Our downtown is Christmas aglow, with City Hall, Segra Stadium and the Arts Council of Fayetteville-Cumberland County adorned in holiday lights. Shops and businesses, too. Everything but the historic Market House, with not a candle in the windows as once there were in Christmases past. Or garland and wreaths with red ribbons looking upon Hay, Green, Gillespie and Person streets. And a Christmas tree, too. So sad for some of us in this city in a community that has become what it has become since May 30, 2020.
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Give credit to Chief Gina Hawkins and the Fayetteville Police Department that since November, according to a news release, the agency has increased its presence throughout the city’s major corridors and businesses in this holiday shopping. Thieves are among us, and holiday shoppers can be their prey. The FPD offers sound safety tips for shoppers, such as park near a light; employ the buddy system and try not to shop alone; shop with a single credit card; secure your Christmas packages in the trunk of your vehicle; and avoid use of an ATM. Prudent advice from the Police Department.
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Sorrow this day as Cumberland County Sheriff Ennis Wright and deputies with the Sheriff’s Office bid farewell to Oscar Yovani Bolanos-Anavisca Jr., 23, who was killed Dec. 16 in the line of duty, the victim of an alleged drinking-and-driving motorist. Bolanos-Anavisca was investigating a convenience store robbery on the south end of Gillespie Street. “A senseless tragedy that could have been prevented,” the sheriff says of the deputy’s death. “A dedicated, selfless member of the Sheriff’s Office who lost his life protecting the citizens of Cumberland County.” Services are scheduled today for the deputy at Rivers of Living Water Church, 1764 Bingham Drive, with visitation from 10 a.m. to 1:45 p.m., followed by a 2 p.m. funeral.
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The Cumberland Board of County Commissioners voted in November to build a 69,000- to 89,000-square-foot multipurpose events center in the front parking lot of the Cumberland County Courthouse, and now they are awaiting a parking study after committing $85 million for construction. “We are currently exploring alternative options within walking distance from the selected site and the courthouse that would more than make up for the lost parking identified and would be accessible to citizens conducting business,” Assistant County Manager Brian Haney says. “We are also conducting a more detailed parking study, now that the site has been selected, to confirm our understanding of the impact of the Crown Event Center site location in terms of displaced parking and its impact on existing downtown parking capacity. The key takeaway is there is a plan, and it’s going to be addressed as part of this project.” Excuse me, parking should have been the first consideration when Commissioners Toni Stewart, Glenn Adams, Jeannette Council, Jimmy Keefe, Michael Boose and former Commissioners Charles Evans and Larry Lancaster gave the green light to replace the old Crown Theatre and Arena on U.S. 301 Business. Commissioners say there will be parking available at the Franklin Street parking garage, the back parking lot of the courthouse and at leased property at nearby First Presbyterian Church. The front courthouse parking lot is giving up 203 spaces. The Franklin Street parking deck can accommodate 295 vehicles, according to a city spokeswoman. Glenn Adams, vice chairman of the commissioners, says there is ample parking at the church. No one knows how many parking space are available in the back parking lot of the courthouse, although Haney says the county is looking at additional parking. But Haney will not say where. The parking lot for the old theater and arena, according to Seth Benalt, the Crown general manager, can accommodate 900 vehicles. Talk about putting the cart before the horse.
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Something else you might wish to know about the Franklin Street parking garage. Rates are $1 per hour, according to the city, with a $5 daily maximum. Special event rates may apply. All Fayetteville parking locations are free on Saturdays and Sundays, unless there is a “special event” taking place.
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Local residents assisting and advising with construction and design input of the multipurpose events center, according to the county, are Vikki Andrews with The Brandon Group; Casey Benander with Haymount Homes; George Breece with the National Association for the Advancement of Orthotics & Prosthetics; Tony Chavonne with The Chavonne Group; Michelle Courie; Elyse Craver with Stericylce; Katanya Foust with Fayetteville Technical Community College; Mary Holmes with the Cumberland Community Foundation; homebuilder Ralph Huff; Sheba McNeill with Militaryville411; Terri Thomas with the Vision Resource Center; and Kelsey Timas with Guiding Wellness Institute. To be announced is a representative of the An Affair to Remember Fashion Show and a representative of Cape Fear Regional Theatre. Fayetteville State University, Methodist University and Cumberland County Schools also will have a voice among organizations that currently use the Crown Theatre and the arena.
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“Very nice article,” Judge John Tyson of the N.C. Court of Appeals writes in an email about our Dec. 18 column on Charles and Shirley McLaurin, who will be closing Eastover Art Works (circa 1971) sometime in February. Tyson is an Eastover native.
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Joe Utley Jr. is the county tax collector, and his office reminds residents that property taxes for real estate and personal property are due Jan. 5 or you will be delinquent and penalties will apply. Utley is a good fellow just doing his job, but some may call him the Christmas Grinch.
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Just a quick note from St. Nick, who says he is an avid reader of CityView each day since he’s been out at Cross Creek Mall over the holidays. “Tell all of the little girls and boys ol’ Santa is heading back Saturday evening to the North Pole to get ready for my annual midnight sleigh ride, and Fayetteville and Cumberland County will be among my first stops,” Santa sends in an email. “Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and Rudolph are raring to go.” A peck on the cheek to Mrs. Santa, he writes, “and we’ll be on our way.”
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Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, the most serene night of the year. And I have somewhere to be and a red candle to light on the most serene night of the year.
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
