MINUTES
STATE
OF
The Henderson County
Board of Commissioners met for a regularly scheduled meeting at
Those present were: Chairman Bill Moyer, Vice-Chairman
Also present were: Deputy
Clerk to the Board
Absent was: Planning Director
CALL TO ORDER/WELCOME
Chairman Moyer called
the meeting to order and welcomed all in attendance.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Commissioner Messer led
the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag.
INVOCATION
County Manager
INFORMAL PUBLIC COMMENTS
Chairman Moyer reminded
those who had signed up to speak to keep their comments to three minutes each.
1.
David Weintraub – Mr.Weintraub requested the Board of
Commissioners pass a formal large scale development moratorium for major subdivisions
until the Land Development Code is passed and the small area planning has been
completed. As the Director of the Environmental Conservation Organization (ECO)
he prefers to spend his time planning hikes and bird walks, water monitoring of
our watersheds and creating environmental programs. In his short tenure here it has occurred to
him that if things continue in the current direction, we will be reduced to
doing nothing more than running urban walks, reminiscing about what once was,
rather than immersing folks in the amazing natural gems that make up our
county’s natural heritage. He stated that they have collected over 3,000
signatures but could have easily gotten thousands more and can if need be. Many of the people they spoke with are
volunteers who were passionate about their concerns with growth and run away
development. “There is a sense that county government has not been responsive
to their rising discontent.” The problem
is in growth, growth without land use policies that govern its direction. ECO favorably supports the passage of the LDC
as quickly as possible.
2.
MariJane Pell – Ms. Pell stated that the people of
3.
Susan Stewart - Ms.
Stewart is a resident and concerned citizen of
4.
Chris Berg – Mr. Berg passed, did not address the Board.
5.
Fielding Lucas –Mr. Lucas stated that the older he gets the
more he is impressed by the number of people who know what is best for him, far
better than he is likely to know himself. He talked
about
our growth and referred to the proposed development for Crab Creek.
6.
Eva Ritchey – Ms. Ritchey stated that she supports a
moratorium because we need it. We long past need a land use plan. She stated that
developers are not the problem, there are good developers that do exactly what
the rules say. They care only about one
thing and that is profit. The problem is that we have had no rules so we have
houses perched on ridgetops. We have
homes on steep slopes. We have mountains that have been carved in half. Good planning is about being neighborly. She
stated that we have been talking about land use for ten years.
7.
Bill Ramsey – Mr. Ramsey stated that every year this Board
casts hundreds of votes. The thing that
separates some votes from others is that many of the votes that are cast here
have to do with annual issues and the Board will vote on them again; the annual
budget, some staff appointments, that sort of thing. The really gravidus votes
that the Board must make are those that set a precedent and there are none on
the agenda that have any more gravity than the vote on The Glen at Flat
Rock. He urged the Board to hear the
pleas of the people who live in that community and vote no for all the reasons that
have been given through the three long meetings that have taken place over the
last three months. This is a precedent setting vote. It is the right project but it is the wrong
location.
8.
Bill Alexander – Mr. Alexander represents The Glen applicant.
He thanked the Board for the time they took to hear all the people regarding
The Glen, including his client. Educated development of land is not what has
changed the face of our county. What has changed the face of our county is the
unprecedented growth rate that occurred all over western
DISCUSSION/ADJUSTMENT OF AGENDA
Chairman Moyer stated
that there are people who came for agenda item “Important Dates” and would
prefer not to wait till the end. He
requested the Board move the “Important Dates” up so the dates could be set and
those people could leave.
Chairman Moyer stated
that under the Consent Agenda there was one additional road,
Commissioner Messer
mentioned that Cane Creek Water and Sewer District is on the agenda tonight
regarding the waterline on Highway #25 at the fire department. It will likely be late in the evening before
the Board discusses this item. He asked
if this item could be moved to try to accommodate the people in attendance from
the Fletcher Fire Department. Chairman Moyer asked that it be moved up as the
first discussion item.
Commissioner Williams made the motion to approve the agenda
with the above requested changes. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
IMPORTANT DATES
Set Public Hearing on Noise Ordinance Amendments
Chairman Moyer stated
that because of the absolute necessity to get the land development code
finished, he asked that this item be rolled to a later meeting. The Board was
in agreement.
