[0:00] two.
[0:26] Wow. [clears throat]
[0:33] All righty, Madam Clerk. Are we clear?
>> Yes.
[0:35] » All righty. Good evening, everybody. We
will call this meeting to order and
[0:39] we'll begin the evening with a moment of
silence where you can pray, meditate, or
[0:43] just enjoy a moment of silence to
yourself.
[1:03] Thank you. If you'll please join me in
standing for the pledge of allegiance.
[1:09] I pledge algiance to the flag of the
United States of America and to the
[1:15] republic for which it stands, one nation
under God, indivisible, with liberty and
[1:23] justice for all. Uh, thank you.
[1:33] » [laughter]
[1:36] » All righty, moving into the public
comment portion of our evening. We have
[1:40] two people signed up. Uh, first person
sign up is Mr. Joe Black. So, Mr. Black,
[1:45] you want to take the stand? I know you
know the drill, but uh, set your name,
[1:49] your address, and your three minutes
will begin when the clerk is ready. and
[1:53] just be sure to speak clearly into the
microphone.
[1:56] » My name is Joe Black live 340 Howard Gap
Road. Uh we'll speak about the dam under
[2:02] the bridge on 25 Can Creek. Um if we
were able to remove that, it may have
[2:10] fish migrate up downstream. Um bushes
along 25 special end of hired gap need
[2:17] to be trimmed. Uh impedes view of
traffic. Uh I've been to other place
[2:23] they got blow bushes or trees on side
road are trimmed way up where you can
[2:28] still see cars coming.
Uh parking in the fire lane at the Engle
[2:33] store
um can be a problem sometimes people to
[2:38] park there for a few minutes they say
and so on. Um and phones while driving
[2:46] it's not improving.
Um, do we need to put also ever
[2:52] intersection say here's a citation?
[2:58] Anyway, that's it for me. Uh,
uh, the mural. Yes, we're coming off the
[3:03] mural. I understand. Uh,
um,
[3:09] my memory is not very good. Sometimes I
get nervous and I certainly forget.
[3:13] Well, uh,
>> thank you. It's my list. Thank you.
[3:17] » Thank you, Mr. Black.
All righty. Mayor, if you want to later,
[3:22] I can give I think I've emailed you an
update, but
[3:26] » yeah, if you want me to mention under
manager comments, remind me on that.
[3:30] » That'd be appropriate.
>> All righty. The next person we got
[3:34] signed up is Miss Julia Fogle.
>> So, just set your name, your address,
[3:39] and your three minutes will begin when
the truck's ready.
[3:40] » Good evening. Uh, my name is Julia
Fogle, and I live at 49 Overton Place.
[3:45] Um, and I do indeed my I'm going to read
this to you all just so as you know I
[3:49] serve on the planning board but I'm here
tonight speaking strictly as a local
[3:53] resident and a commercial property owner
owner and taxpayer on the highway 25
[3:57] corridor. Our property was originally
6098 Hendersonville Road and now our
[4:02] property address is listed at on the GIS
as Overton Place. There are two entry
[4:07] and exit points on Highway 25 from our
property and our property is off
[4:10] opposite Blake Street Advanced Auto
Parts and the Seasons at Cane Creek
[4:14] Apartment Complex. To give a bit of
history, um more than 8 years ago, I did
[4:19] reach out to the NC DOT directly to
request a traffic light. Uh since there
[4:23] was traffic concerns even at that time,
our request was denied at that time.
[4:28] Today, that evaluation is completely
obsolete. Um, and on our side, we have
[4:33] our primary home, a rental house, and
four active commercial RV lots. Thanks
[4:37] to you all. Thank you. Opposite us, a
new coffee shop, more apartments opening
[4:42] soon, and eventually a planned multi-use
commercial space to be built in the not
[4:46] tooistant future, hopefully. Um, and
currently, when exiting Overton Place
[4:51] onto Highway 25, we are trapped by
general traffic traveling. It seems
[4:55] often well over 45 mph, which does
include large 18-wheelers. At the same
[5:01] time, we must compete with heavy cross
traffic emerging from Blake Street, the
[5:05] auto parts store, and the existing
apartment complex seasons at Cane Creek.
[5:09] We also deal with drivers who seem to
use the center turn lane as a third
[5:13] travel lane just to merge into traffic.
Um, to make this quarter more dangerous,
[5:19] the land across the street is actively
changing. While the front multi-use
[5:23] commercial space is not broken ground
yet with buildings, it has been graded
[5:27] and the newly built apartments appear to
be almost completely done. Um they
[5:32] they've recently added a a paved road on
that property and that runs right into
[5:38] Highway 25.
Hi. And so as a result, you know, I just
[5:42] noticed during a recent storm, all the
water from that road that they've
[5:47] recently put there that they've paved,
um it went all into 25. I don't know if
[5:50] y'all went through there, but it was it
was a lot of water. Um, so it was um
[5:55] it's a lot of storm water that's running
right to Highway 25 in front of the
[5:58] coffee shop in the existing apartments.
