the NEWS RECORD SERVING THE PEOPLE OF MADISON COUNTY SINCE 1901 Thursday, May 1, 1986 ^ Count-Out To Be Held At High School Tuesday, May 6 is Primary Election Day in Madison County. Polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. Voters in the Revere-Rice's Cove precinct will cast their ballots at the former Gunter's Grocery Store. Voters in other precincts will vote in their usual polling place. Democrats will select candidates for the U.S. House and Senate, county commission, school board and tax collector. Republicans will choose candidates for the U.S. Senate, county commission and District II on the Madison County Board of Education. Unaffiliated voters may also vote in the non-binding refer endum concerning location of a nuclear waste dump in North Carolina. Due to repairs to the county courthouse, the election night count-out will be held in the cafeteria of Madison High School beginning shortly after 7:30 p.m. May Day Festival Saturday The annual May Day Festival at Madison H.S. will be held on Saturday from 9 a.m. until 11 p.m. A crafts fair has been added to this year's festival. Crafts will include chair can ing, paintings, jewelry, wall hangings, cornhusk dolls, candles and crochet exhibits. In addition to the crafts fair, there will be games, volleyball and horseshoe tournaments and refreshments. TOere wil also be a dance held in the school gymnasium beginning at 8 p.m. Proceeds from the festival will benefit the Madison Coun ty Association of Retarded Citizens. Legion Meets Tonight In Marshall American Legion Post No. 317 will hold their monthly meeting tonight at 7 p.m. in the Legion Hall on Back Street in Marshall. All members are urged to attend. Hot Springs Reunion Planned A reunion for all former students at Hot Springs School from i960 through 1973 will be held on May 24 from 4 until 10 p.m. All former teachers, principals and staff, as well as pre-1960 students are invited to attend. The reunion is planned as an informal affair and light refreshments will be served. Softball Tourney In Hot Springs The Madison Youth Softball League will hold a pre-season tournament on May 10 for children nine through 12 in Hot Springs beginning at 9 a.m. Everyone is invited to attend. LISA THE ELEPHANT was the star of the Roberts Bros, cir cus which visited Marshall for two performances on Tuesday night. Marshall Students Take History Day Honors Marshall School continued its winning ways this weekend, taking two first place awards and one second place in the state History Day competition held in Winston-Salem. A first place in the individual category was won by Allen Fisher for his display entitled "Labor vs. Management." A first place in the media category was won by Heather Banks and Karen Deaver for their visual arts display on nurs ing and midwifery. A second place in the individual performance category was awarded to Jody Felton for her performance entitled "A Vista Worker Comes to Appalachia." A third place award was given to Amber Coulby and Susan Waldrop for their group project, "The Feminist Movement in America." The first and second place finishers go on to Washington, D.C. next month to compete in the national finals. Bray Trial Begins Monday The murder trial of William Bray is scheduled to begin on Monday morning in Madison County Superior Court. Bray is charged with the murder of State Trooper Bobby L. Coggins in September of last year. Although the case has been placed on the court calendar, prosecutors are still uncertain where the case will be heard because of ongoing repairs to the Madison County Court House. Repairs to the building's roof have forced a postpone ment of the trial in the past. The contract with H and M Construction calls for repairs to be completed in time for the May 5 trial date. However, it is still uncertain if the repairs can be completed in time. Jackie Davis, foreman on the project, said that subcontractors still have to put a number of finishing touches on the repairs. Davis expressed doubts that the building would be rerady in time for Monday's trial. If the courtroom is not available, prosecutors may move the trial to Yancey County. Because of the publicity surrounding the shooting and subse quent manhunt, 300 county residents have been summoned as potential jurors. Names of thise called for jury duty appears on Page 12. Bray remains in the Madison County Jail without bond awaiting trial. The other suspect in the trooper's murder, Jimmy Dean Rios, is scheduled to face trial during the June session of Superior Court. IVY CREEK, above, was cleaned by Mars Hill Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts during Saturday's Clean Streams Day effort. Complaints Mount As Sewer Project Nears Completion By WILLIAM LEE One could say that the town of Mars Hill found a tough road to pave when they decided to install a sewer system in their community. At the very least, it has been a rough road. Complaints have piled atop more complaints from the residents in the - usually peaceful community. While most of the complaints have been due to the inconvenience and annoyances to be expected when heavy construc tion work interupts the daily routine, the town nonetheless finds itself in volved in a couple of law suits. Ed Howard, owner of Howard's Drugstore on Main Street has filed suit against both the town and Cooper Construction. Howard's attorney, Richard Miller of Marshall, was repeatedly unavailable for comment on the suit The suit, however, concerns alleg ed damages to Howard's other business, the Mars Hill Skating Rink, caused by flooding when construction crews reportedly filled a ditch adja cent to the rink. Howard also claims that construction crews illegally trespassed on his property, overstep ping the legal easement he granted. Harold Ponder, who