Town of Holly Springs
Board of Commissioners Regular
Meeting
Tuesday, August 19, 2003
MINUTES
The Holly
Springs Town Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, August
19, 2003 in the Council Chambers of Holly Springs Town Hall, 128 S. Main
Street. Mayor Dick Sears presided,
calling the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
A quorum was established as the mayor and all four sitting board members
were present as the meeting opened. At
this time, there is a vacancy on the board.
Board Members Present: Commissioners
Steve Tedder, Chet VanFossen, Peter Atwell, Hank
Dickson and Mayor Sears.
Board
Members Absent:
None.
Staff
Members Present:
Carl Dean, town manager; Chuck Simmons, assistant town manager; John Schifano,
town attorney; Joni Powell, town clerk (recording the minutes); Drew Holland,
finance director; Len Bradley, director of parks and recreation; Stephanie
Sudano, director of engineering, Kendra Thompson, senior engineer, Alysia
Bailey, senior planner; Gina Bobber, planning director; Tamara Ward, public
information officer; Luncie McNeil, director of public works; Adam Lindsay of
administration; and Cecil Parker, chief of public safety.
2 and 3. The pledge of allegiance was
recited, and the meeting opened with an invocation by Rev. Hal Adkins, pastor
of the Moravian Church of Holly Springs.
4. Agenda Adjustment: The August 19, 2003 meeting agenda was adopted with changes,
if any as listed below.
Motion By: Atwell
Second By: Dickson
Vote: Unanimous.
Items Added to the Agenda: None.
Agenda Items Removed: Item 8d, Rezoning Petition
03-REZ-02 was removed from the Consent Agenda after the rezoning request was
withdrawn by the petitioner; Item 9e., Arbor Creek Animal Wellness and
Rehabilitation Clinic requests for development concessions, was removed from
the agenda at the request of staff and the petitioner.
Other Changes: Item 8b., a budget amendment to establish a project fund for the
police station project, was removed from the Consent Agenda and placed under
New Business for discussion.
5a. Oath of Office - The Town Clerk administered the Oath of
Office to new Town Commissioner Mike Taylor. Mr. Taylor was appointed by the
Board to serve out the term of former Commissioner John Schifano, who resigned
his seat to accept a position as town attorney.
Mr. Taylor will serve out Mr. Schifano’s term,
which expires Dec. 2, 2003.
5b. Recognition of Mr.
Ernie Pearson - Mayor
Sears presented former town attorney Ernest C. Pearson with a token of
appreciation for his service as the town attorney from 1997 to 2003. Mr. Pearson said that he enjoyed working with
the Town of Holly Springs as the Town’s legal counsel.
5c. Celebration Goal 2003 Week Proclamations - Mayor Sears presented proclamations
designating Aug. 19 as Wake County Public School System Celebration Goal 2003
Day in Holly Springs to Ms. Tammie Sexton, principal of Holly Springs
Elementary School; Ms. Pam Peters, principal of Holly Ridge Elementary School;
and Mr. William Crockett, principal of Holly Ridge Middle School.
Mayor Sears explained that the
school system was observing its success system-wide in increasing the number of
at-grade-level students in Grades 3-8.
6a. Public Hearing:
Bridgewater Rezoning Petition 03-REZ-03 - Ms. Bailey explained that the Town had received a
petition requesting the rezoning of property located between the Arbor Creek
and Windcrest Planned Unit Developments. The petition requests the rezoning of 19.72
acres from R‑20 Residential, which has a maximum allowable density of
1.75 units per acre, to an R‑10 Residential District with a maximum
allowable density of 3.25 units per acre.
The petition also requests that 81.47 acres be rezoned from R-20 to an R‑8
Residential District with a maximum allowable density of 4.50 units per acre.
Ms. Bailey explained that the Town’s
10-Year Comprehensive Growth Plan designates this property for medium density
(2‑5 units per acre) residential development, which means that this
zoning map change would be in compliance with the Growth Plan.
Ms. Bailey said that the proposed
(+/‑ 81 AC) R‑8 zoning would be buffered from adjacent Windcrest PUD by a Neuse River Riparian Buffer and would be
similar to the lot sizes in the Windcrest PUD. She added that the R-10 portion of the
request borders Arbor Creek PUD.
With that explanation completed,
Mayor Sears opened the public hearing to accept input. The following comments were recorded:
Jo Jones Macon, property owner
– Ms. Macon spoke in favor of the rezoning request.
She advised the Board that she and
her siblings are the property owners, and she provided her written comments
into the record. She explained that her
family has a long history in this area and that her forefathers passed this
property down to her and her siblings.
