Archive for April, 2021

Weichel receives Credentialed Manager designation

Korena L. Weichel, Assistant County Manager of Granville County, recently received the Credentialed Manager designation from ICMA, the International City/County Management Association. Weichel is one of more than 1,300 local government management professionals currently credentialed through the ICMA Voluntary Credentialing Program.

To receive the prestigious ICMA credential, a member must have significant experience as a senior management executive in local government; have earned a degree, preferably in public administration or a related field; and demonstrate a commitment to high standards of integrity and to lifelong learning and professional development.

Weichel has over 13 years of professional local government executive experience. Prior to her appointment in 2020 as Granville County’s first Assistant County Manager, she rose in the ranks from serving as Administrative Services Director to Assistant City Manager and then City Manager for the City of Creedmoor.

Weichel graduated magna cum laude from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke with a bachelor’s degree in Public and Non-Profit Administration. She has demonstrated a commitment to lifelong learning and professional development throughout her local government career, completing highly respected programs from the University of North Carolina’s School of Government including Municipal and County Administration, LGFCU Fellows: Leading for Results, Public Executive Leadership Academy, and the Community Development Academy.

In addition to the Credential Manager certification, she has long held certifications as a senior-level professional in human resources from the HR Certification Institute, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), and the International Public Management Association for Human Resources (IPMA-HR).

Weichel has also made significant contributions to a number of other organizations, including the North Carolina City and County Manager’s Association Conference Planning Committee (currently serving), the North Carolina League of Municipalities’ Human Resources Advisory Committee, the Granville County Tourism Development Authority (Chair) and the North Carolina League of Municipalities’ Organization of Municipal Personnel Officers (President).

The mission of ICMA is to advance professional local government through leadership, management, innovation and ethics, and by increasing the proficiency of appointed chief administrative officers, assistant administrators, and other employees who serve local governments and regional entities around the world. The organization’s 13,000 members in 27 countries also include educators, students, and other local government employees.

Animal Control awarded grant from Petco Love

Granville County Animal Control has been awarded a grant from the newly-named Petco Love organization that will aid in a continuation of their work to trap, neuter and release (T/N/R) feral cats.

Petco Love is a nonprofit leading change for pets nationally by making communities and pet families closer, stronger, and healthier. Since their founding in 1999 as the Petco Foundation, Petco Love has contributed more than $300 million towards pet adoptions and other lifesaving efforts. In addition, they have helped find loving homes for more than 6.5 million pets in partnership with Petco and with more than 4,000 organizations nationwide.

“Today Petco Love announces an investment in Granville County Animal Control and hundreds of other organizations as part of our commitment to create a future in which no pet is unnecessarily euthanized,” said Susanne Kogut, President of Petco Love. “Our local investments are only one component. This month, we will also launch the first of our national tools to empower all animal lovers to drive lifesaving change right alongside us.”

The $6,000 investment from Petco Love will enable Animal Control Officers to add 90 to 100 feral cats to the T/N/R program. In 2020, the T/N/R program helped save the lives of 411 cats and was a significant factor in the low euthanasia rate reported by the Granville County Animal Shelter.

“The growing feral cat population is one that we have been addressing over a period of time,” said Matt Katz, Granville County Animal Management Director. “The T/N/R program is steadily making an impact, and in a humane way. This funding will allow us to continue our work to safely keep our numbers in check while keeping our euthanasia rate low.”

Offices of Granville County Animal Control are located at the Granville County Animal Shelter, 515 New Commerce Drive in Oxford. For more information about the T/N/R program or other services provided, please call 919-693-6749. To learn more about Petco Love, visit petcolove.org.

To visit the website pages of the Granville County Animal Shelter, please click here.

Commissioners to meet at Expo and Convention Center

The Granville County Board of Commissioners will meet on Monday, May 3, 2021 for a regular meeting at 7 p.m. at the Granville County Expo and Convention Center, 4185 Hwy 15 South in Oxford.

This will be an in-person meeting that is open to the public. Any questions should be directed to Debra Weary, Clerk to the Board, at 919-603-1307 or debra.weary@granvillecounty.org. 

To view the agenda, please click here. 

Four-county-area shares updates to regional plan

Granville County and neighboring counties of Franklin, Vance and Warren – as well as their municipal jurisdictions – have updated their regional hazard mitigation plan that covers the four-county Tar River area. 

The Tar River Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan identifies local policies and actions for reducing risk and future losses from natural hazards such as floods, severe storms, wildfires and winter weather. The plan is available for public viewing on the Tar River Regional Hazard Mitigation website.

A Fact Sheet is also available for further information and is available here.

For more information and/or to offer comments on the plan, please contact Robin Edwards with Granville County Emergency Management at 919-603-1310 or via email at robin.edwards@granvilecounty.org.

“Spring Clean Out” scheduled for May 15

The Annual Spring Clean Out is scheduled for 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 15 at the Granville County Expo and Convention Center. This event provides an opportunity for residents to recycle and/or properly dispose of unwanted household items during spring cleaning.

