~
: arrangements for the annual event
Member Of The
North Carolina
Press Association
VOL. 102 NO. 5
KM Hosts East Friday
For Lead In SWC
~~ 1-B
RT Ri
Chris Henson
Versatile Athlete
RoE
Toe nev ew Sr Re PPT FY PT Prey Te en
>S 0O0l
EDDIE ENJOYS
at school and home
working with children
ON NIW SONIA
98087
*qAV INOWAHEIJ
"Your Hometown Newspaper Since 1889"
Thursday, February 1, 1990
KINGS MOUNTAIN, N.C. 28086
ZYVYEIT TVIYORWHK AINAVR
F a St Welcome To Kings Mountain
Exit
New C of C Director
Quits After One Day
Kings Mountain Chamber of
Commerce will continue to seek a
full-time executive director, newly-
elected president Dr. Grady
Howard Jr. said Monday night at
the annual banquet attended by
115 people.
"We regret that Lisa Rhyne of
Gastonia, who we hired last week,
has decided to move to Atlanta for
personal reasons but the search
committee will be meeting in the
next day or two to consider other
applicants for the Chamber's first
full-time executive director," he
said.
Howard took the occasion to
praise outgoing President Bobby
Maner and directors for their fine
leadership during the past year and
veteran secretary Lucille Williams
as the "Chamber of Commerce
right arm in Kings Mountain." Mrs.
Williams, secretary for 27 years,
new Vice President Ruby M.
Alexander and Treasurer Vickie
Smith chaired the committee on
Hardin who delighted the audience
with his impressions of stars and
music from the 50's.
"Kings Mountain has enjoyed
BREAKING GROUND FOR PLANT - Architect Ben Sides, realtor John Barker and Kings Mountain
Mayor Kyle Smith, left to right, help break ground for the new Pioneer Motor Bearing plant to be built
between Kings Mountain and Grover. Construction on the 25,000 square foot plant will begin immediate-
ty. The compaty y hopes to bei in operation by the end of the e year.
Ground For New Plant Near KM
Photo by Dieter Melhorn
gency.
unprecedented growth in the past
decade and we have all the advan-
tages of a big city while enjoying
a small town with our close prox-
imity to Charlotte and Douglas
Airport," said Howard. "Our cli-
mate is ideal and the Chamber
finds itself in the ideal spot to be
the professional medium to pro-
mote Kings Mountain as a fine
place to live and work, which we
know it to be."
Maner introduced outgoing di-
rectors Ernest Rome, John
McGinnis, Will Herndon and Jonas
Bridges and also recognized Wade
Tyner, Dr. David’ McDaniel, Larry
Hamrick Jr. and Mike Huffman as
new directors, hold-over directors
Joseph Andrew, Darrell Austin,
Glee Bridges, David Faunce,
Kemp Mauney, Odus Smith and
Claude Suber and honorary direc-
Pioneer Motor Bearing Company broke ground for
its newly-acquired 9.5 acre site near Kings Mountain
Wednesday in ceremonies attended by company and
city officials at 10:30 a.m.
Construction of the new 25,000 square foot manu-
facturing plant will begin immediately and is expected
to be completed by June.
The company anticipates employing 10 to 13 people
before the end of 1990 to manufacture and repair bab-
bitted bearings and seals for the company's public util-
ity, marine, and industrial customers East of the
Mississippi River.
The facility will be located at the intersection of I-
85 and N. C. 216 in Cleveland County near Victory
Baptist Church on Battleground Road four miles south
of Kings Mountain.
Pioneer Motor Bearing is a small Eaily -owned
business founded in 1920 with its principal office in
South San Francisco, California. The company is a
leading supplier of babbitted bearings and seals for ro-
tating and reciprocating machinery such as steam tur-
bines, gas turbines, compressors, gearboxes, pumps,
and large electric motors and fans. Plant officials say
employment will increase here gradually over time to
a level equivalent to its South San Francisco plant,
which has 45 employees.