She said she is interested in developing the property that has been in
her family for generations, but -- because the history of her family is tied to
the land -- she would want a quality development that would preserve the trees
and beauty of the property. She said she
felt that the Forest Hills Development company had worked well with the family
and she was supportive of its efforts.
Patrice
Alexander, 112 Wellspring Drive – Ms. Alexander spoke in opposition to the
rezoning request, citing the high number of smaller lot sizes in the proposed
R-8 section.
She said she believes the Town
should focus on encouraging developers to provide homes on larger lot
sizes. She said the open space being
proposed would be inadequate since much of it is not developable land. Ms. Alexander also said she feels the
Bridgewater residents would use the amenities in Arbor Creek where she owns
property. She said she was not so much
concerned that neighbors would be using the Arbor Creek amenities but that the
Bridgewater development may not provide amenities for its residents.
Regarding the development plan, she
asked the board to consider requiring a buffer to be placed between Bridgewater
and Arbor Creek, if approved. She said
the access to Hwy. 55 would be necessary and she reiterated her concern of smaller
lot sizes and affordable homes in the $90,000 range.
In answer to a board member’s
question as to the size of lots in Windcrest PUD, Ms.
Bobber said the PUD allowed 4,000 square foot lots.
Tom Spaulding of Spaulding and
Norris – Mr. Spaulding, speaking on behalf of the applicant, spoke in favor
of the rezoning request. He explained
that the applicant had begun its work by going to the Town’s Technical Review
Committee and gaining input for a plan that would win favorable consideration
by the Town Board.
He said the company followed the
recommendations of the TRC and had placed a large R-10 section adjacent to
Arbor Creek and had situated the R-8 parcel adjacent to Windcrest
PUD.
He said an access to Hwy. 55 had
been secured and would provide a dividing line between the R-10 section and the
R-8 section, which, he added, was being requested to be zoned straight R-8 and
not PUD as is with the case of Arbor Creek and Windcrest.
Mr. Spaulding addressed the open
space issue, explaining that the developer planned to provide a greenway trail
and pedestrian bridge over Middle Creek.
Commissioner VanFossen
asked about the critical Hwy. 55 access.
Mr. Spaulding advised that Hwy. 55
access was secured and would serve as the main entrance into the subdivision. He said he would have no problem restricting
construction traffic from using other streets.
Commissioners asked Mr. Spaulding
about the project price ranges of homes in the development.
Mr. Spaulding said that it was a bit
early to estimate, but he guessed homes would cost in the $200,000 range in the
R-10 section and lower for the smaller houses in the R-8 section. He said homes would average at $180,000
within the whole development.
There being no further comments, the
public hearing was closed.
Commissioner Atwell said he would be
in favor in approving a petition that requested less R-8 land area. Commissioner Tedder agreed.
Commissioner VanFossen
said the project as presented was fine with him because he feels the R-8 area
would serve as a natural transition between the Arbor Creek and Windcrest developments.
He added that the applicant had followed the suggestions of the TRC in
doing this.
He added that he would not be in
favor of buffer between the Bridgewater and Arbor Creek developments because it
would not promote inter-connectivity of neighborhoods.
Commissioner VanFossen
admitted that the request was a bit heavy on the R-8 land area, but he pointed
out that this was probably a market-driven decision. He said he felt like the development company
would be incurring enormous development costs because of the need to secure and
provide road access to Hwy. 55. The
added cost could be relieved with the development of smaller lots.
Commissioner Dickson said he had no
issues with the R-10 portion of the request, but he did feel the R-8 land area
was too much.
Action: The Board approved a
motion to table action on Rezoning Petition 03‑REZ‑03 until the
Sept. 2 regular meeting so that the petitioner could revise the request to
decrease the amount of R-8 land area. [Note: Because the revised petition would
represent a less intense rezoning, no new public hearing or mailing of notices
is required.]
Motion By: VanFossen
Second By: Atwell
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of Ms. Macon’s comments as
submitted are incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
6b. Public Hearing:
Bridgewater 03-DP-05 Development Plan - Ms. Bailey advised the Board that since the property is not
properly zoned to accommodate the development plan as submitted, there was no
need to proceed further with consideration of the development plan.
Ms. Bobber suggested that Mayor
Sears open and then continue the public hearing until the Sept. 2 meeting.
Mayor Sears opened the public
hearing. There being no comments, the
public hearing was continued by action of the Board.
Action: The Board approved a
motion to continue the public hearing on Development Plan 03-DP-05, Bridgewater
Subdivision, and defer action on the development plan
and requested waivers until the Sept. 2 regular meeting of the Board.
