Tag Archive for: #towntalk

TownTalk: Granville Tourism Prepares For A Busy Intro To Fall

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Summer may be a time to slow down and enjoy family vacations, outdoor activities or chill out with a good book in the air conditioning, but Granville County Tourism Director Angela Allen invites everyone to come out to the streets of Oxford and Creedmoor for several upcoming events.

On Saturday, Aug. 6, head over to Old Warehouse Square just off College Street in downtown Oxford for a “Back to School Bash.” There will be a bounce house, fairy hair, vendors and food trucks on hand from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Allen told WIZS’s Bill Harris Thursday on Town Talk. There will be a school bus on hand to accept school supplies and donations, and Allen said the goal is to fill that bus with items that can be used in classrooms across the county.

Numerous downtown merchants will have collection bins for donating school supplies for students and teachers in advance of the event, and folks are invited to make donations, Allen added.

By early August, grownup and children alike are “getting ready to get their mindset back to school,” Allen said, so a fun family event is just the thing for preparing to return to the classroom.

The Back to School Bash coincides with the annual Sidewalk Sale in downtown Oxford, which happens on Friday, Aug. 5.

If bluegrass music is more your jam, check out Music on Main in downtown Oxford on Friday, Aug. 12. The Grass Street Band will perform from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. “It’s a great time to get out on the streets in downtown Oxford…grab some to-go and bring your lawn chair,” Allen said.

The Creedmoor Music Festival is returning after a break during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Allen said it is “definitely back, bigger and better.” The festival is set for Saturday, Sept. 17 in downtown Creedmoor. Music lovers will enjoy seven different performances on two stages throughout the event, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Allen said there’s a variety of genres represented, from rock and R&B, to Bluegrass and sounds of the ‘60s by band The British Invaders. Add to that mix more than 100 food and craft vendors, and the 29th annual Creedmoor Music Festival will have something for everyone. Find Creedmoor Music Festival 2022 on Facebook or visit https://www.cityofcreedmoor.org/ for updates on when the different groups will perform.

The final concert of the Alive After Five series will take place on Thursday, Sept. 29 in downtown Oxford from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Little John parking lot just off Main Street. The group Spare Change will perform.

And wedged in between all the musical performances is the 16th annual Hot Sauce Contest and Festival. The event, held on the second Saturday in September, falls on Saturday, Sept. 10 and Oxford is gearing up for another influx of visitors to sample the latest hot sauces and mingle downtown for a day of fun and food.

The Embers with Craig Woolard and Crush are among the musical guests scheduled to appear on the Main Stage, as well as numerous other local artists on the regional stage.

The classic car show, always a crowd favorite, will showcase cars for participants to view.

The kids’ area returns with lots of activities like inflatables, crafts and face painting to keep the little ones happy.

There’s a new scavenger hunt planned, which gives participants the chance to win a gift basket filled with hot sauces and other items from downtown merchants.

Check out all the activities planned at a new website, https://nchotsaucecontestandfestival.com/

 

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TownTalk: Plans For New Convention Center On Parham Rd.

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There’s a lot of planning that goes into any construction project, a statement to which Vance County Director of Tourism Pam Hester will attest. But in the case of a possible convention center complex that is in the works for the area, it’s a matter of turning a vision into reality.

Hester was John C. Rose’s guest on Wednesday’s Town Talk and she shared some initial ideas about how acreage just off Parham Road could be transformed into a spot that locals – and visitors – can enjoy. The property is owned by the Vance County Department of Tourism.

“Hopefully, this will be the catalyst for change,” Hester said, in an interview recorded earlier and aired Wednesday. A healthy economic environment is one that has a mixture of businesses, large and small. This convention center and the focus on increased tourism, she said, can be an economic driver.

Initial plans show a 27,000 square foot convention center, which Hester said would be included in the first phase of the three-phase project. “It’s in the conceptual stage right now, (and) we’ve got to go back for some tweaks.” The size could increase to about 30,000 square feet, with a main room that can accommodate 500 for dinner, but as many as 1,000 for trainings and other types of meetings. The main room can be divided into three separate meeting spots, each with its own separate entrance, so Hester said each smaller room could house a different event at the same time.

