Second class postage paid
at Black Mountain, JVC 2#7H
25'
Thursday, April 29,1982, Volume 30, Number 17
Mem her of the JVCRA
Hailstones the size of marbles,
some up to an inch and a quarter
in diameter, bounced off the
pavement in front of the Oid Depot
Monday afternoon when two
storms appeared to converge over
Black Mountain. The thunder and
lightning storm durrpcd several
inches of rain and popcom-iike
hail on the town in a matter of
minutes. (Photo by Trlna O'Donneii.)
Ground broken
for first area
condominiums
by Cynthia Reimer
Groundbreaking ceremonies were
held April 21st for the Lynx Condo
miniums to be built on the north side of
North Fork Road across from the golf
course, the first built in the area.
Black Mountain Mayor Tom Sobol
and Buncombe County Commissioner
Chairman Curtis Ratcliff cut a ribbon at
the Arnold Jones and Son Real Estate
office before the groundbreaking at the
site.
Other dignitaries present were Aider
men Gay Fox, Carl Bartlett, Mike
Begley and architect Jan M. Wiegman.
The first phase of the condominium
project will contain 13 living units.
Begun April 21 was the Sourwood,
containing three two-story townhouses.
Each will have three bedrooms, two
baths and a private deck, with cedar
exterior.
The 1,430 square foot units are
designed primarily for low mainten
ance, according to Paul Jones, construc
tion coordinator of Arnold Jones and
Son, contracted for construction by the
Lynx Corporation.
Options will include parquet hard
wood floors in the foyers, solar water
heat, carpet and cabinet selection.
Included in the $65,500 price, plus
monthly maintenance fees, will be a
dishwasher, refrigerator and range,
microwave oven and other appliances.
A private swimming pool and club
house will be added in the second phase
of construction.
A total of 70 living units are planned.
Jones said the condominiums will
"reduce the impact of land costs" for
homeowners.
There will be no restrictions against
children. "We didn't want to create a
total retirement community," Jones
said. "We're trying to create a neigh
borhood."
Dutch-bom Asheville architect Jan
Wiegman designed the condominiums,
striving for a chic rather than rustic
appearance.
Financing will be available through
First Federal of Hendersonville, Ashe
ville office.
The name Lynx was chosen, Jones
said, "because of the heritage of the
mountains and Black Mountain" and
also in reference to the nearby golf
course.
Participating in the groundbreaking at the Lynx condominiums were: (L
to R) Mayor Tom Soboi; Amoid Jones, contractor; Jack Coie, vice president
of the Asheviiie branch of First Federai; architect Jan Wiegman; and
Curtis Ratdiff.
KunMe ho/ds open house
by Cynthia Rehner
About 200 attended the open house
and ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new
Kunkie Vaive Rant on Old U S. 70
Monday afternoon.
Biack Mountain Mayor Tom Soboi cut
the ribbon across the portico at the
building's main entrance. Tours of the
facility with refreshments at the end
followed.
Kunkie now employs 21 for the
manufacture of pressure safety valves.
Nearly all employees are local, grad
uates of a three week training course
Nucfeor orms
not key fo
peace, say
Advocates
by Cynthia Reimer
Members of the Warren Wilson
Coilege Peace Fellowship and the
Swannanoa Valley Advocates for a
Nuclear Arms Freeze joined other peace
groups for an Asheville press confer
ence Monday.
Worry about nudear arms led to a
nationwide Ground Zero Week last
week with activities to educate the
public of the effects of a nudear war.
A petition was circulated nationwide,
calling for a mutual freeze between the
United States and the Soviet Union on
testing, production and deployment of
nudear weapons.
Reading a statement for the Warren
Wilson College student Peace Fellow
ship was Mary Walton. She voiced the
opinion of the college community,
induding President Reuben A. Holden,
saying, "It is becoming increasingly
dear to those of us in the peace group at
Warren Wilson College that there is no
security in nudear armaments."
She said students have collected 525
signatures on a nudear freeze petition,
representing 95 percent of the student
Doay.
Dr. Hugo Thompson spoke at the
press conference for the Swannanoa
Valley Advocates for a Nudear Arms
Freeze. About 100 members meet the
third Monday of each month at the
Black Mountain Library at 7:30 p.m.
"We have a large number of retired
people in the Swannanoa Valley," Dr.
Thompson told reporters, "and many of
them are involved in the Advocates
group. We have lived through two big
wars and a half one and we have vivid
memories..."
"Nudear war would be worse and
more widespread in damaging effects,
involving many times the number of
innocent victims, and leading to both no
win and no recovery," he continued.
Dr. Thompson blamed the nation's
leaders for "playing games of power
with lethal weapons."
"We think too many of our leaders
are dangerously misled and are mis
leading us," he said.
The Swannanoa Valley Advocates
collected over 500 signatures on the
nudear freeze petition.
Chamber
to meet
The Black Mountain-Swannanoa Cha
mber of Commerce Board of Directors
will meet Tuesday, May 4 at S :30 a m.
at the Black Mountain Savings and
Loan.
The Swannanoa Valley Chiropractic
Clinic, owned by Dr. Murray Green
span, recently joined the Chamber.
through Asheville-Buncombe Technical
College. At capacity, the plant expects
to employ 250 in five years.
The home office of Kunkle Valve is in
Fort Wayne, Indiana. Don Alexander,
plant manager in Black Mountain, said
the company decided to locate its
second plant here in order to be nearer
its customers, such as Ingersoll Rand
and Allied Valve.
