TOWN OF HOLDEN BEACH

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2012

Unofficial Minutes & Comments

Lous Views

1. Police Report Chief Wally Layne

Break-ins follow-up: Multiple agencies have been investigating the string of break-ins for several months A married couple was arrested and the suspect in the video is still at large Warrants have been issued for Hamilton John Ortiz Bones for the break-ins. No break-ins reported in the last six weeks since video of suspect was released
a) Previously reported Every island in the area has been hit and they are searching for a suspect wanted in connection with more than 100 break-ins. The crime spree started in November. All the break-ins have been at oceanfront properties, occurring between 8:00 p.m. and midnight, only taking 32 to 50 flat screen TVs. Ocean Isle Beach Police have also posted a surveillance video of the suspect on YouTube. The video can be viewed at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnOqfiYdps&feature=youtu.be.

Wally reminded all property owners to write down the serial numbers of their electronic devices so that if they are stolen they can be returned when they are recovered. Chief Layne was elected to the Board of Directors of the NC Association of Chiefs of Police

2. Proposed Parks & Recreation Master Plan a. Presentation Dan Blackman & Shane Lippard b. Discussion and Possible Action

Prepared by 1) Town of HB Parks & Recreation Advisory Board 2) Town of Holden Beach staff 3) Right Angle Engineering & Dan Blackman Landscape Architecture Process 1) Worked on for over eight months 2) Surveyed owners & tourists 49% owner response, which is a very high percentage

3) 4) 5) 6)

Two public meetings were held Inventoried existing facilities both here on the island and nearby Formulated what needs to happen Working in our favor a) Town has undeveloped land b) Town has funding source BPART account 7) Parks & Recreation Advisory Board made recommendations and approved plan What it does 1) Documents needs & desires 2) Provides direction a) Updates to existing facilities b) Planning and design studies for new facilities c) Programs and activities 3) Foundation and validation of goals 4) Opportunity to seek funding; reference document when we apply for a grant 5) Flexible and fluid document Where we are at 1) Final draft, seventy page document 2) Five year plan serves as a reference document and a guideline to implement 3) Copies of Master Plan will be made available to the public a) Town website will have document available for review o Charts o Maps o Photographs b) Town Hall has hard copies of the plan for you to review 4) Agenda item at next BOCs meeting before being adopted by Board Final opportunity for public input Went back and forth about how to move forward Recommended same minor corrections should be made They have requested any comments be submitted before they vote on plan at next meeting Finally decided to handle as agenda item at next BOCs meeting on March 13th *** One of the issues was census numbers; apparently the Board does not like the count Went off on tangent questioning the count, considering doing our own According to the United States Census Bureau, HB had a permanent population of 575 in 2010 It is what it is

You can make a fairly convincing case that we dont even have that many people here Really thats what you have a problem with in a seventy page document
Census 2010 All homes on all of the barrier islands will be visited by census workers beginning in March 2010. Because of the number of second homes and rental homes, forms will not be mailed to anyone on barrier islands. There will be approximately 25 census workers assigned to Holden Beach. It is very important that everyone is counted. Census information affects the number of seats your state occupies in the United States House of Representatives. Every year, more than $400 billion in federal funds is distributed to states and communities for things such as new hospitals, schools, better transportation and social services based on census results.

5) Discussion and Possible Approval of Resolution 12-02, Resolution Opposing the Proposed Early Start Time for Brunswick County Schools The proposed early start date could cause further decline in the tourist industry, this would result in the collection of less occupancy tax monies.

Simply stated, they object to proposal to start school earlier due to concerns about how it would negatively impact tourism and more specifically our Occupancy Tax revenue.
6) Discussion and Possible Granting of Permission to the Mostly Bluegrass Society To Utilize the Pavilion and Surrounding Area on May 26th for their Spring Festival This would be the 4th year the event would be held on Holden Beach if approved.

Board had concerns with a number of issues including that it generates no revenue for the Town. It actually was the Town staff that reminded them that the whole point of these festivals is to get people to come to our island and hopefully rent here in the future. Despite safety concerns and inability to enforce ordinances the Board approved on a 3-2 vote.
7) Discussion and Possible Rescheduling of a Date to Hold a Goals & Objectives Workshop

Decided to reschedule Meeting scheduled on Thursday, March 8th at 12:00 p.m. A discussion on requiring religiously affiliated institutions to provide contraception coverage would have taken less time
8) Discussion on the Quality of Time Warner Service Mayor Holden

Groundhog Day - same old, same old

Issues with price / service / quality Last February TWC made commitments to address complaints and fix these issues Town has contract with them till 2016 They will be inviting them to attend town meeting for another beating
9) Discussion and Possible Approval of Contract Between the Town and Martin Starnes and Associates for 2011 2012 Audit Year

Contract to execute audit for this fiscal year It was my understanding that it was a requirement to change vendors after three years The Board and Town Manager seem to think it is more of a guideline Either way, they are going to solicit services, and put out to bid Incumbent has done it the last three years at a cost of @$19,000 a year
10)Discussion of Par Course / Fitness Trail

What is it? Fitness stations in high foot traffic area Quarter mile stretch, north side of OBW between Greensboro and Scotch Bonnet One of the few projects suitable for recently acquired land there What is proposed? Twenty exercise stations with multiple stations clustered together Includes benches, water fountains and palm trees Town will work with space they have, no plans to use any retaining walls When will it be done? By Memorial Day Project cost of $20,000 1) Source of funding BPART account a) BPART Beach Preservation / Access & Recreation / Tourism Fund

