There is more good than evil in this world, and when good men and women fight for what is right, evil will disappear into the darkness where it belongs.

As the Bell Tolls…

“As the bell tolls” is a phrase that refers to the imminent end, failure, or ruin of someone or something. It is an allusion to the sound of a bell ringing from a church to indicate that someone has died.

Below are the salaries and contracted labor of the towns of Mars Hill,Marshall and Hot Springs.

HOT SPRINGS- This is what I received this afternoon, but it is insufficient in the PRR. I will request a more detailed explanation and try to have theirs by next week.

Maintenance Salaries range from 15.00 to 25.00 per hour

Police Salaries range from 16.00 to 23.00 per hour

Town Attorney gets a 250.00 retainer fee per month and additional charges vary.

No contractors on record.

Yearly audits are 17,750.00

Office Staff range from 18.50 to 22.00 per hour

Mayor Monthly – 450.00

Alderman Monthly – 375.00

Town Administrator  – 30.00 per hour with a 8 hour week

Audit available on line

Mars Hill – Part-Time

Mars Hill Full Time


Marshall

Marshall Contracted- Town Manager-Land of Sky

Well, Forrest Gillium has surely collected on Marshall’s taxpayers.

He is right in there with Coy Phillips, who is double dipping off the town of Mars Hill and Madison County. He is showing up under Brontus Phillips for part-time and full-time police.

Do you want to know why Mars Hill has perverted jewels working for them? Look no further than Coy Phillips and the Madison County Sheriff Department Sex Castle. But better yet, why are we, the taxpayers of Madison, paying Coy Phillips to work for Mars Hill when he is drawing a salary in Madison?

Brontus is Buddy Harwood’s right-hand man, right?

Marshall’s population in 2024 was 802. As of the 2020 United States census, there were 777 people, 346 households, and 195 families residing in the town. As of the 2000 census, there were 842 people. THEY LEFT- Wonder Why?

Marshall is currently growing at a rate of 0.38% annually, and its population has increased by 2.69% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 781 in 2020. Folks, these are dismal numbers.

As of the 2020 United States census, the town of Mars Hill had 2,007 residents, 742 households, and 440 families.

Let’s compare the salaries of Forrest Gillium and Nathan Bennett and per the residents they serve…

Nathan Bennett’s annual salary is $75,384, and Forest Gillium’s is $89,232. Gillium is getting paid $13,848 more than Bennett.

I calculated these salaries using the above Census population numbers.

Here are the results:

  • Taxpayers in the town of Mars Hill are paying $37 per person for the services of their town Manager.
  • Taxpayers in Marshall are paying $111 per person for the services of their town manager.

When Forrest Gillium started his tenure with the town of Marshall, he had a much lower salary than this, but he supplemented it with TWO grants. Now, the town taxpayers must supplement the grant money, which has obviously run out.

This is a fine example of how Grants are used in this county to grow government. Grants always have a back door, and Gillium is the Poster Child for this!

Forrest Gillium is not worth $89,232; this is why the town of Marshall is such a cesspool of chronic nepotism in their government. Why do you think they have so many issues with sewer and water?

Hey, I am not the only one saying it below reviews of Marshall NC

Now, we, the County Taxpayers, must pay for that water and Sewer line on 213, which will cost more than the grant funding to supplement the Town of Marshall’s incompetence over the years.
The Republican Party of Madison County and the County Commissioners are culpable of putting us in this situation.

What will be next? ANNEXATION by these two towns? Think about it, folks…

Marshall Nepotism Policy


Why is the Town of Marshall’s Lawn maintenance man making more than the Chief of Police?

  • James Chandler’s salary- $66,185
  • Chief Boone’s salary- $58,858

It’s almost $10,000 more, but it gets worse. Kristie Griffin, the tax collector who makes $49,940, is married to Chandler.

The nepotism policy above, while lame, does bring up a problem for the town.
I will reference (C) and (D) below…

It has been brought to my attention that Kristie Griffin and her husband, James, Jamie Stokes, the Town attorney, are involved in a 50-B action and failure to describe a deed to an elderly man during a closing that may come back to bite the town in the butt.

