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VOL. 106 NO. 50
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Thursday, December 15, 1994
after a lengthy discussion.
Developer Jim
matter.
Lybrand, who entered
Council Chambers late in the discussion, did not
comment and was not recognized by City
Planning Director Gene White to comment in the
Engineer hired to inspect project
City Council voted 6-0 Tuesday night to em-
ploy the W. K. Dickson engineering firm to in-
spect the Downing Street Extension Subdivision
in an effort to clear up on an ongoing dispute over
reimbursement for installation of utilities but only
Councilmen Rick Murphrey and Dean Spears
questioned calling in an outside engineer when
Lybrand had employed the local firm of Moretz
Engineering. Spears also questioned why Public
Works Dupt. Karl Moss couldn't handle the ques-
tions about the roadway.
"This matter has been handled piece meal
from day one and is an ongoing situation that
needs to be handled once and for all," said
Planning Director Gene White.
Mayor Scott Neisler agreed with White that the
Dickson firm should be employed to make rec-
ommendations to the board.
Councilman Ralph Grindstaff was absent.
See Engineer, 16-A
ast,
a
United Fund drive
goes over the top
Kings Mountain citizens got
an early Christmas present
Tuesday with the news that
Kings Mountain United Fund's
goal for 1994 is over the top.
Chairman Nancy Scism and
UF President Jay Rhodes con-
gratulated volunteers at the an-
nual celebration luncheon at
Holiday Inn.
"At 11:30 a.m. this morning
we can officially report that our
goal of $125,145 is over the
top," said Scism.
She took the occasion to
praise drive leaders and particu-
larly the industrial segment of
the drive which collected over
Pp ee
Dan Thompson; advance gifts
"O My God they didn't get
out,” were the first words that
Esther Wingo said when she
saw her mother-in-law's burning
the Oak Grove
“Community Sunday.
Sarah Crockett, 90, of Angel
“Road, and Hunter Phifer, in his
: 80's, owe their lives to Casar
: volunteer
firemen Danny
- McCurry and Gary Willis who
just happened to be in the area.
Crockett and Phifer suffered
Two more
- Two more members of the
city zoning board - David
“Faunce and Joe King - resigned
last week, bringing the number
to three who have quit the board
in the past several weeks.
Joe Smith, a former member
of both the Planning and Lake
Commission, resigned recently
- due to personal reasons.
Faunce, an executive of
Mauney Hosiery, and King, a
former law enforcement officer,
-ider
Firemen rescue e
chairman Kyle Smith; commer-
cial co-chairmen Ronnie
Whetstine and Elaine Grigg;
professional division chairman
Tom Tate; ministerial chairman
Rev. Harold Schwantes, schools
chairman Ronnie Wilson who
said the schools reached an all
time high in giving; City of
Kings Mountain chairman
Maxine Parsons; hospital chair-
man Hank Neal; and publicity
chairman Lib Stewart.
Rhodes presented a plaque to
Mrs. Scism and she, in turn,
presented a plaque to Rhodes.
Mrs. Scism will serve as pres-
smoke inhalation and were tak-
en to Kings Mountain Hospital
and transferred to Carolinas
Medical Center.
The elderly couple apparently
suffered no ill effects from the
blaze which started from a pan
of grease on a wood stove
knocked in the floor.
Carl Wingo, Mrs. Crockett's
son, moved the couple to his
brother Robert Crockett's fur-
nished mobile home Tuesday
resigned after the recent City
Council meeting at which
Council overruled recommen-
dations of the committee in two
zoning matters.
"Evidently, zoning is simply
a political issue rather than a
thoughtful process considerate
of neighbors, neighborhoods,
continuity of growth and the
rights of the property owners,"
Faunce wrote City Planning
Director Gene White, who
SVBK Consulting Group of
Charlotte was hired by Kings
Mountain City Council Tuesday
to audit the city's four utility
systems.
