April 2015
The regular meeting of the Village of Forest Hills was held in the meeting room at the Jackson County Recreation Center at 6:00pm on April 07, 2015.
The following members of the Council were present:
Mayor Kolleen Begley
Councilmember Ron Mau
Councilmember Carl Hooper
Councilmember Dan Perlmutter
Councilmember Clark Corwin
The following Non-Council members were present:
Stephanie Gibson, Town Clerk
David Moore, Village Attorney
Tanner Hall, Sylva Herald
Robert & Debbie Rowland, Village Homeowners
Lee & Mary Ann Budahl, Village Homeowners
Betty Pressley, Village Homeowner
Nilofer Couture, Village Homeowner
1) Call to order: The meeting was called to order at 6:00pm by Mayor Kolleen Begley.
2) Announcements: 1) The joint meeting with Jackson County will be held on Monday August 03, 2015. 2) Whee Farmer’s Market grand opening, Tuesday April 28th. 3) The application for a Zoning variance has been withdrawn.
3) Approval of Agenda: Councilman Hooper made a motion to approve the agenda, seconded by Councilman Corwin, and unanimously approved.
4) Approval of Meeting Minutes from March 03, 2015 Council Meeting & March 16 joint Council/Planning Board Meeting: a motion to approve the minutes from the March 3rd Council meeting was made by Councilman Hooper, seconded by Councilman Mau, unanimously approved. A motion to approve the minutes from the joint council and planning board meeting was made by Councilman Mau, seconded by Councilman Hooper, unanimously approved.
5) Acceptance of Financial Report & Checklist for the month of March, 2015 Stephanie provided copies of the Financial Report for March. In March, there were expenses of $7,630.50 for Police protection, Administrative fees, Consultant fees, Web Site fees, Streets, Powell, and Entrance operating fees. Revenues for March were $9,507.36 from Sales Tax, Franchise & Utility Tax, Ad Valorem Taxes, and Interest earned. The ending balances in the Money Market, Checking, and Powell accounts totaled $199,874.89.
Councilman Hooper made a motion to accept the financial report; Councilman Mau seconded the motion, unanimously approved.
6) Public Comment: Mary Ann Budahl asked how speed limits would be enforced in the Village, Mayor Begley replied that if changes to the speed limits are voted on and accepted, signage would be installed and then officers would be able to enforce those limits.
Robert and Debbie Rowland who live at 520 S. Country Club Dr., own lots 47, 48, & 49, they would like to build a home on one of the adjoining lots that is .5 acres, they would like to build an approximately 1300 sq. ft. home for their daughter and grandchild. Mrs. Rowland noted that on their Deed in 1969, it stipulated a requirement for a home at least 1300 sq. ft. and did not list an expiration date. They asked the Council if they would be able to construct a home less than 2,000 sq. ft. on a lot less than 2 acres. Mayor Begley noted that they are requesting a variance from the current ordinance stipulations. She said that it has gone to the Planning Board and is on the next agenda and she will forward their comments to the Planning Board.
7) Vote on Proposed Ordinance Changes:
- Speed Limit 15 mph on all Village roads (non-state roads) (Motion to adopt new ordinance, Article 800)
- Cave Springs Road
- Non-state portion of North Country Club Dr.
- Non-state portion of South Country Club Dr.
Councilman Perlmutter said he was concerned about enforcement of the speed limits. Mayor Begley noted that Planning Board members as well as Councilman Hooper and an officer drove the areas being considered and recommended the proposed speed limit. She noted that safety for Pedestrians is a concern. Councilman Mau said there are areas in the Village where a higher speed limit would not be feasible.
Councilman Corwin made a motion to adopt the speed limit, Councilman Hooper seconded the motion, and the vote was passed by a ¾ vote.
- No Parking on all Village roads unless there is an emergency (consistent with N.C. Gen. Stat. §20-161) (Motion to amend existing ordinance Section 302, B)
Councilman Hooper made a motion to adopt the proposed amendment to Ordinance 302, B, Councilman Perlmutter seconded the motion. Councilman Mau asked about right-of-ways being included. Attorney Moore said that he reads the statute to be about space, he noted that vehicles must be seen within 200’ and not obstruct traffic movement. Councilman Hooper asked if the intent isn’t to be only hard surfaces.
Councilman Hooper amended his motion to exclude right-of-ways, Councilman Perlmutter seconded the motion. Attorney Moore suggested making the ordinance consistent with N.C. Gen. Stat. §20-161. Councilman Hooper made a motion to amend the existing ordinance, Councilman Corwin seconded the motion, unanimously approved.
Councilman Mau made a motion to make the ordinance language consistent with N.C. Gen. Stat. §20-161, Councilman Corwin seconded the motion, unanimously approved.
