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 Siler City, North Carolina  (919)663-3232   

School building getting underway

By Bob Wachs

When the 2005-06 school year begins next month, some Jordan Matthews High School students will still find themselves eating lunch outside or in the wide confines of Senior Hall when the weather is bad.

But if construction plans go the way school officials expect, those days are on their way to becoming history.

A new kitchen/cafeteria for JM is on the drawing board, along with a new elementary school in Siler City. Earlier this month school superintendent Ann Hart presented board of education members with an initial schedule for the four construction projects recently approved by county commissioners.

Those four projects, Hart said, will be done two at a time. “There are actually four different contracts,” Hart told the board but economy of scale and a cost savings will put two together two times. Hart said she and associate superintendent Paul Joyce met with the project architects and come up with what she described as “a pretty good timeline.”

The second set of projects is scheduled to start approximately six months behind the first one – the lunchroom and elementary school. That second group includes a new middle school in northeastern Chatham County and major renovation of a classroom wing at Horton School.

Both groups, the superintendent said, will require approximately two years for what is called “substantial” completion.

Time frame for the two Siler City projects shows a start date of July 8, which includes the preliminary architect meetings. An educational specifications committee will meet weekly through at least August to determine facility needs, especially for the new elementary school.

That committee is made up of teachers from kindergarten through grade five; teachers in specialty areas – art, music, English as a second language, exceptional children, and others; school nurses and psychologists, and administrators.

“This group will work on the logistics and components,” said Joyce, who oversees buildings and facilities as part of his responsibilities. “Once the pieces are identified,” he says, “we’ll start putting them together into a building, looking at what should be in a classroom.”

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Hospital treats many for heat-related troubles

By Joseph Pardington

Most patients who visit Chatham Hospital complaining of heat exposure problems do not even realize what the problem is, said Annette Willett, Chatham Hospital Emergency Room Nurse Manager.

“The patients just say they are not feeling well,” Willett said.

Common complaints are headache, dizziness and profuse sweating, which could all be related to heat-related problems.

There are two basic types of heat problems—minor syndromes, including heat exhaustion and heat cramps—and major syndromes, including heat stroke, Willett said.

Heat cramps usually result from exercising in the heat that leads to painful contractions in leg muscles, such as calves and thigh muscles. People with cramps sweat profusely. A common remedy is to replace the fluids lost during sweating.

Heat exhaustion is a little more serious, as it involves elevated heart rate, lowered blood pressure and extreme sweating. People who complain of heat exhaustion complain of being light-headed, fatigue, weakness, headache and sometimes nausea and vomiting. Another possible symptom is confusion, which may or may not be present. If left untreated, heat exhaustion will lead to an even more dangerous condition: heat stroke, Willett said. Treatment of heat exhaustion includes replacing fluids through the use of I/V tubes and sometimes the loss of electrolytes, she said.

Heat stroke patients present with confusion, bizarre behavior, hallucinations and extreme irritability, Willett said. If left untreated, seizures and coma result, she added. Body temperatures can reach 107.6 F. Heat stroke patients have marked sweating to start with but then stop sweating as the body tries to use all available water to cool down. It is a very serious condition requiring immediate medical attention.

Willett had some practical advice for avoiding heat problems.

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New flood maps may mean new regulations

By Cara Rotondaro

Newly released preliminary maps of floodplains in Chatham County could mean new regulations for individuals who own land in the spots designated as prone to flooding.

The maps, released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to Siler City and Pittsboro town halls as well as to the county planning office, indicate new floodplain definitions in the county and towns.

The floodplains have always existed, said Pittsboro town planner David Monroe, and floodplain maps aren’t new to the county. But while the previous maps issued by FEMA were simple and only designated several floodplain sites, the new maps, thanks to advanced technology, provide a far more thorough picture of the floodplains, aerial photos and an intense grading system.

The release of these new maps and legal notices listed by FEMA in the newspaper initiate the beginning of a 90-day period in which those who wish to appeal the new floodplain designations have a chance to do so before the maps are made permanent.

Monroe has a copy of the Pittsboro maps in his office in Town Hall, Siler City Director of Planning and Community Development Jack Meadows has a copy of the Siler City maps in Town Hall and County Planner Jason Sullivan has a copy of the county maps in the county planning office in Pittsboro.

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School board seeks election time change

By Bob Wachs

Chatham County’s board of education is interested in changing the date for board elections but whether that happens or not lies with the General Assembly.

Currently board of education members are elected in the May primary, taking office in December. Board members have talked off and on for some time about changing that vote to the November general election, shortening the waiting period between the election and taking office.

Board of educations members do not have the authority to arbitrarily make such a change but must seek approval by the legislature in the form of a local bill. County board of elections director Dawn Stumpf says a number of counties across the state have made such a change, which has to come in the form of a local bill.

The deadline for such local bills passed on March 30 but local officials are hopeful the matter can be resolved in time for the next election.

School superintendent Ann Hart said Tuesday that her office has been in touch with the N.C. School Boards Association office and that a lawyer from that office has contacted Rep. Joe Hackney’s staff about attaching the measure as a rider to another bill. Hart said she is hopeful that the measure, which would be non-controversial to legislators, can be resolved quickly.

“We don’t think it will be a problem,” she said.

Board of education members are slated to discuss the matter with county commissioners at a joint work session of the two groups next Monday night at 7:00 in the board of education meeting room in the administrative building.

The Chatham News

is Published Every Thursday by The Chatham News Publishing Co, Inc at

303 West Raleigh Street, Siler City, NC 27344, (919)663-3232

Alan D. Resch Editor-Publisher

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