FRONT PAGE

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County leaders said it will require a tax increase to fully fund the school system's budget request, which is $5.2 million more in operating funding than they got last year.
The bottom line, County Commission Chair Harry Foy and School Board member Tommy Piper said, is how will the county get down to an expense they can approve in the budget.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County commissioners tasked staff with creating a stakeholders group that could tackle water allocation issues.
For at least the past two meetings, Raleigh-based developer and Franklin County Home Builders Association member Dan Tingen has criticized the county's water allocation process, calling it ambiguous and detrimental to development.

CASTALIA -- When you go out to Hardly Farm, you won't find anyone who's not hard at work.
But, the second-, third- and fourth-generation folks running the former tobacco farm in the northeastern corner of Franklin County take plenty of pleasure in their work.
"... We're having fun," said Kim Gupton Stewart, who took over the 37.5-acre, northeastern Franklin County farm when her Dad, Bennie Ray Gupton, passed away in 2019.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County commissioners agreed to give home builders and others more time to respond to a hike in fees paid by new development.
In 2017, the General Assembly enacted a bill that requires governments and municipalities that collect fees that cover the impacts of new growth and development to prepare a written analysis to justify the amount charged.
In 2018, after developers balked at higher fees, the county set a fee of $1,350 for water and $1,950 for sewer for new developments.

LOUISBURG -- County commissioners agreed to spend up to $130,000 to build a dog park in Pilot.
During the board's April 15 meeting, Assistant County Manager Will Doerfer presented a preliminary proposal to build a dog park at the Pilot Lions Park, with a rough estimate of between $89,000 and $100,000.
At that meeting, Commissioner Danny Pearce successfully made a motion to move forward with plans to construct that park, starting no later than September.

Youngsville Town Manager Nathan Page