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LOUISBURG -- A much-discussed cooperative project between Louisburg College and the town of Louisburg was shot down again Monday night -- for the second time in less than a year.
That action came during a three and a half hour meeting that included a one hour secret session for the council to discuss personnel but no personnel actions were taken after that session.

LOUISBURG -- The detective that played a key role in sending a Franklin County man to prison for 17 years said allegations that he was on the take and fired for impropriety are nothing but lies.
"... The allegations that they made against me are false," said former Franklin County sheriff's deputy John Whitman, who Scottie Hunter named in his legal appeal to get out of jail. "I'd just like to make sure that's clarified."

Sen. Lisa Barnes and, from left, Fonzie Flowers, Corey Pursche and Cat Redd

YOUNGSVILLE -- Town leaders are hosting two events next week, the first steps to gauge public input for a new town transportation plan.
Youngsville is in the midst of creating its Comprehensive Land Use and Transportation Plan and will host a community walking tour the afternoon of Oct. 25, then a community listening session that evening.

LOUISBURG -- Police arrested a Louisburg High student they allege assaulted a school administrator and threatened to shoot up the school.
A 15-year-old was taken into custody following the Oct. 17 incident.
According to Louisburg Police Chief Jason Abbott, officers responded to a group of students fighting at Louisburg High School at about 11:45 a.m.

LOUISBURG -- Franklin County commissioners received an update and adopted a resolution, both designed to bolster airport operations.
Commissioners were also told that revaluation efforts remain on schedule.
In 2018, Franklin County contracted with Ohio-based Marr Arnold Planning to develop an airport Master Layout Plan for Triangle North Executive Airport.

YOUNGSVILLE -- An Oxford man was killed and two others were injured, at least one of them, seriously, in a single-vehicle wreck.
According to State Highway Patrol Trooper R.M. Goodacre, Curtis Leroy White was traveling at the intersection of U.S. 1 and N.C. 96 when he ran off the road to the right just before 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 13.

FRANKLINTON ­-- Two Raleigh residents were killed this week following a single-vehicle wreck.
According to investigators with the State Highway Patrol, Brandon Harris, 32, was driving a 2005 Chevy Corvette south on Montgomery Road, near Cornerstone Drive, when the vehicle ran off the roadway to the right just after 10 a.m. on Monday.

LOUISBURG -- After a three-hour standoff, Franklin County sheriff's deputies arrested a Louisburg man who began firing shots in a convenience store parking lot.
No one was hurt.
According to authorities, Jose Lino Villafuerte drove into the parking lot at Marcos Mini Mart at about 9:40 p.m. on Oct. 8 and began firing shots into the air.

Last Friday didn't work out as planned -- although planned days almost never work out in the newspaper business.
I was planning on a quiet, October day to write a column and get organized for this week's edition then maybe play hooky.
Then I read an early morning news feed that reported a mass shooting in Raleigh, too close to home for my taste.

For a number of reasons, Monday night's Franklin County Board of Commissioners meeting was a bit of a curveball.
I'll stick to the first two.
Most often when residents or other interested parties address a governing board during the citizens comments portion of a meeting, they usually have an axe to grind or talk about something that grinds their gears.

Dear editor:
In response to the letter from Russ Frazier, I feel there is a lot we agree on also.
My main complaint with our politicians in Washington is based on my belief that these folks work for the American people.

Dear editor:
Looks like the county and town are on same page when it comes to purchasing property!
In contrast two weeks ago someone sent us another letter in mail wanting to purchase 10.5 acres of our property but offering only fourteen thousand dollars!

Dear editor:
This is an open letter to the Franklin County commissioners:
I read in The Franklin Times of October 6 that you have decided to pay $800,000 of our hard-earned tax money for a 4.72 acre plot of land to provide a "new, improved" trash collection site in Youngsville.

STANHOPE -- It's no coincidence that the Southern Nash Firebirds have owned opponents in the second half of contests during the 2022 boys soccer campaign.
Of course, talent has a lot to do with -- and the Firebirds have been loaded with that attribute over the past several seasons.
But it's more than that as Southern Nash boasts one of the top possession games in the area, and that strategy has a way of wearing down the opposition.

(L to R) Southern Nash's Sam Wheaton and Bunn's Geritt Coombs sprint toward the ball in the midfield during Monday afternoon's important Big East Conference showdown at the SNHS Soccer Complex.

WAKE FOREST -- The recent Big East Conference 18-hole girls golf championship was a chilly one -- but the Southern Nash Ladybirds continued their red-hot season nevertheless despite the less-than-admirable conditions.
SN wrapped up its clean sweep of the season matches -- and defended its league crown -- during the annual championships, which were held at Brevofield Golf Links in Wake Forest.

ROCKY MOUNT -- Carlee Tart may be better known for her exploits in other sports at Bunn High School, but she is making a name for herself on the tennis court this fall as the No. 1 Singles performer for the Ladycats.
Tart, a senior, recently won the Class 2-A Singles portion of the Big East Conference Girls Tennis Championships, which were held on the campus of North Carolina Wesleyan University.

RED OAK -- Playing Northern Nash is much like spinning a lethal wheel of pick your poison, as the Fighting Knights are seemingly impenetrable at every position on the football field. The Fighting Knights boast one of the best quarterbacks in the area in Keno Jones, who can run and pass with equal effectiveness. NN's offensive line is also sturdy, and its running backs can both churn or fly, given the situation.

BUNN -- Already the curator of one major upset this season in the Big East Conference, the Bunn Wildcats went looking for another one last Thursday against Nash Central -- and came close to pulling it off.
The Wildcats led at halftime, but Central's running game took over the contest in the second half as the Bulldogs pulled away down the stretch en route to defeating Bunn by a 26-7 margin in a key league gridiron showdown at the BHS Football Field.

LOUISBURG -- An old friend will be returning to Louisburg High School when Nash Central travels to tangle with the Warriors in a key Big East Conference football matchup.
Nash Central is coached by Chris Lee, who guided the Warriors from 2009-14 before returning to his native Nash County to take over the gridiron program at Central.

LOUISBURG -- Sheriff's deputies arrested a Youngsville area man on multiple sexual exploitation charges.
Deputies assigned to the Patrol Operations Division arrested Cabel Ray McKinley Jr. on Oct. 12, charging him with five counts of second degree sexual exploitation of a minor.