Brady Cody
Robbinsville – After securing the property to construct a long-needed justice center, there has not been a lot of news concerning the status of the facility.
That changed at the outset of Graham County Manager Brady Cody's report Tuesday, given during the board of commissioners meeting.
Cody said he spoke to both Moseley (the architect, based in Greenville, S.C.) and WithersRavenel (the Cary-based project engineer) last week, with both entities confirming that planning and design was still ongoing. Cody passed along the board's stance that construction of the justice center itself is priority No. 1, while building a detention center and sheriff's office is the second leg of the project.
"I also reiterated with the team that this design needs to be quality, but also budget-friendly," Cody stated. "We want to make sure it can be constructed quickly, efficiently and will be something that the people of Graham County can be proud of – but is also not something that is going to break the bank for the taxpayer."
Cody noted that the initial contract was to design the entire facility – which will be constructed in-between the Graham County Community Building and the county library, on Knight Street – up front. Now, the justice center itself will be designed separately as part of a revamped agreement, which Cody added will bring a lower cost for design fees.
"We're going to obviously make sure there's enough adequate space for what is going to be constructed, but the primary focus is getting this justice center designed and off the ground as quickly as possible," said Cody. "That's what the community wants, as well. It's been a project long in the making."
Once the recreation season ends in May, the current spot – which serves as a practice facility for local youth teams and was once the Robbinsville High School baseball field – will be alive with activity. Cody shared that surveyors will be on-site and might utilize virtual reality glasses to allow county officials a glimpse of what's to come.
"We should be able to move very quickly at that point," Cody said.
Other news & notes
* Former sheriff and commission candidate Chase Lancaster pitched the idea of hosting a rodeo, to serve as a fundraiser for various departments of Graham County government. Lancaster revived the tradition of local rodeos in 2022, which has gained traction over the last few years and seen several two-night stints hosted at the Graham County Recreation Department off P & J Road. The board appeared to universally support the idea, with commissioner Natasha Williams asking that the proposed date of July 4 be changed to avoid conflicts with the Graham County Heritage Festival. Commission Chair Meggan Smith also suggested that Lancaster meet with recreation director Thomas Menard about the event in advance.
* TD Hill with RH CPAs, PLLC – who is handling the county's backlogged audits – addressed the board virtually with an update. Hill said the 2023-24 audit was scheduled to be sent to the Local Government Commission by April 15, which prompted Smith to later ask if all audits would be caught up by the end of the calendar year. "I think so, but there's a lot of variables in there," Hill said. "I think that's certainly possible."
* Jessica Ayers and Liz Hooper were both unanimously approved by the board to be appointed to the Southwestern Commission's Area Agency on Aging.
* A motion to extend the interlocal agreement with the Nantahala Regional Library system was tabled, after commissioner Lynn Cody stated his belief that the Town of Robbinsville dropped its funding for the library last year – even though Robbinsville is still in the current agreement. The Town of Lake Santeetlah has also decided to support the local library through Friends of the Library, which was the only noted change in the agreement.