/ P8/C8******CAR-RT LOT**C 002 A032/ i||fr'-iill,liHll,lllliiM'inliillllili'l,illll,,nM1lil1' SHEPHERD PRUDEN LIBRARY ■106 W WATER ST EDENTON NC 27932-1854 WWW CAROLIHftCHRYSLER.COM i 252-335-0724 f 1001 HALSTEAD BLVO ELIZABETH CITY 482-4418 50« Wednesday, January 25, 2017 Smart Start, Chowan CARES seek $100K for school readiness BY REGGIE PONDER Editor The local coalition on early childhood education is looking for $100,000 a year that advocates say is necessary to maintain the current momentum in improving school readiness among the coun ty’s children. Early childhood advocates as sociated with Chowan/Perqui mans Smart Start Partnership and Chowan CAR.E.S. (Children’s Alliance to Realize Educational Success) have identified these programs as critical to the effort; Reach Out and Read - $5,000 - distribution of books for children through pediatricians’ practices BAB.Y. (Birth and Beginning Years) - $4,500 - training for par ents in how to work with infants and young children to boost their learning and prepare them for kin dergarten Child Care health consultant -$44,000 School readiness coordinator -$46,500. The programs were part of the Transformation Zone Grant that funded improvement efforts in early childhood education and three other counties. “We need some help,” Susan Nixon of Chowan/Perquimans Smart Start Partnership told the Chowan County Board of Com missioners at its meeting last week. Nixon said she was afraid to see The goal established by Smart Start and Chowan C.A.R.ES. is for half of the county's children to be school-ready when they enter kindergarten by 2018. The current rate is 31 percent, up from 21 percent in 2014. what would happen in the future tional recognition, without additional funding. The “I’m very passionate about the grant funding ended late last year, work that we’ve done,” Nixon Nixon pointed out the work in said. Chowan through the Transforma tion Zone Grant had gained na See CARES, 4A Regional Fair sweeps state awards From staff reports The Chowan County Regional Fair swept the six awards for fairs with less than 15,000 in attendance at the recent convention of the N.C. Association of Agricul tural Fairs. “The Chowan County Regional Fair would like to thank the com munity for their continued support in making us an award-winning fair,” the Chowan County Regional Fair Board stated last week. This year’s fair will be held Sept 26 - 30. The 2017 fair theme is “Coun try Nights and Fair Lights.” The six awards were: Agriculture Award — Given to the fair that best showcases agricul ture and the agricultural heritage of the area served. Agricultural prod ucts including new and antique ag ricultural machinery and equipment are displayed and farm-related dem onstrations are ongoing. livestock and poultry exhibits and/or livestock shows are representative of the area served. Agricultural-related contests and entertainment are carried out to further showcase agriculture. Image Award — The prestigious Image Award is given annually to the fair that truly represents what a N.C. Agricultural Fair should be. The Image Award cannot be won by the same fair two years in a row; however, the fair can compete for J SUBMITTED PHOTO Members of the Chowan County Regional Fair Board celebrate the fair’s sweep of the six awards In its category at the recent convention of the North Carolina Association of Agricultural Fairs. the Agriculture and Youth Awards. Customers attending the fair are provided with a safe environment and friendly, inviting atmosphere. The fair will be very progressive and making improvements based on available resources. Media Award — The Media Award is given to the fair that has the best overall advertising and public relations campaigns. Youth Award — The Youth Award is given annually to the fair that best showcases youth and youth activities of the area served. Since youth are the future of Agricultural Fairs, the winning fairs recognize the importance of youth participation and involvement and strive to See FAIR, 4A Locals at Inaugural Balls, Women’s March BY REBECCA BUNCH Staff Writer Chowan County residents were among those participating in two momentous events that took place in the nation’s capital over the weekend - the inauguration of the country’s 45th president, Donald Trump, and the Women’s March on Washington. Among those who got a first hand look and the chance to wel come dignitaries attending the Jan. 20 inauguration was Edenton native Allison “Allie” Farless Mills, who is a congressional aide for U.S. Congressman Scott DesJariais of Tennessee. She is the daughter of Charles and Shari Thompson Far less of Edenton. Mills, who handles scheduling for the congressman, was among the 400 congressional aides who volunteered to greet and direct ev eryone from former presidents and first ladies to members of the U.S. Supreme Court and members of Congress. Mills said she was among the greeters at the “law door” near the old Supreme Court cham bers. Among those she welcomed were former vice president Dick Cheney and his wife Lynn, former vice president Dan Quayle, former president George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Sec retary of State Hillary Clinton, and the Trump grandchildren. Mills described the experience as “amazing” and said two in par ticular involving Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton stood out in her mind. First, she said, former first lady Laura Bush commented on the fact that Mills wasn’t wearing gloves and that her hands must be cold. To her surprise, Mills said, Laura Bush held her hands to warm them up for her. She said that when Bill and Hillary Clinton approached the See TRUMP, 4A 1 XM NO WNGETt xcmvm the things i cmfor cktnqe.. 