Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / April 2, 1992, edition 1 / Page 4
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Opinion Page THE BRUNSWICK&BEACON Edward M. Sweat t and Carolyn H. SweaU Publishers Edward M. Sweatt Editor Susan Usher Netvs EUlitor Terry Pope Stajj WHtors Doug Rutter Sports Editor Peggy Earwood Office Manager Carolyn H. Sweatt Advertising Director Timber ley Adams, Cecelia Gore and Linda Cheers Advertising Representatives Dorothy Llrennan and Drenda Clcramons Moore ..Graphic Artists William Manning Pressman Ixinnle Sprinkle Assistant Pressman Tracy Smith Photo Technician Phoebe Clemmons and Frances Sweatt Clmtlation PAGE 4 A. THURSDAY, APRIL 2. 1992 Height Limit Act Would Add 'Muscle' And Peace Of Mind ("here's a move afoot at Sunset Beaeh to seek a local act in the North Carolina General Assembly that would set a 35-foot height limit on structures built on the town's island, a limit that would be subject to change only by a referendum of voters of Sunset Beach. Such a limit is being sought to add "muscle" to the existing height limit in the town's zoning ordinance. Why? Because the town is pursuing development of a sewer system that would serve the island as well as the mainland. A sewer system would allow higher-density development of the is land. possibly in the form of high-rise multifamily structures. Where allowed, this type of development tends to occur, though not always immediately. More than anything else except cost, fear of such develop ment is likely to block efforts to develop a town sewer system. Concern about high-rise development appears to be shared by mainland residents and island residents; resident taxpayers and non-resident taxpayers. Last week, the first of several meetings was held to hear from the public on the town's land use needs. Fourteen island house holds and 17 mainland households were represented by the ap proximately 50 people at the hearing, including resident and non resident property owners. Given a chance to pool their eoncems in a list and then "vote" for the top five, 29 chose the need for the height limit bill as one of their top concerns; the next closest issue received only 18 votes. Voting on whether to maintain or replace the bridge to the island was split almost even, 16-15. More than deed restrictions, more than a zoning regulation, the height-limit bill would reduce the likelihood that high-rise de velopment would occur on the island unless the people who live in Sunset Beach actively choose to allow it. The bill would put voters in the position of being proactive, rather than reactive. It would put them in the driver's seat. The idea isn't new. Elected leaders of two other local towns. Long Beach and Holden Beach, have honored similar requests, sometimes going against board members' individual feelings in doing so. Both towns have in place local legislation that requires a referendum of voters before the height limit can be changed. For residents of the community the bill is simply added peace of mind. Twice now the Sunset Beach Town Council has chosen not to act on a request to seek a local bill for that purpose. The town's attorney has advised council members to consider such action carefully, that agreeing to such a request would mean giving up a piece of its power and authority. He's absolutely right. Council would be giving up a small piece of its power and should consider that carefully. But to whom would the Sunset Beach Town Council be giv ing up its power on this issue? Not to the far-off bureaucrats of state government; not even to the town's non-resident property owners/taxpayers. The council would be giving up that power to the people who would be most affected by any changes in how the community is developed: the people who actually live there. Opponents of the local legislation might argue that these are the same people who elect the town council. That is true. But that doesn't mean that a majority of council members might always act in the same fashion as a majority of the town's voters might on a given issue. The height limitation as now provided in the town zoning or dinance could be changed with comparative ease, though not without the benefit of public comment and debate. It's entirely possible, argue advocates of the legislative limit, that the personal sentiment of those serving on the council at any given time might change, creating a majority of three that favors higher-rise development on the island and would vote for it re gardless of the wishes of the majority of the townspeople. Certainly those offending members might later be voted off the council, but by then the damage might already have been done. Most days and on most issues, voters are willing to take such chances with their elected representatives; it's a risk that comes with our representative form of government. But those affected sometimes consider an issue too impor tant, too far-reaching in impact, to leave to elected representa tives to decide. We have examples of that at both the state and federal level. Why not at the local level as well? If support for the 35-foot height limit legislation is as broad as it appears to be, Sunset Beach Town Council would do well to listen and to act accordingly. Write Us The Beacon welcomes letters to the editor. All letters must be signed and include the writer's address. Under no circumstances will unsigned letters be printed. Letters should be legible. The Beacon reserves the right to