Pikeville town commission plans public hearings
By Joey Pitchford
Published in News on August 3, 2016 1:46 PM
The Pikeville town commission considered some items and tabled others at their meeting Monday, while setting a date for several public hearings.
Three public hearings were set for the next town commission meeting, which will take place Tuesday, Sept. 6, in observance of Labor Day.
The town will consider an application for a community development block grant (CDBG) seeking funds for water and sewer maintenance needs, as well as a proposed amendment to the code of ordinances which would alter zoning permit fees in the town.
Pikeville has applied for similar grants in the past, but has not received them despite what town administrator Michael Hunt said were strong applications. The town does not have a grant writer, and does not currently have plans to hire one.
September's meeting will also see a public hearing to discuss potential United States Department of Agriculture funding for the new town hall project. The town decided in June to select Daniels and Daniels Construction as their contractors for the project, but the town must find a reliable source of financing before beginning the project in earnest. Hunt said that while working with Daniels and Daniels to find funding, a potential USDA grant came to the forefront as the most promising option.
The town must first hold the public hearing before applying for the funds.
The town then approved a request from the C.B. Aycock High School music boosters to make use of the Pikeville community center from August 8 through 12 for their annual band camp. The town decided to let the school use the center free of charge, as it has done in previous years.
The town also tabled discussion of a new cell phone and computer policy for town employees designed to cut down on improper use of town-issued devices.
The commissioners were in agreement that a new policy was needed to make sure town-issued phones and computers were being used only for town business, but decided to wait until the next meeting to gather more information.