City ofSouthport
New ordinance requires flood hazard permit
By Amitabh Pal
Municipal Editor
An ordinance that requires resi
dents to secure a "flood hazard area
development permit" before starting
construction in designated flood
hazard areas was adopted Thursday
night by the Southport Board of
Aldermen.
The entire waterfront is designated
a flood hazard area, as well as some
other sections of the city. Building
inspector Doug Gillette said anyone
with doubts about whether construc
tion is in a flood hazard area should
call him. The city will make the
determination free of charge; the fee
fora permit will be $10.
The board accepted Gillette’s
recommendation to require the
permit. In his presentation, the
building inspector said the Federal
Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) in its evaluation several
months ago said the city should
adopt such an ordinance.
Alderman Bill Delaney was skep
tical, saying he was in favor of re
quiring a permit if it would help
lower the city’s insurance rating
down or keep it constant, but that he
felt it was just another "bureaucratic
Rabies clinics are scheduled
Brunswick County Animal Control and three local veterinarians will
sponsor low-cost rabies clinics on Saturday, December 5, from 9 a.m. until
noon.
The fee for rabies vaccinations will be $5, and all other shots will be
charged at the discretion of the veterinarians.
Rabies clinics will be held at the following locations: Brunswick Animal
Hospital, Highway 17 at Supply; Companion Animal Hospital, Highway
130, East Gate Square, Shallotte; and Leland Veterinary Clinic, Clairmont
I’laza, Leland.
County leash law
to dog new board
Brunswick County commissioners have effectively handed the
tinal decision to adopt a countywide leash law to new' com
missioners taking office on December 7.
Commissioners voted 3-2 Monday night in favor of the law, but
since the vote was not unanimous the proposal will have to undergo
a second reading before it can be adopted. And since Monday’s
meeting - which is to be continued on Thursday, December 3 - is
technically the last formal meeting of the current board, it will be
up to the next board to adopt the ordinance.
The law would require all dog owners to keep their pets on their
property or on a leash when off their property. Violation of the or
dinance would be punishable by a fine of up to $250. Hunting dogs
would be exempted.
Commissioners Frankie Rabon and Gene Pinkerton voted against
the proposed ordinance.
Pinkerton said he had not studied the proposal long enough to
know if he was for or against it, and Rabon called the ordinance
"more bureaucracy that the county’s taking over."
(©) Town of Long Beach &
Waste Industries, Inc. Recycling
A joint venture.
Materials to be Recycled and How to Prepare Them
ALUMINUM
Accepted: Aluminum Beverage Containers
Preparation: Rinse cans, crush if needed.
Not Accepted: No Food Cans or any other type of aluminum.
GLASS
Accepted: Clear, brown and green glass from beverage bottles and food jars. No Blue Glass!
Preparation: Rinse bottles and jars. Remove lids. Separate glass by color at site.
Not Accepted: Window glass, light bulbs, crystal, ceramic and cookware.
NEWSPAPER
Accepted: Newspapers only.
Preparation: Loose stacked. (Do not bag or tie). Remove all inserts and slicks.
Not Accepted: Inserts, magazines, catalogs, phone books, plastic or brown bags and bundles that are tied.
PLASTICS
Accepted: PETE 1 Soft drink, juice bottles. HDPE 2 Milk jugs, water bottles. (Turn container over and look for (1) or (2) inside
the triangular recycling symbol.)
Preparation: Remove lids, caps, or neck rings. Rinse and step on it or crush it.
Not Accepted: No motor oil, antifreeze, pesticide, cooking oil, laundry, detergent, bleach bottles. No plastics codes
3, 4, 5, 6 or 7.
CARDBOARD
Accepted: Corrugated boxes only.
Preparation: Clean boxes, free of any contaminants.
Not Accepted: No waxed boxes.
Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m., SE 48th Street, Long Beach
hurdle not worth the paper it is writ
ten on."
The board also awarded the bid for
the rclining of the water tank to
Southern Corrosion Co. for $23,155,
and approved an amendment to the
noise ordinance which will allow
work on the project until midnight.
(See related story.)
The noise ordinance as written
would not permit construction work
after 6 p.m. on weekdays.
Public works director Ed
Honeycutt urged the board to amend
the ordinance. He said he was "very
uneasy" having the tank out of ser
vice because the city would be
without its main pressure regulator
and with no backup.
