Edenton native makes Boston
headlines with 'Touch the Sky' 1
: designer clothing line C6
ADRENALINE JUNKIES HEAD TO
TOP NOTCH RANCH & ARENA
Top Notch bull "Jap" heads to Las
Vegas to compete nationally C1
482-4418
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
White Oak
■ welcomes
new principal
By Rebecca Bunch
Staff Writer
Asa young girl, Amy Stein
ert always wanted to be the
teacher when her friends in
the neighborhood pretended
to play school.
Today, she is White Oak
Elementary School’s new
principal.
“My first real moment of
knowing that
this (being
an educator)
is what I was
meant to do
» was in fourth
grade,” she
said.
K “I had a
teacher that truly changed
my way of thinking... I have
always tried to treat students
in just the same special way
that she treated me.”
Her warmth and pro
fessional demeanor were
among the qualities that
helped her land the job, said
Dr. Allan Smith, superinten
dent of schools.
“We feel certain that par
ents, staff and students will
greatly benefit from her
leadership,” he said.
%f
Quality system
As director of elementary
education and county test
ing director for the Camden
County school system since
2006, Steinert had the chance
to interact with educators
from the Edenton-Chowan
Schools.
Each time, she said, she
came away convinced it
would be a great place to
work.
“Edenton-Chowan has
always had exemplary
schools,” she said. “The
teachers and others I met,
you could just tell their qual
ity.”
Steinert added, “It (school
system) just felt like a
friendly place and a place I
wouldn’t mind coming to.”
See PRINCIPAL, Page A2 ►
INDEX
A Local
Land Transfers...A4
Editorial...A5
B Sports
Recreation News....... B1
Nascar........... B2
h„; ■ ■ . ■■ ^
C Community News
Upcoming Events......C2
Society...C3
Obituaries.C4
Church...C5,6
K':,' -v ■ ;■ •:■■
- D Classifieds
Buy/Sell/Trade.D1
Service Directory....... D2
Employment............,.D4
6 ""8 9 0 7 6"4 4 813” 0
©2006 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved <
CHICKENS PROVIDE EARLY WARNING
SYSTEM AGAINST DISEASE
By Vernon Fueston
Contributing Writer
Five chickens in William
Davidson’s Edenton back yard
stand guard against the spread
of three major viral diseases
into the area as part of a state
wide public health program.
Now one of the birds is gone.
Only four of the five cages
were occupied Friday One
bird has tested positive for the
Eastern Equine Encephalitis
virus (EEE) in a weekly blood
test on the birds conducted
by the town’s environmental
health department.
The virus affects horses and,
occasionally, humans accord
ing to the Centers for Disease
Control.
EEE does not produce dis
ease in chickens, just an im
mune response according to
Ralph Hollowell, Director of
Environmental Health for the
region.
The infected bird is not con
tagious and will live out its
days in relative comfort on an
area farm, he said.
The chickens serve as an
early-warning system to pub
lic health authorities on the
spread of Eastern Equine En
cephalitis, the West Nile Virus
and the “J” Virus, Davidson,
a garage supervisor for the
town, said.
Among Davidson’s responsi
bilities is the town’s mosquito
control program. The viruses
are spread by mosquitoes.
The birds are maintained by
the town as part of a statewide
program to monitor the spread
of the diseases.
This is the second year the
chickens have been kept by the
town. The next nearest moni
toring station is in Currituck,
according to Davidson.
The program also has insect
Fiscal crisis may play big role in
Chowan County’s Nov. elections
By Bob Montgomery
The Daily Advance
Chowan commission can
didate Earl Willis says he
used to tell his high school
history students that po
litical change can’t happen
without a strong two-party
system.
Willis, a registered Repub
lican who grew up in Dare
County and. taught school
in Perquimans County, says
he never had far to look to
prove his point.
“The two-party system
is not healthy in northeast
North • Carolina,” Willis
said, referring to the Demo
cratic party’s dominance in
the region’s politics.
“And the only way that
would change is if good
people were willing to give
voters a choice.”
Thanks to Willis and four
other Republicans on the
ballot this November, Chow
an voters will have a choice
of candidates when they go
to the polls.
But it’s because of Chow
an County’s ongoing fi
nancial crisis — the local
Vernon Fueston
William Davidson, Garage Supervisor for the Town of
Edenton, with one of the town's "Sentinel Chickens."
catching traps located around the county, testing mos
quitoes for the viruses.
Davidson said only young virgin hens are used in
the experiments to reduce any variables that could
skew the results. The birds are provided by the State.
The chickens are tested weekly for antibodies
against the diseases that would indicate exposui'e, ac
cording to Hollowell.
Public health officials check the chickens for anti
bodies in their blood weekly, drawing a sample from
a blood vessel under the wing, he said.The laboratory
tests for the virus are conducted by a lab in Raleigh.
Davidson said he was expecting the arrival of a
replacement hen in a few days, filling out the popula
tion.
The town is advising citizens to take steps to avoid
mosquito bites and reduce mosquito-breeding condi
tions around the home.
government dominated by
Democrats suddenly found
itself this summer $3.8 mil
lion in the hole and contin
ues to struggle to pay its
bills — that Willis may fi
nally get thsft two-party sys
tem he’s been seeking.
