Tag Archive for: #hendersonnews

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City Adopts Budget; Conducts Public Hearing

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When the Henderson City Council met Monday night, the fiscal year 22 budget was adopted as presented by the city manager.

Mayor Eddie Ellington told WIZS News, “No tax increase and no fee increases, keeping in mind the struggles of the citizens dealing with the effects of Covid-19 last year.”

The total city budget is $41,142,405. Almost half, or $20,225,360, comes from the general fund. The regional water fund and water fund combined equal some $12.7 million while the sewer fund is almost $5.2 million and just over $2.4 million is coming from capital reserve funds.

Also at the meeting, the council carried out a public hearing about the Lynne Avenue near Dabney Drive area. Ellington said input and concerns were voiced by three folks who “spoke in favor of the proposed cul-de-sac” which would stop ingress and egress between Dabney and Lynne. None spoke against the proposal.

Ellington said, “We did not take action (Monday) night; however, we will likely call it to a vote at the next meeting.” He said, “This action would ease traffic problems for the neighborhood as well as congestion on Dabney Dr.”

Property will need to change hands to make it a reality, and the estimated cost for the building of the cul-de-sac is $46,200.

A small shopping center at the corner of Dabney Drive and Lynne Avenue, which sits on a half acre site and is locally owned, would continue to have direct access to Dabney Drive under the proposed plan.

A meeting agenda attachment, a memo dated January 6, 2021 from Code Compliance Director Corey Williams to City Manager Terrell Blackmon provides additional information.

“The property located at 1337 and 1343 Dabney Drive at the corner of Lynne Avenue is zone Office Institutional
(OIA). There have been attempts to rezone the parcels to commercial zone due to the high traffic counts on Dabney
Drive. However, the City Council has denied the request due to potential commercial traffic entering on to Lynne
Avenue.

“The Development Service Staff along with the Engineering Dept. presented a plan to install a cul-de-sac at Lynne
Avenue. This would prevent traffic from entering and exiting Lynne from Dabney. This suggestion went before the
Land Planning Committee on August 20, 2020, which members of the committee agreed that the cul-de-sac was a
good ideal but wanted to ensure residents had input through a “open house” review.

“Since that time, Development Services Staff have communicated with the potential developer, Hill DeBose, and he
agrees with the concept of the cul-de-sac. Mr. DeBose suggested that the owners would consider donating the
additional land for the cul-de-sac project. Mr. DeBuse is willing to present his concept of development to the city.

“Prior to any presentation the city must be caution in contract zoning which is illegal. The cul-de-sac project needs to
be separate from any potential rezoning case. The cul-de-sac project should be considered first and if a rezoning
petition is refilled then the Planning Board and City Council must carefully consider all the potential uses of the new
zoning district. The developer is eager to move forward”

S-Line Rail Corridor

TownTalk: Downtown Development Manager Shares Updates On Projects

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Picture this: The S Line rail passengers, bound from Charlotte to Richmond, stop in the late afternoon at the Henderson Depot. As they emerge from the train, they’re making decisions – Where to dine? Want to take in tonight’s show at McGregor Hall? Which downtown hotel or bed and breakfast should I try tonight? The stopover in Henderson has become a welcome break in the trip, a respite filled with food, nightlife and tranquil lodging.

When you dream, dream big.

And when there’s an opportunity to get closer to making that dream a reality, make sure to check it out.

That just may be what Tracy Madigan has experienced in her first months as Henderson’s downtown development manager. The dreams are alive and the opportunities are presenting themselves.S-Line Rail Corridor

Madigan spoke with John C. Rose on Wednesday’s Town Talk about her new role and what’s on the horizon to make downtown a more attractive destination for visitors – and prospective businesses.

As for the train stopping again in Henderson, she said there was to have been a meeting today with state officials to share just why Henderson needs to be a stop on the S Line.

“There are all kinds of ideas in the works,” Madigan said. But they are merely ideas, waiting for decisions to be made. Henderson and Franklinton are being studied for possible train stops. A stop in Henderson could open up lots of possibilities for downtown development, she added.

While the train stop may be more of a long-term project, Madigan mentioned several areas downtown that have already gotten a facelift – namely, lights at the reflection pools and fountains near the city fire station, the construction of an outdoor pavilion/amphitheater by McGregor Hall  and the beautification of Orange Street Park.