And you know, I've lived here most of my
[6:02] life, grew up in Fletcher, and I've
never seen that much water on Highway 25
[6:06] at that time. I know there was a large
rainstorm, but still it usually would
[6:09] clear. Um, so I'm just very concerned
about that as well. So, um, basically
[6:14] the NC DOT may review Highway 25 as a
regional quarter, but the dynamic
[6:19] completely breaks Fletcher's plans for a
walkable town center and a vibrant
[6:22] community. We cannot build a safe,
walkable downtown on a high-speed
[6:27] commuter raceway. I asked this council
to formally petition NC DOT for an
[6:32] updated traffic signal warrant analysis
and a speed zone study to drop this
[6:36] quarter to 35 mph which to immediately
conduct a code enforcement investigation
[6:42] into the developer storm water
management. Thank you for your time
[6:46] consideration.
>> Thank you.
[6:46] » Thank you.
>> Thank you. Thank [clears throat] you.
[6:49] » And we could perhaps talk about that a
little bit later as well. Some valid
[6:52] points there. Um, do we have anybody
else signed up for public comments?
[6:57] Anybody else that wishes to speak in the
public comment period?
[7:01] Okay. Hearing and seeing none, we'll
close the public comment period and
[7:04] we'll move on to the approval of
minutes. Uh, council any corrections,
[7:08] additions, or deletions to the minutes
presented.
[7:11] If not, is there a motion to the uh uh
to approve the minutes as presented?
[7:15] » No, I'll make that motion.
>> Okay. A motion to approve the minutes as
[7:18] presented. Is there a second?
>> Second.
[7:20] » Okay. A motion and a second to approve
the minutes. Any discussion hearing?
[7:23] None. All those in favor of approving
the minutes say I.
[7:25] » I.
>> Those opposed. Okay. The motion carries
[7:27] and the minutes are approved. Moving on
to updates from council. If there are
[7:31] any updates.
[7:34] All righty. Hearing and seeing none.
Moving on to the consent agenda. Four
[7:39] items there. I will remind y'all we have
item number five. Item number six by the
[7:43] purchase of a garbage truck and a street
sweeper. Any questions, comments,
[7:47] concerns?
All right. We have a motion to approve
[7:50] the consent agenda.
Make a motion. There a motion to approve
[7:54] the consent agenda. Is there a second?
>> Okay, we got a motion and a second to
[7:59] approve the consent agenda. Is there any
discussion? Hearing none. All in favor
[8:03] of approving the consent agenda. Say I.
>> Those opposed. Okay. The motion carries
[8:07] and the consent agenda is approved.
Moving into our first discussion item,
[8:12] the public evidentiary hearing for the
special use permit review for focus plus
[8:18] academy. Uh we have a screen. Okay. We
will now open the evidentiary hearing
[8:24] for the focus plus academy. The
applicant has requested a special use
[8:27] permit on the property located at 50
Library Road. The decision we made by
[8:33] some majority vote of the board. This
hearing is a quasi judicial evidentiary
[8:37] hearing. That means it is like a court
hearing. State laws and specific
[8:42] procedures and rules concerning how this
board must make his decision. The
[8:46] board's discretion is limited. The board
must base his decision upon competent,
[8:50] relevant, and substantial evidence in
the record. The quasi judicial decision
[8:54] is not based on public opinion. It must
be made in accordance with the standards
[8:58] set forth in the ordinance and grounded
in the evidence presented. If you plan
[9:02] to speak as a witness, please limit your
comments to relevant facts and
[9:05] applicable standards rather than
personal preferences or opinions.
[9:09] Participation is limited. This meeting
is open to the public. Everyone is
[9:13] welcome to watch. Parties withstanding
have rights to participate fully.
[9:17] Parties may present evidence, call
witnesses, and make legal arguments.
[9:21] Parties are limited to the applicant,
the local government, and the
[9:24] individuals who can show that they have
that they will suffer special damages.
[9:29] Other individuals may serve as witnesses
when called by the board.
[9:33] General witness testimony is limited to
facts, not opinions. For certain topics,
[9:37] this board needs to hear opinion
testimony from expert witnesses. These
[9:41] topics include projections about impacts
on the property values and projections
[9:45] about impacts of increased traffic.
Individuals providing expert opinion
[9:50] must be qualified as experts to provide
factual evidence upon which they base
[9:54] their expert opinion. Witnesses must
swear or affirm their testimony. And at
[9:59] this time, we will administer an oath
for all individuals who intend to
[10:02] provide witness testimony. So, anybody
that includes the property owners,
[10:09] Tyler,
anybody else that's going to speak?
[10:14] Good. All right. Right hand.
Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the
[10:19] evidence you shall give to the board and
this action shall be truth, the whole
[10:23] truth, and nothing but the truth?
Welcome.
[10:26] All right. Thank you.
[10:37] All righty. The parties to this case are
entitled to our impartial board. A board
[10:41] member may not participate in this
hearing if he if she or he has fixed has
[10:46] a fixed opinion about the matter, a
financial interest in the outcome of the
[10:50] matter or a close relationship with an
affected person. Does any board member
[10:54] have any partiality disclose or refusal
to offer? None. Okay.
[11:04] The parts of this case have rights for
any exparte communication to be
[11:08] disclosed. Exparte communication is any
communication about the case outside the
[11:13] hearing. That may include site visits as
well as conversations with parties,
[11:17] staff, or the general public. Does any
board member have any site visits to
[11:20] disclose?
No. Okay. Does any board member have any
[11:25] conversation or other communications to
disclose?
[11:29] No.
