Mayor’s Summary of the April 9, 2026 Town Council Meeting

Greetings!

I awoke to 33 degrees this morning, and just before meeting time it was 63. I’m not sure what season we are in! But the warm afternoon weather, and perhaps the agenda, brought a good crowd to the Town Hall for our monthly meeting.

As I have said before, I do these summaries so you know what is happening in our Town immediately and so you don’t have to wait a month for the official minutes in next month’s agenda packet. If you want, you can view tonight’s meeting recording by CLICKING HERE for Part 1 and CLICKING HERE for Part 2.

Public Forum

• Tom Frist asked what the Town policy was on food trucks, ice cream trucks, and the like. Town Manager Savannah Parrish responded that it varies depending on circumstances such as the type of event, location, timing and other factors. I told Tom that if he was thinking of operating an ice cream truck, he could park it at my house.
• Philip Arnold asked if FEMA is part of the government shutdown and if so, is it affecting us. Savannah responded that yes, most of FEMA has been furloughed, including the Public Assistance group we work with. Although we recently received a FEMA payment, it had been in process since before the shutdown. Our FEMA liaison staff are not taking phone calls, emails, or any type of communication. It is definitely affecting us and our Helene progress.
• Regarding the new Sanitation Ordinance, Kathy Putnam asked how many residences are needing to make changes to bear resistant containers (BRCs) or BRC permanent systems. Again, Savannah responded by saying that we don’t have a specific count, but reports are that there are many residences that have qualifying systems. If you have a question about your preparedness, write to trash@townofmontreat.org or call 828/669-8002 to discuss it and seek assistance.

Council Meeting

After calling the meeting to order, I reminded everyone about the Montreat Landcare Festival and Arbor Day Celebration this Saturday, April 11, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at Moore Field. It promises to be another great Landcare event.

Town Manager Savannah Parrish shared information on several topics:

• The Town has a new Zoning Administrator, Shelly Johnson. Shelly is a Town employee, not a contract employee as in the past. Shelly works Tuesday through Thursday.
• We are nearing the end of first round interviews for the Chief of Police position. Second round interviews will begin soon. In the meantime, Captain Tim Bradley is doing excellent work as our Interim Chief.
• The sign ordinance hearing will be continued to the June meeting as there will be no May Town Council meeting due to significant travel by Commissioners. The Council has scheduled a workshop session on the ordinance for May 1, giving time for further discussion and work to be done before the June meeting. It is an extremely important ordinance, and we want to make sure it’s done right for the Town.

Public Comments

• Kathy Putnam, Chair of the Landcare Festival and Arbor Day Celebration, reminded everyone of Saturday’s event and described many of the activities of the day, including plant vendors, local artists, food, information booths, and even high tea. Don’t miss it.
• Tanner Pickett, MRA VP of Communications, offered various updates, including:
  • Expressed appreciation to Town staff and Council for their work and support of MRA
  • Reminded everyone that on Saturday, April 11, there will be a “sneak preview” of the new Good Steward store at the Moore Center next to the Huckleberry Cafe. Official opening of the store will be May 23^rd.
  • Announced that Community Hikes will be offered on Tuesdays at 9:00 am. Sign up by CLICKING HERE. Meet at the Nature Center.
  • MRA announced earlier today at a community meeting about their plans for proceeding with the Lodge project. The presentation and Q&A were recorded and will be posted to the MRA website (www.montreat.org) soon.

Old Business

• The Council took up the matter of the Conditional Zoning Request for 779 Foreman Siding Road that had been continued from the January meeting. The topic began with a Public Hearing, at which the applicants, Wade and Susie Burns, along with their attorney, spoke to their request. Opposition to the request was expressed by members of the Hamilton family, who have a residence next door. After significant discussion, the Council began their deliberations. Commissioner Blake did an excellent job sorting through the matter and identifying the key issues the Council needed to consider. In the end, it was decided that the application was incomplete for the Council to properly act on and continued the matter to the July 9^th Council meeting. In the meantime, Town staff and legal counsel will work on a proposed Conditional Zoning ordinance for this application for Town Council to consider.

New Business

• The Council approved an ordinance authorizing the limited use of golf carts used by MRA for the Worship and Music Conference.
• The Council approved a resolution authorizing Savannah to execute a joint cooperation agreement to add the Town of Mars Hill and Town of Marshall to the Asheville Regional Housing Consortium.
• The Council approved two budget amendments, thefirst one transferring $22,000 of Street funds to the Sanitation Department for improvements to the Convenience Center. The second amendment authorized the transfer of $114,340 of FEMA reimbursement funds to the Hurricane Recovery Fund 29.

Council Communications

• Commissioners Alexander, Fouche and Widmer once again expressed great appreciation to Commissioner Blake for his excellent work done on Conditional Use Permit research and background on behalf of the entire Council.

Speaking for the entire Council, I thank you for your interest and support of the work of this Town. If you have any questions, comments, or ideas, please write me at thelms@townofmontreat.org or call me at 828/669-3852.

Thank you again,

Mayor Tim Helms on behalf of the Town Council