MINUTES TOWN OF STOKESDALE REGULAR TOWN COUNCIL MEETING 8325 ANGEL PARDUE ROAD STOKESDALE, NC27357 May 12, 2022 AT 7:00PM  Members present: Mayor Mike Crawford, Mayor Pro-Tem Derek Foy, Councilman Tim Jones, Councilman Jim Rigsbee, Interim Town Clerk Dale Martin, Town Attorney Tom Medlin,  Finance Officer Kim Thacker  Councilman Jimmy Landreth was not in attendance.  1.  Call to Order, Pledge of Allegiance, Invocation:  The meeting was called to order by Mayor Mike Crawford at 7:07pm, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Pastor Ed McKinney of Stokesdale United Methodist Church gave the invocation.  2.  Review and Adopt Agenda:  Councilman Jones requested an agenda amendment to add a discussion about their Metropolitan Planning Organization representative. He also wanted to add a discussion and vote on job Motion by Councilman Rigsbee to approve the agenda as amended. Mayor Crawford seconded Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor. Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  advertising for the Town Clerk position.  the motion.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  3.  Review and Approve Minutes (August 5, 2021; August 12, 2021; September 2, 2021 Open Session; September: 2, 2021 Closed Session; April 7, 2022 Budget Workshop;  April 14, 2022 Regular Town Council Meeting):  Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to continue consideration of August 5, 2021 meeting minutes, Mr. Foy clarified that he wished to ask the Town Clerk a few questions about the minutes. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to approve the. August 12th, 2021 meeting minutes as presented,  seconded by Councilman Jones.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. seconded by Mayor Crawford.  247    Councilman Jones reminded the council ofhis reticence to provide approval for minutes ofa meeting that he did not personally attend. He clarified that should his vote delay the approval of minutes, he would review recordings, documents, and anything else needed to weigh inj properly. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-nay, Councilman Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to approve September 2nd 2021 meeting minutes as presented, Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-nay, Councilman Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to approve September 2nd 2021 Closed Session minutes, Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-nay, Councilman Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to approve April 7th 2022 Budget Workshop minutes, seconded Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to approve. April 14th 2022 meeting minutes as presented, Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. seconded by Mayor Crawford. Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. seconded by Mayor Crawford. Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. by Mayor Crawford. Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. seconded by Mayor Crawford. Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. Public Safety Reports:  4.  Fire Department  Fire ChiefTodd Gauldin reported the following: 40 medical calls, 25 fire calls, 21 other calls, overall increase in calls, and an ongoing trend towards more calls overall. He also cautioned everyone to take care with their seasonal appliances, particularly grills. He encouraged everyone toj properly put out charcoal fires and to be attentive to gas grills, specifically noting to not allow  the gas tol build up too much before lighting the grill.  5.  Administrative Reports: a) Planning Board  Mayor Pro-Tem Foy discussed ongoing plans for aj parade and an undefined: fall event (perhaps a Back-to-School event). Councilman Rigsbee mentioned a request for ai memorial park bench. Councilman Jones stated that the park grill near the first shelter was still uninstalled and needed  to be addressed.  b) Administrative Report from Interim Town Clerk  248    Interim Town Clerk Dale Martin reported the following for April - 101 meters installed, 16 applications for transfers of service, 55 meters on hold for builders, 75 meters in stock, 650 water bills sent out, 17 work orders prepared, 27 811's processed, 14j picnic shelters processed, ongoing work to update records for backflow, one. ABC permit being processed, plans in process for water line extension in the Blacksmith subdivision, collaboration with NCDOT on: road work improvement plans, notification from DEQ1 that a Clean Watersheds Needs survey was required, continuing toj put budget books together, subdivision list inj progress, residential building permit Mayor Pro-Tem Foy then read an email from Republic Waste concerning the change in trash and recycling vendor for the Town. It clarified a few details about the process as they ceased operations, with the last day ofs service being June 30th. Mayor Crawford added that the new company, GFL, had provided an email and phone number citizens could use to ask questions.  