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PROGRESS SENTINEL
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VOL. XXXXVIl NO. 41 USPS 162-860 KENANSV1LLE, NC 28349 OCTOBER 11. 1984 16 PAGES THIS WEEK 10 CENTS PLUS TAX
'Commissioners Endorse
Aid To Two Businesses
Requests for state economic de
velopment grants totaling $300,000
were approved by the Duplin County
I Board of Commissioners last week.
" Two industries asked the county
for the funds to expand their plants.
The requests will go to the N.C.
Department of Commerce for ap
proval. If they get the money, the
companies will repay it with interest.
Duplin Manufacturing Co. of
Warsaw asked for a $200,000 grant.
It would repay the county the
$200,000 over 10 years at 7 percent
interest. The company also plans to
| borrow $300,000 from Branch Bank
& Trust Co. for its expansion.
county over 12 years at 6 percent
interest with the initial payment
deferred for 18 months.
Commissioner Allen Nethercutt
said, "Not only do we want to keep
our industry going in the county, we
The proposed project would create
101 new jobs and double the size of
the facility from 12,250 square feet to
24,500. The company makes chil
dren's sportswear.
Bell & Sons of Calypso asked for
$100,000. It plans to increase pro
duction to 2,000 dozen T-shirts and
baseball jerseys a week. The firm
employs 23 people and would hire
15. The firm proposed to repay the
want to keep you growing as well."
In other business, the board
approved $6,372 for extension of
water and sewer lines from Beula
ville to N.C. Hydraulics Manufac
turing Co. just outside the city limits.
The company is expanding its plant.
Emmett Wickline, the owner, said
the company paid $6,850.68 in
county taxes last year on its valua
tion of $913,424.
The board appropriated $2,000 for
the Magnolia branch of the county
library system. Mayor Ruth Quinn of
Magnolia asked for help to purchase
a library building for $7,600. Mag
nolia can apply $1,500 of the appro
priation to the purchase and $500 to
equipment.
John Michaud, county librarian,
said he does not consider the Mag
nolia branch a wise development. It
will mean splitting county library
resources even more, he said.
Michaud said the main library in
Kenansville circulated 43,337 books
last year compared with 34,238 in the
preceding year.
The board appropriated $19,221 to
complete paving of the airport run
way. The paving was incomplete
when the contractor went bankrupt.
Cost of completion has been esti
mated at $39,095. The county re
ceived $12,750 from the contractor's
bonding company. It has $7,123 it
reserved from the contract. The work
will proceed as soon as the county
receives state approval.
Frank Moore, tax supervisor, said
Carolina Power & Light Co. will
compare its tax valuations with those
of other property owners as the
county prepares it revaluation, re
quired every eignt years. The com
pany wants to determine it its yearly
valuations by the state compare
reasonably with the octennial valua
tions of other property.
Two Duplin County
Men Admit Assault
>
And Trespassing
Two Duplin County men received
active prison sentences last week
after pleading guilty in Brunswick
County Superior Court at Bolivia to
trespassing and felony assault
charges.
) David Winford Wasson of Rose
Hill and Joseph N. Bradshaw of
Wallace had been charged with
assault with a deadly weapon with
intent to kill, inflicting serious
injury, and first-degree burglary.
Wasson was also charged with
assault on a female, and Bradshaw
was also charged with assault with a
deadly weapon.
In a plea arrangement, Wasson
pleaded guilty to forcible trespass
ing, assault with a deadly weapon
inflicting serious injury and simple
assault. He received a three-year
sentence, with all but 180 days
suspended.
Bridshaw pleaded guilty to'
forcible trespassing, assault with a
deadly weapon inflicting serious
injury and simple assault. He was
given a three-year sentence, with all
but 180 days suspended.
Duplin Aaribusiness
>? I V
Fair October 1-6
Hunter Safety Emphasized At Fair Through Contest
The second annual Duplin Schools Hunter Safety
Shooting Tournament was held at Turkey Stadium at
the county fairgrounds in Kenansville last week. The
tournament was sponsored by the North Carolina
Department of Wildlife and Duplin County schools.
Contestants participated in trap-shooting and arcllery.
