Jeff
Sullivan chosen to join
Board of Education
Members of
the Johnston County Board
of Education voted 5-1
this morning (Thursday) to
appoint Jeff Sullivan to
fill the seat on the board
vacated by the recent
conviction of Ronald
Johnson of felony
extortion and other
misdemeanors.
Mr. Sullivan will serve
the remainder of Mr.
Johnson's four-year term,
which began in December
following his re-election
in November.
Mr. Sullivan finished
second behind Mr. Johnson
in both the 2024 Primary
and General elections. A
retired teacher and
administrator with
Johnston County Public
Schools and recently a
driver-education
instructor, Mr. Sullivan
will represent District 7
in the Clayton area where
he resides.
He was one of three
candidates for the vacancy
who were interviewed by
school board members in
open session Tuesday
morning (photo shown
above from that meeting
provided by Johnston
County Public Schools).
The others were Gracie
Chamblee, a retired
special-education teacher
who continues to serve as
a substitute teacher in
Johnston, and Thomas
Daugherty, currently
employed as a K-12
education consultant with
the N.C. Department of
Public Instruction.
Board member Michelle
Antoine cast the lone vote
for Ms. Chamblee at
today's brief session. "I
was highly impressed with
what she had to offer,"
Ms. Antoine said.
Remarked board member Kay
Carroll: "I thought we had
three very good candidates
who all demonstrated they
had a heart for children."
The other current members
of the school board are
Chair Lyn Andrews, Vice
Chair Terry Tippett, Kevin
Donovan, and April Lee,
who joined the board in
December after winning
election for the first
time to represent District
4, which surrounds McGee's
Crossroads.
Link to
video of board's
interview session held
Tuesday morning>
Four newly employed
officers took their
oaths at Monday's Town
Council meeting,
administered by Mayor
Andy Moore as Police
Chief Pete Hedrick
(right) looks on.
Full
staffing of town's
police force almost done
The
Smithfield police force
has 43 authorized
positions. Chief Hedrick
announced at Monday's Town
Council meeting that 41 of
those positions are now
filled, with candidates
for the remaining open
slots in the process of
being hired.
That's a remarkable
improvement for the Police
Department's staffing
situation. When Chief
Hedrick was hired in
August 2023, the
department had a dozen
vacancies – a situation
that prompted the Town
Council that fall to
authorize incentives of
$5,000 for recruitment and
$7,500 for retention of
police officers.
The
situation wasn't much
better last May when the
chief and Town Manager
Mike Scott urged the
council to raise police
salaries by $10,000. The
council agreed – a move
that boosted starting pay
for a Smithfield
police officer to $60,014.
Four new officers were sworn
in at Monday's council
meeting (pictured above,
left to right):
Ian
Langdon, Shahzeb Hameed,
Michael Blackman, and
Glendale Daniels
(accompanied by his
father).
A
big jump in parking
tickets
Reporting
on another matter during
Monday's council session,
Chief Hedrick said his
department issued 846
parking tickets this past
year – up from "under 100"
handed out the year
before. Last year's number
included tickets issued
throughout town, not just
in the central business
district, the chief noted.
His report drew thanks and
praise from council
members. "They're doing
their job," exclaimed
Councilman David Barbour.
Mayor Andy Moore urged the
chief to crack down harder
on folks who park in fire
lanes and leave their
vehicles unattended.
Two
large North Smithfield
subdivision plans
advance
The
Town Council approved
preliminary plans for two
large residential
subdivisions previously
given green lights.
The largest – labeled
"Local 70" by its
out-of-county developers –
will eventually cover 163
acres straddling Durwood
Stephenson Parkway north
of Wallmart. The council
Monday night approved
without dissent not only
the layout of an 86-acre
portion bounded on the
west by Booker Dairy Road
but also voluntary
annexation of the site,
which will include 303
lots for 209 single-family
houses and 94 townhouses.
(A second phase not yet
submitted for approval
envisions 324 apartments.)
