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Tuesday night’s only public hearing
before the Wake Forest Planning and Town
boards was about state-mandated changes
in the town’s zoning ordinance, but
planning board members had lots of
questions.
They also agreed, after
hearing from Cindy McGuire about the
problems of notification with the
Parker-Hannifin rezoning, that mailed
notices to affected property owners,
should go out as early as possible.
After that rezoning, planner
Ann Ayers said, “Chip [Planning Director
Russell] told the staff to send out the
notices at the same time as the
published notice” in the newspaper.
“We try to pretty much do
two weeks,” Russell said, adding that
“mail moves at a different pace for
people in town and where she lives.”
McGuire lives outside the town limits in
a subdivision on Kearney Road.
Planning board member Speed
Massenburg asked about the recusal
process. The changes made by the General
Assembly this past summer say that board
members should recuse themselves when
they have a “fixed opinion” about a
matter, a close relationship or a
financial interest.
“It’s my understanding we’ve
had people actually leave the room,”
Massenburg said. “It seems to me a
member can stay in his seat and join the
discussion.”
Roger Knight, the planning
board’s attorney, said his advice would
be for the affected member to leave the
room for the discussion and vote in
order to avoid future legal action
because “appearances can become reality.
Getting up and leaving your seat is a
courtesy.”
Planning board member
Michael Martin said the new statement
about fixed opinions bothers him.
“That’s kind of ambiguous.”
The statement applies to
special use permits, planning board
chairman Bob Hill said. “You are
supposed to make your decision based on
the evidence presented during the public
hearing.”
Martin answered that he had
known of instances where people on both
the planning and town board had made
their decision before the hearing.
“If you observe someone on
your board who has that kind of
opinion,” Mayor Vivian Jones said, the
new language means the question should
be raised and the entire board vote on
whether the person should recuse
himself.
As Russell read through the
changes, a similar question arose when
planning board member Kim Parker
questioned the section saying a planning
board member shall not vote on a matter
where he/she has “a direct, substantial
and readily identifiable financial
impact.”
Hill said the section speaks
to intent. Also, “If he thinks he has a
conflict of interest and says so, the
board as a whole has to agree.”
“These aren’t optional. I’m
giving you what you have to do,” Russell
said about the changes, which were
underlined in the printed zoning
ordinance sections board members
received in their agenda package.
Martin objected to one of
the optional changes Russell had
included, one requiring zoning protest
petitions to be on a form provided by
the town. Martin said it could be a
hardship for people to get the form,
that it might subtract a day or more
from the time people had to organize a
petition and that many people are able
to draw up a petition.
Russell said the form can be
posted on the town’s web site for people
to print out. The form would also
include the requirements for a petition
to be qualified and force the town board
to a three-fourths rather than a
majority vote on the disputed rezoning.
Petitions that do not meet the legal
requirements are just an expression of
sentiment, he said. “It doesn’t take
numbers to invoke the three-fourths
vote, it takes the right number of
people.”
There was no second to
Martin’s motion to strike out the
required form section and it died.
Hill welcomed the three new
members: Peter Thibodeau, Ward Marotti
and Kris Kaeberlein. Returning members
are Alphonza Merritt and Parker, and
those whose terms did not expire in
December are Martin, Hill, Massenburg,
Steve Stoller and Tom Cornett.
Hill and Merritt were
re-elected as chairman and vice
chairman.
Martin and Parker were
nominated to fill the seat on the
comprehensive planning committee vacated
when Frank Drake was elected to the town
board. Hill said he had served on the
committee for several years and offered
to step aside, but Martin said he would
withdraw if Hill did that. Both names
were sent on to the town board, which
will make the choice.
The comprehensive planning
committee, which meets at 7:30 a.m. at
The Forks Cafeteria on the third Tuesday
of the month when there is business,
reviews development plans and decides
whether to send them on to the planning
and town boards. The meeting is open to
the public, but you have to buy your own
coffee or breakfast. |
