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20 PAGES TODAY
KINGS MOUNTAIN MIRROR
^ VOL. 3 NO. 30
KINGS MOtiN’TAIN, NORTH CAROLINA 280M THURSDAY. APRIL 4.1*74
BUinton On Cansler St. Project
^They Don’t Understand Redevelopment’
Bypass Hearing
Not Be
All That Quiet
ByTOMMdNTYRE
Editor, The Miiror
If more property owners like Mrs. Jane Martin of
Lackey St. are as dissatisfied with the proposed U.S.
74 bypass the design hearingset for May 2 might not be
as quiet as District Highway Engineer Ken Mauney
thinks.
Mauney was reportedly to feel that in view of past
public hearingi he did not anticipate too much op
position at the design hearing for the bypass.
"If the bypass goes through as proposed now," Mrs.
Martin told Ihe Mirror, "I won’t have a house
(See BYPASS pJA)
KINGS
U S 74
MOUNTAIN
BYPASS
BETHWARE
(IMMUNITY
By JAY ASHLEY
Mirror Suff Writer
“hit (
■0,
,^/?l303
''■'.l.'y <T
Current
UJS. 74
Bypass
Proposal
PROJECT-
INOICATES PROPOSED INTERCHANGES
OP TAAmFCATATlOW AND MI8HWAY SAFETY
Strike
Still On
At FME
By GARY STEWART
Mirror Staff Writer
Approximately 35 truck
(kivers and dock workers at
Fredrickson Motor Express
are still on strike today over
what they term “unfair labor,
practices” on the part of their
employer.
Ral^ Garrison of Dallas, a
spokesmtm for the strikers,
said the strike went into effect
at midnight Sunday after the
company failed to make any
tffers toward settling com
plaints which trace back to
last fall.
Garrison said the workers
are seeking a contract which
would include more pay,
dependent insurance,
seniority and vacation
benefits, ample overtime pay,
work classification and other
benefits.
The drivers and dock
workers, along with fellow
employees from 12 other
Fr^ickson terminals, joined
the United Steel Workers of
America last fall,, at which
time a list of demands was
given to the company.
Garrison said the em
ployees’ negotiating com-
mitteeand laiion lawyers have
met with the company on
several occasions since Oc
tober “but they (the com
pany) haven’t offered
anything.’’
Garrison said a vote was
taken on March 24 and the
drivers and dock workers
voted to strike midnight
Sunday unless some progress
was made on the compaiiy’s
part.
“The negotiating committee
had a meeting with the
company after the vote was
taken and told them of our
At JHM Reservoir
Electric Pumps
Replace Diesels
ON STRIKE - Here are a few of the 35
striking drivers and dock workers at
Fredrickson Motor Express. The men went on
strike Sunday at mi^ight over what they
Photo by Gary Stewart
termed “nnfah- labor practices.” From left,
(he strikers include R.D. Sisk, Vsughn
Roberts, Ralph Garrison, William Schenck,
Larry Moore and Richard Wells.
By JAY ASHLEY
M|rror Staff Writer
Wednesday was a day for
change at John Henry Moss
Reservoir. It was the day the
city switched from diesel
anises to electric motors for
water pumping operations.
According to Commissioner
Uoyd Davis the diesel engines
have never been quite
satisfactory for pumping
water into the T.J. Ellison
Filtering Plant. The engines
have sunk into the lake twice
in the past and on the first
occasion pumps borrowed
from the Anniston, Ala. Civil
Defense Rescue unit also
sank. The pumps had to be
rescued and repaired before
being returned to Anniston.
Davis said “the electric
motors are much more
satisfactory for this operation.
One electric motor can pull as
much water in one day as both
the diesel engines were
doing.”
Both diesel engines were
pumping four million gallons
per day.
Davis said the cost of
operation at the filtering plant
will also be substantially
better, although he said he
was hesitant about stating
figures. He did say the cost of
operating the diesels ran 3700
per week. “Using the electric
motor will cut down on this
cost since it won’t use diesel
fuel at 25.9 cents per gallon
like the old engines. It will also
mean a savings of about 20
man-hours of labor per week."
The filtering plant has three
electric motor driven pumps
on hand and that gives the
plant a potential of pumping 12
million gallons of water per
day.
Davis and severai other
commissioners also took the
opportunity to comment that
they didn’t understand why
the electric motor driven
(See CITY p. 3A)
Ingram Proposals
Still Under Fire
In Cleveland County
Boyles Is Named
Morgan’s Manager
ByTOMMdNTYRE
Editor, The Mirror
John Ingram’s con
versations about the way auto
insurance companies are
turning his proposals on
change favoring motorists
every way but loose could be
termed sour grapes.