>> Okay. Based on disclosures we've heard
[11:31] from the board concerning the partiality
or exparte communications, does any
[11:36] board member Does any member of the
board or any party to this matter have
[11:40] an objection to our board members
participating in the hearing?
[11:45] Okay.
Then the planning is only director Tom
[11:50] will introduce this hearing. Before you
start, please confirm that you were
[11:53] sworn at the start of the hearing. Mr.
Tyler was sworn and if not we'll
[11:56] administer this vote now. Tyler was
sworn so we are good to go.
[12:02] » Thank you Tyler.
[12:26] You got it. There's a new monitor for
driver.
[12:32] You got it. Yeah, you got it. Thanks.
[12:41] Here
[12:59] we go.
[13:05] Good evening, Mr. Mayor. Uh members of
town council, I would like to formally
[13:09] submit my staff report and my
presentation into the official record.
[13:13] Uh the town has received an application
for a special use P permit from the
[13:17] Focus Plus Academy.
Subject property is located at 50
[13:21] Library Road and is an existing uh
church. It's the Fletcher uh or United
[13:27] Methodist Church. Uh the 3.9 acre
property is on C1 General Commercial.
[13:32] The applicant proposes to operate uh
Focus Plus Academy within two existing
[13:37] classrooms as a small middle and high
school with a maximum enrollment of 25
[13:41] students. No exterior changes to the
building, parking or site are proposed.
[13:48] Uh as the mayor mentioned, this is a
quasi judicial review. The decision must
[13:52] be based on competent evidence presented
during the hearing and the standards
[13:56] established in the land development code
including compatibility, traffic, uh,
[14:00] parking, utilities, public safety, and
impact on the surrounding properties.
[14:06] Uh, the property and the surrounding
commercial corridor are all zoned C1.
[14:11] Uh, residential zoning is located
farther from US 25 along Potit Street.
[14:16] Uh the site is also part of an
established civic area that includes the
[14:20] church, uh Fletcher Library, Kate and
Peaks Park. Uh schools are an allowed
[14:26] special use in C1. So therefore, no
reszoning is required.
[14:32] Uh the top left image shows the existing
interest um on the west side of the
[14:36] building that will be utilized by the
proposed school. Uh the top right image
[14:40] shows the rear parking area that will be
utilized by teachers, parents, and
[14:44] visitors associated with the proposed
school. Uh the bottom left image shows
[14:48] the existing uh park located adjacent to
the church providing a nearby
[14:53] recreational or open space amenity um if
needed by the school. And then lastly,
[14:59] the bottom right image shows the
existing signalized intersection that
[15:02] will serve as the primary access point
for the site.
[15:07] So moving moving into the plan and the
site plan um provided for this project.
[15:12] The school will occupy approximately 700
square ft of existing classroom space
[15:17] within the um church. No additions,
grading, new impervious services or
[15:23] infrastructure improvements are
proposed. Student drop off and pickup
[15:27] will separate um we'll have a separate
circulation pattern from the preschool
[15:31] with staggered schedules to minimize
conflict conflicts. uh 15 parking spaces
[15:36] are allocated to the school exceeding
the minimum requirement of just two
[15:39] spaces. A traffic impact analysis is not
required because the project is not
[15:44] expected to is is only expected to
generate about 60 daily trips. School
[15:49] hours be Monday through Friday 8:15 to
3:45 with an early demiss dismissal at
[15:55] 1:45 on Fridays.
[15:59] Uh the proposal supports the land use
plans um goal of expanding local
[16:05] educational opportunities while making
efficient use of an existing community
[16:09] facility.
Um although the property is within the
[16:14] town center business designation of the
heart of Fletcher. Um Heart of Fletcher
[16:18] design review is not required because
there are no exterior improvements,
[16:22] additions or substantial renovations
proposed with this project.
[16:26] Uh lastly, the planning board reviewed
the special use permit request at their
[16:30] July 21st regular meeting and voted 8 to
nothing to recommend approval of the
[16:34] special use permit.
I'm happy to answer any questions you
[16:38] all may have. And Jill Patterson with
Folks Plus Academy is also here and I
[16:42] believe she has a presentation to
provide y'all as well.
[16:47] Do we have any questions for Tyler
>> here in CO? Thank you, sir.
[16:53] » Thank you.
>> All right. We will now welcome the
[16:57] applicant to come up and present
evidence in support of the request. As a
[17:01] reminder, evidence and arguments must
focus upon the applicable standards. And
[17:05] then just before you begin, just state
your name and your address for the
[17:09] record and your relation to the case.
[17:44] You probably
[17:50] I did this.
>> All right, I'll let them set this up.
[17:53] » Yeah, take your time. You're you're all
good.
[17:55] » Yeah, no worries. I'm Jill Patterson. My
address is 1025 Brush Creek Road in Fair
[18:00] View
[18:04] and my IT department will get us online
here shortly. [laughter] Thank you for
[18:08] your patience. I appreciate it.
>> And then what's your relation to the to
[18:13] the case? So, I'm myself and my husband
Steve Patterson were the founders of
[18:20] Focus Plus Academy.
>> Perfect. Thank you.
[18:22] » Thank you.
Let's
[18:27] do this way.
[18:45] I can't get
you.
[18:49] » Yeah,
>> I think we might be back to
[18:52] » I have no mouse.
[18:57] I'll show you.
[19:09] Good.
[19:17] Perfect.
[19:30] Stay there.
