Knightdale Town Council Meeting

Thursday. I don't know. guys at all.

Good evening. Good evening everyone. Welcome to our January town council meeting. First official town council meeting. Well, other than our work session for um the year. So, we are glad that you are here. We're going to go ahead and get started. Um first with our invocation from Mayor Pro Tim Evans. If you would, we can enter into prayer. Lord, we come this evening with a spirit of gratitude. We are grateful for this ability to serve the wonderful citizens of our community here in Nightdale. We're grateful for the trust that they have placed in all of us from an elected officials as well as for those that are in the the business of service. Lord, we are grateful for the opportunity to be servant leaders. We thank you for all that you do, for the protections you that you provide, and for the vibrancy that we hope shall remain within our community. Please divorce any uh self-interest that we may have in the decisions that we make and that that our decisions shall be pure for the benefit

of our community. For this we pray. Amen.

All right. And next we will have our pledge of allegiance. And tonight we are pleased to have members of the Nightdale High School JROTC in attendance to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. They are juniors and seniors at Nightdale High School. And at this time, we are going to ask for everyone to please stand. Present to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for it stands nation arms forward march. You may be seated. We're going to give them one moment because they're going to come back in and join us in just a moment.

All right. And as they're coming back in, yes, as they're coming back in, could we please give them a round of applause? [applause] One, two, three.

[applause]

So proud of them and grateful that they were able to be here this evening for our uh pledge of allegiance and to get our meeting started. So next is our adoption of the agenda. Any changes to tonight's agenda? Questions or comments or motion to adopt?

Motion to adopt.

Second.

All in favor?

I.

Any opposed? Majority approves. Motion carries. We'll move to presentations, recognitions, and awards. Introduction of HR technician, Miss Bill.

Good evening, mayor and council. I am excited to introduce you all to a new HR staff member tonight. This is Logan Sturgil, our newest HR technician. Um, he started work with us last week. Logan is a graduate of Appalachin State and brings private sector HR experience with him. Um, He is recently married and also recently moved to the triangle. So we are really excited to welcome him to the team and to this area.

Yes, definitely welcome. And next introduction of maintenance worker Mr. button. I was instructed to speak into the mic. [clears throat and cough] Good evening, mayor and council. I am really excited to introduce to you one of our new maintenance workers, uh, Lee Pew. He comes to us um with a lot of experience in uh public works. So we're, you know, he's got some experience in heavy equipment operation. He's got a class A license. Um these are all things that we greatly desire. Um Lee lives in Raleigh and with his wife and two children. And so we are really excited for him to be here. So Lee Council Council Lee

[applause]

And if we could have our new employees come forward and we'll take a picture.

One, two, three. As always, it's always a great moment to welcome new employees. We're glad to have you. glad that you chose Nightdale and we look forward to great things from you um with Nightdale. Next is our ARC awards, Mr. Summers. Thank you, Mayor Day. So, we're never quite sure how full the room's going to be. So, would you please do me a favor? Would y'all please come up here and fill in the front seats? That's everybody in the back. I'm sorry. I didn't I want to clarify that for everybody in the room. Come on up.

Come on in. Come on up. I promise nobody's going to bite. That feels much more intimate. We got Deputy Chief Soda to go one row. We appreciate that.

Somebody left a phone.

Oh, wait. So, sometimes we come into this room, sometimes it's packed, sometimes it's sparssely populated. Sometimes we come into this room and folks are very, very upset. Sometimes we come in this room to celebrate. Sometimes we come in this room to just do the town's business. But

