■»rr«ntonM«B.Library X
117 S.l»la St.
Varr«ntoa, N.C. 27
Parrot lee#r5
Volume 87 25c Per Copy Warrenton, County Of Warren, North Carolina Wednesday, September 26, 1984 Number 39
| More Voting Machines Expected
Election officials hope to have two more
& voting tabulator machines to add to the three
| already owned by the county for use in the
November 6 presidential election.
Ejection supervisor Ruby Jones said this
week that the machines will be installed in
Hawtree and Nutbush precincts. Machines are
already in use in Norlina, East Warrenton and
West Warrenton precincts.
County Manager Charles Worth told county
commissioners at their mid-monthly meeting
last Wednesday that thi machines were being
purchased at a cost or (3,200 each from the
California-based Airmac Technology
Systems, Inc.
In April, the board authorized a five-year
lease-purchase agreement with the same
company for the acquisition of 12 machines at g
a cost of $3,475. However, Worth said Monday £
that the county was "not in a financial
position" to proceed with that arrangement, |
and would purchase machines for the nine
remaining precincts as funds became
available.
The machines are not what are commonly
called "voting machines," but are vote
tabulators. Voters mark their ballots in the
usual manner and the ballots are then fed into
the machine where they are tallied elec
tronically. gj
The purchase of the machines has been
urged by local election officials who say they |i;i
will make the polling operation more efficient
and make possible earlier election returns.
Displayed are a representation of the more flan
100 dolls to be shown on Saturday, September 29, at
the Doll Show and Yard and Bake Sale at the
Norlina Methodist Church. Sponsored by the
Norlina United Methodist Women, the event will
begin at 9 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. Proceeds will be
used to help with expenses of repair work being
done at the church and parsonage.
Action Taken By Commissioners
Mutual Aid Agreement Is Passed
In Wake Of Escape By Convicts
The multi-county,
two-state search last
June for six convicts
who escaped from a
Virginia prison led to
the authorization last
Wednesday by county
commissioners of a
mutual aid law enforce
ment agreement for the
Warren County Sheriff's
Department.
The agreement
enables the department
to lend assistance to
other county and muni
cipal law enforcement
agencies in emergencies
while retaining for its
deputies the same
"rights, privileges, and
immunities" they would
have if working in their
own jurisdiction, ac
cording to the N. C.
General Statute govern
ing the agreement.
The statute also stipu
lates that the requesting
agency will be in com
mand.
"As indicated with the
escapees, mutual aid is
important," County
Manager Charles Worth
told the commissioners.
"This agreement is the
result of that and will
establish who is in
charge. Fortunately,
thus far various other
departments have been
cooperating wholeheart
edly, but if something
comes up at a later date,
we'll have something to
fall back on."
The agreement will be
executed subject to ap
proval by the county at
torney.
In other business, the
commissioners:
—Reappointed Donna
Roope, Irene Fitts,
Bessie Shearin, and
Peggy Williams to the
Region K Domiciliary
Home Community Ad
visory Committee. Dr.
Cosmos George was ap
pointed to fill a vacancy
created by the ex
piration of Dr. Donald
Coffman'sterm.
—Authorized J. W.
Farrar, director of War
ren County social Ser
vices to sign contracts
for the agency as long as
they do not pertain to
monetary matters and
are approved by the
county attorney.
—Authorized a re
vised resolution
establishing the Kerr
Area Transportation
Authority to include
Franklin County, which
joined the four-county
effort after the initial
resolution was signed.
—Approved a request
to the N. C. Department
of transportation for
re rating S. R. 1135 for
paving.
Committee Is Formed
Building Needs Will Be Examined
Concern for the long-range facility needs of
county government led last Wednesday night to the
appointment of a Capital Development Committee
by Eva M. Clayton, chairperson of the Warren
County commissioners.
"We know a number of buildings are in trouble,"
Mrs. Clayton told the board. "Agencies have been
coming to us one at a time requesting help and we
provide that help as the need arises. But we need a
group to make assessments and come up with some
long-range plans."
Commissioner Jack Harris concurred with Mrs.
Clayton, adding that the action should have been
taken 30 years ago.
Those appointed to serve on the committee are:
Chairperson Clayton, Commissioner Harris,
Warren County School Board Chairman Henry
Pltchford, Warren General Hospital Board Vice
Chairman John Andrews, County Industrial Com
mission Chairman Monroe Gardner and L C.
