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^VAJTlQv THE STATE PORT PILOT ^6-191^ Volume 47 Number 35 March 17, 1976 Southport, N. C. 22 Pages 10 Cents ARBOR DAY WAS for the first time on Oak Island by the Woodbine Garden Club Monday when the club planted a crepe myrtle at the Yaupon Beach Town Hall. Planting the tree are (left to right) Margaret Con naughton, president of Woodbine Garden Club; Bill Smalley, Yaupon Beach Commissioner for Parks adn Beautification; Joel Broadway and Bill Wiggs, both of Oak Island Boy Scouts Troop 229. Arbor Day is a day set aside for the planting of trees. Photo by Kenny Hewett Under Fire JS* By ED HARPER News Editor Brunswick County commissioners will further investigate a report that the Tax Supervisor’s office is poorly run and that $280,000 in tax releases were granted in December alone without approval of the county board. The report, submitted Monday by Frank Lewis of the N.C. Association of County Com missioners, had been requested by the Brun swick County governing board. Supervisor K.T. Bellamy was present for the discussion and the one - hour, five - minute executive session that followed. Commissioner Ira Butler, Jr., who said he was speaking as a former county tax supervisor, suggested that the county needed professional help to work with the department. “I feel some people are not getting the fair shake they need,” he told fellow board members. Commissioner Willie Sloan said he agreed. He said the time had come to look for a well - ex perienced administrator — ‘‘possibly a well - experienced supervisor.” Following the executive session, which at torney Grover Gore attended with Bellamy, (Continued on page 2) Long Beach Census In Need Of Helpers Town Manager John J. Berry said today that applications are still being accepted for Census Takers to work on the Special Federal Census of Long Beach to begin March 29. Applicants must be at least 18 years old, have a car, be able to pass a brief written test and be available full - time, including evenings, for about one week beginning March 29. Those selected should be able to earn between $16 and $24 for an eight - hour day, which includes the evening work. Mileage of 15 cents is also paid. “Qualified persons should come by the Long Beach Town Hall immediately and complete an application,” Berry said. Census Supervisor Mary F. Garris will test and interview all applicants on Monday the 29th. Long Beach residents are preferred, although all within a reasonable commuting distance from the town will be considered. This will be the third census in the town’s history. The special census is being paid for by the town, the other two were the National Census of 1960 and 1970. 102 residents were counted for the 1960 Census, while a whopping 383 percent increase was shown in the ensuing ten years when 493 were recorded on April 1, 1970. Based on the last Census, Long Beach was the third largest in corporated town in the county; twon officials are confident that when this special count is com pleted, Long Beach will be second by a wide margin, surpassed only by Southport. Mrs. Garris has advised the town that the actual head count will take only about a week, and that she will release a preliminary count before leaving the area. The final and official count, which will include a break down by age, race and sex, will be made about two months after the completion of the field canvass. Boards State Disagreement About Budget By ED HARPER N«*v*s Editor “I don’t think we should have to go to the county commissioners before making an expenditure,” Board of Education Chairman Wilber Earl Rabon said of a situation that is developing in county government. But County Manager Don Flowers disagrees. It is the “attitude,” he said, “that if the county commissioners get off the big pile of money, the county could build all the schools they want to.” He said it would take an “80- or 90-cent” tax rate to meet Board of Education budget requests, which he categorized as “totally unreasonable.” The Board of Education, holding a special meeting Monday night, had asked County Planner Johnny Sutton to come explain what it was the commissioners wanted. “Accountability” of funds for the new county office complex, he told the board. Rabon said “it just sounds like juggling some figures.” The commissioners had instructed the Board of Education, which is allotted county funds through the Board of Commissioners but whose members are chosen in a non - partisan election, to transfer $500,000 to a capital reserve account. Sutton said Monday night the money would be in a “capital reserve fund for the Board of Education.”. He said the county “assumed” the funds were for maintenance and administrative facilities in the new county complex. In fact, $300,000 has been earmarked for the new maintenance facility. $100,000 is a supplement to the state bond issue that provided $1.7 million for improvements to Lincoln, Bolivia, Waccamaw and Union schools; and the other $100,000 is earmarked for architect fees for other projects, including the planned Leland Middle School. Supt. Ralph King said placing the funds in a single account would be “going from the specific to the non - specific.” Member Bill Sue said it didn't make sense to him to “transfer” funds that already are being spent. “Our board can keep as good control of these funds as their board can," said the chairman. Sutton, who pointed out that the commissioners’ demand was not his proposal, said there was “no intent to establish a capital reserve fund as such” for the county. Sutton said he could un derstand the reasoning behind the Board of Education not wanting to turn - over $500,000 when only $300,000 was involved in the new county complex. Sue said he could see “nothing wrong” with transferring the $300,000 intended for the maintenance facility — “if that’s what the commissioners want to see.” But if it is accountability the commissioners want, he asked, why couldn’t the money be transferred after an actual cost figure is determined? The board approved a motion to wait until actual costs are determined. Member Barbara Yount said that if the commissioners insisted, the $300,000 could be transferred now. But according to statements by Board of (Continued on page 2) Tuesday Elections Set, Including Island Ballot By BILL ALLEN Staff Writer Brunswick County voters will go to the polls Tuesday to vote for candidates running for the presidential nominations in both the Pemocratic and Republican parties. They also will be asked to mark ballots on two proposed Constitutional amendments and improvement bonds for higher education. In