TOWN OF HOLDEN BEACH

BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING TUESDAY, MAY 8, 2012

Unofficial Minutes & Comments

Lous Views

1. Police Report Chief Wally Layne

Playing shorthanded, only had six officers available for a few weeks Current staffing of eight officers although they are budgeted for ten officers Island is getting busier; they are already gearing up for prime time I believe we have adequate staffing most of the year However, I feel strongly that a seasonal adjustment is needed See my comments in Corrections and Amplifications
2. Discussion and Possible Adoption of Ordinance 12-03, An Ordinance Amending Chapter 90: Animals of the HB Code of Ordinances (90.99, Penalty) Ordinance would increase the fine for not having your pet on a leash to $500 per offense.

Wally weighed in a) Warning is a form of enforcement b) Only issue citations in a extreme case, at officers discretion o On average issue ten citations a year c) It is primarily the property owners that do not comply d) Questioned how we will collect fine from tourists e) Encouraged the public to call when you see pet regulation violations Board seemed more concerned about the negative impact on tourism, rental income, occupancy tax revenue, being pet friendly, then about ensuring the publics safety. This contradicts Police Chiefs assertion that is owners not tourists Board feels that education not enforcement will handle the problem Education could and should be done with additional signage and by also having rental agencies put ordinance in their brochures. Unfortunately education alone will not get problem handled The motion was made to: 1) Increase education 2) Issue written warnings

3) Increase enforcement 4) Increase fine to $100 effective January 2013 My 2 Cents 1) Year round problem, worse during the shoulder seasons 2) Its owners, owners guests and tourists a) Not just tourists in pet friendly properties o Town has @1,000 rental properties <60 or only @6% are pet friendly 3) Currently no penalty for noncompliance o Only ten citations issued o Have seen more than ten violations in one day during my daily walk 4) Education only goes so far need to issue citations to increase compliance 5) There is a percentage of the population that still will not comply o Unfortunately irresponsible owners spoil it for everyone else 6) Benchmark surrounding communities for enforcement and collection policies a) Wrightsville Beach issued over 250 warnings and @100 citations at $250 per ticket o Seriously doubt they all went uncollected b) The Wrightsville Beach officer said that two things work o encourage citizens to call the police o police enforcement word will spread quickly 7) People should not have to fear walking on the beach because of dogs not on leashes Im happy we are even having this dialogue Increasing the fine to $100 is only one part of the equation The more important piece is to have an increased police presence on the beach strand See my comments in Corrections and Amplifications If we dont have people on the beach strand to enforce compliance the ordinance has no bite

3. Planning & Inspections Report Building Official Tim Evans a. Presentation on Flood Insurance Maps and Height Restrictions b. Discussion on Towns Participation in the National Flood Insurance Program

Presentation on building height limitations (35) I thought I had a better understanding of how it worked before seeing the presentation

It was difficult to follow along and I am unable to explain our height limitation policy now If the goal was to increase our understanding it missed the mark Handout to follow along would have been helpful Presentation on flood insurance was fairly straight forward The goal is to get our rating reduced which would significantly decrease insurance costs Already doing a lot of things we need to do Possible to reach goal if we form a committee that will work to improve Public Awareness Committee members represent various areas like banking, real estate, insurance, etc. Board gave him green light to submit names for this committee

4. Discussion and Possible Approval of Ordinance 12-04, An Ordinance Amending Chapter 95: Streets of the Holden Beach Code of Ordinances (95.05, Street Rights-of-Way) This ordinance adds approved pervious products to the list of items allowed in the ten feet of rights-of-way nearest the pavement or road bed.

