kmherald.net
Gambling or |
marketing?
Grover board concerned of
Internet sweeps facilities,
denies permit for one,
approves permit for another
we ELIZABETH STEWART
lib.kmherald@gmail.com
GROVER - Internet sweepstakes! Is it gambling or
harmless promotions?
Split on the legality or illegality of this phenomenon,
Grover residents aired their concerns during a lengthy
meeting of the Board of Adjustment Thursday where the
board approved by 5-0 a conditional use permit for Mike
Heath to put in 15 Internet sweepstakes machines on his
property at 110 M. H. Camp Highway. It is directly across
the railroad tracks a short distance from downtown Main
Street where police have shut down game rooms and
three have reopened.
In a second vote, 5-0, the board denied a permit to Don
Johnson, 126 S. Main St., to put in additional machines
on Main Street primarily because of lack of parking
spaces. Johnson owns all but one of the store buildings
that fronts Main Street Grover and has rented the stores
to sweepstakes operators until recently when a police
crack down began. Johnson said three sweepstakes '
. See GROVER, 6A
City looks to
bring Main
Street in-house
wm: ELIZABETH STEWART
lib.kmherald@gmail.com
City Manager Marilyn Sellers will recommend to
Kings Mountain City Council Tuesday night that the city
create the position of Main Street Manager (or Downtown
Development Director) and assume the primary respon-
sibility of downtown revitalization beginning Jan 31.
If council okays the recommendation and the new pol-
icy at its 6 p.m. meeting Tuesday night a full-time Main
Street program coordinator would become part of the eh
staff - with paid benefits - by July 1.
Until a new manager is on board, grants will continue
“to be managed and reports filed by the city's planning de-
partment, design committee work will continue and var-
ious committees implementing the four points of the Main
Street program will be evaluated.
Sellers is also recommending that the office used by
former Mountaineer Partnership Executive Director
Adam Hines be retained by the city for use of the new
manager. Hines resigned Dec. 30 to join the firm of Ed-
ward Jones Investments. :
Before making her recommendation for a new policy
Sellers said that she contacted four area Main Street cities
- Bessemer City, Forest City, Lincolnton and Morganton
where a city employee runs the program successfully and
also Main Street officials.
See CITY, 6A
CCS opens bid
for new offices
i ELIZABETH STEWART
lib.kmherald@gmail.com ‘
Cleveland County Schools will open bids Feb. 7
at 2:30 p.m. for a Central Services Building which
could top a $9.1 million dollar cost figure projected
four years ago and house all administration as early
as December and the Turning Point Academy, the al-
ternative school, by June 2013.
Assistant Supt. John Yarbro said the renovation of
the old Shelby Middle School on Sumter Street in
Shelby will house offices and 100 employees cur-
rently in the School Readiness building on S. Post
Road, administrative offices and employees now on
See DAVIDSON, 5A
EL ali (O18
ne Comfort Systems
ovation never felt so goo
Greg Melton, right, of Holland & Hamrick Architects gives
Cleveland County officials, I-r, CCS board member Kathy Falls,
Assistant Supt. Martha Hill, Assistant Supt. Dr. Linda Hopper,
and board member Phillip Glover a tour of the LeGrand Center
now under construction. AT RIGHT, a rendering of what the
LeGrand Center should look like on completion.
LeGrand Center, grand indeed
EMILY WEAVER
Editor
"This building is more unique than
anything we've ever done. It's got some
neat things going on," said Roger Hol-
land, architect of Holland and Hamrick
Architects after a tour of the LeGrand
Center Monday evening.
The 89,000-square-foot facility, its
main entrance soon tp be encased in
glass, will be the new home of the
Cleveland Early College High School,
Cleveland Community College's Con-
tinuing. Education department and
Cleveland County's economic develop-
ment offices. It also features a grand
ballroom and conference center of more
than 13,000 square feet. All three own-
ers look forward to using it.
Cleveland County School officials
gathered outside of the new center at 5
p.m. for an inside look at the towering
facility under construction on the cam-
pus of Cleveland Community College.
compari
Holland and Hamrick Architect Greg
Melton estimated construction should
be completed in June.
Cleveland Early College’ High
School Principal Anita Ware said that
they hope to move in to their new home
in time for the next school year.
"This is impressive," said school
board member Jerry Hoyle as he toured
the facility.
"The early college and CCC's contin-
uing education department will occupy
the center's first floor with controlled
access between the two and separate
entrances for both. Floor plans assign
space for nearly 30 classrooms. A fac-
ulty lounge is the only "shared space"
between the two schools, Melton said.
As the tour group meandered
through the early college's unfinished
halls, he pointed out the two sets of
"gang toilets" for boys and girls.
"One for the Bloods and one for the
Crips?" quipped school board member
Roger Harris.
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Kings Mountain's Treyvon Adams goes in for a lay-up off a fast break in Fri-
day's game with South Point at Parker Gym.
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- "I guess they go in gangs or groups,"
laughed CCS Spokeswoman Donne
Carpenter.
The facility offers three outdoor
classroom areas and courtyards for stu-
dents. A large multi-purpose room will
be divided by two skyfold partitions,
which will accordion up to the ceiling
with the turn of a key, opening the
space up to a large cafe-auditorium able
to accompany up to 375 people. Hol-
land said that these partitions will pro-
vide for better acoustics.
Right outside in a semi-circle drive,
students will come and go on school
buses.
In the hallways, concrete slabs cov-
ering the floors of alcoves are the foun-
dations-of lockers yet to be installed,
~ Melton pointed out.
"One thing that we carried over from
the (Shelby) Middle School design to
this is making sure the corridors were
See LeGRAND, 5A
Touchdown
Club gets ‘1st
, and 10’ with
endorsement
EMILY WEAVER
Editor
Punting a plea from the "50-yard-
line", the Kings Mountain Touch-
down Club sought support from the
Cleveland County Board of Educa-
tion Monday night to raise money for
a new’ 12,000-sq.-ft. field house,
press box, bathroom and concession
facilities for John Gamble Stadium.
The club earned its "first and 10"
with the board's endorsement of the
fundraising campaign.
David Brinkley, serving on the
_ club's board of directors, said that the
501¢(3) nonprofit is hoping to raise
enough money to build the new field
house. Also in the club's game book
isto update the existing field house
to accommodate other sports and
provide offices for coaches and pro-
vide new bathroom and concession
facilities for the stadium.
See BOARD, 3A
8
985257002001