Franklin Town Board of Aldermen Meeting 10-03-2011

**10-04-2011 at 4.00pm** Here is the video of last nights meeting:





**10.00pm** Here is the audio of tonight's meeting.

Download MP3 (right click to download)



The Franklin Town Board of Aldermen will be meeting tonight at 7.00pm in the Town Hall. I will be there to tweet the meeting and record video, but will not be providing live video. You may follow my tweets at #MaconGov, using your favorite twitter client, or on the widget below. Once the meeting is over, I will replace the widget with a record of my tweets from the meeting, and I will upload video and audio from the meeting as soon as I am able to process it. Meanwhile, you can watch the last meeting.

Town of Franklin Board of Aldermen

Agenda

October 3, 2011

7 p.m.

1. Call to order -Mayor Collins

2. Public hearing 7:05 p.m. for Chuck Holland ‘s special-use application

3. Public hearing 7:10 p.m. for Mildred Rice, et. al. (Windy Gap) re-zoning request

4. Set public hearing for Verizon wireless cell tower site “Wild Mint” at the end of Gaston Street

5. Approval of September 6, 2011 meeting minutes

6. Public Session

7. Board consideration on the following items:
    A.) Chuck Holland’s special-use application
    B.) Mildred Rice, et.al. (Windy Gap) re-zoning request

8. Proclamation for Mental Illness Awareness Week- Debbie Roberts

9. Informational briefing on Angel Medical Center and Mission Hospital merger- Tim Hubbs

10. Discussion on Duke re-licensing of Lake Emory- John Boaze

11. Water and Sewer
     A.) Authorizing resolution by the Town of Franklin to apply for Rural Center funds
     B.) Bib preparation approval for sewer plant renovation project

12. Fire Department
     A.) Resolution adopting Hazard Mitigation Plan for the Town of Franklin
     B.) Financing for fire equipment- Chief Warren Cabe

13. Appointment of Matt Bateman to fill vacancy on the TDA board for tourism related business- Mike Grubermann

14. Committee reports; Nikwasi Indian Mound

15. Adjourn

Monthly Reports enclosed in agenda packet (I will try to post a PDF of the agenda packet as soon as I can)


Here are my tweets from the meeting in reverse chronological order:

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov The Franklin Town Board of Aldermen have adjourned. I will try to get the video out as soon as possible

8.50pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Mayor Collins is discussing capping the Nikwasi Indian Mound with 18 inched of dirt and "Love Grass", other groundskeeping issues

8.48pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Mayor Collins limits discussion to Matt Bateman's approval or not. Passes 6-1 Scott voting against.

8.46pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov A motion has been made to appoint Matt Bateman to the TDA. Alderman Sissy Patillo is discussing methods of correcting the problems

8.43pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#maconGov There is considerable back and forth on the TDA and whether or not to table the appointment to get the TDA's attention

8.42pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Alderman Bob Scott said that he wants to table all appointments to the board until concerns are met regarding the TDA conduct

8.38pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Alderman Bob Scott said that the TDA has not been filing the quarterly or annual reports as required by town ordinance

8.36pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Alderman Bob Scott is expressing concerns about the TDA Board...esp a vote by email, which is prohibited by law.

8.35pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Town Planner Mike Gruberman has recommended the appointment of Matt Batemen to fill a vacancy on the TDA Board

8.34pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov The Franklin Aldermen have approved the request of Franklin Fire Dept request to lease 2 apparatus for $104,117 for 10 years

8.32pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov I think it is odd that "rare or endangered species" always seem to turn up when something is going to be built or re-licensed.

8.00pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Boaze is listing all the rare & endangered plant & animal species that will have to be accounted for if the Dam is re-licensed

7.59pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov John Boaze is a consultant with Fish & Wildlife associates bit.ly/ngLEqK who are advising th… (cont)deck.ly/~RqukE

7.58pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Hubbs says that the last three years have been financially the worst in the hospital's history. Th… (cont)deck.ly/~trIh1

7.51pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Chuck Holland gave the Town Board the hairy eyeball as he left the Town Hall.

7.33pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Summer Woodard, Assistant to Sam Greenwood, is updating the Board on the specifics of the Chuck Holland special use permit

7.25pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Town Planner Mike Gruberman suggests that the public hearing be set for the Nov 7th, 2011 meeting of the Town Board

7.23pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Chuck Holland says that between the Town of Franklin and Macon County, the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing

7.18pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Two more neighbors of the Chuck Holland mobile home park have relayed problems with water runoff, with noise

7.11pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Another neighbor says that runoff from the property causes damage to her property, is concerned what more would do

7.10pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov A resident near Chuck Holland's mobile home park is bringing a water runoff problem at the construction site to attention

7.09pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Mayor Collins has opened a public hearing for Chuck Holland's special use application