Motion By: Dickson
Second By: Atwell
Vote: Unanimous
6c. Public Hearing: Development Plan 03-DP-04,
Scot’s Laurel - Ms.
Bailey said that this development has been designed using development
incentives in the R‑8 residential zoned land located off of Kildaire Farm Road.
She said the property is proposing 145 lots to include 58 townhomes and 87 single-family homes; however, she added
that the applicant has requested that the public hearing be opened and then
continued to the Sept. 16, 2003 Town Board meeting.
With that explanation completed,
Mayor Sears opened the public hearing to accept input. There being no comments, the public hearing
was continued by action of the Board.
Action:
The Board approved a motion to continue the public hearing and defer action on
03-DP-04 until the Sept. 16, 2003 Town Board meeting.
Motion By: VanFossen
Second By: Dickson
Vote: Unanimous
7. Wake County Board of Education Capital
Building Program -
Mr. Mike Burris, assistant superintendent of facilities of Wake County Public
School System, addressed the Board with a brief presentation on the school
system's current and future capital projects.
Action: None.
7b. Tischler
Date Update - Mr.
Dean explained at the Board Retreat in January, the Board discussed several
topics relating to development policies in Holly Springs. Mr. Dean said that in May, Mr. Rusty Caudill
stopped by his office and discussed the possibility of doing his internship
project in Holly Springs. Mr. Caudill is
a Master of Public Administration student at North Carolina State University,
and currently works with the inspections department with the Town of Cary. Mr. Dean said he enlisted Mr. Caudill’s
assistance in updating the data on the Tischler Study
conducted in 1999 to provide information as the Board considers development
policy matters.
With that introduction, Mr. Caudill
reviewed his findings. Mr. Caudill’s
report illustrates that the Town benefits more from the residential development
of large lots and higher home values than it does with lower-valued
high-density development.
Action: None.
8. Consent Agenda:
All items on the Consent Agenda were approved following a motion by
Commissioner Dickson, a second by Commissioner Atwell and a unanimous
vote. The following actions were
affected:
8a. Budget Amendment - $5,000
- The Board adopted a budget amendment to the FY 2003‑04 budget in the
amount of $5,000 to allocate funds for Town Hall open house and dedication
ceremony expenses. A
copy of the Budget Amendment is incorporated into these minutes as addendum
pages.
8b. This item was moved to New Business
during the Agenda Adjustment
8c. Installment Financing -$300,000 The Board approved installment financing in
the amount of $300,000 for equipment approved in FY 2003‑04 budget. A copy of the Installment Financing statement is incorporated into these minutes as
addendum pages.
8d. Rezoning Petition 03-REZ-02 (Stone Tract) was removed from the agenda
during Agenda Adjustment at the request of the petitioner.
8e. Smallpox vaccinations - The
personnel policy was amended to address adverse reaction to smallpox
vaccinations, pursuant to North Carolina Session Law 2003‑169. A copy of the Personnel Policy amendment
is incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
8f. Minutes - The minutes of
the Board’s regular meeting held on August 5, 2003 were approved.
9a.
Resolution 03-20, Holly Springs Road Project Right of Way Condemnation ‑ Mr. Schifano asked the
Board to consider adoption of a condemnation resolution authorizing staff to
proceed, if necessary, with the condemnations of properties that are essential
for planned improvements at the intersection of N.C. 55 and Holly Springs Road.
Mr. Schfano
said the property owners identified in the resolution have each been contacted
via personal visit(s), telephone, and/or through their legal representatives to
discuss the sale of portions of their properties: Elsie Mae Hahn, 220 N. Main
St.; Holly Springs Quality Food Mart, 300 N. Main St.; Danny Norris, 128 Holly
Springs Road (an agreement was reached on terms with the property owner, but a
BB&T partial security release is pending); Abm E.
& Syeda E. Ullah, 111
New Hill Road; and Wake County Opportunities Housing, 567 East Hargett Street, Raleigh (a conveyance contract is being
reviewed, and the outlook for resolution remains hopeful.)
Mr. Schifano said that to date,
since no formal agreement has been reached with these properties,
it is recommended that the Town should be prepared to condemn these properties. Otherwise, construction along this
intersection may need to be delayed. Mr.
Schifano said finally, if an agreement can be reached with a property owner
prior to the initial construction start up date, then condemnation steps can be
avoided and/or halted.
Action:
The Board approved a motion to adopt Resolution 03-20 authorizing commencement
of right of way acquisition by condemnation along Holly Springs Road as needed
by the planned improvement project.
