December 12,1
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'ERQUI.'IANS COUNTY LIBRARY
110 W ACiDE'-'Y ST
HERTFORD ‘C 27944
The Perquimans Weekly
350
Vol, 64. No. 50
The only newspaper for and about Perquimans County people
Hertford. North Carolina 27944
The parade must go on
Rain
doesn’t
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
Santa didn’t deliver an
early parade committee wish
for perfect weather Saturday,
but the rain didn’t wash away
the holiday spirit that filled
Hertford.
An overwhelming majority
of those who had entered this
year’s Christmas parade
braved the elements and par
ticipated in the annual holi
day event.
“We really appreciated
having so many participants
in the parade,” said Chamber
of Commerce parade chair
man Diane Stallings. “The
committee was grateful that
almost all of the entries decid
ed to remain in the line-up
despite the rain. It showed a
real sense of community in
Perquimans County.”
Stallings, committee mem
ber Susan Harris and the
Perquimans Dispatch
Department reported numer
ous calls early Saturday
morning inquiring about the
parade.
“My phone started ringing
early Saturday morning,”
Stallings said. “Susan called
me around 9 o’clock saying
her telephone started ringing
around 8. (Parade committee
member) Parker (Newbern),
Rain didn’t stop the show Saturday when the Perquimans
County Chamber of Commerce-sponsored Christmas parade
DAILY ADVANCE PHOTO
wound its way through the streets of Hertford. There was a
good turnout of entries and watchers for the wet event.
Susan and I met around 10
and decided we were rolling
rain or shine.
“It’s very difficult to
reschedule a parade,”
Stallings explained. “With
people so busy around the
holidays, many of our partici
pants couldn’t have come on
another day. Then you have
to consider your grand mar
shall, your judges, law
enforcement support and the
dozen or so people it takes on
parade day to make sure
everything is organized. Once
you make your plans, you
really have to stick with your
date.”
The weather changed llie.
way the parade lined up this
year because the area where
the parade traditionally lines
up was too wet, Stallings said.
The line-up change affected
parking for participants, but
Stallings said everyone was
extremely cooperative.
Even Santa stayed on
.course, stopping at the court
house to hear the Christmas
wishes of the children who
lined up to talk to him.
As early as noon, cars
began lining the parade route
to get a front row rain-or-
shine seat. Downtown,
parade-watchers stood elbow-
to-elbow under awnings, try
ing to keep dry.
Earning awards were:
school category-first place.
Beacon Academy, second
place, Perquimans High
School Monogram Club; busi
ness category—first place.
Stepping Stones Daycare, sec
ond place, Norfolk Ford
Assembly Plant; church/civic
category—first place. Snug
Harbor 4-H Clubs, second
place, Belvidere Community
4-H Clubs; and bands/march
ing units—first place, John A.
Holmes High School, second
place, Santa’s Twirlers.
State Representative Bill
Culpepper (D—Chowan)
served as parade grand mar
shall.
Developer protests
Hertford policy
Hurdle doesn’t
want to pay $700
water/sewer fee
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
An Elizabeth City real
estate developer told the
Hertford Town Council
Monday night that he doesn’t
think he should have to pay a
tap fee to connect lots at his
subdivision to the town water
and sewer systems.
Nathan Hurdle said had he
known about the fees, which
amount to $700 per lot, it
would have impacted his deci
sion to buy the property off of
Grubb Street and develop it as
Spring Village.
Town manager John
Christensen told council that
work began on the project
prior to his employment as
town manager. He said the
town spent over $13,000 to
bring Hertford’s water and
sewer lines to Spring Village.
Hurdle paid $7,000 of that cost.
When Christensen discov
ered in early 1994 that the
town was still owed over
$6,000, an agreement was
drawn by town attorney
Walter Edwards and signed by
Hurdle which stated that
Hurdle would pay $400 per lot
sold so that the town could
recoup its infrastructure
expenses.
