Newspapers / The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, … / Sept. 12, 1996, edition 1 / Page 1
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September 12, The Perquimans Weekly Vol. 64, No. 37 The only newspaper for and about Perquimans County people Hertford, North Carolina 27944 Boat ramps Fran storms through Perquimans to close for festival By SUSAN R. HARRIS Editor By SUSAN R. HARRIS Editor The Hertford Town Council voted Monday night in regular session to close the municipal boat ramps and adjacent park ing lot for the Indian Summer Festival on Saturday, Sept. 21. On festival day, the park will become the Waterfront Pavilion, an area catering to children and youth. Games, food, a petting zoo, clowns, bands and other activities will be set up in the area. Council directed Town Manager John Christensen to notify bass clubs of the clos ing. In addition, Christensen will meet with the festival committee about erecting signs before this weekend to let boaters know of the ramps’ closing. Council appointed a com mittee to consider lighting and the overall appearance of the downtown area. Christensen said he made councilihen aware that in order to erect the town’s Christmas decora tions each year, three poles are erected, requiring the side walks to be torn up. When the decorations come down, town crews take down the poles and repair the sidewalks. The town manager recom mended that council consider erecting permanent poles to match the light poles down town or to consider installing more traditional globed lamps on posts in the district. Christensen said putting up lights with posts and globes would require a significant investment on the town’s part because sidewalks would be torn up to install new under ground wiring. A committee was formed to study the issue. Councilman Sid Eley, Robert Baker, Christensen and downtown business representatives Suzanne Haste and Judy Christensen were appointed to the study group. Christensen passed along words of praise to the town maintenance and utility crews from resident Eldon Winslow. Winslow congratulated the town on the quick and efficient clean-up following Hurricane Bertha. In other business, council: • agreed to decide at the October meeting whether or not to reopen the S-bridge to fishing. • told Tommy Harrell that the town would pursue obtain ing a grant for the construc tion of an amphitheater at Missing Mill Park if funds for such projects become avail able. • instructed Christensen to write the Northeast Region Economic Development Commission that the council will not be willing to pay $2,000 for a natural gas pipeline feasi bility study. The commission had asked that Chowan, Perquimans and Pasquotank , counties and the towns of Elizabeth City, Edenton and Hertford each pay $2,000 for the study, with the commis sion matching those funds. Hertford councilmen said they wanted the fee based on popu lation. • passed an economic devel opment rate rider that allows the town to negotiate electric rates with large industrial cus tomers. • received bids on lots the town owns for review and later action. • met in closed session to discuss a legal matter. Lizzie HarreU got her living room redecorated Thursday night, courtesy of Hurricane Fran. Harrell, her grandson Jason and friend Ellie Vickers were asleep in Harrell’s Sunset Drive home when high winds toppled a large tree onto the front of Harrell’s house. Limbs poked through the roof to the livingroom, where Jason Biggs slept on the couch. The crash brought Harrell, Biggs and Harrell’s friend, Ellie Vickers, up from their beds. “We heard the noise and we just sort of all met in the hall,” Harrell said. Harrell said she lost four trees during the storm. Fortunately, only one hit her home. Harrell’s son. Tommy, a contractor, was working on getting the tree off of the house Friday afternoon. Tommy Harrell said he would not be able to access the full extent of the damage until he could remove the tree from the roof. The tree barely missed Harrell’s fireplace. The yard was literally cov ered with tree limbs, as Harrell, her granddaughter. Tommy Harrell and an unidentified helper began the clean-up process. “As bad as it is, you have to just laugh about it,” Harrell said. “We were so fortunate no one was hurt.” Throughout the county, there were reports of downed trees, but high water may have caused more damage. Hertford and WinfaU officials closed the causeway because of flooding. As late as Monday, one drive way at Larry’s Drive-In at the north end of the causeway was under water. Piers were torn from their pilings. One Front Street pier ended up in a neighbor’s yard. Front Street resident Jesse Perry said he tied a rope to his pier to keep it in place. Hertford firefighters - i ^ . i ii, ‘ I ^ iii i. i M 11 n r ... . , rnU IU by bUoAN nAKnlb The Sunset Drive home of Lizzie Harrell sustained damage Thursday night when Hurricane Fran blew through North Carolina. A tree downed by high winds fell through the roof of Harrell’s house. responded to several calls according to Chief Sid Eley. One call came from a Market Street resident whose roof was damaged, resulting in water pouring into the livingroom, Eley said. Early Friday morning, Eley said he rode through town with police officer Nathan Zachary. When they got on the S-bridge, Eley said the water and waves were so high, water was spraying up through the bridge’s drains. Scattered power