- Administrative amendments referring to the Interlocal Agreement with Jackson County (Appendix I)
8) Reports
Planning Board: Councilman Corwin noted that Todd Collins will chair the next meeting, he will be absent. He noted that he will have the Planning Board review the final report from the charrette, review house lot and size requirements, and create a schedule for improvements for the next 3-5 years.
Safety: Councilman Hooper noted that no safety issues were reported. He said that he has received bags and gloves from the Department of Transportation for the clean-up day in the Village and said that a patrolman would be on site from 8:00am – 12:00pm for the 5K run. Mayor Begley noted that LeeAnn has asked that participants arrive by 8:30am and the runners will start at 9:00am.
Village Roads & RPO Board: Councilman Perlmutter said he has no changes to report, he hasn’t been to an RPO meeting since his last report.
Jackson County: Councilman Mau said he has no new information, the Steering Committee for the Jackson County Comprehensive Plan has been moved to April 15th.
(Written reply to homeowners’ water drainage complaint) The written response to the drainage issue was reviewed and Councilman Mau said that he would respond to the residents affected.
Mayor’s Report:
Mayor Begley noted that two ordinance violation letters were sent out by Ken Dickert, one to a homeowner whose house mentioned was a health concern due to the amount of trash on the property, the other to a homeowner with two dogs on the loose.
Mayor Begley said that Green’s Excavating is scheduled for road maintenance in April. Councilman Mau will discuss gravel needed and bring a quote to the next meeting. Councilman Corwin suggested that Councilman Mau be able to go ahead and order the gravel if the cost is not greater than $1,000. Councilman Hooper made a motion that Councilman Mau be able to order gravel if the cost is not over $1,000, Councilman Perlmutter seconded the motion, unanimously approved.
9) Unfinished Business:
Order signage – road name signs (and speed limit & no parking on roads): Approval of quotes obtained from Correction Enterprises & B.H. Graning.
Mayor Begley provided copies of quotes obtained from Correction Enterprises for signage, samples of signage, and a quote for installation of signs from B.H. Graning.
Councilman Corwin made a motion to approve the cost of signage and the applicable taxes, Councilman Hooper seconded the motion, unanimously approved.
Councilman Perlmutter made a motion to approve the quote from B.H. Graning to install the signage, Councilman Hooper seconded the motion, unanimously approved. Mayor Begley noted that she will have Correction Enterprises ship the signs to B.H. Graning to install.
Revise Village entrance sign to reduce future operating and maintenance costs:
Mayor Begley provided a quote she obtained from a Landscape Architect to come and have a site meeting with Council to look at the entrance and possibly plot a base plan for the entrance. Mayor Begley noted that he will review the site for $200 and it would be $300 - $650 to get a Landscape Plan.
Councilman Perlmutter made a motion to have the Architect come and review the entrance and create a plan, Councilman Corwin seconded the motion, unanimously approved.
Sidewalk Pledges: Mayor Begley asked about meeting dates for her and Councilman Perlmutter to meet with Elizabeth St. John to discuss sidewalk proposal.
10) New Business
- Budget Committee – participants & schedule work session date
Mayor Begley noted that the previous committee members were she, Councilman Hooper, and Stephanie, she asked if anyone else would like to be on the committee, Council agreed to keep the same members. Mayor Begley noted that the meeting is open and anyone interested is invited to attend. She suggested meeting in May, possibly May 2nd if that works for the committee. The committee agreed to meet at the Jackson County Recreation Center on Saturday, May 2nd at 12:00pm, Stephanie will advertise the meeting on the website and in the newspaper.
- Amend one word in the Rules of Procedure: Update rule #27 to read “including the mayor” vs “plus the mayor” so it is more clear. The latter is the way the UNC School of Government wrote it in their publication.
Mayor Begley asked the council to amend the verbiage in the Rules of Procedure, Council agreed.
- What future ordinance changes do we want to address? (Planning Board recommended no change to the “no more than 2 unrelated” ordinance. Does Council want to address it any further?)
Councilman Corwin said that he does not feel that there is a need to discuss the “no more than 2 unrelated” ordinance any further.
Councilman Mau suggested that the Planning Board look at Ordinance 201-B, he will review and bring any others to address to the next meeting.
- Set up work session with Chris Green and Mr. Hooper and others? This item was moved to the May agenda.
11) Additional Public Comment: Betty Pressley shared that some time ago there was a driver in the Village that tore up three sections of her fence, a sign, and her yard due to excessive speeding.
Debbie Rowland mentioned that they walk a lot and that if a car is parked on the road, there is no room to get off the road safely.
12) Adjourn: At 7:35pm Councilman Hooper made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Councilman Mau, unanimously approved.