Regular Meeting
The
Staff Members Present:
2 and 3. The Pledge of Allegiance was
recited, and the meeting opened with an invocation by Rabbi Edery
of The Temple Beth Shalom.
4. Agenda
Adjustment: The
Motion By: Dickson
Second By: Womble
Vote: Unanimous
Items Added to the
Agenda: None.
Items Removed from
the Agenda: None.
Consent Agenda
Items Moved to Regular Business: None.
Other Changes: None.
5a. Government Finance Officers Association Award
Presentation – Mr. Ken Chavious presented a Certificate of Achievement for
Excellence in Financial Reporting award to the Town’s finance department by the
Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) of the
Mr. Chavious said that the
Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of
governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents
a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.
Action: None.
5b.
Mr.
Green requested the Town to consider releasing the funds of $15,000 for the
publication of the membership directories.
He added that, as a Platinum member of the Chamber’s Investment Club,
the Town of
Mr. Green said that he will be coming back to the Council
to discuss to what degree the Chamber hopes to receive for future funding for
this project.
Action: The Council approved a motion to approve
funding of the
Motion By: Womble
Second By: VanFossen
Vote: Unanimous
6a. Public
Hearing: Ordinance 06-14, UDO Amendment 06-UDO-04 on Signs – Ms. Bobber explained that the public hearing for
Ordinance 06-14 remains open from the July 18 and August 1 Town Council
meetings.
Ms. Bobber said since February of last
year, the Town has studied the sign regulations of the UDO and held two public
meetings with local businesses. She said
there were five (5) persons in attendance at the
She
said the current regulations addressing out-parcels do not allow monument
signs, but the amendment would allow for out-parcel monument signs, but only
interior to the center. The Technical
Review Committee (
Ms.
Bobber discussed the following outline of sign UDO amendments with the Council:
Global
Changes:
·
NV:
·
Development Incentive references to Development Options
·
Board of Commissioners references to Town Council
7.03
A: Master Sign Plans:
·
Eliminate for residential subdivisions and single-use sites.
·
Still require Town Council approval with Development Petition.
7.03
B: Sign Zones:
·
Added “Interior Sign Zones” to the LB, CB, and GB Districts to allow for
ground signs on all out lots in Integrated Centers.
7.03
D: Signs in Residential Districts:
·
Increased allowed sign size from 4 sq. ft. to 32 sq. ft. and height from
4’ to 6’ for Educational, Governmental, and Religious uses.
·
Added new temporary sign provisions for “platted subdivisions” to have a
32 sq. ft. sign instead of 6 sq. ft. and allows more signs based upon number of
entrances, not just one per road frontage.
7.03
E: Signs in Commercial/ Mixed-Use/ and Industrial Districts:
·
Increases sign height allowances from 8’ to 15’ for integrated centers
with more than 1000’ of public road frontage.
·
Adds provisions to allow out lots in Integrated Centers to have
individual ground signs within the “Interior Sign Zone” NOT along the public
road frontage.
7.03
F: Signs in the LB District along Residential Gateways and in the TV District:
·
Increases the size allowance for temporary signs from 6 sq. ft. to 32
sq. ft. to match all other non-residential districts.
7.03
G: General Sign Regulations:
·
Changes sign area calculations- eliminates sign structure or decorative
casing from the calculations, however limits the structure and decorative
elements to a maximum of 50% of the signage area.
·
Results: ground signs that are currently limited to 40 sq. ft. may
become as large as 60 sq. ft. (40 sq. ft. of sign and 20 sq. ft. of
structure/decorative elements) and shopping center signs may become as large as
120 sq. ft. (80 sq. ft. of sign and 40 sq. ft. of structure/decorative
elements). Signs will still be limited
to maximum height for the specific district.
Ms.
Bobber said staff and the Planning Board recommend approval.
She
added that the Planning Board reviewed the amendments and suggested further
discussion on several items. Ms. Bobber said
the Planning Board recommends that signs in commercial, mixed-use and
industrial districts should be internal to the integrated center.
