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ian
February 18,1999
MERGER
From 1A
whatsoever to be improved in a
merged system. However, on
balance, I think the negatives
= outweigh the potential bene-
its.”
McRae said merged systems
would result in a lack of close-
ness presently enjoyed by the
Kings Mountain~ schools.
“Bigger implies to me loss of
the personal touch we have be-
tween our schools and the com-
munity,” he said.
“I can’t see any geographical
benefit that inclusion of Kings
Mountain would bring to a
merged situation,” said McRae.
“Our students could not be
used to solve any unusual pop-
ulation challenges that exist in
the other two systems.
“It’s simplistic to assume that
merger would cost less. While,
for example one superintendent
as opposed to three, there are
many other funding inequities
that imply additional funds. I
work for the Kings Mountain
Board of Education and I will
support whatever direction it
chooses to pursue,” he said.
B. S. Peeler said he feared
Kings Mountain Schools would
be lost in a mega school formed
by merger.
“I have always taken the
stand that until someone could
prove to me that merger would
be beneficial to the Kings
Mountain School District I
would not support any move-
ment to push forward the merg-
er of the three school systems.
“Our board has investigated
most of the recent mergers in
the state and the Causby/Boyd
Associates June 1995 Study of
the recent mergers. Our con-
tacts with the schools and the
Causby/Boyd Study confirm
our remarks that the costs and
administrative personnel after
merger were greater than before
merger. The local schools felt
that they had lost their freedom
to perform their jobs. The redis-
tricting of the larger school dis-
tricts have a definite negative
effect on the closeness of the
schools in the community.
Kings Mountain Schools would
not benefit from a merger of the
Cleveland County, Shelby City
and Kings Mountain District
Schools. :
No one has proved to me that
a merger ‘would benefit our
‘school system in‘any way,” said
Peeler.
Bolin said there are 117
school systems in the 100 coun-
ties of the state and Cleveland
County has three.
“I feel the county needs only
one administrative unit and
consolidating our resources and
administrations would be a
more efficient use of the tax dol-
lars than funding separate sys-
tems,” she said.
Vice-chairman Shearra Miller
disagrees with the concept that
a merger will automatically
save money.
“I do not believe that consoli-
dating the three school systems
into one large system merely for
financial reasons would be in
the best interest of the children.
“Many people assume that a
merger of this type will auto-
matically save money.
“This has not been proven in
other counties where merger
has taken place. I also feel there
are many other issues to be con-
Prayer for U.S.
(Ed. Note: This prayer for
the United States by President
George Washington was taken
from “Writings of
Washington” by Editor
Leicester Ford, and submitted
by Rev. Edgar Cooper of Kings
Mountain).
“Almighty God: We make
our earnest prayer that Thou
wilt keep the United States in
Thy holy protection; that Thou
wilt incline the hearts of the citi-
zens to cultivate a spirit of sub-
: ordination and obedience to
government; and entertain a
brotherly affection and love for
one another and for their fellow
citizens of the United States at
large.
“And finally that Thou wilt
most graciously be pleased to
dispose us all to do justice, to
love mercy and to demean our-
selves with that charity, humili-
ty, and pacific temper of mind
which were the characteristics
of the Divine Author of our
blessed religion, and without a
humble imitation of whose ex-
ample in these things we can
never hope to be a happy na-
tion. Grant our supplication, we
beseech Thee, through Jesus
Christ our Lord. Amen.”
Ei
sidered such as local supple-
ments, administrative buildings
and instructional program dif-
ferences. I believe that we can
continue to work together with
the other systems in certain ar-
eas such as transportation,
Smart Start, Head Start,
Davidson School, North Shelby
School, Job Ready and any oth-
ers that would be appropriate.
“If an outside independent
study proved that consolidating
the schools woud improve the
instructional program for our
children then I would be willing
to consider this option but until
that happens I simply cannot
believe that bigger is necessari-
ly better,” said Miller.
‘Why merge the school sys-
tems of Cleveland County?”
asked Dr. Larry Allen. “What
_ does Kings Mountain gain by
being a part of merger discus-
sions?”
