KINGS MOUNTAIN
The Herald
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Vol. 119 No. 9
Since 1889
50 Cents
SPORTS - 3A
Incentive
grant ok’d
for Indian
Motorcycle
ELIZABETH STEWART
Herald Correspondent
Kings Mountain City Council
Tuesday night approved a 10-
year tax incentive grant and
light industrial zoning that
brings production and 95 new
jobs closer at the new Indian
Motorcycle = Company on
Battleground Road.
In a related action, the board
set a public hearing for March 26
to hear a similar request from
Parker Hannifin Corp., which is
expanding its Canterbury Road
hydraulic division headquarters
to add 100 jobs.
Indian Motorcycle is making
an investment of $11 million and
HIGH WATER MARK
design engineers have been
hired and development testing
is underway with production
slated to begin a year from now,
said Mayor Rick Murphrey.
The incentive grant means no
city taxes for the company
beginning with this fiscal year.
City Attorney Mickey Corry
explained that Indian
Motorcycle lowered the figure
of .its net, investment which
looks on.
required a second public hear-
ing by council. Corry said the
new taxable figure totals
$2,806,000 over a two-year peri-
od. Stuart Gilbert, President of
the Cleveland Chamber of
Commerce, spoke on behalf of
the company.
The mayor said that council
established the grant program to
encourage entrepreneurs and
developers to locate in and
oo EMILY WEAVER
eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
Get ready fisherman, Chris*Craft’s latest cre-
ation is every fish seeker’s uream boat and is
also the first line to be produced in the compa-
ny’s new Kings Mountain plant.
President Steven Heese and Chief
Designer/Vice President of Operations Bob
Greenberg invited city and county officials to
have a sneak peek into the behind the scenes
construction of their newest vessel - Catalina 23
make additional property
improvement investments in
Kings Mountain. Additionally,
the city awarded a downtown
incentive grant to Tony and
Kathy Davidson who plan to
make major renovation to their
insurance office at 214 S.
Railroad Avenue. The
Davidsons are the 14th recipi-
ents of city grants covering
seven different properties.
Council formally applied for Plan.”
a $440,000 Community Block
center console. The boat is 23 and a half feet
long with an 84” beam, weighing in (dry) at a
whopping 4,484 pounds with the T-Top on.
According to its specifications, the Catalina
features a roomy, “self-bailing” cockpit and a
spacious bow seating area; “stainless steel thru-
hull fittings; fish boxes on both port and star-
board; powder coated aluminum leaning post
with 20-gallon live well at helm; open cell foam
upholstery for convenient drying; custom fiber-
glass rod boxes on both port and starboard; and
(comes with) a 5-year Chris-Care Protection
The Catalina, like all of the Chris*Craft ves-
Grant to install 6,400 linear feet
of 8 inch sewer lines and con-
nections to 67 people in 31 fam-
ily housing units in the
Westover neighborhood in West
Kings Mountain.
sels, is equipped with a Yamaha engine, which
tops out at “49.8 mph at 6,050 rpm or 43.3 knots
at 6,050 rpm.” The cruise speed for the boat is
“30.6 mph (26.6 knots) at 4,000 rpm” and its
range at cruising is up to “330 miles.”
Gel Coater for Chris*Craft Jerome Watkins sprays gel on the first boat to be produced at their
factory in Kings Mountain, Wednesday morning, while Lamination Mgr. Richard Rice (far left)
Chris*Craft produces first boat
at new Kings Mountain facility
Underneath a Benak seat on the bow, is a hid-
den latrine. The center of the frontal bow seats
can be converted into a table for dining and
underneath the seats are hidden compartments
for supplies. An igloo cooler comes with each
Chris*Craft vessel, said Plant Manager Roland
Buchholz, along with a CD player and device
for checking the depth of the water.
“I've spent the last year engineering it. I've
spent the last seven months on site here every
week with it. So it’s been a lot of fun,”
Greenberg said.
“We're so excited about such a professional,
name-brand company coming to Kings
Mountain,” said Mayor Rick Murphrey after
helping spray paint part of KM’s first boat
Wednesday morning. “They just have great
associates out here, work force and good com-
munication. They have such a good marketing
and selling point for our entire community.”
Murphrey anticipates that Chris*Craft’s
global market will bring a lot of recognition to
Kings Mountain. “We look forward to many
years with our association and we wish them a
lot of success.”
US Congressman Patrick McHenry toured
the facility later in the day. “This is a very
impressive company. They have great manage-
ment and great owners,” he said, adding that
this will not only prove to be good for Kings
See Chris*Craft, 5A
Ingles takes
60-day option
for property
on Shelby Road
ELIZABETH STEWART
Herald Correspondent
Kings Mountain businessman
Eddie Yarbro says it will likely
be mid-April before Ingles
Markets closes the deal on 20
1/2 acres his family owns on
Shelby Road and the site of a
proposed new super store.
