Board, Community To Hear
Technical Center Proposal
BY SUSAN USHER
Next Monday Brunswick County
school officials and community busi
ness leaders will hear from DuPont
officials, the Brunswick County
Education Foundation and a recently
formed regional Science Alliance on
a proposal to develop a science,
math ami technology center.
The meeting will be held at noon
Monday at The Ship's Chandler
Restaurant in Southport. Among
those speaking will be Jeff Priest of
Aiken, S.C., where DuPont helped
establish one such center.
However, the decision to go
ahead with plans for the meeting
didn't come easily.
After a hour of sometimes heated
discussion at a special meeting
Friday evening, the Brunswick
County Board of Education left it to
Superintendent of Schools PR.
Hankins to decide. Hankins those
to have the meeting, stressing its
purpose will be "informational" on
ly ? not to launch the proposed
technical center project as at least
one board member had apparently
hoped.
Should there be sufficient com
munity interest in the project,
Hankins said, then the school sys
tem would begin developing specif
ic plans for the center and securing
the help and financial support from
DuPont and other interested parties.
The center, as roughly proposed,
would be used for staff develop
ment and for student education.
Board member Robert Slockctt
had been working on the proposal
with Assistant Superintendent for
Curriculum William Harrison and
officers of the Brunswick County
Education Foundation. Slockctt and
Harrison both said they thought the
board had directed them last fall to
work on the project.
"I really want to see this go and I
want to sec us do something about
this," said Slockctt, angered at the
possibility the meeting might be de
layed.
"Board members gave me the
authority through their interest to
proceed with this project," he insist
ed.
However, other members who
were serving on the board last fall
said all that had been specifically
approved was a trip out-of-state last
fall to discuss the possibility of such
a project with DuPont officials.'
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meeting, then on a separate motion
decided to delegate setting of the
date and agenda to Hankins and his
staff.
Ms. Baxter and board members
Doug Baxley and Polly Russ ex
pressed concern that the school sys
tem wasn't prepared for the meeting
as proposed by Slockclt.
"We don't know what we're ask
ing for or what we're going to do,"
said Ms. Baxter. "We arc all for this
program but we want it to be coor
dinated with staff and not rushed in
to."
Board members have not been
briefed on the project, results of an
in-house needs survey of science
tcachcrs have not been compiled
and no decision has been reached
on how to fill the assistant superin
tendent for curriculum post from
which Harrison recently resigned.
Also, the leadership of the
Education Foundation is in transi
tion. President James Hardy, a re
servist, is being called to temporary
active duty, Slockett said.
Slockctt had set up Monday's
meeting with DuPont officials and
members of the business communi
ty and drafted invitations on Board
of Education letterhead before
board Chairman Donna Baxter if
not other members, knew anything
about the meeting, she said.
When she suggested Slockett was
moving the project along too hastily
and without the board's knowledge,
he countered, "There arc some
things ? the board doesn't need to
know and I think this is one of
them."
Unlike smaller activities such as
Junior Achievement, he was told,
development of the proposed center
would involve decisions regarding
policies and curriculum ? decisions
that the board itself would have to
make.
Slockclt, an ex-officio member of
the Foundation's board, accused
Mrs. Baxter of being "autocratic"
and or stalling the program for po
litical reasons, which she denied.
Slockctt is one of two Republicans
on the five-member board.
The other Republican member,
Yvonne Bright, sal quietly through
the hour-long meeting. Near its
close, she told fellow members, "1
think we've blown this whole thing
out of the water. We've made a
mountain out of a mole hill.
On a lengthy written motion by
board member Doug Baxley, the
board also affirmed thai it had not
delegated its decision-making au
thority concerning policies and pro
grams to any single member or
combination of board members.
After questions arose about the
June 24 meeting, Slockctt sought
Friday's special board meeting in an
effort "to secure commitment and
authorization from the board to pur
sue plans to develop and construct a
regional sciencc/math/tcchnology
center with the Education Found
ation."
Ocean Isle Beach Sets Land Use Plan Hearing
BY DOUG R UTTER
Occan Isle Bcach leaders want lo continue
promoting tourism as the town's main economic
base while preserving the island's image as a
"quiet, relaxing, family bcach community."
