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HUMC awards 21 scholarships, 3
“News from Next Door”
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2019
$1.00
School system’s lottery fund request rejected
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
The Perquimans County
Commission deadlocked
in a 3-to-3 vote last week,
meaning the school system,
at least for now, cannot
draw down $146,000 from
its state lottery construction
account.
State law allots a certain
amount of lottery proceeds
to individual school dis
tricts for construction, but
requires that the schools get
the approval of their count y
commission first.
Superintendent Tanya
Turner was asking to draw
down $146,000 to make up
for funds that inadvertently
paid from the regular cap
ital spending account and
not from money set aside
for the athletic complex.
The money went for build
ing a combination restroom
and concession stand at the
football field. The building
is finished and Turner said
the field would be ready for
use this football season.
Janice Cole, a former
chairperson of the commis
sion, spoke out against al
lowing more lottery money
to be used on the athletic
complex.
“It seems like our gener
al fund will be used to pay
for what the school system
needs and the lottery fund
is to be used for what they
want,” Cole said. “My point
is that we, the residents of
Perquimans County, seem
to be victims of a backdoor
plan to have us foot the bill
for the major expense of an
athletic complex.”
She fears the schools will
continue try and tap the
lottery fund for the athletic
complex.
“Today it is the conces
sion stand. But the field
house is not complete, there
is no ticket booth, there is
no parking lot yet. How long
before the school system
comes before you to say
that it is not safe for people
to have to part at the high
school and cross the street
to get to the field?”
While the field house is
not finished, it is being paid
for by a private donor.
Voting against the motion
to approve was Chairman
Wallace Nelson and Com
missioners Kyle Jones and
Fondella Leigh. Voting in
favor of the request were
Commissioners Joe Hoffler,
Alan Lennon and Charles
Woodard.
While a 3-3 tie vote is
rare, it has happened once
before. A tie vote means the
motion fails.
Jones has been critical
of the increased spending
on schools to the point he
voted against adopting the
county budget this year,
even though school spend
ing was flat.
“Our board should have
slammed on the brakes last
April when they request
ed $56,000 from our fund
balance to repair a broken
See LOTTERY, A2
Schools
to test
remote
learning
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Perquimans Schools will
take a step toward a system
that will allow education
to go on even if kids aren’t
physically in school.
The school board has
approved creating one “Re
mote Learning Day” for the
2019-20 calendar year with
the option of two more days
if needed.
The first RLD will be Nov.
1. That date was already
scheduled to be a manda
tory workday for teachers 1
and a day off for students. 1
With the test, it will be con
sidered a regular school day
for attendance purposes
and count as a “make up”
day even though students
actually wouldn’t be in
class. Students will still be
required to work, just not
from school.
RLDs won’t be good for
everything, because they re
quire giving teachers some
time to prepare the remote
lesson plans.
“If we know a hurricane
is coming a few days in ad
vance, we can use remote
days,” Superintendent Tan
ya Turner said. “If we wake
up and there is suddenly
snow on the ground, we
won’t be able to do that.”
While each Perquimans
student has a school-is
sued tablet computer, many
See REMOTE, A2
STAFF PHOTO BY PETER WILLIAMS
Sen. Bob Steinburg (left) presents the Order of the Long Leaf Pine to Sid Eley Saturday morning at the Hertford
Department. Eley, a former science teacher and current member of the Hertford Town Council, has served 50
years with the volunteer fire department.
Sid Ely awarded Long Leaf Pine
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Sen. Bob Steinburg
(R-Chowan) presented Sid
Eley with the Order of the
Long Leaf Pine Saturday
for his services to the town
and Perquimans County at
large.
The ceremony was held
at the Hertford Volunteer
Fire Department where
Eley has been a member
for 50 years. Todd Tilley,
the Perquimans County
clerk of superior court
and a firefighter himself,
said in the history of the
fire department, only two
members have served 50
years. The fire department
dates to 1879. Sid serves as
the chaplain for the depart
ment.
Steinburg said the award
is result of a bipartisan ef
fort. It is awarded by the
governor, and Gov. Roy
Cooper, a Democrat.
