Newspapers / State Port Pilot (Southport, … / June 4, 1997, edition 1 / Page 1
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Sports ( North Brunswick lost its ‘edge’ in state track finals when star went down - 1C Kids s{ things — school's r~a Boiling v sends cont fee to comiiimcc - rs lest v'hen IB ri 'oating r*age 2 School funding BCAE leader claims county should do more By Terry Pope County Editor County commissioners continued their budget discussions Tuesday fresh off a lecture by Brunswick County Association of Educators president Linda Callender on figures she says prove the county could be spending more on schools. Commissioners will hold a public hearing on the budget Tuesday, June 10, at 6:30 p.m. in the public assem bly building at the county government center near Bolivia. “Yes, it is true we are a fast-grow ing county and we have great needs for water and sewer,” said Ms. Callender. “It basically says fast growing counties need to look at a number of scenarios, and the most unpopular of those is to raise taxes or to revaluate property more often." After Ms. Callender addressed the board commissioners Monday, at least one member took exception to the numbers she used. District 5 commissioner Bill Sue of Leland responded near the close of the meeting by saying the total spending per pupil in Brunswick County is at the top of the list of counties regard s' less of a county’s ability to pay, an See Funding, page 6 Pilot wins 23 awards The advertising department of The State Port Pilot again has won the most North Carolina Press Associa tion awards of any newspaper in its division. Pilot staff members received 23 awards, including ten first places, in competition announced Friday at the NCPA Advertising Conference and Awards Ceremony in Chapel Hill. This marks the fifth consecutive year the newspaper’s advertising staff won the most awards in its circulation cat egory; the Pilot news staff has done likewise four of the past five years. • In addition, the newspaper earned the Metro Plus Business Award for best overall entries. “We are proud of the efforts of our entire advertising staff," said Ed Harper, editor, “and are grateful to those businesses that trust in our abil ity to create strong, effective adver tising campaigns on their behalf.” First-place awards include: B Best Food Ad -- A Taste of Southport; staff. ■ Best Home Furnishings and Ap pliance Ad - Nice & Pretty; Cindy Aldridge and Debi Coleman. B Best Institutional Ad - Orton Plantation Gardens; Renee Elliott and Debi Coleman. See Awards, page 11 Photo by Jim Harper Portions of a water line extending beneath the Lockwood Folly Inlet were removed by the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers snagboat Snell Tuesday, touching off another in a long series of disputes over water sys tem management between Brunswick County and the Town of Long Beach, Brunswick County has appar ently won this battle. Lockwood Folly Water line is removed By Terry Pope County Editor County officials say a water line anchored beneath the Lockwood Folly Inlet has aged beyond repair and is now viewed as a naviga tional threat. The line broke free and floated to the surface May 20, and last Friday a decision was made to remove the line rather than pay $30,000 to $50,000 to chain it back to the inlet bottom. "The Coast Guard reports it has been struck by boats, and we saw it as a tremendous safety hazard." said county manager Jim Varner. “We put some signs up to warn the public. We were in agreement that it was best to pull it up." See Connection, page 6 concern By Richard Nubel Municipal Editor Although they appear to be on the losing side of the argument, Long Beach officials this week objected to removal of a water line spanning Lockwood Folly Inlet. The U. S. Army Corps of Engi neers Tuesday removed a portion of the county-owned main water line which has connected Long Beach to the east end of Holden Beach since 1978, but has been used sporadically Concern, page 6 Budget proposal Taxes, sewer rate increase to hit Yaupon By Richard Nubel Municipal Editor A substantial property tax increase and a sewer rate increase of up to 127 percent for some in-town cus tomers are included in a budget pro posal on which Yaupon Beach com missioners may act Monday night The proposed $ 1.387-million hud get — prepared in a series of com missioners' workshops over the last month — is to be the subject of a public hearing beginning at 7 p.m. Monday. Subsequent to that public hearing, commissioners may act to adopt the budget, or may do so at any time prior to midnight June 30. An agenda for the regular monthly board meeting Monday night indi cates budget adoption will be dis cussed. As the board itself has compiled the budget proposal, adoption is almost a certainty. Here is what impacts cost of liv ing in