MINUTES
Town of Blowing Rock
Board of Commissioners
December 12, 2006
The
Town of Blowing Rock Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday,
December 12, 2006 at 7:00 p.m. Present
were Mayor J. B. Lawrence, Commissioners Bobby Ball, Keith Tester, Terry Lentz,
Rita Wiseman and Tommy Klutz. Others in
attendance were Town Manager Scott Hildebran, Town Attorney Allen Moseley, Town
Engineer Doug Chapman, Police Chief Eric Brown, Public Works Director Johnny
Lentz, Parks & Recreation Director Jennifer Brown and Town Clerk Sharon
Greene.
Call to Order
Mayor
Lawrence called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and welcomed those in
attendance.
Approval of Minutes
A
motion was made by Commissioner Ball to approve the minutes for meetings held on
November 14 and 17, 2006, seconded by Commissioner Tester. Commissioner Wiseman stated there was one
correction needed for the minutes of November 17th on page two, paragraph
four. “Town Attorney” needed to be
changed to “Town Auditor”. With the recommended
correction, Commissioner Ball made a motion to approve the minutes for November
14 and 17, 2006, seconded by Commissioner Tester. Unanimously approved.
Presentation – Update on Blowing
Blowing
Rock Art & History Museum President Wellborn Alexander and Executive
Director Joanne Mitchell were present to update Council on the status of the
museum project to be constructed on town property.
Ms.
Mitchell thanked Council for the opportunity to speak regarding the
museum. She stated that BRAHM was now in
their 4th year of operation with an active membership of
approximately 600 people. Ms. Mitchell
stated they remained committed to their mission of promoting the visual arts
and history and celebrating the rich heritage of the mountains.
She
informed Council of a new program in collaboration with the
Ms.
Mitchell stated they fully anticipated meeting their deadline of August 2008 to
break ground for the construction of the museum and efforts to raise funds
informally began in the spring. Ms. Mitchell stated that BRAHM was pleased with
the level of support they had received, and would continue to solicit donations. A formal public announcement regarding their
campaign would be during their Annual Meeting held in June 2007 according to
Ms. Mitchell.
Ms.
Mitchell informed Council that Mr. John Calvin a member of the Board of
Trustees had agreed to serve as the Project Manager for the building. Mr. Calvin would select a Construction
Manager at Risk by asking a group of contractors to make proposals. Mr. Calvin also agreed to manage the construction
of the Parking Structure for the Town at no cost should the Town so desire. Ms. Mitchell inquired if steps had been taken
by the Town in order for this parking structure to happen.
Ms.
Mitchell also stated that Conceptual/Preliminary Design drawings had been
obtained and within 90 days of reaching their fundraising target, the architect
would be instructed to begin preparation of construction drawings.
Ms.
Mitchell stated that BRAHM was committed to a “campus concept” of three
structures on one location each supporting the purpose of the others.
In
closing, Ms. Mitchell stated that BRAHM looked forward to participating in the
beautification of
Commissioner
Wiseman inquired if the proper steps had been taken with the North Carolina
Legislature regarding the parking structure.
Town Manager Hildebran stated a bill allowing the parking structure to
be constructed without formal bidding and via a non-profit had been approved.
OLD BUSINESS
1.
Town
Manager Hildebran presented Council with a draft Resolution # 2006-17 Opposing
the
Commissioner
Ball stated that efforts were being made by several people to raise awareness
regarding the proposed “Globe Project”.
She stated that approximately 1200 letters and emails were delivered to
the Forest Service during the 1st Comment period, with approximately 95% of
them stating they were not in favor of the “Globe Project”.
Commissioner
Ball informed the audience the new proposal from the forest service would
affect 19 acres less than the original proposal.
She
stated, at the present time, all that could be done was to continue writing
letters hoping the forest service would not continue with their “Globe Project”
efforts. Commissioner Ball also hoped to
get support from a local representative in getting a local bill approved by
Congress for a Scenic Area Designation. Commissioner Ball recommended that Council
adopt another resolution taking the “No Action” stance regarding the “Globe
Project”. She also asked that the Town of
Commissioner
Tester agreed with Commissioner Ball’s summary stating the new alternative
proposed by the forest service did not dramatically change the perimeters of
the project.
A
motion to adopt Resolution #2006-17 was made by Commissioner Tester, seconded
by Commissioner Wiseman. At this time,
Mayor Lawrence suggested the word “widely” be removed from paragraph three of
the proposed resolution. Commissioner
Tester amended his previous motion to reflect the recommended change, receiving
a second from Commissioner Wiseman.
Unanimously approved. Resolution Opposing the
NEW BUSINESS
1. Memorial Park Picnic Shelter
Town
Manager Hildebran presented Council with a proposal from the Parks and
Recreation Department for construction of a picnic shelter on the north side of
the park restrooms. The
A
preliminary sketch and scaled drawings were presented to Council for their
review.
According
to Town Manager Hildebran, the estimates for the project, including labor were
approximately $12,000. Mr. Hildebran
stated that Blowing Rock Renovators had made a very generous offer to construct
the shelter at cost with labor being donated to the Town. Their estimation for materials was between
$6,000 and $7,000.
Mr.
Hildebran also stated the WInterfest Committee was interested in contributing a
portion of Winterfest proceeds to fund construction of the shelter.
During
the November 16th Planning Board meeting, a recommendation was made
for approval of the shelter with a hip roof design, an ADA-accessible picnic
table, and an ADA-compliant picnic area surface. They also recommended if funds allowed, that
rock be added to the post bases to match the park restroom building.
Commissioner
Wiseman recommended that a rock or cedar clad abutment be used along the
columns base instead of just posts. She
felt this would enhance the appearance of the shelter. Commissioner Klutz
recommended that diagonal corner braces be used on the roof.
A
motion was made by Commissioner Wiseman, with the recommended changes to accept
the proposed picnic shelter in memorial park, seconded by Commissioner
Ball. Unanimously approved.
Town
Manager Hildebran requested that Council consider the FY 2006-2007 Audit
Contract with Combs, Tennant & Carpenter, PC not to exceed $19,000 which
included all GASB #34 audit standards.
A
motion was received from Commissioner Lentz to accept the FY 2006-2007 Audit
Contract, seconded by Commissioner Ball.
Unanimously approved. FY 2006-2007 Audit Contract (Attachment 2)
Speakers from the Floor
None
Departmental Reports
Council
inquired if department heads had anything they would like to discuss or
problems to report. With no further discussion, Mayor Lawrence extended his
wishes for everyone to have a Happy Holiday.
At
this time, Commissioner Wiseman requested that Council move into Executive
Session to discuss personnel matters by authority of North Carolina General
Statutes 143-318.11(6), seconded by Commissioner Ball. Unanimously approved.
Adjournment
The
meeting reconvened and with no further business to discuss, Mayor Lawrence
adjourned the meeting at 8:00 p.m.
MAYOR_______________________
J.B. Lawrence
Attest:
_______________________
Sharon Greene, CMC
Attachments:
#1
Resolution #2006-17
#2
FY 2006-2007 Audit Contract