What do you do when a building’s structural integrity is so in jeopardy that one half begins separating from the other half due to a water source that repeatedly floods parts of said building? The obvious answer would be to abandon it. When the dwelling is a town’s municipal building, the obvious answer becomes a lot more cloudy.

The Commonwealth Regional Council (CRC) is seeking ways to help fund a replacement for the municipal building housing the Town of Drakes Branch’s offices. The municipal building is in the process of separating, meaning parts of the building are going in separate directions, due to a creek that runs approximately 15 feet behind the building.

“Every time someone from the state comes in they get really excited when they see it (and) say, ‘We’ve got to do something’… but then when they go back it gets bogged down,” CRC Acting Executive Director Melody Foster said at the September CRC meeting.

“They walk through that water to unplug those plugs to get in the truck. I mean, it’s dangerous as all heck what they’re doing on a day-to-day basis,” Foster said.

The CRC understands that something has to be done, and they’re working toward that measure. If left to its current state of deterioration, people will be hurt. This is a disaster waiting to happen.

The next step, according to CRC, is to evaluate the floodplain in Drakes Branch and to look at the best option for dealing with the municipal building and other buildings in the area which are also in poor shape.

While I commend the CRC for their support in this endeavor, I also call state agencies to streamline a solution to this problem.

Morgan White is a staff reporter for The Charlotte Gazette. His email address is Morgan.White@TheCharlotteGazette.com.