August 12, 2022
The Town of Farmville has received $1,500,000. from the federal American Rescue Plan. The funds were distributed in an effort to help us residents recover from the financial impact of the pandemic. There are parameters regarding how this money can be spent, including economic relief for workers and families who were harmed as a result of COVID shut-downs, etc. As of June 2022, the Town of Farmville had not yet decided how our money would be allocated. It will be crucial for all of us to give input as to how this $1.5 million should be spent and to keep an eye on how it is dispersed. It would be nice if some of this money could be used to help offset the July 1, 2022 increases in our water, sewer and electric rates, as many Farmville residents are struggling financially with inflation. This could be done in a variety of ways.
Also, it was reported on August 2, 2022 that the Town of Farmville will receive $10,465,000 in grant money from the State of North Carolina to help with water and sewer projects, including our cast iron waterline rehabilitation. Part of these funds are designated to help with Housing Authority sanitary sewer improvements. For more details, please see the following article.
On February 17, 2022 WITN reported that the Farmville Corporate Park would be receiving $300,000. as part of ten grants from the North Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority to help with sewer infrastructure.
Finally, the lawsuit brought against the Town of Farmville by the Ole Time Smokehouse/Mark Shirley completed what we hope will be a successful mediation. The Pacific Legal Foundation did a fantastic job showing that the Town of Farmville was clearly in the wrong when commissioners voted to increase the food truck fee from $100 per year to $75 per day. It sounds like the Town of Farmville almost has no choice but to correct its overreach. If the commissioners voted in closed session at the August 2022 Town Board meeting to accept the terms of the mediation, the legal fees to us tax payers will come to an end for this matter. At this time, it is unclear how much money this lawsuit has cost us. We are hoping that the commissioners agreed to the terms of the mediation and allowed a victory for “the little guy” and freedom for a person to make a living without burdensome governmental regulation. We could not thank the national, libertarian law firm, Pacific Legal, enough for its unwavering support of normal, everyday people caught in the cogs of random government restrictions and onerous burdens. If the commissioners did not vote to accept the parameters of the mediation, our legal fees will continue, as there is only one shot at mediation and the next step would be going to court. You might remember that Shirley did not sue for economic damages. The suit was only for $1 and for changes to Farmville’s food truck fees and rules. It would be very easy for our commissioners to correct the wrong. Hopefully they will accept the terms of the mediation negotiated by the Town’s law firm. The Town of Farmville hardly could face a more prepared, knowledgeable firm, as the Pacific Legal Foundation has won 14 cases at the Supreme Court of the United States.
celiastone 