Kristie Griffin’s sister has filed a 50-B action against her husband of 48 years. I think 50-Bs are unfair laws because the accused has no rights in the action until the judge settles it.

That being said, here is the story brought to me by the accused, and considering the past actions by Jamie Stokes, attorney for French Broad EMC and Elder abuse, I think it is worthy of print. You can read the story below if you missed it…

According to the accused, this stems from a parcel of land he agreed to sell to Kristie Griffin and her husband, James Chandler, because they were relatives, and he wanted to help them. They live adjacent to his property.

This gentleman is not a learned man regarding deeds and surveys; he relied on what he visually told Griffin Chandler and his wife he would sell to them. Incidentally, he never saw any money; his wife took it.

Griffin-Chandler lives adjacent to his property. When the survey was done, this man was 64 years old and unknown to him, the Chandlers had taken his water well access. On the day of the closing, Griffin-Chandler’s attorney, Jamie Stokes, did not explain to him what he was signing.

Remember, Stokes works with Griffin-Chandler in the town of Marshall.

The Accused did not find out until after the closing that he no longer had access to his property and his water well. His wife’s family put up No Trespassing signs to try to prevent him from getting access to his well. This started some friction with his wife because Kristie Griffin is the sister of the woman who filed the 50-B.

Why would anyone knowingly sign a deed that would cut off their well from use?
Why didn’t Stokes of Leake and Stokes fullfill her ethics clause in her license by explaining this?

The accused got into an argument with his wife, the sister of Kristie Griffin, and took out a 50-B on him.

He was dragged from his home in his slippers by Buddy Harwood’s bandits. He feels like they badgered him on the day of this arrest.

On the day of the first hearing, the accused discovers Allie Leake is representing his wife. He has stated to me that Allie Leake was also involved in making out a will, which he was overseeing for his mother.

Allie Leake, who is the same Leake to be the next coronated Judge in District Court?

Are you catching on? This is why I say Allie Leake is unfit to sit as a Judge in our district.

This is a conflict by Stokes and Leake, and this is common in Madison County. Employees who use the system to profit strike down anyone who challenges them, especially in the town of Marshall, and they will go to any means to do it.

Madison County is no exception…

As of today, the Madison County Government has failed to provide legal Public Records.

I requested access to or a copy of the Planning Board minutes from the last few years from Brad Guth, the Director of ALL of the departments below, and Rod Honeycutt, the county manager.

I have made three written attempts starting 30 days ago and four phone calls and messages. Brad Guth and Rod Honeycutt have not attempted to provide this Public Record request.

According to the state open records law, N. C. Gen. Stat. sec. 132-1 to 132-10, I write to request access to and a copy of 

  • All planning board minutes for 2021- 2023 and to date of request.

If your agency does not maintain these public records, please let me know who does and include the proper custodian’s name and address.

If you decide to deny this request, please provide a written explanation for the denial, including a reference to the specific statutory exemption(S) that you rely on. Also, please give all segregated portions of otherwise exempt material.
Please be advised that I am prepared to pursue whatever legal remedy necessary to access the requested records. Violation of the open records law can result in the award of reasonable attorney fees, for which you may be held personally liable. 

I believe the obvious question here is: Do these minutes exist, and why are Brad Guth, Rod Honeycutt, County Commissioners and the two attorneys trying to prevent the public and taxpayers from reviewing them?

NC law requires county governments to keep minutes for ALL boards and provide access to the public at ANY time.

I want all of you to take the time to review the recent GIS maps below for Madison County.
Brad Guth- (pronounced Goof) is over this department also.

Notice the date above under Last Modified. This is when the GIS Mappers added “Protected Ridges” under the legends. Jeff Hyder, who was the former Zoning Inspector under Forrest Gilliam and is now in charge of GIS, refused yesterday morning to answer the simple question below:

Mr. Hyder

I am requesting information on the GIS maps. What was the approximate date you added the Ridge Protection layer to the County GIS maps?

Thank you for your assistance

He comes back with this below:

Good morning, 

I am sorry. For the request you will need to fill out the form that can be found at the link provided below.