Allen said consolidation is an
issue that has been discussed
many times by prior school
boards and studied by several
outside groups and the same
conclusion was drawn by all.
“Consolidation is not the most
- efficient method of operating
our school system,” he said.
Allen said he has never been
a proponent of merging the
school systems and feels that
the best interest of the Kings
Mountain District Schools can
best be served by maintaining
our local autonomy as a sepa-
rate school system.
“Bigger is not always best,”
says Allen, who said he felt the
general consensus of Kings
Mountain citizens has been to
keep our schools identity and to .
have local access to board mem-
bers, administration and to be a
part of operating our own
school system.
“I will continue this focus
and position with the local
- board,” said Allen.
Board Chairman Ronnie
Hawkins said the Board of
Education is on record as being
opposed to merger of the Kings
Mountain District Schools. He
said the issue of merger has
risen many times over the years
he has served on the board and
each time board members ask
themselves, “would consolida-
tion be in the best interest of
our children? Is consolidation
what the people of Kings
Mountain want?”
“I believe that a. small com-
munity oriented school system
assures our children of the best
in educational opportunities”
said Hawkins. “This allows par-
ents to be more involved with
those whose responsibility it is
to make decisions regarding
their children’s education.”
Hawkins quoted Dr. Dobson
and Dr. Bauer of “Focus on the
Family” who have stated that
“public schools offered more
for children when we had many
small school systems, not large.
He said an independent study
not related to Cleveland County
has shown that merged systems
in North Carolina are in the red
and not necessarily doing all
that well academically.
“Since the Shelby Star began
its editorials about merger I
have again been told repeatedly
that the citizens of Kings
Mountain do not want merger.
“1 will continue to support
Kings Mountain District schools
as a single system. It has proven
to me that it can be successful in
meeting the needs of the chil-
dren that it serves and that the
board and administration are
willing to listen to the parents
and community,” said
- Hawkins.
Herald/Times
HISTORY
From 1A
The Pauline’s street access
and full utilities are a big plus,
he said.
Bunch said when he bought
the mills much of the textile ma-
chinery was still usable. He
started selling equipment to
companies in Canada and
South America. Fire losses at
the sites amounted to about
$600,000 and since the buildings
were not occupied there was no
insurance. At the Margrace site
the Bunches say they plan to
spend about $200,000 more in
the drying and finishing areas
with the hope of attracting new
industry.
Walking through the largest
building at 3000 Margrace
Road, Johnny Bunch talked
about the active warehouse
rented by Reliance Electric. The
building provides storage for
frames, housing and parts for
the industrial electric motors
Reliance manufactures. Bunch
also services the warehouse.
Kelly and Bernice Bunch
started the family business with
a machine shop in 1969 that be-
came the present company of-
fices and a welding and fabrica-
tion facility on Grover Road.
From the time they bought
the two plants 14 years ago
Kelly Bunch says they have
worked to restore the 80-year-
old properties, built by industri-
alist Charles Eugene Neisler Sr.
about the end of World War 1.
The Neislers sold the mills in
1955 to Massachusetts Mohair
Plush and the Teamsters Union
closed the mills in the late 1970s
putting many Kings Mountain
people out of jobs.
“Jimmy Dickey used to tell us
stories about the old Margrace,”
said Johnny Bunch, a vice presi-
dent of Bunch Inc. Dickey was
plant superintendent at one
time and used to keep goats to
mow the grass in one of the
many warehouses on the
sprawling Margrace properties.
“About six months after Dad
bought the property we went
into the white house and there
was this baby goat who had
survived all that time,” said
Johnny.
The Reliance space is one
example of what Johnny Bunch
says Kings Mountain people
can’t see from the street side.
“Although on some parts, of
the property it looks like junk
but most of it is re-saleable,”
says Bunch. Salvaging alu-
minum, copper, etc could re-
coup some of the cleanup ex-
penses.
Before rebuilding could begin
at the site the Bunches cleared
and hauled off debris for over
three years.
“The Reliance warehouse has
walls 18 inches thick and six
million bricks,” said Bunch who
said the cost today to lay that
much brick would be $2.4 mil-
lion.
Bunch plans to build a new
building inside those walls on a
new poured concrete founda-
tion.
