SHALLOTTE BOARD OF ALDERMEN
PRE-AGENDA MEETING
JULY 25, 2006
5:15 P.M.
The Shallotte Board of Aldermen met for a pre-agenda meeting on July 25, 2006 at 5:15 p.m. in the council chambers of the Shallotte Town Hall with Mayor Gerald Long presiding.
Aldermen present: Jerry Jones, Buddy Kelly, John Kinlaw, Larry Harrelson and Jim Roach
Aldermen absent: None
Staff present: Sandy Hewett, Paul Sabiston, Mimi Gaither (left at 8:30), Albert Hughes (left at 7:55), Paul Dunwell (left at 7:50) and Cindy Babson (left at 8:30)
Staff absent: Rodney Gause
I. CALL TO ORDER
Mayor Long called the meeting to order. A motion was made by Buddy Kelly seconded by Jim Roach to open the meeting. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
II. DISCUSSION ITEMS
1. Review of bids received for the Shallotte Point force main project and discussion thereof – Administrator Sabiston informed the Board that Dave Bowman is waiting on references from apparent low bidder JW Cook & Sons Inc. He is planning on attending our Regular Board meeting on August 1, 2006 to make a presentation so the Board can formally award the bid.
2. Discussion regarding an Interlocal agreement with Brunswick County for Fire Marshal services in conjunction with the Town’s Fire Marshal – After a few typographical errors were noted, it was decided to place this item on the consent agenda for the August 1, 2006 regular meeting.
3. Request for payment plan for capital reserve/transmission fees for recently annexed property seeking to connect to sewer system – Jimmy & Zettie Price, who recently annexed property into the Town of Shallotte, are requesting the Town allow them to make monthly payments on their sewer connection fees. After a $1,000 down payment, the Price’s have requested they be allowed to pay $200 per month until the approximately $7,000 in fees are paid. The Board decided to allow the Price’s to make the monthly payments after all parties involved have signed an agreement. It is to be noted the Board has allowed this payment plan because of a hardship and potential environmental hazard because of their existing septic tank that is failing.
4. Discussion regarding Strand River Development (Gray Bridge Road) and its desire to connect to Town sewer and annex into the corporate limits – Representative Jim Wiseman was in attendance to request sewer allocation for a proposed project located on Gray Bridge Road. Mr. Wiseman stated the project, which consists of approximately 2,400 units, has already been PUD approved by Brunswick County. He is proposing that the Town grant them sewer for the first phase of the project, so they can move forward from an engineering standpoint. Mr. Wiseman doesn’t feel his company would be interested in annexing the entire tract at this time. He stated it would take entirely too long to get the process completed and they just don’t have the time. Alderman Kinlaw doesn’t have a problem with annexing each phase individually, but does have a problem with “lending” our sewer line without a firm commitment from the developer. Mr. Wiseman commented that a “reimbursement policy” could be implemented and if the developer didn’t follow through with their commitments, they would pay the Town an established sum of money. Alderman Kelly would like us to use the same criteria as we have with others in the past. We need to stick to our policy. Alderman Kelly also stated that it seems Mr. Wiseman is saying they won’t agree to annex anything until an agreement is reached. It was decided to have our attorney and Strand River Development’s attorney work together to develop some sort of “reimbursement” agreement if they do not want to pursue annexation.
5. Discussion regarding revision to sewer allocation policy – Administrator Sabiston submitted proposed changes to our Policy Regarding Sewer Allocation by the Town of Shallotte. In the revised policy, the allocation amounts change from 30 lots to 60 lots (12,600 gpd per request for residential), from 6,300 to 8,300 (gpd per request for commercial) and from 6,300 to 12,600 (gpd per request for mixed use). It also implements that once the Board of Aldermen approves a sewer allocation, the applicant or property owner to which the allocation is made shall have one year in which to begin the project for which the allocation is awarded. Alderman Kinlaw asked that this be extended to two years, for example, a project he is currently involved with has been delayed numerous times by the Department of Transportation and other agencies for amendments, etc. The Board discussed the two year versus one year limitation and decided, instead, to leave the revisions as submitted, but to also include a sentence that states if the applicant encounters any delays in starting the project, they may come before the Board of Aldermen and request a sewer allocation extension. Administrator Sabiston will make the amendments and present at our meeting on August 1, 2006.
6. Departmental/Administrative Reports – Administrator Sabiston updated the Board on the following items:
- USDA Loan for Fire Station – The architect had concerns with the size of the lot and whether the desired fire station would fit on such a lot. The Fire Liaison Committee met on June 29th and their consensus was that the station could fit. Mr. Steward was asked to design a preliminary site plan for that lot. Hopefully he will bring the draft plan to the Town Hall by next week and a follow up meeting with the Liaison Committee could be scheduled.
