Agenda about the City Council meeting of November 19, 2013

 This Agenda is about the Hickory City Council meeting that will take place on the date listed above. City council meetings are held on the first and third Tuesdays of each Month in the Council Chambers of the Julian Whitener building.

At right of this page under Main Information links is an Hickory's City Website link. If you click on that link, it takes you to our city’s website, at the left of the page you will see the Agenda's and Minutes link you need to click. This will give you a choice of PDF files to upcoming and previous meetings.

You will find historic Agenda and Minutes links. Agendas show what is on the docket for the meeting of that date. The Minutes is an actual summary of the proceedings of the meeting of that date. You can also look in the upper right hand corner of the front page of the Hickory Hound and (will soon) find the link to the past history of Hickory City Newsletters.

Here is a summary of the agenda of the meeting. There were a couple of important items that were discussed at this meeting and the details are listed further below:

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City Website has changed - Here is a link to the City of Hickory Document Center

 City Council Agenda - November 19, 2013

Invocation by Rev. Karla Woggon, Rector, Episcopal Church of the Ascension

Special Presentations
A. Presentation of the Business Well Crafted Award by David Gissy of the Business Development Committee, to Dan Causey, President and Doyle Keever, Vice President of Keever’s Key and Repair Service
B. Neighborhood College Class Graduation

Persons Requesting to Be Heard


Consent Agenda:
A. Approval of Resolution to Surplus Library CD/DVD Display Case and to Donate the Case to the Hickory Music Factory, a Local Non-Profit Organization. -  The Library requests approval to surplus a CD/DVD display case that is no longer in use or needed by the Library and to donate the display case to the Hickory Music Factory, a local non-profit organization. Public Notice advertised on November 8, 2013 in a newspaper having general circulation in the Hickory area.

B. Approval to Revise the Hickory Public Library’s Meeting and Conference Room Policy. - The information contained in the current Meeting and Conference Room Policy is mostly
valid; however, to avoid confusion and clarify intent, it is necessary to update the language in some areas and to eliminate a rule that no long applies. Staff requests approval of the revisions for the purpose of eliminating, revising or replacing language or rules that are no longer relevant, may be redundant, or no longer reflect the library’s actual practice.

C. Approval of “Food for Fines” Amnesty Week at the Library, December 2 – 14, 2013.  -  Approval of the waiver of overdue fines for library customers who donate canned food items at either Patrick Beaver Memorial Library or Ridgeview Branch Library during the two-week period of December 2-14, 2013. One can or box of food will cancel $1.00 in overdue fines, and donated items will be given to Greater Hickory Cooperative Christian Ministry.

D. Approval to Amend Lease Agreement for the Property Located at 304 3rd Street SW, Hickory. - Hickory Police Department requests approval to amend the lease agreement for the property located at 304 3rd Street SW, Hickory, leased to Ronald Andrew Jones and Jennie Nicole Frye. The original lease agreement was approved by City Council on October 1, 2013. After further review of the lease agreement it was noted that several changes were needed. The Agreement is hereby amended by correcting the name of the Landlord from the “City of Hickory Police Department” to the “City of Hickory.” Paragraph 5 of the Lease entitled RENT DUE DATE is hereby amended by deleting the paragraph in its entirety and substituting the following paragraph: RENT DUE DATE: Tenants hereby acknowledged that late payment will cause Landlord to incur costs not contemplated by this Rental Agreement. We allow for a 3 day grace period. In the event rent is not received prior to the 10th of the month, Tenant agrees to pay a $30 late fee. Neither ill health, loss of job, financial emergency or other excuses will be accepted for late payment.

