Thursday, November 30, 2000
KINGS MOUNTAIN
Vol. 112 No. 48
Since 1889
50 Cents
City receives $630,000
Others have
10 days to
upset bid
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
City Council voted 5-2
Tuesday night to receive an of-
fer from Sea Island Company,
Downtown
incentive
program
approved
By GARY STEWART
Editor of The Herald
In an effort to stimulate
downtown growth and busi-
ness activity, City Council
Tuesday night unanimously ap-
proved a Downtown
Development Incentive Policy.
The program would offer
matching grants in three sepa-
rate areas: facade improvement,
development inducement, and
customer inducement.
Mayor Rick Murphrey ap-
pointed a committee to work
with property owners and ten-
ants on the grant criteria and
application process, in keeping
with a historical theme. | __..
However, grants must be ap-
proved by City Council.
The committee consists of
Bernice Chappel, Holly
Galloway, Johnny Harris Linda
Allen and Robert Smith.
Facade grants would be a
maximum of $6,000, or $5,000 if
the property is not fully compli-
ant within its historical context.
Development inducement
grants would be a maximum of
2% of approved expenditures
but could be doubled if it is ful-
ly compliant with its historical
context.
Customer inducement grants
would be based on the number
of utility customers added in
the downtown project, and the
maximum grant would be
$1,000 per utility customer.
A maximum grant for a pro-
ject that includes at least
$10,000 of facade work,
$100,000 of non-facade con-
struction work and creates a net
two additional utility cus-
tomers, would be $11,800.
Ultimately, the grants would be
controlled through the city’s
budgetary process. Mayor Rick
Murphrey suggested that when
the first applications are re-
ceived, that the city put aside
“$25,000 to $30,000” for induce-
ment grants. He anticipates the
program to be up and running
by the second quarter of next
year.
“This will encourage new
business in downtown, he said,
“and those that are already es-
tablished to expand and up-
grade, and will reward them for
their investment.”
The benefit to the city, he
said, would be more jobs, more
activity, and more tax base in
the downtown area.
The downtown area, as de-.
scribed in the program, basical-
ly includes the areas from King
to East Gold (and down
Battleground to Clark Tire), and
the areas between Gaston Street
and Cansler Street including
First National Bank and Bridges
Hardware.
Murphrey said as the pro-
gram grows, so will the steering
committee and the city’s efforts
to assist with the master plan.
LLC to purchase the old City
and Davidson lakes and to ad-
vertise for upset bids.
Other firms have ten days in
which to offer a bid of more
than Sea Island's offer of
$630,000. If an upset bid is not
received, Council may accept
Sea Island's offer to purchase
the lakes as early as its
December 12 meeting.
Councilmen Carl DeVane and
Bob Hayes voted against selling
the lakes, noting that they
3g
The warm, sunny weather yesterday br
photo at left, neighbors Louise Gillespie,
Patterson of the Patterson Grove Commun
several generations.
would be more valuable to the
city for recreation and other
purposes.
Sea Island had made the offer
to Council at its October meet-
ing, but Council authorized
Attorney Mickey Corry to nego-
© tiate the time frame for closing,
which originally was almost a
year, and the amount of earnest
money that would be returned
to Sea Island if it does not carry
through with the deal. Corry re-
ported Monday that the dead-
: HB GETTING READY FOR WINTER
ought Kings Mountain people outside to get th
left, and Janie Collins of Kings Mountain spent the day raking leaves. At right, Gene
ity was chopping wood to heat a greenhouse on the farm his family has owned for
line for closing would be 60
days on the City lake, and 90
days on the Davidson lake. A
deposit of 5% of the bid price
($15,000 for City lake and
$16,500 for Davidson) is re-
quired and the city Sea Island
would forfeit 50% of the deposit
or “work product” services
such as environmental studies,
wetland surveys and dam sur-
veys, if the deal is not closed.
Sea Island has indicated it
would use the lakes for residen-
id for 1akes
tial development. Both are
zoned R-10 (single family
dwellings).
City Manager Jimmy Maney
pointed out that the lakes are no
longer necessary as a water
supply, nor are they sufficient
for back-up in a crisis situation
because the old Deal Street
treatment plant has been torn
down and costs to pipe the wa-
ter to Moss Lake for treatment
would be astronomical. Besides,
the lake’s capacity is only equal
ALAN HODGE / THE HERALD
ings in order for the coming winter. in
Christmas rush is on
People hitting the stores
BY ALAN HODGE
Staff Writer
With Santa’s visit just a few
weeks away, people are hitting
the stores in record numbers.
Interestingly, this year’s hot
ticket gifts are proving to be a
mixture of high tech and nostal-
gia.
“Barbie dolls and the Barbie
VW car has been a very good
seller this season,” says Suzie
Muter of Wal-Mart in Shelby.
“Other hot toys include Poo-chi
the robot dog and Diva Starz in-
teractive doll.”
Muter also says that scooters
are on a lot of kid’s Santa lists
this year. A far cry from the
scooters of old which were of-
_ ten constructed out of an or-
ange crate, plank, and discard-
ed roller skate, today’s scooters
feature aircraft aluminum
frames, urethane wheels, and
adjustable controls. Most mod-
els fold easily for storage. Prices
for these sidewalk screamers
vary from $40 to $90.