“This award is very spe
cial,” he said. He said as a
state representative and
now a senator, he’s had a
lot of requests to honor
someone with the Long
Leaf Pine, but the governor
in power determined many
don’t meet the level of the
Long Leaf Pine, the state’s
highest civilian honor.
The senator praised all
volunteer firefighters, and
singled out Eley as “the
best of the best.”
Eley, 72, also served
the school system as a
science teacher before he
retired and then became
the executive director of
the Perquimans County
Chamber of Commerce
until he stepped down this
year. He’s also served 28
See ELY, A2
Objection
raised to
bridge plan
. BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
Instead of destroying
wetlands, one Hertford res
ident recommends closing
the causeway early so the
contractor building a new
bridge can access materials
from the road.
The contractor for DOT
I plans to use the site of the
old Davenport Motors deal
ership to store materials. It
is asking for permission to
build a 200-foot long tres
tle toward the water so the
crane can access piles and
concrete. Some of that con
struction will require clear
ing wetlands.
“The best and least envi-
I ronmental damaging solu
tion would be to use the
existing causeway closed to
traffic,” wrote Sara Winslow
in a letter to the N.C. De
partment of Transportation
and the N.C. Division of
Coastal Management.
She admits the idea isn’t
likely to gain traction.
“When I spoke with the
project manager said he
said it (closing the cause-
way early) wouldn’t be po
litically acceptable.”
One of the main rea
sons DOT went with a de
sign-build concept for the
new bridge was to limit the
amount of time the link be
tween Hertford and Winfall
is down.
Yet Winslow argues that
the wetlands do play an
important role, and it will
take generations before the
See BRIDGE, A2
STAFF PHOTO BY PETER WILLIAMS
A boy kicks a Velcro-covered soccer ball at a Velcro-
covered target last week at National Night Out at the
Perquimans County Recreation Center. The event was
provided by Camp Cale. There will be more pictures In
the next issue of The Perquimans Weekly.
National Night Out draws hundreds
BY PETER WILLIAMS
News Editor
County officials say the
first National Night Out
event a success.
By some estimates about
350 people showed up for
the four-hour event Tuesday
at the Perquimans County
Recreation Center.
Some of the things includ
ed were fire trucks from
every county department,
informational booths, and
crews from EMS and local
law enforcement.
Perhaps the biggest hits
were the games from Camp
Cale, the miniature horses
from the 4-H High Achiev
ers Club and a visit from the
Nightingale medical helicop
ter, said Sheriff Shelby White.
Smaller Night Out events
have been held in the past,
but the event last week was
the first of its size, White
said.
“I think this first year was
a really good test,” White
said. “I talked with a number
of vendors and they seemed
happy. I know we had some
vendors that wanted to get
in at the last minute.”
He said a survey would go
out to vendors to see what
they liked and what things
that can be improved on.
While the event started
at 4p.m. the crowds real
ly didn’t start coming until
about 5:30 p.m., White said.
“By about 7:15 p.m. to
7:30 p.m. it started to dwin
dle down.” -
Carla Thornton Bundy,
the coordinator for the 4-H
horse program, said every
body seemed to have fun.
“We were very busy we
had quite a few 4-H kids
they are helping out,” Bundy
said. “I feel like things were
very organized and they had
a very good turn out. There
was a nice variation of dif
ferent organizations being
represented and lots of free
giveaways. The kids were
very happy.”
See NIGHT OUT, A2
Hospital foundation awards grants
Back To School Bash
BY NICOLE BOWMAN-
LAYTON
The Chowan Herald
Non-profits and govern
ment agencies received a
share of $100,000 grants to
help improve the health and
well being of residents in
four counties Friday.
The Vidant Chowan Hos
pital Foundation held its
14th annual Community
Benefits Grant Program
during a ceremony in the
hospital’s classrooms.
The awards were given to
groups that serve Chowan,
Perquimans, Tyrrell and
Washington counties.
Some grants support
ed food initiatives, while
others went toward swim
ming classes for elementa
ry-school students or opi
oid-treatment programs.
Vidant Health provides the
financial help to the foun-
dation.
Brian Harvill, hospital
president and foundation
See GRANTS, A2
STAFF PHOTO BY PETER WILLIAMS
A mother fills out forms
at a Back To School Bash
last week at Perquimans
Central School. Classes
start on Aug. 26.