By Greg Bassett

Wednesday, Feb. 3, 1999 --

• Hundreds of mourners gathered at the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center to pay their final respects to Randolph G. Outen. Renowned for his ability to bring people together, the former Principal at both James M. Bennett and Parkside high schools died Saturday of an abdominal aneurysm. The 65-year-old lifetime educator had most recently served as Executive Director of O.U.R. Community and as Vice President of the county school board.
• Scoring three consecutive pins in the lighter-weight divisions, John Dimore, Sydney Douglas and Tori Porter got Wicomico High School’s wrestling team off to a fast start Tuesday against James M. Bennett. But later, Erich Weiland, Jaime Regan and Winfield Chandler won their matches to lead JMB to a 38-31 win over their cross-town rivals. Wi-Hi coach said two of his starters were out with the flu, causing the Tribe to lose to Bennett by just one weight class for the fifth year in a row.
• What began as a members-only hangout and an English-style pub, but expanded into the area’s most popular nightclub and restaurant will close permanently this Saturday night.The Royal Exchange Pub opened in 1975; the Flying Club opened three years later. General Manager David Cooper said lunch and dinner reservations are almost all booked through Saturday, as longtime patrons come by to say farewell.
• Salisbury Mayor Barrie Parsons Tilghman and the City Council have reached a compromise that will permit the council to have more of a role in the search for a new police chief. Previously, the mayor was going to present the council with one name for approval or veto. Council members, however, led by Council President Robert P. Cannon, felt they were being left out of the vetting process.
• Thirty-nine people were charged with underage possession of alcohol after Wicomico Sheriff’s deputies responded to a party Saturday night in Salisbury. One 19-year-old man was taken to Peninsula Regional Medical Center and treated for alcohol poisoning when he was found unconscious in a home on East Lincoln Avenue.
• Salisbury Housing Director William Holland said his department needs more support from the local court system if conditions are going to improve in the city’s neighborhoods. Holland said his inspectors are able to get renter/violators to court fast enough, but the property owners – who must pay the fines – have their court appearances delayed by the subpoena process.
• The Salisbury City Council approved an agreement with Salisbury State University and Wicomico County that will allow for creation of a public access cable-TV station that will broadcast city and county governmental meetings. The station will be located on the SSU campus and broadcast on Comcast Cablevision.