application ongoing (for which May 13thi is the last day to: file an appeal).  Events Committee  Noi report  d) Property Committee  Noi report 6.  Financial Reports: Finance/Budget Officer: Kim' Thacker  Finance Officer Thacker presented the financial reports for both the General Fund and the Water Starting with the General Fund, for the Bank of Oakridge the checking was at $23,260.88, the CDARS account was $2,559,664.96. For Fidelity Bank, the checking account was at  Fund, detailing the account balances as of April 30, 2022.  $261,713.88, petty cash at $150.  For the Water Fund, she reported a Bank of Oakridge CDARS account balance of $499,798.07. The Fidelity checking was $591,334.99. The CRF Fund was $160,695.12, NC: Management Responding to a question from Mayor Pro-Tem Foy, Mrs. Thacker stated the bill expected several months ago from Guilford County for municipal elections had not yet arrived, noting she  Fund at $522,642, and the Fidelity Savings account was $45,050.99.  would follow up on it.  7.  Citizen's Comments from the Floor (3-minute limit per speaker):  Cheri Pikett, 7804 Robinson Rd, Summerfield, NC- Spoke of her concerns with the current curriculum in Guilford County public schools, referencing her belief that children were being subjected to coercive subject matter. She stated that students were being taught "critical race theory" via "social emotional learning,' ," and taught about Frankfurt School Marxists. She followed up claiming that this was a "religion" and "based on skin colors and groups," and was therefore in violation of certain laws prohibiting religion and discrimination in public schools.  249    She also claimed that these programs have damaged thousands of our children," and wanted to somehow prevent this supposed curriculum from "continuing" in Guilford County schools. Eileen Thiery,8101 Meadow Springs, Rd..Stokesdale, NC- Asked for clarification about the maintenance responsibility for the area around the Town Clock. She stated that, being the Stokesdale Town Clock, she might expect the Town to officially take over the maintenance of the area at the base oft the structure and then officially budget for that maintenance.  Old Business 8.  Consideration of an amendment to revise the Town of Stokesdale Water Line  Specifications (continued from April 14th meeting):  Councilman Jones suggested that, for new water lines, the Town should exclusively use 8-inch PVC class C900 pipes. Mayor Pro-Tem Foy agreed, and also mentioned that this was because he had already moved to make this change in the past. Mr. Jones agreed with Mr. Foy, as both recalled voting to make this change on two previous occasions (in 2017 and 2020). Mr. Jones also stated that, though he understood that some contractors preferred the 6-inch pipe for the lower costs, he was not sure why 6-inch pipe was still allowed and being used in new projects considering those previous attempts to change the requirements. He also stated that the Fire Department had requested the use of 8-inch pipes as well as the pipes provide better quality (in Itv was also mentioned that Interim Town Clerk Dale Martin had flagged several writing errors, mostly grammatical, in some oft the documentation and that those errors should be corrected. Motion by Councilman Jones to make changes to the Water Line Specifications which would correct grammar and formatting, correct the hydraulic modeling submittal, and change the specification allowing for 6-inch or 8-inch pipe to instead exclusively use 8-inch PVCclass C900 pipe for water lines. The motion was seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  terms ofboth volume and pressure) when dealing with fires.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  9.  Discussion on Drink Machine located at' Town Park (continued from April 14th  meeting):  Motion by Councilman Jones to unplug the park drink machine, wrap it in a tarp, mark it as out oforder, and then tol have the Finance Officer estimate the electricity cost ofr running the machine since it was installed and bill whoever holds the contract for the machine that amount. Mr. Foy requested that the motion be broken into two motions, one to mark it as out of order and Motion by Councilman Jones to unplug the park drink machine, wrapi it in a tarp, and mark it as  one related to the billing. Mr. Jones agreed and withdrew his motion.  