THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 9, 1995 TAG: 9504070195
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 12 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
Court Room No. 2, Municipal Building, Suffolk.
The large-screen TV crackles to life 10 minutes before a special meeting of the City Council and Planning Commission to consider a proposed industrial park and race track.
A promotional tape plays to a standing-room-only crowd - most of them race track opponents. In the hallway, three more TVs show the same video as latecomers lean against the walls or sit in straight chairs placed there to accommodate the crowd.
The camera shows various views of the city.
``In Suffolk, we simply want to do things right,'' the narrator says as several people snicker.
- Susie Stoughton Monday, April 3
9:10 a.m. - U.S. Route 58, Suffolk
A yellow school bus has something swinging in the rear window.
Upon closer inspection, colorful, plastic Easter eggs can be seen dangling from ribbons.
On each side of the window are cut-outs of bright red tulips, and taped underneath the eggs is a paper cut-out that reads ``Happy Easter.''
Must be a cheerful driver and a happy bunch of kids on that bus!
- Shirley Brinkley Tuesday, April 4
10:30 a.m. - The Citizen office, Church Street, Smithfield.
The usual buzz of the office is interrupted by the telephone call from a nearby florist, who announces he will be making a delivery in the next few minutes.
Of course, that call causes four women to stop work long enough to thoroughly ponder two inevitable questions: Who is getting flowers? And who sent them?
Sadly, our answer comes soon enough. The florist jumps out of his van and strides up the sidewalk - without flowers. He drops off an envelope of material for his business' upcoming advertisement.
And the flowers?
``Oh, I dialed the wrong number,'' he adds casually. Luckily, the florist doesn't wait around to hear a response.
- Allison Williams
1:30 p.m. - Downtown Suffolk
Trains may have left the depot on North Main Street, but spring has arrived! Geraniums in boxes are blooming in the windows of the CSX train station. And they are maintenance-free!
Pat Snyder and friends have toted paint buckets to the station and are artistically brightening the exterior of the building, which was recently damaged by fire.
Snyder, an artist, is a member of the Save Our Station (SOS) Committee. Composed of members of the Suffolk-Nansemond Historical Society and the Downtown Suffolk Main Street Program, the committee is dedicated to the renovation and beautifying of the historic building.
Members of the committee also spent a day raking, cleaning up, and planting grass seed on the premises.
- Shirley Brinkley Wednesday, April 5
9:35 p.m. - Farm Fresh, Suffolk Shopping Center, Suffolk.
The cashier is wearing a button that says, ``Please be patient with me, I'm a trainee.'' She smiles at the customer and picks up the items one at a time.
Reaching for a bag of vegetables, she hesitates, then glances up sheepishly.
``Squash,'' the customer offers.
``Thanks,'' the trainee replies, appearing relieved as she looks up the number to key into the computer.
``Are they good?'' she asks. ``I've never eaten them.''
The customer says she loves them but her children would give her quite a different answer.
``We used to have a fit whenever my mother cooked rutabagas,'' the cashier says. ``But now I love rutabagas. Maybe I'll try squash sometime.''
- Susie Stoughton ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Members of Save Our Station painted flowers on the boarded windows
of the CSX train station on Main Street, which was condemned after a
fire.
by CNB