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"News front Next Door"
JANUARY 16, 2013 - JANUARY 22, 2013
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Public embracing new traffic ticket system
PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
A new system that al
lows drivers to pay traffic
tickets on-line is gaining
traction in Perquimans
County, according to coim-
ty officials.
Perquimans County
Clerk of Superior Court
Todd Tilley said his office
had 1,023 tickets processed
using the new system last
year. That compares to 479
in Pasquotank County and
69 in Chowan.
The Perquimans total
represents less than half
of the total number of
tickets processed in the
county last year, but Tilley
said the acceptance of the
new program is a positive
sign. The county handled
a total of 2,644 tickets, in
cluding those using the
new system. The system
was rolled out last year. In
the first year, Perquimans
County collected $248,000
using it.
“Citizens conveniently
may make their payment
from anywhere Internet
connectivity is available,”
TiUey said last week. “I
encourage citizens not
wanting to appear in court
regarding their traffic cita
tion to save gas and time
and go online to pay”
TUley said going to the
courthouse to pay a traffic
ticket could take as little as
Spare dirt becomes gun range
for retiring gas station owner
By PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
W r.D. AUendidn’t
start out with
plans to build the
only public rifle and pistol
range in the Albemarle.
He was simply trying to
make a living selling gas.
But when the state
widened U.S. 17 outside
of Hertford in the 1990s,
it meant losing his old
gas station and building a
new one back away from
the new road. And in the
process, came the new
sideline of selling ammu
nition and running a gun
range.
Allen and his wife
Della sold gasoline in the
Hertford area since the
late 1960s until they closed
the doors for the last time
on Dec. 29.
More On This Story
Gun range may still have
a future — 4
The gtm range started
with some leftover dirt.
“The man building the
road said he had some dirt
he needed to get rid of and
asked if he could put it on
my land,” AUen recaUed
last week. “It started off
with one pUe across the
back.”
AUen figured he could
use the dirt as a backstop
for when he might want to
zero in a hunting rifie.
“Then he showed up
and he had more dirt.”
Both the rifie and pistol
ranges are fuUy enclosed
inside a dirt berm 12-feet-
taU.
“From there it took
off far more than I ever
expected it to,” AUen said.
“I just expected a few local
feUas would use it when
they needed to zero in
their riUes to go hunting.”
In the end, he said
between 25 and 30 percent
of his customers were
women who’d just gotten
a concealed weapons
license and wanted to
practice.
“Most of the time when
the weather was nice
you’d have a few people
SUBMIUED PHOTO
W.D. Allen works on a bow for a customer at his gas station on U.S. Highway 17 between Hertford and Edenton. Allen closed the
doors Dec. 29 and sold the business to DuckThru.The future of the gun range is being debated.
there during the week
but it woiUd reaUy get
busy on holidays and on
Saturdays. Some people
got upset with me because
I woiUdn’t let them shoot
on Sundays, but there is
a church across the road
and another one nearby I
respected their rights to
privacy and not getting
disturbed on a Sunday
The store is located at 764
Ocean Highway South.
STAFF PHOTO BY PETER WILLIAMS
A Sign indicates that the gun
range is now closed, Monday.
“I was drawing people
from Virginia and from
the beach, aU around.
And I never advertised
it. I didn’t want a bunch
of anti-gun nuts creating
trouble.”
But in December, AUen
caUed it quits.
, “Working six days a
week gets to you,” said Al
len, who wUl turn 75 years
old on Feb. 3. His knees
are worn out, probably a
byproduct from years of
running around working
on cars and pumping gas.
“Both my knees are
wore out. I’ve been doing
this for 43 years. Re
member back when gas
stations had a rubber
cord running across each
driveway?”
When cars rode over
the cord, a beU would ring
letting the gas attendant
know that a customer was
there.