[19:56] There we go.
>> Oh, there we go. Hooray.
[20:00] » Hang on. I don't know why it's in.
That's good. Okay.
[20:05] All right. Like I said earlier, I'm Jill
Patterson. my husband Steve Patterson
[20:09] with the founders of Focus Plus Academy.
And first I just want to say thank you
[20:13] very much for allowing us to be here
tonight, share a little information
[20:17] about the school, share some information
about our permit application, and answer
[20:21] any questions that you might have. So,
first I'd like to start with a little
[20:26] information about the school.
We are creating this school for students
[20:32] like our son and other students like him
who struggled in traditional classroom
[20:37] settings.
These are students that typically find
[20:41] success and feel confident when the
school's built for them and set up to
[20:46] support them. Specifically,
the kind of students that we're going to
[20:51] be serving, they're bright and they're
capable.
[20:54] Many of them have ADHD, executive
functioning challenges, or autism.
[21:00] And what this looks like in a classroom
are the kids who struggle to get
[21:04] started. They struggle with
organization, managing their time,
[21:08] completing their work. When they get
their work done, sometimes they just
[21:11] can't even get it turned in. It's just
hard.
[21:15] Some key details about our school. We
plan to be a low studentto staff ratio,
[21:19] five students to every one staff.
[21:23] When we launch in August, we plan to
open for grades 6 through 9. And then
[21:28] we're going to thoughtfully and
intentionally grow to grades 6 through
[21:32] 12.
And on day one when we open, we're
[21:35] already approved by the state to accept
the North Carolina scholarship funds for
[21:40] both the opportunity scholarship, which
is the scholarship for financial need,
[21:45] and the ESA plus, which is based on
disability. We can accept those funds
[21:49] from day one, which if you're not
familiar with those, those scholarship
[21:53] funds when they're awarded to families,
it helps them pay for private school
[21:57] tuition and other services. So if if
families have been awarded those, in
[22:02] some cases either their tuition can be
completely paid in full by those
[22:06] scholarship funds or significantly
reduced. So that just opens up our
[22:11] school to that many more families and
makes it available and accessible to
[22:15] families who really need it.
How we plan to support students for
[22:20] success. Our school is designed to be a
strength-based approach school. Our
[22:26] teachers will be trained in positive
teaching techniques and that's across
[22:30] the board. They'll all be certified in
the same techniques so that no matter
[22:34] which classroom the students in, they
all hear the same language and they're
[22:39] worked with in the same way.
Supports built into their school day.
[22:44] Core academics are aligned with the
North Carolina grade level standards.
[22:47] Executive functioning skills are taught
and practiced and not just expected. And
[22:51] life skills will be part of our
curriculum.
[22:55] how we plan to be compatible and low
impact with the community.
[22:59] We're going to have a maximum plan size
at this location of 25 students and up
[23:03] to six staff. If enrollment, if people
start asking about enrollment beyond
[23:08] that, we're going to cap at this
location. So, we won't go over that.
[23:12] We'll be utilizing approximately 700
square ft of existing space in the
[23:16] church. We're not anticipating any
adverse noise, glare, odor, or other
[23:21] negative impacts on the surrounding
properties.
[23:25] We've completed our boat, both the fire
and the health safety permits.
[23:29] We're projected to have low traffic
volume and we've scheduled our drop off
[23:33] and pickup times to avoid overlap with
Sunshine Preschool. So, there'll be a
[23:38] full 15 minutes between ours ending and
their starting for any kind of pickup or
[23:43] drop off minimum.
If you look at our site plan for that we
[23:49] um submitted with our application,
our circulation plan will completely
[23:54] avoid anything that Sunshine Preschool
is planning to use. So on the map here,
[23:58] Sunshine Preschool is operating in the
front of the church and it's in red and
[24:02] they use that front circular drive for
any kind of circulation that they use
[24:06] for pickup and drop off. We're proposing
to to use the back of the church. So,
[24:12] our traffic will go all the way around
to the back to drop off and pick up
[24:16] there and then come back out. So, it
completely avoids that area.
[24:21] And we want to take a minute to go
through the requirements for the nine
[24:23] special use permit criteria.
If you look at the ingress and the
[24:28] egress, we're planning to use the
existing driveway and the signal at the
[24:32] intersection. Traffic's limited and
scheduled and our operating times are
[24:37] staggered with the preschool for parking
and and impacts.
[24:42] The 15 parking places that are available
to us in the back completely exceed what
[24:47] we need at this location given the
amount of students we plan to have there
[24:51] ever.
Utilities. We're using existing
[24:54] utilities, existing buffering. We're not
proposing any new signs or lighting.
[25:00] We're using existing spaces,
landscaping, and accessways. So, the
[25:04] outside recess time is going to be on
church property.
[25:09] Buildings and structure. We're not
proposing any changes. Our hours of
[25:13] operation are weekday daytime operations
and we've submitted our required site
[25:19] plan.
So, Focus Plus Academy feels that this
[25:23] is consistent with the current Fletcher
land use plan. And if you look at the
[25:27] first goal of that being providing the
citizens of Fletcher with a quality
[25:31] environment for living, leisure,
activities, and work, you can see that
[25:35] through the fact that we're bringing in
local jobs. will create jobs and
[25:39] employment as enrollment grows.
