A cup of coffee and questions

Gordon Meriwether
Published: June 11, 2008

The mayor and I share an addiction: a good cup of coffee to start our day.

Judging from the morning pilgrimage to our local den of iniquity (Raven’s Nest Coffee House), there are quite a few members of the town, county and business leadership that share this daily affliction. Although the focus of this quest is to satisfy our need for caffeine, occasionally there is time for good fellowship, discussion and humor.

On one such occasion, I happened to learn of a meeting our town leadership was planning in New York City to visit two bond rating services.

To say the least, I was impressed that my little hamlet had the nerve and audacity to sally forth into such an aggressive and competitive world as Wall Street: the land of the GEs, the ADMs, the CitiGroups, as well as major cities such as Los Angeles and, now, Culpeper. Would anybody even listen to us?

But in March, off to the Big Apple on their quest this band of fellowship did go. The presentation was bold, and by all reports, the shrewd and clever Wall Street analyst left no stone unturned in response. Our noble warriors gallantly upheld the proud traditions of our town.

A month passed with little indication of the success or failure of their quest.

Then the news was announced from the highest peaks in the Piedmont. Culpeper, our fair village, has been awarded a Moody’s A1 rating and a Standard and Poor’s rating of A+/Stable.

As a result of the hard work and dedication of our elected officials and professional staff, Culpeper has found itself in an enviable position financially.

With the stresses and challenges of our economic times, we have the financial where-withal to invest and position this community for the future.

Initially, these ratings will be used to sell $18.7 million in general obligation bonds to expand the sewage treatment plant. But what the ratings show is that Culpeper’s financial position is strong.

In fact, according to the town treasurer, we hold a general fund debt of $7 million which is only 4.5 percent of the debt limit we could carry.

What all this means, good citizens of Camelot, is that we, the Town of Culpeper, save interest on money we borrow. Credit is much more available and cheaper to us.

With towns, cities and counties declaring bankruptcy around the country, our town has been given the highest ratings available to allow us to plan, develop and build for the future.

My congratulations and thanks to the mayor and the rest of the town leadership for their stewardship of the Town of Culpeper, and to you good citizens for your resolve to be financially accountable over the years.

But this accomplishment brings to light another issue that faces us in the immediate future, consolidation. Do we lose these ratings if consolidation with the county is successfully adopted? My call is absolutely.

Well then, what is the county’s bond rating? How are we as county residents planning on financing the various development projects?

Is the unsolicited proposal of Angler the future of the county? Can the county borrow money or sell bonds for municipal improvement? Will they?

Let’s add these questions to our list for the opening debate of the consolidation plan.

These financial and other issues impact your town and county and our future together.

These issues are not black magic, to be left to the politicians and accountants to understand. They are as straightforward as digging a well or planting your garden.

Ask the questions until you understand. All of us benefit from the light.

If we had questioned the consolidation when the petition was circulated initially we would not be wasting our limited tax dollars on other people’s agendas.

It’s amazing what a good cup of coffee will do for you in the morning.

Gordon Meriwether is an independent columnist who lives in Culpeper. He appears every other Thursday in the Star-Exponent. E-mail