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SERVING THE REOPLE OF MADISON COUNTY SINCE 7901
Thursday, April 3, 1986
25c
MADISON
COUNTY LIBRARY ?
* GENERAL DELIVERY
NC
Court House Dome Removed
-Pictures On P.5
a
Community
Calendar
DOE Hearings Set For Friday
The U.S. Department of Energy will conduct a series of
public hearings on Friday in the Asheville Civic Center to
receive comments concerning the proposed nuclear waste
dump. Sessions will be held from 9 a.m. until noon; 2-5 p.m.
and 7-10 p.m. More than 100 local residents have registered to
speak at the hearings. Speakers will be limited to five-minute
presentations. /
Gov. James Martin is expected to be among the speakers
addressing the Asheville hearing.
Election Offices Open Saturday
The Madison County Board of Elections office on Main
Street in Marshall will be open on April 5 from 10 a.m. until 4
p.m. for voter registration.' Monday, April 7 is the deadline for
residents wishing to vote in the May 6 primary and referen
dum.
Lt. Gov. Bob Jordan Tours County
Lt. Gov. Robert Jordan will tour Madison County this morn
ing before attending a hearing in Waynesville. Jordan will
visit the Mars Hill Town Hall at 8 a.m. and the French Broad
Electric Membership Corp. headquarters at 9 a.m. He will
meet with officials in the Marshall Town Hall at 9:25 a.m. and
depart for Hot Springs, where he is expected to arrive at 10:45
a.m.
After meeting with officials and residents in Hot Springs,
Jordan will travel to the Sandy Mush Community Center
before leaving for Haywood County.
Leukemia Walk-A-Thon Planned
The annual walk-a-thon and bike-a-thon to benefit th<
Leukemia Society will be held on April 12 from 11 a.m. until I
p.m. at Madison H.S. Sponsor forms are available at the Mar
shall Public Library or from Katherine Boone at Marshal
Elementary School. For more informationr?ontact Bea Baak
at 649-2436. Prizes, including a grand prfie of 20 books o
trading stamps, will be offered.
Laurel VFD Pig Roast Planned
The Laurel Volunteer Fire Dept. will sponsor a pig roast on
April 6 from noon until 2 p.m. at the fire hall. Adults admission
is $3. Children can eat for $2.50. Everyone is invited to attend.
VFW Auxiliary To Meet
The Ladies Auxiliary of the Mars Hill VFW Post No. 5483
will hold a special election at their April 8th meeting to fill the
position of treasurer. The meeting will be held in the Town
Hall at 7:30 p.m. All members are urged to attend,
Weaverville Library Reception
The public is invited to a reception at the Weaverville Public
Library on Sunday from 2 until 4 p.m. marking the opening of
an exhibit of portraits by Maria Lu Kelso. The library is
located on Main Street in Weaverville.
Open Burning Banned
Dry Weather, Arsonists Blamed For 15 Fires Here
By WILLIAM LEE
The current dry spell and arsonists
are blamed for 15 brush fires
reported by the Madison County
Forest Ranger over the past week.
State officials have issued a ban on all
open burning.
Three fires suspected to be the
work of arsonists burned late Sunday
afternoon in the Marshall area.
All three were contained to under
two acres of damage, according to
County Ranger Tony Webb. Two fires
believed to be the work of arsonists
along Panhandle Rd. were started
within 15 minutes of each other, Webb
reported. The third suspicious fire
was set along Redmon Road.
"We occassionally have a few out
breaks of wood arson that are grudge
fires," Webb said. "Someone has a
grudge against a neighbor, or against
us for some past citation, and will set
these."
"Occassionally, though, we do run
into that type who sets fires for
kicks."
Webb said the two fires on Panhan
dle Road were probably the work of
the same person, who waited for
firefighters to put out one before star
ting the second one nearby.
Webb mentioned that the N.C. Divi
sion of Forest Resources is now offer
ing an award of $500 (or information
that leads to the arrest and conviction
of any woodlands arsonist. He said he
hoped the reward .may make a dif
ference with those previously reluc
tant to step forward with information.
The arson fires are particularly
dangerous at this dry stage that is ex
pected to continue for the next two
weeks. With the isolated areas of
Madison County, there is always a
danger of any fire erupting out of con
trol if not caught early.
"I'm very fortunate to have crew
leaders in a number of communities,
watching out for possible problems,"
Webb said. "We also have good
response time from the six volunteer
fire departments in. the county, as
well as drawing on assistance from
the U.S. Forest Service."
Due to the dry conditions, a burning
ban is now in effect for most of
Western North Carolina including
Madison, Buncombe and Haywood
Counties. A similar ban was issued in
Tennessee last week by Gov. Lamar
Alexander.
Webb says that during this period
any burning must be done in a screen
ed container, within 100 feet of an oc- i
cupied building, and be deligently
watched.
"By an occupied building, we do not
mean a barn or woodshed," Webb
pointed out, "but a house or place of
business."
"So far, we have been fortunate
that we haye been alerted to brush
fires early, so they can be contained
before they get out of hand and
seriously threaten timber and farm
land, and human lives."
CUPOLA OF THE MADISON COUNTY COURT HOUSE was
removed by workers on Saturday afternoon. Several hundred
spectators gathered to watch the dome removal. -More pic
tures on Page 5.
Aldermen Discuss Sign Ordinance
By ROBERT KOENIG
3 Mars Hill aldermen held a special
- called meeting Monday night to
] discuss the proposed sign ordinance,
annexation and the town's spiHway
problems. The discussions will con
i tinue at next Monday's regular mon
thly meeting.
