Regular Town Council Meeting Summary - Tuesday, July 11, 2023

The Lake Lure Town Council held a regular meeting on Tuesday, July 11, 2023 at 5:00 PM at the Lake Lure Municipal Center at 2948 Memorial Highway, Lake Lure, NC 28746. The public was invited to attend.   

The following is a summary of the meeting for those who could not attend. You may download the meeting packet for additional information.  Please note that this is a summary of the meeting and formal meeting minutes will be included in the following month's meeting packet.  

I. Call to Order: Mayor Carol Pritchett called the meeting to order.  She thanked everyone for attending the meeting and highlighted the following upcoming events: 

• 7/19 at 5:00: Community Awareness Forum with Sheriff Aaron Ellenburg (Please join us for the first of a series of these forums.)
• 8/4-6: Cycle NC Mountain Ride (300+ Cyclers and their family members will be in Town for the weekend of activities.)
• 8/11-13: 19th Annual Lake Lure Olympiad (We are thrilled this event is coming back for the 19th year!)

II. Agenda Adoption: The Agenda was approved as written.

III. Mayor's Communications: The Mayor thanked everyone for coming.  She invited anyone to speak during the public comment portion of the agenda.

IV. Town Manager's Communications: Town Manager Hank Perkins presented a summary of the Departmental Updates. 

• Public Services: The Hydro Plant produced income from May 20th to June 20th resulting in an estimated $59,000 in collections. The 2nd culvert pipe replacement on Luther Burbank has been completed. The former ABC store has been completely cleaned out, locks have been changed, and the exterior has been painted and landscaped.
• Community Development: The department issued 22 permits for the month of June as compared to 60 permits in May and performed numerous follow-ups. This includes 9 Zoning, 2 Lake Structure, and 3 Land Disturbance Permits. The department continued to work with staff to develop the Erosion and Sediment Control Program (a program that we operate as a “Local Program” for the State) to the standards what we agreed upon during our April 5th program audit. This is a big, time-consuming program and they hope to be on track for the 4th quarter 2023 follow-up review.
• The  Zoning & Planning Board reviewed the proposal from the ABC Board to allow the “governmental signage” at the new store, in addition to the standard sign allowance. There was Board agreement that the ordinance allowed the ABC logo signage to be considered as exempt signage with Town Council approval. The proposal was submitted to Town Council at the 6/28/23 Work Session where it was approved. The Zoning & Planning Board also reviewed the Town’s ordinances relating to regulating on-premise alcohol sales, specifically the category referenced in our Zoning ordinances as “bars, taverns, nightclubs or sale of alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption” for the purpose of considering whether the code language should be more clearly defined and/or revised. A draft revision is being developed based upon that June 20, 2023 meeting discussion and will be reviewed at the July Board meeting. The Board of Adjustments reviewed and approved two variance requests for setback adjustments. Followed-up with AT&T’s tower permitting team.  They are completing the engineered construction drawings and plans for the tower.  They have a geotechnical engineering analysis scheduled for the site and still anticipate having both their zoning and county building permit applications submitted for approval by July 28, 2023. Also contacted NC SHPO to confirm status of their approval. They have provided conditional approval for tower construction to begin, with the requirement that the final draft of the online historic bridge informational feature be submitted to them by September 1st. That had not been received by SHPO as of June 30, 2023.  We are following up with the consulting firm that was hired by the tower contractor to develop the online historical feature to get an update. 
• Fire Department: –It was a busy month in June. The department responded to the following critical incidents: 1) a call with a child locked in a vehicle; 2) An Allergic Reaction @ Chimney Rock State Park; 3) A cardiac arrest with mutual aid call to Bills Creek. The Rutherford County Fire Marshal’s office returned the county boat that was used on 6/10 for the swim event. The department responded to 46 fire/medical/rescue calls throughout the month. Firefighters completed 430 Hours of Training this month.  Assisted the insurance investigator with the fire investigation on West Lake DR.  
• Police Department:  – Summer traffic and tourist are keeping the department busy, which is the norm for June. Officers are concentrating on boating with 72 Lake Patrol hours this month and writing citations when necessary.  Lake Lure Officers helped with the 2023 Lure of the Lake Swim event held June 10th at Lake Lure Beach. The event and traffic in the area went well. Reserve Officer Dean Givens was hired as extra security for the Rumbling Bald Music Festive on June 10th. As with the swim event, there were no issues. The Lake Lure Flag Day event went very well and it was attended by Veterans who took part in placing the flags on the burn pit. Once the flags became ashes they were buried in the same spot as others in years past. Many thanks to LLFD for their help with this ceremony. The Retired Flag Box has been a part of LLPD’s foyer for many years now and is appreciated by many citizens of not just Lake Lure, but surrounding areas.
• Parks, Recreation, and Lake Department: The department provides exemplary oversight of the Parks, Recreation, and Lake Department as well as boat permit sales. They also worked on getting online boat permit sales capability, planned a volunteer work day with Bat Cave Baptist Church, Dittmer-Watts Nature Trails trail boss walked the trails and reported issues – 1 volunteer; 2 volunteer hours. Buffalo Creek Park trail boss walked the trail and reported issues – 1 volunteer; 4 volunteer hours 6. Weed Patch Mountain trail boss walked trail and reported issues – 1 volunteer; 7 volunteer hours 7. Carolina Climbers Coalition had 2 workdays to work on the new Upper Boulder’s Trail at Buffalo Creek Park – 23 volunteers; 368 volunteer hours 8. Organized a Dittmer-Watts workday on 6/8 to trim overgrowth –1 volunteer; 7 volunteer hours 9. Organized a Weed Patch Mountain workday on 6/22 to remove fallen trees and trim overgrowth –5 volunteers; 35 volunteer hours 10. Organized a Buffalo Creek Park workday on 6/27 to remove fallen trees –6 volunteers; 36 volunteer hours 2 11. Organized a Weed Patch Mountain workday on 6/29 to trim overgrowth –2 volunteers; 35 volunteer hours 12. Planned upcoming trail maintenance days and recruited volunteers to help 13. Checked Buffalo Creek Park, Dittmer-Watts Nature Trails, and Weed Patch Mountain for damage 14. Utilized volunteers to collect water samples – 4 volunteers; 20 volunteer hours 15. Utilized a total of 766 volunteer hours. Bat Cave Baptist Church volunteers made improvements of Morse Park Picnic tables, covered shelters, and grills – 12 volunteers; 240 volunteer hour
• Finance: Revenues and Expenditures Reports are provided as separate attachments to supplement this summary. Revenues continue to track as projected and departments also continue to efficiently use resources in regards to individual line items in the departmental budgets. In the state shared revenues, there will be a surplus in particular line items as well as local line items for zoning and community development activities. The Town sustained its strong financial position with an unreconciled bank balance of approximately $9,859,891.86 for all funds other than special revenue funds (the Dam Fund) which still holds a balance of $16,500,000 as well as accumulated interest of $236,058.69-an additional $27,000+ in interest. The external auditors continues to assure that the audit is near completion with a final review. A review continues of the recent (sewer project) state loan and grant funds to determine if any proceeds or expenditures are applicable during FY 2022 or the applicable fiscal year. Melissa Hand continues to be quite engaged in Town Hall and Finance activities as the Accounting Specialist assigned to Finance. She has offered excellent insights, provided excellent organization of records and has become very acclimated to the various process and procedures.
• Communications: Communications Director Krejci continues her community outreach along with progress in all areas. Grant development for the town’s replacement dam remains a priority. Top highlights include completion of Boater Safety Video, 20% increase in Website Users (20,516) in June 2023 over June 2022. Social Media (FaceBook): The Town of Lake Lure has 19,752 followers as of June 2023, representing a 9% increase (+1,696) over June 2022. Town News: Published 46 news articles with hyperlinks sent by email to 2,000+.
• Administration: New Procurement Policy, FY Budget Proposed, and meeting with contractors on Dam Valve Construction. 