Also approved Monday is
the layout for a 170-lot
subdivision for
single-family houses on
property extending from
Buffalo Road eastward to
the greenway trail south
of Smithfield Community
Park.
That site abuts the
Bradford Park subdivision,
whose residents voiced
alarm about drainage and
traffic issues when the
council last July voted
4-3 in favor of rezoning
to allow the subdivision
on land owned by the Lampe
family. Two of those
dissenting council members
– Marlon Lee and Steve
Rabil – once again voted
against the plan on
Monday. The other –
Councilman Travis Scott –
was absent.
During a public hearing
Monday night, the
project's engineer –
Donnie Adams of a firm
based in Clayton – assured
the council that grading
plans for that subdivision
not only should channel
water away from Bradford
Park but also should
reduce "by more than 80%"
the volume of rainfall
presently crossing the
Buffalo Creek greenway. A
couple of storm-water
holding ponds are planned
to handle all that runoff,
the engineer noted.
Town
Council endorses East
Coast Greenway plan
Approved
by the council without
dissent is what was
described as the "likely"
route through town for a
proposed bicycle and
pedestrian trail extending
from Smithfield's Buffalo
Creek Greenway to Four
Oaks and Benson. The
proposed route would
follow South Second and
Wellons streets and
traverse undeveloped
woodlands to reach a
crossing of the Neuse
River on a new bridge
planned for US 301.
Adrian O'Neal, the
county's parks and
recreation coordinator,
told the council adoption
of the preliminary plan
including "the most likely
route" is necessary to
qualify the project for
state and federal grants.
Mr. O'Neal noted that
Johnston's County
Commissioners have already
approved the plan, which
will now go before town
boards at Four Oaks and
Benson for their
concurrence.
Councilman Sloan Stevens
asked about the project's
cost. "I don't think
Smithfield should be
responsible for it," he
declared. In response, Mr.
O'Neal said funding
sources for the project
have not been identified
as this point, adding that
one estimate he has heard
puts the price tag at $8.3
million.
David Barbour was the only
council member to vote
against adopting the plan,
expressing his displeasure
that it doesn't include a
multi-use trail about to
be built from Downtown
Smithfield's river bridge
into West Smithfield, his
district.
Presently, the East Coast
Greenway includes all of
the town's Buffalo Creek
Greenway, with signage
indicating a route along
existing streets and
highways through Johnston
County. Smithfield's
greenway is also
designated as part of
North Carolina's
Mountains-to-Sea Trail
that's still under
development.
Three
appointments to boards;
numerous vacancies
remain
The
council reappointed Sarah
Edwards to the town's
Board of Adjustment, Mark
Lane to the Planning
Board, and Alisa Bizzell
to both the Planning Board
and the Parks and
Recreation Advisory
Commission. A memo
accompanying Monday's
agenda notes current board
vacancies as follows:
Appearance Commission 3,
Board of Adjustment 3,
Historic Properties
Commission 2, Parks and
Recreation Advisory
Commission 5, Planning
Board 2.
Revaluation's
informal appeals
deadline Monday
Johnston
County Tax Administrator
Jocelyn Andrews reminded
the public at Monday's
meeting of the County
Commissioners that next
Monday (Feb. 10) is the
deadline for property
owners to file informal
appeals of recent
real-estate revaluations
by the county.
"As of this morning
(Monday) we have received
over 2,500 appeals," Ms.
Andrews reported. While
the preferred method of
appeal is being handled
online, she said her staff
fielded more than 8,000
phone calls in January.
"And we heard over 1,100
face-to-face appeals" in
the Tax Office, she added.
Once all the informal
appeals are heard and the
staff determines whether
requested adjustments in
property values are valid
or not, "we will notify
all people at the same
time in writing," Ms.
Andrews said. The goal is
to send out those "letters
of decision" by the end of
March, she noted.
Once that process is
complete, property owners
still dissatisfied with
their new valuations may
file formal appeals to be
heard by the county's
Board of Equalization and
Review in April, the tax
administrator noted.
