The NEWS RECORD
u
Serving Madison And Buncombe Counties
Vol. 88 No. 31 Thursday, August 4, 1988 25c
J
Big Pine Now Has Its Own
Volunteer Fire Dept.
Panes 11 and 14
Board Says Free Renovations Misleading
By STEVE FERGUSON
The Madison County Board of
Education declined an offer Monday
from a Spring Creek group to make
free repairs to Spring Creek Elemen
tary School because the group's in
tentions were considered misleading
by the board.
Bill Barutio of Spring Creek ad
dressed the board saying he
reepresented 90 percent of the
parents living in that area. He said
almost $3,000 had been raised in
pledges and other money in a "Save
Our School" campaign.
Spring Creek is scheduled to be
closed at the end of the next school
year as part of a county school con
solidation plan.
Earlier this year, the board approv
ed Barutio's request to tour the facili
ty and survey for needed repairs, as
long as he went with the county
maintenance supervisor and the prin
cipal of the school. He listed his fin
dings in what he considered to be
order of priority:
?Barutio said he found an "inade
quate" water supply to the school.
Whenever a commode was flushed in
the school, other water sources could
not be used, he said,
Kepresentatives from Caldwell
drilling said the low water supply
could be from small pipes running to
the school or a well that is too
shallow, Barutio said, and added that
Caldwell Drilling would supply the
labor and machinery free of charge
and the Spring Creek Development
Committee would pay for the pipe or
other materials necessary to drill the
well.
?He also claimed windows in the
school were "beyond reparable. One
fell out of the principal's office the
week before we went there to tour the
school," he said. Officials from
Westall and Company suggested in
stallation of 85 double-glazed win
dows.
Barutio said the committee has
been running an "Adopt-a-window"
campaign in which donors pay $100 to
purchase one window for the school.
In return, donors would get a plaque
to place under their "adopted'' win
dow. To date, he said $5,000 has been
raised in this campaign.
"Again, this is at no expense to the
school board," Barutio said.
?Poorly placed bathrooms should be
turned into dressing rooms for
visiting athletic teams, Barutio said,
and a centrally located toilet should
be added.
"We look forward to working with
the school board in effecting these
repairs as soon as possible," he said.
Board member James Baker called
Barutio's presentation misleading
and said he had had several Spring
Creek residents visiting and calling
his office about the matter.
Spring Creek residents showed him
a petition titled: "Save Our School."
According to Baker, they asked
him if the petition meant they will
keep Spring Creek School open.
The board's consolidation plan
calls for Spring Creek School be to
closed at the end of the 1988-89school
year.
Baker said he objected to the title
"Save Our School."
In response to Baker's statement
that he had had several calls and
visits from Spring Creek residents,
Barutio asked, "Who are these peo
ple? I represent 90 percent of the
parents on Spring Creek."
"I'm not obligated to tell you that,"
Baker said.
Baker charged Barutio with
misleading the residents with the
petition titled "Save Our School."
Said Barutio, "But that's what
we're trying to do."
Barutio referred to the July 9th
meeting when the board approved
Barutio's plan to tour the school and
report damages, provided he was ac
companied by the principal and the
county maintenance supervisor.
"If only for a year these kids need
to be in a safe, productive learning
environment," Barutio said.
"But that's not what you're trying
to do at all, is it, Mr. Barutio?" Baker
said. "You're confusing people. I'm
going to have to be opposed to this."
"Your reaction is a insult to the
people of Spring Creek," Barutio
answered.
Barutio's proposal died when no
board member would make a motion
to approve the matter.
In other action the board learned
from Tamm a Moriarity, vice presid
ent of Marshall Primary PTA that
Moriarity has written a grant ap
plication to buy two video laser disk
players and the accompanying soft
ware package, estimated to cost
$11,000.
Moriarity said the "Windows on
Science" program taught students
with exciting video images.
"I remember trying to watch these
movies when I was in school and try
ing to stay awake," Moriarity said.
"This is nothing like that."
She said the cost of the program
might be funded by Wachovia Bank
and Trust. The bank's average con
tribution to such projects is $12,000
"This is so new that field testing in
the earth science disk was just finish
ed last year," Moriarty said. "1
remember when I went to school, it
was hard not to go to sleep in front of
those movies. This is nothing like that
at all."
Moriarty asked the board for per
mission to seek funding from
Wachovia Bank and Trust. "Their
average grant is between $12,680 and
$14,557," she said. "We're asking for
$11,812.13. This is a very expensive
program."
