City Council

MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS The City of Jesup Board of Commissioners held a regular meeting Tuesday, April 18, 2023, at 7:00 P.M. at City Hall Council Chamber. Mayor Ralph Hickox called the meeting to order. Roll call was as follows. Mayor, Ralph Hickox Present Commissioner, Shirlene Armstrong Present Commissioner, Tim Cockfield Present Commissioner, Bill Harvey Present Commissioner, Ray House Present Commissioner, Stanley Todd Present Commissioner, Pamela Shuman Present City Attorney, Mike Conner Present City Manager, Rose Marcus Present Police Chief, Perry Morgan Present The Lord's Prayer was led by City Attorney Conner. The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Police Chief Morgan. A public hearing was held to request landscaping and parking variances at 1520 W Cherry Street. Building Inspector Don Herrin informed Council the lot for the proposed Dollar General was not large enough to accommodate all the parking spaces required in our ordinance and they were requesting a reduction from 36 to 30 parking spaces. He stated a variance was also requested for 2 parking spaces that would not be inside the required 55-foot tree canopy for the parking area. He stated the Zoning Board met the previous day and passed the motion to approve the variances. Commissioner Cockfield stated he was not in favor of cutting back on the number of trees and suggested moving the trees around or adjusting the size of the building. Building Inspector Herrin responded a tree could be placed to include all the parking spaces within the 55-foot canopy, but another parking space would be lost. Josh Rasmussen, with Teramore Development, LLC came before Council and stated the size of the building required 36 parking spaces, but after completion of a survey the size of the lot was smaller than originally stated, thus reducing available parking spaces. Also 2 parking spaces would fall outside of the 55-foot tree canopy requirement. Adding an additional tree to meet the 55-foot canopy requirement would result in the loss of another parking space. Commissioner Harvey stated he was not in favor of loosing trees, but thought we needed more trees and suggested placing trees elsewhere on the property. Commissioner House stated variances are requested all the time and it undermines our ordinances. Josh Rasmussen responded he wasn’t asking for a variance to remove trees, but to allow 2 of the parking spaces to fall outside of the required 55-foot canopy. He stated he would speak to the engineers about adding more trees to the landscaping plans. Commissioner Todd made a motion seconded by Commissioner Shuman to approve request for landscaping and parking variances at 1520 W Cherry Street. Commissioner Cockfield abstained due to conflict of interest. Commissioner Harvey voted no. All remaining Commissioners voted yes. Motion passed 4 to 1. Mayor Hickox asked if anyone present would like to speak. Having no response, Mayor Hickox closed the public hearing. Fire Chief Josh Huffman came before Council to request permission to bid out for an architect for design of the Pine Street fire station. Commissioner House made a motion seconded by Commissioner Shuman to approve request to bid out an architect for design of a new fire station. All Council voted yes. Interim Public Works Director Allen Boyd came before Council to request approval to bid out a flatbed truck. He stated the truck was a budgeted item and his intent was to bid out for the chassis and frame and reuse the current bed as it was still in good condition. Commissioner House made a motion seconded by Commissioner Todd to approve request to bid out for a new flatbed truck. All Council voted yes. City Manager Marcus informed Council the lease agreement between the City of Jesup and the Joint Board of Tourism began on March 6, 2013 and expired on March 6, 2018 and needed to be renewed. She recommended Council create a committee to review the agreement and make a recommendation at the next Council meeting. Heather Altman, Board of Tourism Director, came before Council and stated the lease agreement was signed prior the her becoming Director and she was not aware of the lease until recently. She stated she would review the lease agreement and be prepared to discuss it at the next meeting. Commissioner Harvey stated the lease agreement was well written and covered everything. Commissioner Armstrong stated she had not received a copy of the lease and would like to have time to review it. Commissioner Armstrong made a motion seconded by Commissioner House to table the discussion of the lease agreement until the next meeting giving everyone time to review it. All Council voted yes. City Manager Marcus stated the poor condition of the McMillan Creek Greenway Boardwalk was discussed at the previous Council meeting and a decision needed to be made on whether or not to disassemble the boardwalk and permanently close the entrance on Sixth Street. Commissioner Todd made a motion seconded by Commissioner Armstrong to disassemble the McMillan Creek Greenway Boardwalk and permanently close the entrance on Sixth Street. All Council voted yes. City Manager Marcus reviewed the March 2023 financial statement. Water Department Supervisor Anthony Crawford asked Council to award bid for an altitude valve to Consolidated Pipe & Supply in the amount of $22,215.00. Commissioner Harvey made a motion seconded by Commissioner House to award bid for altitude valve to Consolidated Pipe & Supply in the amount of $22,215.00. All Council voted yes. City Manager Marcus stated City Hall would be closed Monday, April 24, 2023 for a State Holiday and Council’s department tour that day would have to be rescheduled. She stated the budget study would be held at City Hall on April 19, 2023 from 1:00 to 5:00 PM. City Manager Marcus stated three AEDs had been purchased and placed at City Hall, the Police Department, and Cracker Williams Recreation Center. Council agreed to move the tour of departments to May 1, 2023 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Commissioner Armstrong stated illegal dumping was still going on in her district and needed attention. Commissioner Shuman stated she had noticed water running down Garbutt Road, but was informed the Fire Department was testing hydrants. She thanked the Fire Department for being proactive and stated everything was good in her district. Commissioner Cockfield commended the Police and Sheriff’s Departments for their quick response to the active shooter in the Food Lion parking lot on Monday. He added the shooting was a continuation of an altercation that originated at Briarwood Apartments and suggested contacting the District Attorney Keith Higgins to see what could be done to resolve the issue at Briarwood. Commissioner Harvey reminded Council the City of Jesup had been given permission by Wayne County to remove palm trees at Holiday Inn and they needed to be picked up before we lost them. He added he had placed flags where the trees needed to be placed, but the flags were now missing. Interim Public Works Director Allen Boyd agreed to meet Commissioner Harvey at Cracker Williams Recreation Center the next morning to discuss where to plant the palm trees. Mayor Hickox expressed his condolences to the family of Howard Wasdin. He stated he was pleased with the Planning Retreat and what was accomplished by the Board of Commissioners. Meeting was adjourned. _________________________ Rhonda Tillman Acting City Clerk/Treasurer