The Board of Supervisors, Halifax Town Council and South Boston Council all voted Monday to set a joint public hearing for their May meeting to address the comprehensive agreement that will govern the proposed water/sewer authority.
Draft copies of the agreement were presented to the governing bodies’ members during the Monday meeting which allows 30 days for the agreement to be reviewed before the May public hearing must be advertised, Water/Sewer Working Group Chairman Doug Bowman said.
There are no outstanding issues among working group members, Bowman added.
Bowman also issued a request to the three boards, asking that they have their nominees selected to serve on the authority’s board of directors prior to the May joint meeting.
The operating agreement calls for South Boston to have three directors, Halifax to have two and the county to have one. A seventh director will be chosen by the initial six and approved by the councils and supervisors. Board members will serve rotating terms between one and four years.
If the three governing boards approve the operating agreement at their May meeting the authority will begin operation of the three municipalities’ water and sewer systems effective Jan. 1, 2008.
Copies of the 49-page draft agreement can be viewed at South Boston and Halifax town halls and the county administration building.
The boards then received a health insurance presentation from insurance consultant Patsy Akridge.
Her recommendation for Halifax and the county was a self-insured plan administered by Southern Health.
In the cost analysis, renewing with Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield would cost the localities $1,635,864 for the upcoming fiscal year, according to Akridge. While switching to the self-insured plan offered by Southern Health left the localities with a maximum liability of $1,347,962.
With Southern Health, county and Halifax employees will be able to choose from four plans. Two are traditional plans with office visit co-pays and prescription drug cards and the other two are high deductible health plans, Akridge said.
High deductible plans offer lower monthly premiums, but do not start to pay any benefits until a $1,250 deductible is satisfied, she added.
The county is expected to meet jointly with Halifax Town Council during the Board’s April 2 meeting to address the insurance options, however, a special called meeting may be held if Anthem sticks to its policy of requiring 90 days notice of termination, legislators agreed.
The three governing boards then received an update from Halifax Councilman Allen Stevens who serves on the vehicle decal working group.
Stevens said that the group met and is proceeding with a proposal that will eliminate vehicle decals for the three localities and put the $25 fee on other another tax bill.
The group is working towards having a resolution ready by the May joint meeting for consideration, he said.
During the public comment period Cowford Road resident Daryl Harris spoke against the new school zones pointing out that his neighbors on Golf Course Road were in the new South Boston school district and he is now in the Sinai district.
“Until three weeks ago no one knew what was going on,” Harris said. “Where were these three boards?”
Board Chairman William Fitzgerald told Harris that the matter is one for the elected School Board of Halifax County.
Harris also said he was disappointed with Halifax Council for not pushing for the alternative school districting plan that would have sent Halifax students to the new school.
Next Sue Bales spoke against constructing a solid waste transfer station at the former Georgia-Pacific site on Plywood Trail saying it would harm a piece of property that is well suited for industrial development.
Following the joint meeting, supervisors reconvened and approved $700,000 to allow demolition work to begin on a building at the Georgia-Pacific complex. A grant has been filed to pay for the work, but with the South Boston landfill slated to close the demolition work has to begin now, IDA Executive Director Mike Eades said.
The IDA won’t receive the status of the grant until the middle of July and that is not enough time to get the work completed, Eades explained.
If the grant is awarded, the county can use those funds to reimburse itself, County Administrator Bryan Foster said.
Supervisors agreed to move forward citing additional expenses to demolish the building after the South Boston landfill closes with hauling costs and tipping fees.
According to IDA Chairman Larry McPeters, three prospects are currently looking at the G-P site and none of them require the building.
“It needs to go,” McPeters said.
The Board then approved changes to two performance agreements with county businesses.
They agreed to change the start date of ABB’s performance agreement to June 1, 2006 to reflect when the company started adding expansion related positions and changed the start date of Huber’s agreement until 2008 to allow the qualifying Halifax Opportunity Fund investment to be done at once.
Lastly, the Board approved a request by Halifax Councilman Charles Parker to hold a rally Thursday at the courthouse.
He said the rally is to petition the School Board to delay in closing Halifax Elementary School. The rally will start at 5:30 p.m. and will proceed to the School Board’s meeting at Mary Bethune at 7:00 p.m.
Supervisor Bryant Claiborne questioned whether a vote on the matter was necessary, saying the public has a Constitutional right to gather there.
Deputy County Administrator Jerry Lovelace said it has been past practice for groups wanting to use the courthouse grounds to ask supervisors for their approval.
Lovelace said the vote would also establish the precedent for groups that may wish to stage rallies at the courthouse in the future.
Supervisors then approved the rally at the courthouse.