Overall, real-estate
values were increased by
70.6% over results of the
county's previous
revaluation in 2019. From
now on, Johnston will
conduct its revaluations
every four years. In years
past, revaluations were
done here every eight
years – the maximum gap
allowed by state law.
DETAILS
about the appeals
process are posted on
the county's website>
Audit
shows county's Fund
Balance is up to $269
million
During
Monday morning's session,
commissioners received the
annual audit report which
shows the county's General
Fund Balance had grown to
$269,039,469 as of June
30, the end of fiscal year
2023-24. That's up from
$241.7 million a year
earlier and $117 million
in 2020, noted CPA Alan
Thompson of the
Whiteville-based
accounting firm of
Thompson Price Scott Adams
& Co.
The recent build-up of the
county's reserve fund is
one of the factors that
last year earned the
County of Johnston the
highest rating awarded by
national bonding agencies.
That translates into lower
interest rates whenever
the county sells bonds to
finance school
construction and other
capital projects.
Contributing to recent
growth in the county's
Fund Balance is Johnston's
ranking at or near the top
of the state's counties in
collection of property
taxes. The annual audit
shows Johnston's
collection rate was 99.2%
last year and no lower
than 99.49% over the past
five years. Johnston's
rapid commercial and
residential growth is
another big factor
boosting the county's Fund
Balance in recent years.
The auditor's report
showed General Fund
expenditures in 2023-24
totaled $322,768,390, more
than offset by revenues of
$352,602,841, most of that
from property taxes
($191,480,457) plus sales
taxes and other fees
($97,204,123).
On the expenditure side of
the ledger, the county
spent $108,808,921 on
education, $76,788,685 on
public safety, $57,931,550
on human services, and
$42,354,409 on debt
service. The audit showed
the county's total
indebtedness – mostly for
school bonds and loans for
water and sewer projects –
totaled $667,162,934 last
June 30.
VIEW the
summary report presented
Monday by the auditor to
commissioners>
$403,000
budgeted for upgrades at
the county's airport
Federal
grants will cover most of
the cost of repaving a
couple of "taxilanes" and
constructing a new "hold
apron" and "bypass
taxiway" at Johnston
Regional Airport.
Commissioners approved the
project's budget, which
includes a matching county
appropriation of just
$20,089. Airport Director
David Harris said a recent
surge in aircraft traffic
is the reason for the
work. "We've transitioned
from a five-day-a-week
airport to a
seven-day-a-week airport
over the last six months,"
said Mr. Harris, who began
his employment as the
airport's director January
1.
New
member added to the
county's Planning Board
Voting
by ballots with 10
applicants for four
available seats on the
Johnston County Planning
Board, commissioners
reappointed Debbie Edwards
Howard of Smithfield,
Freddie Hudson of Kenly,
and Timothy M. Little of
Evans Road, Princeton and
added Susan Weaver Ford of
Weaver Road, Kenly to
replace Michelle Pace
Davis, who won election to
the Board of Commissioners
in November. The board
also appointed Caleb
Johnson of Lowell Mill
Road, Selma as a new
member of the county's
Board of Adjustment.
January's
1.32" of rain
"contributed" to drought
The
entire eastern half of
North Carolina is
presently classified as a
region experiencing
"moderate drought" by U.S. Drought
Monitor. Here's why:
Cornell Cox reports that
precipitation measured at
his Backyard Weather
Station in South
Smithfield totaled just
1.32 inches in January,
and that comes on the
heels of 1.97 inches in
December, 2.53 inches in
November, and a paltry
0.28 of an inch in
October. According
to U.S.
Climate Data, normal
rainfall amounts for
Smithfield are 3.61 inches
in January, 2.94 in
December, 3.08 in
November, and 3.04 in
October.
