The following members of the Council were present:

Councilmember Ron Yount

Councilmember Marcia Almond

Councilmember Nilofer Couture

Councilmember Daniel Shields

The following members of the Council were absent:

Mayor Jim Wallace

The following non-Council members were Present:

Stephanie Gibson, Clerk

Tim Eckard, Planning Board

Jack Brown, Resident

1. Call to order: at 7:00pm Mayor Pro Tem Almond called the meeting to order. 

     2.  Announcements:

Reminder – Please silence cell phones for meeting. 

     3.  Approval of Agenda: Councilmember Shields made a motion to approve the agenda, Councilmember Yount seconded the motion, unanimously approved. 

     4.  Approval of Meeting Minutes for August 01, 2023, Regular Council Meeting:(All meeting minutes are posted on the Forest Hills website once approved.) Councilmember Couture made a motion to approve the meeting minutes for August 01, 2023, Councilmember Shields seconded the motion, unanimously approved. 

     5.  Acceptance of Financial Report & Checklist for the month of August 2023: (All financial reports are posted on the Forest Hills website once approved.) Councilmember Shields made a motion to accept the financial report, Councilmember Yount seconded the motion, unanimously approved.

      6.  Public Comment:  None 

      7.  Reports: 

Mayor’s Report: Jim Wallace – Mayor Wallace was absent.

Roads: Ron Yount – Councilmember Yount said that he spoke with CWS about the areas in the pavement they are supposed to fill, and he said that they would be patched soon. 

RPO/TAC: Marcia Almond – Councilmember Almond said the Southwestern Commission had not had a meeting since the annual dinner.

Planning Board: Planning Board Chair Tim Eckard shared that the board has five members now that have been sworn in and that he was elected chair.  He noted that the Planning Board discussed having remote meetings but for now will meet in the Assembly Hall.  Tim discussed the report that he previously emailed to the Mayor and Council members regarding STRs and said Attorney Fox had reviewed the recommendations.  The council discussed and had a final review of the document and recommended that a public hearing be held at the October meeting for review and final approval. Councilmember Shields made a motion to add R-1A, R-1 and R-2 to the areas within the village where no short-term rentals are allowed, Councilmember Yount seconded, unanimously approved. Stephanie will advertise the hearing on the website and request advertisement in Sylva Hearld.  Councilmember Couture will post the notice on Facebook.

Village Safety: Nilofer Couture – Councilmember Couture said she had not received a patrol report but noted there were 47-911 calls, she noted that most of the calls were from the hotel area, prospect, and Pincushion Lane.  She noted that officers responded to a wellness check on SCC Drive and an overdose/poisoning on NCC Drive.

8. New Business:

 WCU Spraying Herbicide:  Councilmember Almond said that Angela Davis had contacted her regarding WCU spraying herbicide along the roads and banks.  She was worried about the chemicals being sprayed close to her residence.  

9. Unfinished Business:

 Short Term Rentals:  A public hearing will be scheduled for the October meeting to review ordinance changes.

 Update on Prospect Commercial Space:  No recent updates. 

 Update on Grants:  Councilmember Couture said she would check with Patricia and ask that she be researching grants that might be applicable to the Village.

     10.  Adjourn: At 8:00pm, Councilmember Shields made a motion to adjourn, Councilmember Yount seconded the motion, unanimously approved.