Slockett: Candidate's
Reluctance To Deal Cost
Her Superintendency
BY SUSAN USHER
Brunswick County Board of
Education member Robert Slockett
says a finalist for county superinten
dent of schools didn't get the job
becausc she would net promise to
hire former board Chairman Dot
Worth's husband.
Furthermore, he also questions
whether the board rouowed its own
stated procedures in hiring a super
intendent to fill the vacancy created
by the firing of John A. Kaufhold.
While other incomplete applications
were rejected. Acting Superinten
dent P. R. Hankins' application was
accepted though required transcripts
were not included.
Slockett claims Barbara Rogers,
principal of East Wake High School
near Raleigh, lost Mrs. Worth's
swing vote, and therefore die post,
because she wouldn't promise to fire
Assistant Superintendent Bill Turner
and hire Randy Worth in his place.
Neither Mr. nor Mrs. Worth re
turned The Brunswick Beacon's
phone calls Monday. However,
Randy Worth has publicly denied
the assertion.
Meanwhile, the school boa/d has
no? acted in regard to Slockett 's
claim, on the recommendation of its
attorney.
"Mr. Slockett is the only person
we have heard from," said Donna
Baxter, current chairman of the
board. "It has not been addressed by
the board because it has not been
brought to the board (by the party
involved)."
SJockeu's explanation: "They
(Mr. and Mrs. Rogers) have filed an
informal complaint in the news.
They hope the board will address
the matter as a result of that."
Mr. and Mrs. Rogers are Bruns
wick County property owners, hav
ing owned a home at Long Beach
for seven years.
Slockctt said Mrs. Rogers told
him she was "shocked" to learn she
was r.ct selected 2s superintendent.
"They both (Mr. and Mrs. Rogers)
felt there was something wrong in
the way it was handled."
As lste as the night tht vote was
taken, he said she had been assured
of having Mrs. Worth's vote. That
night, he said Worth asked for extra
lime during the Sept. 10 executive
session to call advisors that incit
ed her husband.
Members Donna Baxter and
Slockctt also supported Rogers for
the post However, after Mrs.
Worth's vote gave Hankins the ma
jority needed, Ms. Baxter changed
her vote in open session for the sake
of board unanimity. Only Slockctt
voted for Mrs. Rogers.
At the board's Sept. 1 meeting, a
majority of members had expressed
a readiness to vote on the superin
tendence But, after an executive
session during which questions
were raised regarding an incident in
Ms. Rogers' background, the vote
was delayed until members could
interview the four finalists for a sec
ond time on Sept. 10.
At that meeting the board noted
that Mrs. Rogers had been suspend
ed from a Wake County post be
cause of a conflict of interest. The
school had purchased more than
54,000 of remedial math materials
developed by Mrs. Rogers and sold
by a company in which she had an
interest.
Monday, Ken Rogers, speaking
on behalf of his wife, said he or
Slockctt plan to ask the Brunswick
(See SLOCK ETT, Page 2- A)
Municipal Leaders
Share Goals For 1 991
BY DOUG RUTTER
Municipal leaders in the South
Brunswick Islands have a wide vari
ety of goals for their communities
in the year ahead.
Ba ed on New Year's Eve inter
views, plans for 1991 range from
expanding the town boundaries in
one community to fixing up a place
to run town business in another.
SHALLOTTE
The newest mayor in the South
Brunswick
Islands said she
doesn't have a
lot of big
changes plan
ned for 1991.
Shailotte
Mayor Sarah
Tripp, who was
appointed in
November to
take the place
of outgoing mayor Jerry Jones, said
she will do her best this year to
serve her community.
"I just hope the best for the
town," she said. "I hope the resi
dents will feel free to call me and
the aldermen and attend our meet
ings."
SUNSET BEACH
Sunset Beach Mayor Mason
Barber has a lot
more on his f
mind going into
the new year ? I
including the
split in the com
munity over the
proposed high
rise bridge to
the island.
Barber said
he hopes to pull barber
the people who have opposing
views on the bridge together in
1991. "We've got a real disagree
ment between the permanent resi
dents and the seasonal residents,"
he said.
Also this year. Barber said the
town council needs to concentrate
on its community facilities plan,
which was completed in the sum
mer of i990 but never discussed.
And although the town council
recently annexed golf course and
commercial property at Seaside, the
mayor soid more annexation will be
discussed over the next i2 months.
Barber said the town council is
ready to consider annexation of
more areas including the condo
50^ *5
J9?
m
miniums at Oyster Bay Plantation
and the residential areas known as
Sugar Sands, Shoreline Woods and
the old Sea Trail development.
