The Cougars open their
Waccamaw 2A/3A season
Friday vs. the Vikes -- 8B
|Morch29JI99^J.
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Neighbors
The Sea Notes will per
form their Easter concert
this Sunday, 3 p.m. — IB
Our Town
Bald Head Island has won
permission to place groins
along the beach — Page 2
VOLUME 64/NUMBER 31 SOUTHPORT, N.C. 50 CENTS \ H
BEMC
support
weighed
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Brunswick Electric Membership
Corporation will offer a presentation
of ways it can assume some of the
operational and management func
tions of the Southport electric depart
ment in three to four weeks, and Caro
lina Power and Light Co. wants a
chance to review that proposal and
perhaps offer one of its own.
BEMC officials first met with
Southport aldermen two weeks ago
for initial discussions of some con
tract arrangement. The announcement
of CP&L's interest came as aldermen
met in workshop session Thursday
night.
City manager Rob Gandy said he
had provided information about the
city's electric operation to BEMC dis
trict manager Don Hughes who, with
co-op attorneys, will seek to identify
See BEMC, page 10 „
SPRING FORWARD
Sunday, April 2, 2:00 a.m.
Don't forget to set your clocks
ahead one hour
Mrs. Harper
is recognized
as volunteer
Margaret Harper of Southport was
one of six recipients of the 12th an
nual Distinguished Women of North
Carolina Awards presented by Gov.
James B. Hunt Tuesday night.
Award recipients were Mollie
Gloyne Blankenship of Cherokee, the
arts; Barbara K. Allen of Raleigh,
business/profession; Norma H. Ser
mon-Boyd of Pollocksville, educa
tion; Eva McPherson Clayton of
Littleton, government; and Mrs.
Harper, volunteerism.
U. S. Ambassador Jeanette W.
Hyde of Raleigh received a special
award of public service for contribu
tions in all five categories.
"These women truly are distin
See Harper, page 15
Jon Francke, a visitor from Wilmington, dis
covered daffodils and other delights in a recent visit
to Southport’s Waterfront Park. The riverside is a
Photo by Jim Harper
favorite gathering place for visitors and residents
alike, especially in the growing warmth of spring.
Larger county library system
seeks additional public funding
By Holly Edwards
Feature Editor
Brunswick County library director
Reecie Tate says she was told not to
expect any "huge increases" in her
budget for the next fiscal year because
the county school system would get
a large portion of local funds.
County commissioners and school
board members recently reached an
out-of-court settlement that guaran
tees the schools about $13 million in
local funds each of the next two years.
Despite the county's caveat, Tate
said she will ask for $793,702 for the
next fiscal year, $393,000 more than
the current year budget.
"As far as I’m concerned, we've in
creased library services 25 percent
and we need a huge increase," Tate
told the library board Monday night.
When the Southport branch opens
next month the county will have four
full-service libraries in operation.
Board members approved Tate's
budget proposal, and said they would
do what they could to persuade
county commissioners the funding is
needed.
Some of the major expenditures in
Tate's proposal are $279,481 for sala
ries, $67,550 for group insurance,
$30,000 for electricity, $120,000 for
books and $154,968 for a computer
ized card catalog system.
With the cost of a book estimated
to be about $30, Tate noted that
See Funding, page 15
Southport branch schedule to reopen, page 8
Oak Island project
Second bridge
hearing brings
public support
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Between 150 and 200 persons
strolled past maps, displays and other
depictions of proposed routes for a
second Oak Island bridge Thursday
as N. C. Department of Transporta
tion and its consultants conducted an
informational workshop on the long
awaited bridge project at the Long
Beach Recreation Center.
Most came just to urge the trans
portation department on, said DOTs
Philip Edwards, bridge project engi
neer.
"Most people were there just to
show support and to ask when we
were going to start," Edwards said.
An additional 50 persons filled out
questionnaires about the proposed
bridge project and DOT will receive
mail-in questionnaires for another
week.,
"I did talk to one or two who did
Uof favorlhe bridge^TKe engineer
said. "They wanted to keep the island
‘I did talk to one
or two who did not
favor the bridge.
They wanted to
keep the island as
inaccessible as pos
sible. ’
Philip Edwards
Project engineer
as inaccessible as possible."
