The Town Board this year wants to build Davidson as a “national model of a healthy community” with a series of goals that address town government, businesses and residents. Those goals, discussed at the board’s monthly work session Tuesday, include ensuring Town Hall’s financial stability and the community’s economic sustainability.

Also Tuesday, the board discussed 2010 lobbying priorities with its Washington lobbyist. (Based on the discussion, the list likely will look a lot like last year’s.) And commissioners talked to town staff about the format they’d like to see in departments’ regular reports to the board. And the board held a closed session to discuss a legal matter. (We’re working on getting details about that.)

TOWN BOARD GOALS

The board continued a discussion of 2010 goals that began at its annual retreat two weeks ago. The goals build on this year’s primary theme of economic development, taking a broader view: building a “healthy community.”

The board singled out a couple of specific areas that it will be monitoring: the health of MI-Connection, the cable system Davidson jointly owns with Mooresville, and building a badly-needed second fire station to serve the east side of town.

The board identified five goals that it hopes to work on this year under the broad theme of a healthy community:

• Financial stability and responsible stewardship – ensure stability of the MI-Connection cable system, establish financial policies, capital funding, build a second fire station.
• Civic health – practice transparency, take meetings into neighborhoods, review ordinances and assets to ensure integrity of our governing structure, implement the Comprehensive Plan, support town staff in their roles as national leaders who generously contribute their expertise to their professions and other communities.
• Economic viability and sustainability – Implement an economic development plan including: large employers or capital investments; small retail and downtown development; reduce vacancies; nurture independent businesses and the incubator concept; re-zone and hold land, such as Davidson East; identify and encourage residential development that supports downtown and mass transit; encourage Exit 30 development as planned; develop a property managers’ interest group and ask how we can support them.
• Community engagement and connectedness – identify and respond to opportunities for community building by strengthening engagement with and connections among neighborhoods, individuals, programs and activities.
• Enhance the physical, mental and emotional health of our residents through: connectedness, developing green initiatives for environmental sustainability, and implementing mobility objectives (mass transit, sidewalks, etc.)

LOBBYING 2010

The board also met with its Washington lobbyist, Steve Dye of the firm McAllister & Quinn. Davidson hired Mr. Dye a year ago jointly with the Town of Cornelius. It wasn’t clear Tuesday night whether the two towns might join forces again this year, or whether Davidson might hire Mr. Dye on its own. In 2009, the two towns paid $3,000 apiece as a retainer for Mr. Dye’s services. He said Tuesday his minimum retainer is $5,000 for a solo engagement.

Mr. Dye reviewed his efforts in 2009 to get funding for three projects: a downtown parking deck, the proposed Davidson IB Middle School/Community Center project and a proposal to overhaul the Griffith Street bridge over I-77 to include better pedestrian access. None of those projects were funded. He said these kinds of projects would most likely be funded through earmarks, special appropriations attached to other bills. Mr. Dye said Davidson’s congressman, Mel Watt, had gotten fewer earmarks in 2009 than in past years.

Mr. Dye also has been working with the two towns to help secure federal funding for the proposed Red Line, the commuter rail project north of Charlotte. He noted that a recent federal rules change that puts more emphasis on the economic development benefits of transit and less on ridership could favor the Red Line.

The board and Mr. Dye discussed a variety of other possible projects that he might lobby for this year, including money for a downtown parking deck and the community center project. He also would help the town apply for grants or partnerships with federal agencies, such as money for new police and fire equipment and a possible partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers to help with a proposed dam project at an old mill pond off Beaty Street that is on land the town owns.

No decisions about lobbying for 2010 were reached at Tuesday’s meeting. Town Manager Leamon Brice said he would ask the board at its February meeting to reach an agreement on lobbying priorities.

RELATED DOCUMENTS

Minutes of January town board retreat, listing goals (PDF), CLICK HERE>