Two Steady Hands
Dr. Neil S. Grigg’s resignation
as assistant secretary of the N. C.
Department of Natural Resources
& Community Development hasn’t
gained much publicity. Then Sec.
Joe Grimsley’s appointment of Dr.
Jay L. Langfelder to fill the
position came almost as an after
thought last week.
Those who applauded Dr.
Grigg’s decision to return to
Colorado State University and the
classroom are foes of sensible
treatment of this state’s natural
resources in general, and water
quality in particular. Their
celebration was short lived
because Dr. Langfelder is ex
pected to build on the solid
foundation put in place in the Hunt
Administration.
There is a great similarity in
Neil Grigg and Jay Langfelder.
Both are scholars, but they
possess an almost uncanny ability
to relate to laymen. Both are not
blinded by political reality,
neither are they afraid to blend
logic and common sense with
scientific data. Neither are
“eggheads” in the usual sense of
the word.
Dr. Grigg got something
positive going on the Chowan
River restoration. Then he was the
first to to support successful ef
forts to expand the project to the
entire Albemarle Sound Basin. He
recognized that 12 per cent of the
counties in North Carolina are
directly involved and that in
terests spread throughout the
state and nation.
Dr. Langfelder is a seasoned
professional who will move into
the position at the Archdale
Building without missing a step.
We want to bid Neil Grigg
farewell with an expression of
thanks for charting the course. We
want to welcome Jay Langfelder
with the confidence that he will
keep things on course while ex
ploring new territory.
, Identified
The wives of Tar Heel gover
nor’s are the topic of a new book,
as reported last week in a news
article in The Chowan Herald.
There is particular interest along
the Public Parade because the
wife of Gov. Ehringhaus resided
here for a number of years. Her
son, Haughton, still lives in
Edenton.
Because of the local interest, we
pulled a file picture to run with the
article. Pictured with Mrs.
Ehringhaus at a function in
Hertford was Mrs. J. Emmett
Winslow and an unidentified lady,
who we are told is Mrs. Fred
Morrison of Kill Devil Hills and
Washington, D. C.
Mrs. Winslow is a strong booster
of Historic Edenton but never fails
to get in a plug for “The Lost
Colony” at Manteo. So we bet she
was the one who solved the
mystery of the unidentified lady.
The note left in our typewriter
pointed out that Mrs. Morrison is
producer of North Carolina’s first
and oldest outdoor drama.
How about that, Lucille!
Pile Up Crumbs
Historic Edenton, a consortium
of properties along the Public
Parade, has learned to exist on
crumbs from the General
Assembly, Chowan County and the
Town of Edenton. Historic
Edenton has learned to do the
most with the least.
As money in the public coffers
becomes scarcer, it has been
increasingly difficult to maintain
a program at Historic Edenton
which is in step with what the area
deserves. As family budgets are
tightened there are more and
more people taking the free
walking tour and fewer and fewer
willing to pay the modest charge
for guided tours. The plight
thickens!
The Edenton Historic Com
mission has become guardian of
the corporation which administers
funds to maintain and operate
historic sites. The latest net to
snag funds is a non-profit foun
dation which accepts tax
deductible contributions.
Contributions to the foundation
should compliment funds raised
by the Edenton Woman’s Club
sponsored biennial Pilgrimage of
Continued on page 4
B. ” 1- .. v. ........
R ALD
Vol. XLVI - No. 51
Local Firm To Construct Health Care Facility
The Edenton Town Council
agreed Tuesday night to ask the
state Environmental Management
Commission to allow a proposed
health care facility on West Hicks
Street to tie into the municipal
sewer system.
James E. Lewis, director of
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HEALTH CARE PROJECT—Pictured here is the first draft of
a sketch plan for a Senior Village to be located on West Hick
Street, across from the Chowan Hospital. The project initially
will consist of a 60-bed rest home and 34 townhouse apartments
for the elderly. Albemarle Associates is the developer and the
project will be owned by Retirement Concepts, Inc. The sketch
plan was prepared by Howard Capps, a landscape architect and
planner in Elizabeth City. The new offices of Drs. Homthal and
Sick are to the east of the property.
Court Overturns Hit And Run Conviction
Convictions of two prominent
Manteo men on charges growing
out of the death of a Dare County
pedestrian overturned last week
by the N. C. Supreme Court.
Charges against Charles S.
Fearing, 34, and his cousin,
Malcolm Keith Fearing, 111, 26,
grew out of the hit-and-run death
of an 87-year-old man nearly three
years ago.
