Granite Quarry to Rowan County: Call us

Published 12:01 am Thursday, April 5, 2018

GRANITE QUARRY — The Granite Quarry Board of Aldermen expressed its frustration with Rowan County on Monday because it hadn’t heard back on a request related to a town-owned parcel in Granite Industrial Park.

The industrial park’s development has been a joint effort of the town and county. Granite Quarry owns a 16-acre parcel in the park, which is served by a new street called Chamandy Drive. But the access off Chamandy Drive to that parcel is owned by Rowan County.

The town has sent two requests to the county for access to its land but has not heard back.

Alderman John Linker said the town “has gone beyond what’s reasonable” in its wait.

“We own Chamandy Drive,” he said. “We need to get access to our property off our street. I don’t understand it.”

Granite Quarry has a prospective business — a cold storage facility for processed chicken — that is interested in the site.

“All we’re trying to do is get access to our property,” Feather said.

In another matter, East Rowan High School students Tiahja Young and Nevaeh Price gave a presentation on their Early Childhood Education project to promote literacy while keeping kids active.

The project was called “Move It and Review It,” which essentially created a game using QR codes as questions and affixing each question to a stake. The stakes were designed to be set in the grounds around the East Rowan YMCA, then be rotated among the campuses of Morgan, Granite Quarry, Rockwell and Shive elementary schools.

The carpentry class at East Rowan made the stakes. Participants walk from station to station, using their phones to read QR codes and answer the questions.

Linker saw a presentation on “Move It and Review It” during a visit to East Rowan High and invited the girls to attend a town board meeting.

“I thought it might have applications for us,” Linker said.

The QR codes and stakes could be set out in stations at a town park, Linker said as an example, and it could provide an exercise-driven amenity.

Jim LaFevers asked the girls and their instructor to attend the next parks and recreation committee meeting April 16 to explain if further.

In other business Monday, the aldermen:

• Approved paying $960 to Brad Goodman Solutions LLC for software for the Fire Department. Fire Chief Dale Brown said the software will help with training, scheduling and time sheets. “This program, I think, will fit our needs,” Brown said. “It’s really a good deal for all the proponents we’d be getting.”

• Heard from Conrad that $2,800 in street improvement funds will go toward curb-and-gutter work on Crook Street, to address a drainage problem.

• Heard from Town Clerk Tanya Word that the town is not in state compliance with its pre-audit and disbursement process. She said she will bring back a potential solution to the board in May.

• Heard from Hord that April 20 will be a Litter Sweep Day in Granite Quarry in which residents will be encouraged to participate. “Litter in this town is a big deal,” Hord said, telling aldermen his three-man department picked up 39 bags of litter in three hours along U.S. 52 and Old N.C. 80 on a recent day.

• Rejected Hord’s request to sell the maintenance department’s golf cart as surplus property. The golf cart needs a $600 battery. Cress, a former maintenance director for the town, argued for keeping the cart at least six more months. “I think it will help you somewhere down the road,” he said.

The cart has been used in the past for spraying herbicides next to streets and sidewalks and along park trails. Hord said he expects to do that kind of work with a John Deere tractor and trailer. “It’s not needed,” he said of the golf cart.

Contact Mark Wineka at 704-797-4263.