THE STATE PORT PILOT
A Good Newspaper In A Good Community
VOLUME46_ NUMBER 6 ■ 20 PAGES TODAY SOUTHPORT, NORTH CAROLINA AUGUST 28, 1974 10 CENTS A COPY PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY
Mayor: Blame
On City Unfair
Mayor Eugene B. Tomlinson said Tuesday that
blame for any delay in construction of Brunswick
County Memorial Hospital should not be directed
at the City of Southport.
Tomlinson said, “It has come to my attention
that if there is a delay in the new hospital, such
delay will be blamed on Southport’s planned legal
action. I want to make it perfectly clear to all
county residents that Southport supports the
mandate of the people which is to build a new
hospital, not to close Dosher.”
The mayor has directed that a restraining order
be sought against county hospital construction
until assurances are received that Dosher will
continue to function at its present level.
“We have tried to meet with county officials to
discuss this situation; no answer to our request has
yet been received. Therefore, if there is a delay in
the new hospital, don’t blame Southport’s planned
action which is aimed at keeping faith with the
people of our area, but rather blame those officials
who have steadfastly refused to meet and discuss
reasonable solutions to the adequate meeting of
the county’s acute care medical needs.
“If new hospital plans are now only about 60
percent complete, as I understand, any delay to
this point can be attributed directly to those
responsible for the new hospital planning,’’ said
the mayor.
Auto Mishaps Thursday
Supply Youths
Struck, Killed
Two Brunswick County
children were killed Thur
sday within a five - hour
period while walking beside
highways in the Supply area,
according to Highway
Patrolman W.A. Long.
Felicia Mia Gray, 8, of Rt. 1
Supply, was killed when hit
by a car near Holden Beach
on Highway 130 Thursday
afternoon about 4:30.
Warren Bellamy, 11, of Rt.
2 Supply, died instantly after
being hit by a car Thursday
night at 9:40 while walking
along Highway 211 in the
Green Swamp area of
Brunswick County.
Long, who investigated
both fatalities, charged Jerry
Lee Stevenson, 18, of Rt. 2
Supply, the driver of the car
that hit Bellamy, with
(Continued on page 2)
SURVEYING DAMAGE caused Thursday
morning when lightning struck the steeple of
Trinity United Methodist Church is the Rev. Earl
Richardson. The bolt, which occurrred during a
heavy rainstorm that lessened the danger of fire,
shattered the steeple with great force, causing
wooden shingles to penetrate other shingles.
Wiring throughout the church was destroyed; a
section of wall was knocked out in the interior of
the building.
Long Beach Thoroughfare Renamed
Modular Home, Footage
Issues Tabled By Board
By BOBBY HILL
The Long Beach town
council at a public hearing
Thursday delayed action on
banning modular homes and
increasing square footage
requirements.
The modular home issue
was referred back to the
Hanning Board after little
more than a half-hour of
discussion.
The square footage
requirements, thought to be a
simple matter, was still
unresolved after two and one
half hours of heated debate.
The crux of the argument was
whether the minimum
footage would be required on
one single floor or allowed to
include total “living space”
of a residence.
Both questions were
referred to town attorney
James R. Prevatte.
The council will again hold
public hearings on the
matters at its regular
meeting next Thursday.
The square footage
requirement bogged down
after severe! people claimed
the restriction to one floor
would inhibit architectural
variety. In answer to
questions, Building Inspector
Boyd Phillips said, “There
won’t be any A-frames built
(under the signle floor
requirement).”
Prevatte was instructed to
research the deeds of town
property to see how they
currently read.
Town Manager Frank
Kivett instructed Phillips
that the square footage
requirement in the meantime
will be enforced on one
single floor.
The footage requirements
had been proposed to coincide
geographically with deed
restrictions. The move was
reportedly made at the
request of National
Development Corporation'
spokesman Hannon Tem
pleton.
7,331 Are Enrolled
A total of 7,331 students have enrolled in
Brunswick County schools this year, Supt. Ralph
King announced Tuesday.
“Our enrollment has been going up every day
since school opened last Friday,” Supt. King
declared. “But it is too early to tell how many
students we will have this year.”
School officials expect an increase in
enrollment after Labor Day. Before school
opened, officials predicted about 7,400 students
would be enrolled this year.
The amendment would
have required 1,000 square
feet from 2nd Street West,
south of Ocean Highway, to
the end of Pinner’s Point.
Also, 1,200 square feet would
have been required from 33rd
Street East, south of Ocean
Highway, west to 12th Street
East.
Planning Board members
Mrs. Rosetta Short did not
agree with the specific
wording of the proposed
amendment; however, she
did not deny the amendment
reflected the intent of her
board. Mrs. Short charged
that the town council has not
provided the planning group
with legal counsel after being
requested to do so.
