03/28/2024
Bladenboro Town Hall
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by Blake Proctor

 

Bladenboro’s May 10th Commission meeting began at 6 pm sharp with a bang of the gavel by Mayor Rufus Duckworth; all members were in attendance. The invocation was provided by Commissioner Greg Sykes, and the Pledge to the Flag was recited by all attendees.

 

During the Open Forum, Mr. Ezra Blanks of Monroe Street appeared before the Commission to complain about dire long-term ongoing drainage problems on Monroe Street and throughout his neighborhood. As is customary during open forums, the Board listened to his presentation without comment.

 

The Consent Agenda was quickly unanimously approved without comment. There was no Old Business to present and only a short four-item agenda of New Business.

 

First, out of the gate, Ms. Sara Lennon was on hand to announce the upcoming grand opening of Chandler’s Back Street Beauty Shop, a business complementing Chandler’s Back Street Barber Shop. She invited Commissioners to attend the grand opening Sunday, May 23rd, at 4 pm. Both these businesses are located at the former Lennon’s Dry Cleaners at the corner of Railroad Street and South Ash Street.

 

Mr. Tommy Hinson had asked to speak to the Board about the damage done to a shared wall beside the demolished Hinson Supermarket Building at 109 W. Railroad Street, part of the downtown demolition project. Mr. Hinson was not present; therefore, this matter was not brought up.

 

Also on the agenda was a discussion of having the Lumber River Council of Governments (LRCOG) prepare the updates mandated by state statute for all zoning ordinances in the state. The agreement to have LRCOG prepare this update was unanimously approved.

 

Town of Bladenboro Administrator Mr. Lowry then presented the Administration’s preliminary budget request for the fiscal year 2021-2022. As it is merely the first draft, there are no hard-and-fast numbers at this time. However, the initial figures comprise a General Fund budget of $1,526,605 and a Utility Fund budget of $603,340.

 

There were no individual comments from Commissioners, and instead of presenting his Administrator’s Report, Mr. Lowry deferred his presentation until the upcoming budget workshop.

 

Following was a 15-minute closed session to discuss the possible hiring for a vacant position. Instead of adjourning at 7:06 pm, the Commission continued the meeting until Monday, May 17th at 6 pm for a budget workshop.

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