North Carolina Now; 4157; Interview with Albert Collier

The It is Tuesday February 4th and western counties do that from the impact of a new casino tonight on North Carolina now. Good evening I'm arraignments Wright welcome to this Tuesday edition of North Carolina now. Glad you could join us on this evening's program will learn about research being conducted into respiratory infections of children. Scientists are trying to discover ways to lessen the frequency and severity of these childhood ailments. Also tonight Michel Louis

introduces us to a couple who has started a museum dedicated to African-American history. But we start tonight's program in Cherokee the mountains of western North Carolina have always been a popular tourist destination. The town of Cherokee draws thousands of people each year who come there for the scenic beauty the fishing and the chance to experience the experience the Cherokee Indian culture. But there is another reason people come here gambling as producer Maria Lundberg shows us there is no question that it's definitely here to stay. Yes. It is not Atlantic City or Las Vegas. This is Cherokee North Carolina. The only legal home to gambling in our state in a region where tourism once reigned as the major source of income. Video gaming has made a big impact. In 1996 alone the casino had thirty seven million dollars in revenues after expenses. Half of all net profits go toward tribal operations and endowment accounts.

The remaining 50 percent is designated for annual payments to every enrolled member in the tribe. That came to one thousand six hundred sixty five dollars per person in 1996. Although this small office you know has been extremely profitable for the charity drive. This is nothing compared to the new 82 million dollar facility that's currently in there. Work is in the early stages but when finished Harrah's Cherokee Great Smoky Mountains casino will be an amazing structure. The one hundred seventy five thousand square foot video gambling and entertainment complex is designed to look like a mountain resort. It will feature sixteen hundred video gambling machines three restaurants a childcare center and a fifteen hundred seat entertainment center for concerts and other events. Hilary Osborne is one of five members on the tribal casino gaming Enterprise Board. Although Harrah's will manage the facility the board will oversee the

operations. We are the owners representatives the owner being the tribe. So we are the interface between the tribe and Harris who is a management contractor. And all of the contractors who are building the casino officials estimate that this new complex will create about eighteen hundred new jobs and draw between 3 and 4 million visitors a year. Charity principal chief Joyce Doogan believes the casino will move the tribe toward economic self-sufficiency. The greatest thing that I see is that it will provide year round. It has an opportunity to provide that. It also has gives us an opportunity to expand. Our economy our economic base. I'm hoping that this casino when it draws more people that we can also begin to build up what we offer besides tourism.

I'm talking about the need for small business. We need a drugstore here. We need more grocery stores. We need clothing stores. We have we do not have that. So what happens is the money our people make here goes off the reservation. After the loan debt is paid off during the first five years profits could reach 100 million dollars annually. All those specific uses for the money have not yet been decided. Chief Doogan points to the benefits that gaming dollars have already produced for the tribe. We were able to put more into the education program the higher APR and we were able to put more for into the cove. We have more money put into home improvement for the elderly in the region. It has given us greater opportunity to improve what we have. But residents in surrounding counties are concerned about the impact the casino will have on their communities. Jackson County Commissioner Jay coward is one.

A number of things that trouble me about the project were put forth in two papers at work. Prepared approximately a year ago if this paper is true then what people do with the money if they have to spend on a vacation in West North Carolina is devoted all of it in a casino and devote none of it in retail shops and stores in charity or deals for other places. There's going to be an increase in traffic and congestion. There's going to be an increase in the name of law enforcement because of the traffic congestion and Jackson County in swing county in Haywood County are not prepared right now to meet those that increase in traffic congestion. We're trying to protect the environment. We're just going to have an impact. You can't bring 3 million people through here and not have an impact. It's.

But hopefully it will not be primarily negative with no funds coming to the counties from the Cherokee coward worries how they will meet increased housing needs new schools and additional public services. But his biggest concern is what he sees as the absence of a regional partnership. What my concern is is that it's getting developed in an isolated fashion by the tribe and the tribe is not engaged in a regional participatory effort with other local governments so that we all work in how this thing works out in the union. We need to have something that everybody can benefit from in. But right now it looks like to me it's going to have a benefit to the Cherokee and the local county surrounding the tribe are going to have to absorb the impact of all the negative things that arise because of the casino. We initially held a meeting of all the commissioners and mayors and we talked to

them about the status that was. A year ago we gave them an update. We do need. We just recently discussed that we need to do that again and we need to bring them in on any concerns they have so that we can begin to address them and they can go back to their communities and reassure or do some planning of their own. We're looking at ways that we can make sure that we do not become known as the game in Mecca of the South East that we still capitalize on most things that were here before again and that we capitalize we continue to capitalize on those family attractions that brought him here in the first place. We have unemployment high unemployment rates here. But so do the counties around us so we. I'm I feel that will impact those counties in a positive way. And I've encouraged those counties to please look at it that way.

