Newspapers / The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, … / March 28, 2007, edition 1 / Page 1
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Matthews honored Rage 2 Sports updates Page 7 Local pens book r,T i * A ******* aCAiR"R-T LOT^^C-1^^) 1 PERoGiMAHS COUHn’ LIBRAj^rt 110 K ACADEHi- bT ^ 8 HERTFORD, HC 27y4^t-130b 0 March 28, 2007 Vol. 75, No. 13 Hertford, North Carolina 27944 rERQUIMANS Weekly County to Navy: You're not welcome Leaders Residents speak MARGARET FISHER “Our church is on sacred ground,” Amber Winslow, 12, told a Navy judge last Wednesday. “You don’t mess with God.” Winslow was one of 95 people, mostly residents of Perquimans, that came to a public hearing to voice their opinion about "an airstrip that the Navy is considering building in the township of Belvidere. Winslow’s church. Up River Friends, and her home are located in the core area that the Navy would have residents ousted from if they were to build an outlying landing strip in Perquimans. The church has been there since 1866, Winslow said. Officially, about 815 people came to the hearing at the high school. Unofficially, Navy representatives said that there could have been as many as 1,100 because not everyone signed in, said Plymouth Mayor Brian Ross. Diane Layden said that the home she was born and Continued on page 10 DAILY ADVANCE PHOTO BY JOON POWELL Perquimans County residents leave no doubt where they stand on the possibility fo the U.S. Navy building and operating an outlying landing field in the Belvidere Township. Over 800 people packed the high school last Wednesday evening during a public hearing hosted by the Navy regarding the Environmental Impact Studies done in conjunctiion with consideration of constructing an OLF in Eastern North Carolina. MARGARET FISHER The day U.S. Navy officials came to Hertford for a public hearing on a proposed land ing airstrip, agricultural commissioner Steve Troxler released a letter to the Navy urging not to locate in Washington County. Troxler told Navy Secretary Donald Winter in the letter that “North Carolina has lost 300,000 acres of forest and farmland since 2003 and has led the nation in farm loss for two years straight.” He recommended that the Navy find a more suitable site than Washington County, the . Navy’s preferred site located near Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. The majority of land the Navy wants to take over is used to grow corn and soy beans, not only valuable feed stock, but from corn is derived one of the most viable gasoline alternatives — ethanol Continued on page 10 studied for future work MARGARET FISHER Special panels have been placed around town by the N.C. Department of Transportation to mark locations around the S- bridge for surveying. The markers will pinpoint exact locations in aerial photos to be taken this week, said Jason Smith, Division 1 locat ing engineer with DOT in Williamston. About 12 panels have been placed in the area, including on Church and Grubb streets. The photos will be matched up with specific coordinates in order to produce planning sheets for a new bridge to be constructed. Smith said. DOT has earmarked $15 mil lion for the bridge to be rebuilt in 2013. The survey will help deter mine whether to rebuild and widen the causeway or build a bridge all the way across the water. The causeway portion of U.S. Highway 17 Business is listed in the Transportation Improvement Program as funded for planning and design, but not for construc tion. Local DOT offi cials made a request to Raleigh i n December for approval to combine the two projects. “The project is going to be so similar that there’s no need to have two projects,” said Sterling Baker, DOT division mainte nance engineer in Edenton. In another bridge project, the 1965 southbound Perquimans high-rise bridge is slated to be resurfaced in a process called hydrodemoli tion. The project, estimated to cost as much as $1.5 million, will include removing the top layer of concrete down to the first layer of rebar by a high pressure water process and resurface with an overlay of concrete, said John Abel, divi sion bridge maintenance engi- Shoaf is Hertford planner, HHI chief MARGARET FISHER PHOTO BY MARGARET FISHER Panels shaped like arrows are located around town by NCDOT to point out specific locations in relation to the S-bridge. The markers are being photographed from the air and will be used in planning for a new bridge. neer in Williamston. An inspection of the bridge was completed last Wednesday. In the inspection, the under side of the bridge was deter mined to be in good condition, making the bridge a good can didate for hydrodemolition, Abel said. “The bridge, itself, is in real ly good shape in relation to it’s age,” he said. All the bridge joints will be replaced and debris will be vacuumed up in the process so that there is no spillage into the river. DOT officials will pursue funding for the project, and no date has been determined for work to begin. Hertford changes water rate schedule MARGARET FISHER Hertford town councilors agreed to set water rates in the extraterritorial jurisdiction in line with the town’s minimum fee instead of county rates. The county changed from a tiered rate to $6 per 1,000 gallons for less than 20,000 gallons. But the town of Hertford charges a minimum fee of $13.90 for up to 3,000 and $5.32 per 1,000 gallons above that. So the town will be charging ETJ residents who are hooked up to the town’s water system a minimum of $13.90, regardless of whether households use one, two or three thousand gal lons in a month. The new charge will be reflected in the bill to be sent out in April and due in May, said Town Manager John Christensen. Brandon Shoaf’s job is to make the town of Hertford an attractive and appealing place so businesses will want to relocate here and residents will want to stay. Shoaf left a position as regional planner and rural planning and global posi tioning system coordinator for Albemarle Commission to become the town’s plan ner and Historic Hertford Inc. coordinator. The HHI position became vacant last fall when Wendy Jewett left. At the time, town counselors were debating whether to share the services of a planner with the county. They decid ed to combine the two positions into one with the stipulation that the HHI duties would focus on bringing busi ness into town, rather than coordi nating events. Beginning Jan. 8, Shoaf , who has lived in Perquimans for three years, took on his new role. One of his high priorities is to work on a pedestrian plan. “I think there needs to be some kind of connection to the Recreation Center and the Food Lion,” he said regarding a walkway/bikeway across U.S. Highway 17. He’s also begun working on revamping the town’s zoning map, resolving snags in the code enforce ment ordinance and formulating an overlay plan for the town’s main gateway at Church Street and U.S. Highway 17. The town is currently surveying residents as to what roads they would like to be paved with side walks. Besides sidewalks, sidewalk upgrades and multi-use trails are also beginning to be planned. Shoaf serves in an advisory role for HHI, which is the town’s Main Street Program. There are a good many businesses from outside the town that have joined, he said. “I think there are a lot of folks in town that should be a part that are not,” he said. HHI’s goal is to increase busi ness downtown while promoting a small-town atmosphere. Shoaf said that he will seek a grant that will enable him to draw in business to the riverfront. Prior to working at Albemarle Commission, Shoaf interned at the Regional Development Institute in Greenville and was a farm duty supervisor at Carolina Classic Catfish Farm in Ayden. Shoaf graduated from the N.C. Rural Economic Development Center’s Economic Development Institute and Georgia Tech’s Economic Development Institute in 2006. Brandon Shoaf Weather Thursday High: 588, Low: 42 Showers Friday High: 60, Low: 40 Sunny Saturday High: 65, Low: 50 Mostly Sunny
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
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March 28, 2007, edition 1
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