The Tourism office will be located there, too, which will allow staff to oversee facility usage and rentals – anything from boat and car shows to corporate training events, weddings and sports camps.

“It’s more than just a convention center,” she explained. “It’s more like a community/convention/welcome center.”

The second phase would include addition of a hotel, which is important for tourism in a couple of different ways: Visitors need a place to stay when they attend events in the area, and tourism programs are funded by the 6 percent occupancy tax that hotels and motels generate.

“That would open up a world of opportunities for us,” Hester said of the additional space for visitors to stay. Add a restaurant and the complex becomes more attractive for groups looking to hold events there.

Although Vance County has 319 fewer available hotel rooms, Hester said the county enjoys the highest occupancy tax rate ever. “That six percent that hotels collect is up significantly – it’s much higher than it’s ever been,” she said.

The project’s third phase would be addition of a greenway or walkway to connect with other parts of the city. And there will be a handicap-accessible children’s playground, she added, as well as a place to walk dogs and even a charging station for electric cars.

Like all projects, area officials have been discussing possible timelines for construction and completion.

“I would like to see it start tomorrow,” Hester said, “but that’s not realistic.” More than likely, getting the project underway in 2025 is more realistic.

In the meantime, planning continues and ideas keep percolating among tourism staff, its governing board and the county commissioners. Hester said she is hopeful to get some grant funding as well as developing a plan for corporate sponsorships.

 

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TownTalk: Preview Of Ruin Creek Animal Protection Society Cruise-In

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The upcoming Ruin Creek Cruise-In is the perfect time to celebrate the successes of a collaboration of public and private agencies whose mission is to reduce the number of unwanted dogs and cats in the area.

The Cruise-In will be held on Saturday, July 30 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the former Boyd dealership, 284 U.S. Hwy 158 Bypass. Admission is free to the public; all proceeds will benefit the Ruin Creek Animal Protection Society.

RCAPS founder and president Brandon Boyd said the Cruise-In is the group’s largest fundraiser of the year. This year’s presenting sponsor is Vance County Department of Tourism.

“Not only is it a fundraiser event, but it’s also a time of community fellowship for people in our area to get together and share an evening of safe and enjoyable fun together,” Boyd said in a written statement to WIZS News.

“This is a time we get to see all of our generous donors that allow the work of Ruin Creek to take place and gives us the opportunity to simply tell everyone, ‘thank you,’” Boyd added.

The Cruise-In is surely an event for human enjoyment, but the real winners are the hundreds of dogs and cats that find their way to rescue organizations for foster care or for adoption.

Vance Animal Services Director Frankie Nobles said RCAPS, working alongside his staff, has been a valuable partner.

In the last six years or so, the number of dogs and cats coming through the animal shelter has basically been cut in half – from more than 3,000 a year to last year’s count of below 1,800, Nobles told John C. Rose during Tuesday’s Town Talk.

“We’re seeing that number of animals drastically dropping,” he said, but over the past several weeks, the daily intake is a dozen or more animals. “The shelter is seeing a lot of intakes,” Nobles added.

But RCAPS programs like the Friday Freedom Rides get animals out of the shelter, freeing up space and reducing the need to euthanize animals because there simply is no room to house them.

“The more money they can raise, the more animals we can help get out of here,” Nobles said. Some of that money is used to pay for the transport, but RCAPS also helps offset the cost for the shelter’s spay and neuter program, as well as provide vet care for sick or injured animals who are brought in to the shelter.

County residents who receive government assistance – like Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid – can qualify to get their pets spayed or neutered for free through the shelter. The only out-of-pocket expense for eligible pet owners is their animal’s rabies shot, $5 at the shelter or $10 on the day of the spay or neuter procedure.

Residents who don’t qualify for the free spay or neuter services can still get their animals fixed at a reduced rate – $50 for male cats and $60 for female cats, and $70 for male dogs and $80 for female dogs.