Most of the construction work on the casino is being done by Indian contractors and tribal officials say that due to an Indian preference law. Most of the jobs at the casino will be filled by Cherokees rather than seeing an influx of outsiders chief Doogan says they expect to fill remaining positions with people already living in the surrounding areas. The new casino is scheduled to open in October. Still ahead on North Carolina now if you are a parent or grandparent of a child in daycare you'll be interested in our interview segment. But before we get to that we turn to Mitchell who is at the news desk for a summary of today's statewide news. Good evening Mitch. Thanks Marina. Good evening everyone. The push to secure more funding for quality education tops our news tonight. The state board of education along with state school superintendent Mike Ward are making the request of the General Assembly. They're asking for more than forty seven point four million dollars and all the money would be used to reduce class sizes in the second and third grades bring teacher salaries in line with the national

average beginning with a raise of ten point three percent and a 36 million dollar expenditure for computers and training. The board will also request the General Assembly take action to make school safer. North Carolina's joining 16 other southern states to petition the federal government for redistribution of highway funding. The coalition wants a federal disbursement of 95 cents on the dollar for all 50 states. North Carolina currently receives 81 cents for every dollar in gas taxes it sends to Washington. Southern governors say while greater numbers of people and jobs have flowed to the south federal highway dollars have not. States receiving more money than they put in oppose the plan. In legislative news today the first bill to be considered in this general assembly session has been approved by a Senate committee. The committee quickly passed the campaign reform package. The plan introduced by Senator Webb gully would revamp our state elections are run by limiting contributions and making it easier for the public to know who is donating to politicians. Golly emphasize this campaign finance

reform is not a partisan one. That is not a problem for Democrats. And that is not a problem for Republicans. That is a problem for all North Carolinians and it's one that we have to take action on. We have to take action on now. Senate Democrats say they want to pass such reforms quickly and force Republican lawmakers and the State House to act. Charlotte book distributor Baker and Taylor is accused of overcharging schools and libraries across the country. A suit brought by the federal government and a former employee alleges the company changed the trade classification on books in order to raise the price as a result libraries and other public institutions spent an additional 100 to 200 million dollars over a 10 year period. Company officials call the charges outrageous. More than 90 percent of the country's public libraries by some or all of their books from Baker and Taylor. Inmates from state prisons put in more than two million hours of labor along state highways last year. That's the latest figure from the Department of Correction

under contract with the Department of Transportation. The prisoners clean ditches clear growth and pick up litter. The inmates are from minimum to medium security prisons and are paid less than a dollar a day. Looking ahead to tomorrow's weather a rise in temperature will drive the mercury up well above normal for this time of year. Look for highs to reach the mid to upper 50s in most areas. Wilmington could hit 70. Some rain may fall during the morning. Clouds will slowly move out bringing partial clearing as the day progresses. And in business news a slowdown is projected for North Carolina's 1997 economic future. The forecast published in the January issue of North Carolina economic outlook four sees the end of current economic expansion. NC State economist Dr. Michael Walden writes The state will experience three quarters of slow economic growth through September. On the positive side the unemployment rate and most of the state will continue to drop and much of the western part of North Carolina will have good growth on the down side slow retail sales are predicted and the economy of the

