W TOWN OF WEDDINGTON REGULAR' TOWN COUNCILI MEETING MONDAY,JANUARY8 8, 2024-7:00P.M. WEDDINGTON TOWN HALL 1924 WEDDINGTON ROAD WEDDINCTOA,NCZ8104 AGENDA 1. Call Meeting to Order 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Determination of Quorum 4. Additions, Deletions and/or Adoption oft the Agenda 5. Conflict of] Interest Statement: In accordance with the. state government ethics act, it is the duty ofe every Council member to avoid conflicts ofinterest.. Does any Council member have any known conflict of interest with respect to any matters on the agenda? Ifso, please identify the conflict and refrain from anyparticipation in the matter involved. 6.1 Mayor/Councimember Reports 7. Presentation from Fire Chief Steven McLendon, Wesley Chapel Fire Department 8. Presentation from ChiefI Deputy Tony Underwood, UCSO 9. Public Comments 10. Public Safety Report 11. Consent Agenda 12. Old Business 13. New Business A. Approval ofDecember 11, 2023 Regular Town Council Meeting Minutes B. Approval ofFY 2024 Budget Amendment A. Discussion ofText Amendments i. RCD minimum lot size ii. Stormwater B. Discussion of Amendment to UCSO Contract E. Discussion of dates for Council Retreat 14. Updates from' Town Planner and' Town Administrator 16. Update from Finance Officer and' Tax Collector .I Discussion of Amendment to Annexation agreement with Village ofMarvin D. Discussion ofl Ethics Agreement and Code of Conduct for all appointed Board Members 15. Code Enforcement Report 17. Transportation Report 18. Council Comments 19.A Adjournment W TOWN OF WEDDINGTON REGULAR TOWN COUNCILMEETING MONDAYJANUARY 8, 2024-7 7:00 P.M. WEDDINGTON TOWN HALL MINUTES PAGE10F8 1. Call Meeting to Order Mayor Bell called the meeting to order at 6:59 p.m. 2. Pledge of Allegiance Council led the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. Determination of Quorum Quorum was determined with all Councilmembers present: Mayor Jim Bell, Mayor Pro Tem Tom Smith, Staff present: Town Administrator/Clerk Karen Dewey, Finance Officer Leslie Gaylord, Deputy Clerk/Admin Assistant Debbie Coram, Town Attorney Karen Wolter, Town Planner Robert Tefft (via Visitors: Dorothy Thomas, ChiefDeputy Tony Underwood, Lt. Shawn Mayhew, Fire Chief Steven McLendon, Cindy Hicks, Gayle Butler, Andrew Martinson, Debby Moffat, Jay Moffat, Liz Holtey, Kristin Nicholson, Kim Topalian, Leon' Topalian, Frank Turek, Spencer Turek, Robert Iorizzo, Nicol Solis-Iorizzo, Bill Deter, Robert Wetteroff, Peter Balletta, Mike Maxon, John Drahzal, Bridget O'Brien, Drew Podrebarac, Tracy Stone, Andy Stallings, Charlie Bondurant, Sandy Welfare, Brent Lee, Neil Rayson, Buntin Councilmembers Brannon Howie, Jeff Perryman, and Darcey Ladner. phone), Deputy Grant Wrenn Podrebarac, Christopher Neve, Srikanth, Melissa Emerine, Chad Emerine 4. Additions, Deletions and/or Adoption of the. Agenda Motion: Vote: Mayor Pro Tem Smith made ai motion to adopt the agenda as presented. The motion passed with a unanimous vote. 5. Conflict of] Interest Statement: In accordance with the state government ethics act, it is the duty of every Council member to avoid conflicts ofinterest. Does any Council member have any known conflict ofinterest with respect to any matters on the agenda? Ifso, please identify the conflict and refrain from Mayor Bell read the Conflict of Interest Statement. Councilmember. Howie recused herself from discussion ofagenda item 13.B. as a member oft the church and ai member oft the board oft the preschool. any participation in the matter involved. Town of Weddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 2of8 6. Mayor/Councimember Reports Councilmember Perryman reported that the next Western Union Municipal Alliance meeting will be on 7. Presentation from Fire Chief Steven McLendon, Wesley Chapel Firel Department Thursday 25 January at 4:00 p.m. atl Marvin Village Hall. ChiefMcLendon presented the Wesley Chapel Fire Department recent ISO rating. He explained that fire departments are rated on an insurance scale 1t to1 10. Wesley Chapel scored an 88, reducing the rating to Class 2 which could correlate to lower homeowners' insurance. One other non-municipal fire department in Councilmember Perryman asked ifthe inspectors had any recommendations toi improve anything. Chief McLendon responded that they don'tmake: recommendations and the score is based on different criteria. Mayor Pro' Tem Smith asked what areas could improve. ChiefMcLendon responded that there are a couple of areas where there could be improvement: the infrastructure with firel hydrants. Roughly only 70% ofthe area is covered by hydrants; maximize training for all members; there are: no full-time employees, all are the state ofNorth Carolina scored Class 2. They can look at the score to see what areas to improve. part-time, in the four stations covering 46 square miles and about 62 to 65,000 people. 