The Davidson Town Board will meet for its monthly work session Tuesday, when the agenda also will include items missed two weeks ago when the board’s regular monthly meeting was postponed because of snow.

The board is expected to vote on a resolution in support of the Trust for Public Land, which is working on with a potential deal to preserve as open space 242 acres in the failed Abersham development northeast of town.  The board also will vote on new rules aimed at reducing the impact of new construction on existing neighborhoods and on a resolution allowing the town staff to advertise bids for town purchases via the internet instead of in local newspapers. Presentations Tuesday include an auditor’s report on the 2009-10 budget.

The meeting begins at 6 p.m. at Town Hall, 216 S. Main St.

ABERSHAM VOTE

A resolution up for a vote Tuesday would express the town’s support for the Trust for Public Land and open space preservation. The resolution does not mention the Abersham development by name, but officials have confirmed that the trust is proposing to buy land in that failed development, off Grey and Shearers roads near Fisher Farm Park. The resolution would allow the town to join the Trust and Mecklenburg County in applying for grants to fund a purchase.

As we reported Jan. 17 (“Trust for Public Land eyes deal for Abersham property”), the Trust for Public Land has contracts to buy land in the former project, which comprises 242 acres. Download the resolution, (PDF) CLICK HERE>

PRESENTATIONS

Accountant Clare Myer will present the annual auditor’s report on fiscal 2010. In a note to commissioners, Town Manager Leamon Brice said, “There are no findings in the audit.”

The board also will hear a presentation by Kathryn Sellers of United Family Services and District 1 county commissioner Karen Bentley on a proposal for hiring a domestic violence counselor in north Mecklenburg. They made a similar pitch last year, and Mayor John Woods said the board would try to work with other north Mecklenburg towns to find a way to meet the request. But Huntersville did not fund the position and the town budget was tight, so the money ultimately was not included in the budget. (See March 31, 2010, “Towns asked to help fund advocate for battered women.”)

Town staff also will give presentations on goals for the Capital Improvement Plan and on preliminary financial data as the board begins budget planning for next fiscal year.

DEALING WITH CONSTRUCTION

A half-dozen items will be put to votes as part of the board’s “consent agenda,” which includes items to be voted on in a group without discussion at this meeting. Among them is a series of amendments to the Municipal Code that are designed to address frequently-heard complaints about “infill” construction in existing neighborhoods.

“We believe these amendments will help us eliminate a lot of the issues we have with infill construction,” Mr. Brice said in a note to the board two weeks ago. The amendments involve the noise ordinance, parking, storage on a right-of-way. And Mr. Brice said the town is also working on a “permit requirement” for anyone doing work in a public right-of-way.

The rules would make it illegal to store landscaping or construction materials on a public street, and would not allow concrete or other construction supplies to be mixed on public streets. Builders would have to maintain “safe passage” for vehicles on public streets. Dirt and debris also would have to be cleared from roadways.

The ordinance also seeks to limit noise from construction and vehicles and sets daytime hours when louder work may take place. (Download a copy of the proposed changes (PDF), CLICK HERE>)

ELECTRONIC ADVERTISING

The Town Board also will vote, as part of the “consent agenda,” on a resolution that would let the town manager and town staff seek bids for purchases and services using advertising through “electronic means,” including the internet. The change would eliminate the requirement that the town use a printed newspaper.

Mr. Brice told the board in a memo that state statutes allow municipalities to advertise for bids electronically “in certain situations.” The proposal up for a vote Tuesday “would allow us to use electronic means in the appropriate situations,” he said.

In a separate vote, the board will adopt two proposed “advocacy goals” to be submitted to the North Carolina League of Municipalities as it lobbies at the legislature this year.

The first would seeks to let towns publish public notices on local websites [including news sources such as DavidsonNews.net and municipal websites] instead of newspapers. To comply with current laws, the town advertises in the Mooresville Tribune, a newspaper that does not cover Davidson or circulate in town.

A second goal would be to allow municipalities the option to require
residential fire sprinklers in all new homes.

Download a copy of the proposed resolution (PDF), CLICK HERE>

OTHER ITEMS

Also up for votes are proposals:

• To amend the personnel policy in accordance with new state rules that make all dismissal letters public. (See the proposed changes (PDF), CLICK HERE>)
• To accept Chairman Blake Lane as a town street. It turns out the short street next to the CVS, between South Main Street and Lorimer Road, was never submitted for acceptance as a town-maintained street. This resolution will make Chairman Blake Lane officially public and maintained by the town, the manager said. Download the resolution (PDF).

The board also will hold a closed session for a personnel matter. Mr. Brice said he would be discussing results from his annual review late last year.

RELATED DOCUMENTS

The town manager’s memo to the town board.

The agenda, with clickable links to documents. (PDF), CLICK HERE>