Parks and Rec Advisory Board Meeting

Look, I was

So many things easy, John.

All right. Good evening everyone. Welcome to Apex Town Hall Town Council meeting. I'll call the meeting to order officially for Tuesday, April 28, 2026. And uh thank you for being here. Um I also want to welcome those who've joined us by live stream via YouTube. We have a big agenda tonight, which means we're gonna get out of here about two o'clock in the morning, I think.

Optimista,

we're going to go ahead and start uh with our commencement invitation and pledge. Let me read a diversity statement. The town of Apex values and celebrates diversity and inclusion. We see diversity as a strength that binds our community together, inviting members from different faith communities to deliver the invocation. at the beginning of our council meetings supports this unity. Recognizing that not everyone practices the same traditions, we welcome you to have a private moment of silence. What I want to do now is if you wouldn't mind standing, let's honor our nation and join me in the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Thank you so much. We'll move now move now to our invocation. And tonight we have with us the daughter of one of our former business owners. Uh it was Glam Soldier located downtown. Uh Alicia Ramsey. Um her daughter 7 years old. She's going to come up Arya and deliver some words of encouragement as part of a vacation tonight. So, if you would come on up, Ara.

Hello, Mayor Gilbert and city council members. My name is Arya and I'm 7 years old. I'm here today because Mayor Gilbert invited me for an invitation. He is awesome. And no, he did not tell me to say that.

Say that.

Now say the second part. And no.

And no.

And no, he did not say that.

And no, he did not tell me to say that. I have a special place in my heart for the town of Apex. And I knew exactly what I wanted to talk about. When you think about what makes Apex so special, is it the grassy soccer field or the skate park? Is it Peakfest or Witches Night? Not just those things. What makes Apex special are the people in this town and especially the teachers and small business owners. For example, I love going to Oali Bakery. I love the honeybee latte at Mission Market. And I loved my teachers at Salem Baptist Preschool. It's people like Sarah, the owner of Tulip Magnolia. She is a former school teacher turned boutique owner who literally lets me come and work at her store for an hour. She teaches me how to do day-to-day tasks. or people like Donnie at Spiral Graphics who always takes the time to talk with me and find out how I'm doing when my mom's picking up her hats and t-shirts. I've learned a lot about business, the art of buying and selling online and in person. I love getting to know people. She loved My mom is the owner of Glam Soldier, a veteranowned business that started out on Salem Street when I was two and a half years old.

She loved having her store in downtown Apex, and she still owns it today, but moved it to Raleigh so she could raise us kids. Mayor,

yeah,

mayor and city council members, we pray for the town and for the teachers. Thank you very much. Thank you, Arya. That was very courageous for you to do that. We appreciate you being here this evening. All right. Thank you.

You're welcome.

All right. You want to stay for the whole meeting?

You can stay. You want to run the meeting?

I go home. No. Okay. All right.

I'm good.

All right. Thank you for being here.

Okay. I'll see you.

All right. See you later. Okay. Thank you so much. All right.

And they need to be moved.

Okay.

All right. Yes, sir. All right. I got an announcement to make. I never thought I would do this at a council meeting, but there were three vehicles that need to be removed or moved immediately. Um they're in a no parking zone. Uh in affinity John, oh, I was going to go back to my police days. J A Z6994. That's one. J A6994 is the plate. And then the next vehicle is a red Tulsa LLS8588. And then a white BMW HML124.

That's yours. Okay.

I feel relieved.

Okay. White BMW HML 1124. Okay. All right. I

do want to recognize um protectors of our town who are here. Um in fact, let's do this real quick. We'll move on. All the town staff members, please stand up. I want to recognize you for all the great work you do. Please stand up and be recognized. All right, we're moving now to announcements and petitions by the governing body. We'll go ahead and start with Mayor Pro Tim Mafy.

Hey, thank you, Mayor. Um, couple things. Over the weekend, I had the uh the privilege of attending the YMSL, the Young Men Service League annual banquet on behalf of the town. Had a lot of young great leaders and and thank them for all their service. Um, downstairs, if you guys seen it, we had a a Lufkin art opening. Look at the the art for some middle school students down there. It's great stuff. And, uh, also wanted to mention, you know, I'm probably not the only one, but our our excellent, uh, fashion show, a little catwalk that we all did over the weekend. I think we all crushed it, some more than others. Um, watch the video if you're curious. But Earthfest was awesome, and thank you to staff and all the vendors who help put that on. Thanks, man.

All right. Thanks, Mayor Pro Tam. Council member Gray. Uh want to say once again, thank you to all my colleagues uh for what you guys do every day. It's not easy. U especially seeing as how we are literally in the middle of our budget season, my favorite time of year. Um really uh you know, I want to just take a moment to say, you know, we've been receiving emails from various members of the community. Um you know, we haven't been able to answer all of them. We you know, we are taking all of them. We are reading every single one of them. If you haven't had a chance to see our budget, I really encourage you to do so. Go to apexnc.org. Click on the government tab, you'll see a in the second column, second line down, you'll see budget. Click on that. You get our entire budget, the proposed budget that's there. And we're still taking input on what should be done, how we can make it better, ideas, and things

of that nature. So, please feel free to go there. And next council meeting we will have once again the public hearing where we'll solicit feedback and comments from all of you to talk about the budget. But the budget's an important thing. It's how we not only spend our money but it's more importantly an example of our priorities as a community and um where we put our money is you know quite frankly where we put our heart and it's a good thing that we get everybody involved in this. So thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you sir. Council member Zerman. Just one thing I want to echo uh Mayor Prom the Earthfest on Saturday was a great success. I want to thank all the staff that put that together, especially the fashion show which was new this year. I'm a little shag grin that I haven't got any phone calls from modeling agencies to start my new career. Um but I

I'll tell you.

I I was rocking that blazer, man. I was you I was doing good. But anyways, um you know, it was great great stuff. Always good to see um many people come out for for these festivals that are so much part of what what makes Apex Apex. Unfortunately, I'll be out of town this weekend and I'll have to miss Peakfest. Uh but I'm sure that the town will be well represented there as well. So, thank you very much.

Thank you, Council Council Member Mood. Um, as my colleagues said, the Earth Fest is, you know, um, was amazing and thank our town staff for putting up such an amazing festival. And I also have a proposal next year. Um, I propose our council, you know, and mayor we, you know, we be a separate team from others. So, council team fashion show. Okay. And Ed, you can lead us with your

negative

WEIRD AND amazing cat box. Yes,

you are famous on internet now. Okay.

Okay. Another thing um at the peak uh resilience and well-being task force um we passed the resolution on April 14th council meeting and it was a unan unanimously vote. Uh thank you my colleagues. Uh our first workshop is scheduled on May 29th from 6 to 8:00 pm at Apex Senior Center. Everyone is welcome to attend no matter you are you know uh caring for yourself, your family, your friends or you are just interested and would like to uh participate all welcome you know um to join. So, please stay tuned and um come to the workshop. We are expecting you. Okay. Thank you. That's all.

Thank you, Council Member Ree.

Yes. Uh thank you. I'll be brief considering we have a extensive meeting this evening. First, want to echo Earthfest. Thank you for uh the community for being there. Thank you staff. The other update I have is that Apex is yet again open for business. Uh the economic development department um has uh notified me that there are three new industrial buildings recently completed and on the market for lease located on production drive. Um there are again building 2, three, and four ranging between 180,000 square feet and uh 28,000 square feet. Um Foundry Commercials the broker for Apex Commerce Center. So, uh um if you or anyone you know uh or if you just want to share the news in your uh networks, um we're looking for uh ind industrial uh uh tenants for those buildings. That's completes my update. Thank you.

All right. Thank you, Councilman. All right. I don't have anything to present tonight. We'll move now to adoption of

the meeting agenda. I'll have uh Mr. Clerk to announce the additions or changes.

Uh yes, Mayor. The changes for tonight's meeting agenda is uh the removal or consideration of removal of consent item number seven which is anou between NC children and the town uh is proposed to move to the regular meeting agenda as regular meeting agenda number three. The addition of a consent agenda item which is continuing the uh town council ad hoc finance committee meeting uh or meetings through June 30th of 2026. the addition of presentation number four, the National Tennis Month Proclamation, requesting a continuence for public hearing number nine, which is reszoning case number 25 CZ21, which is 2728 Holland Road until Thursday, May the 28th, 2026. And then public hearing 11, deferring this item back to the planning board for their May 11th, 2026 meeting and continuing the item until the town council meeting on May the 28th, 2026.

Thank you, Mr. Coleman. Uh with those uh changes, are there any others hearing? None. Is there a motion? Motion to approve of those changes. Motion mayor pro Tim.

Second.

Second. Zman. All in favor say I. Oppos. Motion carries. Consent agenda. Um, as previously noted, consent item number seven is proposed to be moved to the regular meeting agenda and consent item number eight is requested to be added. Is there a motion? Mot.

All right. All in favor say I.

Opposed. Motion carries. All right. Move now to town council committee reports. Next ad hoc finance committee meeting scheduled for Thursday, April 30th, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. and then the work session will follow um later on at 3:30 p.m. Same date.

All right, moving now to town manager report. Mr. Bossbury.

All right, good evening, mayor and council. I have a few items to cover.

I'm going to start with the lighter stuff first because it just feels right to go there. So, uh special events, as everyone knows, we have Peakfest coming up this weekend. It is a rain or shine event. Uh hoping for a little less rain than I've seen in the forecast, but we'll see. That's Saturday, May 2nd from 9:00 a.m. to 4 pm. That is a new location though. It'll be at town hall. But the logistics, everybody's been working so hard on that event. Uh so hoping for success on that and as little rain as possible. Uh next, there's a proclamation coming up for um May is Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and we have a few events that I'd like to mention in relation to that. Uh, Sushi and Sumo is Thursday, May 7th from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. That's at Apex Community Park volleyball courts. You can get all the details on these events on our website.

Uh, my notes says May 7th for that. Is that

I Okay,

I can check that.

I got information May 16th.

Okay,

we'll check that. Uh, next is the I hope I'm going to say this right. M Jang social. That is May 21st. That's at the Apex Senior Center. That's from 5:00 pm to 8:00 PM. Registration is required for that event. And then we have a couple events coming to the Halley. Uh the Apex Community Dance, which was formerly known as the Apex Family Dance, is now called the Apex Community Dance. That's Friday, May 1st from 700 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Halley. We have the art reception for Apex Pride Art. That is Friday, May 1st as well from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. We have Sweet Surrender, the spring play, and there are four, five, six, six different uh dates and times for that event. So, you can check our website, but that's a uh a play at the Halley called Sweet Surrender. Then, we have Super Fun Saturday, which is Saturday, May 16th from 10:30 a.m. uh to 12:30. And that is described as a super fun day with free arts and crafts for children.

So, sounds like a great event. Now, I'm going to get into a little bit heavier stuff. Our meter updates for electric. We've replaced approximately 15,200 electric meters. Uh, that process continues to go well and like we've said before, we intend to wrap up in the fall with those replacements. Next is Ask Apex. I will hit the statistical highlights, just a couple of them. They continue to do a great job. 94% of calls are now resolved by Ask Apex, which that's I think the highest percentage that we've had so far. The average wait time is 49 seconds on that. So, uh if you need some assistance and you don't know who to call, call our Ask Apex team and they will take care of you or in the 6% of the cases where they cannot, they will get with the departments that need to assist. Next is an update on the Salem Streetscape project. Uh, so there's been some information put out on this and we're going to continue. There's a meeting that we're going to have this week. So I'll have more information after that meeting. Uh, we've got a couple meetings on it this week, one Wednesday and one potentially Friday. U, I believe after the Friday meeting, we will have a substantial uh, update for you. But right now, what I want to share is uh, that construction has slowed down on the project. It did not entirely stop with the overall project. We were able to pivot and do some work on Saunders, some drainage work there. Uh but people did notice that it has slowed down. The biggest issue that came up there was we had to get an updated electrical plan in place. Uh and that was uh caused by some field conditions that were experienced and some some things needed to be redesigned. Uh there were multiple technical reasons why we needed an updated electrical plan. As of Friday the 24th, we have received that electrical plan from our design consultant. Uh that plan is now being expedited through the town's review. Uh so there's a rush on that review and um that's where it'll be critical for us. We'll know more Friday about how that's going to impact the overall timeline. Uh we do believe that right now there will

be an impact to that timeline, but we're going to also hopefully have solutions on how we can speed up the process and hopefully regain some of that time. Uh but as of right now uh we do anticipate an impact to the timeline unless we can have some other solutions and we're going to work with the contractor. They've committed to work with us on that. Uh so like I said we'll have more substantial update after Friday. Uh but that project is uh hopefully going to be back on full speed very soon as that electrical plan makes it through the permitting process. So that's streetscaping. Next, I wanted to hit the peak plan 2055. Uh, if you would like to share your input, but you missed out on the two public forum events, it's not too late. You can visit www.apexnc.org/ peakplan to share your input and that comment form will be open through May 1st. So, if you want to give input on kind of the visioning and future for Apex, do that through the website by May 1st. Next, it was brought up a couple weeks ago at our at our last meeting that we should consider a volunteer program. So, I felt like it was probably a good idea to highlight that we do have a volunteer program. And uh we actually have a appreciation dinner that's coming up this Thursday for our volunteers. It's a pretty robust program. I'm going to give you some statistics from January of 25 to January of 26. We currently had or during that period we had 2,77 volunteers that served a total of almost 58,000 volunteer hours. Uh they're spread out among senior programs, youth programs, and the estimated savings with that volunteer program is close to $2 million. Uh so a pretty robust program that we are hoping to grow. So we do appreciate that it got got brought up and I have the ability to to highlight that program. If you are interested in volunteering for the town, please reach out to us uh because we do have opportunities. They're in town hall, the senior center, community center. We have volunteers all over the organization and we're happy to find you a home to

volunteer. So, we appreciate that. Next item I have is budget, which has been talked about a couple times tonight. Uh we are square in the middle of budget season, which is also one of my favorite times of year. We uh since we presented the budget on the 16th, we have heard from members of the public and we've heard from our staff as well. So, we're kind of getting that squeeze in the middle, which we appreciate. Um I did want to mention a couple of key dates. The public hearing was mentioned. So, to date, we've had three public hearings on the budget. We will have that fourth, as uh council member Gray mentioned, on May 12th will be the fourth public hearing on the budget. Uh then we are proposed or scheduled to have the fifth public hearing on the budget for May 28th. That's when we're hoping for uh an adoption. If it does not occur on May 28th, then it would go to the following meeting hopefully, which is in June. Uh June 9th, I think is the date. Yes, June 9th. Uh so by the end of May, we will have had five public hearing opportunities on the budget. The next finance committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 30th. Uh we also have a couple of council work sessions on the calendars. The next one is May 8th and then I believe we have a tenative May 21st, but we also have a tenative for June 2nd. And the June 2nd would be needed if we don't adopt on May 28th. We would have a work session available on June 2nd where we can work through some details. Um if we know why it wasn't adopted on the 28th, we'll work through that and get it ready for the following month. Uh so we have a lot of dates coming up on the budget, but we're super excited to continue to work through those items. the information. Uh, budget staff has done a great job of making the information available. As council member Gray mentioned, you can go to the website. There's a there's a lot on there. You can look at previous year's budgets. Uh, it's it's pretty pretty robust on the website and we're happy to answer any questions. We've been trying to answer the questions as they've been coming in too. We've had quite a few of those come in. Uh so we are trying to answer as many of the questions as possible prior to that's it for the formal report and then I've got a couple of items if there are no

questions related to the report.

Quick question about the you talked about the peak plan if people want to get involved. Could you just briefly discuss what that is? That's involving not only zoning but other things that are taking place.

Right. It it's an overall visioning plan for the town. I mean it's all thing it's transportation it's mass it's bus transit mass transit. um it's everything that you want to see kind of in the future of our community. You have an opportunity to give input on what you want that to look like and then through the process it'll then translate into updates to our regulations and codes. Um so it's an opportunity to just kind of talk about your vision of what you want to see in Apex. Uh and then the consultants and staff, they take all those inputs and work it through what will guide us uh through 2055 and get some plans in place for that.

Good. I don't know if staff you want to add anything to that.

Good. All right. I got a thumbs up. So that's generally it. It's it's your opportunity to help shape the future of Apex and

Oh, there you go. It's on the screen and there's a QR code you can scan. There's a lot of details available on our website. Um if you really want to have input in the community, this is a big opportunity for you. Um this doesn't come along every year. We do these periodic updates to our plan. So this is your chance. Get involved. give us your input and help guide what the future of Apex will look like. Any other questions on the report?

Have one. Um, thank you for the update on the streetscape. I was going to say I've heard a lot from downtown business owners. I imagine there will be swift communication apparatus.

Yes, sir. I'm glad you brought that up.

As soon as we know more what part of our this week

is to come up with that communication plan on what it'll look like once we know all the details that we need to communicate. We did send an email out um I think it was maybe a week or so ago with some information, but we didn't know a whole lot. So, this week we hope to know more to actually then communicate that out. So, thank you for bringing that up.

Any other questions?

All right.

Okay. Good. Keep going. All right. Next, I'm going to ask our chief to come on up. I think you're kicking us off on

this. We have some exciting news uh when it comes to our fire department, and I'm going to let Chief Herman talk about that news. Good evening, Mayor, Council, Manager Bossburg. Thank you very much, town staff and our wonderful citizens. So, we have a a very special presentation and announcement much like your gold shoes and that you wear when you see this uniform come out. We've got something special. So, uh we work very hard with our internal comms department to produce a video to really showcase what an ISO inspection is and what this announcement is. So, I'm going to turn it over now to it to hit play and I'll be back to make some special introductions and uh get this going. So, thank

you, Chief. Hi, I'm Tim Herman, fire chief here in Apex, and I have some exciting news to share with the entire community. The Apex Fire Department has officially earned an ISO class one rating, both within the town limits and throughout the unincorporated areas we protect, known as the Hypex Fire District. This is the highest score awarded by the insurance services office, and it places us among the top 1% of fire departments nationwide. It's an achievement our whole community can celebrate. But this rating isn't just about the fire department. It reflects years of commitment, investment, and teamwork across multiple agencies along with the support of our residents. Let me explain what goes into an ISO rating and why it matters. The Insurance Services Office or ISO evaluates fire protection in more than 44,000 communities across the United States. After reviewing a community, they assign a public protection classification score from 1 to 10. A class one rating is the highest level of fire protection. ISO on

behalf of the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshall looks at four major areas to determine a rating. First, the fire department itself. They evaluate staffing, training, equipment, response times, and overall readiness. Our firefighters train every day to stay prepared for fires, medical calls, rescues, and any emergency that may arise. Maintaining modern apparatus, strong response strategies, and highly trained personnel played a major role in earning this rating. Second, the water supply system. ISO reviews hydrant spacing, water main capacity, flow testing, and the reliability of the entire system. Our partnership with the water resources department ensures hydrants are properly installed, inspected, and ready to deliver water when every second counts. Their work behind the scenes is vital to protecting lives and property. Third, the 911 communication center. The first step in any emergency is the call for help. ISO evaluates how calls are received, processed, and dispatched. This includes the training of our dispatchers, the technology they use, and the backup systems in place. Our 911 professionals ensure responders get to the right place as quickly as possible. And finally, community risk reduction. This includes fire inspections, public education, building code enforcement, fire investigations, and datadriven risk planning. By identifying hazards and educating residents and businesses, we help prevent emergencies before they happen. Achieving an ISO class one rating does not happen overnight. It reflects years of planning, collaboration, and dedication across departments and community partners. I want to thank our firefighters, the water resources department, our 911 dispatchers, town leadership, and all

the organizations and individuals who played a role in this achievement. Most importantly, I want to thank you, the members of our community. Your support for training, equipment, facilities, and safety programs makes achievements like this possible. Residents and businesses may also see potential insurance benefits depending on your provider. But more importantly, this rating confirms that the systems designed to protect our community are operating at the highest level. While we're proud of this milestone, our commitment does not end here. We will continue to train, innovate, and invest in the services that keep Apex a safe place to live, work, and visit. Thank you for your continued support and stay safe.