It's a new educational option for the
[25:44] families of the community. We're
accessible to as many families as
[25:48] possible by already being approved for
the state scholarship program and being
[25:51] able to accept those funds. And this is
an efficient reuse of space, making
[25:56] productive use of existing classroom
space with no new infrastructure.
[26:00] Also, we're not anticipating any adverse
impact on the community. You can see
[26:04] that there are limited size
utilizing in existing infrastructure
[26:09] staggering our operations with the
preschool completing our inspections, no
[26:13] exterior site changes. And based on
these factors, we feel like the proposed
[26:18] use is not expected to adversely affect
nearby residents, employees, public
[26:23] welfare, surrounding properties or
public improvements. So given that we
[26:27] feel that our why this makes sense is
that our proposal combines a needed
[26:31] community resource with smallcale
operating plan that's compatible with
[26:35] the property and the surrounding areas.
So with that we respectfully request
[26:41] that the city council approve our
special use permit. We thank you for
[26:44] your time and we're happy to answer any
questions.
[26:48] » Sounds good. Do we have any questions?
>> Very thorough.
[26:53] » Yeah. Well done. Thank you. Thank you.
>> All right. Does anybody else have any
[26:57] additional questions for the the
witness? Any party withstanding?
[27:02] Do you all want to call anybody else to
speak on your behalf? I'm assuming no.
[27:06] Okay.
[27:10] All righty.
[27:14] Does the board have any more questions
for the parties or the witnesses before
[27:17] we move into deliberation?
No. Good. All right. Does any board
[27:23] member have personal knowledge of
additional facts relevant to the case
[27:26] that should be entered into the record?
No. All right. Hearing no additional
[27:31] questions or presentation of relevant
facts, the board will now begin
[27:35] deliberation. The evidentiary hearing
remains open. So the board may ask
[27:39] clarifying questions if needed. As a
reminder, this board is tasked with
[27:43] deciding if based on the evidence
presented, this this proposal meets the
[27:48] applicable standards. This decision
cannot be based on the personal
[27:52] preference of board members rather is
based on standards and evidence and
[27:57] board members are encouraged to
reference the applicable standards and
[28:00] specific evidence in a deliberation. For
this particular case, the board is asked
[28:04] to decide does the record include
competent, relevant and substantial
[28:08] evidence that the development is
consistent with article 15.10
[28:12] and that all nine required criteria for
the issuance of the special use per
[28:16] permit. All right. Now we need to make a
motion to vote and board members just be
[28:22] sure to use the suggested motion for
approval or denial of suggested
[28:26] approval. Um that part of you written by
staff. Okay. I make a motion. I move
[28:34] town council approve the special use
permit association with the
[28:38] petition finding that the proposed
development is consistent with article
[28:42] 15.10 10 to all nine or all nine
required uh criterias for the issuance
[28:49] of a special use permit has been met. Uh
the development shall be constructed in
[28:54] accordance with the approved site plan.
Okay, we have a motion for approval. Is
[28:59] there a second?
>> I'll second.
[29:01] » Okay. Motion and approve. A motion and
second for approval. Is there any
[29:04] discussion hearing? None. All in favor
of approval say I.
[29:08] » I.
>> Those opposed. Okay. The motion is
[29:10] carried and staff will draft and I will
sign a final written decision to reflect
[29:13] the vote and reason for his decision.
That written decision will be provided
[29:17] to the applicant and other parties with
a right to such notice. Parties have 30
[29:21] days to approve this decision. Approved.
Congratulations.
[29:30] All righty. Then moving on to discussion
item number eight, the report on
[29:35] performance measures. I know we went
over this last week, so maybe just
[29:39] » a very high high level.
>> Uh so yeah, I I went over in depth the
[29:46] uh progress on our 6 months of activity
under established uh performance
[29:53] measures and this is something that was
established about a year and a half ago
[29:58] and it been some time since we had an
update on it. So I wanted to uh
[30:04] basically went through summary data from
all departments and you know unless you
[30:09] have any other questions on it. I I know
there was a couple follow-up things. Um
[30:17] I think on one of the performance
measures with uh public works on the
[30:23] fleet being completed, repairs on fleet
maintenance.
[30:29] um
and that was back on uh 90% of the fleet
[30:34] repairs being completed within 3 days of
work orders submitted. We've had no
[30:39] problem achieving that. You see it was
99%. I did have a conversation with our
[30:46] um public works director and it's we
feel still an attainable goal at this
[30:52] time or does not put an undue hardship
on them u meeting that and if that
[30:57] changes you know we'll let you know and
these will continue to be things that
[31:02] are um updated u and revised and again
the whole point of this is just to stay
[31:12] on task to um maintain a high standard
of performance in these services um that
[31:19] that our departments provide uh to the
public to the town
[31:24] um and I think that was it
any highle comments any questions
[31:33] comments very well done
>> thank you yeah and I I commend them uh
[31:39] again back to some of the comments I
made I I I I I'd like to think we
[31:45] maintain a high standard of service and
this is just to kind of um stay on task
[31:51] but also demonstrate um uh some of the
things that are happening in an
[31:57] efficient you know effective way. So and
we'll continue to monitor this and
[32:02] revise it as needed and also feedback
from you all and the public.
[32:09] » All right, sounds good. Oh, well done
everybody on that. Uh, moving in to our
[32:15] final discussion item, the update on the
Kang Creek Greenway extension project.
