Town council OKs

water, sewer for

soccer complex
By Jason Reagan

Although the town of Boone, Appalachian State and Watauga County don’t always agree on every issue, the idea of more affordable housing and enhanced recreation brought the trio together during last week’s town council meeting.

The council approved a request by ASU and the county to extend water and sewer service to the recently opened soccer complex on Brookshire Road with an eye toward adding an affordable housing complex in the future.

The soccer complex is a joint project operated by the county, ASU and the High Country Soccer Association.

County manager Rocky Nelson told the council that, initially, the county and ASU believed a well system could have been installed at the facility but ASU has since constructed a 1,000-seat soccer stadium which must, by state law, include 20 restroom fixtures — a requirement that can’t be met by an onsite water/sewer system.

Nelson pointed out that the county board of commissioners recently passed a measure that will lead to affordable housing units being built on the complex tract and that any extension the town passed would serve both the soccer complex and the housing units.

The complex would use an estimated 3,000 gallons per day, according to the application.

Currently, the soccer complex is used by the ASU soccer team, Watauga County Parks and Recreation, the High Country Soccer Association, the Hispanic Soccer League and several intramural teams.

Council member Rennie Brantz asked Nelson if the proposed water main request — 6 or 8 inches — would be enough to serve the complex and any future housing needs.

Nelson said county engineers would have to evaluate the site but the initial report showed one of the two sizes would work. Boone public utilities director Ricky Miller said an 8-inch main would likely work best.

When asked about community recreational options at the complex, Nelson said long-term plans called for adding an outdoor beach volleyball court, basketball court, picnic pavilions and a walking trail at the soccer complex site.

In addition, the walking trail may be extended under the nearby bridge under U.S. 421 to eventually connect with the town’s Greenway trail contingent on grant funding.

The council approved the request unanimously with the contingency that the county hire an engineer to evaluate the water main needs and that the county approve the possibility of annexing the property into the town limits.

In other business:
Term Extension
The council approved a measure that will begin a process that would change the mayor’s term from two years to four. The unanimous vote places the requested charter amendment before a public hearing on April 16.

Boone Post Office
The town agreed to move forward on a project that will renovate the downtown Boone Post Office building, which the town purchased last year.

The town will likely spend $150,000 to secure an architect to design and manage the renovation as well as $25,000 for exterior painting, $25,000 to identify and remove any hazardous material found during the process and $29,000 to remove partitions from the basement of the building.

Resolutions
The town memorialized former Mayor Wade Brown, who died on March 9, with a unanimous resolution honoring Brown’s efforts to “establish the Boone Area Chamber of Commerce, the Horn in the West outdoor drama, the Boone Golf Club, expansion of the Watauga County Hospital (now Watauga Medical Center) and construction of the new Watauga County Library.”

“Wade W. Brown was not only a fine attorney, an outstanding citizen and a loyal husband and father, but a true friend, who will be greatly missed by many,” the resolution stated.

Mountaintop coal removal sparked unanimous passage of a resolution in support of the Appalachian Mountains Preservation Act, currently in committee in the N.C. General Assembly.

The bill would prohibit North Carolina utilities from buying or using coal extracted through mountaintop removal methods. The resolution has no binding power but expresses the opinion of the council to the General Assembly.

The council unanimously agreed to offer non-binding opposition to an amendment to the N.C. constitution that would ban same-sex marriage. A bill to amend the constitution is currently before the N.C. General assembly.

John Spear
An issue that was not discussed at the meeting but is being discussed by many in town is the sudden departure of town development services director John Spear.

It was discovered last week that Spear is no longer employed by the town but officials would not disclose details surrounding Spear’s departure, citing state privacy law. Boone assistant to the town manager Jim Byrne is currently serving as interim director until a permanent director is named. 

For more coverage of the four-hour town council meeting, see the next edition of the Watauga Democrat.