Tag Archive for: #hendersoncitycouncil

The Local Skinny! Henderson City Council Takes $275K Loan To Purchase Embassy Block Property

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The Henderson City Council approved Tuesday taking a $275,000 loan to purchase property in the Embassy Block area of downtown to create extra parking and a “pocket” park.

Benchmark Community Bank will provide the five-year amortized loan. The council approved the purchase of the Embassy Block in the 2024-25 budget that was adopted in June 2024.

According to City Manager Terrell Blackmon, the property that the city will purchase is bounded by Young and Montgomery streets. It doesn’t include the part of the property that faces Garnett Street. It is where Falkner Building Supply was located, and is currently part of the McGregor Hall holdings.

The council also approved paying bilingual city employees up to $2,000 extra a year for language services they provide for city business transactions with customers whose first language is not English.

Blackmon told council members that the police department has five employees who fit the bill and there are several other city employees who currently help out when needed. At most, Blackmon estimated that it could mean an extra $20,000 in the budget. The languages needed most are Spanish, Arabic and American Sign Language, he noted.

Employees would have to demonstrate their proficiency by passing an exam; details were not provided about the type of exam that would be involved.

Information in the agenda packet stated that the “objective of the incentive is to establish and strengthen relationships with other communities where English is a second language and to provide language assistance  services on a consistent basis. Additionally, the incentive will be a source for future talent for various positions and retention of multilingual staff.”

The water fountain installation at Garnett and Charles streets will be named in honor of former mayor Eddie Ellington. Ellington was the 39th mayor of Henderson and served two terms from 2015-2023.

Blackmon said the city had fielded several calls from members of the community to request that Ellington be honored in some way. He said the city’s Public Works department will create a sign that will be placed at the water fountain with Ellington’s name on it.

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TownTalk: Winder Street Signs To Get Special Designation To Honor Eddie Hicks

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The City of Henderson is officially honoring the late Eddie Hicks by attaching his name – literally – to the street where he grew up.

In a ceremony scheduled for Friday, Nov. 1 at 11 a.m., local leaders, dignitaries and others will gather at the corner of Garnett and Winder streets in downtown Henderson to witness the unveiling of the new Winder Street signs, which will have a second sign attached to it bearing Hicks’s name.

City Manager Terrell Blackmon gave a sneak preview to Hicks’s widow, Jackie, and others present at the October City Council meeting. Hicks died on Oct. 31, 2022 at the age of 67.

“This council took the time to take action to recognize Mr. Hicks, based on his commitment to this community,” Blackmon said in remarks during the meeting. Hicks had a long association with the Henderson Vance Recreation and Parks Department, having worked there as a teenager and during the summers when he was in college. A college football standout at ECU, Hicks returned to his hometown – and the recreation and parks department – following a successful NFL career with the New York Giants.

“We wanted to honor his name on Winder Street, where he grew up,” Blackmon said. And the city’s Public Works Department created a design that honors Hicks without having to change the street name.

The city will dedicate Winder Street to remember one of Henderson’s most beloved residents. Each street sign along Winder Street will have the second sign bearing Hicks’s name, Blackmon explained.

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Henderson City Council Approves Adding Two Staff Positions

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The Henderson City Council approved on Monday the creation of two new staff positions – a public information officer who will report to the city manager and a part-time administrative support position to assist the mayor’s office with scheduling and other tasks.

The council voted unanimously for the public information officer position, but the vote was 6-2 in favor of the part-time position. Council members Lamont Noel and Sam Seifert cast the no votes.

“It’s one of the areas that we’re lacking in,” said City Manager Terrell Blackmon during his presentation about the public information officer to the council during the Oct. 14 monthly meeting.

The salary range for the PIO would be between about $66,000 and $99,000, according to information in the meeting’s agenda packet. Among other things, Blackmon said the PIO would be the person to handle marketing, social media and “proactive media outreach.”

Although the salary is not in the current budget, Blackmon said it shouldn’t be a problem to fund the position. “I think we’re in a position now that we can fund this position,” he said.

A list of general job duties was included in the agenda packet, including serving as the city’s source of information about various programs, policies and activities and “developing a voice for the City and community that builds trust by prioritizing transparency and accuracy.”

