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Herald
editor bids
goodbye
— 5A
50«
Patriot’s Pointe
withdraws CUP
application
Builder plans to
return at later date
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
Efforts to bring afford
able living apartments to
Edenton ended when the
builder withdrew an ap
plication for a conditional
use permit, marking the
second such failure in a
month.
The Raleigh-based Caro
lina Project Equities opted
to withdraw its CUP ap
plication for the proposed
Patriot’s Pointe, a 72-unit
apartment complex along
Paradise Road. Friday’s
sudden reversal came as
the Planning Board contin
ued to study the builder’s
market feasibility study
that shows Edenton-Chow
McCrory
appoints
Goodwin
to post
By RITCHIE E. STARNES
Editor
After November’s failed
bid to become secretary
of state, the former chair
man of the Chowan Coun
ty Board of Commission
ers has been appointed to
work on
behalf of
the gover
nor.
Gov. Pat
McCrory
has named
fellow
Republi
can Eddy
Goodwin as his regional
director for eastern North
Carolina. The post calls
for Goodwin to represent
McCrory, serving as a li
aison at events the gover
nor is unable to attend in
counties east of 1-95.
“I am proud of Ed’s pub
lic service record and sol
id character,” McCrory
said Monday. “His roots
run deep in eastern North
Carolina and I’m excited
to have him join our team
as eastern regional direc
tor.”
Goodwin began the job
two weeks ago, having
already attended about
eight functions for Mc
Crory.
“If the governor is re
quested to speak and he
can’t make it, I speak
on his behalf,” Goodwin
said. “I’m supposed to
represent all of the people
(not partisan) and pro
vide information to the
governor’s office.”
See GOODWIN, 2A
02009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
an in dire need of more af
fordable housing.
Because of the Planning
Board’s delay to render,a
recommendation earlier
this month so it could re
view the study with the
Town Council not expected
to consider the CUP until
May 14, the builder found
itself pressedagainstaMay
17 deadline with the N.C.
Housing Finance Agency
The contractor had to com
plete its request for federal
tax credits that would en
able renters access to lease
amounts based on their
income.
Project Equities’ partner
Mark Tipton said Monday
that the withdrawal is only
a temporary setback.
“It just got to be so close
we thought we’d take a
See APPLICATION, 2A
Wonders of Spring
PHOTO BY REBECCA LOWE
If sneezing from airborne pollen hasn’t signaled the start of spring, the bright yellow fields of rape sure add to the season
not to mention local scenery like this crop off N.C. 32, east of town. After the flower stops blooming the seeds fill out and dry
before harvesting. The seed (about the size of a poppy seed) is used in making canola oil and feed for livestock.
Farmers Market to accept SNAP tokens
By REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
The Edenton Farmers
Market will reopen Satur
day morning with a few
additions, including the
acceptance of SNAP (Sup
plemental Nutrition Assis
tance Program) as a form of
payment.
Vero Brentjens, who
manages the market, said
that beginning this week
end SNAP tokens will be ac
cepted for the first time.
Brentjens said those who
come to the market with the
SNAP tokens would be able
to purchase many different
fresh food items.
“This is something we
have been working on for a
while now because we felt it
was a real need in our com
munity with so many peo
ple out of work and needing
assistance,” Brentjens said.
“Come Saturday, this will
mark the end of a long road
for us as we have worked
diligently to bring this ser
vice to the market”
Another new feature this
year will be the start-up of
cooking demonstrations by
a local chef, Leslie Lippin
cott, using foods available
for purchase at the market.
Recipe cards will be avail
able so people can make at
home the dishes they see
demonstrated, Brentjens
said.
“We are very excited to
be offering this,” Brentjens.
“Our feeling is, let’s see if
we can use this to get people
toeatwelL”
The demonstrations are
tentatively scheduled to be
gin in late June, Brentjens
said.
There will also be some
new vendors including
Donna Spivey of Perqui
mans County who will be
bringing baked goods.