“I never see the ruins of a tex-
tile empire when I walk over
this property, I remember it
when I was a kid growing up
here,” said Johnny Bunch.
Bunch said his family wants
to save that nostalgia by restor-
ing the mills. ;
Like his father, Johnny Bunch
has a dream for rebuilding a
piece of history.
plaints from neighbors. ..
i ELIZABETH STEWART / THE HERALD
Samantha Taylor cleans brick at Pauline Mill in Kings Mountain
City Council to hold hearing
on condemnation of KM mills
the brick to Baton Rouge for possible building
projects in the Louisiana historic sections.
Tilley says he can clear out the debris at the
Pauline site in 30 days. He is salvaging what he
can and recycling materials, taking out the metal
and wood first. He estimated it will take four to
five months to clean the bricks.
Rejuvenation of the Pauline mill started in
mid-November. The Bunches are in process of
renovating a warehouse. Tilley estimated it will
cost him about $35,000 to demolish and haul off
debris from the site. Bunch had hoped to save
the brick shell and build upscale condominiums
in it but neighbors opposed. Tilley will remove
the hull of the old mill but two smaller buildings,
an office and a garage are intact. The restored
warehouse is topped by a new galvanized roof ;
and new aluminized steel siding. {
At the Margrace plant six buildings have been
rebuilt, reroofed and meet codes.
“They are not Hiltons but they are usable,”
says Kelly Bunch.
The old machine shop has been reroofed and
painted and will soon house the Bunch welding
business. The tin building has been reroofed.
Window guards are on all the restored buildings.
Vandals have shot out windows at the older
buildings with bb guns and the window treat-
ment will eliminate that problem, according to
Bunch. A 200 feet long section of the plant is in
process of going up and steel beams are on the
ground.
Johnny Bunch redesigned the once flat roof at
the Margrace to elevated steel and it now houses
the 13,500 square feét active Reliance warehouse
( sprees ed wis oO which has been up and running for two years.
Bunch said he has shown city officials’a copy of 7 Kelly Bunch said it had taken years to take big A
his October 12, 1998 contract for $1 with David looms that weigh more than an automobile from
Tilley of D. R. T. Service Co. to demolish the ‘the Margrace plant and estimated that as much as
Pauline buildings and clear the property within 350 tractor trailer loads of equipment had been
one year. : : hauled off.
Tilley was on the Pauline site this week. He and Some of the looms that came out of the old
his daughter, Samantha Taylor and Jim McCoy Margrace and Pauline Mills were manufactured
were cleaning the white brick which Tilley calls in 1898. When the Pauline Mill was torched the
New Orleans brick. Tilley said he plans to ship looms were destroyed.
99 NEON
Air Conditioning,
C3240, Stereo Radio,
Tinted Glass
Shelby List $13,808
City Council will conduct a public hearing
Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. on an appeal from Kelly and
Bernice Bunch not to condemn the old Margrace
and Pauline Mills they bought jn 1985.
The “repair and demolish” order was issued
September 18, 1998 by then-chief building in-
spector Andy Scoggins. The order targets six of 13
buildings on the 24-acre Margrace site and four
buildings, some fire damaged, at the three acre
Pauline site on Waco Road. The inspectors cited
unfit and unsafe areas.at both locations.
Johnny Bunch, vice-president of Bunch Inc.,
said he will present evidence of compliance with
the terms of the order and engineering drawings
for proposed improvements at Tuesday’s meet-
ing.
neil has three options, according to City
Attorney Mickey Corry. Council can uphold the
order, modify it or nullify it. Since the building
inspector position is vacant, Council could also
“start from scratch.”
Over objections of Councilman Rick Murphrey,
Council voted last month to set the hearing on
motion of Jerry Mullinax, whose district is home
to the Pauline Mill. Mullinax has pushed for clean
up of the Pauline site.
Murphrey said at the meeting he had visited
both the sites and had seen improvements and
was particularly impressed with the improve-
ments at Margrace. “You really can’t see from the
street what's going on behind that chain link
fence,” he said.
Bunch said he is complying with a schedule
that was submitted last year when Mullinax
called forthe cleanup after he said he had com- 1/4
5 SE
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