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Thursday, December 4, 1997
Excited Kings Mountain High football fans react to the Mountaineers’ winning touchdown in
Friday's state 3A playoff win over Ragsdale at John Gamble Stadium. The Mountaineers travel to
Kannapolis Friday at 7:30 for the Western Championship and the right to advance to the State
Championship Game December 12 in Chapel Hill. See stories on page 1-B
Mountaineer Christmas is Friday
A Mountaineer Christmas Friday from 5-10
p.m. in downtown Kings Mountain is being
billed by the sponsoring Business and
Professional Association as "fun and merriment
for all."
"It's a Christmas tradition that began last year
it will continue forever,” said Ellis
d we ho
Battleground Avenue.
The events start at 5 p.m. on Railroad Avenue
with welcomes by Mayor Scott Neisler and KM
Business and Professional Association President
Kathy Neely. Reggie Alexander will be master of
ceremonies and "Forever Plaid" will open the en-
tertainment, singing from 5:15-5:45 p.m. and
again from 7:30-8 p.m. Other entertainment acts
from the Railroad Avenue stage include blue-
grass, gospel and Christmas music by Cross
Two stages for continuing entertainment will
be set up on Railroad Avenue and in the parking
lot. of First Union National Bank on S.
from 8:30-9 p.m., Jenny Goforth from 9 p.m.-9:20
p-m., the Long Branch Choir from 9:20-9:45 p.m.
and awards from 9:45 a.m.-10 p.m.
The Grover Elementary Multiage Class will
perform from 7:45-8:15 p.m. from the First Union
8:15-8
ta
Christmas parade.
A special presentation will feature the Bells of
Praise, the handbell choir, of Central United
stage followed by Lakey and Co. dancers from
:40 p.m. and Dance Magic from 8:45-9:10
Methodist Church at the church.
Reference from 8 to 8:30 p.m., Christy Walker's
traditional and contemporary Christian music
With only one meeting re-
maining before the new City
Council is sworn the present
seven-member board spent big
bucks Tuesday night on city im-
provements already budgeted
but splitting 4-3 on hiring two
new patrolman for the Kings
Mountain Police Department.
"Here we are again spending
money we don't have," said
Councilman Dean Spears, who
had earlier in the meeting ques-
tioned spending items.
Spears presented a substitute
motion, seconded by Phil
Hager, that the Council accept
only one of two proposed feder-
ally funded COPS grants. The
Library to
A $450,000 fund drive for a
new Children's Wing at Jacob S.
Mauney Memorial Library will
soon get underway.
Co-chairmen of the campaign
are Charles Mauney of Mauney
Hosiery; Stella Neisler Putnam
of Neisler Brothers; and Thad
Roberts of Reliance Electric.
* Kings Mountain City Council
last week established the capital
project fund. Carl Elliott of The
Sumner Group of Gastonia will
oversee the fundraising cam-
paign. :
Library Board of Trustees
Costners’ Midpines
home Christmas
showplace
See Page 5A
grants, as proposed, would
have provided $116,450 to fund
the salaries of two more officers
for three years but left the cost
of uniforms and equipment to
the local department.
Ward 2 Councilman Jerry
Mullinax made the motion that
the board accept the two grants
and pay the local share of the
cost, using drug seizure funds
or excess money appropriated
for vehicles for salary alloca-
tion. Voting with him were
Councilmen Ralph Grindstaff
and Jerry White. Voting with
Spears were Council members
Norma Bridges, Rick Murphrey
and Phil Hager.
add children's wing
Chairman Dr. Jeff Mauney an-
nounced plans for the campaign
last Tuesday which got the
unanimous approval of the
Council.
"I'm real excited. This will be
a great addition,''said Mayor
Scott Neisler.
"Not too many municipalities
own and operate their own li-
brary and this addition will up-
date our library into a state of
the art facility," Neisler said.
Librarian Rose Turner said
the addition would mean that
all children's facilities, such as
At 8:30 p.m. the Gaston County Choral Society
will perform at the Kings Mountain Woman's
Club on East Mountain Street. The Woman's Club
will be serving wassail during the presentation.
Downtown merchants and food establishments
will be open for business offering holiday shop-
pers special discount promotions.
Horse and buddy rides will depart from Loui's
Restaurant through the illuminated historic home
See Christmas, 3A
City Manager Jimmy Maney
recommended that the board
approve funding of the salary
of only one new policeman,
saying that for the three year
period the city would spend
$79,198 and after that the board
could be faced with eliminating
one of the positions.
"Could you not tell the man
hired that he is being hired un-
der a grant?” asked Mullinax.
Grindstaff and White, both for-
mer Kings Mountain police-
men, urged that the board ap-
prove the two new positions
since the city has annexed other
areas and more staff will be
needed.
