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The event went well with over 160 in attendance. There were two documents recorded- a substitution of trustee and a satisfaction. I would like to express my appreciation to Secretary of State Elaine Marshall; Business Information Systems, Simplifile, and Electronic Document Logistics (EDL) for making the event a great success!
Greg Niles passed away on Saturday. When I received the call I was just stunned. I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening wrestling with mortality, in intimate prayer, cleaning out gutters, and keeping in my thoughts on his three children–one named Aiden (like my own son).
Greg was a real professional. He enjoyed his job and was about transforming the Planning Department in to a customer service driven operation while respecting planning best practices. I remember last month he showed me a new pictography software program they had developed with GIS. We installed it internally in our office within a week. He was really giddy about showing it to me and how it would benefit the end user. I felt a real kinship with him as a young, energetic Department Director working to transform county government.
I will really miss him. He helped me raise my game so to speak and I keep him, his wife, and his children in my prayers.
The Elections Department reported a total of 129,895 voters for the primary: 30,445 were in-person early voters; 1,632 were by-mail voters; and, 97,833 Election Day voters. This represents a 40% turnout overall and 27,000 more voters than the county recorded in the November 2006 general election.
Of note, the majority of Elections Department staff worked from 5:30 a.m. - 11:00 p.m. George Gilbert advised there may be a run off election on June 24th for the Democratic Commissioner of Labor.
Chairman Perkins issued a Proclamation of a State of Emergency for Guilford County this morning due to a reported tornado that caused widespread damage, injuries and loss of life on Thursday, May 8th. The Proclamation was made to maintain public order, services, protection of lives, safety and property during this emergency and will remain in effect within Guilford county until the emergency is over. This proclamation is a first step in order to submit a request to the State of North Carolina for potential financial assistance.
At approximately 11:30 p.m. on May 8, 2008, Guilford Metro 9-1-1 received reports of a tornado in the area of Interstate 40 and Sandy Ridge Road with numerous vehicles including tractor-trailers overturned on Interstate 40. Subsequent to the initial calls, additional reports of damage included several locations with building collapse, fire alarms and trees/power lines down. Multiple public safety agencies within Guilford County responded to these incidents within the Colfax, City of Greensboro and Piedmont Triad International Airport area. At this time, there have been three injuries and one fatality was recorded from the storm event. Alan Perdue activated the Guilford County Emergency Operations Center and public safety personnel began assessing damage.
Greensboro Assistant Fire Chief David Douglas stated at the press conference this morning that a commercial and industrial area in Guilford County around U.S. 421, Interstate 40, N.C. 68 and Sandy Ridge Road has been quarantined, meaning no traffic or employees will be allowed in that area. West Market Street is also closed in that area. Search and rescue teams, inspections and engineering crews are doing damage assessment and evaluating each building to ensure no one was left behind, Douglas said. The Greensboro Police Department has set up a command post at the Piedmont Triad Farmers Market on Sandy Ridge Road. Business and property owners may call that mobile office to report structural problems at 708-5037 for help in accessing their business. Non-emergency calls should be directed to the City of Greensboro’s Contact Center at 373-2489.
Meteorologist Jeff Orrock, National Weather Service, verified that a “F2, small F3 tornado with wind speeds of 100-130 mph, left a path of destruction in this area.”
Planning Director Greg Niles verified damages with the superintendents for both FedEX and HondaJet: FedEx: minor damage to roof mounted vents and HVAC units; HondaJet: access ladder damage. Other than shifting materials and debris, the sites are in good shape. Also, Guilford County Schools reported no damage to Colfax or other schools.
Duke Energy notified us that Guilford County sustained damage with 1,100 outages reported, principally in the area west of the airport, as the storm moved through from the southwest to the northeast.
The Health Department and Public School Nurses coordinated the “Gift of Sight Vision” van at Friendly Shopping Center earlier this month. Ninety-two children were examined for vision problems. This event, in partnership with LensCrafters, gave each child a hard case and cleaning cloth. The eye exam and glasses are a free service.
Bridgeway Behavioral Health, Inc. opened its 20-bed Low Intensity Residential Unit at the Guilford County Substance Abuse Treatment center, West Wendover Avenue, on April 7th. As of Wednesday, there were 5 women and 10 men residing at the facility. In order to qualify for the program, residents must have a diagnosis of substance dependence, must not have Tuberculosis, and must not require detoxification services or medically managed hospital care. The Guilford Center reports that Bridgeway has hired a total of 6 clinicians, 2 case managers, 7 residential habilitation technicians, and a bilingual (English/Spanish) receptionist. The case managers will make referrals to recovering consumers for vocational rehabilitation and job-seeking training as well as linking them to recreational activities in the community and GED preparation. Bridgeway is actively recruiting for a part-time medical director, as detoxification treatment cannot be offered until this position is filled.
Negotiations are continuing with the Town of Kernersville and City of Archdale for collection of municipal property taxes by Guilford County. If the governing bodies of Kernersville and/or Archdale agree to the terms of a contract, the Guilford County Tax Department will collect municipal taxes for land and buildings that are in those jurisdictions and within the boundaries of the County. The department currently provides this service to nine other municipalities.