CALABASH
Down the road in Calabash, goals
for 1991 include getting new ordi
nances in place, figuring out how
they will be enforced and getting
sewer service to the waterfront.
Mayor Pro tern George Anderson
said building a spirit of cooperation
in town will be
important in the
coming year if
? the town board
is to accomplish
\ } \"/\' it? goals. "I still
think this
/* > ' town's going to
work," he said.
"It's going to
take a lot of co
ANDERSON operation by a
lot of different people."
Calabash Mayor Doug Simmons
was hunting Monday and could not
be reached for comment.
OCEAN ISLE BEACH
Planning for expansion of the
town sewer system will be a top pri
ority in 1991
for officials at
Ocean Isle
Beach.
Mayor Betty
Williamson said
the town board
will plan for the
extension of
sewer service to
WILLIAMSON
where dwellings still depend on
septic tanks for sewage treatment.
Also this year, Mrs. Williamson
said town residents will continue to
see progress on a project to put all
power, telephone and cable televi
sion lines underground.
The mayor said town officials
will continue to push for a U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers study of
Shallotte Inlet. She said dredging
the inlet would help the economy of
the entire area and is needed to en
sure healthy fishing and tourism in
dustries.
VARNAMTOWN
Vamamtown Mayor Judy
Galloway said the biggest objective
for the new year is to get the town
hall in order.
The town board recently bought a
(See MUNICIPAL, Page 2-A)
* ? -
STAFF PHOTO BY SUSAN USHCR
Not For Fishermen Only
This unofficial boat landing on the Sunset Beach causeway draws not only recreational and commercial fishermen, but a variety of gulls
and seabirds as well.
TAX PAYMENT DEADLINE MONDAY
CP&L Again Leads County Taxpayers' List
BY TERRY POPE
The naires arc the same but the
order has slightly shifted for Bruns
wick County's "Top 10 Taxpayers"
list for 1990.
According to the county tax ad
ministration office, there were no
new additions to the top 10 list of
county property owners in 1990.
The list is dominated by businesses
and corporations except lor one in
dividual, Ocean Isle Beach develop
er Odell Williamson, who maintain
ed his number six spot on the list
again this year.
Once again, Carolina Power and
Light Co., with its Brunswick nu
clear plant in Southport, heads the
list of taxpayers.
Property tax bills state that pay
ments are due Saturday, Jan. 5;
however, the actual deadline for
paying 1990 taxes is Monday, said
Tax Collector Nancy Moore. The
office will be closed Saturday.
"Property owners have been giv
en through the 7th since the 5th falls
on a Saturday this year," Ms. Moore
said. "On the 8th they will owe a
penalty."
Payments mailed must be post
marked by ihc post office on or be
fore Jan. 7. Metered mail received
by the office after closing Monday
will be subject to the 2 percent
penalty.
Business was brisk at the tax of
fice last week. The period following
Christmas is the busiest time of the
year for the tax collection depart
ment. The tax department also mail
ed 1991 tax listings to property
owners Monday. Residents should
receive their listing forms in the
mail this week and have until Jan.
31 to list personal property subject
to taxes.
"We've been pretty steady," Ms.
Moore said last Thursday. "The lob
by's been full about all morning."
1 0 Largest Taxpayers For '90
PROPERTY OWNERS VALUATION TAX AMOUNT
Carolina Power & Light Co $619,257,210 $4,485,1 19.68
E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co 230,829,913 1,581,184.91
N.C. Eastern Municipal Power 196,553,403 1,425,012.17
Pfizer lnc 56,014,756 406,107.00
Cogentrix 37,634.611 272,850.93
Odcll Williamson 39.437 *55 i 89, 70? * ?
Federal Paper Co 24.626,568 168,458.75
International Paper Co 23,340,769 158,473.19
Bald Head Limited 21,129,561 153,189.39
Brunswick Electric Membership 20,051,138 138,926.80
SOURCE; BRUNSWICK COUNTY TAX ADMINISTRATION
A droo slot installed in the office
lobby at the government complex in
Bolivia has helped cut down the
long lines and has speeded up tax
collections for persons who wish to
pay their taxes in person.
Collections are running ahead of
last year's pace, too, Ms. Moore
said.
"As of Dec. 20 we had collected
about 31 percent, or about 3 percent
higher than last year," she said.
Annually, about 85 percent of
Brunswick County taxpayers pay
before the deadline each year.
About 15 percent of property own
ers end up paying a penalty, which
increases to 2 3/4 percent in Feb
ruary. The penalty will increase by
three fourths percent each month
thereafter. The names of delinquent
taxpayers are usually published in
local newspapers in April.
