Catawba County Board of Commissioners next meeting is set for 7 pm on Monday, February 19, 2007 at 1924 Courthouse, 30 North College Avenue in Newton, NC.

The Catawba County Board of Commissioners will hold six public hearings when the Board meets beginning at 7 p.m. on Monday, February 19, 2007 in the Robert E. Hibbitts Meeting Room on the second floor of the 1924 Courthouse, located at 30 North College Avenue in Newton. Four of the public hearings regard requests to rezone property at 3013 and 3025 Highway 127 South (from R-20 Residential to O-I Office and Institutional); at 2617 Highway 16 South (from RC Rural Commercial and R-40 Residential to HC Highway Commercial); at 5767 Highway 150 East (from R-20 Residential to HC Highway Commercial) and at 5793 Highway 150 East (from R-20 Residential to HC Highway Commercial). The fifth and sixth public hearings will be on the closeout of two separate Community Development Block Grants awarded to the County from the State of North Carolina.  Note: The County's zoning designations have changed with the passage of the Unified Development Ordinance on February 5, 2007.

The Board will also consider a request from the Catawba County Industrial Facilities and Pollution Control Financing Authority to approve the issue of $4.5 million in Industrial Revenue Bonds for Fiber Line, Inc.  This bond issue would carry no financial obligation to Catawba County or the State of North Carolina. The money comes from private investors and bonds are sold in national capital markets to insurance companies, bond and mutual funds. The Board will also present a Certificate of Commendation honoring William Butler, a Bandys High School junior, Patricia Goodwin, a registered nurse, and the Catawba Rescue Squad, whose quick actions and professional care saved the life of a man who collapsed at a Bandys High basketball game.  Full agenda

Now that the Catawba County Unified Development Ordinance has passed, what does it mean to you?

The Catawba County Board of Commissioners adopted a Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) on February 5, 2007, after seven years of work to create Small Area Plans and develop the UDO, and six months of study and public hearings by the Board.  In this and the next few issues of Catawba County E-News, we will present detailed information on how the final UDO may effect you, as well as a link to a wealth of information about the UDO itself.   How to obtain a Zoning Permit for a single family or two-family dwelling

             How to obtain a Zoning Permit for an Accessory Dwelling Unit/Guest House

             More on the UDO

Are you enjoying this year's Big Read?   The Catawba County Library staff has assembled a list of other "read-alike" books that may please those who are enjoying this year's Big Read selection. 

James McBride’s The Color of Water is the Catawba County’s 2007 Big Read selection and is based on McBride’s experiences growing up in an interracial family. The mission of The Big Read is to promote the power of books and the importance of literature through countywide reading and discussion of the same book. Librarians have compiled a brochure of materials focusing on interracial themes as depicted in The Color of Water.  Full story

The Catawba County Public Health Department will celebrate North Carolina Association of School-based, School-linked Health Centers Week from February 18-24. 

The celebration is intended to focus on the partnership between the Health Department's Totally Teens Health Center and Catawba Pediatrics Association, and the role of this partnership in improving the health and well being of youth in Catawba County.  Full story

Learn about employment with Catawba County Government and apply for an available job online!