LUMBERTON — With a date later Monday evening with the Board of Education of the Public Schools of Robeson County to discuss construction of a new central office, the Robeson County Board of Commissioners heard a proposal of a less expensive way forward.

Bobbie Jacobs Ghaffar offered the Native Angels building with 29 acres in COMtech Business Park for $6.3 million. That compares with a school board plan on the table to buy land and construct a building for something more than $20 million.

“As a taxpayer, I ask you to consider a more reasonable use of public funds,” Ghaffar said. “The building has 36,000 square feet and can accommodate the entire school staff.”

The schools already own 35 acres in COMtech adjoining the Native Angels property. The schools have rented the Native Angels building for its central office staff since Hurricane Matthew destroyed the old central office on N.C. 72 just west of Interstate 95.

“Do they (the school board) have this proposal?” Commissioner Raymond Cummings said.

“I have met with them,” Ghaffar said.

With a backup generator, the Native Angels building was operational throughout the power outage caused by the hurricane, Ghaffar said. The building also has an auditorium that seats 125 with state-of-the-art communications system.

In another matter, the commissioners, meeting as the Robeson County Housing Authority, heard preliminary plans for all county public housing units to be smoke-free by January. It is a federal Housing and Urban Development mandate.

“It’s going to be a huge undertaking,” said Niakeya Jones Cooper, director of the housing authority. “We’re all working to figure out how to do this and how to enforce it.”

The program will provide residents who smoke five weeks of counseling and seven weeks of nicotine patches, if they wish to quit. Smoking will be prohibited within 25 feet of all public housing buildings.

“We’re meeting with the other municipal housing agencies to work together,” Cooper said. “Pembroke is already smoke-free.”

The commissioners will have a smoke-free policy before them at a future date.

The United Way of Robeson County invited the county to join a wheelchair ramp program and apply for funding. The program loans aluminum ramps free of charge and then reuses them, said Latricia Freeman, United Way director.

The city of Lumberton participates in the program through its nonprofit Mayor’s Committee for the Challenged. The ramps cost $1,800, and 17 have been funded through the United Way.

“All that you need to do is create a 501c3 program and apply for funding through the United Way,” Freeman said. “These ramps are needed all over the county.”

The response was positive.

“I know this program, and I like it,” said board Chairman Tom Taylor.

“I’d like to join this program,” said Commissioner David Edge.

Before adjourning to meet with the Board of Education, the commissioners approved the hiring of Dr. Ashleigh Johnson, a licensed physician, to work at the Health Department.

By Scott Bigelow

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Scott Bigelow can be reached at 910-416-5649.