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Twenty-seventh Year, Numb
Holden Be
Approve A
BY DOUG BUTTER
Holden Beach Commissioners
Monday voted 3-2 to annex the town's
first mainland territory, but it's
unlikely that the controversial issue
is settled.
As expected, board members
William Williamson. Gil Bass and
Gay Atkins voted in favor of annexation
Monday night, while Bob Buck
and Georgia Langley cast opposing
votes.
The board cast the same 3-2 vote at
its last meeting on June 5, but the second
vote was required because a
four-fifths majority is required on the
first balloting.
The annexation ordinance is
scheduled to take effect on June 30,
1990, bringing into the town limits approximately
67 acres of commercial
and residential property on either
side of the causeway.
However, the annexation could be
rescinded by the present board or a
future board. All five seats on the
board of commissioners will be up for
election in November.
Speaking of the one year before the
annexation takes effect, Mayor John
Tandy said, "There are a lot of things
that can happen between now and
then."
Commissioner Atkins added, "This
gives us a year to listen to everybody
that wants to say what they want to
say."
Prior to this week's vote, board
members favoring annexation were
asked to explain their positions, and
all denied that the action will result
in any personal gain.
Williamson and Atkins said annexation
will allow the board to protect
the residential nature of the island
but still allow the town to grow in an
orderly fashion.
Bass opened his comments by
stating that everyone would like to
see things stay as they are, but cited
statistics on the growth of Brunswick
County to show how fast the area is
changing.
"Growth has come to this county,"
he said. "We don't want to recognize
that, but if you're an elected officer
you've got to look toward the future."
Due to the urban nature of the
Federal Fi
Lockwood
BY DOUG BUTTER
Lockwood Folly Inlet would continue
to be dredged with federal
funds next year under the president's
latest budget proposal, but not at the
same level as in the past.
The inlet, which earlier this year
was dropped entirely from next
year's proposed budget, will likely be
maintained with federal dollars at
least through next fall, according to
an official with the agency that coordinates
dredging projects.
Billy Narron, chief of programs
management with the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers in Wilmington,
said the corps has spent an average
of $440,000 per year to maintain
Lockwood Folly Inlet over the past
five years.
The latest budget proposal President
George Bush sent to Congress
last month allocates $329,000 for
dredging of the inlet.
"We don't feel like the $329,000 will
keep it in as good a shape as it has
been in the past," said Narron, "but
wu uu icci u win Keep u open anu
operating."
Although the budget still needs to
be passed by Congress, Corps officials
said they expect the latest proposal
for inlet dredging funds to be
approved as presented.
Marty van Duync, public affairs officer
with the Corps, said the impact
of the proposed cutback for the local
inlet may mean that it is not dredged
i
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tertainment
ed in this issue.
I gg -Li C-vvVL
?er 34 the brunswick beacon
ach Comm
Aainland A
"I cannot sit here a
Beach be cut off frc
Hoi
causeway area, he said that if it is not
annexed, it will eventually become a
separate municipality. "If Holden
Beach is cut off from growth, it would
be a great disservice to this island,"
he said. "I cannot sit here and let
Holden Beach be cut off from future
growth."
Commissioner Langley, who has
opposed annexation of residential
areas fearing a shift in power from
the island to the mainland, said this
week that two of the three board
members who favor the measure
uavc a cum net ui interest oecause
their employers own property in the
area proposed for annexation.
She argued that Bass, manager of
Holden Beach Fishing Pier, has a
conflict of interest because the owner
of the pier also owns property in the
area proposed for annexation. Ms.
Atkins works for Alan Holden Realty,
which also owns land on the
causeway.
Commissioners Bass and Atkins
both denied that their situations
represent a conflict of interest,
M... .'-thine ".greed that annexation
may help the firm sell a
piece of property that has been on the
market for some time.
A motion from Commissioner
Langley to hold a non-binding
referendum of the island's registered
voters concerning the annexation
proposal drew support from Buck,
but failed when the three commissioners
who favor annexation voted it
down.
Mrs. Langley had asked that the
referendum be held as soon as possible
as a means of measuring public
opinion of the plan.
However, Commissioner Atkins
said it's easier for each board
member to talk with individuals than
to hold a special vote.
"If you really want what the people
want, you should have no problem
j rids Alloca
Folly Inlet
as often or as deep as it has been in
the past. The inlet is currently dredg
eu auuui twice a year.
In any event, she said the Corps
will not spend as much money to
maintain the inlet between Holden
Beach and Long Beach next fiscal
year as it has in other years. Fiscal
year 1990 starts October 1 and runs
through Sept. 30,1990.
"We're going to be maintaining it
to a lesser degree," she said. "We've
had to spread things around to try to
cover things as much as we can. All
of our projects have been affected by
this."
