By Joanie Morris
Salisbury Post
KANNAPOLIS ó Cabarrus County Commissioner Coy Privette has put his house on the market and, according to Privette, “it is S-O-L-D.”
But Privette says he’ll maintain a residence in Cabarrus County and continue to serve on the Board of Commissioners.
Privette, 74, was arrested in July and pleaded guilty in August to six counts of aiding and abetting prostitution after paying a Salisbury woman for sex at local motels. He announced in September he would resign from the board when his home was sold and a replacement had been chosen with his approval.
But the Cabarrus County Republican Party refused to let Privette help choose his successor and Privette announced he would not resign from the board.
“I’ll just continue to serve,” Privette said.
In an interview Wednesday evening, Privette said that he and the buyer were closing on his home Monday morning. He said he will continue to live in Cabarrus County, even though he and his wife recently bought into a retirement community in Thomasville.
“We will split time between the two places,” Privette said. He declined to say where in Cabarrus County he would be living and when he would notify the Cabarrus County Board of Elections about his new address. State law requires that commissioners live in the county they serve.
“My residency will continue to be here in Cabarrus County,” Privette said. He maintains that he will alert the Board of Elections about his address change when everything is finalized with his new home.
The company selling Privette’s home, Century 21 Hecht, listed the home at 306 Cottage Drive for $249,900 and a Web site page for the home says it is being sold “as is.”
Privette and his wife, Betty, have lived in the six-bedroom, three-bath house since 1970, according to Cabarrus County land records. Privette announced in September the couple would be moving to a retirement community in Thomasville when the home sold.Contact Joanie Morris at 704-932-3336 or jmorris@salisburypost.com.