Motion By: Dickson
Second By: Atwell
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of Resolution 03-20 is
incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
8b. Budget Amendment - $670,000
- At this time, the Board took up Item 8b., which had been removed from the
Consent Agenda for discussion.
Mr. Simmons explained that the
budget amendment in the amount of $670,000 is a project fund, which includes
the $550,000 already budgeted for the actual construction. Other items in the budget amendment includes
such things as landscaping, security system, architectural, furniture and
contingency.
Board members said they just wanted
clarification on some of the items.
Action: The Board adopted
a budget amendment to the FY 2003‑04 budget in the amount of $670,000 to
establish a project fund for the police station renovation/addition project.
Motion
By: VanFossen
Second
By: Atwell
Vote:
Unanimous
A copy of the Budget Amendment is incorporated into these
minutes as addendum pages.
9b. Ordinance 03-14
Yard Waste, White Goods - Mr. Schifano explained to the Board that Ordinance 03-14 would
revise Part 4, Chapter 2 of the Town Code formerly called "Yard and Leaf
Waste Collection." The proposed
changes include the proper disposal of "white goods" (refrigerators,
water heaters, etc), large amounts of yard waste, and other bulky trash items.
He said the ordinance also imposes a fee schedule to be charged to residential
consumers. Mr. Schifano reviewed the fees that would be imposed are as follows:
*For yard waste greater than 2 1/2
cubic yards and less than 4 cubic yards (a pick‑up truck load), $40; for
yard waste between 4 and 8 cubic yards, the fee would be $80; and for loads
greater than 8 cubic yards, the cost would be $120.
*For white goods or bulky trash
items such as sofas, beds, etc., a fee of $25 would be charged if it is an
amount that a 2‑man crew can load in a 10‑minute period. An additional $25 fee is charged for each
additional 10 minutes.
Mr. Schifano explained that the
ordinance was amended in October 2001 when the Town changed from collection of
yard waste in paper bags to use of a vacuum truck. At that time, the procedures were taken out
of the ordinance itself and placed into a separate policy statement. He said he would suggest that the policy
statement be re‑included into the code for the sake of making it easier
for the public to follow the proper procedures, which have not changed since
the last revision.
Commissioner Tedder said he supports
the premise of the ordinance, but questions the 10 minutes and says the $25
that is proposed for bulky trash items is too small an amount to charge. He said it almost encourages folks to dump
their over-sized waste and call the Town for collection.
Commissioner VanFossen
agreed and suggested a $40 fee.
Mr. McNeil explained that the Town
would go out and look at the size of waste loads and give residents an estimate
that would be agreed upon in advance of collection.
He said bulky trash and large yardwaste loads must be placed behind the curb, but not
until afer the resident has arranged to have it
hauled away by the Town.
Commissioners said they felt the payscale for bulky trash should be the same as the yardwaste schedule.
The Board directed that the draft
ordinance be amended to set the fee for bulky trash to mirror the fee schedule
for yardwaste: $40 (or, Level 1 on the fee schedule)
for yardwaste and bulky trash collection between 2
1/2 cubic yards and 4 cubic yards; $80 (or, Level 2 on the fee schedule) for
loads between 4 and 8 cubic yards; and $120 (or, Level 3 on the fee schedule)
debris in volume greater than 8 cubic yards but less than 12 cubic yards.
Action: The Board adopted
Ordinance 03‑14, as amended, amending the Town Code relating to the
collection of large amounts of yard waste, white goods and other bulky trash
items, effective Oct. 1.
Motion By: VanFossen
Second By: Atwell
During discussion of the motion,
commissioners decided to add a prohibition in the ordinance against leaving
bulky trash at the curb for more than 48 hours, or it will be picked up by the
Town and charged to the consumer according to the fee schedule.
Amended Motion: VanFossen
Second to Amendment: Atwell
Vote on Amendment and Main Motion: Unanimous
A copy of Ordinance 03-14 as amended
is incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
9c. Hazard Mitigation
Grant Agreement -
Ms. Thompson said that as a result of the environmental disasters from
Hurricane Floyd, the federal government devised a plan to implement mechanisms
that minimize the magnitude of future environmental damage. She said that Senate Bill 300 mandated that
local governments implement a Hazard Mitigation Plan in order to address future
concerns.
Ms. Thompson said the federal
government allocated funds to supplement local government contributions toward
creating the required plans. And, in
order to receive those funds, a contract with the North Carolina Division of
Emergency Management must be executed by the Town.
She said the maximum available
federal government reimbursement is 75% of the costs, or a maximum of $15,000
(whichever is less). Ms. Thompson said
the reimbursement requires a local government match of $5,000.
