BROADCAST VIA FACEBOOK LIVE       SITE: CITY OF HIAWASSEE
OPEN TO PUBLIC – TOWNS COUNTY CIVIC CENTER LOCATION 

HIAWASSEE WORK SESSION AGENDA
April 26^th , 2021 6PM

1. Call to order
   • Invocation – Amy Barrett
   • Pledge of Allegiance 
   • Mayor’s Introductions of Guests and Announcements 
   • Approve the Agenda as distributed 
2. Old Business
   • Mayors Report
   • Mountain View Townhouse project 
3. New Business
   • Property Insurance Renewal for 2021-2022 
   • Inter-Governmental Elections Agreement with County
   • Budget 2021-2022 – 1^stReading next week-May 4^th
     • Budget hearing May 24^th6PM with Work Session to follow, 2^nd Reading June 1^st  City Council Meeting
   • Financials for October, November & December 
   • Consent Agenda – May 4^th
     • April 6^thCity Council Meeting Minutes 
     • April 26^thWork Session Minutes 
     • September, October, November & December Financials

4. Police Report
5. Economic Development Update
   • Joint Economic Development Resolution
   • DDA new board appointees
6. Executive Session
7. Adjournment

HIAWASSEE WORK SESSION MINUTES
April 26^th , 2021 6PM

The City of Hiawassee April Work Session was called to order at 6PM on April 26, 2021 at the Towns County Civic Center by Mayor Liz Ordiales. The meeting was broadcast over FaceBook Live and was open to the public for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Present in addition to the Mayor were Council members Anne Mitchell, Patsy Owens, Nancy Noblet, and Amy Barrett.  Council member Jay Chastain was absent. Staff present were Economic Development Director Denise McKay, Police Chief Paul Smith and City Clerk Bonnie Kendrick. Also present was City Attorney Thomas Mitchell.

The Invocation was given by Council member Amy Barrett and was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.  Mayor Ordiales welcomed all attendees to the first in person meeting in over a year.  

In her Mayors report, Mayor Ordiales gave the COVID update (17 new cases in the last two weeks and 7700 vaccinated; 32% fully vaccinated.).  City Hall is again open to the public.  3^rd notices for Property Taxes were mailed two weeks ago and there are now 36 outstanding bills equaling approximately $14,659.00.  The next mailing will be mid-May and will indicate liens will be placed on the properties.  Hydrant flushing is scheduled to begin next week.  Pump issues continue due to foreign objects entering the sewer system (shoes, rags, trash, etc).  The meeting with the Towns County Water Authority took place last week and the cost of water will increase from $2.12 to $2.62.  We have had a group of young people from Gwinnett playing spike ball on the Square.  The buoys for Mayors Park and Lloyds Landing are in and will need to be set.  The ladder is back on the kayak ramp.  April saw the Dementia Friendly community proclamation as well as the Hiawassee Gold Wing Motorcycle group proclamation.  The bears are out of hibernation so be aware of your surroundings.  Hikers are coming into town as well.  Trailful Outdoors was featured in the Outdoor Retailers magazine.  Frank Riley has been awarded the Smokey Bear award.  He is a great asset to the community and has long been involved in the Firewise Communities initiatives.  Events on the Square are beginning – Yoga on Saturdays, Hamilton Garden’s Blooming Affair and upcoming are Music on the Square, First Fridays and more.  The Historical Society will open their meetings for the public beginning May 10^th.  Joan Crothers said the Plant Affair on the Square raised $917.  Mayor Ordiales thanked Chip Neptue for donating the ferns for the gazebo and the English Country Gardens for the many plants they donate for the Square. There will be a Mother’s Day flower sale on the Square on Friday and Saturday May 9^th and 10^th.  The banner for the State Champion Towns County Indians basketball team has been delivered to the school, signed by the team and will be hung in the gymnasium.  Mayor Ordiales recognized Council member Anne Mitchell for achieving her certificate of recognition with GMA.

City Clerk Bonnie Kendrick advised the Council that the agenda should be amended to include the second reading of the amendment to Chapter 4 of the Alcohol Ordinance which addresses the service of food requirement for a brewery with a taproom.  Motion to approve the agenda as amended was made by Council member Nancy Noblet, seconded by Council member Anne Mitchell with all in favor.

