Larry Walker of Patterson Street said he recently returned home from church to find a broken window in his kitchen and the home security system had detected motion. It was not the first time Walker has been a victim of larceny.
“I’d like to know what’s being done about these break-ins,” he said. “... We’ve got people walkin’ the streets who have no business on the street.”
The other two residents addressing the issue were elected to the town board Nov. 3, but don’t take office until December.
Resident James McDougald asked why a police officer had been let go when “citizens are losing property and losing confidence in the situation.”
The officer had been dismissed because of a personnel issue, said police Capt. Tammy Deese. Another officer has been added for a few hours each week and patrols have been “beefed up,” she said, and detectives are following leads.
“We just don’t have anything concrete to this point to charge anybody,” she said.
Resident Victor Womack said breaking and entering is a common crime in Maxton.
“I had my house broken into — I live on McCaskill — and all I hear is, ‘We have a lead, we have a lead,’” he said.
Womack asked if the Police Department was seeking additional funding for more equipment and officers. Deese said the department was not.
In other business, the board heard a report from Tina Stepp, director of the Robeson County Library. She thanked the board for allotting an additional $1,000 to the Maxton library. The Friends of the Library elected to give Maxton $1,000 for new books and more than 3,000 books have been donated to the system.
“We’re starting to run out of room,” Stepp said. “We’re getting so many new books.”
Six new computers acquired through a grant will be added to the Maxton library. A few older computers donated by the State Employees’ Credit Union will be used in the Children’s Department, Stepp said.
The board learned that Stepp plans to form a mobile classroom to teach computer classes and the library offers assistance with resumes and job applications.
Mayor Gladys Dean thanked Stepp for the improvements to Maxton’s library.
“Our participation and attendance at the library have increased phenomenally,” Dean said.
The commissioners discussed the success of the town’s annual collard festival, which took place Saturday with an estimated 2,500 people in attendance.
In other business:
— The board accepted ownership of a vacant lot at 307 Florence St. The property will be sold.
— No one spoke at a public hearing about budget changes to a Community Development Block Grant.
— The town’s new mailing address is P.O. Box 99.
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