The new Fayetteville Area System of Transit bus terminal will come online under budget this spring. City officials say that, despite numerous delays, the transit center is more than $500,000 under budget. The City of Fayetteville was awarded a Federal Transit Administration grant of $8 million in 2012. At that time, the facility was a concept that had been in development for over six years. The project was selected by the federal government on a competitive basis and was the largest FTA grant of its kind ever awarded in the state of North Carolina. It represents 80 percent of the cost to build the basic transit portions of the facility.

A local firm, Construction Systems, Inc., was the low bidder and was awarded the building contract in August of 2014. The total cost of construction was set at $12,150,000. City council increased the budget to $12,441,000 to cover unforeseen costs of soil remediation and removal, said Transit Director Randy Hume. The site at West Russell and Robeson Streets was the former location of a commercial laundry, and toxic cleansers had saturated the ground over time. In addition to the federal grant, the State of North Carolina initially contributed more than $1 million in matching funds, and has added to it since then. The city’s current share of the project is $1,486,325. That’s more than half a million dollars less than the $2,003,750 originally committed by city council.

The current total budget for the project is $12,654,125. The contract with CSI, with change orders, is $11,891,751. The city has additional commitments related to construction management, inspections and testing totaling $441,000. Also, Hume says, FAST expects some additional costs related to bus bay signs, technology components and public art of $270,000. That brings the total cost to $12,602,751, which is under budget.

Unforeseen delays in construction have not resulted in added costs from the contractor. “Based on our contract, we will have substantial claims against CSI for liquidated damages,” Hume stated. “Liquidated damages are a contractual agreement … when damage occurs,” said Deputy City Manager Kristoff Bauer. “We have contractually agreed that the loss is $1,000 per day,” he added. FAST applied for and received federal grants to cover 80 percent of the added costs. And, NCDOT provided $213,125 of additional grant funds which were set aside as a contingency.

“I am not expecting any significant cost overruns from CSI,” Hume stated. “We will have added costs related to construction administration and management because of the delays in completing the project. We have enough contingency in the budget to handle these.”

The city makes “progress payments” to the contractor as construction proceeds. Payments are based on the work completed as certified by the project architect, according to Bauer. The construction contract has a provision whereby the city holds out about 5 percent of each payment to ensure all the work is completed, Bauer added. He pointed out that this project experienced three different challenges along the way. The first was the unexpected requirement to remove contaminated soils. The second was a series of permitting and design issues, some of it relating to relocation of previously permitted utilities. The third issue was with a subcontractor who was unable to deliver and assemble steel for bus bays. That subcontractor had to be replaced. The soil was addressed early. The other two issues have had spillover effects described as far more complex. “At each stage, however, the City has timely inspected work, provided effective notice and held the appropriate party accountable,” noted the deputy manager. Completion date for the transit center originally was June 17, 2016. “A six- to eight-week preparation period is needed following completion before our opening,” said Hume. Had the general contractor met the contract date, the center would have opened in late August 2016. Hume says the new date for operations to begin is this May.

“Every day we are working with our members to capitalize on opportunities to prosper and grow. It is only through our collective efforts that we can truly strengthen our economy. ”These are the words of Patricia Gonzalez, the Greater Fayetteville Chamber’s new director of membership services. Patricia is no newcomer to Fayetteville. She’s lived here for 15 years and is the wife of a retired Air Force officer who’s now working for the N.C. Department of Public Safety.
Gonzalez is a native of Petaluma, California, and a graduate of Cal Poly State University in northern California with a degree in business. She withstood what she called a rigorous, in-depth interview process before being chosen for her new post. She’s looking forward to working with a new Chamber President and CEO, a position that has been vacant for 10 months. Interim CEO Darsweil Rogers notes in this edition’s News Digest that the chamber hopes to fill the vacancy about the end of the month.

Gonzalez has been on the job a little over a month and is anxious to get to know the chamber’s members. She regards her duty as one of service to the membership of 800 businesses and military units. She hopes her interpersonal skills will allow her to increase the chamber membership to 1,000 in two years. She’s in “the process of creating processes,” of building the chamber’s rolls, she says. “We’re here to champion Greater Fayetteville’s businesses.” First, comes shoring up existing members by providing them with the expertise and support vital to their economic success. Gonzalez believes the chamber is an essential element of the community’s efforts to expand economic development, noting that small business is the community’s underlying foundation.

Gonzalez tells of lessons learned from reading a book several years ago on how to clean house. Typically, she says, one begins by straightening up one bedroom at a time. The mistake you can make is to come across an item that belongs in another room and taking it there. Then you turn attention to that room and overlook the one where you started. Completing the task at hand is the lesson learned, which is the key to concentrating on the needs of one business at a time. Gonzalez is a perpetual note taker, insisting that good notes are so important. Clearly written, accurate notes help to capture information for later study and review. She’s “already filled up four notepads,” she says. Asked how she keeps up, she said: “You just do it!”

The things Gonzalez says makes her job most enjoyable are the longtime members who’ve supported the chamber and the community. She cites Bryan Honda’s unique position as the Greater Fayetteville Chamber’s oldest and most dedicated member having first joined in December 1954. In her introductory message in last week’s edition of Up & Coming Weekly Gonzalez wrote: “Through collaborative efforts, we’re able to provide valuable networking opportunities, advocate for the business community with government and work with our current business leaders while preparing our next generation of leaders.”

Fifth District City Councilman Bobby Hurst is considering not seeking re-election in the fall. Councilman Ted Mohn, who represents the 8th District, said earlier that he will not run. Hurst said, “My new job with Senator Meredith and Cardinal Landscaping and Fayetteville Beautiful are priorities that take a lot of my time.” Hurst became an aide to Meredith after closing his family business recently. “Perhaps it is time to let someone else serve this great city,” Hurst added. He has been on council since 2007 and before that from 2000–2001. Mohn has served four terms, the last two of which came following a two-year interruption after he chose not to run.

Hurricane Matthew Costs
City of Fayetteville taxpayers may end up picking up part of the tab for costs associated with Hurricane Matthew last fall. Budget Director Tracey Broyles has told city council the Federal Emergency Management Agency will likely reimburse the city much of the $9.6 million in damages or recovery costs the city has incurred. FEMA will send the city $6.9 million; the state will reimburse the city $2.3 million and insurance will cover $150,000 in costs. After $225,000 has been taken from city reserves or fund balance, it will leave a projected $325,000 which may not be reimbursed, Broyles said. It too would likely come from this year’s fund balance, which is an unappropriated surplus the state requires local governments to maintain.

Chamber Hunt for CEO Nears an End
The Greater Fayetteville Chamber hopes to select a new President and CEO in a matter of days. “Three finalists among 20 candidates from across the country have been interviewed,” said Interim CEO Darsweil Rogers. None of them are from North Carolina, he added. Rogers has held down the post for 10 months. “It’s been a wonderful ride,” he said. Rogers says the most important thing he has learned in his chamber experience is the importance of communicating among members. He suggests it will be job one for the new CEO. “There’s a presumption the chamber is a good ole boy’s club,” he said. “There has been a gap, a misunderstanding” of what chambers do, Rogers added.

Housing Rehab Contractors Needed
Building contractors are encouraged to apply for Cumberland County’s approved Community Development registry. Contractors who reside in Cumberland County and want to be added to the registry should apply at the Cumberland County Community Development office at 707 Executive Place. Information is online at www.co.cumberland.nc.us/community_dev.aspx. Those jobs include single-family, owner-occupied homes and homes damaged by Hurricane Matthew. Homeowners must reside within Cumberland County but outside the city limits of Fayetteville which has its own community development program. Cumberland County has been awarded funds by the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency through the Disaster Recovery Act of 2016. Funding is also provided by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Is this really compassion?

Whether it is determining how America should address illegal immigration, the possibility of terrorists entering the country through legal means, suspected voter fraud, the plague of poverty, or a multitude of other challenges, there seems to be a recurring call for compassion. This emphasis on “compassion” is contributing to a dangerous divide in our nation.

That divide is reflected in the protests we seem to see daily. This is especially true of those protests that seek to deny free speech to people who hold conservative views. This is far too frequently accompanied by violence and threatening speech. On the other side of this vocal outcry are those who remain quiet but grow more and more frustrated and disgusted by what they see in the outcry; the calls for compassion. I contend that in this tension between those who scream for compassion and those who question the legitimacy of those screams is the divide that is fed by the calls for compassion. For those pressing so fervently for compassion, the critical question regarding what they want becomes: “Is this really compassion?”

Here is a definition of compassion from greatergood.berkeley.edu:
“Compassion literally means ‘to suffer together.’ Among emotion researchers, it is defined as the feeling that arises when you are confronted with another’s suffering and feel motivated to relieve that suffering."

