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Tlie Perquimans Weekly
350
Vol. 66, No. 29
The only newspaper for and about Perquimans County people
Hertford, North Carolina 27944
Planning
board
must make
Ward
rezoning
decision
Hertford Council
sends request
back to board for
answer by August
HTC meeting
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
The Hertford Planning
Board didn’t do its job regard
ing the Charles Ward rezoning
request, according to Hertford
Town Council.
Council voted Monday night
to send back to the planning
board a request by Charles
Ward to rezone property at the
intersection of Grubb Street
Extended and Sunrise Lane '
from C-2 to R-8.
■^VVard asked the town to
rezohe the property to allow
him to build sixteen 850-
square foot single-family
homes on the acreage, which
is presently farmland,* several
months ago.
The planning board sent
word back to council in June
that the four board members
who attended their final meet
ing to discuss the re^oning
were deadlocked at 2-2 bn the
issue. Officially, a spfft vote
means a recommendation to
the council to deny the request
beccHJse it was not passed by
the planning board. Town
Manager John Christensen
tqld council.
After a discussion at coun
cil’s meeting in June, council
man Carlton Davenport moved
to deny Ward’s request based
on the split vote of the plan-
hing board. His motion was
defeated 3-2 and sent back to
the planning board for further
review.
'With no updated decision
ffom the planning board
before council Monday night,
Davenport said the issue
should be sent back to the
planning board “because it’s
their job and they made no rec
ommendation.”
Davenport said all seven
niembers of the board should
meet and make a decision on
the request.
Councilman Billy Winslow
said he had spoken with some
planning board members who
informed him they did not
want to act on the request, but
rather wanted council to take
the action.
Mayor John Beers agreed
with Davenport that the plan
ning board should take anoth
er look at the issue because
three of the board’s members
were not present for the final
vote on the issue.
The planning board should
make its recommendation by
council's August meeting,
councilman Sid Eley said. He
added that if he was a
landowner making a zoning
request, he would think the
towp had taken too long to
make a decision.
Davenport said council and
the planning board should
meet within 10 days to discuss
the request and make a deci
sion on the issue.
Residents who live adjacent
to the Ward property have
asked the town to deny the
Request.
Illegal house plants troublesome
Woman arrested
for allegedly
growing pot
inside her home
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
House plants can get you in
trouble.
Perquimans County sher
iff’s deputies arrested a county
woman Friday night after find
ing three marijuana plants
growing in her home, accord
ing to Chief Deputy Dean
Cartwright.
Christine Kingston, 27, of
Route 4, Box 730, Hertford, was
arrested and charged with
manufacturing a controlled
substance. Bond was set at
$10,500 unsecured.
Cartwright said Deputy
Kevin Byrd received informa
tion from Elizabeth City Police
Sgt. Carl Pureza that Kingston
was growing marijuana.
Pureza’s source was a confi
dential informant. Based on
the information obtained from
the informant, the Perquimans
County Sheriffs Department
obtained a search warrant.
Cartwright said deputies
found the three marijuana
plants, six pipes and numer
ous marijuana seeds at the res
idence.
Kingston’s first appearance
before a judge was set for July
15.
Two Snug Harbor men were
arrested Monday for allegedly
breaking into a residence in
the subdivision.
George Sehlmeyzr, 32, and
Johnny Andrew Coggins, 20,
both of Holly Street in Snug
Harbor, were arrested and
charged with first degree bur
glary, injury to personal prop
erty and simple assault. Both
were placed under a $10,500
secured bond.
Cartwright said Byrd
received a call that a break-in
was in progress in Snug
Harbor. The report stated that
two individuals were at the
home of a third individual
“trying to have a confronta
tion with a gentleman inside
the house.” Cartwright said
Byrd was told that the man
inside the house wouldn't
come out and kept telling the
pair to leave. Finally, Byrd
was told, the man inside the
house closed the door and
went back inside. At that
point, Sehlmeyzr and Coggins
allegedly broke the door and
Truck farming grows in the family
’4*^ 7-.-.
It/* "
PHOTO BY SUSAN HARRIS
July means sweet corn ripens in Perquimans County. In the shop of Tommy and Sherry Harrell in Bear Swamp, Bear’s Pick corn is
being harvested, graded, crated, cooled, labeled and packed in trucks ready for shipping in refrigerated trucks from Kansas City
to Florida to New England.
Truck farm is way
of life for Harrells
Tommy and
Sherry Harrell
ship Bear’s Pick
produce all over
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
It’s may sound corny, but
aw shucks. Tommy Harrell is
just keeping the familj^ legacy
alive.
Tommy is a third genera
tion truck farmer.
He and his wife. Sherry, are
in the midst of one of the
busiest seasons of the year
right now — harvesting sweet
corn for shipment to markets
from Kansas City to New
England to Florida.