December's unemployment rate reduced to 3.0%
Johnston
County's jobless rate fell
from 3.3% in November to
3.0% in December as the
number of employed
Johnstonians rose slightly
from 107,830 to 107,868
while the number filing
for unemployment benefits
dropped from 3,642 to
3,378, according to the
latest report from
the N.C. Department of
Commerce. North
Carolina's jobless rate
was 3.4% in December, down
from 3.7% in November. The
national rate was 4.1% in
December, a slight
reduction from November's
4.2%.
WHAT'S COMING
UP
This is "National Wear Red Friday"
boosting heart health
The
Smithfield Town Council
adopted a proclamation
Monday night urging
"residents, business
owners, and visitors" to
support a month-long
heart-disease awareness
campaign by "wearing red"
this Friday, which is National
Wear Red Day. The
proclamation also
encourages Smithfieldians
to make financial
contributions to the Johnston
Health Foundation's
Heart Fund>
School
board may adopt
calendars when it meets
Tuesday
The
Johnston County Board of
Education's regular
monthly meeting is set for
4 p.m. Tuesday in the
Evander Simpson Building
on US 70 Business east of
town. The board has been
working toward adoption of
operating calendars for
both the 2025-26 and
2026-27 school terms when
it meets next week.
VIEW the
complete agenda for
Tuesday's meeting once
it's posted online>
Olivia and Liam county's top baby names in
2024
Register
of Deeds Craig Olive has
released his office's
annual list of most-used
names for babies born in
Johnston County.
Heading the choices for
girls is Olivia (12
babies) followed by Emma
(10), Amelia and Evelyn (8
each), Charlotte, Genesis,
Mia, and Valentina (7),
then Ailany Camila,
Josephine, and Lainey (6).
Heading the choices for
boys is Liam (17) followed
by Levi (11), William (9),
Daniel, Julian, Michael,
and Samuel (8 each), then
Amir, Carson, Elias,
Grayson, Jason, Jeremiah,
Noah, Oliver, Waylon, and
Wyatt (7).
Johnston County during
2024 recorded 2,063
births, 1,725 deaths, and
1,340 marriages – all
increases over 2023's
numbers. Underlining the
county's growth over the
past decade and a half are
these 2010 numbers: 1,234
births, 831 deaths, and
987 marriages.
VISIT the
website of the Register
of Deeds Office for more
information>
DEATHS
& FUNERALS
A
WORD (OR TWO) FROM THE
EDITOR
How
do we get folks to take
it easy as they drive?
Perhaps
Smithfield needs to be One
Big Speed Bump. Or, we
could become infamous for
having four-way stop signs
at every intersection
lacking a traffic light.
(Please don't take those
impractical measures as
serious suggestions.)
Whether it's Downtown's
Market Street or one of
our quieter residential
lanes, it seems more and
more folks are "pushing
the pedal to the metal"
with little if any thought
about the safety (and
peace of mind) of others.
Stephanie Avery of
Meadowbrook Drive is the
latest in a line of
residents pleading for
relief. She asked the Town
Council Monday night for a
four-way stop at the
intersection of First and
Parker streets on the
south side of town where
she resides.
Another recent citizen's
request to the council
sought a four-way stop at
South Second and Church
streets.
My nomination is a
four-way stop at South
Second and Davis streets.
And whatever happened to
Councilman David Barbour's
request for speed bumps in
his West Smithfield
neighborhood?
Meanwhile, the Market
Street "racetrack" remains
wide open for speed
cheaters as those traffic
lights continue to stay
green far too long.
If those concerns aren't
going to be addressed,
perhaps it's a blessing in
disguise that Smithfield's
streets are crumbling
faster than the town can
repave them. More and more
potholes ought to slow
down some of those
speeders out there.
The
Good Old Days?
Here's
a 1940s view of Downtown
Smithfield's busy Market
Street when US 70 was a
two-lane thoroughfare
through town (no bypass
then) and angled on-street
parking was the norm. (From
a Heritage Center
collection)
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to this edition: 1,582
MISS
A PREVIOUS EDITION?
You'll find
it in the Weekly
Sun archives>
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