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The iMorrisville & Preston Published Monthly Morrisville, NC April 30,1998 Major corporation purchases The Progress By Thomas Melville Editor Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. purchased The Morrisville & Preston Progress from Kirkland Newspapers, Inc. last week for an undisclosed amount. The corporation, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, also bought all five weekly newspapers owned by Kirkland Newspapers, which included the Garner News, Fuquay- Varina Independent, Holly Springs Sun, Cleveland Post and The Apex Herald. Not guilty plea for accused murderers Trial in September By Mary Beth Phillips Staff Writer Three of the four men charged with killing two Mexican migrant workers in the Carpenter Community last November were arraigned in late April, while the fourth was set to have his hearing at the end of April when his attorney returned to town. Gregory Robinson, Jr, 23, of Willow Springs, Jonathan Russell Robinson, 24, of Cary, and Montrese Tameal Miles, 20, of Raleigh, pleaded not guilty to first degree murder before Judge Henry Barnett on April 20. The attorney for Jamie Antwon Mitchell, 19, of Apex, was out of town and his hear ing was scheduled for April 30. The first tentative trial is slated for September 7 for Jonathan Robinson. That date is subject to change, according to Assistant District Attorney Jeff Cruden. The state is seeking the death penalty because of the circum stances surrounding the deaths of Fernando Neri Perez, 20, and Valentin Suniga, 44, Cruden said. The two men were shot on November 20 during an alleged drug robbery at the mobile home they shared at 6750 Good Hope Church Road. The trailer was one of several farmer Lee Phillips used to house migrant workers. The four young men remain in the Wake County Jail without bond. Death sentence for Holman Allen Holman, the man responsi ble for murdering his wife on the streets of Apex, was sentenced to die by a jury of his peers April 7. A Wake County Superior Court jury took two days to deliver the verdict that will send the Morrisville resident to death row to await his fate. On March 17, Holman, 39, admit ted to shooting his wife, Linda, 49, of Route 1, Box 106 off Green Level to Durham Road twice in the back at 6 a.m. July 28. “I’m very comfortable with the jury’s decision,” Prosecutor Susan Spurlin said Monday. “I think it was supported by the evidence.” Holman’s case will be automati cally appealed to the NC Supreme Court, Spurlin said. Spurlin said she was not surprised Holman admitted his guilt. “The evidence of his guilt was overwhelming. I was surprised he didn't admit to it sooner,” she said. “He said he was going to kill her, a police officer saw him kill her and he talked about killing her after wards.” The crime occurred on the morn ing of July 8 at 6 a.m. at the Phillips 66 at NC 55 and Olive Chapel Road after Holman had chased Linda down NC 55 - trying to run her off the road. Alerted to the scene by a call from Linda, officers met Ms. Holman at the gas station and she pointed out See JURY, page 2 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. owns more than 80 daily and community newspapers across the nation and previously purchased North Carolina newspapers in Lumberton, Clinton, Elizabethtown, King, Danbury, Albemarle and Yadkinville. “We are very excited about the growth opportunities that his market offers,” said Donna Barrett, assistant division manager at Community Newspaper Holdings. Barrett, who will serve as publish er to all six newspapers and will work out of the Fuquay-Varina office, said that they will continue to publish a community newspaper that will meet the needs of a grow ing area. Barrett attended Indiana University Southeast in New Albany, Indiana. She has been with the corporation since it started in February 1997. Before she joined Community Newspaper Holdings, she worked as advertising director of The Evening News in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Barrett, 35, her husband Michael and two sons Tyler, 13, and Logan, 6, will reside in Holly Springs. William Kirkland, Jr., who owns Kirkland Newspapers, Inc., pur chased The Apex Herald, Garner News, Fuquay-Varina Independent and Cleveland Post from Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. in January, 1994. Kirkland started the Morrisville & Preston Progress in 1995 and added the weekly newspaper Holly Springs Sun in 1996. He also made the monthly Cleveland Post into a weekly. In January 1997, Ann Kirkland, William Kirkland’s wife, was named publisher of The Morrisville & Preston Progress. Stormy weather m ^ r 2" * PHOT) SY Mary Be™ Phillips Stormy the Ice Hog, the Carolina Hurricanes’ mascot helped serve food during “Big Wheels Day" at the Meals on Wheels site in Luther Green Center, Morrisville. They w/ere celebrating 25 years of ser vice for Meals on Wheels in Wake County. Meals on Wheels celebrates 25 years The Mayor of Morrisville received less attention than the Carolina Hurricanes’ mascot Ice Hog, Stormy, at “Big Wheels Day” at the Meals on Wheels site at Luther Green Center in Morrisville on Thursday. Survada Hicks, who runs the meal site, said the Meals on Wheels organization invited high officials to all its nutrition sites on April 23 to celebrate 25 years of service in Wake County. Peggy Sue Hawkins, manager of community relations for the Carolina Hurricanes, said the National Hockey League team is pleased to be active in the commu nity. She said Stormy the Ice Hog, who has proved to be very popular, has touched 375,000 people at various community events since the Hurricanes came to the area a year ago. “Sometimes he makes three appearances a day,” she said. “This year he was in 19 Christmas Parades.” The Carolina