[32:19] Okay. So, last week I went over the uh
revised timeline that Miguel Associates
[32:26] had provided and again uh we're going to
be extending the greenway trail um
[32:33] leaving the park going west
uh coming across the Fernle Leaf
[32:38] property and then going um under uh the
Highway 25 bridge and coming up around
[32:46] and then continuing west along the Cane
Creek. So on the that south side of the
[32:54] Cane Creek, um they've completed the
concept on this. We're a little bit
[33:01] behind on some of the milestones to get
this get through environmental review
[33:08] and design and then ultimately get this
to bid. We've got the funding sources in
[33:13] place. Um but in order to do those
middle sections there um we got to
[33:20] finalize some of the um either easement
or property. And just just a quick
[33:26] update on that, we're we think we're
pretty close with the uh we're trying to
[33:31] work on an acquisition piece with the
Charlie Owen property. It's titled this
[33:36] Sorco property. So that's the the one
right before the section of land that
[33:42] the town owns there across from Cumins.
Um
[33:47] the uh I just sent back the final
version. We had a whole bunch of
[33:52] comments suggestions from our
engineering firm on it, but it's it's a
[33:56] little less than 3 acres of land. It
will um keep an easement on there so
[34:03] that Mr. growing can get access to that
for as long as he farms the rest of the
[34:08] property there um that that is being
farmed. Some of it's in a kind of
[34:14] industrial use at that south end of it.
Um so we're hoping we're very close on
[34:20] that. We we got to get that finalized
before we can get approval on permits.
[34:25] And so that's what's holding this up a
little bit. It just takes time going
[34:29] back and forth negotiating on this. But
we think we're we're pretty close. I'm
[34:34] hoping in next if he's fine with that
and there's no other changes maybe in
[34:39] next month coming back with some type of
action about acquiring um that track
[34:45] that we need. Uh and then on the um
Fernley side um talked to the
[34:51] administrator Mr. up low and they seem
comfortable with it as it's surveyed
[34:57] right now and we'll be seeking an
easement across there. Um, this first
[35:03] part of the project just uses that
section across Fernle Leaf as a bid
[35:09] alternate. So, if our bids come in good,
we have about an 800,000 budget right
[35:13] now. We'll try and do that section, but
that may be done at a later time. We'll
[35:19] be getting that center section on the
town property and Sorakco property um
[35:25] completed if bids come in fine all that.
Um, and then on the schedule it once we
[35:32] finalize that, we're looking to get the
environmental review done hopefully no
[35:37] later than October
um final design by into the March
[35:45] realistically, excuse me, realistically
probably into the November, December to
[35:50] finalize design, get that ready to be
let for bid end of the year, first of of
[35:58] um of 2027 or January have that um bid
out and then if you're comfortable with
[36:06] the final lowest responsible bid um we
would move forward somewhere in the
[36:13] February March hopefully starting work
on it and it shouldn't take a terribly
[36:19] long uh period of time to do it. It's
fairly straightforward forward work of
[36:26] just establishing the trail and base.
There's no paving. This is a soft trail
[36:31] at this point or gravel. And then the
goal is to come back and ultimately with
[36:36] additional paving pave the whole area.
So So that's that's kind of where we're
[36:42] at. I don't know if there's any
questions about it.
[36:45] » We have any questions for more comments?
Sure.
[36:49] » Well, thank y'all for for working on
that and especially with such
[36:52] emergencies grant monies and you said
we're safe with that. So,
[36:56] » and and we'd like to we're trying to
move this along as quickly as possible.
[37:00] I I know that the timeline I submitted
to y'all previously. We're we're behind
[37:05] on that and you know this is a suggested
timeline
[37:09] » by our engineer that's probably
realistic. Um, but anything we can do to
[37:14] accelerate or condense that down, we're
trying to
[37:18] » move that forward cuz longer it takes,
nothing gets cheaper
[37:23] to business.
>> Well, excellent work by y'all. So, we
[37:27] appreciate it.
>> Thank you.
[37:28] » All right, moving on to your town
manager report.
[37:31] » Okay. Um, I mentioned last week on the
Town Center project,
[37:38] uh, with Lewis Real Estate Group, um,
they want to engage a a land planner to
[37:44] rea re-evaluate the site. They've
started that process. They're work, um,
[37:50] they're working on getting a quote and
then a budget and timeline for that. And
[37:56] we'll come back and present that to
staff. And then at that point, we would
[38:01] be talking to you all about it if you're
comfortable. Probably have them present
[38:06] to you. Um because if you do, if you
move forward with that, we've got some
[38:11] other interests I'll talk about in a
second here as well. Um, we'd probably
[38:17] have to do some type of at least formal
engagement with them since they'd be
[38:22] expending a fair amount of money to
basically update the uses and market,
[38:28] you know, likelihood for for the
different things we'd like to see done
[38:33] on the property. Um, so they said in the
next two weeks they have that together.
[38:40] So, we'll review review review at the
staff level and then get that to you as
[38:44] as soon as we can.
So, I don't know if there's any
[38:48] questions on that. And then we we've got
a couple other entities um evaluating
[38:55] the site that I've mentioned. Um we're
meeting with one Wednesday that wants to
[39:01] talk about a potential site plan. Uh and
then another group um that's they
[39:08] haven't set up the meeting but they're
and it's one that's got a like an anchor
[39:13] large anchor tenant but they they're
trying to site plan all of our property.
