Old Fort aldermen agree on merit increases for employees

OLD FORT, N.C. — After a brief closed session, the Old Fort Board of Aldermen agreed Monday to give merit increases to three town employees.

Near the end of Monday’s regular meeting, Mayor Garland Norton said Alderman Greg Piercy wanted to go into closed session to discuss personnel matters.

After 10 minutes, the aldermen ended the closed session and came back into open session. They approved giving merit increases to Len Russell and Coy Robinson, who work in the Maintenance Department, and Dewey Lawson, who works with the town’s police force.

Lawson got a $1 an hour raise. Robinson got a raise of 75 cents an hour and Russell got a raise of 50 cents an hour, according to Finance Officer Renee Taylor.

In other matters, town officials heard a report from Kim Combs of Parents Taking Charge about an upcoming Easter egg hunt in Old Fort. Parents Taking Charge (PTC) is a small group of Old Fort residents who want a better community for the children and also hope to bring more business to town.

On Saturday, March 31, PTC plans to hold an Easter egg hunt and Easter bonnet contest at Davidson’s Fort Historic Park, located off Lackey Town Road. The bonnet contest starts at noon and the Easter egg hunt will begin at 2 p.m. All ages are welcome and there will be cash prizes for the bonnet contest. The event is free to the public, said Combs.

In another matter, representatives of the Old Fort Mountain Heritage Alliance were scheduled to attend Monday’s meeting. However, they could not be there.

But the aldermen did approve a request from the alliance about improving one of the town parks. The alliance had earlier asked if the crabapple trees in the mini-park in downtown Old Fort could be removed and replaced with new trees. The mini-park is located on Main Street across from the Arrowhead Monument.

The aldermen approved the alliance’s request. Taylor said Wednesday the trees have already been removed.

The alliance will attend the April meeting to inform town officials about the ongoing beautification efforts for Old Fort.

WSOC