Newspapers / The Pamlico News (Bayboro, … / Oct. 10, 1984, edition 1 / Page 1
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The Pamlico News -jl_ No.l7,Vol.40 25* per copy USPS 782-460 Wednesday, October 10,1984 It took a little over a week and came none too soon... Recently a stretch of Highway 306 from NC 55 to SR 1200 (headed towards NC 33) was widened from 18 feet to 22 feet. Prank Spain of the county Department of Transportation division said that some money was left after the projects scheduled for the past year were completed. It was decid ed, he said, that the best use for the limited funds would be to widen the heavily-traveled road. He did not know how much the widening cost. Development May Be Hindered By Sewage Regulations Some realtors and real estate agents in Pamlico County have already had run-ins with the sep tic tank regulations which went in to effect January 1; others have yet to experience them. Those who have say they are concerned about the regulations’ impact on development in the county. In Minnesott Beach, Gilbert Evett of Hardison Realty said he has not yet had any problems with the regulations, which say that a septic tank cannot be installed on a site where the seasonal high water table is twelve inches or less below the surface of the ground, but that he understands others have. Linda Lane at Neuse Shores Realty in Bayboro also said that she has not yet been “really af fected” although she expects the regulation to have a detrimental effect on any large tracts of land being sold for development. Con tracts for property now being sold, she said, stipulate that the sale will be binding only if the lot pro ves suitable for a sewage desposal system. A few years ago, she com mented, no one ever bothered to ask about a sewage system but now one of the first questions a prospective buyer has is, “Will it be suitable for a septic tank?” One realtor, who preferred to remain unidentified, said he believes the regulations will render as much as 90 percent of the property in the county unusable. Bernice Nobles of Oriental speculated that the regulations, which were drawn up by the state, seem to be pushing the county towards a county-wide sewer system “which cannot now be af forded.” Nobles said one of her major concerns was that property bought now, and judged suitable for a septic tank, might not be ap proved for a system in several years if the regulations should change again. She said that most of the lots she sold were bought by (SeeSEWAGE, Page 13) Meeting On Septic Tan k Regs Set For Oct. 18 Complaints from Pamlico County property owners and developers about the septic tank regulations which became effec-v tive January 1 are still coming into the health department, the agency which oversees and ap proves septic tank installation permits. An educational meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, October 18, for anyone who would like to comment, make a sugges tion or ask a question about the regulations. State officials will be present to discuss the matter with the public. The majority of the coinplaints center around the restriction which prohibits the installation of a septic tank on a building lot where the seasonal high water table is 12 inches or less below the surface of the ground. In January, the county had the op tion of adopting the state- propos ed regulations or writing its own, which would have to have been more strict than those presented by the state. In the August 29 issue of The Pamlico News an article ap pea red quoting JimBaluss, direc tor of the health department,as saying the purpose of the meeting, which was originally scheduled for September 12 but was not held because of Hur ricane Diana, is ""**> ‘to begttT' stimulating reasonable discus sion about the problem...and the problem’s impact and how we’re going to cope with these im pacts.’ ” One of the primary im pacts, he said, is that the regula tions render 35 to 40 percent of the county’s usable land useless for development because the water table is, by the regula tions, too high for a septic tank to function properly. The state maintains, tie said, that sewage cannot be properly treated by filtration in areas where the water table is high. The state, said Baluss, put down test wells throughout the state and monitored the movement of ground water and its quality. Twelve inches seems to be, ac cording to the results, the “ab solute minimum”, he com mented, less than that allowing Oriental GDBG About Two-Thirds Complete Under Oriental’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) project, twenty-one houses have been rehabilitated leaving fourteen to be finished. Oriental received a $707,950 grant in 1982 with construction beglnnlngln April of 1983; $393,000 was to go to housinb rehabilitation and $134,450 to sewer line con struction with the remaining funds to be used for relocation, street paving and clearing plus $15,000 was allocated to the renovation of the target area’s community building. Originally the program was set up as a one year project but it has since been extended to two years. As with other CDBG projects in the area, initially there were pro blems getting contractors. Presently, there are three con tractors either actually working on a house or holding a contract. Seven h, mes, including three mobile homes, have yet to be bid. Current contractors are C. B. Rogerson, Rowe Appliance and George L. Pugh out of Greenville. For the houses completed, rehabilitation costs are averaging $11,739 a house, according to Clem Paffe, local project ad ministrator. The overall project is being administered by McDavid and Associates. Initially a $12,000 per house ceiling was set; this, however, was changed in May, said Paffe, to $14,000. The in crease was necessary, he explain ed, because eight to ten of the homes then being renovated need ed extra work, such as bathrooms costing $2,000 to $2,500 each. On one house, an expenditure of $10,000 was approved. This house, explained Paffe, is located in a very prominent position at the edge of town. He said that he and the town commissioners decided that the adltional expenditure was justified in order to improve the general appearance of the en trance into town. To date $250,000 has been spent on renovations. Relocation assistance for a family whose home was too deteriorated to rehabilitate was budgeted at $15,400. It will actual ly cost $15,800~$10,000 to