They could be, except for
J aiiu kunA uiciil w IMI aiiki/ wiaju uc, CAVCpt lur uicjr ULIU W«» UllkC a KTCf
kT intentions,” said Garrison, the fact the N.C. Insurance and a mended it to a good
* ftlAU SAGII (armtldM** MMaWa ^ T ^ — t _ ..AMrABa ^aIIa aiaAA>.2Wa^^ J Al^ta.
“gnd they still wouldn’t make
any offers. I don’t think they
really thought the guys would
carry it out”
Of 49 drivers and dock
workers at the KM terminal,
38 were on strike and 11
working Monday morning.
The strikers said “three or
fiiur" have since gone back to
work and the company has
hired four adcfitional drivers.
The 3.“ workers still out pledge
to hold their ground.
Frank Vanstory, manager
'f the KM terminal, would not
comment on the situation
! except to say that "most of our
: employees have reported t%
f on a near schedule as
(See STRIKE p. 2A>
Commissioner never falls into
the doldrums over the lobbyist
pressure in Raleigh. He only
staggers, then comes back
strong.
Talking to a room full of
Rotarians and special guests
at the Kings Mountain
Country Club last Thursday
Ingram said, “The auto in
surance companies ain’t
never seen a fight like they did
in the General Assembly in
1973.”
He said North Carolina was
the first state in the union to
abolish the assigned risk
“mess." He said this piece of
legislation made it mandatory
fur insurance companies to
write policies for the eligible
drivers at the time they ask
fur them and that those
policies have to be renewed as
long as the motorist wishes it,
as long as he remains in good
standing with the law.
“Tliis bill is still not exactly
what we want,” he said. “The
collision cancellation clause
was removed. When the
Senate passed this bill what
they did was take a great bill
biU.”
Ingram attributed this to the
great pressure on Senators by
insurance lobbyists.
Another piece of legislation
Ingram said he was proud of
would do away with the rate
discrimination for the under-
25 drivers. “Of course the
insurance companies refused
to accept the proposal,” he
said. “Now the commissioner
will have to devise a plan
showing how this can be done.
An April 15 hearing has been
set. May 1 is date for the
change.”
A bill by Sen. John Henley in
the same area passed on the
second reading, according to
Ingram, “but over the
weekend the pressure against
the Senators was so great that
on the third reading the bill
was recbmmited to com
mittee.”
Ingram said he was happy
to report, however, “that
yesterday (Wed., Mar. 27) the
Senate rejected a 37 Plan
which would have increased
discriminations against safe
drivers and would have forced
me to raise rates of nearly half
the people of North Carolina.”
He said the 37 Plan was a
ploy to postpone true
automobile insurance reform
ending rate discrimination
against safe tkivers because
of age.
“In 1971, the auto insurance
industry created a smoke
screen against Representative
John Ingram with a 260 Plan,”
Ingram said “This year this
same industry created a
smoke screen against Sen.
John Henley with the 37
‘Gimmick’ Plan.
‘“nie 37 Plan would have
raised the rates for 48 percent
of the vehicles in the state, left
30 percent unchanged while
(See INGRAM p.2A)
Attorney General Robert
Morgan today named Willard
Boyles as Cleveland County
Manager of his campaign for
the Democratic nomination
for the United States Senate.
Boyles is manager of the
business forms division of
Shelby Printing Company and
resides at 403 Phifer Rd.,
Kings Mountain.
“We are delighted to have
Willard directing our cam
paign in Cleveland County,”
Morgan said. “He is a ha^
worker and the type person we
want on our team,” he added.
Boyles is a life-long resident
of Cleveland County and has
lung been active in
Democratic Party affairs. He
served two terms as YDC
President in Cleveland
County.
He is married to the former
Melba Watterson. They have
one sun and one daughter, and
are members of the Oak
Grove Baptist CTiurch where
Boyles is chairman of the
board of deacons and chair
man of the building com
mittee.
Boyles is also a Mason in
Lodge 339 at Kings Mountain
WILLARD BOYLES
and a member of the
Progressive Club at Beth-
ware.
“We are very encouraged
by the great support for Mr.
Morgan in Clevdand County.
We will be taking this cam
paign to every precinct in the
county on the grassroots
level,” Boyles said.
The Kings Mountain Redevelopment Commission has ‘
snag” in the Cansler Street Renewal Project.
In their regular meeting Tuesday morning, the KMRC
members heard from commissioner Leroy Blanton that
residents in the Cansler area “don’t understand what
redevelopment is all about.” Blanton said, “they need to see
something concrete in the area.”
Blanton and RC Chairman Carl Mauney concurred that “the
people have heard through the grapevine that the commission
is coming in to bulldoze their homes and they haven't been told
any differently.”
