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February 3, 1999
THE STATE PORT
To the ma s
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High school wres
competitive, but f h
South boys seek
Cougars in playc
Volume 68, Number 24
Published every Wednesday in Southport, NC
Citv/SBSD
‘Merger’
remains
on hold
By Richard Nubel .
Municipal Editor
If and when Southport aldermen
direct city staff to report on South
east Brunswick, Sanitary District
commissioners’ request for consoli
dation of the city and the district,
city manager Rob Gandy will rec
ommend aldermen hire a consultant
to evaluate the request.
“I wouldn’t feel comfortable tack
ling it on my own,” Gandy said.
On January 14, SBSD commis
sioners rejected a Brunswick
Electric Membership Corporation
offer to purchase the district’s sewer
system and voted to ask city aider
men to annex Southeast Brunswick
Sanitary District to the City of
Southport. The action comes after
SBSD commissioners filed suit
attempting to block an attempt by
Yaupon Beach to annex nearly 600
acres of the southern portion of
Southeast Brunswick Sanitary
District. SBSD commissioners said
they have more in common with
Southport than they do with Oak
Island towns.
Later that night, district chairman
James W. (Bubba) Smith appeared'
before Southport aldermen to con
vey the annexation request.
Aldermen received Smith’s request.
Mayor Bill Crowe allowed no pub
lic discussion of the annexation pro
posal that night and aldermen have
not publicly entertained the request.
Gandy said Monday that aldermen
had not yet scheduled a time to con
sider the SBSD annexation request.
Aldermen last Wednesday conduct
ed a lengthy workshop session with
consulting engineers who have been
See Merger, page 6
HERE’S YOUR SIGN
Photo by Jim Harper
County school workers last week erected a new sign at the head of Cougar Drive in Boiling Spring
Lakes, and both South Brunswick middle and high schools are already using it for informational
messages.
Oak Island
Mock budget
for new town
is bottom line
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
"Well, maybe those guys haven't
been just throwing our hard-earned
money away."
That was probably the sentiment
of most of the approximately 80
persons who took part in formula
tion of a mock budget for the new
Town of Oak Island at the Long
Beach Recreation Center Tuesday
night. The exercise was conducted
at the third in a series of four citizen
participation workshops to which
Yaupon Beach and Long Beach res
idents have been invited to discuss
various aspects of the planned con
See Budget, page 8
‘I hope they under
stand now how dif
ficult it is to provide
services and keep
the tax rate in line at
the same time.’
Dot Kelly
Yaupon Beach mayor
Early-bird sessions
get public criticism
By Richard Nubel
Municipal Editor
Until the board is presented peti
tions signed by 51 percent of eligi
ble voters. Southeast Brunswick
Sanitary District commissioners
will not even consider scheduling
night business meetings.
Commissioners Tuesday shunned
a resident's request for evening
board meetings to be scheduled so
more district residents could wit
ness commissioners' actions. SBSD
commissioners regularly meet at 8
a.m. the first Monday of each month
and usually schedule all special
meetings during morning hours.
“We feel if we have to pay an
assessment... we want to be able to
come to the meetings and take part
and hear what is said." said
Oakwood Glen resident Jenny
See Early-bird, page 8
Removal was hasty, resolutions say
Realtors, builders rally around Home
By Terry Pope
County Editor
A hasty dismissal of Wade Home as county
representative for the Coastal Resources
Commission’s Coastal Advisory Council last
month has local home builders and developers
concerned.
Two of those groups presented resolutions to
the Brunswick County Board of
Commissioners Monday asking that the board
reconsider its appbintment of Long Beach res
ident Rupert Riley and reverse Home’s sud
den dismissal.
Buddy Rudd, president of the Brunswick
County Board of Realtors, and Randy Hurst,
president of South Brunswick Islands Home
Builders Association, presented commission
ers with their concerns over the recent
changes. The board listened and accepted the
resolutions but took no action.
Commissioners voted 4-1 on January 19 to
remove Home from the council on District 5
Commissioner Bill Sue’s motion. They
replaced him with Riley, who has twice run
unsuccessfully for mayor of Long Beach and
is past president of the political action com
mittee Long Beach United for Progress.
Rudd said the 300-plus members of the
Brunswick County Board of Realtors stand
opposed to the sudden actions and urged com
missioners to seek input from citizens before
making the appointment permanent. They
believe that Horne's understanding of coastal
issues makes him the most qualified candi
date.
“We are faced with changing and challeng
ing circumstances which Mr. Horne is aware
of and has been involved with,” said Rudd.
“We believe the termination of Mr. Horne and
the appointment of his replacement was hur
ried and done without consideration for any
See Horne, page 9
RUDD
... .. Photo bv Ginger Ilarpei
Every member of the Pilot staff received journalism awards from Gov. Jim Hunt in Chapel Hill lasl
Thursday, and editor Ed Harper accepted another first-place plaque for the newspaper’s general excellence
‘Simply the best’
Pilot wins 16 state awards,
including excellence, news
jffie State Port Pilot received 16 awards — the most of any communi
ty newspaper in North Carolina - at the state press association cere
mony held Thursday night in Chapel Hill.
First-place awards in general excellence and news coverage, and
individual honors for all members of the news, editorial and photogra
phy staff, placed the Pilot at the head of competition in the 3,500-to
10,000 circulation division. The next highest awards total in the divi
sion was seven, shared by several newspapers from across the Tar Heel
State.
Pilot photographer Jim Harper won seven awards himself — six in
various photography categories and another in general news reporting.
Outdoors writer Douglas Cutting won two awards and Pilot municipal
editor Richard Nubel, sports editor Terry Pope and feature editor Laura
Kimball each won individual state press honors.
Awards were presented during the Winter Institute conducted by the
North Carolina Press Association and were based on work published
during the period October, 1997, through last September. Gov. James B.
See Awards, page 6
Modular
now okay
at Lakes
By Laura Kimball
Feature Editor
Modular homes may appear in
Boiling Spring Lakes soon, but not
before some current property own
ers have their say.
At a city board meeting Tuesday
night, it was announced the plan
ning board has recommended
modular homes be permitted in
Boiling Spring Lakes, but only if
certain standards are required.
For example, the home must be
transported by a flat-bed vehicle
which is removed from the premis
es within 72 hours, lifted by a
See Modular, page 9
. NEWS on the NET: www.southport.net
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