Thursday's informational workshop
offered the first opportunity for the
public to address the project before
those who will be making decisions
about siting the bridge and a two-lane
highway-- with enough right-of-way
See Bridge, page 6
$40 million possible
Chamber seeks
renourishment
of island beach
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Southport-Oak Island Chamber of
Commerce has jumped into local gov
ernments' effort to expedite a federal
beach renourishment program for
Oak Island, urging its members in a
letter this week to write Congress, the
Corps of Engineers and state coastal
officials to make Oak Island's case for
beach stabilization.
"Erosion is an important issue to
any waterfront community or sur
rounding community that relies on
this resource to bring people to the
area or increase the quality of life for
its residents," wrote William D.
Carter, the chamber's vice-president
for governmental affairs.
"A committee of Oak Island offi
Welfare reform causes local concern
By Tferry Pope
County Editor
What kind of pressure will the state put on counties regarding
welfare reform?
County officials will outline a response before that question is
even raised.
"We've been working from top down for a long time," said De
partment of Social Services director Jamie Orrock. "We sit back
and wait for something to happen and then we cry and whine once
it happens. J
”1 want to get our two cents in this time before it happens."
Orrock and his DSS board want interim county manager George
McGinnis and Brunswick County commissioners to sit down to
gether and draft a position statement for state legislators.
Some welfare reform packages freeze AFDC (Aid to Families
with Dependent Children) expenditures to 1993 levels. It is the cen
tral theme in at least two of the state bills under consideration.
The impact may be significant for some counties with growing
lists of welfare recipients. The financial burden may be passed on
to counties that may struggle with already tight budgets.*
‘We sit back and wait for
something to happen and
then we cry and whine once
it happens. I want to get our
two cents in this time before
it happens.,
Jamie Orrock
DSS director
"I've never seen the climate like it is now," said
Orrock. "It's scary if you're a recipient."
The DSS board has submitted its budget request for
1995-%. Welfare reform is a key item on the Republi
cans' contract of topics to debate in the legislature this year. Changes
are also forthcoming on the national level, some in the form of man
dates for states.
"It's just my concern, the way it's set up now, that in a few years
we're going to have more people eligible to receive benefits than the
state or county can give," said Foster McKoy, DSS board member.
He was appointed to the DSS board last year and has plans to
meet with county leaders to help draft.the statement. The board wants
the ear of 14th District State House members David Redwine (D
Ocean Isle Beach) and Dewey Hill (D-Lake Waccamaw) and 98th
House District member Thomas Wright (D-Wilmington).
"In this short period of time I've seen some things that 1 just can't
see how it can continue," said McKoy. "You can see the numbers
here. We’re going to outrun the funds."
As states move to adapt to the national changes with some plans
of their own, DSS board member Moses Stanley said some recipi
ents may move to where the benefits are greater. There is agrowing
generation of families who won't work and who find the benefits
too attractive. §
"I guess my concern is, whatever comes down I hope it has some
See Concern, page 6
cials and independent businesses have
composed the enclose information for
your review. They are requesting our
state and federal public officials to
speed up the U. S. Army Corps of
Engineers' evaluation of beach
(re)nourishment."
The corps is presently engaged in
evaluating Oak Island as a possible
candidate for a federal 933 beach
renourishment program. Initial esti
mates by the corps place the cost of
See Chamber, page 6
Forecast
We can expect partly cloudly but
otherwise nice weather for the period
of Thursday-Saturday. Highs each
will be in the high 60's with lows in
the 40's.
Tide table
HIGH LOW
THURSDAY, MARCH 30
7:28ajn. 1:10 a.m.
7:44 pjn. 1:23 p.m.
FRIDAY, MARCH 31
8:09 ajn. 1:33 a.m.
8:24 pjn. 2:03 p.m.
DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME BEGINS
SATURDAY, APRIL 1
8:47 ajn. 2:33 ajn.
. 9:01 pjn. 2:44 pjn.
SUNDAY, APRIL 2
10:24 a.m. 4:13 a.m.
f 10:38 p.m. 421 pjn.
MONDAY, APRIL 3
I IKK) ajn. 4:32 a.m.
11:14p.m. 4:59 p.m.,
TUESDAY, APRIL 4
11:36 a.m. 5:31 ajn.
11:32 p.m. 3:39 pjn.
WEDNESDAY, APRILS
*.— ajn. 6:12 a.m.
12:15 p.m. 621 pjn.
The following adjuatmeata abonld be made:
Bald Head Island, high -10, low -7; Caswell
Beach, high -5, low >1; Southport high +7.
; low ♦lsTtockwood Folly, high-22. low-8.