Town Council - Regular Meeting

We have to actually open. I bet I bet they are just wide open. Come in the day after Christmas in their house. Yeah, that'll be nice. Oh, Dana, I want to do Christmas in their house. Her house is beautiful.

Yes, sir. Their house is I said I want to do Christmas in their house. If I was you, I'd go there. It's beautiful. You know, it's one of those deals they didn't think ahead of This house.

A friend of mine was going to have two knees and he said, "Would you recommend Eddies?" I said, "Nope, sure would." Wow, that's a little unbelievable. And he said, "Who would you recommend?" I said, "Nobody. You pick that on your own because I don't want to hear." You said he'd be Dwayne's wife went down to Charlotte.

I think they Yeah.

Okay.

It's called fashionably light. I've heard late for the funeral, but never for the swearing in. Well, I've kept the agenda. You didn't look at the time. No. Told you. That's all right. As long as you're here, Bill. That's right. I'm here. All right. We'll go ahead and get started. Welcome everyone to our organizational meeting for December the 4th, 2025. Everyone had a chance to look over the agenda for this. Make a motion to adopt the agenda. Second. I'll second. All in favor?

All right. Thank Mr. Honorable Warren Hughes for being here to to conduct the oath for us. Sorry, your honor. I'm first. I had a big long speech prepared for this, but due to Mr. Wheeler's lateness, I'm not very Oh, please go ahead.

No, first of all, I have to apologize and I don't think you have my back. We're the best place to go. But, uh, I got to apologize to Miss Hawk and to the other folks. I'm not sure if it was Mr. Canon, but probably three or four years ago, Miss Huckabe called me and asked me about swearing in the new town council and the mayor and I said well I said I'd love to but as the mercy judge I only have authority to work whenever I'm assigned court wasn't on the day so to prove that public officials and judges time to time make mistakes innocently, but we do make them. I'm over in Madison County watching my good friend, Mr. Larry Lee, former Mr. Judge here, swear in his daughter, Mr. and I'm thinking, how does he swear? He's not an he's not even an emergency judge, you know. Well, so I couldn't wait. I got home that night. I looked up the statute. I found an obscure statute that provides that a retired district court judge they swear in administrators. So I apologize to you folks for not being able to do this again. My ignorance I was told we couldn't do anything unless we had commission. But apparently we have the authority now and I'm excited to do it. One thing I'll share this Russell's not going to remember this but He was destined many years ago to be a politician. Seriously, I I could see this as plain as yesterday and I don't know why we were there, but something was happening

at Michael Elementary. I was down there that day and I think was there and your class and I don't know what you were maybe sixth or seventh grade something like that came in and of all those kids in that class Russell walks right up throws his hand out that was a sign right there. We're gonna get this gentleman to hold the Bible for you somewhere where you can take good picture. Yeah,

your left hand Russell Foxy support maintain the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Laws of North Carolina, not inconsistent there will that you will faithfully discharge the duties of your office as mayor. Thomas Russell Fox solemnly and sincerely swear that you will support the Constitution of the United States that you will be faithful and bear true allegiance to the state of North Carolina and constitutional powers and authorities which are or may be established for the government thereof that you will endeavor to support maintain and defend the Constitution state not inconsistent with the Constitution of the United States the best of your knowledge and ability. Congratulations. I can get you to

You want me to

swear at you when you get here? Now, Randy and I normally don't see each other in this kind of setting. usually at a at a doctor's office or at the physical therapist. Your place down your right solely swear that you will support maintain the constitution of the United States and the constitutional laws of North Carolina not inconsistent therewith that you will faithfully discharge the duties of your office as town council.

I do. You J. All solely and sincerely swear that you support the Constitution of the United States, that you will will be faithful and bear true allegiance to the state of North Carolina and the Constitutional powers and authorities which are or may be established with government thereof and that you will endeavor to support, maintain, and defend the Constitution state not inconsistent with the Constitution of the United States the best of your knowledge and abilities.

Thankulations, sir. Move that. You will swear that support of the United States laws of North Carolina. I do believe in that you will support the constitution of United States that you faithful to the state of North Carolina or establish that you will end support maintain and defend the Constitution state not inconsistent with the Constitution of the United States and I do CONGRATULATIONS gentlemen you

need a motion. I need to elect mayor pro 10 nomination. I nominate Judy. All in favor? I Judy's done it for a long time. Thank you. Thank you. All right. Now, just need confirmation for a regular meeting schedule. continue to leave it the first Thursday of of the month at 6 pm. Everybody good with that? Yeah. So, we need to make a motion. Make that motion.

