Town Board Votes to Light Up Cleveland, NC $128,000

One of the biggest decisions at the monthly Cleveland, NC meeting for October 2020 was to spend $128,000 on street lights. The lighting issue was not on the meeting agenda and was introduced by Mayor Patrick Phifer. 

The lights discussed would be a lamp style similar to the lighting in Faith, NC. The lights would have an option to hang decorative flags. Phifer said that he had seen flags in other towns featuring military heroes and notable community members. He noted that the county would help pay for flags in an effort to help in "branding" across the county. 

The cost of new lighting could be spread out over ten years, but it would be more costly to make monthly payments. Per Commissioner Richard Taylor, the payment plan option would cost the town $75,000 more than paying up front. 

In addition to the purchase cost of the street lamps, monthly power costs would increase from $830 currently to $1377. 

In a unanimous vote, town board approved the new lighting.

Phifer said that lamp style lights would be more attractive than lights on telephone poles. Putting in the lights would be a "small amount of a facelift."  

Town Guidelines on Halloween/Holidays

Phifer noted that community members had been asking if we would be having Halloween in Cleveland. He said that Halloween would come regardless but noted that state coronavirus rules would apply. That means that indoor gatherings can not exceed 25 people and outdoor gatherings are limited to 50 people. 

The Christmas parade was mentioned, but Phifer said that the Cleveland Lions Club handles the parade so the town is not involved. "We need something to look forward to . . . " noted Phifer. 

Water and Sewer

Water tank inspections are coming up, and board members considered four bids. Pittsburgh Tank was selected, because the company uses a robot to examine tanks. Other companies would need to drain tanks which would impact service. 

Repairs are needed on the bar screen (which catches debris flushed down toilets) at the water treatment plant. The censor does not seem to be working correctly. The board approved $4000 so that the repairs can be made by town employees. 

Cleveland Town Park

Board members decided not to fully reopen the park this year due to concerns with Covid-19. It would be possible to open the shelters, but they would need to be closed again when the temperature drops which should be pretty soon.

Orange tape around the playground equipment will be removed. Phifer said that the tape may be more dangerous than taking it off. "Someone is always looking to sue someone," he noted.

Taylor asked if the board had a budget for upgrading the park. He said that it's very expensive to buy things like playground equipment. The current play items are twenty years old and cost $20K. He said that new pieces would likely last twenty or more years but would be pricey. He also said that some items were needed for adults as well. He mentioned benches. No one responded to the question about a budget amount. 

Taylor noted that the county had asked if Cleveland would help with the park area beside the new library. Currently, the park has basketball and swings which are in pretty good shape. Taylor said that he has a professional volleyball net that he would donate. No one else responded to the county request for help which was not specific.

Police Department

Chief Jon Jessup's request for Covid funding of $23K was approved. The money enables the police department to have a computer network which could include maintenance. Currently, all computers are old and stand alone. According to Jessup, a computer could go down and data would be lost. With the upgrade, the town would have back up in place and better communication. 

The board approved Jessup's request to apply for a Governor's Commission Block Grant for 2021. The grant would be for equipment versus personnel. The grant would not be matching, so the town would not have to spend money to receive funding if selected to receive a grant. 

The police report for September included 34 calls, 29 stops (with 18 warnings and 17 citations), and 3 arrests. 

Town Keys

Commissioner Travis Summitt voiced concerns about the current system of issuing keys for entry to town property. He said that some keys were floating around including master keys. 

Board members discussed alternatives like the system currently used by the police department and the fire department (chip and fingerprint systems) Although the town has never had a problem with the stray keys, the board plans to follow up and have more secure key polices. Commissioner Bryan Little requested prices to secure the town hall with plans to consider expansion to maintenance on the same system at a future time.

Farewell to Town Engineer

Town engineer Mike Koser attended the board meeting last night. He has been the town engineer for many years (close to 50) and has moved on to Yadkinville as a town manager. He assured the town that he would help in the transition. Phifer thanked him for his many years of service and for making the effort to help beyond what would be required.  

Old Celanese Plant

Interest in the old Celanese plant has been steady. One company hopes to open part of the old plant for manufacturing with jobs paying in the 40K per year plus range. Talks are still in progress, and updates will come later. 

Town Logo

Phifer had a final copy of the town logo which was whittled down from eighty possibilities. Cleveland is spelled out in the logo with a compass to the left side. The county slogan is: "Be an original." Phifer said Cleveland opted not to use that slogan but will go with: "Always original."