Head Start, the Junior Room
and the Easy Reading room
would be housed in one area, a
2,447 square feet addition
which would also include office
space for Children's Librarian
Louise Sanders, two bathrooms
and storage rooms plus a full
basement.
. Turner said she envisions
that after the new addition is up
and operating that the front
portion of the present building
will be used for Internet access
See Library, 3A
Run-off
in Ward
Mullinax
says he may
go to court
King Mountain voters in
Ward 2 must go back to the
polls to decide the race for
Ward 2 Councilman but no date
has been set.
The State Board of Elections
on Tuesday voted unanimously
to order a new election in the
Nov. 4 race that challenger and
former commissioner Jim
Guyton lost by one vote to in-
cumbent Jerry Mullinax.
"I'm happy," said Guyton.
"There were just too many ir-
regularities.
"I'm amazed at the state
board's ruling,” Mullinax said
Wednesday.
Mullinax said he is talking to
Kings Mountain, NC Since 1889 *50¢
GUYTON
MULLINAX
an attorney for a probable ap-
peal to Superior Court of the
State Board of Election's deci-
sion.
Both Guyton and Mullinax
say they are ready to go at it
again.
Last week challenger and
former commissioner Guyton
appealed a decision by the
Cleveland County Board of
Elections to dismiss his com-
plaint of voter irregularities. He
and Mrs. Guyton went to
Raleigh on Tuesday.
DOUBLE FUN - Twins Rebekah and Ryan Ross sit on Santa's
lap during the jolly ole man's visit to the lighting of the Kings
Mountain community Christmas tree Monday night. They are the
14-months-old children of Rodney and Amy Ross of Kings
Mountain and grandchildren of Nancy and Richard Ross of
Kings Mountain, Mrs. Virginia Cawood of Mt. Airy, Md. and Mr.
and Mrs. Thomas Cawood. of Spring City, Tn.
White said after the meeting
that the board should cut back
on other items, not police.
In addition to approving one
COPS grant, the board autho-
rized the purchases of:
Three new police cars, al-
ready budgeted for fiscal year
1997-98 and to be bought under
state contract bid with one of
the vehicles to be used by the
Investigative division.
One line truck for the electric
department from Duke Power
Company at a cost of $95,000.
One commercial garbage
truck on lease purchase for the
sanitation department and two
smaller residential trucks by
Council approves only one COPS grant
vote of 6-1 with Mullinax op-
posing. Mullinax said he ap-
proved of buying more trucks
for residential users but not for
commercial.
After the meeting Mullinax
said the reason he was in oppo-
sition is "because we aren't
making any money on the com-
mercial side and we need to get
out of the commercial end of
the garbage business."
Maney said the sanitation
budget is operating with a rev-
enue shortfall of $122,000 this
year but that he anticipates that
with a new fee structure for
See Grant, 3A
Vol. 109 No. 49 9
BM CHEERING FOR A CHAMPIONSHIP
ordered
~ battle
Johnnie McLean, deputy di-
rector of the state board, said a
new election could be held in
about 75 days once it is cleared
by the U. S. Justice Department.
The County Board of
Elections voted last week after a
hearing to dismiss Guyton's
claims of irregularities at the
November 4 election because of
insufficient evidence. The board
had conducted an investigation
into Guyton's allegations that
some voters were not entitled to
vote in, Ward 2 but no voter
gave testimony or affidavits at
the hearing.
Cleveland County Director
of Elections Debra Blanton said
that two Kings Mountain voters
said they got wrong ballots in
Ward 2 but that in both cases
the situations were corrected
and they did not vote the
wrong ballots.
In the Nov.
See Guyton, 3A
Christmas
parade
Friday
Santa Claus is coming to
: : 0 90-100 uni
4 election
, city recreation di-
rector, said plans are shaping
for the holiday opening event
and the first night parade.
The parade will feature for-
mer longtime Mayor John
Henry Moss as parade marshal,
pretty girls, the Piedmont
Pistons, beauty queens and
U.S. Congresswoman = Sue
Myrick.
The parade participants will
lineup on East Gold Street in
the area of the cemetery and
City Hall and proceed to the
corner of Battlegrcund, turn
right in front of Kiser's
Restaurant to the overhead
bridge, turn right on King
Street and disband on Deal
Street in the area of Kentucky
Fried Chicken.
Floats made by Kings
Mountain area people will be
judged and three winners will
be selected to receive trophies,
says Hord. The Parks &
Recreation Commission is spon-
soring the event.
A big fireworks extravaganza
to be presented by the Kings
Mountain Fire Department
near the end of the five-hour "A
Mountaineer Christmas" festivi-
ties which start promptly at 5
p-m. Downtown stores will be
open to accommodate shop-
pers.
See Parade, 3A
See page 4B
Joe Bell sets KMHS
scoring records
The history of the
Christmas tree
See page 4A