Councilman
VanFossen commented that all business signs -- external
as well as internal -- should be consistent and have equal signage. There was much discussion among the Council
and staff regarding signs on commercial lots for internal and out-parcels, allowing
individual ground signs, versus allowing only the external lots to have ground
signs. Ms. Bobber said the Planning
Board reviewed both options and recommends the sign to be internal to the
integrated center.
Ms.
Bobber said that another point of discussion for the Planning Board was other
than adding a time frame for removal, was the provision when a business goes “out
of business” that the sign must be removed if the business has been out of
business for 60 days. She said that many
Planning Board members thought that removing a perfectly good sign that meets
town standards was an issue and that the Town shouldn’t require the removal of
such a sign.
There
was much discussion of different options for removal of signs when a business goes
“out of business,” such as, leaving the structure or frame in place and replacing
the face with a blank panel. Ms. Bobber
said that staff recommends leaving section 7.03, G., 4 or 7.03 G., 10, in the
ordinance without changes. Councilman VanFossen said that he agreed with staff’s recommendation.
Ms.
Bobber said that the Planning Board members also discussed the Town’s methods
used for calculating the monument sign surface area. She said staff proposes to allow up to 100
percent of the allowable sign surface area to be used as support structure, but
the Planning Board recommends that only 50 percent of the allowable sign
surface area be used, thus allowing only a 48 square foot structure.
Ms.
Bobber said amendments to section 7.03, E., 3, d, e, f. and g, addressing
grounds signs needs to be added to the listed amendments to be considered. She said that it reduces the size of a double-faced
sign from 40 square feet to 32 square feet and
adds regulations for “Post & Arm Signs” with 7.03, 3.,3.,d. e. and specify
in d. the maximum sign surface for a post & arm sign is six (6) square
feet. And in e. the maximum height for a
post & arm sign is 8’ for the sign and 10’ for the decorative post.
Councilman Womble asked if the currant ordinance would allow
signs that will list the names of businesses located within the shopping
center. Ms. Bobber said yes the
ordinance allows these types of signs.
There were discussion among town staff and Councilman
VanFossen to allow interior lots of a shopping center to have a sign on the
road frontage. Councilman VanFossen said
that he was in favor of allowing ground signs for internal lots and be
consistant with all lots. Councilman
Womble said that he agreed. Councilman
Dickson said that he did not agree with allowing road frontage ground signs for
internal lots. Ms. Bobber said the Planning Board discussed both
options and recommends the sign to be internal to the integrated center.
With that explanation completed, Mayor Sears reopened
the public hearing to accept input. The
following comments were recorded: None.
There
being no input, the public hearing was closed.
Action: The
a. To “reduce size of double-faced signs
from 40 square feet to 32 square feet and add regulations for Post & Arm
Signs” with 7.03, 3.,3.,d. e. and specify in d. the maximum sign surface for a
post & arm sign is six (6) square feet. And in e. the maximum height for a post &
arm signis 8’ for the sign and 10’ for the decorative post.
Motion By: VanFossen
Second By: Dickson
Vote: Unanimous
A copy
of Ordinance 06-14 (06-UDO-04) is incorporated into these minutes as addendum
pages.
6b. Public Hearing:
Zoning Map Change Petition 06-REZCU-10 – Ms. Bobber explained to the Council that the property
owner is requesting to rezone both properties along
Ms.
Bobber said upon approval of rezoning the property, plans for the new storage
area would be submitted and reviewed at a later time through a special
exception use process.
She reported that the applicant has committed the
following for both parcels:
Permitted Uses
allowed on parcels 0649-87-7451 and 0649-87-2410 for Security Self Storage
would be:
Office / Professional Services: Including but not limited to, Construction
Companies (office only); Contractors
(office only); Corporate Headquarters (office only); Home Remodeling Companies
(office only); Manufacturers Representatives.