Following a request by Council Member Garry Daeke, Blackmon said he would provide a full job description to the full council for review before hiring.

Seifert asked whether the current budget contains money for the PIO position.

“We have reserves that we can fund that position,” Blackmon said.

As for the administrative support position, Noel asked whether those job responsibilities already fall to the mayor, manager, mayor pro tem or the clerk. Blackmon said there are duties that are above and beyond what the city clerk is able to do.

The part-time position would be for between 20 and 24 hours a week, with a pay range of between $18 and $20/hr. for a total annual salary to be about $12,000, Blackmon said.

Among the part-time assistant’s duties will be planning meetings and events, and representing the mayor at some of those events, responding to correspondence and keeping track of the mayor’s calendar, filing system and assisting the mayor at community events, presentations and appearances.

The Local Skinny! Council Approves Pay Increases For City Employees

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In a unanimous vote Monday, the Henderson City Council approved a pay increase for all city employees, tacking on close to a 20 percent increase in payroll costs in the city’s budget. The increase will be retroactive to sync with the pay increase given to police and fire department employees.

City Manager Terrell Blackmon said the move adds about $1.8 million on the expense side – payroll expenses and the cost of the study – but the city’s expected revenues should be about $2.5 million, so “we can accommodate the total impact,” he told council members during their regular monthly meeting.

Back on Aug. 19, the city council approved a pay increase for police and fire department employees – to the tune of just more than $900,000 – out of “urgency,” Blackmon said in remarks during the meeting. At that August meeting, it was stated that the results of the pay study for all employees would be considered at the Sept. 9 meeting.

Blackmon said the pay study reviewed 70 different job positions for the 2023-24 fiscal year which resulted in recommendations for an updated classification and grading scale.

Salary increases have been a part of the city’s strategic plan for a couple of years, he said, citing the need to be competitive with surrounding areas and attract and retain employees.

The local tax base hasn’t grown much in the last decade, but Blackmon said anticipated growth is on the horizon.

“There’s expected growth here in the community,” he said, noting that there are close to 2,000 housing units underway and more on the way in the first quarter of 2025.

Council Member Michael Venable made the motion to approve the pay increase, which was seconded by Council Member Tami Walker. Council Members Garry Daeke and Sara Coffey were not present at the meeting.

The Council also voted to approve a unified development ordinance that essentially updates zoning and land-use regulations that have been in place – unchanged – for more than 40 years.

Information in the agenda packet prepared for the meeting stated, “Over the past 12 months the Development Services Department staff, Insight Planning Consultants, and the Planning Board have been working on land use regulations of the zoning and subdivision ordinances that have not been comprehensively updated and re-written since the 1970’s. The proposed Unified Development Ordinance combines best practices for zoning and subdivision regulations, along with other desired City codes such as design guidelines, sign regulations, floodplain and stormwater management, into one document.”

The updated ordinance includes a revised table of uses, mixed-use district, regulation removal of redundancy zoning districts, new regulation to assist in affordable housing creation and other  technical planning practices.

The city contracted with Insight Planning to craft the UDO and comprehensive plan that was adopted in July 2022 for $99,000.

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City Council Adopts Social Media Policy In Special Called Meeting Wednesday

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In a special called meeting Wednesday afternoon, the Henderson City Council unanimously adopted a policy regarding the use of social media.

Henderson City Manager Terrell Blackmon told WIZS News that the city has a social media policy for employees, but it does not apply to the city’s elected officials – the mayor and members of the City Council.

Adoption of the policy was the sole agenda item for the 3 p.m. meeting. The meeting was short, with no discussion or comments on the matter before the vote was taken. Council members Sara Coffey and Sam Seifert were not present.

The policy, just more than two pages in length, spells out best practices and suggestions for elected officials about the use of social media, including personal emails, and “liking” and forwarding posts on social media platforms.

The policy lists eight Professional and Personal Conduct Standards that range from expectations that officials follow the City’s policies and standards to reminding officials “should be honest and accurate when posting information or news, and should quickly correct any mistakes, misstatements and/or factual errors in content upon discovery. Officials should not post or share information to be false about the City, its employees, constituents, other public officials, suppliers, vendors, or contractors.”

Additionally, the policy contains eight additional best practices and guidelines for elected officials that are “strongly recommended to ensure that the personal and professional use of social media by elected and appointed officials is done in a responsible manner.”

