Matthews Morning Minute: September 18, 2018

News About Town: In August the Board of Commissioners delayed until October 8 to vote on an Overlay district for 3 Small Area Plans located around Matthews. The districts include the Entertainment District (which includes acreage around the Sportsplex), John Street/Outerloop (largely undeveloped property outside of 485), and Monroe Road Corridor (light industrial uses along Monroe Road around Family Dollar). The purpose of Small Area Plan Overlays (SAP-O) is to give the town enforcement capability with the three Small Area Plan policies. The Planning Department published an Impact by Area pdf, a 21-page detailed document further explaining the roles of SAP-Os. Public comments and concerns can be found here. The Town is hosting a meeting regarding the Small Area Plan Overlay on September 22 from 9 AM until noon. The Board will vote on the Overlay at the regularly scheduled Council meeting Oct 8.

News Above Town: Florence has moved along, but is the rain over? The Magic 8 Ball says outlook good; The Weather Channel shows a break in the downpour, but the rain will start back up next week. As for today, appreciate clearer skies, lower humidity, and a high around 88.

One Good Thing: Beantown Tavern Annual Golf Tournament takes place Monday, September 24, 2018. Cost is $125 per player and includes green fees, balls, and a cart as well as three meals (one of which is dinner at Beantown) and a vodka bar. Call 704-849-2023 for more information.

Matthews Morning Minute, September 11, 2018

News About Town: Earlier this year the  Board of Commissioners approved FY 2018-19 Town Budget, which included a 1.5-cent property tax increase. A portion of this tax increase was designated to fund 10 full-time employees for the  Matthews Fire Department. The Fire Department is hosting a recruitment open house on Saturday, October 13, 2018 from 10 AM til 1 PM.

News Above Town: The thunderstorms continue as reminders of Hurricane Florence. Town Officials are working with state and local partners to stay informed and ensure the town is prepared for the storm.

News Around Town: The Town is holding a Finest Fido contest. Check out the fabbest five pups in Matthews then “like” your favorite to vote.

One Good Thing: Seven members of the Matthews Fire & EMS Department participated in The 2018 Charlotte Firefighters 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb.

Each firefighter climbed the equivalent of the 110 stories of the World Trade Center to honor fallen heroes from the September 11, 2001 attack on the Twin Towers.

September 10 Board of Commissioners Meeting

Prior to the regularly scheduled Town Council meeting, the Board of Commissioners will meet with Town Attorney Charles Buckley and town staff to discuss conditional zoning, conflicts of interest, and methods for streamlining meetings (also discussed as Item 9B in the previous council meeting pgs 70-72).

Large hardwoods are invaluable to Matthews' identity. The Appearance and Tree Board works to maintain our tree canopy.

On the agenda for the September 10, 2018 Board of Commissioners Meeting are a few items of note:

• The Planning Board will discuss by-right zoning;

• The Matthews Appearance and Tree Board has been busy;

• The Board of Commissioners will consider appointing Scott Query, son of commissioner Kress Query, to the Planning Board;

• The Board will review the Town's response letter to NCDOT's plans for widening of Highway 51.

Take Me To Your Leaders: Meet your mayor

As Mayor of Matthews, I want to maintain our small town appeal by supporting all of the great things that make us a desirable community. I look forward to guiding us in making smart decisions as we evolve and continue to be the greatest town in North Carolina.

Matthews operates as a municipal government with council-manager leadership. A mayor is an elected leader of a municipal government. Under Council-Manager organization, though, the mayor is a symbolic figurehead, but does not hold more authority than other Board of Commissioners.

Who is the mayor of Matthews?

According to the town website, Mayor Paul Bailey received a BS in mechanical engineering from NC State, and a masters in mechanical engineering at the University of South Carolina. He's married and has 3 children and 3 grandchildren. Paul and his wife Sherrie have lived in Matthews for 34 years. Previously Bailey served on Matthews Board of Commissioners and the CMS Board of Education before being elected Mayor of Matthews in 2017.

What is the mayor's role in Matthews?

The Matthews Board of Commissioners use majority vote to approve or reject policies, adopt resolutions, among other duties for town-wide adoption. The mayor is a first among equals on the city council and his vote does not hold greater weight than other members of the Board. The mayor is, however, the first point of contact for the Town Manager when critical information should be conveyed to the Board. The mayor leads and mediates public meetings.

The Matthews Mayor is a part-time position, has a salary of $19,650 annually and a technology allowance of $3,600 per term. The position does not include benefits. 

Throwback Thursday: What is your vision for Matthews? (circa 2005)

With permission, The Beacon is archiving past issues of Matthews News and Record (more recently named The Matthews Record) articles online. Throwback Thursday articles will include relevant content still facing Matthews today. This article was originally published June 16, 2005.

 More than 300 Matthews citizens flocked to city hall last week to express their personal visions for the future of their town. Neighborhoods and housing, cultural arts and historical preservation, schools, parks and recreation, town services, air and water quality - all of these aspects of the quality of life and character of the community were explored during this lively town meeting. 

