City Council

CITY OF HIGH SHOALS REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING March 14, 2023 Call to Order: The City of High Shoals was called to order on March 14, 2023, at 6:30 pm at the High Shoals City Hall. Present at the meeting were PJ Rathbone, Jimmy Laws, Kathy Rhyne, Bobby Vassey, Bo Rhyne, Denese Cook and Dennis Cash. Invocation Pledge of Allegiance Approval of Agenda: Motion to approve the agenda was made by Denese Cook with a second from Bo Rhyne. All approved Approval of Minutes: A motion to approve the minutes from the September 14, 2023, regular meeting was made by Kathy Rhyne and seconded by Denese Cook. All approved. Citizen’s Comments: Ms. Barbara Cash approached the podium and asked the Council what the City employees do when it rains. Do they sit at the water plant and drink coffee? Mayor Rathbone said they check storm drains, equipment, and the lift station. He said they obviously can’t cut grass when it rains. Ms. Cash said the information she had come from a reliable source but couldn’t say who it was. She asked why council members were doing the staff’s jobs. Jimmy Laws said that he does work with the staff but primarily as a teaching opportunity. Mr. Laws also said he was unhappy that only he and Dennis Cash helped clean up trash at the cemetery on a Sunday. Mayor Rathbone asked Ms. Cash if she was happy with how the city was run. She said no. The Mayor asked her what the Council could do to make it better. She said to communicate more. She said sees that many people are fixing up their houses in the city while others are not. The Mayor said that the County’s code enforcement office is doing their job and addressing those issues. The Mayor said he and the Council would do all they can do to address her concerns. Ms. Cash also said that the City Park needs more equipment. The Mayor said that the City had applied for grant funds for the park. Good of the Order: Mayor Rathbone distributed materials he was given at a leadership meeting and asked that the council members read through it, that is was good information he wanted to share. Departmental Reports: Police Report: No Gaston County Police personnel were at the meeting. The Mayor said he would reach out to them for future meetings. Audit Report: Eddie Carrick, CPA, presented the FY 21-22 annual audit and said that the audit showed a positive year for the city with no major concerns or findings, He did say that the Local Government Commission would require that the City submit a letter stating why the audit wasn’t completed and submitted prior to December 1, 2022. He explained that the issue was with the conversion to the new finance software created problems that took longer than expected to be resolved. He said the letter should be submitted within 45 days and signed by each council member. Finance: The Mayor stated that the City had $711,120.44 in the bank balances, $1,100.17 in Powell Bill funds, $160,125.02 in savings, $44,720.14 in Capital Management and $505,175.11 in the checking account. Cemetery: Denese Cook stated that the cemetery had been cleared and cleaned up around the edges. Water and Sewer: Bo Rhyne said he had received a call about a water issue at 205 N. Lincoln Street. The Mayor said that Two Brothers Utilities and Don Smith were currently at the site working on it. Mr. Rhyne said he was concerned that no one from the City is available for such calls after 4 pm. He also stated his concern that no one was at the City Hall to take the complaint and talk with the resident. Streets and Sanitation: Kathy Rhyne said that the person(s) on State Street is now avoiding the speed bump at the cemetery and the ballpark is now going around the speed bump onto the grassed area. She asked if the County Police could enforce that. She also said that new surveillance camaras being installed in the area may help catch the person(s) creating the problem. She said that other than that there were no other street issues to report. He also reported that Yard of the Month was awarded to Sonny and Nancy Gates at 127 Church Street. Vehicles: Jimmy Laws reported that all vehicles were in good operating shape. He said that HS- 3 would soon need two new front tires and an alignment. He also said that all the City’s equipment was in good working order to begin Spring work. Administration: Mayor Rathbone reported that the City received $100 for the old security camaras than were replaced in the City Hall. He also distributed to the Council information that he had received regarding an upcoming new rezoning and subdivision in the works in the area east of N. Lincoln Street, Church Street and North Street. He said he would keep the Council informed as the process works its way through the County planning department. He said any approval of a rezoning would be done by the City at some point. Kathy Rhyne asked if this new subdivision and development could affect the City’s water agreement with Lincoln County. The Mayor said no and that replacing the water line on N. Lincoln Street will help with the City’s 34% water loss. Old Business: Power Service Lines, City owned equipment/property: The Mayor said he had received quotes to remove trees and brush near the power line serving the lift station from Old Hardin Road. He said that should something happen to that line like a tree or limb falling on the line would be the City’s responsibility to clean up. A motion was made by Kathy Rhyne to accept a bid from Brent Mackey Tree Service in the amount of $3,050 to clear the area around that power line, and that the funds would be split between the Sewer and Streets departments. Bo Rhyne seconded the motion, and all approved. CDBG Resolution: Steve Austin discussed a resolution to update the City’s Capital Improvement Plan for water and sewer improvements. He said that Robinson & Sawyer were already under contract to update the City’s Asset Management Plan once the new water line was completed along N. Lincoln Street, Thompkins Street, Old Hardin Road and Frye Street in the next few months. He said that the Capital Improvement Plan would delete the current water project as the number one priority and elevate the replacement of the water lines along River Street and S. Lincoln Street to the number one priority. He said this is needed for the City to apply for more CDBG grant funds in the state’s May 2023 round of funding. A motion was made by Kathy Rhyne to approve the resolution to update the City’s Asset Management Plan. Denese Cook seconded the motion. All approved. New Business: Bank Deposits: Jimmy Laws moved to adopt the resolution regarding how much cash on hand the City could have before requiring the rest be deposited in the bank. Bobby Vassey seconded the motion and all approved. Local Water Supply Plan: The Mayor presented a required resolution to approve the newly updated Local Water Supply Plan. Kathy Rhyne moved to adopt the resolution; Jimmy Laws seconded and all approved. Easter Celebration: The Mayor again reported that he City’s Easter Egg hunt is scheduled for April 8, 2023. He said that the set up would begin at 9:30 am that day and asked all that could to come and help. Roadside Pickup Update: Kathy Rhyne distributed a new roadside pickup schedule and policy to be made available to the public. It states what can and cannot be set out for the City to pick up and when it will be done. The Mayor asked that a statement requiring that the doors should be removed from refrigerators before setting them out. A motion was made by Jimmy Laws to approve the new Solid Waste Policy with the addition of the statement that refrigerator doors be removed. Bo Rhyne seconded and all approved. City Hall Landscaping Update: Kathy Rhyne stated that she had made a list of plants and equipment needed to replace the 15 dead plants in front of City Hall. The list included the plants, a wheel barrel, seed and fertilizer, an edger, lime, and mulch. A motion was made to approve that $2,400 be spent on this project with costs to be split between all City departments was made by Jimmy Laws. It was seconded by Bo Rhyne. All approved. Adjourn: Jimmy Laws moved to adjourn. Kathy Rhyne seconded and all approved.