Onslow Commissioners Honor Telecommunicators and Others

Twelve Onslow County Telecommunicators have been honored for outstanding services, including saving lives by competent and calm direction during medical emergencies. The twelve were honored in a regular meeting of the Onslow County Board of Commissioners, Monday, April 4, 2022.

The twelve, who answer 9-1-1 calls for the County, were given special recognition and honored by the Commissioners as part of a presentation during the meeting. Earlier the Commissioners had adopted a proclamation proclaiming April 10-16, 2022 as National Telecommunicators Week in Onslow County.

Rezoning Requests

Two rezonings in the Sneads Ferry area were the topics of two public hearings after which the two rezoning requests were approved. Joseph B. Martin and his wife asked for a rezoning of about 7.6 acres of land off Wilmington Highway or US17. It would rezone the property from Highway Business to Rural Agriculture. The site is currently used for their family’s residence, and the rezoning would allow that use. It was approved unanimously.

The second rezoning request was to for about 17 acres of land on the south side of Old Folkstone Road from Residential 5 zoning to Highway Business zoning. The currently undeveloped property is owned by Sneads Ferry Investments and is bounded by existing Highway Business zoning and High-Density Residential zoning. The future use could accommodate business and some residential uses. It was also unanimously approved.

Richlands Mobile Convenience Site to Remain Open Once a Month

In December, the Onslow Board of Commissioners voted to close the mobile convenience sites located in the areas of Richlands, Hubert, Nine Mile and Belgrade due to the lack of revenue generated at each of these sites. The sites were scheduled to close this week.

The Commissioners were asked to reconsider closing the Richlands site after some residents protested the long drive to the Landfill for disposal of trash from the western-most portion of the County. A proposal had been put forward to open the Richlands site for one day a month. Three persons spoke at the public comment period protesting the closing at the Commissioners’ meeting.

With Commissioner Scott dissenting, the motion to keep it open one day a month, passed.

Grants, Plans and Recognition

The Commissioners also received and approved the annual plan for the Juvenile Crime Prevention Council. The plan is required for funding programs every two years. Commissioners praised the work of the Council for the plan.

Two grants were approved that will help the County with emergency needs in the future. One is the Emergency Management Capacity Building Grant which will help provide Emergency Management offices throughout the state with funding to assist in the development of additional local emergency management capacity. The funds are be used to provide a back-up system for cybersecurity and to replace outdated portable communication systems. The grant will provide $259,000 to the County.

The other grant from the National Association of County and City Health Officials and will provide additional efforts to build membership within the Onslow County Medical Reserve Corps. The grant is for $5,000.

Two other proclamations were also presented during the meeting. One recognized April 2022 as Child Abuse Prevention Month. Another recognized April 4 through April 10 as National Public Health Week. Representatives from the Health and Social Services departments were present for the recognition.

Other Items Approved

Consent items presented for approval at the time of the agenda adoption included tax releases and refunds, the monthly tax collectors report and action to provide for alternate members of the Board of Equalization and Review.

The action for the Board of Equalization and Review allows for their duty to hear appeals on property values. The action reminds property owners who may wish to appeal their property value that once the Board of Equalization and Review adjourns, no further appeals can be heard about property values until the board meets next year.