Jeff Hyder

Folks, I want you to understand that the County can not invent any policy that violates state or Federal Law. I had this conversation with John Noor over a year ago and informed him that I would reluctantly take this to the NCBAR if he and the county persisted. Those of you who fill out this form are being subjected to an illegal act under N. C. Gen. Stat. sec. 132-1 to 132-10.

Below is my response to Hyder:

First, it is illegal to have me fill out a form. I have NEVER filled out your county form. Under Federal and State Public Records law, I don’t even have to provide you with a name. It’s pathetic that a guy who used to run the Zoning Department does not know this. So, let’s start again since you can’t answer a simple question.

FIRST ATTEMPT

Under the state open records law, N. C. Gen. Stat. sec. 132-1 to 132-10, I write to request access to and a copy of :

  • What was the approximate date you added the Ridge Protection layer to the County GIS maps?

If your agency does not maintain these public records, please let me know who does and include the proper custodian’s name and address.

If you decide to deny this request, please provide a written explanation for the denial, including a reference to the specific statutory exemption(S) that you rely on. Also, please give all segregated portions of otherwise exempt material.
Please be advised that I am prepared to pursue whatever legal remedy necessary to access the requested records. Violation of the open records law can result in the award of reasonable attorney fees, for which you may be held personally liable. 

Thank you for your assistance 

According to the web captures above and my own recollections using these maps during the week prior and the week of January 15th, the ridge-protected Ordinance layer was not present.

UPDATE- Late yesterday afternoon, Jeff Hyder responded with this

The protected ridges layer has been part of the counties internet GIS map that I created since 2015 and may have been a part of the website before that managed by Atlas Geographic . The county has had the layer at least since 2010 because it was part of an .mxd file created in 2010. I cannot find an exact date when it was first used because the properties for the source of that layer were on a E drive from a computer at least four computers ago but I would believe since adopted GIS technology back in 2004. As far as the website, any time I make any changes to a layer it refreshes the date and that could be as simple as moving the order and which it is displayed, and I have not never edited the protected ridges layer.  But the last time something had occurred with that layer was on May 12, 2022 when I refreshed some address data.

Jeff Hyder

I will take him at his word, but this is not the first time I have had problems with Guth’s cabal. It happened with an event center that opened just down the road from me. I was not against it, but Brad Guth did not properly advertise it or post it on the County’s website. The owner of this place noticed the same thing. I have a web capture that verifies this. Rod Honeycutt lied about this to me also, even after telling him I wasn’t the only one who witnessed this. Gaslighting is how these guys operate, which speaks volumes.

Let’s look at Hyder’s statements above on an address data refresh on May 12, 2022, which changed that layer. This doesn’t add up.

If he is correct with the county having this information accessible since 2010 or prior, that raises more questions as to why it wasn’t utilized to help identify possible violations of the ordinance, or at least utilized it to check each permit application location relative to any protected ridges–that would have been a quick checks and balances to keep all the applicants honest when checking the box or not.

These Ridge Rapers now can’t say they didn’t have a good way of looking this up, even though it’s the responsibility of the contractor or permit applicant to provide survey data with contours showing a house would not be built within the “restricted zone.” However, that survey info would only be necessary when you are building within a certain distance (say 100 feet horizontally) to a protected ridge.

I have an idea for Hyder and Guth. On the layers, I noticed there’s an “i” icon located beside every layer they have turned on to view its details. Those that don’t have that icon are settings on their end that are purposely turned off from view.

Why doesn’t the county be transparent and turn on the detailed viewing of all layers?
It would prove Hyder is telling the truth, Right?

Don’t EVER forget who pushed to have Brad Guth hired and bragged after they hired this lazy, incompetent meat-head.

It was Michael Garrison and Matt Wechtel. Don’t ever forget that Brad Guth held a public hearing for zoning changes with Event facilities in Madison County and didn’t even show up with the draft of the change to the meeting.

Check the tapes. The commissioners, specifically WoodPile Wyatt, are probably trying to scrub those as we speak.

Madison County Commissioners even moved to put this man over everything in 2022. WHY?

The county introduced Brad Guth in the newly formed role on Jan. 18. 

Guth referred to the role as encompassing an “umbrella division,” as it will include planning and zoning, GIS and inspections in addition to economic development. 

