Member
North Carolina Press Association
Says he will "absolutely look at all future bids
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Attorney lays down law to KM City Counci
City Council took an improper
vote last Tuesday when it rebid a
$2 million Peak Generation Plant
project but City Attorney Mickey
Corry told City Council Sunday it
won't happen again.
"I absolutely want to look at all
bid packages from now on before
How high's
the water?
It could rise 10%
in '96-'97 budget
Water and sewer bills could go
up about 10 percent and garbage
collection could be cut to once a
week ‘if City Council agrees
Sunday at 2 p.m. with city admin-
istrators figuring the proposed
$19.3 million budget.
The proposed 1996-97 budget
calls for no increase in the 40 cents
per $100 valuation property taxes,
no increases in gas and electric ser-
vices and provides a 3 percent cost
of living raise to the 160-plus city
employees.
Hicks said a typical combined
bill would run about $1 more
monthly and outside residents
would bear the bulk of the in-
crease.
"It's a no-frills and hold the line
budget," says City Manager Gary
Hicks. who said the budget is up
See Water, 10-A
Council takes action on them," he
told the board.
"I could have said whoa but I
had no information to back up my
opinion," he said.
At Corry's urging, the Council
voted unanimously to rescind the
awarding of a low bid of 4.77 per-
cent, 1 percent lower than the orig-
inally accepted bid, to BB&T
Leasing Corporation.
"I received information Friday
after the Tuesday meeting," he told
the full Council at Sunday's special
meeting.
Although the revote on the fi-
isi
“nancial package for the power
plant was taken reluctantly by
Council last week, it passed unani-
mously. Three Council members -
Jerry Mullinax, Norma Bridges and
Phil Hager - expressed concern
about taking a vote again on the
same project after it had already
The City Hall fountain is a real temptation for youngsters who can't resist the water in summer weath-
er. Kathy Martin, 4, and Rebecca Martin, 2, children of Mr. ‘and M#s. Don Martin, tried with no luck to
get their aunt, Brenda Martin, above, to help them in the water.
Kings Mountain People
Phone calls in the dead of night
usually bring bad news.
This was the case at least with
Lt. Curtis Sims, 33, during his ear-
ly years on the Kings Mountain
Rescue Squad.
It could vary, the badness of the
call - from a heart attack or noti-
fication of a grinding automobile
accident to a call from a woman
with a splinter in her child's finger.
"The thing we had to remember
after we awakened at two or three
in the morning and dressed in a
flash was knowing that you were
helping somebody who needed it."
Sims said he will never forget
one experience nine years ago. The
Rescue Squad got the call that a
teenager hiking with a church
group to tne top of Kings Mountain
had plunged 30 feet during a late
"...our job is to be there
and give the help we are
all trained to give.”
-KM Rescuer Curtis Sims
' afternoon thunderstorma
"We went halfway up the moun-
tain in the crash truck and brought
the boy back in a basket," said
Sims. Also assisting in the rescue
were the Kings Mountain and
Bethlehem Fire Departments.
The boy suffered some injuries
but recuperated and is now 23
years old. Occasionally Sims hears
from the family who moved from
the Kings Mountain .area after the
accident.
Drownings, crib deaths, and
fires claimed lives and Sims said
he and rescuers had seen the trau-
ma and the pain of death. During
the past 18 months Sims lost his
mother and grandparents on both
sides of his family.
Sims there when you need him
"We all know what is to lose
loved ones but our job is to be
there and give the help we all are
trained to give," he said.
Sims joined the Kings Mountain
Rescue Squad as a rookie 14 years
ago when Gene Champion was
Captain.
His first real call was from a rel-
ative of a woman who had suffered
cardiac arrest. At that time there
were emergency medical techni-
cians on the squad but no
paramedics and women had not yet
joined the ranks. Today the all-vol-
unteer squad has three paramedics,
including one woman, 8 interme-
diates skilled in advanced care and
able to administer IVs and nine
emergency medical technicians.
The Squad is equipped with four
bul:
BID ances See Sims, 2-A
KM High
graduates
190 seniors
A total of 190 Kings Mountain
High School graduating seniors re-
ceived their diplomas during 1996
commencement exercises Friday
night at John Gamble Stadium.
Principal Phil Weathers an-
nounced during the program that
two seniors- Kristy Peterson and
Christie Hughes - had tied for vale-
dictorian of the Class of 1996.
Miss Peterson, who gave the
valedictory address, challenged her
classmates to use the knowledge
they received during 12 years of
schooling to pursue more goals and
recounted some of the changes in
recent years at the high school, fo-
cusing her remarks on new block
scheduling.