Thank you for seeing that. It was a little long, but I think it was important to highlight all the different components. It's not just the fire department. Um, so I want to name a couple guests we have in the room and then we'll do a quick presentation. I'm going to call out two that are hiding in the back. So, we've got the fire services director of Wake County, Daryl Alford. I'm going to make him stand or he's raising his hand. Um, and uh deputy fire marshal Joe Ving Digny. And he's the uh deputy fire marshal of Wake County. So, if in case you didn't pick up on the video, we were an ISO class one in the city. We were a two in the Hypexex district. If you noted, we dropped that to a one. So, we're a straight one even in our unincorporated areas. So, I know we usually have friends here from the Friendship, the New Hill community. They are an ISO class one as well. So, thank you'all for being here. We are great partners with Wake County. Um, so now I would like to introduce some folks from the North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshall. We've got our inspector, John Whitfield here. We've got Shannon

Bulock, who is um with the state fire marshall's office as well. But at this time, I want to call up the state fire marshal for the entire state of North Carolina, Brian Taylor. Thank you, Chief. You've made my job very easy after that video. That was very well put together. Mayor, council, thank you for the opportunity to let me come before you to uh talk about this exciting time for your community and what it means for it. Uh mayor, I would like to get the contact number for area. I think we could use her Arya. Uh I think we could use her inspiration in Raleigh with the uh uh with some leaders there while they debate on a uh a budget that we much need in North Carolina. I think she could inspire many. But uh yes, Office of State Fire Marshall is the only fire marshall's office in the country that actually does the rating inspections for communities of less than 100,000. You're reaching that point very quickly. Uh but uh Jim Long many years ago went before the legislature and said that look we are not we're doing a disservice to our community members. We need uh to come in and take over the inspections for North Carolina. We've been very successful in that. Mayor, we came five years ago, a little over five years ago right after CO met you in front of the fire station with Chief McGee uh to uh present your first class one uh for Apex and and that was a proud moment of what it means for the community. in now uh with the leadership of Chief Herman, he's extended that into your rural area. Um and so it's a very exciting news and it is a cooperation of of the community as you've seen all the areas that covered it takes the public works 911 and of course the the men and women of the uh Apex Fire Department their commitment and pride that they take into their uh their community and fire department uh and the work that it takes. So be very proud of that. I can tell you that there's 41 fire departments in the state of North Carolina, 1200 fire departments. There are only 41 class one departments. I can

tell you there's only just a little over, I don't know the exact number of 400 nationwide. So, that is something to be very proud of. Uh we are very proud of our state and our communities in the state of North Carolina and we set the mark for so many across this country. At this time, I'd like to present the certificate of a class one to Apex Fire Department.

AWESOME.

YEAH. I'm going to make my two assistant chiefs in the room to come down. I made them dress up in class A's as well. Um, and as they're walking down, he mentioned it. Uh, but these folks in the back make it happen as well as these firefighters, both sworn and unsworn. And it takes a village to get one of these 44 spots in North Carolina. So, thank y'all for being here.

Yes, sir. Absolutely. behind two more appulations. It's a big deal.

It is. And chief chief's humble on this, but he and his staff worked extremely hard. Uh, and I know he mentioned it, but we wouldn't be there without the support of you all as well. So, um, congratulations to everybody else.

Good work.

All right. Next, we have an item. I'm going to invite our finance director, John Griffin, up. This is going to be our presentation on utility billing

update.

Good evening, mayor, members of town council. Um, so this is a revisit of a topic you discussed at your retreat a couple months back to, um, just update you on the status of the project of returning to standard operating procedures for utility billing. um give you the opportunity to review that information and think about any questions you might have. So again, they were discussing utility billing operations and returning to standard operating procedures. Uh the guiding principles are we want to support our customers, but we also want to, you know, pro provide pro proper financial stewardship for the town's resources. Just wanted to quickly review the calendar we had. And so this is the actual list of the various events that have covered it that have happened with utility billing over the last two um little almost two and a half years now. So that's you know there was a disruption. We've reviewed external bills. We've launched new software. Um we're replacing meters. Um and during that period we had no disconnections or late fees for unpaid bills. I ran these numbers at the beginning of this month. uh we had 30,597 active customer accounts and of those there were four 4,45 customers who had some past due balance for them a number of greater than 30 days. Those were four a little over 4,000 residents and about 320 some odd commercial accounts. the largest bills. Um, just to give you a sense of the range, the averages was about 1,200 on residential accounts, about $2,400 on commercial accounts. Um, there were 17 customers who owed us more more than $500 on the residential level, and there were 110 that owed us more than $500 on the commercial level. Um, since the last update, the numbers degraded slightly. We have a little over

$6 million in balances that have been owed to the town for over 30 days. And the amount of for over 90 days is about $4.4 million. Did want to give you a quick update of the specific call volume and ticket trend in our customer account software just to give you a sense of um going back to August 2025 when we, you know, were first going live. Everybody's getting into the new system. Um, we've got a portal online where you can ask questions directly to the utility billing staff. Um, generally the call volume has declined on the ask apex side and the portal queries have also declined. Um, and so you've just got totals average by day, total by the portal and then you have a combined number. So we're down to about half of what we were even six or seven months ago. Did want to give an update on the actual, you know, what we consider the accuracy of the billing. Um so as of right now the number of corrections and adjustments on customer accounts continues to trend downward. Um and so that is just for clarity adjustments is when we're having to really you know somebody has tried to pay us their check has bounced. We have to issue a fee. You know we're maybe waving some revenue because of some issue we determined or corrections is when we're literally saying you know this is the amount of gallons your meter said and we now know that's inaccurate. So we're updating that number. Overall you know we're averaging about a 2.8% 8% um rate that is down to half percent last month. What is standard operating procedures? So everything we're going to cover on the next couple of slides, we are baking into an update to your customer service policy that we're planning to bring before the the council in June. Um we're coordinating with electric and water so that you know it really covers all of the ways we do business with the citizens. Um did want to point out the effective date on the current policy is 1995. So it is a little bit of a a lift to update something that dated. This is a calendar of the actual our two main cycles. Um and what we talk about

when we talk about going live on July 1st with disconnections and late fees, you know, somebody would have their bill read on June 17th would get the meter. We would issue a bill a couple weeks later on July 1st. That due date would be on July 28th. one day later if they have not paid that balance would be assessed a a fee and then we have a potential cut off date of September 20 22nd. Same thing for cycle 2 the read date would be July 1st they would get their bill on July 15th the due date would be August 11th penalties calculated one day later and then another potential cut off date in October. Outside of just the information communicated on the bills, they would also receive at least two written communications, special purpose letters explaining the amount dedu owed, explaining how to communicate with us if they have a question about that amount, as well as two automated calls. So, they're going to get, you know, kind of an IVR call to let them know, hey, by the way, you owe the town. In terms of service impact, there's going to be three flavors in which dis um disconnects occur. um customers who have all of our services. So that is electric, water, sewer. Um if their electric service allows it, we would actually do a remote disconnect. So on those dates, a signal would come up on our come out of our software and it would tell their meter to shut off. And then if they were to pay um even if it's after hours, that would then schedule them, you know, within a couple of hours to have service restored and it be all automated. There's going to be two other circumstances where if they have all of our services but they don't have a remote disconnect feature on the meter. We have some like commercial electric businesses like that. Um they would be suspended by electric department operations. So we would have to actually roll a truck out to perform that. If they are just a water only customer um the same thing runs in reverse. This time it's water resources going out to do the disconnect. the actual penalties themselves, um, it

would be a 1% on their outstanding balance calculated one day after the due date. They could get up to two late fee adjustments per year if they otherwise are paying on time. We would give people a little flexibility. So that, you know, we're not just going to penalize them when say there's no other options even if they might have otherwise been in good standing. There would be a $75 reconnection fee. Um, and so that is just to offset the cost of anything that we might have to do to actually facilitate those reconnections. Um and we would target these efforts on disconnections for uh $500 or more and that's between the usage and the fees. We do have a medical u consideration program. So folks who have doctor notes, medical exc medical medical justifications, they'll get extra time. Um we're still working through the specifics on that, but we do have something to cover that. And of course, if they sign up for a payment plan, um then there would not be any late fees applied to them. This is just an example of the math. So, someone who, you know, has a hundred, they sign up for a payment plan. The payment plan is $200 a month for $2,400. Their monthly payment would be 375 if 175 is their current. Without a payment plan, they would acrew that 1% late fee on that balance. This is just to give you some context on payment plans. Our software is hardcapped at doing up to 12 months and it would spread that amount evenly. I do want to note um the payment plan amounts are included in the current charges on the bill. So if somebody has to sign up for a $500 payment plan, for example, and they have a $300 average bill, that means their bill would actually say $800 in their current charges. And I only say that really because there have been a couple instances lately where somebody has signed up for payment plan and then the following month seen their their current charges significantly higher and then asked for a high bill um investigation which kind of makes it a little difficult because it creates a lot of work for information that was communicated.

Anybody who is on a deferred payment plan can't sign up for budget billing. We'll explain what that is. The table on the right side of the slide is really explaining the current volume of how many requests we get for a payment plan per month. Um so that number is still pretty low um all things considered for the amount of outstanding balance. Budget billing, just to quickly explain that, um that is an option for customers who'd like to smooth out their bills over a uh over a 12-month period. It basically is a contract between the town and the customer to pay an estimated amount in equal monthly installments rather than what they would actually owe and then in that 12th month we would true up and if they overpaid they would get a refund and if they underpaid then they would have an amount due to the town. Um do note that you know people who fall behind on the budget payments would then roll into the um disconnection uh operations at that point. So, we did want to note that, you know, that straying from their budget plan for more than two months is just going to violate void that contract. We do have assistance programs. The town did have a direct customer assistance program for up to $636 and that was set aside a couple years ago. There's about $85,000 remaining in that uh contract as of this month. Neighbor up also assists and there are Wake County and North Carolina programs to provide assistance with folks's utility billing needs as well. This is an overview of the communications tactics that we're starting now and we'll be working on over the next couple of months. We've updated our website. We've we're going to put portals on the the account, the banners so that people kind of are driven towards this information. pushing on social media, newsletters. Um the bills will be updated to indicate disconnect, late fees, delinquent balances. We're going to do targeted outreach. You know, we can look up the specific customers who owe the town larger balances and reach out to them

directly by phone and email. We're doing bill inserts, um flyers, and then of course we will do data calls as well. Um we're also planning on reporting to town council um as we move into this. So starting July 1st, we would be reporting the totals, the number of payment plans established, the call volume, just so that you have a grasp on where we are in the process, what we're seeing so that everybody is on the same page. Um, from my perspective, I think this issue would be considered we we're back to normal conditions once we're below the long the outstanding balance being below half a million dollars, 500,000. We do want to note that um when we do have to eventually write off bad debt, it comes as an expense on your financial statements. And so that does require, you know, a budget amendment. It has to go flow through your normal budgeting procedures. Any questions?

I have a question. Um starting with your last comment about the the write off. Um at what point in time are we required to consider writing off this balance? So uh in that case that's a situation where the law or the accounting procedures follow the law. So there is a statute of limitations to collect. It does differ by service. So um for example water services and sewer bills have different statutory limitations. For example, they run on different years. Um but essentially you're just required to write it off after a certain number of years have passed.

Okay. And upon write off, will we stop collections or we will continue the collection process um for as long as we can?

At that point, um since the statute limitations, we won't be able to really enforce it, but we can actually run it through the state government. The state program has the debt set off program. So, you basically validate a debt, you send it to the state, um and then if they are entitled any money by any agency of the state of North Carolina, basically the state would garnish them. So, for example, if they were getting like an income tax refund, for example,

and the town had submitted a debt set off for them, then the state would write us a check instead.

Thank you.

Quick question about you discussed uh budget billing and that that's not simply for those who may be in a delinquency status. That's that's an open program for for anybody that's out there. And uh can can you just give me that number again? How much we are in our delinquencies? How much money are we out?

The number is back

about $6 million is the amount over 30 days. The more longer term, the more serious number is 4.3 million.

You know the total balance of our electric fund cash balance

cash balance on the electric fund is I think it's about double that right now. It's about 8 million on the operating fund. So, I just want to call out, this is not a question, but I do want to make an observation here. Um, $6 million in delinquencies. Just to kind of put it in context, we mentioned the budget be, you know, slightly earlier. Um, the current recommendation from the manager's budget is a tax increase of 3.5 cents on our tax rate. Each cent represents about $2 million worth of income to the town. So this balance is roughly the equivalent of three cents on your tax rate. So now it's not entirely an apples to apples comparison because electric hits are electric funds not the general fund but I just want to kind of set some perspective for people that if we need to get to a point of writing off these balances rates will increase to offset the loss of money. So anybody who is not paying their bills potentially will increase the the bills for everybody else in the town. So um I just want to call that out call on you know people's civic duty you know to you know get current on

on their bills. Um we have a legal obligation to collect as soon you know as long as we know that there's an outstanding balance right so we will not um stop collecting uh until we absolutely must stop. Um, but you know, the longer this this lasts, right, like we got to make sure that our electric fund stays solvent, stays whole, um, if we have $12 million in our fund balance, which is already deemed to be insufficient, right? Writing off 6 million is going to hurt that fund even more, right? And we have no other way of making that up than increasing the rates for everybody else in town. So, I just want to put it out there for everybody to consider. You know, if you think you're sticking it to the man, you're not sticking it to the man. You're sticking it to your fellow citizens.

I got I got appreciate um the comments. So, what's the plan for those who can't pay like the resources available? Um what's the communication with NeighborUp or any other organizations? Because I mean, let's face it, with those numbers, I see a big thing happening here. and many people getting that power tent off.

I'm sure. So,

yeah, but probably the biggest part of that is, you know, we do plan in these communication tactics to also highlight those programs. Um um hopefully, you know, those programs will be able to provide assistance to kind of help with those citizens and we'll try to work with our customers as best we can.

And we do have payment plans, right?

Yeah. So, I mean, and that's a 12-month program essentially. that's that's there and we've also have the ability to do the the budget billing. Um I mean yes this I mean there there this this will hit some folks very hard. I get that. Um I also you know I think the concern is

we can only we can only handle the free rider problem for so long. Um I think it's important that we communicate to those who have difficulty with the bills and you know I mean this there may be a lot of money. We communicate to them payment plans. We work with them on payment plans. Sounds like we're giving them at least four different forms of communication before we even get to the point where we're turning off a utility. You know, two written and then two phone calls and, you know, sounds like there's a lot of attempts to get there. I guess, you know, this and and I'll I'll defer to to the town manager. I mean, and this is not something that we haven't I mean, we've been communicating with a number of these folks for for for months, years at this point, right?

Yes, sir. And and also, there are a lot of different reasons for people being in the category that they're in um and in the numbers. We also have a number of accounts that have made zero payments in 12 months, that have made no payments in six months. We know that there were some that disagreed with our billing and and um and some people made what they felt like was a reasonable payment, but we have other accounts that have just made no payments in over a year. Um and there are there are sizable number of accounts that have just stopped paying altogether and aren't making even what they felt was a reasonable payment. Um but like John mentioned, the first line of defense is a payment plan. We have budget billing. Um, I believe you also had a slide that highlighted some of the other um opportunities,

customer assistance,

assistance with um funding opportunities, the Wake County assistance program, North Carolina programs. Uh, so we want to we want to work with people. We want to set up a payment plan. Uh, our our intention, nobody wins if we're cutting off power left and right. That is not our intention. But as also was pointed out, uh, we have to because this is an enterprise, these are enterprise funds. It's not just electric. gets all a lot of our utilities together. We have to make those funds whole. And so at the

end of the day, if we cannot collect, then we have to figure out a way to shore those funds up, which is then going to impact rates. But our first we want to work with people. We want to get payment plans in place. We want to offer assistance programs. That's the primary focus right now. And that's we have the time to do that now, but that that gap is closing, too. So, we need people um to come in and get on those payment plans. We've been talking about that for a few months. Uh, and we've had some people take us up on it, but I think John showed the slide. We haven't had a ton of people take us up on those payment plans. Um, so we are encouraging people to come in, get on those payment plans so that we can start getting everyone back to normal and also get those funds on a path to normaly. I

I I want to ask you one question and this may be a question that you have an answer to or you don't, but to those who, you know, the person who hasn't paid for 12 months, I mean, have we even seen like a reduction in their electrical use or water use during that time period?

No sir. the the usage has stayed the same and we've just had people that said I don't agree with it so I'm not making any payments alto together.

Okay.

I had a few questions and thank you for your presentation. Um first and you had the slide up that Yeah. Um no I'm sorry the uh the one with the customer system. There you there you go. So I'll come to back to that in a second. Really quickly I just wanted to

confirm that I heard you correctly. You said if you set up a payment plan that there is no penalty. Correct.

Okay. So, I just

charging a fee on it. There's no sign up fee or anything like that.

Excellent. So, I just wanted to uh reiterate uh that if folks were looking to go ahead and set something up that that is there. The second thing I wanted to address is it looks I wanted to draw attention to this um the possibility of getting up to $636 in assistance

for needs based if you live in town. So again, if we're looking, you don't need to switch it, but I was going to say if we look back to that slide where you had the number of customers, it seems like a

lot of customers could make a phone call. and who would they make that phone call to to set up that um pro to be to see if they're eligible and then um to apply for that customer assistance program. Is that Ask Apex?

I guarantee if they call Ask Apex, we will have

Awesome. Fantastic. Thank you. Last couple questions. Um there's a lot of commercial accounts. Mhm.

And one with 65 or $61,000 outstanding. Is there any kind of um custom outreach to those super users who are businesses? So, you're not talking about moms just trying to make ends meet and then you talking about established commercial businesses that owe $61,000. Are we reaching out to them with in the same way where it's two emails and two phone calls or is there perhaps a uh a visit?

Sure. I could I could give that a shot. Um

I'm just thinking commercials I mean commercial businesses different from residential. I I would say we're we're we would still plan on looping that in with the same. You know, there's going to be a separate communication for these extremely large outside ST balances. They are going to get direct communication from the town about this to kind of figure sort it out.

Okay. Excellent. Um and there's a total of 1700 out of more than 30,000 accounts. 1,700 owing more than $500. That's what five and a half%

of all customers. It's small group of folks. Um, reach out. I'm sure we can work something out, folks.

Any other questions or comments?

Yeah, I just want to underline again the um payment plan option. And if you go

back to the slides, seeing that the signups as mentioned, very small numbers. Not a lot of people are taking advantage of this. I predict that once this becomes real, once the notices go out that hey, it's going to get shut off. Once the lights start going off, that number is going to skyrocket. You'll have a really tough time getting a hold of someone at that point instead of a payment plan. So, I would just ask if you're watching this or you read about this later and you think you might be in a position that you could take advantage of a payment plan, I would encourage you to do it sooner rather than later so you're not in a position where you're waiting in line with a bunch of other people. You can do it today. Get this out of the way. And the same thing for the uh the the Apex uh CARES programs at $85,000 available. We've had trouble getting that out the door in the past. You know, um we've had this program for a while. The money's been available. I I suspect that all that money will go out the door and not everyone who requests assistance will necessarily get that. So, if you believe that's a program that you would qualify for, I'd encourage you to reach out today while that money is still there in balance um and get your application in and get that relief before we get to the point where everyone's trying to do it and the money will eventually uh will eventually run out. So, thank you.

Thank you. I believe on that note that's all that I have.

All right. Thank you so much. All right. We'll move now to town clerk's report.

I yield

your time. Thank you for that. All right. Proclamations. We have several. Uh we'll start with well presentation one the uh peak star award quarterly award. May prom.

Thank you mayor. Uh so today is uh the day once a quarter where the town of Apex in coordination with the Apex Public School Foundation comes together to honor one of our public school employees, a staff member, a teacher uh administration um recognize them for

their for the work uh educating our kids and and being such an important part of our community. It's um something we do every quarter up here. we uh learn a little bit about what goes on in the schools and you know get a chance to uh to honor that hard work. Um so what I'd like to do um right now is call up Aspen from the Apex Public School Foundation to tell us a little bit more about the program and the foundation and introduce our honore for this quarter. Good evening council members and thank you for having me. My name is Aspen Ambrose and I am pleased to be representing the Apex Public School Foundation at tonight's meeting. The Apex Public School Foundation supports all Wake County Public Schools within an with an Apex mailing address. Currently, that's four high schools, five middle schools, and 12 elementary schools. The primary goal is the teacher teacher grant program. It funds teacher proposals that promote student engagement throughout through initiative and creative programs. This year, we funded all 16 grants that applied, which was a total of over $30,000. I would be remiss to not mention that unfortunately, this will be the last time the Apex Public School Foundation will present at the town council meeting, as the board has unanimously decided to close operations. As a grassroots volunteer-driven organization, the demands have exceeded the pace of the organization to a point where it is no longer sustainable. While we are ultimately here tonight to recognize an incredible teacher, I'd also like to also take this moment to say thank you to the reason we are here, the founders of the organization, Barbara Conroy and Stephanie Mitchell, for giving this foundation their all over the last seven years. On Tuesdays, the APSF has celebrated over 300 exceptional educators, administrator administrators, and staff members at Apex area schools with a social media shoutout. Each semester, shout out honores are then eligible for the twice yearly peak star award in partnership with the town of Apex. It is my pleasure to introduce the final

Peakstar award recipient for Apex Public School Foundation, Guy Civotello, better known as coach, a PE department chair at Apex Friendship High School. He demonstrates dedication to his students, players, and school community on a regular basis. as evidenced through Strikeout Cancer, an annual event that he has initiated and runs to raise money for cancer research in collaboration with multiple different high schools, as well as the initiation and and annual event of Friendship Tigers, honoring the school's history, and as an intervention coordinator in the classroom, finding ways to make every student feel valued. Thank you for all that you do, coach, and congratulations for being recognized as a Peak Star award winner. Yeah.

