Mayor’s Summary of the April 10, 2025 Town Council Meeting

Hello Montreaters,

We welcomed more than a dozen attendees on this rainy evening and were honored they joined us. My meeting summary follows below. The official minutes will be in next month’s agenda packet. And, you can view tonight’s meeting recording by CLICKING HERE.

Public Forum                                                                                                                  

• Jean Norris asked that when the Army Corps of Engineers comes to clean the hurricane debris from Flat Creek, will they also remove debris from the tributaries as well? Town Manager, Savannah Parrish, answered that she did not know the answer, but given other conversations she’s been involved in, she doubts it. If she gets a more succinct answer, she will let everyone know.

• There were no other questions at the time, so I asked Savannah to give her Helene Update that was on the TC meeting agenda. She began with an overview of what has been accomplished in the past six months, which was a significant list including:
  • All roads and bridges open
  • 1000 feet of waterline replaced
  • Calvin Trail, Providence Terrace, and other culverts permanently repaired
  • Texas Road bridge removed
  • Welch Field reconstructed and prepped for summer visitors
  • Extensive Damage Inventory of more than 80+ projects prepared and submitted to FEMA

She and Barry Creasman, Public Works Director, worked diligently to develop the Damage Inventory, making sure all projects were included, project scope was outlined, and estimates were accurate. This is a critical step as FEMA reimbursement is directly linked to the accuracy of the project descriptions.

She stated that the biggest challenge we now face is a cash flow challenge. FEMA uses a reimbursement method, meaning we first do the work and pay for it, then they reimburse us. That is what causes the cash flow challenge. The Damage Inventory totals more than $11 million, with four of the projects exceeding $1.2 million apiece. With a Town annual operating budget of $2.7 million, there is little ability to fund the projects in advance as required. The staff and Town Council are investigating options to allow us to move forward. We welcome ideas and donations.

• After Savannah’s presentation, Priscilla Hayner asked if all the National financial changes will affect FEMA funding and recovery. Unfortunately, no one knows the answer to that question at this time. She also asked if we are collecting information about our response to the catastrophe and are developing ideas on how to improve. Savannah responded that yes, staff has been meeting to discuss post-event actions. Additionally, Montreater Clay Hamilton, who has considerable disaster response experience, is working with the staff in this effort and ultimately in the preparation of an updated disaster response plan. We are extremely grateful to Clay.
• Seth Hagler, MRA VP, asked if we had considered doing a no-rise study on Flat Creek. [A no-rise study and certification has to be done to ensure that any projects done in a floodway will not increase flood heights] Savannah responded that we would we willing to work with MRA on such a project. Seth also expressed gratitude for the Town’s excellent work on repairing the Calvin Trail culvert, allowing the campground to open.
• Clay Hamilton thanked the Town for all the excellent work and progress that has occurred. But he expressed concern that visitors this summer will only judge progress based on what they see at the moment, not knowing the status immediately post Helene. There was discussion of how we could communicate the extent of damage and all the recovery work accomplished.
• Martha Campbell informed everyone that the PHC will soon have a Hurricane Helene exhibit on display and we could work with them to orient people to the extent of damage after the storm. [ed.note: the College is also working on a similar project]
  

Council Meeting

After I opened the meeting, I asked everyone to remember the process of recovery and all that has been accomplished so far.

In Savannah’s Town Manager Communications, she offered three items:

1. You will see blue and red tape on Hemlock trees along Assembly Drive. Please do not remove the tape, as the trees have been tagged for treatment against the Wooly Adelgid, coordinated by the Montreat Tree Board.
2. We have a new technique for preparing meeting minutes, which requires speakers to speak directly into the microphone.
3. The Town offices will be closed next Friday, April 18^th, in observance of Good Friday. Sanitation schedule for Monday pickup will occur as normal.

Old Business- There was none

New Business

• There was quite a discussion about bears and the BearWise project. BearWise Chair, Arrington Cox reminded everyone that bears are wild and we cannot feed them, approach them, or allow them access to our trash. Doing any of the above simply exacerbates our co-existence and ends up hurting the bears.
  
  The Montreat BearWise program is organized with neighborhood “bearwatchers” who provide communications within the neighborhoods. If bears are seen they should be reported to your neighborhood bearwatcher. Arrington praised the 23 bearwatchers, including:

There was further discussion about increasing communication levels about bears, especially with renters and visitors. Savannah offered that the Town will be adding a page to the website with bear information for renters and conference attendees. Also, an additional dumpster will be added at the Convenience Center to handle extra trash volumes in the summer. She also summarized a discussion with the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC), who is recommending that Montreat institute a wildlife feeding ban for one year and require all home owners to use bear proof trash containers. There was considerable discussion about these and other ideas and issues. Savanah will come back next month with a summary of thoughts and ideas. A representative of the NCWRC, Wildlife Biologist Justin McVeigh spoke in favor of the feeding ban and bear proof trash cans as a way to change bear behavior. Rules and regulations are needed, but residents need to change their mentality about living with bears and what it means. We haven’t done that yet, which is why two bears had to be euthanized within the past two weeks here in Montreat.

• The Council approved an extension to the Tax Collections Agreement between Buncombe County and the Town.
• The Council approved two budget amendments, one in the amount of $27,950 for a new wood chipper and the other in the amount of $244,197 for hurricane related finances.

Public Comment

• Martha Campbell related to the bear discussion that she believed that Greybeard Realty used to pick up renters’ trash on Saturday, which really helped in sanitation security. She also agreed with the need for a bird feeding ban and requirement for bear proof containers.

Council Communications

• Commissioner Blake recommended the Council consider a system to better vet recommendations for ordinance text amendments. Text amendments are extremely important and we need to have a system to better consider such recommendations. I asked Savannah to work with our Town Attorrney on this matter.
• Commissioner Alexander expressed agreement with Commissioner Blake.

Again, I thank you for your encouragement and support in the work of the Town staff and Council. We truly appreciate you.

If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions, please write me at [email protected] or call me at 828/669-3852.

Thank you again,

Mayor Tim Helms on behalf of the Town Council