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City of Claremont Regular Meeting MinutesMonday, December 4, 2017

The regular City Council meeting of the City of Claremont was held in the Council Chambers located at Claremont City Hall at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, December 4, 2017.

The following members of the Claremont City Council were present: Mayor Shawn Brown, Councilmember Timothy Lowrance, Councilmember Lee Miller, Councilmember David Morrow, Dayne Miller and Councilmember Dale Sherrill.

The following personnel of the City of Claremont were present: Interim City Manager Mike McLaurin, Police Captain Allen Long, Public Services Director Tom Winkler, Fire Chief Bart Travis, City Clerk Wendy Helms, Finance Officer Stephanie Corn, City Planner Leslie Meadows, City Attorney Bob Grant, and Kara Miller, Events Coordinator and Communications Specialist.

Others in attendance were: Charles Helms, Leah Martin, Kathy Lowrance, Terri Miller, Gary Sigmon, Donna Sigmon, Ryan Bowman, Julie Bowman, Angela Brown, Lindsey Elrod, Les Morrow, Beverly Morrow, Israel Morrow, Robert Smith, Danny Hedrick, Terry Miller, Jack Leaird, Larry Arndt, Jason Lowrance, John Cathey, Gene Monday, Karen Henry, Carl Henry, and Mitchell Setzer.

CALL TO ORDER

Mayor Shawn R. Brown called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. A quorum was present.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

The agenda was approved as presented.

INVOCATION & PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

Pastor Dennis Marshall gave the invocation and the Lowrance grandchildren led the Pledge of Allegiance.

CONSENT AGENDA

A. November 6, 2017 Regular Session Minutes- Councilmember Timothy Lowrance made a motion to accept the November 6, 2017 regular meeting minutes. Councilmember David Morrow seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

Monday, November 4, 2017 Regular Meeting Minutes of 6

CITIZEN CONCERNS & COMMENTS- the Citizen Comment period was open. Larry Arndt spoke briefly about the abandoned duplexes on North Church Street. City Staff will check into his concerns.

OLD BUSINESS

A. Audit Presentation- City Auditor Debbie Wentz gave an overview of the City financials. She assured Council the City is in a good financial position.

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS

House of Representative Delegate Mitchell Setzer presented Timothy Lowrance with a flag flown of the state capital on December 1, 2017. He also presented Timothy Lowrance the Order of the Long Leaf Pine for community service. Mayor Shawn Brown presented Tim a Resolution passed by the NCLM in honor of his service. Lastly Mayor Brown presented Resolution 17-17 from the City of Claremont honoring his service to the community. Councilmember Lowrance expressed his appreciation.

OATH OF OFFICE

House of Representative Delegate Mitchell Setzer gave the oath of office Councilmembers Les Morrow and Dayne Miller. Mayor Brown was sworn into a second term as Mayor by Representative Setzer.

At that time Council recessed for ten minutes for photos.

PRESENTATIONS

Slade Harvan with The Wooten Company gave a presentation on the recent pavement study. He gave Council information on the condition of City streets. The finalized report will be ready in January for approval.

PUBLIC HEARING

Motion was made by Councilmember Dale Sherrill to go into a public hearing at 7:37 p.m. Second was made by councilmember Les Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

City Planner Leslie Meadows discussed a new tenant, ASP Image Studio, now occupies the recentlyrenovated Hewitt Store building located at 4895 South Depot Street. The photography studio owner, Tim Turnmire, proposed a form of window signage that is not currently addressed in Claremont’s sign ordinance. Said form of window signage uses a rear projection projector to project advertising images, similar to a flat screen television, onto an exterior store window facing the intersection of South Depot and Main Streets. Upon conferring with City Attorney Bob Grant, this type signage technically meets our sign code’s definition of a common window sign under Section 9-3-170 Signs Permitted without a Permit. Thus, as a sign permit is not required, the City has no control of the projected imagery content or time lapse settings. Mr.


Turnmire has been made aware that flashing, fluttering, swinging, or rotating signs, other than time and/or temperature signs and electronic scrolling signs, are prohibited under Section 9-3-172. Per Bob Grant’s traffic safety concern recommendations, it seems wise to consider adding some clarification within the City’s sign ordinance in regards to the definition of “flashing”/“fluttering”, and perhaps setting a minimum lapse time between display/image changes for on-site commercial signs, as well as for billboard signs. Due to ever advancing technologies, the City may see an influx in electronic scrolling and/or projection imagery signage requests into the future.