Good job, coach. All

right, mayor. Thank you.

All right. Good. I I do want to say um you know u APSF has done a great work in the town and I hate to see them go. Um shout out to Stephanie and Barb for their great work over the years. So right we'll move on to uh our next presentation. We have proclamation for Asian-American and Pacific Islander Month 2026. So we'll move down and read the proclamation together.

Whereas the month of May offers a meaningful opportunity to celebrate the diverse cultures, histories, and contributions of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islanders, A&HPI communities across the nation. And

whereas North Carolina has been a home for the A&HPI communities since the mid 1800s when the first Chinese immigrants came to the state and whereas AA and HPI communities have played a vital role in shaping our nation's story contributing to advancements in education, science, business, public service, and culture often in phase of historical and ongoing challenges. And whereas the town of Apex is proud to have its first Asian-American council member, Sumu and to be represented by Yaloo in the North Carolina House of Representatives. Whereas the town of Apex is fortunate to have such a strong and vibrant A&HPI community and we will always continue to celebrate and support them as they make Apex a much better place. You all could have clapped. That's fine. Now therefore, A, Jacqu K. Gilbert, mayor of Apex, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2026, AsianAmerican, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the town of Apex. GO

and encourage residents to immerse themselves in the cultural and educational opportunities offered throughout this month signed the 28th day of April, 2026. So, I'm gonna have council member mood to come and read the names.

Thank you.

Susan Trong, you see a waves, please come here. Dr. Uh because you can use you

shaky. Okay. NC. Okay. Um Nita Sharma NCNC. Okay. Vish Gardia. Bats. Vish. Okay. Guardia. Baps. Okay. Uhhuh. Uh. Okay. Captain of the Dragon Dance Team at Triangle Chinese Language School. Den Pandi, where are you? Okay, you're here. NC. Okay. move and say uh okay uh captain of dragon dance team of Chinese school at Chel Hill. Okay. Uh K Lee.

Yeah. Chinese triangle Chinese school. Okay, come here.

Shilong. Okay. The uh leader uh one of the most important leaders of the Chinese community. Okay. Okay. I think uh did I miss anyone?

Oh, okay. Oh, food lunch. Okay. Yes. Okay. Leili from food lounge. Yes.

Yes.

Okay. Do we have everyone? No. Any anyone m I missed?

No. Okay. Good.

All right. Thank you. Thank you. as many people as we can.

I think this is forc

I'm not sure who this is going to

where where do you see the

American One more important.

Yeah, they are the same. Yeah.

Get everybody this picture. guys in the back.

Oh, the video. Okay. You want do you want to tell them what it is?

Okay.

Uh yes. Um now we are playing a dragon dance video. Uh uh actually uh there are two teams. One is uh from one team from uh Triangle Chinese Language School. Another one is from Chapel Hill Chinese Language School. Right. Yes. There are two teams performing this video on this video. DONE. OKAY, OUR NEXT proclamation is JewishAmerican Heritage Month 2026. Council member Zmer will kick us off with that.

All right. The proclamation Jewish American Heritage Month 2026. Whereas Jewish American Heritage Month is celebrated nationwide each May in honor of generations of Jewish Americans who have contributed to our history and culture of our nation from its origin 250 years ago. And

whereas Jewish Americans have been vital to the growth and success of our nation through roles in political leadership, business ventures, military service, education, science, arts, and so much more. hand.

Whereas North Carolina has had a Jewish community since the early 1700s who have since created numerous synagogues, cultural institutions, and charitable organizations that help make our state a great place to live. hand. Yes.

Whereas the strength and resilience of the Jewish American community serve as an inspiration to us all and their kindness and the community spirit is a key is a key aspect of what makes Apex great. And

whereas the town of Apex stands firm in solidarity with the Jewish American community in our town and nationwide and strongly opposes any anti-semitism, prejudice or persecution they are subjected to. Now therefore, I Jacques K. Gilbert, mayor of Apex, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2026, Jewish American Heritage Month in the town of Apex, and urge all residents to come together through a shared commitment to unity and love for all people signed as 28th day of April, 2026. Receiving the proclamation tonight uh from the Jewish Federation of Raleigh, Robin Thally, also from the North Carolina Coalition for Israel, Lorraine Mien, Andrew Gluck, Amy Rosenthal,

Deborah Freriedman, and Ken Friedman. Please come up and accept the proclamation.

And others who are here for the proclamation, please come up. Thank you for being here. It's coming a little bit. Thank you all very much. All right. Our next proclamation is National Tennis Month 2026. Council member Gray. Okay, kicking off the proclamation for National Pickle Ball Month. I joke. I

joke.

I joke. Little levity in this.

Say the reality. Never make fun of the person who's got a big racket who's going to be standing next to me. I got it. I got it. National Tennis Month 2026. Whereas tennis is an exciting, approachable and accessible sport which helps promote excellent opportunities for its players to enjoy competition and socialization, spend time outside and increase their physical health. And whereas research by the Physical Activity Council shows that more than 27.3 million Americans play tennis in 2025, an unprecedented 6.2% 2% increase in participation over 2024. And whereas Apex is proud to support this growth with its excellent tennis infrastructure, including tennis lessons and competitive tennis leagues for residents and non-residents, as well as open play opportunities at Apex Community Park, Apex Nature Park, Pleasant Park, and Kelly Road Park. And Whereas Western Week Tennis of Association is also a champion for tennis in Apex with its programs and resources for youth and adults as well as through its specialized tennis programs for players with with disabil disabilities. And

whereas the town of Apex is grateful to both its parks, recreation, and cultural resources department and to the Western Wake Tennis Association for their excellent work in supporting and growing tennis for everyone to enjoy.

Now therefore, Aj, Jacqu K. Gilbert, mayor of Apex, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2026 National Tennis Month in the town of Apex and encourage residents to enjoy this great game. Set up a time to play with friends and enjoy an experience that is truly hard to match. That's pretty good. Pretty good. All right, let's have Chris Merrick and Christine Watson. And I don't see Laura. Is Laura here?

She's not here.

She's not here. Okay, come on up and receive the proclamation.

Yeah, it's fine. Wait until you want to be the right there for us. Thank you very much. Horizontally. Thank you.

I appreciate you guys.

Thank you so much.

Thank you so much. Appreciate this.

All right, moving on. Proclamation for older Americans month 2026. Council member Ree will kick us off with that proclamation. Older Americans Month 2026, speaking my language. Whereas Older Americans Month, observed each May, is a

time to recognize the countless contributions, experiences, and achievements of older adults while reaffirming our commitment to supporting their health, independence, and well-being. Whereas the 2026 theme, champion your health, emphasizes the importance of wellness, prevention, and self-care, encouraging individuals to take an active role in maintaining their physical, mental, and emotional health as they age. And

whereas older adults are vital members of our community, contributing their time, talents, and leadership through volunteering, mentoring, civic engagement, and participation in local programs and activities. hand. Whereas the town of Apex is home to 16,785 residents aged 55 and older, each bringing unique life experiences, knowledge, and value to that strengthen the fabric of our community. And whereas older adults in Apex have access to a wide range of opportunities throughout our community, including Town of Apex facilities and parks, local organizations, and civic groups that support championing their health through active living, connection, learning, and engagement. And Reese, you're back. Okay.

And I was ready that time. Whereas, the town of Apex is committed to fostering an environment where older adults can thrive by supporting active lifestyles, encouraging preventative health practices, reducing social isolation, and promoting opportunities

for engagement, purpose, and connection.

There therefore, I Jacqu K. Gilbert, mayor of Apex, North Carolina, representing the older Americans, do hereby proclaim the month of May 2026 as Older Americans Month in the town of Apex and encourage all residents to recognize, celebrate, and support older adults in our community as they continue to champion their health and enrich the lives of those around them. Signed the 20th day of April, 2026. All right. Megan Rushing, recreation program supervisor. Alle Yeah. Thank you for your work. Ally Pilaski, senior center manager, Don Hassinger, Eric Whitman, Terry Edwards, Karen Matthews, Lee, Sheila Morrison, Alan White, and Millisent White. Thank you.

Jamila Jamila Godfrey.

Jamila Godfrey from Please come up. You don't have a choice, ma'am. He said you had to come up. So,

thanks for being here. Need a few on the other side. A few on the other side. All

right. Thank you. AMEN. Our next proclamation is public service recognition week 2026. Uh Mayor Pro Tim Mafy.

Thank you, Mayor. Whereas the town of Apex employs more than 700 public servants who work diligently to provide exceptional service across many types of programs and services to our more than 80,000 residents. And whereas town employees provide clear evidence every day of their dedication to public service, expertise in their role, and passion for serving a great community of residents. And Whereas town employees are vital to so many of the aspects of day-to-day life in Apex, including transportation, water and electricity access, fire and police protection, green space and recreation opportunities, waste and recycling services, building safety, planning and development, housing assistance, government connectivity, and much, much more. hand. Whereas many public service jobs are physically hazardous or dangerous, and we extend our thanks to all of these employees who take risks in their daily

lives to help our town stay protected and run effectively. hand.

Whereas the town of Apex extends its sincerest thanks to all of its public servants whose work has an immensely positive impact in making Apex the peak of good living. And

now therefore, I Jacqu K. Gilbert, mayor of Apex, North Carolina, do hereby proclaim the week of May 3rd to May 9th, 2026, public service recognition week in the town of Apex and encourage residents to extend their thanks to a town employee or department who has helped make their day a little better. Receiving the proclamation tonight will be Karen McGee, our HR director, excuse me, Carmen McGee. Um, all other town employees in the room, please come up and receive the proclamation.

Thank you. I love you. Congratulations.

Can I

Can I get some of you guys to stand in between? It's like the in the pool you can't swim past. Jimmy got a fan club.

All right. Final proclamation tonight is safe drinking water week 2026, Sunday, May 3rd through Saturday, May 9th. And uh Council Member Moo will be kicking us off. Whereas water is our most important natural resource and serve as the cornerstone for every other resource and service we enjoy each day. And

whereas safe drinking water is critical to the health and vitality of any community through its essential function in human life and through its role in proper hygiene. And whereas the town of Apex Water Resources Department employs 75 employees who work to maintain the health and quality of the town's water supply and ensure that all residents have access to the safe

drinking water. And

whereas the work of Apex Water Resources is not only essential, it's also very complex with working divisions of administration, storm water engineering, utilities engineering, water quality, utility maintenance, meter services, compliance, collection system maintenance, pump station maintenance, and water reclamation. end.

Whereas the town of Apex remains committed to the supplying of safe drinking water as well as the responsible usage and the prevention uh preservation of its natural resources which it comes from. Now therefore, Jacqu K. Gilbert, mayor of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim the week of May 3rd through May 9th, 2026 safe drinking water week in the town of Apex and commend our excellent water resources staff for their professionalism, commitment to safety, and hard work in keeping the town healthy and hydrated. Receiving the proclamation uh tonight will be our water resources director, Jonathan Jacobs, and all members of the water resources team. Please come up. Good job.

Um, assistant town manager Marty Stone is being summoned to the front as well.

Thank you, sir.

The original The Rock. Three,

two, one. One more. 3 2 1 All right, we're moving on now to the Think Apex award presentations.

All right, Miss Brienne Gilbert.

Good evening. Thank you.

Thank you. That's what I'm talking about. All right. How are you all? Good.

Awesome. I'm pretty good. Town clerk. Cool. All right. All right. So, good evening. I have the honor and the pleasure of serving as the community engagement manager for the town of Apex. And it is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2026 Think Apex Awards. This year is super special because we are celebrating 10 years of uh acknowledging community and all of the beautiful and positive contributions that our community stakeholders make towards the town of Apex. The Think Apex initiative created in 2014 aims to foster a strong sense of community by encouraging a local mindset throughout Apex amongst businesses, residents, and visitors. The Think Apex Awards, created in 2016, recognizes outstanding local businesses, individuals, groups, nonprofits, and youth for their dedicated service to others and to the Apex community as a whole. Nominations for the awards were received through a public online application

process. Winners were selected by previous Think Apex award recipients. A few of them are here with us today and I would like to extend a special thank you to all of them for their invaluable role in this year's selection process. Tonight we have uh Mayor Gilbert will assist with the awards presentation as well as Marlon Newman and our town council mayor pro.

She's here.

Oh and our for Oh, I'm sorry. That's why I paused. Lord forgive me. And our former mayor pro Nicole Doer. PLEASE JOIN US. THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE. Good to see you.

Got to clean my glasses.

All right. At this time, we'd like to recognize all of this year's nominees. When we call your name or the name of your organization, please stand and remain standing until all names have been called. Audience, please hold your applause until all names are announced. We will start with the individual or group category. First we have Camarina Munos, Adam Whitaker, Richard Model, Evvana Gutierrez, Marina Bul Baloska, Pawan Mishra, Phil Welch, Prasan Guran, Drew Lello, Daniel Cotaparst, Pat Smith, Marian Maryanne, excuse me, Giorgio, Angelica Swante, and Shan

Rolette. Please join me in giving our individual or group nominees a round of applause. Thank you so much. You may be seated. Thank you. The nominees for the business category are Peak of the Vine, Southline Brewing Tap Room, Harmony Home, Positively Apex, Montessori Creative School of Apex, Cello Design, and Foxtail Coffee. Please join me in applauding this year's STUDENT NOMINEE. ALL RIGHT, THANK YOU. You may be seated. The nominees for the nonprofit category are a voice for all foundation, shining light in the darkness, connecting community, St. Vincent de Paul Conference of St. Andrew, Triple T Foundation, Scott H. Hearnden Foundation. Please join me in applauding this year's nominees for the business category nonprofit. Thank you so much. You may be seated. And next we have the nominees for the youth category which are Juliana Cetti and Nisha Nishka Ki.

All right. So, we will now recognize the honorable mention and top thinker for each category. If your name is announced, please come forward and walk to the left of me, shake hands with all of the council members, receive your award, and pose for a quick photo with Mayor Gilbert and former mayor proempor. After your picture, please stand to the side as we will take a group photo once

all the winners have received their award. We will start with the individual or group category. The honorable mention in the individual or group category leads with compassion and action, building trusted relationships and connecting families with the resources they need to thrive. Through monthly community programs, they have created welcoming spaces where children engage in healthy activity while families gain access to health care, education, and essential support services. By partnering with dozens of organizations and personally engaging residents, their work has connected hundreds of individuals and families to critical resources, strengthening both stability and opportunity within our community. Their hands-on approach, meeting people where they are, responding to real needs, and bringing neighbors together has helped ensure that no one feels alone. The honorable mention in the individual or group category goes to Avana Gutz.

Picture time over here. 3 2 1

No.

Okay.

Everybody matters. Everybody deserve a chance, an opportunity. and I fight for my Latino community because they're resilient and I admire my people.

All righty. The top thinker in the individual or group category, the nominee is the visionary founder and leader behind the Lonspark Center for Creativity. transforming a bold idea into a thriving hub for artistic expression, opportunity, and community connection. Through this work, they have built a platform that deeply engages with the apex and broader triangle community through arts education, events, and meaningful support for local artists and families. By expanding access to the to the arts, excuse me, they have created a space where creativity is not a privilege, but a pathway to confidence, growth, and belonging. In a time when arts access continues to shrink, this nominee has opened doors, uplifting talent, empowering the new generation and strengthening the cultural fabric of our community. The top thinker award in the individual or group category goes to Pawan Mishra. Congratulations.

All righty. So, next we have the business category. The honorable mention in the business category. Founded by an Apex resident, this business has has transformed the visual identity of Apex through vibrant, meaningful murals across the community. A formal elementary school teacher who followed her passion for arts now creates large-scale works that bring color, character, and pride to local spaces. From Foxtail Coffee and Peace Love in Little Donuts to Wake Med Rehab Center and throughout the Sweetwater community,

her murals are more than art. They are lasting public expression of community identity that residents experience every day. Through creativity and dedication, this work has made Apex more beautiful, welcoming, and connected. The honorable mention award in the BIS business category goes to CELLO DESIGN COMPANY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. The top thinker in the business category is a cornerstone of the downtown Apex community. Since opening in 2015, the owners have created a welcoming space where people come together to connect, celebrate, and support one another through events like local art showcases, student displays, fundraisers, and meet your town council gatherings. They have intentionally used their business as a platform for community engagement and impact. Beyond its cultural impact, this business has strengthened the local economy by supporting employees, partnering with small businesses and vendors, and consistently drawing residents and visitors to downtown Apex. This year's top thinker award in the business category goes to Peak of the Vine. CONGRATULATIONS.

CONGRATULATIONS.

CONGRATULATIONS. Thanks for all your hard work.

Congratulations, buddy. Get your Now for the nonprofit category. This nonprofit founded by an Apex residents is dedicated to connecting individuals and agencies to ensure vital resources reach those who need the most by bringing programs directly into mobile home park communities. The organization removes barriers to access and creates safe, welcoming spaces where families can receive support and build connections through initiatives like youth soccer, Zumba, children's activities, fresh food distribution, diaper support, and bilingual health and education resources. This work meets residents where they are both physically and culturally through strong partnerships and a deep ongoing commitment. These efforts have expanded access, strengthened relationships, and created a inclusive and connected apex community. The honorable mention in the nonprofit category goes to connecting COMMUNITY

like you're running out of hands.

Congratulations.

Wow. Oh my

two. The top thinker in the nonprofit category has made a powerful impact in Apex by advancing communication accessibility for individuals who are non-verbal or have difficulty speaking. In 2025, they expanded the foundation's reach by developing and distributing communication boards and resources across public spaces, helping individuals express basic needs, safety concerns, and social interactions. Beyond tools, she has brought together families, educators, first responders, and providers to build a stronger, more connected support system for neurode divergent individuals. Through inclusive events, hands-on advocacy, and hundreds of volunteer hours, she has created safe spaces, reduced isolation for families, and improved access to critical services. Her work goes beyond awareness, delivering real tangible solutions that make Apex an inclusive, supported, and connected town for all. The top thinker in the nonprofit category goes to a voice for all foundation. The award recipient is not with us this evening, but we will receive the award on her behalf. Let's see. And last, but certainly not least, we have the youth category. The honorable mention in the youth category is making a remarkable impact in Apex, currently serving as a youth voting member on the town's arts and advisory

board, the youngest member ever appointed to this role. She has contributed nearly 200 volunteer hours to the Apex community, supporting local events and helping care for Apex Parks. Through her involvement, she has not only given back, but also inspiring other young people to get engaged. Her leadership extends across numerous roles, including participation in the mayor's internship program, serving as a board leader for Kids Who Give, and volunteering with the Apex Youth Council. She has also been selected as a governor's page reflecting her commitment to civic engagement at the state level. In addition to her community impact, she remains highly involved at Apex High School through Model UN, FBLA, student council, and the varsity stunt team, demonstrating exceptional dedication, leadership, and balance both in and outside the classroom. The honorable honorable mention in the youth category goes to Juliana Corsetti. One more. Alrighty. The top thinker in the youth category. This nominee has demonstrated exceptional leadership and selfless service across Apex through a wide range of volunteer and community initiatives. As a leader within the Apex Youth Council, the mayor's internship program,

and local nonprofit organizations, she has supported events serving children, senior seniors, individuals with with special needs and environmental initiatives. From hands-on service at community events to organizing inclusive programming, her work reflects a deep commitment to serving all members of the community. She also played a key role in launching a career fair at the Apex Community Center, connecting teens with professionals across industries and expanding opportunities for youth beyond any single organization. In addition, her leadership in STEM me mentorship, guiding students, excuse me, guiding students in robotics, drones, and hands-on learning demonstrates a commitment to empowering the next generation. Her dedication has been recognized through multiple honors, including the mayor's award, commissioner's award, and the president's volunteer service award, reflecting both the breath and depth of her impact. The top thinker in the youth category goes to Nish Nishka Ki. On behalf of the town of Apex, thank you all for coming tonight. Congratulations again to all of the nominees and the winners. Please, let's give them another ROUND OF APPLAUSE. WE ALSO WANT to again acknowledge former mayor promp Doer for bringing your idea to life. We want to thank the town

council for always supporting initiatives that keep community at the center of Apex. Community is what makes Apex the peak of good living. So again, thank you for your positive contributions. Let's stay connected. Let's stay engaged. And in closing, let me encourage everyone here tonight to foster a local mindset to support and invest in the local and unique aspects of our community and to enjoy our town and each others. Thank you so much. Have a wonderful evening.