E. Citizens’ Advisory Committee Recommendations for Assistance through the City of Hickory’s Housing Programs. The following requests were considered by the Citizens’ Advisory Committee at their regular meeting on November 7, 2013:
 Bobby & Angela Cowans were approved for recommendation to City Council for firsttime homebuyer’s assistance to purchase a house located at 828 5th Avenue SW, Hickory. They have requested $7,500 for assistance with down payment and closing costs. The First-Time Homebuyers Assistance Loan is zero interest, no payments and repaid upon sale, refinance or payoff of first mortgage.
 Kisha Shuford was approved for recommendation to City Council for first-time homebuyer’s assistance to purchase a house located at 824 5th Avenue SW, Hickory. She has requested $7,500 for assistance with down payment and closing costs. The First-Time Homebuyers Assistance Loan is zero interest, no payments and repaid upon sale, refinance or payoff of first mortgage.
 Habitat for Humanity, 1615 8th Street Drive SE, Hickory, was recommended to subordinate City’s 2nd mortgage to Peoples Bank due to refinance of 1st Mortgage. Applicant was approved, provided that the mortgage loan is no more than what is owed on the property. They are refinancing for a lower interest rate and lower payment. Funds are budgeted for these items through the City of Hickory’s former Rental Rehabilitation Program income received in FY 2012 and/or program income received through the City of Hickory’s Community Development Block Grant Program. Each of the following applicants is being recommended for approval for assistance under the City of Hickory’s 2012-2013 Urgent Repair Program. This program provides qualified low income citizens with assistance for emergency-related repairs not to exceed $5,400.
 Phyllis Chester, 1526 20th Street Drive NE, Hickory,
 Edward Cunningham, 61 5th Street SE, Hickory,
 Polly Brotherton, 63 16th Street SE, Hickory,
 Lois Tse, 339 11th Street Place SW, Hickory,
 Timothy Rhodes, 923 South Center Street, Hickory,
The Citizens’ Advisory Committee recommends approval of the aforementioned requests for assistance through the City of Hickory’s housing assistance programs.

F. Approval of a Joint Resolution Approving a Memorandum of Understanding between the Western Piedmont Regional Transit Authority and the City of Hickory. -  City Council previously approved the conveyance of the Piedmont Bus Transfer Station property from the City to the Western Piedmont Regional Transit Authority (WPRTA). The deed was recorded in Deed Book 3199 Page 375 on July 12, 2013 with the Catawba County Register of Deeds. After the deed was recorded, City staff and WPRTA staff were informed that that the parties needed to follow additional procedures with the conveyance in accordance with FTA guidelines. Specifically, FTA would not approve the deed’s reverter clause which states the bus transfer station (the “property”) will revert to the City in the event WPRTA ceased to operate as an entity or if WPRTA ceased using the property as a bus transfer station. Because a portion of the project was funded with federal grant dollars, the FTA has an interest or share in the remaining useful life of the property. This interest would not be automatically extinguished if the property reverted to the City. Instead the value of its share or interest would depreciate over a period of time. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) establishes that for a period of forty years from the date of completion of the project, the City and WPRTA agree that no transfer or disposition of the property can take place without the approval of the FTA. In the event WPRTA ceases providing public transportation services, WPRTA would need to obtain the FTA’s approval before conveying the property back to the City. The MOU also establishes that the property will be used as a bus transfer station or related ancillary use.

G. Budget Ordinance Amendment Number 8
1. To budget $17,792 of North Carolina League of Municipalities (NCLM) contributions in the NCLM Conference expenditure line item. These funds are to help pay expenses associated with hosting the conference. Contributions include $15,000 from the North Carolina League of Municipalities and $2,792 from the Hickory Metro Convention Center.
2. In FY12-13 the City's "Parking Rental" revenue exceeded budget by $10,952 and the "Parking Fines" revenue exceeded budget by $4,783. This budget amendment moves these excess funds to the "Parking Capital Reserve Fund".
 3. To budget $39,840 of Library Foundation Endowment Funds in the Library’s
operational budget to purchase literacy stations, furniture for the children and teen
area, programs for adult, children and nonfiction books.
4. To transfer $6,150 of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to the
project fund for the renovation of the former Ridgeview Public Library for use as a
meeting space and history center. The North Carolina Historic Preservation Fund is
contributing $9,000 and the InterFaith Housing Development Corporation is providing
the $6,000 required match; however the single quote came in $6,150 above the
budget; therefore the overage will be covered with Community Development Block
Grant Funds.

