The Cleveland County Commissioners; Susan Allen, Ronnie Whetstine, Johnny Hutchins, Doug Bridges and Deb Hardin, under the Stealthy County Manager Brian Epley are set to sell (give-away) a piece of property valued by the Cleveland County Tax folks at $143,719 for a measly $30,000 at tonight’s Commissioner’s meeting.
But folks, don’t believe me. Please don’t believe a word I say. I dare you not to believe a word I say. Go check it out for yourself.
- First, google “Cleveland County GIS” and “click” on it.
- Next Enter Parcel Number 25684 in the Box for Parcel Number and click on SUBMIT. A screen titled RESULTS will pop up.
- On the left-hand top of the Results Screen, put your curser on the number 25684 and click on that number. A screen titled DETAILS will pop up.
- Scroll down and you will find the Property Address is at 1334 Spake Circle. If you do not see that address, repeat I through 4.
- Scroll down just a little more and you will find appraised values for the property.
What you will find is this: 2019 Tax Values
Building Value $26,208
Land value $117,511
Total Value $143,719
Before you go any further, you might consider taking your blood pressure medication, sit down for five minutes or more and consider this:
The Cleveland County Commissioners noted above, at their meeting tonight, 6:00 PM June 16, 2020 are set to approve selling this property in a “Negotiated Sale” for $30,000. According to NC State law such a “Negotiated Sale” can only be done for property valued at $30,000 or less. Otherwise an “advertised” auction is necessary.
So, what have your wonderful Cleveland County Commissioners done for all you taxpayers? They have given away $113,719 in property in a wheeling and dealing otherwise secret deal. They have defrauded you taxpayers. They have illegally falsified the property value in such a way as to hide the fact that the property is worth much more that $30,000. In other words, they are crooks. Plain and simple. And they expect you vote for them in the 2020 Election.
But the Commissioners didn’t invent this kind of criminal activity. They just copied what the Cleveland County School Board did in the attempted illegal sale of the old North Shelby School about six months ago.
What happened with the Old North Shelby School is the School Board secretly negotiated with Rev. Dr. Lamont Littlejohn to transfer ownership of the Old North Shelby Property to Littlejohn’s Mt. Calvary Baptist Church. But word got out about the crooked school boards plan. Then Mr. Willie Green quickly made the School Board an offer to exchange some property on Earl Road for the Old North Shelby School Property. The Old North Shelby School Property was valued at around $1.2 Million and Mr. Green’s property, adjacent to Shelby High School and across the street from the old K-Mart that Ingalls Grocery Store paid over $3 Million for.
But, the School Board under Chairman Shearra Miller, Vice-Chair Richard Hooker and Board Member Roger Harris allegedly wanted Littlejohn to get the property in return in Littlejohn’s influence in getting out the “black” vote to help them get re-elected to the School Board.
So, at a School Board meeting about six months ago, Mt. Calvary Baptist Church offered $550,000 for Old North Shelby School-valued at over twice that. Then they refused Mr. Green’s offer using the excuse that Mr. Green’s wife was on the School Board and a Conflict of interest existed. Never explaining how a higher offer could be called a conflict of interest. The School Board voted to accept the Littlejohn/Mt. Calvary offer of $550,000 and the required 5% ($27,500) was put up by Littlejohn/Mt. Calvary.
And all was well, right. Right? WROOOONG!!! Littlejohn/Mt. Calvary has to this day not put up another dime of that remaining balance of $522,500. Speculation is Litlejohn and Mt. Calvary never will pay up. That after a long enough period of time, the Old North Shelby School Property will miraculously appear in a property transaction where Littlejohn/Mt. Calvary will turn a huge profit.
Oh well folks. When you snooze-you lose.
All I have left to say is single-shot vote for Shawn Murphy for Commissioner. And just suck it up when the old Commissioners raise your taxes next year.
As for the school board, vote Robert Queen, Ron Humphries, Joel Shores, Rodney Fitch and Samantha Davis. If you do that, you will see major changes. It’s just too bad voters and the public didn’t pay attention to what the crooks on the County Commissioners were doing to them.