Motion was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller to go out of the public hearing at 7:48 p.m. Second was made by Councilmember David morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

NEW BUSINESS

A. Resolution 17-17 Honoring Timothy Lowrance – Resolution 17-17 was presented to retiring Councilmember Timothy Lowrance for his service to the community. Motion was made by Councilmember Les Morrow to adopt Resolution 17-17. Second was made by Councilmember Lee Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

B. Closed Session- Motion was made by Councilmember Dale Sherrill to go into a closed session at 7:50 p.m. in reference to G.S. 143-318.11, consult with attorney. Second was made by Council member Dayne Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

Motion was made by Councilmember Les Morrow to go back into regular session at 8:01 p.m. Second was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

C. Resolution 18-17, 19-17, 20-17 and 21-17 Appointments to the Planning Board - With the election of Les Morrow to the Claremont City Council and the resignation of Crystal Clark the City Council will need to name two individuals to fill two positions on the Planning Board. Notices were placed announcing these upcoming vacancies. On November 20th, the Planning Board considered the applications received and voted to recommend that Tim Lowrance and move Ron Lancaster from Alternate Planning Board to full status. Moving Mr. Lancaster to full status member would create Alternate vacancy. The Planning Board was not successful in approving an Alternate Member recommendation and instead requested the City Council to consider the three other applications who areDanny Hedrick, Michael Pope, Wesley Harrington. Recently the Catawba County Commission appointed a representative to serve as the ETJ representative to the Claremont Planning/BOA Board. The current representative is Gene Monday whose term according to our records will be expiring soon. Under our ordinance the Claremont City Council is supposed to make a recommendation to theCatawba County Board of Commissioners. The person recently appointed by the County Commission lives inside the city limits and not the ETJ. Attorney and the Interim Manager has reached out to Catawba County about this matter.

Motion was made by Councilmember Dale Sherrill to approve Resolution 18-17, re-appointing Larry Pannell to the Planning Board and recommending Gene Monday to Catawba County for appointment. Second was made by Councilmember David morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

Motion was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller to approve Resolution 19-17 appointing Ron Lancaster to fill the remaining term of Crystal Clark. Second was made by Councilmember Dale Sherrill. Motion passed unanimously.


Motion was made by Councilmember Lee Miller to approve Resolution 20-17 appointing Tim Lowrance to fill the remaining term of Les Morrow. Second was made by Councilmember David Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

There applications were considered to fill the alternate position on the Planning Board. Those interested in the position are Wesley Harrington, Michael Pope and Danny Hedrick. Council votes are as follows:

Wesley Harrington- no votesDanny Hedrick- Dale Sherrill and Dayne MillerMichael Pope- Lee Miller, Les Morrow and David Morrow.

Michael Pope will fill the alternate seat on the Planning Board.

D. Approve 2018 Council Calendar- Motion was made by Councilmember David Morrow to accept the 2018 Council Calendar as presented. Second was made by Councilmember Les Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

E. Ordinance 18-17 Amending the FY 2017-2018 Budget- Councilmembers were presented with Ordinance 19-17, these are line transfers requested by department heads during the month. Councilmember Dale Sherrill made a motion to accept Ordinance 19-17. Second was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

F. Ordinance 20-17 Sign Ordinance Text Amendment- On October 16th, the Planning Board reviewed and accepted for recommendation proposed text amendments to Claremont’s Code of Ordinances under Article I, Sign Regulations, Sections 9-3-163 through 9-3-176. The proposed sign ordinance text amendments pertain primarily to electronic scrolling and/or projection imagery signage.The recommended amendments will provide more detailed illumination guidelines, clarify the definition of a “flashing” sign, and specify time lapse settings for digital display changes.

Motion was made by Councilmember Les Morrow to approve Ordinance 20-17. Second was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

G. Accept Grant Agreement with Golden Leaf- On October 20, 2017 we received notification that the Golden Leaf Foundation had awarded Claremont a grant in the amount of $250,000. The purpose of this grant is for the project “Claremont Project Light Year – Wastewater Treatment Expansion. The Prysmian Group will expand its facility and is part of a capital investment of $53+ million dollars. 50 new jobs will be created with an average annual wage of $43,800 plus benefits, compared to the county average of $42,536.

The grant is a cost reimbursable grant and for construction only. The term of the grant is 36 months from the start date and we will request a delayed start date up to October 2018 to allow ample time to complete the construction.