H. Grant Project Ordinance Amendment Number 3.
1. To accept a $6,150 transfer of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and budget in the renovation of the former Ridgeview Public Library project. The North Carolina Historic Preservation Fund is contributing $9,000 and the InterFaith Housing Development Corporation is providing the $6,000 required match toward the project; however the single quote came in $6,150 above the budget. The overage will be covered with Community Development Block Grant Funds; therefore a budget amendment is necessary
.
Informational Item
A. Report of Mayor Wright’s travel to North Carolina League of Municipalities Executive Director Search Committee, Raleigh, North Carolina on November 1, 2013. (Parking Expense - $12; Mileage Reimbursement - $194.36)

New Business - Public Hearings
1. Rezoning Petition 13-12 for Property Located at 1024 and 1030 4th Street NE, as well as Two Vacant Lots. - Petitioner Robert Lee Combs Jr. has petitioned for the rezoning of .51 acres of property located along 4th Street NE. This property includes 1024 and 1030 4th Street NE, as well as two vacant lots. The petition is to rezone the property from High Density Residential – 4 (R-4) to General Business (C-2). This public hearing was advertised on November 8, 2013 and November 15, 2013 in a newspaper having general circulation in the Hickory area.


New Business -  Departmental Reports:
1. a. Memorandum of Understanding between the City of Hickory and Hickory Baseball, Inc. regarding Additional Projects to be Under-taken at L.P. Frans. Stadium. - Staff will outline what these projects are and who has responsibility for them. Additionally, there will be a budget amendment to fund the City’s additional projects in the amount of $391,000.
b. Budget Ordinance Amendment Number 9.  - To provide funding for additional improvement projects at L.P. Frans Stadium as described in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City of Hickory and Hickory Baseball, Inc. Therefore a $391,000 appropriation of General Fund balance to the L. P. Frans Stadium Capital Improvements line item is necessary.

A Statistical Analysis of the Hickory Ward 6 Election

Jill Patton ran unopposed in this race. She received 88% of the vote in her election and 70.61% of all ballots cast in the election.

About a week before election day Mike Huttman decided he was going to run a write-in campaign. Other than friends, most people don't know who Mike Huttman is. The vast majority of people who voted for Mike are people who have had contact with him. He received 330 votes (7% of the votes cast), which is pretty impressive for such a low profile campaign. Besides Mr. Huttman, there were 95 other write-in votes. So in total you see that there were 425 write-in votes in this race, which is 8.9% of all votes cast.

What is very interesting about the voting in this ward is the number of people who did not vote. Over 20% of the people, 982 no-votes, in the at-large election did not vote in this particular election. In Ridgeview over 50% of the people did not vote; in Brookford over 30% of the people did not vote; in College Park, Kenworth, Highland, Longview north and south, and St. Stephens 1 and 2 over 20% of the people did not vote in this election. In every other precinct, except a couple where fewer than ten people voted, there were at least 10% of the people who did not cast a vote in this particular ward election.

The Electoral Reality of Ward 4 in Hickory

A Statistical Analysis of the Hickory Ward 5 Election

Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- November 17, 2013

10 Facts About The Growing Unemployment Crisis In America That Will Blow Your Mind - The Economic Collapse Blog - Michael Snyder - November 10th, 2013 - Did you know that there are more than 102 million working age Americans that do not have a job? Yes, I know that number sounds absolutely crazy, but it is true. Right now, there are more than 11 million Americans that are considered to be "officially unemployed", and there are more than 91 million Americans that are not employed and that are considered to be "not in the labor force". When you add those two numbers together, the total is more than 102 million. Overall, the number of working age Americans that do not have a job has increased by about 27 million since the year 2000. But aren't things getting better? After all, the mainstream media is full of headlines about how "good" the jobs numbers for October were. Sadly, the truth is that the mainstream media is not being straight with the American people. As you will see below, we are in the midst of a long-term unemployment crisis in America, and things got even worse last month.                    In this day and age, it is absolutely imperative that people start thinking for themselves. Just because the media tells you that something is true does not mean that it actually is. If unemployment was actually going down, the percentage of the working age population that has a job should actually be going up. As you are about to see, that is simply not the case. The following are 10 facts about the growing unemployment crisis in America that will blow your mind...                  #1 The percentage of working age Americans with a job fell to 58.3 percent in October. The lowest that number has been at any point since the year 2000 is 58.2 percent. In other words, there has been absolutely no "jobs recovery". During the last recession, the civilian employment-population ratio dropped from about 63 percent to below 59 percent and it has stayed there for 50 months in a row. Will the percentage of working age Americans with a job soon drop below the 58 percent mark?...