addition, Long Beach and Yaupon Beach voters will cast ballots on the question of consolidating the two Oak Island towns. The 20 precincts in Brun swick County will be open from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. Tuesday to allow voters to cast ballots. Voters will be given three ballots to mark, except at Long Beach and Yaupon Beach where they will be given four. Generally, it has been a quiet campaign in the county. The names of six can didates seeking the Democratic nomination for president will be listed on the ballot. In addition, voters can mark “no preference” on the ballot. Gov. George Wallace, of Alabama, Former Gov. Jimmy Carter of Georgia, and U.S. Senator Henry Jackson of Washington are the only Democratic can didates who have waged major campaigns in the state. Gov. Wallace rolled up an easy win the first presidential primary held in the state four years ago. Other Democrats on the ballot are Congressman Morris Udall of Arizona, Sen. Lloyd Bentsen of Texas, who has already dropped out of the race, and Former Sen. Fred Harris of Oklahoma. In the Republican primary, Former Gov. Ronald Reagan of California will take on President Gerald Ford. Both candidates have conducted active campaigns in the state. Voters dissatisfed with both candidates can mark “no preference” on the of ficial ballot. Two constitutional amemdments will be on the ballot. They involve issuing revenue bonds for hospital and industry. Constitutional Amendment 1 will permit the state to sell revenue bonds to finance hopsital improvement and modernization projects. Amendment 2 to the state constitution would allow local (Continued on page 2) Squad Volunteers For City Ambulance Duties By ED HARPER News Editor 1 The Southport Board of Aldermen looked with favor Thursday night on helping the rescue squad go into the ambulance business. “I think definitely we should move with this rescue squad,” said Alderman Pierce Horne after hearing a presentation from Doug Ledgett and Cathy Holth of the service organization. Currently, the rescue squad only has one piece of major equipment — a boat — and ambulance service is handled by Gilbert’s Funeral Service with equipment owned by the bank. 4 A committee headed by Alderman Mary McHose had met with representatives of Gilbert’s and the best deal they could come up with meant almost $20,000 per year in city expense, providing a three-year pact was signed. Too much, aldermen agreed; the rescue squad is asking for an initial $20,000 funding and the equipment would belong to the city. Mrs. Holth told members of the Board of Aldermen that fire-rescue chief Ormond Leggett had issued a public appeal for volunteers and 17 persons responded, 14 of them trained Emergency Medical Technicians (EM Ts). She said the volunteers would take the required defensive driving course to qualify for ambulance duty. The service is free, she said. What the rescue squad is asking for in return is that the city provide two modular ambulances which could be . acquired for about $8,000 each with the help of state funds. Also, the squad wants a building of basic con struction that would house the two ambulances and the boat. Confining the service to Southport city limits was mentioned and Mayor Eugene Tomlinson said this concerned him. It concerned the rescue squad too, ac cording to Ledgett, and the proposed area of service was expanded to all of Smithville Township except Oak Island, which he noted already is well-served. “In essence what the fire department is serving” would be the Southport squad’s work area. Alderman McHose said the city was looking at a total investment $18,000 to $20,000. She said the proposed location of the rescue building would be near Dosher Hospital. The availability of new ambulances was a concern Thursday night and a special meeting of the Board of Aldermen will be called this week after further in vestigation. OTHER BUSINESS In other business before the Board of Alermen Thursday night, members were in troduced to new Superin tendent of Public Works Tom Roberts. The meeting was also the first regular session for new city Finance Officer Harold Aldridge. Joe Walton of the Recreation Commission was present to discuss the use of the old marineology building, which was returned to the city after the county Board of Education stopped using it for educational purposes. The county now wants the building for office space. Mayor Tomlinson told Walton the county believed it had an alternate plan, but Walton had a counter proposal: That the county reimburse the city $3,000; sign a two- or three-year lease; and grant to the city access to other buildings on the site of the old Southport school. Walton pointed out that use of the building for recreation is restricted because the Board of Education is using the rear of the building for storage. Yet if the county were to use the building, Walton said, the Board of Education reportedly would clear out. If so for the county, he asked, then why not for the city? The counter - proposal, which would involve the old Jorgensen house used on Sundays by St. Philip’s Church, was made by the Recreation Commission which met prior to the Board of Aldermen meeting Thursday night. The old Southport school site is the proposed location of a new postal facility, and Mayor Tomlinson reported on the progress of that project. He said he had talked with James C. Coe of the postal service real estate section, who reported that all matters relating to Southport had been transferred from Memphis to Atlanta and apologized for the delay. Tomlinson said he was assured surveyors would be in town before the end of this month to prepare a report on the old school site. Recreation member Walton told the board that nails could be driven in the old gym floor — contrary to what “Revolution!” had been told — assuming there were plans in the making to install new flooring in the near future. Mayor Tomlinson commended the work done to date by Recreation Director Gary Walker. Tomlinson urged board members to visit and show appreciation for the work done at Dosher Memorial Hospital. “At times they (the employees) haven’t even known who was running the hospital,” he pointed out. He also reminded board members of an April 5 hearing in Raleigh con cerning the environmental aspects of cooling towers at the CP&L nuclear plant, a costly project which the utility claims is unnecessary. “This is a matter we are on the side of CP&L in,” the (Continued on page 2)
State Port Pilot (Southport, N.C.)
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March 17, 1976, edition 1
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