For the 3 1/2-4 week sweet
corn season, the Byron
mechanical harvester makes
its way into the acres of corn
around 6:30 each morning. By
7:30, wagon loads of corn
pulled by tractors are being
pulled into the Harrell’s pack
ing shed for packing.
Two wagons are pulled into
the shed at the time, with
packing work stations set up
on either side of the wagons.
Twenty-four women grade and
pack the corn into wire-bound
crates. The crates are then lift
ed into a hydro-cooler, a
machine filled with ice and
water that pre-cools the corn.
Sherry Harrell said that each
morning during corn season,
60 300-pound blocks of ice are
hauled in from Elizabeth City
for use in the hydro-cooler. It
takes about 20 minutes for a
crate to -fnove through the
machine, which recirculates
the cold water around the
crates, reducing the tempera
ture by about 40-50 degrees.
Once out of the hydro-cool
er, the corn is stacked onto pal
lets, a Bear’s Pick label is past
ed on and the 42-crate, pallets
are moved hy' fbrklift into a
storage cooler that is set on
about 33 degr^s.
From the storage cooler,
each truck is loaded and is off
to market.
This process continues'each
day until about 5-6 p.m.
The work provides a month
of employment for 48-50 local
people.
The Harrells also truck cab
bage, and sometimes pump
kins and cucumbers.
The life of a truck farmer is
what Tommy Harrell has
always known. His grandfa
ther raised truck crops in
Chowan County, and was the
first to ship snap beans.
Tommy said.
Tommy’s father, Thurman,
kept the family tradition
going. Tommy and his brother.
1
Bobby, both farmed with their
father at one time, operating
as T.R. Harrell & Sons. The
trio shipped 26 different veg
etables to markets all over.
Tommy said the three bought
the first mechanical harvester
in North Carolina in 1971 for
use on their growing enter
prise.
Locally, the Harrell family
was probably best known for
their strawberries. People
from all over drove down
Center Hill Highway each
spring to pick berries.
Tommy and Sherry went
into business on their own in
1980, operating as C. Tommy
Harrell Farms. In addition to
the truck crops, the Harrells
raise soybeans and corn.
In addition to shipping
sweet corn to market, the
Harrells sell it for eating and
''freezing. Custoniers can go to
the shed on Bear Swamp Road
to purchase the corn. There
are signs on Center Hill
Highway directing customers
to the farm operation.
When they’re not working
on their farm, the Harrells can
often be found lending a hand
to community, business and
farm-related endeavors.
entered the house, where a
confrontation occured.
Byrd’s report states that the
two left and that as he
observed them, they attempted
to elude him. Byrd and Deputy
Darlene Jacobs were able to
catch both men and take them
into custody.
The incident occured at the
John Harris residence. Troy
Martin, who was allegedly in
the Harris house, was alleged
ly assaulted during the inci
dent.
Both Sehlmeyzr and
Coggins are scheduled to
appear in court on July 15 in
Hertford.
Inmates to
help tear
down Keel
building
Town hopes to
lower original
$21,000 bid
By SUSAN R. HARRIS
Editor
The Town of Hertford is
hoping that some free inmate
labor can help lower the cost of
demolishing the Keel building.
Town Manager John
Christensen said Monday
night that an inmate crew will
begin emptying the building
and clearing the lot on July 20.
After that work is complete,
Christensen said the town will
go back to Whitehurst Sand
and Gravel for an updated bid
on tearing down the building.
Whitehurst’s initial bid was
for over $21,000. Christensen
said town officials hope that
with the building empty and
the lot clean, the town can
save money on the building’s
demolition.
The town tore down a con
demned house on King Street
last month. Whitehurst was
awarded that bid in June.
Hertford Police Chief Dale
V’anscoy told council he is
very concerned with the speed
of traffic on U.S. 17, especially
at its intersection with Wynn
Fork Road.
Vanscoy said since the four-
lane has been open between
Edenton and Hertford, speeds
have been recorded in excess
of 80 miles per hour and acci
dents have increased.
'Vanscoy asked council to
consider making a request to
the state to lower the speed
limits to 45 miles per hour
from the town’s southern lim
its to about halfway between
the intersection of Harvey
Point Road and the
Perquimans River Bridge.
“It could save somebody’s
life,” Vanscoy said, adding
that speed on U.S. 17 has
become “a major problem.”
The town agreed to contact
the state Department of
Transportation in support of
the lower speed limit.
U.S. 17 has been marked at
the crossover between the
Perquimans Centre and
Captain Bob’s Restaurant, but
Christensen said he has
received no word from DOT
when they will change the traf
fic pattern at the intersection.
The plans for making the
crossing safer include not
allowing traffic to go straight
across between the two feeder
roads.