Darla Smith, Vice President of the Board of Directors for Esther House of Stanly County, spoke during the April meeting of the Stanfield Board of Commissioners regarding the month of April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

Smith provided the following statistics about sexual assault. Every 107 seconds a person is sexually assaulted. There are approximately 293,000 victims of sexual assault every year. Last year, Esther House served 25 victims of sexual assault in their shelter.

In addition to safe shelter, Esther House provides many other services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault such as counseling, court advocacy, hospital accompaniment and assistance finding housing. Smith said Esther House recently added services for victims of human trafficking as well. Charlotte ranks number one in the state for sex trafficking and this problem is within Stanly County as well, she added.

Following Smith’s presentation, Mayor Kevin Barbee read a proclamation for April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, which the board subsequently adopted. Stanfield Town Hall will also display a wreath during the month of April in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

In addition, Commissioner Rick Williams announced that he has been appointed to serve on the Esther House Board of Directors. His official induction to the board will take place during the Board of Directors meeting on Monday, April 10.

In other matters:

• Commissioner Greg Lucas provided the financial report as follows: General Fund $709,566, Powell Bill Fund $49,297, Enterprise Fund $148,830, General Fund CD $58,143, Enterprise Fund CD $104,486, N.C. Capital Management Fund General $2,019, N.C. Capital Management Fund Enterprise $2,497.
• The board approved amending the water/sewer application to become a contract.
• The police report for the month of February is as follows: one disturbance, one assault, one breaking/entering, two assist fire/EMS, five suspicious persons/vehicles, 500 business/neighborhood checks, 154 investigation calls, 23 citations/charges, one arrests, one business/residential alarm, one motor vehicle collision, three mutual aid, two domestic violence reports and 171 total calls for service.
• The police report for the month of March is as follows: two disturbances, two breaking/entering, five assist fire/EMS, seven suspicious persons/vehicles, 521 business/neighborhood checks, 161 investigation calls, 12 citations/charges, two arrests, four business/residential alarms, one DWI, one motor vehicle collision, two mutual aids, one damage to property, one domestic violence report and 187 total calls for service.
• Commissioner James Griffin made a recommendation to amend the town’s general ordinance to make it unlawful for any registered sex offender to be present at a public park owned by the town. If the ordinance is put into place, signs about the regulation will be posted near the park. Griffin said Locust has similar signs near their city park. A public hearing on the recommendation will be held on Thursday, May 4.
• Commissioner Larry Sides said the benches at one of the baseball fields at the park need to be replaced.
• The annual outdoor market is planned for Saturday, June 17 from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Pete Henkel Park. The market will feature crafts booths, yard sales, flea market and farmers market vendors. A 20×20 spot can be rented for $20 for the event. Vendors interested in participating should contact town hall at 704-888-2386.
• The board adopted a Minimum Housing Standards ordinance. The council also approved an interlocal agreement with the county for enforcement of the local ordinance.
• A public hearing will be held on Thursday, May 4 regarding nine amendments to the zoning ordinance.
• Bulk goods pickup is scheduled for April 8. White goods pickup is scheduled for May 13. An electronics, household hazardous waste drop-off event is scheduled for April 8 at the Agri-Civic Center.
• The board discussed the proposed budget for the 2017-2018 fiscal year. A public hearing will be held on Thursday, May 4 to hear public comments on the proposed budget.
• Next month, Commissioner Rick Williams will be appointed to the Stanly County Community College Board of Trustees and the Stanly County Economic Development Board. These appointments are pending the approval of the Stanly County Board of Commissioners.