"Some are more expensive than
that," said Superintendent Bob Ed
wards. "It depends on the research
that has gone into it."
Moriarty said preliminary results
showed 78 percent of the teachers
surveyed said the program increased
comprehension, 93 percent said it was
easy to set up and 89 percent said it
improved their students' motivation.
"It is a great proposal," said Bobby
-Continued on back page
Tamma Moriarly
i
Mars Hill Zones
New Areas Into Town
by HASSIE PONDER 7>
After a heated discussion at the Mars Hill town board meeting,
aldermen approved the rezoning of a tract of land just north of the town
limits on N.C. 213.
The battle over rezoning N.C. 213 began several weeks ago, when
Donald Wayne asked the aldermen to rezone his property off N.C. 213
from an R-l residential area to a C-2 commercial area so he could build
a car wash.
The board denied Payne's original request until they could hear from
the Mars Hill Planning Board.
The planning board did not recommend the change because it would
be "spot zoning," which is illegal in North Carolina.
Once Payne brought up the issue of rezoning his land, Town Manager
Darhyl Boone told the board that several others have asked about the
rezoning of N.C. 213. Several residents and landowners in the area re
quested the city limits be extended a mile farther so that rezoning could
take place.
Alter the planning board and aldermen examined the land in ques
tion, the zoning board submitted recommendations.
When Monday night's meeting convened, the Mars Hill board had not
made a decision on the rezoning issue.
Mayor Joseph Godwin began the meeting by cautioning the group that
the board was not there to make a decision and said that no decision
would be reached at the meeting.
'We can't make everybody happy. Sometimes we roake people mad.
We're going to make some people mad here tonight, "Godwin said. God
win instructed the crowd to speak to the business at hand clearly and
orderly and opened the floor for discussion.
-Continued on back page
Three Apply For
Beer & Wine Permits
r, ^ s ,*? . i . ' ? ????
By EMMA LOU WAMBLES
Three Hot Springs businesses ap
plied for beer and wine sale licenses
Tuesday morning and were told at a
special hearing a decision would be
made within the next week.
Mayor Kenny Ramsey said Alcohol
Law Enforcement supervisor Bill
Williams conducted the hearing at
the town and collected applications
from Ramsey, in the name of
Ramsey's Amusements, from Joe
Justice for Carolina Grocery, and
from Larry Hunt for Larry's Exxon.
Ramsey said the town would
benefit from the sale of beer and wine
through sales and beverage taxes,
which he has estimated at $7,000 to
$8,000 annually.
If the applications are approved,
the action wilt make Hot Springs the
only Madison County location offer
ing beer and wine sales and the first
time since 1948 such sales were allow
ed.
Last month the town held a special
election on the question of beer and
wine sales, which passed by a 36-vote
margin.
Hot Springs had allowed off
premises liquor sales, but the North
Carolina ABC Board closed the state
operated store recently because of
poor sales volume.
A total of 129 residents voted in
favor of off-premises beer sales while
93 voters opposed it.
On the same ballot 119 voters ap
proved the sale of unfortified wine
while 95 voters opposed that item.
Unfortified wine is lower in alcohol
content than many wines, with an
alcohol content of around 11 or 12 per
cent. Fortified wine usually has about
20 percent alcohol content.
The town's mayor called the vote a
positive move for the town of 700 peo
ple.
"We get the bottles and cans
already," Ramsey said, referring to
alcohol purchased in neighboring
communities but consumed in Hot
Springs.
The mayor said the legalization of
beer and wine sales will help boost
tourism in the area. Ramsey, owner
of The Trail Cafe, said he often is ask
ed by vacationers where they can buy
beer.
At Monday night's meeting, the Hot
Springs Board of Aldermen agreed to
act as the governing body enforcing
?Continued on Page 11
County Car Wrecked As Rumors Spark Search
By STEVE FERGUSON
Three Madison deputies on a mari
juana hunt Thursday were surprised
to find three TV stations and
authorities from several counties
hunting for them.
A county police car was wrecked as
an indirect result of that hunt when a
deputy from Mars Hill drove to Mar
shall to help in the search.
Deputies Tony Case, Vance Ingle
and Marty Johnson left the sheriff's
office at 5 p.m. Thursday on a tip that
there was marijuana growing in the
Stackhouse area. Shortly thereafter,
dispatcher Teresa Case said she
received a call from an ex-deputy
who had overheard a conversation in
Petersburg about the three.