Compassion is not the same as empathy or altruism, though the concepts are related. While empathy refers more generally to our ability to take the perspective of and feel the emotions of another person, compassion is when those feelings and thoughts include the desire to help.”

The phrase “relieve that suffering” is the key component of this definition. Compassion does not simply make people a bit more comfortable in their state of suffering. No, the aim is to help them be free of that suffering. In the account (John 8:1-11) of Jesus helping the woman caught in adultery, He did not simply save her from being stoned. Jesus challenges her accusers and, in the face of His question, the accusers leave. In verse 11, Jesus says to the woman, “Go and sin no more.” He did not leave her in a state where she might easily commit this act again. Instead, Jesus “helps” this woman by not only saving her from being stoned but by also showing her the way to avoiding similar suffering in the future. This is the look of compassion.

With this definition of compassion, where helping relieve suffering is central and the compassion of Jesus as points of reference, consider a current issue where these points might be applicable. That issue is requiring that prescribed identification be presented by citizens in order to vote. Opposition to such legislation has been and is being, vehemently opposed in states across America. The primary reason given for opposition is that certain groups of citizens cannot obtain any one of the required forms of identification. Following are relevant quotes from a document posted by the American Civil Liberties Union titled, “Oppose Voter ID Legislation - Fact Sheet:”

“Many Americans do not have one of the forms of identification states acceptable for voting. These voters are disproportionately low-income, racial and ethnic minorities, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Such voters more frequently have difficulty obtaining ID, because they cannot afford or cannot obtain the underlying documents that are a prerequisite to obtaining government-issued photo ID card.”
“Minority voters disproportionately lack ID. Nationally, up to 25 percent of African-American citizens of voting age lack government-issued photo ID, compared to only 8 percent of whites.”

“Underlying documents required to obtain ID cost money, a significant expense for lower-income Americans. The combined cost of document fees, travel expenses and waiting time are estimated to range from $75 to $175.”

These quotes paint a picture of a person who cannot afford $75 to $175 to take the actions necessary to get the ID required to vote and is very likely a black citizen. The ACLU, NAACP, and many other organizations, along with individuals, respond to this situation by spending and causing what must be millions of dollars to be spent by defendants to stop enforcement of voter ID laws in various states. There is no doubt in my mind that every organization and individual involved in mounting these court cases, coupled with protests and tremendous media support, will argue that these are acts of compassion.

Put these claimed acts of compassion to the test of the definition of compassion and the example of Jesus. If a person cannot spend $75 to $175 to get an ID required to vote, what might that indicate about the person’s overall life condition? Very likely, not being able to vote for lack of an ID card is among the least of his or her difficulties. Compassion would direct us to help that person move beyond the state of suffering that makes it impossible to get an ID card. However, this is not the response of those who fight with amazing energy to prevent implementation of voter ID requirements. What is described here does not pass the “compassion test.”

The question then becomes why these people would claim compassion but not act in ways that really reflect compassion … help people move beyond their state of suffering? The answer is pretty obvious to me. If a person is struggling and suffering for whatever reason, it is not likely that he or she will make the investment of time and energy required to get informed regarding issues and facts on which voting decisions should be made. That situation leaves one open to be influenced by people he or she chooses to trust. Along come strong personalities who claim to have the best interest of these suffering masses as a top priority. Those strong personalities, in sound-bites, make a case, such as voter ID, being about preventing these suffering people from voting and it rings true. The result is feigned compassion that does nothing by way of freeing people from suffering, but smoothly ushers them into being controlled and manipulated while coming nowhere close to recognizing what is happening.

What we need now is real compassion. For the most part, it must come from Americans who are quiet, but frustrated and disgusted with the havoc being perpetrated on our nation in the name of compassion. We must speak up and get involved publicly with efforts that help others move beyond their suffering while not punishing or penalizing those who are not among the suffering. Breaking free of quietness and taking a stand will be costly to those who choose this course. However, failing to do so will be far more costly.

As I write this, TV sports channels are all about the upcoming NBA All-Star game in not Charlotte, as originally scheduled, but New Orleans, which is thrilled to have it. New Orleans got the nod—and the money—after North Carolina passed and has failed to repeal the infamous HB 2, commonly called “the bathroom bill.” Eleven months ago, our General Assembly passed that discriminatory legislation, and it has been downhill ever since.
Not a fan of professional basketball, I probably will not watch the game –much less attend, nor do I favor one team or the other. What I do care deeply about is that Louisiana, not North Carolina, is getting millions in hotel, restaurant, shopping, rental car and tax revenues, while North Carolina is getting nothing but bad press. Front and center on the All-Star Weekend website is this statement: “Due to the North Carolina Transgender bathroom law, the NBA has relocated the 2017 NBA All-Star Weekend.”
This sort of negative publicity has been going on since last March when the bill was enacted, and promptly signed by then Governor Pat McCrory the day after he saw a poll that erroneously reported a majority of North Carolinians supported HB2.

No one knows, of course, the exact cost of HB2, but a November 2016 article by Corrine Jurney in Forbes magazine said at least $630 million and counting. Under the heading “Cross-Industry Carnage,” Forbes lists the aforementioned All-Star game, the loss of NCAA and ACC championship, which recent news reports say might not come back until 2022, decisions by financial services providers PayPal and Deutsche Bank not to expand in North Carolina, entertainers including Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam and Ringo Star, who took a pass on our state, a moratorium on Google Ventures investments here and more. We will never know the businesses, conventions, vacationers and others who quietly made decisions not to come to a state with an openly discriminatory law.

Less quantifiable is the damage done to North Carolina’s once progressive reputation. While jokes may have died down a bit over time, North Carolina remains a regular target of late night comedians. I had my HB2 moment last spring in New York City when an art museum docent overheard a friend and me chatting and asked where we were from. When we replied “North Carolina,” the woman actually blurted “OOOH! How embarrassing!”
So how did we get in this hole, and how do we get out?

We got here not because transgender people were terrorizing other people in public restrooms but because leaders in control of the General Assembly thought HB2 would be a great “run on” issue for their candidates in the 2016 elections. In hindsight, they both misread the people of North Carolina and grossly underestimated the economic consequences of social discrimination. HB2 was a solution in search of a problem that is costing our state both money and our national standing, and it should be repealed immediately.

There are some hopeful signs.

Peder Zane, a conservative columnist for the Raleigh News and Observer, wrote this earlier this month.
“As a practical matter, the so-called bathroom bill was completely unnecessary. It addressed a nonexistent problem. Transgender North Carolinians never posed a threat to their fellow Tar Heels.

“Even its sponsors understand this. That is why, as far as I can tell, there has been zero enforcement of the law. Where are all the biological males cited for using the lady’s room?”
Where, indeed?

Where, indeed?

Legislative leaders failed in a special session to repeal HB2, and they are now saying that all this is Governor Roy Cooper’s fault, that he should come up with a compromise. This is an “alternative fact”—aka, a whopper—if I have ever heard one since Cooper was not in the legislature last year and had at all nothing to do with the enactment of HB2. Nevertheless, he has floated a compromise proposal and says he will keep trying.

People all over North Carolina are giving their legislators an earful about repealing HB2, and so should we. The financial cost and loss of national reputation are mind-boggling to address a problem that even conservatives say never existed.

If HB2 were really such a great idea, wouldn’t other states be stampeding to pass their own “bathroom bills?”

I hear only silence.

There’s a TV show called Law and Order, and like most TV shows and movies, it depicts situations and circumstances as they should be, not necessarily as they are. On this show, criminals break the law, law enforcement hunts them down and arrests them. They go to court, get convicted and go to jail to serve their sentence. Really? Well, all that may eventually happen, but in the real world, chances are it would take years. Many think, as I do, that political correctness has gotten so out of control it has our nation paralyzed with intimidation and fear. As a result,
enforcing the rule of law has taken a back seat to political correctness. Really.

When, and at what point, was it decide that Americans had the right to choose what laws they would or would not obey? This obsession with political correctness has transformed our republic into a revolutionary free-for-all when it comes to obeying and enforcing laws and the doctrines outlined in the U.S. Constitution. Have we allowed slick lawyers and glib politicians to dilute and distort the U.S. Constitution by allowing them to use it for their personal political gain?

These questions need to be asked and answered before our American way of life melts down into anarchy. Cases in point: illegal immigration and sanctuary cities. When was the word illegal redefined in America to mean “no harm, no foul?” It used to be if something was illegal then it is unlawful. Unlawful meaning “against the law.” So, if an act is against the law, then it should be stopped and punished and certainly not rewarded. We encourage lawlessness by rewarding such bad behavior and illegal activities. For illegals we issue driver’s licenses, knowingly hire and shelter them and spend billions of taxpayers’ dollars on medical treatment, welfare and social programs, protecting and sheltering those documented criminals whose own countries have rejected them. Why? Because they have political value. To make matters worse, over the last decade, our inept federal government (Congress) has been transformed into the vehicle of choice for diluting the U.S. Constitution and making the rule of law arbitrary. The two most egregious examples of this are federal funding for sanctuary cities and the proliferation of rights, benefits and legal services extended to illegals while millions of our own natural-born Americans live in poverty, receive inadequate health
care and attend schools with few resources and subpar academic records.

