HOLLY RIDGE TOWN COUNCIL
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
January 8th, 2008
Mayor Padgett called the Regular monthly Meeting of the Holly Ridge Town Council to order at 7:30 pm. at the Town
Hall. Councilmembers present were: Mayor Pro-Tem Hines, Councilman Edwards, Councilman Wright, Councilman
Summerlin and Councilwoman Bragg.
Invocation and Pledge
Councilwoman Bragg gave the Invocation and Mayor Padgett led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Adoption of Minutes
A motion was made by Councilwoman Bragg and seconded by Councilman Summerlin to adopt the minutes of the
December 11th, 2007 meeting. All agreed.
Adoption of Agenda
A motion was made by Councilman Summerlin and seconded by Councilman Wright to adopt the agenda as presented.
All agreed.
Persons Wishing to Address the Council
There were none.
Committee Reports
Parks and Recreation Committee – Anita Dingler – no report at this time.
Presentation to Mr. Herschel Brown by Mayor Padgett
Mayor Padgett, on behalf of the Holly Ridge Town Council, presented a Certificate of Appreciation to Mr. Herschel
Brown, who helped with the Construction of the Town Hall and also built the new Police Department. Mayor
Padgett said that Mr. Brown had always gone the extra step to help the Town.
ONWASA Report
Mayor Pro-Tem Hines gave an update on ONWASA. He said that they had a bond sale and there was $42,000,000
allocated. He said that there will be a meeting on January 14th at the Fire Department at 6:30 pm. about the areas that
the water lines were going to be run to….He said that most of the areas that do not have water should have it within two
years. He said that once water lines are run to these areas it will help the ratings for fire protection. He said there will
be a luncheon for the groundbreaking in Piney Green for the lines that will be tied into French Creek lift station which will
help add wastewater to the eastern side of the county. This will be Monday, January 14th at 10:30 am at the French
Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said ONWASA has reconfigured the new construction
calculations which will go from 120 gallons per day, per bedroom to 90 gallons per day per bedroom. He said that the
annual meeting for ONWASA will be January 17th, 2008 at 6:00 in the ONWASA building and they will hold the election
of officers. He also said there would be a workshop in Raleigh on Friday, January 11th and Saturday, January 12th,
2008.
Public Hearing to Amend Article 12 – “Health and Disease Prevention” Section 4. Property Kept Clean.
Manager Fann stated that this amendment will address the issue of maintaining Retention/Detention ponds throughout
Holly Ridge. It has been brought up on several occasions that the ponds needed some attention when it came to their
appearance. This amendment will allow the Town’s Code Enforcement officials to enforce this new policy and make our
Town look better.
A motion was made by Councilman Edwards and seconded by Councilwoman Bragg to go into the public hearing on the
amendment of Article 12 – Health and Disease Prevention, Section 4. Property Kept Clean. All agreed.
A motion was made by Councilman Edwards and seconded by Councilman Wright to return to Regular Session from the
Public Hearing. All agreed.
A motion was made by Mayor Pro-Tem Hines and seconded by Councilman Summerlin to adopt the amended Article 12
– Health and Disease Prevention, Section 4. Property Kept Clean by adding letter (D) Retention/Detention Ponds to the
ordinance. All agreed.
Public Hearing to Amend the Zoning Ordinance to Add RA (Rural Agriculture), R10 (Residential), and NB
(Neighborhood Business) to 8.20 “Alcohol Sales and Adult Entertainment” and to Correct Type-O’s in the Zoning
Ordinance, Also to Add Table of Contents for the Zoning Ordinance, Subdivision Ordinance, Minimum Housing
Ordinance, and Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance.
A motion was made by Mayor Pro-Tem Hines and seconded by Councilman Summerlin to go into the public hearing on
the Amendment of the Zoning Ordinance to Add RA, R10, and NB to 8.20 “Alcohol Sales and Adult Entertainment”,
Correct Type-O’s in the Zoning Ordinance, Add Table of Contents in the Zoning Ordinance, Subdivision Ordinance,
Minimum Housing Ordinance, and Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance. All agreed.
A motion was made Councilman Summerlin and seconded by Councilman Wright to return to Regular Session from the
Public Hearing. All agreed.
A motion was made by Councilman Edwards and seconded by Councilman Wright to add the RA, R10, and NB to 8.20
“Alcohol Sales and Adult Entertainment” and to correct the type-o’s in the Zoning Ordinance, also to add Table of
Contents for the Zoning Ordinance, Subdivision Ordinance, Minimum Housing Ordinance, and Flood Damage
Prevention Ordinance. All agreed.
Side Parking Lot at Police Department
Manager Fann stated that a suggestion had been made to extend the Police Department parking lot to accommodate
visitors and the officer’s privately owned vehicles. Currently, there is only room for two additional vehicles and one of
those is a handicap space. He said that in the packages, he has included four quotes for placing rock to the right of the
paved parking lot which will make an additional parking area. Manager Fann suggested that the Council go with Option
B which will cost $4,000 and look like the original Police Station parking lot before it was paved. Councilman Edwards
asked if the Maintenance Department could do the work and Manager Fann said that they could. Chief Maiorano said
there was only approximately $240.00 difference in one of the quotes to have the rock hauled and rolled on the site.
Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said that he is not against the Police Department getting their parking lot rocked, but the citizens
are still riding on streets that haven’t been patched. He said that there could be parking out in front of the Department
on the side of the road and Chief Maiorano said that technically, there is not supposed to be any parking on a state
road. Councilman Edwards said that the additional parking spaces can also be used for overflow parking for the Town
Hall too.
A motion was made by Mayor Pro-Tem Hines to concentrate on getting the rest of the roads in Town fixed for right now,
and the Maintenance Department could put some dirt in the parking area and table the item until a further date.. The
motion was seconded by Councilman Wright. All agreed. Councilman Edwards said that he would like to have some
cost estimates brought back to the next meeting on how much it will cost to finish the patching and repair of the streets.
Further Discussion and Possibly Call for a Public Hearing to Amend the Zoning Ordinance – Article XXIX.
Outdoor Advertising Signs (Off Premise)
Manager Fann Stated that this Article was never included in the original Zoning Ordinance. It was referred to in the
Ordinance but got omitted when the ordinance went before the Council. This item was on the December agenda but
was suggested that we look into what other towns in the area were doing in regulating the size of these off
premise signs. Larry Willaford, the Building Inspector, checked with several towns to see what their requirements are on
these type signs. Manager Fann said that the size of the signs can be limited and conditions placed on existing signs as
far as having them removed at some point in time. He said that the Town’s current ordinance states that the size of
outdoor signs may not exceed 450 square feet. Some of the other Towns have the size as low as 64 square feet.
A motion was made by Councilman Wright and seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Hines to call for a Public Hearing at the
February meeting to possibly change the size of the outdoor advertising signs (Off Premise) from 450 square feet to 64
square feet and to allow a ten year time frame to come into compliance with the new regulations. All agreed.
Discussion on Council Member to Serve on the Eastern Carolina Council
Manager Fann said this item was on the December agenda and it was suggested that it may be a waste of time having a
Councilmember drive to the meetings when it seems as though the small towns aren’t receiving any benefits from the
membership. The cost to be a member of the ECC is approximately $400.00 per year.
A motion was made by Councilman Edwards and seconded by Councilwoman Bragg to dissolve the Town’s membership
with the Eastern Carolina Council. All agreed.
Resolution to Adopt the Municipal Records Retention and Disposition Schedule
Manager Fann stated that this resolution will need to be adopted in order for the Clerk to dispose of recorded minutes
after the Council has approved and adopted the minutes from the Council meetings. This would also cover other
records as stated in the Records Retention and Disposition manual.
A motion was made by Councilwoman Bragg and seconded by Councilman Wright to adopt the Municipal Records
Retention and Disposition Schedule as issued by the NC Department of Cultural Resources, Division of Archives and
History, Archives and Records Section, Records Services Branch. All agreed.
Council/Employee/Volunteer Appreciation Dinner
Manager Fann said that it has been suggested in the past to have an appreciation dinner for the Council, employees
and volunteers. The Town would provide the meal and issue certificates that would recognize the person by what
position he or she holds and the number of years of service.
Councilman Wright asked how many persons would be recognized and Town Clerk responded there would be
approximately fifty. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines stated that he has been sitting on the ONWASA board and preaching about
spending money, and he doesn’t have a problem with buying certificates and having an appreciation day and maybe try
to get a pig donated, but having a dinner and paying for it with taxpayer’s money he isn’t sure about. He said maybe a
committee could be formed to plan to have something in the spring or summer, and bring back some suggestions at the
next Council meeting. Councilwoman Bragg said that maybe the individuals could pay for their own meals. Mayor
Padgett asked Sharon Clay (a member of the Planning Board) if she would head up the committee and she agreed to
do it.
A motion was made by Councilwoman Bragg and seconded by Councilman Summerlin to appoint Sharon Clay as the
head of the committee to make plans for an appreciation dinner/pig picking, and to report to the Council at the February
meeting. All agreed.
Council Retreat
Manager Fann said this is the time of year where we start considering our annual retreat. The questions are whether
we have one, where we have it, and topics/concerns. He said in talking with some of the Council and department heads,
it seems as though last years retreat went well. Councilman Hines asked why we should go out of town to have a retreat
when it could be held at the Town Hall. There was much discussion on whether to have the retreat catered or go to the
Smokehouse for lunch if it was held at the Town Hall.
A motion was made by Councilman Summerlin and seconded by Councilman Edwards to have the 2008 retreat at the
Town Hall on March 15th, 2008 beginning at 10:00 am and have it catered by JC’s Catering. All agreed.
Police Department Comments
Chief Maiorano stated that the Police Department firing range is ongoing at the present time, and a location at the spray
fields has been identified for this use. He said that within the next couple of months, ONWASA and the PD can get
together and put the project together, hopefully, at no cost to the Town. He stated that if there is a cost, he will bring it
back to the Council.
