The Orange County Board of Commissioners will discuss Thursday whether to privatize the county’s curbside solid waste and recycling services.

The board will meet at 7 p.m. at the Department of Social Services, 113 Mayo St., in Hillsborough.

The idea came up earlier this year after the N.C. Supreme Court voided a Cabarrus County impact fees program, Assistant County Manager Michael Talbert said. The county is weighing its options, he said.

County Attorney John Roberts said the unique nature of the county’s recycling program makes it a target. The state Legislature and the appellate courts have moved toward limiting local authority over the last several years, he said.

While private companies don’t recycle as many types of materials as Orange County does, Talbert said they could provide curbside service to more homes that want it.

Talbert, Carrboro Town Manager David Andrews and Chapel Hill Town Manager Roger Stancil agreed the move also would have implications for joint recycling operations. The town managers said their respective boards want to hear from the commissioners before making any decisions.

The commissioners could hold a public hearing April 23. The change would go into effect until July 2014.

Omar Beasley failed to win a county commissioner's seat in last week's election, but if he decides to try another run for office he's got some money to get going.

Beasley's third-quarter finance report listed a cash balance of $3,715.86 as of Oct. 29 and, on election day, the Committee to Elect Omar Beasley got a $1,050 donation from developer Neal Hunter.

Hunter is a financial backer of the controversial 751 South development. Beasley took no position on the project during the campaign for county commissioner.

The City Council unanimously rejected the 751 South developers' request for a water-sewer extension earlier this year. Three council seats and the mayor's chair are up for election in 2013, and the project could become an issue in next year's city campaign.
 

County Commissioner candidate Anita Daniels (right) said today that she has been endorsed by former Durham County Sheriff Worth Hill and incumbent Register of Deeds Willie Covington.

"I am honored to receive the support of two of Durham's most effective leaders who were elected by the citizens of Durham to serve multiple terms," Daniels said in a prepared statement.

Daniels has also been endorsed by the Friends of Durham, one of the county's three major political-action groups.

A social worker, Daniels applied to serve out the term of retired Commissioner Becky Heron in 2011. The four remaining commissioners instead chose Pam Karriker to take Heron's seat. Karriker is not running for election this year.
 

PARKING FEUD: Raleigh residents squared off Wednesday at a committee meeting about a proposed ordinance that would ban front-yard parking. Members of the council’s Comprehensive Planning Committee asked staff for further analysis before making a recommendation to the full council.

WEST TO COMMISSIONERS: Raleigh City Councilman James West was appointed to the Wake County Board of Commissioners last week, leaving vacant his District C council seat. The council will interview candidates and likely choose one at an October meeting. Parks advocate Eugene Weeks is thought to be the leading contender to replace West.

COUNCIL: Meets at 1 p.m. Tuesday. No public hearing scheduled for Tuesday night.

WINE BAR IS BACK: After closing in February, Frazier’s Wine Bar has reopened on Hillsborough Street, New Raleigh reports. The bar also has a limited food menu, but serves mostly wine.

PARTY ON HILLSBOROUGH: A Hillsborough Street celebration that will span eight blocks is scheduled for 1 to 10 p.m. Saturday. The Live It Up On Hillsborough Street festival will showcase “the local culture of the street and surrounding communities,” according to the city. The eco-friendly event will include a farmers market, beer garden and mini-lecture series featuring. Proceeds go to renewable energy projects. For more information, visit raleighnc.gov.

The Raleigh City Council unanimously passed today the resolution that criticizes the Wake County school board's ending of the socioeconomic diversity policy.

The council members agreed to the resolution that expresses "concern over any attempt to resegregate Wake’s public schools by either race or socioeconomic status.” County commissioners had approved it Monday by a 4-3 vote with all four Democrats in support.

“We need to do anything in our power to stop the school board,” Mayor Charles Meeker said at today's council meeting.

The Democratic majority on the Wake County board of commissioners gave their official disapproval Monday to the plans of the Republican majority on the school board to go to community-based schools.

As noted in today's article by Thomas Goldsmith, the board of commissioners approved in a party line vote a resolution that formally expressed “deep concern over any attempt to resegregate Wake’s public schools by either race or socioeconomic status.”

“Segregate, segregate, segregate is what you are doing!” said Democratic Commissioner Harold Webb of the new school board's elimination of the socioeconomic diversity policy.

Wake County Commissioner Stan Norwalk is going to force his fellow commissioners to take a stand on the school board's decision to scrap socioeconomic diversity.

Norwalk has put on today's agenda a resolution saying that the commissioners and Raleigh City Council "express their deep concern over any attempt to resegregate Wake’s public schools by either race or socioeconomic status."

Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker, who has been critical of the new Wake County school board majority, said he received the resolution a week ago from Norwalk. He said it will be discussed at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

UPDATE

By a 4-3 vote, all four Democrats voted for the resolution while all three Republicans, who are all running for re-election this year, voted no.

At the urging of Democrat Lindy Brown, who is also running for re-election, the resolution was amended to say it will adversely impact economic development, job creation and property values in all of Wake County. It originally only said Raleigh and Eastern Wake.

By the same 4-3 party line vote, language calling for support to lift the state's charter school cap was removed from the commissioners' legislative agenda.

Here's more hand-wringing from critics of the new Wake County school board majority about the resignation of Supt. Del Burns.

In an online column today in the Independent, Bob Geary says Burns' resignation makes it official that Wake County is in crisis. He links it with Asst. Supt. Chuck Dulaney's retirement at the end of the month to say that "the schools staff is rudderless in the storm."

In the latest Gurley-Norwalk battle, both Wake County commissioners went at each other Friday over the cost of neighborhood schools.

As noted in today's article by Thomas Goldsmith, Commissioner Stan Norwalk claimed Friday the school board's efforts to create a neighborhood-based system would cost $250 million.

"You're making things up," responded Tony Gurley, chairman of the board of commissioners, in the article.

Considering all that the Wake County school board and county commissioners have been doing recently on their own, it will be interesting to see what happens when they meet together

Today is the first joint meeting of both boards since the new majority took control on the school board and Tony Gurley was elected chairman of the board of commissioners. The main official thing on the agenda is the discussion of alternatives to the Forest Ridge High site.

But that's just one of the things to watch for today.