Badin Town Council considers closing alley in West Badin

Published 3:42 pm Friday, January 20, 2023

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The issue regarding the closure of an alley in Badin was discussed at length at the January meeting of the town’s council.

Avonda Thomas spoke in the public comments portion regarding property she and her husband, Tito, own in the West Badin community.

Thomas said she had written permission from Ann McCoy, whose property is the only one zoned general business that is next to the alley way. She said McCoy had stated closing the alley “would not affect her and it is OK to close it with her property right there.”

She said she had verbal permission from five other landowners near the alley for its closure.

McCoy provided a photo to council members and staff saying a building existed on the property in the 1950s and 1960s. She said the alley “did not serve a purpose” and “closing would not interfere with anything.”

In the first phase of their plans, an office space would be built, Thomas said.

“The alley is kind of keeping that from happening because it’s blocking it,” Thomas said.

She said unless ALCOA rezones, donates or sells land, this area “is our only hope for Badin. The alley is blocking the growth.”

Mayor Gary Lowder said a request from 2008 to close the alley “died on the table.”

Though Lowder did not know what the procedure would be for closing the alley, he said the issue should be tabled until the February meeting.

Town Manager Jay Almond said he was contacting the UNC School of Government and consulting North Carolina General Statutes to see what the procedures would be.

In an email sent to The Stanly News & Press, Almond said it appeared the 2008 request to close the alley “was abandoned by the requesting party. Because it was halted mid-stream, there could be additional steps that were not reached at that time. Statutory/legal or procedural changes may have occurred in the past 14 years as well, so that possibility must be considered.

“As such, the town will reference North Carolina General Statutes for guidance, will consult with public advocacy and legal entities as well as other municipalities to be sure proper current procedure is fully understood,” Almond wrote. “If indeed any action is to be taken, those processes are what the board will adhere to for the sake of fairness and propriety.”

According to the March 11, 2008 minutes, Christopher Carruthers made a similar request to close the alley between Sumpter and Jackson streets.

Other minutes from 2008 reflected town manager Todd Herms looking into the steps per the state statutes. The board passed a resolution declaring its intention to consider closing the alley, and legal notices for a public hearing on the matter were published in the April 10, 17, 24 and May 1 editions of The Stanly News & Press.

Almond said in an email the past attempt “appears to have been tabled by a motion and vote.”

About Charles Curcio

Charles Curcio has served as the sports editor of the Stanly News & Press for more than 16 years and has written numerous news and feature storeis as well. He was awarded the NCHSAA Tim Stevens Media Representative of the Year and named CNHI Sports Editor of the Year in 2014. He has also won an award from Boone Newspapers, and has won four North Carolina Press Association awards.

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