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Kings Mountain Hosts R-S Central Tonight
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Tuesday
VOLUME 94, NUMBER 1
TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 1981
20c
KINGS MOUNTAIN, NORTH CAROLINA
KM*s 1981 Outlook:
Over lyOOO New Jobs
By ELIZABETH STEWART
Co-Editor
What’s on tap for Kings
Mountain area citizens in new
year 1981?
Mayor John Henry Moss en
visions that 1,000 new jobs will
be available to area citizens due
to industrial expansion, new and
improved housing, continuation
of many programs and initiation
of several new ones.
Elaborating on his predictions
for the new year, the Mayor
made these announcements:
•Great Dominion Corpora
tion of Kings Mountain has ac
quired 20-plus acres of property
and plans to construct a steel
fabricating and heavy machinery
manufacturing plant, a first in
North Carolina, which will
iploy 220 people. A formal an-
^uncement will be made in ear-
January and employee ap-
Hications will be taken beginn-
'ing March 1. The Kings
Mountain-based company will
employ all local people, will bank
locally and intends to be a big
contributor to Kings Mountain
economy in 1981. President
Robert (Bob) Dickens and Vice
President Karl Moss said the
company will manufacture
heavy steel weldments which go
into the energy producing field,
plus the petroleum chemical,
coal gasifaction, mining and
some defense department
markets. ‘There is a growing
market for this product which
will lead to increased manufac
turing and employment in the
Kings Mountain area,” said Mr.
Dickens.
•The Mayor confirmed that
he and members of the industry
development committee are
working very closely with a large
major industry which has
already acquired property to
build in this area. The diversified
industry is expected to make a
formal announcement in early
1981.
•Century Construction Com
pany of Atlanta, Ga., and
Hunter Real Estate Co. of
Greenville, S.C. are proposing to
build 75-plus units of luxury
apartments in Kings Mountain.
•O.G. Penner Construction
Co. of Kings Mountain, in its ex
tension of Southwoods Sub-
Division, is planning to con
struct 50 residences on
Southwoods Drive, extension of
Pinehurst Dr. and Kingswood
Circle.
•Commercial Shearing will
begin operations in early 1981 at
its new Canterbury Road plant
where construction is nearing
completion. The plant will
manufacture hydraulic
machinery casting, gear pumps
and gear motors and will house,
not only a distribution center
here, but operate as a tankhead
division and hydraulic com
ponents division.
•Clevemont Mills is planning
a major expansion at its plant on
York Road.
New job opportunities
through new and expanded in
dustry will see a top priority for
1981 in more and better housing,
and Thomas A. Tate, Home Sav
ings and Loan president, will
serve as chairman of a
22-member housing committee.
Mayor Moss said that the
Kings Mountain Housing
Authority is constructing 10
new units for the elderly on
North Carpenter St. and that
Mrs. Ruby M. Alexander’s pro
ject for the elderly at the corner
of Gantt and Morris Streets will
provide much needed housing in
the community.
Mayor Moss sees the newly-
created annexation committee as
one of the most important in the
city’s history and “most
necessary and timely” in view of
the development of the KM
Bypass and other land use con
siderations in connection with
the bypass.
Other important committees
charged with heavy respon
sibilities in the brand new year
are the hydroelectric committee.
Bethware School Section
♦ Of 74 To Be Completed
)
Grading and structural work
on the Bethware section of the
U.S. 74 By-Pass of Kings Moun
tain is expected to be completed
in October 1981.
^ Mayor John Henry Moss said
• A* a timetable for completion of the
’ project will cover a two one half
r jMT period.
It ~
* Blair To Speak
To Baptist Men
Dr. William Blair, retired
I ARP pastor, will be guest
speaker at Wednesday night’s
meeting of Baptist Brotherhood
A of Kings Mountain Baptist
Church.
/
President Tommy Tindall said
that Baptist Men will meet in the
Church Fellowship Hall at 7:30
p.m. Refreshments will be served
after the meeting.
“We invite interested citizens
to join us in the special
program,” said Mr. Tindall.
A “turn key” job, the 74 and
1-85 interchange is expected to
be completed in October 1983
and the Mayor said he is presum
ing that all work will ^ com
pleted by October 1981 and the
road will be “ready for travel.”
“Right now it looks like road
crews have got Kings Mountain
pretty torn up but two and one
half years from now it’s going to
be a beautiful bypass,” said the
Mayor.
Champion’s of Kings Moun
tain and Crowder Construction
Co. of Charlotte share the
$15,572477 contract for Phase
Three construction where work
is slated to be finished in October
1983. Six new bridges, several
ramps, a King St. “flyover” will
be added, eliminating all areas
where 74 and 1-85 traffic cur
rently merge.
The tie-in at 85 in Gaston
County is the major step in the
long-awaited Kings Mountain
Bypass. Work has been under
way all year in stages one and
two which include areas from
Highway 161 and 74 West near
Bethware School.
of which Commissioner Jim
Dickey is chairman, the
downtown revitalization com
mittee, of which W.S. Fulton III
is chairman, and the committee
to head development of a
modern law enforcement center
at the old city hall.
“I am hopeful that 1981 will
be the year in which significant
progress can be made in the
development of a hydroelectric
plant at Moss Lake, the renova
tion and improvements of the
old City Hall and revitalization
of the business district and our
older neighborhoods such as the
Phenix Neighborhood Strategy
Area where the city has applied
for a Small Cities Grant to help
cover cost of improvements,”
said the Mayor.
“The Neighborhood Strategy
Area is a top priority of city
government and calls for im
proved city services and
rehabilitating of existing homes,
thereby making the area viable
and enhancing livability and
commercial activity,” he con
tinued.
