The Local Skinny! Teacher Pay And State Budget

/by

Gov. Roy Cooper signed a dozen or so bills into law on Monday, a couple of which involve education and educators. At a time when most area school children – and teachers – are enjoying their summer vacations, Cooper signed into law small pay raises for educators and extended grants to keep childcare centers open at least in the short-term.

In signing Senate Bill 357, Cooper stated that the legislation “provides critical but limited grants to help keep childcare centers open for the next few months.” He said legislators need to do more for parents, businesses and children to extend the grants through 2025 by

“investing in our nationally recognized NC Pre-K and investing more in quality early childhood education. Our children’s future and our economy depend on it,” Cooper stated.

As for Senate Bill 332, Cooper said it “simply restates the small pay raises legislators already gave public school teachers last year.”

Citing North Carolina’s rank of 38 among the 50 states in teacher pay, Cooper said the legislature should be paying teachers “significantly more.” That ranking, coupled with the fact that North Carolina invests nearly $5,000 less per student than the national average, Cooper said North Carolina should spend more for teachers and students. “Our state has the resources to make meaningful investments to help our public school students and now is the time to do it.”

CLICK PLAY!

 

TownTalk: Uber-Type Service Will Replace Henderson’s Around Town Shuttle

/by

Henderson’s Around Town Shuttle worked well for a good long time, but KARTS Executive Director Randy Cantor said it’s time for an upgrade to a more efficient concept that is designed more like the rideshare Uber than a city bus line with set stops.

Cantor, who has been in the KARTS role for about a year, said the four-county service area can be challenging. There are many employees driving many vehicles across a large geographical area, he said on Monday’s TownTalk. He assured rural clients that their services would continue as they have been – residents need only call 252.438.2573 at least 48 hours in advance to arrange transportation for doctor visits or other appointments.

But the closed-loop Around Town Shuttle that had run in Henderson is being replaced by an on-demand group of vehicles that clients can schedule by calling the KARTS dispatcher or by using their Smart phone or app.

Right now, KARTS as a whole operates on a cash-only basis, said KARTS Finance Manager Tonya Moore. But when the new micro transit concept kicks in, payment will then be possible with a card or with a phone app.

Cantor said changing the model has nothing to do with how KARTS is operating and everything to do with providing the best and most efficient service possible to clients. He said he hoped that round-trip fares for the Henderson service would be in the $10 range, but setting the price is not up to him or KARTS.

KARTS gets state and federal funding, and counties also contribute, but it’s never enough to fully cover expenses. Moore said the Around Town Shuttle had cost $1 every time a rider used the shuttle. The once robust ridership, however, had dwindled to about 300 rides a month. Cantor said using an on-demand service would be more efficient than having a shuttle drive around Henderson in a circle five days a week, eight hours a day, 40 hours a week.

Since the ability to call and arrange transportation exists and stressing that the Around Town Shuttle was only one aspect of KARTS, Cantor agreed that there is not really a gap in coverage.

The Around Town Shuttle stopped running June 30.

The newer style transportation offering may be available in as few as a couple of months.

CLICK PLAY!

Vance County Logo

The Local Skinny! Commissioner Balks At City’s Reimbursement Request For Displaced Families

/by

In her report to the Vance County Board of Commissioners last week, County Manager C. Renee Perry said she had received a letter from Henderson City Manager Terrell Blackmon that formally requested $22,000 to reimburse the city for money it gave to families displaced when the place they were living in was shut down back in May.

Perry, however, reminded commissioners that county funds had been used to house the families to the tune of $26,905.67. “My recommendation is …there should be an offset to the cost that the county incurred,” Perry stated during the commissioners’ July 1 regular monthly meeting.

If the city and the county were to split all costs 50/50, the city and county would each pay $22,000 for the $2,000 vouchers provided earlier by the city to the displaced families AND the city would put up $13,452.84 to take care of half of the almost $27,000 that the county incurred while the shelter was in use.

According to Perry’s calculations, 8,547.16 is the more accurate number that should be considered – $22,000 minus the $13,452.84.

The commissioners ultimately took no action at the meeting.

Commissioner Yolanda Feimster expressed concern over the request. When the incident with (Motel) 121 occurred, the county provided the shelter, and all the things that went along with it – water and electricity – not to mention portable showers, toilets and overtime pay for law enforcement officers to make sure the area was safe.

“And we were never reimbursed, not one dime,” Feimster said.

She went on to call the $2,000 payment to the families who had to spend a week in the former Eaton Johnson gym-turned emergency shelter a “band-aid” approach that would have little long-term effect.

Feimster said she was sympathetic to those who had to move out of the motel that they called home, but she expressed concern that the city is asking for reimbursement for something that the county was not first consulted about.

CLICK PLAY!

