Wednesday, March 30, 2005
Single Copies 50£
Vol. LXXII, No. 12
Council
scraps plan
following
opposition
BY SEAN JACKSON
The Chowan Herald
Plans allowing the sale of
alcohol to outdoor diners
dried up during Monday
night’s Town Council meeting.
Council’s administrative
committee chairman Steve
Biggs said Town Manager
Anne-Marie Knighton had
polled councilors about then
opinion on forwarding the
matter to the April 12 meeting.
Council typically votes on is
sues during such regular meet
ings.
Knighton said Tuesday that
council unanimously opted to
shelve the issue.
“Council members heard
from a lot of citizens who were
opposed to concept,” she said.
During its March Feb. 28
meeting, council was told that
at least one downtown restau
rateur had expressed interest
in being able to serve alcohol
to outdoor tables on South
Broad Street.
Restaurants are allowed to
serve food outdoors to patrons,
but the town ordinance gov
erning that activity does not
allow alcohol to be served.
Koonce
leadership
graduate
Chowan Middle School prin
cipal Willie Koonce graduated
March 18 from the nationally
recognized Leadership Pro
gram for New Principals of
fered by the
Principal’s
Executive
Program of
the Univer
sity of North
Carolina.
One of 63
principals
throughout
the state selected for the pro
gram, Koonce completed more
than 130 hours of training over
a six-month period. He studied
state accountability programs,
analysis of test data, finance,
instructional leadership, tech
nology use, community and
diversity, ethics, integrity and
vision.
“The goal of the program is
See KOONCE On Page 3-A
Koonce
INSIDE
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On Page C-t ...
Adventure awaits
in the Peace Corps
Potential new site for 911 Center identified
Public hearing
on proposal
set for April 4th
BY EARLINE WHITE
The Chowan Herald
After the 911 Communica
tion Center was flooded out
during Hurricane Isabel, the
county realized the need to
relocate its central communi
cations to higher ground.
That new locale for an
Emergency Operation Cen
ter (EOC), to house the. 911
Communications, Sheriff
and Law Enforcement offic
ers has been potentially iden:
tified as the area behind the
Chowan Life Center on Free
mason Street.
A public meeting will take
place April 4 at 6 p.m. during
the Chowan County Commis
sioners meeting at the 1767
Chowan County Courthouse.
The Commissioners will wel
come comments on possible
environmental impacts of
the EOC project. The meeting
will not focus on the need for
the facility itself, but on the
possible pollution that may
result or any historic areas
that may be disturbed.
“We (the Chowan County
Board of Commissioners)
plan to obligate mitigation of
monies made possible by the
USDA after Hurricane Isabel
to the EOC project,” County
Manager, Cliff Copeland
said. “We hope to identify
grant resources to reduce the
amount of money we will
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Staff photo by Earline White
The 911 Communication Center and other law enforcement
offices may relocate to the area behind the Chowan Life Center
on Freemason Street in Edenton.
have to borrow...As far as we
know there are no environ
mental issues involved, nor
disturbances of any historic
landmarks. We feel it will be
a good investment for that
part of town-a sort of rejuve
nation for the neighbor
hood,” Copeland added.
The site was chosen be
cause of its proximity to the
hospital, highway 17 and its
already existing infrastruc
ture including natural gas,
water and sewer lines. As a
bonus, the site is also near
the Adult Day Care center
where the emergency work
ers will be able to take advan
tage of the facilities.
Also open for public com
ment during the April 4th
Commissioners meeting
will be the use of the Coun
ty’s Rural Operating Assis
tance program (Rural
Transportation Program)
appropriation and the 2005
Small Cities Community
Development Block Grant
Program.
Plans for Cotton Mill
development change
By SEAN JACKSON
The Chowan Herald
The development of Eden
ton’s historic cotton mill has
had a change in plans, and
town officials support the de
velopers’ move to an all-resi
dential blueprint.
Developer Henry Yates told
council that the Cotton Mill
development will contain 58
residential cc&dos, and no re
tail or comnfercial -spaces.
Original plans included a po
tential restaurant and other
businesses.
