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The Pamlico News
Learning Resource Center
Pamlico Technical Institute
P. 0. Box 185 i
Highway 306 South
Grantsboro, N. C, 28529
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Vol. II No. 16
Serving Pamlico County and Richland Township
Thrusday, April 20,1978
Kari Gatlin models the sun dress that she made for 4-H
Dress Revue.
Aurora Changes
Town
Hall Hours
At the Aurora Board of
Commissioners’ meeting held
on April 11, the Board opposed
the proposed retirement
changes, agreed to pul sewer
laps to vacant lots upon owner’s
request, and changed the
business hours of the Town Hall.
All Commissioners were
present at the meeting except
Joe Galloway.
Marvin Jennings, Town
Administrator, brought before
the Board the proposed
retirement changes. The rate
now is 9.06% and if the change is
adopted by the General
Assembly, the rale would go up
to 9.87% or 9.9; this does not
include Social Security. The
employee pays about 6% at the
present and the Town pays
9.06%. Commissioner Paul
staled that “We have to vote
according to out situation and
that’s a lot of money for us.”
(referring to the additional
increase on the Town’s part)
The Board voted not to support
the proposed retirement
changes.
The Board hired Mr. Jones to
do some of the mowing around
the Rutledge House and the
Medical Center. His pay will be
$40.00 per month.
Mr. Allen appeared before the
Board to ask that the taxes on
his son’s car be waived because
tiis son did not live in Town in
1977. He said that his son did
pay County taxes and N. C.
State taxes but that since he
was not a resident of the Town
at the lime, he felt he shouldn’t
pay the Town taxes. The Board
decided that if it could be
proven that he paid property
tax (and that if the car was
listed elsewhere and the lax was
paid) elsewhere then he should
not have to pay property taxes
in the Town.
Mr. Jennings requested
permission to order Town
license plates for 1979. He slated
that roughly 325 had been sold
thus far. The Board fell that the
Town policemen should begin
enforcing the display of Town
lags. Mr. Jennings said that the
cost of the lags will be about
$160.00. The Board gave Mr.
Jennings permission to order
500 Town lags for 1979.
The Board approved the So
Par payment of $922.34 and the
balance of the $6461.00 request.
The Board had withheld the
$922.34 pending completion of
unfinished work.
It was brought up that the
ramp at the Medical Center is
too high. Mayor Bonner said
that she will call Sam Ashford
and get him to check it and
make sure that it was built to
specifications.
Mr. Jennings reported on the
status of sewer hookups to
vacant lots. The contractor had
previously told Mr. Jennings
that the cost would be between
$70 and $110 depending on the
depth. Mr. Jennings talked to
the contractor again and the
contractor said that he would do
it for a flat $90.00 fee but that he
wanted some sort of contract.
Mr. Jennings said that he and
Attorney Thompson would draw
up a contract.
The Board voted to change
the hours of the Town Hall
because of the request by Mr.
Jennings. Mr. Jennings had told
the Board that he would like to
have Wed. afternoons off
because of personal business.
The Board approved giving Mr.
Jennings the afternoon off, since
he does spend so much lime in
Town Board meetings, and
closing the Town Hall on
Wednesdays after 12:00 noon.
The new hours are: Monday,
Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday
- 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and
Wednesday - 8:00 a.m. - 12:00
noon
County Commissioner’s Jurisdiction
Over 4-D Program In Question
The Pamlico County Com
missioners met in a special
meeting on April 12 with all
present.
County Attorney Bernard
Hollowell presented the request
for final plat approval for The
Bluffs subdivision. He ex
plained that the Planning Board
had approved the plan and that
he found that all legalities have
been met. Phase 1 of the project
was approved some lime ago,
he noted, and now the applicant,
P. E. McCotler, Inc. wished to
add more lots, some 44
altogether, and this will
necessitate paving all roads.
The Commissioners reviewed
the documents presented, which
included a note payable to the
County, a bond securing the
note, and a deed of trust on the
property which had been
purchased by the applicants
from Indian Trace, Mr.
Hollowell brought to the at
tention of the Commissioners
that the outstanding balance
due on the property to Indian
Trace is $88,000 and that this
takes precedent over any other
claim. However, he had been
told that the value of the land
shown on a title insurance
policy is $300,000.
Health Director Charlie
McCotter was asked if he had
approved the lots as shown on
the maps.
He replied that he had used
three different maps and that he
would like to suggest that in the
future, all lots should be
numbered serially rather than
some lettered, some numbered,
some both. He said that he had
denied one lot, most are all
right, and drainage is needed on
some.
After some discussion as to
whether the amount of the bond
is sufficient, the final plat ap
proval was given to the sub
division.
