VOLUME 65/ NUMBER 3 SOUTHPORT, N.C. 50 CENTS
Sports
Football forecasters can
collect $25 for their effort in
our pigskin contest - 4-5C
Neighbors
Does Richard Nubel have
both oars in the water or is
he just making waves? — IB
Our Town
A proposed Yaupon Beach
motel can be built under
certain conditions — Page 2
EDC
objects
to label
By Terry Pope
County Editor
“What is clean industry and how
can it be recruited?” is the topic of
the October 19 public meeting sched
uled for 7 to 9 p.m. at the Carolina
Power and Light Co. Visitors Center
near Southport.
It is one in a series of seven spon
sored by the Brunswick County
Long-Range Planning Committee
used to gather input on how the
county should manage its growth over
the next 25 years.
However, the Brunswick County
Economic Development Commission
says that wording is all wrong.
It may imply that officials respon
sible for recruiting industry have done
a poor job by luring “unclean” or un
desirable businesses here. The com
mission has asked that tliers used to
promote the public meetings be
changed to read “job creation to meet
employment needs.” It’s a term that
EDC executive director Tom Monks
prefers.
The relationship between the EDC
and Long-Range Planning Commit
tee has been strained after a
county wide public session last month
with appointed and elected officials
from across the county didn’t include
the commission. It was at that session
where eight topics of concern were
voted on by the group of 135 in at
tendance and became the focus of the
See Objects, page 8
Obscenity
in schools
is charged
By Holly Edwards
Feature Editor
The Brunswick County school sys
tem is pandering obscenity to juve
niles by allowing pornographic ma
terials to be distributed in county
school libraries, parents told the board
of education Monday night.
A parent of a South Brunswick
Middle School student told the board
his son obtained a book entitled The
Funhouse last month from the middle
school library and soon began asking
his father questions about some of the
material contained in the book.
“I took the book from my son and
was appalled and sickened at what I
read in the book,” said parent David
Putnam of Boiling Spring Lakes. “I
was further upset that the very same
people that I entrust my children to
for Five days a week allowed my fchild
to bring home this filthy trash as part
of an assignment.”
Putnam said the book contains pro
See Charged, page 13
Bald Head Island was busy digging (and pump
ing) itself out Monday after overwash from
Hurricane Luis filled South Bald Head Wynd with
beach sand and flooded lagoons and some golf
holes with salt water. This location is at the beach
rnoio Dy Jim itarper
access near the old Swansquarter site, with the vil
las in the left background. Power also went out in
shoreside homes, and some locations were still
without electricity on Tuesday.
Long Beach
says strand
was helped
While some of Brunswick
County’s south-facing beaches may
have suffered for the astronomical
high tides and passage of Hurricane
Luis this week, Long Beach actually
profited some.
“Quite honestly, we gained sand
in some places because of the north
east winds,” town manager Jerry
Walters said this week. “We’re not
in as bad shape as Holden Beach or
Ocean Isle Beach. Any erosion we
See Strand, page 7
BHI overwash
floods lagoons
By Jim Harper
Staff Writer
Overwashing swells from Hurricane Luis filled Bald Head
Island golf course lagoons, flooded two golf holes and filled
sections of South Bald Head Wynd with beach sand.
Workers were still busy Tuesday trying to clear the roadway,
pump the lagoons back down to normal level and restore elec
tricity to some 35 homes still without power since overwash
downed service Friday evening.
Most electric power had'been restored by Sunday evening.
Electrical service was uninterrupted in portions of the island
not overwashed.
Operations had been resumed at the Bald Head Island Club,
See Lagoons, page 6
Yaupon wastewater plan
Impact must be reviewed
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
A preliminary engineering report
and environmental assessment of the
planned Yaupon Beach spray-irriga
tion treated wastewater disposal sys
tem will have to include its impact on
the Oak Island Golf and Country Club
property, town commissioners learned
Monday night.
An assessment of the environmen
tal impact on the golf course and its
abutting properties was one of the
conditions sought by the Arboretum
Community Association which has
vowed to oppose spray-irrigation on
the golf course which abuts that
Caswell Beach subdivision.
Commissioners got good news
about the proposal Monday night
also: Spraying on the golf course may
be done right up to private property
lines. State regulators apparently will
not insist that a substantial buffer be
established between the spray area on
the golf course and private property,
including the Arboretum.
Consulting engineer Robert Gra
ham told commissioners it was dis
covered no buffer zone would be re
quired in discussions between
hydrogeologist Ed Andrews - who
has been retained by the golf course -
- and an engineer with the state’s Di
vision of Environmental Manage
merit.
“Ed Andrews met with the review
engineer who will review the golf
course portion of the project,” Gra
ham said. “(Andrews) was under the
impression that the state would make
us maintain a 50-foot buffer from
houses. Since then he met with
higher-ups in the Groundwater Sec
tion (of DEM) and this is not true. We
See Impact, page 7
County school
position filled;
search begins
By Holly Edwards
Feature Editor
Interim superintendent of schools John Jones
appeared relaxed and confident Monday night as
he spelled out concerns to the Brunswick County
Board of Education.
He was hired Thursday to serve as interim su
perintendent of schools following former super
intendent Ralph Johnston's resignation, and will
be paid $5,000 per month.
“I’m from the old school, so I feel real strongly
about the three A’s — attendance, attire and atti
tude,” he told the school board.
Jones said the way a student dresses is a good
JONES
indication ot that student s positive selt-image and attitude towards educa
tion. And, he said, regular attendance is an essential component of academic
See Search, page 13
Johnston resigns
Former superintendent cites
health reasons for departure
By Holly Edwards
Feature Editor
A Brunswick County school board
member said the board had grounds
to fire former superintendent Ralph
Johnston but instead offered to pay
him some $5,000 in local funds until
December 31 to leave his job with
out a fight.
Both Johnston and the school board
were represented by counsel in a six
hour closed session held last Wednes
day.
“The contract states that if he is
medically unable to continue his job
then the contract is null and void,”
board member Billy Carter said.
“Common sense would tell you that
the board probably had the founda
tion to support itself if it had to in
court, but the board of education has
the responsibility to do what’s in the
best interest of the school system.”
Technically Johnston, who has held
the top education job since 1992, will
remain on paid medical leave for the
next 60 days. After that, he may re
turn to work for Brunswick County
in a job the board created for him -
special projects coordinator — at his
$81,517 superintendent’s salary, most
of which is funded by the state.
In any event, Johnston’s employ
ment in Brunswick County will ter
minate December 31 of this year.
Johnston began a medical leave of
absence Thursday in his new position.
See Johnston, page 13
New ferry
contract
awarded
The N. C. Board of Transpor
tation has awarded a $4.7-mil
Iion contract to build a new ferry
for use on the Cape Fear River.
The contract, awarded to
Steiner Shipyard Inc. of Ala
bama, calls for construction of
a 180-foot vessel to operate be
tween Southport and Fort
Fisher.
Odell Williamson of Ocean
Isle Beach, who represents
Brunswick and New Hanover
counties on the state board, said
work on the ferry is expected to
begin next month. The ferry will
carry approximately 400 pas
sengers and 35 automobiles.
Work on the project is sched
uled for completion in Novem
ber, 1996.
Almost certainly the most valuable fish ever caught on hook and line
here was this 2.36-pound flounder landed by Larry Baker (left) in the
Wildlife Bait and Tackle Flounder Tournament over the weekend.
Director Jimmy Price congratulates Baker on his tagged which
qualified him for a $10,000 prize.