Metropolitan triangle will be very slow due to Hurricane Fran. Some American Airlines pilots are picketing at Raleigh-Durham International Airport. The pilots say they want to call attention to what they consider unfair wages. A strike deadline of February 15th has been set by the pilots. They say if they don't get a raise by that time a walkout will occur. American Airlines management says meeting the pilots demands would severely damage the company. Travel agents already warning travelers not to book flights on American. Duke Power Company is asking federal regulators to approve their 7.7 billion dollar merger with Pan energy of Houston. If approved it would be the first merger between an electric company and a gas company. Charlotte based Duke Power is awaiting a decision from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The merger would create the largest energy company in the United States. And now for a look at what happened on Wall Street today. Viruses

are the most common cause of respiratory illness in younger children. Recently the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute awarded a five year seven point nine million dollar grant to the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine to study viral infections in children. The purpose of the study is to discover strategies to minimize damage and to accelerate repair following respiratory viral infections. Joining me now to tell us more about the research is Dr. Albert Colyer the principal investigator for the study and chief of pediatric infectious diseases at USC Chapel Hill School of Medicine. Dr. Collier welcome. Thank you. Give me some background how prevalent are viral infections in children.

Children in daycare have more bio infections in children living at home. They may have 8 to 12 bowel infections in the first year of life. Most of those being in the second half of that first year of life. This is due to the fact that mothers pass antibodies over to the young children prior to the time that they are born which last protect them during the first six months of life. Children living at home I have about six respire two illnesses during the first year of life so the children who are attending daycare which is more and more of our population is more mothers work actually get more of these viral infections because it's passed among the children. That's right if you have 25 classmates in daycare particular during your first year of life you're exposed to more illnesses early during that period of time. These children have more violent factions early but they'll have fewer later say in the fourth and fifth year of life. That's when the children living at home have the kind of leveled out throughout the five years they may have six or seven. Each year during that period of time during the fourth and fifth year their children in day care who've already experienced those viruses they only have two or three.

So which is probably different than it was 20 30 years ago when when the kids were getting the viral infections as they were more school age as opposed to earlier now correct. We've been studying viral infections in daycare over the past 30 years and 30 years ago we had about 1 percent of the children under 5 in daycare in North Carolina. I've heard figures that that's up to about 74 percent today. So there's a great change has taken place in those 30 years as far as the number of children are in day care. How dangerous is this receiving these are getting a viral infections when the children are much younger. Most of these viral infections aren't very dangerous but sometimes they do set up for more dangerous bacterial infections. The most common infection that we see in young children secondary to the bowel infections or middle ear infections which cause a blockage of the middle ear you Station tube which allows it to connect with other parts they respire to retract in bacteria start to multiply. They are and get middle ear infections the children have earaches. This may also play a role in that when that area fills up with fluid the tympanic

membrane cannot move and this probably interferes with the hearing of the young child during that period of time. And this is very important because it's that second six months of life the children learned to talk they start to babble and be able to hear at that time I think is very important. So tell me about your study exactly what are you trying to accomplish here. We're getting very sophisticated we know now that the respire to attract is the largest surface area exposed to the environment it's much greater than our skin. So it's when this the possibility of infecting this it's hard to keep it from becoming infected because of this large surface area that goes on there the viruses infect the cells that line the conducting Airways of our aspire to attract. And what we're doing is learning how these cells are infected how the signals that they send out to bring the right lymphocytes in and all the cells that are infected with viruses the little islands that become infected when someone sneezes in your face all the cells have to be killed in the right cells have to be stopped and the circulation as they come through that area

and then they have become up migrate in to kill those cells that are infected with the viruses. So what we're trying to do is learn more about these signals. They're very very small chemical compounds in how that we can manipulate that to benefit the host one that we would. Decrease the amount of inflammation that takes place there during this process of those cells being killed and trying to figure out a ways to increase the rate at which repair takes place. So are you looking out preventing the viral infections or curing them. Well we're interested in both we're interested in the prevention. If there are ways that we can come up with better vaccines and we're interested in ways that we can cure them anything that we can do to benefit the human host in its response either in cutting down the injury when the viruses infect or increasing repair after the virus has infected the cells so that it will benefit the host say that we can cut down the number of days that you have the coal that you'll be sick for a few or fewer days and we can cut down the attachment of the virus to first step in the affection.