Nobles said they’ve done more than 400 community animals – and that doesn’t include those animals that are in the shelter.

The spay/neuter program, coupled with education programs in the community, Nobles said the unwanted pet situation has improved.

“That’s our goal – to reduce that number as low as we can get it,” he said.

In just a few months, the shelter will celebrate six years at the new facility on Brodie Road. Nobles said he appreciates the work of Lead Officer Megan Cottrell as well as Animal Service Officers Chris Vick and Waverly Saunders.

Heather Lovings is the shelter’s office assistant and ever-present volunteer Ellen Wilkins provide invaluable service to keep the office running smoothly.

Nobles said RCAPS volunteers Michelle Wood and Taylor Pitkowsky are a big help, too.

The Cruise-In is a chance to say “thank you” to the community for its support of the work of all the staff at the shelter and the volunteers at RCAPS. Last year’s crowd was in the 3,200 to 3,500 range, and organizers are hoping to exceed that number.

Classic and collector cars from all across North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia will be participating in this event, and local vendors will offer a variety of craft items for sale as well. Vehicle owners can register and check in beginning at 1 p.m.

Stock car racing television broadcaster and classic car enthusiast Mike Joy will be on hand for the festivities, as will Richard Petty’s “Petty Garage,” a traveling display with some of the latest gizmos and gadgets from the world of car racing. There will be demonstrations of some of the equipment for participants to enjoy, too.

South Hill’s Shep Moss and Party Time Music will provide musical entertainment during the Cruise-In, Boyd said, and there will be raffle drawings for prizes throughout the evening.

 

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TownTalk: Barnes And Allen Speak At GOP Event

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Two candidates vying for election in the upcoming midterm election were in Henderson recently and spoke to a partisan crowd about what’s at stake in November.

N.C. Sen. Lisa Stone Barnes, R-District 11, is seeking re-election, and she was welcomed at last month’s Vance County GOP fundraiser. Barnes faces Democratic challenger Mark Speed on the November ballot.

District 11 includes Vance, Franklin and Nash counties. She and her husband live in Nash County and grow sweet potatoes.

“This election is so important,” Barnes told the group of several hundred in attendance at the June 24 event. “We have a chance to regain the super majority in the House and in the Senate, she said, which would eliminate the conservatives’ worry about the governor’s veto.

“We have so much to be thankful for,” Barnes said, heaping praise on the U.S. Supreme Court for overturning Roe v. Wade, a decision that had come down earlier in the day. She called the Court’s ruling a “victory for the American republic (which) returns power to the states, where it belongs.”

Trey Allen, one of two Republican candidates for two N.C. Supreme Court seats, echoed Barnes’s sentiments for Republicans to reclaim the super majority in the General Assembly.

In his remarks, Allen reminded those in attendance that the State Supreme Court “has the last word in interpretation of state law.”

Allen, who currently is the general counsel for the state’s Office of Administrative Courts, said judges are the servants of the law not the masters of the law. As a state Supreme Court justice, he said it would be his job to “follow and enforce the law, not rewrite the law.”

Allen stressed the need for “strong Constitutional conservatives” serving both on the state Court of Appeals and Supreme Court.

If voters elect Republicans in these races, Allen said “we’ve got the change to add to the majority on the Court of Appeals and to take the majority on the North Carolina Supreme Court.”

Allen will face Democratic incumbent Associate Justice Sam J. Ervin IV on the November ballot.

 

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TownTalk: Place Names In Franklin And Warren Counties

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Did you ever wonder how some towns, communities or crossroads get their names? For the very curious, there’s always an online search to ferret out tidbits of useful information. Folks in this area, however, have Mark Pace and Bill Harris!

The two local history buffs talked Thursday about how some communities in Franklin and Warren counties came by their unique names like Pokomoke, Alert (say it AY-lert), Wise and Axtell.

Of course, many names are derived from prominent families in the area at the time, like Bunn, Wood and Youngsville.

But naming a town for a prominent athlete who lived near the turn of the 19th century?