V. Council Liaison Reports and Comments

• ABC Board: Commissioner Doster advised that the board met and sales are up.  He explained that the ABC Board went to Zoning and Planning to get approval for additional signage.   
• Zoning and Permitting: Commissioner Doster advised that the board reviewed the local regulations on bars and serving alcohol on site and they are continuing to review this and will make recommendations. 
• Board of Adjustments: This information was included in Town Manager updates. 
• Lake Advisory Board: Commissioner DiOrio advised that the board met 7/10/23. They reviewed the first draft of the fish study with some reaffirming information. The fish habitat in Lake Lure is excellent. The bass population is outstanding and in fact, they are overcrowded. The board is looking into a special fishing permit to allow more fishermen to be able to fish year-round.  This will help address the overcrowding issue.  The board has been reviewing the impact of the new Lake Use Regulations.  They are hoping to make revisions based on their review and feedback. They hope to be loosening the permitting requirements so stay tuned for these updates in future meetings. 

The Mayor thanked everyone for their service on Town Boards. 

VI. 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.

1) Debbie Warren from 138 Yacht Island Dr. in Lake Lure advised that the Lure of the Lake Swim held recently had 103 swimmers and she said they couldn't have done it without the Police and Fire Departments. She gave a shout-out for the Lake Lure Olympiad which is one month from today.  We have good preregistration but we hope increased registration will continue.  She encouraged every to visit lakelureolympiad.org for more information. 

