Spending, Appointments Highlight
County Board's Last Meeting
BY ERIC CARLSON
"Christmas is coming early!"
That was the observation voiced
by audience member Eileen
Kellagher of Long Beach as she
watched the Brunswick County
Board of Commissioners appropri
ate $147,427 worth of last-minute
spending before three newly elected
members took office Dec. 5.
At a continuation of their Nov. 21
regular meeting Wednesday night
(Nov. 30), outgoing Republican
Commissioner Donald Shaw joined
lame-duck Democrats Wayland
Vereen and Chairman Don Warren
in a series of votes that raised the to
tal of new spending since the elec
tion to $338,827.
Returning Republican Commis
sioner Jerry Jones said no to several
of the new expenses, but he agreed
to most and suggested one new allo
cation of his own. Democrat Tom
Rabon, who also was reelected, did
not attend the meeting.
In other last-meeting action, the
board voted unanimously to appoint
Ocean Isle Beach building contrac
tor Tom Pope to the Brunswick
County Board of Health and to re
appoint former county commission
er Benny Ludlum to his seat on the
board.
Pope's appointment increases to
three the number of health board
members who are involved in septic
tank installations, which are regulat
ed by the health department. The
board continues to function without
a physician or an optometrist. The
latter state-mandated seat has been
filled for the past year by Ocean Isle
Beach builder Bruce Quaintance.
The commissioners made 11 ap
pointments to other area boards. All
but two were approved without op
position.
Warren voted against a motion by
Jones to return former Republican
Commissioner Gene Pinkerton to
the Brunswick County Library
Board of Trustees.
it was Pinkerton who spearheaded
the creation of a county library sys
tem as a commissioner. He served as
the first chairman of its board of
trustees until Democrats captured a
majority on the county board and re
placed Pinkerton with former Dem
ocratic Party Chairman William
Stanley.
Stanley recently resigned from
the library board. Warren remains a
member.
Jones, who represents the com
missioners on the county planning
board, voted against Vereen's nomi
nation of Robert Quinn of Southport
to replace Rosetta Short on the new
ly formed Zoning Overlay Study
Committee. Quinn has been a vocal
opponent of numerous planning
board decisions on zoning. Quinn's
appointment was overturned by the
new board of commissioners on
Monday. (See related story. Page 1
A.)
All other votes on appointments
were unanimous.
Dale Carter was named to the
Economic Development Commis
sion of Brunswick County to fill a
vacancy left when his father, Billy
Carter, resigned after being elected
to the school board.
Library To Reopen Jan. 9
BY ERIC CARLSON
Shallotte's newly expanded and remodeled Rourk Branch library is
scheduled to re-open Jan. 9, a member of the Brunswick County Library
Board of trustees said last week.
The temporary library currently operating in Resort Plaza shopping
center will close Dec. IS to allow county employees and volunteers from
the Friends of West Brunswick Library to move books and other materi
als into the new facility, according to Don Eggert, chairman of the
trustees' building committee.
A formal dedication for the new library is planned for mid-January
Library board members toured the new building with architect John
Sawyer and county engineer Robert Tucker during a "punch list" inspec
tion last week. Contractors were given their final instructions for com
pleting the remodeling job before turning the building over to the-county
for use.
The final work to be done at the newly remodeled library includes
touch-up painting, some electrical work and the installation of telephones
and other electronic equipment. The carpeting has been put down and
most of the book shelves are in place.
The former West Brunswick Branch library has been closed since
April, when part of its collection was moved to temporary quarters locat
ed and paid for by the Friends of the Library. The $289,649 remodeling
project includes a renovation of 2,232 square feet and the construction of
a 1,904 square foot addition.
New Signal Light Going Up
At Grissettown Intersection
A contractor began work last
Thursday erecting poles for a new
full traffic signal to replace the cau
tion light at the accident-plagued in
tersection of N.C. 904 and U.S. 17
at Grissettown.
However, work has not begun on
a controlled signal approved last
summer for the intersection of U.S.
17 and Union School Road, also
south of Shallotte.