Official “Release of Funds” by Golden Leaf is contingent upon City having all funds in place necessary to construct the McLin Upgrade and Expansion. Any other grant conditions are contained in the Grantee Acknowledgement and Agreement.

Motion was made by Councilmember Dale Sherrill to accept the grant agreement with Golden Leaf. Second was made by Councilmember David Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

H. Accept Agreement with Industrial Development Fund- Prysmian Cable Systems- On November 14, 2017 we received notification that the N.C. Department of Commerce had awarded Claremont a


grant of $1,000,000 from the Industrial Development Fund to help upgrade critical wastewater needs that will benefit the International Business Park and Prysmian The City must contribute a cash match of at least twenty-five (25%) of the Grant Amount. The grant is a cost reimbursable grant. The term of this grant shall commence on November 15, 2017 and terminate on November 14, 2019.Motion was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller to accept the agreement with Industrial Development Fund. Second was made by Councilmember Les Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

I. Election of a Mayor Pro Tempore- At the first meeting after their election, the council shall select one (1) of their number to act as mayor pro tempore. The mayor pro tempore shall have no fixed term of office, but as such, shall perform all the duties of the mayor in the mayor's absence or disability.

Councilmember Dayne Miller nominated Councilmember Dale Sherrill for Mayor Pro tempore. Motion was made by Councilmember Lee Miller to close the nominations. Second was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller. Councilmember Dale Sherrill was elected Mayor Pro Tempore by acclamation.

J. Accept Agreement with NCDOT- Centennial Blvd Sidewalk- We have been notified by the N.C. Department of Transportation which would provide funding for Centennial Boulevard Sidewalk Project. The total cost of this project is $572,000. The maximum award of federal/state funds are $458,000 (80%) and require a local match of $114,000 (20%). The grant is a cost reimbursable grant. The term of this grant is 5 years.

Motion was made By Councilmember David Morrow to accept the agreement with NCDOT. Second was made by Councilmember Les Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

K. Resolution 22-17 EDA Grant Match Commitment- One of the city’s major priorities is to expand the McLin Wastewater Treatment Plant. Our strategy for funding the plant is to leverage our funds while seeking various grants and loans through our private, county, state and federal partners. This is project is estimated at $ 10,844,900 of which $8,729,450 is for construction including a 5% contingency. Of the $10,844,900 we have received funding commitments in the amount $3,826,393 from our partners.

We are recommending two strategies to complete our funding efforts which are:

Apply for Federal EDA Funding – To accomplish this we must complete an application to the EDA in the amount of $3,000,000 by January 2018. EDA grant can only be used for construction and must be applied for this year in order for our application to be competitive. Before applying we must have the reminder of the construction funds committed. To accomplish this, we will need to commit to $1,903,057 in local funds along with the funds provided by our partners.

NCDEQ loan/grant Request – We have submitted a request to NCDEQ for the entire $10,844,900 needed for this project. Unfortunately we will not receive any information on this application until March 2018 and we will miss the opportunity to apply for EDA funding. If we receive the full amount from NCDEQ we will not need the $1,903,057 local match.

Motion was made by Councilmember Dale Sherrill to authorize the submission of a formal application to the EDA with a commitment match of $1,903,057. Second was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

L. Accept Abstract Votes from Catawba County Board of Elections- Abstract votes were provided by the Catawba County Board of Election. Motion was made by Councilmember Dayne miller to accept these votes. Second was made by Councilmember Les Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.


M. Consider Request from K-64 Program- A request has been received from the K-64 program in which they are requesting an allocation of $2,000. These funds would be used to purchase protective cases for Chromebooks which are provided for 7th graders. These case would acknowledge the support of the City along with other businesses supporting the effort. Motion was made by Councilmember Lee Miller to allocate $2,000 to the K-64 program. Second was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller. Motion passed unanimously.

DEPARTMENT AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

The dashboard report was accepted as presented.

CITY MANAGERS REPORT

Interim City Manager Mike McLaurin spoke briefly bout setting dates for the budget workshop.

Motion was made by Councilmember Dayne Miller to go into closed session at 8:41 p.m. Motion was unanimous.

Motion was made by Councilmember Les Morrow to adjourn the meeting at 9:42 p.m. Second was made by Councilmember David Morrow. Motion passed unanimously.

Respectfully submitted,Wendy L. Helms, City Clerk

___________________________Shawn R. Brown, Mayor

Attested:

____________________________Wendy L. Helms, City Clerk


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