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Town Council - Nov 3, 2008 |
Minutes McClellanville Town Council November 3, 2008 – 7:00 PM McClellanville Town Council held a regular meeting on the above-noted date. Notice of the meeting had been published in the Town newsletter and the Charleston Post and Courier. Mayor Rutledge Leland presided at the meeting, and all Council Members were present: Gussie Humes, Jim Scott, Aaron Baldwin, and Bob Gannon. Others present included Clerk Mary Duke, Charleston County Stormwater Utility Manager Chuck Jarman, Malcolm Baldwin, Cheves Leland, and Emily and Oran Baldwin. Mayor Leland first asked Council to review the minutes of the October 6th meeting. After review, Councilman Humes made a motion to approve the minutes as written. The motion was seconded by Councilman Scott and carried unanimously. The mayor then recognized Chuck Jarman, Stormwater Utility Manager for Charleston County. Mr. Jarman made a power point presentation on the County’s Stormwater Management Program. He explained the federal government’s requirements for stormwater management under the Clean Water Act and the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). He said that McClellanville was currently below the population threshold which would indicate the requirement for compliance with most of the NPDES regulations, but that regulations which restrict development of property in the vicinity of water resources identified as “impaired” could already affect some properties here. He said that the County Stormwater Management Program was willing to assist local communities in complying with NPDES requirements, including public education regarding pollution controls, permitting, inspection, enforcement, mapping, and “housekeeping”—making sure that the County complies with pollution control best practices in its maintenance activities. He said that the goal of stormwater management was to make all natural water resources safe for fishing and swimming. Council thanked Mr. Jarman for the presentation and said that they would be considering requesting the County’s assistance with stormwater management as this is becoming an area of concern for all communities. Cheves Leland said that several ditches in town were in need of cleaning, and that she felt more maintenance was needed in order for the ditches to drain adequately. Mr. Jarman agreed to pass along Cheves’ concerns to County Public Works’ maintenance department Cheves added that Em and Oran Baldwin had continuing problems with severe stormwater flooding of their property, and had yet to see action on an approved drainage plan drawn up by the County. Mary said that although all property owners affected by the project had signed easement agreements for the drainage improvements, the easement approval process by several of the property owners’ mortgage companies had been ongoing for several months. She said that as soon as all of the mortgage holders approved the easements, the plats and deeds for the easements could be recorded and work on the project could begin. Council next considered Mary’s question on maintenance inspections of the equipment at the Town’s playground. Council discussed whether a regular inspection by the Town’s Building Official, Paul Fields, would be sufficient to satisfy legal safety requirements, or whether a maintenance agreement with a playground equipment company would be needed. Councilman Jim Scott said that as long as Paul could document his regular maintenance inspections and findings, liability concerns should be satisfied. Council suggested that Paul might develop a checklist of playground equipment/items inspected and perform a monthly inspection. Mary said that Paul had agreed to do these inspections if Council so directed. Councilman Gannon then made a motion to authorize Paul Fields to perform the playground safety inspections. The motion was seconded by Councilman Scott and passed unanimously. Council next revisited their consideration of a draft “application for funding” form, proposed for use by those applying for donations from Town funds. Councilman Aaron Baldwin said that, after previous discussions and consideration of the policies used by other local municipalities, he tended to believe that Council should approve no donations from town funds, except for contributions for relief after hurricanes and similar natural disasters. Council agreed by consent that around two thousand dollars could be budgeted in the future for contributions after disasters and emergency situations, but that, other than these emergency donations, further contributions from town funds would not be approved. They agreed that, for the remainder of the current fiscal year, the monies budgeted for donations would be distributed as in the past, in response to requests made to Council on a case by case basis. Council noted that donations for the jump castle at the Wisteria Parade and floats for the Christmas and July Fourth parades would need to come from other sources next fiscal year. Councilman Humes reminded Council that this year’s Christmas Parade was scheduled for December 13th, the second Saturday in the month. Council