THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 2, 1995 TAG: 9511020494
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY MASON PETERS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: HERTFORD LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
After months of low visibility, former Elizabeth City State University Chancellor Jimmy R. Jenkins surfaced Wednesday to urge the Northeast Regional Economic Commission to give $150,000 in seed money to a group of Lake Gaston real estate developers.
Jenkins, a former vice chairman of the commission and still a member of the pump-priming panel, joined in seeking help for the Lake Gaston Regional Development Association, which wants to build a $29 million hotel and golf course complex on the Northampton County shores of Lake Gaston.
Jenkins spoke at a meeting of the travel and tourism advisory committee at the commission's Hertford headquarters in Perquimans County.
Jenkins is listed as ``chairman of the board of directors'' of the Lake Gaston development association, with headquarters in Henrico, N.C., on the north shore of the lake near the North Carolina-Virginia border.
``If there are no objections, this request will go to the full commission,'' said Mary Lilley, the Williamston chairman of the Travel and Tourism Advisory Committee.
The travel and tourism committee has taken over operations of the commission's former tourist division, which was headed by Estelle ``Bunny'' Sanders. Sanders was fired by the commission Aug. 4, along with Executive Director James Lancaster Jr. Each was paid $58,000 a year.
Since Jenkins' unexpected resignation from ECSU's top post last August, he has all but disappeared from public view. In a resignation letter to UNC President Clemmie D. Spangler Jr., in Chapel Hill, Jenkins said he would take a few months leave before taking a teaching position at ECSU as a biology professor.
During Wednesday's subcommittee meeting in Hertford, Grover Edwards, who succeeded Jenkins as vice chairman of the full Economic Development Commission, sat beside Jenkins and other representatives of the Northampton County entrepreneurs.
Several months ago, the full commission approved a grant to help plan the huge Lake Gaston recreational complex but later rescinded the action when it was learned that some of Edwards' relatives owned property on which the Lake Gaston Association hopes to build.
In an Oct. 13 letter to Jenkins, Lilley said she had ``reviewed with interest'' the re-energized proposal to build the multimillion dollar complex on Lake Gaston.
``For your information, I have forwarded a copy of this proposal to Max Busby (the commission's Edenton attorney) for a ruling on the inevitable question of conflict of interest,'' said Lilley. Busby was not immediately available for comment.
Lilley also offered to the committee several proposed revisions of a ``scoring sheet'' and other suggested changes in present regulations governing funding requests to the commission.
``My phone has been ringing all day with questions about money for nebulous projects,'' said Lilley.
``Personally, I would like to continue our funding moratorium until after (a) strategic plan is completed,'' Lilley said in a memorandum to other commissioners. The economic panel froze all funding during a reorganization that followed the dismissals of Sanders and Lancaster.
On Tuesday, Sanders sought an injunction in Perquimans County Superior Court to prevent the full commission from holding any more secret meetings.
In an earlier suit for unspecified damages, Sanders accused the commission of using private meetings to plan the dismissals.
Sanders, in her injunction request, said she ``fears that the defendants will continue to violate the open meetings law. . . . The potential for continuing legal actions is real and a continuing violation of North Carolina's public policy.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
JIMMY R. JENKINS
by CNB