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Resident presses council over road repairs and right‑of‑way; town schedules site visit
Summary
George Shelton told the council crews had previously patched a rough stretch near his property but work stopped; staff and council said only a small sliver of his parcel lies inside town limits and arranged a site visit with Mr. Shelton and staff to verify boundaries and maintenance responsibility.
During unscheduled public comments, Richlands resident George Shelton urged the council to repair a rough stretch of road that he said has damaged vehicles and previously received town maintenance. Shelton said town crews "picked up trash at that house" in the past and that recent patching stopped short of his property.
Town manager Jason May and council members explained the town’s jurisdictional boundary and shared a county GIS map showing a small sliver (about 5–10 feet) of Shelton’s parcel lies inside town limits; the manager said the town cannot lawfully pave outside its mapped boundary. "We can't go outside of the town and pave," staff said, and council offered to have the street committee inspect Shelton’s property and return with findings.
Separately, a second public commenter raised concerns about tree removal and the town’s right‑of‑way authority following storm damage. Jason May clarified the town’s rights: the existence of a right‑of‑way allows limited access for drainage work but does not mean town ownership of private trees. The council agreed to a site visit and scheduled 4:00 p.m. the next day for staff and council members to meet the resident on site to determine whether the town’s easement or an orphan road program might apply.
Why it matters: The exchanges illustrate routine boundary and maintenance disputes small towns face when property lines, historic maintenance patterns and improved GIS mapping intersect. Council asked staff to coordinate a site inspection and to provide the resident with county resources where appropriate.