Cooper and Brad Carroll, members of the Citizens
United for Progress task force.
Among the county's most recent moves to
upgrade facilities is the renovation of the basement
of the County Agricultural Building on Courthouse
Square for use by the Warren County Sheriff's
Department.
The department, which currently operates out of
a small office in the courthouse, is expected to oc
cupy its new quarters within the next few weeks.
Construction crews have been at work at the
Agricultural Building repairing damage caused by
water seepage and repartitioning offices to meet the
needs of the sheriff, his six deputies, secretary and
other state and local officials who must use the
facilities.
County commissioners authorised the
renovations at a coat of about $21,000 after Sheriff
Theo Williams advised them of the difficulties his
department faced in carrying out law enforcement
efficiently in the cramped courthouse office.
The commissioners have also recently discussed
the feasibility of acquisition of property to house
county offices, such as the county manager and in
dustrial developer, which are currently housed In
rented offices.
New Zoning Revisions
Proposed By Planners
By KAY HORNER
News Editor
Proposed revisions to
the Warren County
zoning ordinance ad
dressing the construc
tion of multi-family
dwellings and providing
for two new zoning
districts, residential
agricultural and light
industrial, were
presented to county
commissioners last
Wednesday by Selby
Benton, chairman of the
Warren County Plan
ning Board.
Currently, only the
Kerr Lake and Gaston
Lake areas of the county
are zoned & ily
single-family lcaiaen
tial, lakeside camp,
lakeside business, and
neighborhood business
districts are designated.
The plans of Virginia
developer J. R. Brock to
construct a multi
million dollar planned
unit development
(PUD) on Lake Gaston
at Eaton's Ferry Bridge
prompted the revised
ordinance to address,
among other things,
construction of town
houses and condomin
iums.
According to 0. L.
"Butch" Meek, secre
tary to the Planning
Board, the proposed or
dinance, which has been
four months in the
making, is worded in
such a way that it can
apply to the areas
currently zoned or can
encompass other areas.
"We're trying to adopt
wording that will
prevent us from having
to come back at a later
time and again revise
the ordinance," Meek
said this week.
The zoned areas will
be delineated on a map
to become a part of the
ordinance.
A rough sketch of the
map, which will be
presented to county
commissiones at an Oc
tober 10 work session
with the Planning
Board, does not call for
countywide zoning,
Meek said, but does
propose zoning for
several areas not
previously zoned.
Among these areas is
an industrial corridor
between Norlina and
Soul City on U. S. 1 in
cluding sites where two
industries, Owens
Illinois and Swing
Transport, are con
structing facilities.
"This is to protect the
county's investment in
that area for industrial
water and sewer lines,"
Meek indicated.
Other land in that
area has been designat
ed agricultural-residen
tial. "We don't want to
cram industry right up
to farms in Ridgeway,"
Meek explained.
It will be up to county
commissioners to
amend the current
zoning ordinance, and a
public hearing must be
held before they take
that action.
In 1877, the Planning
Board submitted
amendments to the
commissioners which
covered much of the
same material included
in the latest proposal.
However, the com
missioners never acted
on that proposal.
"Mainly we want to
say to the commission
ers that this proposal is
what we now have come
up with and we want
them to take a look at
it," Meek commented.
"The October 10
meeting will be a fact
finding session and work
session, as I see it."
The current document
is a collaborative effort
of the Planning Board
and the N. C. Depart
ment of Natural Re
sources and Cultural
Development.
"We tried to better
define things and take
out what was outdated
or antiquated," Meek
said. "We hope it will be
well received. . . .of
course, you'rt always
going to get opposition.
Folks don't like to be
regulated and told what
they can and cannot do
with their land. But if
the county decides to
grow, it must do certain
things."
Two Wrecks Are Reported
Interstate 85 Accident
Injures Five Motorists
Two accidents were
reported in Warren
County on Thursday and
Saturday of last week.
Five Virginia resi
dents were treated and
released fromMaria
Parham Hospital Satur
day fol'owing a three
vehicle collision on 1-85
seven miles north of
Norlina, according to
patrol reports.
The accident occurred
around 10:30 p. m., ac
cording to Trooper C. E.
