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Discouraged but not defeated, Swain continues quest for overdue cash settlement BY CAITLIN BOWLING STAFF WRITER he outlook for Swain County doesn’t look any better this year than it did the last three years in its quest to make good on the government’s stale promise of a cash settlement. Despite being promised $4 million a year during a 10-year period, it seems Swain County is once again being stiffed by the federal government. The county inked the deal in 2010, releasing the federal government from its obligation to rebuild a county road flooded by the creation of Fontana Lake in the 1940s. The county agreed to a $52 million cash settlement in lieu of rebuilding the flooded-out road through the Smokies. But the county hasn’t gotten the annual payment for the past four years, and the allocation was left out the president’s budget again for the coming year. “The current administration was going to put those monies in their budget. They have failed to do that,” said U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Cashiers. “It doesn’t look real promising from a priority standpoint with the administration right now.” The budget for 2014 is a continuation budget, meaning there will be little room for new allocations, Meadows explained. Had the money been included in the 2013 budget, it may have found its way into the 2014 budget as well. Since taking office earlier this year, Meadows has worked with Swain County leaders to get the money its residents are owed with no luck. “It’s very frustrating and disappointing,” said Leonard Winchester, a member of the Citizens for the Economic Future of Swain County who was an active participant in the
August 21-27, 2013
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North Shore Road settlement process. When the deal was signed in 2010, the county received an initial lump sum of $12.8 million. It hasn’t seen any more money since. In 2011, the money was cut from the federal budget following an across-the-board crack down on earmarks. This year, legislators said the allocation was accidentally left out of the budget, and next year is the same story. Only in 2012 did any money — $4 million to be exact — actually get appropriated for Swain County. It was inserted into the National Park Service’s construction budget, and the National Park Service was then supposed to hand the money over to Swain County. However, the $4 million got caught up in bureaucracy. For two years now, Park Service leaders have refused to let the money go without an additional authorization from Congress, even though the federal General Accounting Office ruled that a seperate act of Congress is not necessary. “I guess since we don’t need it, we are going to have to get it,” Swain County Manager Kevin King said sarcastically. “Another way the government is keeping us from getting what we deserve.” King was part of a Swain leadership delegation that visited Washington, D.C., at the end of last month. At this pace, the North Shore agreement will expire before Swain County receives what it was promised. “If it wasn’t paid in 10 years, they don’t owe us none of it,” Commissioner David Monteith said. The county could negotiate an extension of the agreement, but given its past luck, that doesn’t seem likely to happen.
Panels tell Swain County history More panels detailing the history of Swain County are now on display outside the county administration building in Bryson City and even more are on the way. The marble panels list important points in the county’s history, its veterans from various wars and historical facts. Already Swain County Commissioner David Monteith has spotted kids doing rubbings of veterans named on the panels. “The school classes are going to eat this thing up,” Monteith said. The first few panels were installed last year, and over time, the county has added more. In total, 60 panels will cover the concrete wall outside the administration building.
GETTING AUTHORIZATION King and Commissioners Monteith and Phil Carson visited Washington, D.C., in late July to meet with Department of the Interior officials and hopefully convince them to release the hung-up $4 million that’s been sitting in the park service budget with Swain’s name on it since 2012. “That was the biggest reason we went up there,” King said. “It didn’t go as we had planned.” The attorneys with the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees the National Park Service, fed the county the same line as last year — the money is there; it just needs
Swain leaders go to Washington, D.C. Smoky Mountain News
BY CAITLIN BOWLING STAFF WRITER he recent three-day trip to Washington, D.C., marks the fourth time Swain County representatives have visited the capital during the last couple years. Swain County Manager Kevin King and Commissioners David Monteith and Phil Carson drove about eight hours from the small town of Bryson City to the big city of D.C. at the end of last month to speak with federal officials about the North Shore settlement money (see related story). The trio pulled off the three-day trip for $2,000. About a quarter of the budget was spent on hotel rooms in the Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel on 14th Street in downtown. With the four trips altogether, King estimated that the county has only expended about $10,000, adding that such costs are necessary. “If you don’t go up there, they are not going to come to you. You have to get in front of them,” King said. During their trip, they also met with the National Park 16 Service, U.S. Forest Service and Tennessee Valley Authority
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The high spirits witnessed during the pomp-filled North Shore settlement signing ceremony in 2010 are now deflated. File photo officials to talk about partnering on exhibits in the county’s new museum. The county is currently converting its old historic courthouse into a visitor center and cultural heritage museum.
the authorization. It was the same line, even though this year the county had the backing of the General Accounting Office ruling saying that in fact extra authorization is not actually needed. So, Meadows plans to introduce two pieces of legislation into the U.S. House in the next couple of weeks — one would force the park service to part with Swain County’s $4 million and the other would authorize the park service to pay out the remaining cash settlement balance of $35.2 million when it is appropriated. “I just want them to get what they are due,” Meadows said, adding that Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., has been
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“We want them to participate in all our heritage projects,” King said. “The Forest Service was very receptive to that as was the TVA.” One particular point of interest for Monteith was the condition of Hall Cabin and Calhoun House. Both are historic homes located in the Swain County section of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and are supposed to be maintained as a cultural resource by the park service. However, Monteith said houses have fallen into disrepair. “Inside of them is withering away. It’s pathetic,” Monteith said. Hall Cabin has holes in the roof of the porch, leading to further damage the longer it goes unrepaired. Meanwhile, the Calhoun House looks nice on the outside but the inside is a different story. “You would be so disheartened,” Monteith said of the houses’ appearance. If the park service isn’t willing to take care of them, Monteith said, then the commissioners would rather they be moved out of the park onto county property. That way, the county can care for them. He even suggested moving one of the houses next to the courthouse museum and making it an historic attraction.