Varnamtown Opposition Over Taxes
(Continued From Page 1-A)
future as Vamamtown lakes on new
projects. "There is no such thing as
staying like you arc," he said. "Un
less you stop, and you're not going
to stop, things arc going to esca
late."
But town officials said town tax
es arc low enough so everyone can
afford to pay them and that the tax
rate doesn't have to increase if resi
dents don't want it to increase.
Mrs. McDonald said only seven
residents in town pay more than $50
a year in town taxes. Three of them
arc on the town board, she said, and
three of the other four want the
community to remain incorporated.
She said she contacted disabled
and elderly residents before the
town board adopted its budget last
year to sec if the 4.5-ccnt tax rate
would be a burden.
Town officials pointed out later
that the town gets more than 90 per
cent of its revenue from the state.
Vamamtown property owners have
paid only about $3,310 in taxes
since the town incorporated.
In addition to taxes, Simmons
said residents of Vamamtown had
been misled about what would hap
pen following incorporation. He
said residents were led to believe
nothing would change when the
area was incorporated, but the town
board has purchased land and is
moving toward construction of a
town hall.
Alderman Roger Robinson said,
"If anybody was misinformed, it
was done through the grapevine, not
silling in front of this board."
Redwine, who attended last
week's meeting to gauge public sen
timent and answer questions, said
the General Assembly could pass a
bill that would unincorporate the
town subject to a local referendum.
Due to the nature of the incorpo
ration issue, however, Redwine said
the earliest he could introduce legis
lation to dissolve the town is Jan
uary 1991. An adjournment resolu
tion adopted by the General Assem
bly last year prevents the legislature
from addressing controversial issues
in the upcoming short session.
Redwine said he helped the
Shady Forest community near Sun
set Beach unincorporatc in the
1970s. But he said that town was
never active and was a "paper
town" from the time it incorporated.
A show of hands near the end of
last week's meeting in Vamamtown
revealed that about three-fourths of
the people attending want the com
munity to remain a town.
Annie Smigicl, president of the
river preservation group Save Our
Shellfish (SOS), was one of several
people who spoke in favor of re
maining a town, saying, "I think it
has strengthened our voice as far as
getting the river cleaned up, and I
Oiink we should stay incorporated."
Jim Callan, a member of the
committee that studied incorpora
tion of the community about two
years ago, also said he favors stay
ing incorporated. He said dissolving
the town could open the area up to
annexation by Holdcn Beach or
Lock wood Folly, an unincorporated
golf course community near Var
namtown.
"We don't know what the Lock
wood Folly area might do in the
way of incorporating," he said. "If
we unincorporatc now, we're pre
senting ourselves to an executioner
with a double -barrel, 12-gaugc shot
gun at 10 feet."
Rev. Trade Varnum, the first
mayor of Vamamtown, and others
said it was hard to believe opposi
tion to incorporation exists, since no
one has ever brought a complaint
before the town board.
"We have harmed nobody," he
said. "We have done nobody a dis
service."
The former mayor emphasized
two sections in the town charter that
require a vote of residents before
they can occur: 1) increasing in the
town tax rate above 10 ccnts and 2)
paying the mayor and aldermen a
salary.
Speaking to Simmons, who was
standing at a podium, Vamum said,
"If you find a town charter with the
two town laws that our charter has
in it, I'll eat that desk that you're
standing in front of."
Much of the night was spent dis
pelling rumors that involved people
on both sides of the incorporation
issue.
Among them were rumors thai
Simmons had tried to unincorporatc
a scction of Wilmington when he
lived there and that a portion of
Swain's land was left out of the
town so he wouldn't have to pay
town taxes on the property.
Mrs. McDonald also refuted a ru
mor that the N.C. Department of
Transportation (DOT) refused to
plow local roads following the De
cember winter storm bccausc Var
namtown is an incorporated com
munity.
The town board member pro
duced a letter from the DOT and a
map showing the state's priority
roads that arc cleared following
winter storms. "Being a town did
not keep you from getting your
roads plowed," she said.
Earlier in the meeting, residents
were assured emergency services
such as Tire, rescue and law enforce
ment would be provided whether
the area is incorporated or not.
Coastline Volunteer Rescue
Squad President Kevin Mulholland
said there will be no charge for ser
vice whether the area is incorporat
ed or not. "Coastline's going to ser
vice this area whether this is a town
or not a town," he said. "We've got
you covered."
Sheriff John Carr Davis told the
group, "We're gonna be there re
gardless of what you decide."
Most of the crowd Iett the church
when the discussion on incorpora
tion ended. A handful of residents
remained as the board of aldermen
continued with its regular monthly
business meeting
The board appointed Alderman
Luellen Norris, Swain and residents
Jackie Varnam and Beverly Woolen
to a financc commiltec that will
draft a proposed budget for the
coming year.
Aldermen also created a new
planning committee and appointed
Robinson, board member John
David Dawson, Rev. Varnum and
residents Danny Galloway and Fayc
Galloway. The mayor and town
clerk will serve on both committees.
The board's ncxl regular meeting
will be Thursday, April 19, at 7:30
p.m. in Dixon Chapel United Meth
odist Church.
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(Continued From Page 1-A)
Both Ms. Burroughs and Neal,
who also testified at length, stated
that the Somersetl cat scratched
both of them as Ms. Burroughs held
the animal so that the veterinarian
could attempt to draw blood from
its jugular vein for the leukemia
test.
