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PROGRESS SENTINEL
^ vol. xxxxvii no. 24 USPS 162-860 KENANSV1LLE. N.C. 28349 june ie, 1983 18 pages this week 10 CENTS PLUS TAX
Kenansville May Not
Need To Raise Its Taxes
The proposed $186,122
general fund budget for
Kenansville's 1983-84 fiscal
year includes no tax increase
and reduces the general fund
contribution to the water and
sewer fund, which is nearing
self-sufficiency.
The annual budget hearing
will be held at 7 p.m. June 20
? in the town hall.
The town's tax rate of 69
cents per $100 assessed val
uation is expected to bring in
$82,000. Other major reven
ue sources are $27,000 from
franchise taxes. $21,636 from
sanitation collection fees,
$17,800 from local govern
ment sales taxes, $15,000
from the state gasoline tax
through the Powell Bill allo
cation, $3,000 from ABC
9 store profits.
Major expenditures from
the proposed budget are
$58,511 for administration,
an increase of about $8,000
from the current level; $42,
644 for police, up $6,000
$12,100 for fire protection,
up $9,100; $51,415 for
streets, up almost $10,000:
$20,302 for sanitation, down
$7,000; and $1,150 for ceme
tery expense.
Anticipated water and
sewer department revenues,
including the town's contri
bution, are $101,590 com
pared with $126,984 for the
current year, during which
repairs totaled $25,000 and
painting the water, $12,000.
The new budget includes
only $8,500 for repairs and
$4,000 for painting. Income
from water and sewer fees is
expected to total $90,500, an
increase of $6,500 from the
current year.
During its Monday night
meeting the board awarded a
contract $6,189.80 to
Raywood Kennedy to build
an addition to the main
tenance shed to house the
new town garbage truck. The
shed was not large enough to
house the new equipment.
The board also approved a
variance from the town live
stock ordinance to permit
livestock to enter the county
fair Oct. 3-8. The ordinance
bars the housing of large
animals with tl. city limits.
It also awarded a paving
contract for $4,839 to C.E.
Turner of Pink Hill.
The town gasoline contract
was awarded to Stephens
Hardware for 4 cents a gallon
under the regular tank price.
The board received $3,850
from the town ABC store as
its share of the past year's
profit. This was an increase
of $550 from a year ago. Two
years ago the store made no
profit. ABC profits are split
55 percent to the town and 45
percent to Duplin County.
NEW PHENIUS ARRIVES AT THE
LIBERTY CART. John Rice a curly-haired
man more than six feet in height arrived in
Duplin County to join the 1983 production of
^ the outdoor drama The Liberty CArt in
Kenansville. Rice arrived last Friday and
traveled with members of the cast to be a
part of the weekend celebration of arts and
drama in the Jacksonville Mall. Rice comes
to The Liberty Cart after two years as the
lead in Blackbeard, an outdoor drama in
Bath, he is a resident of Bowling Green,
Ohio he works as a teacher of speech and
theatre
Beulaville Trash
> Collection Fees
To Rise $1
The 1983-84 Beulaville
Town budget was presented
to the Beulaville Board of
? Commissioners. June 6 with
Pa proposal to raise trash
collection fees and give town
employees a salary
increase.
The town tax rate will
remain at 60 cents, but the
new budget proposes an
increase from $2 to $3 for
trash collection of residential
customers and $6 for busi
nesses. Also, a proposed
limbs, tires, or other debris
P fee of S2S per truck load is
slated in the 1983-84 budget.
A public hearing will be held
on the budget. June 27 at the
Beulaville twon hall at 7c30
p.m. Within the general
town budget for 1983-84
Beulaville projects $210,300
in expenditures; the water
and sewer fund is set at
$115,900 and $26,600 is ex
pected in the revenue
sharing fund.
P A salary increase of five
percent was originally sub
mitted to the Beulaville Town
Board in the 1983-84 budget.
Commissioners Franklin
Boyette made the motion to
raisk. town employees
salaries to 10 percent, the
second came from Commis
sioner Rabon Brown. The
salary increase for town
employees is the first in two
^ years, Boyette said. Town
accountant Doug Clark
estimated the additional five
percent salary increase
would cost Beulaville about
$6,000.