Cleans up ordinance, amends to add approved pervious product Apparently gravel was not in compliance, which is what we have been already doing
5. Town Managers Report

Beach mural mounted on fence across from Town Hall, which is visible from the bridge Budget 03/15 03/28 04/30 05/10 05/17 05/31 due 06/12 06/30 season, workshops are scheduled as follows: Goals Workshop Canal Dredging Working Group Department Heads Submissions to Budget Officer Revenues / Capital Programs Workshop Expenses / Budget Message BOCs Budget Meeting, the Town Managers proposed budget is BOCs Regular Meeting Deadline for Commissioners to adopt budget by

Side casting dredger was deployed in the inlet for two weeks and maintenance dredging is now completed. The Lockwood Folly Inlet remains

devoid of inlet navigation devices. Once it is determined that it is no longer hazardous for navigation buoys are supposed to go back out there. Phase two will be started the last week in July which when completed should overcome the last two years of neglected inlet maintenance. Waste Industries - trash can requirements / Ordinance 07-13, Section 50.10 Rental properties have specific number of trash cans based on number of bedrooms a) One extra trash can per every two bedrooms Cost of $93.63 per can per year Approximately 1,000 rental properties, many properties are not in compliance Average rental property has adequate income to cover this minor expense
6. Mayors Comments

No progress has been made in removing the abandoned shrimp boat Southern Lady which is sinking on the north side of ICW across from Town Hall. Outside our jurisdiction Town exploring all of our options

BOCs need to revisit and resolve Frontal Dune Policies Holden Beach Code of Ordinances Made by the Planning & Zoning Board a. 94.03, Frontal Dune Policies and Regulations Town would like walkways to go over newly created dunes. Currently no requirement to build any walkways Most walkways are not in compliance including the towns. 1) Walkways are supposed to go over the frontal dune, the one closest to the water a) Goal is to minimize people walking across the dunes b) Ordinance has $500 fine for walking on dunes no citations have been issued Significant cost to oceanfront property owners. No easy or inexpensive solution Does not make sense to spend money to put sand on the beach strand and then not address this issue. All agreed we need to protect the dunes its the how that needs to be figured out Complicating the issue: 1) The situation varies based on island location 2) Sand and dunes are constantly shifting

General Comments
North Carolinian voters Tuesday overwhelmingly approved, 61% of the vote, a constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriages, partnerships and civil unions, becoming the 30th state in the country and the last in the South to include a prohibition on gay marriage in the state constitution.

Reminders
Waste Industries solid waste collection change in service, trash pickup twice a week starting Saturday June 2nd On May 19, 2012 the Holden Beach Beautification Club will present the Seaside Garden Tour. Eight private homes and five refurbished parks on the island will highlight the event. Tickets will be on sale for $10 the day of the event at the pavilion from 1 - 4 PM. Your brochure will be your ticket with a map of the garden locations. Our home in Pointe West has been included So please introduce yourself to me when you are on the garden tour Attachment Holden Beach Locator

Upon Further Review

This month in the continuing saga of Mark Saunders and The Coastal Companies The future of numerous developments and tracts of land in Brunswick County are in question because of a lawsuit filed by Bank of America against the properties owner. The lawsuit, which is in North Carolina Business Court, is against Mark Saunders and developments and businesses under his umbrella company The Coastal Companies. Bank of America asked the court to appoint a receiver to preserve and protect the properties and any income they may generate, but the request was denied by N.C. Business Court judge John Jolly Jr. A case management hearing was scheduled for May 2nd in Raleigh, N.C. However, BofA filed a motion asking the court to compel arbitration and stay the business court proceeding pending an arbitration ruling. The bank says binding arbitration is set forth in loan documents in the event of a dispute and

subsequent arbitration request by either party. If approved by a judge, the request would have both sides working to resolve the dispute outside of court. The bank is suing The Coastal Companies for $78 million, charging the developer defaulted on its debt. ///// Brunswick County filed lawsuits against an insurance company, seeking money to complete promised infrastructure in three housing developments. Filed on behalf of Brunswick County and the Brunswick County Planning Commission, the federal lawsuits seek $11.9 million from Bond Safeguard Insurance Co. after the The Coastal Companies failed to complete improvements to Seawatch at Sunset Harbor, Ocean Isle Palms and Ocean Ridge Plantation. In March, Brunswick County sent letters demanding that Bond Safeguard pay the principal amounts of the surety bonds, stating The Coastal Companies has made "no appreciable progress" in installing remaining infrastructure needed at the subdivisions. The bonds are required for developers to sell lots before they have completed infrastructure such as roads and water lines. The county commissioners approved seeking the bond money despite a plea from CEO Mark Saunders to hold off and allow him to finish the work. The county's letters didn't bring the desired response from the bonding company, however. "Bond Safeguard has not responded to Brunswick County's demand other than to request information from Brunswick County," the lawsuit against the insurance company states. The county is seeking payment on the bonds, plus interest from the March date of demand until the insurance company pays up. The county's letters to the insurance company list the Bank of America lawsuit and a federal tax lien as contributing factors in the move to collect the bond money.

