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Volume 88 25* Per Copy Warrenton. County Of Warren, North Carolina Wednesday, January 23, 1985 Number 4
Public Hearing Set
Zoning Proposal
Is Given Board
By KAY HORNER
News Editor
A proposal by the War
ren County Planning
Board for countywide
zoning was well received
last Wednesday night by
county commissioners
who agreed to take the
matter to the public at a
hearing scheduled for
March 20.
Currently, only the
Kerr Lake and Gaston
Lake areas of the county
Loan Request
By Parks Body
Is Turned Down
A request by the Soul
City Parks and Recrea
tion Association for a
county loan of $1,152 was
declined by county com
missioners at the mid
monthly meeting last
Wednesday on the advice
of County Attorney
Charles Johnson who
questioned the ad
visability of the county
making a loan to a
private agency.
However, the board
did vote to assist the
association by advancing
$1,000 in county funds
already budgeted to the
association.
rne county ap
propriated a total of
$12,500 in the 1984-85
budget to the association
for operation of the Soul
City pool. Of this
amount, $1,000 had been
retained for disburse
ment in April or May
when the pool opened,
according to County
Manager Charles Worth.
The board authorized
Worth to advance the re
maining funds in
response to the associa
tion's request for a loan.
The board also refer
red to Worth for further
study a request by Kathy
Wilson, executive direc
tor of the Haliwa-Saponi
Indian Tribe, for
assistance in obtaining
Revenue Sharing funds
and Community De
velopment Block Grant
funds for use in
restoring the Haliwa
(Continued on page 3)
are zoned and only
single-family residences,
lakeside and neighbor
hood businesses, and
recreational businesses
are allowed.
The new ordinance,
seven months in the
making, provides for
multi-family dwellings,
industry, business,
mobile home parks, as
well as planned unit de
velopments throughout
the county.
However, the majority
of the county would be
zoned agricultural
residential, and bona
fide farmland, as
prescribed by state
statute, would be exempt
from zoning regulations.
Farms and livestock
production would be
allowed in the
agricultural-residential
zone.
Because of the rural
nature of the county, the
commissioners and plan
ning board are hoping for
the support of the farm
ing community on the
zoning issue.
Planning Board
Member William
Brauer, himself a
farmer, told the board
that most of the farmers
he had spoken with had
no objection to coun
tywide zoning, and
Chairman Selby Benton
cited one landowner on
Lake Gaston who initial
ly had been opposed to
zoning, but was now one
of its strongest
supporters.
"He's in favor of it now
that he has seen what it
has done for him," Ben
ton said.
One of the key
elements of the proposal
is industrial zoning for
certain portions of a cor
ridor from Warrenton to
Norlina along U.S. 158
and 401 and from Norlina
to Soul City along U.S.I.
According to the Plan
ning Board, industrial
zoning is being proposed
in that area to protect the
county's investment in
water and sewer lines.
The public hearing is
required by law before
the county commis
sioners can make any
changes in the current
zoning ordinance.
Anyone needing proof of just how cold it was Monday in Warren County had
to look no further than the roof of Egerton's Market in Norlina where these
icicles, some several feet long, had formed. Record-breaking temperatures that
plummeted below zero gave school children and county employees a two-day
vacation, but kept local law enforcment officers on the road helping stranded
motorists and transporting employees to local health care centers. Volunteer
firefighters also reported an increased number of fires throughout the county
as residents stepped up efforts to heat their homes.
(Staff Photo)
Local Guardsmen To Aid
Development Of Panama
Approximately 8U
National Guardsmen
from Company C 505th
Engineer Battalion,
based in Warrenton, are
participating in a road
building project in
Panama, according to
Staff Sgt. Robert D.
Edmonds, unit training
NCO with the Warrenton
company.
