Thursday, June 30, 2005
Vol. 117 No. 25
Since 1889
KINGS MOUNTAIN
The Heral
50 Cents.
-year KM Council term vote fails
Councilman DeVane announces he has Lou Gehrig disease
ANDIE L. BRYMER limited by the disease, prepared a
Staff Writer statement which was read by Mayor
Rick Murphrey before the vote. In
Kings Mountain City Council that statement, DeVane argued that
members will continue to serve two- two year terms do not give first-
year terms. term council members time to learn
Councilman Carl DeVane, who
their jobs. He also accused some
plans to run again despite Lou
council members of seeking election
Gehrig disease, attempted to make
© - © terms four years long. The measure
- - failed by a 4-3 vote during Tuesday
* night's council meeting. Veteran
council members DeVane, Rick
Moore and Howard Shipp voted for
the measure. First- term council
members Houston Corn, Kay
Hambright and Brenda Ross voted
against the measure along with Jerry
Mullinax who has served before.
DeVane, whose ability to speak is
related publicity as early as January.
According to former councilman
Gene White, the measure was not
DeVane’s idea.
“We all know who is actually pro-
moting this,” White said during the
public comment phase of the meet-
ing. DeVane vigorously shook his
head no as White spoke.
White said he was not opposed to
staggering the current two year
terms but said four years terms had
been tried before and failed. He
went on to launch more accusations
laced with innuendo.
“This political structure has cor-
rupted the city manager system,”
White said.
Referring to Manager Greg
McGinnis, White said “he wont’ be
here long unless he compromises his
integrity.”
White criticized the city for spend-
ing money on special events, saying
it was “not the city’s responsibility
to entertain for votes.”
“There isn’t one person in Kings
Mountain who doesn’t realize the
real reason,” White said, referring to
special events spending.
White accused some members of
the council of “pursuing their own
interest while running the city in the
ground.”
Until several months ago White
had been a fixture during the public
comments portion of meetings,
speaking out against the city. Then,
he went on record saying he wasn’t
going to continue the practice and
was absent from meetings until
Tuesday.
The measure DeVane proposed
would have affected the 2007 elec-
tion. If council had approved the
matter a public hearing would have
been held. After that the measure
would have appeared on
November's ballot. If it passed, the
Justice Department would have had
to give its approval pursuant to the
See Council 3A
Kings Mountain
Councilman Carl DeVane’s
proposal for four-year
council terms was voted
down 4-3 at Tuesday
night’s meeting.
JULY FOURTH FIREWORKS
JOSEPH BRYMER / HERALD
Rashad Dowling, left, and Michael Leviston shop Monday night at Cherokee Fireworks. The store, located at the
South Carolina state line, is seeing heavy traffic due to the upcoming Independence Day weekend.
Locals flock to state line for fireworks
BY ANDIE L. BRYMER
Staff Writer
The boxes have catchy names - Wild West, Munitions
Dump, Thunder Road - and theyre selling fast, at least
according to Cherokee Fireworks manager Roger Cozart.
The store, located over the South Carolina line at
Grover, ordered three times its normal pre-Independence
Day inventory, Cozart said.
Cherokee has seen an increase in business since the
. Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Cozart says that since then
fireworks have caught on so well with some folks that the
loud, colorful mini-explosives have become a hobby.
Customers will spend anywhere from $1 to $5,000,
according to Cozart. The larger purchases typically come
from groups of neighbors who pool their funds to have
their own private pyrotech show.
© The July 4 fireworks selling season cranked up two
weeks ago. Sales will drop dramatically on July 5 though
according to Cozart customers come every day fegpiless
of the season.
After North Carolina relaxed its fireworks ws, South
Carolina retailers feared their sales would drop. Not so,
See Fireworks, 3A
Big celebration
Monday in KM
A flyover by ultra light air craft, music and a fire-
works show are all part of the City of Kings Mountain's
annual Fabulous 4th celebration.
The event starts at 6 p.m. Monday at the municipal
walking track adjacent to the YMCA.
The ultra light aircraft will fly over at 6 p.m. followed
by a concert by Kelsey DiMarco.
