Matthew Sasser | Daily Journal

Matthew Sasser | Daily Journal

<p>Abbie Covington explains to the Norman Town Council why she decided to run for county commissioner.</p>
                                 <p>Matthew Sasser | Daily Journal</p>

Abbie Covington explains to the Norman Town Council why she decided to run for county commissioner.

Matthew Sasser | Daily Journal

NORMAN — Town Clerk Glenda McInnis says that their 2020-21 audit has been revised and amended per a recommendation from their auditor.

Last month, Ken Anderson, CPA of Anderson, Smith & Wilke, PLLC, informed the town of Norman that they had three violations on the draft of their audit.

The main concern was official documentation regarding the bonding of three members of Town Council — Mayor Tonia Collins, Mayor Pro Tem Stephen Cranford and McInnis.

Previously, they were not officially bonded. Now, all three have been bonded for $50,000 each, and this change has been officially documented.

McInnis also made an amendment to the audit that properly balanced the budget. One final correction was adding an official town stamp to their checks.

Businesses vie for former BP station

Last month, Justin Collins, owner of Collins Automotive & Towing, Inc, approached the Town Council about moving his shop to the former BP station.

Mayor Collins confirmed that this opportunity was no longer an option due to an emergency within the owner’s family. The mayor disclosed that she and the owner are distantly related.

Lyndoll Parks and Carlos Gonzalez attended the meeting to pitch their plan to open a Mexican store with fresh vegetables, fruits, dairy and meats, along with basic toiletry items.

“It’d be a lot quicker [for Norman residents] than driving 20 minutes to Ellerbe, which is the closest grocery store,” Parks said.

Parks also cited the high percentage of Hispanics in the Norman area who would be interested in this business. Their plan would be to open by the end of March.

Town Council members cautioned that they would need to replace a water pump that was stolen from the building. Rent for the former BP station would be set at $500.

Nina Stovall also approached the Town Council about using the building as a warehouse. She currently keeps her items at a store in Candor, but cited difficulty with loading and unloading items in Candor that wouldn’t be an issue in Norman.

Collins said they would get back to the interested parties shortly. Norman Town Council will meet next Monday, March 14 at 7:00 p.m. to determine who will occupy the building.

Town receives grant to fix-up town-owned buildings

Norman received a $10,000 grant from the North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management to improve, purchase or build on any property that the town owns. The Lumber River Council of Government applied on behalf of Norman.

McInnis said this could be used on the community center. Paperwork still needs to be completed by the end of the month in order to receive the funds.

County Commissioner candidate stops by

Abbie Covington, former Hamlet mayor and current city councilwoman, attended the meeting to explain why she filed to run for County Commissioner this election.

“The reason I filed was not for Hamlet, but for every town in this county,” Covington said. “Because somebody has got to go to [the commissioners] that has some knowledge of what has happened to us [following the Board of Commissioners’ decision to change the sales tax distribution method from per capita to ad valorem in April of 2020] — the consequences and the severity of them. I’m very familiar with the problem and familiar with the solutions.”

Covington cited the difficulty in the City of Hamlet trying to find ways to allocate money for a street sweeper for this year’s budget.

“There was something in me that just thought, ‘This isn’t right,’” Covington said. “Once again we have no commitment from the county about anything.”

Norman lost 100% of its sales tax revenue under ad valorem. Under the original agreement following mediation between the municipalities and the county, Norman was to receive $30,270 in both 2020-21 and 2021-22, but it remains unclear whether the county will continue to allocate these funds as the balance of sales tax will remain in the county’s favor.

The municipalities have not yet received the second half of this allocation for the 2021-2022 fiscal year.

Covington said that all of the municipalities in Richmond County need a “permanent commitment” from the county regarding supplemental revenue that can be counted on each year.

“There’s something irrational about taking found money and plugging it into continuous operating expenses into your budget,” Covington said. “It won’t work.”

Covington also expressed frustration that she only learned about the switch to ad valorem after reading the Daily Journal. Norman Town Council members agreed that that was how they learned about this major change. Covington concluded by saying that Norman needs a representative who knows the importance of their ability to plan for the future and will represent a smaller municipality.

“Nobody who plans a city budget should depend on the gratuity of the county,” Covington said. “We’re ready to budget and we don’t know what we’re budgeting for. You cannot conduct business in a town full of people that pay taxes when you don’t know what your future is.”

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Reach Matthew Sasser at 910-817-2671 or msasser@www.yourdailyjournal.com.