Twentv-elghth Year, Number
Shallotte, North Carolina, Thursday, December 28, 1989
25e Per Copy 30 Pages, 3 Sections
Storm Dumps Record
Snowfall In Brunswick
BY THE NKWS STAFF
Brunswick County was creeping
down an icy road to recovery Tues
day in the wake of a massive winter
storm which dumped a record
amount of snow over the weekend
and gave the area its first "White
Christmas" in more than a ccntury.
Coupled with record-breaking
cold temperatures and a wind chill
factor that left residents feeling as if
it were 10 degrees below zero or
more, nearly a foot-and-a-half of
snow coated and temporarily para
lyzed the county over the weekend.
Besides forcing many to change
holiday plans, the storm left most
roads impassable and caused water
pipes and pumps across the county
to freeze or burst.
The National Weather Service
(NWS) measured 15 inches of snow
at New Hanover County Airport in
Wilmington from the storm that
started Friday night and ended late
Sunday morning. Local NWS wea
ther watcher Jackson Canady re
corded 17 inches of snowfall at his
Shallotte Point residence.
Amazingly, the storm did not
cause any major power outages in
the county. However, the area did
set an all-time electricity demand of
154.5 megawatts Christmas Eve
day, said Bobby Gore, manager of
operations for Brunswick Electric
Membership Corp. The previous
record peak was 145 megawatts set
this summer.
With snow and ice covering most
of the roads in the county through
out the weekend, many of those
who ignored warnings from local
officials and risked traveling were
involved in car accidcnts.
Sgt. J.B. Axsom of the N. C.
Highway Patrol said Tuesday morn
ing that 125 automobile accidcnts
had been reported in Brunswick and
New Hanover counties since Friday
night. Most were fender benders,
with no major wrecks or serious in
juries reported.
Following reports of motorists
stranded on N.C. 211, Brunswick
County Emcrgcncy Management
Coordinator Cccil Logan activated
the National Guard unit in Shalloltc
Sunday morning. About a half doz
en Guardsmen were called on to
transport hospital employees to and
from work and to assist wherever
else they were needed. Logan said
the National Guard was expected to
remain activc through Wednesday
morning.
While minor road accidents were
plentiful, Logan said no house fire
had been reported over the long hol
iday weekend.
While some area residents were
reported to be out of heating fuel,
the biggest problem across the
county besides travel appeared to be
frozen or broken water pipes and
water pumps.
National Weather Service spokes
man Russ Kcltcrman said the week
end snowfall broke the previous
record of 12-1/2 inches set in Feb
ruary 1973 and provided the area
with its first "White Christmas"
since the service started keeping
records in 1871.
Problems caused by the snow
were compounded with bitter cold
temperatures and life-threatening
winds which blew the powdery
snow into drifts several feet high.
Kcltcrman said the Wilmington
area set an all-time record low tem
perature of zero degrees Christmas
Day. The old record low was 5 de
grees recorded in 1899 and again in
1985. The previous low temperature
for Christmas Day was 9 degrees in
1983.
The area also set two new rccords
Saturday with a low temperature of
15 degrees and a high of 20 degrees
? the lowest high temperature ever
recorded Dec. 23. Kcttcrman said
the 20-dcgrec high was two degrees
below the old rccord low tempera
ture for that date.
Hayden Cartncr, a resident of the
Tanglewood subdivision near Hold
en Beach, said Tuesday the Atlantic
Intracoastal Waterway had frozen
from one bank to the other near his
home. "It was certainly solid all the
way across," he said. "I can't find
anybody out here who's ever seen it
before."
The county's N.C. Department of
Transportation maintenance office
has kept five salt trucks running
since the snow started falling Friday
night, said County Maintenance En
gineer Lee Curric. The office kept
about 20 to 30 people ? the equiva
lent of half its employees ? work
ing throughout the weekend and
holiday.
The three DOT snow plows in
the county were on the roads
throughout the weekend and contin
ued to clear roads Tuesday. In addi
tion, Curric said the office rented
several graders and borrowed five
tandem trucks with salt spreaders
and scrapers attached.
Curric, who took over the lop
DOT post in the county last week
just in time for the storm, said Tues
day that all primary roads in the
county ? including U.S. 74-76, U.S.
17 and N.C. highways 133, 179,
904 and 87 ? had been cleared at
least once.