Please don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not down on America nor am I being negative. These are all obvious observations. Our country and our American way of life have become much too politically charged and motivated. Why? Mostly out of the pursuit of greed, money and power. So much so that the checks and balances built into our Constitution by our forefathers (the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government) have been politically homogenized. Homogenized? Maybe a better word for this is contaminated? Either way, it is not a healthy situation and the task of righting America should be both a Democratic or Republican objective. It’s the American thing to do. I’m extremely confident that as American’s it is in our DNA to figure out the best way to preserve our country, our traditions and our American way of life. Let’s get to it!

Thanks for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

Better Health of Cumberland County presents its 20th anniversary Evening at the Theater on March 4, an opportunity for the public to enjoy delectable food, casino tables and dueling pianos while supporting an organization with an inspiring mission. This year’s black and white themed evening and will take place at Cape Fear Botanical Gardens.

Better Health is a nonprofit organization founded by Ruth Peters in 1958 with the vision to “improve access and availability of health care services for the underserved, low-income [Cumberland County] resident … through assistance, referral, and education.”

The organization relies solely on sponsors, grants, individual and corporate donations and fundraising events. Amy Navejas, executive director of Better Health since July 2015, said of Evening at the Theater: “This is our largest fundraiser. It is critical for our operation and the services we provide. One hundred percent of the funds raised go toward our core missions of diabetes treatment and education, emergency direct aid and childhood obesity prevention.”
Evening at the Theater owes its name to its original venue. Twenty years ago the staff, under the direction of then-Executive Director Roberta Humphries, conceived the idea for a fundraising event to be held at Cape Fear Regional Theatre. Since then, the event has evolved every few years in location and content, from dinner and a movie at the Cameo to skits at SkyView. In 2015, sponsor Timothy Edwards proposed to bring in elements of a casino, which proved to be a huge success and greatly increased the fundraising power of the event.

Navejas said, “It’s a lot of fun for everyone! We have a variety of attendees, whether individuals who come because they want to support a wonderful cause, those who are drawn by the casino, or those who want to have a great date night while benefitting the community in the process.”
Due to the popularity of casino-themed entertainment for the past two years, Navejas moved the venue to the Grand Hall and Orangery at Cape Fear Botanical Gardens for this 20th anniversary Evening. The move will create space for more attendees to enjoy the night’s offerings. The casino will have its own space in the Grand Hall, with the UNC-Duke game playing in the background. In the Orangery, adjacent to the Grand Hall, there will be food, bars, seating, room to dance and Blazin’ Keys Entertainment’s dueling pianos.

Dueling pianos is an interactive form of musical entertainment that involves two pianists onstage playing audience-requested songs. Casey Cotton, dueling pianist and founder of Blazin’ Keys, said of the act: “It allows people to be a part of something - a live show. It’s a thrill to see what songs people pick, and I love the challenge of two guys on pianos pulling off a song that it normally takes a whole band to do.” Cotton has played piano for 31 years and has performed in venues across the country, from Savannah Smiles Dueling Pianos in Georgia to Centrale Italian Kitchen & Bar in New York.

The Evening will also feature a 50/50 raffle. Attendees can purchase tickets from showgirls who will be floating between the Grand Hall and Orangery, and at the end of the night the winner will receive half of the cash earnings from raffle ticket purchases. Last year’s winner, Clark Reaves, won $2,000 and donated his winnings back to Better Health. There will be a wager board for the UNC-Duke game, with a gift basket for the person who correctly guesses the final score. Finally, there will be a premium liquor basket presented to the casino player with the highest chip count at the end of the night. “I am most excited about seeing the event come together as a whole,” said Brad Laub, volunteer board member and first-time Chair for this event. “The night is going to be full of excitement and energy!”

If you would like to support Better Health’s mission but cannot attend Evening at the Theatre, there are other ways to get involved. “One of our strongest needs is for volunteers to commit to at least one day a month at our diabetes clinic,” Navejas said. “We also always have shortages on used wheelchairs, scooters, transfer benches and eye glasses.” You can also simply donate cash to help Better Health reach their fundraising goal of $50,000. Visit http://www.betterhealthcc.org and click “How To Help” for more details.

Marilyn Coffield, a registered nurse who has volunteered at Better Health since 1998, said of what she does: “The more I learned about Better Health, as I began working for the organization, the more I admired and resonated with their nonprofit mission. We are so grateful to be able to offer free services. We are so appreciative of the community support for events such as Evening at the Theater. It is a delight to see [people who come through Btter Health’s doors] move forward in their lives. We celebrate and encourage any small gains with them… they do the hard work and we are their cheerleaders!”

Tickets to Evening at the Theater are available for $75 per person using the form under “Events” at betterhealthcc.org or by calling 910-483-7534.

February 15, 2017

Buckle up for another time travel trip with Mr. Peabody and his boy Sherman in the Way Back Machine to celebrate the 100th birthday of 1917. Remember what our old philosophizing buddy George Santanya once said after a few beers while trying to impress a waitress: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Taking heed of George’s words, let’s stroll around the events of just one short century ago. Perhaps a review of the past will allow us to make some sense of our present muddled circumstances and avoid repeating World War I as World War III.

In 1917 Woodrow Wilson was re-elected president. The year started off with a bang when T. E. Lawrence, soon to be Lawrence of Arabia, joined the Arab tribe of Feisal Hussein to fight the Ottoman Empire. In January, the United States made a deal with Denmark and bought the Danish West Indies for $25 million. While not as good a deal as the Dutch got buying Manhattan for $24, it was still a bargain at twice the price. Once the U. S. owned the islands, we renamed them the Virgin Islands for reasons shrouded in Oedipal love and mystery. Owning the Virgin Islands assured us that cruise ships loaded with Norovirus-infected passengers would have a place to dock, throw up and buy T-shirts. In January, the little cable cars that climb halfway to the stars first appeared on the streets of San Francisco where Tony Bennett would, a century later, leave his heart and his liver.

Europe was a bubbling cauldron of toil and trouble as World War I kept boiling over. America was still out of the war at the beginning of 1917. Relations with Germany took a major turn for the wurst when a German submarine sank the U. S. S. Housatonic. President Wilson asked Congress to declare war against Germany in April. The last American troops under General Black Jack Pershing left Mexico in February after vainly chasing Pancho Villa.

Repeating the past, one hundred years later, President Trump threatened to send U. S. troops back into Mexico to round up some more ‘bad hombres.’ Somewhere Pancho is snickering.

The Russian Revolution went into overdrive when Czar Nicholas II ordered his army to put down demonstrations in Petrograd and the army mutinied. Things got worse and Czar Nick abdicated in February, only to end up dead in 1918 at the hands of the Commies. In August 1917, Pravda, the official newspaper of the communists called for the killing of all capitalists, priests and officers. A hundred years later, to the surprise of many Republicans and Democrats, President Trump announced the moral equivalency of Russia and America. The Commies took over Russia in October and with Lenin, Trotsky and Stalin their leaders. Things don’t always work out when there is a triumvirate of leaders. Leon Trotsky had a falling out with Stalin. Leon ultimately ended up with a severe headache brought on by the wrong end of an ice axe delivered at the request of Stalin decades later. Cheka, the secret police force of the Commies was established in December 1917. Cheka begat the KGB, which begat Vladimir Putin, who begat The Donald.

Not everything in 1917 was war or rumors of war. Some other stuff happened also. The first jazz record “Dixie Jazz One Step” was recorded by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. Montana’s Jeannette Rankin was elected as first female Representative in the U.S. Congress. Prohibition in the form of the 18th Amendment was approved by Congress and sent to the states for ratification, much to the delight of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr., gangsters and teetotalers everywhere.

America’s first draftee in World War I, the immortal Leo Pinckney was inducted into the Army in May 1917. It was awkward to have Germans serve as British royalty during World War I. The British Royal family was of German descent and renounced its family name of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha in July. They changed their last name to the much more stiff-upper-lip and crumpet-chomping sounding name of Windsor. That name change saved us from having to say Queen Elizabeth Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.

America’s favorite G-Man and cross-dresser, J. Edgar Hoover got his first job at the U.S. Department of Justice in July. Speaking of spies, the Dutch temptress Mata Hari was executed as a German spy in France in October. History is silent on whether J. Edgar ever dressed as Mata Hari. The “last successful cavalry charge in history” occurred in October 1917 at the Battle of Beersheba in Palestine when the Australian cavalry attacked and defeated the Germans and the Turks.