If we could have all of the award recipients stay for a group photo along with our town council. Thank you.

Thank you so much. We're going to stand back here.

Okay. two more two.

Make sure everybody gets their pictures.

Yeah, we got people.

Take your time. pictures.

Okay. Not yet.

Everybody's over today.

Alrighty. Great work, Brienne. Good job, CDNC. Appreciate y'all. Your great work. Hey, we're going to go to a uh 10 10 minute. Is that good for everyone?

Okay. All right. We're going to be in recess for 10.

All right, thank you everyone. Uh we're back in session. We'll move now on the agenda to public forum. This is opportunity for community members to speak as I'm the list now. Looks like we have a total of five uh with only one person with nine minutes. So you have four more people speak uh with you to speak. All right, we'll start with Thomas Scott. If you would please come up. You have three minutes. Mayor Gilbert, city council members. Um, this is in regards to uh I've had several uh email correspondences with the council, city council members, MW Aaffy, Mayor Gilbert, Mr. Vosberg. This is in regards to um contractor who are uh unlicensed. They per they per uh performed uh uninspected work. The town has issued notices of compliance and the town through m Mr. Vosberg. Let me quote the UDO please. UDO is article 11 enforcement 11.1 11.5. This is in regards to the town being able to find contractors for non for unpermitted work, uninspected work, and non-compliance with town directives. And the town could actually sue to force compliance. The town has refused to adhere to the UDO.

And I can't for the life of me understand why. Uh council uh councilwoman uh MW, I had a meeting with her at Foxtail. I gave her a whole binder. She dropped it on somebody's desk and has nothing's happened. Absolutely zero. And I don't understand why. You're looking at a revenue shortfall, but you have an avenue per the town manager to be able to rectify this and to go after builders that do not follow the code. Period. I'm kind of I'm kind of hot because this has happened to me. I ended up with a contractor during COVID. Who was it? Licensed GC, electrical, plumbing, nothing uh Jasper Garner with the electrical department came out. He's put a block on my property. Well, that's going to affect the sale of my property. I'm in a lawsuit now with Luxury Bath and Kitchen in Raleigh. It's been going on for couple years now. And I've got an attorney. I have talked to your city attorney Lorie Hoe. I think Marty Stone has been copied in on this assistant assistant manager. Zero. I want answers. I want to know why you're not adhering to the UDO and following the provisions of the UDO. That's it. Thank you so much for your time.

Thanks for speaking tonight. All right, Karen.

I'm coming.

Take your time.

Good evening, Mayor Town Council. First of all, Councilman Gray, you said

talk about the budget. Listen up. I've been talking for a while. First of all, one of the council members told us that it was only going to be pennies increases on taxes. Well, it's pennies on a percentage of the price of the valuation of the property. We don't have any control over that, but that can be hundreds of dollars. Number two, I want to make it perfectly clear to the entire council and to the mayor and to the police department and to the fire department. I completely support what they need to do the job, their equipment, their uniforms, their pay, whatever. I support it. Next, you're raising the fees on the youth sports. That's kind of like a tax on your citizens here in Apex. Them little kids, we already paying for parks and recreation in our tax dollars. Now, you're going to add on extra bucks on the youth sports. You're increasing the services, but you're giving us less service for things like yard waste. I'll get to that later on. You just got done recognizing older Americans. I'm one in that category. Okay, we'll admit it anytime, anywhere, but you're taxing us out of Apex in our homes. I've got one neighbor who already has to move because he can't afford to live in his house. And don't get me started on your QR crap. Um, we're going to now have to pay in our taxes, if I understand what you discussed, but it's a little hard to hear over in that corner

that us taxpayers are going to have to have an increase in our taxes to pay for the people that haven't paid their utility bills. I want you to show me where the cuts are to the budget. Thank you. be around in a little bit.

Thanks for speaking, Elizabeth Raystead.

Elizabeth Rait, 3113 Friendship Road. Mayor and Town Council, good evening. Um, I want to first stop and thank Councilman Zaggerman for clearly and transparently laying out how the $6 million in delinquent electric bills equates to roughly 3 cents or 7.6% of the town's proposed property tax rate. It is a substantial number. When I first saw the number looking at the agenda, I was like, "Okay, am I overreacting?" I was like, "Whoa." dropped it into AI and well that was really the wrong thing. It came back with much more alarming information. So I was like okay let's go look at the town's audited financials. Well I could find the fiscal year 22 23 24 but I could not find last year's fiscal 2526 audited financials. I went back to the council meeting minutes and the last time that we had the annual comprehensive financial report presented to the council was January of 2025. So nothing has occurred this year to talk about the fiscal year end of June 30th of 2025. So I said, "Okay, let me go to the local government commission." And for my neighbors here who may not know about it, it's a division of the North Carolina Treasury and it is the

department where all municipalities and councils have to submit their audited um financials. They aren't showing they aren't showing they've received the financials from Apex yet. And that was really surprising because the last three years the deadline was December of that fiscal year or following the close of June 30th that December and Apex was late the last three years. So I thought this year was going to be an easy year because they extended the deadline to March 31st and now we're sitting here at the end of April and they don't have anything. So now I'm starting to question the town's delinquent. And in the past, you would have to write a simple little letter, but the consequence is according to general statute 159-34, they can actually withhold a portion of your sales tax. And that was actually mentioned in last year's presentation. It wasn't in the meeting minutes, but if you go back and listen to the YouTube video, you will hear that was laid out that we could not be late again because the consequences were different. So, if we're in a year where there's declining revenue and we have people not paying their bills, certainly we should file things on time so we don't have our sales tax withheld. So, I ask you to look into it and figure out what's going on because we as a town should not have our financials late. Thank you.

Thanks for speaking,

Mayor. Miss Kimman.

Good evening, Mayor Gilbert and council members. free. It's a word I see a lot in town of Apex posts on social media,

including those about the Go Apex bus service that few people utilize, the 20 or so town organized and paid for events in addition to the 13 other events the town provides staff support for, not to mention the community engagement series. All of these events are fun and appeal to various groups in our community, no doubt. But in reality, none of these services or events is really free. Taxpayers fund all of these initiatives to some degree. That's money that is not going to public safety, including school resource officers, or to other infrastructure needs that would benefit the entire Apex community. So, I implore the council to please review attendance at these events around the bus routes and other discretionary expenditures and scale back or eliminate those with low attendance or find alternative funding sources. The annual budget for the town has increased from about 160 million in fiscal year 2019 to potentially 245 million in fiscal year 2027. Along with tax hikes, we've seen huge increases in utility bills that are absolutely crushing families. Now, the council is likely to approve a reduction in the popular yard waste removal services. This is an essential government responsibil responsibility that should be funded. So, I ask the council to please focus on essential services such as public safety and seek more private sponsorships for the fun and fancy expenditures because at the end of the day, nothing is free. Thank you.

Thanks for speaking. Final speaker signed up, Frank Jackson. He has four more people. Nine minutes, please. Mr. Mayor Gilbert, town council members,

good evening. Like you said, my name is Frank Jackson. My address is 21104 Abby Marie Lane in Fugquway Marina, but I'm also a parishioner, 32-year parishioner at St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church here in Apex. I'm also the executive director of the nonprofit St. Francis Builds. I'm here tonight to join others on our heartfelt quest to improve housing affordability in the town of Apex and the surrounding Triangle communities. Many have come before me to talk about affordable housing. It's not the mega mansions that are currently being built by developers and the in the 600,000 to more than a million dollar range. Average bluecollar and now even uh many white collar workers can no longer afford to live and flourish here in the peak of good living. When families are approaching 50 or more percent of their income paying their mortgage, insurance, property taxes, there's not much left for the rest of their bills that we're all confronted with. It's a fallacy by many that as individuals receive salary increases, they move into larger, newer homes and that lower income individuals can then move into those single family homes, those condos and the town homes. And maybe they're a little rundown, but they're adequate for their needs. What we have found is that affordable homes means more than low price. For many, it means being able to continue living in place, often places they can no longer afford to pay for or even maintain. For several years, S St. Francis Builds has been providing home repairs to seniors, veterans, and disabled families that are living below poverty level. We do it with volunteers and financial contributions. There's a large need for individuals and families right here in Apex that are living in deplorable conditions that in many cases are so dangerous you wouldn't even have your pets living there. We're currently working on four simultaneous projects with many more on our on our growing waiting list as people hear about the efforts that we do. One example that we've worked on is a single disabled

gentleman, a 72-year-old veteran. He owns a mobile home here in Apex. He brings in about $1,200 a month from social security, for which he pays about $600 in rent for his land. But imagine having $600 left to pay for utilities, taxes, doctor visits, medications, and food. His floor, manufactured from fiberboard, had rotted over the years, creating potholes inside of his home every couple of feet. He often fell through those holes, getting injured. In addition, none of his appliances worked and his roof leaked as though it were raining inside. His shower leaked so badly that if he turned the water on, it cascaded through the wall into his bedroom, flooding it. With volunteers and donations, we were able to create a safe, warm, and dry home for this man, gave him back his dignity, and changed his life and his attitude. Another example is a retired couple who owns a home here in Apex. He's partially blind and he's had three strokes. His wife had major back back problems and she's also disabled. They also, by the way, care for their 2-year-old grandson who lives with them only because his mom didn't want the responsibility of a child. So, the grandparents took them in, took them in. The rear of the house that they live in has already collapsed unto itself and it's pulling down the rest of the structure. They have no central heating and have been relying on a single fireplace for warmth and often for cooking as the appliances aren't always working. At least that's what they've told me. They've also fallen behind in utility bills for which St. Andrew's Parish and the St. Vincent Depal Conference which was represented here tonight has assisted. Essentially, this family is camping in their dilapidated home. St. Francis Builds is doing what it can to assist, but so much needs more. So much more needs to be done. And for years, no one seems to be listening to their needs. I'm sure you're thinking, well, why don't these families do something

about it? We have programs here in Apex. Yes, you do, but many of them don't even come close to the level of need that exists. Often, there are so many hurdles to overcome, and the lead times to receive that help are substantial. There are many reasons for this, and St. Francis Builds volunteers are here because we want to make a difference in our communities. Our studies have found that of the more than 25,000 households just here in Apex, approximately 1% are classified as seniors and or disabled living below poverty level. That equates to conservatively more than 250 homes that are in this condition. Each if each home required an average of $10,000 in renovations, bringing it just to a point of basic living, that still amounts to about $2.5 million. As I've mentioned, our nonprofit, St. Francis Builds, has repaired several homes here in Apex. The average cost of materials has been about $7,000. Thrown a new HVAC system, which costs between 12 and $15,000, and quickly you're up to 1920,000 per household. Does every poverty-stricken house need these these extensive repairs? No, but many do. And these people just don't know how to communicate their needs. There's no neighborhood watch, if you will, to keep an eye on these home repair needs. I personally retired after serving as a project manager for 35 years while simultaneously volunteering for over 20 years repairing homes around the country ravaged by hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and natural disasters. I've even been as far as Haiti after their devastating earthquake. So, I've seen poor. The poor in Haiti are living under plastic tarps with their family. Poor is feeding your family clay just to stop the hunger pangs. Yes, clay. Is that a bleak outlook? Perhaps it is. We're not there yet. But ignoring the growth of poverty right here in our own backyard won't make the problems go away. Having had a thriving handyman handyman

business myself and having impoverished residents coming up to me desperately asking for help, we looked at ourselves and decided to shutter our for-profit business. We started our nonprofit St. Francis Builds. We've been blessed with all of us with good jobs all our lives, the ability to save for our own retirement, and others helping us when we needed it. At St. Francis builds. We decided upfront not to take salaries and to engage like-minded people willing to volunteer their time and their talents. Somehow we've convinced people that what we do benefits the community and themselves and many have helped to partially finance our projects as well. St. Francis Builds wants to be part of the changes that are taking place here in Apex. We want to be part of the discussion, part of the solution. We realize that the town budget can't do it alone. The county budget can't do it alone. The federal budget might be able to, but they're not going to do it alone. And builders can't do it alone. And those living in poverty in these deplorable conditions, they absolutely can't do it alone. But working together, coming up with not just common sense goals, but formalizing commitments and accountability on the part of local government and its citizens, searching out and truly listening to those residents in need. Those changes can and do move mountains. I'm not naive to believe that these are simple changes. They're not. But this is the peak of good living. It should be good living for all residents, not just those who can afford the current out of control cost of living. Everybody deserves respect, dignity, and a safe place to live. On behalf of all of the volunteers at St. Francis Builds, I really appreciate your time.

Thank you. Thank you. All right. Thank you, Mr. Jackson, and everyone who spoke tonight during a public forum. Uh, we'll go ahead and close it at this time and move into

public hearings. So, we have public hearing one, annexation number 824, 8204 Stevenson Road. Mr. sign direct.

All right. So, this annexation is at 8204 Stevenson Road that is located in our far uh eastern portion jurisdiction. Uh this is a an existing single home and they are requesting annexation due to septic failure. Uh staff does recommend approval. be happy to answer any questions.

All right, thank you. Questions for Miss Kent? Hearing none, I'll go ahead and open up the public hearing for comment. No one signed to speak. Public hearing is closed.

Back the council for possible motion.

Motion to motion.

Second. All in favor say I.

I.

Opposed. Motion carries.

Move now on to public hearing two. Annexation number 826, Vidia ETJ.

All right.

Sorry,

I didn't do it fast enough.

Quick, quick, quick. So annexation uh 826 is uh Vidia and these are various parcels that have been added to uh the project uh and they are requesting uh town services. Uh staff does recommend approval. Be happy to answer any questions.

Questions?

All right. Hearing none, we'll open up public hearing for this item. We have two people here, but they're actually here just to answer any questions on behalf of Veridia. Right. Okay. All right. We'll go ahead and close it. Motion approved.

Motion mappy.

Second.

Second. Reese. Discussion. All in favor say I.

Oppose. Motion carries.

And annexation 827 public hearing three annexation 27. 827 127 Twin Creek Road.

All right. So, this is in the far northern area of our jurisdiction. This

property is a single family home and they are requesting annexation for well failure uh well and septic failure, excuse me. Uh it is a 5 acre parcel. Staff recommends approval. Happy to answer any questions.

Right. Thank you. Questions? All right. Hearing none, open up the public hearing for comment. No one signed up to speak. It is closed.

Motion approve.

Motion mafy second.

Second. Zigman. All in favor say I. I. Oppos. Motion carries. All right, moving on to public hearing four yard waste program updates. We had the presentation last council meeting by Mr. Bossburg. Thank you for that.

Why is he doing

random times too? It's so weird.

Uh and also presentation by Mr. Mullis. Thank you for that for public works. So this is opportunity for members of the community to come in and just um present any concerns or questions um through the public hearing process. So we'll start with U. Karen. Thanks again for signing up. Okay, I forgot to announce I'm Karen Delvinthaw, 507 Homestead Park Drive in Apex. That means I live in the town. Um, good evening, council members and mayor, yada yada. Yard waste. Okay. Previously, couple weeks ago, I presented council or mayor prompt with a picture of five wheelbarls full of pine needles out on my curb. Not leaves, not grass, not branches, twigs, anything else. Just pine needles from one blow. A blow is a big windstorm. One. One. Five wheelbarls. That's from my gutters, from one side of

my house, from pine trees that aren't even on my property. The HOA requires that I have a pretty lawn. I don't want to get fined. your proposed already done deal yard waste program not taking suck them up truck that's what I call it the vacuum truck around to pick up grass you'll do it in the fall for the leaves I want to know what you're going to do about the pine needles do I put them in the trash can do I wait until you get around into a big container for me that I can't number one got wheels. Hard for me to get these trash cans, these big suckers out to the curb as it is and get them back in because got to get them out of sight. Can't leave them out. HOA. Don't know what you're going to do about these pine needles. Every time we get a big storm, we got one. Was it last night or the night before? A lot of the wind. Guess who's going to have to have a crew come rake up the pine needles and put them to the curb? What you going to do for these big blows? Cuz they're still going to happen. I have no authority to cut down those pine trees. If I did, I would. They'd be out of there. But they aren't. You better come up with a solution. You proposed all this yard waste increase. You're decreasing my services. What are you gonna do about my pine needles? I got time to spare.

Thanks again for speaking. All right, Mayor Miss Kimman.

Thank you again, U Mayor Gilbert and council. Mary Miss Skimman 3177 Rattama Ron Newill. When I first moved to Apex in 1995, one of the best services the town offered was that curbside yard waste collection. As an avid gardener, it was so easy just to place all my pruned plant material at the curb, especially now in the spring. Now, Apex is cutting this popular service to bi-weekly and effectively requiring Apex families to store a third cart when many of us live in town homes with little to no storage for the two carts we already have to store. I understand that some people put out large trees and that was burdensome to the town. It just seems to me that we could have come up with a more creative solution than cutting the weekly yard waste pickup and requiring materials to be placed in a cart, which can be difficult for some people with physical limitations. Additionally, people are going to dump their grass clippings and other yard waste material in the neighborhood RCAs. They're going to do it there or elsewhere in Apex rather than use those carts. As for what other neighboring towns are doing, frankly, I do not care. I live in Apex, not Holly Springs or Kerry. Thank you.

Thank you for speaking.

All right, that was the last person to sign up. So, public hearing is closed. Mr. Bosber, again, what is the next steps of the yard, but can you just remind the

So, we will be bringing on May 12th,

I believe, the uh ordinance for council consideration.

Okay. Thank you. All right, we move on to public hearing five and six together. Annexation number 807 and reszoning case 26 CZ01.

Good evening, mayor and council. Uh, this annexation is located in the

north uh western section of town. This is um actually two two lots of record um two acres and one acre. So total of three acres uh south of Castleberry Road. And then here's Chattam County line. And this is associated with the um the reszone. So you'll be voting on it at the end. So 26 CZ018905 Castleberry Road uh this project um was actually reviewed by planning board on December 8th, 2025. So giving you a quick history, page one in your staff report states that uh the proposed resoning at that time was low density residential conditional zoning going from two lots to four lots. uh planning board recommend denial and the project was never before a town council. It was continued and then the applicant um withdrew the application. So the applicant submitted an application this is 26 CZ1 for the proposed rural residential conditional zoning going from two lots to three lots. The parcel includes um currently a single family house, mature trees, and then um existing stream coming across the property. The uh Castleberry Road is a North Carolina Department um of transportation road with an existing terminus of state maintenance at Sleepy Valley Road. So ends right here. And then Castlebury Road west to Sleepy Valley Road and Council Drive are privately maintained roads. So the current zoning is Wake County residential ADW proposed is rural residential conditional zoning. The uh current land use classification

is rural density residential. If reszoned as proposed, the 2045 land use map would uh classification would change to rural transition residential. Um neighborhood meetings were conducted on February 5th and March 5th to uh 2026 and they're attached to your staff report. Wake County Public Schools indicates elementary, middle, and high schools within the current Simon area are anticipated to have insufficient capacity for future students, but school expansion or construction within the next five years may address um this at the elementary, middle, and high school level. The proposed zoning um uses include single family dwelling, accessory apartment, utility, minor, park, active, passive, and greenway. And then the proposed conditions under design is a maximum of three lots. Minimum lot size shall be 35,000 square feet. Um average lot 42,000 after the rideway dedication. A 40 foot undisturbed type B landscape buffer along the eastern and southern property line. And then a six foot high privacy um outside the required landscape buffer along the southern property line. Install re evergreen trees among the along the eastern property line adjacent um with the type A pluffer standards. Covenant shall not restrict construction of accessory dwelling units. And they also included accessory dwelling units whether attached or detached shall be limited to one bedroom not exceed 1,500 square ft or 40% of the primary dwelling unit whichever is less. the transportation and condition that the developer shall construct and dedicate an extension of the Castleberry Road from the existing um state maintenance to the western boundary and frontage of Castleberry Road. It's a 22 foot wide um public street

based on town of Apex Rural residential street standards and also construct a five- foot uh sidewalk along the project frontage and then the developer shall terminate Castleberry Road with a public culac. Each lot shall be served by single driveway and all driveway shall exclusively access the public street extension of Castleberry Road. Construction activities shall be restricted to Monday through Saturday, no later than 700 p.m. and construction vehicles shall not use Sleepy Valley Road um to access the properties. They included eight environmental conditions and eight architectural conditions such as the materials, the uh garage door details, um porch at a minimum six feet in depth due to um oh actually after after the planning board meeting, the developer or applicant included two additional architectural conditions. All exterior housemounted light fixtures installed on the eastern facing facade of the most eastern building including but not limited to wall packs, sconces and flood lights shall be fully cut off or fully shielding in design. And then the eastern most residential structure shall be accessed via driveway on the western side of the lot and shall not have vehicle garage access door on the eastern facing side of the structure. Due to the small area, the project was exempt from environmental advisory board, park and recreation advisory board, and affordable housing. And just a quick overview of um the rural transition residential classifica classification is defined as a transition between rural density areas and low density residential areas. So low density uh classification is north of Castlebury Road and then the rural density is here and rural transition

residential classification is at one unit per acre. Planning board recommended to deny at 6 to2 and the planning board report to town council is attached to your packet. Uh planning staff recommends approval of the resoning as proposed by the applicant. The 2045 land use map designates the site as rural density residential classification. The applicant is proposing rural residential conditional zoning with a maximum three lots, one unit per acre. If the properties are reszoned as proposed, the land use would automatically um be amended to rural transition residential. The proposed resoning to rural residential conditional zoning will provide flexibility to accommodate one additional single family lot. And the proposed resoning is reasonable in the public interest because the proposed reasonzoning will implement stricter environmental conditions than UDO requires and will allow single family lots that are compatible with the surrounding neighborhood character as it provides a transition between more rural residential areas and lowdensity residential areas. Furthermore, the proposed uh reasonzoning requires improvements to the Castleberry Road infrastructure from the end of the existing pavement on Castleberry Road to Council Drive. And um you have received uh public hearing emails um from the people listed on this. And with that, the applicant is here and he does have a PowerPoint presentation. And if you have any questions for staff,

any questions for Miss C?

