The Carthage Town Council held its monthly meeting on Nov. 21.

According to Carthage Town Manager Emily Yopp, a request for a $584,000 grant was submitted to revitalize Carthage’s downtown area.

A large portion of this would go toward pedestrian improvements, including repairs to the sidewalk on Monroe Street, landscaping, benches, and renovations to the historic jail. This is in addition to a $25,000 grant the town was recently awarded from Duke Energy.

Tom Robinson served as Carthage’s Town Manager for almost nine years before recently retiring. He has since been hired as a consultant by the town to review town priorities. His recommendations were presented to the council; his recommendations include:

*Upgrades to sidewalks and roads. He recommended the council review the recently completed Bike and Pedestrian Plan that, according to Robinson, could have been better done.

*A walking path around the town’s water plant reservoir. This would connect several neighborhoods.

*A review and updates to the town’s Unified Development Ordinance. He recommends a total update completed by an outside consultant. According to Robinson, this will be an expensive process, but it is necessary. “Carthage has reached the point where many residential and commercial developments are considering the region,” said Robinson. 

*According to Robinson, “Moore County is a water deficit area. The town needs to increase both sewer and water capacity. Additionally, he recommended a review of water and service development fees to make sure they reflect the increased costs for the necessary improvements.

An extensive conservation concerning the annual Christmas parade resulted in changes for this year’s parade. Specifically, the town will start having a registration process to participate in the annual parade and cap the number of participants.

In recent years, many people have shown up for the parade without being registered. This has caused huge backups and confusion.

According to Yopp, “The town simply does not have the staff to manage a large parade.”

The proposed cap is 100 participants for this year. The town will continue not to charge money to be in the parade.

The 50th annual parade will be held on Dec. 10 at 7 p.m. It will be held at Carthage Square.

Sandhills_Sentinel~Written by Sandhills Sentinel Reporter Chris Prentice. Contact him at [email protected].

Photo of Carthage sign by Sandhills Sentinel Photographer Melissa Schaub.

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