"I still haven't received the plans
for that project," Archie Wells, DOT
assistant division traffic engineer,
said Friday. "1 don't know what has
happened to them."
Union School officials and the
school's advisory council cam
paigned for the signal throughout
1993 for safety reasons. They in
creased their lobbying effort after
the state Department of Trans
portation said a full signal was not
warranted and put up poles at mid
summer for a flashing caution light
instead.
That work was halted when the
state Board of Transportation
changed its mind. At that time a
DOT official told The Brunswick
Beacon that the newly-approved full
signal would be installed as soon as
a contractor completed improve
ments under way on U.S. 17 south
of Shallotte, and possibly by the
time school opened in early Sep
tember.
Approval of the N.C. 904 signal
came in early fall, after a DOT re
view of the intersection's high acci
dent rate and after New Hanover
County Sheriff Joe McQueen's van
was struck by a car attempting to
cross U.S. 17 on N.C. 904.
Mild Weather To Continue
South Brunswick Islands resi
dents can continue enjoying a mild
autumn, as the forecast for the next
few days includes no significant
changes.
Shallotte Point meteorologist
Jackson Canady said Tuesday he ex
pects temperatures to average from
THf BSUNSWKX^KACON
Established Nov. 1, 1962
Telephone 754-6890
Published Every Thursday
At 4709 Main Street
Shallotte, N.C. 28459
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
IN BRUNSWICK COUNTY
One Year $10.36
Six Months $5.55
ELSEWHERE IN
NORTH CAROLINA
One Year $14.86
Six Months $7.90
ELSEWHERE IN U^A.
One Year $15.95
Six Months $8.35
Second class postage paid at
Shallotte, N.C. 28459. USPS 777
780. Postmaster, send address
changes to:
P.O. Box 2558,
Shallotte, N.C. 28459-2558
the upper 40s at night into the mid
60s during the daytime, with near
normal rainfall.
For the period of Nov. 29 to Dec.
5, Canady reported 1.42 inches of
rainfall, above average, with rain
over four days and over seven out of
the past 10 days, he said. "It's been
an exceptionally rainy period."
Temperatures were mild, ranging
from a low of 34 degrees on Dec. 1
to a high of 76 degrees on Dec. 3.
A daily average high of 66 de
grees combined with a nightly aver
age low of 51 degrees for a daily av
erage temperature of 58 degrees,
which is about 8 degrees above the
long-term average.
The long-term forecast is for con
tinued above-average temperatures
in this area.
This newspaper is
printed on recycled
paper!
"Hogwawi
JERRY JONES takes the oath of office for a second term as
Brunswick County Commissioner shortly before being named
chairman at the new board's first meeting Monday night. Joining
him during the ceremony was his wife Barbara Jones.
Other new appointments include
Frances Allen, Parks and Recreation
Committee; Ed Allen, Aging
Advisory Board; Sabrina Puckett,
Industrial Facilities and Pollution
Control Authority; Linda Bethune,
Southeastern Center Area Board;
James Marlow, Transportation
Steering Committee; Debbie
Bartlow and Paul Wayne Reeves,
Home and Community Care Block
Grant Committee.
Several of the appropriations ap
proved Wednesday night drew oppo
sition from Jones, who will continue
to serve on the board during the sev
en months remaining in the 1994-94
budget year. He questioned the wis
dom of spending the board's entire
contingency fund this early in the
funding cycle.
"I guess for the next six months it
will just be tough luck, huh?" Jones
remarked.
Jones opposed Vereen's request
for a donation of $30,000 to a group
that wants to purchase a building for
a senior citizens center in Long
Beach.
Vereen also won approval, despite
Jones' opposition, for a 55,000 do
nation to Brighter Tomorrows
Unlimited. The non-profit organiza
tion collects aluminum cans for re
cycling and uses the money as grad
uation gifts to encourage students to
finish high school. Vereen's wife
Linda helped start the program.
Also approved in a 3-to-one vote
with Jones dissenting was a $30,000
donation to the West Brunswick
High School Booster Club to help
build a field house at school's M.H.
Rourk Stadium.