The athlete, as it turns out, was a young stallion who shattered the record for 3-year-old trotters back in 1889. His name was Axtell, and there’s a little community in Warren County that bears his name. After he completed the 1-mile race in a blazing 2:12 time, Axtell was sold to a consortium for the “most outrageously expensive price for a horse” at the time – $105,000, Pace said.

There was a period when it was in vogue to give towns names that had a positive spin, and Axtell could have been an example. Wise, Pacific (now Youngsville) and Alert are other examples, he added.

Louisburg, the county seat of Franklin County, was named for the King of France, Louis XVI. If you remember your Revolutionary War history, France was an ally of the Colonies in its fight for independence from British rule.

Warren County is named for Joseph Warren, a physician and Patriot during the early days of the American Revolution. He was killed during the Battle of Bunker Hill. His brutal death at the hands of British soldiers “really fired up the Patriot cause,” Pace said, and, consequently, naming the county in North Carolina serves as a homage. No doubt, had Warren lived, he would have gone on to be one of the great Patriots, alongside the likes of Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, Pace said.

It’s probably safe to say that there’s not another place on Earth called Norlina, Pace said. This town at the Vance/Warren border had been a water and coal stop for the Raleigh & Gaston railroad. Norlina was where that rail line came together with Seaboard and “a community quickly developed there,” Pace observed. In 1913, the town of Norlina was incorporated.

But what about the origin of Embro and Bambro?

As for Embro, Pace said he’d done some research on the subject. The Mitchell family, he said, came from Scotland  – Edinburgh, to be precise – and settled in the general area. If you put a Southern twist on the Scottish town, he said, you might just come up with Embro.

And Ridgeway? Pace said that was where the railroad track was laid for the Raleigh & Gaston line – “it was laid along the ridge way,” he said.

 

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TownTalk: Bobby Wilkerson Remembered

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In a world where so much emphasis is placed on outward beauty, there was something a little quirky about Bobby Wilkerson’s long-running campaign. But there were plenty of folks clamoring to be a member of Wilkerson’s group – The “Ugly” League.

Wilkerson died last week at the age of 89. His nephew, Danny Wilkerson, spoke with John C. Rose on TownTalk Wednesday and shared some memories of his Uncle Bobby.

As the self-proclaimed “Mr. Ugly,” Wilkerson went around town handing out membership cards, an act that won him attention and more than a little acclaim.

“He would always talk about the men being ugly,” Danny recalled, chuckling. “He had cards printed up…people would just laugh and joke about it, saying ‘yeah, I got my Ugly card.’”

The membership ranks swelled, but Danny said he didn’t think his uncle ever offended anyone by granting them membership into The Ugly League. “He’d say, ‘if I didn’t like you and love you, I wouldn’t give it to you,’” Danny said.

If you got right down to it, his Uncle Bobby was a “people person and he believed in making people happy,” Danny said.

Throughout his working life, Bobby interacted with many people in the community – he was a dispatcher before the 911 system was established and he also worked at the Henderson Fire Department. Danny said there was a time when he, his Uncle Bobby and Danny’s dad Ranger all worked together at the fire department.

In what Danny called semi-retirement, his Uncle Bobby continued his public service as a magistrate, which Danny said he enjoyed a great deal.

All those years, however, Bobby maintained what today would be known as a “side hustle” – he had a business maintaining fire extinguishers. He would travel around town in vehicle of choice – a red International Scout, laden with fire extinguishers and all the tools of the trade.

Danny remembers helping his uncle when he was still in elementary school. “He made me work hard. I value that time with him – he taught me a lot about life,” Danny recalled.

The last Scout Wilkerson had, Danny said, met its demise on the train tracks beside Falkner Coal Yard just off Garnett Street. Seems the Scout had stalled on the tracks, and a train hit it.

No matter how folks knew him – as a magistrate, owner of a fire extinguisher business, founder of the Ugly League, there’s little doubt that he was well-loved.

“He was a gift from God to us all,” his nephew said.

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TownTalk: The Red Cross And International Humanitarian Law

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Whether it’s conducting a blood drive to ward off a summer shortage at local hospitals or providing aid to civilians caught up in the turmoil of armed conflict, one of the fundamental principles of the International Red Cross is to reduce human suffering.

