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June 6- A furlong is a horse racing distance measurement of one-eighth of a mile. A typical horse race is a mile or eight furlongs. The North Carolina legislative procedures can be likened to a horse race, and this current session is in the last furlong of the race.  The whips are out, and there is a mad rush to get budget bills over the finish line before adjournment.  The race will probably be over in Raleigh sometime later this month or in early July

We have a new belt press!  Some might say so what?  But most may ask, what in the world is a belt press? Or why does it matter?

May 30- I write this weekly column to keep folks informed about what is going on in Highlands town government, so let me share what has just happened at our sewer plant on Arnold Road.  

We have a new belt press!  Some might say so what?  But most may ask, what in the world is a belt press? Or why does it matter?

May 24- So, on this Memorial Day, I hope we will all remember the fallen and those veterans who continue to fight the internal battle from the trauma of war.  America loses over 20 veterans to suicide every day.  These men and women are today’s causalities of war.

And on this somber day, Americans should remember the Gold Star families of the fallen and lost. Parents, spouses, and children carry a tremendous and continuous burden of loss and despair. They too, have given to and served our nation in the most profound way.

May 15-  On Monday, I had the honor of awarding town scholarships to the graduating seniors at the annual Highlands School Honors Day program.  This year $56,000 in scholarships were awarded to the graduates. College students who are still in school at colleges, universities, and technical schools are also given scholarships.  I want to thank everyone in the community who supported this important program for our young people.

May 10-  At the end of the day last Friday, my wife, Sallie, was exhausted, soaking wet, and sporting a black eye. But Sallie told me she had had a great day. Say what?

We had just completed the first day of competition in the Three Rivers Fly Fishing Festival, during which I had organized a fishing trip by canoe down the Cullasaja River from Cooks Sawmill to Franklin for my son, his wife, Sallie, and myself. It was an ambitious attempt to catch trout on a scenic wild river, to say the least.

May 3- 

Last week I attended the annual conference of the North Carolina League of Municipalities, aka CityVision.  Let me review some of the highlights.

Governor Cooper spoke at the main luncheon.  I, along with other mayors and elected officials, was glad to hear the governor say that municipalities should have more autonomy in making zoning and development regulations rather than having legislators in Raleigh make those local decisions.

April 24-    

Let me cite a couple of proposed bills that underscore this position. First, there is HB 409-Regulation of Accessory Dwelling Units (ACD). Are ACDs a major issue for some communities? ....  This bill would allow across-the-state ACDs in all single-family residential zones. ...The bill also so has no parking limits or capacity limits.  What? Yes, no limits like what local governments might require

April 18-   

The Highlands School has been a unique educational institution for this community, and frankly, I can’t understand why any parent wouldn’t want their children to attend this small K-12 school. Our school is one of only a few schools in North Carolina with the 13-grade format. The school has an excellent record of students going on to make outstanding achievements both here in Highlands and across the country. 

April 10- I was at an inaugural Earth Day convocation 53 years ago this month, and it will be celebrated again this year on Saturday, April 22.

I had a little longer hair back in April 1970 and was probably sporting a set of bell-bottom blue jeans, which were the standard in those days. When I attended the convocation, I had both a concern for the environment and as well as myself, as I was also worried about a draft physical and that I was over my head on both accounts.

April 3- One resident asked about sewer connections. About half of the town is connected to the sewer, and the other half is not.  Heavy rock formations have deterred the development of the sewer system throughout the entire town. Nevertheless, I do believe the town needs to revisit this issue and determine how much it would cost to extend the sewer system throughout the entire town. I know the price tag would be high. Given the investment, the board would have to consider making it mandatory that residents connect to any new extensions.

March 29-  Since the recent Duke Energy power outage shut down the Highlands grid, I have had a number of suggestions and questions about the issue. Let me respond to several of these items as best I can.

Since the outage, our town manager, public works director, and I have reviewed many power-related issues with a Duke Energy representative. In fact, we routinely converse with Duke Energy concerning operations and the administration of our wholesale contract with them.

March 22 - At last Thursday’s meeting, the Highlands Town Board approved a number of items that will now move forward. Let me review several major decisions that were made.

First, the board approved the new leases for the HAM Radio and WHLC antenna located on the town’s Big Bear Pen Tower.  These leases will now be published in the newspaper during a 30-day period before the final lease can be signed.

March 15 -Last Thursday, the town board and staff conducted an all-day budget workshop, aka the Highlands Town Retreat.  This event signaled the start of the budget process for the coming year.  It will be followed up by a number of afternoon budget workshops this spring.

March 7- Last Friday afternoon, in anticipation of bad weather, I was in town hall monitoring the weather situation with our town manager and public works director.  Problems started around 2:30 with the total loss of power across the town.  