What can we learn from history? Not much. Excuse me, I just got a picture of a cat on my cell phone.

For such a small organization, Sustainable Sandhills has a big impact on the community. From green schools programs to forums about climate preparedness to an environmentally-focused film series and locavore pop up dinners, this organization is not afraid to get creative when it comes to important issues. On March 10-11, Sustainable Sandhills and Fayettevile Technical Community College will host the Sandhills Clean Energy Summit. Each day includes a keynote luncheon with a speaker along with several forums, discussions and panels covering topics related to just about every aspect of clean/renewable energy.

“Friday is more focused on the business perspective. We will have professionals in sustainable energy fields there to talk, as well as people who work in energy policy,” said Denise Bruce, green action coordinator at Sustainable Sandhills. “So if you are a small-business owner looking to find out about clean energy or learning about how energy policies affect business and industry, this is a day you won’t want to miss. Something that I think will be really fun is that we are touring a local solar farm at the end of the day. Tickets for the tour are limited, though. Those who don’t go on the tour are invited to stay and network.”

The event is at FTCC. Doors open at 11 a.m. The keynote luncheon runs from 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Bruce noted that this is the only part of the event (each day) that requires purchasing a ticket. It is $25 per ticket to attend the luncheon.

From 1-2 p.m. Friday, attendees can choose from three topics: Renewable Energy Investing and Infrastructure opportunities for Your Business; Land Use Planning for Solar Installation; and Solar Farm Operations and Maintenance.

From 2:15-3:15 p.m., topics include The State of Energy in North Carolina and Energy Efficiency in Business and Government.

At 3:15 p.m., loading for the solar tour begins. Departure for the tour is at 3:30 p.m. At FTCC, from 3:30 p.m., attendees are invited to attend a networking session with representatives from Key Energy and Tom Butler of Butler Bio Farms.

Saturday is more consumer oriented. “We will be talking about things like jobs in the clean energy field and how people can get training that will prepare them to work in this field. We will also be talking about things like climate resilience and social justice and power.”

Saturday’s events also begin with registration, which runs from 11 – 11:30 a.m. Opening remarks are at 11:30 a.m.followed by a speaker.
Topics from 1-2 p.m. cover home energy efficiency, training and workforce development opportunities and climate resilience. From 2:15-3:15 p.m., speakers will talk about social justice and power, community solar issues and electric vehicles and EV infrastructure. Climate talks and closing remarks are from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

In conjunction with the Clean Energy Summit is the World Climate Simulation. It takes place March 11 from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the FTCC General Classroom building. It is an interactive simulation of the International Climate Negotiations. A collaboration between Climate Interactive and MIT, this simulation is based on the COP22 climate conference held in Marrakesh, Morocco, in November 2016. Participants are cast in roles as world leaders who have gathered to produce an agreement to reduce CO2 emissions enough to limit global warming to 2 degrees Celsius by the year 2100. Register at gogreen.ccs.k12.nc.us.

Speakers throughout the Clean Energy Summit include professionals and experts in their respective fields.
Gary Bilbro is president of SMART Recycling U.S., which provides services including food waste diversion to composting, anaerobic digestion and energy generation. SMART is claimed to be the cleanest, easiest, least expensive and most efficient food diversion program that exists.

Jay Blauser is UNC Pembroke’s first sustainability director and chief sustainability officer. Blauser and his team work to minimize the university’s global warming emissions and to educate graduates about social, environmental and economic issues.

Mark Brown is Senior Customer Programs Officer at Fayetteville Public Works Commission. His team develops energy and water efficiency programs, services and tools that make it possible for PWC customers to take advantage of the company’s smart grid initiatives.

Stephan Caldwell is the creator of the Grease for Good program. This program helps communities see how locally-made biofuels can benefit the community not only as an energy source but also as a tool to educate and inspire others.

Kacey Hoover has a strong technical background in regulatory, government affairs, and market trends pertinent to the industry. Hoover currently serves as North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association’s Strategic Relations Manager.

Ken Jennings is the Renewable Strategy & Policy Director for Duke Energy Carolinas and works out of the Raleigh Office. He’s held numerous business roles and ultimately landed in the regulatory policy field. Throughout his career, he has developed new generating facilities, managed business analytics teams, testified in numerous rate proceedings in multiple states.

Jodie Lasseter will attend on behalf of Power Up NC. Lasseter works closely with community leaders and environmental justice organizations to build grassroots power throughout the U.S. and abroad.

Katie LeBrato is the marketing communications director at NC GreenPower. She brings leadership to their Communications Working Group and Sustainability Group.

Jay Lucas works for the Public Staff of the North Carolina Utilities Commission where he has managed the regulatory aspects of the state’s Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard since 2009.

To find out more about Sustainable Sandhills or to register for the Clean Energy Summit, visit http://www.sustainablesandhills.org/sandhills-clean-energy-summit.

Charlotte’s Web is a classic children’s novel. It was written by E.B. White and illustrated by Garth Williams. The book was published in October of 1952. Since it was first published the book has been a mainstay in schools and home’s across the nation. In 2000, Publishers Weekly named the book as the best-selling children’s paperback of all time, a truly amazing honor. The Children’s Literature Association named it, “the best American children’s book of the past two hundred years,” another incredible title that speaks to the book’s combination of critical acclaim and mass popularity.

“Each year a few students are selected to choose the shows for the following semester. It is then given to our professor and the chair to decide. The vote for this show was unanimous because of it childlike wonder and sense of nostalgia,” said FSU spokesperson Christina Jones.

The story centers around a pig named Wilbur who is the runt of his litter. Wilbur lives on a farm and is in danger of being slaughtered by the farmer. Luckily, Wilbur’s barnyard friend steps in to save his life. The little spider, Charlotte, writes messages in her web that convinces the farmer to leave the little pig alone. Wilbur goes on to compete in the county fair while Charlotte lays an egg sac full of her unborn young. Wilbur returns to the farm and helps care for the eggs until they hatch and Charlotte subsequently dies.

Iris McBride (Wilbur) is a sophomore at Fayetteville State University and a double major in both theatre, and music. Morgan Pierce (Fern) is a freshman at South View High School and “loves theatre more than anything else.” Tracyie Zapata-Kuhn (Charlotte) is a graduating senior at Fayetteville State University with a major in theatre. She has played lead roles in previous children’s shows, such as the rabbit in The Velveteen Rabbit, Laura in Rumplestiltskin, and the wife in The Fisherman and His Wife.

FSU presents Charlotte’s Web the play written by Joseph Robinette. Robinette worked with E.B. White to create a stage adaptation true to the spirit of the original story. There will be school performances on Feb. 16 and 17 at 9:15 a.m.and 10:45 a.m. There is also a public performance on February 18th at 10 A.M. This is a perfect opportunity to see the stage production as a family and to share the classic tale with friends and families of all ages. Tickets for the general public are $10. Tickets can be purchased through the FSU Box Office by calling 910.672.1724.

Charlotte’s Web does not mark the end of the season for FSU. April 6-8 will feature Passing Strange by Stew and Heidi Rodewald. This show combines comedy, drama and rock music. The musical takes place in Europe and focuses on a story of self-discovery for a young African American. The show is critically acclaimed and has received a Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical.

For years the FSU Theater program has brought high-quality shows to the community for very affordable prices while also developing the skills and talents of the students in the program. While looking for ways to engage in the lively artistic community thriving in Fayetteville, don’t forget to look at the FSU Season. It offers a wide variety of excellent shows and provides an opportunity to support the growing artists in the area.

On Feb. 21, the Crown Theater will present the show Brain Candy Live! at 7:30 p.m. The show features two entertainment powerhouses, both individually known for their creative pursuits of knowledge: Adam Savage and Michael Stevens. Savage is known for his work on television and Steven’s has made a name for himself with his popular YouTube channel called Vsauce. Together they use the stage, some science and some convenient optical illusions to create a fun evening full of creativity and learning.

Stevens has a background in neuropsychology and a love for performing onstage. When YouTube was invented, it gave him the perfect platform to combine these two passions. The goal of his channel, Vsauce, is to engage people in a fun and comfortable way, like hanging out with friends, he explains. But it all starts with questions that can come from anywhere, even fans. And he truly means any sort of questions. “I especially like the joke ones. I did one on why is it called our bottom if it is in the middle of our body. The question was an entry to talk about how interesting that there are no other animal that have a butt as big in relation to their body as we do,” Stevens said. “One of the leading hypotheses about why we have unique butts is that they are big pieces of muscle we have because we are runners. We don’t have claws, fangs or venom, so the only way to hunt for prey before we had tools was endurance hunting. Even though an antelope can run faster it can’t run longer. You run till it needs to stop and you keep running.”