I do have a couple couple questions. Um, and I think you just mentioned it, but uh just want to make sure I got it. Uh, this this is two lots that were combining in a single resoning request. Correct.

There's a northern and a southern lot.

And so by rights, how many structures

can be built there today without a resoning?

Two.

True. Um there's also on the in the staff packets the one of the diagram shows a stream running kind of east nor from west to east to through this through this lot. Uh but I didn't see anything about riparian buffers in the staff report. Is this a so but what's going on with that stream and what will happen if this lot will be subdivided in three lots with three structures on it. I think the applicant it does go through TRC. We do review this and it was not noted as far as a required buffer.

But what's going to happen with that stream then

with the with the

So there's a stream on the lot running from from west to east

right along about here.

And so there's no buffer requirements around the stream. That's what um as far as going through TRC, storm water control, they staff does review that

and I think the applicant will have

while he's pulling it up, I can I can answer your question. Uh, Councilman Zigerman, that's the stream is not uh a intermittent stream. So, it's not um really classified as a stream. It's more just a draw. The drainage does come from the kind of southeastern area of the lot towards the northwestern part. But um once I get to that kind of picture of the three lot situation that you brought up, you'll kind of see in the more northwestern area off of this parcel where the stream was studied and where that stream origin point actually starts and where the buffer is located at. So it is completely off of this parcel

though. So um but with that, good evening council members, Mary Gilbert. I'm Will Norton with Jones and Canson Engineering, 221 North Salem Street here on behalf of the two property owners and they are represented here tonight for the two parcels that are up for reasonzoning consideration. I want to thank June and planning staff for their assistance and working with us throughout the life of this resoning case uh as it has evolved and changed um for for meeting on site and the kind of continuous evolution that this taken um and how we can best provide the best outcome here for property owners and um surrounding neighbors and for the public. So, I just want to highlight just a short little PowerPoint presentation here, but a few points that kind of got us to where we're at tonight and how things have kind of taken shape. So, um, like June mentioned, there's two lots of record here, track 10 and 11. Uh, that equals three acres total. One's two acres, one's one acre. Um, and so this proposal is for a maximum of three lots of 35,000 square foot, minimum lot size with an average of 42,000 square foot. um so right at an acre um as far as the average lot size and that's to accommodate the culac um that would be implemented and the additional rideway needed to bring that on. Um the previous resoning that was brought up from the background was the low density one with four lots at a 25,000 square foot minimum um area. So, um, and this kind of gives you, I know June had it, but this kind of gives you a lay of the land of where Castleberry and Sleepy Valley, as well as the pump station across the street and the Lake Castleberry subdivision to the uh, northeast. So, some key revisions from 25 CZ11 to 26 CZ01, which is what we're presenting tonight, and a few other additions. The first bullet point just reiterates what what I just talked about. The 20 foot type B landscape buffer was originally proposed in the original um resoning

case. Uh with staff kind of guidance, we we increased that to a 40ft type B landscape buffer. Um so effectively what that does is the closest home would not would be 50 foot uh at least from the common property line to the east. So the row of evergreen trees at a type A buffer standard in addition to the eastern landscape buffer um June touched on that. So that would be outside that 40 foot. So effectively at that type A buffer standard you have roughly about 50 ft of supplemented landscaping in addition to what's out there based on the type B buffer. The road construction June mentioned uh we've limited that further. If you kind of recall, um, we did have the road from Castleberry curving around and extending across the entire property frontage based on some guidance from planning board and, uh, some from planning staff. We were allowed to end that in a public culde-sac uh at the pump station and kind of shorten that impervious amount um that would be associated with this needed to bring uh public road infrastructure to these uh these parcels. Um the ADU uh um zoning condition shall be allowed. So, we didn't have to meet with the housing department, but we did meet with them, and this was a a request from them. Um, and you've seen it a handful of times now where uh this will assist with affordable housing. And so, we did further restrict that um to allow one per lot in the UDO, whether that's detached or attached, but it now has size restrictions. Um, and then, uh, let's see here. The the other two conditions June mentioned, we added these based on planning board, um, recommendation a couple weeks back where lighting and, uh, kind of driveway orientation, garage access on that

eastern most lot um, where we could accommodate that. So, we've added those in as well. And then the this is that kind of um feature that shows a a schematic of what these three lots could look like. And Arno to your uh to your point, you can kind of see in that top left corner where the the streams uh and the buffers round out. So off the property um but nonetheless being shown. So they have been studied. uh it's just not a um called stream as far as NCDAQ DQ or the Army Corps standards. So it's more just a natural draw where drainage uh can flow. And so with that um with this road infrastructure and the culde-sac being stopped right there, there wouldn't be a need for any sort of culbert or anything to cross. It would just naturally go towards that stream. So, um, so with that, just wanted to kind of follow up, but, um, you know, since planning board, we've continued to modify and make the project further mitigated based on neighbors request and planning board feedback. Um, at the end of the day, this is an anticipated residential use in a residential area with approximately 1acre lots on public water and sewer infrastructure that's across the street. Um, we've added a lot of provisions that are in place to limit and minimize that disturbance to neighbors. This isn't a large scale development, as you can probably tell. Um, there there are a few of those on Caspberry Road, but this is relatively smaller in nature. Um, so, um, this is two property owners that are going through the process to make a compatible change and incorporate into the town in order to build three homes. and the uh project is being supported by planning staff. This is not an interruption to any neighbors daily activities and we fully support their operations. This is not to hinder or disrupt anything that they have going on. The desire is to build three

residences where folks can possibly come in and enjoy these same things in this neighborhood. The two parcels are about 300 ft wide from east to west. You'll hear some things and you have in your staff packet. So 100 foot buffer is really not feasible to accommodate on this parcel um when the resultant lots would not really be compatible at that point. You're just making smaller lots. So um the approximate 50t of landscaping on either side as well as the fence hopefully shows that um we're willing to mitigate as much as possible and that separation from one residential property to another. Um, so the the Army Corps land is approximately 920 ft south. I know that's been um a topic of discussion as well. So we're about 920 ft away uh to the south to that Army Corps land. Um the road extension we'll kind of talk on that. it it's as minimal as it could be for a public road uh to be put in this place and we have to have that public infrastructure in order to get access to town annex parcels. Um it also kind of provides an access to the pump station that the pump station has a concrete driveway out there and every time I've been to the site there's always trucks there. So this would help uh kind of help beef up that infrastructure to town standards for for public use. Um, and so much of the construction related requests that you'll see in the neighbors are guided by laws and regulations, not by uh voluntary zoning conditions. So this by nature and by scale is not going to be a clear-cut mass graded project. They're they're large lots. Uh there won't be blasting or mass earth work involved. So any tree removal, grading of that sort will be on a lotby- lot basis uh just to build the home on the respective lot. So, I hope all that I've laid out as best as I could and shown that this pre

proposed resoning is compatible in the interest of the greater public. As always, I'm here to answer any questions. Appreciate June and all the planning staff and appreciate the opportunity and all y'all's time as this has gone on for the past few months. So, thank y'all.

All right. Thank you. Any questions?

Just one uh question. I know that there there were a lot of comments from the neighbors with regard to this project. Can you just briefly describe, you know, what steps have you taken to address their concerns?

Sure. Yeah. So, as I said, this is kind of going on over um the past handful of months. And, um, you know, lot count was one thing. So, um, taking that from four down to three, which is kind of what planning has guided us on is, you know, a one unit breaker is appropriate here as a transition. You have Lake Caspberry across the street, which is low density resoning. Um and then uh kind of that one unit per acre is is what kind of fits here uh based on the proximity to everything and proximity to town infrastructure as well. So but proposing four bringing that down to three um we feel was a nice mitigation as well. um as increasing that buffer. You um the neighbors asked for a 100 foot buffer uh from from the east and based on lot size that just wasn't really feasible. But however, we did increase from a 20 foot to a 40ft type B as well as add the the evergreen trees to kind of also mitigate that. Um we've highlighted those two conditions that were added from planning board to now. And so that would help as well mitigate any light uh pollution per se is kind of the term that people use from um our site to the east as well. Um and in general it's just going to be your housemounted stuff. So um not you know any kind of heavy industrial type lighting. It will just be housemounted features. So um and then the driveway

access effectively um you the driveways will only come out to Cal Road, one single driveway that's uh as part of the zoning conditions. Um so not going to have um you know as many access points or anything like that. Um it'll be a single driveway out to Caspberry Road. Um, so those are some kind of highlights that we've talked about and things that were asked as asked of us uh so to kind of gear development a little bit further away from the existing uh properties. So that's kind of a handful of things that we've talked about and things that have evolved. Um, but in general, the whole case has kind of been added to and evolved to other over time. But those are some of the main things.

Thank you.

Other questions? Um can you uh okay what about clear cut you mentioned you know um you try to avoid clearcut as much as possible how I mean what's your uh mean practical way to you know do that.

Sure. So just the nature of the construction of these being 1acre lots and where the houses will be set back it just the nature of of the actual construction of it. Um the lots are you know oriented in a way that uh north south that we're just going to take out what's necessary and grade what's necessary for the home construction. Um there's no RCA associated with this. There's no mass grading associated with this. It's based on the scale of it. So, um, yeah, that's that's kind of how that would Yeah, absolutely.

All right. Any other questions?

Thank you, sir.

Yep. We'll go ahead and open up the public hearing comment. Uh, we have three speakers signed up. We start with Eddie.

Read this right. Was

Okay, that's fine. Yeah. Three minutes.

Mayor Gilbert, members of the council, my name is Tom Kendig. My wife and I, my wife Karen and I reside at 409 Sleepy Valley Road. We and our neighbors, uh, most of whom are here this evening, are all a part of the Sleepy Valley rural residential community. stand up. Last summer, we invited Mayor Gilbert to our neighborhood to show him that we are a tight-knit, longstanding rural residential community. We care for and watch over each other's properties. We celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, uh and sometimes just the joy of gathering. For years, we gathered at uh one of our neighbors house for her birthday. We did that until she turned 102. For her 103rd birthday, we had to uh go to a nearby assisted living facility. She almost made it to her 104th. Um, our kids used to ride a tractor-drawn hay wagon to go house to house to do their trick-or-treating for Halloween. Our properties are on large lots ranging from 2 to 21 acres with an average of about six. Several are actually in Chattam County. our our neighborhood adjoins and is surrounded by the US Army Corps of Engineers, uh, White Oak Creek Flood Plane, and ultimately Jordan Lake. And of course, if you go just a little further down there, it's actually the water intake for both you and Carrie. The core land is leased as wildlife game lands and is

teameming with wildlife. Uh, Mr. Mayor, the pair of eagles are again nesting in the tree that we walked you to last summer. Most of us are in Wake County and are currently under the county's zoning RDW, excuse me. And the town of Apex's land use plan calls for this remaining rural residential with zoning of one house per every five acres. This proposed development with its rural transitional zoning is still considerably higher than our existing rural community and much higher than what's actually called for in the plan. We feel this development is still um inconsistent with our community and with the town's own plan. While we have watched and continue to watch increasing development all around us, this will be the first development directly impacting our rural community. If approved, we believe this will make it difficult for us to maintain the rural character which we so cherish and desire and which the town itself calls for in your adopted land use plan. this uh first seemingly small encroachment we worry about as uh as kind of setting the stage for future um impacts on our community.

Thank you, Mr. King.

Thank you.

This uh was not for National Tennis Month. This was actually one of our residents uh wrote you about his first job on a tennis court. I hope you read that and this was

Thank you. appreciate it.

All right. Uh, good evening. Uh, thank you for allowing me to share my thoughts on the matter at hand. My name is Eddie Wazell. I live at 812 Wdale Way, and

I've been a lifelong resident of the Sleepy Valley community. Last time I spoke before you, I started with a flashback about how our community of rural residents used to stretch, how far it used to stretch, and how much things have changed once you turn off our gravel road. Today, I'm going to focus on current events and developments I hope will help you highlight. will help highlight why this proposed reszoning does not make sense. While understand that change is constant, this is not a case where that concept should apply. When this development was first proposed, we were told that the pump station the homes would tie into was at capacity. That assessment was updated and our new understandings of the proposed homes will take it to capacity before any of the potential accessory buildings were added. The city of Durham recently put a 5-year moratorium on new construction its eastern area due to a sewer line being maxed out. I am certainly not a sewage expert, but taking a pump station to capacity and possibly beyond that seems like a bad idea. More development with the potential for contaminated runoff closer to a creek that feeds into Jordan Lake Apex's source for water also raises major concerns. The creek is on core land northwest of the property in question which is much closer than 920 ft that was referenced earlier that is south of that property. Uh and also shout out safe drinking water week. Um, I do not believe I am exaggerating when I say we live in a rural sanctuary where large lots and friendly neighbors provide insulation for the suburban sprawl that has been creeping in. The peace and tranquility are why we all live in Sleepy Valley. This project, if approved by the council, would severely disrupt the defining characteristics of our rural community. Wooded lots of two acres or more where you can barely even see your neighbors allowing for total privacy privacy. We care for each other and we help take care of our community. And more importantly with the matter of hand, we are united against this proposed resoning. It does not make sense given the 2045 land use map which has the property as rural density. You saw one of my co-workers names uh up there on the screen. Uh I teach Green Level High School and she is one of our agricultural teachers and FFA adviser and she submitted a letter of support opposing the resoning. One of our community families in McAllisters, you'll hear from Christine in a moment

will be the most impacted. All right. They have a farm that has helped not only my co-workers classes but countless other children interested in agriculture. This proposed development not only ruined their idyllic setting but also endangered their animals and all fairness their family and the many children who visit their farm. How so? You may be wondering part of this proposal uh is to pave the end of Caspberry Road which runs past their property. Paved roads bring more traffic and people driving faster and faster. In my co-worker's letter of support, she included a jarring fact from the Wake County Farmland Preservation Program. It stated in the last 9 years, Wake County lost 22,964 acres of its farm and forest land. That's almost 20%. The 104 acres just down the road where they're about to build 270 homes was just clearcut. You have the opportunity to protect a few more acres today with your vote. Please deny the proposal and let our rural residential haven live on where the pavement ends. Thank you.

Okay. Thanks for speaking,

Christina McAllister. the packet to be shared. Um,

when you're ready.

When you're ready.

Okay, I'm ready. Good evening, mayor and council. I'm Christina Mallister and I live at 8901 Castleberry Road, directly adjacent to the proposed reasonzoning. I'm on the eastern side. I'm asking the town council to deny the resoning and keep this property rural density residential consistent with the current 2045 land use map. This is not about stopping growth. It's about putting the right growth in the right place. This property is currently rural density approximately one home 5 acres. The request would have moved it towards a rural transitional approximately one home, one acre directly beside an active farm, youth education space, livestock, horses, and a rural deadend road conditions that is not transitional.

It's a land use conflict. The applicant compares this proposal to large nearby neighborhoods, but those are not the same context. This parcel is only about 3 acres, surrounded by rural density, residential lots, protected spaces, woodlands, agricultural uses, private gravel drives, and existing homes with greater separation. True compatibility would be measured against the immediate neighborhood, not the larger suburban development down the road. Castleberry Road is not a typical road. It is a dead-end road where the gravel section naturally slows drivers. Paving that section beyond this historic tobacco barn may look like an improvement on paper, but in real life it will likely increase speed, traffic flow, congestion, and unsafe turnarounds. Cars already miss the dead end and use our clearly marked private circular driveway to turn around. Adding density increases that risk. Our property is not just a residence. It's an active farm agurism property and educational space serving Apex and Wake County for over the past 12 years. We have children walking ponies and horses near that driveway, goats, chickens, camps, classes, farm tours, and youth leadership programs. Traffic, lights, noise, storm water, dogs, trespassing, and construction impacts us differently than it would a typical residential lot. At the planning board meeting, the developer did not answer whether street lights would be installed. That matters. Street lights, headlights, garages, driveways, and security lights change the rural character and directly affect adjacent homes, pastures, animals, and privacy. The reasonzoning also raises a bigger planning concern. If rule density can be changed to higher density on a small parcel without strong compatibility protections, then the rural edge becomes meaningless. It sets a precedent for piece by piece erosion on apex rural areas. My my request and the neighborhood's request is please deny the reasonzoning and keep the property rule density. If council chooses to move it forward, then meaningful and enforceable

conditions are necessary. Larger buffers, I think 100 is okay, especially next to the farmland. Preserve trees. No clearing where avoidable. Don't understand how they said no blasting. They're going to have to tear a house down. We'll have to remove prey animals from the property. No street lights, near rule edges, lighting restrictions.

Thank you for your time.

Thanks for speaking.

Thank you.

I see the rest this right here in the book, right? The rest of your comments.

Yes, it it sure does. It has the rest of my speech and then um legislative conditions that help phases one through nine where we still feel like it impacts us.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you. All right, last speaker for the public hearing for comment. So is closed. discussion. All right. Nobody goes off. Um, we're frequent watchers of the show. Um, you probably remember that I had a I voted consistently against development of this area uh for some of the same reasons cited by some of the residents here. like this was meant to be a transitional area into the game land towards the south. Um and you know the kind of going against the land use map um you know in my mind goes against the the vision of the town that was set out you know with the help of our residents several years ago. I understand we're going through a revision of that that plan, but that doesn't take away some of the u you know original intent right where we deliberately decreased the density of developments as we got closer to Jordan Lake watershed as we got closer to uh gameland territory. Um, at the time, you know, when Castleberry Reserve came up for resoning, uh, I consistently voted no against that, uh, because I saw it as

the first domino, you know, for basically that whole area to, uh, go get redeveloped at a higher density than was originally intended. Um, so, you know, two houses versus three houses. Um, you know, what's the difference? Um, you know, to me, this is really a matter of principle and sticking to the land use map that that we have. Uh and so for that reason I cannot support the request that's in front of us tonight.

Thanks Councilman.

So let me ask you a question. Uh a June um they can build two houses by right right now, right?

You remember that correctly?

Correct. If

Yeah.

And they can recombine the lots by right as well.

Yes.

Okay. So I I guess my my first reaction to the packet is like propose a set of conditions. Um a lot of them are are reasonable, but the first condition is maximum of two residential lots. So if you're limiting them to two residential lots, like you stop there. Like the this entire process, this resoning is them asking for a third lot above what they're already entitled to. They're entitled to two lots, so they're getting nothing if they don't get the third lot. So, I just I mean I want to make sure we're clear. If we deny this, they can just build two lots with no buffers and no anything. Like all the conditions we have are what they're offering in order to get the what is one home. And this has happened to us before where we've we've denied these small things and they go and they build by right and we end up with with a worse outcome for the residents of the neighborhood and for Apex. um because you know we we tried to draw that line and and said you know we want to get this or that or anything and they said well you know so we're already very thin here because they're entitled to two and they're asking they've gone down from four to three so for one extra home are all the conditions they've offered and there's no reason for them to agree to

to build two homes and then any other conditions because that's what they have today right no buffers no preservation no environmental conditions, just clear cut it. Two homes is what they could do.

