Loose leaf curbside collection is underway for Statesville residents who perform their own yardwork. (Landscape contractors are responsible for proper disposal of all leaf piles they create.) Here is an updated schedule and a reminder of the guidelines residents should follow to make for a more efficient and productive pickup.

The Statesville Fire Department is committed to providing excellent fire service to the community and wants you to tell them how they’re doing! Community organizations, businesses and residents are invited to participate in a special survey that focuses on the needs and expectations of the SFD. ​ The survey is available online at www.statesvillenc.net/fire and allows individuals to prioritize SFD programs.

Santa Claus is leaving his magic mailbox at City Hall again this year. Beginning Nov. 29, the magic mailbox will be located in the City Hall lobby, 227 S. Center St. It has the ability to special express your letter to the North Pole without a stamp! SANTA CENTRAL: City Hall will be festively decorated inside and out, ready to host Santa Central on Friday, Dec. 3, 6-8:30 p.m. You’re invited to take photos with the Nutcrackers standing guard in the front of City Hall or with Santa beside the 15-foot tree inside. On Dec. 3, there will be refreshments, arts and crafts for the children and special tours of Historic City Hall, led by Victorian ghosts of Christmas past. It’s all free. 6-8:30 p.m.

The Statesville Planning Department has announced that the timeframe for approval of the proposed 2045 Land Development Plan (LDP) has been extended to give staff an opportunity to address the concerns and comments raised by the public thus far in the process. The draft LDP can be viewed at www.statesvillenc.net/ldp. Any changes to the draft plan will be made available to the public on the City’s website. The Planning Board will continue its review of the draft plan at its January 25, 2022 meeting. Its recommendation and the plan will be presented to City Council on February 7, 2022. A public hearing is also scheduled for that meeting. Adoption of the plan is set for February 21, 2022.

The City of Statesville will close its offices on Thursday, November 11 in recognition of the Veterans Day Holiday. Because of the holiday, there will be no garbage collection on November 11. The revised schedule for the week of November 8-12 is as follows: Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday routes will operate on a regular schedule; Thursday and Friday routes will operate on a regular schedule. The Statesville Fitness & Activity Center and Bentley Center will be closed on Veterans Day. The Statesville ABC Stores will be open on November 11th.

The City of Statesville is posting a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) on the City of Statesville website on Friday, November 5, 2021. The City of Statesville is seeking assistance from qualified Architectural/Industrial Engineering Consulting firms to provide design and construction services for Phase 1 and Phase 2 to rebuild our Warehouse Operations Center. The website address to view and download the RFQ documentation is: www.statesvillenc.net/bidpostings

CHANGE IN PUBLIC HEARING DATE: City Council has selected a new redistricting plan. There will be a public hearing on the plan at the Nov. 15, 2021 Council meeting. The approved districts will be in effect for the next citywide election, scheduled for March 8, 2022. Up for election will be the Mayor, 2 at-large Council seats and seats in Wards 2, 3 and 5.

Statesville City manager Ron Smith has named Brian Roberts as the City’s new Finance Director, effective immediately. For the past two years, Roberts, 38, has served as the City’s Assistant Finance Director under Chris Tucker, who resigned in August to accept another position.

What's Halloween without a visit with Statesville's ghost? Have you ever wandered past the old Fourth Creek Burying Ground and seen the shadow of the unknown soldier buried there? Did you grow up hearing stories about the ghost of a young girl spotted over and over again dripping wet in the Vance Hotel? Don't miss your chance to enjoy a walking ghost tour full of old stories and legends from Statesville’s past. Step beyond the beauty of Statesville’s historic downtown and discover its true haunted history--where tales of spirits, scary creatures, mysterious deaths, and creepy alleys become real. Guided by The Sharpe House Historic Players, you will be enthralled on your journey into the spirit realm on select evenings throughout the fall.

Public Power Week is a great time to remind customers that the City of Statesville Electric Utility Department is proud to be a part of this community year-round. Mayor Costi Kutteh proclaimed Oct. 3-9 as Public Power Week in Statesville, presenting the proclamation to Travis Campbell, Operations Manager and Jamie Bishop and Josh Sigmon, crew foremen.

The first phase is the week of Oct. 4-8 and involves the collection of excess household garbage. For that week only, residents can place extra bags of household garbage on the street, as well as furniture and white goods for pick-up. The extra items will be picked up on their regular collection day. For more information on the Community Cleanup initiative, go to www.statesvillenc.net/cleanup or call 704-878-3415.

Statesville City’s 16-year old Land Development Plan is getting a make-over. After months of study, research, public meetings, surveys, and discussion, both the Planning Board and City Council will receive an overview of the LDP’s recommended goals and priorities for the City’s future growth. The joint meeting will be held in Council Chambers on Monday, Oct. 4, at 5 p.m. It will be an opportunity for these leaders to ask questions and give their input prior to the public hearing and first reading of the plan on Monday, Nov. 15. The meeting will be broadcast live on cable channel 20 and the City’s Youtube Channel (www.statesvillenc.net/live).