The Board voted unani
mously not to renovate the
old Beulaville town hall, and
if additional space was
needed in the future a new
building would possibly be
constructed. The motion was
made by Commissioner
Franklin Boyette. Carl Pate,
Chairman of the citizens'
committee to renovate the
old town hall appeared
before the board estimating
the reconstruction costs at
$12,500 excluding any
heating or cooling system.
Univision Cable Television
was granted an extension
until July 1 by the Beulaville
town board. Gail Bailey of
the Univision Cable service
appeared before the board to
request an extension and
informed the Commissioners
of available service to 185
homes in Beulaville, Of the
185 homes connected 73
homes had subscribed to
cable service. Bailey
explained. Within the town,
the cable representative
said, 299 homes are yet to be
connected and Univision
expects at least 150 of the
waiting group to subscribe.
Connection delays have been
caused by unreleased right
of-ways to some Carolina
Power and Light poles within
Beulaville, Bailey explained.
Fire Chief Millard Decker
ot Beulaville appeared
before the Board to request
exemption of the town fire
department from OSHA
standards. Decker estimated
$8,000 would be needed to
bring the Beulaville fire
department up to the
standards required by
OSHA. The funds would be
needed to replace breathing
masks. Decker said. The
Beulaville town board
apporved the request to
exempt the fire department
from OSHA standards.
Beulaville Commissioners
approved payment of $25
per nightly meeting of the
town board to Gerk Carol
Miller. The Board also
approved new town hall
hours, closing Saturday
morning and opening daily
Monday through Friday 8
a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Planning Board for the
town of Beulaville was
granted $300 by the Town
Commissioners to finance a
project to study extrater
ritorial zoning. Earl Spell.
Planning Board member,
informed the Commissioners
of an estimated $130 is
needed for map work and
recording fees at the Duplin
Register of Deeds Office in
order to pursue the extrater
ritorial zoning project.
Extraterritorial jurisdiction
can be extended up to one
mile beyond the town's cor
porate limits. Zoning would
be the only jurisdiction
within the territory, no taxes
would be assessed and no
town services provided to
Audit Advice For Duplin
Hospital Draws Praise
The recommendations of a
study of Duplin General
Hospital commissioned last
month "will be carried out as
closely as possible," hospital
and county officials said this
week.
The hospital's operating
costs have exceeded income
from patient fees for me
than a year. The county
commissioners, hired the
auditing firm of Price-Water
house of Atlanta and Raleigh
to study the financial situa
tion and recommend im
provements.
The report blamed much of
the hospital's problems on
lack of support by county
residents. Only 34 percent of
Duplin residents needing
hospitalization come to the
local hospital.
It also cited delayed col
lection of money due; de
layed payments of bills,
causing loss of discounts;an
oversized board of trustees;
over-staffing; the need for
better use of the facility; and
the lack of a program to sell
the hospital to the commu
nity.
The study recommended
the county provide $335,000
more for the hospital during
its current fiscal year to help
speed up payments to take
advantage of discounts and
to begin some upgrading
equipment, especially for
billing.
Improved collections and
'isXer payments would
increase the hospital's 1983
income by $280,000 accord
ing to the study, and $80,000
a year in the following years.
A 5 percent increase in
patient load plus recom
mended the improvements
would make the hospital
self-supporting in two years,
te study said.
Commissioner D.J. Fussell
of Rose Hill said, "We
didn't hire them just for
reading matter. We wanted
facts. We had facts, more or
less, but we needed an
expert to tell us just what
was needed.
"It's hard for us (as a
board) without real expertise
in the field to go before the
people with the problem,"
he said. "Anything of this
size should have some expert
advice."
Both Fussell and board
Chairman W.J. Costin of
Warsaw said they believe the
hospital can overcome its
problems. They agree with
the study that the size of the
board of trustees should be
reduced and that the hospital
needs to improve bill collec
tion.
A committee of the board
of trustees, headed by H.M.
Price of Rose Hill, recom
mended last month that the
26-member board be reduced
to 13 members. The Price
Waterhouse study advised a
reduction to nine.
Commissioner Allen
Nethercutt of Chinquapin,
who voted against commis
sioning the study, said "It's
exactly like I thought it would
be and we could have used
that money someplace else."
The study is expected to
cost about 20,000.