With help from Sam Franklin and Franklin Brothers Nursery, the summer plantings are in at the park, and some garden benches are coming soon to that greenspace, nestled beside the Henry A. Dennis Building on Garnett Street.

“You should be seeing the lights in the fountains coming on in the next couple of weeks,” Madigan said. This is the first of several water installations that are planned around the city, she added.

The pavilion, an outdoor venue option for events, is under construction. Tommy Roberson, of Robco Manufacturing and Alumadock Marine Structures, is a pavilion benefactor, she said.

The vision of the downtown development commission is to assist with, help and encourage downtown development and economic vitality, she said. Often, city and county entities collaborate to further the mission.

Although she is a city employee and reports to City Manager Terrell Blackmon, Madigan said, she often collaborates with other agencies and government officials. Vance Economic Development Director Christian Lockamy and Chamber of Commerce President Michele Burgess are two individuals who continue to provide extensive support and help.

One long-range goal is to develop incentives in the form of grants to help businesses – existing and prospective – have an impact in the downtown area. There are smaller incentive grants that are available, but Madigan said she hopes to be able to offer larger grants in the future.

Click Play for Today’s Full TownTalk

TownTalk: NWS Predicts Above Average Hurricane Season

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Summer’s On The Doorstep And That Means Hurricane Season Is, Too

Summer is still officially about a week away, but Jonathan Blaes, meteorologist-in-charge at the National Weather Service office in Raleigh says it’s not too soon to be thinking about having a plan in case of a hurricane.

Blaes said Tuesday that the first two named storms have posed no threat to North Carolina, but the June to November hurricane season is shaping up to be another busy one for weather forecasters. And he’s watching another system in the Gulf of Mexico that could bring our area rain in the next three to five days.

“This season is likely to be another busy one,” he said. He said last year was an extreme year, and this year is shaping up along the same lines.

He told Bill Harris and John C. Rose on Town Talk that this is the seventh consecutive year that a tropical storm has developed before the normal June start date. There’s even talk about changing the official start date to May 15 because of this, he said. “The weather doesn’t really know the calendar very well – that’s for people to worry about,” Blaes said.

TownTalk Broadcast with Jonathan Blaes

Meteorologists must deal with more and more data in their jobs, and artificial intelligence is one tool that helps target more meaningful data to make their forecasts. But Blaes said it’s important to know when to rely on computer models. “There are certain patterns where humans add a great deal of value to forecast,” he said. One example is cold air damming or “the wedge.”

In winter, when temperatures hover in the 30s and 40s for days, “the wedge” sits over the area and computer models struggle with just how long the weather pattern will last. “Sometimes, we (humans) can beat the models,” Blaes said. But at other times, such as accurately predicting the track a hurricane will take, it’s best to leave it to computers.

“Weather likes balance,” Blaes said, “and to be honest, that’s what a hurricane does.” Hurricanes are nature’s way to remove excess moisture and heat from one area of the globe and put it somewhere else – the Atlantic Ocean supports development of a Bermuda high pressure system, which “hurricanes tend not to be able to drive through,” Blaes said.

Depending on where that high is set up that often will dictate the path a hurricane takes, he added.

“There’s a reason we have a rich history in this area,” he added. Hurricanes oftentimes graze us, and sometimes crush us.”

SportsTalk: Vance Charter Ladies Preparing Early For Basketball

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Basketball season may be a few months away but Vance Charter Ladies Varsity Coach Brian Howard already has his team hard at work in preparation for the upcoming season.  “Off season has been pretty good.” Howard said. “We are into our off season workouts. We are averaging 10 to 12 girls a day,” Howard continued.  Howard characterizes that as a huge turnout.

The groundwork for the upcoming season was laid out at the end of last season. Howard told his team, “If you want to play on this team you have to do off-season workouts.” During these workouts Howard and his staff are tracking every piece of data possible such as made shots, made three throws and made three point shots in an effort to improve on last year’s 7-3 record. According to Howard the result of tracking these data sets will be having the right people in the program and the right people in the right spots on the floor when the season begins.

Coach Howard says he expects the Lady Knights to be better prepared and in better shape due to the off-season workouts. It’s also giving him and his staff the opportunity to install new and improved offensive and defensive schemes. Howard feels that this will put Vance Charter’s program ahead of many others. His team will feature four seniors and he singled out rising freshman Amber Reavis as someone the team will rely on heavily.

