Charlotte Redmond (left) laughs with Mayor John Woods after he presented her with the Employee of the Quarter award. (David Boraks photo)

The Town Board on Tuesday voted to allow a house on Davidson-Concord Road to be used as an office for a large-animal veterinarian. In an unusually short 45-minute public session, the board also gave its OK to a new planning approval process. And it adopted revisions to the erosion control ordinance.

Commissioner Laurie Venzon was absent.

The meeting included presentation of the town employee of the quarter award, which went to Charlotte Redmond, the town hall receptionist. Mayor John Woods said Ms. Redmond has been “the voice and face of Davidson for the past 12 years.” She’s also an accounting and administrative specialist who always goes “beyond and above,” he said. The honor is voted by town employees.

ZONING/PLANNING CHANGES

The board held a public hearing and then voted 4-0 to amend the town zoning map to allow a home at 16618 Davidson-Concord Road to be converted to a commercial/office use.

The action came on a request by large-animal veterinarians Bob and Karen Gochnauer. The Gochnauers run Mobile Large Animal Vet Services in Troutman. They want to move the business to an existing home on the Davidson property, which would be an office and commercial space for mobile veterinary services.

In a letter to the town and discussions with the planning staff, they said the change would involve only minor exterior and interior changes. The property would be accessed from Davidson-Concord Road along a shared driveway.  The Gochnauers said access to the site eventually would switch to a future road off Davidson-Concord Road.

During a public hearing before the vote, Planning Director Kris Krider read from a letter submitted by a neighboring property owner supporting the change. No one else spoke during the hearing.

The board also voted 4-0, without discussion, to approve changes in Section 7 of the Davidson Planning Ordinance. The changes would revise the town’s development review process, including the role of the planning board. For a copy of the proposed changes, CLICK HERE>

AFFORDABLE HOUSING CHANGES DELAYED

The board had been scheduled to vote whether to adopt changes to the affordable housing ordinance. But that item was removed from the agenda after Commissioner Evan Webster noted that the board had not seen a final copy of the changes. The board is expected to take it up again at its December meeting.

The proposed amendments were the subject of a public hearing last month. They would include a new formula for determining eligibility for affordable housing units.

The vote on erosion control was specifically to adopt new language that brings the town’s ordinance in line with a revised Mecklenburg County Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance. The ordinance is designed to help prevent pollution by setting rules and authorizing enforcement of those rules to limit the effects of erosion. In a brief presentation before a public hearing that preceded the vote, the board was told that the most significant change was to require certification for those who inspect sites for compliance with the ordinance.

OTHER ACTION

The board also:

• Approved resolutions requesting the N.C. Department of Transportation to turn over control of three streets to the town: Jackson Street, the end of Shearer Road near Dembridge Drive, and a portion of Robert Walker Drive.
• Approved a proposal to suspend the rules of its monthly work session Nov. 25 to take action an affordable housing plan for the Bradford subdivision.
• Authorized the town staff to apply for a Safe Routes to School Infrastructure Reimbursement Grant.
• Authorized the town to apply for a North Carolina Department of Transportation Pedestrian Planning Grant.
• Approved a $37,100 budget amendment, to reflect money received from Davidson College to pay for a crosswalk and curb “bulb-outs” at Concord Road and Woodland Street.

The board removed from the agenda a vote on a proposed regional agreement that would set up a regional transportation commission. Town Manager Leamon Brice said the agreement was not ready for a vote. In a note to the board, he said Davidson, Cornelius and Mooresville were still waiting to see if Huntersville might join the group.

The board held a closed session after the meeting to discuss an undisclosed property purchase.