School board candidate profiles
Page 5
The trash man
Page 4
Subscriber of the Week:
Sidney Long Jr.
April 23, 2008
Vol. 76, No. 17 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
HERTFORD, HC 27344-1306 V*" ^
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Stallings
Schools
head
earns
degree
Stallings
earns doctor
of education
Schools Superintendent
Dwayne K. Stallings added
another
line to his
p r o f e s -
sional cre-
dentials
recently,
earning
his doctor
of educa
tion from
East Caro
lina Uni
versity.
Stallings, who is in his
first year as superinten
dent of Perquimans County
Schools, successfully de
fended his dissertation on
Public School Facilities and
Teacher Job Satisfaction
on April 1 before a doctoral
committee, announced Dr.
Lynn Bradhsaw, chair of
the Department of Educa
tional Leadership at ECU.
“I am delighted,” said
Stallings shortly after re
ceiving word of the success
ful defense of his disserta
tion. “It has been a great
deal of work and has taken
a. tremendous amount of
time, but it is gratifying to
me to be able to accomplish
such an important goal in
my personal life.”
Stallings completed his
undergraduate work at Eliz
abeth City State University
in 1985, earned his masters
degree from East Carolina
University in 1990 and a
Principal/Curriculum En
dorsement from East Caro
lina University in 1996.
Stallings taught in Eden-
ton-Chowan Schools, Gates
County Schools and Pasquo
tank County Schools before
settling in the Perquimans
County School District,
where he has been for the
past 14 years,
Since 1994, he has served
as assistant principal and
principal at the high school,
principal at Perquimans
Central School, and assis
tant superintendent for the
district before being named
superintendent upon the
retirement of Dr. Kenneth
CONTINUED on page 14
Banners
hung for
town's
birthday
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Event planners are put
ting the finishing touches
on Hertford’s 250th birth
day celebration slated for
Sunday, May 4.
Fresh new banners cel
ebrating 250 years were
hung in the historic down
town district last week,
and town businesses are
being asked to spruce up
their fronts in time for
the party. Town cleaning
crews will be out sweep
ing the streets and trim
ming the grassy areas as
well.
The special day gets un
derway at noon with Cap
tain Bob’s, the Belvidere
Ruritans, and the local
restaurants offering food
and drinks.
Historical readings
telling of the town’s his
tory will get underway at
1 p.m. The town’s charter,
signed May 4,1758, will be
read.
The College of The
Albemarle Band and the
Renaissance Consort will
provide music to enter-
tam the crowd.
Local Boy Scouts will
provide an Indian camp
on the courthouse green.
A commemorative pho
to showing everyone who
attended the celebration
win he taken at 2 p.m.
And, of course, birth
day cake, displaying the
town’s official 250th logo,
wUl be cut.
Several commemora
tive items denoting the
special day will be for sale
including note cards show
ing the historic downtown
Perquimans Weekly photo by CATHY WILSON
BRANDON SHOAF, TOWN PLANNER, hangs the town's new banners celebrating 250 years as
the area prepares for the upcoming 250th birthday celebration planned in Hertford on Sun
day, May 4 in the historic downtown area.
area, and first day of issue
cancellation stamp and
envelope which will be
collector’s items.
The Albemarle Cho
rale win perform a special
pops concert to cap off the
day of festivities. The free
concert starts at 7 p.m. in
the recently-renovated
Perquimans County High
School auditorium.
Hertford awards water contracts
Construction
to begin this
summer
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Hertford Town Council
awarded contracts total
ing nearly $4.5 million last
week for construction of
the town’s new water plant
project.
Turner Murphy Compa
ny received the contract for
general construction and
raw water supply totaling
$2,609,989 while Caldwell
Tanks, Inc. won the bid to
construct the elevated wa
ter tanks totaling $921,900.
B&M Contractors will
do the electrical work on
the project to the tune of
$844,800 and Magette Well
& Pump Co. will dig the two
wells for $73,888.
The complete project in
cludes buUding a new water
treatment plant, retrofit
ting two existing water sup
ply pumping systems, con
structing two deep weUs,
erecting a new 250,000 gal
lon steel water tank, reno
vating an existing 500,000
gallon water tank, and de
molition of a 100,000 gallon
water storage tank.
