By Jessie Burchette
Salisbury PostCounty commissioners will tackle two long-running issues Monday night ó the baseball stadium and Summit Corporate Center.
Commissioners Jim Sides and Tina Hall will report to the board on negotiations with Smith Family Baseball on the lease for Fieldcrest Cannon Stadium in Kannapolis. The stadium is jointly owned by the county and city of Kannapolis.
Smith Family Baseball, the owner of the Intimidators franchise, has asked the county to continue the half-price lease rate through 2015. The contract price is around $150,000 a year.
The county allowed Smith Family to pay $75,000 a year for the past three years in part to free up funds for marketing and building attendance. The owners also agreed to do more of the maintenance work at the stadium.
Commissioners have said previously they won’t continue the reduced rate.
And commissioners will consider turning over marketing of the county-owned industrial park, Summit Corporate Center, to the Salisbury-Rowan Economic Development Commission.
Robert Van Geons, executive director of the Economic Development Commission, will present a marketing plan.
Under the plan, the Economic Development Commission would commit $60,000 of its existing funding to the marketing, which would include developing a Web site, advertising in targeted publications and working to engage regional brokers and consultants.
In other matters, the board will:
– Discuss the county’s relationship with Centralina Council of Governments in light of the agency’s role in the planned Salisbury annexation of the N.C. 150 west area.
Rowan County is a member of the Centralina Council.
– Conduct a public hearing and consider approving an ordinance that would ban registered sex offenders from county parks, libraries, fairgrounds and other recreation areas.
– Conduct a public hearing and consider adopting a zoning text amendment that would allow bona fide farms with vineyards and wineries to operate wine-tasting rooms.
– Hear a report from Sandra Wilkes, Social Services director, and commissioners Chairman Arnold Chamberlain on the work of the Child Abuse Prevention Task Force. The Task Force met on March 31.
The Board of Commissioners meets at 4 p.m. Monday in the J. Newton Cohen Sr. Meeting Room, County Administrative Offices, 130 W. Innes St.
Contact Jessie Burchette at 704-797-4254 or jburchette@salisburypost.com.