner’s or the entire board’s actions in a timely manner; … a number of citizens have already indicated to the board that they prefer the meetings be held in the evening … our elected officials are expected to represent the people they have been elected to serve and not make decisions based primarily on their own personal agendas.”
The resolution then went on to asked the commissioners to return to evening meetings.
Boyle’s presentation elicited no response from the board.
In an unrelated item, two residents expressed concern over the landfill fees charged to county land owners wishing to dispose of lawn refuse.
James Earl Campbell,Sr. and Charles Wagstaff, both of the Ridgeway, told the board they were upset over having to pay a landfill fee.
Campbell stated said he moved to Warren County in 2006 and he takes great pride in the appearance of his lawn and yard and worked continuously to keep it looking good. When he recently transported a load of trash to the landfill after finishing his yard work he was told that they would let him unload his trash this one time, but in the future he would have to pay a landfill fee to unload the cuttings. Campbell thought that the landfill fee, which was included yearly in his county taxes, was a land fill user fee.
He asked the commissioners to verify the rules and regulations on land fill use in Warren County
Both Campbell and Wagstaff expressed concern that if landowner have to pay a fee every time they take yard clippings or other refuse to the landfill, that could lead to land owners eventually opting to dump the garbage elsewhere, possibly even along side county highways.
As with Boyle’s presentation, the commissioners had nothing to say to the concerns and questions voiced by Campbell and Wagstaff.