I'll second. All in favor? Good deal. Recess. Go eat. Motion to motion to recess. No, we don't. Oh, recess. Yeah. Motion to recess. we recess and then we have to do a motion to adjourn after we recess. Yeah. So, how about it? There's some big There's some big cookies. Somebody please get those big cookies. Thank you a lot, Mus. Thanks for come back.

You're not going to carry house tonight. Don't look like it. Oh, this is so good.

It was so thick. What's that? Was a chicken. Next time. Next time. After this, appetizers.

Eat one of them cookies. You don't have to eat for a week. True. real chainsaw. None of this is on the mind. That's a cookie. That's my favorite.

I don't think anybody minds. We'll go ahead and move forward as everybody eats. Nobody cares. No. No. We have a motion to adjourn. I make that motion. I'll second. All in favor? I. All right. Welcome back everyone to our regular business meeting for the month of December 2025. Um I guess we've already looked at this agenda, haven't we? That's as part of the top call this meeting to order. Anybody signed up for no public comment? Danny, you don't have anything?

Well, please your call to the judge. Come on up. Absolutely. You're on the honor system. That's a good thing, Brian. I made a list.

I I really don't have a lot to say. I I was going to congratulations to all the wins here and I appreciate you willing to serve. Certainly, but uh just a uh a short update on your county tax office. She's local. She's married from Riverside and she's been there since February. So I'veed her every calamity that we can imagine since then and she still work but other than that all smells like snow was Thank y'all and merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas. All right, everyone had an opportunity to look over the minutes from our November 6th regular meeting and our November 18th special meeting. Motion to approve. Second. All in favor? Hi. We don't have any public hearings or presentations. Correct. Move on to Miss Hawkade for the manager update.

Okay. I will update you guys on our current ARPA projects. Um Shane and I attended progress meetings on the two contracts for the water man lines today. Um the side streets are moving along pretty good. Um they're they have a little bit of a a lag time I think um on some equipment that they needed to order for the uh pump station um at Shepherd's Way. Uh I don't know if it was the pumps and the generator or both or one or the other, but that's what they were kind of waiting on, but it seems to be fine in terms of finishing on the ARPA schedule. Uh TP Howard that's doing the main street install. I think they're already up to Swiss. Um and that's a a heavy lift with all the traffic and everything. And I know it's a an annoyance on the street down through there, but if you want to look right up here, you can see it's it was time every hundred years you got to have a little headache to get something good. So we're excited about those projects moving on. And then we did just find out there is enough money in that budget to do all of the lineup on.

So much needed. That's an old AC line and definitely needs to be taken out of service. Um so that that's good news. Kinjun um construction from out of Georgia was in started this week on the um sewer sewer repair lining project on the east interceptor finished the west and they moved to the east and um that seems to be going pretty good. Uh they worked mostly around the square and pretty close today but then I think they got on down didn't they down in there behind boas today. Yeah.

So, they're moving along with I guess this is their camera work and, you know, getting everything fixed, pull the lining through. So, that'll be good. Um, the project of installing the new raw water line that's goes from the intersection 197 and Bowling Creek up to the plant through the field almost ready to tie in. They made that tie in up there at the top today. Sweet. So they will they'll be working on pressure testing and everything that line and then of course going back down that way.

Yep. So that's that's great news. Um that's one that was upsized to to 12 inch line. So that's going to be good. Um also had a progress meeting today and a walk through of the 118 North Main renovation project. Uh last week they were uncovering some of the flooring that was in the old office area there and did find some tiles that were hot for asbestous. So they're going to have to remediate that. Um but they they got it tested in like two days and they'll um they've already got some quotes coming in to get it uh removed and disposed of properly. So, but uh I think from the walkth through, which I couldn't attend because I had another meeting, but it they're making progress and they had um you'll notice on the outside of the building they're working on that it's called a Ephas the um coating on the outside of the building. It looks really nice, but it's going to be good. Um so, that project is moving along pretty much on schedule. um the stream daylighting project. If you've had a chance to go down there and stand at the top and look down, you can actually see what our nice stream is going to look like. That is obviously a project that even though it's on town property, it's funded by the Blue Ridge RCD Conservation Group um through some state grants that they got. Uh and um the mayor and Shane uh were looking and talking to property owners there at the end of Aelia about the culvert under Aelia on that end and it's they can tell you more about it but it definitely needs to be replaced and that was not part of the project but the company that is on site has agreed to do

a change order with RCND um but the town would have to fund that part of it um their quote is $48,658 and they will replace the culvert with the 60inch pipe that's running along the side of Rogue Street there and um put the road back together for us. We think that's um pretty good price for that.

