CHOWA^HERALD
482-4418 Wednesday, January 30, 2019 75*
Boyle recalls
Monroe’s trip
to Edenton
-1B
LGC talks to town council about water loans
Timeline for Conger
building discussed
BY MILES LAYTON
Staff Writer
Members of the state’s
Local Government Commis
sion visited Town Council
Monday to follow up on
matters arising from secur
ing loans needed to finance
the improvements needed to
get the town’s drinking wa
ter back in compliance with
state law.
When the LGC approved
Edenton’s application for a
$2.6 million U.S. Department
of Agriculture loan on Jan.
8, members expressed some
criticism for how the town
handles it finances. That
loan, combined with a $1.1
million USDA grant the town
was awarded, will pay for
$3.7 million in upgrades and
renovations to the town’s
two water treatment plants.
LGC took issue with
Edenton’s most recent au
dit report that listed several
material weaknesses in the
town’s accounting practices
and internal fiscal controls.
One finding from the audit,
for example, was that pur
chase orders weren’t always
prepared before purchases
were made but instead pre
pared afterward.
“The LCG team has been
extremely helpful and pro
vided recommendations
which we have implemented
to strengthen our internal
controls,” Town Manager
Anne-Marie Knighton said
during Monday’s council
meeting. :
Sharon Edmondson, LGC
director of fiscal manage
ment, explained the loan ap
proval process and why LGC
members grilled Edenton.
“I do think a lot of the com
ments made at the meeting
were not directed at Edenton
per se, you just happen to be
in the room,” she said.
Edmondson said LGC
believes Edenton is taking
the appropriate steps to ad
dress problems associated
with the audit, and‘that the
town is not the only govern
mental agency dealing with
matters of compliance and
accounting needed to secure
loans needed to improve
infrastructure. She said be
cause grant funding for such
projects is harder to come
by, more local governments
are applying for financing —
loans that require approval
by the LGC before financing
is made available.
Edmondson said in recent
years, accounting standards
have “tightened up and be
come more strict than they
See COUNCIL, 6A
Family:
A Stop Before Heading South
Jones in
hospice
care
Congressman battling
undisclosed illness
Adams Publishing Group
FARMVILLE — U.S.
Rep Walter B. Jones Jr.,
who has represented the
3rd District of North Car
olina in
Congress P
s i n c e
1995, has
entered l >
h o s p i c e
care, ac
cording
to multi- —
ple news JONES
sources.
Jones, 75, has been
battling an undisclosed
illness since last fall. He
was granted a leave of
absence that has kept
him from casting votes
in the U.S. House since
September.
Adding to his health
woes, Jones suffered a
fall and broke his hip
earlier this month. He
underwent surgery at Vi
dant Medical Center on
Jan. 15, according to his
office.
The Farmville Repub
lican missed taking the
oaths of office with other
members of the 116th
Congress on Jan. 3, his
staff reported. He was
sworn in by Rep. G.K.
Butterfield during a pri
vate ceremony in Jones’
home on Jan. 4.
Speaking on Friday,
Butterfield described
Jones as “a very good
friend and has been a
friend for more than 20
years.”
While taking the oath
of office, Butterfield
said, Jones’ spirits were
good “and he was men
tally alert and he was
physically alert.” But
terifield said he thought
Jones would return to
the House soon.
However, the visit
took place before Jones
underwent hip surgery.
Jones first was sworn
in to the U.S. House of
Representatives in 1995,
See JONES, 2A
Like us on Facebook at
/THECHOWANHERALD
6 9076"44813'
©2019 The Chowan Herald
All Rights Reserved
PHOTOS BY MILES LAYTON/CHOWAN HERALD
Swans are familiar sight at the Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge.
Give birds a peek at Lake Mattamuskeet
Chowan Herald
HYDE COUNTY — A
few miles outside Fairfield
along NC 94, migratory
birds gather annually at
Lake Mattamuskeet.
