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Public Hearing Jan. 27 To Review, Discuss Elmwood Redevelopment Project

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The city’s redevelopment commission is scheduled to hold the first of two public hearings next week to review and discuss the Elmwood Urban Redevelopment Area plan. The group will meet on Thursday, Jan. 27 at 5:30 p.m. in Council chambers at City Hall, 134 Rose Ave. The public is welcome to attend either in person or via Zoom, according to information from City Clerk Esther J. McCrackin.

The public hearings are part of the overall process of creating a workable plan for the proposed area, which consists of about 200 acres that include both sides of Burwell Avenue, Chestnut Street all the way to Andrews Avenue and almost to Beckford Drive, including Elmwood Cemetery. The city is getting guidance and support from the UNC School of Government’s Development Finance Initiative as it continues to refine a detailed plan for redevelopment for the area.

The second public hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 3, beginning at 5:30 p.m. The location is the same – Council chambers – and the public may attend in person or via Zoom.

Join the Jan. 27 meeting via Zoom at the following link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81555003103?pwd=czlpZnpXYVVHaE9HNmxhZlJVeFBXZz09
Meeting ID: 815 5500 3103
Passcode: 884056
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+19292056099,,81555003103#,,,,*884056# US (New York)
+13017158592,,81555003103#,,,,*884056# US (Washington DC)

 

Join the Feb. 3 meeting via Zoom at the following link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83435666091?pwd=RG9jSTgwdm1YSlI3VERZdzFUZEJzZz09
Meeting ID: 834 3566 6091
Passcode: 285955
One tap mobile
+13017158592,,83435666091#,,,,*285955# US (Washington DC)
+13126266799,,83435666091#,,,,*285955# US (Chicago)

Town Talk Logo

TownTalk: Remembering Weather Events Of The Past

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There’s an old saying – everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it.  That was true of today’s installment of TownTalk. John C. Rose and Bill Harris didn’t do a thing about the weather, but they, along with several callers, certainly talked about it.

With another round of wintry weather predicted for the area beginning Thursday night, it seemed an appropriate topic. While this round of weather is NOT predicted to approach the two feet of snow the area received in 2000 or the crippling ice storm of a couple of years later, any amount of frozen precipitation could bring things to a standstill. And with the coldest temperatures of the winter coming along for the ride, whatever we get won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

Callers to the program remembered the snow storm of 2000 which buried the entire area and shut down everything. One caller said it took hours to get his car out of the snow and another caller said of the 2002 ice storm that he had just moved here from upstate New York to escape the wintry climate only to find the winter weather followed him to North Carolina.

Another caller remembered an ice storm from 1970 that left him with no heat or power in a mobile home while going to school at Campbell University.

While winter weather is certainly foremost on everyone’s mind, hurricanes Fran and Hazel were remembered as well.

Weather can certainly be interesting in North Carolina. The residents of coastal NC have their share of Atlantic storms on a regular basis and those who live in the mountains deal with much more winter weather. It’s central North Carolina that might remember the big storms more vividly since we don’t get big winter storms or tropical systems as frequently.

Hopefully this weekend’s weather will not be severe enough to be remembered for more than a week or two.

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Winter Weather

Broken Tree Limbs from Winter Storms Can Cause Damage

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Once again this weekend Old Man Winter is about to pay central North Carolina a visit.  Last weekend the Vance County area experienced snow, sleet and freezing rain along with some breezy conditions. Paul McKenzie of the Vance Co. Extension Service explained on today’s Home and Garden Show during The Local Skinny! that large shade trees can be damaged by winter storms. “After a winter storm of any type, particularly with ice and wind, you should check those large shade trees for broken limbs and branches,” McKenzie said. “Obviously, the ones that are on the ground are easy to spot but, the ones stuck in a tree are much harder,” McKenzie continued.

Eventually, due to more wind or with the passage of time, these limbs and branches will eventually fall. The danger is that they could fall on an out building, your home or vehicle. More importantly, they may fall on a pet or a person causing injury.

“If you see anything you can’t handle with a pole saw, keeping your feet on the ground, you should hire a trained professional to take care of the limbs,” McKenzie said.

The Lawn and Garden Show can be heard on WIZS as part of the Local Skinny! every Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. on WIZS 1450am, 100.1fm and online at wizs.com.

Possibility Of Winter Storm Prompts Council To Reschedule Planning Retreat

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The Henderson City Council’s annual strategic planning retreat has been rescheduled to late February, based on the possibility of inclement weather. The retreat had been schedule d for tomorrow and Friday, but city officials said it would now take place on Feb. 24 and 25. Start times and location will remain the same.

The retreat will be held at Henderson Country Club. Thursday’s meeting will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday’s session will begin at 8:30 a.m. and conclude at 12:45 p.m., according to information from City Clerk Esther J. McCrackin.

The public is invited to observe the retreat sessions, but the meeting will not be livestreamed; it will be in-person only.