Mayor Pro-Tem Hines asked Chief Maiorano if something could be worked out to have the Christmas parade in Holly
Ridge again. Chief Maiorano said that the engineer from DOT came down and said specifically, that the state roads in
Town could not be shut down. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines asked if the parade could be routed on some of the Town’s
streets. Chief Maiorano said that information signs would have to be put up to redirect traffic and the cost of these were
approximately $4,000 or $5,000. Manager Fann said that he thought you could have a rolling road block to do a
parade, but traffic has to be able to continue moving. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said he would like to have a route figured
out so that Holly Ridge can have a Christmas parade again. Chief Maiorano said he would look at the situation again.
Town Manager Comments
Veteran’s Day
Manager Fann told the Council that Veteran’s Day, which is one of the employee’s holidays, falls on November 11th
which is a regular Council meeting. He said that if the Council wanted to, the meeting could be changed to the Tuesday
before or the Tuesday after, or another night.
A motion was made by Mayor Pro-Tem Hines and seconded by Councilman Wright to change the meeting date in
November from November 11th to November 18th, 2008 because of Veteran’s Day. All agreed.
ONWASA Resolution
Manager Fann informed the Council that the Town had received a letter from Mayor Trott concerning the Swansboro
resolution from 2005. He said it was the same resolution that was presented a couple of months ago that was not
adopted by our Council. There were no recommendations from the Council to change the Resolution that was adopted
by Holly Ridge Town Council.
Community Building
Manager Fann said that the PARTF grant packet for the Community/Recreation Building has been mailed to the
representative and he will let us know if everything has been submitted correctly.
Newsletter
The staff will begin working on a newsletter to be mailed out soon. Manager Fann stated that if anyone has anything
they want placed in the newsletter, to let the staff know.
Council Concerns
Mayor Pro-Tem Hines asked Larry Willaford, Building Inspector, if the old Victory Baptist Church had been torn down
yet, and Larry said that the Council had given him thirty days to have it removed. The owners have until January 11th,
2008 to have it removed before the Town can take action. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said that Manager Fann did such an
outstanding job on having the gutters cleaned out on Highway 17 and asked if he could get the gutters on Sound Road
cleaned out also. Manager Fann said yes. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said he wanted to thank Anita Dingler for her
enthusiasm and the great job with the Parks and Recreation Committee and also wanted to thank the committee. He
had questions concerning the monthly budget report about the Council salaries which Manager Fann said those
amounts were transferred to salaries because taxes are being withheld. He also asked where the money for the
Christmas bonuses came from and Manager Fann said the money came from the miscellaneous account. Manager
Fann said that during the budget meetings for the current fiscal year, this subject was discussed and it was decided by
the Council to not set up a line item for the Christmas bonuses and to discuss whether to give them and how much when
the time came. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said that the report should be refined and some line items are misleading.
Councilman Edwards stated that at the December meeting he had mentioned about hearing ONWASA advertising on
the radio, now they are advertising on TV as well. He said that he feels this is a waste of money. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines
said that is something that he is planning to ask at the next ONWASA meeting. Councilman Edwards said that they do
not have any competition so why would they have to waste money to advertise. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said that
ONWASA has a public relations department and has money budgeted toward advertising. Councilman Edwards
commended Officer Brian Deel for being instrumental in apprehending a person who authorities had been searching for
in a robbery case.
Councilman Wright said that he wanted to have discussion on staggered terms for the Council. He stated that if an
entire new Council was elected, it would mean all new persons. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said that that had been discussed
in the past and was on the ballot for the voters (in the 1999 election) to decide and was voted down. Manager Fann
said that a Resolution of Intent would have to be adopted, a public hearing held, and an ordinance adopted changing
the charter. Manager Fann stated that it could be placed on the agenda for the February meeting for discussion and
possibly adopt the Resolution of Intent, and call for a public hearing for the March meeting. Councilman Wright said he
would like to pursue this. Councilwoman Bragg suggested that maybe a survey could be sent out for citizen’s feedback.
He also said he would like to see the Town divided into districts or wards. He said that with the new developments in
Town, they could block vote (s).
Mayor Padgett said that he thought this would be something that would have to be done in the future, but he’s not sure
if now is the right time to do this. There was discussion about the costs of dividing into wards or districts.
Councilman Summerlin asked about the Welcome to Holly Ridge signs and Manager Fann said he would get them
ordered because some of the tax revenue has come in. Mayor Pro-Tem Hines said that the Town would soon need to
begin maintaining the landscaping at the intersection of Highway 17 and 50.
Councilwoman Bragg apologized for being absent at the December meeting, but was out of town for work related
reasons. She thanked the town employees and the committee members.
Announcements
Mayor Padgett said that the Four Town Meeting will be hosted by Surf City on Thursday, January 17th, 2008 at the
Mainsail Restaurant at 6:30 pm. The Mayor’s Meeting will be hosted by Richlands at the Camino Real Mexican
Restaurant in Richlands located at 172 Richlands Hwy on January 23, 2008. The School of Government classes will be
held at the downtown Hilton in Wilmington January 23 – 25, 2008.
Adjournment
A motion was made by Councilman Summerlin and seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Hines to adjourn at 9:30 pm. All
agreed.
Attest:
____________________________ __________________________
Mayor Elmer Padgett Brenda Padgett, CMC