The Pinehurst Village Council held its regular town meeting Tuesday.
The council heard a presentation for a 40-home subdivision called Hollycrest located at the intersection of Linden Road and Hollycrest Lane. The subdivision is in the town’s ETJ. ETJ stands for extraterritorial jurisdiction. It is an area outside a city or town’s corporate limits but close enough to the city limits that the city can exercise land use and zoning requirements. The state legislature granted statewide authority for municipal extraterritorial jurisdictions in 1959.
The proposed new houses in the existing development would offer lots between 25,000 and 38,000 square feet. It will have a density of one house per acre. During a public hearing, residents expressed concern about water runoff and a desire for the area to retain the historical character of the surrounding area. According to the developer, Ken Bass, the builder will be Homes by Dickerson, and lots would only be sold through Dickerson.
Council member Lydia Boesch asked that the development be made “to look like Pinehurst.” The development will have an HOA, but the handful of homes that already exist in the area will not be forced to join.
The council approved the preliminary plot without restrictions 5-0.
In other business, the council approved a petition for a military memorial to be held next April. The ceremony requires a 21-gun salute, and the council must approve any discharge of firearms within the town limit, which they did.
Also, the regional land-use advisory commission exists to ensure development in the area immediately surrounding Fort Bragg (five miles) to ensure that the training mission of Bragg can still be carried out. According to Pinehurst City Manager Jeff Sanborn, the problem started when developers would sell people homes immediately adjacent to the base, who may not understand the nature of the area. They would then complain about the noise generated from Bragg during training exercises. The vote was to accept revisions of the organization’s bylaws. Sanborn sits on the board of the advisory council and represents Pinehurst. Local communities near Bragg are members of the advisory committee and pay annual membership dues.
The council also heard a preliminary report on the town’s finances for Fiscal Year 2021. The town ended the year in a robust financial position with cash available, exceeding the town council’s minimum as a benchmark. Property tax collections were 99.9 percent, with the town paying off all installment debt. Revenues exceeded expectations, and expenses were significantly less than projected. The village fiscal year ended June of this year. The village auditors will present the final report at an upcoming meeting.
This was the last council meeting for council member Kevin Drum. Drum was defeated by Jeff Morgan and Patrick Pizzella in this year’s election. Drum was accused of ethical violations in October. In an emotional goodbye address, he stated, “I will work with the council to improve transparency, so no one will have to go through what I did — I suffered a great deal of personal harm.”
To read Sandhills Sentinel’s article on the accusations of ethical violations against Drum, please click here.
~Written by Sandhills Sentinel Reporter Chris Prentice. Contact him at [email protected].
