News - Randolph Record

07 Aug

Asheboro-based Klaussner Furniture Industries, Inc. to close all facilities

Bob SuttonBusiness, NewsAsheboro, Asheboro business, Klaussner, Klaussner Furniture, Klaussner Furniture Industries, Klaussner Home Furnishing, plant closings

ASHEBORO – Klaussner Furniture Industries, which once had been the largest employer in Randolph County, is shutting down operations at all its facilities, the company announced Monday. The company was tightly tied to Asheboro, which housed its corporate headquarters. According to a news release: “Klaussner’s lending source has unexpectedly refused to continue to fund the Company’s operations. This outcome was not reasonably foreseeable, but due to these unexpected circumstances, Klaussner can no longer sustain its operations.” There will be more than 800 job losses, with a majority of those connected to Asheboro and Randolph County, based on some reports. The…

02 Aug

VinFast breaks ground on automotive manufacturing facility in Chatham County

Ryan Henkel, North State JournalNewsautomotive, factory, vinfast

MONCURE – VinFast, a Vietnamese electric vehicle manufacturer, broke ground on their proposed billion dollar facility in Chatham County Friday, July 28. In an event attended by VinFast executives, the Vietnam Ambassador to the United States, Gov. Roy Cooper as well as various government officials, VinFast laid out their future plans and goals regarding the factory located in the Triangle Innovation Point megasite. “Just over a year ago, Vinfast announced the plan to build our first North American manufacturing facility and today we are here to start the construction of the first EV factory in North Carolina which will have…

29 Jul

Randolph Health adds inpatient services

Randolph RecordNewshospital, Randolph Health

ASHEBORO – TeleNephrology consultations and dialysis for inpatient hospitalizations are being added as part of expanded services at Randolph Health. The hospital has partnered with Renasolve and nephrologist Dr. Rubin Chandran to provide inpatient nephrology services. Renasolve specializes in providing daily 24-hour inpatient nephrology and TeleNephrology services to rural communities, according to Randolph Health. This is the first time the hospital has offered these services even when the hospital was under different ownership, spokeswoman Paula Richards said. The hospital’s announcement said this will “allow patients to remain in their local community – close to family and close to home. Our…

26 Jul

NC Zoo working to secure funding to rebuild aviary

Scott PelkeyNewsaviary, closed, NC Zoo

ASHEBORO — The Aviary at the North Carolina Zoo is set to be demolished, but the Zoo is working on securing funds and putting together plans to rebuild. With its 93 species of birds, hundreds of tropical plants, and an environment that mimics the tropical rainforest, the Aviary has been a guest favorite since it first opened in 1982. In January 2022, the Zoo announced that the Aviary would be closing due to a potential threat of Avian Flu, leaving many guests with the impression that this closure would be temporary. However, during the closure, a team of engineers was…

26 Jul

Randolph Board of Education recognizes educator award

Ryan Henkel, North State JournalNewsRandolph County Board of Education

ASHEBORO — The Randolph County Schools Board of Education met Monday, July 17, with primarily recognitions and informational items presented. The board opened the meeting by welcoming Randolph County Schools’ new public information officer, Amber Ward, who joined the staff following Tim Moody’s retirement after nearly 10 years of service to the county. “She’s going to be good,” said Board Chair Gary Cooke. “She’s one of us. We’ll miss Tim, though. He did a great job.” The board was presented with an update on their FY 2023-24 local budget. “The county commission approved our budget on the 19th of June,”…

24 Jul

Candidates secure spots for November ballot in Randolph County

Bob SuttonNews, PoliticsAsheboro City Schools, election, Election 2023, Randolph County Board of Elections

ASHEBORO – There will be five candidates for three spots on the City of Asheboro City Council. Candidates to file by Friday’s deadline are Eddie Burks, Jane Hughes Redding, Charles Swiers, Harry Okeke and Joey Trogdon. Burks, Redding and Swiers are incumbents. ** For the Asheboro City Schools Board of Education the candidates are incumbents Gidget Kidd, Ryan Patton and Gwenn Williams along with Melissa Calloway and Todd Dulaney. ** Mayor Filmore York will run unopposed in Liberty. Greg Carpenter and incumbent Don Herndon are the filers for Liberty town commissioner. ** In Franklinville, Priscellia Dunn and L. McKay Whatley…

19 Jul

NC Zoo’s new chimp needs name

Randolph RecordNewsbaby animals, chimp, name, NC Zoo

ASHEBORO – Earlier this month the North Carolina Zoo welcomed a newborn chimp. The baby girl still needs a name. NC Zoo’s troop now consists of 17 chimpanzees – females Gigi, Amy, Ebi, Gari, Genie (the mother of the new chimp), Gerre, Ruby, Tammy, Asha and the new infant; males – Jonathan, Lance, Sokoto, Kendall, Gus and Obi and the new infant. The North Carolina Zoo Society members will vote on the baby chimpanzee’s name in the upcoming weeks. The newest baby has been active and nursing, according to Zoo officials. “Genie is doing so well being a first-time mom,”…

17 Jul

Spirits up as Franklinville church building comes down

Scott PelkeyNewsChurch wall collapse, Franklinville, Franklinville United Methodist Church

Demolition crews were working at the site of Franklinville United Methodist Church last week. (PJ Ward-Brown/North State Journal) FRANKLINVILLE – Members of the Franklinville United Methodist Church are saving what they can as the church is demolished following a wall collapse July 6. Emergency crews responded to the Franklinville United Methodist Church on South Main Street after a report of a commercial fire. The arriving units didn’t find a fire but did find that one of the walls of the church had collapsed. Initial reports from fire crews were that the collapse may have been caused by an explosion from…

12 Jul

Commissioners approve select programs for opioid settlement funds

Ryan Henkel, North State JournalNewsdrugs, opioid, Randolph County Commissioners, settlement

ASHEBORO — The Randolph County Board of Commissioners met Monday, July 10, with decisions on opioid settlement funding and project bids as the main items on the agenda for consideration. The board was first presented with a final update on the design of the Farm, Food and Family Center from HH Architecture, the firm working on the project. “With all of the updates that we’ve made, we’re still right around a $29.2 million total budget,” said HH Architecture Project Architect Daniel Jencks. “That’s a touch more than the $28.3 that we currently have secured, but it’s important to note that…

09 Jul

Ten file on first day for fall elections

Bob SuttonNewsAsheboro City Council, Asheboro City Schools, Randleman city council, randolph county, Randolph County Board of Elections, Town of Liberty

ASHEBORO – Ten Randolph County residents filed to run for office during the first five hours of filing. Three of those are seeking to retain spots on the City of Asheboro’s city council. Filing opened at noon Friday and continues through noon July 21. Incumbents Eddie Burks, Jane Hughes Redding and Charles Swiers signed up for the candidate list for Asheboro’s city council. Gidget Kidd and Ryan Patton are bidding to keep their seats on the Asheboro City Schools board of education. For Randleman’s city council, first-day filers were Mike Dawkins (at-large), Steve Grooms Jr. (Ward 1) and Lee Hinson…