Last year’s 7-3 season ended with a 44-33 loss at the hands of Gates County in the state playoffs, but this year will find Vance Charter in a new conference. Howard says the new conference will be interesting. Meanwhile, the Lady Knights have two more weeks of workouts to get through.

For complete details and audio click play.

 

WIZS The Local Skinny! Jobs In Vance

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The H-V Chamber of Commerce and WIZS, Your Community Voice, present Jobs in Vance for June 15, 2021. The Chamber compiles the information, and it is presented here and on the radio. Contact the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce at 438-8414 or email christa@hendersonvance.org to be included.

JOB OPENINGS IN VANCE COUNTY – Week of June 15, 2021

Maria Parham Health is hosting a NURSING job fair Thursday June 24th from 2:00 – 9:00 pm.

Jobs Available:  RN, LPN and CNA

Contact Person:  Stephanie Fox

Method of Contact: Please call 919-482-3479 to RSVP

Pizza Inn of Henderson

Jobs Available:  Pizza makers, short order cooks, dishwashers, pizza cutters, cashiers, salad barattendants and waitresses

Contact Person: Randy Poythress

Method of Contact:  please come by and apply in person at 1250 Coble Blvd.

Select Products Holdings

Jobs Available: Delivery Truck Driver

Method of Contact:  register and apply online at ncworks.gov or go by one of the local offices at 857 S. Beckford Drive, Ste. G, Henderson , 111 Hilltop Village, Oxford, or 210 W. Ridgeway St. VGCC Campus, Warrenton

Brewer Cycles

Jobs Available:  Clean Up Detailer

Method of Contact: register and apply online at ncworks.gov or go by one of the local offices at 857 S. Beckford Drive, Ste. G, Henderson , 111 Hilltop Village, Oxford, or 210 W. Ridgeway St. VGCC Campus, Warrenton

Granville- Vance Health Department

Jobs Available: Processing Assistant

Method of Contact: register and apply online at ncworks.gov or go by one of the local offices at 857 S. Beckford Drive, Ste. G, Henderson , 111 Hilltop Village, Oxford, or 210 W. Ridgeway St. VGCC Campus, Warrenton

Sams Furniture and Mattress Center

Jobs Available: Full time delivery and warehouse positions. Must have a valid driver’s license with good driving record. Must be able to lift 50 to 100 pounds. Starting pay is $13.00 an hour.

Contact Person:  Britt Sams

Method of Contact:  Apply in person at 515 S, Garnett St. Downtown

FIVE COUNTY JOB FAIR – Franklin, Granville, Person, Vance and Warren Counties will be represented at a JOB FAIR on Friday June 25th from 10:00 am to 2:00pm at RALEIGH RD OUTDOOR THEATRE, 3336 Raleigh Rd. It will have over 20 employers! For more information call NCWORKS at 919-693-2686 or 252-438-6129 or email Linda Fletcher at fletcher@vgcc.edu

Some of these businesses are present or past advertisers of WIZS.  Being an ad client is not a condition of being listed or broadcast.  This is not a paid ad.

 

The Local Skinny! 5 County Job Fair; Flag Day; NC Unreserved Fund Balance

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Thank you for listening to WIZS Radio, Your Community Voice!!

A five county job fair is coming up Friday, June 25th.  It will take place at Raleigh Road Outdoor Theatre from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.  An information release from Kerr Tar Regional Council of Governments indicates 20+ employers will be on hand as well as food trucks and community resources.  Vance, Granville, Warren, Franklin and Person Counties will be represented.  For more information, contact NCWorks at 252-438-6129 or 919-693-2686 or email Linda Fletcher at fletcherl@vgcc.edu. See more at www.kerrtarworks.com or www.wvgcc.edu/career-fair.  Put on by the Kerr  Tar Workforce Development Board, Vance-Granville Community College and NC Works.

– courtesy of whitehouse.gov –

In the midst of a revolution, less than a year after declaring our independence, the Congress consecrated what would become an enduring emblem of American unity by adopting a national flag on June 14, 1777.

In the 244 years since, the United States has grown and changed across the generations — and our flag has changed in turn.  The blue field of stars has been enlarged as our Union has gained in size and strength.  The 13 stripes, symbolizing the 13 original States, have held as constant as the bedrock values upon which our Nation was first conceived — the very same values we still cherish, and still reach for, today.

