October 2017

 

Village of Forest Hills

Council Meeting Minutes

October 3, 2017

6:00 P.M. @Jackson County Rec Center, Cullowhee NC

 

The Council meeting for the Village of Forest Hills was held at the Jackson County Rec Center, Cullowhee, NC at 6:00pm on October 3, 2017. 

The following members of the Council were present:

Mayor Kolleen Begley

Councilmember Carl Hooper

Councilmember Clark Corwin

Councilmember Sharon Stovall 

Councilmember Niall Michelsen

The following Non-Council members were present:

Stephanie Gibson, Clerk

 

  1. Call to order:  Mayor Begley called the meeting to order at 6:15 pm. 
  2. Announcements:  
  • Reminder – please silence cell phones for meeting
  • Next month’s meeting is Wednesday, November 8th 

     3.  Approval of Agenda: Councilmember Hooper made a motion to approve the agenda; Councilmember Corwin seconded the motion, unanimously approved.

     4.  Approval of Meeting Minutes:  September 5th/18th , 2017 Regular Council Meeting and continued Council Meeting – Councilmember Stovall made a motion to accept the September Council Meeting Minutes, Councilmember Hooper seconded the motion, unanimously accepted.

     5. Acceptance of Financial Report & Checklist for the month of September, 2017: Councilmember Corwin made a motion to accept the Financial Report for October; Councilmember Stovall seconded the motion, unanimously accepted.

     6. Public Comment: None

     7. Reports:

          Mayor’s Report:   Mayor Begley said that TWSA confirmed that there was a water leak at the Village entrance, B.H. Graning cleaned out the valve and repaired the leak.

Mayor Begley started a list of pros and cons of development and voluntary annexation and asked Council to add to it for further discussion. Council members discussed making a research project for a graduate student to further the discussion.

Mayor Begley said that a resident had called her about three men walking in the Village with firearms. Firearm Ordinance 5.1 & 5.2 states that firearms are unlawful in the Village with the exception of personal defense and with a valid hunting license and that they not be fired within 300 ft. of a dwelling.  Council discussed and agreed to ask Josh Freeman if that section of the ordinance regarding hunting and target practice could be removed without violating any laws. 

        Safety & RPO:  Councilmember Hooper said that there was one vehicle stopped for speeding. The county sent a list of all calls to police within the Village.  Councilmember Hooper said that he would ask for a list of all 911 calls reported within the Village that are non-medical.

Councilmember Hooper said that there is an NC mayor’s meeting coming up for all mayors and there was mention of talks on crib to career regarding early intervention and special education.

        Planning Board:  Councilmember Corwin said that Jack has agreed to chair the next Planning Board meeting and would like to have a job description prepared. Councilmember Corwin recommended that the Village have a representative for the Village at the TWSA meetings. Mayor Begley said she would inquire about it.

       Neighborhood Watch: Councilmember Stovall said she spoke with the officer who is over Neighborhood Watch for feedback about the signs, he said the Village needs new signs, he will check to see the number of signs needed and let Sharon know, she will get information and discuss having a meeting and report back.

       Roads:  No report

       8. Unfinished Business:  

Quote from Parker Paving to resurface Poppy Lane: Councilmember Hooper received a quote from Parker Paving to resurface Poppy Lane in the amount of $6,500.   Mayor Begley noted that it would be Non-Powell expenditure since Poppy Lane will not be added to the Powell Map until next year. Councilmember Hooper made a motion to have Parker Paving resurface Poppy Lane; Councilmember Corwin seconded the motion, unanimously approved.

      9. New Business:

  • Additional information to add to the Mixed Use District ordinance: Mayor Begley said she sent questions to Josh regarding a development agreement and additional language that may be needed for the ordinance. 
  • SkyFi: Mayor Begley shared that there is a local business, SkyFi, setting up line of sight high speed internet.   Council will discuss further when more information becomes available. 
  • Services for taxpayers going forward: Councilmember Corwin said the Council needs to take a look at what services are offered and what could be offered, he mentioned that once the paving service is completed, the Village might look at purchasing or renting power poles from WCU for internet services, looking at safety issues throughout the Village such as trees or electric lines that may need maintenance or removal. Mayor Begley suggested looking into recycling pick up. 
  • Village Computer:  Mayor Begley mentioned that the Village is in need of a new laptop for the Finance Officer/Clerk since the current laptop is approximately 8 years old. Councilmember Corwin made a motion for Stephanie to purchase a new Village laptop up to $1,000., Councilmember Stovall seconded the motion, unanimously approved.

     10. Adjourn: At 8:05 pm, Councilmember Corwin made a motion to adjourn; Councilmember Michelsen seconded the motion, unanimously approved.