Chairman Moyer stated
that staff had spent a lot of time trying to clear dates so the deliberations
could be completed on the Land Development Code (LDC). Two dates have been suggested, August 23 and
August 28. Chairman Moyer requested that both dates be set. Chairman
Moyer made the motion to set LDC workshops for
Request for Public Hearing on new road names: 1. Perry
McDowell Trail and 2. Fiddlers
Chairman
Moyer stated that it appears there is no controversy so staff suggested that it
be set for a regular Board meeting. Commissioner Messer made the motion to set
that public hearing for Tuesday, September 4 at
Set Public Hearing on Rezoning Application #R-2007-04
Based on staff’s
recommendation, Commissioner Williams
made the motion to set this public hearing for Tuesday, September 4 at
Set Public Hearing on Rezoning Application #R-2007-05
Based on staff’s
recommendation, Commissioner McGrady made
the motion to set this public hearing for Tuesday, September 4 at
Tuesday, August 28 at
Tuesday, September 11 at
Tuesday, September 18 at
Tuesday, September 25 at
They are also looking
for a time and date for one day time meeting, for folks who may not feel
comfortable being out at night. Staff
will communicate these dates to the Board when they are firmed up. These will all be public input meetings for
parks facilities held by the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board.
CONSENT AGENDA
Commissioner Messer made the motion to approve the consent
agenda as revised above. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
The Consent Agenda
consisted of the following:
Minutes
Draft minutes were
presented for the Board’s review and approval of the following meetings:
Tax Collector’s Report
Terry F. Lyda, Henderson
County Tax Collector, had provided the Tax Collector’s Report dated August 3
for the Board’s information and consent approval.
Tax Releases
The
Petition for Addition to
Staff had received petitions
for addition to the State Road System for the following roads:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
10.
11.
13. South
Drexel
2007 Strategic Plan and Capital Improvement Plan Monthly
Update
The monthly update was
presented for the Board’s information and review.
A draft letter had been
prepared for the Board’s review and approval, in support of a post office for
the Town of Mills River. The letter conveys the support of the Board for a
full-service post office for that community, and recommends the US Postal
Service consider revising its postal districts to coincide with municipal
borders. The Board was requested to
approve the letter as presented and direct that it be forwarded to Regional
Field Representative Randy Flack in Heath Shuler’s office.”
The suggested motion was
“I move the Board approve the letter as
presented and direct Staff to forward it to Regional Field Office
Representative Randy Flack in Heath Shuler’s office.
Non-Profit Performance Agreements
Subsequent to the
approval of the FY 2007-08 Budget, staff had distributed the funding agreements
to the non-profit agencies receiving County allocations. Staff will be including signed funding
agreements on the Board’s consent agendas as they are received from the
agencies. Funding Agreements were included for the following agencies:
1.
Arts
Council of
2.
3.
Community
Development Council
4.
Council
on Aging
5.
Environmental
and Conservation Organization
6.
Historic
7th Avenue District Inc.
7.
Partnership
for Economic Development
Staff recommended that
the Board authorize the Chairman to execute the funding agreements, in doing
so, authorize the release of the first of the aforementioned agencies’
quarterly allotments.
The suggested motion was
“I move the Board authorize the Chairman
to execute the attached funding agreements and, in doing so, authorize the
release of the first of the aforementioned agencies’ quarterly allotments.”
CDBG Administration Documents
In November 2006, the
County applied for and subsequently received $250,000 in Community Development
Block Grant (CDBG) Housing Development funds for infrastructure development in the
Shuey Knolls Subdivision. Land-of-Sky
was chosen to provide assistance in the administration of these funds for
The suggested motion was
“I move that the Board authorize the
Chairman to sign the prepared documents for forwarding to the Land-of-Sky
Regional Council.”
Request to Re-Allocate Maintenance of Effort Funds
To make better use of
those funds, Community Health Network has requested their reallocation to the
following activities:
$5,000 – Case Management
$6,000 – Psychiatric Medications and Pharmacist
$4,000 – Administration of the Program
Arthur Carder, CEO of
Western Highlands LME, has received this information and supports the
reallocation of funds as it has the potential to impact many consumers.
The Board was requested
to approve the re-allocation of $15,000 in Maintenance of Effort funds for
Community Health Network.
The suggested motion was
“I move the Board approve the request to
re-allocate $15,000 in Maintenance of Effort funds for Community Health
Network.”
