Two local boat building facilities to
shut doors until January, 95
employees to be laid off see below
$$$3f* $
482-4418
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Magnificent obsession
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After three years of solitary effort,
it’s beginning to take shape. The pon
toon platform Robert Reiheld built
from scratch at a dock behind his home
on Queen Anne Creek has grown a su
’" per structure and is beginning to look
like a houseboat.
On Friday, Reiheld was painting the
plywood that covers what he hopes will
be the living quarters of his dream
boat. He said he fell in love with the
idea the first time he saw one.
“I was with my grandfather at the
time, traveling through Canada,” Rei
Two area boat plants furlough
employees as economy slows
Albemarle Boats &
Regulator Marine
to stop producation
until January 5
By Vernon Fueston
Contributing Writer
Two local boat manufac
turers will shut down tem
porarily as economic condi
tions slow nationally Two
other plants report stable
and even increasing sales.
Albemarle Boats and Reg
ulator Marine announced
plans to close their plants
and stop production over the
next two months.
Carolina Classic Boats
said it will continue pro
duction while watching de
velopments. Calyber Boats
reported an increase in its
workforce over the last four
months.
Albemarle Boats will
cease production Oct. 27,
laying off 35 employees un
til Jan. 5.
02006 The Chowan Herald
; i All Rights Reserved
Robert Reiheld builds his
dream houseboat from
scratch in his back yard >
held said. “He never got to build his, but I de
cided it was time to build mine.”
When the craft is finished, it will have all the
amenities of a home, complete with a kitchen
and sleeping quarters.
Reiheld began building his houseboat three
The company is hoping to
reduce the number of boats
held by its dealers, accord
ing to Dan Kubera, spokes
person for Brunswick Corpo
ration, Albemarle’s parent
company. He said sales have
been off double digits dur
ing this calendar year.
Regulator Marine is in the
midst of a phased furlough
that began in mid October.
The plant will close after
the last boat in production
is completed during the first
week in November. Over 60
of the company’s 78 employ
ee’s will be laid off during
furlough. Some workers will
stay on during the closure,
keeping customer service
and sales functions going.
The company expects to
re-open for business Jan. 5.
Rex Anderson, spokesman
for Regulator said the clo
sure is a product of several
factors that have combined
to hurt sales. •
“There’s an unprecedent
ed downturn in the boating
industry and a general mal
aise in the economy right
now,” Anderson said. “Add
ed to that is a credit crunch.
That impacts not only the
consumer but also our deal
ers.”
Anderson said he believes
the rescue plan just adopted
by congress should provide
some relief from tight cre
did.
“That should improve the
economy,” he said. “That’s
why we’re optimistic about
2009.”
Carolina Classic Boats
is not planning to close
its doors other than for a
planned Christmas break,
said Mack Privot, the com
pany’s president.
Privot said the company
is operating with half the
number of employees it had
before the slowdown. He
said the company has orders
on the books right now, but
is watching carefully for
cancellations.
Calyber Boats is actually
expanding it’s work force.
Jim Murphy, spokesper
son for the company, said
they have hired one person
each month for the last four
months to keep up with de
mand.
Murphy credits Calyber’s
new line of “green” boats
for the surge. He said the
boats are produced using
techniques that significantly
reduce the release of green
house gases and also burn
50% less fuel than previous
models.
years ago and said he hopes it will be
able to take a short cruise under its
own power next summer. But even
then, the boat will still be several years
from completion.
His wife, Amelia, can’t wait.
“I think it will be great fun,” she said.
“If I could just figure out what to do
with the grand piano, it would be per
fect. I’d love to go around the Eastern
half of North America with it.”
“If we make it to Charleston, if will
be a success,” Robert said.
— by Vernon Fueston
Senator Dole
makes stop
By Rebecca Bunch
Staff Writer
Sen. Elizabeth Dole defended her
‘no’ vote on the controversial Wall
Street bailout during a brief cam
paign appearance in Edenton in the
final days before the election.
Dole said she and a small group of
other Republicans in Congress “stood
in front of the train” to try and pre
vent the measure from passing.
She said she objected to the way
the plan was crafted, saying it did not
do nearly enough to protect the inter
ests of America’s homeowners.
Chowan County Republican Chair
Bob Steinburg introduced Dole.
He praised her for standing firm
against the bailout bill.
“That,” he said, “is someone we
can trust.”
Energy aid
Dole; also spoke in favor of seeing a
comprehensive energy policy devel
oped that would include drilling for
oil.
“I hope you all agree with that,”
she told the audience.
She said she thinks America needs
to work harder to develop alternative
sources of energy.
“The way I see it,” Dole said, “ev
erything is on the table, including
the kitchen sink, because it (devel
oping new sources) needs to be done
now.”
She also said she favors allowing
See DOLE, Page A2 ►
DISTRICT THREE
Cole
Ralph Cole Sr.
DOB: Oct. 27,1940; Age: 67
Political Offices Held:
Chowan County Commis
sioners
Occupation: Former prin
cipal of D.F. Walker, Direc
tor of the student teaching
program at ECSU
Party: Democrat
Willis
Earl W. Willis Jr.
DOB: Aug. 1,1948; Age: 60
Political Offices Held:
None
Occupation: Retired high
school teacher, real estate
broker.
Party: Republican
Race pits new
comer against
chairman
By Vernon Fueston
Contributing Writer
Third district voters will decide between* -y-?
a former government teacher and political
newcomer and an incumbent county commis
sioner who currently serves as chairman of
the board.
The race has taken several new turns since
Ralph Cole, Sr. and Earl W. Willis, Jr. filed their
candidacies last spring.
The ballot of candidates this fall grew over
previous elections with the introduction of
a full slate of challengers by the Republican
party
Then voters were rocked by the news that the
county’s coffers, once considered cash-flush,
are drained below legal limits.
No active campaign
In the months that followed that announce
ment, Cole did not actively campaign. When
contacted for this article, he said he is not ac
tively seeking re-election.
Cole said his name will appear on the bal
lot because the deadline for withdrawal from
the race has passed. He said that if elected, he
would serve on the commission.
Mr. Cole declined an interview for this ar
ticle.
Offering a choice
Earl W. Willis said his best qualification for
the job is his lack of experience on the com
mission. He spoke to the Herald before Cole’s
announcement.
“I’m not an incumbent,” Willis said. “With
all the events lately, that’s is really an advan
tage. I ran to give the voters a choice.”
Willis also pointed to his high school teach
ing career. He taught history and government
for over thirty years, willis said he’s learned a
few things from teaching government that he
hopes to apply to the county commission.
Plans if elected
“I want to make government more open and
transparent,” Willis said. “I’d change the meet
ing times to 7 p.m. and insure access by video
on the public service cable channels.”
He also suggested changing the meeting lo
cations to outlying locations like the Northern
Chowan Community Center on a rotating basis
for citizen convenience.
Willis said the county needs to change some
of it’s financial procedures. He suggested
rotating the county auditor’s contract every
three years as one example.
Major issues
Willis said the new commission must restore
a proper balance to the relationship between it
See ELECTION, Page A2 ►
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