Wednesday, April 27, 2016
SHEPHERD PRUDEN LIBRARY
106 W WATER ST
EDENTON NC 27932-1854
482-4418
Look for
“Living Here"
inside today’;
Chowan
Herald
50*
Progress Edenton continues to move community forward
BY REBECCA BUNCH
Staff Writer
During Progress Edenton’s
organizational meeting on April
19 one of its leaders, MaryScott
Haigler, made their primary mis
sion crystal clear.
“We’re just going to pash on,”
she said, referring to tire group’s
determination not to give up de
spite the town council’s decision
not to sell the former Northeast
Commission Building.
Progress Edenton is a group of
like-minded people who are in fa
vor of bringing a brew pub to the
town to occupy the former North
east Commission building.
Haigler said the group intends
to seek a new vote by the council
and to let them know that “it’s okay
for you to change your mind.”
“What we need to focus on at
this point is positive information,”
Haigler added. “We need to get out
and spread the word.”
The town council voted 4-2 at
a recent meeting not to sell the
building but the group’s leaders
are hopeful they will agree .to a
second vote on the issue. In the
meantime, they are using social
and print media to help share their
' See PROGRESS, 6A
STAFF PHOTO BY REBECCA BUNCH
Citizens attending the Progress
Edenton meeting held at the
1767 Chowan Courthouse on
April 19 talk and sign in while
waiting for the program to get
started.
Cycle NC

STAFF PHOTO BY REBECCA BUNCH
_ omrrrnuiUDl KCDCHA BUT
Cyel® NC riders began their Sunday morning with the final ride they would make during the spring coastal ride in Edenton Thev will return
again in three years after doing their next spring coastal rides in other communities. See Cycle NC etory on IB Y
Trustees
OK new
agtech
program
BY WILLIAM F. WEST
The Daily Advance
Starting in fall 2017, stu
dents interested in learning
fanning and animal produc
tion techniques could learn
those skills at College of
The Albemarle.
The COA Board of Trust
ees gave the go-ahead Tues
day to a degree program
in sustainable agriculture
technology.
The program, which re
quires approval by the N.C.
Community College Sys
tem, would offer both a two
year associate’s degree and
a one-year certificate. COA'
also would offer workforce
development opportunities
and continuing education
courses in sustainable agri
culture technology.
COA President Kandi
Deitemeyer said college of
ficials believe a sustainable
agriculture program could
be successful at COAs satel
lite campuses.
See COA, 6A
Billboard at entrance to town draws ire
BY KbliUlt PONDER
Editor
A billboard on North
Broad Street just north of
the Town of Edenton has
drawn sharp criticism from
some residents because of
its strongly worded message
about homosexuality.
Noting the strategic loca
tion of the billboard at an
entrance to the community,
Roger Coleman compared
the billboard’s message to
the “sundown town” era
when some communities
had billboards warning
blacks not to be in that town
after sundown.
“The billboard’s presence
makes as no different than
the ‘sundown towns’ of the
past with their ho blacks
after dark’ signs,” Coleman,
a retired minister, said in
a letter to the editor of the
Chowan Herald.
Local businesswoman
Gail Singh also blasted the
billboard’s message in a let
ter to the editor. Singh said
that kind of message at an
©2009 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved


STAFF PHOTO BY
REGGIE PONDER
This billboard
on North Broad
Street is drawing
fire from some
local residents
because of its
strongly worded
statement on
homosexuality -
‘homosexuality is
an abomination'
- and its location
near an entrance
to the town.
entrance to the commu
nity can deter the visitors
and retirees who help fuel
Edenton’s economy.
“Pragmatically, we know
that this kind of ‘welcome’
into town may discourage
the kinds of visitors we so
badly need,” Singh said in
the letter. “For instance,
in the last two weeks, two
couples (one who chose
Edenton as a place to live
recently and one who chose
Edenton as a wedding loca
tion) have tried to put me
on the defensive by asking
about the billboard.”
Thomas Baumgartner, a
frequent writer of letters to
the editor, also has weighed
in on the billboard.
“I do not have much con
fidence that I can trigger
some rational thought in
the person who put up this
billboard, but I do hope at
least to alert all who see it
to this very negative mes
sage being given to people
who come here and encour
age them to make a real ef
fort to make the point with
such people that it does not
See BILLBOARD, 6A
Teen’s
death
being
examined
From staff reports
The Chowan County
Sheriffs Office is continue
ing its investigation into the
death last September of 18
year-old Jesse A. Wood.
An autopsy report re
leased last week deter
mined that Wood’s death’
on Sept 30 was the resulted
of combined toxic effects
of cocaine and methadone.
The report also noted the
presence of numerous pre
scription drugs and multiple
abrasions.
John McArthur, a detec
tive with the Chowan Coun
ty Sheriff’s Office, said last
week that investigators are
reviewing the autopsy re
port and continuing to look
into the circumstances sur
rounding Wood’s 'death.
"The sheriffs office is still
actively investigating this
death to try to determine
how Jesse was able to get
these drugs or who he was
able to get the drugs front ”
McArthur said.
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