Once we looked at it, we're we're one small rain event away from from it, you know, coming across as you again. And while while the contractors there, we felt like it was our best opportunity to get that project done. And the price that Baker gave gave was was fired.

And we do have that money in uh our POW bill. You can use POW bill money for culverts and things other than paving as long as it's on a city street. So we have the funding to cover it. So, I I just need y'all don't need to approve the change order, but I do need approval for us to expend the funds to do it. I need a motion and vote on I make that motion. I'll second. All in favor? Motion carries.

Um, somewhere in all this, y'all have a tax report and That's not it.

Okay. So, to date, um, we've collected 44.56% of the 2025 levy. Um, obviously it's not past due and penalties don't come into effect till after the 5th of January. So, um, that's pretty good. I think I think there'll be a lot of people coming in this month and certainly the first of next month. Um and really we haven't had a change uh in in the other um totals for previous years. Um for last year we've got a couple of properties um that we had referred uh to the um foreclosure attorneys, but they informed us that they're no longer working with the county and so they're no longer going to be working with us. And so I'm in the process of trying to figure out what the next step is there. But it's not we don't have a lot that is outstanding. There's just a couple that are, you know, a little bit over $1,000 that we were going to try to collect on, but um we'll we'll find someone uh to follow that. go through that process. We have sent letters to these individuals repeatedly and they're nonresponsive. So, we're left with no choice but kind of take action. I should have somebody by the next meeting that in mind that can do that.

Thank you, Heather. All right, we'll move on to Mr. Fox clerk's update. just had one little issue with our next meeting. It falls on the holiday and want to resched public works update.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I think Heather's pretty well covered most off to you.

Oh yeah. Like like I said before, we apologize for all the uh construction that's going on most definitely on Main Street, but a little a lot of the side streets and everything is still chopped up and cut up. But bear with us for just a little while longer. Hopefully we'll have a lot of good water lines in the ground and we don't have to dig up near as much every so often as we do. We got another project that's going on that she didn't mention anything about, but uh Samaritan's Purse was Samar's Purse building a building over on West Church Road. So there's a new 6 in water line that's going in through there that is almost complete. They just about have it all building side. So that's another improvement that we're getting out of the Helen flood to come through. So just a lot of stuff happening. That's pretty much all I have

to nursing home. No, it's going up. Oh, from Brownfield. It's coming up church road and all that stops it back in the 2 in everything that comes around. It gets us two more hydrants out there.

Thanks, Shane. It's Leslie. Thank you, sir. Um, I sent out the budget versus actual and the overtime um report day or two ago if you had any questions. And I just updated the FEMA project sheet and as you can see there's very there's only two that we don't have some sort of actual money for and that's the vehicles destroyed at the plant and this maintenance for the temporary intake. So other than that we've been funded pretty much everything else. And I put the total received today is $3,290,99960.

Thank you. You're welcome. So, um, if anybody has any questions, it's kind of just like steadily going. No big no big things happening with the long and steady. All you have to chief with the fire department report.

Thank you, Mr. Mayor. You do have a report. We did have 37 calls per month and a little bit of change of most calls. Uh actually structure fires overtook motor vehicle accidents this past night. Pretty impressive. And we didn't have several fire We are at 483 calls for the year. Looks like we're going to break 500 which will be the first time we've ever broke 500 several coming in. So it looks like we'll get there before the end of the month to update you on some projects. The truck is still they are lettering and I get got some pictures of some of the lettering and waiting on some showing to come in the department. So, it will be down there for a little bit longer. So, I don't know exactly a delivery date yet. Did talk call about the sideby side we ordered. It will be delivered early January to mid January. Pushed it out a little bit farther. That's the latest. We have been busy trying to do some reviews. Shane mentioned the building. It's going up West. We did a review with fire marshall one day this week with the architect on that building just to make sure everything's going to comply the plan for that building is that American first will occupy for a couple of years for some housing and workers and then after that it reverts back to the church and it will be full size indoor gym at that point. So, we're trying to look ahead, make sure everything's there that needs to be so that place. There's several other businesses that are coming in that we're trying to look forward to, make sure they're doing working with some of the entities out in

