Public hearing set on annexation of Duplin Commons
By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on May 6, 2005 1:46 PM
KENANSVILLE -- The town board will hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. on June 6 at Town Hall to hear how people feel about annexing Duplin Commons.
The Kenansville town board is then expected to decide during its regular meeting, which begins the same night at 7:30 p.m., whether to grant the county's request to annex the new complex, which lies across N.C. 11 from James Sprunt Community College. Duplin Commons has about 126.5 acres of land and two new buildings that are under construction. One is a new agricultural office building, which county employees expect to move into around the first of June. The other building is a 2,000-seat event center, which should open by mid-September.
Duplin County officials requested voluntary annexation so beer and wine could be sold at events booked at Duplin Commons. The first event will be a Muscadine Harvest Festival on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1. The festival is sponsored by the Duplin Agribusiness Council. Organizers are hoping as many as 10,000 people will attend seminars on the health benefits of the grapes' seeds and hulls and how to grow the grapes themselves. There will be historical presentations about the muscadine's rich heritage and exhibits of muscadine jellies and jams, a cooking contest and a concert on the grounds.