Brad Guth is Madison County's new development services director.

“They’ve just streamlined the organizational structure in the county,” he said. “The Development Services Department is a new department. There are a lot of departments in North Carolina that are organized this way, rather than having a single individual over building inspections and planning. That’s what this role does.” 

Johnn Casey – Citizens-Times

Brad Guth never should have been hired; he is not qualified for this job on any level, and he wasn’t before he was hired.

He was brought in to fix the problems created by Terrey Dolan and has exasperated the situation, which brings us to the next part below.

Speaking of Madison County Boards, look at what happened below on January 22, 2024.

Below from Johnny Casey, Asheville Citizen-Times. I encourage you to read this twice…

Madison board approves variance in the first request since recommendation to scrap Protected Ridge setback.

Full Story in below link

Board OKs 1st variance since recommendation to scrap ridge setback (citizen-times.com)

Excerpts taken from this story

In the Board of Adjustment’s Jan. 22 meeting, its first since the Planning Board’s recommendation to remove the 50-foot setback requirement, the board held a quasi-judicial hearing and issued a vote on three separate applications for variances, including a request for a variance to the 50-foot ridge top setback requirement.

In its voting, the board considered six bullet points of criteria from the county ordinances:

  • Special conditions: The property must have unique circumstances that are not common to other properties.
  • Literal enforcement hardship: Strict application of the ordinance should cause unnecessary hardship to the property owner.
  • No self-created hardship: The hardship should not be self-imposed or self-created by the property owner.
  • No special privileges: The variance should not confer special privileges that are denied to other properties in the district.
  • Minimum necessary: The variance should represent the minimum deviation from the ordinance necessary to alleviate the hardship.
  • Harmony with ordinance’s intent: The variance should be in harmony with the general intent and purpose of the ordinance and should not be injurious to the neighborhood or detrimental to public welfare.

In its final public hearing on a request to issue a variance for a reduction in the Mountain Ridge Protection Ordinance’s setback from 50 feet to a range of 25-45 feet, the board deliberated for roughly three hours, and worried that issuing a variance to the applicant, Matt Nowicki, would “set a precedent.”

At Nowicki’s property at 82 Walnut Ridge, in the Seven Glens development on the county line in Weaverville, where he plans to build a home, he has already incurred more than $100,000 in construction costs after laying footers on the property.

As such, the board wrestled with a number of the criteria, including the issue of whether Nowicki’s hardship was self created.

Nowicki and site contractor Gus Katsigianis appeared before the board to discuss the request.

According to Development Services Director Brad Guth, one of the extenuating circumstances that led Nowicki to request the variance was because the county inspections department granted Nowicki permits.

“Then, one of our inspectors, when they were going out to do the inspection on their footers, determined that it was on the ridge and that it needed to be approved through the Mountain Ridge Protection Ordinance,” Guth said.

According to Katsigianis , the property sits at roughly 3,100 feet.

Board member Ernest Ramsey said he felt Nowicki’s hardship was self created.

“When this fine young gentleman looked at this lot and said, ‘I want to buy this lot,’ and he buys this lot, did he not look at how steep it was? Is that an unnecessary hardship or did he create his own hardship? He should have not bought this lot if it’s so steep, and we’re setting precedent for everybody else to come in here.”

Board member Hart Barnhill felt differently.

“Who created this hardship was real estate agents and bankers, and there’s none of them here,” Barnhill said. “Those guys have no constraints like our inspectors do. Everybody’s doing the best they can, except that group. I think he was preyed upon by a real estate agent, yes. I think he was backed up by a bank, yes. But at the same time, we’re stuck with this. I don’t think we can debate him buying the property as anyone’s fault.”

Another component of the puzzle was that Katsigianis left unchecked the box on the county building application indicating the site was at an elevation of 3,000 feet or higher.

As such, Ramsey said he felt the reason for the hardship was to be doubly assigned to the applicant team.

Nowicki purchased the lot, which was advertised with a septic permit and a site plan.

Still, the board was quick to remind Nowicki and Katsigianis that they were fortunate to have the project approved, adding that the entire board was cautious about establishing a precedent in approving the setback requirement variance.

