Today several of us spoke up on behalf of the will of the people to request that Cochise County Board of Supervisors NOT grant funds for “cleanup” and demolition of buildings on the historic Miracle Valley Training Center (also known as Miracle Valley Bible College).
Supervisor Tom Crosby asked for a vote to be taken that he be allowed to grant $70,000 of his discretionary budget to be spent on preparing the property to be sold this year. After recently visiting the property with Development Director Dan Coxworth, he (with no construction experience), was overcome by unbelief in the some of buildings being able to be restored. This prompted his offer to help invest in removing the substantial trash on the property and potentially to remove some of the structures in the worst state.
In the regular Board of Supervisors meeting at 10:00am this morning, this action item was on the agenda which we spoke out against. The concern we’ve had is that work on the property up to this point has caused damage to the structures, (such as the recent falling in of ceilings in the dorms after asbestos abatement was carried out).
My dad Steve Allen spoke at the meeting expressing his experience with decades of construction. He shared about how his dad James Allen oversaw building the historic structures and taught him the trade. He is satisfied in the ability to save all of the structures on the property in their current state which are in great need of restoration.
My husband Dan Jones spoke regarding the rich spiritual heritage of the property and why it must be saved.
Tiffany Miller expressed a number of points including asking the Board of Supervisors to step above the apparent religious discrimination in this matter.
Rachel Waterbury requested that tax dollars not be spent on a property which will being going into private ownership and shared about the power of miracles.
I threw out my prepared speech as I dropped over 500 printed petitions onto the podium which took only 36 hours to collect (and more continue to pour in). I appealed through tears that they save these buildings for us to serve the community and body of Christ with.
We came in opposition to them spending the $70,000 for cleanup of the buildings because of the harm which has repeatedly come to them as work has been done over the past months. We appealed for the Board of Supervisors to sell as I made a serious offer to purchase over the counter on behalf of Miracle Valley Oasis Center. They are legally entitled to accept if they wish to and I’ve encouraged this as an option to enable the County to more quickly let go of the weighty responsibility of caring for the property.
The Supervisors discussed the speeches and expressed a need for oversight on how the $70,000 should be spent. Supervisor Ann English acknowledged that she understands that the board are not contractors and that having qualified contractors reviewing any structures considered for demolition would be necessary. Supervisor Peggy Judd strongly vocalized her desire that no buildings be demolished but that cleaning up trash and removing the underground fuel tanks would be acceptable.
When it came time to vote, I felt something spiritually shift in the board room positively. I suddenly knew they were to unanimously oppose us and to trust that it will be okay. And, so they did.
This vote to grant $70,000 to Dan Coxworth to spend on “cleaning” the property is not something we’re okay with. But we sense that God is going to protect the buildings as we continue to keep the petition going and making them aware of our wishes for how the funds should be spent. They have capacity to use the funds to give us a head start on restoring the property, but they also have the ability to use the funds for destruction.
We are here to serve. We’re meeting with County officials to determine the best way forward on our end and to ensure there is clarity from the Board of Supervisors to Dan Coxworth about how to spend the funds without harming the buildings futher.
What can you do right now?
Sign the petition if you haven’t yet, and share it!
Give! We’ve got lots of expenses coming up swiftly and need your support now more than ever!
Pray! God is with us, but we need showered with prayer as we negotiate everything!