THURSDAY
STATUS REPORT: Heart of the Triad gets focus. 1B
April 1, 2010 126th year No. 91
TAX FREEDOM DAY: Event comes earlier in N.C.. 2A
www.hpe.com High Point, N.C.
HAPPY HOMECOMING: Heather Richardson enjoys big day. 1D
50 Cents Daily $1.25 Sundays
HELPING HANDS
WHO’S NEWS
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Volunteers roll up sleeves as tornado cleanup continues WANT TO HELP?
Inside...
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Red Cross responds. 3A Cleanup photos. 5A
The High Point Police Department’s volunteer coordination service is scheduled to operate daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Sunday at Community Bible Church, 4125 Johnson St. Property owners can call 906-4341 to request assistance from volunteers. Those who wish to volunteer can report to the church and contact police department staff at the police Community Action Vehicle.
BY PAT KIMBROUGH ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
SONNY HEDGECOCK | HPE
George Bartlett throws a limb onto a pile of debris as he helps Bud Witcher clear his back yard at 3509 Langdale Drive.
HIGH POINT – Three days after he and his family got the scare of a lifetime, the front yard of Jason Huffman’s Old Mill Road home was swarming with volunteers. Huffman, his wife and three children took shelter in a closet inside a recent addition to their house when Sunday’s tornado dislodged the 500-square-foot room and scattered it about 100 yards away. “As soon as we got in the closet, it hit us,” said Huffman. “I remember it took me and slammed me hard against a wall and the next thing I knew I was in the yard.” His 4-year-old daughter, Lilly, suffered a broken leg, and the family has since learned that their home has been declared uninhabitable and will be demolished, Huffman said. Volunteers from their church, Shady Grove Wes-
leyan in Colfax, on Wednesday were helping the Huffmans clean up. Among other volunteers lending a hand was Jeff Leonard, chief of the police department in the town of Wake Forest, who came with three of his fellow officers to help remove some of the dozens of downed trees Old Mill Road property owners are dealing with. “My neighbor is the grandmother of (Lilly Huffman), so when I heard what had happened, we decided to
HIGH POINT – Two additional trains will chug through the Piedmont this summer, making stops in High Point and Greensboro along the way. The North Carolina Department of Transportation announced two new midday routes for the Amtrak system, which runs from Raleigh to Charlotte, would begin June 5. A Southbound Amtrak will come from Raleigh, arriving at the High Point Train Depot at 1:40 p.m. daily, and a northbound train from Charlotte will arrive in High Point at 1:45 p.m. daily. The trains will arrive in Greensboro at 1:23 p.m.
allow passengers to travel midday rather than early morning or late evening, said Sherry Matthews, team leader at the station. “We have a lot of commuters going back and forth (between Raleigh and Charlotte),” Matthews said. “This could give us a lot more business because some people want to get back earlier. People that want to get back in the middle of the day have SONNY HEDGECOCK | HPE FILE Under the careful eye of the conductor, passengers board that constant transportation the Carolinian, which runs from Charlotte to New York now.” She said the additional City. The train on the other side is the Piedmont that runs routes would give regular from Raleigh to Charlotte. passengers more options, a morning and an evening and they could also benefit and 2:06 p.m., respectively. The state currently spon- run between Raleigh and attendees at the High Point sors four daily routes run Charlotte. Market. The new routes differ from by the “Piedmont” and the “Now some of our evening “Carolinian,” each making existing routes in that they commuters can choose to go
back earlier,” she said. “I know our market visitors will love it, too.” NC DOT secretary Gene Conti said in a statement the new routes were added to serve the Triad’s growing population. “As our population continues to grow, we must provide people with travel alternatives,” he said. “Train travel also provides environmental and energy benefits through reduced congestion and improved air quality.” “We’re hoping this will give us a good turnout and bring more passengers to our station,” Matthews added. phaynes@hpe.com | 888-3617
Housing tax credit nears end BY PAM HAYNES ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
HIGH POINT – The homebuyer’s tax credit that has driven an abundance of home sales since last year soon will become a thing of the past. Thirty days remain for potential buyers to get a home under contract to qualify for the federal government tax credit, which can offer up to $8,000 to first-time buyers and $6,500 to repeat buyers. But the one-month time frame is still enough for buyers who want to take advantage of the credit, according to real estate officials. “I’m telling buyers, ‘Don’t delay any longer if you’re going to do this,’ ” said Ken Wall, president of the High Point Regional Association of Realtors, about the credit. The first thing that a potential buyer should do is get pre-
PROGRAM
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The federal government program originally applied to first-time homebuyers, offering up to an $8,000 credit for single taxpayers who make no more than $125,000 and married couples who make no more than $225,000 a year. The credit has been expanded to repeat buyers, offering them up to $6,500 toward the purchase of a new home. To qualify, the home must be under contract by April 30 and close by June 30. approved for a loan as soon as possible, Wall said. “That could take anywhere from a couple of hours to a few days, depending on their financial situation,” he said. “There are also some things that may show up on their credit that keep them from getting the loan, but they can take some action to get those things wiped off and re-apply. The sooner they start, the better.”
Once a buyer is pre-approved for a loan and has selected a house, they shouldn’t hesitate to make an offer, Wall added. “Sometimes, it can take sellers days to respond to an offer,” he said. “The less time buyer’s have to get a house under contract, that’s when they begin to lose their bargaining ability.” An option to prevent de-
INSIDE
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LIBRARY UPDATE: New entrance unveiling. 1B OBITUARIES
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Martha Ferguson, 62 Clinton Gilreath, 68 Donnie Presnell, 58 Myrtle Wilson, 98 Zan Younts, 77 Obituaries, 2B
VOLUNTEERS, 2A
All aboard! Amtrak adds midday routes BY PAM HAYNES ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
Dr. Zoe Diana Draelos, a High Point dermatologist, was named a consulting professor in the Department of Dermatology at Duke University School of Medicine. Draelos will assist in educating young dermatologists.
WEATHER
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Sunny, warm High 82, Low 50 6D
INDEX ABBY 3B BUSINESS 5-6D CLASSIFIED 5-8C COMICS 5B CROSSWORD 2C DONOHUE 5B FUN & GAMES 2C LIFE&STYLE 1C, 3-4C LOCAL 2-3A, 1B LOTTERY 2A MOVIES 6B NEIGHBORS 4B NATION 5A, 8A, 6D NOTABLES 6B OBITUARIES 2B OPINION 6-7A SPORTS 1-4D STATE 2-3A, 2-3B STOCKS 5D TV 6B WEATHER 6D WORLD 4A
DON DAVIS JR. | HPE
Ken Wall with homebuyer Taneshia Rorie at Providence Realty. layed responses from sellers is giving an offer with expiration date. This leaves sellers a limited amount of time to respond, and buyers will know if they should continue to pursue the property or move on, Wall said. Also, knowing how many outstanding offers have been made on a home also could keep buyers from wasting time, he said. Taking the appropriate ac-
YOUR COMMUNITY. YOUR NEWSPAPER.
tions may help buyers battle another obstacle this month – the competition that real estate officials expect to see from anxious buyers. “Because of the extension of the tax credit and its April 30 deadline, potential buyers seem to be procrastinating until the last minute,” said HPRAR executive vice president Ed Terry. phaynes@hpe.com | 888-3617
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