Mrs. Short then encouraged
interested persons to come to
the planning meetings the
third Wednesday of every
month. “This was all done
last night,” she said,
referring to the debate on the
proposed amendments. She
said public attendance of
planning meetings would
prevent debate at the public
hearings over “who shot
John.”
At one point, Mayor E.W.
Morgan called Mrs. Short out
of order. Citing several in
stances of failing to be
recognized by the mayor
before speaking, Morgan said
he would have the next of
fender of order removed from
the meeting.
Councilman Ellis Dudley
had made a motion to accept
the footage requirements;
(Continued on page 2)
To Sustain Dosher
Mayor Foresees
Small $$$ Need
After hearing a passionate
plea from Southport Mayor
Eugene Tomlinson, the
Boiling Spring Lakes
Property Owners’
Association Tuesday night
voted to support Dosher
Memorial Hospital and a
Smithville Township hospital
district.
The amended resolution
put members of the
association from Smithville
Merchants Participate
‘Octoberfest’
Set At Beach
About 40 Oak Island and
Southport area merchants
met Monday to begin plans
for an Oak Island festival to
be held October 1.6.
The group set up a number
of committees to oversee
several planned activities.
An initial board was
created and voted on, in
cluding Chairman Ted Wood,
Frank Kivett, Marvin
Watson, Troy Davis and Lee
Aldridge. The intent of the
motion, according to Kivett,
is to alternate the chairman
position between Yaupon and
Long Beach. The intent is
also to make the celebration
an annual event and to in
corporate it under the name
“The Oak Island Oc
toberfest.”
A host of special events
planned include a fair with
rides and amusement booths,
a demolition derby sponsored
Labor Day Closings
All governmental offices and Brunswick
County schools will be closed Monday for the
observance of Labor Day.
Most businesses, including banks and savings
and loan institutions, also will be closed, and post
offices will have box service only. The Board of
Commissioners and the Board of Education will
postpone first-Monday meetings one day; the
Yaupon Beach board will meet Monday, Sept. 9.
Township on record as
supporting continued acute
care services at Dosher and
the establishment of a
hospital district for tax
purposes. Town Creek
Township members in the
resolution are on record as
supporting “some sort of
medical facility” at Dosher.
Of about 30 persons
present, only one voted
against the resolution. The
by a Leland race
organization, a fishing
tournament, an exhibit tent
similar to those of county
fairs, street dances, (both
modern and square dancing),
athletic events and com
(Continued on page 2)
turn-out was light, according
to those who regularly attend
the monthly meetings.
County commissioners
have called for Dosher to
close when the county
hospital is completed,
sometime early in 1976.
Dosher advocates claim the
$2.5 million hospital bond
issue which passed last
summer did not include
closing the Southport
hospital.
Tomlinson told the group,
“It (in the bond issue) was
not intimated, implied ... it
was not even suggested that
this hospital was to replace
Dosher.”
Tomlinson said Dosher
advocates support the
“mandate of the people” to
build a new hospital to be
located near Supply. He
spoke favorably of operating
two hospitals in Brunswick
County.
The mayor said Dosher is
ending the fiscal year $4,000
in the black. “We are not the
financial white elephant on
(Continued on page 2)
Eye-Witness Reports
Lightning Hits
Church Steeple
By BOBBY HILL
Several eye-wtiness ac
counts have been found of
people who saw lightning
strike the Southport Trinity
Methodist Church steeple
about 9:30 Thursday mor
ning.
“It sounded like you’d
touched off a stick of
dynamite,” said Jim John
son, who lives across the
street east from the church.
He was sitting in a chair on
his porch at the time with a
clear view.
Johnson said he saw
“shingles flying and a ball of
flame.” Immediately prior to
the explosion, he said, there
was a click like the sound of
an air conditioner thermostat
shutting off.
Col. M.L. Burn, principal of
Southport Primary School, is
another who saw the static
electricity. He said the flame
hit the peak of the weather
vane and “burst into smoke.”
Burn said he was “standing
right on an iron post” and
that when the lightning
struck it “shocked the
bejabbers out of me. The clap
of thunder sounded “like an
artillery shell” striking the
roof, he said.
Burn was standing on the
school grounds, across the
street from the church to the
(Continued on page 2)
BOSS OF" THE YEAR for the American Business Women’s
Association is Col. M.L. Burn (center), principal of Southport
Primary School. With Col. Burn at the ABWA annual Boss
Night dinner Thursday are, left to right, Mrs. Judy Mc
Cormick, who represented the award to Col. Burn; Mrs.
Yvonne Adams, who wrote the letter on which Burn’s selection
was based; Marjorie Livingston, club president and “Woman
of the Year”; and Cheryl Watts, who presented Mrs.
Livingston her trophy.
/