out oforder, seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy.  250    Mayor Crawford asked if the machine was actually in use at all, but it was unclear. Mr. Jones asked where the authority was coming from toj pay for the electricity costs oft the machine, to which Mr. Foy responded that the cost for the machine was likely just included: in a general power bill and sO was not being independently paid for. Mr. Jones clarified that he was unsure ofhow the: machine had been installed without council approval in the first place. Mayor Crawford explained that approval had been given, but he was not sure ifthe person that gave that approval had the authority to do SO. Mr. Jones then said that he would be comfortable withdrawing his motion now that he had voiced his concerns, hoping though that the issue would Mayor Crawford commented that hel had been in contact with a representative at the Coca-Cola Mr. Jones asked Town Attorney Medlin how the Town might proceed ift they did not hear back from the company on this matter. Mr. Medlin suggested that, ifall appropriate attempts to make contact failed, then the Town would be justified in simply unplugging the machine. Councilman Rigsbee suggested, considering that they were still attempting to get ai response from the company, that they could merely continue the matter. The other members agreed with Motion by Councilman Jones to continue the matter, seconded by Mayor Crawford. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-nay, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  be discussed further and eventually resolved. Company and is waiting for a response from them.  this suggestion.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. New Business  10. Consideration ofinvoice from the Friends of Stokesdale for Town Clock Motion by Mayor Crawford toj pay the invoice to the Friends of Stokesdale.  landscaping:  Mayor Pro-Tem asked for clarification, Mayor Crawford stated that he did not think the Town should take over the maintenance oft the area at the base oft the Town Clock but did think that this invoice should be paid. Councilman Rigsbee commented that his concern, regarding potentially taking over the maintenance of this area, was that it was at a separate location from Town Hall which might necessitate ai renegotiation oft terms with their landscaping team. He clarified that the terms under which the Town operates require that they plan expenditures in advance, and that they avoid making payments which werei not budgeted for before-hand. For that reason, either attempting to adjust the landscaping contract currently inj place for Town Hall or paying the Friends of Stokesdale to maintain the Town Clock area were legally difficult propositions. Mr. Foy reminded everyone that aj policy which he drafted which would possibly offer a solution to  this issue was also on the agenda.  251    Town Attorney Medlin reminded the council that ai motion had been made but was: not yet Councilman Jones and Mayor Pro-Tem Foy offered to make the payment themselves to get around the legal concerns brought up by the council on this matter (potentially setting a precedent by using Town money to pay an invoice which wasi not on the budget). Mr. Rigsbee suggested that this could, instead ofbeing paid as an invoice, be resolved as a donation. Amendment by Councilman Rigsbee to donate (rather than pay) the Friends of Stokesdale in the amount of $465.49 for the beautification of the downtown area. The amendment was accepted by Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-nay, Councilman Motion by Councilman Jones to gather invoices from the Friends of Stokesdale relating to the Town Clock area maintenance and Mural project, and to have Town staff locate the agreements between the' Town of Stokesdale, thel Fire Department, and the Friends of Stokesdale for council review. The motion was seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy, but Mr. Foy commented that he was Mr. Jones asked Mr. Medlin for clarification, stating that tol his knowledge NC state law required all public funds given to a non-profit organization be subject to an audit trail. Mr. Medlin responded that Mr. Jones was entirely authorized to make the request, but he was unsure what Mr. Rigsbee asked why they should request invoices from the Friends of Stokesdale as opposed to just checking their own records. Mr. Jones then explained that their owni records would not show them where the money actually went, whereas by reviewing the Friends of Stokesdale's records the council could confirm how the publics' money had actually been used. Mr. Foy then read NC General Statue 55A-16-24, which requires that ai non-profit which receives over $5000 in grants, loans, ori in-kind donations from a local government toj provide financial documents upon a written demand. He then clarified that therefore, Mr. Jones' request Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman 11. Discussion and vote on proposal by Charles R. Underwood, Inc. for maintenance on Councilman Jones clarified that this item was actually about aj pressure reducing valve and pilot valve, not an altitude valve. He then explained the situation (overdue maintenance) as well as  seconded. The motion was seconded by Councilman Rigsbee.  Mayor Crawford.  Rigsbee-aye, Motion carried.  unsure ift the council had the authority to make such a request.  