THEY
DID WHAT?!!!
They
went "Over the Edge,"
that's what they did. Smithfield-Selma High School's Principal David Allen and Athletic Director Lori Rose rappelled 30 stories (about 400 feet) down the side of Raleigh's Wells Fargo skyscraper last Saturday, joining other regional celebrities in a fund-raiser for Special Olympics North Carolina. Unified Spartans, a club at SSS whose mission is to facilitate the inclusion of all students in school activities, raised more than $2,500 to send Mr. Allen and Coach Rose over the edge. And the daring duo survived, thank goodness! (Photo from SSS)
VIEW more photos from their adventure, posted on Facebook>
Site
for new high school
grows to 210 acres
Near
the end of Monday's
evening session, the
Johnston County Board of
Commissioners amended a
resolution initially
adopted in October to buy
a site for a new high
school at Wilson's Mills,
increasing the size of the
purchase from 90 acres at
$2.7 million to 210 acres
for $4.2 million.
Located
on Talton Farm Road beside
the Neuse River near the
county's water-treatment
plant, the acreage is owned
by KAT Properties of
Johnston County, LLC and
Iris T. Atkins. County
Attorney Jennifer Slusser
told commissioners Monday
that the additional acreage
expands opportunities for
more school facilities as
well as future county parks
and greenways.
The new
high school is high-priority
project to be funded by the
$177-million bond issue
approved by Johnston's
voters last month. School
officials have said its
construction will relieve
overcrowding in half-a-dozen
high schools in surrounding
districts, including
Smithfield-Selma High.
Map below shows the site
just east of Wilson's
Mills (from County of
Johnston GIS):
JCCollege
asks for $75-million
bond referendum in 2024
Ken
Boham, interim president
of Johnston Community
College, presented a
resolution to
commissioners from the
school's trustees
requesting the referendum
to be scheduled with the
next General Election in
2024. He said the funds
would be spent for land
acquisition, construction
and remodeling,
infrastructure upgrades,
and other unspecified
instructional needs.
Without comment,
commissioners took the
request "under
advisement."
Dr. Boham will step down
as interim president later
this month as trustees are
close to naming a
successor to David
Johnson, who resigned as
JCC's president in April.
County
OKs incentives for
industrial building at
Benson
The
commissioners approved
county incentives for the
E.D. Parker Corporation to
construct a "Class A"
industrial "spec" building
on Chicopee Road for a
prospective employer not
yet recruited.
The company pledges a
capital investment of at
least $13 million for a
structure of at least
144,000 square feet – both
numbers expected to be
larger, County Attorney
Slusser told the board. In
return, the county
guarantees monthly lease
payments of $25,000 to
Parker until the facility
is occupied or sold (but
no longer than 24 months)
and rebates amounting to
50% of property taxes paid
over a five-year period.
This is the third time in
the past 13 months the
county has partnered with
the private sector to
provide "high end"
industrial real estate,
noted Chris Johnson, the
county's director of
economic development. The
other "spec" (speculative)
projects recently approved
are buildings at the
interchange of I-95 and
Brogden Road and beside US
70 Business between
Smithfield and Clayton.
Mr. Johnson told
commissioners Monday the
county has missed over 60
industrial opportunities
over the past year "due to
the lack of building
inventory."
Commissioners
approve easement for 210
bridge replacement
With
concerns about a lengthy
detour defused, the board
unanimously approved an
easement allowing the N.C.
Department of
Transportation (NCDOT) to
proceed with replacement
of the NC. 210 bridge
across Middle Creek west
of Smithfield.
When the matter came
before them last month,
commissioners were alarmed
about an NCDOT memo
indicating a 10.8-mile
detour for through
traffic. A meeting with
state officials on the
project found that the
detour is much shorter
that that: "less than a
mile," noted Board
Chairman Butch Lawter.
Commissioners had also
wondered if the new bridge
could be built wider to
accommodate the area's
anticipated growth, but
that idea was discarded
because NCDOT "doesn't
build on speculation," Mr.
Lawter said. The
replacement project is
scheduled to start next
spring and take 6-9 months
to complete.
