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™ Wednesday, November 27,2002
CHOWAHEl^ALD
Vol. LXIX, No. 48 Published in historic Edenton... The South’s prettiest town. Single CopiesSOf]
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Lions offer attic filled with love
BY HELEN K. OUTLAND
Staff Writer
In the last few months
more and more families in
the Chowan County area
have fallen on hard times.
Businesses and farms, hav
ing to endure a tight
economy and damaging
weather, have had no choice
but to lay off workers.
During a recent meeting
of the Rocky Hock Lions
Club members began dis
cussing how to help these
families. One member,
Frances Jordan, owner of the
Crossroads Auto Parts and
Service Center, proposed ex
panding on a mission already
being undertaken by two lo
cal churches, Faith Fellow
ship Baptist and the Center
Hill United Methodist
Church. Although the two
churches were targeting the
needs of the Hispanic com
munity, the decision was
made to incorporate all the
needy families in Chowan
and surrounding counties.
According to Jordan,
members of the two
churches donate clothes,
packages of personal hy
giene items, and small house
hold items to the families.
“There are many Hispanic
families in the area who have
Frances Jordan shows off the Rocky Hock Lions Club's Attic, a place where needy
families in Chowan County can find clothes and other household items. The facility is
located at Crossroads Auto Parts and Service Center. (Staff photo by Helen K. Outland)
nothing,” says Jordan. “They
do not have the few dollars it
takes to buy used items at
other centers who support
themselves by selling goods at
a greatly reduced price. The
poorest ones here are richer
than the ones back home. What
little they make here, they
send home to help families
there.”
After the Lions Club mem
bers agreed on establishing a
drop site for used clothing, etc.
Jordan says she began to
worry where this site might be.
I was on my way to wont one
morning, worrying over the
issue, when it dawned on me.
I have the perfect place. It is
centrally located to serve not
only Chowan County, but
See ATTIC On Page 7-A
Town reviews
plan to raise
utility rates
The Edenton Town Council
reviewed a 2.5 percent pro
posed retail electric rate in
crease Monday night during
its monthly committee meet
ings. Town Manager Anne
Marie Knighton presented the
rate increase in response to
North Carolina Eastern Mu
nicipal Power Agency’s 3 per
cent wholesale rate increase,
scheduled to go into effect Jan.
1.
Knighton reported to coun
cil that three factors contrib
uted to the wholesale rate in
crease.
“First,” she said, “a record
setting mild winter last year
reduced Power Agency sales.
Secondly, instead of a pro
jected system load increase,
i.e., industry growth, the sys
tem realized significant de
creases in load.”
“The decreases in load,” she
added, “can be directly linked
to the closing pf numerous tex
tile plants in eastern North
Carolina.” Knighton noted
that Rocky Mount, Wilson and
Tarboro represent a signifi
cant portion of the load on the
Power Agency’s system.
“The third reason for the
rate increase,” she said, “is at
tributed to capital improve
ments mandated by Carolina
Power and Light Company
(CP&L), at the jointly owned
power plants.”
Ms. Knighton recommended
a 2.5 percent retail rate in
crease be adopted to offset the
3 percent wholesale rate in
crease, to go into effect for
Edenton customers Feb. 1. Un
der the proposed rate increase,
a customer using 1,000 kilo
watts a month will see their
power bill rise by about $2.19.
Councilman Jerry Parks
asked that Knighton’s staff
develop a public information
campaign to help educate cus
tomers on ways to conserve
electricity
Councilmen expressed their
distaste for the rate increase
but noted that the Town of
Edenton’s monthly wholesale
bill is projected to rise by about
$20,000 a month because of the
NCEMPA’s rate increase.
Edenton uses ENI system to facilitate online bids
BY HELEN K. OUTLAND
Staff Writer
History was made Thursday
as Edenton, NC, using the ENI
automated procurement sys
tem, became the first city in
North Carolina to use this
Internet software to conduct a
public, sealed bid opening.