B. R. Keller of Charlotte has been named Plant
Manager of the Kings Mountain facility. A native of
Kannapolis, Keller recently retired from Westinghouse
Electric Corporation's Charlotte plant after more than
21 years of service. In 1968, he was recruited by
Westinghouse to join the initial team which established
the large steam turbine generator plant that quickly be-
came a landmark in Charlotte. He has been described
as one of the best tool engineers in the State of North
Carolina. Two of Keller's tool designs have been
awarded patents and there are patents pending on four
of his other designs.
Pioneer is an exclusive supplier to and licensee of
Westinghouse Electric Corporation's Power Generation
Business Unit, and as such is the only authorized re-
pair organization for certain Westinghouse babbitted
projects, including babbitted bearings.
"I am delighted to welcome Pioneer Bearing to
Kings Mountain," said Mayor Kyle Smith at the
groundbreaking ceremonies.
See Chamber, 9-A
New Clerk-Treasurer
Couldn't Pass Up KM
For Jeff Rosencrans, 37, coming to Kings Mountain
was an opportunity he couldn't pass up.
Kings Mountain's new city clerk-treasurer, on-the-
job the past three days, says that already he is falling
in love with the people and his job. "Many people are
coming in and shaking my hand and welcoming me to
Kings Mountain. This is such a friendly place and I
hope taxpayers will see a high level of financial report-
ing and responsibility from this office," he declared.
Rosencrans applied for the city's finance officer po-
sition two months ago after reading an advertisement
in the Charlotte Observer in which 75 candidates ap-
plied to City Manager George Wood for the job. He
comes from Lancaster, S.C., a city of comparable pop-
ulation and 75 miles from Kings Mountain. Lancaster
has a $6.4 million budget with two utility systems
whereas Kings Mountain owns and operates its own
natural gas, water and sewer systems with 6,000 me-
ters and a $19 million budget, including debt service.
Lancaster operates with a mayor and six-member
council and city administrator form of government and
Kings Mountain began, under the leadership of George
Wood and Mayor Kyle Smith, the new city manager
form of government.
Rosencrans says the city manager-council form of
government removes "small town politics" and allows
for "more professional running by the city by paid em-
ployees."
Rosencrans said he had never met City Manager
~ Wood, who served as administrator of Lancaster in
1980-81, until he came to Kings Mountain for an inter-
view. "I checked him out, though, just as he checked
me out, and I heard nothing but praise for him from
JEFF ROSENCRANS
Lancaster officials and from associates in Pinehurst."
Rosencrans had high praise for Mayor Kyle Smith and
was formally introduced to the six-member city coun-
cil Tuesday night.
Rosencrans said he would have probably remained
in Lancaster, S. C. for at least six more months and
longer if the Kings Mountain job had not become
available. "Our son, Scott, 17, finishes high school this
June and we wanted to live there until he is settled in
college," he said. Mrs. Rosencrans, the former Joann
Kupfer of New York, is Director of Nursing at
Rebound Inc., a rehabilitation facility in Lancaster,S.
C., where Rosencrans has worked four years with the
City of Lancaster as its finance officer.
The Rosencrans met at Syracuse University and
have been in the Carolinas since 1976. Before moving
See Rosencrans, 9-A
Er ey
Lent ANN 1 4 i PN a
KM Pool
Foundation
Gets Grant
KM Pool Foundation received
Tuesday a $1500 contribution from
Southern Bell Telephone Company,
the first of three monetary gifts to
be presented by Bell fo the
Foundation this year.
Pam Massey, corporate commau-
nity affairs officer, presented the
check to Dr. Scott Mayse at KM
Natatorium as Kiwanis Club and
school officials looked on.
"We are certainly very grateful
to Southern Bell for this gift which
is above and beyond their pledge
and is much needed for the ongo-
ing operation of the pool," said
Mayse, who chairs the Foundation
id headed up the highly success-
ful community campaign for the
pool which was spearheaded by the
Kiwanis Club beginning in 1984
and culminated last year in dedica-
tion of the $1 million-plus indoor
pool on the campus of Kings
Mountain Senior High School.
Mayse said the community has
raised $900,000 toward the cost of
the pool and KM District Schools
contributed $100,000. He estimat-
cd that between $50,000 and
$60,000 is needed as the campaign
continues into 1990.