At 9 p.m. the Kings Mountain Police Explorers, Loch
Norman Pipe Band, 505th N.C. National Guard unit,
Over the Mountain Man Dale Putnam and Mayor Rick
Murphrey on horseback will made a parade entrance.
As part of a patriotic program Lindsey Bledsoe will
sing the National Anthem and Sabrina Collias. will sing ;
“My Country Tis of Thee.”
After musket fire, fireworks will begin. The event is
slated to end at 10:30 pm.
stores.
Huffman gets
zoning hearing,
announces run
for Grover board
BY ANDIE L. BRYMER
Staff Writer 8
GROVER - A South Carolina man hoping to develop land
in Grover has moved to the town and says he will seek a
seat on the Grover Council.
“I'm going to change
things,” Calvin Huffman
said Monday night as he
stood outside town hall.
Huffman attended
Monday night's council
meeting as part of a continu-
ing effort to get permission
to develop land he owns
inside the town. He is pro-
posing a subdivision but
needs a zoning change from
council before proceeding.
Monday night the council
split 2-2 on whether to allow
Huffman a public hearing on
the issue. Mayor Robert
Sides broke the tie in favor of
the hearing. Commissioner
John Harry was excused
from the vote because he
owns land adjacent to
Huffman'’s property.
Council members Max
Rollins and Barry Toney voted against granting the hearing
and Bill Willis and Jackie Bennett voted for it.
The issue first came up during the April 5, 2004 meeting
when the board wouldn't act on Huffman’s rezoning
request. During that meeting no council member would
make a motion to approve the request. Town Attorney
Mickey Corry then advised Mayor Robert Sides to ask for a
motion to deny the request. Councilman Max Rollins made
the motion but it died for lack of a second.
After Monday night's meeting Huffman accused some
council members of having their “minds made up.”
“It’s always that way on my issues. It’s a vendetta,” he
said.
Huffman went on to say “zoning is nothing but
Communism. Who has a right to tell me I can’t develop my
property?”
The public hearing is scheduled for Aug. 1.
In other business, council members went into closed ses-
sion to interview two candidates for police chief but no
action was taken. Mayor Robert Sides said Tuesday he
expects a decision will be reached by week's end.
The town is re-opening its police department. For the
past several years Grover contracted with the Cleveland
County Sheriff's Office to provide one full time deputy 40
hours a week.
Calvin Huffman listens as
Grover Council ponders his
request for rezoning prop-
erty for a subdivision at
Monday night’s meeting.
KM shoppers hate to see Winn-Dixie oO
BY ANDIE L. BRYMER
Staff Writer
Grocery shopping options for
King Mountain residents may Mountain location.
shrink by late summer. “I live two blocks away,” she
The Kings Mountain Winn- said Monday afternoon as she
Dixie along with 42 other loca- walked through the store parking
tions in the Charlotte region and lot.
others across the south are closing Foster said if another grocery
shop. store doesn’t step in, she'll start
The supermarket chain is trying
to find buyers, according to
Dennis Wortham, communications
manager for Winn-Dixie. They are
marketing the stores not only to
other grocery retailers but busi-
nesses like gyms and hobby
Plonk Tire.
Winn-Dixie customer Essie
Marie Foster hopes another gro-
cery store will buy the Kings
shopping at Food Lion.
It will be a change for Foster
though. She has shopped at Winn-
Dixie for decades since it was
located downtown at what is now
Erica Carpenter, an elementary
school student, says she'll miss the
Winn-Dixie employees. One man
who has worked in produce and
frozen foods has known Erica
since she was riding in a carrier in
her mom's shopping cart. As a
toddler she would sing for him,
something he teases her about to
this day.
Erica’s mother Linda Carpenter
hasn’t made up her mind if she'll
take her grocery purchasing dol-
lars to Food Lion or Harris Teeter.
One thing is for sure, she'll miss
Winn-Dixie’s store brand prego
cheese.
“We just wish it wouldn/t
See Winn-Dixie, 3A.
Dietta Wright leaves Winn-Dixie after a grocery stopping trip. i i
JOSEPH BRYMER/HERALD
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