For communities and con
tractors in the past, receiving
notification of a job, preparing
a bid, submitting a bid, and
then ironing out the kinks was
a long and drawn out process
requiring manpower, travel,
and many long distance phone
calls.
As members of the North
east Partnership and commu
nity and business leaders
looked on three electronically
bids submitted to the town for
repair projects were opened.
Every aspect of the bid process
had been conducted securely
and without city officials, con
tractors, or engineers needing
to leave their offices.
The software used in the
digital process is the brain
child of ENI eProcurements
and eBusiness Solutions lo
cated in Edenton, NC.
“We learned about E-bidding
when we were recruiting Tully
Ryan and ENI,” says Edenton
City Manager Anne-Marie
Knighton. ENI is a software
technology company that has
the unique patent-pending ar
tificial intelligence software. It
has been integrated to stream
line procurement and associ
ated workflow by combining
industry knowledge, procure
ment expertise, and a proven
IT platform to provide compre
hensive procurement and busi
ness software to the A&E, con
struction, utility, waste, and
public sector.
As the town determined
Tulley Ryan, ENI, right, Amy Bodeck, Chuck Skinner, Eric Weatherly discuss the ENI pro
cess at Thursday's e-bid opening at the Northeast Partnership. (Photo by Helen Outland)
some much-needed repairs to
area streets they used the e-bid
system. Ads were submitted to
acquire bids on the project and
the process began. Of the six
bids that the town received,
three were done using e-bid
ding.
Chuck Skinner, Vice Presi
dent of Procurement Applica
tions for ENI and Amy
Bodecker of Hobbs-Upchurch,
Consulting Engineers pre
sented a program on e-bidding,
explaining how it works, be
fore the actual bid opening pro
cess began. “ENI’s sealed bid
application has been used
many times throughout the
country, but we are excited that
the Town of Edenton was the
first municipality to use it in
North Carolina,” added Skin
ner.
“One of the goals the Town
See ENI On Page 7-A
Toppin injured
in shooting
BY BEN DECK
Cox NC Publications
Ron Toppin, a Republican
businessman who twice chal
lenged Senate President
Pro Tem Marc Basnight for
his state Senate seat, was
shot twice at his Plymouth
trucking company Sunday
morning, police said.
Toppin, who remained in
critical condition Monday,
was first shot about 7 a.m.
while standing in an office at
Faith Trucking, 1400 High
way U.S. 64
East, said Lt. W.P. Ward of
Ron Toppin
the Plymouth Police Depart
ment. Toppin then ran, but
See TOPPIN On Page 7-A
Christmas at the Market Dec. 7th
BY REBECCA BUNCH
Editor
The hustle and bustle of the
holiday season will be framed
by the beauty of the Christmas
season in downtown Edenton
this year as the Marketplace
Guild hosts its annual Christ
mas at the Market on Saturday,
Dec, 7. Particular attention
this year is being paid to the
seasonal decorations being
used in the downtown shop
ping district, according to
Guild President Susan Wil
kerson. "The entrance to the
Market for our visitors will be
at the intersection of Broad
and Queen streets,” Wilkerson
said. "This area will be
adorned with additional deco
ration and signs.”
In keeping with the event,
the Guild is sponsoring a Win
dow/Storefront Decorating
Contest. Merchants are en
couraged to make their win
dows look their loveliest.
Wilkerson noted that the
contest’s judges will begin
“making their rounds” that
morning at 10 a.m., choosing
the most outstanding store
fronts based on originality, cre
ativity and detail. She said that
the winners would be an
nounced during the lighting
ceremony set for later that day.
“A photo of the ‘best dressed
business’ will appear in the
Chowan Herald,” she added.
Music will also play a part in
the day’s festivities, said
Wilkerson, with local church
choirs and musicians enter
taining throughout the day.
Anyone interested in partici
Guild President Susan Wilkerson, left, talks with past
president Marion DesJardins, about plans for this year's
Christmas at the Market set for Saturday, Dec. 7.
pating is encouraged to con
tact Guild member Traci
Adams at 482-2855. Adams is
the manager of Peebles De
See MARKET On Page 7-A
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