After a lengthy closed session during Monday’s meeting, the Hope Mills Board of Commissioners voted to approve a letter of intent to engage the town’s police department for school resource officers, and rezoned land for a new residential development.
Hope Mills approves letter of intent for SROs
What happened: Hope Mills Commissioners unanimously voted Monday to approve a letter of intent to engage the Hope Mills Police Department in a contract to provide school resource officers and other security services for the upcoming academic year. This action follows the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office’s withdrawal of deputies from Cumberland County public schools, which takes effect on July 1. The commissioners’ engagement with HMPD seeks to remedy concerns regarding school safety and community policing during the 2024-25 school year, and replace the now-vacant security posts at Hope Mills schools with HMPD officers.
“This has been a very proactive measure on behalf of the Town of Hope Mills, and we’ve done it in less than a month,” Mayor Jessie Bellflowers said.
Why it matters: The commissioners’ letter marks an early effort on behalf of the municipality to find a solution to the looming SRO and traffic control officer issue for the upcoming academic year.
What’s next: The details of the upcoming contract between the Town of Hope Mills and HMPD, and the impacts of this shift, will likely be discussed at later Board of Commissioners’ meetings.
Commissioners rezone land for new residential development
What happened: In a public hearing, commissioners approved a petition made by Biltmore Construction Company Inc. to rezone two parcels of land, totaling 1.81 acres, for residential use. According to meeting materials, the plan, which proposes a small apartment development, only partially complies with the Southwest Cumberland County Land Use Plan. That land use plan calls for mixed-use development on the property. However, because residential buildings are permitted within the R5 zoning classification, the town recommended approval for the project.
“These will be two-story units with garages,” said Tim Evans of Longleaf Properties, the company that seeks to develop the land. “It will be a first class development that we put there.”
Evans was the only attendee to speak about the matter during the public hearing.
Why it matters: This land is located directly across the street from Hope Mills Middle School, making it an attractive location for families with middle school-aged children, and the development will create more residential housing options for Hope Mills residents.
What’s next: Residents can expect to see development of this land in the coming months. No further plans or timelines were available at the time of this meeting.
Other business
Commissioners entered a closed session, lasting two hours, early in the meeting. They cited NCGS 143-318.11, a general state statute that governs closed sessions, as just cause for these sessions to be invoked. Commissioners cited attorney-client privilege, property acquisition and personnel considerations as justification for their closed session.
Due to the lengthy nature of their early closed session, commissioners voted to postpone committee liaison updates about community activities until their next regularly scheduled meeting on July 1.
The board approved minutes from previous meetings, including a May 6 closed session, May 30 special meeting, and June 3 regular meeting. These will enter in the public record and be accessible on the Town of Hope Mills website.
The next Hope Mills Board of Commissioners meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Monday, July 1, at Hope Mills Town Hall.
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