HomeMy Public PortalAbout09-29-1997 Public Session
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MINUTES
HILLSBOROUGH TOWN BOARD
SEPTEMBER 29, 1997
7:30 P.M., Town Barn
The Hillsborough Town Board held a public meeting on September 29, 1997 at 7:30 P.M.
in the Town Barn for the purpose of receiving input from citizens regarding a police substation or
police mobile unit. Present for the Board Meeting were Mayor Horace Johnson, Commissioners
Kenneth Chavious, Catherine Martin, Richard Simpson, and Remus Smith. Absent from the
meeting was Commissioner Evelyn Lloyd. Staff present were Interim Town Manager Sherry
Carter.
Mayor Johnson called the meeting to order at 7:35 P.M. Four citizens had signed up to
speak.
Trudy Yarborough stated she was a member of the North Dixie Community Watch. She
pointed out that in her opinion crime has not gone down and there were problems with dirt bikes.
She stated she wanted the Town Board to give answers to questions already submitted regarding
the substation. She said she was very disappointed with the Board and felt like the Board was
not listening to them.
Commissioner Chavious asked if the Watch Group preferred the substation and if they
were aware of the differences between the substation and the mobile unit. She responded "yes."
Ms. Yarborough stated that the substation had been promised, that they were not seeing
any results. She said the community asks that the substation be built and that they will help build
it. She also stated that the citizens would like more training and suggested that cellular phones be
issued to the citizens who are trying to work with the authorities and that they need some
indication that the Town is trying to work with them. She said they were frustrated and that this
had been going on for years.
Holly Sims said she was new to Hillsborough and she had located here after being told
that HilIsborough was the safest place for single persons to live. She now lives on Lakeshore
Drive and she does not feel that it's safe. She stated she preferred the mobile unit because it can
be placed in a high crime area and be moved about - if crime is run out of one area, the unit will
go to another. She volunteered the use of her driveway to park the mobile unit. She also
suggested the unit could be used as a command post during natural disasters,.
Frances Dancy stated that she had questions concerning both the substation and the
mobile unit, such as to how the decision was made, the cost of the unit, what the maintenance
would be, how it would be manned, how many policemen would it take to man the unit. She
stated she would like more information on the mobile unit before making a decision. She felt
that the substation would be less expensive than the mobile unit.
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Warren Jones stated that he would prefer the substation/community center idea although
he didn't think either the substation or the mobile unit would solve the problems in Fairview. He
said a Citizens on Patrol group would help more and that the citizens need to get out and help.
Commissioner Smith asked Sergeant Judy Jacobs what the cost of I-band cellular radios
would be, how would the citizens be trained, who would the citizens call and how long would it
take to put the Citizens on Patrol theory into effect.
Sergeant Jacobs said that the radios would cost approximately $500 each, that she and
fellow officers would train the citizens, that the citizens would call the Police Officers (not 911),
and that it would take about six months to put the theory into effect.
Warren Jones stated that the Citizens on Patrol idea works well in the Orange County
Sheriff's Department.
Commissioner Chavious asked Sergeant Jacobs to fmd out how many people would be
willing to do Citizens on Patrol.
Ms. Sims asked if this group would only serve the Fairview area or if anyone could be
trained.
Ms. Yarborough stated she was already committed to this idea and was waiting on the
classes to be offered.
The Board directed Interim Town ManagerIFinance Director Carter to bring a budget
amendment to the October 13, 1997 meeting to fund the radios, not to exceed $5,000.
The public meeting was concluded at 8:05 P.M.
Mayor Johnson then called the Town Board into Open Session.
Interim Town Manager Carter asked for an indication of those Board members planning
to attend the N.C. League of Municipalities meeting October 20 & 21. Mayor Johnson and
Commissioner Chavious indicated they planned to attend.
Interim Town Manager Carter presented a request from Alltel Communications to be
allowed to conduct a test drill for a cellular tower on the land the Town owns adjacent to our
inert landfill. This request was granted by consensus.
Commissioner Martin made a motion to go into Closed Session for the purpose of
discussing personnel matters; Commission Simpson made the second and the motion was
approved by a vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
Upon returning to Open Session, Commissioner Smith made a motion to accept the
employment contract with new Town Manager Eric J. Peterson and that proper signatures be
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empowered. Commissioner Simpson made the second and the motion was approved by a vote of
4-0. The motion was declared passed.
Upon a motion by Commissioner Smith, seconded by Commissioner Simpson, the Board
moved to adjourn by a vote of 4-0. The motion was declared passed.
Respectfully submitted,
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