Willis’ opponent for Seat 1
in Chowan’s District 3 this
fall is Ralph Cole Sr., the
commission board’s chair
man.
In any other year, un
seating the chairman of
the commission board in
a county that has elected
mostly Democrats would
seem a nearly impossible
task.
But maybe not this year.
Like most of the other
Republicans on the Chowan
ballot this fall, Willis, 60, be
lieves citizens remain high
ly upset about the county’s
ongoing fiscal. crisis and
county officials’ steward
ship of Chowan’s finances.
County commissioners
learned only in July‘that,
thanks to overestimates in
revenue by the former coun
ty manager, Chowan had a
$3.8 million shortfall in the
current-year budget.
In response, commission
ers were forced to raise the
county property tax rate by
9 cents — from 56 cents to 65
cents — and cut county ex
penses by 10 percent.
Chowan commissioners
also learned this summer
that the county’s former
$29 million nest egg — built
with proceeds from the sale
of Chowan Hospital a de
cade ago — had dwindled
to $700,000 over a five-year
span.
They have authorized
several investigations into
where the hospital monies
were spent and whether
there was any wrongdoing
in their expenditure.
But the county’s former
manager, Cliff Copeland,
has said the funds were bor
rowed to pay the county’s
expenses and avert property
•tax increases. Copeland re
tired in June after 29 years,
before the shortfall was dis
covered by the state Local
Government Commission.
Throughout the crisis, a
See ELECTION, Page A2 >
Fiscal Crisis
H
LGC to Early tax
evaluate payments
progress up 20%
By Vernon Fueston
Contributing Writer
Chowan County’s finan
cial restructuring plan re
ceived either an up or down
decision by the State yester
day, but the outcome was not
available at press time.
After clearing several
hurdles prescribed by the
State’s Local Government
Council, the county present
ed a plan restructuring its
debt payments on two major
capital loans.
Chowan needs the debt re
structuring to make its cash
flow projections work and
meet its monthly expenses.
County Manager Peter
Rascoe said other pre-condi
tions for the debt restructur
ing were met by the county.
On Aug. 14 the commis
sioners passed a revision
balancing the budget using
revised revenue figures ac
ceptable to the State. It was
a compromise budget mix
ing cost-cutting measures
with a realty tax increase.
Rascoe said passing the
budget at that commission
er’s meeting, a measure
heatedly opposed by some,
was necessary to get the
debt re-structuring calen
dared on this meeting of the
LGC.
Rascoe’s plan reduces pay
ments on two key loans from
BB&T covering the construe
tion of D.F. Walker School
and the Northern Chowan
Community Center.
The plan extends both
loans from 15 years to 20,
reducing the annual pay
ments.
The $9.95 million D.F.
Walker loan was due for an
annual payment of $1.04 mil
lion on Sept. 29. If approved,
a new payment of $710,000 is
scheduled for March 29.
A payment on the $4.5 mil
lion community center loan
w.as scheduled on April 31 of
$391,000. That payment was
reduced to $258,000.
Rascoe was optimistic
about the county’s chances
for approval, citing its com
pliance with the LGC’s sug
gestions.
“We have been working
with the LGC at least three
times per week on cash flow,”
Rascoe said. “We have not
made any administrative de
cisions with finances unless
the LGC has concurred with
each of the things we have
done.”
The State could take over
the county’s financial re
sponsibilities if it is unable
to meet its cash flow require
ments.
It has done that only four
times in North Carolina
since 1990 according to Sar
ah Lang, an LGC spokesper
son.
In such instances, Rascoe
See LGC, Page A2 >
County tax su
pervisor Lynda
Hendrix said
early tax pay
ments have
jumped to
$86,000 over
last year.
Officials estimate
county to be back
in black by Nov.
By Rebecca Bunch
Staff Writer
Chowan County should
begin experiencing positive
cash flow again soon, said
County Manager Peter Ras
coe.
“Right now, the state
and county joint cash flow .
analysis shows the county
should begin running in the
black (by November),” Ras
coe said.
Rascoe said a key element
in the county’s ongoing ef
fort to recover from its bud
get shortfall has been the
big increase in property
taxes paid early this year.
Lynda Hendrix, county
tax supervisor, said those
payments have jumped
about 20 percent — or
$86,000 — over last year this
time.
She said that many of
those who have come in
have said they normally
wait until the end of the
year to pay their taxes.
But, she said, “they are
telling us when they come
in that they are making a
special effort to pay early
this year to help the county
over this crisis.”
Rascoe said that has been
a tremendous help as the '
county has struggled to
meet its weekly operating
expenses.
“All citizens need to be
extremely grateful to those
property owners who have
chosen to pay their taxes
early,” he said.
“By doing that, it allows
the county to more easily
meet its financial obliga
tions, and therefore avoid
having to consider incur
ring more debt.”
About paying
County tax bills for real
and personal property must
be postmarked before Jan.
6 in order for a taxpayer to
avoid paying interest.
The Chowan County tax
office is located in the Coun
ty Office Building on East
King Street. *
Hours are Monday
through Friday from 8 a.m.
until 5 p.m. Taxes may be
paid by cash, check or mon
ey order, debit/credit card.
Payments may be mailed
to: Chowan County Tax
Department, P.O. Box *1030,
Edenton, N.C. 27932.
SHRINERS *™“1 FISHERY JSISSS
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