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Craven County commissioners approve package of budget amendments, contracts and recovery funding
Summary
The Craven County Board of Commissioners on July 6 approved a series of budget amendments and contract authorizations — including a $25,000 Duke Energy Foundation‑funded drone for emergency services, a $27,891 server for Havelock Pharmacy, and a $400,255.94 fiber relocation contract with partial NCDOT reimbursement — and funded local recovery and education needs.
The Craven County Board of Commissioners on July 6 approved multiple budget amendments and contract authorizations that county officials said respond to aging equipment, pending transportation construction and ongoing community needs.
Emergency Services Director Stanley Kite told the board his department’s drones had reached the end of their useful life and that the Duke Energy Foundation had awarded a $25,000 grant to replace the equipment with a modern drone capable of operating in inclement weather. The board approved use of the grant and the related budget amendment by roll call vote.
Zach Orman, representing Havelock Pharmacy and the county health department, asked the board to carry over $20,000 in unspent funds and approve an additional $7,891 so the pharmacy could purchase a central server enabling two locations to communicate and replicate data in outages. The board approved the $27,891 budget amendment by roll call.
Steve Bennett, information technology staff, said approximately 46 miles of county fiber will conflict with the I‑42 expansion and must be relocated. River City Construction submitted the lowest qualified bid at $400,255.94; according to Bennett, the North Carolina Department of Transportation will reimburse $335,246.25, leaving Craven County responsible for $65,009.69. The board authorized the budget amendment and execution of contracts.
County Manager Jack White presented several carryover items from the budget process, including a $25,000 school capital outlay amendment for flooring in a pre‑kindergarten modular classroom (FY27). The board approved that appropriation by roll call.
White also presented recurring membership and contribution items: a $25,000 appropriation for a Cherry Point advocacy organization and a $25,000 Highway 70 membership fee (the Highway 70 item required Commissioner Bucher to recuse from discussion and vote). The board approved the Cherry Point and Highway 70 appropriations.
The board approved a $50,360 per‑capita contribution to the C1A economic development partnership to support activities such as shell buildings and airline recruitment. White said the public sector share is split among Craven County, the city of New Bern and Havelock.
On an opioid recovery program line item (RU252), White introduced Caitlin Godley, the program director. Godley said the proposed allocation mirrors prior years: $15,000 for recovery resident tuition assistance, $7,000 for a public‑awareness campaign and $6,200 to bring speaker Tony Hoffman to speak with eighth‑grade students about recovery and resiliency. Commissioners approved the RU252 budget amendment by roll call.
Amber Parker of Human Resources presented proposed on‑call policies and associated daily rates for IT and maintenance staff (weekday, weekend and holiday differentials). The board adopted the policies.
All motions and budget amendments listed above were approved by voice or roll‑call votes as recorded in the meeting minutes.
