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Craven County commissioners approve drone grant, pharmacy server and fiber relocation
Summary
The board approved a series of budget amendments and contracts July 6, including use of a $25,000 Duke Energy Foundation grant for new emergency-services drone equipment, a $27,891 budget amendment to buy a central server for Havelock Pharmacy, and authorization to award a $400,255.94 fiber-relocation contract with partial NCDOT reimbursement.
Craven County commissioners on July 6 approved several budget amendments and contracts to support emergency services, health care connectivity and county fiber infrastructure.
The board voted to accept and spend a $25,000 Duke Energy Foundation grant to replace aging drone equipment used by emergency services. "I was able to apply with the Duke Energy Foundation and was successful in obtaining $25,000 to replace that equipment," Stanley Kite, emergency services presenter, told commissioners as he described a more weather-capable drone that would expand operations.
The meeting also included a request from Havelock Pharmacy staff to change earlier budgeted hardware plans to a central server. "We had included $20,000 for hardware and software, and after further consultation with IT it was determined a central server would be a better solution," Zach Orman said. Commissioners approved carrying over $20,000 of unspent funds plus an additional $7,891 to allow purchase and setup, a total amendment of $27,891.
In a separate infrastructure item, information-technology staff recommended relocating about 46 miles of county fiber affected by the I‑42 road expansion. Steve Bennett said River City Construction was the lowest qualified bidder at an estimated $400,255.94 and that North Carolina Department of Transportation would reimburse $335,246.25, leaving Craven County responsible for $65,009.69. The board approved the budget amendment and authorized staff to execute contracts.
Other approved fiscal items included a $25,000 school capital outlay amendment for Craven County Schools and several carryover budget adjustments tied to the new fiscal year. Votes on the major items were taken by roll call.
The board's approvals authorize staff to finalize purchases and contracts; the fiber project will proceed with the announced NCDOT reimbursement structure and the pharmacy server is scheduled for implementation to allow both pharmacy locations to communicate and provide redundancy in outages.
