SUMMERFIELD town council
WHAT they voted on, and HOW they voted:
June 8 / MEETING HIGHLIGHTS as reported by CHRIS BURRITT Mayor BJ Barnes called the monthly meeting to order, with Mayor Pro Tem Tim Sessoms and council members Lynne W. DeVaney, Teresa W. Perryman, John O’Day and Reece Walker present. Sessoms offered the invocation, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Walker recognized Jenna Daniels, assistant chief for Summerfield Fire District, for recently being named 2021 Fire Officer of the Year by the North Carolina Association of Fire Chiefs. Daniels, the first firefighter in Summerfield to win the award, received a standing ovation from the audience.
PUBLIC SAFETY Summerfield Fire District. The district reported it ran 71 medical-related calls, 15 fire-related calls and 20 other calls in May. Firefighters installed 17 child safety seats. Sheriff’s Office. The sheriff’s District 1 office reported it responded to 120 incidents in Summerfield last
month; details about the incidents were not provided.
PUBLIC COMMENTS For the second time since March, Dwayne Crawford asked town staff to provide a financial audit trail for a $1,500 check paid to Summerfield three years ago by a group of residents seeking to amend the town’s comprehensive plan. In 2017, the town wrote a $1,500 refund check to Crawford and Perryman, who were co-chairs of the Save our Summerfield Committee. However, the pair refused to accept the refund, saying that doing so would indicate they were rescinding their request for the council to amend the comprehensive plan.
Mayor Pro Tem Tim Sessoms and council members Lynne W. DeVaney, Teresa W. Perryman, John O’Day and Reece Walker voted on the following items during the June 8 council meeting. Mayor BJ Barnes was present, but in Summerfield the mayor votes only to break a tie.
5 0: Amend the zoning of property at 7211 Summerfield Road to allow for the overnight storage of up to 10 vehicles 4 1: Approve (Perryman opposed) the $4.67 million budget for the fiscal year starting July 1
4 1: Adopt (Perryman opposed) the rewrite of the UDO (unified devel-
opment ordinance), the town’s rules for residential and commercial development
5 0: Adopt a resolution saying Summerfield will comply with state and federal guidelines for spending COVID-19 relief funds from the American Rescue Plan Act
5 0: Approve the extension of Summerfield’s agreement with Guilford County for tax collections for three years, through June 2024
4 1: Increase (Perryman opposed) Town Manager Scott Whitaker’s annual pay by 8%
Crawford requested the audit trail during the March 9 council meeting.
after Crawford’s request in March, Town Manager Scott Whitaker posted a memo addressing the situation on the town’s website.
After that meeting, Dee Hall, the town’s finance officer, emailed Crawford providing the audit trail; she resent the email to him after last week’s (June 8) meeting. In addition,
Kim McCaskill said she was pleased to see the rewrite of the town’s UDO (unified development ordinance) requires that short-term rental property, such as Airbnb listings, mandates the
home be operated by an individual who lives on the property. McCaskill said a house next to her Pleasant Ridge Road home is operated as an Airbnb where guests are occasionally loud until late in the night and her attempts to reach the owner of the house, who lives in Florida, have been unsuccessful.
Saturday, June 19, 6:30p–9:00p Summerfield Community Park Amphitheater (5404 Centerfield Rd.)
Special Occasion Band
beach, oldies, top 40 . . . free concert
brought to you by:
Marty’s BBQ food truck and Kona Ice on site! Free parking. Bring your blankets, chairs, friends. w w w. s u m m e r f i e l d n c . g o v Check the town’s Facebook page for weather updates.
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JUNE 17 - 30, 2021
The Northwest Observer • Totally local since 1996
