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Holiday crowds likely at lake
 By
Alyssa Marcus
Thinking
about what to do for Memorial Day weekend? The solution could be
right down the road at Jordan Lake.
Jordan Lake
in eastern Chatham County is a good place to go on any weekend, but
the popular recreation destination is traditionally busy on Memorial
Day weekend, the unofficial start of the summer season.
From boating
to camping to picnicking and swimming, there are always plenty of
things to do.
All 1,100
campsites at Jordan Lake have been booked for the Memorial Day
weekend, but there will be plenty of day sites available for those
who prefer to sleep in their own beds.
It’s hard to
predict what crowd sizes will be, but if the weather is nice, it’s a
good bet that there will be a lot of people.
R.C. "Duck"
Duckson, Assistant Operations Manager for Jordan Lake with the US
Army Corps of Engineers, notes that there has been a larger crowd
for the Memorial Day weekend in more recent years, as more people
are staying local for vacations rather than going out of town. This
is perhaps a result of economic pressures in recent years prompting
more people to vacation closer to home rather than travel to other
traditional Memorial Day destinations such as North Carolina’s
mountains and beaches.
more- See Thursday,
May 27, 2010
edition
House resolution honors courthouse
WASHINGTON,
D.C. – Representatives Bob Etheridge (NC-02) and David Price (NC-04)
praised a Wednesday, May 19 House of Representatives vote which
honors the historical and community significance of the Chatham
County Courthouse.
The
resolution (H. Res. 1364) was co-sponsored by the entire North
Carolina delegation and passed by a vote of 406-1. The lone "no"
vote was cast by Donald Young, a Republican from Alaska.
"The people
of Chatham County have been through a lot in the last year and this
fire will serve to remind us that we can remember the past, rebuild
for the future, and persevere for the good of our families and
towns," Etheridge said.
"The
restoration will involve a lot of effort by a lot of people, and I
will work with local officials to help rebuild the courthouse," he
said.
more- See Thursday,
May 27, 2010
edition
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Bill Willcox
photo
Looking for a busy weekend
. . .
A vehicle rolls by an entrance station at
Seaforth Recreation area at Jordan Lake. This weekend begins the
summer season for the lake and crowds are expected out in force to
enjoy the few days. Entrance fees have been raised by a dollar that
began on May 1, 2010.
New
business fuels competition
for lower
prices in Siler City
By Alyssa Marcus
For the past
couple of weeks, Siler City has been a welcome oasis of less
expensive gasoline.
The new
Murphy USA gas station which opened a couple of weeks ago on US 64
near the Siler City Wal-Mart has apparently helped spark
competition, resulting in low gas prices at other stations.
For the past
two weeks, gasoline in Siler City has sold for approximately 30
cents less than in neighboring areas.
This week,
gasoline prices in Siler City reached a new recent low at $2.41
cents per gallon.
CE & W
Enterprises truck driver Glenn Creason takes two or three trips down
to Florida every week, and he said, "Siler City has cheaper gas than
anywhere [between here and Florida] right now."
According to
the Department of Energy, the United States consumes approximately
20 million barrels of oil products each day. This means that about
178 million gallons of gas is used every day, with almost half of
that going towards motor gasoline.
Gas prices
rise and fall for many different reasons. High demand means higher
prices, and a high price for crude oil means higher prices as well.
The biggest portion of gas cost goes toward crude-oil suppliers. The
current cost of crude oil is around $70 per barrel.
Competition among local gas
stations can drive prices in an area down, which seems to be the
case in recent weeks since Murphy USA opened its station in Siler
City.
more- See Thursday,
May 27, 2010
edition
Relay spreads message of hope
By John Hunter
As Tom O’Donnell walked to the completely unlit stage to speak at
the Pittsboro Relay for Life on Friday night, he was asked if he
would need to refer to his notes during his speech.
O’Donnell,
the guest speaker of the event, peered into the crowd. The sun had
set and a sea of luminaries honoring the memory of those who battled
cancer now lit the track of Northwood High School. In the bleachers,
the luminaries spelled out the word "Hope."
"It was
unbelievable. If you weren’t moved by that, you are unmovable,"
O’Donnell said.
O’Donnell
did not need notes. It is a story he knew by heart; one that he has
shared and will continue to share as long as he can.
It all began
with a twitching in his eye.
"It was kind
of like a muscle spasm that was increasing over time," O’Donnell
said.
During his annual physical,
his physician told him to monitor the twitching. Over the next year,
the twitching increased significantly.
more- See Thursday,
May 27, 2010
edition |
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County’s
mayors gather to meet and discuss issues with public
By Alyssa Marcus
On Sunday,
May 23, the mayors of Chatham County’s three municipalities gathered
in Siler City for an opportunity to meet with constituents.
The "Meet
the Mayors" event, sponsored by the Chatham County Democratic Women,
was held at the café Mina Bean’a in downtown Siler City.
The mayors
of Siler City, Goldston and Pittsboro talked about their communities
and to answer questions from their constituents.
Each mayor
spoke separately about the latest news from their towns. Charles
Johnson, mayor of Siler City, went first.
He spoke
about Siler City being a recipient of the NC STEP grant that was
given last month. He said that with the money that this grant
provides, Siler City will hopefully be able to rebuild the work
force, as well as move more people and businesses into the area.
"Right now, we have 50 empty
buildings," Johnson said. And there are plenty of spaces for sale
and rent. He’s hoping that more people will come to see Siler City
as a place to stay.
The second
speaker was Goldston mayor Tim Cunnup. Goldston, in southwest
Chatham, is a town of less than 400 residents.
Cunnup spoke
about a sewer project that has been in the works for many years and
has just recently gotten off the ground. Working with the town of
Sanford has helped get funding for the much-needed sewer project,
which has gotten the project underway.
"It’s not
only economics, its health," Cunnup said of the project.
In Goldston,
75 percent of homes have inadequate septic systems, which makes the
sewer project one of necessity.
The sewer
project will also help a number of businesses expand.
Randy Voller,
mayor of Pittsboro, mentioned the STEP program that Siler City is
now a part of, and the fact that Pittsboro applied for it as well.
Although they did not receive the grant this year, Voller said
Pittsboro will probably get it in 2011.
Voller noted that Pittsboro
tends to be thought of as a place that has money, a place where
residents have money. But although there are parts of Pittsboro that
are wealthy, that’s by no means the majority, Voller said.
more - See Thursday,
May 27, 2010
edition
For more photos of
Clean Jordan Lake click here
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