And Thomas Harper, senior legal advisor for the American Red Cross in international humanitarian law, told guest co-host Phyllis Maynard that the Red Cross/Red Crescent doesn’t take sides; rather, it works to protect civilians and civilian property by upholding international humanitarian law, which Harper described as “the law of armed conflict, the rules that govern warfare.”

It may sound strange that warring factions are supposed to comply with certain international rules, but thanks to an array of agreed-upon rules among nations throughout the world such as the Geneva Conventions that were established after World War II, Harper said it’s a role of the Red Cross and Red Crescent to help ensure those rules are followed.

Harper was the guest on the regular monthly “Former Active Duty, Still Boots on the Ground” segment of TownTalk Tuesday.

Harper, a North Carolina native, needed his parents to sign for him to enlist in the Army at age 17. He was in the Army ROTC at NC State, where he earned his commission as a lieutenant. The Army gave him some time to complete law school at Campbell University and he was a JAG (Army attorney) for about seven years before transitioning to the Army Reserve in 2018. During his active duty, he served in Afghanistan as a prosecutor, special victim counsel and an operational law attorney during Operation Enduring Freedom.

Harper currently holds the rank of major and is a deputy regional defense counsel. “I still wear the uniform, just part-time, nowadays,”he said.

Harper advises the Red Cross on international humanitarian law, a specific subset of policies enacted during wartime.

The evolution of International humanitarian law is the result of “repeated carnage and destruction and just lack of humanity that’s in warfare and saying ‘enough is enough,’” Harper said. Through global treaties like the Geneva Conventions, nations across the globe strive for ways to rein in the destruction that war inevitably creates, while protecting innocent civilians and civilian property.

As international humanitarian law has evolved over time, it has put in place protections and a series of rules that serve to protect the innocent in warfare.

Since February, the world has been focused on the events in Ukraine. Reports of shelling shopping areas, apartments and other civilian areas surface regularly, and it’s instances such as these that come to the attention of the International Red Cross.

The Youth Action Campaign is a Red Cross program that introduces students in the 13-23 age range to the basic tenets of international humanitarian law.

The youth advocates as they are called, form teams in their schools and then are given the task of creating and designing public awareness campaigns to educate others about the ins and outs of IHL.

Just in the past year alone, the youth action campaign has reached more than 40,000 individuals, Harper said. “That’s 40,000 individuals who (now) know more about IHL  and how those protections work today,” he said. “It wasn’t the work of some lawyer in DC or some official at a school somewhere – that was the work of students in a classroom and going out and making an impact in their communities.”

Youth who participate in programs like the Youth Action Campaign are helping to support IHL in everyday, real time.

Harper said it’s grass-roots programs like the YAC, as well as stories, interviews and even radio shows that help the country comply with the Geneva Convention of 1949 – whether it’s a group of teens developing a social media campaign to share in the community or participating in a discussion about current IHL issues.

“These rules have to be respected by all sides,” he reiterated. “Every single person’s voice matters.”

“We don’t take sides, we don’t get into the mix of who’s right or wrong because the goal at the end of the day is to reduce suffering. We’re impartial, we’re neutral, because we have to be.”

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TownTalk: City Council And Regional Water

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The Henderson City Council is scheduled to meet at 6 p.m. today (Monday, July 11) for its regular monthly meeting, and tops on the agenda is the swearing-in of the newly elected council members.

Outgoing council member William Burnette will be recognized for his time on the council and then Ola Thorpe-Cooper, Sara Coffey, Garry Daeke and Lamont Noel, who beat Burnette for the Ward 2 seat in the May 17 primary, all will be sworn in.

Because the primary elections were delayed until May, Burnette’s term in office was a little longer than normal and Noel’s term will be a little shorter, but terms of office should be back in synch by the 2024 election cycle.

Among agenda items to be discussed include a grant proposal to provide “stop sticks” for use by local law enforcement to aid in car chases and a clarification of council members’ involvement on various boards and committees.