Corrections & Amplifications

Board of Commissioners has previously discussed safety issues posed by various activities on the beach strand. They are considering increasing fines in order to increase compliance. Although that will help the real solution is an increase in the number of officers patrolling the beach strand. The Police will start full-time beach patrol beginning Memorial Day. Only one officer will be on the beach strand daily between 10a.m. and 4p.m. (6 hours). Heres what our neighbors on Sunset Beach are doing: The town of Sunset Beach has hired a total of 10 seasonal employees who will be patrolling the beach from May 21st through September 14th. NC League of Municipalities had recommended that it would be more beneficial to have offduty police officers providing that service. However, the seasonal beach patrol / code-enforcement team do not all have a law enforcement background.

The Police in order to be effective need to have high visibility with an increased presence on the beach strand to enforce ordinances and to ensure the public safety. HB Police force unable to be on the beach strand like the beach patrol was. They do not have adequate resources for patrolling the beach strand. The Town may want to consider adjusting staffing to respond to seasonal increase in work load. Recommendation is to re-establish temporary seasonal employee beach patrol. BPART, Beach Preservation / Access & Recreation / Tourism Fund, must be used for tourist related purposes. Apparently paying other expenses besides sand from this account (previously referred to as the sand fund) has now become an acceptable practice. So why arent we allocating funds for a seasonal beach patrol / codeenforcement team? Sunset Beach has ten (10) full-time employees vs. Holden Beach which has one (1) part-time officer. Do we need ten officers? One could easily make the case that we probably do not. Do we need more than one part-time officer? One could easily make the case that we probably do. I strongly feel that we need at least four people which is what we had on the beach strand when we had a beach patrol out there. Who do you think has better ordinance compliance and is able to provide a safer environment? I dont think the answer is Holden Beach, which is why my recommendation is to re-establish temporary seasonal employee beach patrol.

Odds and ends

Holden Beach Property Owners Association / HBPOA John Lytvinenko, President / HBPOA@hotmail.com Owners Focus Forum, first in a planned series of information presentations HBPOA sponsored information session: NC Beach Plan Insurance and Rates Presentation made by representatives from Business Alliance for a Sound Economy (BASE) (Similar presentation made at BOCs Regular Meeting in January) Homeowners in coastal counties pay higher wind insurance rates than those inland. The assumption is that most of the wind losses are in the coastal counties. However that is not the case, coastal areas represent only @30 percent of the losses. Wind losses are statewide, but currently its an arbitrary line as to who has to carry the coverage. It is their opinion that fundamental change is required. Either we all need wind policy coverage or none of us need wind policy coverage. They are not optimistic about

change happening anytime soon since coastal communities represent a minority of the homeowners in the state and legislators would be reluctant to increase rates to the majority of homeowners in the rest of the state (80 counties). There is now $4.0 billion in the HB1305 Omnibus Beach Plan (20 coastal counties) which ensures financial stability.

Factoid That May Interest Only Me

Holden Beach has been named as one of the top family beaches in the nation by American Profile magazine. The Town of Holden Beach is featured in an article selecting the top ten best beaches in America, where our beach is named as the Best Family Beach. The weekly magazine contracted the services of Stephen P. Leatherman director of the Laboratory for Coastal Research at Florida International University in Miami, also known as Dr. Beach, and Holly A. Hughes, a New York City-based travel writer, to put together the results. For more than two decades, Leatherman has released his annual list of Americas top 10 beaches. For a laid-back atmosphere, Leatherman favors Holden Beach, N.C. (pop. 575). On a tiny barrier island, the town is primarily residential, and traffic and crime are minimal. When I look at the family beaches, safety is a very big issue, Leatherman says.

HB Poster
Beach Town Posters collection now includes Holden Beach If you wish to place an order you can do so: Online Phone www.beachtownposters.com 302.537.6617 (No Picture right click / select hyperlink)

Things I Think I Think

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