Lockley, when a south
bound car driven by
Ross Alexander Lam
bert, 20, of Norfolk, Va.
crossed over the median
and struck two north
bound vehicles simul
taneously.
Lewis Preston
Smelley, 51, of South
Hill, Va. and Andrew
Clay Puckett, Jr. of
Richmond, Va. were
identified as the drivers
of the other vehicles.
Lambert's car left the
road following the
collision and came to
Absentee Ballot
Requests Are Up
As the November 6
general election nears,
Warren County Board of
Elections Supervisor
Mrs. Ruby Jones has
reported an increased
number of requests for
absentee ballots.
Of the 46 requests
received to date, the
supervisor stated that 20
were classified as mili
tary, 12 as overseas, and
14 as civilian. She ex
plained that military
applicants are
registered uniformed
service personnel or
their spouses, while
overseas applicants are
overseas military per
sons who are not regis
tered but who may, upon
request, vote for of
ficials on the national
level. The civilian cate
gory includes any
registered voter who
cannot be present to
vote in the county on
Election Day.
Application for absen
tee ballots may be made
through November 1
statewide and beginning
October 9, the voter may
also vote his ballot a* the
time of application in
person at the Board of
Elections office, accord
ing to Mrs. Jones.
With the election ap
proximately six weeks
away, Mrs. Jones re
minds voters that Octo
ber 8 is the deadline for
registration or change
of registration. She en
couraged voters to
make sure they are
registered in the pre
cinct where they reside
and to notify the elec
tions board if they have
■ change of address.
The supervisor also
pointed out that in
dividuals moving from
one township to another
will need to file a pre
cinct transfer. Voters
may not vote in the new
precinct if the transfer
has not been recorded.
Warren County voters
will cast their ballots in
one of the 14 precincts as
follows: River, Six
pound, Hawtree, Smith
Creek, Nutbush, Sandy
Creek, Shocco, Fishing
Creek, Judkins, West
Warrenton, Fork,
Roanoke, Norlina,
and East Warrenton.
rest after striking a
guardrail. The other two
vehicles came to rest in
the northbound lane.
Lambert was unin
jured and Smelley's in
juries did not call for
medical attention.
Puckett sustained a
broken wrist.
three passengers in
Smelley's car were in
jured. They were: Wil
liam Farrer, 53; Shirley
Smelley, 48; and Macy
Farrer, 39, all of South
Hill.
Ann Reath, 57, of
Wemyss, Va., a passen
ger in Puckett's car,
was also injured.
Lambert was charged
with driving while im
paired, reckless driving
and failing to have an
operator's license.
Damage to Smelley's
car was figured at
$3,500, to Puckett's
vehicle $5,000, and to
Lambert's $2,000. About
$200 in damage was
done to the guardrail hit
by Lambert's car.
A Thursday afternoon
accident on U. S. 158 By
pass around Warrenton
involved three vehicles,
but involved no injuries,
according to patrol
reports.
Trooper Lockley re
(Continued on page 8B)
Volunteer Awards
Will Be Presented
Six outstanding volun
teers from Warren
County will be honored
Oct. 2 at Raleigh
Memorial Auditorium
with a Governor's Vol
unteer Award.
They are among
volunteers from 33 cen
tral North Carolina
counties who have been
cited by Governor Jim
Hunt for their work.
The local recipients
are: Dorothy S. Stans
bury of Warren Nursing
Center, individual
human services volun
teer; Martin Richard
son of Warrenton, senior
citiien volunteer;
Norma Q. Retzlaff of
Warrenton, school
volunteer; John R.
Hawkins Alumni &
Friends, Inc., Warren
ton, community volun
teer organisation;
Men's Volunteer Group
of Locust Grove Baptist
Church, church/religi
ous volunteer; and The
Warren Record, busi
ness/industry volunteer
involvement.
According to Charles
V. Petty, executive
director of the Gover
nor's Office of Citizens
Affairs, the Governor's
Awards were created by
Governor Hunt in 1900 to
recognize the efforts of
local volunteers. Each
award recipient will be
presented a certificate
and a special volunteer
pin bearing the Volun
teer North Carolina logo
and the date.
Governor and Mrs.
Hunt will make the
presentations.
Refreshments will be
served and music will be
provided by the Varsity
Man's Club of North
Carolina State Univer
sity.