Plans Tuesday called for crews to
concentrate on secondary roads
while also trying to clear any re
maining snow and ice from the pri
mary routes and keep bridges open.
Curric said he planned to work
about 15 or 20 employees Tuesday
night to take care of slick spots.
"The roads should melt ofT pretty
well today, and we'll be working up
to midnight or as late a s we can
pushing to clear our secondary
roads," Curric said Tuesday. "I
think they (the crews) did a great
job on it. We're not really set up for
snow, but we're in pretty fair shape
for what we had."
According to the Emergency
Management Director Logan, "Con
sidering all the snow we had and the
equipment they have, DOT has
(See STORM, Page 2-A)
r? STAFF mOTO BY EDDIE SWEATT
A RLCORD SNOWFALL brought a while Christmas to Brunswick County. Here, fencing on dunes at
Holden Beach became snow fences.
Developer Organizes
Citizens Group To Protest Septic Tank Fees, Taxes
BY RAHN ADAMS
Even with new sewage disposal
, regulations going into effect Jan. 1,
a Shallotte area developer is orga
! nizing a citizens group to object to
: Brunswick County's handling of
| site evaluations and tax appraisals
I on lots that are not suitable for scp
| tic tank permits.
Hickman's Crossroads resident
William Earl Benton told The
i Brunswick Beacon last Thursday
that he had mailed a protest letter
'? on behalf of the fledgling group to
? the Brunswick County Health
I Department Friday, Environmental
Health Supervisor John Crowder
was not aware of the letter. Health
Director Michael Rhodes was out
of the office last week.
Benton said he intends to speak
to the county Board of Health "just
as soon as 1 can get on their agen
da." The board's next regular
monthly meeting will be held Jan. 8
in Bolivia. "I'm going to get some
response somewhere before I'm
done," he said.
In the meantime, the citizens
group will meet every Thursday at
7 p.m. at the Alcoholics Anony
mous building on U.S. 17 near
Grisseltown. "We're not too orga
nized right now," Benton said.
'That's what I'm trying to do is get
it organized."
Benton said last Thursday that
the organization was composed of
about 20 members and had met
twice, with a third meeting slated
that evening. He indicated that oth
er members include both develop
ers and individual property owners
who have had difficulty obtaining
scptic tank permits on lots that
have been deemed "unsuitable" or
"provisionally suitable" by the
health department.
A provisionally suitable lot is one
that might qualify for a septic tank
permit if improvements are made to
the property or if a modified
sewage disposal system is used.
"We, as a concerned group of
taxpayers of Brunswick County,
feel that we are unjustly being
taxed on property tax," Benton
wrote in the letter dated Dec. 18.
"We feel that this needs to be
brought to your attention due to the
fact that it was regulations by the
Health Board that contributed to
this condition..."
In the letter, Benton objected to a
six-month-old change in the local
site evaluation procedure that made
the S35 evaluation fee non-refund
able. Also, he questioned the fair
ness of allowing only a 50-percent
tax reduction for provisionally suit
able lots.
"We feel that the S35 inspection
fee would be a fair fee on lots that
pass (site evaluations)," Benton
wrote, "but we would ask that the
Health Department return all fees
on lots that did not pass and that
the taxpayer not have to make a re
quest by mail and wait a long time
to have their money returned."
In March, the health board rec
ommended 10 county commission
ers that site evaluation fees be
raised from $20 to S35 and that the
fees be non-refundable, in order to
cover a $135,000 increase in the
health department's local budget.
Health Board Chairman Ricky
Parker told commissioners in
March, "We, the board, realize
money has to come from one of
two places ? taxes or user fees.
We're trying to act responsibly and
create some revenue to help with
the budget."
(See DEVELOPER, Page 2-A)
Pinkerton, Ludlum
Tangle Over Personnel Matters
A
SKETCH BY WILMINGTON PCHJCE AHT1ST
Robber Remains At Large
The Wilmington FBI office last
Wednesday released this police
sketch of the suspect in a Dec. 15
armed robbery at the Calabash
branch of Security Savings and
Loan on N.C. 179. Brunswick
County Sheriff John C. Davis
said Tuesday that no arrest had
been made in the case. FBI
Agent Paul Cox indicated Fri
day that several suspects had
been identified in connection
with the robbery. The FBI could
not be reached Tuesday.