Approximately 92,326 tax state
ments were mailed to Brunswick
County property owners last July.
Those tax bills were a bit higher
than in previous years due to a 9
cent increase in tax rates. In June,
county commissioners raised the
county tax rate to 68.5 cents per
SI 00 of property value, from a
59.5-cent tax rale in 1989. The 1990
county tax base stands at $4.27 bil
lion.
At S619.2 million, CP&L's 1990
valuation dropped by about SI 75
million from its 1989 level. The
company's tax bill this year dropped
by about $600,000, from 55.04 mil
lion in 1989 to 54.48 million this
year.
Tax Administrator Boyd William
son said the drop in values by the
three public utility companies on
the list is due to a scheduled adjust
ment for public utilities.
By state law, in every first, fourth
and seventh year of valuation public
utility companies qualify for adjust
ments based on the percentage of
the true market value the county is
assessing its property owners. In
1990, Williamson said, the county
assessed the utilities 71.5% of the
true market value of their property.
Released last week by the tax of
fice, the 1990 Top 10 list also in
cludes: CP&L; E.I. du Pont de Ne
mours & Co., a manufacturer of
polyester fiber in Leland; the N.C.
Eastern Municipal Power Agency, a
consortium of municipalities which
owns part of the Brunswick Nuclear
Plant's production capacity; Pfizer
Inc., a citric acid producer in South
port which sold its plant to Archer
Daniels-Midland Company of Ili
nois last month; Cogentrix, a co
generation plant that sells processed
steam to Pfizer and uses surplus
steam to make electricity for sale to
CP&L; Odell Williamson of Ocean
Isle Beach; Federal Paper Board
Co., a timber producer. Internation
al Paper Co., a timber producer;
Bald Head Limited, a Bald Head
Island development company; and
local power cooperative Brunswick
Electric Membership Corporation
(BEMC).
The top 10 taxpayers account for
approximately S1.26 billion in prop
erty values and 58.97 million in tax
payments, or more than a third of
the county's tax base.
The current top 10 list includes
some changes from 1989. DuPont
moved from third to second as its
valuation increased by about S2
million. The N.C. Eastern Muni
cipal Power Agency slipped to third
as its value dropped by about S32
million. The increase in the coun
ty's lax rate is responsible for the
increase in taxes owed by individu
als and private corporations, Wil
liamson said.
Pfizer. Cogentrix and Odell Wil
liamson held their middle positions
while the bottom four companies
switched places. Federal Paper
moved from ninth to seventh, Inter
national Paper moved from 10th to
eighth, Bald Head Limited slipped
from seventh to ninth and BEMC
slipped from eighth to 10th.
Cogentrix will pay more taxes,
even though the property valuation
is lower than Williamson at number
six, because of additional Smithville
District taxes for the Dosher Mem
orial Hospital.
Tax payments for others on the
top 10 list also reflect any hospital
taxes for which they are responsi
ble.
Money Woes, Redistricting To Dominate
'Tough' 1991 State Legislative Session
BY SUSAN USHER
State budget-slashing and elector
al redisricting are expected to make
uiC 1991 session of the North Caro
lina General Assembly one of the
toughest yet, says Rep. David Red
wine.
"Legislative staff members say it
is going to be the toughest since the
Great Depression because of the
money or lack thereof," said Red
wine, a Brunswick County native
who first took office in 1983. In pri
vate life, the Seaside area resident is
involved in an insurance and real
estate business.
House appointments for the next
term have not been made, but he
has asked to serve on the appropria
tions committee again and on the
"We can no longer afford to
be sugar daddy to every
body r
? Rep. David Redwine
On state budget woes
redisricting committee. Redwine
has told Dan Blue that he is willing
to do whatever the Speaker-elect
would like for him to do.
Redwine made a bid during the
December Democrat caucus for the
speaker pro-tem post this term, but
lacking two votes, withdrew from
the race, he said.
Redwine has received few re
quests for local legislation to date.
Key among tho<w. he. has received is
a resolution asking him to re-estab
lish two-year terms for county com
missioners. The Brunswick County
Democratic Party adopted the re so
lution at its last convention, and
Republicans are expected to consid
er the measure at their convention
this spring. So far, said Redwine,
support for the proposed change has
been strong and bipartisan.
He has not been approached with
any formal request to change the
way ?cbor>l hoard members are elect
ed. Redwine said he has received
some informal comment supporting
non-partisan school board elections.
Money Woes Top List
When the legislator convenes in
Raleigh on Jan. 30, it mu?.t deal
with an expected $250 million
shortfall in funds for the current
year, plus a projected $1 billion
plus shortfall for the next two-year
(See MONEY, Page 2-A)