Lake Santeetlah – Water system repair and upgrades at Lake Santeetlah took another step in the right direction during the town meeting Sept. 9.
The council announced that Randy Welch is working on the grant application to complete Geographic Information System mapping of Lake Santeetlah’s water lines. The grant will require the inclusion of contributions from the town, which will also include labor from town technician Eric Hayes.
Other news and notes from the meeting include:
* Three dangerous trees were reported at 76 Thunderbird Trail. A bid was put out for removal, and Scott Kamps had the lowest bid. The trees will be removed within the next few weeks, and Duke Energy will drop a power line prior to the removal.
* Continued repairs on the upper gate have proved to be unsuccessful, as the gate only works briefly after each maintenance visit, according to repairman Pete Macaluso, who added that the gate was designed for solar panels. After a quote of $5,800 for equipment and labor, Mayor Jim Hager suggested contacting another repairman for more options.
* Council member Roger Carlton expressed concern over some plants and bushes that have taken over the front entrance. Funds are in the budget for maintenance, but a landscape engineer has not been identified.
* Town Administrator Kim Matheson presented the financial/tax report. As of Aug. 31, the general account balance was $50,693.45, while the water operating account was $21,929.90. Tax collections for the month of August totaled $15,414.41.
* The Town Development Authority announced an Occupancy Tax account balance as of Sept. 5 of $13,767.04. Rental revenue from June 1 is $7,219.64.