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The NEWS RECORD
Serving The People Of Our Communities Since 1 90 1
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Vol. 87 No. 7 Thursday, February 12, 1987 " 25c
Water Project Would Cost $10.5 Million
Mars Hill , Weaverville Study Plan
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
ASHEVILLE - Officials from the
towns of Mars Hill, Weaverville and
Woodf in learned last week that a joint
municipal water system, to utilize the
Ivy River, would cost an estimated
$10.5 million.
The proposed system, designed to
meet the three towns' water needs
through the year 2010, may also re
quire a drastic increase in water
rates for customers in the towns.
That was the word Thursday from
engineer Gary McGill, Asheville, who
gave an often-discouraging report
during a joint meeting of officials
from the three towns at Land-of-Sky
Regional Council in Asheville.
"We don't want to mislead you,"
McGill said. "We don't want to lead
you down the primrose path."
The total cost of the project, design
. ed to help the towns alleviate water
supply problems experienced in
years past, comes to $10,530,400,
McGill said. That price covers the
water treatment plant, the water
lines, and construction, engineering
fees.
"You heard me right -- $10,530,400,"
McGill said. The cost estimate is in
flated and is based on 1990 dollars
because it will take at least three
years of preliminary work before
construction could actually begin.
The system, if approved, would be
ready in 1992, at the earliest.
Last summer's long drought forced
Weaverville and Woodfin to purchase
water from the Asheville-Buncombe
Water Authority. Both the twon of
Weaverville and the Woodfin
Sanitary District rely on Reems
Creek and its tributarires for water.
Weaverville has had a moratorium on
new water lines outside the town
limits since 1974 because of its supply
problems.
Mars Hill draws its water from Big
Laurel Creek. The town currently has
sufficient water to meet its needs, but
officials are also concerned about
where they'll get water in the future.
Mars Hill also faced problems dur
ing last summer's drought, and asked
residents to observe conservation
practices.
Weaverville officials suggested last
March a study of the Ivy River, near
the Madison-Buncombe county line,
as a source of drinking water.
Studies of the river indicates that
the water flow in the Ivy is more than
sufficient to meet the towns' needs,
McGill said.
"With the flow the river has, we
feel that this is a good source of water
as far as quantity goes," he said.
"Our impact on the river will be very
minor."
The system could produce 3.1
million gallons of water a day.
. Preliminary samples taken from
the river show that its water exceeds
drinking water standards, he said.
-Continued on back page
BILL STIJDENC PHOTO
Mars Hill Mayor, Owen Tilson (left) and
Weaverville Mayor Reese Lasher listen to a
report on a study of the Ivy River as a potential
water source for their towns and neighboring
Woodfin.
Marshall Board
Hears Proposal
On New Prison
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
The Marshall Board of Aldermen
heard a suggestion Monday night that
the town join tatea with ether
municipal and county officials to br
ing a medium-security prison to
Madison County.
The board, while appearing
somewhat receptive to the idea, fell
short of endorsing the plan without
first receiving some input from Mar
shall residents.
"We should meet with others in the
county first to see how they feel about
it," said Marshall Alderman Faye
Reid. "We've got a lot of retirees in
this county and a lot of widows who
might think they'll be scared to death
if this thing comes here."
Richard Kingston, a Marshall man
who has been pushing to locate the
prison in Madison County, presented
his suggestion to the Marshall board
at its regular meeting Monday. The
proposed prison is to be a replace
ment of the aging Craggy Prison
located in Woodfin.
The N.C. General Assembly has ap
propriated 17.1 million for the con
struction of an new medium -security
prison in Buncombe County. N.C.
Department of Corrections officials
have located a handful of potential
sites for the new prison, including a
tract of land near Weaverville, but
have met strong opposition from
nearby landowners at those sites.
Kingston has suggested petitioning
the General Assembly to amend the.
law so that the prison coM be built tn
a county other than Buncombe -
specifically in Madison.
"We should look into the possibility
of bringing this to Madison County,"
said Kingston, a member of the Mar
shall Planning Board. "It seems
almost a certainty that it won't be
coming to Buncombe County."
Prison officials met opposition to a
proposed site near Enka, as area
residents complained because of the
site's proximity to churches and
schools.
Weaverville area residents ex
pressed opposition to another propos
ed site on Goldview Drive, citing the
prison's potential negative impact on
property values in the surrounding
vicinity.
But Kingston gave the Marshall
town board a rundown of what he said
are the advantages of locating a
prison facility in Madison County.
Those advantages, according to
Kingston, include:
? $5.6 million in construction funds
alone would be spent on the prison.
? Some 125 new jobs would be
created when the facility is com
pleted
-Continued on back page
Cable Rate Hike
Legal, Company Says
By BILL 8TUDENC
Editor
Several disgruntled customers of
CenCom, the cable television com
pany serving the Marshall area,
stormed Marshall Town Hall Monday
to complain about a nearly 21 percent
increase in rates.
