ROCKINGHAM- The Richmond County Board of Commissioners held their regular monthly meeting Tuesday, July 10 at the Judicial Center in Rockingham.
First up on this month’s agenda was a public hearing for transfer of the recently acquired Rohanen School from Richmond County to New Life Christian Ministries. New Life traded their church property which is located across the street from the new Direct Pack Plant on Airport Road. Despite a full house of citizens, nobody spoke during the public hearing. The commissioners quickly voted to approve the trade on a motion by Ben Moss and seconded by Jimmy Capps. Following the vote, Chairman Kenneth said, “Congratulations” and the crowd erupted with applause indicating the show of support that was in the audience.
We spoke with Gary Richardson, Pastor of New Life Ministries, who indicated big plans for the school, including relocation as well as renaming of the homeless mission to Richmond County Rescue Mission. Richardson noted the overall campus will take on the name “Place of Grace” and plans many additional services to be provided at the new location including a soup kitchen. He also has a vision for additional substance abuse counseling and treatment. The Observer will publish a followup story with additional details in the coming days.
In other business, County Manager Bryan Land brought a request for approval of an agreement for emergency services between the county and FirstHealth of the Carolinas. The agreement is for a three year term and provides four fully staffed trucks for Richmond County residents as well as one quick response vehicle. The $1,041,096 deal was approved unanimously by the board.
Land brought a bid approval request for a new shell building to be constructed in the Rockingham West Industrial Park. The building will be 40,000 square feet with a concrete floor and with room for expansion. The successful bidder was Southern Builders of Rockingham with a bid of $1,348,000. Hawks Builders came in a close second with a bid of only $22,000 higher. Land noted this is the fifth shell building in this industrial park and said, “The shell building program has been very successful for us over the years; we’ve been able to bring quite a few businesses to Richmond County.”
Martie Butler, Economic Developer for Richmond County, discussed the state of our local economy during her bi-monthly report. She noted that she has been visiting the local industries and that, “The economy continues to do really well.” Butler said she is working with local companies on an anonymous benefits survey to help local firms compare where they stack up with others in the general area. Hopes are that this translates into better benefits overall for local employees.
The boom in the economy has already brought about higher starting wages as industries begin to compete for the qualified workforce in the area. Butler also mentioned a number of local companies that are currently holding job fairs to give potential job applicants a chance to see what kinds of jobs they are offering. During a recent job fair held at Direct Pack, the company reported 271 applicants coming out for a tour. More job fairs are scheduled in the near future at RSI, Therafirm and Burlington.
Dr. Tommy Jarrell, Health and Human Services Director, presented a list of “Golden A Recipients”. This list is made up of food service organizations in Richmond County who maintained a 95% or better sanitation grade throughout the previous year. This award program has been in place for the past 19 years. Jarrell highlighted 6 organizations that have received this award all 19 years. They included Convenience Corner, and the following schools- Cordova, Fairview Heights, Richmond Sr. High, Washington Street, and West Rockingham.
At the end of the meeting Commissioner Herb Long commended the local Haiti Mission Team who endured the riots and unrest during the past week. Long said, “I salute the work they do and I’m glad they are back home.”
For additional information on this meeting contact the Richmond County Administrative Office at 1401 Fayetteville Rd, Rockingham, NC. 910-997-8200.