City Manager Chuck Nance
said the proposal is for a turn-
key job with an estimated 200
to 300 man hours. :
He said 80 percent of the
work will be done by a senior
analyst at a cost of $65 an hour
and a projected total cost esti-
mate of between $13.000 and
$20,000.
The recommendation to hire
the Charlotte firm over three
other bidders for the work was
made by the city utilities com-
Iderly C
Hees
ouple from bu
afternoon and Mrs. Wingo went
shopping for new clothes for the
burned-out family.
"They are very lucky," said
Mrs. Wingo, who was returning
from Mount Zion Baptist
Church about 5:40 p.m. Sunday
when she saw the black smoke
coming from the area of Scism
Road.
"Old buildings go down
quick and this house is wood
frame," said Mrs. Wingo.
serves as secretary to the
Council-appointed Zoning
board.
"The present city commis-
sioners do not have an under-
standing of the process, ignore
recommendations of the zoning
board and have not planned nor
are planning for the future of
Kings Mountain.
"Kings Mountain's future is
in desperate straits."
King did not give a specific
Betty Cloninger, 49, died Monday
Betty Cloninger lost her fight
. with cancer Monday.
The 49-year-old Kings
: Mountain homemaker died at
her home after battling bone
cancer with an attitude that
gained her the respect and ad-
miration of many people who
called her after her story of her
"biggest challenge” appeared in
The Herald on August 11.
So optimistic that she could
andergo a bone marrow trans-
plant and return to her normal
routines, Betty never gave up.
Time ran out after her condi-
tion worsened recently and she
was unable to puisue the one
chance in four that her brother
might be the perfect match.
A fast-growing tumor
wrapped around her spinal cord
was diagnosed six months ago
as Multiple Myeloma. She had
to have immediate surgery,
rounds of treatments and finally
the hope that she could find the
donor for a life-saving trans-
plant.
BETTY CLONINGER
Betty's dream to celebrate a
traditional family Christmas and
her fourth wedding anniversary
ended in her death at home
December 12, 1994. Her hus-
band, Tony Cloninger, was at
her side as were other members
of the close-knit family.
Her pastor, Rev. John
Futterer, will conduct the funer-
al service Thursday at 11 a.m. at
Resurrection Lutheran Church
of which she was a member.
Burial will be in Mountain Rest
Cemetery.
A native of Norfolk, Va.,
Betty Huntley Plonk Cloninger
was the daughter of the late
George Huntley and Ruth
Huntley Hendley. In addition to
her husband, she is survived by
three sons, Steve Plonk of
Newport Richie, Fla., and Chad
and Chris Plonk of Kings
Mountain; three step-sons, Tony
Lee Cloninger Sr. of Denver,
Darin Cloninger of Jacksonville
and Michael Cloninger of
Denver; one daughter, Terri
Byers of Shelby; one step-
daughter, Merridith Sherrill of
Denver; one brother, Bob
Huntley of Wilmington; one
grandchild, Brock Byers; and
nine step-grandchildren, Erick,
Andrea, Jyme, Rhyn, Adam,
Trent and Taylor Cloninger and
Brittani and Byron Sherrill.
“It's just a blessing that they
both got out."
County fire inspector Perry
Davis said that McCurry and
Willis were at the home of
Neal Scism, chief of the Oak
Grove Volunteer Fire
Department, to pick up horse
shoes. The two were waiting for
Scism to return home when they
noticed the black smoke about a
mile away.
See Fire, 14-A
members of Zoning Board resign
reason for his resignation.
Faunce has served on the
board for six years.
King's one-year term was up
in December.
Other members of the board
are Murray Pruette, chairman;
Billy Houze and Lou Ballew,
representing inside-city resi-
dents, and Roger Goforth, rep-
resenting the city's Cleveland
County extra territorial jurisdic-
tion.
Kings Mountain, NC 28086 « 50¢
Consultant hired to audit utilities
mittee at a meeting Monday
night.