 

Board Set To Vote Thursday On School District Rezoning

The time has come.
After weeks of political wrangling, alternative plans and special work sessions to address the issue, the Halifax County School Board is expected to vote on a plan to re-draw the county’s school attendance zones tomorrow night.
The meeting is expected to get under way at 7 p.m. in the public meeting room of the Mary Bethune Complex in Halifax.
If approved, the plan will transform an aging Halifax Elementary School into a law and leadership academy, transfer the existing Halifax students to Sinai Elementary School and align all county elementary schools into grades K-5.
“All of the elementary schools will now be K-5, the middle school will hold grades 6-8 and the high school will be grades 9-12,” School Superintendent Paul Stapleton told the Board during their initial work session on the plan in February.
Projected figures indicate that next year’s K-5 class will total 2,926 students, compared with 2,639 this year, the superintendent said.
Stapleton told the Board that the logical place to begin any redistricting efforts is with the Town of South Boston.
“You have to deal with South Boston and decide how many students are coming there and that will affect all of the rest of redistricting,” he said.
With Halifax Elementary School closed, and under the current plan of action, the K-5 South Boston school will house approximately 762 students in an expanded South Boston district, Stapleton said. This year, the two schools the new facility is replacing - C.H. Friend and Washington-Coleman elementary schools - house 716 students.
The new Cluster Springs school, which will combine the existing South of Dan and Cluster Springs elementary schools, is expected to enroll 604 students when it opens next year. The two schools it is replacing currently enroll 717 students, according to Stapleton.
Under the plan, Turbeville Elementary School’s enrollment next year is projected to be 117 students, compared to 143 this year. Stapleton noted that this year’s enrollment includes the sixth grade, which will not be included next year.
Wilson Memorial Elementary School is projected to enroll 133 students next year without the sixth grade, the same enrollment currently in the school with the sixth grade included.
Meadeville Elementary School’s enrollment is projected to be 181 students in the K-5 school, under this year’s 237-student enrollment that includes the sixth grade.
Sydnor Jennings Elementary School is projected to house 264 students next year under the new district, down slightly from the 282 enrollment this year that includes the sixth grade.
Enrollment at Clays Mill Elementary School is projected to be 232 next year with the K-5 alignment. This compares to the 265 students enrolled this year.
In Scottsburg, projected enrollment figures for next year put the K-5 school at 275 students, compared to 295 students enrolled currently with the sixth grade included.
The combined Halifax/Sinai school is projected to house 358 students in grades K-5, compared with a total combined enrollment of 598 students.

 

Obituaries

Mary Alice Reed Kirby

Mary Alice Reed Kirby, 70, of South Boston died March 16, 2007, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Kirby was born in Halifax County on December 20, 1936, to the late James Reed and Queen Elizabeth Barksdale Reed, and was married to the late Garnett Kirby Jr.
Survivors include two brothers, Harvey Reed and Boulden Reed, both of Baltimore, Md.; and two sisters-in-law, Hester Mosley of Halifax and Mamie Edmunds of South Boston.
Funeral services for Mrs. Kirby were held March 20 at 11 a.m. at The Crawford House Chapel in Halifax.

Roy E. Hill Sr.

Roy E. Hill Sr., 85, of Chestnut Road, Nathalie died March 18, 2007, at Lynchburg General Hospital.
Mr. Hill was born in Halifax County, the son of the late John and Gillie Hill and was married to Malissie Saunders Hill. He was a World War II Veteran and served with the 792 AAA Battalion. He was a member of First Baptist Church of Republican Grove where he was a member of the choir. Mr. Hill was a retired state employee as well as his many years of selling automobiles in the county.
Survivors include his wife; one daughter, Joyce Simmons and husband, John, of Lynchburg; one son, Roy E. Hill Jr. and wife, Patti, of Nathalie; three grandchildren, Orey Hill, Noah Hill and Magen Simmons; one sister, Alice Pruitt of Brookneal; two brothers-in-law, Louis Saunders and wife, Mae, of Nathalie and Earl Saunders and wife, Jean, of Rustburg; and one sister-in-law, Jewel Simpson of Durham, N.C.
Two brothers, Samuel Hill and Johnny Hill; and two sisters, Jean Deaner and Arlene Bane, also preceded Mr. Hill in death.
Funeral services will be held today, March 21, at 2 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Republican Grove with the Revs. Shelton Miles III and Lee Roy Davis officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider First Baptist Church of Republican Grove Building Fund.

