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News editor

Once a key bargaining chip in the controversial Benn’s Grant development, the now deteriorating Jordan house is up for sale.

The Isle of Wight Historical Society no longer wants the circa 1858 farmhouse, although it fought for its possession for more than a decade.

So, rather unceremoniously, the Historical Society gave the house back to landowners Richard Turner and Henry Morgan at a meeting Jan. 25.

The Historical Society doesn’t have enough money to restore it, said Society historian Carolyn Keen.

Currently, there’s $37,000 in the Historical Society’s bank account.

According to the Benn’s Grant proffer agreement, Turner and Morgan were to sign over the deed to the house to the Historical Society, along with $200,000 to and restore the structure on a subdivided parcel on the property once the project formally got underway.

However, as Benn’s Grant sits idle, “it’s pretty apparent that the economy has set everything back up there,” said Turner about the 253-acre development that is approved for 240 apartments, 320 single-family homes, two big box retailers, a hotel, additional retail and commercial space as well as the Riverside medical complex.

If the house is sold, the proceeds could be donated to the Isle of Wight Historical Society, Turner said....(Subscribe!)

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Staff writer

”Road Closed” and “Detour” signs are changing the way motorists make their way through downtown Smithfield.

The long-planned closure of South Church Street from Cedar Street to Luter Drive, originally set to begin Jan. 3, is finally underway. It was delayed briefly to finish some permanent patching on sections of South Church Street between the Smithfield Station and Cedar Street, said Richard Hoeflaak of Excel Paving Corp. during the town’s public works meeting last week.

This  week that section will once again be reduced to one lane as workers do some paving to smooth out the road until the final asphalt is laid.

Hoeflaak said plans are still in the works to finish the project by mid-May.

“With the detour, things should come together a lot quicker,” he said. Aside from the delayed detour start, everything is on schedule, said Hoeflaak.

The closing of that short section of South Church Street should help the town save money on the overall beautification project. Hoeflaak said that savings were currently at about $130,000, though the final number won’t come in until the project reaches its end.

The new detour directs cars coming from the Cypress Creek Bridge to turn onto Cedar Street and then use Underwood Lane to gain access to Main Street. However, many cars aren’t driving all the way down to Underwood and are instead taking a quicker right onto Mason Street, a narrower road with more homes than Underwood.

The town is currently moving some of the detour signs to make it clearer that drivers do not need to turn at Mason and “No Parking” signs are now up on the section of Mason between Cedar and Main Streets....(Subscribe!)

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News editor

Residents needing to rid themselves of a cat are being offered alternative options while the Isle of Wight County Animal Shelter deals with an outbreak of feline herpes.

At the same time, volunteers and officials are trying to adopt out infected cats before Friday, Feb. 5 — when the shelter must be free of felines for at least 30 days to thoroughly disinfect and clean the facility, according to Kristin Wilda, spokesperson for the Isle of Wight County Sheriff’s office.

Currently, all the cats now at the facility are infected.

The outbreak follows a similar one in October when 50 infected cats were euthanized.

The facility was sanitized, but shelter officials at the time did not heed the 30-day waiting period and more cats were accepted, Wilda said.

As a result, the virus was not completely eradicated and thus the herpes outbreak resurfaced, Wilda said.

Dr. Betty Payne, the shelter’s veterinarian, said that residents interested in adopting one of the infected cats not have any other cats at home as the disease is highly contagious.

The upper respiratory virus does not affect dogs or humans....(Subscribe!)

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Staff writer

The Smithfield Volunteer Fire Department might soon see some relief from its recent budget woes.

While Smithfield and Isle of Wight County are sorting out who is financially responsible for what when it comes to fire and rescue services, those first responders have been left to shoulder unexpected bills. According to a memorandum of understanding drawn up in 2006, the county was going to own the building once the new fire station was built.

In an attempt to resolve some of the ongoing funding concerns, the Smithfield Town Council invited members of the Isle of Wight Board of Supervisors to its Fire and Rescue committee meeting last week.

Smithfield Supervisor Al Casteen explained that the new Board was still working on figuring out its current financial situation.

“We’ve got a big hole we’re starting in. We’ve got to figure out where we’re going to rob Peter to pay Paul. We need to know where we are before we start dispersing money,” he told council members.

"It’s not a delaying tactic,” Casteen assured them....(Subscribe!)