By Miles Layton

EDENTON – Chowan County commissioners on Monday were invited to a free new musical about the Edenton Tea Party that will open the John A. Holmes Performing Arts Center to community events, then agreed to look at giving the Boys and Girls Club more room at the former D.F. Walker High School, approved a revised personnel policy, OK’d a temporary pay boost for a Department of Social Services employee, set an Oct. 19 rezoning hearing and appointed Ashley Stoop to the Hospital Directors Council.

Speaking during public comment on behalf of Lori Edwards, Sally Francis Kehayes, that’s her in the story’s feature photo, urged commissioners to attend “Spill the Tea!” at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, and 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, at the performing arts center, 600 Woodard St. Edwards, a county resident, wrote the original musical with a state grant. Kehayes said the performances will be the first community events in the new facility.

Admission is free thanks to an America NC250 grant, but seats must be reserved in advance through the website listed on a flyer she distributed.

“We’re hoping everybody in the county comes out,” she said. She thanked commissioners for their part in making the center “as wonderful as it is.”

The show is built around Penelope Barker, who organized 50 other women to sign a public resolution boycotting British goods and sent it to King George III. The production blends pop, hip-hop, orchestral and classic Broadway styles. Kehayes said her husband, Alex, an accomplished actor, is among the cast. The musical will also be staged at Arts of the Albemarle in Elizabeth City at 7 p.m. Oct. 16 and 17 and 3 p.m. Oct. 18.

In other news, Elizabeth Mitchell, executive director of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Albemarle, asked the board for several rooms on the building’s second floor for a dedicated teen center. The club already leases the first floor from the county.

Mitchell said middle and high school members currently share one program area, serving students from sixth through 12th grade. About 52 high schoolers are enrolled, including those who attend teen nights on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and more than 20 attended the club’s eight-week summer camp.

She said the added space would allow the club to expand its career and financial literacy programs, bring in local employers to talk about jobs and trades, and set aside rooms for homework help and ACT preparation. 

County Manager Kevin Howard noted that the school system has proposed using part of the second floor for central office space and said the two uses would have to be worked out. Chairman Bob Kirby, who said he is a product of the Boys Club himself, thanked Mitchell for coming.

Commissioners also approved the amended Personnel Policy Manual, along with a set of employee incentives. Staff said the county does not contribute to employees’ 401(k) accounts, which is unusual among counties. Commissioners were told that local government contributions typically run between 1 and 5 percent of salary, with most around 2 percent.

Howard said any new incentives would require funding and will be presented at the board’s retreat and during the budget process. Commissioner Larry McLaughlin said such incentives are a way to keep employees without relying solely on pay raises, which are expensive.

Kirby, meanwhile, offered his own advice on retirement savings, quoting Albert Einstein’s remark that compound interest is the most powerful force in the world.

In another personnel matter, the DSS director Tyeshia Phelps told commissioners the agency remains in a staffing crisis and some units are down to two people. She said the workforce unit has only one worker. She asked for a special salary adjustment so the front desk administrative employee could be cross-trained to take applications, which now come in person, online and by phone.

Commissioner Tony Shaffer, a member of the DSS board, moved to approve an additional $1,000 per month for the employee while she fills that role. Commissioners approved the motion. The pay would end once a permanent hire is made and she returns to her regular duties.

Register of Deeds Lynn Gilliard also gave a presentation on the county’s deed fraud detection service. She said fraudsters are using real property owners’ Social Security numbers and driver’s license information, along with notary credentials, in some cases without the notary’s knowledge. Red flags include vacant or rental properties, owners with a different mailing address, tax-delinquent properties, and properties with outstanding mortgages or liens or that are for sale or recently sold.

Commissioners voted to waive the county’s quarterly amendment policy so a rezoning request for 1823 Virginia Road can be heard at a public hearing Oct. 19. County staff said the policy is a holdover from the old ordinance, since the new Land Use Regulations adopted at the last meeting do not include a quarterly requirement. The application was filed under the old rules.

The board unanimously appointed Stoop to the Hospital Directors Council, filling the seat vacated by Judge J.C. Cole. A commissioner who serves with her on another regional health board called her well qualified.