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SATURDAY, May 14, 2011
Serving All of Person County Since 1881
Copyright The Courier-Times inc. 2011 All Rights Reserved
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75c
Our 129th Year — No. 39
Roxboro, North Carolina
Two Sections — 20 Pages
www.personcountylite.com
No tax increase increase proposed for city,
but water & sewer rates are slated to rise
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
If the City of Roxboro’s budget
for fiscal year 2011-12 is approved
as proposed, city residents will
not see a tax increase, but will pay
more for water and sewer.
Roxboro City Council will
meet next Wednesday to begin
work on the budget for fiscal
2011-12, which begins July 1. The
proposal submitted by city staff
totals $14,723,761, a 0.64 percent
decrease over last year’s figure
of $14,818,899.
Interim City Manager Tommy
Warren and Interim Finance
Director Dan Craig presented the
budget proposal to council mem
bers and Mayor Samuel Spencer
during this week’s regular May
meeting.
Warren said Thursday that the
budget, as proposed, is balanced,
with no use of fund balance (sav
ings).
Warren and staff are propos
ing a 14 percent increase in water
rates and a two percent rise in
sewer rates.
The increases, Warren said,
would help the city pay for
improvements it must make,
according to state and federal
regulations, to the water plant
and wastewater plant.
Those improvements will cost
about $1.4 million for the waste-
water plant and $4 million for the
water plant, Warren said.
The water plant is now un
der a notice of violation from
the state, he said. The city files
regular reports asking for an
extension so that it can complete
preliminary work needed before
improvements can be made. He
expects the project to take about
three years to complete.
The budget proposal calls for
capital outlay from the city’s gen
eral fund to purchase and equip
four new cars for the Roxboro
Police Department.
Warren said it had been sev
eral years since the RPD had
See NO back page
Heidi York wiil present
recommended budget
to commission Monday
By TIM CHANDLER
Courier-Times Editor
tchandler@roxboro-courier.com
The Person Board of County
Commissioners will receive
County Manager Heidi York’s
proposed budget for fiscal year
2011-2012 when it meets in regular
session Monday morning.
The regularly scheduled meet
ing will be held at 9 a.m. in the
commissioners’ boardroom on
the second floor of the Person
See YORK back page
Heidi York
City plans to have
new manager hired
within six months
f ‘
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
Roxboro City Council has
taken the first step toward hiring
a new city manager, with a time
line of six months to complete
the search.
Mayor Samuel Spencer said
Friday that the advertisement
for the position was “on the way
to the League” of Municipalities.
From there, it will be published in
See CITY back page
Sam Spencer
New library dedicated at Person Co. Learning Academy
By GREY PENTECOST
C-T Staff Writer
greypentecost@roxboro-courier.com
When Person County Schools (PCS)
Technology and Career & Technical
Education (CTE) Director Debbie Smith
was looking at transcripts with students
at Person County Learning Academy
(PCLA) last year she noticed there was
something missing at the school — a
library.
Smith immediately took it upon her
self to add one, and Thursday a dedica
tion was held for PCLA’s new library.
After asking PCLA Principal Simon
Justice if she could take the creation of
a library on as a project. Smith worked
with him to find a suitable location. An
unused room in the lower building was
chosen.
Smith also met with the four seniors
at the school, proposing that the library
project be a gift they could give back to
the school as soon-to-be graduates. She
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A4 Education
A8 Legal Notices..
A9 Movies
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said the students loved the idea, and
gave her feedback on types of books
to bring in, colors, seating, and other
design elements.
Smith began work on the library over
the school’s Christmas break, and in
the following months spent weekends
working on it. Since the students also
had no place to do science experiments
or display projects. Smith decided to
divide the room in half, making it part
media center, part science lab.
Much of the furniture, said Smith,
was repurposed. New tables were pur-
chasedfor the six computers in the room,
and the old ones were converted to lab
tables. Smith brought in a rug from her
house and she put up curtains made by
her mother out of old bed sheets. Shelves
and storage spaces were painted. Book
shelves were brought over from Person
High School (PHS), and Rent-A-Center
(RAC) in Roxboro donated a couple of
couches.
RAC manager Joshua Pace told The
Courier-Times at the dedication Thurs
day that his company was there to help
people who need assistance.
According to RAC District Manager
Darleena Towns, who also attended the
dedication, “servant leadership” was
part of the company’s job description.
Smith reported that she has pur
chased around 550 books since Septem
ber, many of them used. She said that
PHS media coordinator Karen Fitzpat
rick reviewed the list of books to make
sure the offerings were age appropri
ate — geared toward seventh- through
See NEW backpage
Grey Pentecost / C-T
NEW LIBRARY AT PCLA — Person County Schools Technology and CTE Director Debbie Smith (far left)
presents the new library she created at Person County Learning Academy at a dedication Thursday. Others
pictured are, left to right, Shirley Paylor from PCS central services, board of education member Pecolia
Beatty, board member Margaret Bradsher, PCS Program Specialist Harriett Tillett, Board Chair Gordon
Powell, PCLA Principal Simon Justice and PCS Executive Director for Program Services Marionette Jeffers.
Seated are PCLA seniors, clockwise from left, Meghan Johnson, Larry Winstead, Jordan Lewis and Katie Cash.
[center
LANE
PCC graduation slated May 20
at Person High School Stadium
Gall Foushee / C-T
FRIDAY MORNING MISHAP — A Roxboro man suffered injuries Friday when the vehicle
he was driving struck a utility pole on Madison Boulevard. According to Roxboro police,
Hilton Duff, 79, of 3516 Virgilina Rd. was headed southbound on Madison Boulevard when
he reportedly fell asleep at the wheel and struck a utility pole alongside the northbound
lanes. Duff was transported by Person County EMS for treatment of his injuries.
Nearly600 students are eligible
to receive degrees, diplomas and
certificates during Piedmont
Community College’s 41st com
mencement exercises on Friday,
May 20. The ceremonies will
begin at 7 p.m. and will be held at
the Person High School Stadium
on Ridge Road. In case of rain,
graduation will move into the
PHS gymnasium.
The speaker for the event will
be Sen. Rick Gunn of Burlington,
who represents the North Caro
lina Senate District 24 (Alamance
and Caswell counties). Gunn, a
Republican, is serving his first
Senate term. He is vice president
of the Commerce and Insurance
committees and is a member of
the Appropriations on General
Government and Information
Technology, Joint Regulatory
Reform, Program Evaluation and
Transportation committees.
Gunn is a graduate of the
University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill, where he received a
B.S. degree in business adminis
tration. He is president of Gunn
& Associates Commercial Real
Estate in Burlington, where he
has been active in the Burlington-
Alamance County Association
of Realtors, the Burlington
Downtown Corp., the Alamance
County Chamber of Commerce,
Salvation Army Boys and Girls
Club, United Way and the YMCA
of Alamance County.
Also participating in the
ceremony will be Dr. Walter C.
Bartlett, PCC president; Ronald
Booker, chair of the PCC Board
of Trustees; Mike Dossett, PCC
vice president. Instruction and
Student Development; Dr. Doris
Carver, vice president. Continu
ing Education; and the Rev. Ken
neth Stokes, pastor. First Baptist
Church in Roxboro.
“This is an exciting time of
year for us,” said Bartlett of
graduation, adding that many of
Sen. Rick Gunn
this year’s graduates are “heart
warming” examples of overcom-
See PCC’S back page