Action: The Board approved a
motion to enter a contract with North Carolina Division of Emergency Management
to receive $15,000 reimbursement toward the Town’s Hazard Mitigation Plan.
Motion By: Atwell
Second By: Taylor
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of the NCDEM agreement is incorporated into
these minutes as addendum pages.
9d. Hazard Mitigation Plan Agreement with The
Wooten Company -
Ms. Thompson said at the June 4, 2002 Town Board meeting, a contract with The
Wooten Company was executed for professional services to complete the required
hazard mitigation plan for the Town of Holly Springs.
Ms. Thompson said that the state and
federal governments have since revised the requirements for the plan. As a result, the contract with The Wooten
Company needs to be updated, she added.
The Wooten Company's quote to create
a plan that meets the revised criteria is $17,600 and the Town will be
reimbursed from the state for $15,000. She said therefore, the Town will have to fund
$2,600 and contribute staff time that will be involved in the monthly reports
and plan implementation.
Action: The Board approved a
motion to approved the Wooten Company contract for
$17,600 (including 10% contingency) for professional services to prepare Hazard
Mitigation Plan and adopt a budget amendment in the amount of $8,600.
Motion By: Atwell
Second By: Tedder
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of the The
Wooten Company contract and budget amendment are incorporated into these
minutes as addendum pages.
9e.
Arbor Creek Animal Wellness and Rehabilitation Clinic – This item was removed from the
agenda during Agenda Adjustment at the request of staff and the petitioner.
9f. Fair Share Project
Change Orders - Mrs.
Sudano said that the final change order for the Fair Share utility project was
before the Board for consideration. She
said the change order represents the end of the construction contract, although
the Board still may be presented with issues and decisions regarding the
project.
In describing the change orders,
Mrs. Sudano noted that the end result is a net credit to the Town of
$32,706.41.
Mrs. Sudano said the main items are
as follows: Board‑approved fence
upgrade at the Sunset Ridge Pump Station ($8,210.50); additional work required
for abandoning wells due to new regulations after the project was bid
($6,856.61); the addition of emergency dialers at two pump stations which came
on line prior to the Town's SCADA/Telemetry Project’s being in place ($5,218.50);
modification of the jib crane base to accommodate the Town's request for an
electric hoist ($3,087.75 and $1,671.90); and work to remove the existing pump
station that was excluded by the engineer from the original contract
($16,380.05).
Several other more minor line items
include additional work associated with the well abandonment’s.
Mrs. Sudano said the original
contract price for the project was $3,499,637.00 and with this final adjusting
change order plus previous ones, the total contract price is $4,003,744.40.
Action: The Board approved a
motion to approve a construction contract change orders totaling $32,706.41 in
credits for the Fair Share utility project.
Motion By: Dickson
Second By: Atwell
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of the Fair Share project
change orders are incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
10. Public Comment: At this time, an opportunity was
provided for members of the audience who had registered to speak to address the
Board on any variety of topics not listed on the night’s agenda. The following citizens were heard: None
11. Other Business: Commissioner Atwell reiterated his
position that employees out in the field should spot and report problems they
see. He pointed to a vacant lot on the
Village Office Condos site, the Dumpster at the same location, the Sonic site, and litter on the Hwy. 55 Bypass as examples of
problem areas.
He also said he was thankful that
the Town had initiated the street name change on New Hill Road to West Holly
Springs Road, but he said he had understood that the name would be
specifically, “W. Holly Springs Road.”
Ms. Bobber explained that the Town’s instructions were specific that the
name would be W. Holly Springs Road, but that the signs came back from order
spelled “West Holly Springs Road.” She
said she would follow up to see what could be done.
Commissioner Atwell also said he had
noticed that real estate signs, balloons and streamers are becoming an eyesore
on the weekends again.
12. Manager’s Reports:
Mr. Dean reported that dedication ceremonies for Town Hall are scheduled
for Aug. 20. He asked the Board for
potential dates on which to hold a mini-retreat.
Board members agreed that two
successive evenings during the week would work best for everyone’s
schedule. Wednesday and Thursday, Sept.
10 and 11 were suggested.
Mr. Dean asked board members to
confirm those dates and to submit lists of topics for placement on the agenda.
13. Closed Session ‑ None.
14. Adjournment - There being no further business
for the evening, the August 19, 2003 meeting of the Holly Springs Board of
Commissioners was adjourned at 9:45 p.m. following a motion by Commissioner
Dickson, a second by Commissioner Atwell, and a unanimous vote.
Respectfully Submitted on Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2003.
_________________________________
Joni
Powell, CMC
Town Clerk
Addendum
pages as referenced in these minutes follow and are a part of the official
record.