Despite his YouTube experience interacting with audiences, Brain Candy Live! is inherently different. “On YouTube when I talk, I have all these barriers. I record a video, and all you can do is listen and watch, but for the most part, there is a wall between me and the audience. If I want you to smell something or hear something, the mic can’t pick that up. I’m stuck. But all these things are possible during a live event,” Stevens said.

The combination of Savage and Stevens onstage is electric. Both have entertainment experience and engaging personalities that encourage audience participation. They ramp this up even more by purposefully bringing up audience members to participate in their demonstrations and experiments. The audience participates in nearly every part of the show. This personal touch guarantees that every demonstration, though it may be incredibly complex, is understandable and fun for the whole family. The goal here is to wow and dazzle, but not through magic, through understandable and relatable science.

The show is two hours long and does include an intermissio. The show in Fayetteville is particularly special. It is the world debut of Brain Candy Live! and Stevens’ first experience touring. If everything goes well there is the possibility of another Brain Candy show with a new theme in the future. Tickets range from $99.50 for the VIP to $25. To purchase tickets or for more information visit www.crowncomplexnc.com.

Community Concerts will bring the band Foreigner, one of the most popular rock acts in the world, to the Crown Theatre on Saturday, Feb. 25.

Michael Fleishman, Community Concerts Attractions Director, said of the upcoming show: “Foreigner is rock royalty. When it comes to hits, Foreigner is in the same realm as groups like Journey, Fleetwood Mac and The Eagles.

They’ve had amazing success, you know all the songs and we’re very lucky to have them. It’s gonna be a zoo in there! We are anticipating full capacity.”

English musician and lead guitarist Mick Jones established Foreigner in 1976, propelled by a desire “to combine Blues and R&B with British rock and make it sound soulful and authentic.” Jones and his original band mates, including Lou Gramm as lead vocalist, rocketed to stardom when they released their self-titled debut album in 1977. This album produced immediate hits such as “Feels Like The First Time,” “Cold As Ice” and “Long, Long Way from Home.”
Foreigner has grown with the times – both in its membership and audience. Today, the band boasts 10 multi-platinum albums and sixteen Top 30 hits spanning a 40-year legacy. Jones remains the band’s heartbeat and leader, but he is now joined by vocalist Kelly Hansen (since 2007), bassist Jeff Pilson, multi-instrumentalist Tom Gimbel, guitarist Bruce Watson, Michael Bluestein on keyboards and Chris Frazier on drums.

According to Hansen, “The best part about being in this band is getting the chance to do something I feel I was meant to do…what happens on stage with this group of guys is something rare and palpable. It’s like the old saying, if I have to describe it, you wouldn’t understand.”

And Foreigner’s music’s appeal has not faded with the digital age, being featured in popular films such as “Anchorman 2,” “Magic Mike” and “Pitch Perfect” as well as the video game “Grand Theft Auto V.” Their most popular hits today include “I Want To Know What Love Is,” “Waiting For A Girl Like You” and “Double Vision.”

Community Concerts, responsible for bringing Foreigner to the Crown and holding the title of Fayetteville’s oldest art organization, was founded in 1935. The organization is an “all-volunteer, non-profit whose goal is to bring the finest in top-notch entertainment to Fayetteville.”

After the Foreigner concert on Feb. 25, Community Concerts will host the Australian singing sensation and world-renowned music group The Ten Tenors on March 18. This concert will be preceded by a short induction ceremony for new members into The Fayetteville Music Hall of Fame. Now going on its 10th year, The Fayetteville Music Hall of Fame was founded by Community Concerts to honor those who have brought musical distinction to the community.

This year’s season finale will take place on April 11 when Community Concerts features the Broadway smash hit, “RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles.”

Tickets to Foreigner range from $39.50 to $89.50 and are available in person at the Crown Box Office or online at www.CapeFearTix.com. There is a VIP package available when you buy online, which includes a pre-show photo with the band and an autographed limited edition CD, along with other bonuses.

The City of Fayetteville is partnering with Cumberland County Schools to support and help fund a program that encourages students to explore careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The mission of Career and Technical Education is to help empower students for effective participation in a global economy as world-class workers and citizens. “This year we would like to hire between 30 and 40 student interns with an investment of $50,000,” said City Councilman Kirk deViere. That would build on the initial project this past year that saw 16 students spend time working alongside city staff as paid interns.

Career and technical education provides students the opportunity to participate in actual work-based programs. Students will learn the relevance of their education and apply acquired knowledge in a meaningful way through exposure to the real workplace, in this case, municipal government. The program will last between four and six weeks, from June 19 to July 28. 

Student opportunities for internships include:

Agricultural Education, which provides students an integrated educational model that focuses them on careers in food, fiber and environmental systems.

Business and Information Technology Education, which is a program designed to integrate business and information technology skills into the middle and high school curriculum.

Career Development Education, which involves students, parents, teachers, counselors and the community. The goal is to help students make good decisions about themselves and their futures.

Family and Consumer Sciences Education, which prepares students for careers working with individuals and families. The concept of work, whether in a family or career, is central to the program area.

Health Science Education program, which seeks to meet the needs of health care workers. The program recruits and prepares qualified and motivated students for appropriate health careers.

Marketing Education, which prepares students for careers in marketing and management. It encompasses activities within production, as well as aspects of consumption.

Technology Education, which helps students develop an appreciation for and understanding of technology through the study and application of materials, tools, processes, inventions, structures and artifacts of the past and present.

Trade and Industrial Education, which is a secondary program that provides students the opportunity to advance in a wide range of trade and industrial occupations.

Cumberland County Schools staff will collect weekly time sheets of participating students, deposit monies earned into participants’ accounts, keep detailed records of total hours/amounts paid and provide the City of Fayetteville and other partners with documentation of the recorded hours and wages. “The City of Fayetteville provides a professional contact person to serve as a liaison between the school system and the city, and to assist as needed,” said Council Member Larry Wright.

The City will also be working directly with PWC to provide additional funding. Recruitment of additional businesses to support the jobs would come through Chamber of Commerce and partnerships with the County and Cape Fear Valley Hospital as well as PWC. Job partners would share 50% of the cost of the interns.

Cumberland County local government officials have known property values were falling for the last eight years, but apparently were unable to stop the plunge. The downturn was first noticed during the appeal process following the release of 2009 property values. “We weren’t expecting it. It kind of happened all of a sudden,” said Tax Administrator Joe Utley. The 2009 revaluation was published toward the tail end of The Great Recession, which officially lasted from December 2007 to June 2009. It began with the bursting of an $8 trillion housing bubble. The resulting loss of wealth led to sharp cutbacks in consumer spending combined with financial market chaos which led to a collapse in business investment.

“Although other communities in our state have seen significant growth since the recession, Cumberland County’s economy continues with a pattern of weak growth,” said County Manager Amy Cannon early last year. She primarily blames a reduction of troops at Fort Bragg. During the recession, the military was still at full strength, she said, and that kept sales tax revenues up and property values had not been affected. “The local economy thrives during major conflicts,” Cannon said, noting that wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were still going strong. When soldiers return from deployments they spend a lot of money “so our sales tax revenues were up while other counties surrounding us saw a significant drop in their sales tax,” added Cannon.

Utley noted that sales tax revenues began dropping off in 2011. Add to that a decline in the number of soldiers at Fort Bragg. “It doesn’t take a huge fluctuation in military contractors or troops to have an effect on our economy,” Cannon noted. County officials say a net loss of about 2,000 troops began the downward spiral in local consumer spending. “Our sales tax revenues remain stagnant” as property values continue to decline, the manager added. Cannon said in 2014 the county began doing serious research trying to figure out what to do about the reduction of property values and a correlated lack of population growth.

County Commissioners “look to us for solutions and options,” said Cannon. A significant disadvantage for Cumberland County is that 74 percent of the tax base is residential as opposed to industry and commerce. “The downturn in property values was scattered rather than concentrated, said Utley. “From our perspective, it’s very difficult to compare our county with any other community,” Cannon said. “We struggle with that.” Because Fort Bragg’s land area is not taxable, we are unique. Our tax base per capita is significantly lower than other metropolitan areas,” she noted. The Fayetteville / Fort Bragg community lost another 1,900 troops in the last couple of years because of federal sequestration.

But, there is hope for the future. Cannon says the growth of downtown Fayetteville will spur the economy because that’s where millennials want to live. “We are better known today among developers and site selectors than we were just two years ago,” Cannon insisted. “I just believe we have some real opportunities for economic development.”

Tax Administrator Utley points to “$70 million in growth this past year – nine new shopping centers, three new hotels and three apartment complexes.” Utley’s expectations for economic growth include distribution, back office development such as business incubators, warehousing and minor textile sectors. Cannon believes there will be new growth at Fort Bragg. The FY2017 National Defense Authorization Act raises the Army’s end strength to just over a million soldiers for all components, according to Sgt. Maj. Of the Army Daniel A. Dailey. “We’re not in a drawdown anymore; we’re in an increase situation,” Dailey added.