Kerr Tar Regional Council of Governments

TownTalk: Beth Davis Talks Kerr-Tar Regional Council Of Governments

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The Kerr-Tar Council of Governments provides assistance to a cross-section of the community, and part of Beth Davis’s job as regional engagement specialist is to share information about what the agency can do for residents in the counties it serves

The local COG serves five counties – Vance, Granville, Franklin, Warren and Person – and Davis said Wednesday that there are programs and services that benefit individuals, municipalities as well as businesses.

“We are always very busy,” Davis told John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk. There are 16 COGs in the state which received $10 million to help with American Rescue Plan, and another $6 million in disaster, recovery, resilience and mitigation monies to assist in local pandemic recovery efforts.

The Kerr-Tar COG is doing things to make the community a better place to live, Davis said. And that’s something that she enjoys spreading the word about.

“We have a lot of great services and programs for folks in our counties. We’re not a secret,” she said, adding that there are a lot of services that are of great help to the community. “How can you not get excited about that?”

Individuals can get help from Kerr-Tar through a variety of programs – from getting help creating a job resume to taking part in a walking program for people with arthritis to improve physical health.

The NCWorks agency is a part of the local COG, Davis said, which helps to connect employers with qualified candidates. In addition to workforce staff in the Kerr-Tar office, there are three career centers where people looking for help with finding a job. The Oxford location is at Hilltop on Hwy 158, the Henderson location is on Beckford Drive and the Warren location is on the campus of VGCC in Warrenton.

Traditionally, January is a “big time of year when people are looking for a change. It’s a good time to contact the workforce development office” for help in finding a job, she said.

Individuals also can get guidance about resources for seniors through the Area Agency on Aging. The agency is looking to hire an aging specialist, she said, but resources include family caregiver support and an ombudsman to help family members who have complaints about facilities.

Municipalities can get help with grant-writing and the Kerr-Tar planning and economic development arm facilitates a wide range of issues, from providing diversity, equity and inclusion training to spotlighting the use of electric vehicles and other alternate transportation such as bicycle and pedestrian plans.

Visit www.kerrtarworks.org to find out more and to view the monthly newsletter that lists many of the opportunites and upcoming events in the COG service area. There’s also a very active and up-to-date Facebook page that contains details of events.

For those who prefer telephones to computers or social media. Davis said a simple call to the office at 252.436.2040 can get you connected to services and information.

 

 

Unashamed Plan Shows Around Local Area

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For fans of Southern Gospel Music the Unashamed Southern Gospel Quartet has announced three shows in the coming weeks. The first of these will be at Eastside Baptist Church in Henderson on Sunday, January 30th and will begin at 6pm.  Wednesday, February 23rd will find Unashamed in Raleigh at Western Blvd. Presbyterian Church and the third show will be held in Franklinton at Franklinton Baptist Church on Sunday, March 20th at 2pm.

Home And Garden Show

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On the Home and Garden Show with Vance Co. Cooperative Ext.:

  • Use sand instead of salt products on walkways and driveways during winter weather and sand don’t hurt plants like salt can.
  • Cut dead foliage off of ornamental grasses. Take care not to cut into the crown or growing point, which is at the center close to ground level. Also trim last year’s foliage off liriope and mondograss.
  • Check stored bulbs for decay.
  • Inspect large shade trees for damage from the winter storm. Look for broken or hanging branches. If you can’t reach them from the ground with a pole saw, then hire a professional.
  • Check your pruning equipment pruning season is just around the corner.
  • Don’t wait until spring to plant trees and shrubs. Plant them anytime now that the ground is soft enough to dig, so they’ll get a head start.
  • If you have seedlings started indoors check each day for moisture

 

Transformed Eaton Johnson Campus Getting Ready For New Life To Serve Community

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The next few days are moving days for employees of the local department of social services, senior center and youth services as they transition from their old office spaces to their renovated spaces on the campus of the former Eaton Johnson Middle School.

Local officials gathered last week for a ribbon-cutting at the new facility, and County Manager Jordan McMillen said that it took a lot of work from a lot of entities to transform a former school building to a facility to serve the community.

McMillen thanked the county’s school board and county commissioners for helping to make the project a reality. “Putting a large, vacant school facility into reuse is always a challenge and…ultimately, we were able to take an existing facility in North Henderson and put it back into use. This was a win-win-win for the school board, the county as well as the city of Henderson,” he said.

“This new DSS facility is state-of-the-art and will allow our DSS to better meet the needs of our citizens. The facility includes areas for various units to work together, includes training spaces, conference rooms, adequate office space and storage space, interview rooms, youth and children observation rooms and play areas. We are very proud to introduce this facility to the public,” McMillen stated during remarks at Friday’s ribbon-cutting.

This is the first phase of renovation, and McMillen said additional space will be reused as well.

The facility is 102,700 square feet, and less than 41,000 square feet was involved in this part of the renovation project – 39,000 for DSS and 1,800 for youth services – that leaves more than half of the total space available for renovated. McMillen said the plan is to use most of that space.

There are plans to lease out the kitchen space as a commercial kitchen and space to house a Headstart facility.

Cooperative Extension With Paul McKenzie: What Works in the Garden

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Listen live at 100.1 FM / 1450 AM / or on the live stream at WIZS.com at 11:50 a.m. Mon, Tues & Thurs.