Twenty local Guards
men who departed for
Panama on Jan. 11 will
be followed by others
leaving at two-week in
tervals to help build a
road in an under
developed area of
Panama. The Warren
ton unit was called to
assist with the rock
crushing part of the
road construction,
which will allow pea
sants who live in the
hills of Panama to get to
markets with their live
stock, produce, and
other marketable items,
Sgt. Edmonds said.
Seven of the National
Guardsmen from the
Warrenton unit will stay
until the operation, dub
bed "Blazing Trails," is
completed on May 5.
The majority, however,
will spend 17 days
working on the special
project. The first group
is expected to return on
Sunday, and the second
reinforcement will leave
Friday.
In addition to the
manpower, Company C
has dispatched to
Panama a rock crusher
and other pieces of
heavy equipment and
maintenance supplies.
The local unit is the only
one in the state with
equipment for crushing
rock.
The order to Panama
initiated some months
ago as N. C. Adj. Gen.
William E. Leonard
became aware of the
need while attending a
conference of adjutants
(Continued on page 3)
The driver of this ParGaa of Warrentoo track
escaped iajaries laat Thursday when the track over
taraed la aa accldeat on Raral Road 112* about II
miles aaa*h of Warreatoa. According to Highway
* a htm report^ mc (iriVvTj i»oocn tiwury ssflMfiu of
Wama Plains, drove the track off the right
Aoaldsr of tho road where It crossed a ditch and
overturned before coming to rest Sheartn «u
charged with exceeding a sale speed in the acci
dent, which occurred at U:M p. m. Volunteers with
Warrentoa Rural Fire Department were called to
the scene as a precautionary measure, but no Are
was reported. (Staff Photo)
WGH To Close Feb. 15
Hospital Closing
Date Is Delayed
By MARY C. HARRIS
Staff Writer
Once again, the
scheduled date for clos
ing Warren General
Hospital has been
delayed, as the board of
trustees voted tentative
ly on Saturday to close
the hospital Feb. 15, two
weeks later than the
previous deadline. The
date was set with the
hope that financial
problems would not
force an end to services
earlier.
Financial support for
the extension of the
hospital through Feb. 1
had been assured by the
county commission
During Special Meeting
Contracts Given
School Officials
Members of the
Warren County Board of
Education Tuesday
night voted to renew the
contract of Warren
School Supt. Michael F.
Williams and his two
assistants, James Jor
dan and Mrs. Rachael
Ricks for a two-year
term.
The special meeting,
attended by all five
board members, was a
marathon affair which
saw the board huddle in
executive session for
three hours after
hearing a number of
school officials sing the
praises of the present
school administration
during a 30-minute open
session which began
shortly after 8 p. m.
Principals of all nine
Warren County public
schools were on hand for
a show of support for
Williams, Mrs. Ricks
and Jordan.
First of the principals
to speak in favor of con
tract renewal Tuesday
night was Mrs. Shirley
White, principal of
Vaughan Elementary
School, who called on
board members to con
sider the "good working
relationship" between
faculty members and
school administrators
and to remember that
"the county has made
strides in educating our
young people."
Clint Hege, principal
of Norlina Middle
School, said principals
had met last Thursday
night and "we can all
say the same thing— we
have worked with the
present superintendent
and assistant superin
tendents and we
strongly support the
present slate. They put
the children first."
W. T. Ramey, prin
cipal of John Graham
Middle School, said "we
come here tonight with
the knowledge that our
superintendent has one
concern, and that is
what is good for boys
and girls."
Ramey said he had
seen the scores of tests
go up and the dropout
rate go down under the
present superintendent.
"We have not tried to
look good," he said,
"We have tried to do
what's good for boys and
girls."
He noted that Supt.
Williams has set the
tone and worked for ex
cellence in the public
schools "and I would of
fer him a four-year con
(Continued on page 5)
Flames Destroy
Warrenton Home
ers, who on Jan. 16 ad
vanced $100,290, the
balance of the hospital
operating budget. It is
hoped the funds will
allow operation through
Feb. 15 to prevent a
complete shutdown of
services before an in
terim program can be
established during
planned hospital
renovation.
