Kings Mountain Heralas
kmherald.net
DAVE BLANTON
dave.kmherald@gmail.com
Wal-Mart and city officials say
the retail giant is set to begin con-
struction in March at the site of the
old Winn Dixie building, the inter-
section of King St. and Phifer Rd.
In addition to bringing about 95
jobs to town, the new addition is
expected to breathe fresh air into
the Kings Mountain retail scene,
where dollar stores, grocery stores
and small shops presently domi-
nate. Wal-Mart is anticipating the
store to open by late fall.
The Wal-Mart store will be a
Neighborhood Market, a scaled
down version of the chain’s Super-
stores, which will focus on gro-
ceries, produce and general
merchandise, as well as offer a
drive-through pharmacy. {
Volume 126 ¢ Issue 3 eo Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Many in Kings Mountain said
they’ve been excited about the
popular retail chain’s move be-
cause they’re already loyal Wal-
Mart shoppers and now they’ll be
saved a trip to Gastonia or Shelby.
“It’s really a matter of conven-
ience and (saving on) gas money
for me,”
manager at the Kings Mountain
Little Caesars location. “T’1l defi-
FIRST KNIGHTS - Riley Powers, a 2nd grader at East Elementary, is joined by Kings Mountain Rotary Club President
Suzanne Amos and Knight of the Guild David Mesimer as students were recognized for exhibiting confidence and
discipline. See the story on page 6B. Photo by DAVE BLANTON
Still time to enter
MLK photo contest
said Shonna McCree, a
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Kings Mountain Mayor Rick
Murphrey said city officials are ex-
cited that Wal-Mart is coming to
town, adding that it will be a bonus
to shoppers of all kinds.
“It will keep prices competitive
—it will be good for the consumer,”
he said. “It will also bring a lot of
jobs to the community.”
Avramily Tradition of Dignity,
of % 108 S. Piedmont Ave.
Kings Mountain, NC
Service & Undesstanding
739-2591
While the fates of the Jackson-
Hewitt tax preparers’ office and the
Asian Buffet, both of which cur-
rently lease space in the Winn
Dixie building, were uncertain,
Murphrey said the popular eatery
Weiner Works will stay put in the
strip mall’s parking lot. He also
said that the new Wal-Mart will be
positioned to face Hwy. 74.
: See WAL-MART, 7A
No gas fee hike
on the horizon
# ELIZABETH STEWART
a lib.kmherald@gmail.com
No hike in natural gas
fees is expected for city cus-
tomers in the, next two
budget years, and possibly
not after that, thanks to ex-
pansion of gas lines in the
city and the recent settle-
ment of a “rate case” involv-
ing the city, 16 other
municipalities in the ‘two
Carolinas, and their supplier.
City council will not pass
on the increase it will pay
for gas transportation as the
result of almost two years of
negotiations, including a
court case in which settle-
ment discussions started at
28% initially, then got to
22% and then settled at
11%.
“We fought this increase
hard,” Mayor Rick Mur-
phrey said Tuesday as En-
ergy Director Nick
Hendricks presented a
‘progress report also of two
major pilot projects — Smart
Meters and Fiber Optics —
‘two ambitious projects that
Kings Mountain is among
the first municipalities in the
state to undertake with suc-
cess.
Hendricks said . that
Transcontinental Pipeline
filed a general rate increase
with the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission
(FERC) Aug. 21,’ 2012
which would have equated
to more than $4.7 million to
the Transco Municipal
Group of municipalities who
hired Miller, Balis & O’Neal
of Washington, DC to repre-
sent them in court. The at-
torney fee was shared
among all 17 municipalities
and Kings Mountain’s cost
was $5,294.19.
Transco filed the rate
case due to under recovering
on their rate of caused by
additional infrastructure for
ongoing additional load ca-
pacity needs, said Hen-
dricks.
Kings Mountain, through
the Williams (Transco) Mu-
nicipal Group, protested the
filing on Sept.12, 2012 and
on Sept. 28, 2012 a 22% rate
increase to the city and
group was approved with
proposed rates subject to re-
fund after a rate case hear-
ing. Council did not increase
rates to city customers and
absorbed the increase, said
Hendricks. Per the settle-
ment, the increases to the
city from its supplier wil
continue until March 2014
when the 11% rate will be
effective.
“We did not increase the
rate to Kings Mountain cus-
tomers to account for our
See FEES, 7A
Smart Meters to track utility costs
ga ELIZABETH STEWART
5 lib.kmherald @gmail.com
Utility customers who
gas they are using.
“Our goal is to be done
with everything by fall but
we have a few more hurdles
before I come to council
with recommendation for a
full implementation of the
program,” said Hendricks.
He began his presentation
by saying, “This is the fu-
ture, and we’re cleaning up
Friday at 5 p.m. is the last
day to take your photograph
on the theme “Love” to City
Hall as an entry in the Dr.
Martin Luther King Day
contest .
This year’s competition
is sponsored by the City of
Kings Mountain and takes
its cue from a quote by the
slain civil rights leader:
“Darkness cannot drive out
darkness, only light can do
that.” Cash prizes will be
awarded to first, second and
third place winners in both
adult and student divisions.
Tl
The winner in first place
will win $150 cash. The
prizes will be awarded at a
reception/exhibit on Jan. 20
at the Southern Arts Society
at the Depot beginning at 6
p.m.
Photographic prints will
be accepted as well as those
digitally mailed or dropped
off at the City Hall to Lynda
Maddox or emailed to Ellis
Noell, Special Events Direc-
tor, at www.cityofkm.com
A feature of the Dr. Mar-
tin Luther King Day obser-
vance will be the 17th
annual breakfast at 8 a.m. at
Bynum Chapel AME Zion
Church. The meal is a $5 do-
nation and the speaker will
be Presiding Elder Andrew
B. Smoke, Hendersonville
District, Blue Ridge Confer-
ence.
are paying late fees will be
able to monitor their
- monthly bills — and save
money — with new Smart
Meters the city plans to in-
stall free to customers city-
wide this summer.
The pilot program got
underway nearly a year ago
and is being tested by 50
residential customers in the
Country Club area and by
commercial and industrial
users on Canterbury Road
and Woodlake Parkway.
‘City of Kings Mountain
Energy Services Director
Nick Hendricks, in an up-
date to city council, said the
program is being well re-
ceived in the community. By
this fall the Smart Grid pro-
gram will allow all residents
to find out online how much
water, electricity, and natural
See SMART METERS, 2A
City officials show off Smart Meters the city plans to install city-wide this summer. Pictured,
left to right, are Dennis Wells, Holly Black, Nick Hendricks, Matthew Dull and Mayor Rick
Murphrey.
File photo
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