•A 10 hour-per-day Day Care
operation at the KM Communi
ty Center for working mothers
and added activities for youth
and adults.
•Improvements to Deal Street
Recreational Park Complex and
Davidson Park.
•Firming up of a systematic
schedule for street im
provements.
The Mayor said he is highly
pleased that Kings Mountain
Hospital will begin a moderniza
tion and renovation project ex
pected to surpass $5 million in
improvments in the new year, a
two year project which will
boost the KM economy, he said.
Construction work is expected
to get underway in early 1981.
“The Kings Mountain Bypass
has far reaching positive effects
on the citizens of Kings Moun
tain as it relates to our economic
growth and convenience of
travelers,” said the mayor. “My
opinion is that economic growth
and development of the By-Pass
area will accelerate near the
completion of that project and
land use will set a pattern for a
very important segment of the
overall development of Kings
Mountain. That is why it is
necessary for the planning and
zoning board and annexation
committee to begin making plans
for land use and future growth
of Kings Mountain in 1981,” he
added.
The Mayor pledged the city
will continue working in various
funding programs to enhance
utility services in water, sewer,
electrical and gas systems as
well as establishing a systematic
street improvements scheduling
program.
He added, “1 know these
things we’ve reviewed here to
day sound ambitious but I
believe Kings Mountain is on the
threshold of economic oppor
tunity that can be shared by all,
recognizing that all the things we
aspire and the challenges to
achieve them will require dedica
tion to the task. I truly believe
citizens of Kings Mountain want
progress and are willing to work
to achieve worthy goals. I pledge
to work to that aim.”
A “great year for Kings
Mountain in ’81” is the mayor’s
prediction.
NEW YEAR BABY — Christina May KMTsr,
pictured here with her proud mother, was the
first hoby born in 1981 at Kings Mountain
Hospital. She arrived at 7:45 p.m. New Year's
Photo by Gary Stewart
Day. She weighed 11 pounds, eight and one-
half ounces. Her parents are Mr. and Mrs.
Lester Stephen Keever of Bessemer City.
Dickenson Guest'Speaker
CHESNEE, S.C. - Russell E.
Dickenson, director of the Na
tional Park Service (NPS), will
be the feature speaker Jan. 17 at
the dedication of new visitor and
service facilities at Cowpens Na
tional Battlefield.
Dickenson, who has been with
the NPS 33 years, will join other
platform guests at 2:30 p.m. in
an area in front of the new
visitor center at the National
Battlefield, which is located off
South Carolina 11 just north of
its intersection with South
Carolina 110.
The program will begin at
2:30 p.m., with P. Bradley Mor-
rah, chairman of the South
Carolina American Revolution
Bicentennial Commission, serv
ing as master of ceremonies.
New facilities at Cowpens in
clude the visitor center,
maintenance area, paved bat
tlefield tour road, park entrance
and exhibits. One of the features
of the visitor center is a fiber
optic display that progressively
shows movement of the troops
in the battle.
Established as a national bat
tlefield site under the War
Department, Cowpens National
Battlefield, renamed in 1971, has
been under the administration of
the NPS since 1933.
Dickenson, a native of
Fire Guts
Bell Home
The home of Frank Bell at
115 Owens St. was extensively
damaged by fire Sunday after
noon.
Firemen were called to the
scene at 1:50 p.m. by a neighbor.
The fire, which apparently
started in the kitchen, also caus
ed extensive damage to the rest
of the house. Firemen said a dog
suffocated in the blaze. The Bell
family was away from the house.
Kings Mountain Fire Depart
ment extinguished a car fire and
three grass fires during the
weekend. Grass fires were
reported at 902 Gray St., 313
Dilling St. and 1012 N. Pied
mont Ave.
RUSSELL DICKENSON
Melissa, Tex., joined the NPS in
1947 as a ranger at Grand Ca
nyon National Park in Arizona.
The World War II Marine Corps
veteran since has served in a
number of Park Service areas
and offices.
Prior to becoming the
agency’s director last May,
Dickenson was director of the
NPS’s Pacific Northwest
Region, covering Alaska, Idaho,
Oregon and Washington.
He has received the
Distinguished Service Award,
highest honor for a Department
of the Interior employee, and the
Cornelius Amory Pugsley
Award from the American
Scenic and Historic Preservation
Society.
Rev. Boggan To Charlotte,
Rev. Stephens Coming Here
Rev. Robert E. Boggan, Jr.,
pastor of Central United
Methodist Church for four and
one-half years, will assume new
pastorate duties Feb. I as pastor
of the 800-member St. Andrew’s
United Methodist Church of
Charlotte.
Coming to Kings Mountain as
the new minister of Central
Church of 550 members will be
Rev. Ivan A. Stephens, 56,
former pastor of Glenwood
United Methodist Church in
Greensboro.
The appointments were made
recently by the North Carolina
Conference of the Methodist
Church and the changes were
due to the death of Dr. Charles
White, administrative assistant
to the Bishop of the Methodist
Church Conference.
Rev. Boggan came to Kings
Mountain from Winston-Salem
and been active in the Kings
Mountain community, serving
as president of the successful
Kings Mountain United Fund,
as chairman of the Helping
Hand committee of the Kings
Mountain Ministerial Associa
tion, on the board of directors of
KM Rotary Club and the
Cleveland County Chapter of
American Red Cross and as
REV. BOB BOGGAN
chairman of the mayor’s
emergency heeds and resources
study committee. Boggan and
his wife, Pat, are parents of three
sons, Jeffrey and Stephen Bog
gan, both students at Wofford
College, and Patrick Boggan, a
fifth grader at West School.
Rev. and Mrs. Stephens are
parents of two married children
and will be moving into the Cen
tral manse at the end of this
month.