Southport, N.C.
May 13,1992 / 50 cents
INSIDE
Sports, page 16
Cougar golfers finish fifth in state tourney
Classifieds, p. 3B
most complete
Mateproperties
Virginia P. Best releases a handful of environmen
tally safe balloons, each bearing the name and ad
dress of a resident of Ocean Trail Convalescent
Center. The balloon release and mayor Norman
Holden’s proclamation on Monday kicked-off Na
Photo by Marybcth Bianchi
tional Nursing Home Week. Special events are
planned each day with a hot dog, craft and bake
sale scheduled for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, May IS.
All proceeds will go to the residents’ Christmas
fund.
Faulty wall bolts
CP&L knew about its
trouble five years ago
By Jim Harper
Staff Writer
Flaws in the walls of the emergency
diesel generator (EDG) building at
the CP&L Brunswick plant, which
caused a shutdown for repairs April
21, were known to CP&L since Feb
ruary, 1987, but corrective action was
not taken until CP&L was pushed by
a Nuclear Regulatory Commission
inspection team in early April.
Details of the long-standing prob
lems in the building, along with an
NRC assessment that Brunswick plant
problems stem from "lack of manage
ment vision," are contained in an NRC
report of April 29, and are the basis of
further assessment of the Brunswick
operation that commenced Tuesday
in Rockville, Md.
Emergency generators would be
used in shut-down of the nuclear units
NRC cites
weaknesses,
management
§*
if electric power were not available
from regular sources at the site, or
from the CP&L transmission system.
R. B. Richey, vice-president in
charge of the Brunswick plant since
April 2, said Monday that repairs of
walls in the generator building to make
them earthquake-proof have been
completed, and the EDG unit should
be certified operable by week’s end.
(However, both units are expected to
remain down for at least two more
weeks for completion of regularly
scheduled work.)
Richey explained Monday that an
important function of emergency gen
erators would be to provide core cool
ing during a plant shutdown. "The
idea of safe shutdown is core cool
ing," he said.
Richey said that "the original iden
tification of the problem (with fasten
ings in the masonry-and-steel interior
walls) came through special knowl
edge of an NRC inspection team in
early April."
The NRC report of April 29, how
ever, says that the problem was first
noted by a CP&L employee on Febru
ary 13, 1987, but "was neither ad
equately examined or corrected."
In a chronology of the problem, the
NRC document notes masonry block
See CP&L knew, page 6
Yaupon sewer plans on track
By Jim Harper
Staff Writer
Reports and responsive action by
the Yaupon Beach town board Mon
day and Tuesday have apparently
moved the question of sewerage off
center, on track and toward comple
tion as early as July, 1993.
If that turns out to be the case, the
$2.8-million project will come in
roughly a year later than originally
planned.
Mayor May Moore Tuesday night
said, "We’ve been held up a long
time on appraisal (of the intended
treatment site) - it’s moving, and
we believe the permitting will be
moving."
The board Tuesday approved the
state’s real estate appraisal for the
20-acre Fish Factory Road site and
sent the matter back to Raleigh.
That action followed a Monday
evening report from engineer Finley
Boney that an apparent deadlock be
tween two state agencies had been
resolved, and the manner of dealing
with outflow of ground water from
the treatment area approved.
"Before this week is out, CAMA
could say, ‘Your permit is issued,’"
Boney said Monday evening.
He extended a time-frame from
CAMA permitting this week to ad
vertisement and bid opening by June
15, award of a contract in mid
August and commencement of the
ten-month project in September.
In a second action Tuesday the
Yaupon Beach board decided to ask
for special legislation to prevent
construction height limitations from
being raised without referendum - a
concession to Yaupbn Beach
citizens who fear that sewerage
might attract high-rise develop
ments.
When completed, the Yaupon
Beach project will comprise 50,000
feet of sewer main, eight lift sta
tions, 600 connector lines and
piping across the Elizabeth River
marsh and under the Intracoastal
Waterway to the treatment site.
Long Beach budget: 47.5 cents
UJ CiU lldl JJCI
Pilot Editor
A Long Beach budget that calls for less than a one-percent increase in
expenditures but an eight-cent rise in the tax rate was formally presented to
town council this week.
I he proposed budget requires a tax rate ot 471/
2 cents per SI(X) of assessed valuation and does
not rely on any transfer of funds from the town's
unappropriated general fund balance, a practice
that had become commonplace in recent years.
Town manager David Poston said
in his budget message that the
&
A
I 77i.‘7J IUM U1 VIV.^3 — n
cents - is less than the actual cost
of services that were provided in
1991-92. But the current-year cost ,
of 49 cents was offset by a transfer
oi iunos irom me unappropriaiea
general fund balance (S230.680)
and the accommodations tax
(S 105.000) - S335.680 in all.
That was the largest transfer since
practice was begun in 1987-88.
