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Thursday, May 23, 2019
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• Belmont • Cramerton • Lowell • McAdenville • Mount Holly • Stanley
Thursday, May 23, 2019
Mt. Holly officially dedicates new facilities By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
The City of Mt. Holly held official ribbon cutting ceremonies last week for its new Public Works and North Fire Station facilities. Both locations have been in operation for a few months, but officials wanted to schedule the ribbon cuttings and tours on the same day. The events were attended by a nice crowd of city officials and employees. The ribbon handling was done by members of the Mt. Holly and Gasd
The new Public Works facility is super nice. The Public Works building provides a centralized location and more efficient operations for public works functions of the City and combines facilities into one: Utilities, Streets and Solid Waste, and Maintenance. The Public Works facility’s administration building has approximately 8,000 square feet of new construction consisting of offices, workrooms, conference room, break room/kitchen, restrooms/showers/lockers, See MT. HOLLY, Page 8
Mt. Holly city council member Carolyn Breyare cuts the ribbon for the MHFD North Station as other dignitaries and municipal employees look on. Photo by Alan Hodge
Belmont beekeeper says don’t swat those swarms By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
Let’s cut straight to the chase- if you see a swarm of honey bees on a tree or your house this spring- let those bees be. Spring is the time when honey bees start looking for elbow room. Belmont beekeeper Lynda Primke explains what’s going on. “Basically, bees swarm because there are too many in a hive,” she said. “So the queen leaves and takes about half the bees with her.” Don’t be scared if you see a swarm. “The bees are full of honey so they are at their most docile,” Prinke explained. “The queen is in the middle of the mass. They will not bother you.” So, don’t mess with the bees. Leave that to people like Primke and her fellow Gaston County Beekeepers Association members. “We have a list of beekeepers who will come and remove the swarm,” Primke said. “The list is on our website Gastonbee.org. Don’t panic. Make us your first call.” The swarm removal is free-unless the beekeeper has to do some carpenter work to get them out of a house. “If the hive is inside a structure the beekeeper will
Beekeper Ashley Burgess Gabriel lives in Belmont. She went to the Gaston County Beekeeper Association Bee School 2019 and is now a NC Certified Beekeeper. give an estimate of cost if anything has to be taken apart,” said Primke. According to Primke, the swarm season could last several more weeks. “This past winter was not bad for bees,” she said. Primke lives in Belmont at Belmont Reserve so she has to keep her hives elsewhere. “I cannot keep my apiary here so I have an off site location at the Carolina Lavender Farm with John Rowley in Gastonia,” she said. Primke says her group is always happy to have new members join up.
The Gaston County Beekeepers Association (GCBA) is a chapter of the NC State Beekeepers Association made up of local beekeepers from Gaston and surrounding counties. The group generally meets on the last Tuesday of each month at 7 PM at the Citizens Resource Center, 1303 Dallas-Cherryville Hwy., Dallas. Meetings usually feature a speaker who shares knowledge on various topics related to honey bees, honey bee hive management, honey production and harvesting and other See BEES, Page 4
Cramerton PD officers S.D. Evans and J.J. Nevins place the wreath at the Gaston County Law Enforcement Memorial Service held last Thursday at Bethlehem Church. Photo by Alan Hodge
Local law enforcement honor and remember their fallen By Alan Hodge alan@cfmedia.info
A large group of police officers and other dignitaries from Gaston and parts of Cleveland counties gathered last Thursday at Bethlehem Church for the annual Gaston County Law Enforcement Memorial Service where they remembered fallen officers from the past and praised those in the line of duty in the
present. The Cramerton Police Department hosted this year’s gathering. Guest speaker at the event was Tim Sims of the Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office. Sims recounted the harrowing ordeal he endured last year when he was shot twice by a suspect he was questioning near Kings Mtn. Sims credited his fellow officers for their support during the
long recovery period he has been undergoing. “We are the blue family,” he said. “We take care of our brothers and sisters.” Sims also decried the elements in our society who make the job of law enforcement even more difficult that it is. “We protect the weak and serve justice,” he said. “We See MEMORIAL, Page 2