The Southern Highland Reader

STATEWIDE–The Charlotte Observer editorialized today that Gov. Bev Perdue has done good things to make state government more trustworthy and transparent, but that when it comes to the NC Department of Transportation board – a notorious gathering spot for high-dollar political contributors – “some things never change”.

Here’s an excerpt:

Perdue’s approach was to change the Board of Transportation from a decision-making board with the power to approve highway and other transportation projects to a planning board where members could not use their influence to channel roads, bridges or intersections to benefit themselves or their associates. That’s a significant improvement over the old system, which all but invited the board to reward its members, though it still means members make decisions about planning.

But Perdue’s plan did not alter one time-honored, if that’s the right adjective, tradition. She still appoints campaign contributors to the Board of Transportation. Last week she named five members to the board: Sam Halsey of Jefferson, David Burns of Laurinburg, Gary Ciccone of Fayetteville, Ronnie Wall of Burlington and Stan White of Nags Head. All are accomplished business and civic leaders. And election records show all have been contributors to Perdue’s campaigns, though not all in large amounts.

Read the editorial here.

Sylva’s McDonald’s restaurant — the oldest franchise in town — will close for three months in early 2010 to replace its current structure. The local owners will completely remove the current building and replace it with another.

An upshot of the closure is that McDonald’s will be required to come into compliance with Sylva’s sign ordinance. The owners will have to remove the current, large, 80’s-era arches and replace them with a much smaller “monument” style sign.

Franchise owners approached the Sylva town board recently asking to keep their current sign. They expressed concern that their considerable setback from business 23, combined with the impact of a smaller sign, would hurt business. The circumstances disqualified McDonald’s from consideration for a variance, however, and the town asked the restaurant to come into compliance.

While the McDonald’s sign change requirement is tied to the length of the store closure, Sylva residents could see other sign changes soon. The ordinance prevents updates to current oversized signs; owners may not spruce them up without coming into compliance. As a result, current big signs such as those at Wendy’s restaurant and Ingle’s grocery store are likely to become gradually more dilapidated before they are ultimately replaced.

REGIONAL–A draft list of road-building priorities for the southern mountains, released last week, placed a Cashiers crossroads roundabout at the very top, but also included several projects designed to relieve congestion around Sylva.

The 25-project list, compiled by the Southwestern Rural Planning Organization’s Technical Coordinating Committee, plays a significant role in helping prioritize state road building efforts. It has been released for comment, and can be viewed at this address: http://www.regiona.org/rpo.htm

Planning officials hope to replace the heavily-traveled stoplight intersection of NC 107 and US 64 in southern Jackson County with a sizeable roundabout. The roundabout solution was much discussed during the 2008 Mountain Landscapes Initiative as part of a larger, cohesive plan for development around the center of the popular, unincorporated village of Cashiers.

Sylva-area projects on the list are additional improvements to Cope Creek Rd., which connects NC 107 with US 23/74; improvement of NC 107 south from its southern intersection with “old 107″ to its intersection with NC 281 at Tuckasegee, and further consideration of the much-discussed “southern loop” — half of which would connect NC 107 south to US 23/74, effectively allowing Western Carolina University traffic to bypass Sylva.

Missing the list, but also being considered, are these Jackson County projects (among others):

• Improvements to NC 107 from its intersection with Business 23 (Kel-Save) to near Lovedale Rd. (Ingles Area). “Improve the current 5-lane divided facility to divided boulevard facility with median from US 23 Business to south of Lovedale Road. Intersections would also be improved during this upgrade.”

• Improvements to Business 23 from Harris Regional Hospital to its intersection with NC 107 (Kel-Save). “Widen Asheville Highway from a 2-lane facility to a 4-lane divided boulevard facility with a median from NC 107 to US 23.”

Read more from the Cashiers Crossroads Chronicle, here.

SYLVA–The town of Sylva has hired a new manager.

Sylva’s Town Board voted Friday morning to hire Adrienne Isenhower, currently a planner for the city of Lenoir, to replace Jay Denton, who was fired last fall.

The position has been held since Denton’s departure in an interim capacity by Chris Carter, retired manager of the town of Hendersonville. Carter assisted the board in its search for Denton’s replacement.

The board made the decision in a 3-2 vote.

Commissioners Stacy Knotts, Sarah Graham and Maurice Moody supported Isenhower.

Sylva’s planning director/code enforcement position has also been vacant since late last fall, when director Jim Aust resigned after the board failed to approve a planned community on Yellowbird Branch Rd. in Sylva. Aust’s position may not be re-hired. The board has since outsourced inspection responsibilities to Jackson County government, and Knotts, Graham and Moody sought a manager candidate with a background in planning.

Commissioners Harold Hensley and Ray Lewis told the Smoky Mountain News that they voted against Isenhower because of her lack of experience and because her base pay was more than that of the previous manager. However, Hensley had previously made clear his intention to vote against any candidate the majority members of the board chose, regardless of qualifications.

Isenhower, 28 26, earned an undergraduate degree in political science from Appalachian State University, and went on to earn a masters degree in public administration from the same school. She has worked for the city of Lenoir since 2006, and earlier served separate internships with the cities of Lenoir, Troy and Boone. She is the daughter of Elon town manager Mike Dula.

Disclosure: The author of this post is husband of Sarah Graham, Sylva commissioner

SYLVA–Construction of a large hotel south of Sylva – once planned as a Sleep Inn, and more recently as a slightly more upscale Clarion Inn – has stopped.

The project’s general contractor recently told county officials that the project had “run out of money,” and that progress halted at the start of the year. The contractor has pulled off the job, and there are no materials on site.

The hotel met with criticism when construction began last year. Many residents complained that the structure’s prominent location off highway 107, on a ridge silhouetted against the Plott Balsam mountain range, made it an eyesore.

Proponents argued that the service was much needed – especially on the side of town closest to Western Carolina University – and that it was hard to make too much of an argument for aesthetics when the building is flanked by similar commercial structures at a “Wal Mart intersection.”

The town of Sylva’s planning board could do little to mitigate the structure’s appearance, as current zoning restrictions are loose. The board did recommend to town commissioners that a height variance be granted to allow for a gabled roof rather than a flat one. The board granted that variance.

Sylva’s town planner at the time, Jim Aust, worked with the developer to soften the structure’s appearance, negotiating tree plantings around the building, along with landscaping and sidewalk construction along the road front.

UPDATE, 02.04.09: Developer: “Nothing to see here, folks, keep moving along. Tis’ but a flesh wound. All is well! Everything is just fine.” Sylva Herald’s report is here.