Sports
Pro golfer Fred Couples
visits the Winding River
course he designed - 1C
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New eroS
sures bein£
Oak Island 1
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Innovative ;r
may aid in cc dam
age from the sea — Page 2
Zoning
relaxed
'Commercial'
was restricted
by 1994 rules
By Terry Pope
County Editor
Until now, county zoning laws have
been strict against property owners
who want to build homes in commer
cial zones.
But an amendment approved last
week relaxes such restrictions, a move
that will please some long-time prop
erty owners who have felt trapped by
the growth of commercial areas since
county zoning was approved in Janu
ary, 1994.
If a person doesn’t mind living next
to a shopping center or business dis
trict, now the county doesn’t mind
either. Families will be allowed to
build in any commercial low-density
(C-LD) zone with a special exception
permit from the county board of ad
justments.
“It would not apply to someone
who wants to subdivide a parcel,"
explained interim county planning
director Judy Russell. “It would al
low an individual property owner who
owns a piece of land and wants to put
a house on it to now do so."
Single-family units, modular
homes and manufactured housing will
be allowed on lots platted and re
corded prior to January, 1994. The
homes must meet the front-, side- and
rear-yard setback requirements and be
situated a minimum of 50 feet from
any commercial use or structure.
The amendment was approved
unanimously on a motion by District
3 county commissioner Leslie Collier
of Long Beach.
Since county zoning was enacted
in 1994, the Brunswick County Plan
ning Board has struggled with how
See Zoning, page 9
D .. . Photo f>\ Jim H;i
Balloon sculpting was among the arts demonstrated at Saturday’s Art in the Pari and no one apprcc
ed the process, and the product, more than this youngster.
iat
CAMA permitting left to state
Town says inspection work not cost-effective
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
It may take those wishing to build
structures in the state’s coastal zone
up to three weeks to get permits to do
so, but the Town of Long Beach will
not step in to speed the permit pro
cess along.
Mayor Joan Altman last week
broke a tie vote of town council to, in
effect, keep the town's building in
spections department out of the
CAMA minor permitting process. In
formulating its budget for the current
year in June, 1996, council deter
mined the tow n's inspections depart
ment did not receive adequate state
reimbursement to continue issuing
CAMA minor permits, needed for
some construction in town. Code en
forcement officer David Clemmons
said the state’s Division of Coastal
Management formerly paid the town
$50 to issue a minor permit, hut local
inspectors may have to spend a half
day measuring a lot before that per
mil could be issued. The town is paid
only $40 for a final inspection, he
said.
With the town out of the CAMA
permit issuing business this year, one
employee of DCM, headquartered in
Wilmington, has been given charge
el all permitting in New I lanovet and
Brunswick counties He cannot keep
up w nil the workload and onl\ sched
ules .i half-day e\er\ two weeks m
Brunswick County, Clemmons said.
( ouncilor Jell Itnsmmgci last
I uesday said permitting delavs now
between three and four weeks war
ranted a reassessment ot council’s
See CAM A, page
Long Beach:
Reservations
should cancel
Redwine bill
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Take us out of the mix, Long Beach
Town Council has told the area’s leg
islative delegation.
In separate letters to representatives
E. David Redwine, Dewey Hill and
Thomas Wright, mayor Joan Altman
this week asked Long Beach be ex
cluded from House Bill 859, the bill
that seeks to consolidate occupancy
taxing authority in Brunswick
County.
“The town council and I are op
posed to HB 859," Altman wrote.
"We request that you remove the pro
vision pertaining to the Town of Long
Beach from this bill.”
HB 859 came into being this year
after the two Brunswick County
chambers of commerce sought to es
tablish a one-percent countywide ac
commodations tax to raise an esti
mated $450,000 to fund a travel and
tourism promotion bureau. In a meet
ing with representatives of area mu
nicipalities Rep. Redwine, of Brun
swick County, formed a task force of
chamber members and municipal in
‘We continue to
support efforts to
better fund
Brunswick County
tourism promotion;
however, we cannot
support legislation
that diminishes the
town’s ability and
authority to raise
necessary funds.’
terests to iron-out the parameters of a
bill to set the one-percent countywide
tax in motion.
Municipalities were assured that
the one-percent countywide tax on
short-term rentals would not affect
their ability to charge accommoda
See Redwine, page 6
REDWfNE:
Strings attached
on any new tax
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Although reaction to his hill consolidating occupancy taxing au
thority in Brunswick County and establishing a one-percent tax for
travel and tourism promotion has been mostly positive. Rep. E. David
Redwine Tuesday said he would schedule a meeting next month wdth
all concerned to once again discuss the tax proposal.
"After May 1, I am going to ask for another meeting of the task
force and again start from square one to explain what we have and try
to arrive at some consensus,” Redwine said. “I think everybody could
See New tax, page 6
‘I think everybody could feel like they
were in a win situation, instead of
towns like Long Beach and Caswell
Beach feeling like losers if this passes.’
Forecast
The extended forecast calls for
mostly sunny skies Thursday through
Saturday with highs in the 7()'s.
INSIDE
Police report ,
Business.
Obituaries ...
Schools ... *.
Church.
Calendar ....
Classifieds ...
TV schedule ..
District Court
. 11
. 14
. 15
. 6B
. 7B
. 8B
. ID
. 9D
,11D
Another day at the office
Daughters follow parents' footsteps
ny Holly towards
Feature Hditor
More than 2(10 young women in the Sou(hport-Oak Island
area parlieipated in lake Your Daughter To Work Day, a na
tional program that brings millions of girls into the workplace.
The Ms. Foundation founded the event five years ago after
highly publicized research studies concluded that girls' self
confidence and self-esteem dropped markedly during adoles
cence. Several studies suggested that subtle differences in the
way girls were treated at school played a role in the decimation
of their sense of self-worth.
Ft. Col. Margaret Savelle, second In command at Military
Ocean Terminal Sunny Point, agreed that subtle action can carry
a strong message.
"Studies in schools showed that teachers lend to call on boys
far more frequently than they call on girls,” she said. “Subtle
actions like tins on the teacher's pari can semi the message to
girls that men aie going to be called on mme olten tor answers
and looked to more frequently lor leadership. It's no surprise
that e\entuallv most girls stop raising then Hands "
Sunny Point ins ited both daughteis and sons to spend I luirs
day at the letnnnal. although most ol the I 4 \ oung people w ho
participated were girls.
Savelle called the program a "uondetlul opportiimlv ’ tor
young people to learn about the v at iel\ ol tubs a\ ail able in then
community.
"Kids get out and see that there reallv aie people in their own
community who have jobs like this and that llicc can do this it
they want.' she said. “I firmly be I tew e that an \ one w ho can do a
job ought to Iv given the opportunitv to do t
Although women can be found in vntuailv all militarv posi
tions, Savelle said she doesn't think the inl.uitiv will ever be
"enlightened enough to allow women in front-line combat po
sitions. I'hc public also would be reluctant to accept women in
such roles, she added.
"People don't want to think about their mothers and daugh
ters getting killed in combat, but women are already put in
harm's way in many situations,” she said. “I wouldn't want to
have to tell anybody that their child was killed in action, whether
that person is male or female."
Young people were given a tour of the ammunition terminal
Thursday and Sunny Point personnel explained what function
each department performs. The tour included offices at the
headquarters building, the fire department and the railroad
maintenance department.
I low ever, many young people said they were most impressed
w ith forester Tony Claw's demonstration of how Sunny Point
personnel clean up spills of oil and other substances.
"I thought it was neat because he spilled coffee and poured
See Daughters, page 12
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