Fayetteville City Manager Doug Hewett has decided to reorganize his administration team, which includes retaining Deputy Manager Kristoff Bauer as his No. 2. Bauer, 51, became deputy city manager seven-and-a-half years ago, but it’s been a rocky tenure. He was asked to submit his resignation last fall. Hewett also asked former Deputy Manager Rochelle Small-Toney to resign. Within one week, she cleared out her office and left town in October. Small-Toney remained on the city’s payroll through the end of the year to care for her ailing parents. Up & Coming Weekly learned last September of the deputy managers’ impending departures from sources with direct knowledge of the situation.

As part of Hewett’s reorganization of his administration, he decided this month to replace Small-Toney. That position as a deputy manager had been left open since her departure. Her successor will be redesignated an assistant manager. The third member of the administrative management team is Assistant Manager Jay Reinstein. “I do not anticipate any other structural changes in the organization,” Hewett said.
Bauer was hired in August 2009 by then City Manager Dale Iman. He holds dual bachelor’s degrees, an MBA and a law degree, all from the University of Washington. He was passed over for promotion in April when former Manager

Ted Voorhees was fired. Hewett got the job as Interim City Manager. Several years ago, Hewett served as an assistant manager but left town when Iman was let go in 2012. A year later, Hewett came back to Fayetteville to take a middle management position.

Under the council/manager form of local government in North Carolina, elected city councils hire and fire only their chief executives and city attorneys. Hewett was serving as Interim City Manager until the first of the year when the council gave him a one-year employment contract. That was unprecedented. Some council members said confidentially the one-year agreement would give Hewett an opportunity to prove himself. Hewett’s original plan for Bauer, sources said, was to keep him on temporarily in a consultant’s role.

City Hall dynamics in late 2016 saw Bauer take on some of Small-Toney’s responsibilities, thereby enhancing his position. And he became the chief architect of development plans for the minor-league baseball stadium that will be under construction this summer. Hewett and Bauer became more interdependent as Hewett found himself spending time working more closely with city council. Bauer won’t deny that the new arrangement gave him a chance to earn his way back into his boss’s good graces, which he did. Despite his talents, Bauer previously had disagreements with some colleagues and members of city council. Some of those associates have said in confidence they’ve seen a change for the better in his persona.

Except to confirm an inquiry from Up & Coming Weekly on the recent reorganization of his office, Hewett cites state personnel privacy laws as reasons he cannot comment on or confirm our reporting.

Fayetteville City Council is concerned about the accidental death of a teen who died after being struck by a car seconds after she disembarked from a FAST bus. The mishap in late January occurred on Murchison Road when Miyosha Noel-Davis, 16, stepped into traffic from the front of the bus and was hit by an oncoming car. She died several days later at UNC Medical Center in Chapel Hill. “Our training teaches our bus operators not to have passengers cross in front of the bus,” said Randy Hume, Transit Director. He said signs are posted inside buses saying “CAUTION-Do Not Cross in Front of the Bus.” City councilwoman Kathy Jensen declared teenagers cannot be expected to use caution. Councilman Larry Wright suggested FAST coaches be equipped with extended crossing arms like those on some school buses. They discourage passengers from crossing in front of buses. They are asked to use the rear door when getting off buses to allow people who are getting on the bus to use the front door, said Hume.

City to Recover Haz Mat Costs
The Fayetteville Fire Department will be reimbursed for costs associated with a major gasoline tanker truck accident early this month. Fire crews found a fully-loaded tanker truck on its side on Murchison Rd near the future I-295. The tanker carried 8800 gallons of gasoline, according to Battalion Chief David Richtmeyer. A fuel leak was discovered and the department’s hazardous materials team was called to the scene. The state’s Haz-Mat Regional Response Team-3, which is manned by Fayetteville Firefighters, also responded because the situation “required a higher level of equipment and manpower for mitigation,” said Fire Marshal Michael Martin. He did not indicate how much fuel was spilled before it could be contained. The gasoline was pumped into another tanker in a procedure that took several hours. The state will bill the owner of the truck, and the city will be reimbursed for its costs. There were no injuries. State statutes and a local ordinance allow the fire department to recover costs associated with dealing with hazardous materials incidents.

Army Pharmacy Opens
The new Womack Army Medical Center Pharmacy Annex opened for business this month. It’s fully operational, providing refill distribution services plus hard copy and electronic prescriptions. It has also assumed the weekend pharmacy mission from the main outpatient pharmacy at the hospital which no longer operates on Saturdays. The annex is located off Reilly Road, in front of the mini-mall across the street from the Iron Mike Conference and Catering Center. “The new pharmacy will improve efficiency by providing everything right there at one location,” said Col. Jorge Carrillo, Chief of the Department of Pharmacy, WAMC. The new pharmacy also has a drive-thru window for refill prescription pickup.
Weed for Vets
A clinical trial designed to determine whether smoking marijuana is an effective treatment for PTSD among veterans is underway. The study will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of using medicinal marijuana to help vets manage their symptoms, officials with the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies said in a news release this month. The study is funded by a $2 million grant from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Colorado’s Amendment 64 was passed by voters in 2012 which led to the legalization of marijuana in 2014. The new study will monitor four levels of marijuana potency in 76 veterans. The data gathered is intended for clinicians and legislators who will consider whether marijuana is an appropriate treatment for PTSD. Volunteers will complete 17 outpatient visits over a 12-week period, with follow-up visits in six months. “As this is the first placebo-controlled trial of cannabis for PTSD, we are breaking important ground needed to identify improved treatment options for veterans with PTSD,” said Marcel Bonn-Miller of the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. The research was approved in 2014 by the federal Health and Human Services Department.

College Fair
A college fair for rising freshmen among historically black colleges and universities will be held in Fayetteville on March 18. It will be held at Smith Recreation Center, 1520 Slater Avenue, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Program highlights include students being able to connect directly with college admissions representatives to learn about local scholarship opportunities. And they’ll be able to attend college planning seminars. A light lunch will be served. There are 11 historically black colleges and universities in North Carolina, including our own Fayetteville State University.

Local government is going for the trifecta of acting for the public good.

Previously, we published the exclusive story that the city of Fayetteville is starting in earnest its hunt for a new “permanent” police chief. The move could possibly remove the popular and very able interim Chief Anthony Kelly, who insiders say may not seek the permanent post.

But the cool thing about the police chief recruitment is the city will use citizens in the selection process, although that process has yet to be defined. Still, it’s a good thing to allow people who pay the bills to have some say about how they are governed, or in this instance, policed.

Before that, we wrote about the proposed merger of the city and the county independently operated 911 emergency call centers. The driving force behind that move to play nice with each other is to enhance that important life-saving public service and to eventually save taxpayer dollars. Citizens win on that one.

This week we’ve learned that Cumberland County elected officials and the city’s Public Works Commission met to talk about water. Yes, water for areas of the county that need that very common commodity but have a problem getting it. The Gray’s Creek community is one such place.

The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners at its retreat in late January questioned whether the Fayetteville Public Works Commission could provide water to the unincorporated areas of the county; especially those areas that are in dire need of safe drinking water.

But those questions by commissioners were tossed at the county’s engineer who happened to be there and could only guess what PWC could or couldn’t do.
County commissioners didn’t waste time looking for answers. Commission Chairman Glenn Adams today acknowledged to me that he and County Manager Amy Cannon recently met with PWC Chairwoman Evelyn Shaw and PWC Manager David Trego.

Adams said they discussed “possibilities and options” available but gave no details. “After that information is gathered, we will have a follow-up meeting,” he said.
The city of Fayetteville, which owns the Public Works Commission, in the past, used municipal water and sewer services as leverage to get unincorporated areas needing those services to agree to be annexed. That was a bitter pill for many to swallow, especially developers.

It was the only option available to grow the city since the General Assembly banned municipalities from forced annexation. The law repealing forced annexation by North Carolina municipalities came as a result of Fayetteville’s 2005 Big Bang Annexation.

And the onus put on PWC by the city to build costly water and sewer lines in the annexed areas strained the relationship between the city and its utility. The long, simmering internal feud about which of the two ultimately controls the utility came to a head last year when PWC sued the city over the issue. PWC won the court battle and won greater autonomy from its owner.

This past summer, PWC did away with the requirement for any areas or housing/commercial developments to agree to be annexed if it wanted water.

Local developers lauded the move because it opens opportunities to build subdivisions and commercial properties in the county with safe, clean tap water.

And developers won’t be yoked with urban development standards required when you build in the city.

That could be a good and bad thing, depending on where developers will cut corners to cut costs and increase margins. Time will tell.

PWC spokeswoman Carolyn Justice-Hinson said one of PWC’s strategic goals is to work with the county and support economic development. That’s a given when you realize the PWC’s board consists primarily of business minded individuals.