“I was doing mechanic
work back then and when
I heard that beU, I’d stop
what I was doing, run out
and pump $2 worth of
gas, check the oU, wash
the windshield and when
I was finished go back to
the car I was working on
untU the beU rang again.”
When AUen started,
there were four gas
stations in downtown
Hertford. Today there is
only one.
The brand names of the
gas changed. First it was
Sinclair, then MobU then
Chevron. FinaUy AUen got
tired of changing the sign
out in front of the build
ing and named the station
AUen’s Archery.
“When you’re run
ning a smaU business
in a smaU community,
every nickel coimts. You
have to do what you do to
survive.”
Retired admiral to'speak at Farm-City Banquet
From staff reports
A retired rear admiral
wUl be the guest speaker
at the annual Perquimans
Farm-City Banquet at the
Perquimans Recreation
Center later this month.
Benny Suggs is now
6 89076 A
7144
the executive director of
the N.C. State University
Alumni Association. In ad
dition to his naval service,
Suggs served as general
manager of the Harley
Owners Group (HOG) and
Rider Services at Harley-
Davidson Motor Co.,
Farm-City Week and as
sociated events are held
to promote understanding
between rural and non-ru-
ral citizens across North
Carolina.
The ban
quet wUl
begin at
6:30 p.m.
on Jan. 24
with a meal
sponsored
by agribusi
nesses in
the county
County corn, soybean and
wheat yield awards wUl
be presented along with
a special awards. Tickets
are distributed on a first
Suggs
come-first served basis. To
receive your complimenta
ry tickets, visit the Perqui
mans County Extension
Center.
Suggs served 30 years
in the U.S. Navy and re
tired in 2000 as deputy
commander in chief, US.
Special Operations Com
mand. He also served as
commander of Carrier
Group Six/John C. Sten-
nis Battle Group and was
director for Operations,
Plans and Policy for the
U.S. Atlantic Fleet where
he was responsible for the
training and deployment
preparations of more than
175,000 personnel.
A Naval aviator, Suggs
earned his Naval Aviation
Wings in 1971. He has re
ceived the Defense Meri
torious and Distinguished
Service medals, five Le
gion of Merit medals and
two Navy Commendation
medals.
Heath
five minutes plus the time
it takes to drive there. If
the office is busy, the wait
could be longer. Paying the
ticket on-line takes sec
onds.
The system accepts
See TICKET, 3
Official:
Alcohol
permits
bad idea
Kelly: Drinking on
county land risky
By PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
The easiest way to pro
tect Perquimans County
from a lawsuit stemming
from the sale of alcoholic
beverages at a county
buUding would be to never
aUow the sale to take place
in the first place.
That’s one argument
County Manager Frank
Heath has heard.
It comes
in a paper
written
by the di
rector of
risk man-
agement
for a state
group that
represents
county commissions.
Perquimans Coimty was
asked this month to relax
the rules dealing with al
cohol sales at the county’s
recreation center. The
board took no action, but
agreed to consider it.
The request came from
a local Ducks Unlimited
Chapter as weU as the Na
tional WUd Turkey Federa
tion.
Michael KeUy, the risk
management director for
the N.C. Association of
County Commissioners,
said many smaU rural
counties don’t aUow alco
hol sales in county-owned
buUdings because of the
liability and because it
opens up a door that may
take them to a place they
don’t want to go.
“The county manager is
charged with the responsi-
bUity to look at the worst
case scenario in which the
county got involved in a
lawsuit that exceeded the
amount of insurance they
had,” KeUy said Monday.
“If the person using
the property doesn’t have
enough (insurance) the
party that owns the build
ing would come into play.
The safest decision is just
to not do it. That has noth
ing to do with Ducks Un
limited.
“I can’t remember smaU
counties getting into this
(alcohol sales). When
you’re talking Perquimans,
Chowan and Pasquotank
and aU around the sound,
let’s face it, they have a
conservative posture. They
see it as assuming a risk
that they don’t feel good
about.”
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