At the peak of the migra
tions, more than 250,000
birds, including tundra
swans, snow geese, Canada
geese, and more than 20 spe
cies of ducks, winter within
the Mattamuskeet National
Wildlife Refuge. Established
in December 1934, the park
includes about 50,000 acres
of marshes, woods and wa
ter. The dominant feature is
Lake Mattamuskeet, which
is 18 miles long, seven
miles wide, and a swan’s
neck deep.
Observation decks
perched by water allow
bird enthusiasts to see and
photograph all sorts birds,
but the tundra swans are
the most striking.
December through Feb
ruary, large flocks of these
giant white birds with their
long necks gather in the
marshes of lake by the road
leading up to the lodge.
Sunday, a closer look at
a swan that was nesting by
Cycle NC seeks volunteers for spring ride
Coastal ride coming to
Edenton April 27-28
BY NICOLE BOWMAN-
LAYTON
Editor
0
Almost 2,000 bicyclists
are scheduled to descend
upcoming Edenton in April
and the group putting their
visit together could use
your help.
Cycle North Carolina will
host its Cycle NC Coastal
ride April 26-28, with the
historic town serving as the
At the peak of the migrations, more than 250,000 birds, including Tundra swans,
Snow Geese, Canada Geese, and more than 20 species of ducks, will be wintering
within the Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge.
the water’s edge revealed
a very large elegant bird.
Male tundra swans average
52 inches in length and 16
pounds in weight; females
average 51 inches in length
and 14 pounds in weight.
According to the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service,
the swans breed in the high
tundra across the top of
North America. At the ref ¬
VOLUNTEER
To volunteer for Cycle NC
Coastal, fill out the online
form at https://ncsupports.
org/event/cyclenc_coastal_
ride/volunteer/.
central hub. The rides vary
from 10-100 miles in length.
Each day of the event, bicy
clists will explore different
areas of northeastern North
Carolina.
See CYCLE, 5A
uge, they reside in the moist
soil units and the lakes and
forage on cropland on and
around the refuge. They
stay in large flocks when
they are in the area. Tun
dra swans feed on aquatic
plants found in shallow wa
ter by immersing their head
and neck.
The plumage of adult
tundra swans is completely
FILE PHOTO
Cycle NC riders will take to the streets of northeastern
North Carolina April 26-28. The event is seeking
volunteers to help about 2,000 bicyclists check-in and
work at water stops.
white, though their heads
and necks are often stained
a rusty color from ferrous
minerals encountered in
marsh soils during feed
ing. The bill is black and
often has a yellow spot at
the base. The legs and feet
are black and the iris is
dark brown. Both sexes are
See SWANS, 5A
Chamber
adds small
business
award
Annual banquet to be held
Thursday at American Legion
BY MILES LAYTON
Staff Writer
The Edenton-Chowan
Chamber of Commerce
will host its annual banquet
Thursday at the American
Legion Hall on West Queen
Street.
Social hour and silent
auction takes place be
tween 6 p.m. and 7 p.m.
with the dinner and awards
afterward. Banquet’s cater
ing will be by Kelly’s Outer
Banks Restaurant and Tav
ern.
A new award will be pre
sented, Small Business of
the Year.
“The award came about
after some on the Chamber
Board began talking the im
pacts that our small busi
nesses had on Edenton and
Chowan County, and how
they gave back to the com
munity through volunteer
ing, donations, and mentor
ing others,” said Win Dale,
chamber director.
Dale said the Chamber
established the Business
Person of the year award in
1984, but the Board talked
and discussed about creat
ing the new award to rec
ognize an actual business
and the positive impact it
made on the community.
The Chamber formally ap
proved the creation of the
Small Business of the Year
Award and directed Dale to
come up with criteria to be
included in nominations for
a 2018 winner. The Board
approved this criteria, and
the Chamber was able to
include the award with its
other award nomination
announcements in October
of 2018.
“We’re excited about
the inaugural year for this
award, and we’re proud
See AWARD, 5A
now KURU cum
The Boys and Girts Club
In Edenton has raised
BBS,STS toward its goal
of *100,000. To make a
donation, mail a chack,
mada out to the Boys
and Girls Club, to 111
Morrls-town Road,
Edenton, NC 27S12.