All In A Sandwich
There's more to making a sandwich than meets
the eye, at least for one class of Union Primary
School first-graders. Including Carlls Hanklns
and Chris Stephens. For a look at how the local
school Is teaching communication skills across
the curriculum, check the story on Page 5-B.
THE B
Eyes On The Crown
Miss Brunswick County 1990 will be crown
ed Saturday, with five women competing for
the title and scholarships. An impressive list
of Miss America contestants and Miss North
Carolina round out the entertainment at
Hatch Auditorium. Page 4-B.
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TWenty-elghth Year, Number 2
Water Follows Growth
Just as Brunswick County's population is
steadily growing, so is Its water dlstrlbuUon
system. Special assessment districts (SADs)
accounting for the most recent spurt of activity.
Recently-compiled statistics tell the story on
Page 1 1 -A.
eitWTNC BRUNSWICK BEACON
Shallotte, North Carolina, i nursday, November 16, 1989 25c Per Copy 38 Pages, 3 Sections, Plus Inserts
k wntsr. -if
STAFF mOTO BY IAHN ADAMS
FORMER COUNTY COMMISSIONER Rozell Hewett (left) listens as N.C. Institute of Government Assis
tant Director Jake Wicker answers Shallotte Point residents' questions about incorporation last Thursday.
Shallotte Point Residents Question
Officials About Incorporation Plan
BY RAHN ADAMS
At times last Thursday night it
seemed thai Shallottc Point resi
dents couldn't sec themselves as a
riverside town for the water ? not
the water that bounds the proposed
municipality, but the water service it
hasn't received from Brunswick
County.
Approximately 100 residents tur
ned out last Thursday at Shallottc
Point Volunteer Fire Department to
discuss possible incorporation with
state officials. State Rep. E. David
Redwine and N.C. Institute of Gov
ernment Assistant Director Jake
Wicker were present to field ques
tions from the gathering.
However, many of the questions
and statements during at least the
first half of the two-hour meeting
were directed at a local leader who
attended on his own initiative,
Brunswick County Commissioner
Kelly Holden. As they have asked
for the past five years, residents
wanted to know why the county wa
ter system doesn't already serve the
community of more than 1,000
households.
No decision about incorporation
was made last Thursday. Joyce
Land, a member of the community's
incorporation steering committee,
said a petition probably would be
circulated soon to determine if defi
nite support for incorporation exists.
A videotape of last Thursday's me
eting was to be shown Tuesday
(Nov. 14) to residents who could
not attend the initial get-together.
One resident. Dr. Ray William
son, underscored the need for water
scrvice by testing water he drew
from a tap at the fire department
minutes before the meeting. After
separating impurities with an elec
trical device, Williamson held up a
container of murky, green water for
the people to see.
For several years, Shallottc Point
residents have complained to the
county that their groundwater is in
short supply and that the well water
they are able to pump is of poor
quality. In early September, a group
called Shallottc Point After Water
Now (SPAWN) picketed a county
commission meeting.
Vernon Ward, chairman of the in
corporation steering committee, ex
plained at the outset of last Thurs
day's meeting that the committee
recommends incorporation as the
belter means of bringing water ser
vice to Shallotte Point, as opposed
to formation of a sanitary district
Members of the steering commit
tee also include former county
Commissioner Rozell Hewett, Rob
ert Hoff, Daught Tripp, Maurice
Milliken, Margie Milliken, Mr. and
Mrs. R.C. Eaton and former county
Utility Operations Board member
William English.
The committee's suggested boun
STAff moro rr *ahn adams
AFTER SEPARATING IMPURITIES with an electical device. Dr.
Ray Williamson of Shallotte Point displays a murky container of wa
ter that he had drawn minutes earlier from a tap at Shallotte Point
Volunteer Fire Department.
claries for the proposed town are
Middle Dam Road, then west along
Copas Branch to N.C. 179; south
along N.C. 179 to Saucepan Creek,
then east along the Intracoastal Wat
erway and around Monk Island to
the Shallotte Riven and up the river
to Middle Dam Road.
The only question about the pro
posed boundaries was why Monk
Island, an uninhabited dredge spoil
area, was included in the incorpora
tion area. Ms. Land said the island
was included so that the town could
establish a "no wake" zone on the
waterway.
