1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Town of Pleasant Garden September, 0 / :00 pm Kirkman Municipal Building Minutes Regular Meeting In attendance Councilman Wilbur Berry Councilwoman Anne Hice Councilman Eddy Patterson Mayor Pro Tem Ron Surgeon Mayor Rick Wallace Also in attendance Patrick Niland /Interim Town Clerk (AAA) Darla Robenolt / Assistant Town Clerk (Part-time) Diana Schreiber / Town Clerk Don Vaughan / Town Attorney Lynn Willis / Pleasant Garden Post Audience + Call to order by Mayor Wallace at :00 pm Invocation given by Reverend Lawrence Clapp Pledge of Allegiance led by Patrick Niland Town Clerk Schreiber called the roll. A quorum was present. Approval of minutes Mayor Wallace asked the Council if there were any changes to the August 1, 0 minutes. After hearing some minor changes, Mayor Wallace instructed Assistant Town Clerk Robenolt to make the changes and then made a motion to approve the minutes of the August 1, 0 Regular Meeting, as amended. Seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon. /0; motion carried. Agenda Mayor Wallace indicated to the Council that he would like to add an item, at this point, to this evening s meeting agenda Town Donation to the Pleasant Garden Community Center (PGCC). Town Attorney Vaughan indicated he had spoken to the NC Secretary of State regarding the PGCC s 01(c)() status and was assured it is now up-to-date and their taxes are in order. Councilman Berry made a motion to present a $,000 check from the Town of Pleasant Garden to the Pleasant Garden Community Center (PGCC). Mayor Wallace seconded the motion. Discussion (below) ensued prior to the vote. /1 (Councilwoman Hice); motion carried. Councilwoman Hice indicated that in April of this year she had asked for information regarding PGCC s compliance with the state and federal rules based on the fact that she feels the Town always needs to practice caution and due diligence when giving / donating citizen s money. The Council / Town was told a $,000 match of funds from the Town of Pleasant Garden was a stipulation by the County in order for the County to contribute their $0,000. Councilwoman Hice stated that the Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page 1
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Council was not informed correctly. She went on to say that the PGCC did not conform to the state and federal rules / laws until they were forced to in order to get the money. Councilman Berry indicated he would like to discuss this issue and get it over with once and for all. He went on to say the PGCC has been part of the Pleasant Garden community for the past 0 0 years. It is operated using all volunteer personnel who do the best they can and with the community in mind. Let s give them the $,000 we voted to give them and not continue to drag it around anymore. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon interjected that it s not just giving the money to the Community Center for field lights, but for the seniors and youth of this community. Overall, it s an investment in our community. If we have headaches about how the PGCC is operated, then we need to step up to the plate and help run it. I know we ll be thankful as a Town that we ve made this investment for our kids. Mayor Wallace stated that he agrees and couldn t have said it any better. Councilman Patterson also agreed with Councilman Berry. He went on to say that with over $1 million dollars in the Town s reserves and some of the funds being invested in the PGCC were interest funds from budget years 0/0 and 0/0. [Vote taken at this point]. Mayor Wallace asked Councilman Berry, since he had made the motion to present the $,000 check to the PGCC, to make a presentation. Councilman Berry presented the check from the Town to Jeff Triplett, President of the PGCC and Kim Rayle. Mr. Triplett thanked the Council and Town / citizens of Pleasant Garden. He also thanked Councilwoman Hice for making them become compliant and making them learn what they need to do. Mr. Triplett also thanked Ms. Rayle for getting all the information together that the Town requested. Presentation Benchmark, CMR Land Use Mid-Point Presentation (Erin Burris, Erin Musiol) [NOTE: The slide presentations are included in their entirety in these minutes. Included here are a basic overview of the initial survey findings and the context of the question and answer period following the presentation.] Ms. Burris introduced the team, including Ms. Musiol, Jason Epley, and Frank Warren with Warren & Associates. Slide presentations were made (attached) to present the findings of the recent citizen survey, analysis of the responses, and draft plan development. The draft observations will be discussed at the next (October ) Strategic Land Use Plan meeting. Three () alternatives have been developed, in draft form, as plans from which to choose for the future of Pleasant Garden: Alternative #1: Pros - Remain rural; preserve farmland; less development. Cons No reliable future water source; no restaurants or high-end grocery store in town; dependent on outside resources. Alternative #: Pros Increase tax base; some restaurants, grocery, and retail; slight increase in housing options; some revitalization to business district possible. Cons Contingent on some water and sewer; loss of some farmland; some impact on infrastructure and community services. Alternative #: Pros Increase tax base; some restaurants, grocery, and retail; increase in housing options; greatest economic development potential (more job opportunities); housing base necessary to support the downtown. Cons Contingent upon widespread water and sewer; loss of some farmland; significant impact on infrastructure and community services. On a scale of 1-, water/sewer was rated as a 1. The recent survey rated utilities as: Problem =.%, No problem.%. Most of the other issues ranked as - on a scale of 1-. Q&A: Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon thanked the analysts for their comparison of the 00 and 0 surveys. Councilman Patterson remarked that is seems not a week goes by that someone doesn t ask about building a house in Pleasant Garden, but feels that you must have at least two () acres of land on which to build when, in fact, we only require that you build no more than four () houses on one (1) acre lots. Councilwoman Hice queried Mr. Warren about a sign on Route at Liberty Road about two () weeks ago advertising a Lowe s Food store coming to that site. She stated she s also seen / heard about Food Lion signs around that area. Mr. Warren assured Councilwoman Hice that he will look into the situation since it will ultimately affect his survey statistics, though the food stores Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 would not actually be built within Pleasant Garden town limits, they would be within Pleasant Garden s trade area. Mayor Wallace stated that when he was in the military the most important information one needed was where they were going. We need that information for our future. Mayor Wallace also directed Town Clerk Schreiber to get with Greenspace and figure out how to keep as much green space in the town as possible. Mayor Wallace responded to some questions and recapped, stating that: The Town Council represents the town and the town s citizens, with all their diverse points of view and opinions. In regard to Greensboro, we re working to mend fences with them. We re looking at for water and sewer availability from Guilford County. We currently have quite a healthy balance of senior citizens and new families with children in this community. The Town Council appreciates input from all it s citizens and tries to respond to your wishes. Mayor Wallace called a five () minute recess to allow time for Benchmark, CMR to dismantle their slide presentation materials and pack up / leave the meeting. Mayor Wallace called the meeting back to order at : pm. Public Comment Alan Carroll 01 Hagan Stone Park Road: Mr. Carroll has created a new website - www.pgforums.org to provide a public forum for opinions and comments from Pleasant Garden citizens. Mr. Carroll indicated his appreciation for the support and feedback he has received so far. The website was created to discuss issues and share information. Yes, it will contain political information, but he also hopes it will contain other interesting materials, such as recipes and notices of upcoming community events. Currently there are over thirty (0) registered users with over one hundred (0) postings. You don t have to register to view the site. Again, I appreciate everyone s support and value your input to make the site better. Chris Johnson 00 Sparrow Drive: I guess it s a moot point at this time since the $,000 has already been turned over to the Community Center, but I moved her in and for years was a very active participant in community activities with my children. I wonder if there was any attempt on the part of the PGCC to raise funds other than to come begging to the Town Council? I would have gladly worked with the PGCC to help raise funds and would have like to see them raise the money they needed in other ways other than just to ask for it from the Town and the County. I also resent and feel the statement by the consultants is disingenuous to present the water and sewer issues in the context of if cost was not an issue. Taxpayer costs for services will always be an issue! Does anyone have any information on what water and sewer would cost us? Martha Jones Branson Mill Road: I am ashamed of all of us. I have always been a part of the PGCC, as