Pictometry Contract
Included in the budget
approved for the Assessor’s Department is $73,008 for Pictometry, a set of
digital aerial imagery of the county flown to provide an all compass point
(North, South, East, & West), “oblique” image of each parcel. This information will significantly improve
the ability of the appraisal staff to pursue property previously omitted from
the tax roll, and to perform other analysis beneficial to providing a fair and
equitable assessment program.
In addition, other
county departments, including the Sheriff’s Office, the E911 Center, Emergency Management,
and Code Enforcement will be able to utilize the product in the carrying out of
their individually-assigned responsibilities.
The Board was requested
to approve the Pictometry Contract.
The suggested motion was
“I move the Board approve the Contract
for Pictometry as proposed.”
Improvement Guarantee Extensions
Mr. Jeff Cosgrove, owner
and developer of Summit Springs, is requesting an extension of the improvement
guarantee completion date for Phase I of Summit Springs. Mr. Cosgrove is requesting a two (2) month
extension which makes a completion date of
Mr. Dean Anderson,
owner, has requested an extension of the completion date for the Grand
Highlands at
Mr. Scott McElrath,
owner, has requested an extension of the completion date for The Homestead at
Action by the Board of
Commissioners is needed to either grant or deny the extension requests. Staff recommends that the Board approve the
requests pursuant to Sections 170-38 and 170-39 of the Henderson County
Subdivision Ordinance.
The suggested motion was
“I move that the Board of Commissioners find and conclude that the request to
extend the completion dates for Summit Springs, Grand Highlands at Bearwallow
Mountain and The Homestead at Mills River, as provided for in the draft
Performance Guarantee Agreements, complies with the provisions of the
Subdivision Ordinance and is approved.
Resolution Authorizing the Surplus and Disposition of
Personal Property by Private Sale
The Henderson County
Sheriff has received a request from the Town of Mills River to purchase a 2005
Dodge
The selling price to the
Town of Mills River has been calculated to be $9,420 which is the remaining net
cost to the County after giving the Town credit for $14,800 in vehicle cost
reimbursement payments made over the last two fiscal years under its service
contract with the Sheriff’s Department.
The sale of personal
property to another local government unit is authorized under NCGS 160A-274.
The Sheriff requests
that the Board consider approving the resolution declaring the 2005 Dodge
The suggested motion was
“I move that the Board of Commissioners
approve the proposed resolution declaring the 2005 Dodge
Register of Deeds – Request to use ROD Restricted Funds for
Automation, Enhancement and Document Preservation
Beginning in January
2002, the General Assembly enacted legislation that required counties to place
10% of certain revenues generated by the Register of Deeds Office into a fund
to pay for automation enhancements and document preservation. This fund which is a portion of the County’s
Restricted General Fund Balance has in excess of $300,000 currently. Only the Board of Commissioners may authorize
the use and release of these restricted funds.
Included in the agenda
packet was a request from Nedra Moles, Register of Deeds, to use the Register
of Deeds Restricted General Fund Balance for system upgrades and archival
document conversion. The budget
amendment appropriates $25,000 requested from the restricted general fund
balance for this purpose.
Staff requested that the
Board consider approving the request by the Register of Deeds to use restricted
fund balance for this purpose and approve the prepared budget amendment
appropriating the funds necessary for this request.
The suggested motion was
“I move that the Board of Commissioners
approve the request by the Register of Deeds and the associated budget
amendment to use Restricted General Fund Balance for the purposes indicated..”
Request to Establish a Clinical Social Worker (Mental Health
Therapist) Full-Time Employee Position in Health Department
A bi-lingual Clinical
Social Worker serving as a Mental Health Therapist has been working out of the
Henderson County Department of Public Health for almost one year serving
patients of the Health Department, and patients who need a bi-lingual therapist
are also referred from various community health services providers through the
Henderson County Community Health Network. This therapist has been made
available to our community through a federal grant awarded to the Henderson
County Partnership for Health, Inc. and implemented through the Henderson
County Community Health Network (CHN), a collaborative project of the Henderson
County Partnership for Health, Inc.
MAHEC was contracted by the CHN to temporarily serve as a staffing
agency to hire the Therapist and provide for her supervisory oversight as she seeks
State Licensure. Licensure is also
required to bill insurance for services.
