Reporter – Leigh Hester Former Vance County commissioner Scott Hughes has been accused of eBay fraud after seventeen non-existent Sony PlayStation 3 Slim consoles were posted on the auction site under his eBay ID. Starting July 19th, 2011 and over the course of several days, seventeen PS3’s were listed at $200 plus shipping under the website’s Buy It Now terms, which require the purchaser to pay for an item via PayPal or a credit card at the time of ordering …
Month: August 2011
North Carolina’s unemployment rate increased to 10.1 percent in July
While the private sector gained 6,900 jobs, state government jobs decreased by 300 and local government jobs decreased by 11,800. Employment data indicates that a majority of the local government jobs were in education, including teachers. “Job growth in North Carolina’s private sector was offset by declines in both state and local government employment,” said ESC Chairman Lynn R. Holmes. “Gov. Perdue’s focus on job creation and assisting North Carolina’s workers with getting back to work continue to be our …
Wake County ranked among top areas for job growth in U.S.
North Carolina strong in job growth, green energy and biotechnology. CNN Money recently listed the top 25 counties in the U.S. for job growth based on job growth data from 2000-2010. Ranked 15th on the list was Wake County. The North Carolina county, which includes the capital city, Raleigh, as well as Cary, Apex, Wake Forest and Research Triangle Park, saw 35.9 percent job growth over the past decade. Thousands of new jobs have been reported already for 2011. A …
Monday Open Line
Presidents Weekly Address: Putting Country Ahead of Party. From a farm in the Midwest, President Obama talks about the determination and integrity of the American people and calls on Congress to put aside their differences to grow the economy. Tonight, the Henderson City Council will meet at 6pm for regular meeting and work session. For agenda details please check our full post here. Unfortunately our regular reporter will not be able to make it to the meeting.
Henderson City Council Short Regular and Work Session Meeting
Henderson City Council Short Regular and Work Session Meeting on Monday, 22 August 2011 beginning at 6:00 p.m. Location is the City Hall Council Chambers, 134 Rose Ave., Henderson, NC 27536. PUBLIC HEARINGS a) Consideration of Ordinance 11—43, Rezoning 1508 Lynne Avenue to OIA (Office and Institutional) from R8 (Moderate to High Density Residential). (CAF 11—110) ? Public Hearing ? Ordinance 11—43 NEW BUSINESS a) Consideration of Resolution 11—45, Authorizing Bid Award for the Shirley Drive Water Main Replacement Project …
Vance County BoC Work Session
This is to confirm that the Board of Commissioners will hold a special work session on Tuesday, August 23 at the Library’s Farm Bureau Room. The purpose of the work session is to address redistricting and to review district maps. The Board will be provided lunch at 12:00 noon with the work session to follow afterwards (approximately 12:30 p.m.)
NC ACT Scores Remain Above the National Average in 2011
North Carolina students maintained a 21.9 average ACT score in 2011, marking the fourth year that the state’s average ACT score was higher than the nation’s, according to the 2011 ACT results released today. ACT test scores are among the factors that colleges and universities use in their admissions process. In 2011, the national average ACT score was 21.1. “I congratulate the students in the Class of 2011 for continuing a strong showing on the ACT,” said State Superintendent June …
VGCC Small Business seminar offers tips to increase sales
Vance-Granville Community College’s Small Business Center will present a free seminar, entitled “Relationship Sales,” on Wednesday, Sept. 14. The seminar will be held from 9 a.m. until Noon in room 7107 of Building 7 on the college’s main campus in Vance County. Seminar instructor John Formica of Charlotte will help local businesses learn how to be more effective in sales. His tips will focus on avoiding misunderstandings with potential clients and customers, knowing what buyers find most helpful and most …
Friday / Weekend Open Line
President Obama ended his three day tour of the Midwest at a town hall meeting on a farm in rural Illinois, where he took questions that ranged from enhanced protection for law enforcement officers to the shrinking size of local county fairs. The President’s last day was filled with opportunities to enjoy the rural landscape and attractions of his home state, and included stops at the Whiteside County Fair and a Galesburg High School football practice, in addition to an earlier …
Vance County BoE meeting August 23rd cancelled
The Vance County Board of Education Policy Committee Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, August 23, 2011, has been cancelled.