And I'm glad that you mentioned that because that's that's kind of what I'm thinking too, which is that the tough part about this is we're talking about the margin of basically moving from two to one additional. And then it asks it forces me to start asking the question, okay, so what are we as a community getting out of this that they can't already do and access to that pump station? I think, you know, it's a good thing for us. I understand and completely get the the concern about, you know, once you take a road and pave it, there's an increase in traffic. I get that. But as I'm looking at the property itself, it seems as though, and I have to be careful how I phrase this, it seems as though we are extracting a lot more out of what we currently have than what we could get otherwise. I mean, the environmental concerns, the the concessions that have been made all seem to indicate that the other option is They don't come back to us. They clear cut. They build the two houses and do everything else, too. And I I don't know if that is necessarily overall still consistent with what what we were trying to get to with with the with the land use map. I just don't I'm having a hard time with that one.

Let me say something I don't usually say. Um, I am starting to feel bad for these property owners because they have come back and done almost everything

asked of them, every condition. And they're at the point where the only thing they're they're giving they're getting now is one home. The the floor is two. This has happened three or four times where we've denied one of these small resonings and the owner of the property, they just built what they're entitled to and didn't talk to to to us again. It was a bad outcome. like they have they've reduced the density, they've added the buffers, they've added the lights, they've added all sorts of conditions and and the the this additional request of going down to two homes, I'm trying to explain it's not reasonable because they can do that today. You can't say only do what you do today and do all this extra stuff for nothing. They have to get something in order to to offer the conditions. Um so three is like the minimum and that's where we're at for this process. And if we deny this, they're going to decide whether we want to go with the two or, you know, try to sell it, I guess, and flip it for a profit, whatever they want to do to someone else who may not be as uh um, you know, amendable. But I'll say again, I think that the property owner here and the development group has been extremely accommodating to the point where I'm impressed with the work they've put in to try to make this work. And I don't say that very often, so I'll be supporting the project. others.

I have a question for the applicant if possible and forgive me for not having caught this earlier, but I heard you say the these three lots, this is what they could look like, how do I know what they will look like?

Correct. So the the zoning conditions in the the um application, these are we're kind of limited on what we can do because we have um UDO standards that we have to meet as far as lot widths. We have the size restrictions that are brought forth in the resoning conditions. So these are three lots that are at least 35,000 square ft shown on shown

right here and the average is over 42,000 ft. And the buffer it was just kind of the layout. There's 40 foot buffer shown. The setback lines are are displayed there. So it will look because of the zoning conditions very similar to this. The only thing that could be tweaked is a little shift here and there, but the the zoning conditions lend to this type of layout with single single driveways coming out to Caspberry Road. Um and with the road ending where it does um with the public culdesac you this is more or less what what will be the end result.

Thank you.

Yep.

I'm debating like um like Arnold said you know like uh Terry also uh mentioned the owner have the right to build only two homes. They don't have to come to us to ask for you know all those conditions. So they can do clear cut they can build homes no buffer you know just build two homes and the other option is they come to us ask ask ask for reasonzoning they add buffer avoid clear cut and um actually uh provide more stricter environmental you know um restrictions than our UDO requires. So which one is better? Which one is better to the residents? These two options, two homes, nothing clearcut or three homes with, you know, stricter uh environmental requirements, buffer, no clear cut, which one is better? So we have to think about Yeah. to make um you know more responsible decisions.

There's two lots per they can build a home per lot and they can recombine the lot in different configuration.

All right. Thanks for your comments. one house for two, but there's three.

That's okay. It's all good. Any other um discussion council?

Motion approved.

I'll second.

We have a motion to second.

Reszoning and annexation.

Reszoning annexation.

And with those additional conditions

with the additional conditions Um my vote is going to be while I understand the implications um it's about the consistency of what we must do legislatively, which is have a land use map with a strategy. Um, not knowing that this is the outcome. Um, in reality, I do also want to compliment the applicant for their hard work. Um, and yet I I won't be supporting it because it is the it is while in this case it seems to be a bit of an anomaly overall this is a bit of the camel's nose under the tent and the next phase of uh what we hope to do preserving land along especially the county line. So I now understand more about the

implications, but I won't support it for consistency with what the land map and and the enforcement that we aim to do. Mayor, I request a roll call vote. call the roll.

Anybody anybody

my opposition to that?

All right.

Okay. We've got a a motion and a second. Um I'll start with a roll call vote. May prom

I.

Council member Gray.

Council member Ziggerman.

Nay.

Council member Reese.

No.

Council member Moo. I

Okay. Three to two. Three to two. All right. Yes, sir. Okay. Um, this one's the same uh as far as the annexation is associated with the reasonzoning 3100 Olive Chapel Road. Reszoning case 25 CZ22. This is uh located in the western area of town norththeast corner of um Olive Chapel Road and Transit Trail. This uh this lot is at 4.58 acres

and we're going to hold off on the annexation vote at the end. go back. Um so looking the this the site includes um single family residential house, mature trees, an existing little stream that we does have the buffer um located in the northeast corner and then the grade sloping towards um Olive Chapel Road. The site includes a driveway on Olive Chapel Road and another on Transit Trail, an existing sidewalk curb and gutters located along the east side of Transit Trail. And then you can see there's a utility easement line running on the um eastern side. The uh existing zoning district is Wake County residential ADW and a portion right up here is rural residential conditional zoning and the surrounding area is a rural residential conditional zoning single family homes and then Wake County um residential ADW along the uh eastern and southern portion of off of all Chapel Road is land core um which is open space or core land sorry the proposed zoning district is office in institutional conditional zoning and rural residential conditional zoning. So the current land use classification is rural density residential. If reszone is proposed, the 2045 land use map will change to office employment in a portion of the rural transition residential classification. Neighborhood meetings were conducted on November 25th, 2025 and March 3rd, 2026.

And the proposed zoning for the rural residential um conditional zoning district includes Just looking at this area which would be zoning area A single family dwelling accessory apartment utility minor park active passive and greenway. The zoning conditions would um only apply to any new construction of residents on this um area. This is where the single family home is located. So the existing home shall be exempt from the um conditions they were at maximum height um and minimum building setbacks. Uh those are included. All homes shall include the solar conduit in the building design to facilitate for future rooftop solar installations and all garages shall be brought with two 20 volt outlets. There are six architectural conditions. they go about uh material garage door design and also included with the porch. And then um for the office and institutional conditional zoning, the permitted uses include office um governmental service limited retail uses and those are listed on page four of your staff report such as um office, daycare, medical and again governmental service. The following issue uses shall be limited to operation hours 7 a.m. to 900 p. M restaurant, new standard gift shop, pharmacy, personal service, um barber and beauty shop. There um for additional conditions for the government service uses. The proposed buffer is 10 foot for type B along all of Chapel Road and then 20 foot type B transit trail and then to the north that rural

residential conditional zoning 10- foot type A. They would also include um that little asterric is for a a fence as a buffer as well to that residential home and then along the eastern public utility easement would be zero. So buffers area are areas are allowed to be graded and replanted to the buffer type. Only emergency service vehicles shall be allowed direct ingress and egress driveway onto all of Chapel Road. And then the full access drive will be off of transit trail. RCA dedication shall be 20% of zone B growth site area. And then for the zoning off um office and institutional for nonresidential uses other than government services we have the 20 foot type E along olive chapel and transit trail and as well as a 20 foot type B along the area of the residential buffer areas are also allowed to be grade and replanted to buffer type and then there shall be a limit of one access point onto all Chapel Road and point of access shall be right in right out. Um at least 250 ft from Transit Trail and the Olive Chapel Road intersection and then full access on transit trail RCA dedication would be at 25%. And then for the transportation condition for all the office and institutional um development that construction uh roadway frontage widing on all of Chapel Road. It would be 12t travel lanes um shoulders on a 110 ft rideway and provide a 5-ft sidewalk for the extent of the project frontage. and then a variable road frontage winding in addition to typical section for lane transitions going from three-lane to lane two lane crosssection east of transit trail. So, this would allow for

future addition of the eastbound uh left turn lane by others on Olive Chapel Road and Transit Trail. And due to the small area, the project was exempt from environmental advisory board and housing staff did not recommend affordable housing conditions. Planning board recommended approval 8 to zero and planning staff uh recommends approval as proposed by the applicant. The 2045 land use designates this property as rural density residential and rural transition residential. The applicant proposes reszoning to office institutional and rural residential conditional zoning with limited uses and conditions. So if the properties are reszoned as proposed, the 2045 land use map would be amended to office employment and rural transition residential classification. And the proposed resoning is reasonable in the public interest in that it will provide office government service and limited retail uses to serve the existing proposed residential development in the area. The resoning will also allow for that existing residential single family home to remain on the lot and it's generally consistent with those to the north. The proposed resoning will provide roadway frontage widening with a sidewalk along Old Chapel Road and proposed resoning includes stricter architectural conditions than the UDL requires. With that, if you had any questions and the um the applicant is here.

Thank you. Questions? I do have a question. Um, why is there a difference between the buffer requirements for governmental use and other commercial use?

As far as um looking at this site for governmental services, trying to do like a fit onto this um section that's going

to have the O and I just trying to create um more area to work with

10 foot is going to make a difference. I mean it seems like a very small buffer size that you know doesn't materially change the usability of the lens. It would also have an additional 10 foot from the building, a set back from the buffer. So it would be 30 ft that a any building could be at versus 20,

right? And so do we have a proposed side layout for the fire station?

They did a fit test. I don't think that we have a official submitt

and so the fit test requires the buffer reduction.

Yes.

Okay. Thank you. Any other questions? Thank you applicant. Hello again. Uh, Will Norton, Jones Canson Engineering, 221 North Salem Street. Um, I don't have a whole lot to add uh to what June proposed um and and displayed to you here, but I just want to say thank you again to her and um all the planning staff for all their work, not only planning, but also including Steve Adams and Adam Stevenson with engineering and uh fire chief Herman for their assistance in um getting to this point. um as as we've discussed before, this is targeted um as the next fire station location uh to kind of serve more of this western area of Apex to

kind of keep up that level of service that um we got awarded for. So that's awesome. Uh but um yeah, just just wanted to re reiterate that, but the government service uses is what has been targeted here. Um the other O and IZ uses have been further limited to kind of be more neighborhood oriented um for for what is to um come in the future along Transit Trail. Uh Transit Trail is a future collector that will connect all the way from all of Chapel to 64. So this kind of corner corner location is central to a lot of um anticipated future development out in this out in this corner of town. So um happy to answer any questions. um just thankful for planning to to help kind of guide these conditions as well as other town staff to hopefully provide this uh needed service out in this area of town. So, thank y'all.

Thanks. One quick question about the um the existing structure, the residence that's there. Is that what what's the plan for that right now? They're just going to stay there.

That is correct. So, the uh the existing residence, the the guy who rents it um from the property owner um desired to stay there and based on the the need for the area of the fire station, they were able to accommodate that, not have to displace the the resident who's been there for a while. And so, um so yeah, he's able to stay in his house.

So, essentially, they're kind of planning for the All right, he's staying there. They're not kicking him out. They're going to let them be status quo and then correct

afterwards they're basically asking for permission to plan for the next step after the fire station is there.

Uh I believe understood you're right. Yeah, his anticipation is to stay there um for some considerable amount of time. He's actually renting to own um is my understanding. So um his plan is to stay there and he has a workshop set up and so I think he continues he he anticipates continuing to be there for quite some time.

Great. So, yep.

Thank you.

All right. We'll go ahead and open up the public hearing for both items. Public hearing is closed. No one signed up to speak.

Motion.

Motion to approve.

Both.

Second to both.

All right. All in favor say I.

I.

I. I wanted to make a comment. Both.

I was going to

um

So, no, no, no. Like, we don't have to withdraw. Uh, I just want to I just want to state that um you know it irritates me that we enforce these buffer requirements and then when we want to resone the property that you know we take some liberty with that. Now the only reason that or the only that's you know the reason I'm I'm still in favor of this project is because as a town it's becoming exceedingly more difficult to acquire the land that that is needed for our public safety stations. Um this was an opportunity that uh that we had but again like those come up uh you know more and more less frequent. Not sure if there's a proper statement. um less frequent um and and so um again I I understand you know based on the test fit that we need to sacrifice some of the buffers. I also understand that we need um a future fire and uh public safety station in this area. Um but kind of my you know I I do have some irritation with the fact that you know we are sacrificing buffer requirements that we ourselves have set for everybody else to adhere to. So anyway, doesn't change my vote, but I just want to state it for the record.

Thank you, Council Council Ree.

I was just going to quickly say um I make exceptions to the land use map when we are looking to uh institute a new fire station.

Okay. All right. So, we have unanimous

vote.

All right. Track. Thank you.

We can we can get another vote on public hearing nine.

Yep. Okay. All right. Public hearing nine reasoning case. Um, you have a date

continue to May 28th.

Move to continue to May 28th. Second.

All right. Motion second. All in favor say I.

Motion carries.

All right. Public hearing 10.

Almost.

Good evening, Mayor Council. I before you four amendments today to present to you. The first amendment was requested by your environmental advisory board. Um they had come before you last year and presented at a resolution to institute into install the use of native species for all town properties moving forward as part of the UDO requirements. And so that's what we have the first item here presented for you. So this would amend uh chapter 8 of the UDO under plant materials. We have a new section that says landscaping on town owned property would require that all new or replacement landscaping installed on property owned or dedicated to the town of Apex, including public rights of way, parks, open space, and other publicly maintained areas shall utilize native plant materials as defined in chapter 12. Defi terms defined preference shall be given to species native to North Carolina where practicable and plant selection shall be consistent with the town of Apex's design and development manual. Final plant selection shall be subject to review and approval by the technical review committee to ensure consistency with local ecological conditions, maintenance practices, and adopted long-term sustainability goals. The AB did provide a couple of uh non-native plant exemptions that could be part of this policy and that have been included in this amendment. They include um non-native turf grass, replacement of existing non-native plant species that have been removed or have died provided that such replacements are of the same species or functionally equivalent non-native species in order

to maintain the uh continuity of the established landscape and design. And then also non-native plants where the primary purpose is crop cultivation, scientific research, botanical or historic gardens or plantings for wildlife. And then in chapter 12, we have added some definitions just so we could help uh clear some things up for anyone who may be reading it. So we've adapted adaptive plant definition. Now, adaptive plants are plant species or culivars that are not native to the local ecosystem, but have demonstrated the ability to thrive in the regional climate and soil conditions without invasive tendencies, excessive irrigation, chemical inputs, or extraordinary maintenance, and that do not pose a threat to native plant communities. Additionally, the native definition is native plants are plant species that the United States Department of Agriculture has classified as native to the state or the count the county in the southeastern United States. For the purpose of this list, that includes southeastern USA and this includes states as Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and the following counties in Florida. And if you have any questions on this one, I'm happy to answer them. Not I can move on. Amendment number two before you today is uh a sec amendment to the use classifications for commercial uses under office and research in order to clarify that overnight stays shall be permitted only when associated with a physician's ordered sleep study. So under 4.35 under office and research there's an added section here below that states overnight studies shall be physician ordered sleep study. Such stays shall not include inpatient care, the routine provision of emergency services, surgical procedures requiring general anesthesia, or medical observation exceeding 10 hours except as necessary to complete the sleep study or to stabilize a patient pending transfer to emergency medical services. Any questions on this one?

None. Thank you. Amendment number three uh is to chapter

7 and this is to uh prohibit the installation or use of artificial turf within the rightway of any new subdivisions or site plan approval after this date. So and section again under 7.2.1 2.1 under streets. Uh number three has been added. Artificial truth shall be prohibited after this date. This prohibit prohibited shall be prohibited. Shall apply to all areas within the ride ofway including but not limited to planting strips, medians, and other landscape or unimproved areas. Artificial turf shall not be permitted as a substitute for required landscaping, ground cover, or open space within the rightway. This section shall not apply to the repair or replacement of existing artificial turf installed prior to this date. Any questions on this one? Okay. Uh the final amendment was requested by your water resources staff. Um they wanted to update section 6.2.17b which would uh allow the amendment would allow applicants to the option to use the base flood elevations the BFE shown on the North Carolina emergency management non-regulatory flood plane map as an alternative to commission a hydraulic study and report. So simply under that section under section B, this uh language provided by your water resources staff states exactly that that the an alternative to a hydraulic study that they may use the 100year base map base flood map elevations as shown on the North Carolina Emergency Management non-regulatory flood plane map as shown. And that is the final amendment before you today. Any questions on that one?

I do have a question on this one. Um how frequently are those hydraulic studies updated? hydraulic studies. I think so. This is information. I can't speak to that. I would have to communicate with water resources on how often that wet that map is updated itself. But this is in order. I think otherwise they would have to do a hydraulic study themselves of the property if I'm not mistaken.

I don't think we have any water resources staff here. I apologize.

Sounds to me like we're instead of doing the study or requiring that study, we're accepting a previous study conducted

by the state. That's

done by the state. Yes, sir.

Which on the face makes sense. I I'm just wor I'm inquiring about the the currency of the state surveys and how frequently they get updated because as conditions around town change I can you know I can potentially see you know some shifts in uh in you know water runoff and and whatnot. So, I don't want to put ourselves in a position where we are now required to accept a 50-year-old study, right, for something that might or may not be, you know, relevant to to the current day and age. And so, um, I'm sure there's a process. I just, you know, was hoping to get some some information.

I apologize for being able to that question for you. Um, if there was any reason that you would want to table this one and come back and have staff here to present, we could speak to that or

No, I I defer to the the uh expertise of of staff on on this one. I'm sure they uh they thought through this.

Yes, sir.

Okay.

If not, I'll leave it to you guys to discuss today. Thank you,

sir.

All right. We'll open up the public hearing for this item. No one signed to speak is closed.

Discussion. Also motion.

Sounds good to me. I really like the native plant one. Like I think it's been a long time coming from uh the EAB. So, it's good to good to see that happen. It requires us to use native plants on our our own property, which is, you know, setting a good example. Motion to approve.

Motion second.

Second.

Second. Proteim. Any other discussion?

All in favor indicate by saying I.

I. Motion carries.

Right. Public hearing 11. We're voting on that one.

We're going to defer that back to plan for the May 11th and then continue it to the council meeting May 28th.

So moved.

Second. All right, we have a motion second.

Any discussion? All in favor say I.

I.

Motion carries.

All right. Is everybody good? Um, you need a quick break or

quick break. Okay. Yeah, let's do let's

do five. Seven minutes.

Seven minutes.

Seven minutes. Motion.

Have a recess. Seven minutes.

The regular meeting agenda RA1 and two annexation number 805 Welch Homestead Associated Reszoning 25 CZ10.

