Newspapers / The Kings Mountain Herald … / Nov. 1, 2007, edition 1 / Page 7
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November 1, 2007 The Kings Mountain Herald rps "LOCAL NEWS City appreciation breakfast held at The Patrick Center eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com At sunrise on Friday, City of Kings Mountain officials were enjoying breakfast with their valuable customers - an annual gesture of appreciation. This year’s Customer Appreciation Breakfast, hosted at the H. Lawrence Patrick Senior Life and Conference Center, offered good food and good information to the city’s industri- al customers. Mayor Rick Murphrey said that he began his morning speech by recognizing the city’s workers. “We are very proud of the longevity of the people that work for the city,” he said, noting that a lot of them have been with the city a long time. The mayor also talked about some of the programs and proj- ects the city is implementing to save money. “I told them we're operating just like you operate,” he said. “We're running the city as a business. We want to be a low-cost producer.” Murphrey said that with oper- ations like the city’s peak shav- ing plants, performance contract- ing, and the YMCA taking over ‘the recreation program they are able to save money and become more efficient. The city has two peak shaving plants in its electric department. Murphrey said in an interview last month that the city saves about $1 million every year, using the peak shaving plants. During the peak time of electrical usage, each month, large machines are turned on in the plants to shave off the costs of some of the electricity they would otherwise have to pur- chase from Duke Energy, he said. Through performance con- tracting (“going green”) the city is able to save even more money by increasing its efficiency in operations. Murphrey also encouraged the business leaders Signs promote children safety eweaver@kingsmountainherald.com Councilman Rodney Gordon joined efforts with a local Homeowner's Association Vice President Earl Goode to bring a little more safety to the streets of the Country Creek neighbor- hood, off of Shelby Road. Goode said that he talked with Gordon about putting up signs to caution drivers of children. “Once I spoke to Rodney Gordon there was no problem and it went on very smoothly,” he said. Within a few months signs read- ing: “Please drive slow; We love our children,” started popping up around the neighborhood. “I don’t have any children. But there are children all around me and I don’t want to see any child get hurt by cars speeding through,” Goode said. “It’s not for me. It's for my neighbor- hood.” Homeowner's Association president . for Country Creek, Eddie Payne and Goode have also worked on trying to have the neighborhood’s speed limits reduced to 25 mph. In some parts the current limit is 35 mph, Goode said. Gordon said that the change in the speed limit would have to be voted in by the coun- cil. But it was on the agenda for Tuesday's meeting. The final safety measure Gordon said that he would like to see is a Community Watch program in the neighborhood, which may be in the works. “Now, understand, there is not a crime problem out here,” he said. “If there is, we're not aware of it.” But he added that it is always better to be proactive. “I'm elated about the signs being up,” he said. “And that’s something that doesn’t have to be approved by the council that any of the council members can request.” Goode said that he too is very happy about the signs. The main reason for the signs is keeping the children safe. “There’s a lot of people moving into the neigh- borhood with kids and stuff and we recognized that,” Gordon said. He added that if they are able to accomplish all three steps, he would like to use Country Creek as a model for some of the city’s other develop- ments, like Hall Crossing. “I would like to see a lot of the communities get, number one, a homeowner’s association and that’s going to bring the people together. Once they get that formed, I'd like to see them work with their council member and just review the speed limits; if there is a lot of kids, get some of these signs put up and get a com- munity watch program.” Hog Happnin’ Saturday at fairgrounds The 16th annual . Hog Happnin' is Saturday, November 3, at the Cleveland County Fairgrounds, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Money raised supports the Children’s Homes of Cleveland County. Admission to the fair- grounds for Hog Happnin’ is free and open to the public. Event coordinator - Jerry Gardner expects more than 60 competition BBQ teams to partic- ipate in this year’s “Tar Heel State Championship.” The cook- off is sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbeque Society. Teams will be competing in the standard KCBS categories of poultry, ribs, pork, and brisket -- as well as best BBQ sauce. An oak door trophy goes to each first-place winner, and cash prizes will be awarded through tenth place. There is also a Best Booth contest for teams to win cash and a trophy. All-you-can-eat BBQ plates will be sold for $8. Sandwiches and hot dogs will be served from 11 a.m.—3 p.m. in Goforth Hall. Carolina Risin’ will be per- forming from noon-1:30 p.m; other local dancers and musi- cians will perform hourly throughout the event. An arts and crafts show will also be showcased throughout the day. Coordinators Cindy and Ed Howard invite everyone to see a wide array of creations by some of the area's best crafters. Everything from baskets to jew- elry to car accessories will be on display. Hundreds of classic cars and motorcycles will make for a col- orful and impressive sight. Car show coordinator Ronnie Whetstine hopes to have more than 200-plus cars and 60 motor- cycles. Awards will be given to the top 75 cars and top 25 bikes. Hog Happnin’ will also feature the STA-BIL Carolina Mowdown Showdown, co-sponsored by the US. Lawn Mower Racing Association. The Kiwanis Club also sponsors this event in the Grandstand for paid admission. All proceeds for the Carolina Mowdown Showdown go to the Victory Junction Gang. at the breakfast to allow their associates to continue their edu- cation in the workforce. He said that when the workers receive more training and education in their fields, it has been shown to increase efficiency in job per- formance. Murphrey said that they will soon be adding more lights around town and signage. He talked about the new 36-inch water line that the city is plan- ning to install and begin con- struction on in about three years. The new line will replace the old one that is running through town. The mayor said that the older the line, the more it will start to deteriorate. They have already witnessed some breaks in the pipe which the city has had to repair. But he said that the old water line should still be good for about eight to: nine years. Murphrey also talked about the plans for the city’s second lake or reservoir. The additional reservoir will supply water for this region and possibly into Gaffney, SC, he said. “We're not only focusing on infrastructure, but also on the quality of life in Kings Mountain,” he said, as the city moves closer into the future with the help of its customers. EMILY WEAVER/HERALD New signs urging motorists to be cautious of children can now be seen in Country Creek - a joint effort by residents and their councilman. Front, left to right, Reagan Buchanan, 6, and Abigail Pennington, 6. Back, left to right, KM Councilman Rodney Gordon, Taylor Buchanan, 18 months, Daniel Buchanan, and Ryan Pennington. Yue ane 1 Day Special Offer $500 OFF for New Invisalign® Patients November 7th, 8 am - 5 pm 525 S. New Hope Road, Gastonia Hannon.Orthodontics Choose Invisalign®, the nearly invisible way to straighten your teeth. Call today 704.865.8521 Space is limited to 15 appointments MARS SHARE
The Kings Mountain Herald (Kings Mountain, N.C.)
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