Town Council Regular Meeting Summary - November 08, 2022

Thank you to all who joined us for the Regular Town Council Meeting on Tuesday, November 8, 2022 at 5:00 PM in Municipal Hall.  If you missed the meeting, you may view the recording of the meeting here.  The following is a summary of the meeting for those who could not attend.  You may download a copy of the meeting packet here. The minutes from this meeting will be included in the following month's meeting packet. 

Note: Agenda page numbers refer to full meeting packet.

I. Call to Order: Mayor Carol Pritchett called the meeting to order. 

II. Agenda Adoption: A Budget Amendment #345 was added to New Business. The Agenda was approved with this addition.

III. Mayor's Communications: Mayor Pritchett shared the following upcoming events.

• 11/11/22 (Fri) at 9: Lake Lure Veterans Day Program (Rumbling Bald Terrace)
• 11/12/22 (Sat) 9-2: Lake Lure Artists Show and Sale (Town Hall)  
• 11/30/22 (Wed) at 5:30: Lighting Up Lake Lure at the Flowering Bridge near Boys Camp Road
• 12/1/22 (Thurs) at 5: Lake Lure Great Gatsby Gala at Lake Lure Inn – Get Your Tickets at the Chamber Website

IV. Town Manager's Communications

• Public Services – The Public Service Department is busy keeping everything working as smoothly as possible, from normal maintenance to any problems the Town has that are in our realm to fix. Efforts are being made to upgrade the SCATA system and fix all of the mechanical issues in the Lift Station to ensure better operation. Ditch cleaning will continue until a full round throughout Town has been done. We will get the equipment ready for blowing off the roads in November. Top accomplishments/project updates:
  • Cleaned 8 clogs in the Lift Station in the month of October due to “flushable” wipes and PVC debris from construction.
  • Ditch and culvert cleaning is moving forward. They are approximately 80% completed.
  • Last full round of Road mowing has been completed.
• Community Development – Director Williams reports another active month for Community Development. The Department issued 30 permits compared to 35 in September and performed numerous follow ups. This includes 7 zoning permits. Enforcement activity continues to be active, both from public complaints and staff-discovered violations, resulting in a significant increase in time spent on those issues. We have begun reviewing applications for our new Administrative Assistant position and looking forward to freeing Rick Carpenter and Mike to better manage projects in the field. 
• Fire / Emergency Management – With going into the fall, it was still a busy month in October. The Department responded to 48 fire/medical/rescue calls throughout the month. Additionally, members of the department completed a total of 400 hours of training in October. The department also sponsored an American Red Cross Blood Drive.
• Police Department – Fall proved to be spectacular as many tourists came to Town, some to vacation here, some to just drive through, and the heavy traffic on weekends spoke the volume. Staff joined in with the Halloween festivities in Chimney Rock Village as they do every year by gathering in Chimney Rock for the Trick or Treat downtown get-together. Our department greets trick-or-treaters and their families, giving out treats and this year, a glow in the dark bracelet encouraging kids to stay off drugs.
• Parks, Recreation & Lake – Director Dean Givens and Parks & Trails Coordinator Dana Bradley continue to provide exemplary oversight of the Parks, Recreation, and Lake Department. Led the Weed Patch Mountain Trail workday on 10/19 – 3 volunteers and 3 staff members for 21 volunteer hours. Total volunteer hours for the month was 51 working in various areas. Givens and Bradley have been working on dredging, deep water launch permit, and much more.
• Finance – Revenues and Expenditures Reports are provided as separate attachments to supplement this summary. As prior monthly trends, expenditures outpaced revenues early in this fiscal year but property tax revenues are being received now and will steadily be received during the peak collection season over the next few months by the County. The Town continues to have a strong financial position with an unreconciled bank balance of $9,100,000 for all funds other than special revenue. Revenues and Expenditures Reports are provided as separate attachments to supplement this summary. At this point in the fiscal year, revenues are now being received in higher percentages from our local and state funding partners. Applications are being received and reviewed for the approved Accounting Clerk I position. Hopefully, the entire process can be completed within the next 45 days.
• Communications -  Director Krejci continues her community outreach as she has posted 34 news articles that illustrate town-related news, a listing of these articles with hyperlinks was emailed to over 1842 citizens, along with a link to the Town Calendar of Events. Social Media: Published 54 Facebook posts for the community with a post reach of 40,497 for the month. The Town of Lake Lure now has over 19,000 followers as of October 2022. By comparison, the City of Asheville has 21,000 followers. She confirmed that Lake Lure has been selected to host the Cycle NC 2023 Coastal Ride in Lake Lure 8/4-6.
• Manager / Clerk / Admin Summary  - October was a busy month including an array of staff, council, and board meetings and ever-changing day-to-day operations. We continue to work with LaBella Engineering on the new sewer system and planning on directional drilling (HDD) activities in the future. HDD advertising yielded no bidders for our anticipated boring project that was slated for this winter’s drawdown. In the midst of a major project, the Town continues to strengthen its relationship with state entities. In the area of project manager recruitment, 6 candidates were identified by Narloch, Associates. Virtual interviews were conducted with 4 of these candidates and 3 were then identified for in-person interviews to be done after more background checks are to be performed. As of the end of October, one of these candidates has had their in-person interview with the remaining two being slated for in the first two weeks of November.  We also facilitated the work done by the TDA Steering Committee and help staff from Destination by Design put together an accessibility grant in support of our project with the TDA in phase 1 of the master plan for Morse park.  We facilitated putting together and submitting for funding from the State’s Fall Application process for ARPA funds. We worked with Chimney Rock Village in partnership with supporting each other’s projects. The Town of Lake Lure has the potential for getting up to $15 million from its own application and as much as $11 million possible from our partnership with Chimney Rock Village.

