1000 x 90

Samaritan’s Purse Requests Closure of Jamie Fort Road at Former Hayes Center U.S. 321 Entrance in Blowing Rock

By Jesse Wood

April 8, 2013. Among the agenda items at Tuesday’s Blowing Rock Town Council meeting is a resolution up for adoption concerning the closure of Jamie Fort Road.

The Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock
The Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock

The road accesses the former Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock off of U.S. 321. Samaritan’s Purse purchased the property last September for nearly $1.5-million dollars when it went into foreclosure.

When the Hayes Center was first constructed, the Town of Blowing Rock agreed to accept maintenance of the road for snow removal purposes. Now Samaritan’s Purse is requesting to return it to private driveway status, according to the meeting’s packet.

Samaritan’s Purse intends to install a security gate on this portion of the street, which deadends into the parking lot and only accesses property owned by Samaritan’s Purse.

Pursuant to N.C. General Statutes, the Town of Blowing Rock must formally close the street and remove it from Powell Bill listing, which is a state-required listing of roads maintained by incorporated communities.

In a letter from Kevin Rothrock, Blowing Rock’s planning director, the street closure process requires a public hearing and publication notice for a period of four consecutive weeks. Pending approval, a public hearing is scheduled for May 14.

View proposed resolution here: http://www.townofblowingrock.com/supdoc/2013-06.pdf