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KINGS MOUNTAIN, N.C. 28086
Utility Committee To Ask
City To Buy Computers
Hand-held computers for the
city's meter readers to eliminate the
time spent re-reading meters and
replace a manual system were ap-
proved by the Kings Mountain
Utilities Committee Tuesday as
they held a long session in which
they made recommendations for
engineering proposals which will
result in the next two years in
mapping of the water and sewer
system and a city-wide hydraulic
analysis of the city distribution sys-
tems.
The proposals came on the rec-
ommendation of City Manager
George Wood and City Engineer
Tom Howard and will be made by
the utilities to the full city council
at the June 13 meeting.
Wood said that the cost items are
budgeted, including $19,000 for
the four hand-held computers for
meter readers; $29,000 for a hy-
draulic analysis, including map-
ping of the existing water system;
$32,000 for system wide mapping
of the city's sanitary sewer collec-
tion system and $20,000 for manu-
als on standard specifications and
construction details for the city.
David L. Pond, of W.K. Dickson
& Co. Inc., the city's engineering
consulting firm, will present the
proposals to the full board at the
June 13 meeting.
The utility board is recommend-
ing that Pond provide the engineer-
ing services, some of which are ex-
pected by December and some of
See Utility, 10-A
RECEIVES DIPLOMA - Rusty Bumgardner receives his high school diploma from Principal Jackie
Lavender in commencement exercises Tuesday night at Kings Mountain High School.
Foote Mineral Taken Off
Of Hazardous Waste List
Foote Mineral Company was re-
moved Tuesday from a list of 85
sites identified by a state agency as
an inactive hazardous waste site.
Charlotte Varlashkin, a
spokesman for the Solid Waste
Management Section within the
Division of Health Services, said
“wivcorgect information from the
Kings Mpfa®i ¢ompany indicat-
ed thay Foote had on-site disposal
which they do not. Varlashkin said
Superfund will revise their ranking
and remove Foote from the list.
Foote Mineral of. Kings
Mountain, Fasco Controls Corp. of
Shelby, Gaston County Dyeing
Machine Co., Stanley and Mount
Holly, and Lithium Corporation of
America, Bessemer City, were all
targeted by the state agency as hav-
ing contaminated sites that must be
cleaned up. Gaston and Cleveland
Counties are home to two of the §
1,173 most serious hazer area in- peg
dustries among 85 of 800 revised
from a priority list.
Foote Mineral Company
See Foote, 3-A
CASEY JONES
Hospital 'Cost Shift’
21° Of Every Dollar
Helps Pay Someone's Bill
Twenty-one cents of every dollar appearing on the
average North Carolina hospital patient's bill goes to
pay for someone else's care, according to figures re-
leased by the North Carolina Hospital Association.
The figures released cover 129 North Carolina general
hospitals, including Kings Mountain Hospital, for
1987, the latest year for which such figures are avail-
able. Psychiatric hospitals and other specially hospitals
were not included in the report.
This added charge, called the "cost shift", is built in-
to hospital rates. It helps make up for charity care, bad
debts and shortfalls from government Medicare and
Medicaid insurance programs. Rising losses in all four
categories is a major cause for hospital rate increases,
the association said.
Lack of insurance or enough insurance causes bad
debts and charity care. In 1988, Cleveland County was
ranked 76th in the state with an "at risk" population of
27 percent, according to research provided by
Christopher J. Conover, a research associate at the
Duke University Center for Health Policy Research
and Education. Twenty-seven percent translates into
almost one out of every three residents of Cleveland
County who is uninsured or underinsured, therefore
creating more bad debts and more cost shifting.
Medicare is a federal program providing health in-
surance to elderly and disabled people. Medicaid is a
joint federal-state-county program covering certain
categories of poor people, such as infants and pregnant
women. Neither program pays hospitals’ full charges.
"Most hospitals in the state would have to close or
drastically cut care to uninsured patients without the
See Bills, 8-A
Burns New KM Fire Chief
Training plays a big role in fire-fighting and Kings
Mountain's new Fire Chief Frank Burns, 38, will pro-
mote more and more training when he assumes new
duties July 1.
Burns, who has 16 years experience with the city
and five years as Assistant Chief of the Volunteer de-
partment, was hired Tuesday by City Manager George
Wood at annual salary of $24,000.
Wood said extensive interviewing of a field of 15
applicants, then narrowed down to three city firemen,
Accident Breaks
Casey Jones, 15, has put his summer plans "on
hold" since an accident at Kings Mountain Junior High
last Thursday.
Casey underwent surgery Friday after suffering a
broken neck during "horseplay” with a friend during
Physical Education class on the school playground.
"We were wrestling," said Casey from his hospital bed
at Gaston Memorial Hospital.
Casey said he was happy to be out of Intensive Care
and into’ Room 535 where he has already had visits
Srora kia Sth grade classmates, Sn
Catey, son of Mr, and Mrs. Terry Jones of Kings
Mountain, said he would begin therapy next week at
Charlotte Rehabilitation Hospital.
He had planned to work at McDonald's this summer
but he says those plans will have to be changed.
Feeling bad during summer break is no fun, he admit-
SEMINAR-Larry Smith, Tom Roddy and Scot
t Buchanan, left to right, listen to instruction at
ElectriCities seminar Wednesday morning at Holiday Inn in Kings Mountain. The seminar is attracting
employees from municipalities covering a wide area
tion, as well as hands-on experience in underground
class hosted for the first time by City of Kings Mount
PHOTO BY MARTY HOHMANN
Sewer, Water Projects Completed
Kings Mountain has completed two major sewer
and water line projects which will allow expansion in
the southern and western sections of the city.