"All the students on the program
did a wonderful job and I was
proud of each one," said Weathers
who congratulated this year's se-
nior class and said his specific re-
membrance of the seniors would be
of their leadership roles in the
school and community. He said
that students won a high number of
scholarships this year.
been approved.
But both City Manager Gary
Hicks and Finance Officer Maxine
Parsons said the Local Government
Commission had turned down a bid
approval in April for financing of
the new Peak Generation Power fa-
cility which city officials say
would reduce the ‘wholesale cost of
electricity to city customers and for
which the city plans to issue rev-
enue bonds to pay for the North
Gaston Street peak shaving facility. *
Between the April vote and
May's meeting, Parsons was noti-
See Attorney, 2-A
Grindstaff: City
needs team players
City Councilman Ralph
Grindstaff didn't mince words
Sunday.
"If you aren't a team player and
can't communicate we don't need
you," he said to virtually all City of
Kings Mountain Department heads
attending a special City Council
meeting.
Grindstaff said City Council has
no authority to hire and fire. But he
said "we have ways."
Grindstaff made his remarks af-
ter questions were raised by
Council as it prepared to take an-
other vote on a bid for financing of
a high dollar peak shaving plant.
"This isn't the first time I've
heard comments that some em-
ployees don't communicate and op-
erate independently about city mat-
ters.
"If I am stepping on toes I don't
apologize."
Grindstaff prefaced the discus-
sions on the upcoming budget by
making four recommendations.
He said he considered it vital
that the board adopt a more conser-
vative budget than last year and
include the 8 percent fund balance
the North Carolina Local
Government Commission has
rapped the city hard for several
years to maintain.
Eliminate the Kings Mountain
Board of Elections office and turn
those responsibilities over to
Cleveland County.
Start saving money for a new
Kings Mountain Law Enforcement
Center.
A $200,000 budget for Mauney
Memorial Library, used by all resi-
dents of the county, is excessive, he
said, suggesting that the city ask
the county to share expenditures of
its operation.
Mayor Scott Neisler said the city
should receive in the next day or
two a proposal from the Cleveland
County Board of Elections to run
city elections. He also said he has
asked county commissioners to
budget more funds for Mauney
Memorial Library.
Kings Mountain High seniors march from the school to John es. One hundred and ninety seniors received their diploma.
Gamble Stadium Friday night for the annual commencement exercis-
Capital outlay
requests studied
Capital outlay requests expected
to be approved in the proposed
1996-97 city budget are led by the
city's electric department where
$475,511 is budgeted for the pro-
posed Peak Generation plant on
North Gaston Street and where
$100 000 is budgeted for a bucket
truck and $120,000 for a line truck.
The water/sewer budget in-
cludes $110,000 for the Beason
Creek Street move, $10,000 for a
Northside 30-inch project, $40,400
for a roof for the water plant and
$40,000 for a new dump truck.
A large part of the gas budget is
to be funded from revenue bonds,
including the Jamestown
Subdivision, the Country Creek
Subdivision and the Southside ex-
pansion for a total of $173,000. In
addition, Firestone extension lines
at $30,000, the Oak Grove line ex-
tension at $70,000 and the
Highway 74 Extension Phase I at
$42,000 round out the budget fig-
ures. ; ;
A new item in the Police budget
is earmarked for a design study for
a new Police building at cost of
$15,000. The Police Department is
also budgeted to get $7,000 in ra-
dio equipment. :
An air pack ungrade for $1500
was okayed for the fire department
but far no money has been appro-
priated for a new fire truck.
A request for computer equip-
ment of $10,000 for the library was
turned down and a request of
$20,000 for building repairs at
Moss Lake was cut in half.
The Parks & Recreation
Department request for a computer
and printer was also cut from
$5000 to $2500 and the finance de-
partment's request for two comput-
ers was cut to one computer, copier
and printer for purchasing at
See Budget, 10-A
Brown
denied
permits
All 14 East Ridge Street proper-
ty owners who are neighbors of the
proposed rezoning area that devel-
oper Mike Brown plans to build
houses have signed a petition re-
questing a change in the zoning
from R-8, which Brown requests,
to R-10.
The R-10 designation would
limit Brown to building only sin-
gle family dwellings in10,000
square feet lots. :
Planning Director Steve Killian
turned down several permit re-
quests from Brown this week.
Killian said he was able to issue
only one permit until after the re-
zoning matter is resolved.
Brown is also requesting rezon-
ing of residential property that
fronts on East King Street to gens
eral business to put up a bowliffg
alley and movie house.
Brown says he has invested
more than $100,000 in the proper-
ties and plans to develop it.
The Planning and Zoning Board
will meet on the rezoning matter
See Petition, 2-A