a child and as an adult. I find it appalling that a check was written in advance of approval from the Town Council. It was as if there was no other decision other than to just give the money to the Community Center. Thank you Councilwoman Hice for being a good steward of the Town s money. Billy Yow Guilford County Commissioner: Guilford County pledged $0,000 to the PGCC if the Town Council would pledge $,000 to match the counties funds. What would you have if you were to take that ballpark out of Pleasant Garden? I don t feel it was the right thing to do to slow down giving the Community Center the matching funds by using delay tactics, no matter how noble they Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 were. Pleasant Garden needs to grow and if it weren t for these programs there would be no growth in this town at all. You need to do studies to plan growth / infrastructure example, where should we build and office park? Where should we build a retail center? It took me three () months to convince them (the county) to put money into the Forest Oaks area. The $0,000 donation to a communitybased organization was the hardest thing I ve had to convince the county to do. The town did not give the Community Center anything. The lights will cost over $0,000 and I feel that s an investment in Pleasant Garden s future. Thank you for your attention. Mayor Wallace made a motion to close the public comment period. Motion seconded by Councilman Berry. /0; the motion carried. Councilman Berry posed questions to the Town Council asking if there was any action taken on the John Kornegay letter of June, 0? If so, why wasn t the response presented before the entire Town Council? Town Attorney Vaughan responded that he had called Mr. Kornegay and invited him to speak / present at a Town Council meeting. Town Attorney Vaughan stated that his dealings were entirely with Mr. Kornegay since the letter inquiry was from Mr. Kornegay in representation of an anonymous client. Councilwoman Hice indicated she was confused by the issue / question. Councilman Patterson asked if this whole issue was considered dead, but indicated he felt there should be some official response to Mr. Kornegay. Councilman Patterson made a motion to respond to Attorney John Kornegay s letter of June, 0 to the Town Council and ask for he or his representative to discuss the issue with / before the Council. Councilman Berry seconded the motion. Discussion (below) ensued prior to the vote. / (Mayor Wallace, Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon, and Councilwoman Hice); the motion failed. Councilwoman Hice asked Town Clerk Schreiber to read Mr. Kornegay s letter aloud to refresh everyone s memory. Town Clerk Schreiber read the letter (attached). Mayor Wallace asked if there was any additional discussion on this issue and reminded the Council that the process in place for this type of request is to go first to the Guilford County Planning Department who reviews the plans and then sends them to the Town / Zoning Board for review when they meet the counties requirements. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon stated that Mr. Kornegay should to do more work. Councilwoman Hice asked if Mr. Niles (Director, Guilford County Planning Department) had been contacted. Asst. Town Clerk Robenolt responded that she had sent Mr. Niles a copy of the letter. Councilman Patterson stated that a suggestion be made to Mr. Kornegay that the due process be followed. We should not just sweep the issue under the rug. Mayor Wallace indicated he supports the zoning ordinances as they stand. Councilman Patterson reiterated that we should still respond to Mr. Kornegay s letter. At this point Mayor Wallace asked Town Attorney Vaughan to respond to the letter. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon stated that this is a huge project. It s an election period right now and this project is just way too big to bind a new Town Council in the future. (At this point the vote was taken and failed). Councilwoman Hice stated that if anyone wants to build something in Pleasant Garden why should the town put money into a possible future 01(c)() program? Mayor Wallace responded to Ms. Chris Johnson s public comment on the water issue on the 0 public survey. It would be about $1,000 per household for each water hook-up and about the same for each sewer hook-up + a fee of about $0 per month for all Pleasant Garden residents. Plus, if water lines and sewer lines were run in Pleasant Garden it would be mandatory that each household / business hook-up and subscribe to the services, there would be no options to not hook-up and opt to use existing wells, etc. Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Reports Town Clerk (Diana Schreiber) I appreciate all the information Benchmark, CMR has provided to help establish long-term goals for Pleasant Garden. There is a resolution (attached) in your packet of information to declare voluntary water conservation measures by the citizens of Pleasant Garden. A reminder the primary is on October here in the Town Hall. The next Town Council meeting needs to be shifted to a week earlier Tuesday, October, 0 at pm - to accommodate the primary election. The Guilford County Board of Elections will be setting up on Friday, October. The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources will be coming to the office to help set up the files and help determine which files should be kept. Analog Digital Solutions, Inc. (ADS) (information and quote attached) has sent us some information about their audio / video capabilities that allow CDs to be made and distributed. This would be a great way to capture the meeting minutes and distribute them. Councilwoman Hice indicated the sample CD given her did not work on her Apple computer or in her CD player in her truck. Application needs to be compatible with more formats than just Windows. Town Clerk Schneider indicated she would check on that issue and get better information for further discussion of digital / electronic minutes capture and distribution. ICS Systems, Inc. (information and quote attached) is a software solution more compatible with municipal accounting and payroll use than QuickBooks, which we currently use. ICS software would be a good investment in future municipal growth and having the accounting and payroll software to grow with the town. QuickBooks is more for small business use and can be very unwieldy for our uses. We can configure ICS for our use for about $,. Kids Voting I ve given you each a copy of a letter (attached) from Pat Vreeland, Executive Director of Kids Voting, thanking us for our $00 contribution. I ve included some representative artwork in your packet of information (attached) showing some ideas for Christmas banners. We can table this item and discuss it next month if you d like. I ve put some estimates in your packets of information (attached) for putting electric out in the Picnic Shelter area. This has been requested by the Farmer s Market vendors and by the Recreation Board for Pet Day use and for future use in the Picnic Shelter. Mayor Wallace responded that he would talk more about the topic the next week with Town Clerk Schreiber. Mayor Wallace made a motion to approve R--00 - Resolution Declaring Voluntary Water Conservation Measures by the Citizens of the Town of Pleasant Garden. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon seconded the motion and asked Town Clerk Schreiber to read the resolution aloud into the minutes, which she did. /0; the motion carried. Mayor Wallace asked Asst. Town Clerk Robenolt to make sure the resolution is published in the Pleasant Garden Post. Councilwoman Hice indicated she would like to send out requests for proposals (RFPs) for the ADStype software to record meeting minutes. Mayor Wallace indicated he would like to table that item for now and put it on next month s agenda for discussion. Regarding ICS software - Mayor Wallace asked Interim Finance Officer Niland the cost for QuickBooks software (about $1,00) plus the monthly cost of PayChex payroll costs ($0 per month currently). Town Attorney Vaughan interjected that there s also a yearly fee assessed for payroll software use because there are so many changes that happen within the realm of payroll / software. Councilman Patterson suggested that Town Clerk Schreiber check clerkserve.net and see what other cities and towns are doing and what their software is, etc. Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Finance Officer (Patrick Niland - Acting) Mr. Niland introduced Budget Amendment #1 for 0 / 0 (attached) to decrease 00. Subcontract Personnel (AAA) by $0,000 by not working past the end of October and no hours in 0; and increase 00.0 Town Improvements by $0,000 to be used to procure the Holiday banners. Councilman Patterson asked Mr. Niland if the banners were originally to be purchased out of capital reserve funds? Mr. Niland responded that a capital project would have to be set up and funded to make the purchase, but could be done. Councilman Patterson responded that it was probably easier to just make this one-time purchase from budgeted funds vice setting up a capital reserve project since the project would be short lived. Councilman Patterson made a motion to take the funds for the 0 Holiday Banner Project from the general funds versus capital funds. Seconded by Mayor Wallace. /1 (Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon); the motion carried. Councilwoman Hice posed the question that we re now paying three () people at Town Hall and citizens are