Special Exception
Uses allowed on parcels 0649-87-7451 and 0649-87-2410 for Security Self Storage
would be:
Clothing Service: Including but not limited to, Dry Cleaning /
Laundry Establishment; Shoe Repair Shop; Tailor and Pressing Shop.
Food Sales and Service: Including but not limited to, Bakery –
retail; Convenience Store; Dairy Bar – retail; Delicatessen;
Ice Cream Store – retail;
Restaurant – Drive In; Restaurant
– Drive Through; Restaurant – Fast
Food; Restaurant – Sit Down; Yogurt
Industrial Use: Including but not limited to,
General
Industrial Uses: Self-storage (Mini-) Warehouse
Office / Professional
Services: Including but not limited
to, Bank Machines – Walk-up; Bank Machines – Drive-Through; Bank Machines – Free-standing; Bank / Savings & Loan / Credit Union.
Personal Service: Including but not limited to, Barber Shop; Beauty Shop; Health Spa or Fitness Center; Tanning Salon.
Recreation: Including but not limited to, Dance Studio;
Gymnastics Studio;
Retail: Including but not limited to, Apparel
Shop; Arts and Craft Store; Camera Store;
Card Shop; Computer Store; Convenience Store; Drug Store;
Flower Shop; Gift Shop; Newsdealer; Shoe Store;
Stationery and Book Store;
Tobacco Store; Variety
Store; Video Store.
Accessory Uses: Those accessory
uses listed in Section 4.01, A., 3., below, under the headings of Food Sales and Service, Personal
Service or Retail may exceed the limitations set forth in Section
4.01, A., 3., a., below, and be approved by the grant of a Special Exception to
occupy from twenty-five (25) percent to one-hundred (100) percent of the net leaseable area of the ground floor of a building,
provided that the limit of such uses to not exceed ten (10) percent of the gross floor area of all buildings combined shall apply.
Ms.
Bobber explained that the following are primary uses that would be allowed on
the Security Self Storage site: office /
professional services, construction companies (office only), contractors
(office only); corporate headquarters (office only); home remodeling companies
(office only); and manufacturer representatives.
Ms. Bobber explained the definition
of accessory uses and referenced special exception uses that are allowed on the
current parcel.
Ms.
Bobber said the Planning Board members discussed the following:
·
the proposed list
of commitments (as listed above);
·
the primary and
special exception uses;
·
the warehouse
distribution district is the only district that allows for self-storage
facilities;
·
the difference
in the setbacks and landscaping between the local business and warehouse distribution
districts;
·
the typical
local business uses that requires a special exception use; and
·
the difficulty to rent spaces for such a building.
Ms. Bobber said that staff
and the Planning Board recommend approval, following a vote of 7 to 0.
With that explanation completed, Mayor Sears opened the
public hearing to accept input. The
following comments were recorded:
Kathleen
Kelly of 904 Bonhurst Drive said that her property abuts the property being proposed
for rezoning and that she opposes the rezoning.
She said that she also opposes to the list of possible uses that are
listed as the property owners’ commitments.
She said that the impacts of rezoning the property would depreciate her
property values and the surrounding properties.
Councilman
Dickson asked if with the rezoning approval, would self storage facilities and
office/retail uses be allowed on the site.
Ms.
Bobber said yes this rezoning would allow self storage facilities and some
minor retail and office uses to be located at the front of the property along
Councilman
VanFossen explained that what is being proposed was
to remove the existing structure located at the front of the property on
Councilman
Dickson said that this rezoning would not change any current conditions to the
rear of the property nearest
There
was further discussion about the development of the property as a special exception
use that would require the property owner to come back to the Town Council for construction
approval of the new facilities.
Ms.
Kelly asked the distance between her property line and the rear of the storage
units and was concerned about the junk located at the rear of the property.
Kurt Regensburger of 1101 N.