edit libelous comments. Address letters to The Brunswick Beacon . P. O. Box 2558. Shallotte, N. C. 28459. What Does It Take To Buy An Island? A lot of people, including mc, would like very much to sec Bird Island publicly owned and pre served. What we sometimes forget, though, what's involved. For a prop crtv to be sold, there must be not on ly a w illing buyer, but a willing sell er and a deal that satisfies both. Bird Island, of coursc, is the small, quite privately owned island off Sunset Bcach, across Mad Inlet. At one time the island had a road. liuu mi), u vkiviv, a m lugv uiivi j>vi haps a cabin of some kind ? few remnants remain of thai previous de velopment. It's a special place, a retreat for humans ? and lor wildlife. All sorts of shore birds, a few big cats, otters, a few small deer, wild boar and oth er creatures either live there or arc frequent visitors. Piping plover nest in the inarsh at the rear; sea turtles lay eggs in the sand. An occasional bald eagle has t>een spotted soaring overhead. The island's owner. Janie Page Price of Greensboro, has for years said she would like to have a home on the island. At one point she talked about allowing four to six friends or family members to also build. In part, for company, 1 think, and in part, to make building on the island more practical. After all, Susan Usher you're talking about a bridge, a road, electric service, etc. ' " 'o I'KtMirn little /\r nn IK UIV puot JMV O OIIW ?? II IIIUV V- ??V> interest in selling the island to any one. and there have been offers. Anyone interested in developing the island would have to have mon ey. and to be gamblers at heart, be cause Bird Island is covered under the Barrier Island Act. That means no federal money is available to sup port construction (or future replace ment) of roads, bridges, electrical service. Property owners wouldn't even be eligible for the federal Hood insurance program or post-disaster aid, as I understand it. The latest episode in the Bird Island saga has Mrs. Price applying for state permits to replace the old bridge to the island and includes subdivision of the island into 15 lots. For some obvious reasons, con cerned environmental activists are exploring ways u> politely block is suance of the permits. The diverse wildlife on the island, and potential navigability of Mad Inlet arc expect ed to be the keys to that grass-roots effort. Mrs. Price asserts the division of the island into lots isn't because she wants to develop it. but so that she can show the government the land has monetary value. Why would she want to show the government the land has value? I doubt it's because the cov ctcd as a spoil area, as was suggest ed to one reporter. For every person you meet, there's another theory. I dare not speculate. In several conversations over the years, Mrs. Price has never men tioned the possibility of selling the island for development or preserva tion. It simply hasn't been for sale. She also hasn't discussed giving all or a portion of the island to either the state or to a private group such as The Nature Conservancy; still, I'd like to think such a venture possible. I wouldn't blame Mrs. Price for not wanting to give it to a govern ment agency. Part of the island complex was condemned for the Little River Inlet Jetty project back in the 1970s. That deal involved the federal govern ment, both Carolinas, Horry County, S.C., and Brunswick County. Mrs. Pricc and her late husband, Ralph, didn't want their property taken in the first place. Furthermore, they never felt they were compensated for its true worth. To add to the rub, locals haven't always treated the island ui ib. own ers well; there's been a dock fire and other property damage. Despite all that, Mrs. Pricc has been pretty tolerant- - both of the widespread interest in her property :?nfl of trespassers on it. Fortunately, most visitors slay on the public beach and leave the island ;ts they've found it, minus a shell or two perhaps. I think that's because ihcy think of the island as a shared treasure, a resource, not as a place that's "owned". Current sentiment for public own ership of Bird Island, one of the last remaining undeveloped barrier is lands along the East Coast, symbol izes the better side of human im pulse?our occasional yearning to protect and nurture God's work just as we find it, without putting our own "man-made" stamp on it. We can only hope that the wide spread concern and love for this spe cial island touches an altruistic spark in both its current owners and those who want to ensure its preservation in a natural state. IflKvw //ji/dkuvv _ prindbime beauty fragile and dear, <KNj tfflE '<? WALNUT ?REPUBLICAN MAY? gpNgpM "DISTRICT S S?!H1@#L El-ECT "1 , FRUMP J <STOfgj _COUN?i rbM/^fsli III uim - "Won't last Ion election year! Double The Cars And Double The Trouble When my 1987 Pontiac rolled past 120,000 miles and the air con ditioner quit working, 1 bought a new car ? as a backup. The Pontiac now has 127,000 miles and is still my favorite car. U has been to Chapel Hill and back many, many limes. Juggling life and work between two automobiles has been like rais ing a family. 