All tagged felicia solomon
The Friends of the Homeless Shelter in Kinston has been graced with a new mural titled "Tree of Hope," painted by local artist Jamil Burton. This vibrant piece is more than just a splash of color on a wall; it is a symbol of community, resilience, and the shared journey of hope.
The 2023 municipal unofficial election results for the Kinston City Council race are in, and the residents of Kinston have made their voices heard. Incumbents Mayor Pro Tem Antonio Hardy, City Council Member Felicia Solomon, and City Council Member Sammy Aiken hoped to secure their seats for another term against opponents Les Lipford and Barbara Seaforth. Hardy, Solomon, and Seaforth secured a seat on the Kinston City Council.
Neuse News Publisher BJ Murphy interviews 2023 Municipal Election candidate Felicia Solomon.
Felicia "Nikki" Solomon, a longstanding community leader and incumbent is up for re-election to the Kinston City Council in the upcoming 2023 Municipal Election. Solomon has served on the council since 2015 and brings with her over 20 years of community service experience.
The 42nd annual BBQ Fest on the Neuse took place this weekend with Mayor Dontario Hardy giving out keys to the city. There were four recipients this year, Waylon Adams, Craig Hill, Shannarra Barrow, and Nikisha Williams.
The city of Kinston has approved an increase in parking violation fines from $2 to $25, following a proposal from Police Chief Keith Goyette. The decision was made after considering similar fines in nearby cities, such as Goldsboro and New Bern, where fines for parking violations range from $25 to $50.
Concern for the safety of Kinston was the public sentiment at the city council meeting on Tuesday. After the public comments, Council members Chris Suggs and Felicia Solomon revisited a tabled agenda item on a town hall type discussion with the community to address concerns about recent crime.
The Kinston City Council passed the proposed Fiscal Year 2022-2023 budget Tuesday evening. The budget included increased salaries for the mayor and the city council and funding to increase the hourly rate of part-time city employees. This was the third year in a row the council attempted to give themselves increased salaries. Council member Robbie Swinson voted against the increased mayor and council salaries both times it came for a vote Tuesday.
Neuse News delivers hyper-local news to the inbox of our readers every morning at 7:00 AM. Here is a look back on July’s most memorable articles.
The 2021 Municipal Election for Lenoir County has 13 of 13 precincts reporting. Mayor Dontario Hardy will retain his mayoral seat for the City of Kinston. Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon came in behind Hardy with Holcomb and Warren following.
More than anything else, Kinston needs a leader that is OF the people, for ALL people, and believes in the POWER of people. I can speak to this with authority, because I have witnessed it all my life. Help the city of Kinston thrive, help the city of Kinston accelerate the will to revive, by electing Felicia Solomon Mayor.
As we approach Tuesday, November 2nd, my thoughts continue to grow about the results of the City Council and especially the Mayoral elections. The office of mayor is considered the chief political office in city government. The importance of this role cannot be taken lightly. This letter is not a personal indictment against Mayor Hardy, the man, but an expressed uneasiness about his leadership skills and concern about his judgement which impacts us all as citizens of Kinston.
Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon was recently interviewed by Pastor Jason McKnight and Neuse News Publisher BJ Murphy for the city of Kinston’s mayoral campaign. Solomon is a Kinston native who has served the community for over 20 years.
Neuse News publisher BJ Murphy sat down with Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon to discuss her bid to become Kinston's Mayor and issues facing the City of Kinston. They discussed the two requests for mayor and council pay increases, department head vacancies, how to help small businesses struggling to find employees, and more.
Vaccine mandates have made headlines as cities and municipalities strive to combat the recent spike in COVID-19 cases. In recent news, as reported by WITN, City of Kinston Mayor Dontario Hardy gave his thoughts on if he would consider a vaccine mandate if COVID-19 cases continued rising. The other candidates, Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon, Zac Holcomb, and Jeff Warren have also weighed in on vaccine mandates.
The Kinston Mayoral race has four candidates including incumbent Mayor Dontario Hardy, current Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon, Jeffery Warren, and Zac Holcomb.
For the first time in nearly a decade, the city of Kinston is looking for a city manager.
During closed session of Tuesday’s regular meeting, City Manager Tony Sears tendered his resignation to the Kinston City Council; his final day in the position will be Aug. 17. He has accepted the deputy city manager position for the City of Wilson.
On June 15, 2021, Kinston’s City Council voted to approve the proposed 2021-2022 budget, which included a four-cent property tax increase. The budget did not include the proposed salary increase for the city council members or the mayor. During the meeting, Councilmember Robert Swinson made a motion to remove the salary increases from the proposed budget, which was seconded by Solomon. The motion passed with Solomon, Swinson, and Councilmember Kristal Suggs voting for the budget without the salary increases, and Councilmembers Antonio Hardy and Sammy Aiken voting against it.
“I will sleep well tonight knowing that we made the right decision to not approve the salary increase for the Council,” said Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon.
The Kinston City Council met for a Budget Worksession on May 24, 2021, wherein a four-to-one vote they approved their own salary increase of $18,000 total per year and the mayor’s $3,600 per year raise ahead of the June 15th City Council meeting. The City of Kinston is expected to increase property taxes by $0.04 per $100 valuation at that meeting.
As this was a budget work session, there is no video of the off-site meeting, but an audio recording is attached. This vote was the only one taken during the four-hour budget meeting. During the same session, the previously reported dry-cleaning allowance line item was removed by the consensus of the mayor and board.
A press conference was held tonight with city officials including Mayor Don Hardy, City Manager Tony Sears, Kinston Police Department's Chief Dilday, and Mayor Pro Tem Felicia Solomon in response to an officer related incident captured and shared on social media.
