Taxpayer
Protection
Act’s time
has come
By THOMAS PAUL DE WITT
Whenever a new governor
comes into office, it is incum-
bent on all state citizens to be
optimistic and wish the man
our best. And so we should do
for Gov. Mike Easley. In that
spirit, I offer the new governor
some advice to make his ad-
ministration more fruitful.
: There is much in the politi-
: cal winds to which Easley
should pay heed. One must
first stipulate that the North
Carolina electorate is a rather
conservative one. The people
like their state government to
do things so long as it does
: them in a limited fashion. In
: broad, theoretical terms, they
want less government to do
| more and to do it better.
: An Agenda 2000 poll con-
. ducted for the John Locke
: Foundation just before the
i November election found that
fully 69 percent of likely North
. Carolina voters favored the
Taxpayer Protection Act,
: which would limit state
- spending growth to a combi-
Editor: Gary Stewart 739-7496
February 1, 2001 Section A, Page 4
| OPINION
PICTORIAL EDITORIAL
The Kings Mountain Herald
Chamber is
not taking
position on
lake issue
(Ed. Note: This is a re-
sponse to a letter in last
week’s paper from City
Councilman Gene White).
To the editor:
Thank you for sharing your
views and questions in the let-
ter dated January 22, 2001. In
response to your questions:
- The Chamber does not
have an official (nor unoffi-
cial) position on the sale of the
two formerly city-owned wa-
ter lakes in Kings Mountain.
The Chamber's Kings
Mountain Advisory Council
did discuss the issue (as infor-
mation without action) at its
January 2001 meeting, after
the issue was brought forward
ALAN HODGE / THE HERALD
A ‘JOY’OUS OCCASION - These folks’ smiles reflect the enthusiasm that will soon turn the former Joy Theater in downtown Kings
Mountain into a Performing Arts Center. Members of the Kings Mountain Little Theatre are making plans to raise funds to purchase
the building and return it to its glory days and more. Left to right are Susan Champion, Jim Champion, Mary Neisler, Clenon Tackett,
by one of the Advisory
Council members.
- The Chamber does not
have an official (nor unoffi-
cial) position regarding the
Kings Mountain Land Use
Plan. Furthermore, The
Chamber has not issued an
opinion concerning the use of
the property to which you re-
ferred. I am not sure if the
above-mentioned Plan ad-
dresses annexation and ET]
expansion; but the Chamber
has officially supported recent
© city efforts on these issues.
- The Chamber Board and
the Kings Mountain Advisory
Council is not aware of any ef-
fort on behalf of the Chamber
to use its space at City Hall to
“mobilize special interest
against taxpayers and the du-
ly elected representatives of
Kings Mountain.” The
Chamber would not tolerate
such action from its staff or
volunteers. I agree with you
that the Chamber office in
City Hall is excellent space,
and we are quite grateful for
that arrangement.
In the background informa-
tion you provided to corre-
spond to your first question,
you referred to Shirley Brutko.
As administrative assistant in
the Kings Mountain office,
Shirley is a part-time staff
member of the Cleveland
. County Chamber who is not a
designated spokesperson for
the Chamber. I understand
that Shirley is a member of the
Save the Lakes Committee.
While she is restricted to the
tasks outlined in her Chamber
job description while in the
Chamber offices, she (as any
other staff member) does have
the right to become involved
in various causes and commu-
nity activities during hours
other than those assigned by
the Chamber.
Chamber president Rob
Youngblood and I would wel-
come the opportunity to fur-
ther discuss your views and
questions. We would also
gladly discuss the organiza-
tion’s 2000 Action Report and
Accomplishments with you at
any time. We would also in-
vite you to contact any mem-
bers of the Chamber’s Kings
Mountain Advisory Council,
since it is the group that re-
viewed, approved and recom-
mended the items in both the
report and accomplishments.
