The Board of Commissioners of Havelock meeting, January 28, 2013.

The Board of Commissioners of Havelock Meeting on January 28, 2013.

As usual, the mayor observed a moment of silence rather than a prayer of any kind. CCTA may want to visit this area again sometime this year.

Several citizens spoke before the meeting, most in regard to the recreation area on Lewis Farm Rd. As a representative of CCTA I spoke on the purpose of government, asking that commissioners spend our money wisely and only on those things not provided by the private sector, in line with what the city could afford. I doubt that my presentation got much attention, other than courtesy.

The agenda item regarding applying for a PARTF grant for the Lewis Farm area was discussed. Apparently the city was gifted (or purchased for a low amount) a tract of land outside the city called Lewis Farm. This land came from the Coastal Land Trust which is a conservationist group who purchases land using donations and government money. They own over 20,000 acres of land in NC. In this case the land appears to have been purchased to protect air rights of Cherry Point and probably should not be developed for that reason. The City of Havelock wants to use this land to provide another recreation area for Havelock, particularly the west end. This is a rather small parcel of land and doesn't really meet the need as seen by the commissioners, however the price does fit into their budget. As a CCTA member I am concerned as the city will apply for a $500,000 grant from the state to build and maintain this area. According the the commissioners Havelock receives no money from the county for recreation even though about 40% of the use is by county residents. (They do pay a slightly higher fee for usage.) This is another indication of how government has overreached its authority by expecting state residents to provide funds for what is clearly a local need. This money should come from the city and county.

The other important item on the agenda was the presentation concerning the WWTP (Waste Water Treatment Plant) Expansion and Neuse Outfall Project and awarding the contracts for said project. There were two contracts awarded; one to upgrade the treatment plant and the other for the line to the Neuse River. The total expenditure is over $9M. Of course, some of this money was received from grants and loans from the Federal government, even though that was not discussed at this meeting. Water and sewer are legitimate projects for local government, but the funding is a problem for CCTA as it is not fully financed by city citizens. However, this improvement was needed to allow for development and expansion of Havelock. Hopefully some of the money will be recouped from developers and buyers of homes and businesses.

All other items on the agenda were of little or no consequence. The next city board meeting is February 25, 7 pm, and is open to the public.

Respectfully submitted,
Nancy Murdoch
CCTA Havelock Watchdog