On the electronics scene,
Radio Shack in Cleveland Mall
reports that one of their most
popular items this year is a de-
vice for golfers that measures
See Shop, 3A
Common sense safety tips
BY ALAN HODGE
Staff Writer
Though the holiday season is
supposed to be a time of merri-
ment, failing to follow some |
common sense precautions
could turn those days into may-
hem. Though there’s no need
to become a nervous Nellie over
Christmas safety, being on top
of several situations could
spell the difference between
“ho-ho” and “oh-no.”
A good place to start a
Yuletide safety program is with
the Christmas tree. Unless it’s
from a “choose and cut” opera-
Those Dalmatians are pretty,
but they don’t make good pets
BY ALAN HODGE
Staff Writer
When Walt Disney first featured Mickey
Mouse in “Steamboat Willie” back in the 1920s,
folks didn’t run out and buy rats for their kids.
The same thing can’t be said about Dalmatian
dogs since the Disney films “101 Dalmatians” hit
the silver screen a couple of years ago.
With the Thanksgiving premiere of “102
Dalmatians” dog experts and humane societies
across the nation are concerned that another
Christmas run on the spotted pups will take
place.
The reason for worry is rooted in the Dalmatian
temperament and physiological makeup. Though
they are cuddly enough as puppies, and look
plenty of exercise and a tirm handed master.
If that isn’t enough, the breed is also prone to
deafness, can be destructive when left alone,
be fatal.
sheds constantly, often develops skin allergies,
and has a poor tolerance of children.
Topping the list of health troubles is the fact
that all Dalmatians are highly susceptible to kid-
ney stones. Due to the breed's unique urinary
system, uric acid salts form the stones which can
According to the Humane Society of the
United States, within a year of the release of “101
Dalmatians”, animal shelters nationwide saw a 25
percent in people giving up their once cute
‘Dalmatians. In 1999, the Cleveland County
Animal Shelter received at least one Dalmatian a
week. This doesn’t count the unknown number of
tion where the tree 1s nving
right up to the point of pur-
chase, most have been drying
out for a period of time before
they leave the lot. To check for
freshness, remember that green
‘needles on fir trees other than
pine break off crisply when
they are turgid with moisture.
‘A tree that is dry will have rub-
bery needles. The needles of
trees such as Virginia pine will
not break at all unless very dry.
Once you have your tree
home make sure it is in a sturdy
stand that holds at least a quart
of water for each inch of trunk
See Safety, 3A
to four days water supply for
the city customers who use an
average of $7 million gallons
per day, he said
“That's the reason Moss Lake
was constructed,” Maney said;
“because the city had a severe
water shortage. They are no
longer a resource for public
consumption.”
DeVane said he felt like the
city was “giving away a re-
See Lakes, 3A
KM, Grover
parades
Saturday
BY ALAN HODGE
Staff Writer
Kings Mountains Hometown
Christmas is on its way with
several events sure to kick start
the Yuletide spirit in everyone.
Starting off the festivities will
be the annual Christmas tree
lighting ceremony at Mauney
Memorial Library on Thursday,
November 30 at 7 p.m.
Christmas carols will be provid-
ed by the “NEW” Honors
Chorus which features singers
from North, East, and West ele-
mentary schools. The carolers
will be directed by Stephanie
Paysour.
Following the music, Kings
Mountain mayor Rick
Murphrey will read the holiday
classic “The Night Before
Christmas” followed by Santa's
spectacular arrival.
After Santa alights, he will visit
with the kids in the auditorium
of the new Harris Children’s
Wing.
Saturday, December 2 at 3
p.m. will see the big Kings
Mountain Christmas Parade
step off at 3 p.m. downtown.
Larry Sprinkle of NBC-6 will
serve as Grand Marshall. ;
Over 100 entries are signed,
up for the parade. Some of
these will include the Kings
Mountain High School
Marching Mountaineers,
Bethware Fair Queen, Junior
Miss Bessemer City, North
Carolina Beef Ambassador, Jane
Campbell Dance Academy,
Mecca Shrine Temple, Relay For
Life, and Faith Baptist Church.
Additional entries include
Benton Express, Kings
Mountain Carrousel Princess,
Dance Reflections, Kings
Mountain ATV Club, Tryonada
VFD, Freedom Riders, and
Kings Mountain Business and
Professional Association.
Saturday, December 16 will
bring even more Hometown
Christmas to Kings Mountain
when Christmas at the Gazebo
gets underway at 10 p.m. The
event, which lasts until 4 p.m.
ALAN HODGE/THE HERALD
Kings Mountain Senior Center director Monty Thornburg and
his Dalmatian Corry make a good team. Thornburg says that
while he and Corry get along fine, the breed is a poor choice
9 CX
OC
even cuter cutting up in a movie, Dalmatians are = Dalmatians that were simply put out. for children.
See Grants 3A actually high-strung, energetic dogs that need See Dogs, 3A : i
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