the results would bei ifthe Friends of Stokesdale refused the request.  was indeed aligned with state law. Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  Town's Altitude Valve:  some oft the differences between the mechanics of the valves mentioned.  252    Motion by Councilman Jones to approve proposal by Underwood for $4,803.75 to rebuild pressure reducing valve, install ai new pilot valve, and perform all associated labor. The motion Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman 12. Discussion ofTown Policy relating to Non-Profits requesting funding from Town: Mayor Pro-Tem Foy proposed aj policy allowing Non-Profits to request funding from the Town. He explained that he designed this policy based on similar polices used by other towns. Some of the major elements of this policy were: the non-profit would inform the town of what services they provide, how many volunteers and members they have, any funds they have received from the Town in the past three years; provide two years of tax information; and a description ofhow Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy directing the Town Attorney to review the proposed Non-Profit funding request policy. Ifa approved the policy would be effective retroactively to May 12, 2022. Councilman Jones proposed an amendment that the Town would expect Non-Profits to provide invoices, cancelled checks, and other records tol keep track ofhow public money was being used by the non-profit. Mr. Foy agreed to the usefulness oft the amendment and accepted it. Councilman Rigsbee voiced a concern that this policy might interfere with their ability to donate to the Stokesdale school. The council suggested that, not being ai non-profit, its should be exempt. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  was seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy. Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  the requested funding would be used.  The motion was seconded by Mayor Crawford.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  13. Town Policy on Closing a Water Account:  Mayor Pro-Tem Foy clarified that this policy was focused on abandoning a water tap, and that Councilman Jones discussed a: few points about how the water system in the town was arranged, and what some ofthe options were for dealing with an abandoned tap. He and Mr. Foy clarified a few points as to how contractors might remove meters and backfill holes, and what the concerns were with the different options. They both agreed that, despite the challenges, getting aj policy in Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy directing Town Attorney to review proposed process on abandoning a water tap, ifa approved the policy would be retroactively effective to April 12, 2022. Mr. Jones cautioned that, should there be no: fees involved for abandoning a water tap, the Town would then be responsible for the costs. Additionally, he recommended that disconnected meters  his wording may benefit from some updates moving forward.  place sooner: rather than later would be a major benefit.  The motion was seconded by Mayor Crawford.  253    be checked occasionally to ensure that property owners were not illegally accessing water Mayor Crawford asked what the actual cost should be, Mr. Jones explained that he didn'thave: a number ready off the top of his head but that he felti it would be unwise to not charge at all. Mr. Foy proposed that the following line be added to the policy: "To abandon a water tap Councilman Rigsbee asked if there was a cheaper and less permanent alternative to the methods suggested up to that point. Mr. Jones explained that, with simple padlocks or pinlocks, any citizen with a few tools and some know-how could easily remove those locks and continue accessing water services after the offiçial abandonment and disconnection. He also mentioned that, in the process of removing locks, it was common to cause damage which the Town would ultimately need toj pay for. Mr. Rigsbee then suggested that it might be better, overall and financially, to assume that citizens were trustworthy and use cheaper methods int the abandonment process. Mr. Foy agreed that he would generally assume that the citizens were trustworthy, and that the council likely didn'tneed to worry overmuch about water theft. Council continued to discuss different options for how to! lock or remove meters, and what processes might bej puti in place to avoid unnecessary costs while still checking to ensure water Mr. Medlin suggested that the language be changed to indicate only that an abandoned tap would be rendered inoperable rather than removed, which would allow for operational leeway. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  services.  property owners should pay a $250 abandonment fee."  services were not being access illegally.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. 