Costin said the commis
sioners have made no de
cision about the hospital, but
probably will do so before
Oct. 1, the start of the
hospital's fiscal year. He said
the county board has little
authority over the hospital
except during annual lease
negotiations for use of the
county-owned building.
During their June meeting
Thursday night, hospital
board members called them
selves "lame ducks" and
deferred most action until
the issue of the board's size
is resolved.
The hospital received
$25,000 from the county
Thursday. This year, the
county has provided
$145,000 in addition to the
$105,000 payment on hospi
tal bonds the county has paid
each year since the bonds
were issued in the 1950s.
Hospital administrator
Richard Harrell said the
average daily patient load of
about 59 for the first seven
months of the hospital year
has increased by five over
the same period last year.
The hospital has 90 beds. He
attributed the increase to the
higher number of physicians
in the county-from seven in
1976 to 18 now, with three
more expected this summer.
Harrell and Annie B.
Houston, director of nursing.
said the over-staffing noted
in the study results from lack
of use.
"You have to maintain
your basic staff with capabil
ity of handling the immediate
patient load plus some emer
gency load." Harrell said.
He said the staff that cares
for 60 patients can care for 70
with me part-time help.
Mrs. Houston said the
arrivaf of several obstetri
cians has led to a dramatic
increase in the number of
births at the hospital. Harrell
expects 250 births at the
hospital this fiscal year,
compared with 20 three yiars
ago.
Harrell also said discus
sions with the county Mental
Health Department about its
moving from the top floor of
the newest hospital wing
have begin. "We hope to
take this floor over next year
and place 16 patient beds in
it," he said.
The floor has been leased
to the Mental Health Depart
ment for about $30,000 a
year, about the same amount
one patient bed would bring
in during a year.
Faison Produce Sales Are Off To Late Start
tahlp nrn/liipprc nf all ? W
Volume is increasing on
the Faison vegetable auction
market, but the areas pro
duce marketing season is
about two weeks late,
farmers and crop reporters
said.
"It's the first time in my
26 years here as auctioneer
the market opened after
Memorial Day," Jimmy
Joliff said Thursday. The
market opened Monday.
The exceptionally wet, cool
spring delayed crop planting
and growth in the region.
The market?the largest
vegetable auction in North
Carolina-normally would be
handling squash, beans and
table cucumbers by this
time, Joliff said.
Wednesday's sales con
sisted of zucchini and yellow
squash and an occasional
hamper of green beans.
Thursday is normally an off
day on the market, he said.
Cucumbers will begin
appearing in volume late
next week, Joliff said.
Steve Skuba, market
reporter for Market News
Service, said activity has
been "very limited" at rural
marketing sheds in Samp
son. Johnston and Duplin
counties because of the late
ness of the crop.
Prices have been good, he
said, especially compared
with last year when the
bottom fell out of the market
early because of overproduc
tion.
Top-quality zucchin^
squash have been bringing
more that $6.50 for 25-pound
cartons; top-quality yellow
squash get $6.45 to $6.60.
Fifty-pound cartons of over
sized squash have brought $3
to $5.
In an average year, the
major .portion of South
eastern North Carolina's
early-summer vegetable sea
son has passed by the time
the Virginia-Delaware-Mary
land Eastern Shore and New
Jersey seasons peak. Plant
ing was delayed a few days in
those areas and there is some
indication their marketing
seasons will tie delayed as
well.
Unless the marketing sea
sons in those areas are late,
their produce will come in
when the volume from South
eastern North Carolina is at a
peak. That would create stiff
price competition for vege
1/
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areas.
Skuba said farmers and
others wishing to keep up
with the latest prices for
vegetables can hear recorded
quotes by calling 267-9361 or
267-5331 at the temporary
Market News Office from the
auction market here.
PRODUCE BUYING BEGINS IN FAISON. Produce sheds
began accepting vegetables from local farmers last week,
after delaying the opening almost two weeks because of
late planting seasons. Squash and beans dominated the
market throughout the week, buyers said, with an
occasional basket of pepper appearing. Prices for squashy
fell by the end of the opening week. Due to the late
planting season the local produce will be in competition
with vegetables grown in the Sou*h Carolina and Virginia
market belts. Pictured above, buvers follow the grader
down the lineof produceas he marks thegovernment grade
on the vegetables. &