There was much discussion around the Mountain View Townhouse project.  Council member Anne Mitchell posed the question to the rest of the Council “What does the Council wish Hiawassee look like in the future?  What is the overall plan and does this project conform to that ideal?”.  Council member Mitchell also indicated that she felt the Planning board should be involved in discussions and that affordable house is needed.  She also questioned whether it has come time to seriously consider implementing a zoning ordinance for the City.  Attorney Thomas Mitchell advised that a zoning ordinance would provide more flexibility in designating areas of greater density while leaving the remainder of the City as it is.  Mr. Mitchell said that was not possible with the planning ordinance.  He also said he was aware that the City residents were not necessarily in favor of zoning and he was not trying to advise that the Council “should” have a zoning ordinance.  Council member Amy Barrett expressed concern around people and families that are not able to afford to live in Hiawassee and feels the City has a lot to offer families.  She also feels that the townhouses offer a niche that is not currently available.  Council member Nancy Noblet said she felt the appeal of the townhouses would be with the younger people as 3 stories would not be seen as undesirable, and that the Council should be looking toward the future and younger people.  Attorney Mitchell presented an option to the Council to modify the present planning document which would allow Mr. Lawson to proceed with the townhouses and the Council was receptive to the option. This option will be presented at the City Council Meeting next week for first reading approval. 

Council member Amy Barrett exited the Civic Center for the duration of the insurance discussion due to her ties to Barrett Insurance.  Tim Barrett of Barrett Insurance presented the update to the 2021-2022 GIRMA Property and Liability Insurance.  There is a 10% increase this year, however, much of that is tied to new areas such as Fireworks coverage and Drug dog coverage.  This will be on the agenda next week for approval.

We have discovered that the City of Hiawassee and the Towns County Board of Elections do not have a fully executed agreement to do the 2021 election.  We will be executing that agreement at the meeting next week and will forward it to the County and the Board for their approval.

The 2021-2022 budget will be on the agenda for 1^st reading next week.  We will plan a public hearing on May 24^th at 6pm with the May work session to follow immediately.  The 2^nd reading will take place at the June 1^st Council meeting.  The budget is available on the website for public review, or you can contact City Hall if you would like a hard copy.  Council member Amy Barrett had a few questions regarding how SPLOST will be managed/spent and well as some changes in the budget from previous year (franchise fee is less this year due to Windstream leaving the cable TV business segment, property tax collection costs/benefits, etc).

The Mayor presented the summary financials for October, November & December.  There were no questions from the Council related to this.

The Consent Agenda for the May Council meeting will include the minutes from the April 26^th Work Session Minutes, the April 6^th City Council Meeting Minutes, and the financials from September, October, November, and December 2020.

In his Police Report, Chief Paul Smith reported that K9 Buddy made a drug arrest on the evening of the last work session (March 29^th) including methamphetamines as well as other drugs and paraphernalia.  Also, he was in training last week and is now certified in child passenger safety seat installation.  Anyone in Towns County who is on any kind of assistance (TAN, WIC, etc) is eligible for training with the Chief and a free car seat. 

In the Economic Development Update, Director Denise McKay said there are 12 vendors for the May Night Market (May 7^th).  She will have Mikayla Jerominek, summer intern from the University of New Hampshire, to work with her for 10 weeks.  The joint resolution for the strategic plan has been approved by Towns County and the City of Young Harris at their April meetings.  It will be on the agenda for the meeting next week.  Rob Sollie and Alec Therrel have resigned from the DDA.  Ashlyn LaPorte will fill the unexpired term of Rob Sollie, however, we do not yet have a replacement for Alec. There was a request made for replacement to the council.

Prior to the conclusion of the meeting, Attorney Mitchell reviewed his suggested changes to the planning document – some changes were minor in nature, but tightened up the language to be more in keeping with the intent of the document as well as make it more enforceable, while others were more detailed – and there is also a need for some input form other entities (ie EMI).

There was no Executive Session.

Motion to adjourn was made by Council member Amy Barrett, seconded by Council member Nancy Noblet with all in favor.  Meeting adjourned at 7:29pm.