A $625,000 eight-inch gravity sewer line from Falls
Exxon Station on York Road to the city's new 400
GPM pump station and back-up station two miles
south of I-85 beyond Thermocote Welco was put in
service Monday. Thermacote contributed $38,000 of
the cost and county funds supplied $119,000.
Ramey Inc. was general contractor and W. K.
Dickson & Co. were project engineers.
City Council approved the project Feb. 15, 1988.
City Engineer Tom Howard said the sewer installa-
tion will allow for expansion along 161 South.
A second major project will provide water to cus- -
tomers on Highway 74 West and cost $497,000 with
the county supplying $220,000 of the cost. The line
runs from McDonald's to the city's booster pump sta-
tion across from Dennis No. 3 Store on Shelby
Highway. The installation includes 31 fire hydrants to
provide fire protection for the residents of the area and
172 water line taps. Citizens living on both the north
and south sides of Highway 74 West can tap onto the
line by filling out appropriate permits at City Hall.
Howard said that 30 city customers on Gold Street
Annexation will be switched to the new system and an
old water line abandoned which was not providing ad-
equate water pressure or fire protection.
City council approved the 74-West waterline project
Jan. 18, 1988. Rhodes Construction Co. was general
contractor.
Main extensions of gas to the new Logan Park Sub-
Division on Margrace Road and to Paul's Seafood on
York Road will open up areas of town for expansion,
said Utility Director Jimmy Maney. "Running gas to
the new sub-division will open up the apple orchard
area in that section of town where we hope, someday,
to cut through and tie-in Phifer Road in a loop to
Southwoods," said Maney. The gas extensions to York
Road would also benefit residents of the Galilee area.
and continues until Friday noon. Classroom instruc-
installation and transformer work, is a feature of the
ain.
3
has been conducted during the past several weeks. A
review board was composed of Wood, retired Chief
Gene Tignor, and fire chiefs from the adjoining towns
of Cherryville and Lincolnton with Wood making the
second round of final interviews.
Burns, a maintenance supervisor at Eaton
Corporation for 10 years, is excited about his new job.
A Kings Mountain native, he was a paid firemen from
1974-78, working under Chief Gene Tignor, and has
See Burns, 8-A
Student's Neck
ted, but he was glad to be recuperating.
"It will be awhile before I want to do any
wrestling," he laughed.
Kings Mountain Junior High Principal Jerry Hoyle
said the accident occurred on the school playground
about 15 minutes before the bell ran for dismissal of
classes on Thursday. "Our coaches were on top of the
situation and kept the student still until help arrived
from Emergency Medical Services and Casey was
rushed to the hospital.” As soon as Hoyle learned that +,
Jones was moved from Intensive Care into 2 room he
made the announcement on the intercom system at
school and Casey started having calls and visits.
Casey said he hopes his friends will continue to
come to see him at the hospital and after he returns
home." I appreciate their concern,” he said.
Electricians Take |
Part In Training
BY MARTY HOHMANN
Of the Herald Staff
Technology is always advancing and the City of
Kings Mountain is keeping up with the changes. With
more areas turning to underground power lines, Kings
Mountain is playing host to a safety and training pro-
gram sponsored by ElectriCities of North Carolina,
Inc. to address concerns over that type of system.
ElectriCities is a Raleigh-based agency which draws
its membership from 65 municipalities providing their
own electrical service. The agency provides technical
assistance, systems betterment training, energy man-
agement, safety and training seminars, linemen career
development, communications information, manage-
ment services, legislative assistance and legal aid.
Kings Mountain became a member of ElectriCities in
January.
The three-day seminar is being held at the Holiday
Inn from May 31 until noon on June 2. During that
period Carlton St. John, seminar coordinator for
ElectriCities, hopes to teach linemen from Virginia,
South Carolina and North Carolina municipalities
some lessons that could save their lives.
"It's a real privilege to come in and see your faces
this morning. I don't take it for granted," he told the
group of 37 men who attended the conference. "That's
really what this school is all about is to prepare you for
a bright and successful future."
St. John recognizes the importance of the training
because he has seen men who have died needlessly in
the line of duty. He has more than 15 years of hands-
See Cities, 8-A
Beauty (?) Pageant
To Benefit Rescuers
The second annual Kings
Mountain Rescue Squad woman-
less beauty pageant will be held
Saturday at 7 p.m. at B.N. Barnes
Auditorium.
All proceeds will go to benefit
the Rescue Squad.
Some of the most beautiful
"women" in Kings Mountain in
Kings Mountain will be competing
for the crown and all the honor and
prestige that goes with it.
Contestants include Jonie
Blanton, Johnny Hutchins, Marvin
Chappell, Todd Cerwin, Steve
Wilson, Kenny Falls, John
Haskins, Scott Brodnax, Dale
Wilson, Scott Mann, Steve Barrett,
OPENS PUMP STATION-Jimmy Van Dyke, supervisor of the
city's pump department, unlocks the gate at the new pump station
on York Road which the city put in service this week.
Dale Bragg, Randy Bell, Al
Moretz, M.C. Pruette, Harry Kyle
and Osborne Messer Jr.