22 May May 22nd, 2017 Minutes

THE FOUR HUNDRED AND SIXTIETH SESSION OF THE BOARD OF ALDERMAN

VILLAGE OF ALAMANCE
May 22, 2017

Present: Mayor Tichy, Alderman Tichy, Alderman Isley, Alderman Andrews, Alderman Jones, Mark Reich, Attorney Koonts and Clerk York

Absent: Mayor Pro Tem Sharpe, Alderman Crouse

Mark Reich led the invocation

Alderman Tichy moved to approve the April 24, 2017 meeting minutes and Alderman Isley seconded. The motion passed 5-0.

OLD BUSINESS

Village Website

Alderman Tichy confirmed that he has been unable to restore the old Village website because the backup files are so outdated compared to the newer technology. There are some options for the Board to consider in building a new website. Alderman Tichy could attempt to create a basic site to get general information out, or have a professional company build one for the Village, or use any free website builder online such as Go Daddy.

Alderman Andrews asked for Alderman Tichy’s professional recommendation on the matter and he advised that he would use a local company to build the site. It was suggested to send out an RFP to a couple of local companies and see what the response is.

Mayor Tichy would like to have all ordinances accessible on the new website and Alderman Tichy suggests that each Board member consider the things they would like to see on the new site and send those ideas out in a group email for everyone to consider. It is much more economical to design the site with all the information needed on it at the start than to have to add things on later.

ORC Report

Mr. Allred reported that the Birch station is running well. The siphon mixer is continuing to trip out and it has been proposed that the square D unit be sent back for the control company to evaluate. Everything was good with the distribution system. The THM testing results should be coming in soon.

The NC 62 pump station had lightning strike it on May 5th. It took out the level transducer and one of the floats. Mr. Allred worked with a contractor on the floats and got them fixed. On May 11th Mr. Allred pulled the number 2 pump out because it was believed to have something in the bottom of it. Upon inspection, nothing was found. The pumps were reset and are currently working fine. The new transducer came in today (May 22nd) and Mr. Allred stated that he plans to try to finish installing it after the Board meeting. There were no overflows this month.

NEW BUSINESS

Mark Reich: Report on Street Maintenance

Mr. Reich presented the results of his study of road conditions in the Village of Alamance. He believes the worst street conditions are on Rob Shepard Dr, with alligator and block cracking, which would need full depth patching. Mr. Reich referenced the report as he explained the cost to repair the roads. Rob Shepard would cost between $60,000 and $70,000 to repair. He would also recommend the patching of Cardinal lane, Councilman Rd, Cabin and Elder Rd. The patching is more cost effective, running about $15,000 to $16,000 for these four roads. Crack sealing is the most cost effective of all, and it is recommended to do in the fall for best results. The estimated cost would be approximately $8,000 per mile. Mr. Reich has estimated the total cost of this road work to be anywhere between $106,000 to $118,000, as he is uncertain of the extent for crack sealing.

The sidewalks from the Village sign to the Lutheran Church need repair. The sidewalk in between the Church and the Grill and the Grill to Town Hall need repair or replacing, along with some sections after Rob Shepard Dr. The cost to repair or replace sidewalks is approx. $75 to $100 per linear foot. The total cost would be between $100,000 to $150,000. Most of that cost is for grading and road crews to flag traffic. There is a possibility that DOT may have some funds available for the sidewalk project. Mr. Reich will check into this, although he believes it usually for new projects. Mr. Reich suggested that it is possible to save some money on the sidewalks if the jobs were broken down into sections and a smaller contractor company was used. In the State of North Carolina, you do not have to be licensed for work under $30,000 per job.

There was some question as to whether the roads in Heritage Glen should be paved when the other road work is to be done or wait until phase 5 is completed. Mr. Reich suggested that the 5 ‘court’ roads could be paved along with Brookstone, because the heavy truck traffic should not be a problem on these roads. The cost of the extra work will need to be considered.

Clerk York brought up a point regarding the sidewalk repair. He thinks there is a possibility that Powell bill money could pay for that but it needs to be checked into. It would have to be approved by the group that governs the Powell Bill money. The Board needs to consider spending the bulk of Powell Bill money on these projects. There is approximately $212,000 available in Powell Bill funds. Each year we receive about $30,000 in these funds. We can continue to accumulate funds without any spending until 2019. Given our average spending on streets, we could last for a few years beyond 2019 without having our allotment reduced.

Presentation of Fiscal Year 2017-2018 Budget

Clerk York presented the Board with the new budget. On the revenue side of the General Fund, the sales tax was adjusted up by $20,000. The staff wages were increased by 3%. The water rates will increase for the Village based on an increase from Burlington of 2%. The new rate for water will go from $5.46 to $5.52 and sewer will go from $6.38 to $6.49. The remainder of the budget is relatively the same as last year, the biggest change is the over $100,000 decline in the spending for the water fund based on the new meter project that was recently installed. There could be some slight changes to the trash and recycle budget based on the proposals the Village gets from other contractors, but no large change is anticipated.

Clerk York stated there would be copies of the proposed budget at the post office, in the town hall and at the convenience store for people to pick up and look over. There will be a budget hearing meeting on June 26th for the public to attend.

Audit 2017

Clerk York informed the Board that he had received the proposal for the 2017 audit and it seems to be in line with what has been paid in previous years, with the minimum to maximum cost being $19,300 to $24,400. It will be voted on at the next meeting.

Trash and Recycle

Clerk York is still waiting on a proposal from Republic and therefore is not prepared to go over any information with the Board until they have submitted their proposal. The Board should consider, for the future, the disposal of yard waste because Waste Industries will no longer provide that service. It is possible that another company may provide that service or that a large container could be placed in a certain spot for customers to bring yard and bulk waste which would be dumped by our vendor. Yard Waste is paid for separately; the Village currently pays $112.33 an hour to have it picked up and a landfill fee of $22.00 a ton to dump it. There was some discussion as to the problems that could arise from having an unattended container to dump bulk waste in. Another option for that could be a scheduled day or two per year to collect bulk waste and electronics, if needed. Further discussion on the matter will continue when more information is had from the expected proposals.

Finance Report

Clerk York stated that there was one budget amendment for $500.00 to be added to the fees for tax billing and collections and $80.00 for the internet, so that the yearly budget will be met. Alderman Andrews made a motion to approve the amendment seconded by Alderman Tichy, motion carries 5-0.

OTHER BUSINESS

Clerk York informed the Board that he had sent a letter to Ron Senecal to clean up the junk behind his business. He will have 30 days to remedy the problem as there have been numerous complaints.

Public Comment

Elizabeth Powell brought up the issue of wanting the Board to consider an ordinance against people parking in their front yards. There are some properties that have muddy yards and the vehicles then track the mud across the sidewalks leaving a mess for people who walk or run on the sidewalks. She also brought up the fact that Mr. Shackelford’s property is looking very poor again. Clerk York stated that he would call Mr. Shackelford about cleaning up his property.

A motion was made by Alderman Jones and seconded by Alderman Andrews to set a public hearing date for the budget on June 26th 2017 at 7pm, motion carries 5-0.

Alderman Andrews motioned to adjourn and Alderman Tichy seconded. The motion passed unanimously.