Newspapers / The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / Sept. 21, 2005, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
ews Journal If it happcnal, il’s news to us 50I Na27VoLlOO Raeford & Hoke County k.c. Wednesday, September 21,2005 Revaluation on horizon, tax bills may go up Senior citizens may see lower bills under state program, some others’may go down too By Victoriana Summers Staff writer Capital improvement projects planned in Hoke County are continuing to stack up debt. Yet projects such as a pending jail expansion and school additions plus a new health building soon to be completed will provide more safety, human, educational, recreational, and health services for citizens and their children, according to Commission Chair man Bobby Wright. To pay for many of the loans on these projects, some county officials indicated they are count ing on an increase in revenue generated from the upcoming 2006 property revaluation. The revaluation could increase some taxpayers’ bills by as much as 20 to 25 percent, according to the Hoke tax assessor’s office, but some programs for senior citizens could reduce their tax rates. “People should not swim the river until they get to it when it “Some of our landowners comes to concerns about the prop- who own property without road erty revaluation for next year,’’ frontage have property valuations Wright said. “We will cross that reduced by at least one-third,” bridge when we come to it. he said. “Not everyone wilt see an increase on their tax bill. 1 think we have been very fortunate in Hoke not to have raised taxes for 10 years.” However, Commission Vice Chairman Charles V. Daniels said he wants to be sure tax payers do “not sink” from the (See REVALUATION, page 7A) Road trip set to get scoop on ethanol plant Board to tour similar plant, talk to locals ^ "V- % By Victoriana Summers Staff writer The Hoke board of commis sioners and County Manager Mike Wood are flying to Pales tine, Illinoison Monday to tour an ethanol plant of a si mi lar design to the one proposed by Clean Bum Fuels, LLC in Hoke County. “If we are investing money in this ethanol plant, we need to do our homework,” Commissioner Chairman Bobby Wright said of the exploratory trip. “We must have guarantees for our taxpayers, and Mr. (JackjCarlisle, co-partner of Clean Bum Fuels, recognizes that.” This Week Turkey Bowi trophy home again page 5 A Festival goers liked the park page 3 A Kershaw, Gaddis meet on gridiron page4A Podiatrist gets the boot page6A Index Births 3B Calendar 3B Classifieds 7-8B Deaths 8A Editorials 2A Legals 5-6B Religion 2B Schools 5B Socials 3B Sports 4-5A Weddings 3B We’re on the web at www.thenews-joumal.com Read by 3,000 each week Planned as a day trip, commis sioners will receive a tour con ducted by an engineering team. Hoke’s board will also informally interview neighbors of the out-of- state plant, asking their opinions on any problems associated with odor or noise. The plant is located on the II- linois-Indiana border, according to Wright. The board approved the trip in a Tuesday meeting, continued from the regularly-scheduled session on Monday night. Hoke officials plan to initially invest $3 million in a 5(X)-acre site for Clean Bum Fuels at the Hoke County Regional Industrial Park, transferring land to the firm. Investing a proposed $80,000 into the enterprise. Clean Bum Fuels’ co-partners Carlisle and Philip Kohl say Hoke is centrally located and its rural environment is ideal for the first ethanol plant to be built on the East Coast. Ethanol plants, deriving their product from com, have tradition- (See ETHANOL, page 6A) 9 ^ I ribundivi DiM t givic InflMabic iddt k tlw MCliriaf Saatrd^ | /| ihrk. Tiipr^ WhajyVVhwMLptyrfliy M South Hoke couple yearn for safe ‘decent’ home * "^1 Essie Mae Stevens and son Charles show Commissioner james Leach (center) the collapsed back porch of her old farmhouse. '/i Brianna Chavis shows rotten boards. Help may come from grant By VicTORi xNA Summers Staff writer Essie Mae and James “Candy Rose” Stevens have been married for more than 30 years, residing in their wooden ramshackle home i n South Hoke that reportedly dates back to the 1700s. Without hot water or kitchen facilities, an indoor toilet or air-conditioning, the couple has survived for years in near-poverty circumstances. Under the gnarled oak trees that shade the house, the Stevens home appears to be on the poi nt of collapse. They say they are praying God will bring them a decent home to live in for the future. “In the winter, we just have an old wood-burning stove inside,” Essie Mae said. “1 put up plastic and heavy drap eries on the windows to try and keep out the drafts and leaks, but it does not work very well. (See HOME REPAIRS, page 6A) Trhe N e news News T Journal Other stuff County commissioners okay two meter readers, inspector By Ken MacDonald Publisher Man, was I exhausted after the lOK Turkey Festival foot race Saturday. Even at 8 a.m. the temperature was approaching 90, and it was just a hard race to watch. As I stood at the intersection of Main Street and Sixth Avenue observing al 1 those runners who are used to the festival’sfiveK try tocope with what this year waschanged to a ten K run, I was almost feeling guilty kicked back in the shade and all. But then this woman sprinted by, pu.sh- ing a loaded baby carriage, and she was out front, near the lead. Something welled up from within me. “All right, all right!" 1 wanted to yell, “What’s wrong with you'.' Are you nuts''''” People like her make people li ke me feel like .-.places hand to forehead in .shape oj :: losers. Oh yeah, I hike occasionally, t(See OTHER STUFF, page 4A) By Victoriana Summers Staff writer The board of county commission ers approved three positions last week: for one environmental health specialist and two water meter readers, with total salaries of almost $10(),0(X) not in this year’s budget. The board also requested the sheriff economize on gasoline for deputies patrolling the county so Hoke would not be over budget by the end of the year. Based on the conservation request, deputies are roving less and remaining stationary in their patrol zones. Sheriff Hubert Peterkin told the board he has doubled up deputies in one vehicle during peak times in patrol zones in the county when possible. “T hat way if they cal led for backup the backup deputy would already be in the patrol car,” Peterkin said afterward. “I do (See NEW WORKERS, page 6A)
The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 21, 2005, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75