Newspapers / The Black Mountain News … / Jan. 14, 1982, edition 1 / Page 1
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Thursday, Januaiy 14, 1982, Volume 30, Number 2 Member ofthe NCPA 2 5 Christmas baby Town Board meeting Town clerk resigns by Bill Anthony The resignation of Blade Mountain Town Clerk Vinson Miller was accepted by the Town Board of Aldermen following an executive session after the Board’s public meeting Monday even ing. This action was accomplished with the same apparent equanimity with which the Board heard out a protest against “another highrise sign” along Interstate 40, that of the relocating Alcoholic Beverage Control store, plus scheduled agenda items. And the Board dedded to buy for the firemen a Lucas rescue tool, although agreeing to date the purchase order following a meeting next week of the County Commissioners should that group agree to contribute toward the purchase. Alderman Steve King, repre sentative of the Lucas tool distributors, abstained from the vote in the face of “innuendos” of conflict of interest. Water Ftand Of potentially greatest concern to the Board was the following excerpt from a letter trom the state’s Department of State Treasurer read by Mayor Tom Sobol, referring to a review of the Town’s 1981 audit report: “Hie amount of the W ater and Sewer Fund balance available for appropria Bone-chilling -4 degrees recorded Baby bom Dec. 25 receives special gift Blade Mountain’s Christmas baby, Derek Dewayne Reed, received a spec ial gift last week from Mrs. Katherine Rice, a handmade Christmas quilt. Derek was bom at 3:02 a.m. Dec. 25, at Memorial Mission Hospital. Proud par ents of the seven pound, 12 ounce boy are Sherry and Dennis Reed of Flat Creek Road, Blade Mountain. Mrs. Rice made several quilts for sale during the holiday season at The Old Depot. When one remained unsold, she decided to give it to a baby bom on Christmas. The Black Mountain News tracked down the baby. Mrs. Reed is on maternity leave from her job at Ingles. Derek is the Reeds ’ first child. He was expected to arrive in January, but his early appearance was just fine with the Reeds. Planning Board to meet Monday The Black Mountain Hanning Board will meet Monday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m. at City Hall. The public is welcome. Bitterly cold temperatures and biting winds caused deaths across the nation and discomfort in the Valley this weeK. In the early hours of Monday morn ing, the official weather station at WFGW radio in Black Mountain record ed a low of -4 degrees. Although it was cold, the temperature was three de grees warmer than the all-time record of -7 set Jan. 23, 1963. Many area residents are suffering from the frigid temperatures of the arctic air, according to ABCCM-E director Lois Nix. The agency, which received a record number of calls in December, reports many emergency calls this week for assistance in keeping warm. “We got one call from a woman, it was nine degrees and she had a three week old baby and not a drop of oil,”Nix reported. Another woman thought she had enough fuel oil to get by until she received her paycheck Thursday. She got up at 5 a.m. Monday, the furnace was out and the house was ice cold. “She’s a working woman,” Nix said. “The money just won’t stretch. We hurried and got her some oil before her pipes froze.” ABCCM-E received a windfall from Major league pitcher Owen honors Stewart Former Owen High School student Sammy Stewart, now pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles, was honored here last week when Owen proclaimed Jan. 5 “Sammy Stewart Night.” Stewart, the first Owen athlete to win the Athlete of the Year Award twice, received a plaque at the Tuesday night basketball game for his work with the young athletes of Buncombe County. Stewart has arranged camps and work shops for aspiring young baseball players, led by professional athletes including Stewart himself. Also announced was Owen’s inten tion to name the newly-renovated baseball field behind the school the Sammy Stewart Field. The field is being renovated by the “Big 0” Club. A concession stand and restroom facilities are being built, landscaping being done and an old foundation removed. Because Stewart will leave in Febru ary for spring training with the Orioles and will not be here for the opening of the field, the club, the Owen baseball team and coaches decided to honor him at the basketball game Tuesday. For the Orioles, Stewart has set a Big League strike-out record for rookies and received an earned run average award for rookies. He has also pitched in the W orid Series. Stewart is not new to setting records. He attended Buncombe County Schools with 12 years of perfect attendance, according to Owen Principal Charles Lytle. He graduated in 1973 and attended Montreat-Anderson College in Montreat before joining the Orioles. Fred Ivey, assistant principal and athletic director at Owen, headed the committee which arranged to honor Stewart. Keith Duncan is the only other Owen student to be named Athlete of The Year twice. He now attends Western Carolina University on a basketball scholarship. Sammy Stewart accepts honors last week at “Sammy Stewart Night” With him is his family. (Photo by Charlie Taylor) the City of Asheville which has allowed them to help many families this winter. Wood trimmed at the North Fork reservoir is available free of charge for those who need it. About 65 or 70 pick-up loads have been distributed so far. “It’s just been a godsend,” Nix said. Hermits for the wood are available at ABCCM-E. New or used electric blankets, a low-cost and very efficient method of staying warm, are needed, Nix said. Buncombe County schools were dos ed Monday and Tuesday because of the cold weather. Some area businesses were also dosed. Snow began falling Tuesday night leaving an accumulation of 3 inches