then reviewed the proposal from Clerk Mary Duke and Administrative Assistant Gary Bronson to begin publishing the Town newsletter as an online document, rather than mailing printed copies to all of the residents, property owners and friends on the town’s mailing list. Mary said that the newsletter could be perhaps be emailed to those who wished to receive it, and could also be accessed on the town’s website. She added that she and Gary planned to continue printing some copies to place at the town library and some business sites. Mayor Leland said that he felt those who still wished to receive a hard copy of the newsletter in the mail should be able to receive that service. Council agreed that those who still wanted a mailed copy should notify the Town Office to retain their names on the mailing list. Council agreed that they did not object to the change to an online newsletter, as long as those who could not access the newsletter online still had an opportunity to receive a copy in the mail. Mary said that the change to an online newsletter would be advertised several months before the change went into effect, and that the notice would include the information that those still wanting a mailed copy would have an opportunity to receive one. Council next considered a resolution to accept Graham Farm Road and Leland Creek Road in the Graham’s Corners PD into the into the town road system. Mayor Leland recused himself from the discussion and the vote, as his company, Carolina Seafoods, is the owner of the PD. The Mayor turned the conduct of the meeting over to the Mayor Pro Tem, Councilman Bob Gannon. The Mayor Pro Tem asked Council for a motion on adoption of the resolution to accept the roads, in order to have the matter on the table for discussion. Councilman Humes made a motion to adopt the resolution; the motion was seconded by Councilman Baldwin. Mayor Pro Tem Gannon then opened the discussion on the motion. He recognized Malcolm Baldwin, who has acted as developer for the Graham’s Corners project. Malcolm said that he and the mayor pro tem had met with officials from County Public Works recently to address the final concerns the County had noted with the roads and drainage in Graham’s Corners. He said that the County had had a punch list of about five items, and that he had addressed or was in the process of attending to all of them. He said that part of a ditch was being piped in, to satisfy the County’s concern that the shoulder of the road at that point appeared to be too narrow between the roadway and the ditch. He said that he had confirmed that covers for catch basins located on the roads were heavy duty and able to bear the load of traffic. Where the height of one catch basin extended above the level of the road at the intersection of Graham Farm and Leland Creek Road, Malcolm said that earth had been graded around the catch basin to reduce the risk of damage to vehicles or the catch basin cover. He said that the earth could be replaced with concrete if needed in the future. He added that erosion control rip-rap would be placed at drainage pipe outfall areas. Councilman Baldwin asked Malcolm whether the County would maintain the roads if the Town accepted them. Malcolm said that this would be the case. The Mayor Pro Tem asked Malcolm whether he had attended to all of the items on the County’s “punch list,” and Malcolm confirmed that he had. He said that he believed the County’s caution in approving the roads and drainage had been motivated by efforts to promote the best interests of the town and ensure that the roads would be safe and that the cost to maintain them would not be excessive. Mayor Pro Tem Gannon then called for a vote on the motion to adopt the resolution to accept Graham Farm Road and Leland Creek Road into the Town system. The vote by the voting Councilmen was unanimous to approve the resolution. Mayor Leland recused himself from the vote, because of his previously stated interest in the property. The Mayor Pro Tem and the Councilmen then signed the resolution to accept the two roads. Mary then discussed with Council some ongoing complaints regarding an overgrown and unsightly property in town. She asked for direction on how vigorously to proceed in attempting to have the property owner take action to improve the property. As the neighboring property owners had already contacted the owner of the property in question in order to attempt to resolve the problem and little action had resulted, Council directed Mary to have Building Official Paul Fields inspect the property to determine whether it would meet the town’s definition of a nuisance or whether building and safety code violations were present. Then, they suggested meeting with the complaining parties to determine what action they would expect with regard to the situation. Cheves Leland suggested that Mary might need to speak to Emily and Oran Baldwin, as she understood that they had heard a rumor that the proposed drainage plan that would affect their property had been revised. There being no further business, a motion was then made, seconded, and unanimously approved to adjourn the meeting at 8:13 PM. Mary S. Duke Town Clerk |