That's the gist of the town's land use plan up
date which comes up for public hearing next
week. Town commissioners will hold the hear
ing Tuesday, June 25, starting at 9 a.m. in town
hall.
Building Inspector Druicd Roberson said the
update is very similar to the 1986 land use plan,
although the newer draft goes into more detail
on items such as the hurricane evacuation and
recovery plan.
Land use plans are documents that county
and town officials develop and use to plan or
derly growth for the next 10 years. Plans usual
ly arc updated every five years.
Roger Briggs, a planner with McKim &
Creed of Wilmington, helped develop the Ocean
Isle Beach land use plan update, working close
ly with the town's planning board.
Roberson said most of the substantive
changes in the updated plan relate to the ex
traterritorial area.
This area, also known as the ETA, is a main
land tract within a mile of the town limits where
the town enforces zoning and subdivision regu
lations and the state building code.
Ocean Isle officials developed zoning restric
tions for the area before taking over jurisdiction
last May. The population of the area is estimat
ed at 299.
The updated land use plan shows how the
town has grown since 1986, both in terms of
population and property value.
Since the last plan was completed, the perma
nent population of Ocean Isle Beach has in
creased 4 1 percent, from 372 residents to 523.
Over the same period, there has been a slight
increase in the peak daytime population, from
23,189 to 24.371.
Accommodations tax, which is collected
from touristy who rent cottages, condos and mo
tel rooms, has nearly doubled since 1984. Town
officials project collections of 5310,000 in the
coming fiscal year.
The assessed value of the island has in
creased by about S25 million since 1986, to
$290 million in 1990. Commissioners arc esti
mating the property value at S305 million for
the 1991-92 budget
The Ocean Isle Beach land use plan update,
like most other plans, was partially-funded with
a grant from the N.C. Division of Coastal
Management.
Following adoption by the town commission,
the plan will go to the N.C. Coastal Resources
Commission for final certification.
Varnamtown Keeps Taxes Low
Varnamtown officials adopted a
new budget Monday that included
no change in an already-low tax rate
and money for the community's
first street lights.
Aldermen approved a S79.321
budget for the 1991-92 fiscal year
following a public hearing at town
hall, said Town Clerk Paul Vcalcy.
For die third year in a row, town
officials have kept the tax rate at 4
1/2 cents per SI 00 of property, one
of the lowest rates in Brunswick
County.
With a tax valuation around 59
million, aldermen expect to collect
S3.645 in town taxes next year. The
owner of a 550,000 home will pay
about S22.50.
Other projected revenues include
$36,000 in sales and use tax, $3,700
in utility franchise tax and SI, 800 in
alcohol beverage tax. The town
plans to carry over S34.096 thai
wasn't spent this fiscal year.
Some of the larger expenses in
the new budget include SI 1,406 to
pay off the town hall property and
S3, 117 for improvements to the
building and grounds.
Town officials also have budget
ed S7.600 for street lights. They
plan to mount single lights on about
half of the utility poles in the com
munity.
Also included in the budget are
52,500 for street signs, 52,300 for
liability insurance and 52,150 for
office equipment and furniture.
Donations include S2.200 to the fire
department and SI, 600 to the rescue
squad.
Aldermen set aside more than
S28.500 in a reserve fund which
could be used in case of an emer
gency.
Lawmen Probe
Woman's Death
Brunswick County lawmen and
the State Bureau of Investigation
arc still investigating the death of a
Maco woman who died May 8 fol
lowing a single gunshot to the head.
Authorities believe Rita Sarvis
Gamble, 33, committed suicide, said
Dct. Kevin Holdcn of the Brunswick
County Sheriff's Department
The victim's husband, Russell
Lee Gamble, reported her death to
the sheriff's department May 8
around 2 a.m., according to a report
filed by Deputy M.S. Mason.
The victim was found in her resi
dence silling upright in a chair with
an AK-47 assault rifle between her
legs and no shoe on her right foot,
according to the report.
"I expect it to end up as a suicide,
but it's still under investigation,"
Holdcn said Monday. "I don't ex
pect any major developments."
Holden said authorities are wail
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