Executive director of the Redevelopment Commission, Gene
White said, “every case is taken individually and we work with
the people in relocating them to standard housing.”
Blanton said, “we need to start building in the area to let
people know we’re doing something for them.”
The Cansler area contains four “sections” that will be oc
cupied by public housing. According to White, “there are legal
protdems in each section that prohibit the local housing
authority from beginning construction.”
White said as far as he understood, KM Housing Authority
director Tom Harper needed ail properties acquired before he
could start to build public housing facilities.
Commissioner Paul McGinnis said, “we have a HUD
(Housing and Urban Deveiopment) rule that says we can’t
move people out of sub-standard houses into another sub
standard home Since we can’t move the people into standard
homes because we don’t have them, we have to start building
some.”
McGinnis’ remark was prompted by a statement from Leroy
Blanton who said the pn^lem was “residents in the Cansler
area don't want to move outof the area.”
Chairman Mauney said, “if the people don’t want to move
into a predominantly white neighborhood, we shouldn’t force
them to.”
Gene White then added, “the goal of the Redevelopment
Commission is to satisfy the residenls and get them iifto the
dwellings they want.”
3(.’iu<>u .ouuiui'fd aski.ig Whita, a (hcj waiu lo
move from the Cansler area and there’s no place for them to go
in the neighborhood, what can we do?”
The matter of constructing the public housing was again
mentioned by Chairman Mauney who said, “why does Tom
Harpm- have to have all the parcels before he can build? Why
can’t we clear one piece and let him start constructing? We
need some standard housing in order to move the people.
Then we can clear the other parcds.”
White said he didn’t know why Harper needed all the parcels
acquired before construction and asked the commission if they
wanted Harper to explain it to them.
Mauney answered, “you tell Harper what we can do. I don’t
see how we can clear the whole area before building again.”
Blanton asked Assistant director John Hall what the hold up
is in acquiring the parcels. Hall said, “in some cases it’s not
that the people are against the commission but it’s a problem
within the family.” He then cited an instance where he said
“the sister is mad at the brother and down the line. That’s the
hold up.”
Hall agreed with Blanton that if the predominantly black
residents in the Cansler area want to stay in their neigh
borhood, more standard houses will have to be built to ac
comodate relocated families.
Hall also noted older people “don’t like the redevelopment
commission” He cited a case where an elderly lady was
moved “into a much nicer home but she still thinks we are
bad.”
Blanton told Hall, “I think you’re still too young to un
derstand elderly people and their ways. We have to be sen
sitive to their pr^lems.”
Hall said, “we are trying to be sensitive but where do you
draw the line between sensitivity and getting the job done?
We’re talking about getting some results but lots of these
problemsare holding us up. We have a a heavy workload.”
Mauney interrupted Hall by saying, “you have three people
to see 100 residents in three months, I don't think that’s such a
heavy workload.”
Blanton said, “we’ve moved a lot of people on paper but we
are still having problems with the way people think of us.”
Hall answered, “we have to follow federal guidelines on all
our moves and if you think things aren’t going right, just follow
Annie Thombs one day. (Ms. Thombs is assistant at the
Cansler St. site office).
At that point, Mauney told Hall to “get off your high horse.
Let’s talk about this thing sensibly.”
Hazel Brown, (^nsler St. site manager said one hope for the
area lies “in the Morris St. area and construction of some two
and three unit homes.” He said there are only two or three
tunilies yet to deal with and then the area will be acquired.
Blanton suted, “Fm not trying to be contrary, and I know
the staff has problems, but we need to do something for the
people in the area.” He continued by saying some families in
the area had moved to Bessemer City because they had “heard
that the commission is just going to come in and level the
neighborhood.”
Hall said the commission does have to ha ve places for people
affected by renewal before demoliton takes place. The
problem. Hall noted, is building the public housing piecemeal.
Finally vice-chairman John Plonk said, “it seems as thoi^h
we have reached an impasse. 1 suggest the staff keep working
harder and harder on the matter. They’ve been doing a good
job but I don’t see an immediate answer to our problem.”
Carl Mataiey said, “well I’m not going to be a party to
throwing people out in the streets to build public housing.”
White said, “the individual comes first” He then
invited any of the commissioners to talk with residents that
have already been relocated. “I think,” White said, “you’ll
find most of them satisfied.”
Leroy Blanton then told White, “they have been talking
differently to me than they do to you.”
He sai4 “I’ve talked with many of them who are having
second thoughts about their move Many of them are told about
the benefits and money they can receive by moving and they
have never had that much money in their life and decide to
move. In a few months, the money’s gone and they are having
doubts.”