V. Public Hearing  

A. Ordinance No. 22-11-08 Amending Article I Section 36-5, Article VIII Sections 36-235 - 36-261, and Article X Section 36-295 of the Zoning Regulations of the Town of Lake Lure Code of Ordinances – Gatehouses, Guardhouses, and Security Gates – page 16

i. Staff Report - Community Development Director Mike Williams briefed Town Council advising that the existing Code of Ordinances does not adequately define or address gatehouses, guardhouses, or security gates. Community Development and the Zoning and Planning Board reviewed existing ordinances and recommended that that Article I Section 36-5 define gatehouses, guardhouses, and security gates. Additionally, it was recommended that Article VIII Section 36-235 be added to the Zoning Regulations to address gatehouses, guardhouses, and security gates. Lastly, it was recommended that Article X Section 36-295 be amended to address regulations regarding gatehouses, guardhouses, and security gates in terms of exceptions to required yards. The Zoning and Planning Board recommended the initial draft ordinance to Town Council. Town Council reviewed the initial draft ordinance at the October 26th work session meeting and minor changes were made based on Council deliberation.

II. Public Hearing - The Meeting was opened for a public hearing.  There were no public comments.

iii. Council Deliberation - There was a brief discussion. 

iv.  Consideration of Ordinance No. 22-11-08 - The ordinance was passed. 

B. Ordinance No. 22-11-08A Replacing Article III Section 36-72(5) of the Zoning Regulations of the Town of Lake Lure Code of Ordinances – Mobile Food Vendors  – page 20 i. 

i. Staff Report: Community Development Director Mike Williams brief Town Council advising that the Community Development Department, Town Attorney Zoning and Planning Board had reviewed Town Ordinances in regard to mobile food vendors. Town Council had reviewed and discussed various changes posed at a previous work session meeting. Following Council discussions, Community Development brought the subject back to the attention of the Zoning and Planning Board. On October 24th, the Zoning and Planning Board finalized an ordinance recommended for Council approval. Town Council reviewed the recommended ordinance at the October 26th work session meeting and minor revisions were made based on Council deliberation.

II. Public Hearing: There was one public comment from a gentleman who may like to establish a food truck in the future.    

iii.  Council Deliberation: There was a brief discussion and Council thanked Mr. Williams for his efforts to develop this new ordinance. 

iv. Consideration of Ordinance No. 22-11-08A: The ordinance was approved. 

VI. Council Liaison Reports and Comments:  

VII. Public Comment The public is invited to speak. Please keep comments limited to three minutes or less. Comments may also be submitted in writing to the Town Clerk, ostewman@townoflakelure.com, at least one hour prior to the meeting.

VIII. Consent Agenda: The following Consent Agenda Items were approved.

A. Approval of the October 11, 2022 Regular Town Council Meeting Minutes and the October 26, 2022 Regular Town Council Work Session Meeting Minutes – page 29 

B. Accounting Clerk I Position Description Addition of License Requirement –  page 45 The Accounting Clerk I position and job description during the October 11th regular meeting. Town staff has since noted that the requirement of a valid driver license was absent from the approved description and should be added as a requirement.

C. Resolution No. 22-11-08 Authorizing Electronic Advertisement of Bids – page 49 North Carolina General Statute 143-129(b) specifically allow public agencies to advertise bid opportunities solely by electronic means upon approval from the governing board. Town staff desires to advertise bids subject to the requirements of N.C.G.S. 143-129 by electronic means, at the discretion of the Council. Resolution No. 22-11-08 authorizes the advertisement of bids subject to the requirements of N.C.G.S. 143-129 by electronic means. 

D. Ordinance No. 22-11-08B Amending Code of Ordinances Section 4-2. Dangerous dogs; barking; leash requirements. – page 51 There has been continued discussion regarding the Town Code of Ordinance Section 4-2. Dangerous dogs; barking; leash requirements. Town Council was presented with a draft ordinance to re-amend Section 4-2 to define leash requirements on Town owned property. Previous discussions regarding the draft ordinance were tabled until the October 26th work session meeting in which there was Council consensus to adopt the proposed language with the addition of a 10 foot limit for leashes, leads and other means of physical restraint. 

IX. Unfinished Business

A. Request from Property Owner, Josh Skudlarick, of 315 Lakeview Road for Written Approval from Town Council for Adding Fill at or Below the Lake Shoreline. (Parcel #225319) – page 55

B. Approval of Intent to Discuss Renewal of an Agreement to Operate Water System with Chimney Rock Village – page 63 

X. New Business 

A. Consider Amending Mobile Food Vendor Permit Fee on FY 22-23 Fee Schedule – Page 77 - Approved

B. Budget Amendment #345 - Approved

XI. Closed Session In accordance with G.S. 143-318.11(a) (6) for the purpose of discussing personnel matters.

XII. Adjournment