Returning vendors will
include Malcolm King,
co-owner of Edenton Bay
Trading Company who will
be back with a variety of
artisan cheeses produced
at small North Carolina
dairies such as the Chapel
Hill Creamery and the Goat
Lady Dairy
It was just last year that
King began having a pres
ence at the market but he
said he thoroughly enjoyed
the experience and decided
to come back. ,
“We don’t make the
cheese, we don’t milk the
cows, but we thought work
ing with some of the smaller
dairies to make their chees
es available here would
make sense,” King said.
The market runs from
8 a.m. until noon on the
grounds of the old D.E
Walker School.
Donations cover N.C. Supreme Court expenses
Gov. McCrory might
attend 300th festivities
By REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
The convening of the N.C.
Supreme Court in Edenton
next Wednesday will usher in
a month-long series of events
designed to continue the town’s
300th anniversary celebration,
but travel expenses nearly kept
the high court away.
If not for the donations of
First Judicial District Bar As
sociation and the Edenton
Historical Commission, the
Supreme Court
could not have
met its travel
budget for the
session in Eden
ton, the state’s
only other loca
tion outside of
Raleigh where ftllln_
the court can
meet per legislation. The chief
justice accepted the invitation,
but the budget failed to include
funds for meals and lodging, ac
cording to Town Manager Anne
Marie Knighton.
“Bob, we can’t come. We’ve
lost our travel funds,” Council
man Bob Quinn said that Sarah
Parker, the court’s chief justice,
told him.
Quinn, who is also chairman
of the 300th committee, reached
out to the bar association and
EHC about assistance.
The bar association offered to
host a reception Tuesday eve
ning, and the EHC negotiated a
discount for rooms at the Pack
House, and will pay the expense,
Knighton said. Then Knighton
researched whether the dona
tions violated any code of ethics
with the Supreme Court.
“I talked to Christy Roader,
Clerk to the Supreme Court, and
she vetted these arrangements
with Judicial Standards and
the State Ethics Commission,”
Knighton said. “Both entities
indicated that the expenses be
ing paid for are expenses nec
essary and part of the court’s
meeting in Edenton, and the
arrangements pose no issues of
concern.”
Beginningat9:30a.m. Wednes
day the court will hear a series
of three cases at the historic
1767 Chowan Courthouse on
East King Street. A 15-minute
break will be observed between
cases so that the courtroom can
be cleared, allowing more spec
tators to observe.
See COURT, 2A
Tax-tag program to get under way in July
Drivers pay both
bills at once *
By CINDY BEAMON
Staff Writer
Bills will soon go
out to the first wave of
North Carolina driv
ers to start paying
their vehicle taxes and
license renewals at the
same time.
Vehicle owners with
a "7” sticker (for the
month of July) on their
license tags will be the
first to get the new bills
with a new look. The
“tag and tax together”
bill will include both
the license renewal
fee and the vehicle’s
property taxes. Under
the old system, those
bills were mailed and
collected separately by
county tax offices and
the state Department
of Motor Vehicles.
The new tax and tag
notices for July will be
mailed by mid-May,
said DMV communi
cations officer Marga
ret Howell. Payment
will be due by Aug. 1,
with a 15-day grace
period before interest
kicks in.
Eventually, all ve
hicle owners will be
switched over to the
new system. Each
month as registration
renewals come due,
vehicle owners will
receive the combined
tag and tax notices.
For example, the next
wave of bills will go
out for vehicle owners
with an “8” sticker (for
the month of August).
The process will con
tinue each month until
everyone is switched
over to the new billing
system.
The new “tag and
tax together” billing
will have one major
advantage.
Instead of receiving
two bills — one for
taxes and one for tags
— taxpayers will only
receive one. Vehicle
owners will still have
See TAX-TAfi, 3A
PHOTO COURTESY STATE
OF NORTH CAROLINA
This image shows
a sample regis
tration renewal
form. Visit ncdot.
gov/dmv/ for
more information.
B ?;
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