MAHEC often assists communities in getting integrated care started, but
eventually spins these projects off to other entities for longer term support. MAHEC now asks release of its responsibility
for the Therapist, and they want another agency to assume this role. The Therapist’s services have been extremely
timely and helpful to many of our citizens.
There are few bi-lingual therapists serving
The Henderson County
Department of Public Health currently has a vacant, unfunded Public Health
Nurse position that originally provided nursing services funded by the Smart
Start Program. This position could be
re-designated to a Clinical Social Worker position. Our experience over the past year has shown that
not all MH Therapist services currently being provided at the Health Department
would be compensated since most clients have no insurance, nor do they have the
ability to pay. Since there aren’t
enough insured clients to fully support this position full-time, County Mental
Health Maintenance of Effort (MOE) funds would be needed. However, any revenues that may be collected
from billing for services could be used to offset the MOE funds.
Staff requested that the
Health Department reclassify an existing unfunded Public Health Nurse position
to a full-time Clinical Social Worker (Mental Health Therapist) position and
use the amount of County Mental Health Maintenance of Effort funds needed to
cover cost for the position in order to serve citizens of
The suggested motion was
“I move that the Health Department
reclassify an existing unfunded Public Health Nurse position to a full-time
Clinical Social Worker (Mental Health Therapist) position and use the amount of
County Mental Health Maintenance of Effort Funds needed to cover cost for the
position in order to serve the citizens of Henderson County needing these
services.”
Request Appropriation of Additional State Funds into Health
Department Budget for Public Health Accreditation
The Henderson County
Department of Public Health is involved this fiscal year in becoming
accredited. The State Legislature in
mandating Public Health Accreditation every four years provides a one time fund
of $25,000 in the year a local health department is going through accreditation
for the first time. The Consolidated
Contract Agreement with the NC Division of Public Health stipulates that this
fund may be used in any way for meeting accreditation standards. The Henderson County Department of Public
Health needs to have a staff member devote a significant amount of time
coordinating with all areas of the health department operations to assure all
accreditation bench marks are met. A
staff member has been identified for the task.
She is presently a part-time employee who could be temporarily placed
for the remainder of this fiscal year as a full-time employee for the purposes
of accreditation and developing a systematic methodology for assuring on-going
activities to maintain accreditation standards in the years to come. Any remaining funds could be used to further
support items and activities that relate to Public Health Accreditation.
Staff requested that the
additional $25,000 in Aid to Counties offered through a Consolidate Contract
Addendum from the NC Division of Public Health be used as stipulated for
purposes of Public Health Accreditation, and that a portion of these funds be
used for designating a currently part-time health department employee to
full-time status for the remainder of the fiscal year in order to coordinate
the Public Health Accreditation process.
The suggested motion was
“I move that the additional $25,000 in
Aid to Counties offered through a Consolidated Contract Addendum from the NC
Division of Public Health be used as stipulated for purposes of Public Health
Accreditation, and that a portion of these funds be used for designating a
currently part-time health department employee to full-time status for the
remainder of the fiscal year in order to coordinate the Public Health
Accreditation process.”
NOMINATIONS
Notification of Vacancies
The Board was notified
of the following vacancies which will appear for Nominations on the next
agenda:
1.
Animal
Services Committee – 1 vac.
2.
Cemetery
Advisory Committee – 7 vac.
3.
Etowah-Horse
Shoe Small Area Plan Committee – 7 vac.
4.
Planning
for Older Adults Block Grant Advisory Committee – 1 vac.
5.
Senior
Volunteer Services Advisory Council – 1 vac.
Nominations
Chairman Moyer stated
that the Board had not gotten to the discussion of the Etowah-Horse Shoe Small
Area Plan Charter but the way it is set up is the normal way. The vacancies have been posted for that
committee and at the next meeting the Board will make the appointments.
Commissioner McGrady
stated that the people on this committee need to represent the community. He has been trying to work with the folks in
Etowah and Horse Shoe to get a group of names submitted to the Commissioners
that will buy the community into the planning process we have here.
Chairman Moyer reminded
the Board of the following vacancies and opened the floor to nominations:
1.
Child Fatality
Prevention Team – 1 vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
2.
There were no
nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
3.
Juvenile Crime
Prevention Council – 6 vac.
There were no
nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
4.
Nursing/Adult Care Home
Community Advisory Committee – 3 vac.
Chairman Moyer informed
the Board that there are two people currently serving in positions #15 (Kay
Robinson) and # 18 (Rita Suder) and they are both willing to continue to serve,
if it’s the Board’s pleasure.
