Union County Union County - Carolina Weekly Newspapers

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Pat Higgins
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Sean O’Connell
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C. Jemal Horton
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Alain Lillie
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Page 6 • July 3-9, 2009 • Union County Weekly
News
Briefs
County libraries change hours
All Union County public libraries will open a half-hour later at 9:30 a.m. on
weekdays beginning Monday, July 6. The three branches – Union West in Indian
Trail, Edwards Memorial Library in Marshville, and Waxhaw Branch Library – will
close an hour earlier on the nights they’ve been open until 8 p.m. Weekend hours
will remain the same.
The Dickerson Local History and Genealogy Room in the Monroe Library’s new
hours will be Monday and Tuesday, 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Wednesday, Thursday
and Friday, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. It will remain open during weekend library hours.
Hours were changed to ensure proper staffing, officials said. The library lost
17 percent of its staff during the 2009 fiscal year as a result of budget reductions.
For more information, visit www.union.lib.nc.us or call 704-283-8184. q
Fire fees bill hung up in committee
Legislation that would allow the Union County Board of Commissioners to
double the maximum fire fees – to $100 per single-family home, for example – is
stuck in the Senate Finance Committee, and it’s unclear if it’ll be heard before this
year’s North Carolina General Assembly session ends after a budget’s adopted.
House Bill 565, which applies only to Union County, would allow commissioners
to increase the fees to head off fire district shortfalls. A timeline attached
to the bill eliminates all fire fees by July 2010, possibly forcing a countywide fire
tax. Some fire districts in Union County charge the fees; others rely on a tax for
revenue.
Commissioners passed a resolution in June asking that the bill be tabled because
they don’t agree with the timeline. They might get their wish. The bill isn’t on the
finance committee’s calendar for the next two weeks, which means it faces an
uphill battle for approval.
First, it would have to be read and debated in the Senate Finance Committee.
If approved by the committee, it would go to the full Senate for a vote. Both would
have to happen before the end of this legislative session, which usually ends after
a budget is adopted. Senate and House lawmakers currently are negotiating a final
budget draft. q
Wolfe School gets green building
certification
Wolfe School, Union County Public Schools’ school for special-needs students,
has received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, which
has been awarded to only four other new schools in the state.
“We’re doing things that are green and sustainable to be good stewards of the
Earth,” UCPS Executive Director of Facilities Don Hughes said in a statement.
LEED, a registered trademark of the United States Green Building Council, is
a nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of
high-performance green buildings.
One reason Wolfe School was chosen for the LEED certification process is the
special environmental needs of its students, according to the press release. The
school’s small size, 26,000-square-feet rather than the average 96,000-square-foot
elementary school, also makes the required design more affordable.
“The extra things you do to get LEED were a good thing for the Wolfe students
because of their sensitivity to the … built environment,” Hughes said. Natural
lighting instead
of fluorescent
and higher frequency
of air
circulation are
just two building
features.
Hughes said
the district hopes
to build all future
schools with a
green, sustainable
design.
However, it’s too
costly to seek
LEED certification
on all new
structures, the
release said. q
UCPS construction officials worked to get Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design certification for Wolfe School. LEED is the national
benchmark for design, construction and operation of high-performance
green buildings.
Photo courtesy of UCPS
Part of New Town
Road closing
temporarily
The N.C. Department of Transportation
will temporarily close a section of
New Town Road near Chambwood Road
in Sandy Ridge on Monday, July 6, weather
permitting, to replace pipes. The road will
reopen on Sept. 22
Motorists going east on New Town Road
should take New Town Road to Chambwood
Road to South Potter Road back to
New Town Road. Motorists going west on
New Town Road should take New Town
Road to South Potter Road to Chambwood
Road back to New Town Road.
For more information on this project,
call the bridge maintenance engineer at
704-283-6913. q
SPCC offers auto
body courses this
summer for new
job skills
South Piedmont Community College
will offer six-week auto body courses beginning
July 6 and 7 to help train students who
need new employment skills quickly.
Four continuing education courses can
be completed studying Monday through
Thursday from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. All
courses will be taught by Bobby Baucom in
the Whitaker Applied Technologies Center
on the L.L. Polk Campus, U.S. 74, in
Polkton.
Shop fundamentals, safety, materials
and tools; vehicle construction, parts and
components; minor panel alignment and
replacement; and diagnosing and making
minor sheet metal repairs will be offered.
Registration is $75 for each course. To learn
more, visit www.spcc.edu or contact Kathy
Moore at 704-272-6405 or k-moore@spcc.
edu. q
Union Power
employees raise
$5,000 for hospice
Union Power Cooperative employees,
80 golfers and more than 20 hole sponsors
raised $5,000 for Hospice of Union
County at the ninth Annual Ray Jenkins
Memorial Golf Tournament on May 16
at Eagle Chase Golf Club in Marshville.
The event honors Union Power lineman
Ray Jenkins, a 20-year employee
who passed away in December 1999
from lung cancer. Proceeds each year
go to the hospice in Monroe, which supported
Ray and his family.
Union Power employees in Monroe
and Oakboro formed a fundraising committee
this year to focus on raising funds
for the Union and Stanly County hospices.
The committee is planning several
annual employee-sponsored fundraising
events throughout the year. q
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