The Statesville Sculpture Garden has two new pieces to show off at Friday night’s Fall Art Crawl. The sculpture entitled “Harmonious Balance” (left) was purchased by the City of Statesville earlier this year to add to the City’s permanent collection. “Mother & Child” (right) will be in the sculpture garden for the next year as part of the City’s rotational art.

The City of Statesville Planning Department has announced a public meeting for the proposed Bethlehem Road Relocation/New Access Road at Statesville Regional Airport. An in-person meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 28, 2021, from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm in the Statesville Regional Airport Conference Room at 238 Airport Road, Statesville.

SVL Water Resources was recognized for receiving the prestigious N.C. Area Wide Optimization Award. Harry Hull, Water Plant Supervisor, who received the award on behalf of the City of Statesville, said the award recognizes the City's high standards for water quality. For more information on the award, keep reading:

The City has announced that effective Friday, August 27, all persons (regardless of vaccination status) must wear a mask inside all City buildings. This applies to employees and the public. For more information, continue reading.

The City of Statesville is requesting the submission of qualifications from consulting Civil Engineering firms to provide professional engineering and design services for the replacement of watermains located within the City of Statesville, North Carolina, for the following project: City of Statesville Watermain Replacement Project Qualification packets will be received by the Utilities Department, City of Statesville Offices, at a designated drop point located at 301 South Center Street, Statesville, NC 28677 until September 30th, 2021 at 2 pm local time. Packages should be addressed to the attention of Ms. Autumn Hill.

City Council passed the following traffic-related changes to the City Code: Established 25-mile per hour Speed Zones on all city-maintained streets which are not a part of the NCDOT Highway System and other exceptions; Changed the Parking Violations and Fines for Downtown Statesville; Approved First Reading of “No Parking Anytime” ordinance on both sides of Alexander St. between N. Lackey St. and Nursery St.

The City of Statesville is posting a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) on the City of Statesville website. The Request for Qualifications is for Electrical Engineering Services. The website address to view and download the RFP documentation is: www.statesvillenc.net/bidpostings

The 2021-2022 Recycling Schedule is out. It will be included in upcoming newsletters, but is currently on the city’s website at www.statesvillenc.net/recycling. Recycling is picked up every other week and you are assigned either a “red” or “blue” recycling week, based on your address. You can also find an interactive map on the website to find out whether you are a red or blue week. Also on this page, is information about how to recycle. Some key tips to remember are: DON’T bag your recyclables. DON’T recycle glass. REMEMBER – if you’re not sure whether it’s recyclable, - put it in the trash.

Make checks out to the United Way of Iredell County. The memo line on checks should say COS Protect Our Children Reward Fund Cash donations can be made to the City Manager's office, 227 S. Center St. Checks should be mailed to the following United Way of Iredell c/o City of Statesville PO Box 1111 Statesville, NC 28687

June 17 is National Waste and Recycling Collectors Day, but the City of Statesville plans to celebrate all week long! Join in the celebration by giving an extra wave when a sanitation truck goes by or find your own way to say “thank you” for all these great workers do to keep Statesville safe and clean! The employees of the Sanitation Division were honored recently at a City Council meeting where Mayor Costi Kutteh presented a special proclamation to Kevin Rankins, Sanitation Division Superintendent.

Statesville City Council finalized the 2021-2022 budget during Monday’s budget work session, deciding to leave the current tax rate and the $120 annual Solid Waste Fee intact. Council also decided that the proposed 20% increase in water/sewer rates was necessary.

Two major economic development projects have been announced in Statesville – a $70 million expansion of the current Doosan Bobcat North American manufacturing facility in Statesville and the construction of a new $7.9 million production facility for VPI Quality Windows, a brand of JELD-WEN, a global manufacturer of windows and doors. Along with the investment comes new jobs: for Doosan, it will be 250 new, full-time jobs over the next five years, and for JELD-WEN, it will be 235 jobs.

The City of Statesville has begun the process of upgrading all its electric and water meters, replacing the old meters with highly accurate, secure, state-of-the art metering technology called Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) or smart meters. Here's what to expect:

The Statesville Fire Department has added another vehicle to its fleet with the recent donation of a utility terrain vehicle (UTV) by Great Western Motorcycles. This unit will be used for rescue situations involving the greenway and other areas that are inaccessible by fire engines and pickup trucks. It will also be used for medical coverage at City events. The SFD is very appreciative of Great Western’s generosity and support of the department’s work.

Welcome Stacey Everette - Statesville's new Human Resources Director. Everette has more than 20 years of human resources experience, most recently serving for over five years as the director of Human Resources for the City of Washington, NC. Before that, most of her human resources management experience was in the private sector, working for several large manufacturing businesses and a national public accounting firm.

Statesville is celebrating its linemen who are a part of our outstanding Electric Utilities Department. There are two Lineworker Appreciation Days in April, so we're going to take the whole month and honor the profession of electrical lineworkers. We encourage all our citizens to join us in celebrating these employees for their service to our city.

