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VOL. 90 No. 6
KINGS MOUNTAIN, NORTH CAROLINA 38088TUESDAY, JANUARY 38,1879
15c
HGRI^^LD
Water Storage Capacity To Increase
The site for a new two-mllUon
gallon water storage tank on Glenn
St. Is being cleared for construction,
according to City Engineer Alvin
Mbretz.
Workers from Phillips Utilities,
Inc. of Gaffney, S. C. began clearing
Ihe site last week In the northwest
section of the city. Phillips received
the contract for site preparation,
construction of the tank pad (base)
and Installation of about one and
two-thirds miles of 12 Inch water line
under a $336,027.60 bid.
Fisher Tank Co. of Lexington, S.
C. under a contract bid of $209,100,
will erect the two-mllllon gallon
capacity tank on the site.
"With this new storage tank the
dty will have approximately a
capacity of five million gallons of
processed water on hand dally,"
Moretz said. "This storage Is In
addition to the 8-mllllon gallons per
day processing plant at the lake."
Under the 180-day construction
contract, Phillips of Gaffney will
Install 12 Inch water lines from the
new storage facility across country
to Oriental Ave. At Oriental, the new
line will be connected with the 14
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To Guage Public Feeling
Harris Bill Asks State
Referendum On The ERA
Sen. OUle Harris of Kings Moun
tain has drafted a bill that would caU
for a statewide referendum on the
proposed Equal Rights Amendment.
Harris said h* fAAls mirh a straw
vote would give legislators a more
accurate measure of how the people
really feel about E91A. He said In
this manner BRA could be settled
"once and fbr all.”
Although Harris said he has not
heard from ERA proponents on his
bill, the Greensboro Dally News
reported last Thursday that Beth
McAllister, state president of North
Qirollnlans United for ERA, hoped
the bill would not get off the ground.
She said, "There’s Just no need for
that (a statewide vote).’’
Sen. Harris said he is "tired” of
me EKA proposal commg up during
every session. He said It has caused
a real fight among legislators.
ERA has been defeated three
times In Raleigh. In 1977 the Issue
lost by only two votes In the N. C.
Senate. Harris was one of the
senators casting his vote against the
proposal.
"I have no qualms about ERA
Mothers March Planned
Mothers will march for benefit of
the March of Dimes on Birth Defects
cn Sunday, according to announce
ment by Mrs. J. D. Barrett, presi
dent of Unit 186 of the American
Legion Auxiliary, sponsoring
organization.
A door-to-door canvass of the
community Is slated between the
hours of 2 and 8 p. m. In the city, and
women from the Auxiliary will be
calling on residences in the area
during the afternoon with teams
assigned to various areas.
Team captains will assign
workers to the various sections of
town and reports are to be turned
In to Unit Treasurer Judy Harmon
Workers who solicit their areas at
other hours during the week may
turn In contributions to Mrs. Har
mon at City Hall. Workers who are
canvassing the city on Sunday are
asked to meet at 2 p. m. at the
/
RIBBON ■ CUTTING — Despite wintery weather
conditions, crowds of Kings Mountain area citizens
attended Friday’s ribbon-cutting ceremonies and open
house which continued on Saturday at Home Savings &
Photo By Gary Stewart
Loan Association’s new home office on W. King St-
Cutting the ribbon, from left, directors, Pat Cheshire,
Mayor John Moss, Board Chairman Fred Wright, B- S-
Peeler, Dr- Paul Hendricks and Senator J- OUle Harris-
CODAP Banquet Is January 30
Usa Louise Beeler, of Grover
QevelandCounty’s Junior Miss, was
ftwrUi runner-up In North Carolina’s
Junior Miss pageant during the
weekend In Greensboro War
Memorial Auditorium.
LaOena Anne Lookablll,
Charlotte’s Junior Miss, who won
preliminary awards In youth fitness
and poise and appearance Friday,
was crowned Saturday as North
Chrollna’s reigning Junior Miss for
1979. Blonde Miss LookablU received
the crown from Debbie Solomon of
Forsyth County, last year’s winner
and national first runner-up.
LookablU also won for scholastic
achievement.
’The crowning ended a week of
strenuous rehearsals by the 38 North
Chrolina Junior Misses.
Miss Beeler Is daughter of Rev.
and Mrs. H. L. Beeler of the Pat
terson Springs Community.
V# W
Ms. Beeler Was Fourth Runnerup
s 'Y
OODAP, the Cleveland County
Cbmmunlty Organization for Drug
Abuse Prevention, Inc., will hold
Its annual membership banquet at
Shelby High, Tues., Jan. 30, from 7
to 8:30 p. m. New members of
OODAP’s board will be elected and
an annual rejx''’! of activities will be
presented.
The program will feature Mr.
Larry Shaw. courdi’'ator of Family
Cbunseling S«-i vli i's In Gastonia. His
topic will be "The Preventive Role
of the Family.” Mr. Shaw, a South
ChroUna native. Is a graduate of
Southern Baptist Theological
Seminary In Louisville, Kentucky.
He received his clinical training at
Kentucky Baptist Hospital and High
Plains Baptist Hospital In ’Texas.