KMHS Principal Jackie
el baa Ab Aha tk e Aa
KM Police
Equipment
Purchased
Kings Mountain city commis-
sioners Tuesday night bought a
new communications system for
the Police Department, including a
voice logger, at total cost of
$144,907 to be paid for over a
four-year period and to be installed
in 90 days.
The 80 foot tower will be in-
stalled at the old postoffice, site of
the new Law Enforcement Center
when it is moved from the old po-
lice station site.
The new sophisticated system
will replace the out-dated 22-year-
old communications system dam-
aged by lightning several times and
patched up recently after Hugo hit
the area in September.
The system will have immediate
playback capability, Chief Warren
Goforth told Council. It will also
give police records of when calls
come in to determine how fast offi-
cers are responding to a call and
display the callers telephone num-
ber to dispatchers should the caller
not identify himself or provide an
; adequaie. address during an emct- | gsigh
"Goforth Said that in cfisis {uf
situations people can not identify’
themselves clearly and this system,
to be tied in with the new county-
wide 911 emergency system, will
ensure that every caller to the city
police department will go on
record to the dispatcher answering |i
the call.
"Primarily this system will give |i
added safety to our citizens,” said
City Manager George Wood. He
said an insurance check for dam-
ages to the system for $11,400 will
be applied to the cost. "A good
communication system is the guts
and life blood of an emergency like
Hugo and we have been running on
a thread with the present system,"
said Wood. He said the first year
costs of the system, including the
cost of the $25,317 voice logger,
are included in the current budget.
In a related action involving the
police department, Mayor Kyle
Smith announced that District 4
commissioner Jackie Barrett, re-
tired KMPD police chief, will head
See Police, 10-A
Lavender said that many groups
arc now using the pool, including
fourth graders and high school
Physical education classes and out-
of-town swim clubs visiting the fa-
cility have expressed interest in
ideas on fund-raisers for their own
communities to build such a facili-
ty. "All walks and ages of people
are participating in water safety
and swim classes," she said.
Billy King, past Kiwanis presi-
dent and member of the KM Board
of Education, said the long-time
objective of Indoor Pool
Foundation is for the entire com-
Council
Denies
Re-zoning
City Council over-ruled the
Zoning & Planning Board Tuesday
night and denied a rezoning request
from J. W. Tesseneer after oppos-
[ing neighbors presented a petition.
"It's rezoned general business all
around me and I see no reason for.
it not being rezoned," said
Tesseneer, of 405 N. Cansler St.,
who wants to open a business to
rent small electric tools and etc., he
“said in an application filed with the
city.
But Joyce Howell, of 310 N.
~ Cansler Street, said neighbors op-
pose the rezoning because already
traffic. "We only found out doom
~ this matter the day before the zon-
ing board met and approved it," she
said.
"Gene White, secretary of the
Planning and Zoning Board, said
the property has been posted for
‘sometime and neighbors were noti-
fied well in advance of the meet-
_ing. The Zoning Board approved
the zoning request 5-1 on Nov. 21,
1989.
"We think the rezoning will Te-
duce the value of our property and
we need no more business in this
area. I's getting to be an eyesore
like King Street,” she said. Also
signing the petition were Bobbie
Ware, 811 Hiillside Drive; Bill
Childers, 413 Maner Road; Annie
~M. Gordon, 305 N. Cansler St.,
Betty Figueron, 311 N. Cansler St.,
‘Marshall Camp, 403 Cansler St.,
Doris Camp, 403 Cansler St., Mrs.
W. A. Childers, Route 6; Joyce and
L. Ray Howell, 310 N. Cansler
Street.
See Council, 5-A
PHOTO BY RONNIE HAWKINS
CHAMBER OFFICERS-Dr. Grady Howard Jr., right, the newly-
elected president of Kings Mountain Chamber of Commerce, pre-
sents an appreciation plague & to the outgoing president Bobby
Maner.
munity to fully utilize the facility.
Kiwanis Club President David
Neisler said the new indoor pool
was a dream of the civic club as far
back as 1984 when the club made
the first donation and started the
ball rolling for funds.
Massey said that education
about water safety is something
that both young and old can appre-
ciate and commended the commu-
nity for the beautiful facility which
was dedicated a year ago and
named to honor the late Katherine
Neisler.
20 AAR iM
AA SRL sn i nt dbl i