City attorney Mike Isenbcrg said
there could be no variances from the
noise ordinance so the board would
have to amend the ordinance to al
low construction after 6 p.m. during
the project, which is estimated to
take as long as two weeks. Work on
the project is expected to begin the
first week in December.
The board also approved, after a
public hearing, the transfer of
$15,500 in the Community Develop
ment Block Grant (CDBG) program
from the rehabilitation fund to a
relocation fund. The move was
necessary because a mobile home
located at the comer of North Lord
and 10th streets is dilapidated and
will have to be demolished and its
owner relocated.
Consultant Dale Holland said it
would take the Division of Com
munity Assistance 15 to 30 days to
authorize the move.
The board also accepted recom
mendations of the waterfront and
beautification committees.
The waterfront committee recom
mended that the pumping station at
the foot of Lord Street be reroofed
and painted gray to blend with its
surroundings. The town will provide
paint for the project; painting will be
done with the help of volunteers on
November 21. The roofing will be
done later.
The waterfront committee also
recommended that the city dock in
the old yacht basin be repaired.
Mayor Norman Holden agreed,
saying repairs are necessary to free
the town from liability in case of an
accident and also because the corps
of engineers is planning dredging
operations in the area. The board
directed Honeycutt to advertise for
bids.
The waterfront committee also
recommended that the town move
the "dinghy" landing at the end of
the city pier to the end of the city
dock in the old yacht basin. The
board asked Honeycutt to determine
the feasibility of the move.
The board of aldermen also ac
cepted a beautification committee
suggestion that the town encourage
homeowners to install picket fences.
A five-foot picket fence will be in
stalled around the base of the water
tank.
Holden said the committee should
wait until after the relining project is
completed.
The board also:
•Decided to meet December 9 at 7
p.m. to review applications for the
position of city manager and to de
cide which applications should be
further considered.
•Rejected a donation of a 1972
Chevrolet bus to the recreation de
partment for transporting senior
citizens and children.
•Received a report on a hurricane
and storm workshop attended by
Gillette in Wilmington last week.
Water tank repairs are on tap
By Amitabh Pal
Municipal Editor
Southport residents can expect fluctuations in their water supply next
month as the city water tank is shut down for repairs.
The tank, which regulates pressure in the water system, will be out of
service while it is relined with a membrane paint coating to protect the in
side from water damage.
"I want to let the people know that this is something that is absolutely
necessary," public works director Ed Honeycutt said. "We’ll try to keep the
inconvenience down as much as we can."
The city water system operates with three pumps, located at Franklin
Square Park, Leonard Street and Ninth Street, which generate the pressure
that drives the water through the system. Sometimes the pressure rises too
high and this could lead to bursted pipes and faucets. When the pressure
rises to this level some of the water escapes into the tank, thus relieving
pressure on the system.
"The tank acts like a balloon and provides excess pressure relief,"
Honeycutt said.
The tank will, however, be out of service for approximately two weeks.
Work on the project will probably start the first week of December.
To relieve the excess pressure in the system, city crews are installing
valves on fire hydrants. When the pressure exceeds a specific level, the
valves will release some water into the street.
"There is no other way to do this," Honeycutt said. "We will have to
waste water."
Honeycutt said the main concern is damaging pipes, especially in the
older section of town. Without the stabilizing effect of the tank, water pres
sure could be twice as high as normal.
Honeycutt said the major inconvenience residents may experience will be
rapid fluctuations in the water pressure.
"Hopefully, it won’t get too high," Honeycutt said. "Sometimes, it might
be a bit too low but it will come back up soon again."
Honeycutt said water may not be as pure as usual because more iron
from the pipes will get mixed in the water.
He said this is the first time the tank has been relined. Damage to the
water membrane was revealed when the tank was cleaned last April.
"The cleaning of the inside should be done every two years," Honeycutt
said. "It had not been done in 20."
Honeycutt said the city waited until now to reline the tank because in the
winter water consumption is lower. He said the reason the operation will
take two weeks is because it is a complex procedure.
"We’ll have to completely shut the tank off, sandblast it, clean it and then
paint it," he said. "Then we’II have to completely disinfect the water before
putting it back in."
In their meeting Thursday, aldermen awarded the contract for the project,
upon Honeycutt’s recommendation, to Southern Corrosion Co. for
$23,155. The board also approved an amendment to the noise ordinance
that will allow work on the project until midnight.