Other bidders were Utility
Concepts Inc., Cherry, Bekaert
and Holland CPA's of Gastonia,
and Southeastern Consulting
Engineers Inc.
Nance said the audit will be-
gin after January 1 and will in-
volve data collection, including
central billing history data of all
electric, gas, water and sewer
industrial and commercial ac-
counts with a sampling of resi-
dential accounts. The audit
would also determine if com-
puters are cpmputing correctly
with a thorough check of all
rate codes and multipliers.
The Charlotte auditors just
completed work for the City of
Gastonia and have completed
rate analyses for Schedule 10
cities and for Duke Power.
The hiring of the audit firm
was recommended by Council
last month as it took steps to
correct problems in overbilling
and underbilling of electrical
accounts.
Councilman Rick Murphrey
recommended that Nance ask
Utility Concepts about doing a
rate study. He said the ground-
work for the study would be
laid with the audit of all the util-
ities.
Smoking policy
passes by 3-2 vote
A split vote of 3-2 by the
Board of Education Monday
will allow school employees to
smoke tobacco outside the
school buildings out of sight of
students.
Ronnie Hawkins and
Shearra Miller objected but
their motions to restrict employ-
ees from smoking, except as
spectators, failed.
New board chairman B.S.
Peeler, Connie Allison and
Billy Houze voted to take the
recommendation of Supt. Dr.
Bob McRae and the personnel
a
about teachers being /#% mod-
els for students. Milley’ iid that
the system should pr: bo tise
use of tobacco at all &%°/% 4
employees on duty Bit rl k
should be allowed to smoke’
with all spectators at outdoor
events.
"I have not tried to sway any
other member's vote on this
matter," said Miller.
Peeler said he didn't smoke
but he thought smoking neither
illegal nor immoral. "I can see
the teachers just climbing the
walls if we tell them they can't
smoke and the effect it would
have on the students."
If the government is so hep-
ped up about non-smoking it
should make it illegal."
Wells said the new legislation
speaks to the issue of smoking
tobacco only and is due to ques-
tions of health.
Said Miller,"I am not here to
debate the issue but there is a
health factor involved and the
role model factor to consider. A
teacher's responsibility, in my
See Smoking, 14-A
Miller, outgoing chairméy.
said she had strong feelings
4
Peeler selected
board chairman
Retired teacher and lumber- |
man B. S. Peeler was elected
chairman of the Kings
Mountain Board of Education
Monday night as the board reor-
ganized for the coming year.
Outgoing chairman Shearra
Miller was elected vice-chair-
man.
Miller made the nomination
of Peeler, who has served three
years on the board.
0 ember | (] Cor
Xtra
fA who can devo
11 "the job," said Miller. She said
that Peeler is strongly commit-
ted to the public and the school
system.
C.A. Allison seconded the
motion and the vote was 4-0.
Billy Houze then nominated
Miller and Ronnie Hawkins
seconded the motion and the
vote was 4-0.
Peeler said after his election
that he appreciated the confi-
dence of the board.
"I pledge to give all the time
necessary to do what is neces-
sary for the betterment of the
children, placing them first in
all my decisions and then the
schools," he said.
"I will make myself available
to all," he said.
A native of Kings Mountain,
Peeler is the son of the late Mr.
and Mrs. B. S. Peeler Sr. He has
been active in numerous Civic
organizations and in Central
United Methodist Church.
Miller, who is also serving
her first term on the board, is
the wife of Bridges Hardware
: "All of us agree that each of
an devote extra time
See Chairman, 14-A
INTRAMURAL PROGRAM TOPS - Members of the health and physical education department at
Kings Mountain Middle School accept a plaque from Board of Education Chairman B. S. Peeler after the
school was recently
Candi Albergine, David Hefner, Audrey Harris and Peeler.
honored for the best middle school intramural program in North Carolina. From left,