Commissioners
back petition to close
part of Old Olive Road
By
a vote of 5-2, the board
endorsed a petition from
adjacent homeowners to end
state maintenance of a
0.32-mile portion of
unpaved Old Olive Road
from its intersection with
Black Creek Road. Tammy
Thompson voiced objections
in behalf of property
owners nearer the road's
other end off Packing
Plant Road, and she asked
that the closing be
delayed till county water
lines could be installed
and the remaining portion
of the road could be
paved. NCDOT will have
final say on granting the
request for closing.
Voting in support of the
petition were
Commissioners Dickie
Braswell, Patrick Harris,
Fred Smith, April
Stephens, and Chairman
Lawter. Tony Braswell and
Ted Godwin voted no.
Commissioners
delay infrastructure
grants to municipalities
With
requests totaling less
than what was budgeted,
commissioners postponed
approving infrastructure
grants to municipalities
to allow for a revamping
of the amounts. Before the
board Monday were requests
from eight of Johnston's
11 towns for grants up to
$500,000 that totaled less
than $4 million (Archer
Lodge, Micro, and Wilson's
Mills did not apply).
Commissioners had set
aside $5.5 million in the
current budget for the
grants to be funded mostly
with federal COVID-relief
funds from the American
Rescue Plan Act.
Appointments to Veterans Service &
Livestock Arena boards
Commissioners
reappointed Mark A.
Petersen and Bradley
Palmer to the Veterans
Services Advisory Board
(Mr. Palmer was chosen by
balloting since three
persons applied for the
district seat he fills).
Reappointed to the
Livestock Arena Management
Board were Gracie Wells
Chamblee, Ron Hughes, and
Sammy Lee.
READ the
board clerk's summaries
of recent meetings
including Monday's>
Our
signs have changed
with the change in our
seasons.
Call
Pernell.com
to make sure
you're ready
for wintry days coming
our way!
Cost
of town's police-station
addition jumps again
When
the project was let to
contract in March 2021,
the expected cost of a
3,500-square-foot
expansion of Smithfield's
police headquarters on
South Fifth Street was
$784,572. A year later,
because of inflation
coupled with supply-chain
issues related to the
coronavirus pandemic, the
cost had risen to
$1,393,061.
The Town Council got more
bad news at Tuesday's
monthly meeting – that the
final cost will be
$1,831,091. And that's
after changes in
construction materials to
keep the bills from going
even higher.
Todd Waddell of APR
Restoration &
Commercial Development,
the project's contractor,
reported to the council
that material costs
overall have risen 19.2%
this year, with roofing
costs going up 15% every
quarter. He assured the
council the final tab is
now firm as all supplies
have been ordered and
prices locked in.
To cover the additional
expense, the council once
again dipped into the
town's share of federal
ARPA funding approved by
Congress under the
American Rescue Plan Act.
Town Manager Mike Scott
said the draw-down would
leave the town with about
$1.6 million remaining to
be spent from that pot of
money.
Councilman Travis Scott's
motion to approve the
extra appropriation for
the police station asks
the town's staff to
explore grant options in
place of using ARPA funds,
including state aid from
next year's N.C. General
Assembly.
The council was told the
police-station addition
should be finished in
March.
New
fire truck's cost
another victim of
inflation and supply
issues
Later
during Tuesday's session,
the council returned to
the ARPA funding pot as
the likely source of money
to cover cost overruns for
a new rescue truck being
ordered for the Fire
Department. Originally
budgeted for $875,000, the
low bid approved by the
council is $1,010,580 for
an E-ONE Custom Cyclone
Rescue vehicle to be
assembled by Fire
Connections Inc. of Rocky
Mount.
Fire Chief Michael Brown
said the new truck won't
be delivered for 24
months, giving the town
time to figure out exactly
how to fund the purchase.
The new vehicle will
replace a 23-year-old
truck made by American
LaFrance, a company that
went out of business in
2014, the chief noted.
Rezoning
approved to allow
food-processing plant
near airport
Without
objection from the public,
the council rezoned a
9-acre site at the end of
Gulfstream Court off US 70
Business near Johnston
Regional Airport from
Light Industrial to Heavy
Industrial. Stephen
Wensman, the town's
planning director,
explained that the higher
zoning category is
necessary to accommodate a
proposed
food-manufacturing
operation that potentially
could produce an odor.