Americans’ Participation in Labor Force Hits 35-Year Low - CNSnews - November 12, 2013 - The percentage of American civilians 16 or older who have a job or are actively seeking one dropped to a 35-year low in October, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Federal Reserve Is Monetizing A Staggering Amount Of U.S. Government Debt - The Economic Collapse Blog - Michael Snyder - November 14th, 2013 - The Federal Reserve is creating hundreds of billions of dollars out of thin air and using that money to buy U.S. government debt and mortgage-backed securities and take them out of circulation.  Since the middle of 2008, these purchases have caused the Fed's balance sheet to balloon from under a trillion dollars to nearly four trillion dollars.  This represents the greatest central bank intervention in the history of the planet, and Janet Yellen says that she does not anticipate that it will end any time soon because "the recovery is still fragile".  Of course, as I showed the other day, the truth is that quantitative easing has done essentially nothing for the average person on the street.  But what QE has done is that it has sent stocks soaring to record highs.  Unfortunately, this stock market bubble is completely and totally divorced from economic reality, and when the easy money is taken away the bubble will collapse.  Just look at what happened a few months ago when Ben Bernanke suggested that the Fed may begin to "taper" the amount of quantitative easing that it was doing.  The mere suggestion that the flow of easy money would start to slow down a little bit was enough to send the market into deep convulsions.  This is why the Federal Reserve cannot stop monetizing debt.  The moment the Fed stops, it could throw our financial markets into a crisis even worse than what we saw back in 2008.
The problems that plagued our financial system back in 2008 have never been fixed.  They have just been papered over temporarily by trillions of easy dollars from the Federal Reserve.  All of this easy money is keeping stocks artificially high and interest rates artificially low.                     Right now, the Federal Reserve is buying approximately 85 billion dollars worth of U.S. government debt and mortgage-backed securities each month.  We are told that the portion going to buy U.S. government debt each month is approximately 45 billion dollars, but who knows what the Fed is actually doing behind the scenes.  In any event, by creating money out of thin air and using it to remove U.S. Treasury securities out of circulation, the Federal Reserve is essentially monetizing U.S. government debt at a staggering rate.                  But Federal Reserve officials continue to repeatedly deny that what they are doing is monetizing debt.   For instance, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart strongly denied this back in April: "I object to the view that the Fed is monetizing the debt".                        How in the world can Fed officials possibly deny that they are monetizing the debt?                  Well, because the Fed is promising that it is going to eventually sell back all of the securities that it is currently buying.                  Since the Fed does not plan to keep all of this government debt on its balance sheet indefinitely, that means that they are not actually monetizing it according to their twisted logic.

Federal Reserve Whistleblower Tells America The REAL Reason For Quantitative Easing - The Economic Collapse Blog - Michael Snyder, on November 12th, 2013 

Spot The Striking Similarity - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden November 16, 2013



As young people hunker down, homeownership dips - CBS Moneywatch - Erik Sherman - November 15, 2013 - Americans are changing their housing habits in ways that could affect the U.S. economy. Younger people are becoming less mobile and are less inclined to buy a place to live, while broader homeownership numbers are down, according to recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau.                  An Associated Press analysis found that percentage of young adults who move to a new locale has hit a 50-year low. Only just over 23 percent of people ages 25 to 29 moved in the past year, down from roughly 25 percent the previous year and the lowest figure since 1963.                  Why are younger adults passing on buying a home? Likely because the weak job market, stagnant wages and high levels of college loan debt are keeping them in existing apartments with roommates or living with their parents.                       The homeownership rate between 2010 and 2012 was nearly 65 percent, a 1.7 percent decline from the 2007 to 2009 period, according to the Census Bureau. It is difficult to tell how much of the drop is due to young adults not purchasing homes or to other factors. The time range coincided with the economic recession, a rash of property foreclosures that followed the housing crash and a significant tightening of credit. All three factors likely contributed to people being unable to afford homes or to losing the homes that they already had.                  Another finding in the Census Bureau analysis was that the median home value in the U.S. decreased between 2007 and 2012. What is surprising is that some areas weathered the decline, and a few even saw an increase in medium home values: 28 states saw a decline in median home value, but 19 states actually experienced an increase.