Charles Fearing was convicted
of hit-and-run and death by
vehicle. By a 4-3 vote, the court
reversed toe first conviction but
upheld the second. He was sen
tenced. He was sentenced by
Judge James Strickland in
Chowan County Superior Court to
three years for hit-and-run and
one year on the second count.
The court also ordered a new
trial in the case where Malcolm
NEW CHAMBER MEMBER EI.R l«! A R C . I.c Jr tla
new member of the Edenton - Chowan Chamber of Commerce.
Harless, right of the Kellogg-Morgan Agency, Inc., is shown with
Executive Vice-President Jerry Hendee, left, was chosen as part
of the 1982 membership drive now under way.
Albemarle Associates, announced
the $l.B-million project. It is one of
eight Lewis’ firms developing in
North Carolina. Lewis said four
projects are under construction
with the remaining four set to
begin around March 1. He pointed
out that conventional construction
Fearing was convicted of being an
accessory after the fact in toe two
counts. He was sentenced to one
year.
A third person convicted in toe
case also won a new trial. He is
former Dare County Chief Deputy
Sheriff Claudie Clara Duvall, 45.
He was charged with being an
accessory and was sentenced to
three years in prison.
The Supreme Court said Judge
Strickland made a mistake by
telling the jurors to return a guilty
verdict against Charles Fearing if
they decided he knew of toe ac
cident instead of knowing that he
had caused an injury. The jury
charge was the pattern used in all
such cases.
The victim was Cloise H. Greef,
a former janitor in the Dare
Edenton, North Carolina, Thursday, December 10, 1981
and permanent financing, totaling
in excess of sl2-million if in place.
Councilman Willis Privott and
James Martin, director of utilities,
were named to represent the town
before the Environmental
Management Commission.
All of the projects being
developed by Albemarle
Associates consist of a 60-bed rest
home and 34 townhouse apart
ments. The rest home alone
consists of 18,500 square feet of
floor space.
The facilities will be located on a
10-acre site on West Hicks Street,
across the street from Chowan
Hospital and near the new dental
offices of Drs. Homthal and Sick
on Mark Drive.
Appointments Set
On Hospital Board
The Board of Chowan County
Commissioners met December 7
in a regular session.
First on the agenda was the
selection of Chairman and vice
chairman. C. A. Phillips was re
appointed as chairman and J. D.
Peele was re-appointed as vice
chairman.
The following appointments
were made to the Hospital Board:
Gerald Blanchard, Jimmy Hare,
Guy Hobbs and Lester Simpson.
Mrs. H. Fahey Byrum, Jr. was
selected to fill the slot vacated by
Frank White, who was not eligible
for another term.
Dallas Jethro presented the tax
listing schedule for 1982, which is
identical to the 1981 schedule.
In further business Albemarle
Cable TV requested an amend
ment to the County franchise
ordinance for the provision of
cable TV in the Arrowhead and
Chowan Beach areas. Given the
fewer number of people to be
served, Albemarle Cable TV
requested a different rate
schedule for those areas served by
that system. The council- ap
proved these recommendations.
Representatives from the
Library Board were present to
formally acknowledge the reeeiDt
Continued On Page 4
County Office Building.
The split decision is expected to
be cited in future hit-and run
cases. “All you’ve got to do is say
you didn’t know you hit a person,”
an unidentified justice stated.
CRC To Hold
Public Hearing
At its December 10-11 meeting
the Coastal Resources Com
mission will hold a public hearing
on marina and canal standards,
review land use plan updates from
17 local governments and receive
a report on beach access. The»
meeting will be in Kill Devil Hills
at toe Holiday Inn.
The comission will hear public
comment on proposed amend
ments to canal and marina
standards at 10 A. M. on Thursday.
The proposals spell out specific
requirements for marina siting,
setbacks from adjacent property
and minimizing adverse impacts
from dredging and wetland
alterations.
Coastal management staff will
present an evaluation of the land
Continued On Page 4
i Notice I
M Due to error in com- 1
m position the 2-page ads for m
■ AM* do not appear as or- v
M dered. They were designed to ■
m face, hut appear on Page l.t m
■ and II (front and back) in- M
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m The Chowan Herald is m
■ sorry for this error and any m
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• our readers. I
This will be the second
development in a portion of the
Ward Farm which the town earlier
zoned for Medical Arts. The
property is owned by Mrs. Judy
Earnhardt and Mr. and Mrs.
