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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Mayor, New Bern Fire Department, News Media, Opinion
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Alderman Sabrina Bengel takes the oath of office after being selected mayor pro tem. Alderman and former mayor pro tem Jeff Odham is in the background fuming. The two sit on opposite sides of the dais and, judging from their first meeting Tuesday, are on opposite sides of other things, too. It didn’t take long for four years of bad blood between Sabrina Bengel and Dana Outlaw/Jeff Odham to spill over into Tuesday’s Board of Aldermen meeting. The question is, who started it? • Was it Ward 1 Alderman Bengel who, during her first meeting as alderman (this time around) and using a portion ofRead More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Craven County Board of Commissioners, Mayor, New Bern
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Note: This has been corrected since originally posted to reflect that there had never been more than two women on the board, not one. The glass ceiling was cracked, if not shattered, on Tuesday, as three women took their seats on a Board of Aldermen that had never had more than two female members throughout its existence.     And one of the first things the more feminine board did on Tuesday was vote unanimously to endorse the Equal Rights Amendment. In 1972, a proposed Equal Rights Amendment (“ERA”) to the Constitution passed both houses of the U.S. Congress and was sent to the statesRead More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Mayor, New Bern Fire Department
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Alderman Sabrina Bengel takes the oath of office after being selected mayor pro tem. Alderman Jeff Odham is in the background. The two sit on opposite sides of the dais and, judging from their first meeting Tuesday, are on opposite sides of other things, too. Former New Bern mayor Lee Bettis will have his name restored to a fire truck the Board of Aldermen authorized to buy during his last meeting as mayor but the subsequent board ordered removed because he was convicted of crimes. Ward 1 Alderman Sabrina Bengel, using the New Business portion of the meeting that she has complained about on herRead More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Mayor, New Bern, New Bern business and commerce
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CITY OF NEW BERN BOARD OF ALDERMEN MEETING DECEMBER 12, 2017 – 7:00 P.M. CITY HALL COURTROOM 300 POLLOCK STREET 1.   Meeting opened by Mayor Dana E. Outlaw.  Prayer Coordinated by Mayor Outlaw.  Pledge of Allegiance. 2.   Roll Call. Consent Agenda 3.   Approve Minutes. Minutes from the regular meeting on November 28, 2017 are provided for review and approval. ******************** 4.   Consider Adopting a Resolution to Initiate the Upset Bid Process for 508 Third Avenue. (Ward 2) An offer in the amount of $2,500.00 has been received from Tonyah L. Dillahunt for the purchase of 508 Third Avenue.  The property is owned solely by theRead More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Mayor, New Bern business and commerce
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Counting down the days before a largely new Board of Alderman convenes in mid-December, the 2017-vintage board met on Tuesday for a routine meeting in which most agenda items received no discussion and everything passed unanimously. Mayor Dana Outlaw was absent from the meeting while he attended a funeral. (Sorry for your loss, Mayor Outlaw.) Had he been at the aldermen meeting, he could have been counted on for at least one or two no votes, as is his custom. Meanwhile, Mayor Pro Tem Jeffrey Odham presided over the meeting and kept things tame and orderly, with minimal shenanigans and tomfoolery while the boss was away.Read More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Mayor, New Bern, New Bern business and commerce
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Click here, or, if your aim is good, click the bear at left to see the PDF of the Master Parking Plan Advisory Committee’s recommendations to the Board of Aldermen on Nov. 21. A public hearing will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2018 at 7 p.m. at City Hall to gather public feedback and input to these recommendations. (Note: The presentation says Jan. 8.  The public hearing is Jan. 9, 2018 at 7 p.m.)  Read More →

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CITY OF NEW BERN BOARD OF ALDERMEN MEETING NOVEMBER 28, 2017 – 7:00 P.M. CITY HALL COURTROOM 300 POLLOCK STREET   1.  Meeting opened by Mayor Dana E. Outlaw.  Prayer Coordinated by Alderman Odham.   Pledge of Allegiance. 2.  Roll Call. Consent Agenda 3.  Consider Adopting a Resolution Closing Streets for the Jaycee’s Annual Christmas Parade. (Ward 1) The Craven County Jaycees will hold its annual Christmas Parade on December 2, 2017.  They have requested the 1400-1800 blocks of Trent Boulevard, 400 block of First Street, 300-1200 blocks of Broad Street, and 200-300 blocks of Craven Street be closed from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.  They have also requestedRead More →

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The Board of Aldermen heard a report from the Master Parking Plan Advisory Committee at a work session on Tuesday and decided to let a newly constituted board make any decisions, with a public hearing to be held in January. Four new aldermen take their seats in mid-December, and they will outnumber the three incumbents who held on to their seats in the October municipal elections. Rather than committing the city to something major by a board that will substantially change in a few weeks, aldermen decided to hold off making any further decisions. Check previous New Bern Post articles for specifics about the parkingRead More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Craven County Board of Commissioners, Mayor, New Bern
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In 1992, the same year Bill Clinton was elected to his first term as president, the City of New Bern installed a software system called Banner. It’s still in use today, even though the software developer got out of the municipal software business long ago and focuses on education institutional software now. Only one person among the 450 who work at New Bern City Hall knows how to maintain the Banner system, and the company that makes it will stop supporting the version the city uses in early 2018. The city’s aging software system has been a subject of conversation by city leaders for atRead More →

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In: Aldermen, Board of Aldermen, Mayor, New Bern
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Each December on National Wreaths Across America Day, wreath-laying ceremonies are held at Arlington National Cemetery, as well as over 1,200 additional locations in all 50 U.S. states, at sea, and abroad. This year, the event falls on Dec. 16, and one of the locations will be New Bern National Cemetery. Ken Dimpsey of National Wreaths Across America said there are four national cemeteries in North Carolina — New Bern, Wilmington, Salisbury and Raleigh. New Bern’s is the largest in the state, with 1,517 souls buried there. The organization is accepting donations of to cover the $15-per-live-wreath cost. “The main thing we’re trying to doRead More →