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The town of Aurora has faced setbacks during the pandemic but has multiple projects underway according to town clerk and finance officer Judi Lannon. 

“Aurora is having a water treatment plant upgrade project that is in progress right now and we’re excited about that and there’s a lot of focus on that right now,” said Lannon. 

This project was initiated in May of 2019 and is supported by a grant from the division of water infrastructure under the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. 

Also in 2019, a project to build an industrial park in Aurora was begun. The project has been stalled in the planning process because of the pandemic but work is moving forward.

“It’s an industrial park that is slated to be built on U.S. Highway 33 right there by the Richland Township Fire and Rescue. It’s going to comprise of about 41 acres or more of industrial park. We’re really hoping that this will boost economic development and provide 20 or more full time jobs,” said Lannon.

A land development study was recently conducted on the area the town plans to use for the industrial park. There are wetlands in the area that were accessed to determine the amount of usable acres according to Lannon. 

“It will provide a safe attractive work environment which will provide water and sewer and paved road for and these will be for contracting companies that contract with Nutrient,” Lannon said. “Right now, a lot of these companies that service the mine can’t do all of the work they need to do on the mine site so this will provide them a place for host offices, letdown years, fabricating and repair facilities for their equipment, conference rooms, and that kind of thing.” 

Lannon said the project has been delayed but funding is set up and allocated. Upon completion of the planning phase, the town will continue to move forward with the project.

Recreation is also a large focus for the town. A grant to update the softball field was received in 2018 from the Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, along with a grant to hire a recreation coordinator for the town. These grants were provided to the town to foster a healthy environment and encourage an active lifestyle according to the foundation. 

“The softball field over there is being used by a team by the name of Coastal Storm. They’re like our home team, and a lot of girls’ softball has been played over there weather permitting,” Lannon said. “Our recreation coordinator Curt Hendrex has been taking wonderful care of the fields over there and he even put an impromptu par 3 golf course for people to use.”

In addition to the softball field, the Aurora Recreation Department is working to perform maintenance on nature trails in town. This maintenance will provide more opportunities for residents to utilize these trails and make them easier to navigate. 

For more updates on the town of Aurora, visit the town’s website at https://auroranc.us.