OAK RIDGE town council
WHAT they voted on, and HOW they voted:
Feb. 4 / MEETING HIGHLIGHTS as reported by CHRIS BURRITT Mayor Ann Schneider called the monthly meeting to order in Town Hall and was joined in person by Councilmen George McClellan and Doug Nodine; Mayor Pro Tem Jim Kinneman and council member Martha Pittman participated remotely. The meeting was recorded and livestreamed on Oak Ridge’s YouTube page, which is linked to the town’s Facebook page. Oak Ridge Lions Club president Frank Kelleher offered the invocation; it was followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, led by Sophia Soto of Girl Scout Troop 40085.
PUBLIC SAFETY Sheriff’s Office. First Lt. Jeremy Fuller reported the sheriff’s District 1 office responded to 90 calls in Oak Ridge in January; they included five larcenies and two “smash-and-grab” burglaries from motor vehicles at Town Park. Noting reports of vehicle break-ins at Triad-area parks by a group known as the Felony Lane Gang, Fuller urged motorists to lock their vehicles and put valuables out of sight.
“If they see valuables inside in plain sight, they’re bashing the windows out and they’re taking the property,” Fuller said. The Felony Lane Gang originated in Florida a decade ago and has been targeting mothers across the U.S., according to an article in USA Today in January 2020. Men in the gang break car windows to steal purses while women use stolen IDs and credit
8
FEB. 18 - MARCH 3, 2021
cards “to commit more crimes, like cashing bogus checks or going on shopping sprees with stolen credit cards,” the article said. The gang gets its name from the method the women use to cash fake checks, according to the newspaper. Trying to avoid detection, they often wear wigs while going through the “felony lane,” the drive-through lanes at banks farthest away from tellers.
Oak Ridge Fire Department. Lt. Caleb Eller said the department responded to 56 calls last month; of those, 24 were fire-related and 32 were medical calls. Firefighters completed 538.5 hours of training.
PUBLIC HEARING 5 0 to approve a request to
rezone nearly 98 acres on the south side of Bunch Road east of N.C. 150 from agricultural to CZ – RPD (Conditional Zoning – Rural Preservation District). (See related article on p. 14.)
MANAGER’S REPORT Board appointments
5 0 to appoint Jim Harton to
the town’s Finance Committee and reappoint John Garrett to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.
Mayor Ann Schneider, Mayor Pro Tem Jim Kinneman and council members George McClellan, Doug Nodine and Martha Pittman voted on the following items during the Feb. 4 council meeting.
5 0: Approve a request to rezone nearly 98 acres on the south side of Bunch Road east of N.C. 150
5 0: Appoint Jim Harton to the Finance Committee and reappoint John Garrett to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board 5 0: Approve a resolution for Oak Ridge to adopt Guilford County’s multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan
5 0: Adopt ordinances reducing the speed limit in Linville Oaks subdivision
5 0: Approve increasing the fees for shelter rentals at Town Park, starting Jan. 1, 2022
5 0: Approve the second reading of a proposed ordinance to renew the town’s waste collection franchise agreement with GFL Environmental Services
4 1: Hire (Nodine opposed) Hill Studio, a Roanoke, Virginia-based
design firm, to help develop a plan for renovating the historic Redmon house
5 0: Hire Hill Studio to develop an illustrated design guidebook for enhancing the town core’s “village feel”
Hazard mitigation
5 0 to approve a resolution for
Oak Ridge to adopt Guilford County’s multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan. It requires state and local governments to coordinate efforts to reduce the risks and impacts of future natural disasters and emergencies.
Speed limit reduction
5 0 to adopt ordinances
NORTHWEST Loving care for pets ANIMAL HOSPITAL (336) 643-8984
and their families
20% OFF DENTAL CLEANING in February 2021
Full-service medicine, surgery and dentistry Surgical and therapeutic laser
Wendy Camp, DVM
1692-J NC Hwy 68 N, Oak Ridge • (336) 643-8984 www.nw-animal-hospital.com
The Northwest Observer • Totally local since 1996
reducing the speed limit in the Linville Oaks subdivision from 35 mph to 25 mph.
5 0 to approve increasing
the fees for shelter rentals at Town Park, starting Jan. 1, 2022. Town staff recommended adopting the increase immediately, but Pittman and McClellan suggested delaying the increase until next year to ease rental costs for nonprofit groups and other organizations during the pandemic. The council also decided to waive shelter rental fees for documented nonprofit groups for the rest of this year. Doing so will encourage organizations to meet outdoors amid public gathering restrictions, Pittman said. As an example of the fee increase that takes effect next year, the cost for Oak Ridge residents to rent a