Thank you m mayor and m council. Uh you guys continue this from the meeting in March. Uh the applicant has come back today to offer you some changes to their proposed resoning. So I'll allow the applicant to come up. Sounds

good. Thank you. Good evening. Matthew Carpenter with Parker Poe, 301 Fagateville Street. Here this evening on behalf of the developer and applicant, LAR. Got several folks with me here tonight from LAR and with McAdams um who are available for for any questions if you if you have them after the the presentation. Um, just a reminder, this case was before you March 24th. Um, and at that at that meeting, council uh continued the case to allow us to try to address some of the concerns that were heard at that meeting. Um, and I think you'll find as as we get into this that the time was was well spent. We've made a lot of changes to the case um in a relatively short time. And so I'll go through those and then we'll be happy to answer any questions. Um just to reorient you to the site, the site is uh an 83.5 acre assemblage in the New Hill area um near the the major intersection of New Hill Hollowman Road and Old US1. There's been a lot of growth in this area. There are several fairly new subdivisions. uh Woodbury just to the west of us, Friendship Station to the north, um on the other side of of New Hill, Olive Chapel Road, Jordan Manners, Belterra, Jordan Point, um and then also the the New Hill Commons PUD, which is a commercial and and residential project that will have uh grocery anchored retail. And I think that was worth mentioning because uh that the success of that retail will also be dependent on on rooftops in this

area. So, um, and and clearly they feel like the demand is there now. I believe the site plan for New Hill Commons will be filed hopefully next month, um, is is when that's planned. So, the concerns that we heard on March 24th, I I've grouped them into categories, um, and I'll go through each one and changes that we've made to the case in response. So, we heard uh concerns about affordable housing, concerns from neighbors, uh the environmental advisory board recommendations, traffic, parks and wreck, um and then the historic corn crib. And so, we've gone through each one of these categories and we've either either added a condition or we've tried to do some additional study um to understand, you know, where where we can can better answer questions or concerns. So affordable housing was the first and and there was a lot of discussion at the last meeting about this. Um we had come into the meeting as you can see on the in the left column with 5% of units as affordable at 80% AMI with a $100,000 donation. Um and we had paired that with a donation in LAR's other reszoning case that was the same night. Uh and and that condition was based on discussions with DHIC that we've had. Um I think you know developers and the town alike are trying to figure out how to to implement these for sale affordable units because there are a lot of tricky aspects. Um but what we took away from the council meeting was that the town's policy is really the priority. Um and so we we heard that loud and clear. We've updated the condition to be consistent with the town's policy. So now it's 10% of units at 80% AMI for rental and 120% AMI for for sale. As I've mentioned before, um this is a for sale project. We're not proposing rental units. Uh but because, you know, zoning is not tied to any specific developer, we include the the rental unit language in there to ensure that if it were for some reason a rental project, there would still be affordable rental units. Um and based on that

change, staff, uh affordable housing staff recommends approval. Um and I also want to highlight that we're not requesting any incentives under the the policy. So, if you read the affordable policy, it um you know lists potential incentives like RCA reduction um parks and wreck fee offset or or reduce parks and wreck fees. We're not asking for any of those um but we are meeting the the policy goal um at a relatively low density still at 3.3 units an acre. The the next category of changes uh are are neighbor concerns and and this slide shows each of the neighborhood concerns on the left that we've heard throughout the process and then on the right side what we've done to address those concerns. We we've been in touch with neighbors throughout the entire process from when we filed uh last summer until now. Um, and we've we've talked to neighbors really on each side in the existing subdivision, newer subdivisions to the uh west and also the larger four or five acre lots to the east. Um, and then even some of the folks south of of old one. And so the the first concern was density. Um, and we've limited density in the PUD to 3.3 units an acre, which is well below the seven units an acre that that's recommended by the land use map. Um we have smaller lot sizes in in certain locations. Uh we we added a condition that 40% of the single family lots are required to be a minimum of 50 ft in width. Uh that was in response to a a staff concern and a concern from folks in the subdivision to the west um that you know they wanted larger lots adjacent to to to their single family lots. Um moving to some of the concerns from the neighbors on the east side uh specifically Mr. Quales who was here tonight and and now supports the project, but I think he he went home. Um, but he there was a stub street that he was concerned about to his property. We worked with staff and we removed that stub street. Um, and then the the next

row there, uh, we heard from folks on Mason Road south of Old US one that they were concerned about access into their site, their Mason Road where they have some, you know, larger uh, tracked horse farms. They were worried that with construction of our median in old US1, that's a requirement of the PUD text, that it would cut off their access. Um, and we were okay stopping the median short of Mason Road, but we didn't know what DOT would allow. Um, and so we did reach out to DOT and we got written confirmation from them that DOT will not require uh us to restrict access to Mason Road. So, we've confirmed for those folks um that their access will remain, which which really was their number one concern. Um going back to some of Mr. Qual's concerns, uh he was he was worried about clearing of the buffer for street stubs. I know the MI Homes project north of him on his northern property line, they had cleared uh which is is how the UDO uh is written, but they cleared the buffer to extend the street stub to within 10 ft of the property line. um and it left a sizable gap in the buffer adjacent to his property. And so we we crafted the condition so that our street stubs will stop short of the buffer. Um but the rightway dedication will be all the way to the property line so there's not a strip of land that prevents a future cross access connection. Um and then finally it really Mr. Qualie's biggest concern was uh privacy. He's had a lot of trespassing, dumping from the project north of him. Um, we wanted to do better than that obviously and so we had added conditions for uh a type B planting standard. Oddly, there's sort of a gap with the planting requirements in the UDO. Uh the the planting standard is a little more general for type B. So, we've specified the planting type in our putt text. Um, we've widened the buffer from 15 to 20 feet. And then the most recent change between the last meeting

and today is the six-foot uh privacy fence along the eastern property line. So we heard from Mr. Qualice and uh Miss Beerman who lives in closer to to old US1 um that they were worried about folks, you know, just wandering on their property from our neighborhood. Sometimes people see open land. They don't know where the property line is. Um so now there will be a fence for for the length of the property line. So there'll be a retaining wall where our project's on the lower side. Um a planted buffer and then a fence. So So quite a big degree of separation there. Um one change I did tell Mr. Paul we would make tonight. Uh in the putt text it says that we'll have a fence along the buffer. He wanted the word privacy added just to ensure that the the fence is not see-through and it provides the screening that he's hoping for. And so we just have this change to add the word privacy. Um and then the the the next category of changes and these were also a big focus at the meeting in March are the the EAB recommendations. Um and coming into the meeting on the 24th, we had had agreed to six of the 15 recommended uh conditions from the EAB. Um and and you know with your feedback and guidance at the last meeting, we took a holistic look at all of the EAB conditions and we said we want to push it as far as we can to commit to as many of these as we can. And so now we have 13 um of the 15 recommended conditions included. Um I don't know that I need to go through all of them tonight. This slide shows uh let's see 11 of those wi-i which are um things like RCA signage uh pet way stations 220 volt outlets for EV charging in the garage um solar conduit in all homes for for the future installation of solar panels. Um 75% of the landscaping shall

be native species if you remember. I think we had that one at 60% in the the EB had recommended 75 so we bumped that up to 75. Um, no species of native or adaptive vegetation shall constitute more than 20% of the plant material. Um, HOA covenant shall not restrict uh or prevent clover or native grass. Um, we have uh the the condition and I learned a lot about this one that uh the covenants will not prohibit uh or I'm sorry man uh mandate the picking up of leaves. Uh that helps I think with with pollination. Um one sign per SEM to reduce pet waste. We did upgrade the storm water standard to the 25-year storm. I think the UDO is is requires the 10year. Um, and then the last one there, we we've agreed to warm season grasses. This next slide shows what what I think are the um the bigger commitments for for the project. The first is is solar. So, we we've added a condition um that 10% of the single family homes will be pre-installed with with solar panels. Um and so we we talked through that with LAR you know how that will be administered um and how that will be uh you know marketed to buyers and the only language that we didn't include here that I think is in the staff report is that the um lots for solar will be identified at master subdivision plan and we didn't do that because we want the ability to move them around if we have a a home buyer that says um you know we we like this lot adjacent to the RCA for example But we want solar. Can you put solar there? Um we would rather do that than have them set in place in in the subdivision plants. The the next is that um we've agreed to preserve 35% of the existing tree canopy. Um and so where where the project and then you can read the rest of the language where the project abuts adjacent developments. Uh special effort will be taken to locate

the preserved trees adjacent to areas of existing open space. Um and and so uh so we came in a little lower than 30% I mean than 35 our condition is 30% um and that's because we you know we needed some flexibility there with the RCA. The RCA requirement is 35%. Um if you remember we we had a discussion at the last meeting about well is it 30% or is it 35% because there's that mass grading additional 5% we can set it at a flat 35% for the whole site um for for clarity and then 30% of the existing tree canopy will be preserved. So the majority of the RCA will be tree canopy now. Um whereas you can clear and replant RCA and you can also use SCMs. And so uh I think that's a a meaningful commitment. Um the two that we did not include out of the the 15 recommendations, no buffer averaging for the zone 3 riparian buffer. Um we did look at that to to understand whether we could accommodate it and we don't have the the level of engineering yet to understand um to definitively that there aren't areas where we might need to to average zone three of the buffer which is the apex buffer um for a storm water pond, you know, the edge of a stormwater pond. And so that's why we haven't agreed to that one. And then the final condition we haven't agreed to is is tree planting. um that that condition was just an issue of having sufficient land to to replant the the trees. Um it just didn't work with with our site plan. Um the the next bucket of concerns was traffic. Um and so we we still have in the case obviously the the transportation improvements that were in the case leading up to the last meeting. Uh we have road widening on uh both sides of old US1 to the town's ultimate section. That's unusual to see it on both sides,

but we do have that um small strip of land on the south side that will be dedicated as a park. So we're not, you know, using that land as development, but to the town's benefit, it, you know, requires us to widen both sides of the road. Um, we also have turn lanes at the intersection of uh, New Hill Hollowman Road and Old US1 um, on each side. And as I mentioned at the last meeting, those are layered with improvements um, from other cases in the area, including New Hill Commons. Um, but there there were questions that we heard from from neighbors about the the delay and the level of service at that intersection. And so it prompted us to go back and look um at our TIA and and we did make some changes there. So I've called Nate Bowwin up to to talk more about that.

Good evening. Uh my name is Nate Bowokin. I'm traffic engineer uh with McAdams. Uh address is 621 Hillsboro Street in Raleigh. Um so again we wanted to to kind of take a step back and highlight some of the key intersections that we heard um at the the prior meeting um were were concerns both with the community as well as um that you all had addressed some current concerns. Um so on the screen here is looking at the intersection of old New Hill Hollowman New Chapel Road. Um the table to the right is very similar to what you would see within the TIA but with the addition of that bottom line. Um we realized that actually the um analysis within the TIA um did not include the northbound right turn lane because that was a a product of uh some some ongoing conversations with NCDOT and that was additional ask that they had had uh provided following the original submitt of the TIA and so we have added that in now um and wanted to to kind of take a step back there and look at the differences with um really when we're looking at our impacts we're looking at between no build that future condition um without our site as well as the the build condition with our site and with our improvements. Um so the the

no build conditions there in the red box is again 2029 conditions without our our site moving forward. Um we're seeing level service E um in both the AM and the PM peak hour for the overall uh intersection operations. And then um with our site and with our improvements um we're actually seeing u benefits of of the reduction of delay um at that intersection u bringing it down to a level service D in both the AM and the PM peak hour. Um again that is with the the northbound right turn lane as well as the the improvements that were um kind of required of some of the other developments in the area. Um I know also during that last meeting there was conversation of hey there are a lot of improvements being required by other other developments. What's the timeline look like? What what does that um what's the guarantee that those are going to be constructed? And so if you look down the bottom left left hand uh side of the of the the screen um that stick diagram the different colors highlight who's required to construct what improvements. Um a lot of what you're seeing there is there are a lot of improvements being required by the Gracewood project. um which has not constructed their improvements yet and and move forward. Um there are requirements though for the New Hook Commons project to construct those improvements or provide um additional analysis um once they move forward. And so that's one of the big guarantees there um that a lot of those improvements are going to be constructed um as well as there are the additional um improvements that they are providing in the kind of turquoise color. Um, and then of course the the improvements we're providing in red. Um, and then I believe Utleafly Farms also has a right turn lane requirement. So again, all of those improvements come together. Um, we are actually seeing that our project is reducing the the overall intersection delay um, at that intersection. Um, also I know there was a big a lot of conversation about the interchange. That's kind of the pinch point um, there at US1. Um, as you all I'm sure are

aware, there is an NC DOT project to provide some improvements at that interchange. Um, that NCDOT project, it's H0010. It's actually tied to uh my understanding it's develop uh economic development funding for the Amgen project. Um, so it is very vital for them to have kind of a a set deadline. Um, based on the the data available um through NCDOT, it is funded for construction in 2027. Uh so we would anticipate that to be on the ground as well um prior to our buildout. With those improvements that brings the overall intersection uh allows it to continue to operate with level service C and the AM peak hour, level service D and the PM peak hour. That's for the southbound ramps. Shifting over to the northbound ramps. We see uh much of the same level service D in the AM peak hour and level service C and the PM peak hour. The big the big thing here too to highlight is uh our impacts are very negligible. um those those improvements that NC DOT is constructing is providing the capacity that's needed out there um and and allows our uh development to have very very little impact. Um again looking over at uh the intersection of ODS1 and Mason Road like Matthew had mentioned um we had some additional conversations with NCDOT just to verify that we would not be uh tasked with restricting that that roadway for any reason um just based on the proximity. Um they did confirm that that we would not be required to restrict it. Um and in part of those conversations um in particular with us providing the the median along uh old US1 out there um they did bring up the request for a left turn lane onto Mason Road. Um and in particular with some of the feedback that we had received in the the prior hearing uh being that there was a lot of horse farms back there. Uh we felt that that was very appropriate to to provide. Um and so we were happy to to provide the uh the left turn lane there for for Mason Road as well. Um and again that that intersection is is operating at accessible levels of service. Um again we have a very very little impact to the

um the delays there and I will pass it back over to Matthew. Thank you.

Thank you Nate. Um, I I also wanted to talk about the the parkland dedication uh south of of old one uh because after the last meeting we did meet with with parks and recck staff and and just talk with them about their sort of vision for this area. Um, and they did mention that that the linear park has been planned um since the I believe uh council member Reese mentioned the the original land use map meetings that it started you know during that time and has been a long-range plan for the town um for at least 10 years now. Uh and the vision is really for for some sort of linear park with with walking trails. Um and and staff shared some creative ideas with us about, you know, programming for things like uh outdoor exercise equipment that could be permanent or modular um that would allow, you know, that would sort of activate that area and and and uh and bring people to that area um in an area that's that's otherwise odd between old US1 and the railroad track. Um and and that uh that linear park extends on the land use map all the way up to um I think up near Holland Road and and so it's a pretty long corridor there. Um and this is the southwestern end of that. So the town would be be getting uh the the really southwestern edge um of that future linear park with with this zoning case. Um I also wanted to to you know calculate the parks and wreck fee. Um the total parks and wreck fee based on our density would come out to $951,000. That would be reduced by the the market value of the land dedication um which we don't have yet, but that would be an appraisal that we would uh or we would work with the town on the market value of that land when it comes time to to finalize the fee at master subdivision. So um so it's a it's pretty sizable uh parks and recck fee in Lou uh reduced by the acreage. Um but it won't obviously

just 1.6 six acres. It won't reduce the entire fee. It'll probably be um you know a reduction, but it'll still be a significant uh parks and fee in L. And is that the parks and is that the appraisal of that particular parcel or

replace like the average selling price of an acre in the area because it might be

I think it's the market value of the land that's dedicated is the way the UDO reads and so it would be the market value of um the land between old US one and the railroad which is is obviously limited. So that I don't know if staff has

so it's basically 950 minus the value of the land. That's correct. Would be the cash.

That's right.

Value. Okay. Yep.

Um then the the corn crib relocation. Uh this is something that we were working out with Capitalary Preservation in sort of the 11th hour before the last council meeting. And so we we actually made these changes on the screen um at the last meeting, but they were really last minute and didn't make it into the staff report. And so I wanted to make those clear here. Um that capillary preservation supports uh the the relocation language and that we've adjusted the language based on their feedback. Um they've been in involved already in evaluating the corn crib. This is not the actual corn crib. It's one I pulled from the internet. Uh but I thought it was better to look at than than some, you know, clip art or something. So uh so the the language that we changed is that the relocation professional will be approved by the planning director. So um you know there's no no intent here to try to game the consultant who can determine uh you know that this is infeasible. And then the other language that's highlighted here is that the the property that will be relocating the cornry to will be approved by the planning director for compliance with the UDO. So so that's consistent with the UDO framework for relocation uh which only allows relocation of historic structures that are outside the historic district. Um, and so we will follow that process with

uh with a preservation easement um and and the maintenance agreement that's required by by the UDO. So we wanted to make that clear. Um and then since we've been talking about the budget and I was looking at the budget uh I did do run the numbers on uh you know what the property tax projections could look like. Obviously, uh these are are assuming values uh based on new construction that's been delivered and sold in the last couple years around the site. There there are actually, as I mentioned, two or three new subdivisions here. So, uh these some of these the sales are are higher than this. Um but but I assumed, you know, $750,000 market value for a single family home and $450 for a town home. Um and and with the the proposed tax rate um in the the current budget draft uh as I understand it, it it comes out to uh projected yearly revenue of $628,000 to the town. Um and eight a little over $800,000 to to Wake County for a total of of 1.45. Um just trying to help again expand the tax base uh to avoid having to to raise rates. Um and and then the the graphics on the right side are just pulled directly from uh from some of the budget presentations. Um so if this project is is approved and built out, it will result uh in 27 affordable units, 13 homes pre-installed with solar, um parkland dedication for the future linear park, 29 acres of preserved RCA, um a parks and wreck fee in addition to uh the parkland dedication, the road improvements we discussed, um and the addition additional tax base. Um, and so I I think uh what what you can see is that we've got a much better project that we had on on March 24th. And I appreciate council's guidance um and and pushing to

to go back and look at these different areas. Um and I did I went back and looked because I was curious uh the last couple years resoning cases in Apex. Um and I believe this is the only case that has 10% affordable housing and this level of environmental commitments. Um, and so with with that, we've got a case that's consistent with the land use map. Um, it addresses the neighbor concerns. It relocates a historic structure. Um, it uh adds the environmental commitments. And I did I forgot to mention this on the EAB slide. Um, but we did email uh a little over a week ago those updated EAB commitments to the EAB in the spirit of um them wanting to understand, you know, what's happening with cases after they provide recommendations. Um, and we didn't receive any any questions or comments from them. Um, but they do have that information. Then the transportation improvements, uh, the affordable housing, uh, and then staff is is still recommending approval and and so is the planning board. So, uh, we appreciate your time. We're happy to answer any questions, but respectfully request your approval. Thank you.

Mr. Carpenter, can you go back one slide, please?

Yep. just want to understand the 700,000 plus parks and recck free. What's the 700,000?

Yeah, that that's me trying to estimate, you know, what what the um the market value of that 1.6 acres will be. I I don't know what that is. Uh but it'll be the parks and recck fee will be offset by um the like like we said the market value of the the strip of land. So

So are are you saying 700,000 plus like so it's going to be north of 700 or are you saying

that's my estimate? Yeah, we don't know.

That's the park fee because like

No, no, no. No, sorry. Yeah. Yeah. No, it's 700k or more depending on the value of that of the land which we don't have yet.

Um, so I'm just trying to conceptualize the figures.

Other questions?

Um, yeah. Um, and this is question

for the traffic um engineer. And I have to admit I didn't memorize the previous staff report uh in its entirety, but um so it seems like the the TIA is projecting much more favorable conditions in this presentation than in the last presentation. And I'm not quite understanding what has materially changed to make it so.

Yeah. So, what was in the original TIA was the table on the right minus the bottom line. Um, and so we were looking at it. Um,

you're talking to a 50-year-old man like I cannot read that from.

Yeah. Sorry. So, so we were looking at the the delta our our impact still maintaining the level service E, but there were more delay. Um the big thing the big change there was we realized that that actually didn't account for the the right turn lane that came up through the conversations with NCDOT. Um and so that's where we've added that in. It was already a commitment. We just didn't have it conceptualized in the actual analysis. Yes, sir.

Yeah, this took me a bit to understand too. What happened was we submitted the TIA when we filed the the resoning application. Then the TIA recommended certain improvements which we added to our zoning case. staff, Apex staff reviewed those and and gave their recommendations for us to include in the putt text. Then DOT asked for a right turn lane on on New Hill Hollowman Road that was not recommended by our TIA. So we put that as as a we put that right turn lane in the PUD text as a condition. And so it was required even be even when we came into the March 24th council meeting but it wasn't in the analysis in the TIA and so it wasn't in being reflected in the level of service numbers. Yeah.

Um and so as far as the construction of these improvements is concerned mostly around US1 old US1 and new will H hallman um those are off site con or offsite improvements for you. Uh I understand you're sharing that with some of the other developments in the area. Have you been in collaboration with those other developers? Do you have a sense of where we are with things like property acquisition? Have you looked at property acquisition for especially that right turn lane that you are now committing to? Um what's kind of the status on on the actual feasibility of of getting these improvement bills because you know there's a heavy reliance on a lot of other property owners around that intersection. Yeah. Do you want

Yeah, I can talk about

So, yeah, we we have started looking conceptually um at at uh what those improvements look like. Um we have not gotten into like the full nitty-gritty detail design of of those improvements. Um and I believe we have started reaching out to uh some of those land owners. I I don't know um exactly where those conversations um stand, but yeah, you might have some more of that background with

Yeah. So, so we think right now that the the biggest pinch point uh for the biggest potential issue with rightway acquisition is for that right turn lane that we're talking about. Um because of the the barn, which is a historic structure that's right up at the rightway. If you drive through there, you see it right up at the road. Um and so we we drafted the condition to account for that, but because we know that might be an issue, we reached out to those property owners over a month ago, maybe two or three months ago now. Um we're still reaching out to them and we haven't gotten any response. Um but that that process will continue and and once we have uh the the final design of the turn land, which I think will happen later in master subdivision plan review,

um we'll be able to take that to them and make them a concrete offer to say, you know, we want to buy um this stretch of land to to build the turn lane. In terms of the other projects, um I know Newh Hill Commons and some of this is is estimating, but I know New Hill Commons is moving forward and so they would be with their site plan. So they would be doing uh you know, rightway acquisition again towards the end of their of their site plan review. Gracewood I I think is a little further along. I know because they um they acquired uh some rightaway at the ramp on old US1 from another property owner down there that that that I represent for some improvements with Gracewood. So So I know that Gracewood is and that was maybe a year ago. So they are in the process of acquiring um their rights of way. Uh but but I don't know the status of of each individual project, but but I do have that information.