Why hardly anyone signed up for Obamacare - Hint: It has nothing to do with tech glitches at HealthCare.gov - Marketwatch - Jonnelle Marte - November 17, 2013 - It may seem surprising that just 106,000 Americans managed to enroll in Obamacare, choosing a health plan through the new state or federally run insurance exchanges. That is, until one considers human nature.                    Though the enrollment is about 1.5% of the 7 million people expected to buy coverage through the exchanges next year, and well below expectations for the first month, experts say there’s reason to think our procrastination may be as much to blame as bad programming. People typically approach healthcare open enrollment in waves, with a burst of people, usually about 15% of participants, signing up at the start of the enrollment period and then a huge rush of purchases happening toward the end of the period, says Tony DeNucci, a managing director with Towers Watson, a professional services company. “There are people who aren’t paying attention and don’t want to deal with it until the last minute,” says DeNucci.                         The type of person who enrolls in next year’s insurance plan six weeks in advance is also the type of person who files their tax return in January. About 22% of people make insurance decisions in the last two days of open enrollment periods, health officials said during a media call Wednesday. Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of Health and Human Services, also attributed some of the delay to the idea that consumers often take their time making health insurance decisions. “Insurance is very different than buying a toaster,” Sebelius said during the call. “As more people shop and talk things over with their families we expect these numbers to rise.”                      ALSO SEE: Should you keep your health insurance plan?

Even people who signed up for insurance on Oct.1—to the extent that they were able to given technical setbacks on HealthCare.gov and some of the state-run exchanges—won’t be covered until Jan. 1, and won’t have a premium payment until roughly Dec. 15. It wouldn’t be surprising, financial experts say, if many people were waiting to get closer to that moment of gratification to take action. “People are often reactive rather than proactive,” says Taylor Gang, a principal at Evensky & Katz, a wealth management firm based in Coral Gables, Fla.

Obamacare rollout: Doctors concerned about patients, care, fees - CBS News - Wyatt Andrews - November 11, 2013




You may need to prepare for higher gasoline prices - CNBC Market Insider - Sharon Epperson - November 13, 2013 - The slide in gasoline prices has finally stalled.                  Nationally, gasoline prices rose for the first time in nearly two weeks on Wednesday. The national average price for regular gasoline jumped nearly a penny overnight to $3.19 a gallon, according to AAA, marking its biggest one-day gain since Oct. 16 and first increase in 12 days. This bounce comes just after prices around the nation had fallen to their lowest levels since February 2011.               Abundant supplies and sluggish demand contributed to the sharp fall in gas prices recently—and prices are still declining in some parts of the country. In 10 states in the South Central region, the average price of gasoline statewide is below $3 a gallon, according to GasBuddy.com.


Retailers brace for a tough holiday season - CNN Money = Hibah Yousuf - November 11, 2013 - The holidays may not be so merry and bright this year ... for retailers.                     Sales growth during the fourth quarter is shaping up to be the weakest since 2008, according to predictions from Morgan Stanley.                       Same-store sales, a key metric that measures sales at store locations open at least a year, are expected to grow a mere 1.6% from a year ago during the fourth quarter, Morgan Stanley estimates. Last year's holiday sales were up 3.5% from the fourth quarter of 2011.           The 1.6% figure excludes sales at troubled J.C. Penney (JCP, Fortune 500). That's because J.C. Penney is expected to offer deep discounts to try and get back on track after a disastrous drop in sales last year. As a result, J.C. Penney may not have that tough a time beating last year's low bar. And its results could skew the overall sales figures for the industry.                   Related: Outrage over Kmart's Thanksgiving decision                           Why will sales be sluggish this year? The culprit appears to be weak consumer confidence. While Americans have more to spend thanks to a rising stock market, higher home values and low gas prices, they're not so willing to part with their cash..

