September 26, 2014 Complaint filed with the WV Attorney General. In April of 2013 I applied for a building permit to the Town of Masontown to replace basement windows and build a new back porch at 158 West Depot Way in Masontown, WV. This is a rental. I sent the building permit as well as the check for the permit in the US mail. Since the Town of Masontown often refuses or loses my permits, I scanned the permit into the computer and include the printed version of the permit with the check. I waited. I waited. I waited…… In April of 2014 I inquired as to why I had NOT received an approved building permit for the requested repairs—a year seemed like ample time to review a building permit. My cousin Roxy Turner is in charge of building permits and serves as an elected member of council. It seems like a conflict of interest to me since she is a relative to be handling my permits—and usually denying or losing most of them on a regular basis. It was reported in April of 2014 that there was no payment with the check. I had stapled the check to the permit. From April 2013 to April 2014 no one contacted me from the Masontown Town Council that they needed payment until I contacted the Town of Masontown. Once that was discovered, I mailed another check. I received the approved red permit dated April 9, 2014. I posted the red building permit that the Town of Masontown mailed to me in the window of 158 West Depot Way. It took longer than expected to find a person to do the work. He started that work this week. Interestingly the helpful neighbors Joyce and Bob Johnson were reporting the work being done to the town. The town sent someone to investigate, generally only my properties receive these special investigations. Someone from the town was sent to check on the permit. I believe that it was my cousin Roxie Turner, Charlie wasn’t sure. He was told to stop working until this was resolved. He did not receive any paperwork to stop working. He was made to stop working because I didn’t have an approved building permit. What? The permit the town sent was in the window. I have the cancelled check. This is crazy. It gets better. So I went to the water company today to get this building permit matter resolved. My April of 2013 building permit is still there. There is a staple in the top left hand corner where the first check was. There was a search for proof of the receipt since this was an “illegal permit that they don’t use any more” according to Joann Galusky. Turns out, when Ms. Galusky looked through the Town of Masontown’s receipt book, there was a receipt for payment of my approved legal building permit.(?) Why do they think the building permit they mailed me was illegal? She pretty much indicated that I had forged the permit. So now the first check was lost and now a 2nd check was also lost? Who is doing their finances? This goes on all the time. West Depot Way is an ongoing saga from one family Joyce and Bob Johnson and my dear cousin council member Roxie Turner. A year or so ago, the town decided to make West Depot Way reserved parking for residents instead of the open public parking it has been since forever. I even posted signs that said “open parking, park where you want” since the Johnson’s were insistent on marking their parking area and chasing people out of public parking. Interestingly the parking spaces are not the same size and interestingly there are not parking spaces for each lot on the street. I have called numerous times to have this matter corrected. If they want reserved parking that’s fine but all spaces need to be the same size for each house along the street. It is not. There are a couple lots that don’t even have designated parking. The Johnson’s have very nice parking. If you accidently park in their spots, at 169 West Depot Way, they promptly are outside yelling at you to move—very neighborly and welcoming. Mr. Shillingburg who serves on Masontown Council also has ample nice parking in front of his house. A lot across from Mr. Shillingburg owned by Darrell Thornton doesn’t even have a marked parking space. 3 lots I own do not have designated parking spaces either. Doesn’t seem fair. The top of the alley on the right side of this one way street isn’t open although that has been requested numerous times. Yet the lower end of the alley where I own must stay open.(?) Many of the residents on the left side of the street could easily use their alley to park behind their house to reduce the parking congestion but they won’t. There is also a 750 foot sidewalk and retaining wall that at times is about 9 feet off the ground that is in deplorable condition that the Town of Masontown owns on the right side of West Depot Way. The town will not maintain nor repair the sidewalk and retaining wall. I have requested repair and replacement since the early 1980’s (while in high school) and the condition continues to worsen and nothing continues to be done. Grants and other funds received from the state by the town of Masontown for this project over the years were not spent on the sidewalk and retaining wall. Legislative Digest funds received by the Mayor for the wall went to pave an alley in another part of town—although her picture was in the newspaper with the check in front of the retaining wall and the caption reported the funds would go to the retaining wall project. The Town of Masontown also sends out letters about grass cutting. Interestingly, I often get those thanks to the Johnson’s. Yet there is an abandoned property beside the Johnson’s which has had grass cut only once this year. Now of course the Johnson’s trespass on the property and cut about 8 feet of the grass along their privacy fence. I received a grass cutting letter, after I had already cut the grass at a residence; however the neighbor beside this property, hasn’t cut his grass for over two years—which is across from Mr. Shillingburg. Doesn’t seem fair? I understand the need for rules and don’t mind following them. I just think that the special rules for special people thing has gone on long enough. By the way, some years back I filed an ethics violation against the town of Masontown and Roxie Turner with the state and nothing at all happened about that. I was clearing a piece of property for some storage buildings. She nearly attacked the contractor; she cussed him as well—while there serving as a representative of council. This building permit had been rejected about 10 times before I took the town to the Circuit Court to get the permit approved. I am tired of being targeted, harassed and bullied by the Johnson’s, the town of Masontown and especially my council member Roxie Turner. Is there anything that you can do about this? I have rental property in the town that I work on on a regular basis. I pay class 4 property taxes which helps the town’s budget. I don’t want special treatment. I just want fair treatment.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 23:56:09 +0000