Engineering consultant
Steven Sanderson said the
industrial prospect is a
Garner-based company named
Improved Nature, which
manufactures a meat-free
protein substitute made
from soybeans and could
eventually employ as many
as 96 workers. He said any
odor from the plant would
be minimal.
Permit
approved for "private
bar" business on Venture
Drive
The
council approved a
special-use permit
allowing Bobby Huskey to
operate what the town
terms as a "private bar"
in a portion of a
commercial building at 447
Venture Drive. Mr. Huskey
told the council he plans
to serve beer, wine, and
liquor but no food. No one
voiced opposition to the
permit during a public
hearing, but Councilman
David Barbour cast the
lone vote against
approval, without comment.
Council
approves hike in
developers' fees for
park projects
Receiving
a report showing
Smithfield is charging far
less than similar-sized
municipalities in the
region, the council raised
the town's "fee-in-lieu"
that major subdivision
developers are required to
pay in place of providing
space in their projects
for parks. The new fee is
7% of a site's assessed
value for county and
municipal taxation. The
old fee was 1.75%. Money
collected from fee-in-lieu
helps pay for expansion of
the town's park
facilities.
Contract
awarded for new roof,
windows at concession
stand
The
council approved a
contract with low-bidder
JLP Carpentry to replace
the roof and windows at
the Smithfield Community
Park press box and
concession stand at a cost
of $35,500. Budgeted at
$30,000, the extra expense
will be covered by
contingency funds.
Financing
contract approved for a
new knuckleboom truck
The
council approved a loan
agreement with Truist Bank
for purchase of a 2022
Petersen TL3,
24-cubic-yard knuckleboom
truck for the Sanitation
Department. The bank was
the lowest of four bidders
for the 59-month loan of
$160,000 with an interest
rate of 3.92%. The first
payment of $17,775 is $425
above the amount in the
current town budget. The
difference will come from
contingency funds.
Doris
Wallace reappointed to
the Smithfield Planning
Board
With
her reappointment, the
town currently has three
vacancies on its Historic
Properties Commission and
four vacancies on its
Parks and Recreation
Advisory Commission
including two seats for
high-school
representatives.
Johnston's
jobless rate rose to
3.5% in October
The
number of Johnstonians
holding jobs declined
slightly from 103,853 in
September to 103,752 in
October while the number
filing for unemployment
benefits jumped from
3,191 to 3,798,
according to the latest
report from the N.C.
Department of Commerce.
That elevated the
county's jobless rate
from 3.0% in September
to 3.5% in October, when
the statewide rate was
3.9% and the national
rate was 3.7%. For
neighboring counties,
October's jobless rate
was 3.3% in Wake, 3.8%
in Sampson, 3.9% in
Franklin, 4.2% in Wayne,
4.4% in Harnett, 5.6% in
Nash, and 5.7% in
Wilson. VIEW the
report for all N.C.
counties>
HIGH
SCHOOL SPORTS REPORT
Smithfield-Selma's
conference awards
announced
Here's
the list that's posted on
the SSS Facebook page:
Neuse
Charter basketball
boys are 7-1, girls
are 6-2
Both
teams got victories on
Tuesday at Friendship
Christian of Raleigh. The
boys won 70-29, the girls
24-6. Leading scorers for
the Cougar boys were
senior Donollyn Tyrell
with 19 points, junior
Jayvin Bradley with 16,
and senior Sire Holmes
with 15. Junior Tionna
Shelton was leading scorer
for the Cougar girls with
7 points.
WHAT'S
COMING UP?
SSS football team will lead the
parade at 7 this
evening
In
celebration of the
school's most successful
football season in a
quarter of a century,
members of the team at
Smithfield-Selma High will
serve as "grand marshals"
for the parade along
Downtown's Market Street
(from Sixth Street to
Second). With the parade
returning to the local
Yuletide scene, no Santas
will be riding on fire
trucks through
Smithfield's neighborhoods
this year. That was a
COVID thing started in
place of the canceled
parade two years ago.