asking what s going on? Interim Finance Officer Niland responded that through September his goal is to get Town Clerk Schreiber up to speed on QuickBooks and in October to get her proficient on the audit and financial information. There will be about $,000 left in the budget for additional AAA time in November and December, if needed. Mayor Wallace made a motion to approve proposed 0-0 Budget Amendment #1 to decrease 00. Sub-Contract Personnel by $0,000 and increase 00.0 Town Improvements by $0,000. Councilwoman Hice seconded the motion. /1 (Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon); the motion carried. Councilwoman Hice asked Town Clerk Schreiber and Interim Finance Officer Niland to make sure that a current check register was included in each month s packet of information the Council members receive by mail prior to the meeting and not just put in the folder on the dais since there s no time at that point to study it and prepare questions, etc. Councilwoman Hice was assured the check register would be part of the future monthly mail packets. Long Range Planning Board (Glenn Morgan) Paul Kron (PTCOG) gave us a quote for a plan for the soccer area only. We voted unanimously for Mr. Kron to work on the entire -acre plan. Interim Finance Officer Niland interjected that the original estimate of $,00 for a -acre plan is the maximum that can be adjusted downward based on the existing information Mr. Kron can use from Alley, Williams, Carmen & King. Between the 0 conceptual plan and the current plans we feel we can come up with a municipal master plan. At this past month s meeting we discussed services trash pick-up; road maintenance; town security; water / sewer; fire department; etc. and concluded that most of the LRP members feel Pleasant Garden has these things already and just needs to investigate private investment in future restaurants and retail stores. Mayor Wallace asked if the LRP could give Interim Finance Officer Niland some direction as to what they want and by when. Councilwoman Hice asked if an RFP is needed? Town Attorney Vaughan responded that it s not necessary to go out for bids for professional (attorney, CPA, etc.) services. Councilwoman Hice asked if it would be possible for Town Attorney Vaughan to do some research on these plan development costs. Mayor Wallace responded that the $,00 was $,000 less than an earlier estimate. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked what happened to Alley, Williams, Carmen & King s previous work? LRP Chairman Morgan replied that Alley, Williams, Carmen & King s former work will be incorporated into Mr. Kron s future work, wherever he deems it can be used. Councilwoman Hice asked if the 0 conceptual plans were to scale? LRP Chairman Morgan responded that some were and some weren t. Councilman Patterson interjected that was the time we chose from Plan A, B, or C. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked if there was an updated plan that was to scale? Interim Finance Officer Niland responded that there is. Former Town Clerk Lockhart got it Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 before he left. Mayor Wallace asked Town Clerk Schreiber and Interim Finance Officer Niland to move forward with the project. Recreation Board (Brent Lewis) Chairman Lewis indicated the Recreation Board had met on Tuesday, August. He responded to the earlier discussion re: electric to be installed in the Picnic Shelter area by stating that the electric is needed not only for Pet Day (October 1), but for Farmer s Market (for fans, small appliances, etc.). It would be great if the Recreation Board could have a key for the storage area so the Farmer s Market folks who need to could plug into the outlet in there and use it. Chairman Lewis reported that Sgt. Lawrence from the Guilford County Sheriff s Office gave a presentation to the Recreation Board regarding traffic and pedestrian hazards during the Independence Day festivities and how they could work together next year to make the event safer for everyone by possibly blocking parts of Alliance Church Road (through a permit from the NC Dept. of Transportation) and / or other parking and traffic management measures. The Firemen s Appreciation dinner was held earlier this evening, prior to this meeting. Thanks to Georgia Amick for chairing the function, to all the Recreation Board members for their help and support, and to the council members for attending. Regarding the soccer program, we ve got about 0 participants this fall and have sponsors for all our 0 teams. We have eight () new coaches. I sure hate to see the old coaches leave, but as their children move on so do they. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked if Goin Postal had sponsored a team? Chairman Lewis responded yes. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon stated that Goin Postal has lots of giveaways for the kids, etc. Chairman Lewis confirmed. Councilwoman Hice asked Chairman Lewis if all the sponsors have paid up before the team shirts are ordered. Chairman Lewis indicated that everything possible is done to assure the sponsors pay prior to having shirts made. The problem that happened in the spring ( sponsors never paid) should not happen in the future. Councilwoman Hice asked Chairman Lewis if they were still using the Idol field for practice. Chairman Lewis indicated they are in order to save the new field for Saturday games only to give it a chance to harden up to be a good playing surface for the future. We have a verbal agreement with the county re: using and keeping their field up. Zoning Board (Chris Johnson) Per Chairwoman Johnson, the Zoning Board met August to review one (1) new case for subdivision (Mattie and Robert Winstead on Davis Mill and Sheraton Park Road). We made two () change suggestions and approved request. During the time between the last Zoning Board meeting (March) and the August meeting Chairwoman Johnson researched some complaints about a nuisance / junky property, which was cleaned up by the time she saw it. There is no new information from the state on the portable storage units (PODs). Chairwoman Johnson asked Town Clerk Schreiber to talk about the draft Zoning Map for Pleasant Garden that Mr. Niles presented at the Zoning Board meeting and asked for Pleasant Garden input and comments. Per Chairwoman Johnson, Town Attorney Vaughan brought up the John Kornegay letter at the meeting. It incited much discussion, but was ultimately decided that it / Mr. Kornegay hadn t followed existing procedures so the Zoning Board couldn t really deal with the issue at this point. We discussed our $0 budget for new texts / educational materials, which we will be asking the Town Clerk to order for us. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked if Mr. or Mrs. Winstead attended the Zoning Board meeting. Chairwoman Johnson replied that the Winstead s did not attend, they had indicated to Town Clerk Schreiber when she called them to tell them their request was approved, that they weren t aware of the Zoning Board meeting, but they complimented us on approving their request and letting them know about it. MPO Report (Edgar Phillips) Mr. Phillips indicated the August meeting had been cancelled. Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Solid Waste / Recycling (Ann Hice) Councilwoman Hice stated that she had not attended the last solid waste meeting. She did report that all the cross ties that Norfolk Southern pulled up some time ago from the railroad bed are all now gone. They recycled the good ones (or people took them), but the rotten, cracked, etc. ones were tossed beside the tracks and are now all gone. Unfinished Business Gazebo / Magnolia Tree Area Interim Finance Officer Niland informed the Council that he had spoken to Mr. Yow and received an estimate for $,00 to perform the work that the gazebo committee decided they wanted (plans attached). Councilwoman Hice asked if the estimate included a concrete slab on which to place the gazebo after it was moved? Interim Finance Officer Niland responded no, but does include an ADA compliant path and Mr. Yow did mention that no permit is needed for this work. Also, a company in Burlington gave an estimate of $0 - $00 to move the gazebo - including using a crane. Councilwoman Hice asked if wheelchairs would be able to get into the gazebo? Councilman Patterson responded that yes the opening has been measured before and is quite sufficient to allow wheelchair access. Councilman Patterson made a motion to set up a project for the gazebo, currently located on the municipal property hill near the magnolia tree, to be moved based on Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements. Mayor Wallace seconded the motion. /0; the motion carried. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked where the money for this project would come from in the budget. Interim Finance Officer Niland responded that it would most likely come from the Town Improvements budget line item. Mayor Wallace addressed Dr. Richard Fields in the audience and thanked he and his family for the generous gift of the gazebo to the Town of Pleasant Garden and apologized that it has taken so long to get it fully set up for the town citizens to use. The Mayor assured everyone that the gazebo would soon be set up to meet all the ADA requirements so it will be able to be enjoyed by everyone. Pleasant Garden Community Center Contribution - Refer to Page 1 of this report under Agenda. Time Warner Cable in Low Density Areas Interim Finance Officer Niland got estimates from Time Warner to install cable in those identified low density areas in Pleasant Garden of $,000 contributed by Time Warner and $,1 needed from the citizens / a third party. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon made a motion to direct the Town Clerk to send a letter to Time Warner asking them to absorb all the costs to install cable to the residences located on roads in Pleasant Garden not currently being serviced by Time Warner. Councilman Berry seconded the motion. Discussion ensued prior to voting see below. /0; the motion carried. Councilwoman Hice stated that the town is making $,000 a year from the Time Warner franchise agreement, but we need to take a good look at that contract and really understand what we ve signed. Mayor Wallace asked Town Attorney Vaughan if the state can change the requirement for franchise sharing and ultimately change the terms we ve signed up for in the contract. Town Attorney Vaughan indicated that could happen. YMCA Town Clerk Schreiber read aloud a letter dated August, 0 from Mr. Greg Jones, President / CEO, YMCA of Greensboro (attached) that basically states that the YMCA needs $ million dollars toward building a YMCA in Pleasant Garden, but there is no indication of where the YMCA is on their decision to actually build in Pleasant Garden when or ever!? Councilman Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Patterson pointed out that the last sentence of the letter states that the YMCA is looking to raise $ million dollars from the community. Earlier they estimated $ million dollars would be needed for the whole project and that they would only need to raise $ million dollars from the community. Councilman Patterson made a motion to respond to Mr. Greg Jones letter from the YMCA of Greensboro dated August, 0 pointing out that Pleasant Garden is developing a master plan for the Town Complex on the municipal property and requests a progress report from the YMCA by November 1 regarding their ability to collect the funds needed to build a new YMCA building. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon seconded the motion. /0; the motion carried. Councilwoman Hice reminded everyone that this was an agreement made on March, 0 (attached) with the YMCA, but no actual formal agreement has ever been made. Mayor Wallace indicated that based on his conversations with Mr. Jones the YMCA is basing its plans on our earlier discussions / agreements with them. Councilwoman Hice pointed up that discussions with the YMCA should be moved closer to our timeframes as we will need to consider water / sewer issues with them. They have never yet built a YMCA facility where water & sewer hook-ups were not available. New Business Board Volunteer Review / Approval Mayor Wallace introduced a volunteer application for the Long Range Planning (LRP) Board from Mr. Scott May and asked Town Attorney Vaughan if Mr. May s background check had been performed and if so, did it turn out satisfactorily. Town Attorney Vaughan indicated Mr. May s background check was clean. Town Attorney Vaughan indicated that the Volunteer Application forms should be amended to include additional information, such as Social Security number, date of birth, and full middle name. This information is vital to performing the background checks for applicants and assuring the correct individual is being investigated. Mayor Wallace directed Town Clerk Schreiber to make the necessary adjustments to the Volunteer Application form and post the changed for on the town s website. Councilwoman Hice made a motion to accept Mr. Scott May s volunteer application to be a member of the Long Range Planning Board (LRP) and to notify Mr. May of the upcoming LRP meeting being held Tuesday, September. Mayor Wallace seconded the motion. /0; the motion carried. Town Hall Building Security - Town Clerk Schreiber introduced a proposal from J&W Security Systems, Inc. for on-going security monitoring and maintenance services for the Town Hall building. Mayor Wallace made a motion to accept the proposal from J & W Security Systems, Inc. to provide on-going security monitoring and maintenance services at the Town Hall building. Councilwoman Hice seconded the motion. /1 (Councilman Berry); the motion carried. NCLM Historical Photo Project Town Clerk Schreiber informed the Council about the NC League of Municipalities Historical Photo Project (attached) and encouraged the Town to become involved. Town Clerk Schreiber indicated she had sent a letter to the Pleasant Garden Historical Society (attached) asking for their participation and leadership role in support of this project with Town Clerk Schreiber acting as the clearinghouse for information being sent to the NCLM, thus giving Pleasant Garden s contribution one voice. Lion s Club Fun for All Project Town Clerk Schreiber indicated that the Lion s Club had sent a letter dated August, 0 (attached) to the Town asking for a donation from the Town for the Fun for All project matching the funds being donated by the Lions Club - $,0. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked if the Council hadn t approved a donation to this project previously this year? Interim Finance Officer Niland indicated that the Council had previously approved a donation. Councilwoman Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 0 1 0 1 Hice made a motion for all 01(c)() [charitable contribution] requests to the Town to be put on hold in order to develop a policy to handle these requests. Councilman Patterson indicated he didn t want to set such stringent rules and guidelines to limit requests and/or giving. Mayor Wallace asked if there was a second. No second. Motion failed. Mayor Wallace asked Town Clerk Schreiber to check with this group and agreed with Councilwoman Hice that Town policies are in order, but that this request shouldn t be held up since it had already been approved previously. All American Associates (AAA) Interim Finance Officer Niland informed the Council that there remained $,000 set aside for September and October services from AAA. There is also a reserve of $,000 if anything is needed from AAA during November / December or into early 0. Public Comment Jean Greeson 00 Ritters Lake Road: I can t believe you re ready to make new financial policies when you should just take a look at the financial policies you approved and adopted in February 0. You are required to receive approved audits back from organizations prior to giving them town money. Alan Carroll - 01 Hagan Stone Park Road: Analog / digital devices like DVDs and CDs are becoming antiquated in the high-tech realm. I suggest capturing the meetings / minutes on the Town s website in order to address all the compatibility issues. Donald Jones Hunt Road: I m not up here to scold, but we can t hear you in the audience. What can be done to get these microphones to work? Charlie Routh New Garden Road / Nesbit Road: There are too many committees and subcommittees. Micro-management tends to rule these projects. We should listen more to understand what s needed and wanted. David Lewis Walter Wright Road: My street wasn t on the Time Warner list, but should be since Time Warner won t install cable on Walter Wright Road without me paying $,000 for them to bring the cable down my driveway. It s unclear as to what we want Paul Kron at the PTCOG to do for us plans for the soccer field or a master plan using materials we already have and updating them. Mayor Wallace moved to close the public comment period. Seconded by Councilwoman Hice. /0; the motion carried. Staff Comment None Council Comment Councilman Berry mentioned that the Pleasant Garden Historical Society is sponsoring a celebration on Sunday, September 0 at :0 pm of the, 0, and 1 Pleasant Garden High School baseball teams who were state champions for those three () years. Come on out and enjoy the tribute. Mayor Pro Tem Surgeon asked that the Volunteer Application form be posted on the Pleasant Garden website, including updating the application as Town Attorney Vaughan requested, so people can begin applying for next year s board positions. Also, thanks to Brent Lewis, Georgia Amick and Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page
1 1 1 Brenda Patterson and the whole Recreation Board for the Firemen s Appreciation dinner they put on tonight. Mayor Wallace responded to David Lewis public comment by saying that we would get Mr. Paul Kron all the existing plan information so he won t have to re-do it and so it can be incorporated into one overall acre / municipal property master plan. Councilwoman Hice reminded the Town Hall staff that the Volunteer Application should be edited / updated with the fields suggested by Town Attorney Vaughan prior to being posted on the Pleasant Garden website. Councilwoman Hice read from the Town Financial Policy regarding fund donations and suggested we plan ahead and set a procedure in place so organizations can uniformly submit requests for funds and their requests can all be reviewed using an even playing field / plane. Councilwoman Hice updated the Town Council and audience on the progress of the Eagle Scout project to clear dead trees from the walking trail entrance, build public benches, etc. She noted how proud she is of Eagle Scout Jordan Mottram and his project. Councilman Patterson responded to David Lewis public comment by informing him a committee had been put together and there had been no conclusion. Councilman Berry motioned to adjourn at :0 pm. Councilman Patterson seconded the motion. /0; the motion carried. Clerk Date Mayor Town Council Meeting Minutes September, 0 Page