Furthermore, Iinvite you to
attend the next Advisory
Council meeting, which is 12
noon Tuesday, February 6, at
Wendell’s Barbecue. We
would gladly add your name
to our agenda, if you would
like to address the group.
We appreciate your efforts
on behalf of the citizens of
Kings Mountain and your in-
terest in the Cleveland County
Chamber—
Sincerely,
Adelaide Craver,
Chamber Board Chairperson
and Scott Neisler.
. Kings Mountain could become
cultural capital of Cleveland
If there’s one thing that can be said about the people of Kings
Mountain, it’s that they never seem to run out
of Causes. From school merger, to the proposed
sale of Davidson and City lakes, there's always
a group that fights tooth and nail in what they
think is right. ;
The Kings Mountain Little Theater is one
group that is carrying on a campaign for some-
thing they believe in. That belief is the purchase
of the old Joy Theater building downtown and
its conversion into a performing arts center. I
think this is one project that deserves attention.
I have a movie theater in my past. My grand-
father Leroy Willeford operated the movie house in Mount
Holly during the World War II era. I have heard tales from my
aunt about how my father Roy Willeford and his identical twin
Roland used to invite the other kids over for movies- on the
house. Grandfather was also said to have never turned a soldier
or sailor away from the theater if their money was running
short.
Old movie theaters are houses of dreams. After all, what are
Alan Hodge
© movies but someone’s fantasy come to life? A red brick building
: on the outside, the Joy Theater has seen wars, romance, murder,
. comedy, and mystery within its walls. The building is therefore
pea place where worlds have been created, tears shed, revelations
achieved, and lessons learned.
By renovating the Joy Theater, Kings Mountain can have a
physical center for its cultural heart. Besides the Little Theater
productions that will be held there, just think of the opportunity
for piano or dance recitals, art shows, and other events. Business
folks could also use the space for meetings and seminars. I don’t
think there is another place in town with the same potential for
such a wide variety of use.
Hey, why stop with local talent when it comes to recitals.
What a first it would be if Kings Mountain had visiting string
quartets or pianists come and fill the Joy with the sounds of
Brahms, Beethoven, or Mozart. ;
In addition to its interior capabilities, the Joy Theater could al-
so become an architectural gem in downtown Kings Mountain. I
looked at the building the other day and in my mind I saw a
large, fully restored marquee with lots of cool red and green
neon trim glowing on the corner of Railroad Avenue and
- Mountain Street. Maybe the sidewalk out front could be paint-
: ed green like it was originally, or some sort of after-show coffee
shop opened up inside.
Renovation of the Joy Theater should be a top priority of the
city and community as a whole. Just ask Jim Champion his
opinion on the subject. Also roll this catchy title I dreamed up
around in your head for a while- “Kings Mountain, the Cultural
+ Capital of Cleveland County”. Sounds pretty good doesn’t it?
Way we were January 31, 1952
Celebrating its 62nd year, the Kings Mountain Herald for
January 31, 1952 headlined the urgent need the city and Red
Cross had for blood donations. According to the story, the Red
Cross Bloodmobile was coming to town with the goal of collect-
ing 150 pints of blood.
Other front page stories for
January 31, 1952 looked at
plans to install more parking
meters in downtown Kings
®
Looking
Yorn mst | BACK
Abo
duction of “Tom Sawyer”, and
approval of a city taxi franchise CA ea.
to Forrest Dover. ri ra Fl ffir
News in the January 31, 1952 ret N ptea A
Herald from Grover was report- [AT KINGS MOUNTAIN]
ed by Lola Hardin. In her sto- By Alan Hodge
ries, Hardin mentioned that the
Grover School polio drive had netted $163.15. Mrs. W.E.
Powell’s room raised the most money with contributions total-
ing $32. Other goings on in Grover included a meeting by the 4-
H Club and their viewing of a film on reforestation, and a field
trip to Boiling Springs for seed judging.