Despite losing a leverage to grow the city, Mayor Nat Robertson said the City Council is OK with PWC extending water outside the city limits.

Besides, the PWC won its partial emancipation from the city as a result of the court case … which taxpayers and ratepayers funded.

“We support countywide water for economic development,” Mayor Robertson said. The city still has a chance to annex when an area asks for sewer, he said.

Councilman Bill Crisp agrees. “PWC is autonomous. They have the power and authority to do this without the city,” he said.

“Personally, I’ve always said it is God’s water and should be available to everyone.”

One of the Precious Jewels has purchased a first home in a North Carolina city, not unlike Fayetteville. It is a small, one-story bungalow from the 1930s that has been updated over the years, including the blessing of a master bathroom addition. The rest of the house remains as it was built, including an off-kilter fireplace that was apparently an homage to the Art Deco style so fashionable at that time.

The little house is in a neighborhood where people walk dogs and stroll babies along sidewalks installed decades ago by the city and chat with each other while they do it. School buses lumber by twice a day this time of year. Some houses are newer and much grander than the little bungalow with the funky fireplace, and some are slightly more modest. The residents are of all ages and heritages, and there is a university nearby so a student presence filters through as well.

In other words, it is a neighborhood much like Fayetteville’s own Haymount, a smorgasbord area of single-family homes, several churches and the occasional garage apartment, with a small commercial district at its center.

Full disclosure. I have lived almost all my life in Haymount, in a total of six different houses scattered on both sides of Fort Bragg Road, ranging in age and style from the 1930s to midcentury modern. I loved them all for different reasons—the one I grew up in, my own first bungalow-ish house, the one the Precious Jewels grew up in and our final one with its easy grace and low-rise steps. I loved my neighbors, too—from the babies whose arrivals were announced with pink or blue bows to the old ladies who wore stockings even in August to the Haymount “characters” no one will ever forget.

Fayetteville city planners, and thank goodness, we have some, are now studying Haymount to determine not only how to preserve and protect its character but also how to enhance the neighborhood. At a time when Fayetteville is growing, especially with new residential developments, there is a sense of concern about preserving what we have for those who have loved living there for years and those who will love it in the future.

But Haymount has had some issues in recent years. A large home on Oakridge Avenue was torn down to make way for five newly constructed homes, but that old house is not the only one to have made way for more and newer homes. The same thing has happened along Raeford and Morganton Roads and side streets in between. Commercial interests have also been sniffing around, most recently and publicly a school proposed in an antebellum mansion on Morganton Road. Fayetteville City Council said a resounding no to that, but it is surely not the last request. And, the Haymount commercial area, including the famed Cape Fear Regional Theater, is far less than pedestrian and bike friendly. Finding some green space or a bench to watch the world go by is a challenge as well.

Fayetteville has established something called a Neighborhood Conservation District, which requires new construction to conform in scale and character of existing buildings, but no individual neighborhood has been designated thus far. Haymount would seem a likely candidate for that designation, maintaining the eclectic feel of the neighborhood without undue burdens on builders or homeowners who want to do something a little different. Such a district would set parameters but would not regulate color, style, renovations or demolitions, when necessary.

Much of the charm of Haymount is that no one would ever call it “cookie cutter” or even a “residential development” and certainly not a “subdivision.” Haymount has grown up over more than two centuries and encompasses buildings from many eras and of many styles, ranging from the still vacant antebellum mansion to our midcentury modern to newer zero lot line construction. Its churches range from wood-frame buildings to a grand stone sanctuary, and commercial buildings from early 20th century to convenience store modern. 

Count me among the cheerleaders for Haymount and for the careful study the City of Fayetteville is undertaking. Haymount, often referred to as Historic Haymount, makes our community unique and is among the memories people take away from Fayetteville. The study is an attempt to figure out this community resource and make it better not just for the people who live in Haymount but for all who visit there, shop there, eat there, worship there, see plays there and generally enjoy time there.

Other cities cherish their historic neighborhoods, like the one with the house with the funky fireplace. Fayetteville can and should as well.

I feel myself cheering already.

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High School Sports Take Center Court with Earl Vaughan Jr.

For the first time in Up & Coming Weekly’s 21-year publishing history, we have assembled a tour de force of community athletic talent to create a new, exciting and entertaining section in our weekly newspaper, titled, High School Highlights. As the name implies, this weekly section will focus on showcasing Cumberland County’s “up & coming” high school athletes, their schools, coaches, programs, teachers and events.
We are equally excited and proud to announce that no one is more talented or qualified to address these topics than our Senior Sports Editor, Earl Vaughan, Jr. We are extremely excited about having Earl on board to develop this new addition to Up & Coming Weekly. Earl has a genuine passion for this community, high school sports and for supporting developing young athletes. No one appreciates the value of education and high school sports more than Earl. He will be bringing a new dimension to showcasing these high school athletes by recognizing those who also excel in academics. High School Highlights will showcase these “Scholar Athletes” each week.

With this new section comes a very important educational initiative: Newspapers in Education. Unfortunately, today 33 percent of our students read below grade level. Illiteracy among children is increasing at a breakneck speed. Under this program, high school students of Cumberland County will be encouraged not only to read but to write. In addition to providing Up & Coming Weekly newspapers in bulk to all the area high schools each week, the students will be able to submit for publication news, views, poetry and general interest articles on topics relevant to them as young adults.

In support of Earl’s high school scholar-athlete program, Up & Coming Weekly will be partnering with Don Koonce and the DK Sports crew during their weekly radio broadcasts for the 2017 football season. Up & Coming Weekly will be advertising and promoting High School Highlights where DK Sports will be radio broadcasting their popular Games of the Week.

Hey, our newspaper is getting bigger and better as our community becomes bigger and better. Thank you for your support and for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

 Editor’s note: For years, our publisher has advocated for a local TV station. Read more about this topic on page 7.

Many people have wondered over time why Fayetteville doesn’t have a full-service commercial TV station. Community leaders including Bill Bowman, publisher of Up & Coming Weekly, bemoan how the lack of a local television station negatively affects Fayetteville, making ours the largest city in the Southeast not to have one. Four-term mayor, Tony Chavonne, has been concerned about that for many years. “For the past 50 years, we have been in the unfortunate situation of having no local television station in our market. In fact, I believe we are one of the largest urban markets in the country that does not have at least one local television station … It is particularly frustrating as you look at smaller communities in the region – Wilmington, Florence, etc. – that have local television operations,” he said.

There are many reasons why Fayetteville isn’t served by a local TV station. The most important reasons date back to the early 1950s. Fayetteville was a town of less than 40,000 people then. The major metropolitan areas of our state, including Charlotte, the Triad and Triangle were big enough to be in the running for the few television licenses available then. WBTV in Charlotte and WFMY in Greensboro were the first TV stations on the air in North Carolina, both in 1949. WTVD in Durham went on the air in 1954 followed by WRAL in 1956. The bottom line is the bigger cities had stakes in VHF television before anyone in Fayetteville thought about it. Investors had their financial packages ready to go. They had done their due diligence in lining up community support and had made applications with the Federal Communications Commission for licenses to operate. And they all had lined up network affiliations with ABC, NBC and CBS. These were the early days of commercial television. Video was in black and white. There were no cable or satellite services.

The rule of thumb when VHF stations were at a premium was that TV signals could not be duplicated on the same channels within 100 air miles of each other. By the time someone in Fayetteville thought about seeking a license, VHF channels two through 13 were taken. Oh sure, WFLB-TV went on the air from studios on Bragg Boulevard in 1955. But it operated on the UHF band. The FCC had released a few UHF channels for television use in 1952.

Those early UHF signals were subject to interference. The channels generally had less clear signals, and for some markets, like Fayetteville, they became the home of smaller broadcasters who were not willing to bid on the more coveted VHF allocations. Worst of all, TV sets needed converters to switch from the popular VHF channels to upstart UHF stations.
VHF was used for analog television stations and continues to be used for digital television on channels two through 13. The issues involving UHF outlets were greatly reduced many years later with the advent of digital television and cable distribution.

As reported in The Fayetteville Observer 20 years ago, “the future for television broadcasting in Fayetteville, as in many other cities across the land, held great promise. But WFLB-TV went black after only three years on the air. UHF had shown to be unprofitable in competition with stations on the VHF band, not only in Fayetteville but throughout the nation.” The newspaper, in its former Lifestyles section, noted that “UHF sputtered for a long time until years later when the FCC mandated that all TV manufacturers had to have UHF on their sets. The first cable customers in Fayetteville weren’t hooked up until 1964.”

