HORD’S CONTAINER SERVICE (704) 466-6008 Volume 132 • Issue 17
Litter Sweep ends April 25 By Loretta Cozart
The City Council proclaimed April 11-25 as the official Spring Litter Sweep in Kings Mountain – an annual statewide cleanup of roads and highways. You have until April 25 to take advantage of free yard waste pickup. The city will even haul away old cars, large items, yard waste, junk and debris at no cost to you. There are a few exceptions – no hazardous materials, electronics, shingles, or wet paint. If you have paint buckets, please let them dry out or add dirt to the paint before putting them out for pickup. Place filled bags at the edge of the road but behind the curb in a pile for pickup. City crews will do the rest. Welcome spring by cleaning up lawn, litter and junk debris on your property. For more information call Kings Mountain Public Works at 704-7340735.
KM Herald consolidates offices By Loretta Cozart
On April 27, the KM Herald will relocate its offices to Community First Media at 503 N. Lafayette St. in Shelby. Community First Media is also home to Cherryville Eagle and Shelby Shopper & Info. The Herald was founded in 1887. There was a succession of other newspapers that tried to open over time, but only The Herald survived. All emails for the Herald will continue, so please contact us via email or by phone at this new number: 704-484-1047. As more updates about the consolidation become available, we will keep the community informed.
Wednesday, April 22, 2020
kmherald.com • 704-739-7496
75¢
Heavy storms damage Gateway Trail By Loretta Cozart
Due to heavy storms during the morning hours of Monday, April 13, the Gateway Trail experienced extensive damage from high winds. Thirteen trees were toppled, along with the new drive-in theater screen at Hound’s Campground. Volunteers made up of Ronnie and Rita Franks, Scott and Barbara Russell, Shirley Brutko, Bill McMurrey, and Cliff Laurich, spent nine-hours clearing debris from the short cement bridge on the Foote Tail. Some felled trees were too large for the crew to remove, so a professional tree service was called in to clear them. The next day, City of Kings Mountain crews began bush hogging, which is done three times a year.
The cement bridge on the Foote Trail was damaged by falling trees and the rails need repair.See more photos on page 10. Photos Shirley Brutko
Shelby bypass Support for small businesses segment opened NC House Committee approves A new portion of the Shelby Bypass opened to drivers on Tuesday afternoon before 5 pm. The 5.6mile segment extending from Peachtree Road to NC 226. Work on the $19 million contract started in April 2018. It included paving, grading and installing signals and overhead signs to this section that was already built out but needed final surfacing and other elements. Another segment under construction between NC 226 and west of NC 150 is scheduled for completion in 2022. The final two sections are scheduled for construction in 2024, extending the bypass to west of Stony Point Road at U.S. 74 Business in Kings Mountain. “While the final section is projected for completion in 2024, it is likely that date will be pushed back,” said Ron Humphries, Chairman of the Kings Mountain Transportation Commission. “First with budgeting, and now the Coronavirus, it is doubtful that deadline will be met.” As for what the Shelby Bypass will mean for Kings
Mountain, Humphries said, “It is likely to increase traffic and will impact the interchange at US 74 Bypass at Shelby/Stoney Point Roads near Ingles. “I believe when the Shelby Bypass is complete, it could become a defacto interstate. Currently, trucks avoid US 74 through Shelby and often travel south on I-85 South to I-26 when traveling to Asheville. Or, they drive Hwy 321 North to I-40 West. The completion of the Shelby Bypass will give travelers an alternative to those other choices and will be a more direct route,” he said. When complete, the 18.5-mile, four-lane divided bypass from east of Mooresboro to Kings Mountain will improve mobility through and around Shelby. The project will also improve safety by reducing congestion and crash rates on US 74. Motorists are encouraged to pay attention when approaching the work zone, obey the posted speed limit, and allow extra time to reach their destinations safely. For real-time travel information, visit DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media.
COVID-19 Response Act Draft legislation making emergency reforms to North Carolina’s tax and unemployment TIM MOORE laws was unanimously approved in a remote, live-streamed meeting of the state House Select Committee on COVID-19’s Economic Support Working Group on Tuesday, April 14. Additional bridge loans for small businesses were also added to the committee’s docket for further consideration and received support from state House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) during the hearing. The COVID-19 Response Act – Economic Support proposal approved by the committee would make immediate reforms to help North Carolina businesses, unemployed workers, and taxpayers through the pandemic. It waives the accrual of interest on income, corporate, and franchise taxes until July 15, affirms crisis-level flexibility in the administration of
unemployment benefits, and makes reforms recommended by the Division of Employment Security. The proposal also gives additional time to take certain tax-related procedural actions and request tax refunds of prior over-payments, while streamlining processing of unemployment benefits for businesses and displaced workers. “I certainly appreciate the cooperation that we’ve gotten through the committee to advance these proposals that will help North Carolina’s economy now,” committee co-chair Rep. Julia Howard (R-Davie) said Tuesday. Co-chair Rep. Jason Saine (R-Lincoln) presided over the first-ever live streamed meeting of a remote North Carolina House Committee. “Many of the actions this committee has considered, like attached claims for unemployment insurance applications, have since-been implemented by the administration through executive orders,” Rep. Saine said Tuesday. “This shows the strong value we have added to North Carolina’s response,
and these proposals are the next step.” The committee also heard from state House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) about a small business assistance proposal to appropriate additional funds to the Golden Leaf Foundation (GLF). The bridge loan funding proposal would extend $25 million to small businesses and largely mimics the existing program that GLF has offered to adversely affected businesses following Hurricanes Matthew and Florence. “The hope is to be able to increase this, and I can tell you the bill sponsors have worked very hard to this point knowing North Carolina businesses need all the help they can get right now,” Speaker Moore said to the committee Tuesday. “The key is to balance what we do as a state in spending with our reduced tax collections and the relief we receive from the federal government, to extend maximum assistance for North Carolinians to support them through our economic reopening and recovery.”
US Chamber offers grants on April 20 for area businesses US Chamber of Commerce Foundation announced the Save Small Business Fund on April 16, granting short-term relief for small employers in the United States and its territories. Starting at 3 pm on April 20, business owners could
submit a short application that takes about 10 minutes to complete by visiting: https:// www.savesmallbusiness. com/#eligibility Funded by corporate and philanthropic partners, the Save Small Business Fund is a collective effort to provide
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$5,000 grants to small employers. The purpose of these supplemental funds is to help businesses get through the next days and weeks. The application only requires your business’s W-9 form and basic supporting information about your busi-
ness. To apply, you must run a small business or chamber of commerce with between 3-20 employees (not including independent contractors). Businesses in Cleveland, Rutherford, and Gaston Counites qualify. The busi-
ness must be located in an economically vulnerable community. This is defined as the bottom 80% of the most economically distressed zip codes in the United States, as ranked by the Distressed Communities Index. Before See GRANT, Page 8
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