That year, the town board approved the
transfer of $88,405 to establish the tax rate at 35 cents despite a 38-cent
cost of services. The next year, $104,374 was moved from the unappropri
ated general fund balance to lower the tax rate to 31 cents despite a 331/2
cent cost of services.
IM
me cost oi providing town services increased to 39 cents in 1989-90,
according to the budget document now before town council, but commis
sioners that year approved the transfer of S265.153 to maintain the tax rate
at 31 cents. Then in 1990-91 the cost of services rose to 481/2 cents but the
tax rate to only 391/2 cents because of a $300,000 movement of funds from
the balance used to meet early-year expenses
auu piuicti agamsi iuwii emergencies, sucn as
hurricane loss mitigation,
rs of March 31, the town's unappropriated
general fund balance stood at $810,195, up from
the $694,786 figure at the beginning of the
vuiiviu uocoi y\,cu juiy i, 1771.
s Finance officer Cathy Harvell said
v the increase is due simply to
"revenues over expenses;" Poston
^ said the town has kept tight reins on
expenditures: "No one has bought
anything we did not absolutely
'O
/ \ I IICCU.
^EXPENSES/ i Harvell said the common-sense
■ M I level of unappropriated balance for
\ n_J a town the size of Long Beach is
V about 50 percent of the general fund budget, or
\ about SI.4 million. The $810,195 available on
March 31 represents a level of 28.6 percent.
roston saxa tne importance or maintaining a
healthy unappropriated fund balance is that the bulk of tax monies do not
come to the town until the tax deadline, six months into the new year.
See Beach budget, page 3
County 911 system has no hang-ups
ay noiiy r.awaras
County Editor
Brunswick County's "state-of-the-art" 911 system was activated on Friday
morning at 7 o'clock and telecommunicators received their first emergency
call at 10:25 a.m., said Lee Hitchcock, supervisor of the emergency commu
nication' service.
The first call involved a medical emergency at Food Lion at River Run
Shopping Center on Beach Road. Hitchcock said the call was transfeiTed to the
Southport control center, and three-way communication was established
among the 911 telecommunicator, the Southport dispatcher and the caller.
Three-way communication can also be established with the Long Beach
control center, he said.
The system has been running "very smoothly" so far, he said, and the calls
have been coming in steadily. While most people seem to know how to use 911,
Hitchcock said callers have made a few "boo-boos." But, he added, these
mistakes were cleared-up quickly.
It's too early to tell what, if anything, about the 911 system itself needs to be
changed, he said.
"I'm happy it's in service," Hitchcock said. "It's nice to have more than one
person on duty."
Anyone with questions about the 911 system should call the emergency
medical services building administrative number at 253-7490.
Airport asks funds
to employ manager
By Holly Edwards
County Editor
The Brunswick County Airport Commission approved a $74,375 budget
proposal for the next fiscal year, and agreed to extend its contract with Alex
Prichert to keep the airport's fuel and ramp services open for the next six
months during a specially called meeting last Wednesday.
The airport commission will hold its regular monthly meeting tonight
(Wednesday) at 7:30 at the Brunswick County Airport.
The proposed budget is about $45,000 more than last year's budget, and part
of the reason for the increase is the commission's request for $30,000 to fund
a new manager consultant position. The airport commission is also requesting
$44,375 to fund the airport's cost of operations, such as insurance, electric and
fuel bills.
The commission is asking for $61,075 from the county, $2,500 from Long
Beach, $ 1,000 from Yaupon Beach and $5,000 from Southport. In addition, the
airport’s anticipated income is $4,800 from hangar rental fees and fuel sales.
See Airport funds, page 5
OUTSIDE
Forecast
The extended forecast for,
the Southport-Oak Island
area calls for mostly cloudy
skies Thursday and a
chance of showers Friday,
with highs both days in the
70s. Expect fair skies Sat
urday and Sunday, with
highs in the 80s.
Tide table
HIGH
LOW
5:49 a.m.
6:26 p.m.
6:39 a.m.
7:13 p.m.
7:27 a.m.
8:00 p.m.
8:09 a.m.
8:41 p.m.
8:54 a.m.
9:25 pm.
THURSDAY, MAY 14
11:54 a.m.
FRIDAY, MAY 15
12:37 aim.
12:41 pjn.
SATURDAY, MAY 16
1:24 a.m.
1:26 pjn.
SUNDAY, MAY 17
2:09 a.m.
2:08 pjn.
MONDAY, MAY 18
2:53 a.m.
2:50 pjn.
TUESDAY, MAY 19
9:36 a.m. 3:36 a.m.
10:05 p.m. 3:32 pjn.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 20
10:18 a.m. 4:18 a.m.
10:46p.m. 4:14 p.m.
The following adjustments should be made:
Bald Head Island, high -10, low -7; Caswell
Beach, high -5, low -1; Southport, high +7,
low +15, Yaupon Beach, high -32, low -45;
Lockwood Folly, high -22, low -8.