Rocky Mount city council to hold two retreats this year following controversy over last year's $70,000 trip

A year after spending four times as much taxpayer money as promised on a retreat to Asheville, the Rocky Mount City Council will be spending their spring retreat downtown. But city leaders say cost wasn't the determining factor, and another trip could be coming in a matter of months.

Posted 9:43 p.m. Mar 22, 2022 — Updated 8:48 a.m. Mar 23, 2022

Keenan Willard

, WRAL eastern north Carolina reporter

ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — A year after spending four times as much taxpayer money as promised on a retreat to Asheville, the Rocky Mount City Council will be spending their spring retreat downtown. But city leaders say cost wasn't the determining factor, and another trip could be coming in a matter of months.

Rocky Mount leaders say having their retreat locally will help make the community part of the conversation. Last March, former Rocky Mount city manager Rochelle Small-Toney said that the city's 2021 retreat to Asheville would cost $18,000 at most. City leaders have since been under scrutiny for spending $70,000 of taxpayer funds on the trip instead — more than twice as much as Rocky Mount's 2018 and 2019 retreats combined.

A 2018 investigation by state auditor Beth Wood found that Small-Toney improperly spent $1,575 in taxpayer dollars above her authorized meal allotment, including on steak and lobster dinners.

A spokesperson for the city told WRAL News in December that the majority of that money was used to buy meals for the city council and staff at two conferences.

In January, the city paid Small-Toney more than $200,000 as part of a separation agreement.

Peter Varney, interim Rocky Mount city manager, said that city council members are planning on taking two retreats this year — one from April 19 to 20 and another one in the fall.

"There was no pushback from any council members about it, and so I feel that it was a great decision that we were able to make together as a council," said T.J. Walker, Rocky Mount city council member.

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Despite community outrage over the council's last trip, Varney said cost was not a determining factor in keeping this year's retreat more local.

Rocky Mount city council members were concerned about being away from the city and wanted to continue working on their campaigns, Varney said. Four of the seven members of the council are up for re-election in May.

Leaders will likely hold a second retreat in the fall in Durham to look at development in that city.

"Durham won’t be as expensive as the Omni (Grove Park Inn, where the 2021 retreat took place). We took a lot of people to Asheville, in order to be able to lay eyes on what Asheville had to offer in their affordable housing approach and strategic housing plan, and just how they got there," Walker said.

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