At that time, Christensen
said Hurdle told him he felt he
should not have to pay addi
tional tap fees. Christensen
agreed with Hurdle’s assess
ment.
However, in a later review
of town policy, Christensen
said he discovered that devel
opers are responsible for the
cost of running water and
sewer lines to connect to the
town lines, and that tap fees of
$450 for water and $250 for
sewer for each house built are
also due when water and
sewer use begins. Upon find
ing the informatipn,
Christensen said he wrote
Hurdle a letter in December
1995 telling Hurdle that those
fees would have to be paid.
Hurdle responded that he
was under the impression that
the $400 per lot fee was the tap
fee.
“I think it’s highly improp
er to change in the middle of
the stream,” Hurdle told coun
cil Monday.
But Christensen said the
$400 per lot has nothing to do
with tap fees to have water and
sewer turned on. The $400 only
allows the town to get its
money back from the cost of
laying the lines to the subdivi
sion.
“We collect a tap fee for
every lot that’s developed in
this town,” Christensen said.
He used Beech Grove and
Rivercroft as examples of sub
divisions where developers
have paid for connections to
the town’s main lines and tap
fees of $700.
The council took no action,
opting to follow its policy and
collect the $700 tap fees.
Open house
PHOTO BY SUSAN HARRIS
Perquimans County Schools hosted a Christmas open house Monday afternoon at its
administrative offices. System employees, board members, students and community resi
dents gathered for holiday treats and fellowship.
AEMC
board
approves
commerce
centre
project
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
The Albemarle Electric
Membership Cooperative
Board of Directors put its seal
of approval on a loan applica
tion that could fund the first
building construction at the
Perquimans Commerce
Centre.
AEMC board members
agreed to send the county’s
$400,000 loan application on to
the North Carolina EMC board
for its blessing. The local
agency recommended an 11-
year loan with no interest to
fund construction of a specula
tive building at the commerce
centre.
“This is a seed project for
the commerce centre,” said
Perquimans County Economic
Development and Planning
Director Robert Baker Jr.
“Clients want to come see a
building. It will serve as a
drawing card. It is a necessary
project.”
If the NCEMC board gives a
thumbs up to the application,
it will be forwarded to the
Office of the State Treasurer
for approval. A public hearing
will be held in Perquimans
County at that point.
Based on the market
research he has done and
interviews with potential com
merce centre business con
tacts, Baker submitted to the
AEMC board on behalf of the
Perquimans County Economic
Development Commission and
county commissioners a pro
posal for the erection of a
32,000-square foot building
with 22-foot ceilings and port
a-wall construction to allow
for convenient expansion.
“We have found that
although this is the size build
ing many clients are looking
for, it is not typically avail
able,” Baker said. “There is a
genuine need among prospects
for this size and design of
building.”
A tentative site for the
building would be on the south
side of the commerce centre.
Baker said, although no final
determination has been made.
The Regional Development
Institute at East Carolina
University has completed the
master plan for the commerce
centre.
If things continue to go
smoothly. Baker anticipates
that groundbreaking for infra
structure, the spefculative
building and possibly the busi
ness incubator could begin as
early as June. Negotiations
continue on the incubator
grant through Perquimans
2020.
Garbage containers unsightly
Hertford resident Don
Morris told the town board
Monday night that an ordi
nance on garbage cans should
be enacted.
Morris said that some resi
dents are leaving their
garbage cans on the curb all
week rather than moving them
on the day garbage is collected.
“Garbage cans are detract
ing from the looks of the
town,” Morris said.
Town Police Chief Bennie
Murphy added that the con
tainers should be placed on the
curb and not in the street.
Murphy said the containers
pose a traffic hazard when
they are placed on the road
way.
Council agree that there is a
problem with the prompt
removal and proper use of the
containers. Town Manager
John Christensen was told to
contact Waste Industries and
have them conduct an educa
tion campaign on the use of
the containers. The company
agreed to educate the public
when the contract was signed.
Outside
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