Main Street, the property owner, said that he was proposing to expand and enhance
the appearance of the self storage facility along
Councilman VanFossen explained
again that this rezoning petition is proposing to construct a three story
building with office and retail located on the first floor and storage on the
second and third stories along
Mayor Sears said the Town Council is only considering the
zoning of the property and the conditional uses allowed in WD:
warehouse/distribution district conditional use zoning district. He said the second phase will be the site
plan review and approval phase and that’s when the discussion on the structure,
setbacks and design will take place.
Walt
Froster of 920 Bonhurst
Drive said that he was concerned whether
the Town followed all the required zoning procedures for rezoning of property and
that several other property owners in that area did not received a notice of
any proposed rezoning. He said that he
was also concerned with the existing facility that it was being used for
unsuitable uses such as someone within the facility playing drums in the middle
of the night and automobile repairs on the site. Mr. Froster said
that he was also concerned about the surrounding environment and the
development of the community without planned open space and greenways.
Ms.
Bobber said that all the adjacent property owners should have received a letter
from the Town, and the property was posted, a legal ad was advertised in the
paper and advertised on the Town’s website.
Mayor
Sears invited Mr. Froster to visit more of the future
Town Council meetings to hear about the town’s plans for greenway and open
space. He said the Town does a great job
incorporating greenways and open space into the proposed plans as they are
submitted by developers.
There
being no further input, the public hearing was closed.
Action #1: The
Motion By: VanFossen
Second By: Dickson
Vote: Unanimous
Action #2: The
Motion By: VanFossen
Second By: Womble
Vote: Unanimous
6c. Public Hearing:
Special Exception Use Petition 06-SEU-04, Sprint Site #1115 #1 – Ms.
Huffman explained that this request is for consideration of a special exception
use petition for Sprint site #1115, #1 to allow pad-mounted telecommunication
equipment to be located at 1136 Avent Ferry Road behind
the Town’s fire station and adjacent to the water tower. She reviewed with the Council the location of
the site and the required landscaping on the north and east sides of the
property lines.
Ms. Huffman said the staff and the Planning Board is
recommending approval without conditions.
She said the Planning Board discussed the size of the easement area and
the alternative landscape plan.
Councilman VanFossen said in
the last request from Embarq (Sprint) he saw, there
was a proposed building on the site plan.
He said this site plan indicates no building. He also asked whether the light shown on the
plan would be the town’s light or Embarq’s.
Ms. Huffman said that Sprint is proposing pad-mounted
telecommunication equipment with a light that would be used when Embarq visits the site for repairs.
Zachary Palmer of 14111 Capital Blvd. Wake Forest, a representative of Embarq
(former Sprint Telecommunications), said that there would be a dusk-to-dawn
light located on the site equipped with a photo sensor so that it would not be
on 24 hours a day. He said the light can
be a directional light and would be for security reasons. He said the site would be landscaped on the
north and east side of the property line as a required buffer. The proposed site would be located on the
northeast side of the property and located behind the fire station and adjacent
to the water tower. He said that he
would work with the Town staff to include directional lighting on the site
plan.
He explained that the access would be off
Councilman Dickson said that the proposed site is
located to the far east side of the property behind
the fire station and not located near any proposed houses in that area.
Mr. Palmer said originally Sprint proposed to locate
the equipment at the corner along
With
that explanation completed, Mayor Sears opened the public hearing to accept
sworn testimony and qualified evidence.
Speakers spoke under oath administered by the Deputy Town Clerk. The following testimony was recorded:
Robert Castillo of 1200 Avent
Ferry Road said that his property is
across from the proposed Embarq (Sprint) site and
that he is opposed to the petition. He
said that he was concerned about the quality of life and environmental issues. He said that his subdivision is on well water,
and the current poor conditions of drainage and standing water on
He said that he didn’t know what the box contained
and where and how much trenching would be done on-site for the cables. He said that it would be another eyesore along
Mayor Sears said asked Mr. Palmer about the buffering
of the site.
Mr. Palmer said that the side of the box facing the
water tower will not be landscaped, because it’s currently fenced and landscaped
along the vicinity of the site.
