After a reception with refreshments in the second-floor lobby, the Wake Forest Town Board meeting Tuesday night began with a good-bye to Commissioner Zachary Donahue, who did not run for a second term, and the oaths of office administered to Commissioners Anne Reeve and Greg Harrington, who won re-election to their third and second terms, respectively, and new Commissioner Brian Pate.
Then, as Pate said, they got right down to work and finished off the agenda in under an hour.
The only dissent about any item came from Commissioner Margaret Stinnett, who questioned Assistant Planning Director Chad Sary about Priscilla Rolls’ request for a one-year extension for her commercial/retail subdivision, Crenshaw Village, which was approved in 2010. Rolls had a choice of having it still viable for three or five years and chose five. Under the Unified Development Ordinance, which was adopted since 2010, the town board can extend approval of a subdivision for one year past its expiration date.
A letter from Rolls was included in the commissioners’ package which said that she has most recently been working with a possible buyer for a nursing home/assisted living complex, and her engineer (Rice & Associates) have worked out a plan for 10 of the 66.8 acres. However, “UNC has not accepted my counter offer for a purchase.” She said there was not enough time – her letter was dated Oct. 28 – to work through a contract and platting before the approval expires Jan. 17. The tract lies behind Lowe’s Home Improvement and has short frontage on the N.C. 98 Bypass but is accessible from two short streets off Galaxy Drive, the frontage road along Capital Boulevard. Rolls is one of the three heirs who inherited the house (Crenshaw Manor) and the last of the land that was in the Crenshaw-Jones plantation on the west side of town.
Stinnett asked several times about the length of the approval for the Rolls plan, whether there are any other plans good for five years, and what are the conditions of the approval. Sary said the plan includes right-of-way and some construction for the Ligon Mill Road extension, buffers for Richland Creek and a power line through the land. Mayor Vivian Jones noted that it takes a long time for developments such as Rolls is planning to take shape. When Stinnett said the five years was a long time, Jones said, “She did what she was allowed to do.” Stinnett voted against the motion to approve the extension.
There was no explanation sheet for the contract to build a 500-foot section that will connect Grandmark Avenue from Capcom Avenue to Rogers Road, but Director of Engineering Eric Keravuori said the low bidder was Carolina Sunrock with a bid of $448,590.10, which is more than an earlier estimate.
Its funding has been difficult and controversial, with Donahue earlier this year saying the town did not follow its own policies when it went to the Futures Fund committee to ask for up to $200,000 for the construction. The town has a $110,000 grant from the state Department of Commerce, a pledge of $25,000 from an individual and had set $24,850 as the town’s contribution before asking the Futures Fund. At that time the construction cost, aside from the City of Raleigh’s plan to loop an existing waterline and pay for it, was $327,268.
Even though those amounts for construction above do not reach to $448,590, Keravuori said, “We have the funds to cover that” and added work will begin Jan. 1. The commissioners unanimously approved the contract.
The board also approved the sale of right-of-way and temporary easements DOT needs for the rebuilding of the Rogers Road bridge this coming spring and summer. DOT will pay the town $20,450 for 0.523 acres of right-of-way and 0.091 acres of temporary easements.
The board also changed the language in an ordinance to conform with state law which makes it legal to carry concealed weapons in parks.
During the public comment on the proposed 2015-2016 Capital Improvements Plan, William Nennstiel urged the board to remember Heritage, where he lives, when developing the plan and mentioned sidewalks and roads with specifying any need.
Thomas Leonardo, who apparently lives in the Franklin County area of Richland Hills subdivision, said he and his wife recently moved here from Ft. Myers, Florida – “I think the town is actually wonderful” – and then commented on the amount of litter along streets and roads, the old collapsed barn on Wall Road, and the empty buildings on South White Street and urged the town to undertake downtown development. Mayor Jones thanked him for his comments and did not tell him about the long-standing downtown development programs and the recent addition of a downtown developer to the town staff.
The commissioners spent part of the time voting on appointments to the advisory boards and Town Clerk Deeda Harris read out the names of those appointed at the end of the meeting. The following people were appointed:
Board of Adjustment – Jonathan Bivens and Brian Lange
Cultural Resources – Teele Anderson and Sloan Walkup
Human Relations – Sheldon Bleiweiss, Mark White, Joshua Logan and Sheila Brown
Public Art – Sheila Abraham-Corcoran, Rebecca Christian, Elizabeth Hayes, Sharon Pullen and Lauren Landis
Cemetery – Don Daria and Paul Garrison
Greenways – Mitchell Ray, Sandra Rhodes, Erin Quinlan
Planning Board – Stephen DeRosa, Al Hinton, Clleen Sharpe and Rod Springer
Senior Center – Salina Gary, Brenda Thorne, Janet Chadwick
Recreation – Dan Bulatek and Richard Thompson
Technology – Anthony Grieco, Rob Harper and Zee Khan
Urban Forestry – Nancy Bates and Vince Remsburger
The Design Review Board and Historic Preservation Commission appointments will be announced later, Harris noted.