“Other municipalities around the state have adopted social media policies specific to Councils, Boards and Commissions,” Blackmon stated in an email response to WIZS Wednesday.

“The policy Council is looking to adopt today is very similar to one that was adopted by the City of Durham which is considered a ‘model’ policy,” he continued, adding that the policy Council will review was developed with the assistance of the Mayor and City Attorney.

Blackmon said, “There is technically no violation by any member at this time,” and went on to say that the adopted policy “is not designed to be punitive, but to provide direction and guidance. However, violation of the policy could result in the code of conduct being invoked.”

City Council Votes To Hike Property Tax Rate To 65 Cents Per $100 Valuation

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It was not a unanimous decision, but the Henderson City Council voted to increase the property tax rate per $100 valuation to 65 cents at its Monday meeting, just before adopting the FY 2024-25 budget totaling more than $47 million.

In the budget recommended by City Manager Terrell Blackmon on May 13, the tax rate was 55 cents per $100 valuation, which was 10 cents above the revenue-neutral rate. The new property tax rate is 20 cents above the revenue-neutral rate.

Council Member Tami Walker made the motion to increase the tax, which she said would bring in more than $2.5 million in additional tax revenue. Council Member Ola Thorpe-Cooper seconded the motion. Council members Sam Seifert and Garry Daeke cast no votes, and Council members Lamont Noel, Michael Venable, Geraldine Champion, Sara Coffey voted yes with Walker and Thorpe-Cooper.

Thorpe-Cooper made a motion to accept the budget, which totals $47,827,763.

The motion was seconded by Coffey, who joined via Zoom. In addition to Thorpe-Cooper and Coffey, yes votes were case by Seifert, Venable, Walker and Champion.

Daeke and Noel cast dissenting votes.

In another split decision, Council voted 5-3 to accept a $1,500 bonus for each Council member – already included in the recommended budget. The matter had been discussed in earlier budget work sessions, but Daeke and Seifert said they recalled that the money was to be used to pay for training.

Mayor Melissa Elliott insisted that the sum was called a bonus, which, if offered as such, couldn’t have stipulations for its use.

Council Member Venable made a motion, seconded by Champion, to provide a $1,500 bonus to all Council members. Noel, Seifert and Daeke voted no. Coffey, Venable, Thorpe-Cooper, Champion and Walker voted yes.

In a unanimous vote, Council members voted to proceed with the purchase of the Falkner property that is owned by McGregor Hall. The sale price is $255,000 plus closing costs, but the budget line item is for $275,000, Blackmon stated.

Council Members Split On Funding For McGregor Hall

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As members of the Henderson City Council continued budget deliberations at a work session Monday, they found themselves in lockstep to help displaced families find more permanent housing, but far apart on providing financial support for McGregor Hall.

The Council approved giving $2,000 to 22 families who had to move out of the Motel 121 in early May because it was deemed uninhabitable by inspectors.

Since then, five of the 27 families have found other places to live with help from Vaya Health, leaving 22 families – with 47 children – living in motels in Vance and Granville counties.

State money that has been paying for lodging is running out, and the families face being homeless again without some intervention.

“Twenty-two families, as of tomorrow, are going to be homeless again,” said City Manager Terrell Blackmon during the budget work session.

According to Mayor Melissa Elliott, the bill so far is roughly $144,000 in motel bills.

It would cost close to $40,000 to keep them in their current situation until the end of the month, she said.

After some discussion, the Council agreed to pay the $2,000 voucher to all 22 families and then request that the county reimburse the city for half. That way, the city will end up paying for 11 families and the county would pick up the other 11.

It was unclear when the vouchers would be distributed, where the money would come from or whether the families would be allowed to stay in their current lodging after check-out time Tuesday.

Elliott acknowledged that $2,000 is “not a lot of money to relocate…(but) we have to start somewhere.”

Blackmon said he and County Manager C. Renee Perry had been in communication about the situation, and he said that the feeling is the county would be open to help pay for the vouchers.

“I don’t think they’ll leave us hanging out there on this,” he told the council.

In further discussion, some Council members asked whether there are funds set aside in the budget for providing emergency housing.

