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January 9, 2018 Agenda and Explanations  1.   Meeting opened by Mayor Dana E. Outlaw.  Prayer Coordinated by Alderman Bengel.  Pledge of Allegiance. 2.   Roll Call. 3.   Request and Petition of Citizens. This section of the Agenda is titled Requests and Petitions of Citizens.  This is an opportunity for public comment, and we thank you for coming to the Board of Aldermen meeting tonight to share your views.  We value all citizen input. Speaker comments are limited to a maximum of 4 minutes during the public comment period.  At the conclusion of 4 minutes, each speaker shall leave the podium.  Comments will be directed to theRead More →

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The concrete front steps at New Bern City Hall is the first obstacle for people with mobility issues. Google Street View image   For those with mobility issues who want to attend a Board of Aldermen meeting, the seven steps they have to climb to reach the front door at New Bern City Hall is just the beginning of a perilous journey. Those seven concrete steps get you barely a third of the way to the second-floor room where the board meets. I’m thinking that there are one of two thoughts that cross people’s minds when they want to attend a Board of Aldermen meetingRead More →

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The following chart is the salary and travel allowance provided to each board member: The Fiscal Year 2017/18 budget includes $2,000 for travel and training and $1,000 special appropriation for discretionary spending for each Board Member.  As board members, they are also eligible to participate in the Employee Health Benefits plan. Although not a compensated item, the entire Board has city-issued iPads. The mayor (Dana Outlaw) and aldermen from Wards 2 (Jamee Harris), 3 (Bobby Aster), 4 (Johnnie Ray Kinsey) and 6 (Jeffrey Odham) have accepted city-issued cell phones. Aldermen Sabrina Bengel and Barbara Best have not opted for for city-issued cell phones.Read More →

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The board of aldermen without a ward system might as well look like this photo, taken just before new board members took their seats on Dec. 12. Post photo   I keep hearing that New Bern’s ward system is outdated and unnecessary, and that all members of the Board of Aldermen should be elected at-large, the same way the mayor is elected. Getting rid of the ward system would accomplish two things: It would put serving on the board out of reach for all but anyone who is wealthy enough to buy their way into office. It would leave New Bern’s less affluent neighborhoods withoutRead More →

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The outgoing Board of Aldermen shortly before four aldermen surrendered their seats on Dec. 12. Post photo   Dec. 12 was the last Board of Aldermen meeting for four aldermen. They included: One-term Ward 1 alderman Dallas Blackiston, who sought reelection but came in third in a three-person race won by his predecessor, Sabrina Bengel Two-term Ward 2 alderman Victor Taylor, who did not seek reelection and who was replaced by Jamee Harris. Half-term alderman E.T. Mitchell, who was appointed to the board and who did not run for reelection; she was replaced by Bobby Aster. Two-term Ward 5 alderman Bernard White, who lost hisRead More →

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Members of the new Board of Aldermen moments after taking their seats. They are, from left, Sabrina Bengel, Jamee Harris, Bobby Aster, Dana Outlaw, Johnnie Ray Kinsey, Barbara Best, and Jeffrey Odham. Post photo   Three of four new aldermen who took their seats on Dec. 12 bring with them enough experience that it would be inaccurate to call them rookies. Sabrina Bengel, who bested incumbent Dallas Blackiston, boating instructor Tony Bonnici and a hard challenge by retired chemist Anne Schout, has a long history of community involvement, owns real estate and businesses downtown, and previously served on the Board of Aldermen as Ward 1Read More →

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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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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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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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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 →