The Rogers Road Task Force presented its final report on Dec. 6, making recommendations to the Orange County Assembly of Governments on what to do about the community center and sewer system in the Rogers Road community.
But some county leaders — including Chapel Hill Council member Lee Storrow and Carrboro Alderman Michelle Johnson — have started a petition to extend the mandate of the task force.
The Assembly of Governments should do precisely that. The task force, in its report, also asked for more time to formulate recommendations, even though it had performed its original charge.
The promises to the community, though long overdue, must be fulfilled correctly and thoroughly. Of course, every day spent debating the issue is a day spent not fixing it. The force should get an extension, but it must make a final recommendation at the end of it.
Some members of the task force, though, have expressed that the duties charged to them have been completed.
But those who wish to extend the task force think the task force has built a bridge between the community and elected officials, and any progress will be lost if the task force disbands now. This is a fair assumption, given that so many promises to the community have been unfulfilled.
But even if the task force doesn’t reorganize, officials, community members and everyone involved should heed the recommendations made by the task force to move forward in repairing the community.
There are several social and health-related problems that need solving in the community and prompt action must be taken.
The neighborhood needs its community center back, and it has waited long enough.