Commissioner McGrady
nominated Kay Robinson to position #15 and Rita Suder to position # 18, both
for reappointment.
Chairman Moyer made the motion to accept both these nominees
by acclamation. All voted in favor and
the motion carried.
5.
Planning for Older
Adults Block Grant Advisory Committee –
2 vac.
Chairman Moyer stated
that Silvia Crouse in position # 9 and Howard Hess in position #15 are both
unable to serve another term.
Commissioner Young
nominated Paul Payne to position #9. There were no other nominations.
Chairman Moyer made the motion to accept Mr. Payne by
acclamation. All voted in favor and the
motion carried.
6.
Senior Volunteer
Services Advisory Council – 1 vac.
There were no
nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
CANE CREEK WATER & SEWER DISTRICT
Commissioner Messer made the motion for the Board to adjourn
as
Commissioner McGrady made the motion for the Board to
adjourn as Cane Creek Water & Sewer District and reconvene as
FY 2006-2007 TAX COLLECTION SETTLEMENT; FY
2007-2008 TAX ORDER FOR COLLECTION
Terry Lyda, Henderson
County Tax Collector, thanked everyone in the Assessors’ Office and all his
staff in the Tax Collectors’ Office for their hard work and the tremendous job
they’ve done this year. Taking into
account that he has some new employees and considering everything he felt that
they have had a great year. They have collected 97.98% on the annual bills,
comparable to the state average of 96.63%.
They collected 87.53% on motor vehicle taxes and will continue to work
on those.
Terry Lyda – “
I am happy to report
that as of the close of FY 06-07, our office collected 97.98% of the annual tax
bills and we have collected 87.53% of the motor vehicle tax bills. Our collection percentages remain well above
the last reported state average of 96.63%.
Thank you for the opportunity to be of service to you. Respectfully submitted. Terry F. Lyda, Tax Collector”
Chairman Moyer stated
that by law the Tax Collector must deliver any duplicate bills printed for
prepayments, etc.
Terry Lyda explained
that those were included in the list submitted to the Clerk to the Board.
Chairman Moyer stated that
the Tax Collector must make settlements with the Board of Commissioners for all
taxes placed in his hands for collection in the past year. There was a
Resolution Approving the Settlement with the Tax Collector for the 2006-07 Tax
Year.
Chairman Moyer stated
that the Board of Commissioners must approve the bond and must have an Order of
Collection for the Tax Collector and charge him with the collection of the 2008
taxes. He called attention to the series
of documents in the agenda packet for the Board’s review and approval.
Commissioner McGrady moved the approval of the Tax
Collection Settlement for Fiscal Year 2007 taxes and further approve the draft
Order of Collection and Charge for Collection to the Tax Collector for Fiscal
Year 2008 taxes. All voted in favor and
the motion carried.
Commissioner McGrady moved approval of the Resolution
Setting the Bond Amounts for the Tax Collector and Deputy Tax Collector as
submitted. All voted in favor and the
motion carried.
Commissioner McGrady moved approval of the Resolution
Approving the Settlement with the Tax Collector for the 2006-07 Tax Year. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Russell Burrell
explained that what the Board had to do was approve the Bond after the Board
had charged him to collect money.
Chairman Moyer
congratulated Terry Lyda and his staff on another fine job and asked Mr. Lyda
to express the Board’s appreciation to his staff.
ANNUAL REPORT – SOLID WASTE ADVISORY COMMITTEE
The purpose of this
agenda item was for the Solid Waste Advisory Committee to report to the Board
of Commissioners on the Committee’s work since the last report. This report included a proposed By-Law change
regarding the Committee’s purpose and to provide information on the Household
Hazardous Waste/Computer Recycling Event.
The proposed change to
the By-Laws follows:
Draft – Purpose of the
Solid Waste Advisory Committee, By-Laws Article II
Purpose. As directed by
the Henderson County Board of Commissioners (BOC), the Solid Waste Advisory
Committee (SWAC) is to advise the BOC on issues pertaining to present and
future solid waste and recycling programs and methods in
1) Review and make
recommendations to both short and long-term Solid Waste Management Plans
prepared by the office of the
2) Review and recommend
programs and plans to assist in the control of litter.
3) Provide updates to the
BOC on recommended methods for the disposal of solid waste.