While Chair Karen Kiehna said she agreed with Ramsey in that the applicant’s hardship was self created, the five-member board eventually unanimously approved the variance, which, according to County Land Use Attorney Carly Gillingham required a four-fifths majority rather than a simple majority.

As for the criteria point of the literal enforcement hardship – where strict application of the ordinance should cause unnecessary hardship to the property owner – the board disagreed on this point.

Board member Darlyne Rhinehart said she felt enforcement of the ordinance would present an unnecessary hardship to Nowicki.

The board chair said she wondered how Nowicki’s project had come so far in the process, and she and other board members stressed the importance of “cleaning up” the ordinances to ensure projects like Nowicki’s do not come before the Board of Adjustment in the future.

“How did we get here? Not to put the burden on this applicant, but how in the world did we get here?” Kiehna said.

“Not to blame anybody, because a lot of this was left before Brad got here. This has been created. It did not need to happen. Somebody didn’t do their job, and the applicant had some responsibility in it being self created,” Ramsey said.

“So if you’re asking me, ‘Did the applicant self create it?’ Yes, with some help.”

Barnhill also raised the possibility that the commissioners approve the recommendation to remove the setback requirement.

“If Mr. Nowicki appeals this in Superior Court, we’re going to look like idiots,” Barnhill said.

“This is going to remain my overarching thesis here: We have the potential to do a lot of damage to a couple people who might have a very valid reason for doing what they did. We don’t know any of that. Like I said, this is my thesis. This is everything I think about this particular hearing. I think if we do deny this, we are causing unnecessary hardship and I’m not sure what end. If that means that I’m emotionally compromised, you probably know whether or not I’m actually asking if I should recuse myself because I don’t want the emotional damage done by, if some of this is going to get wiped out a month from now.”

In the end, the board members said they prioritized the livelihoods of Nowicki and Katsigianis, who, if faced with a rejection by the board, would potentially lose out on upwards of $400,000, according to estimates from Katsigianis and board members.

“We’re talking about two people’s lives,” Barnhill said.

Prior to the vote, the board chair and a number of other board members agreed that the complete onus could not be placed on the applicant, as the inspections department had some culpability as well.

“This was not a quick decision and not one that we have not analyzed to the best of our individual abilities to respect the positions that we’re in, and try our very best to understand your circumstances,” Kiehna said before the vote.

While Ramsey approved the variance, he reminded both Katsigianis and Nowicki of their fault too.

“I think it’s y’all boys lucky damn day, is what I think it is,” he said. “I vote yes, but it isn’t because I really like it, because you should have done your job. You didn’t. I hate to say that to you, but you should have done it. I’m doing it because I’ve got a heart, and I want to see you move on down the road and get your job done.

Barnhill said he voted yes because “he did not want to see a contractor ruined and his men not able to feed their families.”

“I’m not willing to do that,” Barnhill said. “On a personal level, I’m not willing to take this extraordinary financial burden and slap it on you when, with respect to you, you were the most ignorant party involved. As Ernie pointed out, this was a due diligence issue. Whether it’s Mr. Katsigianis, or our building inspectors, or a site plan that happened 20 years ago, it doesn’t matter to me. I’m not willing to ruin lives trying to follow the letter of the law.”

Ramsey thanked Guth, and said the county development services director’s duties, which include overseeing recommended changes to ordinances, were a much needed addition the county.

“Thanks to Brad, he’s cleaning up some of this so it doesn’t happen again, and that’s a good thing,” Ramsey said. “We don’t want for this to keep happening again. Thanks to Brad for bringing us into the next century and bringing us out of the old one.”

In her vote, the board chair said she wished to stress that her vote to approve the variance factored more than the costs incurred by the applicant.

“Anybody else, when it goes out into the community, this isn’t a ‘gotcha,’ we can keep going forward,” Kiehna said. “Yes, there is a cost to comply and financial hardship is a factor, but not enough to say that we can go ahead.

“In this case, there are so many, as we have all said, situations, activities or events that happened before it came to you, and for you to be in the situation, that you are the one that’s going to bear the costs. And the cost is significant on this one. I just want it to be known that we struggled with this. Yes, the cost is significant and that is where I was back and forth — was it so significant that a family could be bankrupt? To me, that is a very significant impact, and that is where I went, OK. This is truly a situation.”