"He asked me if we had anybody
out in the woods," Case said "Then
be said he overheard people talking
and saying they were going to shoot
them, or that they had shot them
already " Next Case received
another call from someone saytalg to ;
had heard of a <
the others I
caller, who
look for them. Madison County law of
ficials began to gather in Marshall,
along with S.B.I, officers and
highway patrolmen. News crews
from channels 4, 7 and 13 arrived at
the sheriff's office.
"I was getting worried," said
Sheriff Dedrick Brown. "I came
down to the office around 8 p.m. The
S.B.I, came down and all the TV sta
tions came. I don't know how
everybody found out about it. We
even had several surrounding coun
ties standing by."
Madison County lawmen began
organizing a search team. They went
to where Case, Ingle and Johnson had
left their car to go into the woods to
hunt for the pot, near Stackhouse and
Sandy Bottom Roads in Walnut.
While the search teams were form
ing, three startled deputies walked
-Continued on back page
Dana F
in an aec
,M -a- A
Buncombe Joins
Vulcan Lawsuit
By STEVE FERGUSON
Buncombe County commissioners
have joined a lawsuit to block con
struction of a rock quarry in the Flat
Creek community by Vulcan
Materials Company.
"The people out in Flat Creek came
to us and asked us to support them,"
said Buncombe County Commis
sioner Jesse Ledbetter. "We sup
ported two parts of their suit: one,
that there be no construction until the
suit is settled, and two, that there be
an environmental impact
statement.'*
The commissioners voted earlier
this year to ask for an environmental
impact statement from Vulcan.
"During negotiations with the
state, the company and the state ig
nored our request," Ledbetter said.
"I didn't like to see that ignored. That
was a slap in the face to the commis
sioners."
Ledbetter said state law didn't
allow the commissioners to require
an impact study. County attorneys
told the board that their vote would
have no effect.
Area residents have filed suit
claiming a quarry would contaminate
nearby wells, groundwater supplies
and would be noisy and dusty.
Flat Creek resident and engineer
J.C. Bumgarner has said the mine
could lower groundwater levels.
Vulcan denies those claims, saying
that several independent reports
show the mine would have no adverse
effects on the area.
Sirrine Environmental Consultants
of Greenville, S.C., reported the
quarry would have no effect on wells
outside the company's property and
that effects on Flat Creek would be
minimal, since the quarry would not
discharge operations water into the
creek.
A blasting report prepared by
Philip R. Berger and Associates of
Pittsburgh, Pa., said that "without
question, blasting will cause i
damage to wells or other
underground facilities located on ad
jacent properties, nor will it con
stitute a physical hazard to any
neighboring structure or roadway,"
according to Guy K. Mitchell Jr., vicc
president of Vulcan Materials Com- ?!
pany.
A hydraulic analysis for floodway J
protection, also done by Sirrine, in- |
dicated that the quarry would have no
effect on the flow of Flat Creek nor on -4
the creek's floodplain.
Brierley and Lyman Inc. of Denver
concluded the proposed quarry
"would be stable and would produce ,
minimum disturbances to the are?:
surrounding the site" after examin- ^?
ing the soil slopes in the area.
"The inaccurate allegations that -
Vulcan's submittals lack detail or ?
that we have no concern for the;
welfare of the Weaverville communi
ty are not based on fact," Mitchetf^
said in a letter to the commissioners.*
Spokeswoman for Vulcan Gay
Anderson said the studies done, while
not official environmental impact ;
statements, are enough.
"We have conducted very exten- |
slve environmental testing,"
son said. "We believe that info
tion is adequate and sufficient."
Anderson also said groundwafe
would not be affected by the <
"The reports, in essence, say
quarry has no affect on the i
water surrounding it," she
"Vulcan typically has monitor
on its property and we have
had a problem at another site."
Vulcan operates 13 quarries
North Carolina alone.
New Editor Announced I
Cheryl Koenif. General Manager of
The New* Record, has announced the
appointment nf Hugh Koontz, a
Virginia newsman, as its editor effec
tive this week.
Hugh D. Koontt III, ?, has worked
for several dally and weekly
newspapers in Virginia and South
Carolina aa editor and reporter,
Koenlg said.
Koonti la a 1*72 gradaate of
Virginia Commonwealth University