Bernard Burroughs.
Lewis told the Town Council that
in addition to providing a needed
service, the project would broaden
the tax base and provide 45 new
jobs.
The developer has pointed out
that the Edenton facility is part of
a development, financing and
management package which is
being coordinated by A-G En
terprises, 913 North Broad Street.
In addition to Albemarle
Associates, the participants in the
AADA BANQUET PRINCIPALS The Albemarle Area
Development Association held its first joint business appreciation
banquet and annual meeting Tuesday night at the American
Legion Building here. C. B. Smith, left, was elected president of
the 10-county association. Murray Nixon, center, holds the trophy
presented to his fishery as Chowan County’s outstanding
business. Ed Brown of Perquimans County served as AADA
president for the past year. (Staff Photo by Paul Amburn.)
Murray Nixon’s Fishery Cited
As Outstanding Business Firm
The presidency of the 10-county
Albemarle Area Development
Association moved back to
Chowan County Tuesday night and
Murray Nixon’s Fishery was cited
as the county's outstanding
business highlighting the first
joint business appreciation
banquet and annual meeting.
C. B. Smith of Edenton was
unanimously elected president of
the association. He succeeds Ed
Brown of Hertford. Smith served
this year as vice president-west.
Bill Meekins of Elizabeth City,
vice president-north, was elected
vice president in the newly
restructed organizational plan.
For the past 20 years AADA has
had vice presidents representing
various sections of the vast area
served.
Mrs. Pat Smith of Washington
County was re elected treasurer.
The nominating committee was
headed by Bill Wheeler of Dare
County, a past AADA president.
Smith described himself as a
“farm boy from Pennsylvania”
and said he is honored by being
Gross Retail Sales
Figures Are Noted
Gross retail sales in Chowan
County in September totaled
$6,296,973, according to an
analysis of the N. C. Department
of Revenue. Sales and use tax
collections for October were set at
$115,211.12.
Statewide, gross retails were
$3,325,548,990 in September.
Collections in October were nearly
S7O-million.
Gross retail sales in the nine
Northeastern North Carolina
counties other than Chowan were:
Camden, $944,547; Currituck,
$5,285,533; Dare, $14,303,725;
Gates, $2,418,368; Hyde,
$2,025,305; Pasquotank,
$15,833,667; Perquimans,
$3,409,897; Tyrrell, $1,566,195; and
Washington, $6,684,158.
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Single Copies 20 Cents
turnkey projects, include Archer
Real Estate Finance in Raleigh
and Moore Health Care
Management, Inc., of Dunn.
Retirement Concepts, Inc., a
local corporation headed by W. B.
Gardner, former town - ad
ministrator and senior vice
president of A-G Enterprises, will
own projects in Edenton and
Raleigh. Other stockholders in
clude L. F. Amburn, Jr., president
of AGE and editor and publisher of
The Chowan Herald; Harry Ar
cher of Archer Real Estate
Finance; and Lewis.
RCI will be general partners in
further developments in North
Carolina and Virginia during 1982.
Continued On Page 4
elected president of such a fine
organization. He called on people
not now active in AADA to con
sider it.
The new president said he will
continue to lean heavily on the
Agricultural Extension Service in
the counties. Like Ed Brown
before him, Smith praised the
work of Dr. Vance Hamilton,
Agricultural Extension Service
community development
specialist at N. C. State University
in Raleigh.
Brown said he found AADA to be
a rewarding organization which
has its “hand on the pulse of the
area.” He added that the
association is the logical outlet for
bringing about change.
Pat Flanagan, a local radio
personality, provided the audio for
a slide-tape presentation about
AADA and putting a focus on
outstanding businesses of the year
in the 10 counties of Northeastern
North Carolina.
It was noted that Murray Nixon
started his fishery on the Chowan
River with a single shack and
three or four employees, mostly
members of his family. The
fishery, which now has an outlet in
Hyde County at Engelhard,
processes more than 5-million
pounds of product annually.
For 10 years, between 1968 and
1978, Nixon sponsored a free fish
fry on July 4th which grew from
some 350 guests to more than
7,000.
The fishery was cited as having
an outstanding place in the
community and one which con
tinues to be largely a family
operation.
J. D. Brickhouse of Tyrrell
County, AADA Economic
Development Committee chair
man, was toastmaster for the;
meeting.
Trophies tor ihe businesses
honored were made available by
First Colony Farms.