Susan S. Phillips Village Manager Stacy C. Eggers IV Village. Attorney (828)898-9292 www.seesugar.com Gunther Jochl Mayor Scott J. Brown Mayor Pro Tem Council Members David Ammann Wade Wittman Dick Casey a INC, 983 THE VILLAGE OF SUGAR MOUNTAIN 251 Dick Trundy Lane Sugar Mountain, NC 28604 Manager's Monthly Report May 16, 2023 2023 Golf Season: The golf course opened for the 2023 season with a strong day on Friday, April 21st. We hosted a tournament of 80 ASU players int the morning and the course opened to the public at 1PM. Play quickly dropped off each day, after this strong start, with the typical unpredictable weather in April being the contributing factor. We saw a 20% decrease in revenue the first week of this 2023 season in comparison tot thei first week of 2022. Tri-County Paving completed the resurfacing of cart paths ($19,365) and repairs and resurfacing in the parking lot ($3,566). Our new fleet of 55 Club Car golf carts arrived this past week. Our fleet of EZ Go carts were then loaded for transport to Georgia. The Village sold the fleet to a vendor in Georgia in the amount of $214,500. Billboard Tynecastle Hwy: Four Eggers, Village Attorney, filed a complaint in February against the property owner of the billboard on Tynecastle Hwy that was damaged in the storm in September 2021. The property owner has beenr notified several timesi int the last year to remove the remains oft the billboard and debris from the property and has not complied to date. Four has received a motion and order for extension of time from the property owner'sattorney. Four has contacted two local contractors for their assistance in obtaining their opinions regarding the cost to construct the billboard and the cost to repair the billboard in preparing his case against the property owner. Notice to Restore Property: The property owner ofl lot 146/147 on Grouse Moor Drive that was issueda zoning permit in late 2021, was sent a notice requiring him to restore the property to its original state and the Village'szoning permit isi invalid; effective immediately. There was tree removal and grading that had taken place when the zoning permit was issued, and there has been no activity for construction of the home since that time. The notice requires the owner to remove all debris, re-seedi the propertyi for erosion control and plant a minimum of twenty (20) trees at least six (6) feet high within thirty days of receipt of the notice. If the property owner does not comply the Village can impose civil penalties in the amount of Street Maintenance: The Public' Works staff has worked extremely hard this Spring to clean debris from the culverts and roadsidesand have been pruning the overhanging branches along our Village streets. Tri- County Paving has completed repairs and resurfacing of several areas on Grouse Moor Drive ($44,035). They have also completed the paving of the parking area at the Public' Works building. This will complete our paving projects for this budget year. Weather permitting, Public Works will be striping our streets in the upcoming weeks. Phillip Sisco, contracted by the Village through funding by the TDA again this year, has begun the annual plantings and mulching ofb beds throughout the Village, tennis courts and on the golf Board of Adjustment: The Board of Adjustment met on Tuesday, April 25th to consider an application for av variance to the setback requirements on Lot7 73, Rock Spring Circle. The owner requested a variance to the Village's required setbacks due to the cliff and rock outcropping on the lot, approximately forty (40) feet from the front property line, which makes it unbuildable within the current setbacks. After hearing testimony from staff and the property owner, the Board of Adjustment unanimously granted the variance Tourism Development Authority (TDA) Board Meeting: The TDA Board met on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. The Board approved $15,000 to partner with VisitNC to produce a promotional video. The Board also approved the purchase of custom promotional items such cooler bags, water bottles and bumper stickers. They approved a six- month contract with Mark File for marketing support in the amount of $15,000. Mark File submitted the attached. April 2023 marketing update. The Board discussed a proposed FY 2023-24 Budget of $804,255 and set a public hearing before the adoption of the budget at the. June The March 2023 collections oft the occupancy taxs showeda a decrease of 26% in comparison tol March 2022. The occupancy tax collections for the period April 2022 through March 2023 ($985,155) have shown a $200 per day for each day the violation continues. course. Phillip will maintain all these areas throughout the summer season. to the setback requirements on this property. 14th meeting. $2,459 or <1%i increase in comparison to the same period of 2022 ($982,696). Former Councilman Norris Clifton: Former Councilman Norris Clifton passed away on Sunday, April 16th. Her resigned his! position ont the Council in 2019 due to healthi issues and moved back to) York, SC. He served ont the Village Council for 6 yearsf from. January 20121 through December 2018 and was al long-time resident NCI League of Municipalities (NCLM) Legislative Updates: There are months to goi ini this year's legislative session and the NCLM has flagged two pieces of legislation that appear likely to move ahead and need your advocacy to ensure a good result for all cities, towns, and villages. From the League on these two of the Village. proposed bills: HB409 Regulation of Accessory Dwelling Units This proposal would preempt local zoning in every community statewide by allowing a second residence to be built on any lot zoned for single-family homes, with very few restrictions. The bill already passed the House withs strong bipartisan support, andi it will enjoy similar support int the Senate unless you let your senators know how this significant override of local development rules would One particularly worrisome part of this bill: Not only would it increase density in many existing residential neighborhoods, but those new secondary homes would likely become short-term rentals. That is because the bill specifically prevents any requirements that these homes be occupied by the change neighborhoods across your city. property owner. Overall, this bill would mean major changes to communities large and small. SB 675 Land Use Changes and Clarifications Quite simply, this bill would eliminate all extra-territorial jurisdiction (ETI) in the state. City officials have used this authority since the post-World War Il erat to ensure they are making smart infrastructure investments and protecting property values on the growing edges oft town. The ETJ planning tool also assures property owners that the growth around them happens in a compatible way. This bill did was not subject to the May 4 crossover deadline, and we believe it will begin working its way through the legislature soon. We are concerned that not enough lawmakers understand the benefits of ETJ. Without you speaking up to legislators about how it is used in your community, we Please act now to explain how ETJ works for your city and whyi it benefits everyone for the authority to Additional information is attached from the NCLM. Upon consensus of the Council to oppose these two pieces ofl legislation, Four Eggers will draft resolutions for the Council's consideration at our. June 20th believe cities are at risk of losing ETJ authority altogether. remain in place. meeting. Susan PhlipsVllgeMlanager fpp