Kiehna reemphasized that each individual project that goes before the county Board of Adjustment will be assessed as scrupulously as Nowicki’s Seven Glens project.

“Be assured that every single project that comes before us is going to be scrutinized at this same level,” Kiehna said.

Johnny Casey – Asheville CitizenTimes

Folks, I don’t recall having any of these problems in government until Terry Bellamy,Terrey Dolan, and Brad Guth showed up.

This is systemic of Madison County of someone who buys a property and thinks they can do what they want with a wink and a nod.

They have no respect for our rules and laws in this county. They think they can get away with this because they think the county population is too stupid to catch them.

Ignorance can no longer be an excuse for Madison County residents, licensed contractors, employees, and real estate agents to ignore the ordinances and provisions that this county has adopted to protect its homeowners and taxpayers.

It is a circus of stupidity, and Brad Guth, pronounced Goof, is the ringmaster. Think about this: If your name was Goof your whole life, what would you be like?

BRAD GUTH- Pronounced “GOOF”

Speaking of another Goof. What is more embarrassing is reading Hart Barnhill’s asinine commentary above. Barnhill is on the Board of Adjustment. Who voted this Circus Clown onto this board to begin with?

It looks like the Madison Government likes stupid people on these boards…

Let’s go over Barnhill’s comments:

  • “Who created this hardship was real estate agents and bankers, and there’s none of them here,” Barnhill said. “Those guys have no constraints like our inspectors do. Everybody’s doing the best they can, except that group. I think he was preyed upon by a real estate agent, yes. I think he was backed up by a bank, yes. But at the same time, we’re stuck with this. I don’t think we can debate him buying the property as anyone’s fault.”

This shows why Hart Barnhill does not belong on any board in this county. Barnhill is so inept in his understanding of property purchase.

Maybe this is because he has never owned property in Madison County. Barnhill is not a Madison County taxpayer, so he doesn’t have the standing to regulate the rest of us who pay property taxes.

Look at his statements above; he has no idea what he is talking about.

Buyers should beware of real estate agents, and I don’t know anyone that isn’t. Nowicki can turn the agent into the Real Estate Commission and sue them. Why should the rest of us have to help a person who did not do his due diligence?

Even the notion of affixing blame to the banks speaks volumes to Barnhill’s lack of understanding.

The Banks are the victims of this fraud. If you are not a property taxpayer in this county, you don’t belong on any of these boards. Since the County has gone down to five Board of Adjustment members, it is time to remove the Barnhill trainwreck. He is unfit for this position.

When the licensed contractor filled out the application and didn’t check the box, it passed to Brad Guth. As he wants you to believe from his statements above, the buck stops with him, not his subordinates.

Yet Guth tries to blame the building inspection office for this whole debacle, describing them as the fall guys.

Guth is in charge, and if he can’t perform his job as he bloviates above in the Casey interview, then he needs to be fired.

Since the Nowicki homeowner is in Seven Glens, the subdivision of Matt Wechtel, it is worth reporting that no one on the illustrious Board of Adjustment mentioned the landslide of 2019 covered by WLOS.

Madison County family loses home in landslide | WLOS

MADISON COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — The home on top of Chisel Rock Way in Madison County was the dream for Jeremy and Marquel Kuykendall. Peaceful and surrounded by trees on a six acre plot, it was what the Kuykendall’s worked hard to remodel for the past four years.

Jeremy’s mother Darlene said she had never seen anyone so excited to sign a 30-year mortgage. About 2 a.m. April 20, their dream was undercut by a wall of mud and debris. Widespread extreme rainfall the day before amounted to 3-7 inches across Western North Carolina.

All of that water created a landslide, estimated to be half a mile long, which ended when it hit the back of the Kuykendall’s home.
The Kuykendall Home is at an elevation of 2837.93 feet, which is 162 feet from reaching the 3000-foot threshold.

I know most of you may not have known about this rockslide because Paul Moon never reported on it, yet he reported on Marshall’s landslides a month before.

Would it not be wise to implement a checklist like Buncombe?

