Improvements to the multi-purpose center in Pittsboro were the primary topic of conversation at Thursday morning’s board of supervisors meeting.
The meeting opened with Trent Barnett, of the Extension Service, delivering the annual report on the building’s rentals. He said the multi-purpose center earned $6,160 in rentals for 2014, identical to 2013. That was down from the $7,000 in revenue from 2012.
Earnest Fox, Sonny Clanton, JB Rogers
The arena rentals totaled $1,100, which was an increase of $400 from prior year, Barnett said. The county owned New Liberty Schoolhouse had no rentals through the Extension Service, Barnett said.
Barnett’s primary concern was improving drainage conditions around the fairgrounds, but spoke briefly regarding a suggestion Supervisor Earnest Fox made last month on the need for dressing rooms in the multi-purpose center for groups performing there.
“We’ve been trying to find an option for adressing room,” Barnett said. “We’ve used the restrooms because they’re fairly large and we put mirrors in the women’s restroom. I don’t really know a great solution.”
“If money was there for an addition, we could do a dressing room that could also be used as a conference room,” Barnett said. “I know that may be something for farther down the road, if we found some grant funds.”
Board Attorney Sonny Clanton said CEDA Director Sheila Freely is helping look for available grant funds for improvements at the multi purpose center.
On the drainage issue, Barnett said any substantial rain floods the fairgrounds and “it’s a big problem during the county fair for the carnival.”
We need to look at something to help redirect all the water coming down the hill,” he said.
The board discussed cleaning out the ditch, a potential new culvert and other options and some studying on the matter County Engineer Chodie Myers had done. The board ultimately agreed to take it under consideration.
In a related note, supervisors said Myers was undergoing gall bladder surgery at the time of the meeting due to problems he had while attending the supervisors’ annual conference in Jackson the previous week.
The only other business was a bid opening. McKinney Construction submitted the only bid for pile driving, which was approved by the board.