the thing we should never lose sight of is this is the center of government for the town of Nightdale. This is where important decisions are made that govern the future direction of our community. So when we step into these spaces, one of the things we take a moment to do every year is we take a moment to kind of thank employees that do exemplary work. As public administrators, we are trained to be humble, right? I always tell folks, you know, don't get tired sniffing the ink on your business card, right? Don't sprain your elbow, patting yourself on the back. You learn to walk in a professional space that is grounded in humility, right? And service to other people and this unwavering commitment to build a better community and hopefully by extension build a better world, right? But it is important that we pause and thank people, right? I'm sorry that you don't have a packed room tonight because you deserve it. But you got a lot of very important people in this room who do want to thank you for the things that you do. We have two levels of awards that we give out. One are the arc aachiever awards and then there's an employee of the year. The archiver awards is employees who did something that embodied the core values of this organization. Accountability, respect and customer service. And that is something where we ask the directors to say hey look you know we want to hear it through your eyes as the manager. I want to be the best manager that I can to this community, to its to the mayor, to the council, to the staff, to the citizens. But the reality is is I don't know the stakeholders as much as I wish I did. And if I'm being truly honest, a lot of staff members I don't know at a level that I wish I did. It is just the reality of the job and the barriers of separation that we see in this this organiz organizational structure that we have. But I want to make sure that we take a moment just to say thank you right in these moments. So, I have five folks that are going to be recognized for arc achievers this year, or you rephrase that, we do. I'm not trying to make this awkward, but I'm gonna ask you to come up here and stand with me, and we're going to kind of go through a ceremony here. And I thought maybe this year, instead of me telling you that you

matter, why don't I share with you what the nomination form said and why these decisions were made. Is that fair? So, if you would come, kindly stand with me and we'll do this together. I promise it won't hurt. Michelle, would you please come up here? Nicole, would you please come up here? Antonio, would you please come up here? Elizabeth, would you please come up here? And Heidi, did I see Heidi? There's Heidi. Would you please come up here? This is what I received about you. Michelle handles all contracts that come from parks and recreation with accountability to the citizens of Nidel. No matter how large or small the size of the contract or purchase, Michelle is prompt to answer any questions or concerns to ensure a successful contracting process. She treats all customers, internal and external, with a high level of respect and professionalism. I have witnessed this in bid openings, email correspondence, and in personal interactions with all stakeholders. Michelle is always prompt with her responses to emails and phone calls. There have been several times when Michelle has answered my questions about a contractor transaction on her day off or when an out of office response indicated she was away. She has been instrumental in the negotiation of our annual pool contract as well as our new ADA inclusive program contracts. Inclusivity is a value that we really cherish around here and that we really champion. You were that comes from JP, right? So, I want you to know that this comes from another department, another director who believes in what you do and that is worthy of recognition in a space that is thankless, right? It's quiet job sometimes where people don't see the good work you do. Thank you very much, Nicole. I brought my glasses up here because my eyes don't quite work like they used to. Yours is lengthy, so let's all buckle up, but I'm going to capture it in hole. Here we go. Detective Nicole

Edwards exemplifies what it means to go the extra mile in her service to the Nightdale [snorts] Police Department and community. Detective Edwards consistently demonstrates dedication that goes well beyond what is expected. She is meticulous in her documentation of incidents, ensuring accuracy, clarity, and professionalism in every report. This attention to detail not only supports the integrity of our cases, but also reflects her commitment to excellence. Recently, Detective Edwards played a vital role in the case of a missing autistic child. Once the child was located safely, she went beyond the call of duty by meeting with the child's mother, offering guidance, reassurance, and a compassionate, listening ear. In a situation where many officers may have considered their responsibility complete, Detective Edwards recognized the family uh the family's need for continued support and stepped forward with care and empathy. Her dedication extends to her daily work as well. Detective Edwards has repeatedly volunteered her time after hours, most recently staying late to meet with parents and their daughter to discuss internet safety. Her willingness to invest extra time in educating and supporting families demonstrates her deep commitment to prevention, safety, and community trust. Detective Edward's actions embody the principle of adding value to create lasting impact. She does more than her job requires. She uplifts those around her, strengthens our department's reputation, and builds meaningful connections in our community. For these reasons, I wholeheartedly recommend Detective Nicole Edwards for this recognition. Do you know who who wrote that? Sergeant Jordan Francis submitted that on your behalf. Antonio. Although I try not to nominate from within my own department, I feel that Antonio is an excellent candidate for this award. Antonio's primary task entails running the knuckle boom each week. The responsibility means rain or shine that Antonio is interacting with residents on large debris and cleanup. I