8. Presentation from Chief Deputy Tony Underwood, UCSO ChiefD Deputy Tony Underwood presented the end of year report with the Union County Sheriff's Office Councilmember Perryman commented that Weddington currently pays for 3 deputies, Marvin pays for 2 ChiefDeputy Underwood responded that Wesley Chapel has been strongly encouraged to increase the Business Manager Dottie Thomas. deputies, he asked how often those deputies respond to calls in Wesley Chapel. deputy contract. Mayor Bell asked about having a conversation about speeding in Weddington. Council member Howie asked ift there was a cost difference in contracting an overnight deputy as opposed to during the day. ChiefDeputy Underwood responded that there is no cost differential. 9. Public Comments Drew Podrebarac-700 Eagle Road. Mr. Podrebarac commented on his conçerns regarding aj proposed development off Highway 84 and the less than 1 acre lots. He asked the Council to consider development proposed sewer. Love Weddington-less: than one acre lots.. Asked council to consider 1-acre lots. Charlie Bonderant-646 Brandy Courts: Mr. Bonderant commented on the proposed development off Highway 84 and his expectation of due diligence on the impact of the development to conservation areas in Aero Plantation. Town of Weddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 3of8 Spenser Turek: 535 Cottonfield Circle: Mr. Turek commented on his concern with lot sizes less than 1-acre Brett Lee - 1000 Clover Crest Lane: Mr. Lee commented on overnight drag racing and stated his support for Frank Turek - 665 Baron Road: Mr. Turek echoed previous comments regarding maintaining a 1-acre minimum lot size. He commented on the conservation land in Lake Forest Preserve. minimum lots. large lots and smart planning for future development. 10. Public Safety Report Deputy Wrenn gave the Public Safety Report. He reminded residents to lock their cars as a deterrent to car break ins. He stated that the sheriff's office has resources tol help with seasonal depression. He thanked the Deputy Wrenn reported that the radar trailer is currently collecting traffic data on Providence Road and if any communities would like toj post the trailer in their neighborhood, contacti information is online. community for the offers ofl help after the house fires in the community. 11. Consent Agenda A. Approval of December 11, 2023 Regular Town Council Meeting Minutes B. Approval of] FY: 2024 Budget Amendment Motion: Vote: Councilmember Howie: made ai motion to approve the Consent. Agenda as presented. The motion passed with a unanimous vote. 12. Old Business 13.1 New Business A. Discussion ofText Amendments i. - RCD minimum lot size Mayor Bell began the discussion stating that he feels like Weddington is losing character and he is of Councilmember Perryman commented that when the town was first incorporated, one-acre lot size Councilmember Howie echoed Councilmember Perryman's 's comments. She would like to professionals like the County Urban Forester and Bjorn Hansen from the county planning office to Mayor Pro Tem Smith commented that the character and size ofhouses have changed and there are several RCD developments with % acre lots. He stated that the vision ofRCD didn'tplan on the houses being built today. He believes the minimum lot size needs tol bei increased and more the opinion that RCD minimum lot size needs to bei raised to 20,000s sq. ft. was due to the need for septic systems toj perk. talk about lot sizes and the effect on the tree canopy. invite environmentally friendly things steps need to be taken. Councilmember Ladner stated that her platform was conservation and and the best ways green space continued discussion ofr residential conservation subdivisions and lot too conserve those. Council sizes. Town of Weddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 4of8 Mr. Tefft commented that with 50% oft the land being conserved, a smaller lot size gets the yield that would be developed conventionally. To encouraged RCD development, developers need incentive. Council agreed to discuss further and directed staff to check availability ofRandall Arendt, Bjorn Hansen, and Keith O'Herrin to present information on lot sizes and conservation. i. Stormwater Mayor Bell stated that there are parts of the UDO that need to be updated to the 100-year stormwater standards. Councimember Howie reiterated that Council should hear from professionals. Mayor Pro Tem Smith commented that some oft the standards need to be beefed up. Mr. Tefft added that there aren'ta lot ofs sections in the UDO that allow 10-year over 100-year standards. He will confer with the town engineer and get all locations in the UDO. B. Discussion of Amendment to UCSO Contract Mayor Bell gave the background: He met with Dr. Moore from Weddington Methodist Church (WMC) and ChiefDeputy Neil Underwood and the previous mayor and mayor pro tem in late November to discuss amending the town UCSO contract to add a deputy and sharing that deputy with the Weddington Christian Academy at WMC as a school resource officer (SRO). Councilmember Perryman stated his support for the idea and continuing to looki in to working out Councimember Ladner asked what the SRO would work. Deputy