by press time Wednesday. Two homes damaged by fire Two house fires caused extensive damage within a few hours of each other over the weekend, Black Mountain firemen reported. A fire started around a stove pipe at a Blue Ridge Road residence at 2:18 p.m. Sunday. Four rooms received extensive damage, with heat and smoke damage reported throughout the rest of the home. Firemen remained on the scene about two hours as material between the walls continued to smolder. No one was home at the time of the fire. Another fire occurred in a three-story home on North Carolina Terrace in Montreat at 3:21 a.m. Monday. The wall behind a fireplace caught file, causing “quite a bit of damage” to the room in which it occurred, according to a fire department spokesman. The owners were awakened by smoke which at first was thought to be blown bade down the chimney by the strong gust of wind. The house also received consider’ able smoke damage. Weather review Jan. 5-high 50, low 26 degrees. Jan. 6-high 59, low 25 degrees. Jan. 7-high 62, low 38 degrees. Jan. 8-high 37, low 23 degrees. Jan. 9-high 40, low 11 degrees; trace precipitation. Jan. 10~high 2, low -1 degrees. Jan. 11-high 21, low -4 degrees; trace snow. Weather courtesy of WFCW radio, Black Mountain. tion has been decreased to the point where it is now less than 4 percent of the total expenditures in this fund. If this situation continues, a severe cash flow problem could be experienced. It has been our observation that tax-levy ing governmental units have cash flow problems when the available but un appropriated fund balance drops below 8 percent of the next year’s total expenditure budget.” The State Treasurer urged the Town “to determine what expenses can be reduced or to what extent additional revenues are to be achieved.” The Board authorized Mayor Sobol to reply that the Town is seeking more consistency in water billing procedures and installation of a computer system. In an unrelated water matter, the Board agreed to a $1.50 charge to he added to all monthly witer bills, continuing for as long as 40 years, to pay back the $500,000 borrowed from the Farmers Home Administration. This bond, approved by the community last year, plus funds from the Appalachian Regional Commission and the state’s Clean Water Fund, will provide for a reservoir, water storage tank, well drillings, and new and renovated water lines. Sign protested The protest against the proposed ABC sign was led by Joe Tyson who requested the Board’s “encouragement to ABC” to conform with the Town’s new sign ordinance, now in drafting stages. He was joined by Bill and Sara-Mar da Rafter who questioned if a sign designed to attract motorists off the highway “was the image the communi ty wanted.” Mrs. Rafter linked the intended ABC sign with the disputed McDonald’s “100-foot” sign and said, “This is different. This is something the Town is sponsorihg.” The present moratorium on new signs permits is hurting local businessmen, according to Bill Ricketts, owner of a number of Cherry Street properties. Herman Allen described the present ABC store as “A dignified place with a dignified sign,” and warned that “a high profile would lead to possible loss of an ABC store in Black Mountain.” Wendell Begley, who sits on both the Chamber of Commerce Board of Direct ors and the Town Planning Board, reported the Chamber in a letter to ABC Board Chairman A1 Richardson urged that it not erect‘ ‘a permanent sign until the new sign ordinance is approved, and that the sign be in conformity” with the ordinance’s stipulations. Begley also said the Planning Board “hopefully” will have a new ordinance draft for study at its scheduled Jan. 18 meeting. Mayor Sobol observed that the Town does not own the ABC store or its sign, and also noted that the Town receives $75,000 annually in proceeds from the ABC, “without which property taxes would be increased 30 percent.” Both sides, he said, “have to negotiate.” He urged Planning Board members to complete drafting a new ordinance for Town Board consideration at its Feb ruary meeting. Continued on page 6 Everett Stephenson (right) is congratulated by Blade Mountain Postmaster Keith Nelon. Stephenson retired from post office Everett Stephenson began his career with the United States Postal Service on Dec. 14, 1951, as a substitute rural carrier. He ended it on Dec. 29, 1981, as superintendent of postal operations. Stephenson retired last month after 30 years of service at the Black Mountain Post Office. His co-workers there honored him with a party and presented him with a watch. From the U.S. Government he will receive a retirement certificate. Stephenson, a Black Mountain na tive, has made no plans yet for filling the days of his retirement. “I’m not going to make definite plans until spring,” he said. He does look forward to spending time at his hobbies, gardening and woodworking. Stephenson and his wife Josie have three children, Jimmy of Raleigh, Joy of Black Mountain and Jerry of Weaver ville. When Stephenson began in 1951, the post office was located on Broadway Street in a building which is now part of Tyson’s Furniture Company. The new building on Richardson Boulevard was dedicated in 1960. Although Black Mountain Post Office has added dty delivery since 1951, the number of employees has remained about the same because mail is now sorted in Asheville. Because it is no longer sorted by hand in Blade Moun tain, the mail gets out earlier, Stephen son said. When Stephenson left the Navy and came to work at the Black Mountain Post Office, first class stamps cost three cents. Today, at 20 cents, U.S. postage is still the least expensive in the world, Stephenson said.
The Black Mountain News (Black Mountain, N.C.)
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Jan. 14, 1982, edition 1
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