by Blake Proctor
The Tar Heel Town Council held its regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, September 7th, at the Town Community Building on NC Highway 87. With a full Board present, Mayor Sam Allen called the meeting to order at 6 pm; the Pledge of Allegiance was recited, and Mayor Allen provided the invocation.
There were no comments from the public; the consent agenda was promptly unanimously dispatched without comment on a motion by Councilmember Derek Druzak and seconded by Councilmember Mike Underwood.
The sole item of Unfinished Business was the petition from Wayne Johnson of Wayne’s Wheels to be approved for a billboard sign on his property. This item had been tabled at the previous meeting for further review and additional information.
Town Clerk Tara Nichols advised the Board that she had contacted Maria Edwards of the County Manager’s office and had been directed to the offices of Planning Director Greg Elkins and Finance Director Lisa Coleman.
After explaining the dilemma, she received paperwork from the County clarifying that the property was not inside Tar Heel’s Town Limits and was, therefore, a County responsibility. Mr. Johnson may obtain the proper permit by applying to the County Building Department; they will charge $25 for the billboard sign permit.
Ms. Nichols further explained to the Board that Wayne’s Wheels had been billed $20 last year for the Tar Heel Business Property Tax that must now be reimbursed. A motion by Councilmember Angie Hall to reimburse Mr. Johnson was seconded by Mr. Druzak and passed unanimously.
New Business consisted of discussion regarding the renewal of the two mowing contracts with Singletary Landscaping, which had expired at the end of Fiscal Year 2020-2021.
A $2,100 annual contract to maintain the rights-of-way in and around NC Highway 87 was being paid from the Town’s Powell Bill revenues. A separate $5,200 contract to maintain all other Town-owned properties is paid at $433.33 monthly through the General Fund.
Comments were made that Mr. Singletary was not performing in accordance with the contract. On a motion by Mr. Druzak and a second by Ms. Hall, the contract was approved to be reviewed and amended and then brought back at the next meeting for a decision to proceed with advertising for mowing contract bids.
Mayor Allen noted as an aside that he had contacted Danny Todd to mow both the front and back sides of the ditches in town.
It was during Matters of Interest to the Board that matters got interesting. First, a “concerned citizen,” who asked not to be identified, had sent a letter to Councilmember Druzak, detailing a litany of “atta-boys,” offset by a recital of “aw-cruds.”
The writer was most pleased that taxes had been kept low these last several years; they were also enthralled with the attempts at maintaining parks and other common areas.
They were, however, distressed at the lack of upkeep of the rights-of-way within the town, especially the weeds under the power lines. They were particularly distraught at the speeding through town that seemingly cannot be controlled by the Sheriff’s Department.
In response to that correspondence – which certainly hit home, considering the evening’s topics of discussion – Mayor Allen relayed to the Board his attempts at starting a dialogue with State Representative William Brisson.
After contacting Representative Brisson’s office, he had a personal discussion with Mr. Brisson himself regarding the speeding through town, often in excess of 30mph over the posted 45mph speed limit. He relayed the need for placing a whole stoplight at NC87’s intersection with NC131, now merely a flashing orange.
The Mayor also requested assistance from Mr. Brisson on any non-matching grants that may be available. Mr. Brisson assured Mayor Allen that he would schedule a visit to the community at his earliest convenience. Mayor Allen ended by confessing that Mr. Brisson’s office had not yet contacted him regarding a visit.
To conclude the business for the evening, Mayor Allen advised the Board that he had contacted Four County Electric regarding efforts to string 3-phase wires along the north side of NC 87 so that Christmas decorations could be erected each year. Discussions are ongoing.
With all the evening’s business concluded, the meeting was adjourned at 6:35 pm.
About Author