But Paul Deiendorf, regional
manager (or the cable company, told
a group of about 30 residents that
federal deregulation of the cable
ldustry allows his can
to charfg whatever rates it
Deiendorf traveled from
Bakers vil)a to Marshall st the re
quest of Marshall Mayor Anita Ward
to field questions from angry
customers, who have been asking
town officials about the rate Increase
CenCom 's basic cat
110 75 a
a hike of 10.5 percent
one <?| i
town board," Ward said, reading
from the franchise agreement with
CenCom.
"That, under federal law, doesn't
stand, and hasn't for some time,"
Dezendorf said.
Congress in 1964 approved legiala
tion stripping municipalities of much
of their control over cable computes .
The regulation of rates it one of those
controls that towns no longer have,
Dezendorf said.
Ehler then criticised CenCom for
failing to provide its customers with
advance warning of the rate Increase .
We got our bills from you in the
middle of the month stating that our
bills would Increase, retroactive to
the first of the month," Ehler said
BILL STUDENC PHOTO
SBI Agent R.L. Knowles sifts through the remains of a Monday
night fire in the Meadow Fork section of Madison County. Two
men died in the blaze, which is still under investigation.
Late Night Fire
Claims 2 Lives
In Meadow Fork
By BILL STUDENC
Editor
Two residents of the Meadow Fork
section of Madison County died late
Monday night when a fire raged
through their one-story farmhouse.
Authorities have tentatively iden
tified the victims as Dale Balding, 62,
and his son Jimmy Balding, 32.
Those identifications are tentative
until the N.C. Medical Examiner's
Office in Chapel Hill can examine the
remains for positive identification,
authorities said.
The cause of the fire, which
destroyed the Balding house, is still
under investigation by local fire of
ficials and the N.C. State Bureau of
Investigation
SBI arson investigators Mica
Elliott and R.L. Knowles were at the
scene of the blaze all day Tuesday,
sifting through ashes and charred
wreckage for evidence.
"The cause of the fire is undeter
mined at this time. The house was
totally consumed by fire," said Bill
Matthews, assistant director of the
SBI's regional office in Asheville.
It may take investigators some
time to determine the cause of the
fire, Matthews said. All that remain
ed of the house was a rock foundation,
a chimney, a tin roof and metal ob
jects from inside.
"The problem with a fire like this,
when the house is totally consumed.
is that it makes it real hard to
establish points of origin and find out
exactly what might have caused th<>
fire,'' Matthews said
ERbtl 'WRpwl'as -v?w mtrr
viewing friends and family members
Tuesday, trying to learn information
that might help in their investigation
The victims' bodies were burned
beyond recognition, authorities said
Arson is not suspected in the fire:
nor has it been ruled out, Matthews
said.
Much of Elliott and Knowles' work
Tuesday centered around the
fireplace area of the house
Bobby Clark, chief of Spring Creek
Volunteer Fire Department, said the
fire apparently began sometime
around 11 p.m. Monday
"We got the call at about 1 1 : 15 Mon
day night," Clark said. "The house
was completely gone by the time we
got there. Nothing was even
standing."
Clark estimated that 90 percent of
the home was burned in the fire.
Fire fighters arrived at the scene at
about 11:30 p.m., and worked until
3:30 a.m. Tuesday to extinguish the
blaze
Subfreezing temperatures hindered
the firefighters' efforts, Clark said.
A tired Clark was still at the scene
late Tuesday afternoon as SBI agents
sifted through the charred dehris.
Economic War Brewing
_ O
In Madison County
Marshall Merchants
Form Association
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By ANNE KITCHELL
SUff Writer
It is no secret Madison County is financially troubl
ed.
On any given day, one can stand on the U.S. 25-70
Bypass and watch potential retail and industrial
dollars head for Buncombe County.
Over the past five years, the fatality rate for
businesses has tripled, with very few new businesses
to take their place.
A less-hearty community might simply give up. But
Hot Springs Reactivates
Chamber Of Commerce
By ANNE KITCHELL
Stan Writer
The movement to save Madison County businesses
is spreading throughout several communities
In Hot Springs, more than SO area businesses and in
dividuals have banded together to reactivate the
defunct Hot Springs Area Chamber of Commerce to
promote industry and growth.
Fbr more then a month, the steadily increasing
number of concerned citizens haw met to discuss
what can be done about Hot Springs' falteriag
Chandler
Hearing
Postponed
A hearing to determine the location
of the second trial of Andrew
"Junior" Chandler, charged with
sexually abusing seven pre school
children, has been rescheduled to Fri
day.
A Madison County jury was unable
to reach a verdict in the two-week
trial of Chandler. 29, last week
Superior Court Judge James A. Beat v
Jr declared a mistrial, and pro
secutors immediately asked for a
new trial, bat in a different counts
had scheduled a hearing on
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