Mr. McCotter gave the
contracts for a landfill site on
the Lee Landing Road, to serve
the Reelsboro area, to the
Board for their approval. The
land is to be leased from
Weyerhaeuser Co. at a rale of
$98.80 per acre per year for a
five year period. There are five
acres in the tract and the entire
payment of $2,470.12 will be
made.
This contract has been under
negotiation for over two years
and it was felt that a telephone
call from Commissioner John
Bond to the company’s
headquarters brought the
matter to a conclusion. The
contract calls for firefighting
equipment to be available to the
site and that the County must
minimize the hazard of fire in
the area.
Social Services Director
Willie Sutton and 4-D program
Supervisor, Jim Baluss were
present to discuss the future of
this program. (4-D is a
designation for the Child
Support Program which locates
deserting parents. On finding a
parent they are required either
voluntarily or by court action,
to support his or her child. The
law applies to either a mother
or a father who has deserted a
child, whether the parents are
unwed or married.)
County Finance Officer ex
plained that Grady Simpson,
who was originally a full lime 4
D worker and has been part
time for a number of months,
will leave this job the first of
July, to become employed full
time in the Tax Supervisor’s
Office. The question has arisen
as to whether a full time 4-D
worker should be hired under
the County Department of
Social Services or whether the
County should ask the State to
take over the program.
It was noted that a contract
was entered into in December,
1975 with the Stale for the
County to operate this program
for five years, and that it is Miss
Sutton’s understanding that the
Stale is not anxious to take the
program back.
Commissioner John Bond
asked Miss Sutton if the
program is paying its way and
she answered that it is. She did
not have the exact figures at
hand but said that the program
had collected some $36,000
through the location of parents
and that 15% of this, or some
$2,700, had been turned back to
the County, which provided
..most of the County’s payment
for salary.
Miss Sutton said she felt that
having the program supervised
by the local Social Services
Department was more effective
than by the Stale and that
whereas Mr. Simpson had been
able to take care of the work in
three days a week, training a
new person, who may not have
Mr. Simpson’s qualifications in
law enforcement, will make it a
Fred Jones returns to his home in Merritt after a day
of working his mule and his plow.
First Public Hearing Held
On Block Grant Program
Pamlico County held its
first Public Hearing concerning
procedures for soliciting funds
from HUD’s CD Block Grant
Program on April 11th at 7:30
p.m. The Request will be made
for Fed. funds up to $500,000
which should be available Oc
tober 1 if approved. Nineteen
people were present: two from
Bayboro, one from Vandemere,
six from Oriental, four from
Merritt, one from Grantsboro,
one from Alliance/ one from
Arapahoe, and three from
Mesic. Ross Boyer, presented
ihe program, assisted by Dave
Rowland of the Neuse River
COG. County Commissioner
Aurora Town
Hall Hours
AURORA TOWN HALL HOURS
(EFFECTIVE MAY 1)
Monday - 8:00 - 5:00
Tuesday - 8:00 - 5:00
Wednesday - 8:00 - 12:00
Thursday - 8:00 - 5:00
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lobert Paul and Jim Spencer
/ere also present as well as
layors Elwood Jenette of
lesic, Gary Langston of
irapahoe, and Health Director
'harlie McCotter.
The citizens were informed
bout the program and the
ilizen’s participation plan. Mr.
toyer presented a rough draft
f the CP Plan and asked for
iput from the citizens. The
allowing suggestions were
iade:
(Continued on page three)
full time job for a period of
Lime. The Federal Government
pays 75% of the salary and
fringe benefits and the State
and the County pay the rest.
County Attorney Bernard
Hollowell stated that he has
been acting as attorney for the
4-D program but was not
prepared to discuss the
problems at this time. However,
he said that Grady Simpson had
been telling him for months that
it should be under the Slate. He
asked that the discussion be pul
off until the next regular
session.
Commissioner Charles
Alexander noted that it would
be adding another person to the
Courthouse staff and that he
had thought that the program
was going to play out.
Commissioner Jimmy
Spencer said that the Board had
to keep in mind that they had
signed a contract to operate the
program for five years.
Commissioner Bond said that
he is in favor of maintaining the
program, that even if it just
breaks even, it is providing a
real service.
Jim Baluss said that there are
obiective wavs of comparing
State and County operated pro
grams. He did not have the fig
ures at hand but felt it would
be a good way to help make the
decision. He said he would like
an opportunity to keep the
program under the County since
he feels that it is more ef
fectively managed and
supervised locally.
Chairman Robert Paul asked
Mr. Baluss to get the figures
together for the Com
missioners’ meeting on April 17.
Mr. Hollowell told the
Commissioners that he thought
they should also hear from
Grady Simpson privately.