Everything began to change then. UHF Channel 40 came on the air in Fayetteville in 1981 as WKFT-TV, the first independent station in eastern North Carolina but it had no network affiliation. Fox didn’t come along for many years thereafter. In 1985, it was sold to SJL Broadcasting. The new owners built a new 1,800-foot tower and operated with 5-million watts of power. The station rebranded itself as “Counterforce 40” and significantly upgraded its programming, including some local news. But, it operated on a low budget and by 1989, the station was in dire financial straits. In 1985, another group had received FCC access to UHF TV channel 62. WFCT had studios in Lumber Bridge. In 1993 WFCT changed its name to WFAY and a year later became a Fox network affiliate. WKFT-TV was purchased by Univision Communications in 2003. The station later moved from its longtime studios in downtown Fayetteville to a new facility in Raleigh offering Spanish language programming.

Chavonne notes that our community of more than 300,000 people has depended on news coverage from Raleigh and Durham. “The net effect of that occasional television coverage from news operations from out of the community is they don’t have the real pulse of the citizens because they are not here invested every day. Too often it results in misleading, and occasionally headline-grabbing stories told in 30-second soundbites. These stories often miss the real picture and in some ways are reflective of the drive-by media we hear of so often.”

Chavonne continues. “They seldom are able to invest the time in delving into the story to get the facts accurate. While they cover a visually-appealing change of command, they drive by thousands of military family members, each with a great personal story about living in a community that supports them like Fayetteville does. The 911 calls get the headlines but the real stories of our community are rarely covered.”
Chavonne also noted, “The perception of our community across the region and the state is negatively impacted by this limited and incomplete TV coverage. At the end of the day, residents of the communities, and the important role of a vibrant free press in our democratic society, suffer. Add to that today’s low level of attention afforded by the reader who too-often is content with getting their news from tweets and soundbites and too-often unconcerned about accuracy and completeness. They only want a few sentences, and those few sentences decided upon by someone 50 miles away, do not tell the story of this community.”

Chavonne concludes, “I am hopeful that with today’s climate people are gaining an even better appreciation for the role of a robust and free press. In my opinion, we had the best example of that when there were multiple outlets for the free press in those days when we had competing (at least the news operation) newspapers and several locally-owned radio stations with news operations that helped ensure our citizens were informed. So, we continue to fight the battle with no end in sight.”

We measure greatness in several ways. Among them are two questions: “What does a person know?” and “What can a person do?” We brag about our kids’ grade point averages or SAT scores. We claim a person is the greatest to play a sport based on measurable statistics like championships won, home runs hit or touchdowns scored.

The Bible presents a compelling case for God’s greatness. He knows all things. He has never had to learn anything. He is equally proficient in every area of knowledge (unlike scholars who know one limited sphere of knowledge well). Put another way, God has never had—nor will he ever have—an “Aha!” moment when he realizes a mistake he’s made due to insufficient knowledge (Ps. 139:16; 147:4, Matt. 11:21; Acts 15:18).

But God’s greatness is NOT seen only in what he knows but also in what he can do.

Once again, the Bible declares God has unmatched abilities. In a prayer by the Apostle Paul in the letter to the Ephesian believers, we read a part of his concluding praise to God, “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen” (Eph. 3:20–21, NASB).

This passage teaches many things, but among them are the following:

• God can do “far more abundantly beyond” any and every thing we might ask him to do. People have their limits. All of us have some things we can do. But we all have much more that we cannot do. Since we have limited abilities, people do not ask us to do certain things. No one has ever asked me for a $ 10 million gift or loan. They have rightly concluded I could NOT fulfill their request.
• When we ask God to work on our behalf through our prayers, it does not mean God will do exactly what we ask. It only means that he’s capable. His capability should cause us to ask him to work out an “impossible” situation. Why? Because God is capable.
• God can do far more than you can even imagine. All of us daydream. When we do that about God and his abilities, we never imagine enough. Who could have ever imagined he’d elevate Joseph from an Egyptian prison to being co-regent of all of Egypt? Who could have imagined he’d take a persecutor of the church and one who caused the martyrdom of many (Saul who became Paul), gloriously transform him, and use him to write 13 of the 27 books of the New Testament? In more modern times, who could have imagined he’d take a 1,000,000-watt AM radio station built by Adolph Hitler and use it for his glory. Trans World Radio (TWR) of Cary, N.C. purchased the station in the 1970s. Hitler built it for Nazi propaganda purposes (though it was never used for that purpose). Today, TWR uses the station to broadcast the good news of Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection and his offer of everlasting life to all who believe!

Take heart! God knows all things, and he can do all things. So, no matter what your circumstance is, he knows and can work in ways you can’t imagine in order to make something good result from it! He truly can do exceedingly, abundantly beyond all we ask or imagine. Praise his name!

There’s a danger to you and your family in Cumberland County, and it’s not going anywhere. It’s not crime, 100+ degree heat indexes, or the Zika virus. The danger is underinsured drivers. I know, it’s not exactly the apocalypse, but let me explain.

North Carolina law requires drivers to have liability insurance. This insurance pays for damages caused by the “at-fault” driver in a collision. At a minimum, everyone is required to have what is called “30/60/25” limits. If an at-fault driver only has the minimum, that means there is $30,000 to cover the injury or death of one person, $60,000 to cover the injury or death of two or more people, and $25,000 to cover property damages. That’s it! In many accidents, the minimum is just not enough. Where there is a serious injury or fatality, it doesn’t come close.

Did you know that the drivers of city-owned vehicles performing a traditional government function, like picking up garbage, are immune from suit? In the past, the City of Fayetteville hasn’t waived this immunity. This means that although the city drivers have liability insurance, it is never used because the at-fault city drivers can’t be sued. These city drivers and their city vehicles are effectively uninsured.

To make matters worse, many citizens who drive in Fayetteville have no insurance. This is a fact. As an assistant district attorney, I watched people pour into Cumberland County Courtroom 2C on Fridays and routinely have their tickets for no insurance dropped if they brought in a certificate that said they’d since gotten coverage. No harm, no foul, right?

Wrong. As an attorney, I too often have to tell severely injured people that even though the accident was clearly the other person’s fault, they will not be fully compensated for their injuries because that person wasn’t insured or had minimal coverage.

Now that we know the problem, let me give you the solution: “UM/UIM” coverage “UM,” or “uninsured motorist” coverage protects you if you are hit by an uninsured driver. “UIM”, or “underinsured motorist” coverage protects you if you are hit by a driver with insurance limits too low to fully compensate you or your family.

UM/UIM coverage is often inexpensive. For a few more dollars a month, you can eliminate a substantial risk to you and your family. Add or increase your UM/UIM limits through your insurance agent or company. Protect yourself and your family.

Cumberland County government has never experienced what it’s about to go through — raising taxes to offset a loss of usually reliable tax revenue. Tax administrator Joe Utley says the value of the county’s tax base of $18,780 billion has declined by half a billion dollars, or 2.9 percent, since 2016. That represents more than $4 million in lost money. Utley said tax notices were mailed Jan. 31. Property taxes represent only about one-half of annual general fund revenues needed to operate county government. The loss will be offset by an increase in sales and motor vehicle taxes, which are up.

The County Board of Commissioners Finance Committee got the bad news last week. “it’s not good but could have been much worse,” said committee chairman Marshall Faircloth. County Manager Amy Cannon has said over the past several months that our community has not bounced back from the great recession in 2008 as other cities have. Asked about that, Faircloth gave a one-word answer: “jobs.” What he meant, of course, is lack of jobs. Faircloth pointed to the unavailability of mortgage money over the last eight or nine years.

While residential property values are down, the worth of commercial properties is up — shopping centers by 11 percent, mini-storage warehouses by 12 percent and vacant commercial land by 13 percent. Contrast that with a crash in the value of local condominiums whose value is off by 31 percent from last year. Single family residential values are down by about 5 percent. Approximately 72 percent of the tax base comes from residential properties and 28 percent is from commercial and industrial, said Utley. “Sixty-two percent of properties had an assessed value reduction,” said Utley. County commissioners would have to raise the tax rate by two cents from the current 74 cents per $100 of property valuation to make up the $4 million loss.

What does all of this mean for the taxpayer? Responses are mixed: Faircloth, who is a certified public accountant by profession, believes even most homeowners will painlessly absorb a two-cent tax rate increase. For those who suffered a loss of worth, a tax increase will make up the difference to achieve revenue neutrality. The tax rate would have to go up slightly to bring in the same amount of money to operate county government at current levels. For her part, Cannon is not so optimistic. “The best thing we can do is develop some options for the board to consider,” Cannon said. “That could include reducing our expenditures, which may lead to a reduction in county services.”

The total assessed value for the City of Fayetteville dropped about 3.5 percent overall. Residential values were down $604 million (7.2 percent) but commercial values increased $169 million (4.2 percent). A boost in the tax rate would be needed for the city to earn the same amount of revenue it now does. Hope Mills got by almost unscathed with less than a 1 percent loss. Spring Lake’s properties lost about 1.5 percent of their value.