LAURINBURG — The city of Laurinburg will take the next step in the construction of its new City Hall and police station.
The council will hold a special meeting Friday at 2 p.m. to amend its budget appropriation ordinance to increase bond proceeds by $9.1 million, the financing amount for the project approved by the state on Tuesday.
Council will consider amending the budget ordinance to increase expenditures for contracted services by $153,742; capital outlay by $200,000; new construction by $8,526,924; miscellaneous reimbursement by $109,334; and the cost of issuance by $175,000.
City officials also plan to provide a financial update to be shared with media, including social media.
Council will meet at 303 West Church St.
What’s next?
It is unclear how the city will proceed after Friday’s special meeting.
Critics of the project, like Mayor Matthew Block, have expressed concerns that work, including tearing down the Barrett Building, may begin before the November municipal elections.
City Manager Charles Nichols could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
But council member Drew Williamson said that now that the Local Government Commission has unanimously approved Laurinburg taking out a 15-year loan with BB&T, the city needs to move ahead with the new complex.
“I guess as a council we will have to decide where to go from there, but certainly the LGC has spoken,” Williamson said after the hearing in Raleigh. “I can only speak for myself, but I’m ready to proceed with the project.”
Frank Evans, who is challenging Williamson for the District 2 seat, said if elected he would work to stop the project. Evans added that as a “strong community partner, BB&T might consider rescinding the loan if a new council — seated in December — is opposed to the project.
Failing that, Evans said he may recommend that the city keep the money in the bank and make monthly payments on the loan.
“There are needs for the building that can be met for a lot less than $10 million,” Evans said. “I don’t believe people have been given true and honest facts.”
Opponents of the project fear that the size of the BB&T loan means the city will be unable to lower taxes in the future and may even have to raise them or service fees.
“Council is hellbent on doing what they want irregardless of what the citizens want and irregardless of the accepted norms of good government,” Block said. “I ask on behalf of the vast majority of citizens as your guidelines state, to consider the level of community support. When public officials get it in their minds that they want to encumber citizens with debt for projects that citizens don’t want or need, the LGC stands as the citizens’ last recourse.”
But in approving the city’s financing plan, state Auditor Beth Wood said Laurinburg had met six feasibility requirements.
“There are six items that must be fulfilled and our staff says they are, then we must vote yes on this,” Wood said during the LGC’s meeting . “So again, I don’t want anybody out here in this audience from Laurinburg or Scotland County to think we don’t care. We do, but we have a job to do. It is non-partisan, it is non-bias based on the statute.”
Evans said he understands that LGC’s job “was to rule on the financial merit of this project.” But he remains concerned that a future project or unforeseen emergency could put Laurinburg in a financial bind.
Williamson insists that the city has done its due diligence.
“I know there is a lot of opposition, but I do think we have gone through every step we could possibly go through to get to this point,” he said. “The LGC has heard all of the opposition, they have heard all of the testimony from those in favor and they have ruled that we are able to go forward.”