Underwood responded it would be an 8-hour day and 4-40-hour work weeks 12 months a year. Councimember Ladner asked how this would be a fair split between the Town and school. Deputy Underwood and Ms. Hicks with the Weddington Christian Academy responded that the percentage split would be an approximation and the shift would be about 8 hours a day at the school and the deputy would be trained as an SRO. The town and church would enter into an agreement for a 70-30 time and cost split with the 70% for the Ms. Thomas with the UCSO explained that the total cost oft the deputy to be split would be $115,000 Council agreed that this is worth pursuing with some questions to be worked out: the schedule of the church VS. town time, church agreement on paying 70%, how the length oft the contract with the I Discussion of Amendment to Annexation agreement with Village of Marvin Ms. Dewey presented the staffreport: The Town of Weddington entered into an annexation agreement with the Village ofl Marvin in December 2000 and amended the agreement May 14, 2001. The agreement was renewed in December 31, 2020 with some changes to the annexation areas. Marvin Staffh has requested an amendment to the current agreement to change 8 parcels in the Weddington annexation area to be designated in the Marvin annexation area. A developer the details. church. annually. church would work. Town of Weddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 5of8 approached Village of Marvin Staffregarding annexing those properties for ai mixed use, higher density development. The parcels are located at the New Town Road and Providence Road Intersection and on Crane Road. Marvin Staff has requested an amendment to the annexation agreement and Marvin Village Council has called for a public hearing to discuss aj possibility of amending the annexation agreement to be held on Tuesday, January 9, 2024. Councimember Perryman stated when the agreement first came together, municipalities were able toi involuntarily annex property. Now municipalities do not have annexation power at all. The biggest threat to municipalities is unincorporated county property on the borders. He would rather see property annexed into a1 municipality rather than stay unincorporated. There is all commercial on the corner anyway. Weddington should work with Marvin. See where that conversation goes. Mayor Pro Tem Smith stated that the Village of Marvin staff should have directed the developer to come to Weddington first for a conversation. Marvin assumed' Weddington didn'twant the properties and Marvin wants Weddington to give them something without giving anything back in return. He would like tol have a conversation with the developer and wants to understand the request Councilmember Ladner stated her agreement with Mayor Pro Tem Smith. The town needs to start talking to developers. She doesn't want to give away land that could be future tax earnings and things that could benefit Weddington. She wants to understand what the developer wants to build Councilmember Howie stated her agreement with Councilmember Perryman. There is all commercial around that area and the town cannot: force annexation. With the UDO and Land Use Plan, it would be difficult to allow commercial down there outside oft the downtown center. Weddington doesn'town this property and Marvin doesn'town: it. The landowner shouldn'tbe Mayor Bell stated that he hates to see the loss of tax revenue but understands the issue with first. there. punished. commercial there too. Councilmember Perryman asked why new property owners went to Marvin. Ms. Dewey responded that the project being considered fits Marvin's zoning and land use plan and the developer is already Mayor Bell asked for ai rough idea oft the tax: revenue possible. Ms Gaylord responded that ifthe land Mayor Pro Tem Smith asked ifMarvin can annex that property anyway. Ms. Wolter responded that the annexation agreement is a legal document sO Marvin would not be able to annex anyway. Councimember Ladner asked if there was an advantage to agreeing to amend the agreement. Ms. Wolter: responded that it could be better to have a municipality zoning on the property than the working in Marvin on residential development. is valued at $10 million at 4.2 cents. county's looser rules. Town ofWeddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 6 of8 Council agreed to continue the discussion. Staff will reach out to developer to ask for an informal D. Discussion of Ethics Agreement and Code of Conduct for all appointed Board Members Mayor Bell stated that he requested Ms. Wolter to draft a code of conduct for all the advisory boards for Council to discuss. He stated that he believes ifaj person is representing the town on a volunteer Ms. Wolter stated that Weddington has an ethics code included in the code of ordinances and she presentation. board they should bel held to a higher standard. will incorporate this into the ethics agreement from the advisory boards. Councilmembers agreed to implement an ethics agreement for the advisory boards. Council asked Ms. Wolter to complete the code of ethics agreement andj present for approval at the February 12 Town Council meeting. E. Discussion of dates for Council Retreat January 29th at 9 a.m. at a place tol be determined. 