Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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6 FEBRUARY 3-9, 2016 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Recent polls show that the majority of informed North Carolina voters support the Connect NC bonds and so does Up & Coming Weekly. Community colleges rank among the top two reasons that voters support the bonds. Below is information you will need to be informed about this important issue. It is my hope that this information will help you gain greater support for the bond initiative and provide context around the bond discussions. Overview Connect NC is a $2 billion bond proposal for strategic investments in our state's public infrastructure for higher education, state parks, agriculture, safety and water and sewer infrastructure. This will cultivate a stronger economy, improve quality of life, provide improved facilities for education and training and enhance the safety of our food and our citizens. No new taxes are required now or in the future to finance the bonds as North Carolina will be finished paying some current bond debt before the cost of these bonds would be added. There is something in this for everybody. Identified projects span from the mountains to the coast and include direct investments in over 70 counties with benefits for all 100 counties, both rural communities and large urban cities. And, just as businesses invest in their companies and families invest in their homes, North Carolina has the responsibility to invest in its public infrastructure for current and future generations and for its growing population. This would also enable FTCC to expand programs at its existing campus. North Carolina voters will have the opportunity to vote on the issuance of Connect NC public infrastructure bonds in the primary election on March 15. Why bonds? Because long-term financing is the most efficient way to fund critical needs projects, especially when interest rates are at an all-time low. North Carolina has an established and successful history of responsibly using long-term financing to support the infrastructure and educational needs our communities and citizens. These bonds will allow North Carolina to pay over 20 to 25 years for assets that will last for 50 years or more. Most of these infrastructure projects cannot be financed from annual operating budgets on either the state or county levels. Just as homeowners pay for a house as they use it over time, North Carolinians will pay over decades for these needed-right-now improvements to our "house." "It gives us an opportunity to invest in ourselves. I think that is so important as community, a state and a country," said Dr. Larry Keen, FTCC president. "You have to make ongoing investments if you are going to improve. This is another opportunity to continue to benefit from investments made in the past and to build on those foundations." Locally, there are several smaller municipalities that stand to gain from the initiative. "There is some funding for rural communities for infrastructure needs for things like water and sewerage," Keen noted. "There are eight smaller municipalities in our community. It may give them some additional funds to improve infrastructure. From that perspective, it benefits the county at large but smaller communities specifically." There are many reasons to support Connect NC public improvement projects. However, higher education and continuing education seems most relevant to growing communities and a growing state. The North Carolina Community College System will receive $350 million for new construction or much-needed repairs and renovations at all 58 community colleges across the state. These improvements are needed to build, retrofit or repair learning environments that meet the demands of a 21st century workforce. The UNC system will receive $980 million, specifically to build and repair STEM facilities to prepare students for careers in these high-demand fields and help North Carolinians compete for future jobs. "I think it is a great thing for the college and the community. As it stands FTCC will receive more than $10 million," said Keen."Our first priority is a parcel of land that we have on the west side of the county. We want to expand some programs to support Cape Fear Valley Hospital. It is located near First Health, which sits across from the new VA center. It would give an opportunity to continue to serve and expand our capacity to serve needs of healthcare community at large in our area. The other benefit is that the site sits within 200 yard of where the I-295 extension will drop onto Raeford road. It will be a wonderful means to make educational opportunities available in the western part of the community." Connect NC will benefit our state in many valuable ways: upgrading National Guard facilities, Improving water and sewer infrastructures, expanding agricultural research and upgrading and improving our state parks and attractions. All for the betterment of North Carolina citizens. "There are many benefits throughout the community as well. What I am really excited about is the ability to enhance some of things they are doing at Carver Springs State Park to improve it," said Keen. "It is the newest park in our community and the money would help develop it to the benefit of many people in the community." However, out of all these well thought out projects we feel education is the number one priority that we will benefit from the most, especially when it comes to attracting and retaining industry. Investing in education and, specifically, investing in our community college system will net us huge returns. North Carolina's 58 colleges have trained and educated 40 percent of the state's workforce over the last 10 years and our alumni generate 46 percent, or $19.6 billion, of the $42.2 billion economic impact of higher education alumni in the state. For 52 years, our network of career and college educational institutions have been the go-to source for industry-supported and industry-specific training in our state. Our students, our communities and our industries need the support this bond offers to strengthen the infrastructure of FTCC and all our community colleges. Training and education are in our colleges' DNA, but we need the facilities in which to train and the equipment on which to train. We need the technology and the infrastructure to do that and to do it for the benefit of North Carolinians and North Carolina businesses. So, how much difference can $350 million make? It can mean the difference in offering state-of-the-art learning experiences to our citizens or simply status quo. It can mean bringing new state-of-the-art facilities to life on campuses that have had the door shut to major capital efforts since the Great Recession. It will allow community colleges to pursue energy efficiencies that will keep paying dividends for years and it will fund new capital investments for sorely needed repair and renovation projects that bring construction jobs into our communities. Last, but surely not least, Connect NC will keep North Carolina's community college system nationally renowned and internationally copied assuring us the educational edge we need to provide our citizens that all- important first step to college and career goals. No one can dispute that Dr. Larry Keen and the staff and faculty of our Fayetteville Technical Community College make the most of the resources allotted them. Just think what they will be able to accomplish with the resources provided by Connect NC. The primary is March 15 and we all have some very big decisions to make at all levels of government. Let a yes vote for Connect NC be something you will be proud of for decades to come. Yes to Connect North Carolina Bonds: Vote March 15 by BILL BOWMAN 484-6200 www.upandcomingweekly.com Turn to our calendar every Wednesday and see what's happening! BILL BOWMAN, Publisher, UP & COMING WEEKLY. COMMENTS? BILL@ upandcomingweekly.com. 910.484.6200.