The Franklin Town Council met on Monday, March 4, 2019, for their regular monthly meeting. A gavel-to-gavel video and supporting documentation have been embedded in this article so you can see exactly what transpired during the meeting.
Public Agenda
Town of Franklin Council Meeting
Agenda
March 4, 2019 | 6:00 p.m.
1. Call to Order - Mayor Bob Scott
2. Pledge of Allegiance - Vice Mayor Barbara McRae
3. Adoption of the March 4, 2019 Town Council Agenda
4. Approval of Consent Agenda for March 4, 2019
A.) Approval of the February 4, 2019 Town Council Minutes
B.) Forward Re-Zoning Petition to Town Planning Board
C.) Street Closing Request for Holly Springs Church
D.) Street Closing Request for Vietnam Veterans
5. Public Hearing 6:05 p.m. for Multi-Tenant Sign Amendment
6. Public Session
7. New Business
A.) Board Action on Multi-Tenant Sign Amendment - Town Council
B.) Street Closing Request for Springtopia II - Jimbo Ledford
C.) Guardrail Request for South Patton Avenue - Jimbo Ledford & Bill Krapek
D.) Discussion on Town of Franklin Employee Retirement Appreciation - Town Manager Summer Woodard
E.) Update on NCDOT Main Street Project - Town Engineer Nathanael Moore
F.) Update from Franklin Fire & Rescue Department - Chief Matthew Breedlove
G.) Discussion on Nikwasi Initiative Proposal -Vice Mayor Barbara McRae
8. Legal
A.) Duke Energy Line Crossing Agreement - Town Attorney John Henning Jr.
B.) Discussion on Town of Franklin Parking Schedule Chapter 73 and Chapter 75 - Town Attorney John Henning Jr.
9. Adjourn
Video
Media Roll Call
(media outlets that had representatives present have been posted below)
Macon Media
BPR/WCQS-FM
Macon County News and Shopping Guide
The Franklin Prrss
WNCC-FM/WFSC-AM
Elected Critters
(elected officials not serving on this board)
None
Statement of Barbara McRae on Nikwasi Initiative Seeking to Take Ownership of the Nikwasi Mound
We Are All People of the Mountains
Creating a partnership around Nikwasi Mound
Background
Two hundred years ago, the Native people living in present Macon County suffered a terrible wrong with the loss of their homelands.
The Treaty by which that occurred allowed Cherokees who wished to remain and become citizens to claim reserves of 640 acres around their homesteads. Hoping to preserve the places most dear to them, the Cherokee pursued a policy of claiming parcels that included those sites. One of their most sacred places, Nikwasi Mound, was claimed by a Cherokee woman, Na-ha, or Rebecca, and her husband Gideon Morris.
After the loss of their territory, the Cherokee suffered a further insult. The treaty that had granted individual reserves was flagrantly ignored. The head of the survey party appointed by the State personally burned Rebecca and Gideon off their land and forced them to abandon it.
Rebecca sued the federal government. The courts supported her claim and granted cash compensation to the Morrises and the other reservees who had suffered losses.
They did not get their land, or their sacred places back.
Not all the settlers approved of the violent action that cost the Morrises their reserve. Jesse Siler, who was among the richest of the newcomers, became a friend and ally when they moved to a house in the little village of Franklin, near his home. He later acquired the Morris reserve. He and his descendants cared for the mound while it remained in their family.
Many years later, in the 1940s, two of Siler’s descendants, Weimar Jones and Bob Sloan, were leaders in a campaign to save the Mound from the commercial development that began after World War II. Since their successful efforts in 1946, the Mound has been owned by, and tended by, the Town of Franklin.
During the 19th century, the Mound was a prominent landscape feature. It stood in a field near the river, and the State Road passed by on the north side. Travelers could not help but note it, and all travel writers who came through the region mentioned its antiquity and uniqueness in admiring terms.
The 20th century was not so kind. Plowing and weather caused some erosion, and some small digs occurred. The fields were infilled to raise the bottomland above flood stage. Today, the Mound is smaller than it was in 1820. It appears even smaller than it is because some of the base is under many feet of fill. Commercial development has crowded it and reduced its importance on the landscape. But, it is still an impressive presence. It still deeply moves people who know its history, especially those whose ancestors lived in its shadow and gathered with one another in the town house on its summit.
Descendants of the pioneers also have strong attachments to the Mound, rooted in 200 years of their own history. Those feelings are especially strong among those who helped to preserve the ancient place, or whose families were involved in that effort.
This unique and important site holds layer upon layer of history and prehistory – history that is overlaid by powerful emotions and deep spiritual beliefs.
A new beginning
Today, we have an opportunity to bring this story full circle in a manner that honors the original inhabitants of our town and the settlers who followed them here – but also honors the descendants of both groups, who are still here.
Deeding Nikwasi Mound to Nikwasi Initiative Inc. will give the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians joint ownership with us and ensure that, in perpetuity, they share equally with us in its care and preservation.
Nikwasi Initiative has been working since 2013 to build friendships between the people of Franklin and Macon County, and our Cherokee neighbors.
It has been a richly rewarding process. We have learned how much we have in common.
Many in our region share more than our common humanity – many have family bonds that have remained strong through the generations. Many people in Franklin and Macon County have Cherokee ancestry, and many Cherokee have roots among the early settlers.
Regardless of where we came from, or what our individual stories and ancestry may be, we are all people of the mountains.
We share this beautiful place where we are blessed to live. To keep it beautiful, healthy, and prosperous, we need each other.
Most of us have few opportunities in our lives to do something truly meaningful. Tonight, we have such an opportunity. We can take a step beyond the symbolic “extending the hand of friendship” and offer concrete proof that we are friends and intend to develop our friendship with our neighbors across the hills.
This is an historic moment.
The next 200 years start now. We can begin writing a new history based on mutual support, respect, and friendship. Those are enormously powerful resources that can bring a brighter future to all of us.
Respectfully submitted,
Barbara McRae
Vice-Mayor — Town of Franklin
About Nikwasi Initiative Inc.
Nikwasi Initiative is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, organized as a Community Development Organization. Its partners are the Town of Franklin, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, Macon County, and Mainspring Conservation Trust. The board is made up of representatives of all the partners, and all have contributed financial support to its operation.
Nikwasi Initiative was organized in 2013 as Mountain Partners. Its goal was to nurture understanding and reconciliation between the people of Franklin and Macon County and the Eastern Band. The group incorporated and won nonprofit status in 2018.
The partnership has pursued development of the Cherokee Heritage Corridor, a trail linking significant Native American sites. Efforts by Mainspring to restore brownfield sites and improve properties along the Little Tennessee River, near the Mound, inspired further attention to Nikwasi. The group has continued to work on ways the Mound can be enhanced and interpreted for visitors as part of the Corridor. A kiosk with interpretive panels will be erected this spring as part of that process
The Eastern Band has furthered efforts to enhance the area around the Mound through a significant investment in adjoining property. Nikwasi Initiative has been an active partner in discussions relating to a possible museum annex/visitors center there.
As these efforts focus strongly on revitalization of this important section of Franklin, the potential economic benefit to the town and county is enormous.
Agenda Packet
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Published at 11:00am on Tuesday, March 5, 2019
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