14. Updates from Town Planner and' Town Administrator Council discussed availability for a work session retreat. Council agreed to meet on. Monday, Mr. Tefft gave an update: Eagles Landing 25-acre conservation subdivision 7400/7402 New Town Road Site Walk/Charette: 12/14/23 Rea/ Providence Conventional subdivision, 561 lots Sketch Plan submitted Liberty Classical Academy CZfor Private School Planning Board: 7/24/23 (Tabled) Traffic PIM: 8/22/23 Planning Board: Denial Town Council: 2/12/24 Deal Lake 189-acre conservation subdivision 06129109, 4.0,9672072,0020182 Site Walk/ Charette: 11/28/23 Comprehensive Land Use Plan and Town Center Plan Planning Board: 11/27/23; 12/18/23 Town Council: 2/12/24 06126017C Ms. Dewey presented the Administrator's: report: Completed repair and painting oft town hall exterior. Filed the quarterly report for the capital infrastructure fund grant. As far as the SCIF grant money goes. Ia am working on getting inside set up for streaming meetings and Orientation Meeting with NCDOT Division on the 24th- an overview of the division, contacts and an working on the park area update on all projects in Weddington. Town of Weddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 7of8 Urban archery season starts on the 13tha and runs through February 18th. The intention oft the Urban Archery Season is to reduce urban deer populations through increased hunter opportunity. The Urban Archery Season does not obligate private landowners to allow hunting on their property, nor does it eliminate the requirement for hunters to obtain permission from the landowner before hunting. Renewed the job posting for the planner position on LinkedIn, UNCCharlotte, job board and waiting for Will schedule Sarah Sinatra, with Inspire Placemaking Collective, toj present the draft comp plan and Town Hall will be closed on Monday the 15th in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. approval for the. App State job board. downtown master plan at the retreat or the February meeting. 15. Code Enforcement Report Report is in the packets. 16. Update from Finance Officer and Tax Collector Ms. Gaylord presented the financial reports. The audit was submitted this week. The auditor will probably present to the Council in March. 17. Transportation Report 18. Council Comments Councilmember Howie: Thank you everyone for coming out and thank you for your comments, your input and your careful consideration oft the comments you: make and thank you very much to town staff for your Councilmember Ladner: Thank you to the town staff for aj pretty amazing smooth transition. I'm! looking forward to the Essentials ofMunicipal Government Conference in Greensboro on' Thursday and Friday. Mayor Pro Tem Smith: Same thing. All three of us will bei in Greensboro on Thursday and Friday learning all about the government. Thank you everybody for coming out. We love tol hear your opinion. Ifyou do not speak, we don'tmind read. We enjoy hearing from the people and all ofus are accessible for conversation at Councimember Perryman: Well it sounds like al broken record. Thank you to the folks out here this evening. It's always good to see ai room full because the more residents are involved the more informed everybody is going to be. Thank you town staff for doing an outstandingi job. Robert, thank you for help. Day in and day out, you all do a great job for this town and this council. To the new members - this meeting many levels where that is wrong. This town is big enough with 14,000 people and growing, hard work, for answering our phone calls and for your conversation. any time. Thank you. to, enjoy and you're going to be surprised. You're going tol have a good time. The last you're going you'li a corner to just tell folks to move. When I hear somebody you "tell them to move", there are sO We aren't that kind of town to thing I want to say-not to end on a downer. say, needs change. still that there is find what want and what makes happy. Ihope the people living in this town understand you that and are not oft the opinion that people can just move as Town of Weddington Regular Town Council Meeting 01/08/2024 Page 8 of8 Mayor Bell: Thank you for coming out tonight. As youl heard from earlier, Iwant to start streaming the meetings. Ifyou can'tb be here, you can tune in. I'm all about public involvement. You can watch it. We are getting bids and we're going to fix that monitor sO everybody can see. It's coming. Thanks again for coming out tonight. Youri input, we need it. So, see you: next time 19.. Adjournment Motion: Vote: Councilmember Perryman made ai motion to adjourn the. January 8, 2024 Regular Town Council Meeting at 9:01 p.m. Thei motion passed with a unanimous vote. Approved: Shuglh Boa4 fau Biayf Karen Dewey, Town. Administrator/Clerk Beef Jim A wey SEAL