The recommendation before the council during the meeting will be that no more than four council members serve on a single committee or board and that council members not serve on any citizen committee in a role other than ex officio (non-voting) capacity.

Also before the council for its approval are the minutes from the June 13 meeting, which includes an update regarding the Kerr Lake Regional Water expansion project and extension of Franklin County’s current contract.

Vance, Granville and Warren counties share ownership of the water facility, with Vance County being the managing partner; Franklin County is a customer and recently asked for a seventh amendment to its agreement that spells out a request for 3.45 million gallons of water a day – up from the 450,000 gallons a day it currently receives.

The amendment states that Franklin County be granted an extension of the current contract of $4.37 per gallon, effectively freezing the price it will pay for water for the 48 months after the current contract ends.

The water plant expansion project has been years in the making, but according to the minutes from the June 13 meeting, City Manager Terrell Blackmon said “there seems to be a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel regarding the KLRW expansion.”

According to the minutes, the KLRW advisory board voted to accept the GMP for the upgrade and funding has been secured for the project. Next steps include approval from the Local Government Commission and then in a few months’ time, pulling permits for the actual work to begin, hopefully in early 2023.

“At this time, no rate changes are scheduled but there will be increases once the $79,605,000 project begins,” the minutes stated.

Council members in attendance voted unanimously to approve the resolution; Council Member Garry Daeke was absent from the June meeting.

The latest Henderson City Council news and concerns about the Regional Water System.

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TownTalk: 11 Year Old Varonica Mitchell Attracts National Spotlight

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Like a lot of other kids her age, Varonica Mitchell was excited recently because she was getting a new phone.

But how many other 11-year-olds have a resume that lists accomplishments including actress, musician, dancer and, wait for it…stand-up comedian?

Varonia, or V V, as her family calls her, can be seen in her one-man, er, one-girl show on all the different social media platforms. Simply called “The V V Show,” viewers can click on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to see what the vivacious V V currently is up to. She has 37,000 followers, just within that past 18 months.

She chatted with John C. Rose recently for a TownTalk segment that aired Thursday and he asked her what she enjoyed most.

“I think I like dancing most,” she said after a little thought. “Shout out to my mom’s  iDance Praise Academy,” she added.

Whether she’s dancing, modeling, cheerleading, playing the drums or performing her original skits, Varonica gives it her all. Her infectious energy bubbles up when she speaks about the show. She’s developed several characters that she has introduced on her show: there’s Grandma Roseanne and Granny Rowann but she said a lot of folks are partial to Mr. Egg Nog.

“My friends like him,” she said. “His favorite word is ‘Well,’” she said, uses her best gravelly, old codger voice to drag out the word. “Mr. Egg Nog has a big stomach and a beard,” she said. “He tells me he’s supposed to eat healthy, but he doesn’t. He eats everything.”

Varonica gets into costume to portray the characters, and the rest of her family pitches in before and after production. Her dad does the videoing and posting and her mom helps her with her outfits. And when they’re on the road, older sister tutors her so she doesn’t fall behind on school work.

“My mom, my dad and my sister inspire me. Also Kevin Hart,” she added, giving a nod to the comedian, with whom she shares a common attribute – height. Hart, a world-famous comedian, stands at 5-foot-2; Varonica checks in – so far – at 4-foot-5.

“He inspires little kids who want to be comedians,” she said, but even if you don’t want to be a comedian, he still makes them laugh.

And if Varonica creates a similar path for herself, she is well on the way.

When asked what she thought she’d be doing in 5 or 10 years, she got quiet for a moment before she answered. “I will be an independent woman,” she predicted. “I will be doing movies, series…my mom will probably be kicking me out of the house by then,” she said.

But as long as Varonica keeps doing what she’s doing, her future surely is on a sharp upward trajectory.

“It’s me, being myself. Mmm hmmm.”