1 spend more time in my car(s), it seems, that 1 do at home. A glimpse at the odometer proves that. Like children, I try to give each one equal treatment, but the new one knows it is still playing second fid dle. They are both American brands, but there arc some key differences, or maybe 1 just haven't given the new one a fair chance to fit in. Last week 1 had to replace the windshield wiper blades on the Pontiac. It would have taken less time to rebuild the engine. I've nev er seen so many pins, screws, adapters and brackets for such a tiny task. When it was all over, 1 used the pins that were already on the wiper arms and had a pocketful of parts left over. I had to lift a spring on the new arm and slick an adapter through a tiny hole just right so that the spring would clamp down se curely onto the pin. It tixik a hammer and screwdriver to pry the old wiper blades off. It was the equivalent of pulling leeih, if a car had teeth. Six months after buying the new car, which isn't a Poniiac by the way, a postcard arrived in the mail asking me to please lake the lime to lill out a questionnaire that was sent the previous week. Busy, I had not even looked at it. If it was a USA Today or News week poll I would have mailed it back the same day. I've always wanted to be part of those national polls, and I just couldn't get that ex citcd about a survey which begins, "Congratulations on the purchase of your new automobile!" Congratulations? 1 didn't win it in a sweepstakes. Nobody gave it to me for a Christmas present. I went into debt over this thing, this second child. The first question asked, and I am not joking, "Do you still own the car?" If I didn't, would I be answer ing the crazy survey? If I didn't own the car ? just six months later ? wouldn't that tell you guys some thing? There arc categories to check for Terry Pope each question, ranging from ex tremely satisfied, very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, satisfied, not too satisfied, less that satisfied, to not satisfied at all, or something like that. So how satisfied was I with the salesperson who sold me the car? Good question. Are there really peo ple who would buy a car from a lu natic, someone they find obnoxious and insulting? The person who wrote the survey seems to think so. There is almost a whole page de voted to questions about warranty service, for when things go wrong or when factory defects force a recall of cars to the service center. Did they fix the defect quickly? Did you have to wait on parts? Then the last question asks if it's okay to send my answers to the car dealership. If it doesn't get the an swers, then why should customers even bother? 1 could have avoided the second child syndrome, but I gave in. I just couldn't get rid of my Pontiac. We've been through a lot together ? including three sets of wiper blades, pulling teeth. At times, having a sec ond car has been a lifesavcr, too, for they do sometimes get sick. But many people have asked me how in the world did 1 put 127,000 miles on a car that 1 purchased new in 1987. I really don't have an answer for that. 1 just do a lot of highway dri ving, I tell them, but the cars arc cared for. Now watch them read this col umn and conspire to have me walk ing next week. ***? JESSE Primary To the editor: People don't have to look far to feel angry, let down, frustrated and disgusted. The national debt is rocketing to ward S4 trillion ? that's a four and 12 zeroes. Congress has spent $105 billion to bail out the savings and loans, with the cost to the taxpayers to hit S500 billion. More than two dozen South Carolina government officials and lobbyists were convictcd or pleaded guilty to corruption charges stem ming from a FBI sting hearings that featured videotapes of lawmakers taking bribes. Hordes of aides and office work ers around the Washington belt way ? 38, (XX) employees serve 100 senators and 435 representatives. Members of Congress get free day care, free medical care, a private bank, post office and a private po lice force. Running Congress for one year costs us taxpayers S24 billion. That's SI 2.290 per (lay per member of Congress. Members of Congress bounced their way to "Rubbergale" by writ ing X.331 bad checks at the House bank between July 1989 and June 1990. A House committee on ethics is presently investigating charges of illegal drug sales, embezzlement and check kiting in the House Post Officc. Congressman Charlie Rose is its chairman. The chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, and the chairman of the National Republi can Committee since 1975, took a 15-day, S100.000 Caribbean junket at taxpayers' expense to frolic with lobbyists in Barbados-power skiing, golf, touch football on the white beaches ? all were videotaped and aired on ABC's "Prime Time Live." As past president of the South Brunswick Isles Civilan Club, whose motto is "Builders of Good Citizenship," I urge you to register to vole! The deadline is April 6 in order to vote in the May 5 primary. If you want to exercise your right, register now and vote May 5. Bob L. Johnson Ocean Isle Beach Rescue Squad Members Included To the editor. On behalf of all those involved, 1 would like to thank the Beacon staff for their support and coverage of the Holden Beach Day al the Docks. There was one oversight on cither my or the reporter's part. The Hold en Beach Water Rescue Team is made up of members from the fire department, police department and Coastline Volunteer Rescue Squad. If it were not for these members and their ideas, 11BWR would not be where it is today. Keith O. Sawyer Holden Beach (Letters Continue Next Page)
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
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April 2, 1992, edition 1
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