VOLUME 147 ISSUE 36 | THURSDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2024
CHATHAMNEWSRECORD.COM
Home stretch Less than a week from the election, the presidential campaigns are in full get-out-the-vote mode. Democratic vice-presidential candidate Tim Walz was in Wilmington last week, while first lady Jill Biden made appearances in Fayetteville and Raleigh on Friday. President Donald Trump has been holding events across all the swing states, including one planned for Rocky Mount next week and a rally at Madison Square Garden in deep blue New York City on Sunday with a surprise appearance from his wife, Melania. PJ WARD-BROWN / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD
JORDAN GOLSON / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD
SHAWN KREST / CHATHAM NEWS & RECORD
EARLY VOTING Chatham County
In-Person Voting
34,554 Mail Voting
2,403 Ballots Cast by Party
23%
39%
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STATEWIDE EARLY VOTING In-Person Voting
Commissioners delay water system vote to Nov. 4 The decision was delayed because of an absence at the last meeting By Ryan Henkel Chatham News & Record PITTSBORO — The board was slated to vote on merging the county’s water system with the City of Sanford at its Oct. 21 meeting, but since Vice Chair Karen Howard was absent from the meeting, the board elected to postpone a vote on the matter till their next meeting on Nov. 4. However, the board was given an overview of what the merger will entail. “I want to be really crystal clear about this,” said County Manager Dan LaMontagne. “This agreement would transfer all responsibility for setting rates and operating the system to TriRiver. TriRiver will consult with the county before any kind of increases and at least annually, but in reality, we’ll be working with them pretty continuously when any developments come up.”
Montagne also stated that TriRiver’s water and sewer system standards and policies will also be applied to the county the same way they are applied to any residents or development in Sanford and that the Chatham County UDO will still control development. In addition, the agreement lays out the plan for the construction of the Hatley Road and Renaissance Drive Looping Watermain projects at an estimated cost of $4.8 million in total. “The city also agrees to use the remaining portions of the Chatham County water fund balance on projects that will benefit Chatham County,” Montagne said. In terms of changes for residents, those include: • Water bills coming from TriRiver instead of Chatham County. • Change in account numbers. • The 10% increase to water rates previously planned for July 1 will go into effect March 1 instead. • System development fees for See BOARD, page A2
STEPHANIE SCARBROUGH / AP PHOTO
High school senior Nathan Flaherty packs hygiene kits for people in need of supplies in Asheville earlier this month.
HS seniors make key life choices under the stress of Helene recovery First Covid, now Helene — these students have faced more than most By Makiya Seminera The Associated Press ASHEVILLE — On a recent Friday, Ari Cohen and three friends — all seniors at Asheville High School — gathered to play UNO inside his house, next to a pile of bottled water in his living room. It had been weeks since they
3,189,424 Mail Voting
178,934 Ballots Cast by Party
33%
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VOTES CAST AS OF OCT. 29
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Brass knuckles and brains: Navarro continues to fight for Trump The controversial economist looks to win the trade war with China By Shawn Krest Chatham News & Record GOLDSBORO — When the Trump/ Vance bus stopped in Goldsboro two weeks ago, more than a half dozen Republican politicians and former members of the Trump administration spoke to the assembled crowd, giving brief speeches. Each speaker was given a three-minute time limit. There was no question-and-answer period. That didn’t stop one member of the audience from speaking up, however. As Peter Navarro entered his ninth minute of speaking, and the former deputy assistant to the president was clearly winding down, a MAGA-clad listener shouted from the third row. “Before you go, can I just ask you one thing?”
Navarro nodded slowly. “Well, I’m going to answer that,” he said. “I think I know what you’re going to ask me. Because there’s only two things people always say. I spent four years in the White House doing all sorts of stuff — creating jobs. During the pandemic, I was saving lives, and I grew up in public. But the only thing people want to know: Do I have a tattoo, and what’s it like in prison?” The 75-year-old Navarro is a Harvard-educated economist. While the other passengers on the Trump bus dressed in politician casual — bold-colored polo shirts, jeans and bright smiles — Navarro wore a suit, tie and dour frown. Don’t let the background and wardrobe fool you, though: This is no mild-mannered bean counter. Navarro served a four-month prison sentence earlier this year for contempt of Congress after he refused to comply with a subpoena to testify in the Jan. 6 investigation. After being released from a fedSee NAVARRO, page A7
and thousands of other students had been inside a classroom because of devastation from Hurricane Helene, which left a massive tree leaning on Cohen’s house. Without reliable cell or internet service, students in hard-hit Asheville have been finding other ways to pass the time — whether volunteering, exploring hurricane-damaged parts of town or playing board games. “We’ve been hanging out See SENIORS, page A10