Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / April 30, 1987, edition 1 / Page 1
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r RLMIH-.KV 3 ;•/ -.1 ■>KV I'U J$WICIf Twenty-fifth Year, Number 25 I«I7 IHI MUNSWICK IIACON ShalloH., Noflh Carolina. Thursdoy. A|>il 30. 1967 Kc Per Copy 42 Pogas Inclodirg Supplement. Plus Insans j Lcxal Man Sought For Failuro ^ To Appear On Cocaine Charges A DRUM OF LIQUID ASPHALT is hosed down by Calabash firemnn Paul Carney Friday after tlic Department of Traasportatlon tmek carrying it collid- STArf rHOlO tY MAIUOUIE MECIVEHN ed with a car, overturned and skidded several hundred feet at a Calabash Intersection. BY ETTA SMITH The SBI has issued a fugitive war rant for a Sunset Beach man follow ing his failure to appear in Brunswick County Superior Court April 13 for sentencing on several drug-trafficking charges. According to Brunswick County Sheriff John Carr DavLs, both the SBI and the Drug Enforcement Agency liave joined the sheriff’s department In the search for Alan Brooks, who is charged with trafficking in cocaine. Brooks had plead guilty to several drug trafficking charge.?. He had been charged in 1985 with trafficking in more than 400 grams of cocaine, trafficking by possessicn of more than 28 grams of cocaine, trafficking by transportation of more than 28 grams, and two counts of trafficking by the sale of more than 28 grams of cocaine, according to DavLs. The charges were made by the county drug squad after Brooks was arrested at a convenience store near Sunset Beach, according to Det. SgL David Crocker Crocker of the drug unit Crocker said the squad later ex ecuted a search warrant at Brook's home, where they seized two ounces of cocaine. He added that Brooks sold under cover agents in excess of two ounces of cocaine on three separate occa sions. A total of $13,000 worth of the drug was seized or bought from Brooks, he added. Crocker said it has not been deter mined whether Brooks has left the county or if he still remains here, although he said he has receivEsd calls from people saying Brooks has left. According to Vickie Tew, a deputy in the county Register of Deeds OL fice. Brooks filed an instrument there on April 10 making his mother, Bar bara B. Brooks, his power of at torney. Tew said the power of at torney gives Brook's mother the authority to act on his behalf, or to sell property or sign legal documents for him. Seven Injured In Crash As DOT Truck Overturns BY MARJORIE MEGD'ERN A Department Of TTan.sportation truck carrying a 1500-gallon drum of liquid asphalt and a cylinder of diesel fuel collided with a Chevrolet Cavalier at a Calabash Intersection about 1 p.m. Friday, overturning six times. As a result, seven people were taken to Brunswick Hospital by Calabash and Shallotte rescue SilucniS. Avitultiv 22| Cf Hudson, was transferred to New Hanover Memorial Hospital. Those treated and released were Douglas Evans, 28, of Supply, Calvin Boykin, 34, of l/mgwood, Linda f>ong, 27, of Ash, Larry Webb, 22, of Ash, George Reeves, 47, of Supply, and Allen Dillard, 28 of Lenoir, According to Trooper L.M. Richiirdson, Dillard, who was driv ing the 1987 Chevrolet, went through the stop sign at the intersection of Thomasboro and Persimmon roads. The DOT truck, driven by Boykin, approacliing the intersection on Per simmon ltd., struck the passenger side of the car, then overturned sU times, skidding a half block before coming to rest on its side. Calabash fire personnel began im mediately dousing the drum of aaplusii at'oi (.-iniiairin Ot itict nitii water to prevent an explosion. The truck was totalcid, as was the Chevrolet, whose engine was mangl ed and protruded from the front end. Dillard was charged with a stop sign violation. Only one other weekend accident in the county involved serious injuries and damage. Sunday, about 7:40 p.m., Andrew Luke Bunch, 22, stationed on the U.S.S. Guadalcanal in New York, was driving north on U.S. 17, three miles north of Bolivia, in a 1981 Toyota. According to Trooper T.W. Cauldcr, he tried to pass five vehicles on a curve, just as Aaron Lee Linder, 22, of Wilmington, entered the curve traveling south, in a 1983 Dodge, ccrc tc to avoid impact, but collided, almost head-on. Both suffered Class A in juries and were taken to Brunswick Hospital, then transferred to New Hanover Memorial Hospital. Damages were estinnated at $5,000 to the Toyota, $6,000 to the Dodge. Bunch was charged with improper passing. THIS CKEVPUILET C.AVAUER is being towed from the scene of Friday’s accident In Calabash. The car was struck on the passenger side by a Department of iranspEiriafiEni iniu after