A contract for roof
repairs and overdue
renovation will begin on
Jan. 28, and completion
is expected by July 22.
Board members in
dicated that tentative
plans were for the
hospital *o remain
closed at least six
months.
Trustees said they
hoped to maintain
emergency room ser
vices during the period
of renovation. At the
regular meeting last
Wednesday, they adop
ted a proposal for im
mediate care services to
be provided during the
renovation.
The immediate care
center would operate
during hours when other
medical services are not
available and would of
fer treatment similar to
that available in a doc
tor's office. The plan
calls for moving the
county existing emerg
ency medical service to
the hospital and expand
ing and upgrading the
EMTs. The plan cur
rently under considera
tion would be adminis
tered through HealthCo,
Inc. and would be ad
ministered through
federal funds.
Philip Williams,
executive director of
HealthCo, reported on
Tuesday that the plan is
contingent upon approv
al by the governing
board of HealthCo,
recruitment of
physicians to staff the
center, and the avail
ability of federal funds.
The HealthCo board, he
said, is expected to act
on the proposal at a
meeting on Thursday,
and if approval is grant
ed, application would
then be made for supple
mental funding from the
federal government.
The approaching Feb. 15
deadline requires that
all details be satisfied in
an expeditious manner,
Williams stated.
County Native Aids
Inaugural Showing
Local residents wat
ching the Inaugural
festivities of the past
weekend also caught
more than a few glimp
ses of the handiwork of a
Warren County native.
Tom Powell, the son of
Susie Powell of Inez and
a 1950 graduate of John
Graham High School,
was the official floral
consultant for the In
augural Committee and
coordinated the prepara
tion of preliminary
designs, plans, and the
purchasing of flowers for
all nine official In
augural Balls and
related events.
The owner of The
Flower Gallery of
Washington, D.C.,
Powell ordered more
than 900,000 flowers for
the events and invited
more than 125 designers
r across the nation to
ute his floral
designs.
Powell is the im
mediate past president
of the American Institute
of Floral Designers and
during the first Reagan
Inaugural, Powell and
the Flower Gallery staff
decorated the interior of
the Kennedy Center as
well as two other ball
locations. Powell has
also chaired several na
tional floral conventions.
The 1965 Inauguration
used more flowers than
any in recent history,
and brought both
newspaper and televi
sion recognition for
Powell.
During Inaugural
weekend, Powell also
oversaw decorations for
special events held in the
Capital City by his
clients, including NBC,
Nutrasweet, and the
Republican National
Committee.
A two-story frame
house built on Hudgins
property on south edge
of Warrenton by the late
Daniel E. Hudgins, and
owned by Mrs. Ethel
Hudgins was completely
destroyed by fire at
10:54 on Monday morn
ing. No one was at home
when the fire originated,
but a son, Pete Hudgins
rode up on his bicycle
soon after the firemen
arrived.
The fire originated in
a ground room and was
confined to the building.
It is reported that the
fire started from a wood
stove near the chimney.
Firemen used water
to extinguish the flames,
but it was a total loss,
reported Captain Walter
Gardner.
Twenty firemen with
a crashwagon, two
pumpers and a tanker
responded to the call.
The Norlina Company
assisted the Warren
ton Rural Fire Depart
ment in fighting the fire.
The Warrenton Rural
(Continued on page 11)
County officials have
said that the interim
plan would not be imple
mented until written
consent for funding has
been given. An
estimated |150,000 will
be needed to administer
the immediate care cen
ter for a six-month
period.
In a memorandum to
the hospital board on
Jan. 16, Mrs. Eva Clay
ton, chairperson of the
Warren County Com
missioners, noted that
four parties had ex
pressed interest in sub
mitting proposals for
operating the hospital.
Some have began to
define their plan, while
others are still in the
1 ■ mi * , a. , %M
beginning stages, Mrs.
(Continued on page 3)