have received numerous compliments from residents about Antonio's demeanor while he's doing his work, how he is always smiling and willing to take the time to really clean up and answer questions from residents when they approach him. Since taking on these responsibilities three years ago, he has never had a single complaint from a resident, nor has he had any accidents. Antonio is always happy and willing to teach the less experienced staff at public works how to run the machine when they have or when we have our training days. He is always kind and has good things to report on every employee that he instructs. That comes from the public works director, Philip Buntton. Elizabeth approached the parks and recreation department seeking to fill the need in the community with a swimming and water safety education program. This task went above and beyond her job description in order to benefit the Nightdale and Eastern Wake community. She was proactive with the organization of instruction and educational opportunities at the community pool. This program will become an annual event before, during, and after pool season. Elizabeth was also instrumental in the implementation of our first annual live like Ryan golf tournament. The pre-event communication as well as the tournament itself was very wellreceived by all participants. It's really noteworthy, right? There's another one on here, right? So, I don't usually ask the elected officials for their opinion, but as you can imagine, sometimes they like to give me their opinion. So, an undisclosed elected official that I will not share, Council Latius Morris also added that Officer Kelly is an excellent dancer and a strong representation of what we want our officers to be. She is always a pleasure to be around. Thank you. Thank you. Last person for the Arc Achievers is Heidi Solomon. Heidi Heidi does a great job demonstrating the

town's core values. We regularly receive compliments on our customer service from both internal and external stakeholders. Heidi brings a great attitude and demeanor to the office every single day. Every single day I walk into this building. Some days are hard to walk in that front door. Hey Bill, how are you doing? I get a good morning from that desk and it means something, right? To have that demeanor and that personality and that presence. But this nominating individual or individuals went on to say, "Even in challenging or frustrating situations, she remains patient, friendly, and helpful." In addition to her customer service skills, she has processed a record number of permits over the last two years and recently passed the exam to become a certified zoning official from the North Carolina Association of Zoning Officials. Heidi brings positive energy to the position, department, and organization, and she reflects our core values. That comes from Jason and Donna. That's the first co-authored uh submitt I've had, but I wrote around recently and I saw in this community, and if you haven't written around recently, development services been busy, y'all. There's a lot of things under construction, and there's only about two people that run all those permits and keep that process flowing in this community going. And Heidi has persevered in that job and not only persevered and been successful, but been kind, right, and been an attribute to who we are. So for all of you, from me, and most importantly from your co-workers who are all out here, thank you. You're worthy for what you do [applause] for you.

They're acrylic. They used to be glass back in the day. You're dancing. Okay, friends, one more award. Um, the one we try to give every year to the employee of the year. So, I always try to say this with the employee of the year. So, it doesn't come with a big check. It doesn't come with a Rolex watch. It doesn't come with a Caribbean vacation. Um, it comes with an acrylic that you get to keep. What I try to remind folks is this is that in the roughly 100 years that this community has existed, a record of the actions in this room have been taken. And this room has changed a lot. Locations and how it looks and the type of business that we interact in. And those records are kept forever. Um they are memorialized by state law. Those minutes are kept

forever. One of the things I've always loved about the employee of the year award is that that man or woman's name is encapsulated in that space, right? It's just there, right? And it is a quiet reminder that hey man, this year you distinguish yourself above what I think is an exemplary organization, one that I am obviously very biased, but if I was to give a candid professional assessment of is an excellent organization. So this year, I'm not going to make you come up or read it first. No, I'm not. Come on up, Aaron. Let's talk to you. Come on up, Erin. Let's let's let's talk about this for a second. So, with the public safety folks, when we're recognizing them, it's kind of a special space, okay? And it's a space that I've learned to be very respectful of, right? I am a professionally trained public administrator, I am not a public safety professional. You have heard me say in the roughly nine years that I have been here that I don't have the courage to do that job. I don't think I'm a coward, but I just don't have the courage to do the things that public safety professionals do. So, whenever I am trying to distinguish or recognize somebody that stands in this space, I need to make sure that the words I'm using are appropriate. So, I can tell you how much you mean, and I probably will after this, but I would prefer to use Chief Cap's words first. Uh, Chief Caps can't be with us tonight. He's at a conference uh and he will not be back. So unfortunately he sends his regrets but I did ask him to give me something that I could share kind of help me see it in your words. So this is from Lawrence. Uh Aaron has been a 12-year employee here. She is exceptional in her role as the accreditation manager for the Nightdale Police Department. Aaron has demonstrated unparalleled dedication and maintaining comprehensive files and overseeing three rigorous accreditation projects. Kalia accreditation, NCIA accreditation, and the League of Municipalities Law Enforcement Risk Review. Managing these concurrent initiatives is