On-site vendors will be accepting scrap metal, electronics, batteries of all types, polystyrene/styrofoam, outdated prescriptions, books, paper documents for shredding, pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, flares, ammunition and other items. New to the spring event is the collection of paint and household chemicals, which has typically been accepted at fall recycle/collection events only.

“This event provides an opportunity for everyone to properly dispose of and potentially recycle waste in our county,” said Granville County’s Recycling and Sustainability Coordinator Teresa Baker. “We have had much interest in the past, and participation continues to build each year. We invite everyone to come out and bring their recyclables and waste materials on May 15 as we work together to protect our environment.”

Last year’s county-wide event resulted in the collection of more than 5,000 pounds of shredded paper, 4,500+ pounds of electronics and televisions, 800 pounds of hardback books, 185 pounds of medication/sharps, almost 1,000 pounds of scrap metal and an entire pallet of batteries, among other items.

The 2021 event will include a convenient drive-through collection service, so that participants can remain in the safety of their own vehicles. The Humane Society of Granville County will also be available to collect dog and cat food, crates, dog houses, leashes, collars, towels and flea/tick prevention.

As in previous years, a follow-up event is also being planned for the Fall of 2021 at the same location.

For more information, please contact Granville County’s Recycling and Sustainability Coordinator Teresa Baker at 919-725-1417 or at bakertd@gcs.k12.nc.us.

Drive-through Medicaid event scheduled

N.C. Managed Care is changing! To help residents better understand their options, the Granville County Department of Social Services will host a drive-through information-sharing event on Thursday, April 22. Residents are invited to attend and to take home materials and resources about health care options available through NC Medicaid.

This event will be held at the Granville County Expo and Convention Center from noon until 2 p.m.

The Expo Center is located at 4185 Hwy. 15 South in Oxford. 

Stovall Library opens new outdoor space

The Stovall Branch of the Granville County Library System unveiled a new addition to the grounds this week as a pergola was officially opened to the public. The newly-constructed outdoor space will provide a tranquil area for reading, relaxing, picnics and other community gatherings, as well as providing a picturesque site for special-occasion photos.

A ribbon cutting was held on Tuesday, April 20. Members of the Library’s Board of Trustees and Friends of the Library joined library staff and elected officials from Granville County and Stovall for this event.

The Stovall Branch Library is located at 300 Main Street in Stovall and is one of four branches of the Granville County Library System.

Granville employees participate in annual Spring Litter Sweep

Employees of Granville County Government participated in the N.C. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Spring Litter Sweep on Friday, April 16, cleaning up the roadsides of Philo White Road and on portions of the Oxford Loop. Approximately 60 bags of litter were collected and bagged as part of the cleanup effort.

Annual litter sweep events are typically held during the last two weeks of April and September as residents are encouraged to help clean up North Carolina’s roadways. Volunteers are provided supplies such as trash bags, gloves and safety vests​ from the local NCDOT County Maintenance Yard office.

“We encourage residents across Granville County to work together in their own communities and neighborhoods,” said Jason Falls, Director of Granville County’s Solid Waste Management. “The Litter Sweep is an opportunity to make cleaning up our roadways a priority, and to show that we care about Granville County.”

Nineteen Granville County volunteers participated in the Spring Litter Sweep, including Commissioners Russ May (District 5) and Tim Karan (District 6).

The DOT Spring Litter Sweep continues until April 24. For more details on how to participate, please visit www.ncdot.gov.

Local Boy Scout builds benches for GAP

Charles Cease of Boy Scout Troop 637 in Oxford recently donated three specially-constructed benches to the Granville Athletic Park (GAP). Cease selected this as his community service project to earn the rank of Eagle Scout, which is the Boy Scouts of America’s highest rank.

Each bench features a built-in back area to store bags, as well as hooks to hold coats and other personal belongings. Cupholders are also included in each bench design.

The benches will be located at the new tennis courts, which are part of the GAP’s Phase Three expansion.

“I made the benches because I wanted to give tennis players a place to rest after a match, and to put their bags and equipment on,” Cease said of the project. “They are eight-feet long and very sturdy.”

To be eligible for the Eagle rank, Scouts must earn 21 merit badges and perform a service project that is of value to the community, as well as completing other requirements as specified in the Boy Scout Handbook. As a result of this project, Cease earned his Eagle Scout rank on April 11.

Cease is the son of Torrence and Susan Cease. A plaque crediting the Scout’s work on this project is prominent on each bench donated to the GAP.

Commissioners to hold regular meeting on April 19

NOTICE of REGULAR MEETING: The Granville County Board of Commissioners will meet at the Granville Expo & Convention Center, 4185 Highway 15, Oxford, NC on Monday, April 19, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. for the regular scheduled meeting.

This will be an in-person meeting. Any questions should be directed to Debra Weary, Clerk to the Board, at 919-603-1307 or debra.weary@granvillecounty.org.