Lynchburg's electoral board to look at new polling locations

The Lynchburg Electoral Board is vetting potential new sites for the Sandusky Middle School and Elks Lodge polling places.

No decisions have been made and no changes are on the immediate horizon, officials stressed. Any site recommendations made would have to be circulated for public comment and approved by City Council.

The electoral board has started considering new locations in response to voter complaints about Sandusky Middle and the Elks Lodge, both Ward IV polling places.

Last year, a voter filed a formal complaint with the State Board of Elections about the smell of smoke at the Elks Lodge. Election officials acknowledged that was an issue and said they’ve tried to combat it in the past with air fresheners.

They also asked a professional cleaning service about removing the smell, but were told it had permeated the ceiling tiles and carpet and would be difficult to eliminate. Officials said they’re searching for alternate locations, but having difficulty finding eligible sites within the precinct.

Local officials have received regular complaints about an elevated sidewalk at Sandusky Middle, which critics said does not meet the standard for a ramp under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Registrar Carolyn Sherayko said she contacted the school division and was told the walkway was a sidewalk, not a ramp. Sandusky Middle debuted a new building in 2010. School administrators said it meets ADA requirements, Sherayko said.

The electoral board agreed during a meeting Tuesday, though, the complaints likely will continue. Board members suggested Sandusky Elementary School, which is next to the middle school, be considered as a replacement.

The board agreed to visit the school to evaluate conditions there. Officials said they regularly consider these issues and have no immediate plans to submit a proposal to council.

In other news from this week’s electoral board meeting:

 n Election officials would like to remind voters that write-ins are not permitted in next month’s presidential primaries. Sec. 24.2-529 of the state code prohibits write-in votes in primary elections. Lynchburg officials plan to post signs on Election Day, in hopes of minimizing conflict with voters.

n  This year, Lynchburg’s registrar will begin selecting two election workers at every polling place to be technology “specialists” charged with overseeing the set up of voting machines and electronic polling books. The specialists will receive extra training and be paid $130 for the day. Typically, election workers are paid $125.

The registrar’s office said it had problems with people at a handful of precincts in the last election not taking due care with the equipment — including one instance where a worker, reporting a malfunctioning machine, insisted it was plugged in when it was not. Officials hope assigning these tasks to specific people will help combat these types of problems in the future.

- The new LU voting precinct at the Vines Center will be staffed with nine or ten election workers during March’s primary, compared to five or six for other precincts. Election officials want extra staffing in place because it’s the first time the Vines Center has been used. It will allow them to start training more workers in advance of the busier presidential election.

- Former City Council candidate Don Good will be fined $100 for failing to file his required January finance report. Good made an unsuccessful bid for council in 2010 as part of a slate of Republican nominees. His campaign finance reports still showed a negative balance during the previous reporting period last July.

Good’s reports have been showing a deficit of $459.91 since the end of the 2010 elections. Political candidates must continue filing finance reports until they close out their campaign accounts. They are not allowed to do that if the account is in deficit.