Hurricanes offices are located in Aerial Center in Morrisville. Stormy clowned around with the Shiloh residents who attend the nutrition site and then took off his suit and sat down for a meal with the rest. Mayor Gordon Cromwell and his wife Joyce also attended the event. Town leaders absolutely, positively glad FedEx chooses Greensboro By Mary Beth Phillips Staff Writer Several Morrisville officials are relieved that the Federal Express hub has chosen Greensboro over Raleigh-Durham International Airport for its package-sorting hub, but they don’t know if the official opposition and support by area boards had much impact on the company’s decision. The Morrisville Board of Commissioners had voted in February to oppose the location of the hub here, while last month the I’m very glad it’s done and over with, and it’s not coming here. ’ —Bill Case, town commissioner Morrisville Chamber of Commerce voted to support the hub. “It was probably an exercise in futility,” Mayor Gordon Cromwell admitted. “I think when a company like Federal Express decides to go somewhere, they go where the best place is. They are interested in the “I’ll miss every- one,” Ann Kirkland said on Thursday morn i n g after the announce ment was made. She said that she and Bill want to remtroauce inemseives lu Donna Barrett their grandchildren in Florida and take a bit of a rest. They will contin ue to live in Durham. Community Newspaper Holdings Regional Division Manager is John Bauer, who runs all the newspapers east of the Mississippi River. He works out of the Boca Raton News office located in Boca Raton, Florida. The President and CEO of Community Newspaper Holdings is Ralph Martin, the Executive Vice President and CFO is Mike Reed and the Executive Vice President is Paul Martin. The Legends at Preston will press on Developers agree to special conditions By Mary Beth Phillips Staff Writer The apartment complex behind Huntington Woods subdivision will go on as planned, after the Morrisville Board of Commissioners agreed Monday night to allow the developers to receive their building permits. The board also set public hearings for Tuesday, May 26, for special use permits that would allow an addi tional 616 apartments to be located in town, and approved several site plans. The apartment complex. The Legends at Preston, had already been approved in November, but after about 35 Huntington Woods residents came to the March 4 meet ing and brought a petition of over 100 names protesting the develop ment, commissioners agreed to withhold the building permit until further study could be madei Preston developers agreed to meet three conditions—most significant ly to reapply for the driveway per mit from the N. C. Depanment of Transportation. The original permit was based on the use of Double Eagle Court as the access to a con cession area for the Prestonwood Golf Course. Residents had complained that the fact that no left turn would be allowed out of the complex would ‘They will be turning my street into a roller derby. ’ —Paul Fountain, Huntington resident cause traffic problems for the 382 dwelling units to be placed there. DOT had denied a left-turn lane from Double Eagle Court onto Morrisville Parkway because the road is approximately 200 feet from Walton’s Creek Drive. But the Division Engineer has indicated to town staff that a new permit would require a left turn lane to provide stacking distance for vehicles to make a U-turn at Walton’s Creek. But even if the left turn lane is granted, “people turning left out of Walton’s Creek will have to turn across people coming off Morrisville Parkway,” said Paul Fountain, who studied the situation and helped organize the neighbors who attended the March meeting. “They will be turning my street into a roller derby,” Fountain said. He said an apartment complex of that size should have more than one access road. See THE, page 2 Future layoffs at Bristol-Myers Morrisville plant will not shut down By Mary Beth Phillips Staff Writer There will probably be some lay offs at the Bristol-Myers pharma ceutical plant, but the company will not be closing down as previously reported, a spokesman said. Although the product line for Excedrin and Bufferin painkillers, and Comtrex cough and cold medicines will be moving to a Bristol-Myers plant in Mt. Vernon, Indiana, the Ban deodorant product line will continue to be manufac tured here, said Charles Borgognoni of Bristol-Myers headquarters. Borgognoni said company offi cials are trying to move some other manufacturing to the plant from other plants around the country. He expects the logistics of those moves to be ironed out in the next three or four weeks. About 25 percent of the 450 employees employed at the plant are involved with the produc tion of Ban. Originally, the plant was planning to close all of its manufacturing operations, but in late March Bristol-Myers sold its Ban product line to Chattem Inc., a health and beauty products manufacturer from Chattanooga, Tenn., and reached an agreement with the new company to continue to manufacture the prod uct. The company is the Morrisville’s largest taxpayer, having paid $418,947 in taxes in 1997. It makes up 29 percent of the town’s tax base. The assessed value of the plant last year was $69.8 million. It was the town’s first major indus trial plant, opening in 1981. A home on the company’s proper ty which was converted to office space will become a career-counsel ing center for the employees that do get laid off. bottom line, which is the way it should be.” “I’m very glad it’s done and over with, and it’s not coming here,” said Commissioner Bill Case. “I hope we had an impact, along with other See TOWN, page 2
Morrisville and Preston Progress (Morrisville, N.C.)
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