the driver of the Cavalier failed to slop at a stop sign. Meeting On board terms Draws Small Turnout At Holden Beach BY ETTA. SMITH Debate over whether Holden Beach commissioners should serve two- year or four-year terms drew only 11 of the town’s 359 registered voters to a town hall forum Monday night. Four commLssioners who attended the 39-minute meeting did most of the talking, and three of them agreed that it takes time to leant the ropes on the board. The forum was sponsored by the Holden Beach Property Owners Association. The association schedul ed the event to debate the pros and cons of two-year terms before voters decide the issue in a May 5 referen dum. . .. Board members Gay Atkins, Hal Stanley, William Williamson and Graham King attended. Commissioners served two-year terms until 1981, when the town charter was amended to allow stag gered four-year terms. The Holden Beach Property Owners Association presented com- mmissioners with petitions last month asking for the vote. Atkins told the group that the job is like any other—it takes a while to become familiar with it, and to get things done. Other board members agreed. "The point is stability," said Williamson. “And, hopefully most people made the right choice in the previous election. But we do know how dangerous it can be to turn the board over completely in one year." Williamson, who elected in 1985 to a four-year term, added, “I look at myself as still learning.” Resident Rose Cole suggested that a compromise be considered, such as three-year tenns. Former Mayor Kenner Amos, who favors a return to two-year terms, said “If you (commissioners) do a good job in two years, you can be re elected. But if you don’t, there is nothing that can be done to reverse the situation.” In years past, he audeu suiVn cern- missioners didn’t attend meetings for months at a time. Others, he said, didn’t take the opportunity to attend a .school sponsored by the Institute of Government to learn more about the job. Commissioner Stanley said "You continue to learn and the situations are different. The main thing is to leam to work with the others." Stanley added that the various peo ple he has worked with on the board through the years have all worked for the town of Holden Beach, which speaks well for those commissioners and the people who elected them. Resident Melvin Amos suggested that if the media would report more about what stand the different board members take on any issue ttiat comes up during their term, it would be easier to judge the performance of those comniissioners. She also said that more people should attend meetings for that reason. "Four years would be an awful long term to me right now,” said Cotnmissioner King. "It’s quite a chunk of time to commit yourself to something, and I’m sure people get tired of it taking too much time.” He added that the board needs con tinuity, whether it be two or four years. Williamson agreed, and said that with a whole new board there would be no way for new board members to know why the former board made certain decisions. has become close to the com- missoners in the past two years, and that from what l^’s seen In the of Williams and Atkins, they can just now begin to get things done. "Gay’s just now getting to the point that she can pick up the phone and call certain people and get things done concerning things like beach ac cess,” he said, Sid Swartz, who is on the town plan ning and zoning board, said ‘Tm really more discouraged with the town’s voters than with the can didates.” He said that he is “leaning” toward the two-year term, because of the fact that voters don't see that much of a candidate before the election, and after the election they are stuck with a four-year term. Voting on the issue will take place Tuesday from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. in the commissioner’s meeting room at town hall. Land Use Public Meetings Planned BY SUSAN USHER A schedule has been set for a series of public meetings during Land Use Week, schedided May 11-15 by the Brunswick County Commissioners to generate public interest and involve ment in county land use planning. At the meetings, local residents will be asked to come up with their own ideas about the problems and challenges facing Brunswick County in coining years and what they would JUNE 29 TRIAL DATE SET State Inter/e, ^1 BY MARJORIE MEGIVFJIN Judge Donald Stephens has ap proved a motion by the stale of North Carolina to intervene in the Holden Beach west end suit The decision came Monday in Brunswick County Superior Court The motion, filed by Special Depu ty Daniel McLawhorn, asked that Ocean