US consumers tapped out as holidays approach - CNBC - John W. Schoen - Novemner 8, 2013 - American shoppers have a way of rallying when the holidays roll around. But years after the Great Recession, consumers' budgets remain badly squeezed by flat wages, higher payroll taxes and a weak job market.                         "It's been a tough year for consumers overall," said Target Chief Financial Officer John Mulligan. "They started the year with the payroll tax increase, and lower and middle-income consumers bore the brunt of that. They were already stressed. The economy has improved slowly over time, but it's been a choppy recovery for sure."                       Choppy indeed. With the economy growing at just 2.2 percent since the recession ended in June 2009, there aren't enough good-paying jobs for the millions of Americans out of work or looking for more hours.                 Much of the growth in new jobs is in relatively low-wage, low-skilled industries such as retailing and restaurants. Even with the growth in those sectors, there aren't enough jobs to go around—and won't be until overall growth picks up.


Have We Lost Our Common-Sense? - OfTwoMinds.com - Charles Hugh Smith - November 16, 2013 -  The only way to keep the status quo from imploding is to banish common-sense.                  I was surprised to find that many people took my satire/parody last month seriously: Obama Administration Proposes 2,300-Page "New Constitution"(October 10, 2013). A number of people wrote me asking for the source of the story, and others chastized me for not labeling the essay "satire/parody," as so many others didn't seem to get the joke. (The permanent link was constitution-parody10-13.)



NC drug manufacturing plant closing - AP through Bloomberg - November 12, 2013 -
LINCOLNTON, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina pharmaceutical plant will be closing, putting about 310 people out of work.                        Actavis PLC said Monday it will take until the middle of 2015 to close the plant in Lincoln County, which makes creams and ointments.                 The prescription drug manufacturing will be moved to the company's plant in Salt Lake City. Manufacturing of over-the-counter drugs including creams, children's ibuprofen and analgesic suppositories, will be switched to a third-party contractor.


King World News Interview with David Stockman, former Director of the Office of Management and Budget in the Reagan Administration and an implementer of Supply side Economics. -  David Stockman Interview link 

A Statistical Analysis of the Hickory Ward 5 Election

Below is the statistical spreadsheet analysis of Ward 5. David Zagaroli won big and was going to win big all along. There obviously was no discussion of city issues in a public forum. I won't get into further analysis related to Joe Brannock due to his legal issues. The interesting thing you will see here is that around a quarter or more of the people in the South and West Hickory Precincts (Ward 4) did not vote in this election.You will see this pattern carry forward. North Hickory, in large numbers votes in South Hickory ward elections. South Hickory, in large numbers (a statistical anomaly compared to the whole), does not vote in North Hickory wards. You still do see throughout that many people obviously choose not to vote in wards other than their own. Otherwise you would have 90%+ participation in every precinct in every election.




The Electoral Reality of Ward 4 in Hickory

What a sad state of affairs Hickory

This morning's Hickory Daily Record... what a sad state of affairs. I wouldn't trust you know who as far as I could throw him. And y'all know that wouldn't be very far.

The other day I had three people send me a copy of a post on facebook where "He Who's Name Shall Not Be Spoken (HWNSNBS)" was saying that someone (he didn't express a name) who didn't even live in Hickory and blamed all of their life's problems on him was behind the Tumblr account, so I messaged him.

Would any of you like to see that correspondence? In which HWNSNBS says, "Who said I was talking about you?"

I do believe that the Tumblr account was over the top in the beginning, but the subject matter of late has been very relevant. He pointed to several issues, including money spent on sod for "the Sails" project that couldn't have possibly all been used for the Sails Project.  He showed where they have a $12,000 camera pointed at a mural on Union Square, but they say they can't afford to record and televise City Council meetings on the local public access channel. He points to several issues involving their little "Hickory United" Political Action Committee... And in general the guy has really toned down the profanity.

