The Daily Southerner, Tarboro, NC

Local News

July 13, 2012

Health dept. relocation date draws nearer

Editor and Publisher John H. Walker

TARBORO — While the date is not etched in stone, the relocation of Edgecombe County Health Department and Department of Social Services from their North Main locations to downtown is just around the corner.

The two departments are relocating to a pair of former telephone buildings, one circa 1912 and the other circa 1969-1972. The two buildings were purchased in July 2009 for $787,000 with the remodeling cost initially estimated at between $4 million and $5 million.

Since that time, there have been extensive renovations and remodeling to both buildings — including the elevator in the 1912 building and extensive remodeling to bathrooms and the elevator in the newer building.

While there is no current plan to utilize the 1912 building, a makeover had to be completed to adapt the newer structure to its proposed use as a public agency.

In February 2010, Carmon said, “You’re changing the occupancy of it from a private commercial or office space to a public mixed use facility is what it amounts to. We’re looking at putting in laboratories for the clinic side of the house as well as operatories (a working space) for dental.”

At the June 25 meeting of the Edgecombe County Commissioners, County Manager Lorenzo Carmon said the building could be occupied by the end of July — although there has been no update of that estimate.

Carmon told commissioners that the contractor was beyond the agreed-upon finish date, but that there had been some extenuating circumstances that needed to be addressed before coming up with an actual day count and penalty due the county.

The move will be more than 15 months beyond Carmon’s initial time line of 9-10 months from mid-February 2010 — or about January 2011.

Still, for the majority of the employees at the current North Main locations, the move is a welcome one from a facility that was once the county home and needs more than $1 million in repairs. The newest building in the health department complex was built in 1981.

Likewise, business operators in downtown, such a Faye Guill of Cotton’s, welcomes the relocation.

“A lot of people think of our buffet when they think of us,” she said in an interview for Welcome to Tarboro Magazine, “but we offer a variety of sandwiches and salads and meals.”

Unlike the present location, where employees must drive to find food at lunch, the downtown facility will offer a variety — with Addie’s, Capri’s, Classic Diner, Cotton’s, Jin Jin Chinese Restaurant and The Snack Shack — all within walking distance.

And while restaurants will be plentiful, parking may be another story altogether — for employees as well as patients.

There is one parking lot at the rear of the newer building and a lot about a block away, but the most plentiful parking is on the other side of Cotton’s — about six blocks away.

County officials plan to put the existing Health Department/DSS campus on the sale block once the move is completed.

 

Text Only
Local News
  • Nash Health Care seeking expanded affiliates

    ROCKY MOUNT — The Board of Commissioners of Nash Health Care has voted to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to five, pre-selected regional tertiary hospital systems for evaluation of an expanded affiliation relationship.
    Nash Health Care operates a number of facilities, including five hospitals totaling 403 beds — Nash General Hospital, Nash Day Hospital, the Bryant T. Aldridge Rehabilitation Center, Community Hospital and Coastal Plain Hospital.

    June 19, 2013

  • AIB judging under way

    The America in Bloom (AIB) judges are in town, and Tarboro’s AIB committee rolled out the red carpet for them, beginning with Sunday supper at the home of AIB committee member Candis Owens.
    “I am really excited about these judges,” Owens said “It looks like they have been selected specifically for Tarboro, because they’re both historic preservationists.”
    James R. “Jim” Abraham is a professor of historic preservation at the Savannah College of Art and Design, while Ed Hooker, III is the historic architect and cultural resource manager for Fort Riley, Kan., according to the judges’ biography.

    June 17, 2013

  • lemonade.jpg Brother, sister offer relief from the heat

    Madelyn Gay, 9 left, pours lemonade in a cup that her brother Peyton Gay, 10, is holding in front of their St. Andrews Street home last Thursday. With the temperature reaching 96 degrees, the sister and brother tandem sold the refreshing liquid.

    June 17, 2013 1 Photo

  • Summer Food Service Program for children kicks off

    Edgecombe County Public Schools is working to make sure that no children in Edgecombe County go hungry while school is closed this summer by sponsoring the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) for children. Summer meals will be offered at Carver Elementary, Pattillo, Phillips Middle, Princeville Elementary and West Edgecombe Middle schools starting today. The meals will be offered from Monday through Thursday until Aug 8. Breakfast will be served from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. and lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

    June 17, 2013

  • Gun permits on the rise

    The Edgecombe County Sheriff's Department reported a spike in the number of citizens applying for gun permits and carrying concealed weapons. From Dec. 1, 2011 to June 13, 2012, the sheriff's department issued 88 gun permits as well as 213 concealed weapon permits. From Dec. 1, 2012 to June 6, 2013 the sheriff's department issued 492 gun permits and 364 concealed weapon permits.

    June 14, 2013

  • Heat.jpg Warmest day this year reaches mid 90's

    Beating the heat was the name of the game Thursday in Edgecombe County, as temperatures soared into the mid 90’s.
    “Right now the temperature is 95 degrees. This is the warmest day so far across central North Carolina,” said Shawna Cokley, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, at 2 p.m. Thursday. She said the average June temperature for the Raleigh area is 86, 87 degrees.

    June 14, 2013 1 Photo

  • Art Council offers summer camps

    Art camps this summer will get children’s creativity flowing.
    Edgecombe County Cultural Arts Council is offering several camps for children ages 3 to 12. Art teachers for the camps include Ashley Myers, Genevieve Govoni and Taylor Owens, as well as guest artists.
    “It will be a chance for them to create and explore different mediums that they might not be exposed to in school,” said Joyce Turner, executive director of Edgecombe Arts. “Each camp will more or less be themed.”

    June 13, 2013

  • Vines Cobb.jpg Pinetops mayor satisfied with 2013-2014 $4.6 million budget

    PINETOPS — The board of commissioners stayed in line with surrounding towns by adopting its budget without implementing a property tax increase, although water and sewer rates increased by an average of 6.5 percent.
    "It's a good budget, said Pinetops Mayor J. Vines Cobb. "There was no tax increase, so we are holding the line,"

    June 13, 2013 1 Photo

  • Drugs found on THS student at school

    A Tarboro High School senior was hit with drug charges on campus three days before graduation.
    According to Tarboro Police Sgt. Al Braxton, a teacher spotted Rasheen Travon Council, 18, 404 Lincoln Road,. Tarboro, engaged in suspicious activities. The teacher notified a police officer.
    Upon the officer's investigation, he found Council was in possession of 29.4 grams of marijuana in small bags. Braxton said he doesn't know whether or not Council made a transaction at the school.

    June 13, 2013

  • RIVER.jpg Rising Waters on the Tar

    The Tar River has risen to 16 feet-four inches over the past four days. On Saturday, the water levels were very low, but since the rains have come, the water levels have risen. The gates at the Tar River on River Road are shut with padlocks on them, because the water has gone over the path that runs adjacent to the river.

    June 13, 2013 1 Photo