She stated that the estimated tax
base for the town, with the suggest
ed boundaries, would be more than
$14 million.
The tone of the first hour of the
meeting could be summed up by the
comments of one man, who noted
that local beach areas have water
service while Shallotte Point
doesn't. "How come they got water
^nd we didn't?" he asked. "We pay
taxes to the county, and we're get
ting nothing."
Responding to another question of
that sort, Hewett ? who was a com
missioner when the county passed a
$37 million water bond referendum
in the early 1980s ? explained that
the bond money went to construct
the county's new Northwest Treat
ment Plant and main trunk lines, not
water lines into communities such
as Shallotte Point.
Holdcn noted that getting county
water to Shallotte Point through the
current special assessment district
(SAD) method of extending water
lines at property owners' expense
"would be slow." He added that he
was "inclined" to support installa
tion of a main trunk line to Shallotte
Point, "but I can't speak for the oth
er commissioners."
In August, commissioners defeat
ed on a 3-2 vote Holden's motion to
build a $1.2 million water line to
Shallotte Point Benny Ludlum was
the only other commissioner to sup
port the motion. Other commission
ers cited financial restraints as their
reasons for voting down the project.
At the county commission's in
struction, county Public Utilities
Director Jerry Webb presently is
working on cost estimates for a
large SAD that would include the
Shallotte Point area. His proposal
has not yet been presented to either
the UOB or commissioners.
However, when the SAD propos
al was mentioned last Thursday,
HcweU told the gathering, "It is not
worth it to be in an SAD district
Brunswick County is not going to
pay one red dime to get you wa
(See ABC, Page 2-A)
Meeting Scheduled To Outline
'Countywide' ABC Applications
BY RAHN ADAMS
Brunswick County officials said
they were surprised that the coun
ty's Nov. 7 ABC referendum pas
sed. They also apparently were sur
prised to find out Nov. 8 that the al
cohol vote was literally a "county
wide" action, affecting even former
ly dry municipalities.
Due to a rush of inquiries about
ABC permits. Alcoholic Beverage
Control and Alcohol Law Enforce
ment officials will hold a public
meeting Monday, Nov. 20, at 10:30
a.m., at the Public Assembly Build
ing in Bolivia, to answer questions
and explain the application process
to local individuals and business
owners.
Last week's referendum cleared
the way for on- and off-premises
beer and unfortified wine sales, op
eration of ABC stores and mixed
beverage sales in hotels, restaurants,
private clubs, community theaters
and convention centers. All four is
sues passed by relatively wide mar
gins.
The Brunswick County Board of
Elections certified the referendum
results last Thursday after canvass
ing the returns, according to Elec
tions Supervisor Lynda Britt. The
official results, which varied slight
ly from election night totals, were:
beer ? 4,742 for, 4,177 against; un
fortified wine? 4,675 for, 4,222
against; ABC stores ? 5,155 for,
3,803 against; and mixed bever
ages ? 5,114 for, 3.855 against.
Wilmington ALE Officer Joe
Brilcy, whose office will investigate
local applications, said he received
"quite a few" calls last Wednesday
and Thursday about ABC permits in
general.
According to local officials, the
permit process takes about 30 days
Deadlines Earlier
For Next Issue
Because of the Thanksgiving
holiday next week, the Beacon
will publish a day earlier, on
Wednesday, Nov. 22.
Deadlines wQl be a day ear
lier for news and advertising.
Real estate advertising
deadline is 5 p.m. Thursday,
Nov. 16. Classified and other
advertising must be in by noon
Monday, Nov. 20.
Subscribers who generally
get their paper on Thursday
should get delivery on Wed
nesday next week.
The Beacon office will be
closed ? next Thursday for
Thanksgiving and will reopen
for business as usual on Friday
morning.
for beer and wine licenses, depend
ing on the number of applications
that are filed. Brilcy said county
commissioners must appoint an
ABC board and open an ABC store
before mixed beverages licenses
can be issued.
Briley said he also fielded two
calls last week from officials at
Holdcn Beach and Vamamtown ?
two of the municipalities whose
businesses can now apply for alco
hol permits as a direct result of the
Nov. 7 referendum.
