Sunset Beach Council Targets
island Streets
For Paving
BY DOUG RUTTER
If properly owners arc willing to
share the expense. Sunset Beach
Town Council is willing to oversee
a project to pave five dirt roads on
the island.
During their regular meeting
Tuesday night, town council target
ed North Shore Drive and Canal
Drive as well as First, Sixth and
30th streets as the roads in most
need of a paved surface.
The town plans to send letters to
property owners on those streets
asking if they arc willing to petition
the town to pave lite streets and pay
half the cost. If more than half of
the landowners en any or.c street
respond, the town can then proceed
with the paving and assess lot own
ers to recover a portion of the town
funds.
As proposed, the program would
work similar to the canal dredging
project completed last year with the
town paying for the paving upfront
and assessing lot owners once the
work is completed, based on the
actual cost.
However ?unlike the dredging
project which was funded entirely
through assessments ? the town will
pay 50 percent of the street pavirig
cost. Depending on the amount of
grading and drainage work needed
prior to paving, property owners
should have to pay about S300 per
50-foot-wide lot.
Town council settled on North
Shore Drive, Canal Drive and Sixth
Street because paving those roads
would complete paved loops on the
island that could help take traffic off
Main Street. First and 30th streets
were chosen because they already
have drainage systems in piacc that
could be damaged if the roads aren't
paved.
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fore the town can approve any
assessments. And opinions as to
whether or not property owners will
respond to the town proposal varied
Tuesday night.
Mayor Mason Barber, who
suggested the paving program, said,
"I feel like we're gonna get some
takers on this."
unoil rv-? on A ' K/\n >n? ?/???
voiced an opposing view. "Don't
think all the people, arc gonna jump
on this," he said. "There's a lot of
people who don't want their street
paved."
Street paving was only one of the
capital improvements on the discis
sion table Tuesday night, as council
members also kicked around the
idea of running sidewalks along
Main Street.
On a 4-1 vote, council authorized
Town Administrator Linda Flucgcl
to hire an engineer to develop bid
specifications for sidewalks along
Main Street between 10th and 33rd
streets. The cost of preparing the
specifications is not to exceed
51,000.
Councilman Odom was the only
he doesn't believe most of the tax
payers want sidewalks.
However, other board members
spoke in favor of walkways. "I
think from a safety standpoint
they're necessary," said Ed Gore.
The full town council was present
for the two-hour regular meeting,
which ended with a 15-minute exec
utive session called to discuss a
legal matter with the town attorney.
No action was taken in open ses
sion.
Policy Adopted
Sunset Beach water customers
who think their quarterly water bills
are too high can now apply for a
partial release of the bill.
Under a policy adopted Tuesday
night, a water user may be eligible
for a partial release if a water line
break has been verified by a town
employee and the town determines
that the break was not caused by the
negligence of the consumer.
Any water customer seeking a
release will have to file a written
request along with a copy of the
water line repair bill with the town
administrator within 30 days of the
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Water bills will be adjusted by
charging consumers the town's cost
of water for the estimated water
loss. The town administrator will
enforce the policy, deciding when a
customer is entitled to a partial
release and the amount of the
release.
Ironically, adoption of the policy
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winter storm caused water pipes to
freeze and break across the county.
Leaks were found at more than 85
STAFF PHOTO BY DOUG RUTTit
Shelling On New Year's Day
Hrandi Hope Lyles of Laurinburg took advantage of sunny skies on
the first day of 1990 as she and her family searched for shells at east
end of Holden Beach. Among other things, the five-year-old found
these treasures during her walk.
homes in Sunset Bcach.
Contracts Awarded
Council awarded two contracts to
auditor John Carraway of Wil
mington Tuesday night with the
hope that a little money spent now
will save the town in the long run.
For 55,850, Carraway will devel
op standard operating procedures to
ensure more professional handling
of town financial transactions and
develop job descriptions for each
employee. For another S350 per
quarter, the auditor will review the
books every three months. The
quarterly review should save time
and money when i* comes time to
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Moving Right Along
Mayor Barber hopes town coun
cil meetings this year go faster than
the lengthy ones the board labored
through in 1989.
With that in mind, he suggested
Tuesday that the administrator sub
mit written monthly reports to coun
cil members summarizing activity
in the police, public works, water,
and building inspections depart
ments.
For the past couple years, the
reports have been given orally at
each monthly meeting. Barber sug
gested the written reports be also be
given to the press and be posted at
town hall.
Council members were open to
the proposal, and the town adminis
trator gave her reports orally for
what might have been the last time
Tuesday nighL
Mrs. Fluegel said the town issued
nine building permits in December
with a construction valuation of
$623,774. Sunset Bcach also issued
one mobile home permit and two
CAMA permits. Police officers
handed out three parking tickets
u uiaug uic month and assisted the
county sheriff's department 17
times.
As another time saver this year.
Mayor Barber also said he hopes to
keep impromptu public input down
to a minimum. "It's getting to where
people are standing up and talking
without being recognized."
Other Business
In OuiCi business Tuwuiiy, coun
cil:
? Voted to ask the state De
partment of Transportation to turn
off the conventional "affic light at
the pontoon bridge from November
through March of each year and use
a flashing red light instead. Council
members feel the change would
improve traffic flow in the off sea
son.
? Agreed to meet with the plan
ning beard later this month to dis
cuss the annexation feasibility study
completed several months ago.
Based on the study, the town plan
ning board had recommended
annexation of an area that includes
a condominium complex at Oyster
Bay Golf Links. Mayor Barber said
Tuesday it's time for the town coun
cil to act one way or the other. A
dale for the joint meeting was not
set.
?Adopted a resolution allowing
the town administrator to sign docu
ments on behalf of the town to
receive federal aid for costs associ
ated Hurricane Hugo. Mrs. Flucgc!
said the town will receive $9,100 in
public assistance.