In a last-minute spending propos
al of his own, Jones asked the board
to appropriate $25,000 to the Supply
Volunteer Fire Department for the
purchase of a used 2,500-gaIlon
tanker truck.
Supply VFD Chief Roger Suggs
told the commissioners that the de
partment's current 1957 army sur
plus tanker is on its last legs. He
said the group has been "throwing
good money after bad" trying to
keep it running, but a recent break
down has kept the vehicle out of ser
vice for three weeks.
The board voted unanimously to
make the expenditure. It also ap
proved Shaw's request for a $35,(XX)
grant to the town of Northwest for
the purchase of a used tanker and
ambulance. He said the town wants
to establish a "first responder" emer
gency capability.
"They're mostly poor farmers up
there," Shaw said. "If we don't do it
this way, they'll never get it."
In another unanimous vote, the
board agreed to appropriate Si 5,000
to the Brunswick County Clerk of
Courts office to purchase a portable
aluminum building for records keep
ing.
The board also agreed to pay tem
porary Clerk to the Board Joycc
Johnson $2,427 for nearly 200 hours
of overtime accumulated since her
appointment.
Changes Include 24-Hour Sheriff's Office
(Continued From Pa$e 1-A)
rank and duties as supervisor of the
detective division. Lieutenant David
Crocker remains head of the depart
ment's narcotics squad.
Several detectives have been pro
moted to the rank of lieutenant, in
cluding former narcotics investiga
tor Mike Speck, who will continue
serving as county ABC officer while
assuming additional duties as de
partment training officer and
Emergency Response Team leader.
Former Detective Charlie Miller
returns to the uniform division as a
lieutenant in charge of road deputies
and transport officers. Detective
Gene Allen Caison also has been
promoted to lieutenant to join Lt.
Donne 1 1 Marlowe as a detective shift
supervisor.
Sgt. Cliff Eubanks, an experi
enced Drug Abuse Resistance
Education officer formerly with the
Henderson County Sheriff's
Department, has taken over Sheriff
Hewett's former duties as depart
ment DARE officer.
Former patrol Deputy Patti
Hewett has been transferred to the
department's narcotics squad, while
drug officer Douglas Todd returns to
patrol division as a uniformed
sergeant. Newly advanced to the
rank of detective were former
Deputy Michael Cierpiot and Jailer
Zelma Babson.
Sheriff Hewett said six new tele
phone lines will be installed next
week to give the public better access
to his department. A sworn officer
will man the front desk at all times,
he said.
Shift schedules have been re
arranged to assure that the number
of officers patrolling and on call will
not be reduced because of the
changes, Hewett said. Some shifts
have been overlapped to provide in
creased patrol coverage during peak
hours.
"It's going to be hard at first, but
we're going to do it," Hewett said.
"1 expect we'll eventually need to
ask for a position of desk officer, but
for now, we'll do whatever it takes
to keep the doors open and the desk
staffed at all times."
Hewett said he plans to increase
JUDGE William C. Gore Jr. congratulates new Brunswick County Sheriff Ronald Hewett and his wife
Julie moments after administering the oath of office during swearing-in ceremonies in Bolivia
Monday.
the emphasis on continuing training
for officers and will encourage
deputies to get more involved with
investigations normally handled by
detectives.
Other plans for the future include
adding more K-9 units to assure that
a drug-sniffing dog and handler will
be available during all shifts. Hewctt
also plans to have a tracking dog to
help locate fugitives and another an
imal cross trained in bomb detection
as well as drug investigation.
In an effort to encourage "profes
sionalism" and maintain good
morale, Hewett said he will develop
a program of departmental awards to
recognize hard work and efforts
"above and beyond the call of duty."
An internal affairs division also
will be established in the department
to investigate complaints from the
public or allegations of improper
conduct, Hewett said.
"I want to provide the citizens of
Brunswick County with the very professionalize this department, to
best law enforcement available, train, to supervise, but most of all to
Hewett said. ~My goal will be to serve the people who elected me."