Inch existing line. The new 12 Inch
line will be run east to Canterbury
Rd. via Hwy. 74. At Canterbury Rd.,
line will be Installed running north
across country to Stone St., then
west to Katherine Ave. then north to
Groves St. From there the line will
run west to Cleveland Ave., north to
Qiurch St. and west to the new
storage tank site. From the tank site
the new line will run i northwest
under the railroad tracks to Benfleld
Rd and there will be tied Into an
existing 14 Ir-h line.
‘”rhe contract cans for InstsJUng
8,780 lineal feet of 12 Inch water line,
which is about one and two-thirds
miles of pipe," Moretz said. ’”rhlB
will greatly Increase the city’s
capacity for storing processed
water,”
n.
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one way or another,” Harris said. "I
>iat want us to to get it out of the
way.”
Harris has opposed BRA, he said,
^raiisA thA nriAlorlty of his con
stituents have been opposed to It.
’The bill call for the statewide
referendum was due to be finished at
Monday night’s session of the
General Assembly, according to
Harris. Should the bill be aiqiroved,
the referendum would be run In
conjunction with the next general
election — Nov. 1980.
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American Legion Hall.
There Is no specified goal for the
collection, said Mrs. Barrett. Funds
will be used for research and also
will be used to help local and area
polio patients.
Mrs. Barrett said that literature
will be distributed at each residence
and that contributors will also be
given a receipt for their gift, which
Is tax deductible.
Photo By Tom McIntyre
CLEARING THE WAY — Hiese employes of Phillips completed in 180 days and Includes the storage tank and
Utilities Inc., were hard at work last week felling trees about one and two-thirds miles of 13 Inch water line
and clearing the site for a new two-mllllon gallon installation In the northeast section of the city,
storage tank off Glenn 8t. The construction Is due to be
NCBA Asks Ceiling Removal
Former Kings Mountlan H. L.
(Jack) Ruth Jr., now president of
the N. C. Bankers Association, says
the banking industry will request the
General Assembly to modify the
Interest rate laws during this
session.
Ruth commented, ”We must
igidate the Interest rate laws of our
state If we are to be able to provide
funds for borrowers and to sustain
economic growth."
Ruth said the cost of money "has
gone beyond the statutory nine
percent celling, and the prudent
banker will be forced to Invest In
other assets of higher yield other
than loans."
The 1969 General Assembly
changed the Interest rate celling to a
maximum of nine percent on most
loans of $100,(X)0 or less.
Ruth said money Is a unique
commodity that responds to rate
competition aixl can be moved
quickly from one place to another to
seek higher yields.
"In a spiraling economy such as
we have experienced, and without
any change In the Interest celling
Mnce 1969," Ruth said, "the cost of
money has gone beyond the rate that
can be charged. ’Ibis will cause
funds to dry up quickly In this
state.”
An example Is the Interest rate the
State of N. C. charges on Its funds In
banks Is now at 10 and one-quarter
percent, which Is one and a quarter
percent higher than the celling.
L. E. (Josh) Hlnnant, city
executive at First Union National
Bank, commented Monday, "We are
speaking of short term loans. What
we su-e being fcd*ced to do, more or
less to break even, if you want to put
It that way. Is to put loems on a term
basis. Either monthly or quarterly
payback terms. We have to do this to
take care of our customers.”
Hlnnant said this Is actually a two
fold problem. State bsmks are bound
by the statutory celling of nine
percent, but he said that nattoiud
banks actually may charge c«e
percent more than the going federal
discount rate. Hlnnant said that rate
Monday morning was 10^ percent.
"The customers Mr. Ruth refers
to are the large borrowers," Hlnnant
said. "The $100,000 category. The
problem really hasn’t hit the con
sumer yet.”
Hlnnant was referring to car
loans, furniture loans, personal
signature loans. He said, "frankly.
In today’s computer age these loans,
$8,000 or less, are so expensive to
make that It cuts into the bank’s
profits.”
Hlnnant said the demand for the
larger loans, presently, ha.o
decreased In this area, but there
doesn’t seem to be a noticeable
falloff In the consumer type loans.
’"The frightening thing la,” he
continued, "when there Is a
slowdown of loans to the large
borrower It will eventually hurt the
consumer.
"Banks can Invest In government
or municipal bonds with no gam-
tde,” Hlnnant continued. "You still
get a return on your equity. But If
the prime rate contlnuea to grow I
don’tknow what is going to happen.”
Cbtirles Hamilton, executive vice
president at First CTtlaens Bank and
TVust, said, “I have not received a
copy of the asaoclatlon's (xroposal as
yet, so I would prefer to make no
comment at this time."
Jack Ruth noted that the General
Assembly has already removed all
Interest rate ceilings on home loans,
”so the N. C. Bankers Association
feels this request Is not without
precedent."
’’By acting promptly,” Ruth
continued, "we can eliminate a very
real threat to our economic growth
by steering the flow of North
Chrolina funds to other areas of the
nation and the world where higher
returns can be realized.”
The N. C. Bankers Association
proposed to the General Assembly
would not effect consumer revolving
credit.