4) Recommend programs, and
assist in their development, for public education on issues pertaining to the
disposal of solid waste and recycling, including the recycling of electronics
and household hazardous waste.
5) Continue to study and
recommend improvements to county recycling programs, including their costs and
possible funding sources.
Ms. Breckheimer stated
that in April 2006 the SWAC recommended that
Ms. Breckheimer stated
that we had our first ever household hazardous waste collection day in May and
it was extremely successful. They feel
that we have just collected the tip of the iceberg. There is a lot more out
there that is potentially harmful and should be collected in a special
manner. They are planning to have
another such event this year.
Ms. Breckheimer stated
as the Legislature closed its last session, Senate Bill #1492 really made a lot
of changes. One is that all new
construction and demolition landfills have to be lined. We have gotten an extension on our C&D
(construction and demolition) site at our transfer station. That will close in July of 2008 so staff is
looking at what our options are. It will
definitely be a bit more expensive than it is for us now. Ms. Breckheimer also
explained that all of our garbage created here in
Ms. Breckheimer stated
that we have a new Solid Waste Plan budgeted in the 2007-08 budget. She thinks
that the new Plan will take care of some of the concerns about the current
drop-off for recycling.
She explained that there
is a new tipping bay open at the transfer station. There also has been some renovation to the
old tipping floor that is now being used by private citizens.
Ms. Breckheimer stated
that the community is participating in the SWAC meeting. At every meeting they have representatives
from the ad-hoc committee for recycling reform, a group of citizens made up of
the League of Women Voters, ECO, and the Hendersonville Community Co-Op, and
She concluded that with
the Board’s continued support and with the public’s patience we can build an
award-winning solid waste and recycling program.
Chairman Moyer stated
that the recycling containers are not being emptied often enough, trash is
backing up, unless we solve the truck problem we will continue to have
problems. If the recyclers don’t want
the stuff then they are not going to take it and we will have to pay to get rid
of it. There are bins and bins of recyclables on site.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion to approve the proposed
new purpose for the Solid Waste
Advisory Committee’s By-Laws (as stated above).
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
SOIL EROSION AND SEDIMENTATION CONTROL UPDATE
Sam Laughter, Building
Inspections Director for
As a result of the
adoption of the Henderson County Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control
Ordinance with the effective date of
As of today Natalie
Berry has been selected as Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Chief. She has an extensive background in Building
Code, Erosion Control and Storm Water Enforcement with the city of
Training opportunities
are being offered the first of which was held at the Hendersonville Home
Builder meeting on August 9. Natalie presented the program as an introduction
to the builders and followed up with a question and answer session. Other training will be provided by our staff
and the State for Developers, Design professionals, Grading and Building
Contractors.
Temporary offices will
be set up until the Old Courthouse is occupied by the governing body and
manager’s staff. At this time we expect
to set up the more permanent offices that will be vacated near the other
Building Services Divisions.
Chairman Moyer asked Mr.
Laughter if he saw any obstacles to moving forward with the schedule set
earlier. Mr. Laughter saw none.
CONSIDERATION OF THE ETOWAH-HORSE SHOE COMMUNITY
PLANNING COMMITTEE CHARTER
Announcement
Autumn Radcliff reminded
the Board that one of the items in the County Comprehensive Plan was to begin our
small area planning process and one of the first areas was part of what was the
Etowah-Horse Shoe community plan. The
Board of Commissioners has directed staff to begin the process for that
plan. The first required steps are the
approval of a committee charter and the appointment of members to that
committee. Attached as part of the
agenda were a memorandum, outline and draft charter explaining the process and
responsibilities required to accomplish this task. Planning staff requested the
Board of Commissioners approve the draft charter and begin appointing committee
members should the Board desire to proceed with the creation of this plan.
Planning Staff had
previously received names of people interested in serving, as they held small
community planning meetings some time ago.
Autumn offered to do a press release to try to get the word out. The Board liked that idea. The Commissioners also suggested postings in
public places in those communities (General Store, Post Office, etc.).
Viewers on Channel 11
will hear about this because the Board has discussed this issue twice now, that
they are looking for candidates.
Chairman Moyer stated
that the Board will do their best with the help of ads and a press release to
assess candidates to get a broad range
of folks on this committee. We have
applications here in the Commissioners’ office for individuals who are
interested in serving. Applications will be copied and distributed to all the
Commissioners in advance of the next meeting so they can review them and made
appointments from those that are interested in serving. The Commissioners want
a group of citizens that reflect the views of the two communities.