Mr. Palmer
said the access easement will be along the east side of the property line and
off of
Councilman VanFossen asked what
will be in the equipment box and where on the site will be the trenching.
Mr. Palmer said that the trenching for the fiber
optic cable will be within the 307 foot access and utility easement and
connected to the equipment box. He said
Mr. Castillo said that he had strong feelings about
Sprint’s not using
Hinton
J. Skipper, Jr. of 122 E. St. James Street, Tarboro, the real estate manager for Embarq
(formerly Sprint Telecommunications), said within the cabinets are circuit
boards, wires and small back-up batteries that charged from commercial power that’s
connected to an on site meter base. He
explained that without the charged batteries, the customers in that area will
be without phone service in the event of a power outage or bad weather.
Mr.
Skipper said once construction of the pad-mounted telecommunication equipment
is completed the only vehicles will be a van visiting the site twice or three
times a week, which will be parked at the cabinet within the access and utility
easement. He said regarding the grounds
maintenance for the other three equipment boxes located along
There
being no further testimony, the public hearing was closed.
Action #1: The
a. The proposed use
will not be injurious to the public health, safety, comfort, community
moral standards, convenience or general welfare;
b. The proposed use
will not injure or adversely affect the adjacent area;
c. The proposed use
will be consistent with the character of the district, land uses authorized
therein, and the Town of
d. The proposed use shall conform to all development standards of the
applicable district (unless a waiver of such development standards is requested as
part of the special exception use petition
and approved as set forth above, in which case the proposed use shall conform
to the terms and conditions of such waiver).
e. Access drives or driveways
are or will be sufficient in size and properly located to: ensure
automotive and pedestrian safety and convenience, traffic flow as set forth in
Section 7.09 – Pedestrian Circulation and Vehicular Area Design; and, control
and access in case of fire or other emergency;
f.
Off-street parking areas, off-street loading areas, trash
enclosures, trash pick-up and removal, and other service areas are located so
as to be safe, convenient, allow for access in case of emergency, and to
minimize economic, glare, odor, and other impacts on adjoining properties and
properties in the general neighborhood;
g. The lot,
building or structure proposed for the use has adequate restroom facilities,
cooking facilities, safety equipment (smoke alarms, floatation devices, etc.),
or any other service or equipment necessary to provide for the needs of those
persons whom may work at, visit or own property nearby to the proposed use;
h. Utilities, schools, fire, police and other necessary
public and private facilities and services will be adequate to handle the needs
of the proposed use;
i.
The location and
arrangement of the use on the
site, screening, buffering, landscaping, and pedestrian ways harmonize with
adjoining properties and the general area and minimize adverse impacts; and,
j.
The type, size,
and intensity of the proposed use (including
but not limited to such considerations as the hours of operation and numbers of
people who are likely to utilize or be attracted to the use) will not have significant adverse impacts on adjoining
properties or the neighborhood.
Motion By: Dickson
Second By: VanFossen
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of Special Exception Use
application 06-SEU-04 entered into the record by the applicant and addressing
the findings of facts is incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
Action #2: Having
made findings of fact, the Council approved a motion to approve Special
Exception Use #06-SEU-04 as submitted by Mulkey
Engineers & Consultants Project Number 2005429.00, dated revised
Motion By: Dickson
Second By: Womble
Vote: Unanimous
6d. Public
Hearing: Water Bond Extension – Mr. Holland said the purpose of this public hearing is to receive input
on the town’s extension of time period to issue authorized water bonds under a
bond order titled “Bond Order Authorizing the Issuance of General Obligation Water
Bonds of the Town of Holly Springs in the maximum amount of $8,100,000.”
Mr. Holland said the Town does not intend to issue the
remaining water bonds authorized under this bond order before January, 2007, so
the town is extending the seven-year time period so that it can retain the
ability to issue the remaining bonds when it is needed.