Plan was approved in August of last year

Installation scheduled for next month Raging debate about palm trees How many to plant Where to put them When to plant them Despite recently approving plans they flip flopped

Went from 70 palm trees to no vegetation Motion approved to install equipment only Town Manager was beside himself *** Let me get this straight We paid an engineer and landscape architect We had Parks & Recreation Advisory Board recommend approval We had Town staff support plan We had BOC approve plan Now that we are going to implement plan they change their mind It sure does not seem like they have their act together Or is it just me?
11) Planning & Inspections Report Building Official Tim Evans

Lots of building activity going on a) 226 open permits b) 10 new construction permits
12) Town Managers Report

Reviewed status of three funds actual vs. budget a) General b) H2O c) BPART All three funds are where we anticipated they would be at this time Dredging we will not have to fund effort due to Emergency Federal funding of $500,000 HB matching portion was $56,250 Work scheduled as follows: a) 18 days in April b) 12 days in July Terminal Groin The Army Corps of Engineers will conduct public information meeting Meeting scheduled on Thursday, March 8th at 6:00 p.m. All interested parties are hereby advised that the Wilmington District, Corps of Engineers (CORPS), Regulatory Division is holding a public scoping meeting for the Town of Holden Beach's proposed East End Shoreline Protection Project (terminal groin) within jurisdictional waters of the United States. The CORPS is soliciting comments from the public for consideration in the preparation of the

Draft Environmental Impact Statement concerning the Town's proposal. Questions regarding the scoping meeting and the CORPS' review of the project can be addressed to Mr. Mickey Sugg at (910) 251-4811, Corps Regulatory Division Office, in Wilmington, NC. Terminal groins structures run perpendicular to the shore and close to a tidal inlet to catch sand and keep the shoreline intact. Towns position is that a terminal groin could be a vital part of our beach nourishment program; providing stability in the most erosion prone areas of the island. For additional information visit the web site: NC TERMINAL GROIN STUDY
http://dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/CRC/tgs/finalreport/6%20-%20Construction%20and %20Maintenance%20Costs.pdf

Hurricane Irene disaster relief a) Six projects were approved b) Will be reimbursed for the $637,000 in cost Holden Beach will receive $637,383 in federal and state funds under the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Public Assistance Program. Of the amount allotted, $447,960 will be directed to beach nourishment and $189,423 will be directed to beach grass and sand fencing. Holden Beach was hit hard by Hurricane Irene and these funds will be used to help the community make repairs to the damages that were incurred by the storm. The FEMA Public Assistance Program is a federal-state collaboration that reimburses communities for repairs from natural disasters. Through the program 75 percent of the funding is provided by the federal government and 25 percent of the funding is provided by the State of North Carolina.
13) Mayors Comments

Abandoned shrimp boat Southern Lady is sinking on the north side of ICW across from Town Hall. Town has followed protocols and contacted multiple government agencies with no results so far since it is not hampering navigation. It is both an eyesore and an environmental problem that needs to be addressed. Town has been unable to get any action so far and wants it handled before prime tourist season. Mayor requested permission to send letter to the powers that be.

General Comments
As far as Im concerned the meeting was a debacle! Hope this is not how future meetings are going to go Meeting went till 9:30 p.m.

Reminders
The 2012 Vehicle Identification Decals are now available. Property owners are allowed up to four decals at no charge if they are applied for by May 31st. Additional decals and decals issued after May 31st are $10 each.

Upon Further Review

U.S. Congressman Mike McIntyre announced the approval of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) negotiated between the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the State of North Carolina to pay for dredging the Lockwood Folly Inlet. A deal between Washington and Raleigh provides funding for the dredging of shallow-draft inlets along the coast. But the one-year agreement doesn't secure long-term funding for the dredging work, meaning officials could again in the near future find themselves scrambling to secure money to keep the waterway navigable. A federal ban on earmarks last year dried up the stream of funding typically used for dredging projects in the area. The agreement makes breaks down to roughly $500,000 per project and should provide about 30 days of dredging at each inlet. Now that the agreement has been approved, the dredging can begin in the inlet so that the Coast Guard can put the buoys back in place that are necessary for passageway. The inlet is critical to our commercial and recreational fisherman, as well as the tourism industry which is the economic lifeblood of our area. Congressman McIntyre has long been a supporter of investments to coastal infrastructure and Coastal Storm Risk Management Projects and has worked throughout his time in Congress to provide assistance to the beaches and waterways of Southeastern North Carolina.

Factoid That May Interest Only Me

DEJ BLUE Super Bowl XLVI Lombardi Trophy is theirs

Giants beat Patriots for title again

Odds and ends

Bank of America is suing Brunswick County developer Mark Saunders and several companies associated with him, charging they have defaulted on about $78 million in debt. Coastal Companies owns property worth more than $182 million in Brunswick County. The Bank of America suit filed January 9th states that the Saunders companies failed to comply with a March 2010 plan to pay back real estate taxes in Brunswick County and that put it in default on its debt. The bank has now asked a N.C. Business Court judge to appoint a receiver for numerous companies associated with developer Mark Saunders. Bank of America said in its motion that a receiver was necessary to "preserve and protect" the property and income that might stem from them. That encompasses making sure that existing property is maintained. Bank of America's default suit also states that Saunders and the companies owe $1.3 million in taxes to Brunswick County for 2008 and 2009. Brunswick County revenue collector Ken Perry said Thursday that Saunders and his companies owe the county $1.6 million for 2008 and 2009, plus $1.2 million for 2010 and $255,000 for 2011.