It’s always an option for city residents to take the podium at Bridgeport City Council meetings to express a concern.

 

During the public comment portion of Monday’s City Council meeting, two residents took that opportunity, addressing members of Council concerning matters important to them.

 

Special Agent at Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation Division, Jeff James said he was not addressing Council in a professional capacity, but as a longtime resident of the city where he chose to raise his three children.

 

“Back in 1997, I had the opportunity to come back home to West Virginia from the Carolinas. I could have lived anywhere from Buckhannon to Pennsboro to Morgantown, but it wasn’t a difficult choice to make that this is where I would call home,” he said. “…You all, in one way or another - as current members of this Council as well as your predecessors - have been a part of rearing my children and I appreciate that.”

 

But James, a 31-year veteran of law enforcement, said he believes the community is at a crossroads.

 

“Over the last 11 months, I’ve seen it play out when an issue came up about the Tactical Diversion Squad you’re trying to bring to Harrison County,” he said.

 

As an IRS representative to the Harrison County Drug Task Force where James works daily with Lt. (Brian) Purkey and others, he said he knows the squad works tirelessly day and night to protect residents.

 

James then got straight to his point.

 

“To me, it appears as though we’re talking about $20,000 between what the city would offer to the (Harrison County) Sheriff’s Department and the cost of actually hiring a new officer so someone could serve fulltime with the Tactical Diversion Squad,” he said. “Through the great work of Councilman (Lowell) Maxey and others, Harrison County was able to pull off what hundreds of cities in the U.S. have been unable to do – to get a commitment from the DEA to send a Tactical Diversion Squad to their community.”

 

As it presently stands, James said, one other DEA TDS has been established in West Virginia and that is in Charleston.

 

“We have the second and as it stands now, a supervisor and one DEA agent have already reported to work,” he said.

 

There are currently six to seven empty positions yet to be filled, James said.

 

“I don’t know what would change if Bridgeport did put an officer there. I don’t know if it would start a floodgate of others contributing officers, but Bridgeport has not made that commitment and nobody else has either,” he said.

 

The northern 32 counties of West Virginia will benefit from work done by this TDS, but none will benefit  more than the citizens of Bridgeport and surrounding communities, James said.

 

“At some point in time, I would expect that if the DEA is anything like the IRS, they’re going to say we need to move on,” he said. “If this community is not going to support this operation, we will find one that will.”

Day by day, James said he watches the CAD log of the Harrison County Bureau of Emergency Services, taking note of the many area drug overdoses.

 

“You have no idea what your officers are fighting on a daily basis, but they need your help,” James said. “It’s sad to think that people in our community could overdose tonight.”

 

James went on to state a statistic he recently learned that every 11 hours, someone in West Virginia dies from a drug overdose.

 

“Is it worth $20,000? I suggest that it is,” he said.

 

(Read more about the issue at a previously-published Connect-Bridgeport story HERE.)

 

Also addressing Council Monday night was Richard Wilt, a resident of Pennsylvania Avenue, expressing concern about an abandoned house at 158 Pennsylvania Avenue. The home, Wilt said, has not been a permanent residence since 1989. Wilt said he and others have brought the concern to Council. He provided the governing body with the name and physical address of the homeowner, asking that the city follow up. The home has been without utilities for some time.

 

“I know this is a small item for the city, but for the neighborhood, it’s a huge eyesore,” said Wilt, adding that its close proximity actually lessens the value of his own property.

 

Bridgeport Community Development Director Randy Spellman said his department is aware of the situation and that they have dealt with the homeowner for more than 20 years. As he is currently under 10 violations of property maintenance, the city currently maintains the lawn and in the case the property is ever sold, the city will recoup its money.

 

If the property owner doesn’t respond to a request by the city, condemnation will result, Spellman said.

 

“The code requires us to give 30 days before we go to condemnation,” he said. 

 

Editor's Note: Pictured from top are Jeff James, Richard Wilt, Randy Spellman (shown left with Bridgeport Police Chief John Walker.)

 

Read coverage of Council's approval of the 2017-2018 fiscal year budget and other budget matters discussed at the March 27, 2017 meeting HERE.