Blackmon said there may be funds to provide temporary housing for people whose homes are being repaired with community development block grant funding, but he doesn’t think there is a pot of money that would help in situations like the one at Motel 121.

“This exercise, although unexpected, has shown us that we really don’t have the structure to accommodate and help families a little bit longer,” Blackmon said.

Geraldine Champion said she didn’t want anyone to go through what the families living at Motel 121 have gone through.

“We need to do something and we need to be proactive,” she said.

One option that came up is a shelter for displaced families that could operate in the city.

Blackmon said there typically is more funding available for programs than for brick and mortar projects. “We need to figure out how we can get that type of facility in the city,” he said.

The recommended budget, which totals roughly $45 million, could be adopted as early as June 10. Just as the recommended budget presented to Council in early May didn’t have any money designated for emergency housing, neither did it provide any funding for McGregor Hall.

At last night’s work session, two motions failed that would have provided substantial money to the performing arts venue – Garry Daeke’s first motion was for the full request of $75,000. That failed 5-2, with only Daeke and Council Member Sam Seifert voting in favor.

Daeke followed up with a motion, also seconded by Seifert, to provide $60,000. That motion failed, too. Commissioners Geraldine Champion, Sara Coffey, Ola Thorpe-Cooper, Michael Venable and Tami Walker voted no.

Council Member Lamont Noel was absent.

McGregor Hall Executive Director Mark Hopper – who is the venue’s only full-time employee – had requested $75,000 from the city and $60,000 from the county in this year’s budget cycle, all of which would be used to retire the mortgage debt. Blackmon said $124,620 in debt service is due in early July each year.

On the heels of the two failed motions, Coffey offered a motion, seconded by Champion, to provide $5,000 to McGregor Hall in the form of a one-year renewable grant, as well as placing a voting member of the council on the McGregor Hall board and to know how the funding would be spent.

“I don’t think $5,000 will get anyone the board,” Daeke said. “I would like to see it fully funded.”

Seifert said, “I can’t agree more with Mr. Daeke…We need economic development here in Henderson, and this right here is a beacon that draws it in,” he said of McGregor Hall. “This is a driver for many different things.”

Plans to purchase property owned by McGregor Hall continue, which would add up to $275,000 to the performing arts venue’s bottom line. Blackmon said there’s a CAF that is ready to be presented at the next meeting.

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TownTalk: City of Henderson Budget Prelim

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Henderson City Council member Garry Daeke has had a couple of days to review and reflect on the 2024-25 budget that was presented Monday by City Manager Terrell Blackmon.

It’s a delicate balance, Daeke said, to create a budget that provides for citizens’ wants and needs – without putting those same citizens in a bind by raising taxes, fees and more.

“I do enjoy the challenge of taking a budget and looking at all the different pieces,” Daeke said on Wednesday’s TownTalk. The cost of those services versus the tax rate is always a balancing act, and it’s one that Council members will begin discussing at a work session on Monday, May 20.

Blackmon’s presentation included details of a $25 million General Fund budget, and a total budget figure of somewhere around $45 million. The 158-page document can be found on the city’s webpage at henderson.nc.gov, under the Departments heading, click on Finance to go directly to the dropdown box where the document is located.  (Or click here as of 5-15-24.)

“The city’s growing,” Daeke said. “We have so many things we’d like to do.” But how to fund those things is what the budget discussion will be about.

Added to the mix is the recent revaluation of properties in the county, which will generate additional revenue for the city in the form of property tax.

A 45-cent per $100 of value would generate the same amount of tax revenue as this year, Daeke said. “We need some increase, I think. I do not think it needs to be 10 cents.”

A 55-cent per $100 value would generate between $4 and 4.5 million, he calculated, and a 65-cent per $100 value would bring in $7 million. He said, however, that he would not vote for a 55-cent tax rate unless he was thoroughly convinced otherwise during the course of the upcoming budget discussions. If the city were to keep the current tax rate of 75 cents per $100, it would generate roughly $10 million.

Generally speaking, overall property values in the city increased about 63 percent since the last revaluation in 2016. That means many property owners will have to pay higher tax bills, maybe a couple of hundred extra dollars, in the city, Daeke noted.

And that, coupled with higher monthly bills like water and sewer, could pose problems for folks who may be struggling to make ends meet as it is. “We have to be cognizant of what people can afford.”