Blvd. West in Holden Beach be declared a public rightr(tf-way, based on the fact of prescriptive easement. This term refers to the continuous public use of property over at least 15 years, rendering it public property. The suit filed in 1985 by Raymond Cope, Royal Williams, and Concern ed Citizens of Brunswick Comity Tax payers, was in response to the erec tion of a guardhouse by Jim Griffin, f fllWf I nil iwiwfwf f Beach Suit Approved like the county be like in the future as it relates to land use. The Brunswick County Planning Board and Board of Commissioners will use the data gathered at the meetings to help set land use policies. The policies will be included in the update of the county’s CAMA land use plan. Coastal counties are expected to update their plans at five-year inter vals. Brunswick County’s plan was to have been presented to the Coastal Resources Commission last March for approval, but was not ready. A rough draft presented last fall was criticized by that commission and the county was also criticized for not completing it in a timely fashion. The last time public input in the plan was sought was during 'Thar.ksgiving week 1985. Planning Consultant Glenn Harbeck of IDdward E. Stone Jr. & Associates or his designee will con duct the meetings, using an open for mat in which participants can list concerns for discussion by the entire group present Following a series of three meetings in the county’s three major (SeeSERIES, Page 2-A) owner of Holden Beach Really and Holden Beach Enterprises. Griffin’s businesses own the property in ques tion, known as the "west end.” Griffin claimed in a 1986 hearing on the matter that his company had for several years used signs and bar ricades of various kinds tc infiHTn the public the property was privately owned. Finally, 25 people were ar rested for trespassing. Assistant Attorney General Allen Jemigan explained the state’s In terest. "The public has a right to use the beach, and the state is the guar dian of that right,” heflbid. James Maxwell of Durham is the attorney representing Cope, Williams, and the taxpayer’s group. He said the state’s interest in the case began several months ago. “The attorney general’s office called to adc for copies of the pleas,” he said, “probably because a lot of Holden Beach property owners were talking about it.” The request for intervention "bolsters our case tremendously,” Maxwell said. "It Indicates that other people than those participating In the suit are concerned about this Maxwell said the business of public access to beaches is becoming a crucial issue all over the country. "Relaxation is now considered a social necessity,” he noted, "and, although the beach itself is unques tionably owned by tfie public, they have to have a way to get to it” Jim Griffin, the Holden Beach developer who owns the west end pro perty, said the state’s entry into the case doesn’t bother him at all. “That just puts all the folks in one camp,” he s^d. ‘Tm looking forward to be ing In court” Griffin believes his answer to the prescriptive easement argument was upheld when an injunction against him sought by the taxpayer’s group last year was refused ^ the judge. His attorney, Robert Serra of Southport, said, “We expected the state’s request to be granted, and this makes our case even stronger. Now, when we win, the state will be bound by it, too.” Boihi attorneys said a tentative trial date of June 29 has been set to hear the suit Sunset Beach Suit May Get June Hearing Despite an appeal by attorney Roy Treat for attorney fees, members of the Sunset B^ch Taxpayers Association may see their case against Beach Enterprises heard in June. Trest had also represented Edward M. Gore and the town of Sunset Beach, defendants with Beach Enterprises in a suit brought In 198S by the association to acquire Sunset Blvd. for public use. Last year Gore and Sunset Beach were removed from the case, and Judge Donald Stephens ruled Monday in Brunswldt County Superior Court that Trest’s fees for representing them are not recoverable. Trest said he would appeal, but stressed this move would not affect progress of the case. “We’re asking for a court date of June 29,” he said. “Maxwell and I are both anxious to get it done.” James Maxwen of Durham represents the taxpayers association. "nie taxpayers group claims that prescriptive easement, continuous public fjE* Ilf land over at least 15 years, apnlies to the strip of land from the Sunset Beach bridge to the ocean, owned by Beach EnterjNises.
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
April 30, 1987, edition 1
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