Learn more about Varonica and “The V V Show” on any of the following:

www.instagram.com/_thevvshow_/

The VV Show – YouTube

www.facebook.com/thevvshow

Google: http://g.co/kgs/Lds9wG

 

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TownTalk: Looking To The Future Of Area Transportation

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Imagine driving to the train station in downtown Henderson to begin your daily commute to your job in the Triangle. You hop on the commuter rail, which whizzes past the stopped traffic along U.S. 1 and Capital Boulevard as you approach your destination.

For regional planner Sam Boswell, that is no longer a pie-in-the-sky notion, but what could be reality in, say, another 10 years or so.

Boswell is a regional planner who concentrates on transportation for the Kerr Tar COG. He told WIZS’s Bill Harris Wednesday that he sees his job as a balancing act to ensure that the COG provides and promotes projects for all parts of the region, not just the ones that are experiencing the burgeoning growth right now.

The Kerr Tar COG, which serves Vance, Granville, Warren, Franklin and Person counties, stays up-to-date on NC DOT projects, such as the S-Line Rail Project slated to run through Henderson and points north, participation in a regional greenway project and an alternative to the gas tax, which helps to fund transportation projects and maintenance.

Individuals have an opportunity to ask questions, voice concerns and hear updates from the NC DOT as it hosts an open house during the week of July 25-29. Folks can drop in to Div. 5 offices, 2612 N. Duke St., in Durham any time between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. during that week, Boswell said.

Part of his job, he said, is to help municipalities and counties with projects and to explore ways to have a regional effect, “a grouping of services to benefit the region.” That sometimes proves difficult, he said, explaining that municipalities may not reap a direct benefit from a project that is not geographically nearby.

Take the S-Line rail project, for example. This project will connect Raleigh and Richmond and completing the Southeast rail corridor that then can feed into the much-used Northeast rail corridor.

“It’s a big deal, for sure,” Boswell said, adding that there’s a great deal of excitement around the project.

In addition to reducing commute times and the number of vehicles on the road, a passenger rail brings with it other benefits. “If you’ve got a train stop, you’ve got people leaving and people coming in,” he explained. That means riders can choose to get off at the Henderson or Norlina stations, “put a break in their trip and visit local businesses,” spending money and adding to the local economies.

There’s another exciting possibility for transportation of a slower nature – bicycle and pedestrian traffic along a greenway. The East Coast Greenway feasibility study is underway now. It’s mostly a biking trail, but there’s a walking route as well, Boswell said. The greenway extends through 400 cities from Florida to Maine, sort of like the Appalachian Trail, and the American Tobacco Trail in Durham makes up 27 or so miles of the greenway trail, he added.

“We’re working with a team of consultants to see how we can make that happen in the Kerr Tar region,” he said. Right now, there’s a section between Butner and Oxford in Granville County, but the COG is waiting to hear from another grant opportunity to continue the study on a bigger scale – building a greenway trail from Oxford north to Virginia and from Oxford to Henderson.

These projects, and others on the horizon, signal change for the area. Boswell said, like it or not, as the Triangle continues to expand, it’s important to keep the transportation system updated – even trying to stay ahead of the growth that is surely coming.

In addition to new projects like the rail line, it’s also critical to keep existing roads in good repair and able to handle the increasing volume of traffic.

“People are going to start moving in here,” Boswell said of the Kerr Tar region. What planners have to try to figure out is how to make adjustments to the infrastructure to accommodate those people.

More people means more vehicles using the roads, but not necessarily producing more revenue through the gas sales tax. More hybrid and electric vehicles means less money spent on gas, he explained. So the DOT is re-examining an idea previously studied that would generate revenue based on the number of miles a driver drives as opposed to how much gas he pumps into his tank.

“Right now, money for construction projects comes from the gas tax,” Boswell explained. As vehicles become more fuel efficient or not dependent at all on gas, drivers “aren’t paying their fair share…and the burden falls on some drivers more than others.”

DOT looked at it a few years ago.

Is it more equitable or sustainable to pay per mile than per gallon of gasoline? That’s one of the questions being considered in the study, he said.

The study has slots for 450 participants throughout the state, which will run from the end of July through October. Participants will get a device of some sort that will connect to the vehicle’s odometer or otherwise track the miles driven.

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