Parts of the valves are machined by
an automatic turning center, accurate to
Don Robbins explains assembly of safety valves manufactured at Kunkle
Vaive.
Kdfs fo obouncf of
kirk/n' Sundoy
Kiits will be the dress of the day
Sunday at the Kirkin' O' the Tartan to
be held at Anderson Auditorium in
Montreat May 2 at 11 a m. The
customary blessing of the plaids is
sponsored by the Montreat Scottish
Society.
The larkin' will include bagpipe
music provided by Joe Bailey Jr. of
Hendersonville, pipe major of the
Chimney Rock Highlander Pipe Band,
tartans, banners and, above all, the
national dress of the Scots, kilts.
According to Gene McTigue, member
of the Montreat Scottish Society, in
early times the Highlander gathered a
blanket about his waist with a leather
belt and folded the sides over in the
front to keep warm in the mountainous
outdoors. The top half could hang down
the back, be pinned at the shoulder or,
in bad weather, be pulled over the head.
Towntift
app!!cation
fi)ed
The application to the Tennessee
Valley Authority (TVA) for the Townlift
Program for Black Mountain has been
filed, the Community Development
Office reported.
Kathy W acaster, administrator of the
program, said, "I think the filing of this
application is a clear indication that the
Board of Aldermen and the Chamber of
Commerce are working together earn
estly to improve the economic condi
tions in Black Mountain."
If the application is approved, this
will be the first time the TVA Townlift
Program has ever assisted a North
Carolina communtiy. Areas of assis
tance include improvements to fronts of
buildings, landscaping and beautifica
tion plans, traffic, historic zoning,
preservation initiatives, and small bus
iness assistance.
Word should be received in about
four weeks whether or not the applica
tion has been approved, Ms. Wacaster
said.
At night, the Highlander simply
rolled up in it.
As times changed and more work was
done indoors, the top half was cut off,
folded and carried over the shoulder,
ready to be used when needed. This
new style, the kilt, was popular because
it was less cumbersome.
Since the kilt had no pockets, a
leather purse, or sporran, was hung
around the waist. Thick knitted hose
and heavy deerhide boots were wom to
protect the legs and feet. An eating
knife was stuck in the top of the hose.
The kilt is one of the few European
national costumes to survive as a
practical evetyday garment.
The Scottish Society will welcome
questions at the larkin' celebration
Sunday.
News wms state
press awards
by Trina O'Donnell
The Black Mountain News won
statewide recognition last week at the
N.C. Press Women's 29th annual
Spring Institute in Chapei Hill.
Editor Cynthia Reimer won two
second place awards in the non-daily
division of the 1981 contest. Her article
"Ridgecrest site of county's largest
disaster" (July 30, 1981) placed second
among entries in the news category.
"Dad to a thousand," (June 18,
1981), a feature about Donald McKen
zie at the Presbyterian Children's
Home, placed second among feature
entries.
Over 900 entries were judged in the
contest.
A panel of three outstanding journal
ists, William Green, Dewayne Walls
and R.C. Smith, conducted a forum of
the theme "Journalism '82 - the State
of the Art." They considered trends,
changing styles of writing, story sub
jects, current shortcomings, the impor
tance of reader response and other
topics.
W illiam Green served as ombudsman
for the Washington Post. He conducted
within one 10,000th of an inch. The
computerized machine, which turns the
steel at 4,000 revolutions per minute,
finishes the process seven times faster
than those at the Fort W ayne piant.
The valves are also assembled at the
facility and each is tested and set to a
prescribed pressure.
Don Robbins, plant superintendent,
said 90 percent of the valves manu
factured at Kunkle are installed and
fortunately "never have to do any
thing." At the turn of the century, he
said, 15,000 deaths a year resulted from
a lack of safety valves in locomotives,
steamboats, etc. In 1978 only one
person was killed, a result of the quality
of safety equipment.
The Black Mountain plant will pro
duce 4-500 valves per day when fully
manned.
No forklifts are used in the plant.
Materials are transported on carts, a
track propelling them automatically.
The (1,100,000 building contains
(425,000 worth of equipment which cost
(95,000 to set up.
Owen
students in
semifinais
Three Owen High School students are
among the semifinaiists selected to be
interviewed to attend the North Caro
lina School of Science and Mathematics
next year. After initial testing, the
school's admission committee selected
454 semifinalists from 824 sophomores
representing 91 counties in North
Carolina.
Selected from Owen were Robin L
Goodson, Pandora Lytle and Bryan S.
Newell.
Each student will tour the campus,
talk with the faculty and be interviewed
by the staff. An admissions committee
will meet again late in May to select 240
students to be enrolled in September.
the widely discussed investigation into
the newspaper's handiing of reporter
Janet Cooke's Pulitzer prize winning
story about an eight year old heroin
addict which turned out to be a hoax.
W orkshop sessions conducted by
editors of large daiiy N.C. newspapers
provided opportunity for exchange of
ideas among journalists from large and
small papers across the state.
Judge's comments on "Dad to a
thousand" included: "A story that's
available to most reporters if they just
look for it. Well written, especially the
lead, which creates a vivid image and
mood for the rest of the story. Good
quotes interspersed well."
On the Ridgecrest story, judge War
ren King of the Seattle Times, Seattle
Washington, said: "Here's a good
example of how to recreate an event and
give the reader some of the feeling of
what it was like to be there. The
reporter does this by giving lots of good
detail and keeping the narrative mov
ing. Yet at the same time, the story does
an excellent job of explaining the nature
of the illness and how patients were
treated. An interesting, well-organized
piece."