extraordinarily challenging. Requires meticulous coordination of standards, routine audits, and compliance across several regulatory frameworks. Aaron does so under tight deadlines, and with evolving requirements. The part that really stood out to me was though her expertise and unwavering attention to detail, she helped the Nightdale Police Department achieve a historic milestone by becoming the first and only law enforcement agency in North Carolina to secure all three prestigious credentials. This accomplishment not only elevates our department's operational excellence, but also sets benchmark for law enforcement statewide. Beyond internal successes, Aaron was honored with the NC Leah Mentor of the Year Award for her selfless guidance to other agencies navigating these complex processes for the first time. Her commitment to mentorship also fosters broader industry improvement. Though her work on these various or through her work on these various projects, Aaron shows that she embodies the highest standards of accountability, respect, and customer service. Aaron truly exemplifies excellence in public service and deserves recognition. So as the manager and having stood in this space now for almost two decades, I know how challenging it can be to be a law enforcement professional and how every single day when those folks go out there, they're doing the very best that they can. And sometimes that is just a difficult service to administer, even on its best days, it can be challenging, right? One of the things that helps you so much is having somebody who has your back, right? I have your back in the sense that I'm the manager. I'm here to help advocate for what you need, a counsel to support you and give you the resources to be successful. But when you have people quietly weaving narrative in there that we are not only going to have a singular accreditation, we're going to have the three accreditations that are available to us. We'll be the only police department in North Carolina that has it. It's a testimony to why I never get

complaints about the police department. When was the last time we had to navigate difficult difficult trials in that space and when we do at our core we can demonstrate how we have always committed ourselves to go far above and beyond what the standard benchmark in North Carolina is. And for you I want to thank you because that is the fruits of your labor. I get it. It's a team effort, but one person took the lead here and accomplished those goals, and I really, really appreciate it. [applause] Okay. One, two, three. Thank you so much, Mr. Summers, for taking that time. Um, and for those that were awarded this evening, we thank you so much for your dedication. We thank you so much for all that you've contributed. We know it's an honor to be recognized and it's also an honor to be able to take this space and to take this time to share our gratitude and thanks um and just to hear all of the great things that you are doing for the town of Nightdale. I know personally I get to go across and I get to brag on Nightdale and the reason why I get to do that is because of the times and the moments

where you've made the decision to go above and beyond. You've made the decision to do a little bit more. that's going to contribute and make this town an even better place to live. And so I personally just want to say thank you. And I know from the council that's probably some of the messages as well. If anybody else had something, but just want to say thank you. Next is our public comment period. Um is there anyone here tonight who wishes to speak to the council on any item that is not on the agenda? No. Next, we'll move on to um citizens inquiries. Reports on citizens inquiries. Council, are there any reports on citizens inquiries? Um, I did report something already to uh Dustin uh trip uh regarding a had a citizen inquire about Haj uh Oldfacing, sorry, and some uh debris build up on Old Fac um and if we could get in touch with NC DOT to get that cleaned up. I know he was working on that. So, just want to make that public comment. All right. Next, we'll move to the consent agenda. Any questions, comments about the consent agenda

or motion?

Motion to approve.

Second.

All in favor?

I.

Any opposed? Majority approves. Motion carries. We'll move to our new business for the evening. Veterans Memorial and Military Banner name approval. Miss Smith. Good evening, mayor, members of the council. Thank you for the opportunity to come to you this evening to speak about a few of our veteran recognition programs. And so, the town of Nightdale, of course, is grateful for those who

bravely answer the call to serve in our armed forces. And as a town, we strive to offer programs, services, and events that will give thanks to our veterans and pay tribute to them and their families for their sacrifices. And so tonight, I want to highlight two of the programs that we offer here in Nightdale, the Veterans Memorial and the Military Banner Program. So just quickly I'll share some background information that our Nightdale Veterans Memorial was dedicated on November 11th, 2018 and is serving to recognize deceased veterans of the greater Nightdale community who have honorably served. And shortly after the memorial was dedicated, we established the Veterans Memorial Advisory Board to review candidates for permanent inscription at the Veterans Memorial. And to date, we have 125 names that are engraved at the memorial. I want to share with you quickly the veterans memorial recognition policy outlines the criteria for who can be recognized at that memorial. And so the veteran must have resided in the greater Nightdale area for a portion of their life or made significant contributions to the Nightdale community and they must have been honorably separated or discharged. We do recognize veterans from all branches of service and those that were killed in action will have their names engraved in gold. um request to have a name placed at the Veterans Memorial must be made through an application process that goes to our advisory board for review. They look at this criteria and then they gather a list of names to provide to you. So this year the Veterans Memorial Advisory Board has been reviewing applications since June and they have six names that they would like to recommend to you this evening. So from the Army we have Wayne Lewis, Willard Carpenter, and James Hart Senior. From the Navy, we have Gatis Horton. And from the Air Force, Dwayne Smith and Benny Coleman. Shifting gears quickly, I want to talk about our new program, the military

