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.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/987815
WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM MAY 30-JUNE 5, 2018 UCW 11 e minister who of- fered the invocation at the most recent Hope Mills Board of Commis- sioners meeting must have had an idea about an entry on the agenda. He included Jesus' admonition in the book of Matthew that "Every … household divided against itself will not stand." Moments later, commissioner Jessie Bellflowers had a pro- posed resolution added to the agenda; that Mayor Pro Tem Mike Mitchell be censured for cause. Later, Mitchell, read- ing from a prepared statement, spoke of his concerns that some commissioners had been taking part in private discussions of town business on a private Facebook group known as the Hope Mills Chatter. Mitchell felt such closed discussions represented "social segre- gation of elected officials" that could be a violation of North Carolina's Open Meetings law. He did not mention them by name, but it's widely known that Bellflow- ers and town board members Meg Larson and Jerry Legge were involved. Knowing it would likely be defeated, Mitchell made a mo- tion that commissioners not participate in group emails or closed online discussions because they represent a quorum of the governing body. at's when town at- torney Dan Hertzog Jr. intervened. He cau- tioned that he agreed with some others that the virtual Facebook dis- cussions did not neces- sarily violate the law. Mitchell withdrew his motion after Hertzog agreed to research the matter further. Bellflowers introduced his motion that Mitchell be censured for behavior. He insisted that online, closed-group discussions are not considered official meetings. He said they did not engage in coordi- nated, simultaneous discourse. Bellflowers said none of the issues were likely to come before the board of commissioners for official action. "My first amendment rights have been challenged, and I take it personally," said Bellflowers. Commissioner Pat Edwards said this had become a "sore spot" for her and was the most recent of several conflicts among board members. Commissioners Larson and Legge agreed with Bellflowers that Mitchell had raised an issue that had been belabored for months. Mitchell said he was proud of his position, adding, "If you want to move on with this censure, that's OK." e board did so, and the censure resolution passed on a 3-2 vote with Mitchell and Edwards dissenting. In what is often the case, attorneys – even those who concentrate on communications law – disagree among themselves in nuances of the state's open meetings and public records statutes. ere is no misunderstanding of the preamble to the law, which states, "Whereas the public bodies that adminis- ter the legislative, policy-making, quasi-judicial, administrative, and advisory functions of North Carolina and its political subdivisions exist solely to conduct the people's business, it is the public policy of North Carolina that the hearings, deliberations, and actions of these bodies be conducted openly." Hope Mills: A house divided by JEFF THOMPSON Hope Mills Mayor Pro Tem Mike Mitchell NEWS JEFF THOMPSON, Senior News Reporter. COMMENTS? news@upandcomingweekly. com. 910-484-6200. It was just a few months ago that then Lt. Gen. Ste- phen Townsend brought Fort Bragg's 18th Airborne Corps headquarters element home from Iraq. Soon thereafter, Townsend got his fourth star and was reassigned. In an- other five months or so, the nation's lead airborne head- quarters will head back to the Middle East, the Penta- gon announced. Fort Bragg's new commanding general, Lt. Gen. Paul LaCamera, will go to Iraq with several hundred soldiers of his head- quarters unit. e 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, which is part of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) out of Fort Campbell in Kentucky, will be deploy- ing to Afghanistan during the summer. e 101st is an elite, specialized light infantry division. Trained for helicopter operations, it is the most potent and tactically mobile of the U.S. Army's divisions. e 101st CAB will replace the 3rd Combat Avia- tion Brigade of the 3rd Infantry Division based at Fort Stewart in Georgia as part of a regular rotation of forces to support Operation Freedom's Sentinel, according to the Army release. Operation Freedom's Sentinel includes two core components: working with allies and partners and continuing "counterter- rorism operations against the remnants of Al-Qaeda to ensure that Afghanistan is never again used to stage attacks against our homeland." Most of the brigade's soldiers will deploy and are expected to return in the spring of 2019, said Capt. Kris Sib- baluca, a brigade spokesman. He said the brigade will provide aviation support to troops on the ground using Black Hawk, Chinook and Apache helicopters. "e deployment will be a chal- lenge. However, we do not doubt that our soldiers are ready," said Col. Craig Alia, the 101st CAB commander. e 18th Airborne Corps will replace ird Corps Headquar- ters of Fort Hood, Texas, as part of a regular rotation of forces to support Operation Inherent Resolve. It is the operational name for U.S. military interven- tion against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Since August of 2016, the 18th Airborne Corps has been responsible for the Combined Joint Task Force – Op- eration Inherent Resolve. It will oversee this combined joint task force fighting the Islamic State and set conditions for follow-on operations to increase regional stabil- ity, according to the operation's website. Since Inherent Resolve began in late 2014, head- quarters units of 18th and 3rd Corps have alternated deployments by their headquarters units. In the past, these rotations have lasted about one year. Fort Bragg Airborne Headquarters returns to Iraq this fall by JEFF THOMPSON e 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, which is part of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) out of Fort Campbell in Kentucky, will be deploying to Afghanistan during the summer.