Road Closures and Road Blocks

MDOT has started working on the underpass on Hwy. 11, but I haven't heard any details about how the road closure may effect the response of ambulance services for the residents of Lumberton. Thankfully, fire chief, Jerry Walters, has completed his services and is now a certified EMT, but has anyone sat down with the ambulance service and found out how the road closure will affect their response time? In addition to the increase in traffic, there's the issue of road blocks. Yes, it's that time of year again. I don't know the purpose of the road blocks, but they are here. I don't know if the road blocks are set up for a particular purpose or if they are actually looking for certain individuals; I'm not a trained officer and I don't know if this is just part of their routine. WTBS: I don't like road blocks, especially during the summer, but is this a good use of man power? At the last board meeting, the city clerk stated that there is over $500,000 in uncollected fines and court fees owed to the City of Lumberton. So, writing tickets is not really doing much good for this city; it's only giving outsiders another reason to stay on Interstate 59 and avoid the City of Lumberton altogether. I don't know what plans our aldermen have to address the enormous amount of unpaid tickets and fines, but they might want to find a judge that will actually enforce the fines and penalties he's assessing. For instance, change court date to Friday, and whenever a person comes to court not prepared to pay his/her fines or tickets, send them to jail. I guarantee you that after spending a weekend in jail, they will be more than willing to pay the fines.
OAN: Chief Adrien Fortenberry stated that the police department will be enforcing the curfew ordinance, and that those loitering on city property (from Myrick to Main) will be picked up and taken to the police station for processing. I don't know if they are going to give them a warning, but parents need to know that their kids will be taken into police custody if they are loitering on city property, and that includes the corners of Myrick and North 10th Street. Chief Fortenberry already stated that he know that some people are going to say that his officers are harassing their children, but he's going to use all of his officers to help put an end to the senseless violence and disorder that is taking place in the City of Lumberton. In closing, there was a rumor circulating that Mayor Miriam Holder had fired Chief Fortenberry. Well, that was not the truth. Contrary to what people like to believe, the mayor does not hire nor fire individuals. The decision to hire or fire is that of the aldermen.