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Governor Announces Nearly $13M In Rural Infrastructure Grants

Gov. Roy Cooper is seen during a visit to a medical device manufacturer in Pittsboro, N.C., Thursday, Dec. 3, 2020. The governor has announced that close to $13 million in grants have been approved for rural infrastructure. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

There is economic help on the way for North Carolina's rural communities. The state has approved nearly $13 million in grants for infrastructure projects. 

Governor Roy Cooper announced on Thursday the state has authorized 30 grant requests to local governments, which will help to create over 800 new jobs and allow for business expansion.

The governor said in a press release the grants will address critical needs for building, water, and sewer projects. He predicted the public investment in infrastructure will likely attract over $500 million in private investment.

In the Piedmont Triad, funds will be earmarked for building reuse projects in Winston-Salem, Mount Airy, Eden, Lexington, and Salisbury, along with two renovations in Mayodan.

There will be a $2-million investment in repurposing a Rockingham County site for a pet care company's manufacturing and distribution operations.

And Yadkin County will receive assistance for extending water service to a site in Yadkinville.

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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