[1:53] Appropriate funding for it. Good evening.

[1:56] Would like to welcome everyone to our regular session agenda

[2:00] for Monday, September the 14th, 2026, of Elizabeth City

[2:04] City Council. Would like to welcome everyone.

[2:07] At this time, we're going to ask if everyone will please stand, as we will have

[2:11] Councilwoman Cartwright to lead us in the pledge of allegiance after the

[2:15] invocation, which will be given by Councilman Gibbs.

[2:18] Paul may retire.

[2:23] Let's pray.

[2:25] Heavenly Father, we bless you and thank you, God, for this time and this

[2:27] opportunity that you've provided for us to come and serve the citizens, Lord.

[2:31] Ask, God, that you'll be with us as we go through the agenda, Lord.

[2:34] Ask, God, that you'll give us guidance and direction and wisdom, Lord God, as we

[2:37] discuss items on the agenda for tonight.

[2:39] Thank you for each one that is here on tonight, Lord God.

[2:41] We just ask, God, that you will cover this city, that you protect us, God, you

[2:45] would give us knowledge and understanding and wisdom, Lord God, in all

[2:49] things. Lord, help us to make informed decisions, God.

[2:51] Sometimes they may be tough, but help us always look for what's the best

[2:55] interest of the citizens of Elizabeth City.

[2:58] In Jesus Christ's name I pray, amen.

[3:00] Amen.

[3:02] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of

[3:06] America, and to the Republic for which it stands,

[3:11] one Nation under God, indivisible, with

[3:14] liberty and justice for all.

[3:19] Go ahead and leave it. Let me pick up this one.

[3:23] Would like to welcome everyone who may be watching us on the World

[3:27] Wide Web, those who are watching us through Channel 11, and those who are

[3:31] in attendance at our city council meeting.

[3:35] As always, I'm excited. I'm excited because we have our youth

[3:39] in the

[3:40] building, in our chambers, and whenever I see our youth doing great, it

[3:44] gives me great excitement. So I feed off of their energy,

[3:48] and because of their energy. So we're excited to have you in our chambers.

[3:53] Join us for our city council meeting.

[3:55] Council, you have in front of you your agenda.

[3:59] I would ask that you would allow me to add on Item E,

[4:03] employee retirement, Paul Perry,

[4:07] added adoption of resolution to award gun and badge,

[4:12] proclamation, Alpha

[4:14] Delta Kappa Month,

[4:18] and Parks and Rec summer camp recognition.

[4:22] Under the consent agenda, I would ask that you would allow adopt the

[4:26] resolution approving tentative award of water well

[4:30] improvement projects, and under the regular agenda,

[4:34] authorize additional side work

[4:37] under the Water Street Transformation Project.

[4:42] And

[4:43] council, do you have any other additions or deletions?

[4:46] Just like to add under closed session,

[4:50] a land acquisition.

[4:53] That would be closed session.

[4:55] And also, another item for

[4:57] consultation with city attorney.

[4:59] Okay. So that will be added to the closed session.

[5:03] Mr. Mayor?

[5:04] Yes.

[5:05] I'd like to add, consideration for

[5:08] amendment to the budget ordinance, and I'd like to make that

[5:12] Item 12.

[5:14] Item 12. Okay.

[5:15] And make adjournment 13, if possible.

[5:20] So move, that sounds great.

[5:22] Any other additions or deletions?

[5:26] We've no other additions or deletions.

[5:28] Council,

[5:29] what's the pleasure?

[5:31] Motion to approve with the necessary changes.

[5:33] Second.

[5:34] Motion been properly made, second.

[5:35] All in favor, let me know by saying "Aye."

[5:37] Aye.

[5:38] Opposed? Motion so carried. Next, as

[5:42] we go to

[5:47] Hunger Action Day.

[5:51] Do we have anyone here to receive?

[5:54] Okay, we ask you come right to the

[5:57] podium

[6:00] Proclamation. Hunger Action Day in Elizabeth City,

[6:04] North Carolina, September the 29th, 2006.

[6:08] Whereas Feeding America is the nation's leading domestic

[6:12] hunger relief organization with a mission to feed and

[6:16] advocate for America's hungry through a nationwide network of

[6:20] member food banks. And whereas the Food Bank of the

[6:24] Albemarle is a member of Feeding America and fights

[6:27] hunger and poverty in 15 northeastern North

[6:31] Carolina counties, working with more than 100 local

[6:35] hunger relief partners to distribute food to the

[6:39] hungry. And whereas both the Food Bank of the

[6:42] Albemarle and Feeding America seek to engage our

[6:46] citizens locally, statewide, and nationally in the

[6:50] fight to end hunger.

[6:53] And whereas the number of people in the Albemarle area

[6:56] who need assistance is more than

[6:59] 44,440, as

[7:03] reflected in more households in poverty and more

[7:07] individuals being unemployed. And whereas

[7:11] the fight against hunger is a fight that concerns

[7:15] each one of us, especially our citizens

[7:19] here in the Albemarle area and in the city of Elizabeth City.

[7:24] Now, therefore, be it resolved that I, E.

[7:27] Kirk Rivers, Mayor of the City of Elizabeth City,

[7:31] do hereby proclaim September the 29th,

[7:35] 2026 as Hunger Action

[7:38] Day in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

[7:41] And encourage our citizens

[7:44] to join the fight to end hunger by

[7:48] volunteering with the Food Bank of the Albemarle,

[7:52] by learning more about hunger in our communities, by spreading

[7:56] awareness of hunger during September's Hunger Action

[8:00] Month, and by taking action on Hunger

[8:04] Action Day. Proclaim this the 14th day of September

[8:08] 2026. April Only, City Clerk, E.

[8:12] Kirk Rivers, Mayor. And we present this and with recognition that

[8:16] our citizens would do more, that we can help the numbers

[8:20] and improve or make those numbers go down.

[8:24] So we ask please come forward.

[8:29] Thank you so much. Okay. All

[8:33] right.

[8:49] I'd just like to thank everyone for this acknowledgement of Hunger Action Day.

[8:54] We recognize it as a day during Hunger Action Month in September.

[8:58] But,

[8:59] as you mentioned, Mayor, the needs of our city and

[9:03] our county and the region that the Food Bank of the Albemarle serves,

[9:07] it's

[9:08] every day. So, we hope that everyone can

[9:12] visit our website, afoodbank.org.

[9:14] You can find out how you can get involved, how you can volunteer, how you can

[9:18] become an advocate to help change the state of hunger. Thank you.

[9:21] Thank you.

[9:29] Constitution Week.

[9:33] Yes, come right up to the podium.

[9:36] Here.

[9:41] Proclamation. Constitution Week, September the 17th through

[9:45] the 23rd, 2026. Whereas the

[9:49] Constitution of the United States of America embodies the principles

[9:53] of limited government in a republic dedicated to the rule by

[9:57] law. And whereas the aims of Constitution Week are to

[10:01] emphasize citizens' responsibilities for

[10:04] protecting and defending the Constitution and

[10:08] preserving it for posterity, to inform the people

[10:12] that the Constitution is the basis for America's heritage

[10:16] and the foundation for the American way of life, and to

[10:19] encourage the study of the historical events which led

[10:23] to the framing of the Constitution in September

[10:27] 1787.

[10:30] And whereas September the 17th,

[10:33] 2026 marks the

[10:35] 239th anniversary of the

[10:39] drafting of the Constitution by the Constitutional

[10:42] Convention. And whereas it is fitting and proper to

[10:46] afford official recognition to this magnificent

[10:49] document and its memorable

[10:53] anniversary and to the patriotic celebrations which will

[10:56] commemorate the occasion. And whereas Public Law

[11:00] 915 guarantees the issuing of a proclamation

[11:04] each year by the President of the United States of America

[11:08] designating September the 17th through the

[11:11] 23rd as Constitution Week. Now,

[11:14] therefore, I, E. Kirk Rivers, Mayor of the City of Elizabeth City,

[11:18] do hereby proclaim September the 17th

[11:22] through September the 23rd, 2026 to

[11:26] be Constitution Week in Elizabeth City, North

[11:30] Carolina. And ask all citizens to

[11:33] reaffirm the ideas

[11:36] that the framers of the Constitution had in

[11:38] 1787 by vigilantly protecting

[11:42] the freedoms guaranteed to us through this guardian

[11:46] of liberties, remembering that lost rights may never be

[11:50] regained. Proclaim this the 14th day of

[11:53] September 2026. April Only, City Clerk,

[11:58] Mayor E. Kirk Rivers, Mayor.

[12:33] On behalf

[12:35] of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Virginia Dare

[12:38] Chapter,

[12:40] and the Roanoke Tar-Rous Indians of Dare County, we

[12:44] thank you.

[12:46] As many of you may have forgotten, Constitution Week

[12:50] is a traditional time for us,

[12:54] which we have really almost have forgotten.

[12:58] We're asking you to please encourage your

[13:02] educators to spend more time

[13:06] teaching the children about our founding documents,

[13:10] which are so important for the formation of

[13:14] this United States of America.

[13:17] I remember as a child,

[13:20] I had to recite and learn the preamble to the

[13:23] Constitution. And you ask a child

[13:27] nowadays, they want to know, "What are you talking about?"

[13:31] So

[13:32] we have to do some work.

[13:35] They need to know about the Declaration of Independence,

[13:40] the preamble, the Constitution, and also

[13:43] understand the importance of the Bill of Rights.

[13:49] So I'm not here to preach to you this evening.

[13:52] I just say to you, come out wherever

[13:56] you are, and on September the 17th at

[14:00] 4:00, ring a bell.