Ingles took a 60-day option to
buy the property Feb. 14.
The good news, according to
Yarbro, is that the North
Carolina Department of
Transportation has cleared hur-
dles by agreeing to switch a traf-
fic signal planned for Shelby
Road at Commerce Drive to
Countryside Road because of the
proposed Ingles.
With the transportation plan in
place, Yarbro said the project can
move forward. “It’s supposed to
be one of the largest grocery
said.
The proposed site is located on
US 74 West between Vestibule
Church Road and Commerce
Drive. “It’s the perfect location
for more growth in business and
housing,” said Yarbro who noted
he can see the area growing with
Ingles as an anchor for more
developments.
Yarbro’s mother, Ethel, who,
will be 99 years old on Sept. 17,
has been guaranteed by the
prospective buyers ‘life estate’ in
her home she has owned 55
years.
Mayor Rick Murphrey said
after Tuesday night's city council
meeting that discussions have
been ongoing for months with
Ingles representatives and coun-
ty and state officials working to
bring the Asheville-based mar-
ket to Kings Mountain.
“Ingles is in our future,” he
said.
EMILY WEAVER
stores that Ingles. builds,” he
School uniforms
on the horizon?
eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com
A new face is smiling on the
Cleveland County School Board.
New clothes and the possibility
of a new election cycle are on the
horizon for schools. But inter-
mingled with the fresh
approaches at Monday night's
meeting was the recognition of a
classic Kings Mountain champi-
on. Supt. Bruce Boyles asked
East Elementary, NC's Real
D.E.A.L. school, to “toot their
working conditions as measured
by the NC teacher working con-
ditions surveys.”
Teacher Erica Melton said that
their success is based on many
attributes, including great lead-
ership, encouragement’ and
inspiration from their Principal
Jerry Hoyle; duty-free lunches;
common planning time for
teachers; high expectations;
recognition and honor for good
work; teamwork; excellent
teachers and faculty; and com-
munity support, just to name a
horn.”
“We're so proud of wolint they
(Real D.E.A.L.) is a result of a
combination of two things, stu-
few.
See Uniforms, 5A
S. Dale Oliver was sworn in at
did,” Boyles said. “This award the meeting as Cleveland
County's newest board member,
filling the empty seat left'behind
dent achievement and teacher
Emily’s #1
Herald reporter wins first place, staff
third in NC Press Association contest
Lenten services
each Wednesday
at local churches
Kings Mountain Ministerial Association will
continue its community lenten series from 12-
12:30 p.m. each Wednesday through March 28.
The theme this year is from The Beatitudes. Each
Wednesday, a different pastor will bring the mes-
sage, which will last 10 minutes. The host pastor
will prepare the order of service and the host
church will provide music.
Each service, an offering will be taken for the
2006
JournALisM CONTEST
Crisis Ministry of Kings Mountain. The host | AWARD
church will serve a light lunch afterwards for a Vo Daten
donation.
The schedule for the remaining services, speak-
er and theme include:
Wed. March 7 - Central United Methodist
Church; Rev. Moses Neuman will speak on
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for right-
eousness.” from Matthew 5:6.
March 14 - Boyce Memorial ARP Church; Rev.
John Houze will speak on “Blessed are the merci-
ful,” from Matthew 5:7.
March 21 - Kings Mountain Baptist; the speaker
See Lent, 9A
First Place
Easily Weaver
JOURNALISM CONTEST ¢
AWARD
Third Place
Dane fansdey
Kings Mountain Herald news reporter Emily Weaver holds the first place
award she won and the third place award won by the staff at the 2006 NC
Press Association Contest awards banquet Thursday night in Raleigh.
The Herald walked away with
two major awards at last
Thursday night's North Carolina
Press Association awards banquet
held at the North Raleigh Hilton.
Emily Weaver, staff writer with
The Herald, won first place for
the Literacy Features category for
her story “Pucker Power.” It was
written about last year’s End of
Summer Reading celebration for
Mauney Memorial Library's little
readers. Children’s Librarian
Christy Conner had to kiss a pig
since the children met and sur-
passed all of their reading goals.
The mayor was also supposed to
smooch the pig, but was called
into an unexpected meeting. The
judges wrote, “Great success
story about reading, should make
kids and pig proud.”
The staff of The Herald, The
Cherryville Eagle and Belmont
bannernews won third place for
the category of Special Section,
vying for recognition out of 18
entries. The winning section was
a commemorative, souvenir book
on the Battle of Kings Mountain
in honor of the Revolutionary
War battle’s 225th anniversary.
The judges gave positive remarks
on “The Battle of Kings
Mountain,” saying “Nice keep-
sake! I learned a lot of local histo-
ry! Nice layout!”