Yates was on hand for
council’s special meeting
Monday night for discussion
of an amendment to the
development’s conditional
use permit. Town officials
had sought the change to per
mit for the inclusion of a sec
ondary emergency, access
road.
See MILL On Page 3-A
Staff photos
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Battle over proposed
OLF site continues
as Navy files motion
BY EARLINE WHITE
The Chowan Herald
The battle over the proposed Outlying Landing Field to
be situated in Washington and Beaufort counties contin
ued as the Navy filed a motion to stay, suspend or modify
the permanent injunction placed upon the OLF by US Dis
trict Court Judge Terrance Boyle last month.
Boyle’s reason for the permanent injunction was the
lack of analysis done by the Navy on the proposed field’s
potential harm to the nearby Pocosin Lakes Wildlife Ref
uge and the minimized risk of bird-aircraft collisions.
In a release dated March 25, U.S. Navy officials an
nounced that they plan “to pursue every avenue available
under the law to make this critical training resource avail
able to our pilots as soon as possible.”
According to language contained in the release, the
court’s ruling that the Navy did not meet the EPA require
ments does not outweigh the “urgent and critical” need
to appeal while initiating additional EPA work, which was
directed by the court.
The Army Corps of Engineers is requiring six wetland
studies before the training airfield can be built. Because
wetland permits are needed, federal law requires that the
state approve the future of the project and can also require
an evaluation of alternate sites. So far the Navy has
bought and condemned more than 2,000 acres for the
30,000-acre, $186 million site. No further progress can take
place until the Navy obtains the state and federal permits.
Derb Carter, an attorney for three environmental groups
that are opposing the project told the News and Observer,
“There is more uncertainty for the Navy about whether
this site can be permitted. They are going to have to deal
directly with the state. That gives the state more control
in ensuring a site is chosen that has the least environmen
tal impact.”
Meanwhile North Carolina’s two Republican Senators,
Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr, have refused to sign a
joint agreement calling for negotiations with the Navy to
break the standstill, despite encouragement from Demo
cratic Rep. Butterfield to do so.
“They’re (Dole and Burr) are going to let the judicial
process run its course,” said Butterfield’s spokesman, Ken
Willis.
The 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, VA
will hear the Navy’s appeal.
Edenton soldiers among those deploying
National Guard
troops may be sent
to Iraq in future
BY SEAN JACKSON
The Chowan Herald
Soldiers began arriving at a Na
tional Guard Armory in William
ston Monday for a possible deploy
ment to Iraq later this year.
Reached last week, 1st Sgt.
Marshall Carroll said the 725th
Quartermaster Company has re
ceived an order to deploy. The com
pany is comprised of soldiers from
Edenton Cotton Mill will soon be an all-residential facility
Edenton, Elizabeth City, and Scot
land Neck.
Carroll could not say how many
soldiers from Edenton would join
the company’s deployment.
“Any estimation at this time
would be simply that,” he said.
But he was able to say how long
the deployment would last.
“Our orders are for 18 months,”
he said when asked how long the
company, which specializes in con
voy transport, would be deployed.
“How much time we actually
spend overseas,” Carroll added, "I
don’t have a definitive answer for
that.”
He was also unable to say exactly
when and where the company
would deploy.
The unit has a capacity of 170 sol
diers, Carroll said. Soldiers began
arriving at the Armory in Wil
liamston on Monday.
A “send-off ceremony” will be
held for the soldiers at the Senator
Bob Martin Eastern Agricultural
Center in Williamston on April 7
from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Carroll said.
The public is invited to attend.
E.C. Toppin, with the Post 40 of
the American Legion in Edenton,
said his group was set to serve the
soldiers dinner Tuesday at the
Williamston armory.
“We’re trying to do whatever we
can to say goodbye to them,”
Toppin said last week.
Schools receive
safety guidelines
BY EARLINE WHITE
The Chowan Herald
Since the 1999 Columbine tragedy, ap
proximately 1,4000 schools in NC have
received specialized Critical Incident Re
sponse training and kits to respond to
such a crisis as a school shooting.
Chowan County is no exception. The
teachers and staff have been trained
about proper procedures and have peri
odic drills with local law enforcement to
maintain the training.
The need for such training hit home
again following the recent shootings at
See SAFETY On Page 3-A
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