13W chzngtnq the i things 1 c?mm , UCCETT!!! , V- WC-®C ly4| • POCf »r MAX hSl'If §r m mu «n 9 Wt deserve ACCESS TO affordable1 hbuthcare SUBMITTED PHOTO Kristy LaLonde of Edenton (center) is flanked by a friend from Windsor, Wendy Swain (left) and LaLonde’s daughter, Destiny Askew, at the Women’s March on . Washington, DC over the weekend. Town eyes approval for bulkhead financing BY REBECCA BUNCH Staff Writer Town officials are seek ing N.C. Local Government Commission approval for an installment purchase to fund the replacement of the bulkhead at Colonial Park. The existing bulkhead is estimated to be over 50 years old and is in poor con dition. Town Manager Anne Marie Knighton briefed the town council on the effort during its work session on Monday night She is being assisted by Jennifer Bald win, finance officer for the town. “We have a $100,000 CAMA grant and will need to borrow $240,000," Knigh ton said. “We estimate the annual principal and inter est payment to be approxi mately $16,000 per year for 15 years.” Krugaton noted that the LCG requires municipalities to identify its funding sourc es as part of the approval process. The town is solicit ing proposals from banks to loan to the Town $240,000. Request for proposals have been sent to banks and are due in early February, Bald win said. The LGC must approve the terms of the loan. Knighton and Baldwin rec ommended a portion of the funds from the land trans fer tax monies the town receives be used to pay the expected annual debt service payment. Knighton said that the Town budgets to receive $60,000 a year, but in the last two years, the Town actually received $80,000 and is on pace to realize that same amount this fiscal year. “A public hearing is required before the ap plication can be submit ted to the LGC,” the town See BULKHEAD, 3A Property owners file second suit against Timbermill facility BT REUGIE PONDER Editor, Chowan County prop erty owners who live near a planned wind energy facil ity in the county have filed a second lawsuit seeking to overturn county decisions that allowed the project to ©2009 The Chowan Herald All Rights Reserved move torward. Patrick and Belinda Flynn of Paradise Road in Eden ton on Jan. 3 filed a lawsuit against the Chowan County Board of Commissioners, Chowan County Board of Adjustment, and Timbermill Wind LLC. The Flynns live about six-tenths of a mile from where one of the wind turbines is slated to be built and Patrick Flynn represent ed himself in opposition to the project during hearings last year before the Chowan County Board of Commis sioners on the Timbermill Wind Project Conditional Use Permit. Perquimans County offi cials denied the permit for the portion of the facility that was slated to be built in Perquimans but Timber mill officials have indicated they plan to move forward with the development of the portion of the projected that has been permitted for Chowaa The Flynns’ Jan. 3 action appeals the decision of the Chowan County Board of Adjustment on Oct. 26 not to reject the statement by Elizabeth Biyant, county zoning administrator, on the definition of “Environmen tal Assessment” as used in the county’s wind energy or dinance. Based on that inter pretation of “Environmental Assessment” the zoning administrator concluded the Timbermill Conditional Use Permit application was complete. The board determined it did not have jurisdiction in the matter since Bryant’s statement was not an en forcement action. The Jan. 3 filing also ap peals the Aug. 22 decision by the Chowan County Board of Commission-' ers during the Conditional Use Permit hearing on the Timbermill Wind Project in which the commissioners rejected a motion to stay the CUP hearing until after the Chowan Board of Adjust ment had heard the appeal of the zoning administrator’s interpretation. The Flynns’ petition asks the court to revoke the Tlm bermill Wmd Project con ditional use permit on the grounds that Environmental Assessment and complete ness issues were not com pletely argued. The determinations on the Environmental Assess ment and completeness is sues “serve as enforcement actions against the appel lants because they were confirmed with legal advice from the county attorney,” according to the filing. Bryant, in an Aug. 17 let ter to William J. Brian Jr., an attorney representing opponents of the Timber See TIMBERMILI, 4A AT /VIU:S.| COMMUNTT^ CENTER TICKETS $10.00 .ynw-.o win BI. rununHjtu Hi PinuiVI nHIHIHBUIt IN EUtNIUN. Utl UHLL Z3Z-ZZ1 -40/3 UK Z3Z-333-8b6/