14. Fee Schedule: Text Amendments:  Mayor Pro-Tem Foy proposed that al line be added to the Town fee schedule specifying a $500 fee for text amendments, plus the cost of advertising should aj public hearing be necessary. Mr. Foy then provided an example oft the current text amendment process. The citizen in his example requested ai text amendment and paid at total of $200 for the process while the Town, Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy directing the Town Attorney to review the proposed Text Amendment policy and the proposed changes to fees and process, and ifapproved the policy would be retroactively effective to May 12 2022. The motion was seconded by Mayor Crawford. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman 15. Release ofl Performance Bond Letter of Credit for Cold Water Terrace subdivision:  through advertising costs and staff time, incurred a cost of around $2,000.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  254    Council, Finance Officer Thacker, and Town Attorney Medlin discussed the details oft this item and how it related to DOT processes. Mr. Medlin suggested that this should not be a staffi matter, as it was council that needed to confirm for their own purposes that everything was being completed properly. Councilman Jones then responded that he didn'tthink the bond was a part of their ordinance but was not sure ifit included other items that did require attention. Mr. Jones then raised concerns that the plans had: not been reviewed or approved, nor had the related installation been inspected, by a' Town ofs Stokesdale engineer. Mr. Medlin then asked ifthe bond specifically referred to any water infrastructure, asi it would in that case have required an engineer to sign off. However, ifit was al bond for road-work, then NCDOT would need to sign offi instead. Interim Town Clerk Dale Martin then stated that she did not believe the bond Motion by Mayor Crawford to release the bond for phase 1 of case 21-05-STPL-04404, Council discussed Stokesdale's responsibility to address this issue, with Mayor Pro-Tem Foy commenting that many oft the roads seemed to bei in Forsyth County. Clarification was provided that some roads were: in Guilford County and under the Town's responsibility. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  covered any water infrastructure. seconded by Councilman Jones.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  16. Discussion of MPO Representative:  Councilman Jones explained that, for the Metropolitan Planning Organization, Stokesdale had been represented by a Summerfield Council Member for many years. He suggested pursuing some way to become more directly involved in their representation. Councilman Rigsbee commented that he would reach out to a contact to get more information. 17. Discussion of. Job Advertisement for Town Clerk:  Motion by Councilman Jones toj post the job advertisement for the Town Clerk position on Indeed, with the League ofl Municipalities, and the Town of Stokesdale website and Facebook Suggestions were. made to use a service to narrow the field and find appropriate candidates, rather than simply send it out on general job sites. Mr. Jones amended his motion that verbiage be added per their having. joined the Local Government Retirement Commission, seconded by Mr. Foy. Aj proposed job application submission date was set for May 27th. Councilman Rigsbee proposed an additional amendment that it also be advertisedi in the Northwest Observer. The Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  page. The motion was seconded by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy.  amended motion was seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Foy.  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried.  18. Citizen's Comments from the floor (3-minute limit per speaker):  255    Bobby Dalton, Stokesdale, NC - Spoke ofl her concerns about recent changes inj property values and the related appeals process. She requested the Council get involved in the matter, as she was unhappy with how her property was appraised. Council thanked her for commenting on this  matter as they shared her concerns. 19. Council Comments:  Councilman Rigsbee thanked all for attending and Mayor Pro-Tem Foy thanked staff for their work. Councilman Jones thanked staff as well, and also thanked Bobby Dalton for staying until the end ofthe meeting. He then noted his particular concern about property evaluations, in general and for families, as groceries and gas prices were also increasing. Mayor Crawford also thanked everyone for attending and encouraged everyone to vote in the upcoming primary.  20. Adjournment:  Motion by Mayor Pro-Tem Foy to adjourn at 10:35pm, seconded by Councilman Jones. Vote: Mayor Crawford-aye, Mayor Pro-Tem Foy-aye, Councilman Jones-aye, Councilman  Rigsbee-aye. Motion carried. Approved: July 14, 2022  Mayor  F  ATTEST:  Aaklat Dale F. Martin, Town Clerk  256