BY MILES LAYTON

A round-up of things from God’s country…

John A. Holmes High School’s Class of 2025 graduated on Friday – Congrats to 149 Aces!

“We did it Mr. Layton – we did it!” said Chris Mayfield, a senior now alumnus, as he left the commencement service. That’s him smiling in the feature.

In other news, the N.C. Department of Transportation proposes replacing the West Queen Street bridge over the Pembroke Creek in Chowan County. Two Alternatives are being considered:

• Replace the bridge in place with an on-site detour to the north side-would be replaced in-place with a modern two-lane bridge with 12-foot travel lanes and 2-foot paved shoulders, with a raised 5.5-foot concrete sidewalk on the southern side.
• Replace the bridge in place with an off-site detour along U.S. 17, N.C. 32, and U.S. 17 Business.

The existing bridge has a roadway width of 28-feet with two 12-foot lanes and 2-foot paved shoulders. Raised concrete 3-foot sidewalks are in each side of the bridge.

The bridge would be replaced in-place with a modern two-lane bridge with 12-foot travel lanes. 

The proposed bridge would be 314 feet in length and would have a 28-foot clear roadway width, and a 33.5-foot deck width.

NCDOT representatives will be available to answer questions and receive comments. The comments and information received will be taken into consideration as work on the project develops.

The opportunity to submit written comments will be provided at the meeting or can be submitted via phone at 984-205-6615, enter project code 11464, email at US17-Bridge-PembrokeCreek@publicinput.com or at ​NCDOT’s public input portal​ by June 20, 2025.

Speaking of infrastructure, I want to thank former Town of Edenton Manager Anne-Marie Knighton, certainly Town Council, for having the vision to build that kayak ramp at Elizabeth Vann Moore Park. Launched from there Monday evening – been a while since I’ve been kayaking the bay, but it was nice.   

As to the waters of Edenton Bay and the Albemarle Sound, they appear to be algae free – so far. Chowan-Edenton Environmental Group reports that the green stuff has been spotted at Chowan Beach, so it is only a matter of time before it spreads near and far. Sad to say, the green stuff is an annual thing, some years are worse than others. 

Lastly, as posted to social media, Main Street Edenton recently received a $40,000 check commemorating the Mission Development Grant awarded by the SECU Foundation earlier in the year. Across North Carolina, members of the State Employees’ Credit Union contribute one dollar per month to the SECU Foundation, which then reinvests those funds into communities statewide—providing millions of dollars in grants each year.

In March, Director Ches Chesson and Event Coordinator Timmy Turner attended SECU’s Mission Development Conference in Greensboro, joining 27 other grant recipients from across the state. The Mission Development Grant program supports organizations making a meaningful impact in their communities and preparing to grow. To help facilitate that growth, the foundation allocates a portion of grant funds to hire consultants who specialize in leadership development, strategic planning, and capital campaigns.

Main Street Edenton secured this grant to launch a capital campaign aimed at transforming the parking lot at 207 South Broad Street into a pocket park. These funds have enabled us to engage capital development consultants from Moss & Ross and to commission designs for a park that is timeless, authentic to Edenton, and dedicated to telling the lesser-known stories of the people and communities who have called this place home throughout our history.

Last thing, if you have any tips, send them to mileslayton1969@gmail.com or reach out to me via Facebook.