PHOTO BY JOHNNY CRAIG
NEW HOARD MEMBERS for 1992 arc, from left, front row, T. J. Thornton, treasurer; Keith Sawyer;
Roscoe Griffin, vice president; and Kelly Hewett; back row, llobson Bryant; Curtis Todd, president;
Walter Bridges; Doug Todd: and John Snovcr, secretary.
Tri-Beach VFD Elects New Board
Assistant chicf Curtis Todd was reelected president of
the board of directors of Tri-Bcach Volunteer Fire
Department last week at its annual meeting.
Other members elected to the board are Roscoc
Griffin, vice-president; John Snover, secretary; T. J.
Thornton, treasurer, Kelly Hewett, Keith Sawyer,
Hobson Bryant, Walter Bridges and chief Doug Todd.
Receiving department awards were Curtis Todd (offi
cci uf the year), Toniniy Harrison (Tire mar. o! the year)
and Hewett (rookie of the year).
Tri-Bcach responded to some 65 alarms in the greater
Holden Beach area in 1991, including structure fires
(15), woods (20), emergency medical scrvicc (5), vehi
cle (3), trash (5), as well as 17 other "good-intent" calls.
The department averaged 15 firemen responding to
each call with 102.45 hours on fire scenes throughout
the year. In addition, department members received
2.226 hours of training.
Five members received hazardous materials aware
ness level certification last year ? Jonathan McLeod,
Timmy Phelps, Sawyer, Curtis Todd and Roland
Vamam.
Chief Todd also received his Fire Fighter 111 certifica
tion from the N.C. Department of Insurance.
Membership reached iis hii'hrsi level in department
history last year with 10 new members joining between
Sept., 1990- Sept., 1991.
Tri-Bcach also purchased a new 1,250-gallon-per
minute pumper in 1991 which was a welcome addition
to its number of response vehicles.
Also recognized for assistance with contribution jars
were a number of Holden Beach area businesses.
Mrs. Bush Tells
Kids To Read On
It looks lilcr Rarhira Bush won't
be coming to Bolivia any time soon.
In an effort to invite local and na
tional personalities and media pro
fessionals to read to her Chapter
One students, Thommi Arnold of
Bolivia Elementary sent separate let
ters to President George Bush and
the First Lady, Barbara Bush.
Within two weeks, Ms. Arnold re
ceived a reply from Mrs. Bush
thanking the teacher for the invita
tion, but politely turning it down.
Reading has always been one of
the great joys of my life, and I am
delighted to learn of programs that
encourage it," the First Lady wrote
to Ms. Arnold in her Jan. 29 letter.
She sent her test ..ishes to the
students and urged them to continue
reading. "It will bring them lasting
enjoyment," she wrote.
Unfortunately, the president him
Mii' i,a> >ci 10 rcpiy, perhaps due to
a heavy campaign schedule.
Meetings Slated
The Brunswick County Republi
can Party will hold meetings in all
-2 county precincts Tuesday, Feb
25, at 7:30 p.m.
Finances for the forthcoming cam
paign will play an important role on
the agenda, said Millie Morrow
county GOP vice chairman.
GOP Chairman James Payne
asked voters interested in the
Republican "cause" to attend, saying
the pany has put together a ticket of
candidates "representing the funda
mentally conservative beliefs that
mainstream Brunswick County vot
ers hold dear".
For more information on the
meetings interested persons can con
tact either Ms. Morrow, 27 8-5824
or Bill Dunn, 845-2163.
Postal Move Opposed
The Brunswick County Retired
School Personnel opposes plans to
distribute rural mail routes from the
South Brunswick postal station at
Seaside instead of the Shallouc Post
Office.
The group voted at its Februarv
monthly meeting to take a position
against the proposed move of most
postal operations to die new Sunset
Beach office.
We feel that the change of distri
bution of mail for those people lo
cated on rural routes will cause
tremendous inconvenience," said
President Gelcnc Russ.
The retired educators' group also
recommends that a new post office
with adequate space for growth and
parking be built in Shaliottc because
it is the area's center of trade, fi
nance and culture.
Tax Help Offered
The Internal Revenue Service is
offering free assistance to taxpayers
witn questions regarding fudtioi in
come tax returns.
Brunswick County residents can
visit the IRS office in Wilmington in
Suite 200 of the CCB Building,
3904 Oleander Drive, a news release
indicated. No appointment is neces
sary and assistance is provided on a
first-come, first-served basis be
tween 8 am. and 4:30 p.m. Monday
through Friday.
For those unable to visit in per
son, help is also available by tele
phone, 1-800-829-1040, from 8:30
am. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through
Friday.
STAFF PHOTO By DOH! C GURGANUS
POWELL ASSOCIATES ENGINEER Jim Rillups explains the
layout of his proposed sewer system for Calabash at a recent com
missioner's meeting. He will be on hand Feb. 20 to talk to residents
of unsewered areas about the system.
Calabash Will Hear Public
Opinions On Sewer Service
Calabash commissioners have set
up a scries of public hearings to learn
whal residents think about the possi
bility of sewer service in the future.
The hearings will be consecutive
ly, neighborhood by neighborhood,
at the Calabash Volunteer Fire
Department the evening of Thurs
day, Feb. 20.
The gathering is for residents of
non-sewered areas only, said Com
missioner Jon Sanborn. He an
nounced the schedule after the rest
of the commissioners decided on the
best evening for the forum.
At the sessions engineers Jim
Billups and Joe Tombro will explain
the basics of the proposed sewer
system and the individual costs in
volved. They represent Powell As
sociates of North Myrtle Beach,
S.C., the town's consulting engi
neering firm for the sewer project.