banner program that you all approved as a council in July. Um, we identified criteria at that time with the help of the advisory board. It's similar to the Veterans Memorial and that the honore must reside in the greater Nightdale area or have resided in the the community for a portion of their life or made significant contributions to the town. They must verify their military status and or honorable discharge. Again, all branches are eligible. And then with this program, active duty service members, National Guard, reserve, and living veterans are eligible. So, I want to highlight again quickly that we have identified locations down um 1 Avenue, Wilder Nursery Trail, and Nightdale Station Run where we plan to place the military banners. And here is just a a mockup of what that will look like. We will have the name, the branch, their years of service, and their photo. And to highlight our timeline, in July, the funding and the program itself was approved. We've been advertising the program and accepting applications. We're here tonight to present the names for your consideration, and then we can move into the production process, order the banners, and our goal is to have them displayed from July through Veterans Day. And I'm happy to share that we got some good response and we have 20 names that we would like to recommend to you this evening for this program. Um I'll share those with you and we've included their photos as well. Brian Burios Alanes, Ebenezer Tiner III, Michael Johnston, Jason Tyler, Donald Connelly, Richie Narin, Chris Eldr, Alexander Johnson, Cody Haggler, Matthew Marty, Roan, Sha Binham, Samuel Connor, Carlton Smith Jr., Antonio Super, Alex Schwarz, Tori Leachch, Allison Fernstrom, Certoma,

John Truit, Tresa Doula Sultan, and Douglas Boyd. So, with that, I'm available to answer any questions that you have, but it would be staff's recommendation that you approve the names for both the permanent inscription at the Veterans Memorial and for placement in our new military banner program. Thank you, Miss Smith. Any questions or comments?

Just one question. So, the the thought is that upon us moving forward with this tonight, these banners can be ordered and hopefully on display by July 4th and

through was it July through November? I believe

July through Veterans Day. So, they'll stay up through November and then it'll switch back to the start something banners for the other half of the year.

Thank you. Just a question. Uh, so after the banners go up and they come down, will it be an annual opportunity for other people to uh to to actually have a banner and then after you get to it's full, like what happens then?

Right. So, we had identified 30 spots. So, we aren't full yet. So, we will be able to open it back up to take more. And our thought process is once we feel out the the response implementing some sort of weight list and rotation schedule. So maybe they're up for a year or two and then we rotate new ones in and then kind of formulate a weight list and a rotation plan. So that is to to be determined as we approach that. Any others? Or if not, is there a motion?

Uh, I'd like to go ahead and make a motion to approve the recommended names for permanent inscription at the Veterans Memorial Plaza and placement in the military banner program.

Second.

All in favor?

I.

Any opposed? Majority approves. Motion carries. Thank you, M.

Next is advisory board committee reports. This is an opportunity for council members to share updates from recent advisory board meetings. Does anyone have any updates to share?

Uh madam mayor, just a point of information, the uh we have met with the land use review board. Um at that meeting, we actually uh did the uh awarding for our community appearance award as well as our uh tree project. And I that was my first I actually had as a member and I I was just impressed with the commitment of our citizens. I mean, they they went into detail to determine who deserve these awards and and they were very uh sincere about our tree project. So, I just wanted to say I was I was grateful that these folks are are Nightale residents.

Thank you for that. Any other updates or reports? All right. If not, at this time, we do need to go into close session this evening. So, uh, may I have a motion to enter into close session pursuant NC General Statute 143-318.11A3.

So moved.

Second.

All in favor?

I.

Any opposed? Majority approves. Motion carries. Thank you all for joining us this evening. That ends the regular portion of our meeting.