Serving Belmont, Mount Holly, Stanley, Cramerton, and McAdenville | Volume 79 • Issue 4 • Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Phillips new face of Banner News
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Bridge work on target
The BannerNews would like to welcome Caroline Phillips as its new ad sales representative. Caroline is full of energy, has a great personality and is working hard to help new and established clients in Belmont, Mount Holly, Stanley, Cramerton, and McAdenville with their advertising needs. She can be contacted at the office- 704825-0580, on her cell at 803-577-8369, or email at caroline.bannernews@gmai l.com.
CaroMont CEO addresses MH council By Alan Hodge
Photo by Alan Hodge
Despite issues caused by bad weather and metal debris in the water, construction of the new Lakewood Rd. bridge is moving along toward its target opening date of April 2014.
alan.bannernews@gmail.com
By Alan Hodge Alan.bannernews@gmail.com
As part of his tour to get out in local communities and let people know about the breadth, scope, and philosophy of the firm he now heads, CaroMont Health CEO Doug Luckett paid a visit to the Mount Holly City Council last week and delivered an entertaining PowerPoint presentation full of witticism and wisdom. “We are local folks taking care of local folks,� Luckett told the council. “Our mission is local. We are a wellness based organization.� Luckett launched into what he termed his “auctioneer� style presentation as screen after screen of information about CaroMont Health flashed on the council chamber monitors. One of the first tidbits revealed that CaroMont Regional is one of only 18 independent hospitals left in North Carolina. Luckett also let the council know that CaroMont cares about its communities. “We give $1 million per week in community benefit such as charity care,� he said. “We also contribute $7.1 million a year in events, sponsorships, screenings, education and support directly to communities.� CaroMont wellness initiatives and sponsorships that Luckett informed the council about included mobile mammography, flu shots, and greenway projects. Ears perked up when Luckett began talking about how many jobs CaroMont brings to the local area. “We create over 100 jobs annually,� he said. “Not many companies can say that.� According to Luckett, the average nonphysician wage for CaroMont employees is $23.27 per hour. Luckett praised his employees. “I don’t know if I have ever worked with a finer staff,� he said. “They are good human beings.� Another subject Luckett touched on in his presentation is the current sense of uncertainty where government and health care meet. “The statutes and laws change like people change clothes,� he said. “But we are proactively meeting with government See LUCKETT, 5A
If all goes well, in just a few months the new 425-foot bridge over the South Fork River on Lakewood Road in Cramerton will be finished, and the long detour many folks have had to make since Sept. 2012 when the old one was closed and torn down will be but an unpleasant memory. The target date for completion of the concrete span is mid to late April. Charlottebased Lee Construction is doing the work. The new bridge replaces one that dated to 1952. It was named for textile magnate C. Claudius Dawson who came to Cramerton in
1908. Heavy traffic and general wear and tear meant the Dawson bridge was long due for replacement. One of the more interesting aspects of the current $4 million project was the discovery, on the riverbank, of a large stone carved with the date 1871, when the Dawson bridge was torn down. The stone marked the site of an even earlier wooden span across the South Fork at the same location. Work on the new bridge has at times lagged due to flooding on the South Fork River- especially last summer when debris such as waterborne tree limbs clogged the construction area- and problems drilling the riverbed where the concrete supports are lo-
See BRIDGE, 5A
Coal ash war back on By Alan Hodge alan.bannernews@gmail.com
Photo by Alan Hodge
Truliant Federal Credit Union in McAdenville held an event last week celebrating its reopening following construction to repair water damage. The branch continued to serve customers throughout the months that the repair work went on. Taking part in the ribbon cutting are, from left; Brian Kiser, Nik Kielbasa, Bill Carstarphen, Todd Hall, Tammy Kane, Karen DeSalvo, Chad Frye, Ted Hall, and Bob Clay.
Truliant reopens after renovation By Alan Hodge alan.bannernews@gmail.com
The mythical Phoenix bird may have risen from ashes but Truliant Federal Credit Union in McAdenville has come back to greater glory after being closed for several months due to floor damage from a burst coffee machine water line. The firm held a grand reopening ceremony and ribbon cutting at its 121 Main St. location last Wednesday to let everyone know it was back up to full operational status. Actually, the financial center had never completely shut down while the repair work was going on. Services had temporarily relocated to 127 Main St. Demonstrating exemplary customer
service, at times the 121 Main St. location was actually letting customers in singly and in pairs to conduct their business. Rik Kielbasa, Truliant’s senior VP for customer experience, gave kudos for that extra effort. “They were literally inviting customers in to help them solve their needs,� he said. “They never stopped service.� Truliant CEO Todd Hall was at the ribboncutting event and praised the extra effort the McAdenville staff put in during the remodel. “They were the front line folks and did a fine, fine job,� Hall said. Tammy Kane, the McAdenville financial member center manager, also thanked her See TRULIANT, 5A
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of Stanley
cated. “The riverbed had pieces of metal such as railroad track bolts and spikes on it and they got caught in the drill bit,� said NCDOT inspector/transportation technician Nick Cole. “The bedrock was harder than we thought. The drilling was supposed to take four weeks but it ended up taking seven.� Last week, crews were braving cold and rain to further progress on the bridge. One pour of concrete for the decking has already been completed and another was being prepped for. “We will still have two more pours after that,� said Cole. “The last span of girders will
After a lull in the action, the war of words between Duke Energy and those who oppose the utility's coal ash storage methods and policies flared back up again last week with news that seven environmental groups filed requests to take part in NC Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources lawsuits filed last year that claimed keeping the ash at locations such as the now-closed Riverbend Steam Station on Mt. Island Lake near Mount Holly were a threat to public health and safety. The groups that filed the request includes the Neuse Riverkeeper Foundation, the Yadkin Riverkeeper, Cape Fear River Watch, Appalachian Voices, Western North Carolina Alliance, Winyah Rivers Foundation and Waterkeeper Alliance. The environmental groups have long claimed that coal ash stored in lagoons like the ones at Riverbend leak pollutants and contaminate the water and soil with substances such as mercury and selenium. Mt. Island Lake supplies the drinking water to around 800,000 folks. The city of Mount Holly gets its water from the lake. Allen Steam Station near Belmont also has coal ash storage but the city's water intake is upstream. “Duke’s coal ash pollution is threatening rivers, lakes, and drinking water in every part of North Carolina,� said Frank See WAR, 5A
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