7.07pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov The Franklin Town Board of Aldermen have passed a resolution proclaming this week, "Mental Illness awareness Week"

7.05pm 

»

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Debbie Roberts is relaying her struggle with mental illness and NAMI

7.04pm Favorite Reply Delete

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Debbie Roberts is now before the Town Board regarding a Proclamation for Mental Awareness Week

7.02pm 

wpig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov The minutes from the Septmeber 6 & 19, 2011 meetings of the Town Board have been approved

7.00pm

ThunderPig Bobby Coggins 

#MaconGov Here is the agenda for tonight's meeting of the Franklin Town Board of Aldermen is.gd/11F1003

7.00pm 

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Buncombe County Planning Board 10-03-2011

The Buncombe County Planning Board met earlier today and here is the video of that meeting, along with the agenda:

Agenda for

Buncombe County Planning Board  

October 3, 2011

9:30 a.m.

30 Valley Street

Asheville, NC  

1. Call to Order


2. Approval of Agenda


3. Approval of Minutes
    a. September 19, 2011


4. Public Hearing
    a. Administrative Changes to the Zoning Ordinance (ZPH2011‐00083) [see PDF below]


5. Discussion of Lighting Standards to be included in the Zoning Ordinance


6. Public Comment


7. Adjourn






Agenda Item 4a:


Buncombe County Planning Board AdminChanges

Previously:

Buncombe County Planning Board 09-19-2011

I have also posted this information on my social network, Conservative Thunder.

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NC General Assembly 10-03-2011 Legislative Calendar Links to Bill Texts and Live Audio Feeds

The North Carolina General Assembly will convene today in accordance with the Adjournment Resolution here is the schedule for today. There is only one committee meeting today and no session of the NC Senate or the NC House are scheduled for today. 



If you cannot listen to these meetings live, check back later to see if I have. I currently plan to listen to the press conferences. If I do, I'll post the audio (and a download link) for the meeting at the top of this page. You can also follow what is happening in the NC General Assembly by keeping an eye on the hashtag #ncga on Twitter.


If I haven't been able to listen, please check with Voter Radio. You should already be subscribing to their podcasts anyway. I do. ???


Link for audio webcasts by room. The old linking system no longer works.

Here is the legislative calendar with more details:

1:00 PM

Education Oversight Committee, Joint Legislative DRAFT AGENDA October 4, 2011 1:00 P.M., ROOM 643 Legislative Office Building Senator Tillman, presiding Welcome and Introductions Senator Tillman, Co-Chair Representative Holloway, Co-Chair Representative Johnson, Co-Chair Authorizing Legislation/Reports/Education Summaries (Behind Tab 2) Drupti Chauhan, Committee Staff Community College Workforce Development Programs (Behind Tab 4) Scott Ralls, President, North Carolina Community College System Alternative Assessment Strategies:  Implementation of HB 48 and SB 479  (Behind Tab 6) Dr. June Atkinson, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Digital Textbooks (Behind Tab 5) Neill Kimrey, Director of Instructional Technology, Department of Public Instruction Scott Smith, Chief Technology Officer, Mooresville Graded School District

643 LOB

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Red Skies in the Morning

Photo taken this past Sunday in Franklin, NC.

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See The Chinese Space Station Over WNC October 2-8, 2011

**October 4, 2011** I saw, but was not able to capture the passage of Tiangong 1 on film Sunday night, but tonight (Tuesday) I was more fortunate. Here is the time exposure of Tiangong 1 passing through the constellation Cephus. The bright star it passes close to 1st (on the upper left) is Alpha Cephei (Alderamin), a star that is about 49 light years away and it will become the north star around the year 7500 AD. The second bright star (to the right of the 1st and closer to the center of the photo) is Mu Cephei (Herschel's Garnet Star). It is a red supergiant star more than a 1,000 light years away.

The photo was created by a 16 second exposure using my Kodak Z950, basically an advanced point and shoot camera.


It was exciting to see a space station overhead, even if it was not built by America. Perhaps the entry of the Chinese will spur our nation into a new space race...one that will last longer and achieve more than the last space race that dead ended in the shuttle program.

The Chinese have launched a space station test module called Tiangong 1 that will serve as a docking target for the upcoming Shenzhou 8, 9 and 10 manned missions, during which they will practice extended stays in orbit to prepare for the construction of more advanced space stations in the near future. Learn more about it at Wikipedia.


The station will be making a series of passes over North America this week that will visible in the evenings. I have a chart below for my location in western North Carolina, cribbed from Heavens Above.


Click on the date to get a star chart and other pass details for Franklin, NC.