Babson Hired As Detective
(Coatlaacd From Page 1-A)
assigned to patrol duty before advancing to detective, investigator or
deputy sergeant
Babson occasionally worked on violation cases with local law en
forcement agencies in her duties as an animal control officer. While at the
sheriff's department, she has never been designated as a road deputy. Her
official position last week was listed as jailer, according the county per
sonnel department.
After working 11 years for Brunswick County Animal Control and
advancing to head the department, Babson was fired in June 1991. She
was accused of failing to perform her duties and being abusive to her em
ployees.
Babson appealed the firing to the Stale Personnel Commission. She
eventually won a ruling from an administrative law judge, who recom
mended that Babson be rehired and given back pay. In a negotiated settle
ment with the county, she accepted a job at the sheriff's department last
year and went to work as a jailer July 1.
$5 Million Loan For Regional Sewer
Venture On State EMC Agenda Friday
BY SUSAN USHER
If all goes as consulting engineer Joe Tombro
anticipates, the state Environmental Management
Commission will be approving a $5 million state
bond loan for the South Brunswick Water &
Sewer Authority's regional sewer project Friday
in Raleigh.
That approval would spark a lengthy chain of
activity already delayed by three months, said
Tombro, as the authority worked to allay environ
mental concerns regarding the project.
The loan is one element in the funding plan for
a $35.6 million project to build a 2 million-gal
lons-per day treatment plant and collection and
transport lines serving a 45-square-mile area of
southwestern Brunswick County. A low-interest
(3.035 percent) revolving fund loan of $3.75 mil
lion from DEM was set aside earlier for the pro
ject. Other funding includes nearly $4 million in
projected "capacity" charges paid by initial cus
tomers, and S22.8 million in authority-issued rev
enue bonds.
State bonds for the loan haven't been sold, but
will probably carry an interest higher that the 5.85
percent on bonds issued in September, estimated
Tom Fahnestock of DEM's construction grants
section.
With Piedmont Olsen Hensley consulting engi
neers meeting the Nov. 30 loan application dead
line, its approval hinges on DEM Director Preston
Howard's "sign-off' this week on a finding of no
significant impact or FONSI. The finding was is
"We received some comments
of all types and we're trying
to decide what to do. "
? Cecil Madden, Division of
Environmental Management
?
sued a month ago for comments now being re
viewed within DEM and the N.C. Department of
Administration.
With a signed FONSI in hand, the authority
would be able to obtain interim financing, pro
ceed with plans for an early 1995 revenue bond
sale to generate funds, and begin work on con
struction contracts.
That sign-off may be likely, but it was not as
sured as of Monday afternoon.
"We received some comments of all types and
we're trying to decide what to do. We don't know
how long that will take," said Cecil Madden of
DEM. "Staff will discuss and then we'll discuss it
with the division director. Ultimately the decision
on what to do is his responsibility. What we do is
take all the concerns expressed and try to make
sure they are all taken care, that they are ade
quately addressed."
Tombro, consulting engineer with Piedmont
Olsen-Hensley, said almost all of the concerns
raised by the Sunset Beach Taxpayers Association
and N.C. Coastal Federation had been previously
addressed One of those concerns is stormwater
planning.
SBTA says it does not oppose a central sewer
system that includes concurrent stormwater man
agement. It advocates that the FONSI not be ap
proved until a stormwater management plan actu
ally exists.
The authority has adopted a resolution commit
ting to having a plan in place before construction
or operation of its treatment plant is permitted.
The Town of Sunset Beach has received a state
grant to develop a model stormwater management
ordinance, and the authority is appointing a
stormwater management committee whose mem
bership is expected to include SBTA members, he
said.
"That will keep them apprised of what's going
on and we're sincerely hoping for their input,"
said Tbmbro. "I'll say it again: Let's get this thing
rolling together."
SBTA President Clete Waldmiller said several
directors have been out of town so the board
hasn't met to decide whether to take legal action
in an attempt to insure the project does include
stormwater management. SBTA .members were
polled; only 30 so far have voiced opposition.
Under SBTA bylaws, no response is considered a
yes to proposals circulated by mail.
The board is also waiting to hear the result of
dual requests by the SBTA and the N.C. Coastal
Federation for administrative review of the envi
ronmental assessment procedures.