At
this time the Mayor announced that this was the hour, date and place fixed by
the Town
ORDER EXTENDING MAXIMUM TIME PERIOD FOR
ISSUING BONDS UNDER BOND ORDER AUTHORIZNG THE ISSUANCE OF GENERAL OBLIGATION
WATER BONDS OF THE TOWN OF
WHEREAS, the
Board of Commissioners (now the Town Council) of the Town of Holly Springs,
North Carolina (the "Town"), by resolution adopted on February 16,
1999, stated its proposal to issue general obligation bonds to finance costs of
providing water systems. The Town applied to the North Carolina Local Government
Commission for its approval of such bonds, and the Commission accepted and
approved the Town's application; and
WHEREAS, the bond order entitled BOND ORDER AUTHORIZNG THE
ISSUANCE OF GENERAL OBLIGATION WATER BONDS OF THE TOWN OF HOLLY SPRINGS IN THE
MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF $8,100,000 (the “Bond Order”) took effect on July 6, 1999
following approval by the voters of the Town in the manner provided by law; and
WHEREAS, , the North Carolina Local Government Commission
has approved the extension of the maximum time for issuing bonds under the Bond
Order to ten years after the Bond Order took effect, and the Town Council has
held a public hearing as required by law on such extension.
BE IT ORDERED
by the Town Council of the Town of Holly Springs, North Carolina, that the
maximum time period for issuing the remaining authorized amount of general
obligation bonds under the Bond Order has been extended from seven to ten years
after the Bond Order took effect, and that this order will take effect 30 days
after its publication in accordance with law following adoption of this order.
With
that explanation completed, Mayor Sears opened the public hearing to accept
input. The following comments were
recorded: None.
There
being no input, the public hearing was closed.
Action: The
Motion By: Womble
Second By: Dickson
Vote: Unanimous
A copy of
Resolution 06-41 is incorporated into these minutes as an addendum page.
7. Consent
Agenda: The Council approved a motion to approve all
items on the Consent Agenda following a motion by
7a. Minutes - The Council approved minutes of the Council’s
regular meeting held on
7b.
Budget Amendment Report – The Council received a report of FY 2005-06
budget amendments #205 through #227 approved by the town manager.
7c.
Budget Amendments, $15,400 –
The Council adopted amendments to the FY 2006-07 budget
in the amount of $15,400 to pay costs of
7d. Budget Amendments, $81,355 – The Council adopted amendments to the FY 2006-07 budget in the amount of $81,355 to pay costs of
7e. Budget Amendment, $20,000 – The Council adopted amendments
to the FY 2006-07 in the amount of $20,000 so that the town can take advantage
of a special price on greenway bridges.
Copies
of the budget amendments are incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
7f. Budget Amendment, $15,000 – The Council adopted an amendment to the FY 2006-07 budget in the amount of $15,000 for
7g. Budget Amendments – The Council adopted amendments to the FY 2006-07 budget for a development project in the
7h.
7i. Financial Audit Contract
– The Council approved to enter a contract with Duke &
Abbott, CPAs, P.A., for the town’s annual financial audit. A copy
of the Duke & Abbott CPAs, P.A. contract is
incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
7j.
Morgan Park Development Agreement – The Council approved to enter an
infrastructure reimbursement agreement with the developer of Morgan Park, with
terms as approved on June 6. A copy of the Morgan Park Development Agreement
is incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages
8a.
Ms. Stephenson said the developer of the commercial
property known as South Park, located at the intersection of Avent Ferry and the 55 Bypass, and the developer of Morgan Park
contacted staff discussing the road improvements as part of a change order to
the existing contract under Asphalt Experts.
She explained that the plan has been revised and the
contractor has returned the change order pricing. She said staff finds the change order in
accordance with the current unit prices and recommends approval.
Action:
The
Motion By: Womble
Second By: Dickson
Vote: Unanimous.
A
copy of change orders #2 and #3 and budget amendments are incorporated into
these minutes as addendum pages.