Date	Mag	Starts			Max. altitude			Ends
		Time	Alt.	Az.	Time	Alt.	Az.	Time	Alt.	Az.
2 Oct	0.4	20:44:01	10	NW	20:46:22	44	NNW	20:46:22	44	NNW
3 Oct	1.0	19:31:41	10	NW	19:34:11	26	NNE	19:36:40	10	ENE
3 Oct	2.1	21:07:19	10	WNW	21:08:41	24	W	21:08:41	24	W
4 Oct	-0.2	19:54:43	10	WNW	19:57:32	57	NNE	19:59:35	16	E
5 Oct	0.5	20:17:52	10	WNW	20:20:36	44	SSW	20:21:55	24	SSE
6 Oct	2.4	20:41:44	10	WSW	20:43:22	14	SW	20:44:18	13	SSW
7 Oct	0.9	19:27:59	10	WNW	19:30:40	38	SSW	19:33:20	10	SE
8 Oct	2.8	19:51:52	10	WSW	19:53:12	13	SW	19:54:31	10	SSW

The pass tonight will eise from the northeastern horizon up through the tail section of Ursa Major (Big Dipper) to near Ursa Minor (Little Dipper) before disappearing into the earth's shadow. On Tuesday night, it will follow much the same path, only passing through more of the sky and almost a whole magnitude brighter. I will, weather permitting, attempt to get both video and a photographic exposure of the station passing near Ursa Minor tonight and on Tuesday. 


Sources for tracking Tiangong 1:


Heavens Above
N2YO
Space Weather (very simple tracker)

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Weekly GOP Address for October 1, 2011

Congressman Morgan Griffith, a freshman Republican representing the 9th congressional district of Virginia, delivers the weekly GOP address:



Audio:



Transcript:


“Hello, I’m Morgan Griffith, and I represent the people of Virginia’s Ninth Congressional District. It’s an honor to address you on their behalf.


“For years, excessive regulations have been a source of frustration for businesses trying to stay afloat. Now, with our economy struggling and red tape still piling up, these nuisances have become full-blown government barriers to job creation. According to a recent national survey, nearly seven in ten Americans believe new regulations will result in job losses or higher prices on goods and services. They’re right, on both counts.


“That’s why the Republican majority in the House is focused on lifting the burden of excessive regulations.


“Of course, we all recognize the need for reasonable regulations to protect the public. There are good regulations, for instance, that ensure public safety and protect our environment. But there are also unnecessary and unreasonable regulations that hurt jobs in some of our nation’s most critical industries. Here are just two examples:


“The government recently finalized rules that would impose costly burdens on the producers of cement, which is the backbone of just about every construction project. If these rules were to take effect, roughly 20 percent of the country’s cement plants would shut down. Thousands of jobs would be sent overseas permanently, just like that. In Ragland, Alabama, a small town where nearly one in five are considered poor, these new rules led to the suspension of a $350 million cement project. It was on track to create more than 1,500 construction jobs.


“Washington is also trying to hand down rules that would affect boilers used by thousands of major employers, including hospitals, factories, and even colleges. These regulations would impose billions of dollars in new costs, make many goods and services more expensive, and put more than 200,000 jobs at risk. I was startled to learn that because of these rules, Celanese, a Dallas-based chemical company, may significantly scale back or close a plant that employs hundreds of people in my district.


“Understand that the investments required by these rules are irreversible. For those businesses that cannot make these investments, and decide to stop producing their product at a particular location, the job losses are also irreversible. The good news here is, excessive regulations are reversible and fixable.


“Todd Elliott testified on behalf of Celanese at a recent hearing on Capitol Hill. ‘It is very important for the Congress to understand that we compete in a global marketplace,’ Todd said. ‘If our costs become too high, we lose competitiveness and jobs. We encourage you to pursue cost-effective regulations and help create … the jobs our nation so badly needs.’


“Republicans are listening to the American job creators. The House is working on a series of bills this fall aimed at cutting red tape and stopping the excessive regulations that hamper job creation. Next week, we’ll take up bipartisan bills that address the concerns employers have about both the cement and boiler rules.


“The bill I’ve sponsored, H.R. 2250, recognizes the need for reasonable boiler regulations and doesn’t try to haphazardly cancel these rules. Instead, we are saying the government should go back to the drawing board and come up with a more reasonable approach that protects the public without imposing unnecessary costs on employers and workers.


“These bills would save thousands of American jobs, and they are bipartisan. Members of both parties support these ideas right now. President Obama, who has said he’s willing to consider stopping excessive regulations, should call on the Democrat-led Senate to follow the House in passing these jobs bills. Let’s take this opportunity to widen our common ground and do whatever we can to get government out of the way so our economy can return to creating jobs.


“Thank you so much for listening.”


TEXT CREDIT: Speaker of the House John Boehner Contact H-232 The Capitol Washington, DC 20515 P (202) 225-0600 F (202) 225-5117


AUDIO / VIDEO FILES CREDIT: The House Republican Conference - Digital Communications visual.media@mail.house.gov 202-225-5439

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