By Samuel Motley
samuel.motley@salisburypost.com 

SALISBURY — During Monday’s meeting, the Rowan County Board of Commissioners approved the county’s administration building as a location for a new motion picture which will be filmed in Salisbury.

The film, the 24^th,  is about the Houston riots on Aug. 27, 1917, also known as the Camp Logan Riots.  The riot involved 156 soldiers of the Army’s African-American 3^rd battalion. The riot left a total of four soldiers and 14 civilians dead.

Kevin Willmott wrote the film and is known for his work with director Spike Lee. This includes the film “BlacksKkKlansman.”

Rowan County’s administration building is now set to be the backdrop for a scene in the film. And Salisbury was, in part, picked for its historic preservation efforts, according to the city’s website.

The production company — 24^th productions — will pay $2,000 to use the administration building and an additional $5,000 to move desks and electrical equipment for the set, said County Attorney Jay Dees.

The company also has agreed to acquire a $5 million insurance policy for potential damages and injuries associated with the building’s use, Dees said.

Notably, the “company understands that the property is a historic property with construction materials and standards that are of higher quality and expense to repair and/or replace,” according to the proposed contract between the county and 24^th production.

This includes alterations made to the building, including screws or nails in the wall or fasteners used to hold construction to the wall.

Filming will take place in early June and last around 20 days if there are not any delays.

In other business:

• Commissioners gave preliminary approval to a proposal for the Salisbury-Rowan Sports Hall of Fame to have a long-term location in West End Plaza.

“I think everyone here is fine with what the plans,” Edds said.

Still, Edds asked that commissioners to work with the Sports Hall of Fame to create terms for a contract before proceeding.

Commissioner Craig Pierce made a motion to approve the agreement, with the condition that final terms need to be drafted. The vote was unanimous. The agreement for the location in the West End Plaza is expected to pass once the terms for the contract are agreed upon.

• Comments were also made about financial reports.

“With the way things are projecting, I do think that we will see expenditures greater than revenues,” said Finance Director Leslie Heidrick.

This is partially because the county is forgiving a loan made to Kannapolis for the Intimidators’ stadium, which was $2.7 million, she said.

The loan started in 2011, said County Manager Aaron Church; this would have been year eight, he said.

However, the county will have to book this in one year, Church said. This was originally a 48-year loan from the county to Kannapolis, he said. They were originally set to pay $62,000 a year.

So far, expenditures for 2019 have totaled $118.6 million, with revenue adding up to $120.1 million.

Property tax collections through the month of March, at 96.5% of the budget, are the exact same percentage as last year, she said. Sales tax through the month of January compared with last year saw an increase of 7.5%.

Contact reporter Samuel Motley at 704-797-4264.