Other formerly dry towns in that
category include Leland, Bolivia
and Sandy Creek. Towns that had
not previously approved all four
types of alcohol sales also were af
fected. Businesses in Shallottc, for
example, can now apply for on
prcmises beer, unfortified wine and
mixed beverage permits.
N.C. Alcoholic Beverage Control
laws stale that "if a majority of vot
ers vote in favor of certain alcoholic
beverage sales in a county election,
sale of that kind of alcoholic bever
age shall be lawful throughout the
county, regardless of the vote in any
city at that or any previous election,
and regardless of any local act mak
ing sales unlawful in that city..."
Also, a city cannot subsequently
call for ABC election of its own,
unless "...the vote in the last county
election was against the sale of thai
kind of alcoholic beverage..." ac
cording to the statutes.
Confusion about the actual impli
cations of last week's rcferendun
has stemmed, in part, from th<
wording and apparent intent o;
Brunswick County Commissionei
Frankic Rabon's August 7 motion tc
request the ABC vote.
According to the board's audio
tape of the meeting, Rabon stated
that the referendum would involve
the four types of alcohol sales
"within the unincorporated areas of
Brunswick County." But in the
board's official minutes, that phrase
simply reads, "within Brunswick
County" ? consistent with state
ABC statutes.
However, Rabon told the Beacon
Monday that the intent of his mo
tion and his impression of the refer
endum was, in fact, that it would af
fect only unincorporated areas. "I
don't think the intention of it was to
interfere with the towns," Rabon
said. 'To me, they run their own
towns... I don't feel the county
should try to supersede any town
government."
Both Rabon and Kelly Holdcn,
the only other commissioner who
could be reached for comment, said
they were "surprised" that the refer
endum passed.
Holdcn said Friday that his "ini
tial impression" also was that mu
nicipalities would not be affected by
the Nov. 7 vote. But after receiving
several inquiries last Wednesday,
Holdcn contacted County Attorney
David Clcgg, who in turn called the
N.C. Institute of Government about
the matter, Holden said.
Based on information Clcgg re
ceived, Holdcn also commented that
the only apparent way to alter the
impact of the referendum would be
through special legislation setting
up "dry 7x>ncs." The General As
sembly is not scheduled to meet
again until late May.
ABC Commission Legal Special
ist Ann Fulton confirmed Monday
l that "the county vote prevails" over
municipal alcohol votes and that the
tefctcnduin cou.d not hawc been
i- limited to only unincorporated ar
i cas. "The county commissioners
: cannot restrict the election in that
f manner," she said.
r She also noted that special legis
i lation to set up dry areas in a wet
county could possibly be found "un
constitutional as local acts regulat
ing trade," if challenged in court.
Ms. Fulton added that as long as
the Nov. 7 ballot stated the ABC is
sues correctly, the referendum prob
ably would stand. Ms. Britt said
Tuesday that the ABC referendum
was uncontested and no possible ir
regularities were reported.
Calabash Board Cancels Meeting
Calabash Town Council died qui
etly Tuesday night
Mayor Doug Simmons was for
ced to canccl what would have been
the final regular meeting of the pre
sent five-member town council
when he was the only elected offi
cial to show up at town hall.
Councilmen Ed Rice, Keith Har
dee, John High and Landis High
were all absent from the regular
monthly meeting. The mayor said
Rice and John High were out of
town on vacation. He didn't know
where the others were.
After waiting 30 minutes, Sim
mons called off the session and of
fered his apologies to the three
commissioners-elect from Carolina
Shores ? Ed Schaack, George And
erson and Jon Sanborn ? who had
shown up for the meeting.
A new seven-member board of
commissioners that will include five
residents of Carolina Shores will be
sworn into office Tuesday, Dec. 12,
at 5:30 p.m.
STAFF PHOTO ?Y DOUG KUTTH
Ready To Roll
Rolls and rolls of sand fence stacked under the water tank outside llolden Reach Town Hall should soon be
moved out onto the beach, where town officials hope they will help rebuild the dune flattened in Hurricane
Hugo. The town is accepting bids through Friday for the installation of about 35,000 feet of sand fence and
the planting of 700 bundles of beach grass. Town commissioners are expected to move forward with the
project later this month.