City council this morning approved a new facilities agreement with the Roanoke Rapids Graded School District.

The vote was 4-0 with Councilman Greg Lawson absent.

In a document included in this morning's agenda packet it is noted that on May 6 council gave formal notice to the school system it was ending the joint use agreement which had been in place for 28 years. That action was taken because the city believed the document needed to be updated to make it easier to read and to include and update all facilities.

The item was discussed at last week's city council meeting but unexpectedly tabled, Councilman Ed Liverman said, while the school board approved the agreement at its meeting last week.

Liverman said there was some miscommunication at last week's meeting which led to the matter being tabled at the last minute last week. “I think the staff, administration put a lot of work into this.”

Liverman said following the meeting the document is more readable and now includes all fields and facilities in it.

The agreement says all city recreational properties and related parking facilities may be used by the school system while all properties owned by the school system may be used by the city.

The terms of the agreement will be reviewed each year.