Happy New Year!
PERQUiiviAB
December 26, 2001
Vol. 69, No. 52 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
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P4/C3***********5-DIGIT 27944
PERQUIMANS COUNTY LIBRARY
110 W ACADEMY ST
HERTFORD, NC 27944-1306
2 " 2SS1
Dressed in holiday style
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Hertford Mayor Sid Eley and Main Street Program
Manager Belinda Washesky speak with surveyors
doing preliminary work for the downtown lighting
project.
Lighting project
moves closer
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PHOTOS BY SUSAN HARRIS
Perquimans is dressed for the holidays. Nativity
scenes, Santa, reindeer, snowmen, wreaths, greenery
drapes, bows and trees all decorate lawns, porches
and businesses. The color draws our attention during
the day, but once night falls, it is the thousands of
twinkling lights shining in the night that catch the
eye. Already, residents are beginning to put away the
colorful decorations for another year, signalling the
coming end to the holiday season.
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Surveyors were in down
town Hertford last week,
bringing the town and
county one step closer to
the installation of new
streetlights on the S-bridge
and business district.
Replacing the 1960s-style
street lights with poles and
fixtures more appropriate
to the town’s history has
long been on the agenda of
those working to promote
Hertford as a heritage
tourism destination and
revitalize the downtown
area.
The Town of Hertford
and Perquimans County
were awarded a North
Carolina Department of
Transportation
Enhancement grant —
called a TEA-21 grant — in
October 2000 for the light
ing project. Although the
application requested
$551,100 for the three-phase
project, DOT approved
$240,320, which will cover
two phases.
Funds were awarded to
put lights on the bridge,
noted as Area 1 in the proj-
Boone wants to start SPCA in Perquimans
County needs
place where
animals can
be adopted,
she said
SEAN JACKSON
Correspondent
Andrea Boone wants to
make a difference — but
not just in the lives of her
fellow Perquimans County
residents.
Boone, 54, wants to help
create a better future for
stray and abandoned ani
mals in the county. And
she’s hoping that the for
mation of a county chapter
of the Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals will get the ball
rolling.
“Right now, we don’t
have any type of adoption
program,’’ in Perquimans
County, Boone said during
an interview this week.
Boone and her fellow
animal lovers have sched
uled a Jan. 8 meeting at 7
p.m. at the Perquimans
SUBMITTED PHOTO
This German Shepherd was found in the New Hope
area of the county, suffering from neglect. Andrea
Boone fed him and found the German Shepherd
Rescue and Adoptions group in Cary who rescued him
and found him a good home in Tennessee. Boone
believes this kind of incident proves the need for an
SPCA in the county.
County Library in an effort
to form the county’s first-
ever SPCA chapter.
But exactly who does she
want to get involved in the
program?
“I want everybody in the
county to be involved,” she
said. “I just think our coun
ty needs to step up and do
what the neighboring coun
ties are doing.”
Boone said Chowan,
Gates and Pasquotank
counties have successful
SPCA chapters, which pro
vide adoption services for
animals.
In addition to the lack of
adoption services in
Perquimans, Boone also
hopes the SPCA chapter
can partner with county
officials in seeking to
upgrade the county’s cur
rent animal shelter.
The approximately 10-
foot by 20-foot shelter, locat
ed next to the county’s
water treatment facility
just west of Hertford, pro
vides little comfort to stray
and abandoned animals,
Boone said.
“One of my goals is to
build a new shelter,” Boone
said.
And she does not plan to
take an adversarial
approach with county com
missioners. A cooperative
spirit will accomplish
more, she said.
“My position is, let’s see
what we can do together,”
Boone said.
Boone said her own
recent experience with a
stray German Shepherd
opened her eyes to the need
of adequate facilities and a
full-fledged adoption pro
gram.
For three months Boone
tried to lure the dog to her.
The dog, estimated to he
about 18 months old, was
suffering from visible neg
lect, Boone said.
“I would stand in the
rain for three hours trying
to feed him,” she said.
Finally, Boone made con
tact with the dog and fed
him along the side of the
road for much of the sum
mer. Members of the
German Shepherd Rescue
and Adoptions group from
Cary found the dog a home
in Tennessee, Boone said.
With un upgraded shel
ter — complete with “runs”
and medical care — such
dogs could continue to find
good homes, Boone said.
Boone’s other goals
include spay and neutering
services, educational pro
grams, and a rabies clinic.
“I just think we need to
put our house in order,”
Boone said. “I think there
are a lot of people interest
ed in doing this.”
Anyone interested in
this effort is welcome to
attend the
informational/organiza
tional meeting on Jan. 8.
ect proposal, and Area 3,
which runs along Church
Street from its intersection
at Grubb Street to its inter
section at Dobbs Street.
Lights will not be placed
between the bridge and
Grubb Street, which is des
ignated as Area 2.
“Surveying for the new
streetlights is just one of
many steps in the process
of the Historic Hertford
Streetscape Beautification
Project,” said Hertford
Main Street Program
Manager Belinda
Washlesky. “Even though
we have not broken ground,
a lot of work has already
taken place on the street
light project.”
Washlesky added that
since the Enhancement
Program is actually a feder
al program administered
by the state, there are feder
al regulations that must be
followed prior to construc
tion.
So far, a project agree
ment has been executed
with DOT, many meetings
have been held, the right-of-
way has been certified and
environmental documenta
tion has been completed.
Requests for proposals
were solicited and HObbs,
Upchurch & Associates was
hired as the conultant to
handle the preliminary
engineering. Meetings have
been held with various
lighting representatives, a
design committee is nar
rowing the possible materi-,
als for the project, and most
recently, the surveying was
completed.
Thursday
High: 58
Low: 33
Sunny
Friday
High: 58
Low: 33
Sunny