Individual winners of the bow competition were Tony
Westbrook, champion from East Duplin High School;
Chris Swanda, r?cond place from Warsaw Jr. High
l School; Zollie Kornegay, third place from East Duplin.
Trap-shooting winners included Jimmy Barnette.
champion from Jamek Kenan High School; Owen
Rouse, second place from Wallace-Rose Hill High
School; Zollie Kornegay, third place and Mitchell
Smith, fourth place, both from East Duplin. Overall
tournament competition was won by Zollie Kornegay
and second place was Mitchell Smith, both of East
Duplin, and third place went to Jimmy Barnette of
James Kenan. Pictured above are scenes from the
shooting tournament. ' ,
?a /
1-40 Contracts To Be Let
Governor Jim Hunt stopped outside Warsaw last week
to announce new funding to be used in completing 1-40.
The $16.7 million will cut five years from the planned
completion date and bring the finished four-lane
highway from Wilmington to NC 117 south of Warsaw
within the next two years. When completed to NC 117
near Warsaw, Hunt said, 1-40 would be opened to
traffic from that point to Wilmington. Contracts to
complete the Duplin segment betwt|pn NC 117 south of
Warsaw toTeachey will be let next month and March of
1985. Work is currently in progress on 39.2 miles of 1-40
from Wallace to Wilmington. Governor Hunt is
pictured above after the Wednesday announcement
accepting a gift from the Duplin Agribusiness Council.
Representative Wendell Murphy of Rose Hill is
pictured with Governor Hunt.
Students To Make Up Days
Duplin County students will have
to make up two days lost while
Hurricane Diana blew through the
area Sept. 12 and 13.
The Board of Education decided
last week that students should report
to school Tuesday and Jan. 22 ? two
days originally designated as teacher
work days.
Sept. 12 and 13 were declared
teacher work days so teachers would
not lose any pay.
The board had previously decided
to excuse East Duplin High School
students from making up Sept. 14
when their school remained closed
because of flooded roads.
According to state law, schools can
be closed up to five days a year
without makeup days. School sys
tems in Pender, New Hanover,
Columbus and Brunswick counties
and Whiteville chose not to make up
days missed because of the storm.
In other action, the school board
decided that James Sprunt Technical
College may conduct night or week
end classes in Wallace-Rose Hill
High School.
The board's action will resolve a
space problem JSTC has encount
ered in conducting extension classes
in the Wallace area. It could pave the
way for use of other school facilities
for such classes at times when the
schools are not holding regular
classes.
JSTC officials last month asked to
use the school. **? .'lace-Rose. Hill
Principal harclu t... 3re?cr and
JSTC officials will decide on specific
rooms to be used.
"This is a new thing. We don't
know if it will work but we think it
will." said Superintendent L.S. Guy.
James F. Strickland, a member of
the school board and the JSTC Board
of Trustees, said: "I'm overwhelmed
at the cooperation between the
school system and James Sprunt. In
many places it hasn't worked."
Because JSTC will be able to use
computers in the high school in
addition to its own, JSTC will
provide the school five additional
computers to compensate tor pos
sible damage to the equipment.
JSTC will provide five additional
electric typewriters for the high
school's typing and keyboard labora
tory under the same conditions.
JSTC will have a non-teaching ad
ministrator on hand at all times the
school is being used by the college.
The college also will provide a
;"t on to clean the area the college
c >es use. It will not use any
supplies boughrt?y the high school.
JSTC will formally notify the
Duplin County Commissioners that
its use of the high school might
increase utility costs at the school.
In other action, the board:
? Amended its budget to accept
57,000 from the Wallace Parent
Teacher Organization to hire a physi
cal education aide at the Wallace
Elementary school.
? Changed its meeting time to
7:30 p.m. starting Oct. 16. The mid
October meeting meeting will be at
the B.F. Gradv School.
Beulaville Buys Park Option
At the October meeting, Beulaville
Commissioners authorized the
expenditure of $1,300 to purchase
the option on three acres of property
off Parker St. to be used as a park.
The park is part of the Wickline
Community Development Block
Grant local option improvements.
