Suburban planning
April 4. By Dave Vieser. Despite months of public input, the Cornelius Town Board is still not satisfied with the final changes in the town’s land use plan. At their April 3 meeting, the commissioners sent the recommendations back to the Planning Board and the Growth Management Task Force (GMTF) for further clarification.
The GMTF was formed in January 2022 shortly after four out of five town board members were defeated during the November 2021 elections. Growth in Cornelius was a major issue during that election.
The Task Force recommended numerous updates to the Land Use Plan. However several commissioners as well as local business leaders suggested that some other more specific opinions were needed.
“I request that each board member communicate to Deputy Mayor Herron what they want the Planning Board and the GMTF to specifically review by the end of this week,” said Mayor Woody Washam “We will continue this hearing to Monday May 1.”
In other action, the commissioners:
—Approved the expenditure of $245,462 to acquire a new Quick Response Patrol Boat for the Police Dept. The vessel will be a 25 foot T-Top Aluminum boat. The Town will use $200,000 of ARP- Supplanted Funds and $45,062.25 of Asset Forfeiture funds to purchase the vessel. Inventech of Bremerton, WA. will start manufacturing the boat no later than Aug. 1, 2024 and delivery will occur on or before Dec. 1, 2024.
“The current boat the QRV will replace is an old fishing boat that is not designed for the uses the police need,” said Assistant Town Manager Tyler Beardsley. “The new QRV is also more maneuverable and can go into shallower waters allowing better access to more areas of the lake. The current boat does not handle wakes and rough water well and causes fatigue especially in the backs of Lake Patrol officers. The new boat is designed to handle the wakes better which will help prevent injuries to the officers.”
—Recognized the week of April 3-8 as National Telecommicators Week, noting that Cornelius has its own 911 dispatchers who are on duty 24/7 all year.