BY RAHN ADAMS
Brunswick County Commission
Chairman Gene Pinkerton learned
last week that taking an active role
in county administration has some
drawbacks ? like giving fellow
commissioners the impression that
the new chairman is making person
nel decisions for the entire board.
Pinkerton, who is beginning his
second year as District Three com
missioner, has been a familiar face
at the Brunswick County Govern
ment Center at Bolivia since his
election as board chairman Dec. 4.
He said he has spent much of the
time meeting department heads and
touring facilities.
"Maybe a little bit of a compro
mise in being here some, but not be
ing here as much would be better
for everybody including myself ?
which maybe I've learned that,
too," Pinkerton told the Beacon last
Thursday afternoon, shortly after
Commissioner Benny Ludlum
called an emergency meeting and
accused Pinkerton of attempting to
fire one department head and hire
another one.
Gracc Beasley was the only com
missioner absent from the 30
minuie meeting, which also includ
ed a 15-minute executive session re
quested by county attorney and in
terim county manager David Clegg
to discuss a related "attorney-client"
matter. Pinkerton said no action was
taken behind closed doors.
An emergency meeting must con
cern "generally unexpected circum
stances" that require "immediate
consideration" by a public body, ac
cording to the N.C. Institute of
Government and the state's Open
Meetings Law.
Although no individuals or de
partments were named in open ses
sion, officials indicated that the in
direct discussion concerned
Purchasing Director Billy Ingram's
job status and the search for a new
Inspections director. Inspections is
the only department without a per
manent director.
After the board convened last
Thursday at 3:30 p.m., Ludlum ini
tially explained that he requested
the emergency meeting because he
had heard that Pinkerton "had asked
for the resignation of one of the em
ployees" since the board's regular
Dec. 18 meeting.
When Pinkerton flatly denied the
accusation, Ludlum asked if the
chairman intended to hire a depart
ment head. Pinkerton admitted that
he had "discussed" hiring a depart
ment head, hut added that he would
gel the full board's permission be
fore he ever took any such action.
At a work session last month,
Pinkerton tried to have acting
Inspections director Julius "Buddy"
Lewis named as permenant director.
However, after consulting with
Clegg, the board chose to advertise
the position in-house.
Personnel Officer Debbie Bowl
ing said late Friday that three
Inspections staff members applied
for the post and that it had not been
filled. Ms. Bowling also indicated
that no other department heads had
resigned or been fired as of Friday.
After the emergency meeting,
Pinkerton also admitted that he had
engaged in "personal and private"
discussions with Ingram that week.
and that the chairman did not "sup
port" Ingram as purchasing direc
tor ? a position that Pinkerton was
instrumental in creating in June and
one that Ingram has held only since
October.
When asked if his resignation had
been requested, Ingram replied, "On
the arlvire of my lepal counsel. I've
been advised not to comment."
During the meeting, the board de
feated a motion by Ludlum that
would have delegated all hiring and
firing to the commissioners until a
permanent county manager is hired.
The vote was 1-3, with only Lud
lum voting in the affirmative.
Prior to the vote. Commissioner
Frankie Rabon spoke out against (he
motion, saying hie felt hiring and fir
ing was Clegg's job as interim man
ager. Rabon added that he trusted
Clegg to make proper personnel de
cisions, but that he would let Clegg
know when he thought a decision
was wrong.
Ludlum said he agreed with
Rabon's statement but that "if we
weren't here today, there would've
been a fellow hired and a fellow
fired." Later, he commented, "I still
feel like all five commissioners
should know what's going on up
here. The citizens of Brunswick
County deserve better than what
they're getting now from county
government."
Commissioner Kelly Holden indi
cated after the meeting that he also
felt commissioners were too in
volved in personnel matters. How
ever, he said he voted against Lud
lum's motion because he also feels
that Clegg should be allowed to
manage on his own.
Pinkerton told the Beacon after
wards that he understood criticism
about the his increased accessibility
at the county complex. "I think that
it does give us all a certain amount
of pressure to have a member of the
board here that's involved in policy
making and yet maybe causes peo
ple to say or not say things that they
would ordinarily say," Pinkerton
commented. "I feel some pressure
and I'm sure that everybody does.
Thai's not the purpose of it, and yet
that's part of it."