Harnett County commissioners approve grants, contracts and staff changes at March 2 meeting

Harnett County commissioners on March 2 approved a slate of routine and program-specific items including grant acceptances, contract approvals and a new personnel position.

The board approved acceptance of an award reported as $1,416,360 for Soil and Water from the federal agency named in the recap as the "USDA Natural Resources Conservation." The board also approved a $20,000 state grant for the county veteran's office.

Information Technology items approved included the Webexx Countywide Phone System Agreement, transferring a tower access agreement to Ripple Fiber and payouts for milestones 3 and 4 under Ripple Fiber’s agreement. The board approved a fireworks application from Pyrostar Entertainment LLC for Campbell University’s baseball season and authorized a new director of public safety communications requested by the sheriff’s office. Commissioners also approved budget amendments during the county manager’s report and added several local roads to the state’s secondary road system.

The recap did not provide vote tallies, mover/second details, or the full text of motions; it recorded only that items were "approved." The public comment period included remarks from two individuals, but the recap did not summarize their comments.

Votes at a glance
• Veterans grant — Accept state grant of $20,000 for county veteran's office — approved.
• Soil and Water award — Accept $1,416,360 award from USDA Natural Resources Conservation (recap wording) — approved.
• Webexx Countywide Phone System Agreement — approved.
• Tower access agreement transfer — Transfer to Ripple Fiber — approved.
• Ripple Fiber payouts — Approve payouts for milestones 3 and 4 — approved.
• Pyrostar Entertainment LLC fireworks permit — Campbell University baseball season — approved.
• Sheriff’s office — Create director of public safety communications position — approved.
• Budget amendments — approved.

The meeting included a remembrance presentation honoring Chief Warrant Officer Jesse Porter and a presentation of the county’s annual comprehensive financial report for fiscal year 2025. A closed session was held; no subject or outcome from that session was disclosed in the public recap. The next board meeting was announced for March 10 at 9 a.m.

Details such as vote tallies, motion language, and specific road names added to the secondary road list were not provided in the recorded recap.