New Bill Will Slash Small Business Programs
Senate Republicans have introduced a bill that could eliminate all federal programs to assist small businesses, as well as women-owned, veteran-owned and minority-owned firms. Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) introduced S. 1116, titled the “Department of Commerce and the Workforce Consolidation Act,” which would combine the Small Business Administration (SBA) with the Department of Labor and the Department of Commerce, a move that could devastate U.S. job creation. Republicans have attempted to abolish the SBA for nearly three decades. President Ronald …
Latest Kids Count Data Book Ranks North Carolina 38th In Child Well-being
Picture of the Recession’s Impact on North Carolina Children Still Evolving Raleigh, North Carolina –According to data released by the Annie E Casey Foundation in its 2011 KIDS COUNT Data Book, North Carolina ranks 38th in key indicators of child health and well-being. The 2011 Data Book paints a picture of mixed progress for North Carolina children. In a state that consistently receives high marks as business-friendly, more children and families now face greater risk of economic insecurity as a …
Thursday Open Line
An 89-year-old Raleigh man accused of voter fraud said he was trying to prove a point by casting two ballots. Leland Duane Lewis voted in early voting on only the front of the ballot, then returned during regular voting and voted only the back of the ballot. Lewis said he told volunteers at the polling place what happened on Election Day, but he wasn’t charged with a crime until Wednesday. Lewis was released from the Wake County jail on Wednesday …
VGCC evening Computer classes scheduled at Main Campus
Registration will start Sept. 1 for three evening courses being offered by the Vance-Granville Community College Computer Center on the college’s main campus in Vance County. A course on QuickBooks, the powerful accounting system for small businesses, will be held on Wednesday evenings from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m., Sept. 7 through Oct. 26. Students will learn the types of information that businesses need to track and how to enter and track that information in QuickBooks. In addition, students will …
Vance County Tourism Spending Increased in 2010
According to a report released Tuesday entitled “The Economic Impact Of Travel On North Carolina Counties, Vance County was one out of 98 other North Carolina counties that increased visitor spending from 2009 to 2010. The two falling counties were Northampton and Columbus. The report specifically cited the following details: Domestic tourism in Vance County generated an economic impact of $38.74 million in 2010. This was a 7.31 % change from 2009. In 2010, Vance County ranked 61 in travel …
Wednesday Open Line
Alaina Giordano, the North Carolina mother with stage 4 breast cancer has lost the battle for her childrens custody. Her two children are moving to Chicago to live with their father while she continues her cancer treatment in Durham. In the court ruling, Durham District Court Judge Nancy Gordon stated that she denied Giordano primary custody because she was unemployed, “the course of her disease is unknown” and “children who have a parent with cancer need more contact with …
Party Pickup Robber Arrested
On August 11, 2011 members of the Henderson Police Department Major Crimes Unit arrested and charged Tyrelle Octavious Benson, 17, of 7969 NC 39 North, Henderson, NC with robbery with a dangerous weapon and felony probation violation. Mr. Benson was given a $60,000 secured bond pending a court hearing on August 29, 2011. Mr. Benson’s charges were related to the July 18, 2011 robbery of Ulysses Clements Jr that occurred in the parking lot of Party Pickup, 655 N. Garnett …
David Street Firearms Arrest
On August 5, 2011 around 12:04 AM officers with the Henderson Police Department responded to the park on David Street, Henderson in reference to a drug complaint. Upon arrival, the officer’s investigation lead them to the residence of 921 David Street, Henderson. During the investigation, officers located a .357 revolver, two .22 caliber revolvers, various ammunition, a digital scale, and .8 grams of marijuana. Arrested were to following individuals: Damien Lamar Bullock, 17, of 976 Burr Street, Henderson was arrested …
Governor’s Restructuring Plan Streamlines Three Agencies into One Dept. of Public Safety
As part of her belt-tightening efforts to streamline state government, Gov. Bev Perdue announced this week that Secretary Reuben Young will serve as secretary of the new, restructured Department of Public Safety. The new agency will fold in the responsibilities of the current Department of Crime Control and Public Safety, which Secretary Young currently heads, and the Departments of Correction and Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. The new agency is the result of Gov. Perdue’s consolidation plan, announced in December …
It’s Back to Saturday Morning… but is it Smurfy?
A Review of ‘Smurfs’ by Claire Ramsey A movie like ‘Smurfs’ comes only once in a Blue Moon… but only because blue moons are more common than the legend would have it. Starring Neil Patrick Harris and Hank Azaria, ‘Smurfs’ has a lot going for it, especially for 80’s kids like me who grew up with them on Saturday mornings with our She-Ra pajamas and Cheerios. And my chosen descriptors for this reconstruction of the Peyo little blue darlings, from …