Wanet ‘Ronnie’ Martin

Wanet ‘Ronnie’ Martin, 55, of Scottsburg died March 17, 2007.
Mr. Martin was a retired employee with Halifax County Landfill.
Survivors include his wife, Joan L. Martin; his children, Tammy Simmerman of South Boston and Jerald Martin of Scottsburg; four brothers, Hubert Martin of Clays Mill, Ray Martin of Halifax, Oral Lloyd of Phenix and Danny Lloyd of Crystal Hill; and one grandchild, Tyler Martin.
Funeral services for Mr. Martin were held at 3 p.m. March 20, at Wood Funeral Chapel in Chase City with the Revs. Everett Mills and Dewey Barker officiating. Burial followed in Scottsburg Cemetery.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider the American Cancer Society, 4240 Park Place Court, Glen Allen, 23060.
Condolences may be expressed tot he family at www.woodfuneralservice.com

David ‘Red’ Nichols

David ‘Red’ Nichols, 53 of Myrtle Beach, S.C. died March 16, 2007, at Tidelands Community Hospice.
Mr. Nichols was born November 18, 1954, in South Boston, a son of the late Eugene J. and Shirley Ann Barker Nichols.
Surviving are the mother of his daughter and best friend, Kathy Sansbury Winans; daughter, Amanda Jean Nichols of Myrtle Beach; brother, Eugene Nichols Jr. of Miami, Fla.; and sister: Anna Nichols of Roxboro, N.C.
Memorial services were held at 1 p.m. March 20 at Huntington Beach State Park.
Memorials may be made to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of America, SC Chapter, 1247 Lake Murray Blvd., Irmo, SC 29603.
Sign a guest book at www.goldfinchfuneralhome.com

Lewis Hopkins Walker

Lewis Hopkins Walker, 87, of Buffalo Junction died March 20, 2007, in Durham Regional Hospital. He was the widower of Anna Drumheller Walker, and the son of Charlie Clarke and Sally Burnett Walker
Mr. Walker was a World War II Army Air Corp Veteran, was a supervisor with J .P. Stevens, and was a part-time cattle farmer. He attended Gravel Hill and Buffalo Baptist churches.
Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. tomorrow, March 22, in the chapel at Watkins Cooper Lyon Funeral Home with the Rev. Herbert Brown officiating. Burial will follow at Gravel Hill Cemetery.
Survivors of Mr. Walker include sons, Michael Lewis Walker of Buffalo Junction and Andrew Hopkins Walker and wife, Shelia, of Roxboro, N.C.; sister, Marion Smith of Aarons Creek; and brothers, Mark Walker of Buffalo Junction and Bill Walker of Hopewell; five grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
The family will receive friends this evening, March 21, from 7-9 at Watkins Cooper Lyon Funeral Home in Clarksville.
Online condolences may be made to the family at www.wclfh.com.

Deacon Ernest Alford Williamson

Deacon Ernest Alford Williamson, 76, of Halifax died March 18, 2007, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Deacon Williamson was born in Mecklenburg County June 10, 1930, to the late Rev. James Shelly and Sarah Faulkner Williamson. He was a member of Cherry Hill Baptist Church, Buffalo Junction, and was a retiree of Potts and Callahan Construction Company, Baltimore, Md.
He was preceded in death by one brother, Henry Watkins and one sister, Heneritta W. Fountain.
Survivors include his wife, Mary Eliza Williamson of Halifax; one son, Deacon Ervin J. Talley, and wife, Catherine, of Halifax; one daughter, Patricia Mitchell Ball of Pennsylvania; four grandsons, Ervin A. and DeWayne L. Talley, Ervin A. Talley II and Damien Ward, all of Baltimore; four granddaughters, Ebony A., Essence A., Emaya A., and Keleyah C. Talley; four brothers, John Williamson, and wife, Rev. Jessie of Washington, D.C., James Williamson and wife, Evelyn, of Colonial Heights, Samuel Williamson and wife, Willie, of South Boston and Jerry Williamson and wife, Ann, of Orlando, Fla; two sisters, Frances W. Newton of Peekskill, N.Y. and Pauline Williamson-Armstrong of Orlando; one sister-in-law, Clarine Watkins of Bowie, Md.; a devoted cousin Anna Fuller, a devoted niece, Yvonne Hart of Baltimore, MD, a godson James Butler and wife, Linda, of Towson, Md.
Funeral services for Deacon Williamson will be held at noon March 24, at Cherry Hill Baptist Church, Buffalo Junction, with Rev. Antonel Myler officiating. Burial will follow in the Williamson family cemetery, Buffalo Junction. The family will receive friends on Friday evening at C.H. Harris Funeral Home, Clarksville, from 6 until 8 and on Saturday morning from 11:00 until 11:45 at Cherry Hill Baptist Church.