? Took no action on a proposed
street lighting policy drafted by the
town administrator. Instead, town
council plans to update and follow a
master street lighting plan that
Brunswick Electric Membership
Corp. recommended several years
ago. That mastei plan was never
adopted.
? Authorized the town adminis
trator to get informal bids for the
paving of the town hall parking lot.
Council will probably award a con
tract at uk; iicAi icguiai iiicciiiijj.
Learned that Councilman
Odom had presented the town with
a print of the Sunset Bcach Bridge
on display at town hall.
Speeders Charged
With Auto Theft
A 1990 Dodge Caravan stopped
for speeding through downtown
Shallouc last Thursday morning
turned out to be a vehicle that had
been stolen just hours earlier in
Jacksonville.
Shallotte Police Chief Rodney
Gause said officers forced the vehi
cle off U.S. 17 near Hardccs at 2:15
a.m. last Thursday after clocking it
traveling south on Main Street at 65
mph, 30 mph over the speed limit.
Patrolmen Rhea Altizer and
George Samck arrested Jcrmainc
Chadwick, 18, of Jacksonville, and
Aubrey Meadows, 20, of Maysville.
Both men were charged with pos
session of stolen property and giv
ing false information to police. Fur
thermore, Meadows was charged
with careless and reckless driving
and driving without an operator's li
cense.
Baffle Of The Sexes
STAFF PHOTO 8Y ItAHN ADAMS
Sisters Brandi and Crystal Whitesides (foreground, from left) hurl snowballs at a fort manned by their
brothers, Josh and Seth Whitesides (from left), early Friday afternoon outside their residence on Wall
Street, Shallotte.
Sheriff's Department Truck Slides
Into Stopped Vehicle On Snowy Road
Three motorists cscapcd serious
injury when a Brunswick County
Sheriff's Department pickup truck
slid into a Pitt County man's in a
Christmas Day collision near Sup
ply.
According to a Highway Patrol
report, the accident happened Dec.
2! 11.1C a. II C 1*7
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Randolphville Road. Drivers were
sheriff's department member Geor
gia Phelps, 27, of Route 2, Supply,
and Francis Patrick Sprankle, 27, of
Greenville.
Spranklc's 1986 Chrysler was
stopped in the road against a snow
bank, when Ms. Phelps' on-coming
1988 Ford four-wheel-drive truck
siid into the driver-side door of the
car.
Ms. Phelps and a female passen
ger in the Sprankle auto were not
injuried. Sprankle complained of
minor injuries and was taken by
ambulance to The Brunswick Hos
pital at Supply.
Trooper R.L. Murray filed no
charges in the accident. He estimat
ed damages at 52,500 to the
Sprankle car and SI, 200 to the sher
iff's department truck.
Elsewhere, a New Hanover
County man was slightly injured in
a single-vehicle wreck Saturday
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way Patrol spokesperson Ruby
Oakley, the accident happened Sat
urday at 3:30 a.m., 4.9 miles south
of Shallotte on U.S. 17
A 1987 Nissan pickup driven by
Samuel Hey wood H ins on Jr., 24, of
Wilmington was headed north on
U.S. 17, when it swerved off the
right side of the road, ran rtou/n. an
embankment and overturned, Ilin
son said he had fallen asleep at the
wheel.
Hinson was not injured. His pas
senger ? Elbert Kennedy Jr., 24, al
so of Wilmington ? suffered minor
injuries, but apparently did not re
quire hospital treatment.
Trooper D.B. Harvcll charged
Hinson with careless and reckless
driving. Damage was estimated at
S4.000 to the truck.
In another weekend wreck, l.u
cean R. Hornstcin, 19, of Southport,
also was charged with careless and
reckless driving. Ms. Oakley said
uiC iuishdp uv-iuiicu juiiilay at il
a.m., three miles from Yaupon
Beach at the N.C. Wildlife access
area near Fish Factory Road.
Homstcin's 1988 Pontiac was
traveling at a high rate of speed
when it went out of control and
overturned. Hornstcin was not hurt.
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the wreck. He estimated damage to
the car at $3,000.
Ms. Oakley said Brunswick
County closed out 1989 with three
less traffic fatalities than during the
previous year. There were 13 traffic
deaths last year, compared to 16 in
1988.
History Titles
Span Pirates,
Postcards
Reproductions of 520 picture
postcard views of North Carolina
taken early in the 20th century ?
most of which have never before
been published ? are featured in one
of the latest publications of the N.C.
Historical Publications Section.
A North Carolina Postcard Al
bum, 1905-1925, is one of the new
titles offered for the first time in the
division's new i989-90 catalog,
available to the public free of
charge. The catalog lists 150 books,
maps and other printed materials to
aid in the study and understanding
of North Carolina history. Included
are county histories, books about
North Carolina's participation in
military engagements, periodicals,
maps, facsimile documents and ar
chival guides. New titles and those
of special interest to genealogists
are designated.
Old favorites of local interest in
cluded in the volume are North
Carolina Legends, North Carolina
Lighthouses ana The Pirates of
Colonial North Carolina.
Offered in the catalog as well is
the series North Carolina Troops, a
key resource for genealogists, local
history and Civil War buffs. Re
prints of Volumes I through VII are
now available for $35 each, includ
ing addenda, and the addenda may
also be ordered separately. A limit
ed number of sets of Volumes I-X
are available for $314 plus postage.
Volume XI, which includes the rec
ords of the 45th through 48th infan
try regiments, is also available now.
To obtain a copy of the catalog,
write the Historical Publications
Section (N), Division of Archives
and History, 109 E. Jones St.,
Raleigh, NC 27611, or call (919)
733-7442.
IN BOLIVIA
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