2) David Wheel, 169 SouthPoint Drive reported that as most people know Spectrum has been running their underground fiber optics. Last week they were in his neighborhood and they really left the street in horrible condition. His neighborhood is private and the road is private and they had no awareness of the Spectrum plans. He appreciated Commissioner Doster's follow-up on this matter.   

3) Steve Belitto from Lake Lure advised that he saw that on today's consent agenda a 10-year contract for a concessionaire agreement.  He stated that this was a long-term contract and asked how the Town ensures the citizens are pleased with the services of the contract.  He asked if there were conflict of interest statements, etc.   

VII. Consent Agenda: The Consent Agenda including the following items were approved.

A.  Approval of the June 13, 2023 Regular Town Council Meeting Minutes and the June 28, 2023 Regular Town Council Work Session Meeting Minutes, and the June 28, 2023 Special Town Council Meeting Minutes

B.  Resolution No. 23-07-11 Approving Lake Lure Tours Concession Agreement: Resolution No. 23-07-11 approves a new concession agreement between the Town of Lake Lure and Lake 
Lure Tours. This Agreement will span from 2023 to 2033 and Lake Lure Tours will assume responsibility for all maintenance operations.

C.  Resolution No. 23-07-11A Approving ABC Store Signage Regulation Exemption under Code of Ordinances Sec. 36-333 (2): The ABC Store has erected two signs supported by the building walls, but only one sign is permitted under Code of Ordinances Section 36-336 (b) (1). Code of Ordinances Section 36-333 (2) exempts signs of governmental bodies from sign regulations with Zoning and Planning Board review and Council approval. The signs have been reviewed by the Zoning and Planning Board. Town Council also reviewed the signs at the June 28th work session and determined that it is appropriate to exempt the signs from regulations under 36-333 (2).  

D.  Adoption of FY 23-24 Salary Grade Schedule: Town Council adopted the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-2024 budget on June 28, 2023. The budget included a 6.25% cost of living adjustment (COLA). The FY 23-24 Salary Grade Schedule reflects the adopted COLA.

E.  Approval of waiver requests from the Chamber of Hickory Nut Gorge for the Dance Festival scheduled for 9/16/23: The Chamber of Hickory Nut Gorge will be holding the Dance Festival on September 16, 2023. The Chamber has requested Council approval of utilization of Town parking and authorization to charge for parking at the Morse Park/Town Hall and Arcade Building parking lots, suspension of Code of Ordinances Chapter 8 Article II: “Peddlers” and waiver of Code of Ordinances Chapter 20 Article II: “Noise Regulation.”

VIII.  Unfinished Business

A.  Lake Lure Flowering Bridge Parking Lot Request: During past March 22nd Town Council work session meeting, Council discussed a request from the Lake Lure Flowering Bridge (LLFB) in regard to assistance with funding for volunteer parking in the amount of $8,000. At that meeting, it was determined that addressing the LLFB request should be postponed until the LLFB acquired necessary permits. The LLFB has since worked with Community Development Department to obtain all necessary permits and have requested that the Town resume the initial conversation. The request was approved

IX.   New Business

A.   Resolution No. 23-07-11B Approving LaBella Task 18 – Geodesic Dome Tank Cover: The Town possesses a partially buried concrete water tank, located near the end of Washburn Road, currently utilizes a wood structure supported roof with shingles as its cover. This roof structure has not effectively kept vectors from accessing the finished drinking water supply. This tank serves 8 properties connected to the Town’s Public Water Supply System. LaBella Associates performed an on-sight inspection of the tank on May 17th and deemed it to be in good condition. It is LaBella’s opinion that replacement of the existing roof structure with a water and vector-tight, aluminum geodesic dome will resolve the Town’s existing concerns and issues, reduce O&M costs, and extend the useful life of his asset for serval decades. Proposed Task 18 consists of data collection, design, permitting, and construction assistance for replacing the existing roof with a geodesic dome tank cover. The lump sum associated with the task is $12,200. Town Council reviewed LaBella Task 18 during the June 28th work session meeting. Resolution No. 23-07-11B approves LaBella Task 18 for the Geodesic Dome Tank Cover. The resolution was approved

B.  Budget Amendment #351 for LaBella Task 18 Geodesic Dome Tank Cover: The purpose of Budget Amendment #351 is to account for costs in relation to LaBella Task 18 for Geodesic Dome Tank Cover. The total amount associated with Budget Amendment #351 is $12,200.  The Budget Amendment was approved.

C.  Public Services Supervisor Position Description: The Public Services Supervisor position has recently become vacant. Since the vacancy, the Public Services Director and Human Resources Supervisor have made minor edits to the Public Services Supervisor position description. Town staff requests that Town Council approve the suggested Public Services Supervisor position description. Following approval of the position description, Town staff can proceed with advertising to fill the open position. The Position Description was approved.

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

XI.  Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned following the Closed Session.