County Commmission Race, Question 1:
“Several informational meetings have been held on the issue of zoning and a final proposal has been made to the Vance County Board of Commissioners. What would you see as the next step in this process of implementing zoning in Vance County?”
Wilbur Boyd, the first to answer, stated that the ordinance is the third step in planning for the future. He said the first two were the mini-HUB and the subdivision ordinance. Boyd noted that the ordinance was prepared by the County Planner for review by the [Citizen’s] Advisory Committee.
Boyd said that the Committee indicated they did not think the ordinance would be what they thought the commissioners intended for it to be.
“This is a process,” Boyd said. He indicated that it is not close to the end. He said the next step is for the Commissioners to make changes. He said he recommended that the farmer should be allowed to farm property if he so chooses, or if he wishes to transition to another business, he should be allowed to do so, unless he affects the environment, lowers the value of a neighboring property, or affects future planning.
Boyd said that after that point, it would be determined if zoning is right for Vance County.
Dan Brummit responded that the zoning debate has been going on for the past year and that the process started in the wrong way and perhaps needs to be restructured. He observed that a planner from “out-of-town” was hired as well as a zoning administrative officer who have been on the payroll for a year and a half and that there is not yet a zoning ordinance.
Brummit stated that over $1 million has been spent on the ordinance, and that to date the people of Vance County have not been involved in the process. He said people in the districts and the communities need to be listened to. Brummit said that the people he has spoken to have indicated that the zoning ordinance is not what they want.
For County Commission District 7, Tommy Hester was the first to respond. He said that the next step is evaluation by the County Commissioners, who will have a change what they think is right or wrong. He said then there will be two public hearings, and then it will come to a vote, “up or down”.
Scott Hughes began his response by saying that the county spent a lot on zoning, and that he is pro-zoning, now that he has learned about it. He said public should be asked about it.
Hughes advocated a county-wide vote regarding zoning. He said then resources could then be shifted to other areas of need.
Vance County Sheriff’s Race, Question 1:
“Both of you took some time during your opening remarks to address the subject of drugs in Vance County. We’d like to give you two more minutes to speak about drugs, how you would combat the drug problem, and how you would use the money that Mr. Hoyle mentioned that is available through drug seizures that take place primarily along Interstate 85?”
George Hoyle, answering first, began by addressing the drug seizure money. He said he would use to put more people on the street to fight drugs themselves. He stated that his officers would be proactive rather than reactive. He went on to say that he wanted officers who would “get in the car for an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay”.
Peter White responded that drugs are a serious problem, especially in Vance County. He said people will come from surrounding areas to Vance County to do [drug] business, and he asked rhetorically why that is. He said he would combat it by looking at the supply line. He said he would cut off the supply, and that dealers would go out of business or relocate.
White said the primary job of the Sheriff is to look after the citizens of Vance County. He reiterated that drugs are serious and about to destroy our community.
“You will not win a war on drugs by picking people off the corner with three or four crack rocks in their pocket. The war on drugs has to be won by cutting off the supply,” White said.
North Carolina Senate District 7 Race, Question 1:
“The four-county area of Vance, Granville, Warren, and Franklin has made a significant step towards attracting new industry to the area with the creation of the Kerr-Tar HUB. Unemployment rates remain high — particularly in Vance County — from the loss of jobs in textiles and tobacco and other sectors. What can the North Carolina Legislature do to help us attract industry to the HUB and to boost our economic development?”
Doug Berger, on point for the first round of questioning, began by pointing to a Daily Dispatch report that stated that unemployment has been declining for the last three years. Berger said that the information was contrary to the information on Stires’ web site.
Berger said we have a lot of work to do, and that the HUB is the long-term project that will bring jobs. He said that $4 million had been appropriated by the Legislature, $1 million for each county.
The incumbent senator said he and others envisioned a day when the four-county area was considered a “north campus” of the RTP.
Berger said it takes teamwork to solve problem of job loss caused by loss of textiles and tobacco.
Chuck Stires responded to the question by asking the audience to imagine a potential company coming from Virginia and encountering I-85 as “a wake-up call on the highway”. He said that it was an indication that things might be “dicey” in North Carolina if the first touch on the state is not smooth.
Stires also pointed to schools and other infrastructures as issues precluding the attracting of new business. He said that the way it should be done is to set up and economic condition in the state through good roads, schools, and appropriate tax structure, so we’re not the highest taxed state in the southeast.
The debate then took a two-minute sponsor break.
Listen to Prepared Questions, Round 1 here.