March 1- Last Wednesday, our town manager Josh Ward, and I took the five-hour drive to Raleigh to attend the North Carolina League of Municipalities Town and State Dinner for 2023.

This event always takes place at the beginning of the legislative session, and during the reception and dinner, municipal officials had an opportunity to meet with their legislative delegations to discuss local needs and requests.

February 21 - I was optimistic, and the staff was too, that the town would receive a state grant to replace the aging pre-clarifier tank at the water tank. The town had resubmitted the grant we applied for last year.  The project is a big-ticket item, somewhere around 3 million dollars.

Our town manager gave the bad news at the town board meeting last Thursday night that we did not get the grant. In fact, our application scored so low that the state folks managing the grant process told us we neededn’t apply again.

February 8 - As mayor, I like getting positive feedback, all elected officials do, it makes for a good week and last week was a very good week.  After writing this column last week, where I proposed a program where businesses collected voluntary donations for preservation, I received overwhelming and enthusiastic feedback.  Everyone sent me messages stating such a program was long overdue and would be great for the community and efforts toward preserving this unique, beautiful environment.

February 1- These coastal towns, like St. Simons, are surrounded by a unique ecological environment of the vast marshlands and tidal estuaries.  To Georgia's credit, they have worked to preserve these unique spaces while promoting some tourism and development.  Highlands, located on this high and narrow plateau, has faced the same challenges.

January 25- The Town’s Planning & Development Director is implementing the provisions of the newly adopted Short-Term Rental Ordinance. The Town Board approved the ordinance on September 15, 2022. Since then, several questions have arisen about the requirements and enforcement of the new regulation.

January 18- The new year is well underway.  Thursday, January 19, will be the first meeting of the year for the Highlands Town Board.  It begins at 7 PM at the Highlands Community Center next to the ball field.  You can remotely access the meeting through the town website.

Several agenda items are carryovers from last year.  I hope the board will take final action on several of these items.

January 11-  Part 1 – The Local Government Process:  I am not the Kim Jong-il of Highlands. Nor am I “Boss Hogg” directing town employees and the police to follow my commands. I sometimes suspect a few folks on social media and others who send me emails might have that impression.

January 3- After difficult events, it’s wise to review and reflect. Case in point, “the big freeze,” just before Christmas. Highlands hasn’t had extreme below-0 temperatures in over a decade. 

Visitors are now in Highlands year-round.  The full parking on Main Street in December underscores that shift.  Our peak electric and water usage is no longer around July 4th, or October, it occurs around Christmas. Many people were in Highlands during the holiday when maximum power demand and water usage occurred.

December 28- At the beginning of the new year, it is always good to look ahead.  What does the new year portend for Highlands?  I not that good at predicting the future but let me take a shot at predicting what will happen and what needs to be done, if not this year, in years to come.

December 15- I know Santa is making his list and checking it twice; and I’m making a list also, a list of things the town will do next year.   Let me identify a few items on the mayor’s wish list.

December 7- Last year we dodged a bullet with the winter storm that brought 12 inches of snow.  Before the storm there were predictions of 16 to over 20 inches of snow.  As the mayor those projections made the hair on the back of my head stand up straight.  I had visions of the Blizzard of 1994 where Highlands was shut completely down for about two weeks.  

December 7- It’s a shame that Highlands .  .  .  .  I’m ashamed that Highlands. .  .  .  .  I get emails with these kinds of salutations on a routine basis.  Just this past week I received an email with the “shame” opening remark.  Although I could not disagree more in their thoughts on their choice of words.

November 29- The trout are back in Harris Lake.  The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has restarted their winter pond stocking program. As a result, Harris Lake has several hundred trout for the public to harvest. 

November 21-On a plane coming back from a long weekend in New York City, I wrote down my insights from my visit there.  As Highlands’ Mayor, I always get ideas on how we can operate our town by visiting other cities.  New York, arguably the greatest city in the world, is no exception. 

November 14- The Highlands Board of Commissioners meeting is this Thursday night, November 17,  starting at 7 pm at the Highlands Community Center.  The meeting will begin with public comments.

Like in October, the November meeting agenda is long.....

November 7 - As I recently drove down Cullasaja Drive and by Mirror Lake I realized the Monkey Face tree was still there. Regretfully, the monkey face image that was a natural part of that tree is long gone. The only thing remaining remnant of that glorious oddity of nature is a rotting scar on the tree.

November 2- I rediscovered the community core and future of Highlands this past Monday.  I encountered it at the annual Halloween Main Street Celebration.  This annual event had a tremendous turnout where folks were able to just have fun and enjoy one another.