"Wc welcome any questions from
the public about the impact of this
system on the community," said
Billups at a recent commissioners'
meeting.
The hearing schedule is as fol
lows:
?6 p.m.-Carolina Shores (Acreage
Estates only)
?6:30 p.m.-Carolina Shores North
?7 p.m. -Calabash Acres and Cala
bash Acres East
?7:30 p.m.-Bay Point, Carlylc
Acres, Hidden Valley
?X p.in.-Occan Forest
?8:15 p.m.-Carolina Cove, Hunter's
Trace
Why wait for
your federal
income tax refund ?
imsz
? receive your refund anticipation loan within a matter
of days
? available whether we prepare your return or not
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To Many, GIS Mapping System
| Remains A $2.5 Million Mystery
BY TERRY POPE
Some people describe Brunswick County's
Geographical Information System (GIS) as though it's a
caged monster with an enormous appetite.
"It wants information and functions best when it has
a steady diet," said Brunswick County Manager David
Clegg.
Others feared that an airplane hired to take pictures
for aerial maps was Hying over their homes last fall with
a "torpedo" strapped to its belly. The "torpedo" was ac
tually a camera.
But when completed next year, GIS will link county
departments with a single source of maps and data.
Volumes of work gathered from the five-year projeel
will fill an office wing at the government complcx in
Bolivia.
But is the system worth S2.5 million?
"The answer is yes, if used in the proper ways," said
Clegg. "If it sits there unused, it's not worth it."
The package includes thousands of topographical
and soil maps covering every parcel of land in
Brunswick County. The maps can be layered to produce
three-dimensional designs on computer screens.
"It may seem like a costly thing now, but over time
the benefits will outweigh the costs," said Steve
Randonc, former Planning Department employee who
was hired last month as GIS Department manager. "It'll
be almost like a one-stop shop."
The goal is to link data from all county departments
into one computer system to save time and money for
residents, developers and county employees. It will al
low departments to make quicker decisions on permits
or lot evaluations and not have to wade through map
cabinets, searching.
It is the same system that emergency units in larger
cities, such as Charlotte, use when responding to calls.
Monitors installed in the vehicles direct the way to the
emergency location, like a scene from the 21st century.
When the idea was introduced to the Brunswick
County Board of Commissioners in 1988, some were
skeptical and tell it was a bit too extravagant for a most
ly rural community.
Although Brunswick County bought the complete
operational package, it would cost additional millions to
install the system in local emergency vehicles. That isn't
likely to happen in Brunswick County. Instead, the maps
and data will be used in other ways at the government
center, to help:
?Determine lot elevations for septic tank permits and to
identify flood zones for the health department;
?Conduct inventories of families on assistance pro
grams for social services;
?Identify areas of need for low-cost public housing;
?Pinpoint areas where services arc needed for parks;
?Redraw residency district lines based on U.S. Census
data;
?Classify land for zoning purposes; and
?Identify parcels and building improvements for tax
records.
"Just go around the (government) complex," said
Clegg. "Everybody will use it in some way."
L. Robert Kimball and Associates of Pennsylvania
w&s hired in Jur.c 19HH to bciiirs work on the projccl.
When information began pouring in last year, the county
had no one in charge of GIS. Randone dedicated half of
his workdays to organizing the volumes of maps antl
charts that began stacking up in various county depart
ment*
"It was a monster," said Randonc. "I started creating
a system for it and getting to know what Kimball was
doing."
Kimball and Associates hired an airplane with a de
vice that shocked some residents last fall. Several called
the government complcx in Bolivia to find out why a
plane was flying around the county with a torpedo
strapped to its belly.
Actually, inside the "torpedo" was a camera that
took thousands of aerial photographs for GIS maps. The
mysterious plane was sighted only on clear days ? when
there was no fog, smoke or clouds. Rights occurred af
ter the leaves had fallen.
'The days you fly arc few and far between," ex
"4T
VK<;
STAFF PHOTO BV TERBV POPE
STEVE RANDONE, newly-appointed manager
of Brunswick County's GIS Department, has
worked on the complicated mappinp system for
about a year.
plained Clcgg, who answered some calls about the mys
terious "spy plane."
Even those close to the project have difficulty
putting into words what a GIS really is. Like an auto
mechanic's tool collection, it is never complete. It is al
ways evolving and in need of updated information.
"You develop a GIS system," said Clegg. "It has
multiple components. It evolves to meet your needs. To
say that you have a GIS system is a misnomer."
The system is now being fed house numbers. By
mid-April, every home in Brunswick County will have
an assigned house number and street name to eliminate
rural postal routes, all planned to benefit the county's
enhanced 911 program that begins in April. The 911 sys
tem will share some GIS data.
By late summer, Kimball and Associates plans to be
gin delivering its lull voluhie of data by townships, start
ing with Shallotte Township, until all five are complete
in 1993. A user station will allow residents free use of
the computer program once it is installed.
"It's going to take a while to get everyone connect
ed," said Randone. "It takes a phase-in period. There
will be litde bugs that need to be worked out."
Approximately 60 of North Carolina's 100 counties
have purchased GIS systems. A steering committee,
composed of department representatives and appointees
from the real estate and surveying fields, will help de
velop policy for Brunswick County's GIS Department,
said Randone.
The committee must decide whether GIS informa
tion should be free to the public and how much informa
tion should be available.
"It'll be more or less a swapping of ideas," said
Randone, "to find out what each department wants out
of the system."
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