NK supervisors to consider historic commission’s request

New Kent’s Board of Supervisors is considering a request from New Kent’s Historical Commission on the organization’s relocation.

Members spoke at the July 31 work session in regards to supervisors approving the move of school board offices into the Historic Courthouse. With the school’s relocation, the Historical Commission and New Kent’s Registrar’s Office will have to vacate the building.

However, historical commission chairwoman Martha Martin and others approached the board in a request to occupy the adjacent white house building. That building, constructed in the 1870s, served once as the registrar’s office and now, the group would like to occupy it to maintain the historical presence of the surrounding buildings. In order to make the suggestion possible, members of the group are asking supervisors for the director of instruction for schools to be relocated to vacant classrooms at the high school.

District 5 supervisor and chairman Ray Davis commented on the request.

“I like the idea of having the historic commission in that building and them looking into the cost of restoring it,” said the chairman. “I would like to see them accommodated in it.”

“I don’t see no problem looking into that at all,” added District 1 representative Thomas Evelyn. “We moved the school board out of the [Taylor Moore] building to save money and we want to make things work.”

County administrator Rodney Hathaway told the board a formal letter had been sent out to all parties involved in the move with a deadline date to relocate by Aug. 16.

Supervisors are expected to have a more definitive decision on the relocation of school and county offices by the Aug.12 regular meeting.