Following some
discussion, Commissioner McGrady made the
motion to approve the charter as recommended by staff with the change of the
word community to the word communities.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
PUBLIC HEARING – To Consider Economic Incentives Grant for
Continental Teves, Inc.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion for the Board to go
into public hearing. All voted in favor
and the motion carried.
Andrew Tate addressed
“Project United”, now known as Continental Automotive Systems or Continental
Teves. He stated that this project is
considered an $8.7 million investment with 35 new jobs with wages and benefits
at $35,000 annually. It is a competitive
project both internally and externally, externally with other manufacturers on
a global basis and internally with other manufacturing plants within the parent
company. Production would possibly begin as soon as July 2009. In 1997 Continental Teves first located in
Mr. Neland stated that
they are in the process of bidding on a new platform within Damler Chrysler. It
is called the curve platform which is the SUV’s, both the Grand Cherokee, the
Dodge Durango, the Mercedes M-class made down in
Chairman Moyer thanked
Mr. Neland for his efforts in trying to bring this to
Mr. Neland stated that
this November they will celebrate a 10-year anniversary in the automotive
industry.
Agreement
Russell Burrell stated
that the Board had a draft of an agreement that the Office of the
Public Input
There was none.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion to approve the
agreement with Continental Teves as outlined in the public hearing, the form of
which was in the agenda packet, contingent upon their being the successful
bidder on that piece of business. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion for the Board to go out
of public hearing. All voted in favor
and the motion carried.
Recess
Chairman Moyer called a
5 minute recess.
Chairman Moyer called
the meeting back to order.
BOARD DELIBERATION AND DECISION, GLEN AND
Russell Burrell
explained that the agenda item sets out the standards from both the General
Statutes and the Henderson County Code for the determination of vested rights
and the statutory method of obtaining them. It is a very broad standard. The Henderson County Code says that the Board
may approve or disapprove a site specific development plan based upon the need
to protect the public health, safety and welfare. Mr. Burrell stated those are the broadest
standards possible, further stating that the Board may require terms and
conditions as it may deem necessary to protect the public health, safety, and
welfare. Also in the agenda packet were
seven pages (47 pages in all) of possible conditions. Staff had attempted to provide the Board,
should they be inclined, all the conditions that were raised by the evidence
the Board heard in the three nights of testimony. The parties were also asked to supply any
conditions that they wanted to have put in front of the Board. So the Board had
in front of them the possible conditions they could place, should they wish to
do so. The Board also has the authority to grant it in whole without conditions
or to deny it. He stated that the Board
would need to make some findings in each.
The Legal Department had prepared a couple of draft orders, one allowing
it and one denying it. The allowing order makes the presumption that if the
Board allows it, it will be on some conditions; therefore, it is nowhere near
complete until staff knows which conditions the Board will choose. Staff had
identified findings based on the evidence that was heard, that could be made.
Staff hopes to have the order prepared for the Board tonight, once a decision
is made but if it is lengthy it might not be ready tonight. He explained that
the Board’s Ordinance requires that the Board render a decision within 30
days. The 30-day period began to run
with the close of the final day of evidence which was July 24.
Chairman Moyer stated
that the public hearing had been closed but the Board received two documents
tonight, one from staff and one from the Attorneys for the applicant. Russell
Burrell stated that he too had just received both documents tonight and had not
had a chance to review the one from the applicant. He had read the one from staff because he
received it by e-mail earlier.
Chairman Moyer stated
that they both appear to deal with the conditions.
Angela Beeker addressed
procedure, stating that she had submitted their response to the conditions very
soon after the Board concluded the vested rights hearing. When she printed off the agenda item
yesterday she saw that there were new conditions that had been added that they had
not seen before and the letter tonight addresses those.
Boyd Massagee just
wanted to raise a question about the input being taken.
Russell Burrell stated
that what the Board is dealing with tonight is statutory vested rights, they
would give the applicant the right to do something, not withstanding any future
changes the Board makes in the zoning or subdivision laws, for a period of
time. If the Board grants someone vested
rights to do a particular project, under North Carolina Law it is has to be based
on a site specific plan. They have the right to go forward and carry out that
project for the period of time that you grant them, somewhere between two and
five years, five years maximum and two years minimum. That would be the case
even if, after having done that, tomorrow you passed a zoning law that said
that kind of project could not go in the place that they put on the site
specific plan so what you’re effectively doing is granting a time frame of
exemption from future zoning actions and future subdivision that the Board may
make. Chairman Moyer stated that it has no effect on common law vested rights.