The grant contains $70,000 in local
option funds designated for use in
street paving, repair and drainage
and the construction of a park in the
southern portion of the town of
Beulaville. A motion to purchase the
three acres off Parker St. for use as a
park was passed at the August
meeting of the Beulaville Com
missioners. The total cost of the park
property is $13,000.
Beulaville Commissioners voted
unanimously to return $150,000 to a
certificate of deposit. The funds were
deposited with United Carolina Bank
of Beulaville at an interest rate of 11
percent for a 90-day period.
After meeting in executive ses
sion, the Beulaville Commissioners
granted town clerk Carol Miller a
salarv increase. Commissioners em
phasized Miller's position as town
office manager and authorized an 18
percent raise. Both town office
employees had previously been re
ceiving the same amount in wages.
The motion to grant Miller the salary
increase was approved by Com
missioners S.A. Blizzard, Frank
Boyette and Joe Edwards. Com
missioner Rabon Maready did not
vote and Commissioner Elvis
Sumner voted against the salary
increase.
Commissioners voted to change
the town employees' pay/work week
from Monday-Friday to Thursday
Wednesday. The new schedule will
be established by one four-day week
in October and November. Town
employees will continue to be paid
on Friday. The new work and pay
week was established to allow town
office employees a day's time to
write the salary checks.
The subdivision zoning regula
tions were presented during a public
hearing October 25, but no Beula
ville citizens attended. Opposing the
motion to accept the subdivision
regulations was Commissioner Sum
ner.
The Board approved a motion to
draft letters to owners of abandoned
lots in the town of Beulaville. The
letter will ask owners to comply with
the town ordinance to clean up and
maintain their lots. In the event the
lots are not cleaned and mowed,
Commissioners agreed to have town
employees maintain property and
bill the services to the owner.
Faison Board
Appoints Squirrel Warden
Squirrels 1 Squirrels! Squirrels!
Faison citizens will soon have relief!
For several months Faison town
commissioners have been burdened
with complaints from local citizens
about the squirrel population boom
and the destructive force of ihe little
animals. During the meeting of the
Faison town board October 5th, a
squirrel warden was appointed to
dispose of the 'pesty animals.'
When squirrel season opens later
this month, Faison public works
superintendent Fred Wheless has
been appointed by town commis
sioners to dispose of the pecan
eating and attic-tenant animals.
Faison citizens requesting the
squirrel warden's assistance should
contact the town hall.
Multi-water meter rates were set
by the board. During the September
meeting of the board, a list of 44
customers on 17 water meters was
presented to Faison commissioners.
Each meter carrying more than one
water user was billed only one
minimum I've. ?,
*
Faison commissioners unani
mously adopted minimum rates for
each user on the multi-meters at the
meeting last week. Users on the
multi-meters have the option to
install their own individual meter
under the provision approved by the
Faison commissioner setting
minimum fees. The rates become
effective with the November 1
billing.
On a three to two vote, Faison
commissioners also increased fees
for water to out-of-town customers.
Water rates for Faison citizens and
customers beyond the city limits
were the same until the 25 percent
increase was approved last week.
Town administrator Neil Mallory told
the Faison commissioners, out-of
town water customers are normally
charged double rates. Commis
sioners Melvin Rogers and Jane
Hollingsworth opposed the motion.
An ordinance creating a Faison
Cemetery Board of Trustees was
passed by town commissioners. Four
members were appointed, Jane
* 1
Hollingsworth, William Thompson,
Rachel Clifton and Ann Taylor.
The town of Faison will hold a
public hearing to present a self
evaluation report on what is needed
to comply with handicap regulations.
Mallory told Commissioners the
compliance should be reviewed and
action completed by 1986 in order for
the town to continue receiving
federal revenue sharing funds. Dates
for the public hearing were not
announced at the meeting.
Commissioner Rogers reported
S2.100 had been generated in
revenue from the sale of water to
farmers this year. Last year, Rogers
said, only $700 was collected from
the sale 01 water for agricultural use.
To maintain the two blocks along
the railroad in the middle of the town
of Faison, Commissioners approved
the purchase of new mower and the
hiring of a part-time person. Com
missioners approved approximately
$400 to purchase the mower and
hiring the part-time help only during
the grass-cutting season.