According to the Herald, Boy Scouts were active in Kings
Mountain in January 1952. It was reported that Troop 2 at St.
~ Matthew's Lutheran Church had just conducted a big planning
session. Leaders of the pack included Hyena Patrol head
Douglas Falls and Andrell Summitt of the Eagle Patrol. Scout
. Master was Donald Blanton.
Starting off the 1952 auto buying season, the January 31 edi-
tion of the Herald had many ads from local car dealers. Dean
Buick said their new Fireball Engine could make a screaming
170 horsepower. Plonk Motor Company advertised that the 1952
Ford was the “greatest car ever built.” In the used car market,
C.L. Putnam and Sons dealership had a 1948 two-door Chevy
with heater and radio for $930. :
Getting a jump on the Spring fashion scene, Myers’ Dress
Shop had an advertisement featuring some of the latest fashions
for women. Suits in gabardine and sharkskin were selling for
prices ranging from $22.95 to $59.95. Spring coats in lovely pas-
tels were on sale for prices as low as $16.95. At the men’s de-
partment in Myers’, Porto-Ped brand dress shoes were $12.50 a
pair. :
According to the January 31, 1952 Herald, food was also
cheap in Kings Mountain. At Blalock’s Park-Inn, flour was only
$1.99 for a 25 pound bag. Bread was just 15 cents a loaf and
dressed hens were selling for 49 cents each.
The Joy Theater was making a splash on the Kings Mountain
entertainment scene. Shows screening at the Joy during the
week of January 31, 1952 included “The Mob” with Broderick
Crawford, “The Wild Blue Yonder” with Wendell Corey, and
“I'll Never Forget You” with Tyrone Power.
. nation of inflation and popula-
: tion growth. They also fa-
. vored, by 55 percent to 31
percent, across-the-board tax
cuts rather than targeted tax
breaks used as incentives to
attract companies to the state.
. Finally, likely voters in the
2000 election favored, by 54
percent to 41 percent, the idea
that government should do
- less rather than more.
Given the state’s fiscal prob-
lems, the Taxpayer Protection
Act looks more appealing than
. ever. With a current fiscal-year
: deficit surpassing $300 mil-
ion, and the next fiscal year’s
| deficit already projected at
© $450 million, legislators will
- be inclined to pay’ their tisual
. shell games by shuffling mon-'
ey rather than actually cutting
- spending.
They will be further tempt-
. ed to find some tricky ways to
raise taxes to avoid “punish-
ng” their particular con-
stituencies. Keeping in mind
that widespread tax increases
are easily defused, while spe-
cific spending restrictions are
focused and vulnerable to par-
ticular attack by organized in-
terests, the temptation is for
the General Assembly to raise
taxes rather than cut spending.
Gov. Easley could show
some real statesmanship by of-
fering an agenda of fiscal dis-
cipline and accountability.
Knowing that he must tend to
his own constituency, his bal-
ancing act will be difficult be-
cause of the extensive and ex-
pensive promises he made
during the campaign.
The question is whether the
new governor has the political
agility to balance the desires of
the interests to whom he is in-
debted against those of the
general population of the
state.
(DeWitt is senior editor of
Carolina Journal, the maga-
zine of the John Locke
i Foundation).
SIDEWALK
SURVEY
By ALAN HODGE y
Kings Mountain Herald |
Do you think
that the federal
government
should give
money to religion, but stil
religious help people who
organizations to need help.
help down and
out folks?
Ester Wingo
Kings Mountain
i"
It's a legitimate
cause to help
people who are
trying to help
themselves.
Dwayne King
Kings Mountain
| think it’s all right
to give those
groups
government
money to help
others. Reeves
Hetherington
Kings Mountain
It’s all right to give
the money - the
government
wastes a lot more directly to the
on other things. people.
Sonny :
Huntsinger Mike Drake
Kings Mountain
Don’t give the
money fo religious
groups, give it
Ranlo