The Easter Monday meeting was
called by Mayor Owen Tilson. Board
member John L. Chandler told the
mayor he cut short a vacation to at
tend the special meeting.
Mayor Tilson opened the meeting
by informing the aldermen that they
would have to appoint several new
members to the town's Planning and
Zoning Board at their next meeting.
Four members have resigned recent
ly and an additional four members'
terms expire this year.
Resignations have been received
from Ron Riser, Dr. Reese Steen,
Nancy Anderson and Mary Howell.
The terms of Ruth Anderson, Jonas
Chandler, Richard Croom and Ronnie
Wallin are due to expire. Wallin was
recently appointed as the board's
chairman, succeeding Dr. Steen.
The Planning and Zoning Board has
recommended that the members
whose term expires be re-instated.
The board also recommended ap
pointment of Dennis Wells, Ned
Smith, Brenda Russell and Larry
?Bwdaand suggested . tha appoint:
ment of a member of theTIWlJflJSrt
ment and an administration
representative from Mars Hill Col
lege.
Mayor Tilson suggested the
aldermen appoint some younger peo
pie to serve on the board.
The aldermen discussed provisions
of the proposed sign ordinance, but
took no final action on the draft.
Mayor Tilson recommended setting a
flat fee for all sign permits, a change
in the original draft which has
already been approved. The latest
draft of the proposal calls for a $5 sign
permit fee for all signs.
Tilson also suggested that the pro
posed height limit be raised from 25
feet to 65 feet.
Board member Augusta Jenkins
said that the Planning and Zoning
Board, authors of the proposal, want
to meet with the town board once
more before a final decision on the
proposal is reached.
The board is expected to discuss
changes in the proposal at Monday's
meeting, but a final decision on the
proposed ordinance is not expected
before May.
- WofMkfcy nighl. the aWerman are
also expected to hear from Alan Lane
of the North Carolina Dept. Of
Natural Resources and Community
Development. Lane will outline steps
the town must take to annex adjacent
properties.
Town manager Dahryl Boone
reported that he is still awaiting bids
from engineers for a study of the
town's spillway. The study is re
quired befre the town can apply for
an Appalachian Regional Commis
sion grant to fund spillway repain.
Mayor Titeoii reported that be has
reached agreement with Mars Hill
College on a lease of the Main Street
parking lot. The lot is currently
shared by the college and town, but
town officials want to pave the lot us
ing Powell Bill funds. In order to do
so, the lot must become town proper
ty. Mars Hill College has agreed to a
-Continued on Page 2
Local Farmers Vote
To Maintain Quotas
Madison County tobacco growers
voted overwhelmingly in favor of
marketing quotas for burley tobacco
in a referendum last week.
According to Madison County
director of Agricultural Stabilization
and Conservation Services, Bill Zink.
Madison County farmers approved
the measure by 96.7 percent. Of the
1.557 ballots cast, 1,506 were in favor
of the quotas.
"It will be a couple of days before
we hear from the state offices how
other counties voted," Zink said.
If the referendum passes by at least
a two-thirds majority throughout the
rest of the state, quotas will be in
place for crops grown during the next
three years. Price supports will also
be in effect.
State Report Says Area Is Unsuitable
For Nuclear Waste Dump Site
A recently released report by the
state Department of Natural
Resources and Community Develop
ment (NRCD) claims that the propos
ed nuclear dump site in Western
North Carolina may be unsuitable for
nuclear waste storage due to deep cir
culating ground water and geological
rock faults. A meeting was held last
Wednesday in Hot Springs by local
experts determined to prove the
state's claim.
The report, prepared over the last
three months by James Robert
Butler, a professor of geology at the
University of North Carolina,
centered on thermal springs 11 miles
north of the proposed site as indica
tion of groundwater circulating at
depths greater than 5,000 feet.
That now places a greater impor
Ground Water, Rock Faults Cited
i !
" What they fail to realize is that we are between two faultay
riding like a bucking horaet "
? Garrett Smathers
area just north of the proposed site,
yet the DOE study makes no mention
of them at all," Smathers said.
According to Don Link, the fracture
system seen in Hot Springs probably
has its beginnings somewhere in the
Elk River region of the proposed
dump at approximately tt.OM feet
below the surface That
the fault just under the
rock bed that the DOE
suitable
"While these springs are i
the proposed site, and t
different rock I
the depth that
travels in this area," I
Bui it ?miH
that jUSt
?
faces in Hot Springs.
"The DOE study, however, doesn't
show that fault because it simply
didn't bother to extend deep enough,"
Butler said in an interview last week
"If they had gone down another 1,000
feet they would have discovered
another flatbed of rock, similar to
that found throughout the Tennessee
River Valley."
In his report, Butler made mention
of the fact that tbr DOE t<
thrust extending beneath the
v ;
than just looked at the geological
survey maps, where they saw this
large croas section of limestone, they
would have also discovered that it in
terconnects with what is referred to
as the Rector Branch Fault."
"As a scientific study, the DOB
report is a poor piece of work, we
IrnAw that CmatKAM
RESIDENTS POINTED OUT suspected
geologists during last week's Inspection tour In
tng? are. Geologists are hoping to And evidences
H
DOE study.
Most people pnHk hit
these plates ai* ?
umlx i of
DanStupk) "Sh s dan
Hp. re iting in earthquakes
tuptea field of expertise i
'< ?? 0& le will t| mu>.
"