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Back home again
After a threemonth trip that sent him through Pender and Onslow counties, Einstein is back home safe at Old River Farms. Read about his travels and return home on page 1B.
The Pender-Topsail
&
Patriots win track title The Pender High School Lady Patriots indoor track team won the Four County Conference championship last week. Read about the team’s performance in sports on page 8A.
Thursday, February 11, 2016
Volume 45, No. 19
50 Cents
The Media of Record for the People of Pender County
School bond projects in architect’s hands
Volunteering for furry friends
New Penderlea School design well received By Andy Pettigrew Post & Voice Publisher
Staff photo by Andy Pettigrew
Volunteers prepare spaghetti dinners at the annual fundraiser for the Pender County Humane Society in Hampstead last week.
Dees Drug to move to Piggly Wiggly From Staff Reports According to sources inside Dees Drug, the downtown Burgaw location will close within a few months and relocate to the Burgaw Piggly Wiggly.
The Dees Drug lunch counter, a long time fixture in downtown Burgaw, will close. Additional information was not available at press time.
School building projects related to the school bond are in the hands of the various architects for design work. “We are in the final stages of getting the architectural drawings submitted so we can start the bidding process soon for Cape Fear and Penderlea. We are waiting for the bonds to be released so we can get the money and move on to the next steps,” said School Board member Tom Roper. “All the architects are engaged in the final planning process.” Roper said he expects an update on the architects work Friday. The new Penderlea School building has been well received by the community. “It’s been very positive. It’s taken a while to build trust with the decisions we are making. I think the community realizes we can’t do but so much with a hundred year-old facility without costing the taxpayers a lot of money,” said Roper. “When they realized we were going to build something with a historical feel that fits the
Tom Roper Penderlea community and is functional for the kids that keeps that theme, it’s been very positive. Now everybody wants it yesterday.” Roper says the school bond projects take time to move along. “People see the bond and want to see bricks and mortar right away. There is a lot of work still going on behind the scene and we have the pedal to the metal as much as we can,” The plan is to keep the existing Penderlea School open while construction is underway at the new school site.
Hampstead wastewater system ready to roll By Andy Pettigrew Post & Voice Publisher The Pluris wastewater plant, located in southeastern Pender County on the Trask site that is the future home of the Blake Farm development, is ready for operation. This will be the first regional wastewater facility in eastern Pender County and will service future private development up to three million gallons per day.
The Pluris wastewater plant is a privately funded and operated plant, in a partnership with Pender County County Commissioner David Williams says according to Randy Hoffer, Pluris regional manager, the plant is ready to begin operation and are currently accepting wastewater from Topsail High School, Topsail Middle School, and Topsail Elementary School through a pump and haul permit. It’s anticipated that shortly
the sewer lines will be operational. “This is all a privately funded system. There are some smaller package wastewater plants around Hampstead that have been talking to Pluris about hooking up. This is not something that is practical to an individual homeowner,” Williams said. “It’s not a gravity system like a city might have. It’s a pressurized system and
Continued on page 2A
Winter storm brings heavy rain, flooding to Pender By Andy Pettigrew Post & Voice Publisher Weather forecasters hinted at the possibility of snow last weekend – a forecast that never materialized. What fell was rain – and plenty of it. Long-range forecasts of a wet winter due to a strong El Nino are coming true. A rain event last week coupled with a strong coastal storm last weekend dumped a large amount of rain on Pender County and southeastern North Carolina, pushing rivers and streams out of their
banks. Flooding has been reported in neighborhoods around the Northeast Cape Fear River as well as in the Scotts Hill community. “We have four roads in the county that are closed currently. It will probably impact a few more before this is over,” said Pender County Emergency Management Director Tom Collins. “Most of the flooding is in the usual areas, around River Bend and River Birch. Croomsbridge Road is closed, and Old Maple Hill School Road is closed. There will probably be some places
off Shaw Highway, like Sandy Bend at the end of the road. It is already impacting some homes there.” Collins expects the Northeast Cape Fear to crest sometime Wednesday at about 14.6 feet, and remain there until beginning to slowly fall late Thursday. “I’m expecting to see water on the road on both Shaw Highway and Hwy. 53 east of Burgaw. It’s already close to the road in some places. Shelter Creek is high and threatening Holland’s Shelter Creek Seafood,” Collins said.
Staff photo by Andy Pettigrew
Floodwater from the Northeast Cape Fear River covers Croomsbridge Road east of Burgaw after last weekend’s heavy rain.
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