Rocky Mount Councilman W.B. Bullock is inviting residents of Ward 6 to a Town Hall meeting tonight to discuss recent changes to the district and other city happenings.

“Ward 6 was expanded by about 1,000 people,” he said. The ward boundaries were redrawn last year after the results of the 2010 U.S. Census were released.

“The western border used to be Winstead Avenue, but now it is all the way to the southside of Sunset Avenue at Halifax Road. Basically the original Westridge section of the city was added,” Bullock said.

Bullock said the timeliness of the meeting is important, even though he is not running in the upcoming election.

“I thought having the town hall meeting prior to the election would be good timing,” he said. “I want to be able to show people the ward maps and answer any questions they may have. I’ll have print-outs of voting locations, so they know where they need to go next Tuesday.”

He said he looks forward to talking with residents who have lived in Ward 6 a long time and get to know those recently added to the district.

“I’ve been here over 50 years, so there will be a lot of them that I do know, but I’m sure there will be some new people I do not,” he said. “Hopefully, this will give them the chance to get to know me and bring up any issues they may have.”

Representatives of several city departments – including police, fire, utilities and Parks and Recreation – will be on-hand to update residents on new initiatives and upcoming events. Traffic patterns related to the opening of the new Rocky Mount High School also is on the agenda.

“This will give residents a chance to see who the department heads are and ask questions about this, that or the other,” Bullock said. “With the town hall meetings, it really gives people a chance to be a part of what is happening without the procedures and formal setting of a City Council meeting.”

He said hopefully 100 people or more will show up to the meeting, which is at 7 p.m. tonight in the fellowship hall of Trinity Luther Church as 433 S. Winstead Ave.

“I want to continue the dialogue between the council, the city’s staff and the residents because we are there to serve them,” Bullock said. “There will always be about 3 to 4 percent who are naysayers without anything positive to talk about, but hopefully this meeting will give them a chance to learn about some of the amenities we have to offer and some of the good things going on.”