Ms. Burroughs, however, main
tained that Neal provoked the cat by
making 10 to 15 unsuccessful at
tempts to draw blood. Neal claimed
that Ms. Burroughs let go of the cat
when he stuck it the first time with
the needle, and that he knocked the
cat away when it "brutally attacked"
him. He said the "kitty" scratched
and bit him on the hand and ran up
his arm toward his face.
Although Ms. Burroughs testified
that the incident lasted at least 30
minutes, the veterinarian asserted
that he retrieved the cat after it at
tacked him, put it in a restraint bag
and drew the blood on the next try.
"I took the blood sample and said
(to Ms. Burroughs), 'See you later,"
and it was 12:15," he said, indicat
ing that the procedure lasted only
15 minutes.
A key witness for the state was
Dr. Bill Rabon, one of two local
veterinarians who examined the cat
Jan. 5. Rabon testified that the
Somerset! cat suffered injuries that
appeared to have been caused by
"multiple, blunt-force trauma."
Injuries included a broken tooth,
an abrasion on the nose, bruises in
side the mouth, and neurological
damage that kept the cat from being
able to lift its head. Rabon added he
observed that the cat's ncck had
been shaved and th?t "some at
tempts had been made to puncture
the jugular vein."
Rabon, who a'ro is a ir.cr.ibcr of
the Brunswick County Board of
Health, later stated that Neal called
him and discussed the animal cruel
ty case. "He said, 'Bill, you've got
to get a leash on (Animal Control
Supervisor) Zclma Babson for me. I
know you can,*" Rabon testified.
Neal also told Rabon he had
tried to talk to Health Director Mi
chael Rhodes about the matter but
that Rhodes would not speak to
him, Rabon testified.
Under cross-examination by
Lambeth, Rabon confirmed that he
and Neal were "not on the best of
terms" because Neal declared bank
ruptcy after buying Calabash Ani
mal Hospital from Rabon. Neal has
operated the animal hospital since
1986. He moved here after graduat
ing from the Auburn University vet
erinary school in 1985 and working
at animal clinics in Columbia,
Tcnn., and Paris, Texas.
Three other former employees of
Neal ? Sharon Roberge, Annette
Alsbrooks and Dee Lee ? testified
as state witnesses about the other
three cruelty charges. Ms. Albrooks
said Neal twice threw the stray cat
against walls after it scratched him
during an X-ray. Ms. Lee said Neal
struck Ms. Inman's chow dog sever
al times after he had difficulty anes
thetizing the dog for surgery. She
also testified that Neal repeatedly
banged the head of the Harrclsons'
muzzled chow on an examining
table after the dog resisted having
its toenails clipped.
In his testimony, Ncal flatly de
nied abusing any of the animals. lie
said the Somerset! cat broke its
tooth when it hit the floor after he
protected himself from it; he also
said he noticed no other injuries.
Ncal testified that he repaired the
stray cat's broken leg and sent it to
a Humane Society animal shelter in
North Myrtle Beach, S.C., for adop
tion. He said that when the Inman
dog struggled, he simply held it
down with his arms. The veterinari
an admitted muzzling the Harrel
son's dog but denied beating it.
Defense witnesses included three
veterinarians who worked with Neal
as early as 1985; all three said they
never saw Neal abuse animals.
Other individuals who testified on
Neal's behalf included five part
time employees and volunteers at
the animal hospital and eight clinic
customers, all of whom character
ized Ncal as a caring, highly profes
sional veterinarian.
However, the witnesses who had
worked for him ? witnesses for both
the state and defense ? indicated
that Ncal sometimes lost his temper
and became verbally abusive to per
sonnel. When Hicks pointed out
that Neal's office had a high em
ployee turnover rate, the veterinari
an said it was because working in
the animal hospital was a "lousy
job," in which employees often had
to work long hours, clean up animal
excrement and continually see pets
thai were injured or in poor health.
Also, Neal's girlfriend, Tina Wil
son, confirmed under Hicks' cross
examination that her own dog suf
fered a broken leg while in Neal's
care at the animal hospital last year.
Ms. Wilson said the dog was injured
when it caught its leg in a cage.
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PHOTO CONTIIBUTtD
Bolivia PTA Buys New Sign
The Bolivia Elementary School Parent-Teacher Association recently purchased a new school sign
which features the school's bear mascot. Pictured with the sign are (from left) PTA officers Donna
Green, Sherry Willetts and Patricia Sullivan; Student Council officers Alexis Vaught, Dale Linkous,
Kerri Lanier, Jennifer Vnger and Latoia Robinson; Student Council sponsor Thelma Fullwood,
Assistant Principal Carolyn Williams and Principal David Corley.
Cooler Temps
Make Comeback
Weather conditions in the Shal
lottc area are expected to return to
seasonable levels over the next sev
eral days according to Shallotte
Fuiiii meteorologist Jackson Cana
dy.
Temperatures through the week
end should average from the mid
40s at night to the mid 60s during
the day. Rainfall also is expected to
be near normal at approximately
one-half inch.
For the period of March 13
through 19, the daily average tem
perature was 62 degrees, which
Canady said was eight degrees
above average.
The daily average high tempera
ture was 68 degrees, and the nightly
average low temperature was 57 de
grees.
The maximum high temperature
during the period was 86 degrees on
March i3. The minimum iow tem
perature was 4S decrees on March
19.
Canady measured 1.12 inches of
rain during the seven-day period.
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