outages were reported throughout the county. Most power was restored by noon Friday. A shelter was opened at Hertford Grammar School Thursday afternoon. Emergency Management Coordinator Todd Tilley could not be reached for information on the number of people who sought shelter. Varsity and junior varsity football and volleyball games scheduled for Perquimans High School team were can celled and/or postponed for Thursday and Friday due to the weather. The schools and some county offices were closed Friday. In other parts of the state, news crews reported devastat ing damages. Fran hit the state’s southern coast, then plowed inland through the Raleigh area. In Perquimans, residents continue to repair damages and clean up debris from tree limbs. Meanwhile, out in the Atlantic Ocean, Hortense is gearing up. Her path is as yet unknown. PHOTO BY SUSAN HARRIS Wind and high water wreaked havoc with piers and boats across the county. Along Front Street, some piers were twisted, while others were taken from their pilings and landed in neigh bors’ yards. No estimate of damages in the county were avail able at press time. Outside County stiffens animal fines THURSDAY FRIDAY ■ I ^ High: Low: High: Low: High: Low: 80s 60s 70s 60s 70s 60s MOSTLY CLOUDY CHANCE OF RAIN FAIR By SUSAN R. HARRIS Editcr The Perquimans County Commissioners upped the civil penalty for dog owners whose animals become a nuisance to others at their meeting last Tuesday. The former civU penalty per the county animal control ordinance was $10. That fee is now $50, an increase that County Manager Paul Gregory said shows that the commis sioners are committed to solv ing the problem of roaming animals damaging the proper ty of county residents. Gregory said the stiff penal ty will probably not have to be used often, but should help the county to make owners take responsibility for their ani mals. The county manager sqid after Hertford implemented its $25 fine, calls to the animal control officer concerning stray animals declined dra matically. In addition, the county implemented a $10 redemption fee payable by those owners whose dogs are picked up by Animal Control Officer Ron Priddy, along with a $5 per day boarding fee for food and shel ter while housed in the county facility. The county reviewed its ani mal control ordinance in response to resident com plaints about damages caused by stray animals. Regional Waste Authority wins state award Albemarle group one of 19 state winners The Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority won a 1996 Outstanding County Program Award, an award given by the N.C. Association of County Commissioners, to recognize innovative and cost effective programs. The program is one of 19 programs statewide honored at the Association's Annual Conference, Aug. 22-25, in Winston-Salem. The program won in the Environment cate gory. This year, there were 79 entries in four categories - Public Awareness, Environment, Human Services, and General Government. The Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority and the counties which participate, Chowan, Perquimans, Gates, Dare, Hyde, Tyrrell, and Currituck, received their awards at the Association’s Business Session on Saturday, Aug. 24. The seven counties and 10 municipalities in the Albemarle Regional Solid Waste Management Authority have created and maintained a regional approach to solid waste management that is unique in the state. The Authority enabled the seven member counties to take advantage of collective bar gaining strategies to obtain the best possible pricing. In the summer of 1993, the Authority approved a contract with Addington Environmental. Addington, a private landfill contractor, needed assurances that it would have enough waste gen erators to open a disposal site in Bertie County. With the Authority’s approval, Addington moved forward with a landfill that now ser vices 17 eastern counties. Three of the seven member counties were able to close their unlined landfills. The Authority is currently investigating possible regional contracts on the sale of recy- clables, white goods disposal, and tire disposal. The Authority collects solid waste data, invoices customers, col lects accounts, and makes reports to the counties. With the help of a grant from the Division of Coastal Management, the Authority is exploring the idea of a materi als recovery facility. The vision of the Authority is to evolve into a total region al solid waste management program that will provide the most efficient and cost effec tive service possible. Regional cooperation allows the meni- ber counties to provide ser vices collectively that individ ually they could not afford. Through a Memorandum of Agreement with the district health department, the Authority shares the services' of a personnel director, -data processor, and accounting clerk to administer the pro gram. The agreement also allows the Authority access to a main frame computer for its network. The Authority is financed through a combination of county appropriations, grant funds, and a $1 per ton fee paid by Addington for all the waste entering the regional facility. For more information con tact Jerry L. Parks, Albemarle Waste Authority executive director, at 919-297-3300.
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
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Sept. 12, 1996, edition 1
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