As far as the discriminating against Mormon Claims, it shows how far HWNSNBS will go to justify anything and everything that goes on at City Hall. In twelve years, he apparently believes he and Hickory Inc. haven't made a mistake yet. 

I pointed Mr. Tinkelenberg towards some very relevant topics, such as the misappropriation of parking fund money to build those "Sails". I pointed out that the past editor of the HDR had sat on the naming committee and that seemed like a Conflict of Interest to me. That to me seemed to slant the paper's opinion and reporting on that project.

Let's talk about that "Southern Desk" property over in west Hickory. You know, that building that was talked about a couple years ago. They seem to have forgotten all about that property. There has been a lot of crime that has ramped up over there. There was a woman attacked over there a couple weeks ago and left for dead. It was reported in the HDR. The guy that robbed the Mayor's wife lived a couple blocks from there. The person who robbed the Community One Bank last year. He lived a couple blocks from there. That is just naming a few of the many incidents in that vicinity. Why do I pay attention to this??? Because I have a family member that lives over there and I am sick and tired of seeing that area put on the backburner, because they aren't viewed as having any political clout. Hickory Inc. doesn't give a d*** about the people that live over there.

Let's talk about the $25,000 spent on Graffiti removal a few years ago where they said they would report back to the public and they never did.

This wouldn't even be in the paper if it wasn't about HWNSNBS's feelings. Is the goal to form a Posse against me? I feel sorry for those who have allowed themselves to be duped. Where are the priorities???  He's the guy who is going to get everyone to start pulling in the same direction?  This guy is the person who is going to lead us forward???

HWNSNBS thinks I'm behind all of this? I guess that simplifies things into something he can deal with. He needs to go sit in front of a mirror and reflect on life and get real.

Food for thought

"I can't change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination." - Jimmy Dean

The Electoral Reality of Ward 4 in Hickory

First of all I received a call from a Reporter from the HDR. I have already told the Mayor and dozens of others, I have nothing to do with the Tumblr website dedicated to him. They can't seem to understand that their "Leadership" is the reason why people are expressing themselves as opposition. They think they have a handful of people that are creating all of their problems. We have many computer savvy people in this community. Just because they can't operate a computer, don't take it out on people who can. Most people don't even know that site exists and all they are going to do is help promote it. Heck, many people still don't know this site exists, but every time these folks start whining my numbers grow and those numbers continue to grow once people come here and find out I'm not the pariah they try to make me out to be. I put my name on what I do. I do everything in my power to be credible. Don't like or agree with my information, then I encourage you to show me where I am wrong. 

Now, I have gone over the numbers from last weeks election. These numbers pretty much confirm what I suspected. Ward 4 voted for Anetia Wright in an overwhelming fashion. The rest of Hickory did pretty much what was to be expected. And our attempts to change the way that Hickory elects it's City Council still rest upon the solid foundation of concern it was built upon.The referendum has been justified and validated by these results.

Have a look for yourself. 
 

Let's look at the percentages

Who does Hank Guess represent???
Who will Hank Guess represent???
Who represents Ward 4???

Below is the spreadsheet of the numbers.

HVT = Highest Vote Total of precinct in all elections. No votes are people who chose not to vote in a specific election. Thus, 296 people chose not to vote in this election, which was 7.39% of all ballots cast in this election.

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of November 5, 2013

I began recording the City Council late last year, because of my desire that the City do it on their own as any modern 21st century community began doing long ago. I had people tell me that they couldn't make it to the meetings, but they would like to see what is going on. I was also told by some council members that my summaries did not truly reflect the record, so having a video/audio recording cannot be misinterpreted.

So below is the City Council meeting. Beside each agenda item, you will see the minute:second. Now you can click on that minute link and it will take you to that specific point in the meeting. You can drag the marker on the video display to the point in the broadcast that you are interested in seeing.

Agenda about the City Council meeting of November 5, 2013

Highlighted Links below take you straight to that point in the video.




Invocation by Rev. Paul Birkedal, Chaplain, Catawba Valley Regional Hospice

Alderman Meisner not present.

Special Presentations
Mayor Wright recognized St. Stephens High School Civic Students and asked them to  introduce themselves.