Glenn Harbeck of Harbeck and Associates, commissioned by the town to help create a "vision" to direct future development, facilitated the session, traveling among the table groupings to discern what were residents' favorite streets, where they liked to walk, and what single issue was of most concern.

At Commissioner James Taylor's table, residents expressed concerns about keeping Matthews a "quaint" town, controlling traffic, offering diverse retail and entertainment options, finishing connector streets, and saving trees. In another group, citizens were heard questioning downtown vacancies, overcrowded housing developments, traffic congestion, remaining part of the county school system, and the loss of ties to the area farming community. 

“residents expressed concerns about keeping Matthews a “quaint” town, controlling traffic, offering diverse retail and entertainment options, finishing connector streets, and saving trees.”

At the end of the evening, Harbeck observed that it didn't matter at what table he sat - the concerns expressed were universal. He noted that every citizen's sentiments will be entered into a database, sorted by category, and posted to the town's website. The information will be analyzed and vision statement drafted to reflection desires and concerns. Later this summer, he said, a proposed vision will be presented to residents. 

Take Me to Your Leaders, Town Council Edition

Matthews operates under a council-manager governance; this means we have a Town Manager who works alongside the Board of Commissioners (also known as Town Council).

Do you know who is on the Board of Commissioners and what their jobs are? 

Matthews is governed by a Mayor and a six-member Board of Commissioners. There are 2 political races to fill these roles: one for Mayor and a separate for the 6-seat Board of Commissioners.  Both mayor and the board are elected every 2 years in a non-partisan race, and all of the seats are at-large, meaning no member of the board represents one segment of Matthews. The council member with the greatest number of votes is appointed as Mayor Pro Tem and serves as mayor in the absence of the elected mayor.

What do they do? The Board of Commissioners works in conjunction with the Town Staff to ensure all aspects of the town run smoothly. The Board's job is, among other things, to provide leadership by representing their constituents, provide direction toward the Town's future, and approve the annual budget with consideration for property tax rates. 

Currently serving on the board are (pictured below from left to right) Commissioners Chris Melton, John Urban, Commissioner and Mayor Pro Tem John Higdon, Mayor Paul Bailey, Commissioners Jeff Miller, Kress Query, and Barbara Dement. Image source Town of Matthews website

Serving on the Matthews Board of Commissioners is a part-time position, has a salary of $5,500 annually and a technology allowance of $3,600 per term. The position does not include benefits. 

Town Council meetings open to the public and are held the second and fourth Mondays of every month at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 232 Matthews Station Street. If you cannot attend a council meeting, recordings are available by request, from Town Clerk Lori Canapinno. 
 

August 27 Board of Commissioners Meeting

On the agenda for the August 27, 2018 Board of Commissioners Meeting are a few items of note. 

• The concept plan for Purser Halsey Park with a modern agrarian theme will be presented. Among other amenities, this plan includes a natural play area, veterans recognition and memorial, as well as a 5 mile bike trail.

• The Board will consider methods for streamlining of future Town Council meetings. These methods include limiting time for discussion on certain items, earlier start times for meetings, and limiting number of items on the agenda.

• The Board will also consider improvements to town hall which include fiberglass columns to replace the current columns and new handrails. The proposed budget is $80,000.

June 11 Board of Commissioners Meeting

On the agenda for the June 11, 2018 Board of Commissioners Meeting are a few items of note.

As is typical for meetings which include Planning and Zoning presentations, the meeting promises to be lengthy. Of note is the annual extension of the sunset clause for trailer use at Elizabeth Lane Elementary. Also included is a text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance to create 3 Small Area Plan Overlays: Monroe Road, East John St, and the Entertainment District. 

On a heart-warming note, the Board will consider designating parking for veterans and Purple Heart recipients. 

Under new business is listed: Consider Adoption of FY 2018-19 General Fund and Tourism Budget Ordinance, Capital Outlay/Equipment Plan and Fee Schedule. TBH I have no idea what that even means, so I guess it's time to learn. 

Matthews Town Budget Fiscal year 18/19: Funding the Firemen

The next #MatthewsNC Town Council meeting is Tuesday, May 29 in Town Hall.

Items of note: This meeting will include a public comment period for the FY 18-19 budget.

The proposed budget includes a 1.5-cent property tax increase which would be designated to fund 10 full-time employees for the  Matthews Fire Department.

What does this mean?

• An increase of 1.5-cent would increase the property tax bill on a $300,000 home by $45 annually and raises an additional $525,000 in revenue. The increase could potentially be offset by savings with insurance.

What else is in the budget?

• $30,000 for economic development ($20,000 given to nonprofit Red Brick Partnership and $10,000 toward economic events and projects.)

• The town received $1,000,000 for park improvements. (It is anticipated this will go toward 20 acres of open space at McKee and Pleasant Plains, adjacent to the Erickson Development, but is not necessarily ear-marked for that particular project.)