In January, former President
Ronald Reagan submitted a budget
to Congress that included no money
for the continued maintenance
dredging of Lockwood Folly Inlet and
nine other coastal waterways in
North Carolina.
The deletion of those projects was
part of a proposed $8.3 million cutback
in maintenance dredging in the
state.
Following strong opposition from
commercial and recreational
fishermen and elected officials
representing coastal areas, the Corps
set up a task force to study the
maintenance dredging projects.
The task force recommendation
released last month provided for the
continued dredging of more than half
of the North Carolina waterways left
out of the original proposal without
Spending
Budgets for the year the
been set by four South
Check in this issue for th
Shallotte, Sunset Beach
Beach.
Zp" HE
I
Shallotle, North Carolina, Tl
issioners
nnexation
nd let Holden
)m future growth."
?Gil Bass
den Beach Commissioner
with it," argued Mrs. tangley. "I
feel strongly that whatever the people
want should happen."
Earlier in the discussion, she had
said that there are two distinct
groups on the island?one that makes
its living from real estate and
development and another group that
is primarily made up of retired
residents.
"I fnol lil/o thoro o.-o
>?VI unv. UIV.1V. uv v. HIV gi uu^io
here to be represented and maybe
I'm looking at it wrong," said Mrs.
I^angley. "I feel like there are a lot of
people on this island that are opposed
to it, and I feel like they have the
right to be heard."
Buck said he favored the referendum
because he is unsure how
residents feel about the proposal.
He defended his vote against annexation
by stating that there are no
substantial benefits for either side
and that future annexations could
change the character of the town.
Buck also acknowledged strong
public opposition to the proposal at a
public hearing in April.
Although tho issnp of mainland annexation
has been debated for nearly
three years, there was a lengthy
discussion of the proposal before and
after this week's vote with some of
the audience members who crowded
town hall fervently opposing the action.
Cletis Clemmons, a causeway merchant
who led an effort about
years ago to incorporate the Town of
North Holden Beach when talk of annexation
intensified, pleaded with the
town hnarri tr? PvnanH tho ama r?rn_
posed for annexation if it planned to
go through with it.
"If you're gonna make a town out
of it, let's make a town of it, let's go
gung ho," he said. "If you're not,
stay on this side of the bridge."
He asked the board to stop its an(See
ANNEXATION, Page 2-A\
ted For
Dredging
involving any additional federal
funds, but did not include Lockwood
Folly Inlet.
When Reagan submitted the
original proposal in January, local
marina nneratnrs snppulntpH that it
would take less than one year for the
inlet to fill in to the point that it would
restrict commercial boat traffic.
In addition to hurting commercial
fishermen, they said it would harm
shellfishermen who work in
Lockwood Folly River, recreational
anglers and other tourist-related
businesses.
Since the plan to discontinue dredging
of Iiockwood Folly Inlet was proposed,
marina operators and
fishermen in the Holden Beach area
have been writing letters and sending
petitions to representatives to
restore the funding.
Danny Liebl, manager of Holden
Beach Marina, said this week that
while news of next year's funding is
unnH th<> inlnt nnnrlc (n Kn /Ifo/limrl
before the fall. "I'm glad to hear that
they're trying to do something to
keep it open, but I'm not sure that's
going to help us this summer."
Liebl said the inlet hasn't been
dredged since last fall and should
have been done this spring. "It's
definitely needed now," he said.
"We've got some places in there at
low tide you've only got five feet of
water. It's really shoaling up in
there."
Plans Set
at begins July 1 have
Brunswick Islands towns,
le bottom line in
, Calabash and Holden
CK#
hursday, June 29,1989 2
WATER RESCUE TEAM MEMBERS
surf boat Sunday evening from the stra
shore a disabled catamaran that had 1
noon. The sailboat in the background i
Three Re
Disabled
BY RAHN ADAMS
Three local residents were rescued
unharmed Sunday after they drifted
in the ocean off Ocean Isle Beach for
life-hours on a disabled catamaran.
The rescue was one of three
calls?two of them related?handled
Sunday afternoon by Ocean Isle
Beach Volunteer Fire Department's
water rescue team. There were no injuries
in either of the two unrelated
incidents.
Ocean Isle Beach VFD Chief Terry
Barbee said authorities were notified
that the trio had been spotted adrift
in the water Sunday around 3 p.m.
The three were Jay Houston, Glenn
Humbert and a woman whose name
was not available.
Barbee said he did not know who
initially sighted the stranded sailors,
since their craft was between one
mile and llfe miles offshore. "Without
binoculars, you could hardly see
them," he said.
Using their inflatable surf boat,
mxiniKorc /-?P f V-w. fipo rlnniKfrnant'ii
water rescue team reached the
disabled catamaran and found the
three individuals sitting astride one
of the pontoons, Barbee said. The
other pontoon had broken, filled with
water and sunk.
