LUMBERTON — Hurricane recovery, transportation and beavers will be the major issues to come before the Robeson County Board of Commissioners on Monday.
Stephanie Chavis, the county’s Emergency Services director, will update the commissioners on plans for Saturday’s “Rebuild NC Day of Service.” On this day, Gov. Roy Cooper will be in Lumberton joining a score of volunteers in doing repair work on homes damaged by Hurricane Matthew, which blew through Robeson County on Oct. 8 of last year.
While the governor will be working in Lumberton, his cabinet secretaries will be working hand-in-hand with volunteers in Princeville, Kinston, Goldsboro and Fayetteville. The hope is that hundreds of volunteers will come out and help at these hardest hurricane hit areas of the state.
Volunteers are being asked to register in advance, either as an individual or a team. Members of long-term recovery teams will supervise the workers. Locally it is the NC Baptist Men Disaster Relief organization that will guide the volunteers.
To help in the Lumberton area, individuals should sign up online at http://baptistsonmission.org/missions/by-type/disaster-relief/Hurricane-Matthew/get-involved.
In other business, a public hearing will be held on the proposed Robeson County Community Transportation Program application. The application must be submitted to the N.C. Department of Transportation to receive funding.
The program provides assistance to coordinate existing transportation programs operating in Robeson County, as well as provides transportation options and services for communities within the service area. These services are currently provided using transit vans and buses operated by South East Area Transit System.
The county is requesting a total of $722,568 for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2018, and ending June 30, 2019. The county’s share of these funds is $91,571.
The commissioners will also hear an update on the Beaver Management Assistance Program from Bo Benton, a wildlife specialist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In an Aug. 1 letter to Ricky Harris, Robeson County’s manager, Benton reported that in the third quarter of the year 43 beavers and 33 dams were removed as part of the program.
According to the meeting agenda, the commissioners on Monday will also:
— Consider appointments to the Board of Health.
— Consider renewal of the contract agreement between Jail Health Services and Dr. Theresa Bullard.
Monday’s meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the commissioners room of the county administration building on North Elm Street.