The new water plant will
be buUt on the same site as
the current plant and wUl
nearly double its current
322,000 gaUons per day ca
pacity to 610,000 gaUons per
day.
The funding package
for the project includes
$1,835,000 in loans from the
United States Department
of Agriculture and over
$1,172,000 in pants.
Construction on the wa
ter plant project is expected
to begin this summer.
Water rates increased
last July and town officials
expect a future increase in
water rates associated with
the debt service on the new
plant.
Council
to lock
front
doors at
meetings
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
If you want to attend
a Hertford Town Coun-
cU meeting from now on,
please enter through the
back door.
In an effort to minimize
any potential danger dur
ing town council meetings,
the town haU’s front door
facing Grubb Street wUl
no longer be open during
meetings in the future. The
decision to lock the front
door and reduce access to
town haU meetings to only
one direction came foUow-
ing a February incident
in Kirkwood, Mo. where a
distraught citizen shot and
kUled several people during
a town haU meeting.
Hertford officials are fol
lowing the lead of other lo-
^ cal governments around the
nation scrutinizing their
own security following the
Kirkwood ambush.
“After that incident, we
talked about meeting secu
rity,” explained Town Man
ager John Christensen. “We
certainly don’t want any
one to come in and cause
harm. With the front door
access so far from the meet
ing room, someone could
be in the buUding and get
close enough to council be
fore anyone would pay any
attention to it. Eliminating
that entrance should make
the building a lot safer.”
Council’s meeting room
is located in the back of
the town haU and can be ac
cessed by a fun glass back
door. The large illuminated
parking lot leads to the back
entrance of the building.
“With the glass door and
the lights outside, we may
see trouble before it gets to
the door,” he added. “Most
people come in the back
door anyway.”
The Hertford police chief
usually attends the meet
ings as weU.
A key wUl be left inside
the front door in case peo
ple need to exit the building
quickly, Christensen said.
A sign notifying folks to en
ter the meeting through the
back door wUl be placed on
the town hall’s front door
while council is meeting.
Earthstone brings natural stones to area
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Earth Stone, Inc. spe
cializes in natural stone to
complement any bathroom,
kitchen or flooring area.
Located in Ken-Nix Plaza
in Elizabeth City, members
of the Perquimans County
Chamber of Commerce held
a ribbon cutting for the new
store Saturday morning.
Kevin Chase, owner, says
the store is unique to the
area.
“I was in the contracting
business and I know how
hard it is to find natural
stone tUe or counter tops,”
he said.
From Hertford, Chase
opened his store in January,
but it has taken him almost
three months to instaU the
variety of beautifuUy tiled
bathroom and kitchen dis
plays and unique flooring
throughout the store.
He has ceramic, por
celain, and natural stone
counter tops including
granite, soapstone, slate,
marble, cultured marble,
cultured onyx and quartz.
In addition to granite
slab counter tops, he also
offers the more cost ef
ficient granite tile with
matching edges for counter
top, which is about half the
cost of slab.
He features glass tHe,
stainless steel tile, and
natural stone tUe including
travertine, slate, marble.
granite, sandstone, onyx,
quartz and riverstone.
He also carries a full
line of listellos, borders for
backsplashes, and much
of his stones are imported
from Israel, Turkey and Je
rusalem.
The design center and
showroom allows custom
ers to touch and feel the
natural stone and they will
also provide design sugges
tions to help out.
If you need a contractor
to do the job for you. Chase
Perquimans Weekly photo by CATHY WILSON
THE PERQUIMANS COUNTY
CHAMBER of Commerce held a
ribbon cutting ceremony Sat
urday morning at Earth Stone,
Inc. Located in the Ken-Nix
Plaza in Elizabeth City. Owner
Kevin Chase and his family,
from Hertford, were joined by
members of the Chamber in
the store's grand opening.
provides a list of referrals
and stocks aU the materials
to complete the job. .
Earth Stone, Inc. is open
Monday—Friday, 9 a.m.—5
p.m. and on Saturday 9
a.m.—1 p.m. For more in
formation, call 333-1162.
HMMim
Thursday
High: 77 Low: 57
Partly Cloudy
Friday
High: 76 Low: 58
Partly Cloudy
Saturday
High: 77 Low: 55
Cloudy
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