[39:18] Remember it's 49 acres that we that's
including the tract on Highway 25. So
[39:25] those are out there and we want to give
them the shot to compete on this as you
[39:32] know we feel comfortable with concept
and what they may need from the town and
[39:38] what they think they can do on the
property. So um we'll keep these moving
[39:43] forward to you for your evaluation.
>> Sounds good. Thank y'all for work on
[39:49] that.
>> Yeah. Yep.
[39:51] Um and then uh I was last week I
mentioned something about the library
[39:56] project and our efforts to you know
re-engage with the county on it. Um
[40:01] again we're trying to work closely with
them for a joint project to get this
[40:06] built on the town center property. Uh
they have I've talked to you about a
[40:11] memorandum of understanding that they're
working on. I'm waiting for that back
[40:15] from them. It it is in process.
Um, I'm anticipating receiving that any
[40:22] time. They also have sent out a request
for qualifications for an architect for
[40:28] the project and uh later this week I'll
be meeting at a meeting where they'll be
[40:34] evaluating proposals that have been
submitted. So, that's in process. That's
[40:40] good. We're making some progress there
and um I'll keep you updated on that.
[40:45] Um,
I know I mentioned last week a a traffic
[40:50] safety improvement issue. Um, the uh
intersection there where Old Airport
[40:57] Road comes into 25 and the left turn
movement into the Engles parking lot.
[41:05] Um, in the past we've had a lot of
accidents there when it was just the
[41:10] flashing yellow. I don't know if we had
any solid green movement. I think there
[41:14] was some some parts of the day a couple
years ago sent him a bunch DOT a bunch
[41:19] of traffic data on that accident data to
the police department put together
[41:25] um that helped to give at least a
dedicated block of time where it was um
[41:34] use the incorrect traffic term for it
but like a dedicated
[41:39] » um movement there solid green arrow as
we would know But um that's helped but
[41:46] it's still as as we all know a difficult
intersection to navigate and at times
[41:53] dangerous. So um we've re approached
them again the traffic engineer there.
[42:00] They had asked for any more traffic
accident data. Um police department has
[42:05] put that together and sending that to
them or have sent that to them. um and
[42:11] you know waiting for their evaluation. I
mean our preference for just public
[42:16] safety reasons would be to have that as
you know dedicated
[42:21] » solid green. I mean there may be parts
like late at night. Sure.
[42:25] » You know really early in the morning
where it's safe with the flashing yellow
[42:29] but
>> there's quite a few other times it's
[42:31] just
>> the line of sight issues are are tough
[42:35] to navigate there and the speeds. So,
um, so that's what's going on with that.
[42:41] And we just I know the police had just
put that together. Um, and let's see,
[42:48] couple other things. The, um, y'all
approved the, um, stream bank repair
[42:55] monies to try and fix that section that
runs really close to our greenway there
[43:00] at the park. Um, the contractor has
mobilized the site. If you've been in
[43:05] the park just recently, you can see all
the rock that's there and they've fenced
[43:10] off the area. They had a um I wasn't at
the meeting, but some of our staff was
[43:16] there last week um for like a
pre-construction. They think once they
[43:21] get in there and start it, which I
thought it was going to be this maybe
[43:24] the rains thrown it off and the water
levels, but um about a week roughly to
[43:30] get that done. So, um, looking forward
to getting that complete.
[43:35] Um, and then I didn't have this on the
list, but in light of some of the
[43:39] comments, I'll just mention on the mural
project. I think I emailed you all about
[43:45] this, but I talked to Karen E. Bane with
Steep, the agency that's taking the lead
[43:50] on facilitating this.
Um, she's had some communication with
[43:56] the land owner of uh the feed and seed
building.
[44:01] um initially interest on it there. Um he
does have some concerns about potential
[44:08] damage to the building
uh if you you know attach even a vinyl
[44:14] um mural to it. So she's trying to um
have a expert or someone she's used with
[44:23] brick and mortar to basically try and
ensure that it can be done in a way not
[44:28] to damage the building and and preserve
that. Um so she's trying to facilitate a
[44:35] meeting about that. Um and also just
talking to anyone that you know can
[44:42] garner support for this. So that is in
process with some communications with
[44:48] the land owner. Um and then the other
site the by the foam and fabric. Um
[44:55] Karen has talked to the property owner.
They're out of town. Um they had some
[45:02] interest but they wanted her to talk to
the owner or operator of the phone in
[45:08] fabric building itself or the business.
and she's in the process of
[45:14] communicating with them or trying to
meet with them to um pitch the project.
[45:21] Um it it it is I don't know if you all
remember it does encroach um public
[45:26] works was able to verify that that wall
is at least part of it in DOT right
[45:32] away. There is a way to get that done.
initially were no, but you can appeal
[45:38] that up the chain of command there. She
had uh Karen's dealt with that with
[45:44] another project with DOT and was able to
get that through and I I just offered
[45:48] any way the town can help and um
submitting that up through DOT that we
[45:55] would do that. Um so that's kind of
where we're at. Um
[46:01] again, anyone you know knows our
property owner there at the feed and
[46:05] seed that um can speak to the merits of
considering this is helpful.
[46:10] » Yeah.
>> Um so same thing over at the phone
[46:14] fabric. That's that's their biggest
challenge in getting these things done
[46:18] and off the ground is
>> making sure the property owner is
[46:21] comfortable with it and they feel you
know that their property is not damaged
[46:26] at all or enhanced too. I mean it it
will be should be a nice you know
[46:32] aesthetic focal point type of thing.
>> Yeah.
[46:36] » And perhaps in the event that neither of
those locations work out we might ought
[46:41] to just have some other there's not a
lot of other locations.
[46:45] » Not a lot. We had one I had someone
suggest one the other day that maybe it
[46:50] might be a possibility.
>> Okay. Yeah. Maybe just keep that back of
[46:53] them on in case
>> or we put up a new building.
[46:57] » Yeah. building a mural building. Um,
>> but yeah, that's kind of where we are.
[47:04] » Okay.
>> What questions do we have for Mark?
[47:07] » I appreciate your work.
>> Yeah, thank you.
[47:10] » I, you know, kudos to Karen Karen E Bane
is working hard on this. So, and I
[47:15] appreciate her follow I I had on my list
to contact her and she called me first
[47:20] last week.
And then I'll just ask you in in
[47:24] reference to what Miss Balo brought up.
I I didn't see any I didn't drive over
[47:29] there so I missed a runoff or whatever
it could be. But that very well could be
[47:33] the case. But I do know some years ago
we did try to reduce the speed limit
[47:37] coming through here, didn't we?
>> We did.
[47:40] » I bring that up again with DOT. Uh it it
and it you know it was in support of our
[47:47] town center efforts and we did all the
uh streetscape or highway highway 25
[47:54] corridor lighting and redoing the
sidewalks and brick and bringing the
[47:58] lanes in. Um and we asked at that time
to consider
[48:04] uh lowering the speed limit. We were
kind of put off by DOT and I
[48:08] understandably with I26 all opening up.
>> Yeah.
[48:13] » Um so maybe they're in a place to be
considering this again. So that's Yeah,
[48:18] I know. One of the things and I know
there was storm water runoff. We can
[48:21] bring that
>> Yeah.
[48:22] » to all the things that were brought up
though are do D do D do D do D do D do D
[48:26] do D do D do D do D do jurisdictional
>> it might be worthwhile to bring up some
[48:30] of those items. How does everybody feel
about the speed limit piece? Do we have
[48:34] strong feelings about that?
I I would be okay with a 35 justific.
[48:40] » Yeah. For this section, just thinking
about our town center project, I mean,
[48:44] it it's going to happen eventually. They
want to be safe as possible. So, I'm not
[48:47] opposed to making that.
>> Yeah. I I think when I approached him
[48:52] years ago about it, like trying to go
down to 35.
[48:56] » Yeah. Um, and I know it it's a bit of a
hardship or pain for, you know,
[49:04] commuters coming through here, but you
know, we're going to do this and do it
[49:08] try and do it as safely as possible,
encourage
[49:11] » a higher level of comfort. Of course, if
there's additional improvements done on
[49:15] 25 that
>> make that safer, like rounded bouts,
[49:20] things like that,
>> um, that helps. But no, we we've I I
[49:26] requested that of them several years
back.
[49:29] » Sure. Um and then the last piece on that
was there any traffic study done when
[49:35] the new apartments and the pending
commercial piece on the front of the
[49:39] property?
>> I don't know. I we can check with DOT,
[49:43] but I if it was required, it would be
done. Yeah, it's based on the number of
[49:49] trips that are generated to the site.
And I know it's an estimate.
[49:54] » Sure.
>> Um once it goes over that threshold,
[49:58] then DOT requires a traffic impact
analysis to be done. So I don't they
[50:04] might had to do one for the apartment
building.
[50:08] » Okay. Um at this point
probably not for the we have the cough
[50:15] the
>> yeah
[50:17] coffee but
>> I mean I know the rest there's a lot of
[50:20] other mixed use in there then that can
trigger it but the one by itself
[50:25] probably I mean I I doubt it. I'm
looking at Tyler, but I I would Yeah.
[50:31] » Yeah,
>> I would doubt it.
[50:32] » The trigger is normally like 3500 trips.
>> Okay. So, there's near an interchange,
[50:37] that's a trigger. If it's 3,500 trips or
more, that's a trigger. And also, if um
[50:44] you're near a stiff project, a bridge,
that's also a trigger that would not be
[50:50] close enough
to trigger a tone for that size.
[50:58] » Okay. And even and I may be misspeaking
on this, but even apartment complexes
[51:03] don't
>> it's not constant. I mean, you'll have
[51:07] some peak periods of, you know, like
rush hour
[51:13] » not as much as kind of the
>> conjures up some of the comments out
[51:18] there. So,
>> sure.
[51:20] » All right.
>> I agree if we acquire about the 35 mph.
[51:23] » Yeah, I think we can at least inquire
about that. Just give me a couple more
[51:26] seconds to dash out in front of
somebody.
[51:30] [laughter]
[51:33] » All righty. Any other questions,
comments?
[51:36] » All right. Any other business from
council? All right. Do we have a motion
[51:40] to adjurnn?
>> Motion.
[51:41] » Okay. Motion to adjurnn. Is there a
second?
[51:43] » Second.
>> Okay. Motion a second to adjourn. Any
[51:45] discussion? Hearing none. All in favor
for journey say I. I. Those opposed.