October 26 - The town board meeting last Thursday was a marathon session, with almost every item on the agenda taking longer than anticipated.  Let me hit some of the highlights, or rather the “longlights.”

October 20- Thursday is the start of early voting. It continues to November 5.  I don’t know why we call it early voting anymore; a whole lot of folks now vote well before Election Day on November 8.  The early voting format has become a standard way ballots are 

October 12 - I served as a chauffeur as we traveled that long I-40 corridor.  At every stop we saw that election signs were everywhere.  When we arrived in Raleigh I noticed the same cornucopia of election signs, but I also noticed a sign among the many that said, “Save Our Neighborhoods.”  I immediately thought it referenced the short-term rental issue. 

October 4 - The town was spared the remnants of Tropical Storm Ian this past weekend.  Earlier in the week town staff and I had worried that we might have very heavy rains and high winds in the 50 to 80 mph range. If that had occurred power lines would have most likely gone down.

September 22 - As the mayor I continually meet with community groups, both here in Highlands and also in the Western Carolina region.  These meetings constantly reminded me of our shared concerns.

September 22  It has been and will continue to be a time of gatherings this fall in Highlands. The first great gathering was on Saturday night with the inaugural event at the new Highlands Performing Arts Center. What a great new venue! BRAVO Amici was a wonderful first act to open this spectacular venue

September 14   Thursday night is the September Highlands Board of Commissioners meeting; it will begin at 7 pm at the Highlands Community Center next to the ball field. Public comment is the first item on the agenda.

September 7,   The staff and I meet with various groups that support and supply the town on a routine basis, and this past week Josh, Lamar Nix met with folks from Duke Energy.  It was a good meeting.

August 31,   Sallie and I labored this past weekend, along with about 60 other artists and craftspeople, by participating in the Highlands Arts and Crafts Exhibition at Founders Park.  While I had not participated for over 8 years, we set up a tent and display in both shows this year, the one in June and this past weekend.  It is sheer hard work to be in such an event.

August 24. At the board meeting last week, I did a rather long mayor’s report concerning initiatives I want  the board address in future meetings.  Let me briefly review several of these items.

August 17, - At the board meeting last week, I did a rather long mayor’s report concerning initiatives I want  the board address in future meetings.  Let me briefly review several of these items.

August 10, 22 We got it, you got it too!  What?  We have all recently received our Macon County 2022 Property Tax Notice, aka tax bill.  The bills go out every August and are due by January 5th.

August 10, 22 We got it, you got it too!  What?  We have all recently received our Macon County 2022 Property Tax Notice, aka tax bill.  The bills go out every August and are due by January 5th.

July 27, 22  I have complied with the Save Highlands attorney’s public document request, and all my emails concerning STRs have been sent to Derek Allen.  There may be a few I have overlooked or missed, but I have made a good faith effort to fully comply with the request

July 27, 22  The impact of climate change, including massive droughts, wildfires and the loss of habitat for creatures that share space with us on this big “blue marble” can be distressing. Both the dolphin tour and turtle walk made me think about our own special space on the Highlands Plateau.  

July 20, 22  My call for stakeholders to propose compromises concerning STRs underscores the community stalemate on this combative issue. I asked stakeholders to publicly put forth any proposed compromise. I wanted the community to see if there was any common ground.

July 13, 22 The purpose of this public meeting is to review proposed unified development ordinance amendments regarding short term rentals. Bob Hagemann of Poyner Spruill will present proposed amendments to the Board. These amendments were generated by the Board’s work group and also discussed by the entire Board in an attorney/client closed session.

JULY 6, 22 In a special meeting this past Thursday, the Highlands Town Board passed the Highlands Comprehensive Community Plan in a 4 to 1 vote. I wish the vote had been unanimous, but unanimous votes on big items like this plan and yearly budgets don’t seem to be possible.

JUNE 22, 22 At last Thursday’s Highlands Town Board meeting, commissioners passed a 27.3-million-dollar budget for this coming fiscal year. I hope that budget number increases by September. Let me explain, I’m not talking about more spending or a tax increase.

JUNE 15, 22  My heart almost stopped when Josh Ward told me that the public hearing concerning STR amendments had not been properly advertised as a legal notice in the Highlander. That oversight invalidated the subsequent actions of the Town Board in amending the UDO ordinances related to STRs; therefore, the process will have to be done all over again.

JUNE 7, 22 The time after Memorial Day is a very active period for organizations in Highlands. I have had the opportunity to attend many of these events in recent weeks, and unfortunately, I have missed some also.

JUNE 2, 22 I support the difficult decision that the Highlands Board of Commissioners made by a vote of four of the town commissioners to limit the spread of short-term rentals(STR). That vote impacted the future use of their homes and families, as well as my own.