"They said they were just glad to
Sunset Be
With No C
BY RAHN ADAMS
Instead of a lower tax rate, property
owners at Sunset Beach will get increased
services, as the result of an
anticipated surplus in town revenue
that will be used for capital imnrovempnts
At Monday night's l3n-hour
meeting, Sunset Beach Town Council
adopted the town's 1989-90 budget ordinance
on a 4-1 vote, with Councilwoman
Minnie Hunt dissenting.
The $582,791 budget reflects no
change in the town's present properly
tax rate of 16.7 cents nor $100 of
property valuation.
Ms. Hunt told the Beacon after the
meeting that she opposed the budget
due to questions she still has about
certain items, particularly how the
town will handle sanitation services
in the coming year, which was a
separate topic of discussion Monday.
At Ms. Hunt's recommendation,
the board will meet on Thursday, Ju
/^mf
Supplement include
5C Per Copy 110 Pages, 3
$
Pi
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h) --i
of the Ocean Isle Beach Volunteer Fire
nd about a mile west of the Ocean Isle B<
>een abandoned after an accident and si
vvas not related to the rescue effort.
scued After
Off Ocean
see us," Barbee said, adding that the
rescue team ferried the trio back to
the strand in the surf boat.
Sunday around 7:30 p.m., a woman
noticed Houston's disabled
catamaran floating offshore about a
mile west of the Ocean Isle Beach
fishing pier and reported that she
thought she saw a person in the water
near it, Barbee said.
He said the water rescue team
went out again in the surf boat,
checked the area and found no one,
then towed the catamaran back to
the beach to keen it from causing anv
additional emergency calls.
The other rescue occurred at the
far western end of Holden Beach Sunday
evening, immediately before
Barbee and his crew were called out
the second time about the
catamaran.
Holden Beach Police Chief Raymond
Simpson said the incident involved
seven-year-old Suzanne Allen
and her parents, George and Sarah
Allen, of Seattle, Wash.
Police were called to 1279 Ocean
Boulevard West at 7:10 p.m., after a
large raft ridden by the mother and
daughter floated too far off the
beach, said Simpson and Barbee.
Simpson said the pair was stranded
near a sand bar several hundred feet
ach Adopts
Ihange In 1
ly 20, beginning at 9 a.m., to discuss
whether or not the town should contract
sanitation services or continue
handling it with town employees and
equipment.
Also at the July 20 meeting, the
council will meet with the Sunset
Beach Planning and Zoning Board to
discuss an annexation proposal, involving
the Sea Trails and Sugar
Sands developments east of the town
limits extending to N.C. 904 on the
south side of N.C. 179 and a smaller
tract at Oyster Bay Golf Links that
includes a condominium complex.
Balancing The Budget
Figures in the town budget basically
were unchanged from when the
council balanced the budget at a
work session on May 30 by proposing
a $108,181 capital improvement fund.
Revenues in 1989-90 are expected to
total $452,018. Almost $290,000 of that
amount coming from ad valorem
taxes, based on a total property
i
Livmo
d in this issue. i
' Sections, 2 Supplements
Vryisr- -
S ;
J' -~r o
jgSm
STAFF PHOTO BY RAHN ADAMS
Department launch their inflatable
iach fishing pier. The team towed to
iccessful rescue mission that after
Craft
Isle
from the beach. The father swam out
to the raft but apparently was unable
to tow it back to shore. He waited for
rescuers with the child, while Mrs.
Allen swam to shore.
According to Barbee, Mrs. Allen
rPQoVloH fha etronrl nKnnt tkn (imA
Ocean Isle VFD surf boat arrived on
the scene and helped the man and
girl back to the beach.
Holiday Fireworks
Planned At Holden
Campground By The Sea at
Holden Beach will once again
sponsor fireworks display to help
celebrate Independence Day.
William Williamson, campground
manager, said the
fireworks show will begin at about
9:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4, and
that this year's program should be
"bigger and better than ever."
Although the fireworks will be
shot off over the Atlantic Intracoastal
Waterway, he warns
that spectators should watch for
fallout and park at their own risk.
The campground is located on
Holden Beach approximately five
miles west of the bridge.
Ri irlnof
ax Rate
valuation of almost $182.7 million and
a 99 percent collection rate at the
16.7-cent tax rate.
The town expects to spend $474,607
in the coming year, not counting the
capital improvement fund, which
Mayor Mason Barber indicated Monday
that the new fund could be used
for paving, sidewalks, parking or
other canital nroiects.
Other individual departmental
budgets reflected in the approved
budget are:
Governing Body, $3,750.
Administration, $63,176.
Legal, $5,000.
'Elections, $1,000.
Public Buildings, $16,380.
Police, $169,736.
Inspections, $700.
Streets, $75,488.
Sanitation, $38,685.
Drain and Watershed, $20,000.
Planning and Zoning, $20,540.
(See SUNSET BEACH, Page 2-A)
f