purchase thehouse which will be located on their lot and $5,800 to move it and set it upon the property. Pour houses, said Paffe, are va cant and are unfit for rehabilita tion. Under the terms of the block grant, the town agreed to clear the eyesores in order to improve the appearance of the area. Paffe ex plained that there are three op tions: the owner of the property can agree to let the town clear the lot withoet cost to him; the town council can condemn the proper ty; or the town, If the owner refus contamination; and presently the state is very concerned about the contamination of private wells. The seasonal high water table is determined by visual inspection of a soli sample taken by the county sanitarian. A 'Ufager is used to remove a core. The depth of the water table is determined by the colors of the soil layers; the presence of water makes the soil 1 darker. The state, commented Baluss, maintains that this “eyeball method is a very valid way of determining water level” but that it has become somewhat controversial. Whenever a permit is denied in Pamlico County, he added, a soil scientist is asked to give a second opinion, which sometimes differs from the first. “When two trained readers get different opinions, that’s a fairly inexact science,” commented Baluss, “and that’s not good enough when dealing with proper ty that costs so much.” Another point of contention has been “pre-approval” of large tracts of development property. Some property which would have been suitable for septic tanks under the former regulations now is not. One difficulty, explained Baluss, is that while a tract as a whole may have been approved, the individual lots which must have individual permits before a septic tank system is installed weren’t. This may result in some legal problems for the health department so a policy was im plemented that states they will no longer give blanket approvals of tracts of property. In order to find out if a piece of property will be suitable, the property owner must submit an application for a par ticular lot which tells how many bedrooms the house will have, where it will be situated on the lot, if it will have a washing machine, and so forth, and pay the $35 fee. The health department will also issue non-binding letters of preliminary suitability for tracts. Another difficulty in assessing the suitablity of large areas, said Baluss, is that on unimproved, uncleared tracts, the health (See REGS, Page 13) Although only one house is presently being rehabilitated, Oriental’s block grant pro ed to agree to its being cleared, could have the structure apprais ed, then pay the owner and clear the property. Nine thousand has been set aside for clearance ac tivities and $3,500 budgeted for such acquisition. The town. gram is about two-thirds through. however, said Paffe, will not per manently be acquiring any pro perty. Administration was budgeted at $98,000. So far, $71,000 has been ex (SeeCDBG, Page 13) Single Copy Price For THE PAMLICO NEWS Now 25*. Effective with this issue-October 10, 1984-the single copy price of The Pamlico News is 25*. The price change is necessary due to increases in sales tax, distribution and production costs. The yearly subscription rates remain the same. _ V Lee Pascasio Aurora Gets New Police Chief After almost a year and a half of having no police department, the town of Aurora has decided to reactivate it; the new chief of police was sworn in Monday mor ning at 11 am. Lee Pascasio, 38, a Greenville native, comes to the position of chief of police with over ten years of experience in law en forcement. From 1975-1983, Pascasio served with the Pitt County Sheriff’s Department. He was employed by that depart ment as chief narcotics in vestigator and training officer and was later promoted to shift supervisor/criminal investigator. Pascasio worked with the Green vile Police Department from 1973-75 as a training officer, in narcotics investigation and also performed general police duties. For almost ten years, Pascasio served in the United States Marine Corps; he was discharg ed in 1973 with the rank of staff sergeant. He served in Viet Nam for three years where he was a platoon leader, in Japan for one year and stateside for his re maining time. In the service, he worked as an instructor, advisor, training officer and in the military police. He was also a conventional and nuclear ex plosives weapons soecialist. He received 25 decorations-22 medals and 3 commendations and 21 awards for marksman ship. Pascasio has an associate’s degree in criminal justice and is working on his bachelor’s degree in the same field. He also holds advanced certification in law en forcement. A member of several profes sional associations and religious, civic and fraternal organizations, Pascasio and his wife, Emily, live in Greenville and they have two children, Skip, 16, and Alicia, 12. The phone number of the Aurora Police Department is 322-5288. Pamlico Tax Notices In The Mail Although the notices are late this year property owners should receive their tax notices in the mail this week. The forms were delayed at the printers. This is also the first year that the county will be preparing and mailing the tax notices for the towns. Tax supervisor/collector Ran dy Beeman explained that the forms, which were expected in time to have been mailed in September, were delayed at the printers, located in Wilmington. Notices are going out this year they were mailed Tuesday about three weeks later than they did in 1983. Beeman said his office is mail ing 7,936 notices for county taxes and 1,100 for property within municipal boundaries. He pointed out that although the return ad dress on all the forms is the county tax office, payments for town taxes should be made directly to the appropriate town, not to the county. When paying county taxes, he added, it would be helpful if the taxpayer would bring the notice with him. This is the first year that the county has prepared the notices for the towns in the county. This service was made possible by the use of the county’s computer system. The cost to the towns Is $150 or $1 per taxpayer, whichever is greater. Taxpayers are reminded that failure to receive a notice does not grant relief from late pay ment penalties. Y
The Pamlico News (Bayboro, N.C.)
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Oct. 10, 1984, edition 1
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