- Village Point Sewer Project – Bids have been opened and David Bowman is reviewing the bidder’s references. The low bid was $499,703.
- Hobbs, Upchurch- Rate Study & Mapping Project – GIS mapping portion is still underway. We hope to be nearing the end of this project in August.
- Sewer Interconnection with Brunswick County – The Board will need to approve the wage reimbursement contract from the County for the use of our 2 sewer employees. This item will be added to the regular meeting agenda for August 1, 2006.
- Wildwood Village Water/Sewer – Still ongoing.
- Employee Evaluations – All were completed in early July with COLA and appropriate merit adjustments taking place starting July 6th.
- Shallotte Rotary Donation – The Rotary Club previously designated a donation of $2,500 for improvements to the River Park area. This year they have pledged an additional $1,500.
Fire Chief Paul Dunwell congratulated Rick Savage on receiving the designation of Fire and Life Safety Instructor. Chief Dunwell also commented on several retirements that have occurred within the Department. Carson Durham, Morris Hall, Hugh McCullough and Jim VerMeersch have all retired from the Shallotte Fire Department volunteer roster. The Chief would like to order plaques and make a presentation to these gentlemen at an upcoming meeting. He also mentioned the new 24-hour shift policy, which the Department hopes to have in place by September 1st.
A motion was made by Jim Roach seconded by Buddy Kelly to appoint Paul Dunwell as Chairman of the Firemen’s Relief Fund, term expiring October 2006. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
Public Works Director Albert Hughes informed the Board of increases that would need to be made to meter drops with the implementation of radio-read meters. A motion was made by John Kinlaw seconded by Jim Roach to increase the ¾” meter drop from $150.00 to $285.00 and where the line has to be tapped it would increase from $750.00 to $885.00. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
A motion was made by Buddy Kelly seconded by Jerry Jones to approve the following budget adjustments:
- BA-06-07-01 10.3975.0000 Fund Balance (debit $229.98)
10.3718.0000 Farmer’s Market Revenue (credit $229.98)
10.3718.0000 Farmer’s Market Revenue (debit $2,000)
10.4100.5500 Farmer’s Market Expense (credit $2,000)
- BA-06-07-02 10.3975.0000 Fund Balance (debit $193.80)
10.4100.5410 Festivals/Events (credit $193.80)
- BA-06-07-03 10.3975.0000 Fund Balance (debit $401.19)
10.5300.1280 FD Donations (credit $292.31)
10.5100.1280 PD Donations (credit $108.88)
- BA-06-07-04 10.3362.0000 County Funding SRFTC (debit $35,000)
10.3975.0000 Fund Balance (debit $25,476.25)
10.5400.1000 Training Materials (credit $5,000)
10.5400.1200 Office Supplies (credit $1,000)
10.5400.1310 Utilities Gas (credit $1,000)
10.5400.1550 Maintenance Grounds (credit $5,000)
10.5400.1600 Maintenance Equipment (credit $5,000)
10.5400.1700 Maintenance Vehicles (credit $1,000)
10.5400.3230 Equipment Certification (credit $500)
10.5400.3300 Department Supplies (credit $5,000)
10.5400.7400 Capital Outlay (credit $36,976.25)
- BA-06-07-05 10.3975.0000 Fund Balance (debit $46,679.03)
10.5700.1200 Office Supplies (credit $576.37)
10.5700.7300 Memorials (credit $1,065.00)
10.5700.7301 Bricks (credit $9,550.00)
10.5700.7305 Capital Outlay (credit $35,487.66)
Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
7. FYI/Miscellaneous
8. Review Draft Agenda for August 1, 2006 Regular Meeting – The draft agenda was reviewed, no changes were made at this time.
9. Closed Session – Personnel Matter – A motion was made by Buddy Kelly seconded by Jim Roach to go into closed session to discuss personnel. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
A motion was made by Buddy Kelly seconded by Jerry Jones to resume regular session. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
A motion was made by John Kinlaw seconded by Buddy Kelly to grant the Town Administrator a 3% COLA and 1% merit on his present salary of $62,000 and separately, to increase that adjusted salary an additional $10,000, bringing his current salary to $74,480. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
10. Adjournment – A motion was made by John Kinlaw seconded by Jerry Jones to adjourn the meeting at 10:55 p.m. Motion carried 5 yes 0 no.
Respectfully submitted,
______
Sandy Hewett, CMC Date