Yaupon Beach in the veai to begin July 1: ■ A tax increase of seven cents per $100 valuation has been pro posed. The tax rate for the coming Proposed changes in sewer billing have been necessitated by a dangerously low fund balance year will he 37.5 cents per $1(X) property valuation. Property taxes are expected to generate $272,687 next year, based on total valuation of $72.7 million and a collection rate of 98 percent. ■ What will amount to.a sewer rate increase for many customers -- most notably those who use then homes seasonally -- has been pro posed. The $11 monthly flat fee for sewer service will be increased to $25 per month, but customers will receive service tor 4.000 gallons ol water use for that $25 Hat rate. Sewer service for water purchases above 4,000 gallons monthly will be See Yaupon, page 10 BEMC reduces its rate to users By Richard Nubel Municipal Editor Area cooperative members will enjoy a nice surprise when July bills arrive — a four-to-five-percent elec tric rate reduction. Brunswick Electric Membership Corporation announced the rale cut Monday. The reduction comes on the tail of a two-percent rate decrease from the cooperative in November, 1996. “We are delighted to pass on such savings just prior to the warm sum mer season,” BEMC general manager David Batten said at a press confer ence. “We have promised our custom ers quality service at the lowest pos sible cost and, with this rate reduc tion, we are continuing to fulfill that pledge.” Batten said the lower rates are the result of lengthy negotiations betw een the N. C. Electric Membership Cor poration, of which he is a director, and power suppliers. Further, Batten said, the rate reduction comes as evidence of the early effects of gradual deregu lation of the electric distribution in dustry. “We’re going into an era, a point in time, when deregulation will open Carney: No valid reason for dismissal By Holly Edwards i»■ Mil i _ rCfl'Uiv Duttw Yellow ribbons were placed on the fence surrounding Southport Elementary School Monday in a show of support and protest over the forced resignation of principal Patt Carney. Carney said superintendent of schools Marion Wise told her last Wednesday during her annual evaluation he would not re new her contract and offered her the opportunity to resign be fore being terminated. Primary reasons for not renewing Carney s contract cited bv SOUTHPORT ELEMENTARY Wise were low test scores and poor communication with teachers and parents, Carney said. Specifically, she said Wise told her he did not approve of the way she hau dis missed some staff members and a volunteer. I don t believe I ve been presented with anything i ke a valid reason tor not renewing my contract,” Carne\ aid. I had no indication anything was wrong until last ^eck. It s horrible. I had no time to get ready for this. I leti that meeting shell-shocked.” _ Wise would only confirm C"afriey's resignation and said Re could not comment on confidential personnel issues Test results for the county will not be compiled and verified until later this week, but Carney indicated some test scores at the school went up this year and some went down. Carney said she now regrets submitting her resignation and wished she had opted to fight Wise s decision instead. “I was given 25 hours to make a decision, and instead of think ing rationally about it 1 cried,” she said. "In hindsight. I'm so See Dismissal, page 11 access to wheel in blocks of power,’’ Batten said. With deregulation, electric coop eratives in North Carolina will, un der terms of new contracts, be able to purchase power at increasingly fre quent intervals from the pros ider ot tering the lowest cost. We have negotiated block power contracts outside the area," Batten said. "This clearly is the first stage of open access to transmission" which will be enjoyed by the state's 28 elec tric cooperatives. Batten said the cooperative expects power costs to remain level for about the next five, and possibly ten, years "We have worked hard to assure that BF-MC’s wholesale costs would remain low for the foreseeable fu ture,” Batten said. "As long as our wholesale rates stay low, member rates will reflect this reduction.” Bb’MC estimates the lower rates will leave some $3 million in mem bers' pockets. Batten stressed the cooperativ e's policy of returning capi tal credits to its members through general retirement and estate retire ment funds. Capital credits in both funds totaled more than $348,000 last year and had reached $117,000 by See BKMC, page 11 INSIDE Opinion 4 Police report 8 Calendar 13 Business 14 Obituaries 15 Church 4B Schools 6B District Court 6C Legals 7C Classifieds ID
State Port Pilot (Southport, N.C.)
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June 4, 1997, edition 1
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