[14:03] Ring the bell for justice and freedom.

[14:07] We need that reminder. Thank you.

[14:17] International Alpha Delta Kappa

[14:20] Month.

[14:31] Whereas Alpha Delta Kappa, an

[14:35] international honorary sorority for women educators,

[14:39] is observing Alpha Delta Kappa Month during the month of

[14:43] October. And whereas women in education

[14:47] constitute a great portion of the nation's working

[14:51] force and are constantly striving to serve their communities

[14:55] and nation in education, cultural, and

[14:59] charitable programs leading to harmony,

[15:03] happiness, and peace among all people.

[15:06] Whereas Alpha Delta Kappa is dedicated to educational

[15:10] excellence, leadership, and world understanding and

[15:13] recognizes outstanding women educators who have actively

[15:17] engaged in teaching, administration, or in some

[15:21] specialized field of the teaching profession.

[15:24] And whereas the local Gamma Iota chapter of

[15:28] Alpha Delta Kappa is engaged in promoting education and

[15:32] charitable projects and activities, sponsoring scholarships,

[15:36] and furthering and maintaining worthy standards in the field of

[15:40] education at the local and state level.

[15:43] Now, therefore, I, E. Kirk Rivers, Mayor of the City of Elizabeth City,

[15:47] do hereby proclaim the month of October 2026

[15:51] as International Alpha Delta Kappa Month

[15:55] in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, and I encourage all

[15:58] citizens to join me in saluting this

[16:02] organization for its fine record of service to

[16:06] our community. Proclaim this the 14th day of September

[16:10] 2026.

[16:12] April Only, city clerk. E. Kirk Rivers, mayor, Elizabeth City,

[16:16] North Carolina.

[16:37] Mr. Mayor and city council members, the Gamma Iota

[16:41] chapter of Alpha Delta Kappa would like to thank you for this

[16:44] proclamation in recognizing October as

[16:48] Alpha Delta Kappa Month. Again, we are an international

[16:52] organization of both retired and active

[16:55] teachers. I'm looking forward to presenting this proclamation

[16:59] at our October meeting and for serving our

[17:03] community again this year. So thank you so much.

[17:06] Thank you.

[17:12] Next, we're going to ask if the

[17:14] SRO,

[17:16] SROs, and the sheriff will please come forward.

[17:20] And as they're coming forward,

[17:23] I would like to recognize

[17:26] Lieutenant Wallace,

[17:29] Farr,

[17:31] Sergeant Anthony Alexander,

[17:33] Corporal Jeremy Burkett and Jesse Burkett,

[17:38] Deputy E. Goddard, Deputy C. Skorupa,

[17:42] Deputy T. Goldsmith, Deputy I. Jordan,

[17:47] Deputy R. Godfrey, Deputy D. White,

[17:51] Deputy Perry. And if I missed any

[17:55] SROs, we do apologize. But we want to recognize

[17:59] the SROs for an outstanding job

[18:03] working with our youth at our summer camp, the Elizabeth

[18:07] City Parks and Rec, Director Williams.

[18:11] When I showed up for the closing

[18:15] Event,

[18:16] you were cooking.

[18:18] You were serving.

[18:20] When we showed up to do-- The young students,

[18:23] they were planning the end of the year

[18:27] ceremony. You were sitting at the back table.

[18:30] And we just want to recognize you for

[18:34] being in our community, being a part of our youth,

[18:38] making sure that we show leadership to our young people, and guiding them in

[18:42] the right way. And I always believe, and I truly say this when it comes to the city

[18:46] of Elizabeth City, it takes a village to raise our

[18:50] children. And when we continue to work together, they see the village

[18:54] and know that they are part of greatness.

[18:56] So we want to take this time and we have presented to you,

[19:01] the city of Elizabeth City, North Carolina,

[19:04] presents. This certifies that the

[19:07] SROs are awarded the Mayor's

[19:11] Certificate of Recognition. On behalf of the City Council

[19:15] of the City of Elizabeth City, we thank you for your assistance

[19:19] and unwavering support

[19:21] this summer for our kids, our camps, and

[19:25] communities are lucky to have such a dedicated

[19:29] team in our corner. Given this, the 14th day of

[19:33] September 26, signed April Only, City

[19:37] Clerk, E. Kirk Rivers, Mayor of Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

[19:42] Thank you.

[19:42] Thank you,

[19:44] sir.

[19:50] Can you get this for me?

[19:53] Sure.

[19:56] Thank you, sir.

[19:57] Just right here.

[19:58] Yeah.

[20:03] Okay. All right. One, two, one,

[20:07] two. Right to the podium this time.

[20:17] I'll just be very brief. Thank you.

[20:19] I want to say thank you to the city of Elizabeth City for recognizing the hard work

[20:22] that the school resource officers put in for the last eight years.

[20:26] When I transitioned them, like we spoke about, from just going on patrol

[20:30] to going in the community to keep that cycle of...

[20:34] You know what cycle I'm talking about, trying to keep the kids out of trouble,

[20:37] basically. So, keeping them busy during the summer, I believe, is paramount.

[20:42] And I'm still going to stand on the foundation of investing in our youth is

[20:46] very important. So these men and women work 40, 50,

[20:50] 60 hours a week, every week, all summer long. And I'm very proud of them.

[20:53] And again, thank you. Thank you to the SROs, and I appreciate the recognition.

[21:04] Honorable Mayor, distinguished Council, I just want to take a moment to say that we

[21:07] are overly excited of being recognized for what it is that we willfully love to do

[21:11] for our kids and our community. We are the school resource officers that are in the

[21:14] school system. We engage probably 5,000 kids every day in

[21:18] one of your schools. We are hoping and looking forward to do more and more

[21:22] engagement in your community and our community, and we're hoping to build more

[21:25] partnerships to make sure that we inspire our children and our students about

[21:29] leadership, morals, and just being great kids and being positive in

[21:33] our community. So I'd like to say, again, thank you so much.

[21:36] Thank you, God, for this opportunity.

[21:38] And we appreciate anything that we can do to help make this city even better,

[21:42] we're willing to do. So thank you very much.

[21:44] Thank you.

[21:48] Thank you, and we appreciate the continued partnership, looking forward to working

[21:51] together.

[21:53] And as you've just heard from our SROs, they talked

[21:57] about our

[21:59] youth. And

[22:02] our youth are here. And it's exciting because of what

[22:06] they have accomplished

[22:08] right here in our great city. And I'm excited when you see these

[22:12] red,

[22:14] I'm going to say, T-shirts or their paraphernalia,

[22:19] but it gives me great pride to ask for the Elizabeth City

[22:23] Rowing Club to come forward.

[22:37] Right there.

[22:38] Mm-hmm.

[22:38] Everybody.

[22:49] And this is everyone who's part of the rowing club.

[22:51] I want every- I didn't know if you wanted us all. Everybody.

[22:53] I didn't know if you wanted- Yes, I want everybody.

[22:55] Are you part of the rowing club?

[23:00] You're going to have to squeeze through. You have to move out the way. Right there.

[23:01] I'm going to bring them up right after I talk about-

[23:03] All right. That's right, everybody. See?

[23:05] I want everyone to see our greatness- Some of us are there ...

[23:08] in the city of Elizabeth City.

[23:13] And to all of our citizens as they are coming forward.

[23:18] Within this great group that we have of rowers,

[23:23] they actively use our Pasquotank River.

[23:27] They utilize God's gift to us, and they are out rowing in the

[23:31] morning and the evening, practicing

[23:34] when it's hot outside and humid outside.

[23:36] They're gliding across the water.

[23:40] And this group right here, as you would see, says Elizabeth

[23:44] City Rowing Club. They represent us great.

[23:47] And we have national

[23:50] winners. And so all the national winners, raise your gold medal up.

[23:55] And they're from bronze.

[24:01] And we have first place winners. So we're excited.

[24:04] We want to let you know that we continue to support you.

[24:08] And as I thought the season may be over, they let me know that

[24:12] we have those that will now be representing us in China.

[24:16] And they're going to be gone for 10 days, October the 21st,

[24:20] I think, is the

[24:22] October 21st

[24:23] Oh, wow.

[24:24] And so they will be representing the United States.

[24:27] So they now have a larger territory that they

[24:31] represent, but to know that you're right here from our

[24:35] great city of Elizabeth City, and you're continuing to do great things.

[24:39] So to continue with the team, it's all about team

[24:43] concept, and we will be cheering for you.

[24:45] We want you to know that your city is behind you.

[24:48] I will be listening, waiting for

[24:52] Ms. Terry Berry to tell me the great results, but we're proud

[24:56] of you, and we want you to keep pushing.

[24:58] Next year we want more winning with the nationals.

[25:01] We want more representing the United

[25:06] States over wherever it may be. But you have our true support,

[25:10] and it gives me great pride and privilege to be able to present

[25:13] this to the Elizabeth City Rowing Club, and we present this as a team

[25:18] because we are one team. The city of Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

[25:22] This certifies that the Elizabeth City Rowing

[25:26] Club is awarded the Mayor's Certificate of

[25:29] Recognition on behalf of the City Council of the

[25:33] City of Elizabeth City, North Carolina,

[25:36] in honor of your outstanding achievements

[25:40] and dedication. Congratulations, and may

[25:44] even greater success be awaiting you

[25:48] in the distance. Given this, the 14th day of September

[25:52] 2026, April Only, city clerk, Mayor E.

[25:56] Kirk Rivers, sixth Mayor of Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

[26:04] Okay.

[26:06] Whole team come around.

[26:08] Here we go.

[26:11] And all four of you round the...

[26:17] Come over this side.

[26:19] He hadn't had everybody. He hadn't. He got to go up front.

[26:23] Now, those who are going to China, raise your hand. I want everyone to see.

[26:28] Raise it high.

[26:29] That's right.

[26:29] We've got one who's in college.

[26:31] One.

[26:32] She'll go there from her college.

[26:33] And so we're participating in three events representing the United States of

[26:37] America. So we're excited. So now

[26:40] everyone's in place.

[26:43] Okay. We'll give the two of you-

[26:44] Sorry

[26:45] Yeah. Hold it.

[26:46] We'll go right there, and he's going to tell us what to do.

[26:53] Number five. Number three ladies.

[26:55] Y'all mind getting in front of the balloons right there?

[26:59] The computer is-

[27:06] ... here.

[27:09] Right there. Right there. Sounds good.

[27:12] All right.

[27:13] Y'all three, don't mind stepping up forward just a tad bit.

[27:17] Everybody scooch down. Scooch over some

[27:23] more. Right there.

[27:25] Ready for it. Step out on it.

[27:30] Switch out the-

[27:31] Hello?

[27:32] University of Washington.

[27:33] Take the first spot.

[27:34] Every time. Good to see you.

[27:35] Stand then.

[27:36] Amen.

[27:38] Coach.

[27:38] Typically do my reading in my spare time.

[27:42] Yeah.

[27:43] Y'all can't see me. I can't see y'all.

[27:46] But it is a good thing. You probably saw the movie on that though.

[27:49] Mm-hmm.

[27:51] It was a good one.

[27:51] All right.

[27:56] Y'all four just step over this tad bit because I can't see him. Nope.

[28:00] You're number five. Stay right

[28:03] there.

[28:10] Hold on. Hold on. Yep. Come over this tad bit. No.

[28:14] You step over this tad bit. Right there.

[28:18] All right, on three, everybody look at me.

[28:20] One,

[28:22] two, and three. All right. Okay.

[28:32] I just want to express my thanks to the city of Elizabeth City for allowing us to

[28:36] use the Coast Guard Park building. It has been such a blessing.

[28:40] We've been in there since 2020. My sailing program moved in there in

[28:43] 2017, but it is tremendous. I know there are problems with the building,

[28:47] but it's a great boathouse. Because when it floods, we have boats, and they float.

[28:52] So it works out just fine for me, and I just want to thank you guys.

[28:55] Also, with the success of our program has come great growth.

[28:59] So now we have 40 kids. We launch 18 to 20 boats every

[29:02] night

[29:04] with one dock, and that is eating into our time because now it

[29:08] takes three minutes to launch a boat.

[29:09] And so what's happening is I'm training these athletes that are

[29:13] going all around the world, and they don't have enough time on the water because

[29:16] it's taking so long. So if we add a little L, leg off the dock, now we can

[29:20] launch multiple boats at a time. So it seems like a small thing, but it's

[29:24] not a small thing at all. It's cutting into, especially the JV that we're

[29:28] feeding. They're the ones that I'll launch last and bring in first, but the

[29:31] varsity will get their time in, but I'm cutting off the next

[29:35] pipeline,

[29:36] because I don't have enough time on the water.

[29:38] So the extra docks are very significant to this program, and I really appreciate

[29:42] your consideration.

[29:43] Great.

[29:44] So thank you so much.

[29:45] We appreciate you.

[29:46] Thank you.

[29:46] And also, I want to thank you, and I want to thank the parents-

[29:49] Oh

[29:49] ... because of what you do continues to inspire our young

[29:53] people. Because sometimes we just allow our young people to just say, "What do

[29:57] you want to do?" But when you take the time out to make sure that you

[30:02] take them to the training, to practice, and then

[30:05] participate. And then for all of our citizens who have not had an

[30:08] opportunity to watch a race, to go out to, forgot the name

[30:12] of the river.

[30:13] Neuse and Creek.

[30:14] Creek.

[30:14] Both the beach. Yeah.

[30:15] Both beach.

[30:17] Not this Saturday, but the following Saturday, we have our first event out there.

[30:20] So-

[30:20] So come on down

[30:21] ... the first, not this Saturday, but the next Saturday

[30:24] I will be there, but we want to encourage all who have the opportunity to

[30:28] bring young people out so they can see it.

[30:31] We want to make sure our youth in Elizabeth City are exposed to

[30:34] all activities that are going on. But I want to thank you,

[30:38] the coach, and the parents for what you do to continue to make

[30:42] our young people great in the city of Elizabeth City.

[30:46] So I want to give all the parents and the coach a round of applause.

[30:54] Thank you. And those that are going to China.

[30:56] I told the baseball team about a month ago that if they won,

[31:01] that

[31:03] I would cut my hair off. So what I'm going to do is, just for those who,

[31:07] if you go to China, and you come back with a first

[31:12] or a second... I was going to say I would get Councilman Gibbs to cut his off, but

[31:15] he's already so-

[31:17] I got you.

[31:18] You got-- Okay.

[31:18] Cut mine off.

[31:19] Okay. But no, we want to let you know that you have our

[31:23] total support. We're behind you, and we will do something

[31:27] special. I'm not sure what I'm going to do during that time, but we will do

[31:30] something. But just know that your city backs you, and we say

[31:34] thank you for representing not only your city, but representing

[31:38] the United States of America, and

[31:41] that's major.

[31:48] Okay.

[31:50] Next, we have Director Bale. If you could come

[31:54] forward.

[31:58] Sure.

[32:09] And we want to recognize Director Bale.

[32:10] It's always great when we have our

[32:18] employees of the city of Elizabeth City always doing great.

[32:21] They're always achieving, and we recognize, and we want to recognize and let

[32:25] our citizens know of when our

[32:29] employees receive major awards from

[32:33] fellow

[32:34] recognized nationally, statewide.

[32:36] We want to say thank you for you exemplifying leadership and

[32:40] that others have recognized it. And so

[32:45] the Keith Pugh Professional Manager of the Year,

[32:49] Mr. Dajuan A. Bale. For nearly three decades, the

[32:53] nominee has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to

[32:56] excellence in public works administration, operational

[33:00] leadership, and community-focused service.

[33:03] Through his progressive management style, strategic vision, and

[33:07] dedication to innovation, this nominee has established

[33:11] himself as an exceptional candidate for the Keith

[33:15] Pugh Professional Manager of the Year Award, presented by the

[33:19] American Public Works Association, North Carolina

[33:23] Chapter Leadership and Management Division.

[33:26] Throughout his distinguished career in public works,

[33:31] Dajuan Bale has consistently delivered measurable

[33:35] results while leading teams ranging from 30 to more than

[33:39] 120 full-time employees.

[33:43] His professional accomplishments reflect not only technical expertise

[33:47] and administrative excellence, but also a deep understanding

[33:51] of the role public service plays in strengthening communities

[33:55] and improving quality of life for citizens across

[33:58] North Carolina. A little bit about

[34:02] Director Bale. Holds a Master's of Public Administration from

[34:05] Columbia Southern University and has

[34:08] consistently prioritized professional

[34:11] development. His credentials include the completion of the Municipal

[34:15] and County Administration program in 2021 and the

[34:19] Professional Executive Leadership Academy, PELA,

[34:23] in 2024 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

[34:27] School of Government.

[34:31] Many more accomplishments during this nominee's distinguished career can

[34:35] be identified. Outstanding team vision, innovative

[34:39] and administrative effectiveness, employment achievement

[34:43] and operational excellence, commitment to customer service,

[34:47] community service and public engagement, and commitment to

[34:50] sustainability are just a few attributes.

[34:54] Because of this, the APWA

[34:58] North Carolina chapter of

[35:02] the Leadership and Management Division proudly

[35:06] presents the 2026 Keith Pugh

[35:10] Professional Manager of the Year Award to our

[35:14] own director, Dajuan Bale, public utilities

[35:17] director for the city of Elizabeth City.

[35:20] We appreciate you, and we're glad to let everyone know that these are the

[35:24] letters that was presented, and they selected you from

[35:27] others throughout the state of North Carolina.

[35:31] But we appreciate you being part of the Elizabeth City team.

[35:38] And Tom.

[35:44] And Tom Stewart. And this is the award, and we want in

[35:48] recognition of your achievement

[35:50] to the administration area of the public works field and for the

[35:54] inspiration of

[35:56] excellence, leadership, and dedication

[36:00] presented to Director Bale. Good job, brother.

[36:22] Mayor, members of the council, thank you for the acknowledgement.

[36:26] I will say

[36:28] I think this award is kind of bigger than me.

[36:30] I think it's more so reflective of what the city of Elizabeth City has done

[36:33] altogether.

[36:36] People across the state watch what everybody do.

[36:38] So when we're negatively or positively, people see it.

[36:42] And one of the things I can say, that I received several phone calls just

[36:45] throughout different colleagues over the state has said they've seen the positive

[36:48] changes in the city of Elizabeth City.

[36:51] I think a

[36:53] good thing to say to that is just getting the award for the bonds and to hear how

[36:56] the local government commission spoke highly of the city of Elizabeth City.

[37:00] So this is not just me, this is the city as a whole.

[37:05] So that just lets you know, people watch, people see what we do, whether it's

[37:08] always noticed or not. I know sometimes our citizens may have questions, or they

[37:12] don't understand things, but there's work being done, and it's being recognized at

[37:15] a state and national level. So I just want to say thank you and appreciate the

[37:19] acknowledgement.

[37:24] And do we have

[37:28] Miss Ira Rice?

[37:34] Oh.

[37:37] Oh, I had it mixed up.

[37:42] I'm sorry about that.

[37:43] That's all right.

[37:44] We're excited and sad, as always,

[37:48] because we're excited to recognize you for your years of service to our great

[37:52] city.

[37:53] We're a little sad because we lose a great employee.

[37:56] And as I was talking to, just coming from Director Bail,

[38:00] and he was telling me about you. But they wanted to

[38:04] recognize you because of the eight years of service that you have given to the

[38:08] city of Elizabeth City, you've done great jobs.

[38:11] And so we want to present the retirement award presented to Ira Rice,

[38:15] water plant operator A whale. Recognition

[38:19] of eight years of dedicated service to the city of Elizabeth City Public

[38:24] Utilities Department. Retirement effective September 1st,

[38:28] 2026. Kirk Rivers, mayor, Reginald Goodson, city

[38:32] manager, and I say, "When can we go fishing?"

[38:36] Well done.

[38:40] Do we have anything

[38:42] to

[38:46] say?

[38:49] Just a couple of words. I've worked under Dwan, I've worked under Raymond for a

[38:53] long time. Y'all got some good workers in this town, and they deserve

[38:57] all the support y'all can get.

[38:59] Thank you.

[39:05] Is the Perry here?

[39:09] Okay.

[39:11] And next I would like to, and this is just to be able to show and just

[39:15] piggybacks what

[39:17] we always like to recognize, because a lot of times people don't give

[39:22] your

[39:24] pat on the back until something goes wrong, or you

[39:28] never go throughout your career here at the city of Elizabeth City without

[39:32] hearing, "Good job." But to our city manager,

[39:36] to our finance team, to all of our directors,

[39:40] and all of the citizens, I mean, to all of the employees of the city of

[39:44] Elizabeth City,

[39:45] we want to recognize and say thank you. And we have more.

[39:50] But we want to congratulate you for

[39:55] last week,

[39:57] traveling to Raleigh

[40:00] and to the LGC meeting.

[40:02] Which is the LGC, the Local Government Commission.

[40:06] When we have to

[40:09] borrow money, it's just not easy. You can't walk into a bank.

[40:13] When you do large sums of money, you have to go before a commission, and you

[40:17] have to present your finances to a group, and they

[40:20] inform you, yes, you

[40:23] have the

[40:25] finances or you have the way to make repayments.

[40:28] You have your financial,

[40:32] as they would say, house in order.

[40:35] And just from listening online to what they

[40:38] had to say, they had nothing but great things

[40:42] to say about the city of Elizabeth City.

[40:45] And so we want to take this time, your city council, your mayor,

[40:49] we want to recognize

[40:52] all of our city employees. Mr. City Manager, we want to

[40:56] recognize and say thank you for the leadership and to the

[41:00] team that traveled to Durham or Raleigh

[41:04] and,

[41:05] as they would say, $19 million in bonds.

[41:09] And one thing about that is when you have a city

[41:13] that's over 100 years old,

[41:16] we have things to fix in our great city.

[41:19] But because we were able to secure that, that does not mean tomorrow your

[41:22] rates will go up. That is not true. They have to present and

[41:26] show that we're capable of paying back

[41:30] with our existing

[41:33] rates. And so we do not raise your rates just to pay.

[41:36] But this just goes to show that we will be around another 100

[41:40] plus years, and we're putting our money in our infrastructure,

[41:44] which a lot of people don't see until you wake up and

[41:48] your toilet don't flush or your electricity may be out, things of that nature.

[41:52] But this is just to show that we're continuing to invest.

[41:55] But to hear the LGC give the accolades,

[41:59] and right before Elizabeth City went up,

[42:03] another city was turned down or told to come back.

[42:06] They were put on hold, so not everyone gets to-- They had a lot of

[42:09] questions, but they were well-- They gave so many accolades

[42:13] about how the city's finances, how

[42:17] everything is just going great in the city of Elizabeth City.

[42:20] Yes, every house can continue. We will continue to get better.

[42:23] We are not resting and stopping. But we just want to take this time to stop and

[42:27] congratulate each and every one of you

[42:34] Would you like to speak on anything, or

[42:38] you have someone to speak what took place at the meeting?

[42:41] I think you about said it. Said it all, there.

[42:45] 19 million revenue bond for new electric substation

[42:49] and water wells to support growth in this

[42:53] town. As you said, work done by a lot of folks,

[42:56] by the mayor and the city council for the leadership of

[43:00] hiring a bond council and a financial consultant that was

[43:04] instrumental in us getting this revenue bond.

[43:08] All of the staff department heads,

[43:12] all of the over 300 staff, I want to thank them

[43:15] also.

[43:17] And special thanks to Director Bell and Deputy Director

[43:20] White because they were instrumental in leading this process, helping

[43:24] lead this process. They did a great job, and we just look forward to

[43:28] keep moving this city forward. Thank you.

[43:30] Thank you.

[43:35] And after that is, I want to take this time also to represent and say

[43:39] thank you to this city council,

[43:41] because you have from the last that this new

[43:45] council has been seated, you have put things in place to make sure

[43:49] that financially that when they present it to the LGC,

[43:53] that from the rates,

[43:55] to doing management, to making sure that the funds are well

[43:59] spent. And I just want to say thank you to this council because of the simple

[44:03] fact it's a team approach from the city council to our staff.

[44:07] So we thank the staff, but also I want to say thank you to this city council

[44:11] for doing what you do, and my hats are off to each and every one of you.

[44:14] Thank you.

[44:18] Okay,

[44:20] next,

[44:21] we will now go right comments from the public.

[44:30] I have one,

[44:32] Katie Canning.

[44:43] Hi, I made it.

[44:45] I was at the county meeting, so I didn't know, and I actually sent all of y'all an

[44:49] email earlier, more in depth of what my speech is

[44:53] about.

[44:55] So good evening. My name is Katie Canning.

[44:57] I'm from the First Ward, but I also found out that

[45:01] I'm tied also with the Fourth Ward

[45:05] on the other side of my street.

[45:07] I support smart growth, but we must

[45:09] maintain existing

[45:13] infrastructure before adding strain.

[45:15] The city recently secured that $19

[45:18] million for the water, sewer, electric infrastructure while

[45:22] utility costs rise.

[45:25] Should we slow major development until these improvements are

[45:28] complete? Data centers and housing growth could increase demands on

[45:32] utilities, roads, emergency services, schools, public safety.

[45:36] Before approving major projects, the city should explain their

[45:40] impacts on capacity, costs, traffic,

[45:44] water use, and taxpayers. We also need

[45:48] stronger oversight out of businesses affecting public health, safety,

[45:51] and neighborhood character. The shipyard is an underused

[45:55] property that affects neighborhood character and could be repurposed.

[46:00] We should have an honest conversation about practical

[46:03] redevelopment and address environmental infrastructure and community

[46:07] concerns while creating value for residents.

[46:11] The city should recover unpaid nuisance abatements, code

[46:14] enforcement costs, and neglected property expenses before asking

[46:18] residents to pay more. Collection efforts and enforcement should be

[46:22] transparent. We need accountability and preventative maintenance.

[46:26] Like recently, a

[46:28] recent tree limb incident on Erin House damaged power lines and

[46:31] caused outages. Residents deserve clear answers and public

[46:35] process for reporting infrastructure problems.

[46:38] I also want to give

[46:41] props to Public Works. Recently, Mr.

[46:43] Biggs actually connected me with Danielle, and she has been addressing

[46:47] problems on my road due to flooding, so I do appreciate

[46:51] that.

[46:52] Growth must include adequate disability services here,

[46:56] healthcare, childcare, schools,

[46:59] transportation, parks, and recreation.

[47:03] My son has disabilities, and many children in our community also need services.

[47:07] My son was one on a waiting list for

[47:11] three years here, and they still asked me whether I wanted to remain on

[47:15] it. I eventually told them to just remove me.

[47:20] Trained providers are limited, and families should not have to wait

[47:23] years for support for their children.

[47:26] I grew up in Camden, and Elizabeth City in Pasquotank County are now my

[47:30] home. I want this community to remain accessible to families like mine.

[47:33] Success should be measured by whether

[47:37] residents can afford to stay, infrastructure can handle growth, services

[47:41] meet community needs, and decisions are transparent.

[47:43] Before building outward, let's strengthen what we already have. Thank you.

[47:54] We thank our citizens for coming out for public comment.

[47:57] At this time, then we will go to the public hearings.

[48:01] Declare a public hearing open for non-residential maintenance

[48:05] code. Public hearing open for non-residential

[48:09] maintenance code.

[48:11] Mr. City Manager.

[48:13] Oh, I'm sorry. Do we have anyone scheduled to speak for the public

[48:17] hearing?

[48:19] I have no one scheduled, sir.

[48:20] Okay.

[48:21] Anyone would like to have the opportunity to speak?

[48:25] With no one,

[48:27] public hearing for non-residential maintenance code

[48:31] is now closed.

[48:33] Do we have any councilors with a question, or would the city manager like to make a

[48:37] statement?

[48:41] Motion to approve as presented.

[48:43] Motion been properly made.

[48:46] Second.

[48:46] And seconded. Any other discussion?

[48:50] Being no discussion, all in favor let me know by saying aye.

[48:52] Aye.

[48:53] Opposed?

[48:55] Motion so carried. Next, nuisance abatement

[48:58] interest charges.

[49:01] Declared the public hearing open for nuisance

[49:06] abatement interest charges. Madam Clerk, do we have anyone

[49:09] scheduled to speak?

[49:11] No one signed up, sir.

[49:12] Do we have anyone in the audience that did not have the opportunity to sign up?

[49:17] Public hearing declared closed.

[49:20] Council, do you have any questions, comments? Or Mr.

[49:23] City Manager, do you have any questions or comments?

[49:27] If none, what's the pleasure of the council?

[49:31] Motion to approve as presented.

[49:33] Second.

[49:34] Motion been properly made and seconded. Any debate?

[49:38] Being no debate, all in favor let me know by saying aye.

[49:41] Aye.

[49:41] Opposed?

[49:43] Motion so carried. Next, you have the August the fourth

[49:47] emergency meeting minutes. Any additions or

[49:50] deletions?

[49:51] Motion to approve.

[49:53] Second.

[49:53] Motion been properly made and seconded.

[49:55] With no additions or deletions, all in favor let me know by saying aye.

[49:58] Aye.

[49:59] Motion so carried. Next, you have the August 10th, 2026

[50:03] regular session minutes. Any additions or deletions?

[50:06] Motion to approve.

[50:07] Second.

[50:08] Motion been properly made and seconded.

[50:10] With no additions or deletions, all in favor let me know by saying aye.

[50:13] Aye.

[50:14] Motion so carried. Next, approve the August the 24th,

[50:18] 2026 work session minutes.

[50:21] Any additions or deletions? Being none, what's the pleasure of council?

[50:24] Motion to approve.

[50:26] Second.

[50:26] Motion been properly made and seconded.

[50:28] With no additions or deletions, all in favor let me know by saying aye.

[50:31] Aye.

[50:32] Motion so carried. Next, under consideration consent

[50:35] agenda.

[50:39] You have approve budget amendment for load management insurance check,

[50:44] authorize execution of engagement letter for Stroud

[50:48] Financial Services, call for a public hearing

[50:50] TA06-26 vape and tobacco

[50:54] shops,

[50:55] call for a public hearing TA07-26 data center,

[50:59] and adopt

[51:01] resolution approving tentatively

[51:05] award of water well improvements project.

[51:11] That is consent agenda.

[51:13] What's the pleasure of council?

[51:15] What'd you say?

[51:17] Tentatively approving?

[51:19] Yes, for adopt resolution approving

[51:23] tentative

[51:24] award of water well improvements project.

[51:27] That was added to the

[51:30] agenda.

[51:36] The water wells improvement project.

[51:38] Are we approving it or are we tentatively approving it?

[51:43] It says "tentative." So it's tentative. Mm-hmm.

[51:47] What's tentative?

[51:49] Tentative. Well, I'm about-

[51:54] It says contingent upon receipt of the loan approval by the Local Government

[51:58] Commission, so I guess it's probably really not tentative now anymore.

[52:00] It's not tentative.

[52:01] Yeah.

[52:01] Right.

[52:02] Yeah.

[52:02] Right.

[52:03] Okay.

[52:03] Yeah.

[52:04] Yeah. So remove the word, it would be adopt resolution approving

[52:07] award of water wells improvement project. Thank you, Derek.

[52:13] Yes.

[52:14] So that will be the only change under the consent. I do apologize for that.

[52:19] I make a motion to approve the consent agenda as presented.

[52:22] Second.

[52:23] All in favor let me know by saying aye.

[52:25] Aye.

[52:26] Motion so carried. Thank you.

[52:29] Next,

[52:36] we will go to

[52:37] consideration discussion floating dock donation.

[52:42] Any addition, discussion, or

[52:45] materials?

[52:47] Mr. Mayor, I'll be happy to address that briefly.

[52:50] During the last meeting,

[52:52] I indicated to council that I have not had a chance to review the grant

[52:56] documents associated with the Coast Guard park. I've now done that.

[53:00] There is no problem at all with the grant

[53:03] administrators with our accepting this donation, should council decide to

[53:07] do so. If you vote to accept the donation, I would just

[53:11] propose that I meet with Ms. Terry Berry, and that we

[53:15] draft an agreement whereby the city accepts the

[53:18] donation, and it's clear that even though

[53:22] the rowing club can use the docks whenever they would like to,

[53:26] they are not able to exclude others from the public from doing

[53:30] so.

[53:31] And,

[53:32] I just want to make sure that we have run this by

[53:36] our insurance carrier that for liability purposes it's not going to be a

[53:40] problem.

[53:43] Any questions?

[53:45] Pleasure of council?

[53:46] Motion to approve as presented.

[53:48] Second.

[53:49] Motion been properly made and seconded. Any discussion or debate?

[53:54] Being none, all in favor let me know by saying aye.

[53:56] Aye.

[53:56] Opposed? Motion so carried. Thank you to

[54:00] the...

[54:05] Chesapeake City Rowing Club.

[54:06] Exactly. Thank you so much, and we look forward to being able to continue,

[54:11] so now JV won't have to stay out as late.

[54:16] Next,

[54:19] North Carolina DOT U 5939.

[54:26] I believe that was removed on 8/24.

[54:31] Mm-hmm.

[54:33] So this was... I'll let staff address that.

[54:37] Okay.

[54:38] This is just for

[54:40] removing the

[54:43] Electric infrastructure to allow DOT to do their road

[54:47] improvements out near Oak Stump Road.

[54:50] I don't know if the council will remember, the state is doing a road

[54:54] improvement on Hughes Boulevard from

[54:58] Oak Stump Road up to North Road Street, which

[55:02] will contain some proposed roundabouts.

[55:05] So this is their project, but they're starting in the Oak Stump

[55:09] Road area. And when our city crews, electric

[55:13] crews, will remove the infrastructure,

[55:17] they will reimburse us for removing that infrastructure.

[55:20] And they have estimated that that costs us

[55:23] $233,522.10.

[55:27] However, we have to pay up front for it.

[55:30] So that is what they're asking.

[55:34] This is basically how they do this.

[55:37] They get the cities to pay it up front, then they do the reimbursement later.

[55:42] So

[55:43] that's what the state has asked us to do.

[55:47] Yeah. Question.

[55:50] And we do have ownership of those lines, correct?

[55:53] I mean, we have proven that we do own those lines?

[55:56] Yeah.

[55:58] We do.

[56:00] And so we will get this reimbursed.

[56:03] And so this is what's leading

[56:07] to the

[56:09] roundabout just for that one?

[56:13] This is just for that area.

[56:14] For that area.

[56:14] This is starting a project. It's starting down in the Oak Stump Road

[56:18] area, but like I stated, it's going up Hughes Boulevard all the way

[56:22] to the North Road area, with several roundabouts at those

[56:26] intersections.

[56:28] And the reason why I ask those questions, because I know that this council went on

[56:32] record of sending a letter to the DOT,

[56:37] in opposition of roundabouts. And so

[56:42] the question that I guess that

[56:45] to

[56:47] put forward is,

[56:49] with the letter that we sent,

[56:51] this council, I think it was an 8-0 vote, if I'm not mistaken.

[56:56] Does that-

[56:57] This is a different project

[57:00] Right. This is the one in front of, I call it-

[57:02] This is the one down by-

[57:03] ... Movie Tuesday

[57:04] ... City restaurant.

[57:05] Right. That's right.

[57:07] It's going to be right there

[57:08] at Northeastern High School. It's going to be right there at Northeastern High

[57:11] School.

[57:11] It's down further, where you turn to go to Northeastern.

[57:13] Right.

[57:13] Which is a very dangerous intersection, and they've been talking about doing this

[57:17] for years. This will make that a much safer

[57:22] way to get through that intersection.

[57:24] But this is not connected with the project that came out of

[57:28] here and we sent that letter. Again, this is something different.

[57:31] Yeah, I just thought, well, roundabouts, so I'm like-

[57:33] Yeah. Well, I know

[57:33] ... Yeah. Is that one-

[57:35] They've been talking about this for years.

[57:37] Basically, as Mr. Goodson said, this is the way they do

[57:41] things. It's our equipment, our stuff.

[57:44] They ask us to move it so they can do the work they need to do.

[57:49] So when we pay the 200 plus

[57:53] thousand-

[57:54] That is for material. We still have to put the job out for bid

[57:58] for the contractors.

[58:00] So once all that's done, then once the job's completed, they will pay us

[58:04] back, 100% guarantee. I have the email for that.

[58:07] So whatever we spend, DOT's going to pay us back because we're not asking to move

[58:11] it. They want to move it, so...

[58:13] So do we have that, I know we have the funds.

[58:18] Do we need to do any budget?

[58:23] Any

[58:25] budget amendment?

[58:26] That's the motion, is for council to direct staff to identify and

[58:30] secure an internal funding source for the required

[58:33] materials.

[58:43] At that workshop call, everybody was against roundabouts.

[58:46] Yeah, I know.

[58:47] And I just want to make sure that, before we...

[58:51] Roundabouts are just, I guess that's the way for the future, so...

[58:55] Okay. So I'm missing something.

[58:57] Okay. So

[58:59] DOT wants to do this?

[59:01] Because it's their road.

[59:02] Okay. So why aren't they fronting their own money?

[59:06] The process is always they want our

[59:09] utilities.

[59:11] They're the city of Elizabeth City poles and lines.

[59:13] Yeah, but see, with DOT, like for the water and sewer, they would move that

[59:17] because they got people to do it, but electric, DOT would not touch that

[59:21] at all.

[59:23] So we have to pay it up front, and then they pay us back.

[59:25] For anything else, like if it's water and sewer, they pay you up front, because

[59:29] they would move it their self, but they don't deal with power or contractors.

[59:35] But they want it done.

[59:40] Now,

[59:42] do you

[59:44] charge

[59:46] an administrative fee? I mean, obviously we're having to handle a lot of money

[59:50] back and forth. I mean, it's taking time off of somebody's-

[59:54] Yes

[59:54] ... plate.

[59:55] Because we have to pay, when we've done this project, progressive engineer, Rocky,

[59:59] has this, because he does a lot with DOT, so they had to do new stake and

[1:00:03] sheets and all that, where they move the lines and the back to easements and

[1:00:07] everything. So he's the one that does the material list and sends the

[1:00:10] contracts out for bid. So we have to charge them for his

[1:00:14] time, too.

[1:00:16] Okay.

[1:00:17] Question.

[1:00:18] Yes, sir.

[1:00:20] Do we make any money off of this?

[1:00:23] Not per se. It's

[1:00:26] going to upgrade our system. It's going to help us out, so.

[1:00:28] And it's going to help us out?

[1:00:29] Yeah. Long run, you got new poles, new lines, new everything.

[1:00:32] Just-

[1:00:32] They can't follow that.

[1:00:33] Yeah. So they're going to reimburse us for it.

[1:00:36] Okay.

[1:00:36] Will it be underground?

[1:00:37] No. If we want to go underground, we will have to pay the difference.

[1:00:41] So they wouldn't repay us for any upgrade. So that's going to be an upgrade.

[1:00:45] They're just putting back what was there.

[1:00:47] So they're going to put new poles and everything, but if we want to go underground,

[1:00:50] we have to pay extra. So we have to pay that for that.

[1:00:53] Can you just bring back a quote? I mean, that won't hold up the vote tonight.

[1:00:56] Okay.

[1:00:56] But if you can just-

[1:00:57] How much it is to put everything underground?

[1:01:03] Okay.

[1:01:05] Any other questions?

[1:01:08] Pledge of Council?

[1:01:10] Make a motion to approve.

[1:01:12] Second.

[1:01:13] Motion been properly made and seconded.

[1:01:16] Any other discussion or debate? Being none, all in favor let me know by saying

[1:01:20] "aye."

[1:01:21] Aye.

[1:01:21] Opposed? Motion so carried. Thank you.

[1:01:25] Next,

[1:01:27] consideration discussion, holiday premium pay.

[1:01:30] Asked for some information to come back, turn it over to the city manager.

[1:01:34] Sir, we was asked to talk to Attorney Lightey

[1:01:38] to give some more input on whether we should pay premium pay

[1:01:42] for employees that are on call.

[1:01:45] Dr. Johnson talked with Attorney Lightey.

[1:01:49] Dr. Johnson, you'd like to report this?

[1:01:56] Good evening, everyone.

[1:01:58] I didn't actually speak to him face-to-face.

[1:01:59] I did send him an email that night of the council meeting and posed two

[1:02:03] questions to him. The first one was, are there any

[1:02:06] FLSA laws that would need to be considered

[1:02:10] or any other relevant factors which the city would need to consider

[1:02:14] pros and cons of the holiday and premium pay?

[1:02:18] His response pretty much was that FLSA does not prohibit

[1:02:22] providing premium pay or some other additional benefit to

[1:02:25] employees for working certain shifts or after usual hours

[1:02:29] or during emergencies. The 40-hour threshold would have to be

[1:02:33] met, and also FLSA does not

[1:02:37] necessarily require such payments.

[1:02:39] I have to lift this up, I don't have on my glasses.

[1:02:42] Such payments for non-exempt employees being on call.

[1:02:46] And then the other question about

[1:02:50] familiarity with the other electric cities and how they handle

[1:02:54] it, and he mentioned that he was aware of a few towns, mostly in Deer County,

[1:02:58] that are not a part of the electric cities, and they provide for premium

[1:03:02] pay when employees have to respond on call or after hours, and that works

[1:03:06] well for them. But he's also aware of some towns that provide just a

[1:03:09] flat rate when those employees come out and work as well.

[1:03:15] That summarizes the email correspondence.

[1:03:19] Questions from city council?

[1:03:26] What's the pledge of council?

[1:03:31] Make a motion to approve the staff recommendation.

[1:03:35] Second.

[1:03:36] Motion been properly made and seconded to approve the staff

[1:03:39] recommendation. Any discussion or debate?

[1:03:43] Um,

[1:03:46] Mr. Manager.

[1:03:48] Yes, sir.

[1:03:49] Is this... I just want to make sure I'm reading this correctly.

[1:03:52] I know we spoke about this item.

[1:03:59] Is this just for the actual day of the holiday?

[1:04:04] It is for the time that they are called out during the holiday, whatever hour

[1:04:08] those are.

[1:04:09] But what I'm saying is, let's use Thanksgiving for an

[1:04:12] example.

[1:04:15] Does this premium pay just cover

[1:04:18] Thanksgiving Day on Thursday or because city's offices

[1:04:22] are closed, it also covers Thursday, Friday,

[1:04:28] and then does it go into Saturday and Sunday?

[1:04:31] That's what they were requesting.

[1:04:33] What, Deputy White, uh-

[1:04:35] The answer is.

[1:04:36] They were requesting to get paid any time they come out.

[1:04:38] Any time for any holiday.

[1:04:41] And exclusive of the 40-hour work week.

[1:04:44] But what happens, if we're on Thursday and Friday for Thanksgiving,

[1:04:49] then they haven't worked a 40-hour week because those are

[1:04:53] vacation days. They're asking to get paid overtime,

[1:04:57] correct?

[1:04:58] Yes.

[1:04:58] For that Thursday and Friday.

[1:05:00] Mm-hmm.

[1:05:00] So they don't have to meet the 40-hour work week.

[1:05:04] No.

[1:05:04] If they're called out over holidays, they will get paid

[1:05:08] overtime for it. That's what they are requesting.

[1:05:10] Yeah, they can't get paid overtime-

[1:05:12] Hmm?

[1:05:12] Because they haven't worked 40 hours.

[1:05:13] Oh, premium pay.

[1:05:14] So they get premium pay.

[1:05:15] Premium pay, yes.

[1:05:16] Yeah, they get premium pay.

[1:05:17] That's what they request.

[1:05:17] That's the problem.

[1:05:18] Question.

[1:05:19] That's why they can't get overtime. They haven't worked 40 hours.

[1:05:22] But-

[1:05:22] This takes the place of overtime.

[1:05:28] Premium pay.

[1:05:29] Overtime pay.

[1:05:30] My first question is,

[1:05:34] it also affects sick, vacation, and

[1:05:39] whatever other hours that they're off during that time?

[1:05:46] We didn't explore that.

[1:05:47] It shouldn't, but does it?

[1:05:49] Does it affect sick and vacation time?

[1:05:54] I don't think it should either. They don't get sick and vacation for that.

[1:05:57] Yeah.

[1:05:58] I don't think that-

[1:05:59] So is that going to be written in the policy?

[1:06:04] That's what I...

[1:06:05] Huh?

[1:06:06] That's what I... Put that in there.

[1:06:07] And my other question is, how does that affect

[1:06:11] the

[1:06:12] police department? The fire department is different because they're on the 112.

[1:06:17] But other departments that also have to...

[1:06:23] Particular public works, there's several public works departments that have to do

[1:06:26] the same thing. Is this just electric department or is this

[1:06:30] all departments?

[1:06:31] For everyone who's on call, what I understand, except police and fire.

[1:06:36] Everyone except police and fire that's on

[1:06:38] call, sir.

[1:06:46] Mr. Manager, I know when we discussed this at the meeting last,

[1:06:50] two weeks ago as well, we were going to look and see what other

[1:06:54] cities

[1:06:55] that offer utilities were doing. Did we research

[1:06:59] that to find out what similar cities do?

[1:07:03] I understand what

[1:07:06] The attorney said, but that's primarily discussing Adair County,

[1:07:09] but if we research what other municipalities have

[1:07:13] done, I know we talked about that.

[1:07:16] I have talked to other people. They

[1:07:19] do holiday pay. Let's say if I was

[1:07:22] off Tuesday,

[1:07:25] and I was on vacation, if I

[1:07:28] was off Tuesday, then come to work Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.

[1:07:31] If I come in on Saturday or Sunday, that's overtime because that's outside

[1:07:35] of my regular work week. So then when the holidays come, you got

[1:07:39] other cities paying their employees triple time.

[1:07:42] And what the problem is happening with these guys that's not getting paid,

[1:07:46] what's the incentive of them coming into work?

[1:07:48] They leaving their family and all this stuff. It ain't nothing for them.

[1:07:52] So, a lot of my guys are like, "Well, if they don't want to give me the pay, I'm

[1:07:55] not coming in. What is the need for me to rush in and get power

[1:07:59] back on if nobody's giving me the pay for it?"

[1:08:03] That's it. No.

[1:08:04] So then you just stuck with two guys on call.

[1:08:07] Then if you have a pole break, city's going to be out of power for a while.

[1:08:13] Councilman Jackson?

[1:08:15] To address what he just said about the guys that's been sitting.

[1:08:20] As an employee,

[1:08:23] you're subject to be called, if it's an emergency.

[1:08:26] So they understand that part. That you can be called back.

[1:08:31] For them to say, "Well, what's the need for me to report?"

[1:08:33] Right.

[1:08:33] Because it's your job.

[1:08:34] Yeah.

[1:08:35] That's the reason that they report-

[1:08:36] That's it

[1:08:36] ... because it's their job. Now,

[1:08:39] I understand you want to get compensated if you're sitting around the house and

[1:08:42] your wife just took the turkey out of the oven and you got to leave.

[1:08:46] Well, you want to get some type of compensation, which I understand that.

[1:08:50] So we want to figure out a way to make sure that these guys are taken

[1:08:54] care of when they're doing things that are above and beyond what

[1:08:58] normal employees are doing.

[1:09:01] The normal employee would likely be home enjoying his family.

[1:09:05] He's not subject to be called out.

[1:09:07] That's for sure.

[1:09:07] But these guys that work public works,

[1:09:11] the sewer guys, the guys that work electrical, anything could

[1:09:14] happen, and they got to drop everything they doing and try to come and get the city

[1:09:18] back in order, whether it be the water or the electrical or whatever the

[1:09:22] situation may be. So, I'm all

[1:09:26] for compensating these guys in some way, shape, or form because

[1:09:30] it's outside of their normal scope.

[1:09:32] If they're on call, having a pager or whatever the case may be, and that

[1:09:36] thing goes off, they got to go.

[1:09:39] They can't get paid.

[1:09:41] I know a lot of places,

[1:09:42] when they carrying that pager, whether it goes off or not,

[1:09:47] they get X amount of money just to hold that pager, whether it goes off or not.

[1:09:51] And then once they get called out, then they will start receiving their hourly

[1:09:55] pay at a minimum of two hours,

[1:09:58] if they're only called out for 30 minutes.

[1:10:01] But then if it's over two hours, then they get their regular

[1:10:05] pay.

[1:10:08] And her question was the weekend, the Saturday and Sunday, would not

[1:10:12] count because it's not considered a holiday pay.

[1:10:15] Just that Thursday and Friday would be considered the holiday pay.

[1:10:18] Christmas sometimes is three days.

[1:10:20] If it's Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, they would get paid if they got called out any

[1:10:23] of those days, but anything Saturday and Sunday,

[1:10:26] they wouldn't get that premium pay.

[1:10:33] I got another question.

[1:10:34] Yeah.

[1:10:35] And the premium pay is equal to-

[1:10:38] Go ahead. I'm sorry. No, go right ahead.

[1:10:40] You're right.

[1:10:40] The premium pay, how much is that determined to

[1:10:44] be? Who determines that?

[1:10:48] You saying I determine that?

[1:10:50] Yeah, the city council will make that determination.

[1:10:51] I don't know. The city-

[1:10:52] City council

[1:10:53] ... should get them to prepare.

[1:10:56] The city council makes that determination.

[1:11:01] So it needs to be in the policy. If council wants to move

[1:11:05] forward-

[1:11:05] Yeah. Then they got to set a policy

[1:11:05] ... with this, there needs to be a policy and all that needs to be written in it.

[1:11:08] To approve the proposed amendment. This is voting to change.

[1:11:11] Oh.

[1:11:12] This is voting to change.

[1:11:13] Mr. Mayor, Council. Mayor Pro Tem.

[1:11:17] I'm

[1:11:22] like Councilman Jackson. I'd like to find a way to make this work.

[1:11:26] Now, and I'll be honest, I'm not 100% in favor of doing it on

[1:11:30] just using the Thanksgiving

[1:11:33] example and doing it both on Thursday and Friday to start with.

[1:11:35] I think there's a balance here that obviously,

[1:11:41] we have a budget to balance as well, and this has impacts

[1:11:45] to what that is. We don't know what that premium pay is,

[1:11:49] and according to the memo, it's saying that we're going to vote tonight to amend

[1:11:52] the personnel policy, and it's hard to amend a personnel policy if you don't know

[1:11:55] what the rate is. So,

[1:11:57] I know we've got a motion on the table, but I would respectfully ask that

[1:12:03] the maker of that motion pull that back until we've got an actual

[1:12:07] policy with figures in here and

[1:12:11] clear. Yeah, listen to the discussion.

[1:12:14] I agree with Mr. Biggs. I think

[1:12:16] what we really need is for staff to develop the policy

[1:12:21] so we can clearly understand what it is we're voting on.

[1:12:25] And, so I'll withdraw my motion.

[1:12:27] Okay. So the maker of the motion has withdrawn.

[1:12:30] The

[1:12:33] floor is back open. There's no motion on the floor.

[1:12:37] So,

[1:12:38] how do we determine,

[1:12:41] or how is it determined what the premium is?

[1:12:45] I know y'all said the council, but that's not our profession.

[1:12:49] It's our profession to approve it, what's presented to us.

[1:12:52] But how do we come up with the numbers? How do we come up with the fees?

[1:12:57] I wouldn't know where to begin on how much to pay these guys as a

[1:13:01] premium. I'm not sure if anybody else up here does, but as

[1:13:05] a premium, how do we come up with the premium fee?

[1:13:08] In Attorney Lighty's email, he also made a recommendation that you

[1:13:12] consider in multiples. So is it going to be double time, for example?

[1:13:16] Um, so that has to be taken into consideration of course, with the budget as

[1:13:20] well. Let's identify in multiples.

[1:13:24] I have Councilman Gibbs, I have Councilwoman Cartwright, I have-

[1:13:27] That's confusing to me. Um, yeah, I'm going to say no.

[1:13:31] That's even more confusing to me now.

[1:13:34] Deputy Director White said some places he know of, they

[1:13:38] play triple time. Some places probably play double time.

[1:13:40] An hourly rate.

[1:13:42] So we'd have to bring the policy back,

[1:13:45] and council-

[1:13:46] If they-

[1:13:47] We'll bring back some examples from other cities.

[1:13:49] Yeah, that's maybe what we need.

[1:13:50] That's what we need to do, yeah.

[1:13:51] Outside, right?

[1:13:52] Right.

[1:13:54] Councilman Gibbs, Councilwoman Cartwright.

[1:13:58] Well, my thought is, if utilizing the word premium,

[1:14:02] it would have to be something above what their normal rate of pay is.

[1:14:06] If you're going above and beyond what's normal,

[1:14:10] the first thing you come to is time and a half whatever your rate is, or double

[1:14:14] time, or triple time.

[1:14:15] Yeah.

[1:14:16] So if it's going to be a premium,

[1:14:18] if that's the word that's utilized, it has to be more than,

[1:14:23] what their-

[1:14:24] Regular

[1:14:24] ... regular rate. Just if easy math, if this is a $20 an hour

[1:14:28] employee, that premium at a minimum should be $30, time

[1:14:32] and a half.

[1:14:33] It could be $40 if it's double time.

[1:14:36] But if we going to... I think that'll help us as far as

[1:14:41] putting a number on it. Because you got to realize what you're asking for is

[1:14:44] somebody to do something outside the scope of the norm, something

[1:14:48] in addition. And I don't know the

[1:14:52] numbers as far as

[1:14:54] how often it even occurs,

[1:14:56] but I'm a firm believer in,

[1:14:59] I can just steal this from Councilman Spence.

[1:15:03] If our staff need to know that we're going to take care of them in the event that

[1:15:07] they have to make this sacrifice.

[1:15:10] So I don't think we're going to run it...

[1:15:13] I think we're really overthinking this, but we do need to have documentation in

[1:15:16] black and white. But I don't think this happens every

[1:15:20] holiday somebody's called out. I don't think, just

[1:15:24] every penny that's spent has a budget impact, but I think we just need to...

[1:15:28] We can safely say it's got to be time and

[1:15:32] a half or double time, whatever their normal rate is.

[1:15:35] And you probably can look back in history and see how often it even

[1:15:39] occurs.

[1:15:40] Every Thanksgiving and Christmas, we guaranteed to get called out.

[1:15:43] So a couple of times.

[1:15:45] Yeah.

[1:15:45] So that's only a couple of times a year.

[1:15:47] Yeah.

[1:15:48] So, but those guys need to know that if I have to leave or I have to

[1:15:52] go to work,

[1:15:54] the best way I can say it, I don't want to say they saying, "Well, it need to be

[1:15:56] worth my while," but we need to show our staff out that we appreciate them.

[1:16:01] Because if I'm home and I'm ready to eat, and my power go out, I want the

[1:16:04] guys to leave home, go, get the power, come back home.

[1:16:08] But fairly compensate them for doing that.

[1:16:10] Of course.

[1:16:10] I don't have a problem with it at all.

[1:16:11] And the main thing is the guys, we have two guys on call from Tuesday to

[1:16:15] Tuesday. They have to come into work because they're on call, so they have

[1:16:19] to. But anybody else that's not on call, if something major happened, they don't

[1:16:22] have to come in. So their point is, "I'm not getting paid to come in.

[1:16:26] Why am I coming in to help?" But they're going to help the fellow employee, but

[1:16:30] I think they should still get paid.

[1:16:32] So two guys have to come in regardless, but the other ones don't have to.

[1:16:37] If they want a job.

[1:16:38] I'm good.

[1:16:38] Okay.

[1:16:39] Councilwoman Cartwright. Then I have

[1:16:43] Fields, then I have Councilwoman Phillips.

[1:16:46] This situation reminds me of the operating room in the hospital.

[1:16:50] They have to have a schedule, they have to have a call schedule, and they have a

[1:16:54] specific detailed policy for the operating room because they

[1:16:58] have so many people they have to put on call.

[1:17:00] But it may be worth it for...

[1:17:03] I know I can get a copy of their policy specifically for the

[1:17:07] operating room, that they have the same issues that you're

[1:17:11] describing. So I'll be glad to get a copy of that and pass it on to

[1:17:15] someone who may want to look at that.

[1:17:18] It may be something in there that would help

[1:17:22] you come to some kind of conclusion of what would be the best way to do

[1:17:25] it.

[1:17:27] Just a thought.

[1:17:29] Thank you. Then Councilman Spence.

[1:17:29] So I think there's...

[1:17:32] Going back to the Thanksgiving scenario.

[1:17:35] So if they come in and work, let's say on Wednesday and Thursday,

[1:17:40] and they're paid premium pay.

[1:17:44] But the job's not done, so now they've got to work Saturday and Sunday.

[1:17:49] But by that time, they've worked 40 hours.

[1:17:54] So now do they go back on time and a half,

[1:17:58] or are they still going to be on premium pay?

[1:18:02] So there's a lot of different-

[1:18:03] 40

[1:18:03] Some variation

[1:18:04] ... so there's a lot of different ways to think about all this.

[1:18:08] And my recommendation, Mr. Goodsun, would be

[1:18:11] that you don't just email Mr. Lighty, somebody goes and sits

[1:18:15] down with Mr. Lighty,

[1:18:17] that you call several other

[1:18:20] municipalities and see what they do, take a look at what

[1:18:24] Ms. Cartwright can get for you, because it is very similar.

[1:18:28] Mm-hmm.

[1:18:29] And,

[1:18:30] come back with a

[1:18:32] policy that's clear. I

[1:18:35] agree 100%, we need to compensate these folks when they come back.

[1:18:39] I don't have any problem with that, but

[1:18:41] what we come up with needs to be very clear and cover all

[1:18:44] possibilities.

[1:18:46] Okay.

[1:18:51] Councilman Thompson.

[1:18:52] And we're using Thanksgiving and Christmas, I guess, because they're the

[1:18:56] holidays that normally there are more than one of them.

[1:19:00] But,

[1:19:02] I guess I got two questions.

[1:19:04] We're talking about every holiday,

[1:19:07] and then we're talking about the public works and electric department or,

[1:19:12] and we're not talking about

[1:19:17] Vacation and sick leave, or all of that's going to be built into...

[1:19:20] But all of that's going to be self-explanatory. Well, no, not separate.

[1:19:23] All that's going to be built in the policy whenever it's written.

[1:19:27] Yes.

[1:19:28] But I don't think we're looking at affecting sick and vacation time.

[1:19:33] Correct?

[1:19:34] Mm-mm.

[1:19:35] But we'll look at how other cities are doing it, electric cities are doing it,

[1:19:38] because this primarily, the electric staff has brought this to us, but it would

[1:19:42] apply to public works, employees also.

[1:19:45] Yeah.

[1:19:45] We'll look at all of them.

[1:19:46] Okay, because I don't like doing-

[1:19:48] We'll look at all of them

[1:19:48] ... stuff just for one person.

[1:19:49] Right.

[1:19:50] I think it's pretty much because,

[1:19:52] I think that basically

[1:19:55] it would be any employee that comes in for the city of Wilmington.

[1:19:58] That has to be called back in.

[1:19:59] If they call in on a

[1:20:01] holiday. Well, I'm just using if

[1:20:04] they call in on a holiday then,

[1:20:07] I kind of like the central personnel for the school

[1:20:11] system.

[1:20:11] Hurricane.

[1:20:12] You come in, if it's a hurricane that hits the day after

[1:20:17] or hits on whatever the holiday, and in this city

[1:20:20] council, you get a letter from the city clerk

[1:20:25] every January, I believe that identifies

[1:20:29] the number of holidays that we approve every year.

[1:20:33] Mm-hmm.

[1:20:34] So the council does do that. And then I think, but I like that,

[1:20:38] that they look at rates. I guess it's just either they're going to get double time

[1:20:41] when they come in,

[1:20:43] triple time,

[1:20:45] or overtime, I think, I always forget, we're making it a little hard.

[1:20:49] It's either going to be double time, time and a half.

[1:20:53] It's like if you get 40 hours a week,

[1:20:55] a person who's on an hourly rate, once he gets 40 hours,

[1:20:59] starting at 40 plus is what? Time and a half.

[1:21:03] Time and a half.

[1:21:03] Okay.

[1:21:05] So if they come in on Thanksgiving, Easter, or

[1:21:09] whatever that day may be, this council can just either say we want to pay them

[1:21:12] double time,

[1:21:13] then that rate kicks in. If they want to pay triple time, that rate

[1:21:17] kicks in. It's not going to be a specific amount because all of our employees make

[1:21:21] different hourly rates.

[1:21:23] Mm-hmm.

[1:21:23] So if we just want to say holiday premium pay will

[1:21:27] be double time.

[1:21:30] I guess I'm not trying to make

[1:21:33] it as difficult, but we do want to be thorough.

[1:21:36] I'm not sitting here just saying, but I think it's either going to be double time,

[1:21:41] because it's going to be hard to put a

[1:21:44] dollar amount on it, because a person with 25 years who might

[1:21:48] be making $40, he comes out, that's $80.

[1:21:52] Person who just started out

[1:21:54] making 20, he comes out, it's $40. So it depends

[1:21:58] on which ones come out,

[1:22:01] the age of the employee, but I think double time

[1:22:05] to me just sounds...

[1:22:08] Go on from there.

[1:22:09] Well-

[1:22:09] No, I think we-

[1:22:10] Yeah.

[1:22:10] Everybody's been around this DS twice.

[1:22:13] We've already given city manager instructions-

[1:22:15] That's good

[1:22:15] ... on what we're asking him to do. Please let's just move on and let him bring it

[1:22:19] back to us so we can come up with a yay or nay.

[1:22:23] Because as long as we sit here and think, we're going to come up with another

[1:22:26] scenario, another scenario, then we're going to talk about the age, how long

[1:22:29] they've been here, and then all that stuff will start weighing in.

[1:22:32] We've already given him the instructions.

[1:22:34] He already said, "We're going to contact the attorney lady, we're going to contact

[1:22:38] other cities." Let's let him do his job, then we can move forward.

[1:22:41] There you go.

[1:22:43] I recommend that we table it until he can come bring back the information that he

[1:22:46] requested.

[1:22:47] Second.

[1:22:48] Motion improperly made that we table this item until the next meeting,

[1:22:52] and it's been seconded. All in favor, let it be known by saying aye.

[1:22:55] Aye.

[1:22:56] Motion so tabled.

[1:22:59] Next, update 1221 Carolina Avenue

[1:23:03] demolition,

[1:23:04] bid progress.

[1:23:06] Attorney Morgan?

[1:23:09] Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

[1:23:12] It's my understanding that Mr. Henry got a fourth

[1:23:16] bid today through an informal process.

[1:23:19] I don't believe that bids were solicited

[1:23:24] to be submitted by a certain date, by a certain time on a

[1:23:28] certain date.

[1:23:30] There are a couple of things that I would like to point

[1:23:34] out to council in closed session that have arisen since our last

[1:23:38] meeting.

[1:23:39] And if council decides to take action, we could certainly take

[1:23:43] action after the closed session, if that's what the body

[1:23:47] deems to be appropriate.

[1:23:50] I don't know if Mr. Henry wants to add any specifics as to

[1:23:55] what he got today or not.

[1:23:58] There is an item on the closed session agenda for consultation with city attorney,

[1:24:02] and certainly this would fit neatly there.

[1:24:09] Okay. Any questions?

[1:24:14] No action taken.

[1:24:18] Well, let's move this item. Instead of that, let's

[1:24:21] just delay this item until after closed session,

[1:24:25] so we can still take action on it.

[1:24:27] So with that being said,

[1:24:30] does council have any business? This item

[1:24:33] will now be

[1:24:34] 13.

[1:24:38] 14, I'm sorry.

[1:24:41] It's fine.

[1:24:41] Okay.

[1:24:43] Next, we will go into closed session.

[1:24:45] Is there a motion to go into closed session as allowed by NCGS

[1:24:48] 143-318.11?

[1:24:51] Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Mayor. There's one more item.

[1:24:53] Oh,

[1:24:54] that's right. I'm sorry.

[1:24:55] The sidewalk work.

[1:24:56] Authorize additional sidewalk. That was added to the agenda.

[1:25:00] Authorize additional sidewalk work from

[1:25:04] the Water Street Transformation Project.

[1:25:07] Mm-hmm.

[1:25:07] Do we have any questions about that?

[1:25:10] Thank you.

[1:25:11] What's the pleasure of council?

[1:25:13] Motion to approve as presented.

[1:25:14] Second.

[1:25:16] Motion properly made and seconded. Any discussion or debate?

[1:25:19] Seeing none, all in favor of it, let me know by saying aye.

[1:25:21] Aye.

[1:25:22] Motion so carried. Thank you. Now, a

[1:25:26] motion to go into closed session as allowed by NCGS

[1:25:29] 143-3181186 for

[1:25:32] personnel, NCGS

[1:25:35] 143-318.1183, consultation with the

[1:25:39] city attorney, and NCGS

[1:25:42] 143-318.1185,

[1:25:46] contract negotiation. I believe that takes care of the items that was

[1:25:50] added.

[1:25:51] Land acquisition.

[1:25:52] Land acquisition, which is A-

[1:25:53] Four

[1:25:54] ... which would be NCGS

[1:25:57] 143-3181184.

[1:26:02] Motion to go into closed session.

[1:26:04] Second.

[1:26:05] All in favor, let me know by saying aye.

[1:26:07] Aye.

[1:26:07] We will give everyone until 8:28.

[1:26:10] Motion to come out of closed session.

[1:26:11] 8:35.

[1:26:12] We might as

[1:26:15] well

[1:26:19] get with it.

City of EC Council Sept 14 2026 Part 1

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