the county that are putting in bridges and covers trying to make sure they put in heavy enough bridges and covers for fire. a lot of questions about what we need to put in rebuild that's going on in the background. That's about where we are. Thank you, Chief. Yes, sir. Chief,

thank you, Mr. Couple. Our new vehicle is in service. finally got equipped in this budget here. It has a slightly different sting. You probably see in the parade change it up just slightly to include their that's what that is. Uh we do the other is there next to me is the parade which will be Saturday. uh police wise that's really all I have in zoning and code enforcement we just had normal residential permits mechanical permits come that involve design review committee planning board over the last month you have anything to report on

he uh he didn't leave a report but kind of season reports. You know, I do not I can't think of things. You want me to make something up? Yeah.

Okay. Y Chamber of Commerce. Hi there. How are you?

So, we are definitely in holiday mode at the chamber. We're looking forward to the parade um this Saturday. We have about 75 entries um in the parade. So, we're excited about that. sent out um an email to everyone yesterday letting them know where they would be lining up at. I personally, this will be the sixth year that I um had volunteered for the parade. I work at the West Burnsville Baptist Church and it is always a very very fun day getting everybody lined up and get them people where they're supposed to be at the right time in the right place and all of that. Um and then the following Friday night we have Mary Main Street and we're really excited about that. This year we will have two horse and carriages at the new um we will have our tree lighting and Genesis the kids from Genesis Academy will be singing during the tree lighting. This year we are also going to have Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer movie playing in the chamber parking lot. We are also have s'mores there where people can make them at Java. We'll be um giving away hot chocolate. We will have Santa in our pocket park. Um we have bubble machines, snow machines. Um we're going to also the chamber has been working And I think maybe the town has been involved in this also. We um have worked with all of the merchants on West Main Street. And the TVA has um gifted each merchant um a a light an outdoor lighting allowance of $600. So we went to every merchant um and was able to get those orders and

we've turned that into the TDA. And so we are hoping that maybe lights will be here and can be up shortly. We would love to have that done by Mary Main Street. I don't know what the feasibility of that is, but that would be fantastic. Um we when the lights get up, we are planning on um leaving them up through the middle of February so that we can do some advertising um for our merchants and kind of advertise Burnsville as a winter um little Hallmark town destination so that we can our merchants um and help with some tourism this winter. And um other than that, we have um our the event that Claudia um kind of spearheaded last month, Red, White, and Burnsville. It was well attended for the first year. We appreciate the stage and um the music was fantastic all day. there was food and that gave us an opportunity to honor our veterans. And um we have changed some of our programs at the chamber and we now have a um a friends of the chamber program where individuals can join for $75. And so if anyone is not a chamber member and would like to be a friend of the chamber, we would appreciate your support and anything that you need from the chamber, please let us know. We want to collaborate with you in any way that we can. Thank you.

What time What time does that road closure start for Mary Main Street? See, we do it with vehicles, so we kind of just do it as the parade starts. No, for Mary Main Street. Oh, that's not a road closure. Oh, okay. I thought it was. I'm sorry.

Bill, do you have anything from High Country? It was mostly saying bye to some of the people that weren't reelected. And then uh we talked I talked once more about the Council of Aging, that fall risk thing. They now have the funding for that. If anybody is interested or wants to knows anybody that know anybody that would want to Our next town council meeting is the 7th. Is that correct?

I got that one at six o'clock. Right, Bill? 65. I think we talked about that earlier on in the meeting. Have a motion to I make that motion. I'm assuming that these luxury pens are a gift

for your four years. That's how much likes.

The best part is the fidget. Did you show it the fidget thing? Is this it here? Yeah, that's that's so Heather does what I always say. Heather pulls all the things off through the week. I always see is that Mr. Hammond is going to be the grand marshal of our super excited about that. And then um on at Mary Main Street, we're gonna let him light the tree.

So he can speak with the council.