Meanwhile, Santa will
continue to greet
youngsters at his workshop
at Town Hall Park 4-6 p.m.
today (Thursday), 4-8 p.m.
Friday, and 10 a.m. till
noon Saturday, with the
same schedule in place
Dec. 15-17.
SSS
basketball court-naming
ceremony Friday
A
ceremony between the girls
and boys games at
Smithfield-Selma High
School this Friday will
mark the naming of the
court in memory of Carl
Spragins, the Spartans'
boys basketball coach from
1981 till 2000 and the
school's athletic director
from 2000 until his
retirement in 2004. His
1994 team was the Tri-Six
Conference tournament
champion and runner-up in
the state Sectionals. Mr.
Spragins passed away in
October 2021.
New
school-board members
take seats next Tuesday
When
the Johnston County Board
of Education meets at 4
p.m. Tuesday at Johnston
County Public Schools
headquarters on US 70
Business east of
Smithfield, three newly
elected members – Michelle
Antoine, Kevin Donovan,
and Terry Tippett – will
take the seats of
departing members Al Byrd,
Terri Sessoms, and Todd
Sutton, the board's
chairman. As a result, the
first order of business
will be election of a new
chairman. Returning to
serve the remaining two
years of their current
four-year terms are Lyn
Andrews, Kay Carroll,
Ronald Johnson, and Mike
Wooten. VIEW the
agenda for Tuesday's
meeting once it's posted
online>
Johnston
County Museum's Grand
Opening Wednesday
The
Johnston County Heritage
Center's new museum will
celebrate its Grand
Opening at 10 a.m. next
Wednesday. Located in the
former Rose's Department
Store building at 329 East
Market Street in Downtown
Smithfield, the museum's
exhibits tell the story of
Johnston County's
evolution since its
establishment in 1746. It
also includes the Heritage
Center's relocated Gift
Shop. The museum is open
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Monday-Saturday. The
Heritage Center, at 241
East Market Street, is
open 9-5 Monday-Friday and
9-1 Saturday.
HOME
FOR SALE IN SOUTH
SMITHFIELD:
2,427 sq. ft., 3
bedrooms, 2.5 baths,
2-car garage. 811
Baker Street (MLS#
2478008). NOW
UNDER CONTRACT.
SUSAN
LASSITER, Broker
• FONVILLE
MORISEY
REALTY • 919-669-9235
DEATHS
& FUNERALS
Click
on the name to read an
obituary, usually posted
by the funeral home
WILLIAM
(BILL) RAEFELL HILL, 77
– died December 6
SAMANTHA
LANE THORNTON, 45 –
died December 6
LINWOOD
RALPH BENTON, 74 –
died December 4
JUDY ANN
BRADLEY ELLIS, 78 –
died December 3
LUCIA CRUZ
GARCIA, 64 – died
December 2
CHASE
CAMERON TYLER, 30 –
died December 2
WILLIAM
ANDREW BRASWELL, 90
– died December 1
MELVIN GLENN
HAMILTON, 57 – died
December 1
ELIZABETH
EARMISS PIERRE, 74 –
died November 29
A
WORD (OR TWO) FROM THE
EDITOR
History
still happening in our
historic Courthouse
I
have a confession to make:
I chose not to attend
Monday morning's
swearing-in of recently
elected local officials in
the main courtroom of
Johnston County's historic
Courthouse. The reason for
my absence: All of the
elected officers taking
their oaths were already
serving in their various
capacities.
Yes, we did elect three
new members of the
Johnston County Board of
Education in last month's
election. But they won't
take office until next
week, when the new school
board will convene for the
first time.
I did watch a replay of
Monday's swearing-in
ceremony on the county's
YouTube channel to see
what each official had to
say after taking their
re-oaths. What impressed
me most was a scene near
the end of the hour-long
event when Clerk of
Superior Court Michelle
Ball asked more than 30 of
her deputy clerks to come
forward and take their
oaths en masse.
Here's a screenshot of how
that looked:
In case you missed my
recent reference to the
anniversary, the original
part of the Courthouse
where the main courtroom
is situated was put to use
100 years ago, in
September 1922. Here's a
link to more history
about this venerable
edifice>
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