owns a automotive paint and body shop just off Bruce Street, has also filed suit claiming damages and a loss of business due to the construction. "Months went by when they had dirt piled up in the driveway and I couldn't even get to my house,'' Ponder said. "The road collapsed some time after they had laid the pipe causing more problems. I literally had to close down my business until things settled down." Ponder couldn't give exact figures, but estimated that he probably suf fered "several thousand dollars in lost business." Like Howard, Ponder has also had his share of flooding when culverts became blocked up. He admits that the problem had occured in the past, but only when road construction or plowing was done on the hillside above him. A quick inspection of his property shows an obvious problem. In front of one of the trailers Ponder rents out, lies a large puddle of mud and water. Every so often sewage gushes out from the middle and flows slowly down the middle of his driveway. A broken septic pipe is the culprit. The question is who is at fault. Ponder claims that the pipe was broken when construction crews came in and dug up his driveway to place the sewer lines. The town of Mars Hill believes the septic tank pipes had rusted through after years of neglect and may well have been leaking prior to any construction. The water lines were broken in the same manner. "I've never had any problems with my septic tank," Ponder said. He pointed to where the septic tank was located. "All one has to do is come out here and see where the construction crew brought heavy equipment right across the top of the tank. It's just for tunate it didn't collapse." "The one trailer that has the flooding in front of it has also had ex tensive flood damage inside," Ponder explained "And that's where Darryl Boone's mother lives. You'd think he'd see that his own mother was taken care of." "We've had a lot of inconveniences to have to tolerate during till this," Boone commented. "Some just couldn't be helped. You can't do a major project like this without some problems occuring." Former Mars Hill Mayor William Powell agrees. He was mayor when the project began three years ago and has seen how the work has progress ed. "Most of the citizens have tolerated the little inconveniences caused by all the work, and I think damages have been minimal. Things have admitted ly moved slowly recently. But the city seems determined now to get on with the cleanup and repair the roads," said Powell It is the condition of the roads that has caused the most problems down at Town Hall in recent months Reports of shoddy patchwork had filtered back to Mayor Owen Tilson and the board of aldermen. They have in turn informed Cooper Con struction of their determination to withhold payment until the paving work is completed to their satisfac tion. "I've seen Anderson Street so filled with potholes it was nearly impossi ble to drive on," said Vernon Buckner, who lives on Chestnut Street. "And you can see the holes they're getting ready to fill along here, not to mention the breakup of the sidewalk." A new paving crew, Hendersoovilte Paving Company, was hired last -CmUmhI on Page 3 Republican School Board Candidates Address The Issues By WILLIAM LICE Ike following arc iaterviewi con d?cted over the pact week with RepaMleaa candidates far the M?il- Coonty Baard of Education. Oiatriet II. Candidate Jim Heaalcy ?- ?? ? i |A ? Li. a i-i- J ?? * I lUCll IV Rwp ni* scbcuuicu ippoiiii* a _ jli. i_i ? ....l? ... d HNSM i or mis iniprv lew . twcsiisf MMriet I ha* aaly two eaadidatea. at torney Edward Kraase and Or Leatar Stawe, there la no primary lor Matriet I. Ml candidates were aafceri tho u*e three aad UMWVfft are verlMtiRi. , ? P >? :? ' ?? -S- . , and the new problems facing us as a result of these changes cannot be handled by old approaches. For the effective management of our school system, we must have a Board of Education willing to recognise these changes and meet them with the new answers required. The children of Madison County deserve nothing leu As someone who attended a Madison County elementary school, a Madison County high school, and a Madison County college. I feel a close connection with our schools - and a great desiifc to see that our children BAKER: Only as a last resort, (o raise revenue when other funds have been exhausted, or to finance a massive project for which funds could not be acquired through any other means. Consideration must be given, when contemplating a school bond referendum, or ANY bond referendum, to the effects that would have on taxes in the county's future Before turning to a school bond referendum I would have to be satisfied there was simply no other UMtMnfc . I am not, however, opposed County schools in the immediate future? BAKEK: Vou are. of course, eliminating hy that question perhaps the most specific immediate need facing as - and that to the physical condition of our schools. Many of our school buildings across the county are in very poor shape, due to age or |ii?| *4 /J i<f JVISf ufCBOfK VI ""glfvli up to ? ac Mkl_.LL wnicn VMM H- OMTgaMfeH is a stigma which must be DEWEY GRIFFEY. JR. Ii a Republican candidate (or Ar board of education. He Is a resident of Guntertown. State your reaioos for running for the board of education. GRIFFEY. I fee! I have the ability and the knowledge to serve on the board of education I fed that I coul<l improve the school system because they do need improving. &m MICHAEL JENKINS ii a Republican candidate far th. board of education. He it a resident of ? J..' i*.. . . *> ' J. - K 4* JENKINS : 1 cant think of anything I'd rather put my time and effort Mo than the youth of Madison County That's basically what I'm about on that issue

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