MAY 25, 22 The Highlands community has been polarized over short-term rentals. The amendments to the zoning ordinance concerning STRs that were passed by the Board last Thursday night did not completely resolve this divide.

MAY 11, 22 Cost of energy is a huge national issue and a major driver of inflation. At the last Town Board Meeting our energy consultant informed us that Duke Power would be increasing wholesale electric rates in the coming months, and he recommended the town approve a rate increase very soon to address this impending increase that the town will pay for wholesale electricity.

MAY 4, 22 Last Thursday I went to Asheville to participate in a round table on the State of Healthcare moderated by North Carolina Attorney General, Josh Stein, who came to Asheville to assess the state of healthcare, and to especially to see how the 2018 sale of Mission Healthcare to HCA was progressing.

APRIL 28, 22 Last Friday afternoon the weather was warm. Sallie was on the front porch listening to the birds. She asked me to join her. We began to hear voices talking over the Billy Ray Cyrus 1992 hit song, Achy Breaky Heart. We realized it was coming from a nearby neighborhood house.

Several weeks ago, I expressed the concern about a national trend and spread of ghost kitchens.  A ghost kitchen a commercial kitchen that is operated in a residence, sometimes in secret.  I see a parallel with the rapid expansion of STRs in the past few years.

APRIL 19, 22 Last week I attended the Newly Elected Officials Seminar in Asheville. The event was sponsored by the University of North Carolina School of Government and the North Carolina League of Municipalities. While I was recently elected to a third term, I like to attend these events to learn about new issues and brush up on old ones.

APRIL 12, 22 We are getting close to the end of the school year and the graduation season. Highlands School usually has a senior graduation class of about 25 to 30 students. Being one of only three K through 12 schools in the state, our whole town celebrates the accomplishments of our hometown seniors.

MARCH 30, 22 I attended the recent broadband meeting that Senator Corbin and Representative Gillespie hosted two weeks ago. There was a strong turnout of people throughout Western Carolina where broadband accessibility is a vital issue.

March 16, 22 Realizing that someone had carelessly attempted to place their household trash bag in the street BearWise can was distressing. What the photograph does not show is a half-eaten lunch plate that was left on top of the can. What are some people thinking?

MARCH 8, 22 I want to touch several big-ticket items that will be presented. This review illustrates how a few hundred thousand here and there adds up to major budget needs. They are not frivolous expenditures, but essential needs that impact the basic operation of the town.

February 2022 Highlands dodged a bullet March 10 Highlands Town Retreat I want to thank everyone for a very successful and civil public hearing last Thursday night that addressed the Highlands Planning Board’s recommendations concerning short term rental amendments to the UDO.

February 2022 Highlands dodged a bullet with the recent major snow storm. We had no widespread power outages. Nevertheless, town needs to address the problem of how folks can report power outages when town hall is closed

There is a growing movement for residents to use solar energy panels to power their homes. The solar systems save overtime energy costs and contributes to green energy solutions to address climate change.

In Highlands we are getting an increase interest in the use of solar energy.  

The town has relied on the Macon County emergency dispatch call center for years. With a continual increase of residents living here, especially in winter, that system and arrangement has become overloaded. 

I attended a ZOOM meeting last week concerning racial equity and approaches to policing. The police chief from Jacksonville, NC gave a comprehensive presentation concerning his department’s community policing initiatives.

Are your customers raving about you on social media? Share their great stories to help turn potential customers into loyal ones.

On Monday night the Highlands Planning Board completed a review of the draft proposal for amending town ordinances related to short term rentals. 

Let me give you an account of the worries of a mayor.  Recent worries started at the first of last week with a vague forecast of an impending winter storm

Let me cover several current items.  Some of this information comes from questions folks have sent to my website in recent days. COVID, Waterline on Moorewood Rd., town lighting, and power.

We are about to see 2021 fade away and 2022 rise before us.  Looking back, even though it had some challenging moments, 2021 was much better than the COVID dominated 2020.Looks like the Omicron variant will spread this winter.

I was a rainy day on Saturday when wreaths were placed on the graves of American veterans. Nevertheless, Phil Potts, Mike Murphy and Derek Taylor had organized this national event for Highlands, Wreaths Across America. 

Thursday is the December meeting of the Highlands Town Board of Commissioners. The meeting is at the Highlands Community Center next to the ball field. It begins at 7 pm with public comment.

I loved the Highlands Christmas Parade this year.  I am always honored as mayor to lead the parade just behind the color guard.  Sallie, our grandchildren and Lucy, our dog, had a great time walking in the parade and passing out candy.