Landlords most likely would have to increase rents to help absorb those rising costs, Daeke said. “It could be a phenomenal amount in a year’s time for people who are struggling to pay their bills.”

Another funding stream comes from sales tax collection, which continues to be strong in the city. “We’ve done well in terms of people staying home and spending money,” he said.

The budget also calls for moving $4 million from the fund balance to offset non-recurring federal ARPA funds. Daeke said there’s “extra” money available because of having unfilled positions within the city.

Once those positions are filled, however, that “extra” money will not be available.

Some of the other items on the expenditure side of the ledger in the future include a new fire station, completion of the park on William Street and housing redevelopment.

“We’ve taken down 300 homes – we need to start putting stuff back,” Daeke said. “That can’t be done without some funding.”

A major contributor to the sales tax coffers is McGregor Hall. Economic impact studies show that the entertainment venue draws people from across the region to see concerts, performances and participate in dance competitions, just to name a few.

Daeke said he would like to see more support for McGregor Hall from local government.

“I believe it’s time to help them stay in business,” he said, noting that there is nothing in the recommended budget at present.

One idea that’s floating around is to purchase the property on which the former Falkner Building Supply once stood. It’s part of the original McGregor family bequest, Daeke said, so McGregor Hall owns it.

“We’d love to purchase that and put a parking area and other businesses there” to create a cash flow for McGregor Hall and to contribute to the economic vitality to the downtown area.

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The Local Skinny! City Council Votes To Keep B-2A Zoning For Businesses, Retail

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After receiving recommendations from a couple of different committees, the Henderson City Council voted unanimously on Monday to deny a request that would have allowed an empty retail space to be turned into a 16-bed “diversion center” for patients in mental health or substance abuse crises.

Back in November, Vaya Health officials told county commissioners that the space formerly occupied by Big Lots! on Dabney Drive was the best option they could find at the best price point. It would require a special use permit from the city, however, since the area is zoned for businesses and not hospitals or sanitoriums.

The matter was referred to the city Planning Board, which initially recommended to approve the special use permit request. But at a special called meeting in January, the City Council expressed concerns and had reservations about moving the project forward and sent it back to the planning committee for further review. The second time, the planning committee offered no recommendation.

So, the planning board reviewed the matter again in February and the Land Planning Committee weighed in as well at a March meeting, recommending the request be denied because the B-2A zoning is designed for businesses, including retail establishments and that any change could be detrimental to existing businesses.

Now, here we are in April, with the matter back before the City Council.

In reviewing the timeline of events, City Manager Terrell Blackmon said the consensus is that feel that an area zoned for business is not well suited for a hospital or sanitorium.

Council members voted unanimously to deny the request.

Vaya is looking for a location that could serve the region that includes Vance, Granville and Franklin counties, and Vaya reps told commissioners in November that they’d pitch in $1.5 million of the total amount necessary to upfit and transform the space, which would be somewhere north of $4.5 million. Vaya is looking for funding from the three counties to support the project.

WIZS previously reported that the main idea for the facility is to help take some of the heat off local hospital emergency rooms, which often aren’t equipped to handle the specific needs of individuals suffering from behavioral and mental health crises.

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The Local Skinny! Council Approves Creation Of Board To Oversee Main Street Program

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The Henderson City Council voted unanimously Monday to create a downtown advisory board that will take responsibility for overseeing the city’s Main Street program.

This action was taken as a way to stay in compliance with the state’s Main Street program, given a decision in March by the Henderson-Vance Downtown Development Commission to divest itself as the active board of directors and committees of the Main Street program effective June 30, 2024, according to information presented Monday by City Manager Terrell Blackmon.

One requirement for continued accreditation is that the program have a board of directors representing district stakeholders and
community members. The new advisory board will consist of between 5 and 7 appointed members who would be selected following an application process.

Blackmon said he has had conversations with state Main Street staff and they are aware of the changes that will be taking place. He added that city staff would continue to work in partnership with the HVDDC, but the city-appointed board would be responsible for the Main Street program.

The Main Street approach is centered around economic development strategies designed to transform the downtown area and revitalize and strengthen the downtown economy. Henderson re-established its Main Street designation in 2020 and uses a four-pronged approach to attain its goals: economic vitality, design, promotion and organization.

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