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482-4418
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Group confident VC to keep 7 days
By REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
Local officials are ex
pressing optimism that the
Historic Edenton Visitor
Center will remain open
seven days a week for the
foreseeable future.
Mayor Roland Vaughan,
who led a local delegation
to Raleigh Feb. 28 in a show
of support for the center,
said he was pleased that a
subcommittee — charged
with studying budget-cut
ting proposals produced by
a staff research panel for
the N.C. General Assem
bly — declined to send the
proposals to the full Joint
Legislative Program Evalu
ation Oversight Committee
for its consideration.
The panel,had recom
mended in its plan that
the Edenton Visitor Center
be closed on Sundays and
Mondays to save the state
more than $100,000 annu
ally
The subcommittee’s re
fusal also offered a reprieve
to Museum of the Albemar
le in Elizabeth City, which
the panel had recommend
ed be closed permanently
“We were all favorably
impressed with the out
come,” Vaughan said.
Vaughan said that the
Edenton delegation also
included Town Manager
Anne-Marie Knighton, His
toric Edenton Visitor Cen
ter Manager Linda Eure,
Sally Francis Kehayes from
the Cupola House Associa
tion, Norman Brinkley and
Frances Inglis from the
Edenton Historical Com
mission.
Kehayes said that she
was pleased to he able to
attend. She said that the
Cupola House historic site,
which is unmanned, ben
efits greatly from the walk
ing tours given daily by the
Visitor Center.
“I left confident that the
Visitor Center would not
be closed on Sundays and
Mondays,” Kehayes said.
“We need to continue to
have the services they pro
vide as we all work to draw
people to Edenton.”
Vaughan added that the
delegation appreciated
the opportunity to attend
as well as the support of
fered by state Sen. Fletch
er Hartsell, R-Cabarrus.
Hartsell spoke during the
subcommittee meeting
about Edenton and the im
portance of the visitor cen
ter to the community
Hartsell, whose daughter
and son-in-law were Salva
tion Army officers in the
See CENTER, 2A
Site’s
water
move on
schedule
No money available
for public access
By REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
While the driving of pil
ings to support the 1886 Ro
anoke River Lighthouse’s
placement over the down
town Edenton waterfront
could get under way in a
matter of days, public ac
cess and completion of its
interior facelift remains
uncertain.
Paul Waff, owner of
Waff Contracting, said Fri
day morning that his crew
“hopes to have pilings driv
en next week.” But watch
ing preparations, and the
actual relocation itself,
will be about as close as the
public will be able to get to
the historic structure any
time soon.
Current funding for the
moving of the lighthouse
does not include sufficient
funds to build a ramp that
would allow visitors to go
inside and look around the
yet to be restored interior.
Mark Cooney, director
of capital projects for the
N.C. Department of Cul
tural Resources, said that
the $271,000 in contingen
cy funds the department
came up with in 2010 to
move the lighthouse out
over the water would not
be enough to cover con
struction of a ramp as
well.
Cooney said that phase I
of the lighthouse restora
tion project had originally
called for the lighthouse
to stand on a permanent
foundation on land leased
from the town at the down
town park, and for exte
rior work to be completed
using federal stimulus
dollars.
However, when soil con
tamination was discov
ered at that site in 2010,
and plans altered to put
the lighthouse over the wa
ter, “everything changed,”
Cooney said.
Cooney said at that point
the project had to be con
sidered as if it was an en
tirely new endeavor; that
in turn drove up the cost,
See LIGHTHOUSE, 4A
11
0
©2009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
TO KILL A
SQUIRREL
FILE PHOTO
Although the town of Edenton has historically allowed residents to fatally shoot squirrels that were causing a property
nuisance, it plans to soon revoke the policy. Instead, residents will have to turn to the N.C. Wildlife Commission for trap
ping permits.
Town wants no part of killing squirrels
N.C. Wildlife will
be alternative
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Soon the town of Edenton
will no longer allow resi
dents to fatally shoot squir
rels perceived to be a nuisance. If
the police chief gets his way, the
town would get out of the squir
rel killing business altogether.
