The Friends of the Lee County Library will hold its annual book sale from Thursday to Saturday in the auditorium of the Lee County Library’s main branch at 107 Hawkins Ave. The group will have a variety of items available including hardbacks, paperbacks, DVDs, and CDs. Prices are $2 for hardbacks, $1 for paperbacks, 50 cents for mass market paperbacks, $1 for CDs and DVDs and 50 cents for children’s books. There will also be Friends of the Library Tote Bags available for $5. Thursday will be Members’ Preview Night from 5 to 8 p.m. Memberships can be renewed or purchased at this time: $5 for i ..read more

By Richard Sullins | richard@rantnc.com It seems clear that Lee County Schools enjoy broad support among the county’s commissioners, and that when County Manager Lisa Minter presents the first draft of the county’s budget to the board in May, it’s likely that the school district will receive much – if not all – of the additional funding that they’re asking for when the new budget year begins on July 1. The confidence that commissioners have in Minter to develop a budget that will address the nearly $6 million in new funding Lee County Schools are asking for in the new year was on full display ..read more

A weeklong celebration of local agriculture will kick off Saturday with the opening of the Sanford Farmer’s Market from 8:30 a.m. to noon at 115 Chatham St. in downtown Sanford. The market will be open Saturdays until Nov. 9. But the market is just the start of Ag Week, which is celebrated every year by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension as a way to draw attention to the role agriculture plays in daily life. After the market kicks off on Saturday, Ag Week continues Monday with “Green Thumbs Up,” a series of workshops on gardening, with topics including composting, microgreens and soil ty ..read more

On the Friends of the Rant podcast, Gordon interviews Indie Fest performers the Culper Ring, a self proclaimed “dad punk” band from Dallas, Texas with a knack for big hooks and shimmering production, as well as Greensboro’s the Gooseberry Jam, who present a “Southern fried taste of soul set to a backdrop of raw rock and roll.”  The Culper Ring plays Carolina Indie Fest at Hugger Mugger Brewing in downtown Sanford on Saturday, May 11 at 5:30 p.m., and the Gooseberry Jam headlines Friday night, May 10, at 8:45 p.m. https://rantnc.podbean.com/e/friends-of-the-rant-indie-fest-bands-culper-ri ..read more

By Richard Sullins | richard@rantnc.com The Lee County Board of Commissioners should receive a report on May 6 outlining options the county may have as it begins to look at the current and future needs of its jail on South Horner Boulevard that is now three decades old. The commissioners voted last fall to authorize a feasibility study by Moseley Architects of Raleigh to look at the effectiveness, efficiency, structural integrity, security, and capacity requirements for the facility that was built in the early 1990s. Moseley was selected, in part, because of their recent experience in designin ..read more

Sarah Strong, a three-time state champion for Sanford’s Grace Christian School and the No. 1 women’s high school recruit in the nation, announced today that she has committed to the University of Connecticut to continue her basketball career. Strong’s announcement was broadcast live on ESPN during halftime of the Montverde Academy, IMG Academy Florida high school championship game. Sarah Strong was featured by The Rant back in October. Strong, who was featured by The Rant back in October before her senior year, led Grace Christian to its third straight state title in February when the Lady Cr ..read more

Photo: National Land Realty Update (1:45 p.m. April 6): Aloha Safari Park gave The Rant a statement about the availability of the property for purchase: We would like to thank everyone who has shown their care and concern over Aloha Safari Park. It is because of our dedicated customers we get to do what we love everyday.  You might not know, but there was a big change here about two years ago when we got a new owner. He’s a real animal enthusiast, having spent his life working with animals, and he brought that passion with him to Aloha. Since taking over, he’s been all about making the p ..read more

Agreement between National Association of Realtors in March means home buyers/sellers can go lower than 6% for commission to real estate agents Source: Flickr By Billy Liggett | billy@rantnc.com The thousands of homes that have been bought and sold in Sanford in the last several decades have shared one common thread — aside from the skyrocketing prices. They have all come with a 6 percent commission paid out to the real estate agents who worked behind the scenes to make those transactions happen. That commission rate is no longer set in stone, a result of the March 15 settlement of a landmark ..read more

Carolina Indie Fest returns to Hugger Mugger Brewing in downtown Sanford on May 10 and 11, and the Friends of the Rant podcast is back to interview the performers. This week, we talk with Nashville-based Durham native Katie Basden, who melds a diverse array of influences into a soulful take on southern Americana, and Raleigh’s Newspaper Taxis, a rock act who bring to mind a mix of British Invasion hooks, post punk energy, and power pop vibes. https://rantnc.podbean.com/e/friends-of-the-rant-katie-basden-and-newspaper-taxis ..read more

Video credit: Hayley Liggett Original story: A small single-engine plane made an emergency landing on U.S. 1 near Moncure Thursday at approximately 3:45 p.m. The above video was taken before emergency crews arrived. No details have been released, but based on the video and a short eye-witness account, the plane appeared to have made a successful landing, despite no evidence of visible landing gear in the short clip. The Rant will have updates on this story as they arrive. Update: 11:20 p.m. The plane, a single-engine Lancair 360, experienced mechanical failure before it went down on Thursday ..read more