A. Presentation of Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week Proclamation 

Persons Requesting to be Heard
Former Mayor Bill McDonald commented that this was the first time that he had the opportunity to be back in Council Chambers in two decades. He shared a story with the young people that were attending the Council meeting. When he was Mayor the Scouts would come to Council meetings working on their civic merit badge. He asked one of the scouts after a Council meeting if he enjoyed the meeting, and was it educational. The scout replied he would rather be doing his homework.

Mr. McDonald stated a number of weeks ago, he and his wife Susan had come to visit her mother. He read the Hickory Daily Record one morning, and on the front page of the newspaper were two articles challenging two members of Council, Alderwoman Patton and Alderwoman Fox, on some impropriety; which turned out to be absolutely false. In the article on Alderwoman Fox, there were mentioned some of the activities that she had been involved in. Mr. McDonald stated 20 years of service, to anything, is unbelievable. Twenty years of service without absenteeism is even more phenomenal. He stated that he had served with Alderwoman Fox. He was told when he was elected Mayor that the first order of business of any Mayor is that he or she should be building consensus among Council. That they could agree to disagree in a sane civilized manner. He commented that came from some very wise people that had served our city for a number of years. He and Alderwoman Fox, over twenty years, did not agree on everything that she brought to the table, but she was very committed and did her homework before she brought something to Council. The citizens of our city need to know the many wonderful things that Alderwoman Fox did bring to the Council table that were adopted, that made this a better place to live. He personally thanked Alderwoman Fox, and he commented that he hoped that the news media would pick up on the fact that 20 years of service is significant, and all of the contributions that she brought to the table. What a wonderful town this is because of people like Alderwoman Fox who are committed to the betterment of our Community. The audience gave a standing ovation for Alderwoman Fox.

Mayor Wright commented that he was very proud that Bill and Susan had chosen to come back to Hickory, and that he is pleased that they have been appointed to a key committee of our citizens.

Mr. Cliff Moone,  Hickory stated that for the past several years he had approached City Council at the request of the Human Rights Coalition of North Carolina, to request that a proclamation be issued by Council to commemorate Bill of Rights Day on December 15. Mayor Wright and Council have been gracious enough to do that proclamation every year for the last few years and it is greatly appreciated. This year in addition to asking Council to issue the proclamation for Bill of Rights Day, he encouraged Council and requested that they issue a proclamation honoring Human Rights Week, December 10-16, 2013. Last year the Governor and the Mayors of Asheville, Black Mountain, Cary, Charlotte, Durham, Forest City, Garner, Greensboro, Hillsborough, Knightdale, Lewisburg, Marion, Raleigh, Reidsville, Selma and Zebulon also did so. Mr. Moone distributed a copy of the articles of the Universal Declaration ofHuman Rights to Council, and stated that it was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly and supported there by the United States on December 10, 1948. The declaration arose directly from the experience of World War II, and represents the first global expression of rights to which all people were inherently entitled. He requested the declaration of the 30 articles contained within the document he had distributed.

Mr. Moone respectfully requested that, if appropriate, that this years proclamation for Bill of Rights Day, be issued in honor of retiring Alderwoman Sally Fox, in recognition of her years of active civic involvement and faithful service to our community, and for her many contributions to the betterment of Hickory as Ward 5 representative on City Council. 

Consent Agenda: Unanimously approved

New Business - Public Hearings
1. Voluntary Contiguous Annexation of Property Located at 1879 Startown Road, Hickory, Containing .83 Acres. Cal Overby Presentation. Council unanimous Consent.

New Business - Departmental Reports:
1. Acceptance of Offers to Purchase and Contract for Properties Located at 1742, 1743, and 1746 Whitewater Court, in the Waterford Hills Subdivision.

Matter not on the Agenda: 
Paperwork Process for Assistance from FEMA for the damage caused by the flood damage in Hickory that occurred on July 27, 2013. Damage in Hickory is estimated to be $2.8 million. 75% would be paid for by FEMA and 25% by the State. Contact person for FEMA will be Chuck Hanson, the city's chief engineer.

General Comments