The last one

Pride of Kinston is preparing to close on a building that, once removed, will clear the way for revitalizing the entrance to Maplewood Cemetery.

“We’re on the verge of completing the property acquisition,” Pride Director Adrian King said Thursday.

Pride, working in partnership with Kinston Mayor O.A. “Buddy” Ritch Jr. and a handful of private donors, acquired five of six buildings in the 400 block of South Queen Street and had them torn down in July.

The final structure, a complex that has held a Caribbean restaurant, taxi stand and a pool hall, took more time to acquire because Pride and its partners were negotiating with the estate of the deceased owner.

Ritch said he would be “the happiest man on this side of the Mississippi River,” once the last building is purchased, clearing the way for turning the block into a landscaped entrance to a cemetery where generations of Kinstonians are buried.

“With this last building, it will be a bonanza for South Queen Street,” the mayor said.

King said Pride will work from designs created by Brooke Jones, an N.C. State University student and Kinston native who interned with Pride this past summer.

Ritch also thanked local Bishop J.E Reddick for his help in acquiring the buildings — the first five, along with the land under them, were purchased at tax value.

The private donations — which came from David Brody, the BB&T Foundation, the Wachovia Foundation, Realo Discount Drugs, the Harvey McNairy Foundation, Kenneth R. Blizzard and anonymous sources — funded the purchases and demolition, Ritch explained.

Even though his final term in office ends next month, Ritch will continue to work on revitalizing South Queen, a project he has been passionate about for years.

“We’re so thrilled about it,” Ritch said. “We’ve come such a long way on this thing.”

David Anderson can be reached at 252-559-1077 or danderson@freedomenc.com.