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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Most Responsive/ Most Respected Local Politician Mayor Tony Chavonne, City of Fayetteville 433 Hay St., Fayetteville 910.433.1992, 910.433.3401 mayor@ci.fay.nc.us For months at the beginning of 2011, Fayetteville residents waited anxiously to see if Mayor Tony Chavonne would run for another term in offi ce. Rumor had it that he was not going to. When he made the announcement that he would indeed run again, city residents let out a collective sigh of relief: their mayor was going to see them through. Chavonne, who even in the midst of controversy several years ago, has earned this title for the past several years. He sees it not as something he has done on his own, but rather as a journey he has taken with his city's citizens. "It is humbling that I continued to be honored in this survey," said Chavonne. "Knowing that Up & Coming Weekly represents a broad cross section of our community, I fi nd this honor very personally rewarding because I know where it comes from and that it represents the entire community." Chavonne sees his tenure as mayor as a partnership with his fellow elected leaders and the community. "Great things are starting to happen here, and we should all feel blessed to be here," he said. He pointed to several large projects that have come to fruition over the past couple of years: the Hope VI project to renovate blighted parts of our city and bring affordable housing to the community; the funding and construction of the N.C. Veterans Park and the designation as an All-America City. "This hasn't happened by accident," he said. "We had to plant the seeds and then do a lot of hard work. Even more exciting things are going to happen over the next few years, and I want to be a part of it." He noted that the next couple of years will be a very important time for the city. "We have built a better city and now we need to get out there and aggressively sell it by telling our stories and bringing jobs and development here and by keeping our young people here because of the opportunities that can be found here," he said. Chavonne is a man on a mission, and our readers are right behind him. Biggest Local Scandal Police Profi ling In 2010, Fayetteville police made 38,595 traffi c stops. Of those, offi cers searched 1,610 black drivers and 510 white drivers. Those statistics led to charges of racial profi ling against the City of Fayetteville Police Department. In an effort to answer the charges and to fi x the problem, Fayetteville Police Chief Tom Bergamine held public forums. During the forum, Bergamine said that despite the statistics, he doesn't think any of his offi cers are racially profi ling. He added that his offi cers are doing their jobs, following reports of crime in certain parts of the city, particularly drug crimes. He said that leads to more stops and searches of black drivers. Bergamine announced plans to require offi cers to clearly explain why stops are made in the future. He hopes it will improve that perception in his community and "put a lot of people's minds at ease on why we do these searches." Best Use of Local Tax Dollars School/Education Cumberland County Schools www.ccs.k12.nc.us Cumberland County Schools have made great progress over the past several years. New programs of study have been implemented and schools such as the Gray's Creek Elementary School, have been used as models for international education. As the schools continue to progress, local residents agree that educating our children is the best use of local tax dollars. PAWN SHOP GUN JOBBERY INDOOR RANGEI G THANKS FOR THANKS FOR Y THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT! Best Pawn Shop Best Place to Buy a Gun MILLSTONE 14 E 910-354-2124 910 354 21 12 3400 Footbridge Ln. (Camden Rd. off of Hope Mills Rd.) www.StoneTheatres.com Get More Out of Life. Go See a Movie. 22 BEST OF FAYETTEVILLE SEPTEMBER 14-20, 2011 Professional Gunsmith on Staff Concealed Carry & Other Firearms Training Available Large Jewelry Selection 4632 Yadkin Rd. Fayetteville, NC (910) 864-2270 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM