[0:28] e

[0:58] e

[1:28] e

[1:58] e

[2:28] e

[2:58] e

[3:28] e

[3:58] e

[4:28] e

[4:58] e

[5:28] e

[5:58] e

[6:28] e

[6:58] e

[7:28] e

[7:58] e

[8:28] e

[8:58] e

[9:28] e

[9:58] e

[10:28] e

[10:58] e

[11:28] e e

[12:20] good evening I want to call to order this meeting of the wendale Town Board

[12:24] of Commissioners and welcome you all here tonight we have a nice crowd thank

[12:27] you all for being here we're going to be led in the Pledge of Allegiance tonight

[12:31] by Lake Meer Elementary School student Jane

[12:39] ma Jane is a dedicated third grade leader at Lake Myra Elementary School

[12:44] her teachers have described her as hardworking and and as a hardworking and

[12:49] humble student who consistently strives to do her very best Jane's positive

[12:54] attitude and kindness shine brightly creating an atmosphere of encouragement

[12:58] and warmth around her she leads by example demonstrating unwavering

[13:03] determination and setting a remarkable standard for others to

[13:07] follow this past fall Jane participated in the girls on the run after school

[13:12] program at Lake Myra Elementary where she embodied the program's core values

[13:17] Girls on the Run is designed to inspire girls of all abilities to recognize

[13:21] their inner strength and build meaningful connections with others and

[13:24] Jane truly exemplified these principles we are so proud to celebr celebrate Jane

[13:29] as a shining example of leadership strength and compassion and it is an

[13:33] honor to recognize such an exceptional young leader my goodness what a bright

[13:38] lovely young lady you are all

[13:46] right flag got moved all right good the pleasure of allegiance to the flag of

[13:54] the United States of America and to the Republic for stand One

[14:00] [Music]

[14:09] Nation thank you Jane we're very proud of

[14:13] you our invocation tonight we're going to hear from Reverend Wallace Johnson of

[14:17] Wendell United Methodist Church good evening big act to follow evening I know

[14:22] right there's no following that I apologize for my dress I'm in the middle

[14:26] of practice over on Doug Proctor so I'm going to pray and then get back to

[14:30] practice um thank you Commissioners for being here and leading us the town

[14:36] appreciates you a whole lot I know you may not hear that a whole lot but as a

[14:41] faith community we appreciate you all um let's

[14:45] pray oh God you who are good always you who are present with us in the spring

[14:55] and the rain and the flowers to come we give you thanks uh for all the newness

[15:00] that's springing up and the community we give you thanks uh thank you for each of

[15:04] these Commissioners who put in so so much work more than any of us can really

[15:11] understand into making sure that our community is safe and thriving and a

[15:17] beautiful wonderful place to live guide them this evening as they are about the

[15:22] work of the community I thank you for them uh this evening we pray for uh

[15:28] commissioners and Honeycut and eatman and deluts and

[15:35] Joiner for mayor gray and for all of our town leaders we give you thanks for that

[15:40] God we are grateful it's in your name we pray

[15:45] amen thank you are there any adjustments to the

[15:53] agenda the motion to approve so moved all in favor I um

[16:00] um we have no one signed up for public comment uh tonight but as a reminder I

[16:05] like to remind everybody that you can sign up if you're interested in

[16:08] participating in public comment you can sign up the night of the meeting at the

[16:12] door um and you will have three minutes to speak or you can submit written em uh

[16:17] comments by email to the town clerk on Friday before Monday's meeting and they

[16:21] will be read into the record for the length of three minutes if they're

[16:24] received in on time um see do we have a motion to approve the the consent agenda

[16:30] so moved all in favor

[16:36] I uh section four recognitions reports and presentations we're going item 4 a

[16:41] is the recognition of Lake Meer Elementary School teacher Miss Mary

[16:44] Katherine

[16:53] Gilbert Mary Katherine Gilbert and I think she goes by MC is that right is an

[16:58] outstanding educator whose unwavering commitment to the success of every child

[17:03] shines through shines through in all that she does Miss Gilbert brought with

[17:07] her 11 years of invaluable experience as a classroom teacher having taught grades

[17:12] 1 three and five before joining the late Myra School Community this marks her

[17:18] first as our exceptional math coach and instructional facilitator where she has

[17:23] already made a profound impact on both students and

[17:26] teachers Miss Gilbert's enthusiasm for math Ma matics and her unwavering

[17:30] dedication to enhancing instructional practices are

[17:34] contagious teachers from grades K through 5 consistently praise her for

[17:38] her deep knowledge Innovative approach and the invaluable support she provides

[17:42] her work is directly elevating the quality of student learning and

[17:45] fostering an environment of growth and Excellence her influence extends far

[17:50] beyond the classroom Miss Gilbert's dedication to the school's mission and

[17:54] vision is evident in her tireless efforts to support and empower the

[17:58] entire School Community her colleagues described her as passionate committed

[18:03] and truly a gift for our of to our school one whose positive impact will

[18:08] resonate for years to come that's so very nice that was sent

[18:13] by the your principle at your school so we're very impressed and we

[18:18] wanted to have you here tonight and just thank you for what you do for all of our

[18:21] kids in Wendell and thank you for that well thank you guys it is um such a

[18:27] privilege uh speak speaking in front of you tonight and being recognized I

[18:31] really appreciate all the Commissioners that are here um being my first year at

[18:36] Lake Mya um the community that I feel in this city and for the students that

[18:42] we're serving um is just incredibly strong um I kind of Wake County is a

[18:49] very big County but it's really nice to just have that small town Touch of

[18:53] lendell um and so I really appreciate all the support you've given all of our

[18:57] local schools um and I hope we have continued support um especially as you

[19:03] know our our students are are in high need right now um our students and our

[19:09] teachers um and so your continued support is extremely valuable and I

[19:14] thank you for your time tonight you're very welcome thank you for all that you

[19:17] do [Applause]

[19:25] thank all right item 4B is a proclamation recognizing April 2025 as

[19:31] Autism Awareness Month in the town of

[19:36] Wendell whereas autism is a lifelong disability resulting in significant

[19:41] impairment of an individual's ability to communicate understand social

[19:45] interactions and develop interactive behaviors and whereas autism affects not

[19:50] only the diagnosed individual but the entire family and the community at large

[19:55] and whereas there is currently no identified cause or c for autism Al some

[20:01] work autism Works celebrates neurodiversity and works to support

[20:05] individuals on the autism spectrum and whereas alome is it aome works I

[20:11] apologize uh is hosting its second annual sensory walk at Lake Meer

[20:16] Elementary School on April 5th 2025 at 10:00 a.m. and whereas the event will

[20:21] feature a variety of engaging stations where families can explore different

[20:25] sensory experiences together from tactile activities to calming spaces

[20:30] there will be something for everyone to enjoy and whereas in addition to the

[20:34] sensory stations there will also be a bounce house for children to play and

[20:37] burn off energy whereas information tables will also be available where you

[20:42] can learn about autism diagnosis uh support resources and

[20:46] advocacy efforts and no event is complete without delicious food and

[20:50] entertaining performances now therefore on behalf of the Wendell Town Board of

[20:54] Commissioners I Virginia Gray mayor of the town of Wendell to hereby Proclaim

[20:59] April 2025 as Autism Awareness uh day for the town of window I invite everyone

[21:05] to attend the second annual sensory walk duly proclaimed this the 24th day of

[21:10] March 2025 and it's signed by me so is there someone here that would like

[21:18] to receive the

[21:26] proclamation come to you okay

[22:03] all right item 4 C is the February 2025 organizational update for financial

[22:08] operations and strategic uh project measures and I'm available if the board

[22:13] has any questions on the materials provided okay any questions from the

[22:17] board right now all right moving

[22:22] on Section Five is our our public hearings item 5A is a public hearing to

[22:27] Annex and reone approximately 44. 626 Acres from rural agricultural to plan

[22:33] unit at development to create uh Dean Farms development Mr coat yep good

[22:39] evening mayor and board members so items 5A and 5B are public hearings related to

[22:44] this project the applicant is here and has requested the items not be heard

[22:48] once a new date is determined the public hearings uh for both items will be re

[22:52] advertised so we need a motion to table them both or just how do we need to that

[22:59] Mr collie are are they being continued or

[23:05] taken off taken off we do not have a date yet for them to come

[23:10] back okay you don't really need any action there all right so just skip them

[23:16] and move on they'll be Ren noticed is what they will be Ren noticed yep all

[23:20] right nothing for Action okay moving on thank you you're welcome uh section six

[23:27] our administrative items is 6a is the contract award to the Fred Smith fredith

[23:31] Company for the construction of improvements at the intersection of

[23:34] windowell Boulevard and windowell Falls Parkway uh contingent upon uh North

[23:38] Carolina do concurrence Mr codes yep good evening mayor and board members as

[23:43] as mentioned this is a contract award to the Fred Smith Company for the

[23:46] construction of the intersection improvements at Wendell Boulevard and

[23:49] Wendell Falls Parkway otherwise referenced as lap U

[23:53] 6244 uh it is contingent upon ncdot concurrence masking to adopt a

[23:59] resolution uh for that uh just to give some background during the fiscal year

[24:04] 2021 round of lap funding the town uh was granted funding for the project um

[24:10] with a local match that provides pedestrian improvements installation of

[24:13] a turn lane and traffic signal at that intersection uh the construction will

[24:17] provide for those those improvements um the uh contract was advertised on

[24:24] October 7th the construction had to be rebid as we only had two responses

[24:28] um the second round we still had the same two responses so we moved forward

[24:32] with the lowest bid which was the Fred Smith uh bid at 2271

[24:39] 282 um construction for the improvements is expected to start in the spring I do

[24:44] have a map here showing those improvements and just to go over for the

[24:47] the public that's listening at home this project does include a traffic signal

[24:51] installation a turn lane from Wendell bouevard onto Wendell Falls Parkway

[24:55] pedestrian improvements which will be signalized and there in front of the

[24:59] school Wall Street will be closed at the intersection taking an unsafe

[25:04] intersection and improving that updating the sidewalks and then also storm water

[25:08] improvements on Wendel Falls Parkway down to the Cook Street

[25:11] intersection overall project uh we are uh we did get additional funding from

[25:17] Campo um which was higher than our original estimates from

[25:21] 2021 um the town's contribution will be just over a million dollar total project

[25:27] uh for the budget is is $2.9 million for those improvements which also includes

[25:32] inspections ncdot fees in a contingency as well I can feel any questions you

[25:37] have right any questions from the

[25:45] board Madame mayor move uh we adopt the resolution awarding the contract uh for

[25:50] the lap project to Fred Smith

[25:56] Company we we have a motion to adopt the resolution awarding the contract to Fred

[26:00] Smith Company uh is there any discussion on the

[26:03] motion all in favor I any want to oppose okay thank you item 6B is the

[26:12] interlocal cooperation agreement between central Pines Regional Council and the

[26:15] town of Wendell regarding the Little River Watershed storm water

[26:18] infrastructure mapping and training project and we're going to hear from

[26:22] Sarah lentin good evening evening Madame mayor

[26:27] and board members um so I'm here to ask for your approval

[26:32] um for this agreement and authorize the town manager to sign um so the central

[26:38] Pines Regional Council um they received a 205j grant

[26:43] from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality on behalf of the

[26:47] town for the Little River Watershed storm water mapping

[26:52] project um and my slides kind of touch on these

[26:59] other items so um the mapping of the storm water infrastructure is part of

[27:05] Wendell's stormwater management plan um when we map we identify location

[27:12] material size age and condition of the infrastructure which helps us um manage

[27:18] everything um our rapidly growing town has made it uh very difficult to keep up

[27:25] with the updating of this map um right now developers submit design files um to

[27:33] us and then um you know that's once the development is completed and accepted

[27:39] and then that information has to be translated from the design software to

[27:44] the gis software and um weeded out unnecessary

[27:50] information so it's a lengthy process for us the grant um like I said it was

[27:58] funded by the 205j water quality planning Grant that's from the EPA and

[28:04] um submitted through the NCD DEQ um it supports the town's ongoing

[28:10] efforts to complete the mapping of storm water

[28:14] infrastructure and allows $25,000 for the hiring of a qualified firm to help

[28:19] provide mapping and trading services to the

[28:23] town um Central Pines Regional Council um

[28:28] will be awarded the funds and they will provide the administrative services for

[28:33] that contract um the town of Windell uh is committing to an in kind match of

[28:41] $10,000 um to be spent on that uh project um all of that money will be

[28:48] fulfilled by a staff time working on the project um and the match does include

[28:53] work that we have already completed this year and um um the upcoming workload so

[29:00] this does not have any impact to our current staff

[29:07] workloads you guys have any questions anything from the

[29:16] board need a

[29:20] motion can we go back a slide

[29:24] sure um this one here

[29:31] mad mayor I move we approve the agreement to authorize the town manager

[29:34] to sign same we have a motion to approve the agreement and authorize the town

[29:38] manager to sign is there any discussion on the motion all in

[29:43] favor anyone opposed okay thank you thank

[29:48] you uh moving into our other business I think we have one uh from Campo

[29:53] commissioner eeman thank you mayor we did have a Campo meeting last week uh I

[29:57] think think the most important thing for the town that was considered was the

[30:00] additional funding for the lap project at the windowell Boulevard windowell

[30:03] Falls Parkway intersection that we just covered in the previous item uh so that

[30:07] was passed also had presentations about the the updated strategic Transportation

[30:13] Improvement program the 10year state transportation funding program uh

[30:17] unfortunately and this is something I'm kind of concerned about the improvements

[30:21] of the Smithfield Road interchange on 87 and the widening of 87 past uh windowell

[30:26] Boulevard to the 264 split at zebulun both were pretty significantly delayed

[30:31] in the updated draft uh Statewide Transportation plan um most of that's

[30:36] related to funding availability and just the reality of how much a project costs

[30:40] you can only afford as many projects as you have money to pay for um but I think

[30:46] that's always ongoing concern and something that I think ought to happen

[30:49] sooner than later both of those projects uh and then there was also

[30:53] uh included in that increased service for the zwx the zebulun Wendell express

[30:59] bus route that goes from zebulun through Wendell downtown Raleigh uh that's going

[31:03] to be heading toward increased hourly service with some additional stops that

[31:08] is going to be a good good Improvement but certainly not the only

[31:10] Transportation investment we need in Wendell right this minute that's all

[31:15] thank you uh commissioner's reports we'll start with commissioner

[31:19] Joiner thank you madam mayor we didn't make any comments during the meeting um

[31:24] but seeing that lab project be assigned uh to a contractor to be built out um is

[31:30] exciting um I told the manager this week when I met with him to talk about budget

[31:35] uh one of the things that is exciting for me right now is that we're starting

[31:38] to see things come out of the ground um and actually U for a long time we were

[31:43] making plans to do things and designing and getting ready to build things uh and

[31:47] you're starting to see a lot of uh improvements come out of the ground and

[31:51] uh certainly uh want to in that vein compliment our public works department

[31:57] and uh all their contractors for u a a big outlay of uh our Paving plan and

[32:04] getting that wrapped up this week um certainly a lot smoother towns in a lot

[32:08] of different places or a lot smoother roads in a lot of different places in

[32:11] town thank you Madame mayor commissioner luds commissioner eatman else

[32:18] tonight um I certainly want to Echo commissioner J statements a lot of times

[32:23] he hits the nail right on the head and he did again tonight and I appreciate

[32:25] his comments I'll add one more thing I thought Town staff did an excellent job

[32:29] on the Food Truck Rodeo I always like to come downtown and see the businesses

[32:33] packed they seemed happy and excited and the people were excited so it's always

[32:37] good that we do things that promote the downtown Corridor so thank you for all

[32:40] your hard work appreciate it commissioner Delo thank you Madame mayor

[32:45] I just want to mention one thing uh senior health fair uh that was uh

[32:50] previously scheduled we were I think snowed out Iced Out uh cold out Etc uh

[32:57] actually rescheduled for this coming Friday March the 28th from 10:00 a.m.

[33:02] until 2: p.m. so just wanted to remind everybody of that community center

[33:08] community center so thank you madam mayor I have a couple things uh real

[33:13] quickly I recently filmed the 2024 we do it at into the next year uh state of the

[33:20] Town um it should be available to viw on social media and I assume on the town

[33:25] website in the next few days I've seen a copy of it it turned out great it's not

[33:29] too long so please take a look at it I think it'll make you feel really proud

[33:33] of all the things we've accomplished it's a really quick um not everything

[33:37] but it hits some of the high spots of things that we have H had happen in the

[33:41] last um year or so Town staff's been working very hard on your behalf you'll

[33:46] see that if you watch that um Community Arbor Day celebration was this past

[33:52] Saturday and I went out and planted a pecan tree and that was a lot of fun

[33:56] right over there in the pecan Orchard they had Philip Smith always does a

[33:59] really good job with that he has a bunch of real tiny shovels and little kids can

[34:03] help and there were some little kids there and it was just the cutest fun

[34:05] thing so if you've never been I highly recommend it you should go next year

[34:09] because it's really cute and fun and um it's nice that we're maintaining the

[34:14] pecan Orchard out there so that it will be available for the future and I think

[34:18] that's important too and that very same day the Food Truck Rodeo went down there

[34:23] for a little while and it was great everyone was packed and everyone was

[34:26] happy and a lot of people beautiful weather so thank you to town staff for

[34:30] all three of these things because they don't happen without y'all so I really

[34:33] appreciate all your efforts and the town manager we really thank you for that all

[34:38] right uh do we I think we have a closed session we have a motion to go and close

[34:41] session M mayor move the board going to close session pers North Carolina

[34:44] General statute 143 318 1185 all

[34:54] right I guess I should

Wendell Board Meeting - March 24, 2025

Transcript