The Commissioners went into
executive session for an hour
and a half to discuss personnel
matters, particularly a pay plan
as proposed by the State to
bring County employees in line
with other Counties. Lyman
Melvin from Raleigh was
present for this session. No
action was taken.
Through Ten Countries
In South America
by Bill Mason
Oriental to Miami - Thelma,
my wife, carried me to Kinston.
Sunday, February 19th., 1 left
Kinston on a Piedmont plane
and passed over the prettiest
white clouds 1 ever saw. They
looked like taffy candy hanging
in the sky, until we arrived in
Florence, South Carolina.
1 boarded a North Western
plane in Atlanta. Georgia, and it
seemed to be the largest plane
I’d ever seen. The compartment
I was in looked like a baseball
field and only three of us in it.
About 40 people were on the
plane.
The plane was on route to
Miami to pick up a load for
Hawaii and the South Pacific.
They are (N. Western) the only
passanger planes that fly non
stop from Chicago to Japan.
Paul, my travel agent from
Hollywood, Florida, was going
to meet me at the Airport with
my tickets. I was supposed to be
on a Della or Eastern plane, and
my N. Western was late too,
and he missed me.
I got a Cuban taxi driver and
he was the only mad person I
saw on my trip. I asked him to
carry me to the nearest Airport
Inn - he said, “he did not know
the nearest one and did not give
a damn”. I told him that the
man at the Airport mentioned
that there was one only 1/4 of a
mile away - he said “1/4 mile
hell, it is a mile and a half”.
After I got in the motel and
ate something, I called Paul,
my travel agent. He said when
he missed me he got worried
and called Oriental. Said he
never dreamed I would be on a
North Western plane coming to
Miami. I told him dropping me
off in Miami was like throwing a
rabbit in a briar patch.
I had surveyed land all over
Coral Gables, Hileah, and
where the Airport is in 1926.
We left Miami the next day
for Panama City, Panama, and
passed around the western end
of Cuba. We arrived at Panama
City Airport about 8:00 p.m. and
got a taxi to Hotel Carabe. The
driver really did some wild
driving. He did not stop for red
lights, traffic or any thing else.
He was singing constantly
except when he had his head out
of the window, telling someone
to get out of his way. He had
other passengers for different
hotels, but we finally made it.
His old car was banged up the
worst.
PANAMA CITY, PANAMA
(Population is approximately
444,0001 - Founded in 1519 -
Vasco N. DeBalboa discovered
the Pacific Ocean in 1513.
Their dollars are called
Balboas, named after Balboa
and lied to U. S. currency. They
issue no paper currency. Their
cents, Cenlesimos. are equal to
one-hundred per Balboa.
Panama City, on the Pacific
Ocean, is 1,400 miles from
Miami, Florida. It look us about
3 hours flying lime.
My guide said the Jews run
the City. They own the best
stores and control the banks.
The Chinese have the best
restaurants. The City is 10
degrees north of the Equator.
They have 4 months dry season,
ranging from about December
to March. Their rainy season
ranges from April to November.
Panama is an Indian word
meaning “Abundance of Fish”.
Panama was part of
Colombia until 1903 and Simon
Bolivar was their ‘‘George
Washington”, in 1821. The
United States got Panama’s
Independence in 1903.
Panama City is the Capitol -
of Panama and Panama is in
Central America which is part
of North America and not South
America.
The first thing they showed
me was the Shrimp Fleet made
up of about two-hundred boats.
It reminded me of Oriental
about thirty years ago. The
shrimp and fishing boats have
to anchor out in Panama Bay on
the Pacific side, for the tide
rises 20 feet up and down.
After you leave Panama, you
don’t see any prices like $2.99 or
$9.99. It’s all even money in
South America.
The Lottery Building was the
newest and tallest building
with about twenty stories.
They also had their slum areas,
but appear to be replacing
much of the area with high rise
apartments and buildings.
The Pan-American Highway
lacks about 50 miles in the
Panama Jungle of going
through to South America. My
guide had a Dodge and said it
had cost him $14,000. Gas was
(Continued on page two)
Bill Mason
Bill Mason of Oriental
recently returned from a tour
that look him into 10 different
South American Countries. Bill
elected to plan his own trip and
to made his own travel
arrangements so that he could
made side trips whenever he
liked. As a result, his trip is one
of the most interesting reports
on South America that I have
heard.
When Bill slarled to re write
his notes from his trip, he asked
us if we would like for him to
share his memories with the
readers of The Pamlico News,
we jumped at the opportunity.
Thus, for the next several
weeks, in a continued column,
Bill Mason will lake all of us on
a country tour of South
America.
The Editor.