Vance Sheriff: One Arrested For Growing Marijuana Plants

/by

– Press Release from Vance County Sheriff Curtis Brame

On June 5, 2024, members of the Vance County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics unit with the assistance of the NC National Guard Counterdrug Task Force located approximately 20 half-grown marijuana plants being tended upon a premise on Lee Lane in Vance County. On July 3, 2024, warrants were served on Carl Lee Aleshire, DOB 9/14/61, for manufacture marijuana, and maintaining a dwelling to keep controlled substances. Aleshire was given a $14,000 secure bond.

 

Congressman Don Davis Will Have Mobile Office At VGCC Tuesday, July 9

/by

The office of Congressman Don Davis is setting up a mobile office in Henderson on Tuesday, July 9 at Vance-Granville Community College.

Area residents can come to Building 9 at the VGCC Main Campus between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. to request assistance with federal agencies, including VA benefits, Social Security, Medicare, the IRS, Citizens and Immigration Services, among others, according to information from Davis’s office.

Contact the Greenville District Office at 252.999.7600 to learn more.

 

 

TownTalk: Around Old Granville: Area Architects, Part 2

/by

Historical architecture enthusiasts may be able to take a look at a structure and determine quickly who designed or built it. Take Jacob Holt, for example. The homes he built in and around Warren County in the 1840’s echoed Holt’s interest in Greek Revival and Italianate architecture.

Back then, it was common for one person to design, construct and finish interiors of homes, with help from area craftsmen and artisans, said local historian Mark Pace. Pace and WIZS co-host Bill Harris continued a discussion Wednesday about area architects from the pre-Civil War era to the 20th century.

Albert Gamaliel Jones, a contemporary of Holt, was known as a house carpenter, and, like Holt, drew from the classic Greek Revival and Italianate to create the buildings’ style.

He built homes like the Fuller Home in Louisburg, Ivy Hill near Hollister and Lake O’ The Woods in Warren County.

But, Pace said, he was also noted for numerous public buildings, including the 8-columned main building at Chowan College, the main building at Louisburg College and Wesleyan Female College.

“Sometimes it’s a little tricky to see where Holt stops and Jones starts,” Pace noted. Their styles are similar enough that one could be mistaken for the other.

Fast forward to the 20th century and Pace said a Virginia man – trained as a draftsman – became a registered engineer and set up a business in Henderson. The man was Eric G. Flannagan and his business – Eric G. Flannagan and Sons remained in operation until 2001, Pace said.

You don’t have to go far in Henderson to find a Flannagan building.

Pace has referred to the elder Flannagan as “the Jacob Holt of the 20th century.”

Flannagan’s style was a beaux arts style, sort of a post- Art Deco, Pace explained. Take Henderson High School.

What makes it beaux arts are the focus on symmetry and the details – gargoyles on the façade and embossed books under each window – that create that unique style that Pace said is a Flannagan hallmark.

Other area structures include the Methodist Church in downtown Henderson, the original Henderson fire station and the former municipal building beside it, the Orange Street School in Oxford and the main entrance to the Masonic Home for Children in Oxford.

Between Flannagan and his sons Eric Jr. and Stephen, the business has more than 600 homes and other structures to their credit.

When the business closed in 2001, the treasure trove of plans and blueprints were donated to N.C. State University and East Carolina University. And the North Carolina Room at the Richard Thornton Library in Oxford is the recipient of half a dozen boxes from the firm’s archives.

CLICK PLAY!

Vance Co. Regional Farmers Market

Vance County Regional Farmers Market

/by

Calvin Adcock has been a vendor at the Vance County Regional Farmers Market for 27 years. He’s set up shop on William Street, the YMCA, the old Lowe’s building and now at the market on Southpark Drive.

Manager Pat Ayscue calls Adcock a “one-man band” because he’s got “a little bit of everything that everybody wants.”

He fills his corner spot with canned tomatoes, chow-chow relish and more. Everybody comes in to see what he’s got for sale, Ayscue said during a special segment of the WIZS Home & Garden show Wednesday.

Adcock was certified to can tomatoes back in 2004, he said during the show, which was recorded at the market.

“Few tomatoes taste better than his,” Ayscue said.

Whether it’s canned tomatoes, canned green beans or freshly picked produce from other gardens from across the county, customers have their pick of anything from watermelons to eggplant now as the vendors bring a wide selection to the market on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

G & G Farms is a recent addition to the market, and Gian Jefferson said she and husband Gregory are enjoying being market vendors. They have different chicken breeds that lay all colors of eggs, Jefferson said.

Vance County Ag Agent Michael Ellington said helping new farmers get established and find their markets like the Jeffersons have is a highlight of his job.

Bob Parks of Parks’ Blackberries out on Bearpond Road brings his Natchez blackberries to the farmers market this time of year. The newer variety of blackberry ripens a little bit later, Parks said, helping to extend the season. Snack on fresh berries or bake them in a cobbler or dumpling for a super sweet treat.

Adcock, who will celebrate his 86th birthday later this month, said he thinks this farmers market is wonderful. “I appreciate it and like it – it’s really helped the community,” he said.

“Most people have got most anything here you want,” he said.

Click Play to Hear the Full Special Broadcast from the Vance County Regional Farmers Market!