Okay. Thank you. All right. Thanks for the information.

No one signed up for public hearing.

It's closed.

Public hearing from last.

Oh, that's right.

Yeah.

Close it last. Last meeting.

Last meeting. Uh well, I appreciate the work that you've done here. I think you addressed most of the points. Um I appreciate especially coming back with so many of the EAB conditions. I do interested in that that board uh having more of an impact and I think they they had a big impact on the quality here. See that?

Uh I want to echo that. I uh I truly appreciate the revised plan and the work that has come in it and the additional uh commitments that are being made here. Uh I have a couple concerns still though. Um you know one is that southern

track which on the land use map is slated for either you know um residential or commercial. Um, I think this this area lends itself really well for a kind of, you know, neighborhood commercial hub that prevents people from the west side of Apex that have to travel into town, you know, for basic services, you know, getting a haircut, going to the grocery store, whatever the case may be. Um, and I think we need more of those regional commercial hubs, right, to address some of the traffic impacts, you know, from developments in in the area. Um, we don't have a whole lot of commercial land available to us. Um, and so to sacrifice a good chunk of what could be commercial commercial zoning uh makes me a little bit hesitant to to be honest. The other concern I have is is you know still with with with traffic and especially you know where I was going with the property acquisition because the the way that the conditions are written is that if for whatever reason you are not able to acquire the the property then a fee in L would be paid to the town and now basically the town is on the hook to at some point in the future construct these um you know these road conditions. Um, and so we're leaving potentially leaving this intersection in its current state, you know, while adding traffic to to the mix. Um, you kind of addressed my concern of pushing kind of the bottleneck to the US1 um, you know, ramps. Uh, so with the uh, the DOT work that that we're now including here, um, that will offset that. Um, but I I'm I am concerned about this particular intersection that's that's on the screen. Um, because that's, you know, yes, we're making improvements, but we're still not improving the

intersection, right? It's still getting failing grades at at the end of the day. And then my last concern is is with the uh the parkland dedication. I understand that, you know, that sliver of land is is on our land use map as a, you know, potential park uh in in the future. um you know it's it's a very small section of what you know a much larger track would require to to actually make that a meaningful uh public utility public service and and so you know even though the the dedication is there you know I don't really see a feasible use of that in in the foreseeable future so yes we'll be having some some land there but no uh no way of funding um any of the um actual park buildouts that's that the area would would require. We got, you know, hundreds of millions of dollars of other, you know, parks and wreck investments sitting in front of the queue, right, that we have no feasible way of funding, you know, anytime soon. So, adding one more to to the mix, I'm not really sure if that's, you know, really helping, you know, the the public um with with that dedication of land. Um, so anyway, all that to say that I do appreciate all the concessions made. I'll let my other colleagues speak for now.

Well, I'll tell you that I I I appreciate I mean, I understand and can uh and appreciate my colleagues concerns. Um, I think on balance though, as we take a look at this project, we're getting an awful lot out of this. Um, I really do appreciate uh Mr. carpenter, the the the work you and your team have done in addressing, you know, concerns of the neighbors, our concerns with regard to affordable housing, our concerns with regard to transportation, our concerns with regard to parks and recreation, our concern, I could keep going on and on and on and on because there were a lot of concerns and you uh stepped forward and and and and had at least, you know, came towards us with

with with solution sets for each one of our uh concerns and I think that's something to be appreciated. Um, if anything, I I feel like this entire process has been one where I think where you started with the applicant in terms of this process and where we're ending up, I think is a dramatic change. I think there's been a lot of give. Um, I think we've had a lot of take on that as well. Um, and I I think that's something that uh should be at least recognized. Um and uh so I say thank you to that. Um you know, I'm excited about the the the the you know, the fact that you've been considering the parks and recreation aspects of this. Um giving us a a little bit of a leadway forward on on on one of our future park goals. I like the idea that you um are still addressing our concerns and and living up to our environ uh to our uh affordable housing plan. Um, and the part that I'm really excited about, I mean, you didn't meet all of our goals with regard to the environmental advisory board, but um, you know, I think it's it goes a long way. You went a long ways towards meeting a lot of the the big picture goals that the EAB um, has been pushing for. Um, and I think this is the sort of result that we like to see um, as we're making the environmental advisory board. um and their opinion a lot more salient to us um up here. So I I I would not I don't want to discourage this sort of movement in this sort of direction um particularly in the areas of really recognizing the opinion and the advice coming from the advisory board um on the environmental side. So, I I'm in support of this um and can appreciate the the the many steps that were taken by the applicant moving forward.

Anyone else?

Motion to approve.

All right, we have a motion second and

for both for both

and with this condition

with the condition. for a second. Any further discussion?

I just want to say I'm agree with Council Member Ziggerman on the concerns with traffic. I hope that we can be proactive um because that will lend to build more trust so that we can address some of the real issues that folks have. Uh, I mean, let's get this done in a way uh that anticipates and meets this before it's uh backed up on old US1. Um, I do want to say that when this project came to us uh the first time on March 24th, um it was we're in much better position now. appreciate the um adhering to most of the EAB's um conditions and the RCA uh commitment alongside the affordable housing um are two elements that I think uh we should continue to uh to encourage. And so I'll be voting in support.

All right. Have a motion second. All in favor say I.

I.

Oppose. All right. Motion carries. Thank you, Mr. Carpenter. Continue.

All right.

We have the RA3 proposed memorandum of understanding between North Carolina Children's Health.

You want to start it off, Mr. Boser? Okay.

Yes, sir. Thank you, Mayor. I'm going to start it off and then I'll invite Joanna up to give some additional comments. I want to start by saying uh we've had a great partnership so far with NC Children's. Uh this is an entity that is committed to the long-term presence in Apex. So, I think that lays the foundation for what you have in front of you. Uh, you've been teased on a couple of agendas in the past, but that was because we were still working through some of the additional details. Um, all the attorneys got together, so I will defer, if you have any legal questions, I'll defer to the brighter minds in the room on that. Uh, what you have before you is anou that's based on the discussions that we had with NC Children's during the site selection process. Uh this is a formalization of those discussions into a memorandum of understanding. There will be an additional agreement um after you adopt theou we will follow that at a subsequent meeting with additional details uh gets more granular with the next agreement after this. So this is kind of big picture commitments and then how it gets administered will will come before you. Uh the proposedou stays within the original framework that was before you and I'll kind of hit that first. Uh originally we committed to or spoke about $8 million over 20 years and then there was a $5 million reference to fee waivers for a total of $13 million uh wrapped in that commitment and there are some other details. Those were the the biggest parts of the agreement. Uh as the process has evolved, there have been some changes. Uh one example is um we learned from NC children's and from the state that how the ownership of the land will be retained by the state and that changes the entire inspection process. Uh so the town of Apex won't be inspecting the facilities like we first thought. Uh so that changed our thinking on some of the fees and how we approached that. Uh we also started to

get into um how we would plan for those fees and the timing and it really was driven by a construction schedule versus um kind of a stability of budgeting schedule and and that that caused some concern for us. Uh there were also um discussions about which fees and how they would be reimbursed and we came to the conclusion that most of the fees that they would be waving uh we would have to reimburse out of general fund dollars. So at the end of the day, it all became a general fund discussion. So with that in mind, uh we approached NC Children's about streamlining through theou and putting the eight and five into one what I'll call an amateurized schedule over a 20-year period. Uh because if you recall, the 8 million was over 20 years. The 5 million, it could come in the first three years. um if they build the build the facilities and the timing of those uh which could cause if we had a $2 million fee that we had to come up and cover all of a sudden that could be a little difficult for our budget. So by putting it all together in one basket and then amateurizing it over the 20 years which equates to a $650,000 annual commitment uh we felt like that streamlined it was more something we could depend on and and budget for and plan for. Uh there were some additional details related to staffing and as those have come forward practically uh with the positions we've brought before council before. One of those is the project coordinator uh which does work for the overall big branch basin that is already in place. Uh that came out of necessity with other projects that were coming forward. Uh and the one that most recently came before you was an additional planner allocation related to the work in Veridia and the surrounding area and also for NC children. So those will be memorialized through theou process but those two positions are already allocated and in place. There's also a reference in some of the documents we produced uh to the utility commitment uh and that is a reference to in our CIP. I think it was somewhere 40

plus million dollars. Um that is not attributable to just this project. That is to the entire basin. And as part of our discussions with the NC Children's, um we put that forward as a commitment for us towards this project and the surrounding area that that was already in place. Council had invested in this area um and in the overall basin. Uh so there's a reference to that, but it won't be in theou. But just so you're aware of that that dollar amount that we've put forward um to benefit partially to this project. Uh there are also um some additional details that again I'll defer to the legal staff on that, but the big picture I've covered there. Um and and the biggest kind of talking about the positives to our community and then I'll turn it over to Joanna to talk about some of the economic benefits. But to have this state-of-the-art children's hospital in our community um and and for those of you who've ever had a sick child and had to utilize a children's hospital, having this in Apex is invaluable to our residents. uh and and so much so that one of the criteria when they were going through the site selection process was proximity to an airport. And it's because so many people are going to come here to bring their kids to this hospital. And for us to have that in our own backyard for our residents, uh and you look at what we're putting out on an annual commitment, uh and we've we've talked about a 20-year, they're going to be here well beyond that 20-year period. Uh but the benefit that our residents have of having this 10 15 minutes away is is enormous. Uh, so I want to talk about that. First and foremost, the benefit to our residents of having this in our backyard. Um, the other is what we believe, and I'll ask Joanna to come up, the the spin-off development that's going to come as a result of this project being located here. It's a three plus billion dollar investment in our community. Um, and that's just for their project. Uh, all of the projects that will come and want to locate in proximity. Uh, and and you don't need to look very far to see other examples of when these facilities have located, what happens around them. Uh and and so I would ask Joanna to come up and if you

could talk about some of those details as well uh and then we can open up for questions.

Good evening.

Evening.

So this is going to be a little bit repetitive of some things you've heard before most of you, but it certainly does warrant uh a minute or two to just remind you of the economic impact that this project will bring. Um first and foremost wanted to state that a a project like this and in the economic development world we refer to this as a transformative project and when the reason we do that is because of the enormous impact that it will have and the positive the positive impact it will have and the sustainable impact it will have over as uh manager Bosber said over many many years. Um again uh the children's hospital will be a 230 acre campus. It will be anchored by a 500 bed pediatric hospital. It'll also include a behavioral health center, medical offices, and and much more. You've most of you have seen the site plan. It's it's it's pretty impressive. Um it will be the large it will be the second largest Oh, I wish it was the largest, but it'll be the second largest um freestanding children's hospital in the United States when it's all completed. Um as uh Mr. Vosberg said, is projected investment is three billion with a B. Um so that is u again just huge. expected to generate about 3,000 jobs during the construction phase and that'll be, you know, about years five through seven um during buildout and then plus an additional 5,000 jobs permanent that will actually be across that whole 230 acres. Um many of you were here in this room on July 10th, 2025 when we had the press conference when uh Children's announced that Apex was the chosen location for this project. And at that time we were um honored to have North County Secretary uh Lee Liy, Secretary of Commerce Lee Liy here with us. And I want to just quote what he said that day. He said, "This is one of the largest economic projects in the state's history. We know about at least 8,000 direct jobs," he said. But how about the 18,000 indirect jobs that will be

witnessed over the many years moving forward? End quote. Um so again this investment uh for the town the that the town is proposing uh here before you tonight um in supporting this project it's extremely justifiable when you consider the sheer magnitude of what that return on your investment will be and you know we are all going to benefit from this not just one um but but all so happy to answer any questions for you but again this you know all the ancillary things that will come again it's not just this project with these numbers it's all the trickle down effect the vert vertical integration of what's to come um for years and years and years and you know and also the medical field is very highly recession proof.

Good point.

Happy to answer any questions.

No question. Just just want to kind of second some of these these things that have been said. Um I live in Cleveland for uh a while. Um and the transformative nature of a hospital is you know very visible if you go visit Cleveland and look at you know where the Cleveland Clinic is located. It was the blight of Cleveland. And if you look at the area now, uh it is prospering. You know, the the hospital system continues to grow like all these, you know, auxilary services that that are popping up in in in the vicinity uh bringing a lot of economic benefits to uh not just the area, the region. And people do travel from all over the world to uh to visit, you know, these kinds of hospitals. Um and so um we've gotten some some comments from the public as to you know what you know why we would be investing in a project like this especially from the likes of of Duke Health and uh and um UNCC who have you know large endowments and and all that right do we really need to you know what what difference does $13 million

make um you know it's a fair question but at the end of the day if you look at the overall benefit that this brings to to the town Um, I think that's a that's a drop in the plate of what we're going to get in in return.

The fact that's advertised over 20 years, I think is really helpful. Um, I just want to make sure one thing is clear to the public and watching this later and I think you hinted at this. Um, people should be aware this is not the first time we've seen this agreement. It's first time we're discussing it publicly, but this has been a lot of conversations, economic development, um, with council. We've been involved every step of the way. Now is the time when it's coming out for approval because staff has has done the work to to get the contract written. So this is not something that we're seeing for the first time today at all. Council's been involved, you know, before the current council got here. We talked about this, you know, a long time. So just want to make that clear. And uh we're all big supporters of the project. I think this thisou reflects our commitment. I know it's, you know, not going to fund the $3 billion project, $3 billion hospital, but for a municipality, I think to step up like this, um, I hope that the hospital and others watching take away just the commitment that the town of Apex has, that the leadership here has, the elected officials have to this project and and what it's going to bring uh to our community, to Wake County, and to North Carolina. And I want to I'll echo what my colleagues have said, but I think I want to do kind of do three things here. Uh first thing is let's demystify what this is. I mean this project has been a conversation piece on council. I know it's been on many agenda uh you know as far as May of last year and before then this has been a topic of conversation. What thisou does is this is just the memorialization and the next step in the larger process. This isn't some sinister plan to try to,

you know, work behind anyone's back. In fact, the brilliance of an MLOU is that everyone gets to see the terms now. Everyone gets an opportunity to see what's there. And that is a great deal of access that the community gets in playing a role in this. This is something as my colleague said is something that we've been working towards and moving forward to and isn't even the last step. After we're done with this memorandum of understanding, which is just the first step as we start to contractualize this whole thing, we're going to go right back into another set of contracts where we're going to get into the granular details of what each party's role is going to be. But what thisou does is it is an explanation and a roadmap for how the town is going to be involved in the various aspects of how this entire enterprise is going to come down. And we've all heard and are aware of all the benefits that we get out of this entire enterprise. But the purpose of this MOU is to help explain and start to memorialize the things that both all the parties are going to be agreeing to. This isn't a sinister plan to try to hide anything. I appreciate Manager Vossberg uh moving this from consent, but I will be the first to tell you I don't think it was really necessary because we're basically telling you to go and do the things that we've already told you to do. So, I appreciate you doing that, but in my opinion, I don't think it was an absolutely necessary thing. So, let's demestify theou. Let's explain the process. Negotiations and conversations have been taking place with a lot of parties about this. Thisou is where we get all get a chance to say, you said this, you said this, you said this. Let's put it down and then we'll use that as the basis of

creating our contract later. The brilliance of anou is that it gives people an opportunity to see what it is that we as a town have made commitments for. I like the idea of advertising this over time because it makes it much easier for us to plan. The fact that we're writing that down shows that we're losing a lot of thought on that. There'll be other details that are within this. But once again, this is just the next step in the process. And we're essentially giving telling Randy, "Go sign the document that we told you to go and sign when we do theou." So, let's talk about the next big part. What happens next? Well, theou will help explain a lot about what's going to happen next. There will be more contracts. There will be more conversations that will take place. But I think the important thing to understand is that the process is open. Everyone gets a chance to see it. Everyone gets to understand that we're playing a role in this and we're not being steamrolled by Duke or by ch you know the go folks over in Chapel Hill or even at the general assembly. This is one of the few times that we are seeing public private cooperation at the state and national level at the local level. It's a beautiful thing. Beautiful thing. And because it's a beautiful thing, it's for a beautiful purpose. Many people get in front of us and they talk about the impact of various policies on children, on the kids, and things of that nature. This is an exact exact purpose of what we want to do when we're trying to take care of kids in our community and around the world. So, thisou is something that's a necessary thing to get done in order to move us forward. We know the economic benefits and thank you to Joanna and your team for making sure that that's always in the forefront. But to me, this is a simple process. We're telling Randy to sign the paperwork and do what we already told

him to do. And to me, that's an easy vote for me.

Yeah, I was going to say this is an easy vote. I think it was um you I agree that it wasn't necessary to pull from consent, but I appreciate it just for um uh the opportunity to educate a little bit and talk about what this means. Um and I will speak just for a second about from the taxpayers perspective. to uh Joanna's point, this is the deal of a a decade if not more, right? I mean, this is other towns and cities would have loved for this to have happened because every dollar we're investing, we're getting much more out of it. Um, and so that 650,000 uh over 20 years is going to pay dividends. Um, and then I just also wanted to reiterate what you said about um, what Secretary Lily said in regard to um, the real uh, economic impacts go beyond the direct. It goes to the indirect. Um, it goes to uh, uh, all of the um, branding and marketing. Uh, and and this hospital is just perfect for Apex. So, thank you for all your hard work and thank you for uh your hard work uh manager of Osberg and and to all staff.

I want to thank um Joanna and your economic development team and our uh town manager um Bossburg um this children's hospital approved during my campaign. I have not become the council yet. But I remember I was so excited really when I uh you know I read read the news and learn about it. I was so proud right? I told everyone like um my friend living Kerry like rally said

it's in Apex. It's in Apex, you know, um the 8,000 direct jobs, uh 18,000 indirect jobs and also all the, you know, um supporting, you know, restaurants, uh hotels, residential areas around that children's hospital. It brings to Apex um enormous, you know, uh benefits, right, and tax dollars. Um it's, you know, its impact is long. I mean last maybe u 50 years 100 years you know to our residents we have a house paid off children's house paid off right in our neighborhood that's amazing yeah and $3 billion investment I you know I guess uh all other cities everywhere would kill to have it right yes so thisou um just to make it clear, you know, everybody, you have to do this, we have to do this, you know, we are agree with this. And in terms of that $13 million, we agreed to, you know, um, invest. I think um, it worth, you know, um, the benefits from this children's hospital has much more, you know, u many times of returns than this $13 million. So long-term, you know, benefits, long-term economic benefits both um for the town, for we county, for the state. It's amazing. Thank you.

All right. I think we're ready to move forward.

I'll make a motion to approve this.

Second.

All right. So, we'll give it to She's on it.

Second. Motion move. Second. All in favor say I. I. Motion carries. Thank y'all. Appreciate everything.

All right.

Thank you, Mayor. I I just wanted to say one more thing too. I wanted to pass kudos to legal Lori and and Brian

extensive work on this agreement too.

Yep. Absolutely.

Yeah. Can't forget the lawyers.

I mean you could say that.

All right. We're moving on to uh motion to go into close session for four items.

Actually, mayor, um it's a small point order, a little pedantic, but our rules do require us to adjourn at 11 o'clock.

That's right. So, we need a we need a motion to um I'll make a motion to fix the time to adjourn to 11:30.

Well, we could have got here at 10:45, but

All right, there's a motion 30 seconds. All in favor say I. I.

Motion carries. All right,

motion close session.

Second.

Second. Gray. All in favor say I. I. Motion carries. Going to close session. Very aggressive. He's basically doing that.

We do it right now. Do it right now. Resolution

camera.

Yeah, he said we're good.

It's 11:29.

I got a motion. Motion, mayor, to approve a resolution by the town of Apex concerning authorized execution of opioid settlements with six remaining defendants.

I have a motion.

Second.

Second. Ziggler. All in favor say I.

I. Motion carries. Any further business? Hearing none. It's 11:29. He's a German that