Since adoption of the Stars and Stripes, Americans — and people around the world — have continuously looked to our flag as a symbol of unity and liberty.  Our flag has sailed around the globe, and journeyed to the Moon and, now, to Mars.  It has flown on fields of battle, and marks the resting places of those who have given what President Lincoln called “the last full measure of devotion” for our country.  Its prominence at civic landmarks and seats of public authority communicates the promise of democracy — that under this flag, the rule of law is supreme and the people reign.  As we continue the sacred work of building a more perfect Union together, let our flag serve as a reminder to us, and to the world, that America stands for and strives for the promise of freedom, justice, and equality for all.

To commemorate the adoption of our flag, the Congress, by joint resolution approved August 3, 1949, as amended (63 Stat. 492), designated June 14 of each year as “Flag Day” and requested that the President issue an annual proclamation calling for its observance and for the display of the flag of the United States on all Federal Government buildings.  The Congress also requested, by joint resolution approved June 9, 1966, as amended (80 Stat. 194), that the President issue annually a proclamation designating the week in which June 14 occurs as “National Flag Week” and calling upon all citizens of the United States to display the flag during that week.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim June 14, 2021, as Flag Day, and the week starting June 13, 2021, as National Flag Week.  I direct the appropriate officials to display the flag on all Federal Government buildings during this week, and I urge all Americans to observe Flag Day and National Flag Week by displaying the flag.  I encourage the people of the United States to observe with pride and all due ceremony those days from Flag Day through Independence Day, set aside by the Congress (89 Stat. 211), as a time to honor the American spirit, to celebrate our history and the foundational values we strive to uphold, and to publicly recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eleventh day of June, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fifth.

JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

– courtesy of the State of North Carolina –

The Office of the State Controller (OSC) today released the General Fund Cash Watch numbers for the week ending June 11, 2021.  OSC provides a weekly update on the State’s General Fund cash position which can be found at www.osc.nc.gov.

cash watch chart

About OSC
The State Controller is North Carolina’s chief fiscal officer.  The Office of the State Controller serves as an independent resource to ensure the financial integrity of the State by providing accounting, disbursing, payroll, internal control, data management, eCommerce, and financial reporting systems that serve state agencies, employees and the public.

TownTalk: Turning Point CDC Kicks Off Summer Meal Distribution Program

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Turning Point Community Development Corporation kicked off a summer meal distribution program today that will continue providing meals for children daily through mid-August.

Chalis Henderson, Turning Point’s director, invites the community to drive through and pick up hot meals for children Monday through Friday between noon and 1 p.m.

The meal program is a collaboration with the N.C. Food Bank, Henderson told John C. Rose on Monday’s Town Talk. It will be located at the Oasis of Hope Ministries and Turning Point CDC, 2495 Hwy 158, near the intersection of Norlina and Warrenton roads.

Hot, nutritious meals will be prepared and delivered each day, Henderson said. She has a team of volunteers who will load the meals into vehicles – it’s set up to be a “grab and go” event, she added.

Henderson said folks can just show up to pick up food – there is no need to register or to show any identification – but it is a first come, first served event. The hot meals will be served Monday through Friday, and extra food will be given on Fridays to help over the weekend.

Turning Point CDC is 20 years old this year, Henderson said, an organization started by her parents. It moved to Henderson from Oxford in 2012 and Henderson has been the director since 2018. She said Turning Point’s vision is that “rural communities can thrive and flourish,” and she is committed to continuing her parents’ mission and vision to serve rural communities.

Transportation and limited internet connectivity sometimes hinder access to community resources, she said. That is one reason Turning Point is putting a computer lab on wheels – to bring the resources to those who live in more rural areas. Henderson will be hiring a program director soon to launch the Creating Success Mobile Learning Lab, which is a former school bus upfitted to house a bank of computers for adults and children to use.

The bus is undergoing final inspections to get it road-worthy, she said, and the new program director will be in charge of scheduling and logistics for when and where the bus will be visiting. She hopes the mobile learning lab will be up and running as early as July.

“It’s a unique position,” Henderson said, adding that the perfect candidate would be someone with innovative ideas who isn’t afraid to try new things. She hopes to host as many as 20 community events in the next year with the mobile learning lab.

To learn more, call 252.621.5190. Visit www.turningpoint.org to learn how to become a volunteer or to donate.

For complete details and audio click play.