Infection if we can stop that from happening then you won't get infected and we can prevent the disease. Also if there are ways it with we can make antibodies as you said making live vaccines or vaccines that are injected with against these bio agents. This will be our goal as well. How are you going to carry out this research you told me now what you what you're hoping to do how do you do what I do you have you have certain selected group of children that you'll be looking at. Yes for the past 30 years we have studied the children in the Frank Porter Graham Child Development Center which is about a mile and a half from the medical school. We call to respire Torii infections they are from these children. We have permission from some of them to look at the cells we wash their noses out and look at the cells to see the interaction between the viruses and those cells and doing that will also be studying children that come into the hospital. That you can see Childrens Hospital to look at infections their children are sick enough to have to be infected and doing this and will also be doing some studies at the Center for and around medicine and lung biology which is on campus there as well.

Well it sounds like an exciting project and something that I'm sure that thousands and thousands of mothers across North Carolina are very anxious for the results of this study I wish you well doctor and I want to thank you so much for being here tonight. Thank you for inviting me. Let her. The African American cultural complex is a three Building Museum that a Raleigh couple built in their backyard. The facility has been hailed by the Raleigh visitors bureau as one of the best kept secrets in Raleigh and in the state of North Carolina. Producers Erica stark and Michel Louis profile another aspect of the complex that highlights the involvement of

African-Americans in North Carolina architecture. You probably would not have guessed that behind this nicely landscaped home in Raleigh lies a wealth of history. For over 10 years Dr. Homer and his wife one NIDA have been collecting memorabilia on contributions of African-Americans in North Carolina and across the nation. The Palmers who are retired North Carolina educators Well there have been many omissions and distortions in African-American history. Their collecting efforts led to the creation of the African American cultural complex. First just research to call that information to visit. And that started back in 1983. Before we started the construction. Once we built the first building it was a matter of mounting some of the things we had found to show what a museum could consist and what kind of depiction of history. It could visit to the public.

The African American cultural complex has now grown into a three building facility. One highlights people who've made special achievements from slavery to freedom. Another features literature and inventions by African-Americans and the third acknowledges black cowboys and military men involved in the western development of America. Dr. Palmer sense African-Americans played an important role in developing the Tarheel State especially in the field of architecture which is featured in the African American cultural complex. In fact a black architect named Julian Abel Sr. influenced the design of Duke University's west campus. The architectural design University of West Campus including the Cathedral of the chapel was done by a black architect from Pennsylvania it was a white architectural firm never had been as the to Bill his college. But the chief architect for that firm was the black fellow. Consequently the blackfella never saw his work because he couldn't come alone a Mason-Dixon line.

Homer sense there was also a story behind the volcanic stone used to build the internationally known Duke Chapel. The stone was taken from a quarry in Hillsborough owned by George Mayo a black man Mayo ended up selling the quarry to Duke University when he sold the choir to Duke University he realized how little he got for his wealthy Kwara. So he used to protest by going and sitting in on a choir and Duke would have him arrested. He'd get out jail and go back and protest again Bill would have him arrested till didn't decide he was crazy. So they build a fence around a car and today they're descendants. In California Misty is suing Duke University not for more money but because of family a cemetery behind that fence and they can't get in there. African-Americans also made a significant contribution to the construction of the lavish and historical Biltmore house in Asheville. Much of his building crew if not most of it were African-Americans.

That was a young man in Christian the house which Vanderbilt furnished the money to buy the land and much of the material for an event of real estate was used to buy the house. So it is black who could live there and have membership affiliation to support it. That house was a forerunner of the young man's Christian Association YMCA. Dr. Palmer says African-American involvement in architecture as well as other facets of American life dispels the stereotypical idea that blacks are lazy and shiftless and have made no significant contributions. That's why Palmer and his wife have gone into their retirement funds to build the African-American cultural center. But we and my ancestors helped build this land and the things that we have done need to be credited and brought to the forefront and not in scattered pieces but in a centralized location like a museum. And ampitheater is in place for dramas and orations. If you would like to

visit the African American cultural complex you can call 9 1 9 2 3 1 0 6 2 5 to set up an appointment. Well that wraps up tonight's edition of North Carolina now. Hope you enjoyed it. You'll certainly want to join us again tomorrow when we welcome gospel great Shirley Caesar to the program. Is Caesar will be here to talk about her early beginnings on gospel music and she'll also do is the honor of performing for us. Also tomorrow night we'll profile a Charlotte suburbs battle with a gasoline storage tank facility. You'll also want to join us on Thursday when former Senator Terry Sanford will be here to talk about his new book on growing old. We're now have a great evening. We'll see you again tomorrow. Good night.