Commissioner Young
stated that the subdivision plan has already been approved, they have gone
through the procedure and it has been approved by the Planning Board. They are
asking for vested rights and the Board will set any conditions. He just didn’t want the public to think that
the Board of Commissioners were approving the subdivision plan, it’s already
done.
Chairman Moyer stated
that the issue is whether the Board, by granting the vested rights for a
certain period of time, would give them an exemption from future changes of the
law.
Russell Burrell
explained that this is a two-part project; the
Matthew Cable stated
that with The Glen portion, the Planning Board had no authority to approve that
portion, the specific uses, there were no lots created in that portion of the
development. The only authority the
Planning Board had was for the Highlands portion, the creation of those 45
single family lots and the roads for the
Chairman Moyer thanked
everyone for their involvement and all the information put forward with respect
to this project. He felt it was an excellent project but he has serious
concerns with respect to roads, water, effect on the stream etc. He stated that he cannot support the vested
rights. Chairman Moyer made the motion to deny the granting of the vested
rights as requested.
Commissioner McGrady
stated that he could see the need for the facility but was concerned about
traffic and congestion, water quality and quantity, and lack of water and sewer. He feels it is the right facility but in the
wrong place. He feels that the facility needs to be somewhere in
Commissioner Williams
also expressed concerns about traffic and speed enforcement, water, and fire
protection but stated that he would favor the project with conditions.
Commissioner Young stated
that there is a need for this facility in
Commissioner Messer
stated that there is a need for the project but stated that he could not
support it at this site.
A vote was taken on the motion to deny the request for
vested rights under Chapter 189 of the Henderson County Code, Park Ridge MOB,
LLC and The Glen and Highlands at Flat Rock and move that the Board direct
staff to prepare an order with appropriate findings to this effect this evening
and bring it back so that we can conclude this matter tonight. The motion
carried three to two with Commissioners Williams and Young voting nay.
Commissioner Williams
commented on an article in the newspaper which stated that the project would
get approved because someone would get their palms greased. “To insinuate that anyone on this Board is
receiving some compensation for voting a particular way … I can assure you that
will never happen in my case and I don’t think it will happen in the case of
any individual on this Board. I think
that we will have differences of opinion. Quite frankly it pleases me that we
can differ on our opinions and that we can still come together and have respect
for one another and that we can make decisions and try to do the best we can
and then we can move on from there to the next project… I can assure you that
no-one is getting their palms greased on this Board, if anything we’re making a
lot of sacrifices to be here. We
volunteered for this. You people of
The
EMPLOYEE RETIREE HEALTH INSURANCE
Jan Pritchard, the
expert on this issue, addressed the Board and answered some questions.
Folks who have 30 years
service with
There was a question
raised about service time with the military and whether that counts toward
county service. At the current time it
does not.
Chairman Moyer stated
that this is not time sensitive but rather a recurring issue of concern. It was the consensus of the Board to let this
sit a while and think about it rather than spending $8,000 on a study. No
specific change was suggested at this time. Chairman Moyer suggested that
STATT REPORTS
Nothing, other than the
draft Order the Board has in front of them.
Nothing further.
DRAFT ORDER DENYING VESTED RIGHTS FOR THE GLEN
Chairman Moyer asked
everyone to take a few minutes to review the draft order to see if the Board is
ready to act on it. Chairman Moyer stated that he has read through it and
doesn’t have any suggested changes.
Commissioner McGrady
stated that the conclusions are what’s important and he is comfortable with
them. He made the motion to adopt the
order denying vested rights. There was no further discussion. A vote
was taken and the motion carried three to two with Commissioners Williams and
Young voting nay.
CLOSED SESSION
Commissioner McGrady made the motion for the Board to go
into closed session as allowed pursuant to NCGS 143-318.11 for the following
reasons(s):
1.(2)(3) To
consult with an attorney employed or retained by the public body in order to
preserve the attorney-client privilege between the attorney and the public
body.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Attest:
Elizabeth W. Corn, Clerk
to the Board
William L. Moyer, Chairman