QUIMANS
EEKLY
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‘'News from Next Door”
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2021 $1.00
jjl SCAN ME
PAGE A2
PCRA's Jollifica
tion will go on as
planned
PAGE A6
Pirates volley-
ball wins, moves
to top of confer
ence standings
PAGE A6
Perquimans
soccer picks up
pair of victories
Council backs Riverfront Community Development Plan
Plan: Expand Missing Mill Park
amenities, build amphitheater
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
Hertford Town Council has offi
cially endorsed a redevelopment plan
aimed at promoting a mix of tourism,
commerce, recreation and housing in
the town’s riverfront and downtown
areas.
Adoption of the Riverfront Commu
nity Development Plan is intended to
strengthen the town’s chances of suc
cess when applying for future devel
opment grants.
At a special meeting of the town
council Sept. 23, Mayor Pro tern Ash ¬
ley Hodges’ motion to approve a reso
lution supporting the plan passed with
Councilman Quentin Jackson casting
the lone dissenting vote.
Hodges, Councilman Jerry Mim-
litsch and Mayor Earnell Brown all
voted for the resolution. Council
Frank Norman was absent from the
meeting.
Adoption of the plan was originally
on the agenda for the council’s Sept.
13 regular meeting. When the council
did not get to that agenda item it was
rescheduled along with several other
matters to the Sept. 23 special meet
ing.
Jackson explained before the vote
that he would be voting against the
resolution because it would position
the town council as supporting the
RCD plan. Jackson said some of the
things in the plan are not feasible for
the town.
“I know some of you guys are really
pushing, pushing this plan, and have
been pushing for this waterfront plan,”
Jackson said. But Jackson said he was
concerned the plan could “essentially
gentrify the town of Hertford.”
Gentrification typically describes
the process where the character of a
neighborhood changes because of an
influx of more affluent residents and
businesses. It’s usually controversial
because it sometimes leads to tradi
tional residents having to leave be
cause they can no longer afford the
higher property taxes that come with
See RIVERFRONT, A8
REGGIE PONDER/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY
Hertford Town Council has endorsed a redevelopment
plan aimed at promoting a mix of tourism, commerce,
recreation and housing in the town’s riverfront and
downtown areas. One of the Riverfront Community
Development Plan’s proposals expands amenities at
Missing Mill Park.
Home, sweet home
Council votes to fire
Town Clerk Simpson
PHOTOS COURTESY CHOWAN-PERQUIMANS HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
Tavia Spence, shown with her kids, Taveyon, 13; Taviyah, 11; and J’Teyah, 8, moved into their new home at 319
Dobbs Street in Hertford in May. The Spences were selected to be Chowan-Perquimans Habitat for Humanity’s
20th partner family. The entire Spence family had a hand in the remodel of their new home.
Despite COVID, Habitat finishes 3 homes
Pandemic limited number
of workers at project sites
From staff reports
Although the past year and
a half has been a unique time
because of the COVID-19 pan
demic, it’s been business as
usual for Chowan-Perquim
ans Habitat for Humanity. De
spite the constraints imposed
See HABITAT, A3
Imani Rayner, a nurse at
Elizabeth City Health and
Rehabilitation, was raising
her three daughters in a
rental home when she and
her family were selected
as Chowan-Perquimans
Habitat for Humanity’s
21st partner family for this
brand-new home at 300 N.
Oakum Street in Edenton.
Rayner’s home was
completed in February,
and sold to Rayner and
her family in early March.
PAL to mark opening of new space Oct. 9
Arts group to feature works of
artist, sculptor Alexis Joyner
From staff reports
After nine months of renovations,
the Perquimans Arts League’s new
space at 133 N. Church Street is ready
to open.
JOYNER
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Vol. 87, No. 39
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Alexis Joyner.
Perquimans’ arts
organization plans to
host a ribbon-cutting
ceremony and grand
opening at the new
facility on Saturday,
Oct. 9, at 4 p.m.
The grand opening
will feature an exhib
it of works by local
artist and sculptor
Joyner’s work of wooden sculp
tures and paintings often reflect the
relationships between mother and
child, or social issues and concerns,
PAL said in a press release. Through
“visual sermonettes” his work is often
an effort to get the public to under ¬
stand the suffering of Black women.
At the same time, Joyner wants to
honor them.
Joyner’s works have been exhibited
extensively and are included in many
public and private collections. Among
the institutions that include his works
are Chattanooga State Technical Col
lege, Elizabeth City State University,
the Hampton University Museum, the
Daura Gallery at Lynchburg College,
the Greenville Museum of Art, the
Governor’s Mansion of North Caro
lina, and the Schomburg Center for
Research in Black Culture at the New
York City Public Library.
A native of Southampton County,
See PAL, A3
I Jollification
^&. HISTORIC HOME TOUR
Councilors agreed to dismiss
Simpson by a 3-2 vote
BY REGGIE PONDER
Staff Writer
HERTFORD — The Hert
ford Town Council have de
cided by a split vote to termi
nate the employment of the
town clerk, according to a
member of the council.
According to Councilman
Quentin Jackson, the mo
tion to terminate Town Clerk
Olga Simpson’s employment
with the town passed with
Mayor Earnell Brown, Mayor
Pro tern Ashley Hodges and
Councilman Jerry Mimlitsch
voting in favor, and Jackson
and Councilman Frank Nor
man voting against it.
Jackson said Brown made
the motion.
Brown and Hodges both
declined to say anything
about the vote last week, re
ferring all questions to Town
Manager Pam Hurdle.
Hurdle said she was not
authorized to speak on per
sonnel matters and referred
all questions to the town
council.
The town council went
into closed session at the end
of its regular meeting Sept.
13.
The online recording of the
meeting ended with the vote
to go into closed session.
No reason has been cited
by any town officials for the
action, which is not unusual
in personnel matters.
At a meeting a couple of
See CLERK, A3
PHOTO COURTESY PERQUIMANS SCHOOLS FOUNDATION
Fans of the Perquimans County High School Pirates root
on their team in the grandstand at Jim “Catfish” Hunter
Field last season. A campaign to raise $100,000
toward the cost of a new grandstand has raised more
than $30,000 to date.
Grandstand campaign
one-third toward goal
Lassiter: Effort has raised
$30K of $100K needed
From staff reports
Less than a month in, the
campaign to raise $100,000
toward the cost of a new
baseball grandstand at
Perquimans County High
School is nearly a third of
the way toward its goal.
Brenda Lassiter, exec
utive director of the Per
quimans Schools Foun
dation, said this week the
campaign has raised more
than $30,000. That includes
one “Homerun” donation
of $5,000, 18 donations of
$1,000 at the campaign’s
Triple level, and other do
nations for either $250 or
$500, which are the cam
paign’s Single and Double
giving levels, respectively.
The schools foundation an
nounced the kickoff of the
$100,000 fundraising cam
paign earlier this month
to build a new 470-seat
See GRANDSTAND, A3
Saturday, October 2 ND 2021
Music Tickets: TOUR & DINNER: $35 per person TOUR ONLY: $25 per person
-Ar CALL 252-426-7567 FOR TICKETS