8b. Wildacre
Development Agreement – Ms. Sudano said the development is an approximate 1,200 unit
subdivision in the area near the intersection of
Action:
The
Motion By: Womble
Second
By:
VanFossen
Vote: Unanimous.
A copy of Wildacre
development agreement is incorporated into these minutes as addendum pages.
9. Public
Comment: At this time, an
opportunity was provided for members of the audience who had registered to
speak to address the Council on any variety of topics not listed on the night’s
agenda. None.
10. Other
Business: Councilman Womble asked when construction will
begin on the
Ms.
Sudano said the survey contract was just approved and
construction is estimated to begin spring of 2007.
Councilman Womble asked about the beginning of the sidewalk
project from Wendy’s and along
Ms.
Stephenson said that the Town is using NC DOT grant funds of $190,000 for air
quality and the funds for that project have been delayed until the end of 2008
and the beginning of 2009.
Ms.
Sudano said that the Town can get the job done sooner
if the Town chooses to use Town funding versus using the NC DOT grant funds. There was much discussion regarding other
projects that are not funded, such as the
Councilman VanFossen suggested
that staff research the possibility to move the
Councilman VanFossen asked
about the crosswalk project on
Ms. Stephenson said that a design has been completed with
pedestrian awareness options and needs to be reviewed by NC DOT.
Councilman
Womble asked the status of making
Ms. Sudano explained that at a
future Town Council meeting staff will be submitting a downtown enhancement
plan for the design of the downtown street lighting and parking along Main
Street and it would be a good time for implementing Center Street as a one way
street.
Councilman Womble said that he would like to see
Councilman VanFossen said that
he would like to see angle and reverse angle parking along
Ms. Sudano said NC DOT does not
allow reverse angle parking on
Councilman VanFossen and Ms. Sudano continued discussing reverse and angle parking on
11. Manager’s
Report: Mr. Dean invited the Council members to
visit the Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant on Thursday,
August 17th.
Mr.
Dean also addressed his concerns with the article published by the News &
Observer regarding the Novartis project. Mr. Dean explained that there is a need to go
on record that the total of the Town’s commitment of incentives to the Novartis project was for the land and one third of the
grading cost. He said the remaining funds
are for public infrastructure within the
Mr.
Dean said that the Novartis project is a long term
investment for the town for several reasons. Novartis
is an international company that is solid financially and this plant will not
be going overseas due to it purpose of making vaccines for the
Mr. Dean explained that with the number of jobs this
company will be creating, that he estimated that over $50,000,000 will be
investing within the local businesses for the next 10 years. This company will impact the local businesses
such as restaurants, from dry cleaners to day care centers. He said that the town has received emails and
phone calls from developers looking for property, saying that this company will
create the day time traffic needed to market property for other businesses in
the area.
Mr. Dean said that he wanted to go on record to say that
he was appalled when he received a phone call from an
He said that the Town Attorney provided the News &
Observer with all the public documents that included all the information needed
explaining the Novartis project. Mr. Dean said that the article damaged a lot
people who worked hard on the project in many ways. He said that everyone was kept up to date on
the project, and he thought that the article was unfair and unreasonable.
12. Closed
Session: The Council approved a motion to enter into
Closed Session, pursuant to G.S. 143-318.11(a)(3) to
discuss matters of acquiring right of way property for infrastructure easements
located along New Hill Road and Piney Grove-Wilbon
Road realignment; and G. S. 143-318.11(a)(5) to discuss possible litigation
matters.
Motion
By: Womble
Second
By: VanFossen
Vote: Unanimous
General Account of Closed Session –
In
Closed Session, Mr. Schifano discussed the matter of
negotiations of possible infrastructure easements to be located along
-- End General Account
The
Council approved a motion to return to Open Session. The motion was made by Councilman VanFossen, seconded by Councilman Womble and carried
unanimously.
13.
Adjournment: There being no further business for the evening, the
Respectfully
Submitted on
_________________________________
Addendum pages as referenced in these minutes follow
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