See attached for what Buncombe requires. Though not as restrictive as Madison on the protected ridges, they do have a detailed checklist with if/then requirements. We have nothing but blank stares and the good ole boy Blevins Big Daddy checklist.

Remember, Matt Wechtel was instrumental in getting Moon a job with Land of Sky.
We can’t impune the reputation of Seven Glens can we?

Matt Wechtel even barked at a commissioner meeting that he wanted to buy this property. My problem is that FEMA apparently condemned the property, yet it is not showing up on the tax maps as such.

Read the WLOS article above; these statements are from the article below:

“It was awful and to know that your children worked hard all their life and depend on their insurance and they have nothing. They can’t even rebuild it’s so bad.

”Darlene told News 13 they had geologists in the property to inspect the landslide, but they couldn’t provide any assurances it could be made safe.

WLOS

This Property is still assessed at $173,000. The owner is making statements that he wants to rebuild or sell this property. Why in heaven’s name would you even think to do this?

Matt Wechtel works for the Farm Bureau as a claims adjuster. Does it seem strange that a property condemned by FEMA is still being taxed in Madison?

The Chisel Rock Way property is being taxed, yet the Madison County Tax office is not taxing Matt Wechtel fairly for his Grand Estate up in Seven Glens. In fact, most of these lots in Seven Glens are taxed as RURAL VACANT.

Matt Wechtel owns the two properties below:




I own a lot in a subdivision where I live. We own 88% of this subdivision, and this lot is vacant. It is .7 of an acre, not an acre, and I pay more than Matt Wechtel does for his 7.5-acre lot. Chew on that, folks.

Do you think it is fair that Fried Chicken and Wife get the Russell Blevins Special here in Madison County?
Wouldn’t you think an honest Commissioner would try to pay the same tax as the rest of the taxpayers since his mommy gave him the lot he built on in this subdivision?

The Seven Glens subdivision has all kinds of homes built on the protected Ridges; this is just a taste below
More coming…


I will close with an email I sent to Rod Honeycutt about his statements to a concerned Madison taxpaying citizen.
These statements were thoroughly documented, so he can’t lie his way out of them, which is what he is known for in this county.

This concerns the Planning Board’s decision to scrap the Ridge Protection Ordinance.

Mr. Honeycutt- January 10, 2024

Would you like to comment on these remarks you made to a resident here in Madison County?

Rod Honeycutt said that one of three things would happen as it stood now.

  • Willis would tear down and rebuild the encroaching part of the house. 
  • Planning would grant a variance after the fact. 

      Answer- They can’t because the language is too specific, defining reasons for a variance. This build does not qualify.

  • Rod Honeycutt stated  The Ordinance would be amended, and all of this would disappear. 

The amended ordinance will not fix the mess you are in, nor will it help Mr. Willis, as he will have to answer his licensing board. 

Amazingly, the Board of Commissioners is more helpful to a contractor who has fraudulently filled out a municipal government application form than the County residents who have depended on these ordinances to protect their property values and investments.

Public officials’ immunity from litigation is moot when fraud has been committed. You should ask some of your Einstein Attorneys about this.

That is the email I sent, as always, from Matt Wechtel’s sacred cow, who lovingly calls him colonel; he has not responded.

Honeycutt is a colonel but not a Colonel Macgregor type who was on the front lines with his soldiers; Nato Honeycutt is what the Military calls “Leading from the Rear with his Gear.”

Sounds like he is still leading from the rear- CH


We can remove one of these commissioners in March by voting for Tony Ponder on the Republican ticket and not voting for either Wechtel or Garrison.

You Democrats have until 5:00 PM on February 9 to change your affiliation to Independent. Independents who have already registered can vote in the Republican Primary on March 5, 2024, or in early voting.

In-person early voting for the March 5 Primary Election begins on Thursday, Feb. 15, and continues through 3 p.m. on March 2. Find your site at vt.ncsbe.gov/evsite.

Prospective voters who haven’t registered can do so in person at their county board of elections office or their local DMV before 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9, which is likewise the deadline to change party affiliation. It’s also a good time to update your address if it’s changed since the last election.

Online applications with a North Carolina driver’s license are also accepted. Visit ncsbe.gov