The City of Statesville is celebrating April 11-17, 2021 as National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week and taking time to recognize the men and women who respond to emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals, and render lifesaving assistance to Statesville citizens every day. Kimberly Arbogast, Division Manager, oversees Statesville’s Communication Center and Records Division which is a part of the Police Department. The division has 2 supervisors and ten telecommunicators. Also housed in this division are the records unit and parking enforcement. In 2020, the division answered 85,551 calls, of which 9,047 were 911 calls. The types of calls range from requests for an escort or welfare check to reporting an accident or serious crime.

We are excited to be a part of this great loan program that will help small business borrowers who may not have access to traditional resources. Targeting women and minority-owned small businesses, Kiva loans are offered through the Self-Help Credit Union. Statesville City Council provided some start-up money for the program and is looking forward to hearing about the success of local small businesses who take advantage of the program. Here's how to find out more and apply online:

The City of Statesville has completed a study by Raftelis Financial Consultants related to a System Development Fee Report. The report is available for review online for 45 days. Written public comments may be sent to Assistant City Manager Scott Harrell. At the April 19, 2021 City Council meeting, Council will conduct a public hearing on the proposed System Development Fees prior to any action being taken on the recommendations in the report. If adopted, the changes will go into effect immediately. A system development fee is a one-time charge paid by a new customer to recover a portion or all of the cost of constructing water and sewer system capacity. Continue reading for links.

City Council will consider next steps for the development of the Vance Hotel at its meeting Monday, Feb. 15. A Master Development Agreement will be presented which involves selling the hotel property to Rainier Group, LLC, for $47,000 and allowing them to proceed with plans to restore the Vance to a 60-unit hotel. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. and can be viewed on cable channel 20 and www.statesvillenc.net/live. Here’s more information on the agreement.

The Statesville Regional Airport is contributing millions of dollars to the local and state economies, as well as supporting hundreds of jobs connected to the operation of the airport, according to a recent report released by the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Division of Aviation. The report contains 2019 data from the state’s network of 72 publicly owned airports, and the aviation and aerospace assets that rely on them. It shows the Statesville airport as having a $139.2 million impact on the economy, including funneling more than $8.7 million to state and local tax revenues.

Statesville native Dr. Thomas H. Marshburn, NASA astronaut, is going back into space. It was announced Monday that Marshburn will serve as pilot for the NASA-SpaceX commercial mission to the International Space Station in the fall of 2021. Statesville is proud to be the hometown of Dr. Marshburn, who has walked in space and spent five months aboard the International Space Station. Many of our welcome signs around Statesville now include that slogan: “Hometown of NASA Astronaut Dr. Thomas H. Marshburn”

Statesville Utility customers have a simple yet powerful way to share the warmth this winter with neighbors in need. It’s called Statesville Connects and this voluntary assistance program allows customers to contribute through their monthly utility bills to aid low income families and people in crisis who need help with their utility payments. Statesville customers can donate in two ways: The Round-up Program is a new method for contributing that allows the customer to “round up” their bill each month to the next highest dollar amount. Customers can also participate by adding a designated contribution on their monthly bill. Separate donations are also accepted.

The City of Statesville has announced its partnership with Retail Strategies, a national retail recruitment firm, to help expand retail development in Statesville. The project involves conducting a detailed analysis of the City’s retail market, creating a strategic plan for recruiting new business and growing existing businesses, and then proactively reaching out to potential businesses and developers. The project will focus on all of Statesville.

The Bloom is back! The Statesville Bloom is part of Iredell County’s public transportation system (ICATS) and runs a fixed route in Statesville, Monday through Friday. The route, along with other fixed routes, have been suspended since March 18 due to COVID-19 but will resume service effective June 22. Schedules are subject to change based on passenger demand and passengers are requested to follow COVID-19 safety protocols, including safe distancing and the use of masks.

The Statesville Recreation and Parks Department is on the route to big things! And we're off to a great start! We're developing a comprehensive plan for the future of our parks, facilities and programs and we need your help. The next community conversation on Tuesday, March 24 at the Bentley Community Center - has been postponed. Click below to learn more!

As of January 2020, Statesville residents and other Benfield Sanitation Services customers (including Mooresville and Troutman) have been instructed to no longer put glass in their recycling bins. Also, Benfield has begun charging municipalities $20 per ton of recycling, whether or not there is glass in the materials. This will cost Statesville $12,000-$13,000 per year. Removing glass from the recycling materials should lower the weight and lower costs. Continue reading for more information on how to recycle right!

Statesville considers itself a dog-friendly community and asks pet owners to help it keep that reputation by obeying the City's leash laws in city parks and greenways

Statesville Electric Utilities has a great rebate program for residential customers who purchase new heat pump systems and/or electric water heaters. The Baileys recently took advantage of the program and got a $400 rebate from the City after installing a new heating and air conditioning unit.