Newspapers / The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, … / Jan. 26, 2023, edition 1 / Page 1
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THE QUIMANS I7I7 I^ T AZ r^ tL lx 1 j X “News from Next Door” THURSDAY, JANUARY 26, 2023 $1.50 in CJN £ o OS IXI © SCAN ME PAGE Bl NTSB: Mechanic grounded plane before fatal crash PAGE B3 Albemarle Neighbor: Beaty’s ‘Mountain to Sea’ ring wins Our State honor PAGE B4 Tobias: Art, food need to be less abstract, more accessible State reduces town’s wastewater fine from $24K to $1K Brown: Cole’s explanations to state helped reduce fine BY REGGIE PONDER Staff Writer Thanks to explanations the interim town manager provided to the state, the town of Hertford will be fined only $1,000 for viola tions at the town’s wastewa ter treatment plant instead of $25,000. Town Council expressed appreciation for interim Town Manager Janice Cole’s efforts to get the penalties reduced at coun cil’s Jan. 9 meeting. Before those ef- COLE forts, the town was facing a $25,000 fine for sev eral violations at the waste- water plant, Mayor Earnell Brown said. Only after Cole wrote to officials, providing very ex tensive explanations for the violations, did they agree to substantially reduce the fine from $25,000 to $1,000, Brown said. “And as a result of her hard work, we got it down to two violations,”. Brown said. “So before we even start, I would like to say ‘thank you’ for that hard work.” The violations were not ed in an inspection of the plant on Nov. 16,2022. State inspectors found that the inflow pump, grit remov al system, mechanical bar screens and inside ditch aerators were all non-op- erational at the time of the inspection. Cole told the council that some of the deficiencies can’t be remedied right now because the town doesn’t have the money to address them. Cole also explained to state officials that for some of the repairs, wastewater treatment plant staff had ordered the parts but they hadn’t come in by the time the inspection was conduct ed. “That’s why they did not cite us for those two (viola tions),” Cole said. The other two violations were for longstanding prob lems, she said. “We thank you for your work, for saving the town $24,000.” Brown told Cole. Councilor Ashley Hodg es, the council’s mayor pro tern, said he appreciates the work done by Cole and the staff at the wastewater treatment plant. “The town has been re ceiving violations on and off for a while now,” said Hodg es, who was elected in 2019. “This is something that has happened every year I think that we have been on council and it had been hap pening some before that as well.” “We have the system that we need, and the system has not been able to be main tained or is not operational,” he continued. “And again, as Manager Cole has said, our guys are out there working really hard to keep this stuff running and to solve prob lems when things break.” See HERTFORD, A2 Off into the sunset PHOTOS BY JOHN FOLEY/THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY This is the view of the sun setting behind the Bethel Fishing Center in Snug Harbor. The Bethel Fishing Center will be closing Saturday after 30 years. Its owner, Mildred “Millie” Henry, cited inflation and a slowdown in the number of fishermen using the business. Bethel Fishing Center to close Saturday Bands to perform tribute concert to center, owner BY JOHN FOLEY Staff Writer SNUG HARBOR — For nearly three decades, the Bethel Fishing Center has been a Snug Harbor bea con — a place for anglers to load up on bait and grab a beer before launching. The bar and grill has also been a place to listen to good music on weekend nights. But on Saturday, the Snug Harbor institution will close its doors for a final time. This isn’t a fish story. It’s a sad day for those who’ve called the Bethel Fishing Center a home away from home. “Millie,” as owner Mildred Henry is called, said she’s closing the Bethel Fishing Center because of inflation^ and a slowdown in the num ber of fishermen using the See FISHING, A3 The Bethel Fishing Center will close its doors a final time Saturday night. As a tribute to owner Mildred “Millie” Henry and the center, the Dixie Dawgs, Smitty Smith, Tommy Bouch and Lennon Floyd will perform a final show there Saturday starting at 8 p.m. Hertford Grammar exceeds NC rate on 3rd grade reading Currituck, Camden schools, 3 in ECPPS also did better BY REGGIE PONDER Staff Writer Several area elementary schools, including Hert ford Grammar, had bet ter passing rates than the state average on Read to Achieve, the North Caroli na education initiative that seeks to have all students reading at or above grade level by the end of the third grade. The statewide Read to Achieve passing rate for the most recent year was 74.9 percent. Hertford Grammar School in the Perquimans County Schools was near ly two percent better with a 76.8 percent passing rate. “We are very pleased with the Read to Achieve results in Perquimans County given the struggles of recovering from an al most three-year pandem ic,” Superintendent Tanya Turner said. See READING, A3 Cohen retiring as CTE head Jan. 31 Cohen helped expand woikforce, career prep progiam BY JOHN FOLEY Staff Writer Jill Cohen, who’s over- seen expansion of the Career Technical Educa tion program that helps prepare Perquimans High School students for ca reers and the workforce, has announced her plan to retire from the school district. Her last day with the Perquimans Comity Schools is Jan. 31. Cohen, who’s leaving education after 44 years, said she’s starting a new INSIDE Perquimans one of 4 districts garnering CTE grants. Page A3. business that will focus on grant writing and consult ing. “Retirement is really only a word to move you from one industry to an other,” Cohen said. “After 44 years in the educational setting, I am venturing into my next chapter.” Cohen said she and her husband, Larry, plan to See COHEN, A3 Jackson threats case continued Area to have clout on lawmaker ag panels Former Hertford councilor appealing judge’s verdict From staff reports A communicating threats case against former Hert ford Town Councilman Quentin Jackson was con 6 " 89076 47144 Vol. 88, No. 04 WWW.PerquimansWeekly.com @2021 Perquimans Weekly All Rights Reserved tinued to March 20 in Mon day’s session of Perquimans County Superior Court. The continuance was re quested by Jackson’s attor ney, Jamal Summey. The case stems from a dispute Jackson had with Perquimans County busi nessman Patrick Morrissey during a July 6, 2021 meeting of the Hert ford Town Council. The meeting be came so disorderly that Mayor Earnell Brown adjourned it See JACKSON, A3 Sanderson, Hanig, Goodwin, Ward get panel assignments From staff reports The Albemarle area will have top leadership on agri culture committees in both the state House and Senate, while area lawmakers also will serve on key appropri ation panels in both legisla tive chambers. Both state Senate Presi dent Pro Temp Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, and state House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, recently an nounced their appoint ments to Senate and House committees. GOODWIN HANIG SANDERSON WARD State Sen. Norm Sander son, R-Pamlico, was named one of two chairmen of the Senate Agriculture, Energy and Environment Commit tee by Berger. Sanderson, who represents the 1st Sen ate District’s eight counties — Carteret, Chowan, Dare, Hyde, Pamlico, Pasquo tank, Perquimans and Washington — was also tapped to chair the Appro priations Committee on Agriculture, Natural, and Economic Resources. Berger also named state Sen. Bobby Hanig, R-Cur- rituck, who represents the newly drawn 3rd Sen ate District, to the Senate Agriculture Committee. Hanig represents Bertie, Camden, Currituck, Gates, Halifax, Hertford, Martin, Northampton, Tyrrell and Warren counties. State Rep. Ed Goodwin, R-Chowan, was named a member of the House Ag riculture Committee and chair of the Appropriations Committee on Agriculture and Natural and Economic See PANELS, A2
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
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Jan. 26, 2023, edition 1
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