For years the town has allowed
its police chief to issue permits
on a case-by-case basis so prop
erty owners could kill squirrels
by a firearm, although a town or
dinance prohibits the discharge
of a gun inside town limits. That
contradiction as well as a few
other factors have led to the con
clusion that the town should no
longer permit the practice. The
matter will come before the Town
Council on Tuesday night.
Early indications suggest the
Council will stop the permitting.
Police Chief Jay Fortenbery also
prefers that he be exempted from
handling the fate of squirrels in
any capacity, saying the manage
ment of such rodents fall under
the domain of the N.C. Wildlife
Commission.
“It’s just not a safe practice to
shoot a gun in town,” Fortenbery
said. “From an insurance stand
point, it’s just too much liability
If someone wants to kill squir
rels, they’ll have to get permis
sion from Wildlife.”
Fortenbery said he has re
searched and learned that other
police departments don’t permit
the practice..
Town officials also learned
from its liability insurance car
rier that Edenton should discon
tinue the practice. Town Manager
Anne Marie Knighton said the
N.C. League of Municipalities
said the practice puts the police
chief in a difficult position, since
his authorization of a permit is a
discretionary call.
“If there were to be an accident
them the chiefs judgment would
certainly be called into ques
tion,” Knighton said.
Before issuing a permit to
shoot squirrels, the chief would
conduct an inspection of the
property to determine if it was
warranted. Typically, the resi
dent must show proof of some
form of property nuisance.
Fortenbery said he has issued
as many as four such permits.
See SQUIRREL, 3A
Ex-police
chief
files
for seat
From staff reports
A former Edenton po
lice chief has entered the
political arena after filing
to run for a seat on the
Chowan County Board of
Commissioners.
Greg Bonner, 58, was the
last local candidate to file
before last
Wednes
day’s noon
deadline,
accord
ing to the
Board of
Elections.
The
Democrat Bonner
will face Republican Earl
Willis for the District 3
seat.
Incumbent Democrat
Ralph Cole opted not to
seek re-election.
Bonner said the deci
sion to run had been on
his mind for a while.
He said his candidacy
platform plans to focus
on unifying the town and
county.
“I would like to see the
town and county govern
ments work more closely
together for the better
ment of our entire com
munity,” Bonner said. “I
would really like to be a
part of making that hap
pen.”
Bonner added that he
wants to be part of fur
ther advancing the county
from its financial turmoil
that led Chowan to the
brink of bankruptcy and
possible state takeover.
Bonner was Edenton’s
first and only black po
lice chief, but not the first
black officer.
He joined the Edenton
See BONNER, 4A
Judge dismisses 6 complaints of Parrish
Hinton: No evidence
Parrish violated law
By WILLIAM F. WEST
Staff Writer
A Superior Court judge on Fri-.
day dismissed six of the eight
complaints filed by citizens call
ing for the suspension or removal
of District Attorney Frank Par
rish.
In a one-page order filed with
the Pasquotank County Superior
Court Clerk’s Office, Judge Alma
Hinton of Roanoke Rapids said
she reviewed six
of the complaints
and concluded
Parrish did not
break any state
laws governing
district attorneys’
conduct.
Hinton further
said she found
Parrish "has conducted himself
within the bounds of his prosecu
torial discretion.”
Neither Parrish nor his attor
ney, James Maxwell of Durham,
could be reached for comment
Friday.
Hinton
Kathryn Fagan,
a Manteo attor
ney representing
all eight of the
persons who filed
the complaints,
appeared stunned
when reached for
comment late Fri
day afternoon.
“I have not seen the order or
the dismissal as yet because, as
throughout the entire process,
my presence in it has been ig
nored,” Fagan said.
Fagan called both the judge’s
decision not to hold a hearing on
Parrish
the complaints and the fact she
hadn’t been notified of the dis
missal “absolutely outrageous.”
Fagan claimed her clients had
compiled more evidence against
Parrish than those who made com
plaints against Tracey Cline, the
Durham County district attorney
who was permanently removed
from office on Friday. Superior
Court Judge Robert H. Hobgood
removed Cline for making public
statements about another judge
that he said undermined public
confidence in the justice system.
See PARRISH, 4A
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