Shanon Gonce

The meeting included an Annual Organizational Meeting segment covering the nomination and election of the Chair and Vice Chair, and the adoption of the 2026 meeting schedule. Old business focused on the Imagine Mills River Proposed Rezoning of Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) Land, which involved a review and recommendation. New business involved a motion to reappoint Wayne Carland to represent the Committee on the Mills River Partnership board.

The Town Council Meeting agenda included standard items such as the approval of the agenda, calls for public comments, council comments, and manager updates. The consent agenda covered approval of the Tax Collector Report, approval of minutes from January 22 (Regular and Business Meetings) and January 29 (Special Meeting), approval of a resolution setting a public hearing for a Fee Schedule Amendment for ABC Permits, reappointment of two members to the Board of Adjustment, and adoption of a resolution to approve a grant for Tennis Court Repairs. The regular agenda item focused on a discussion regarding the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) project presented by CodeWright Planners.

The meeting agenda focused on two primary discussion items presented in staff reports. The first involved Fire Inspections for Fiscal Year 2027, including a review of the $100 per occupancy flat fee adopted by Henderson County for municipal fire inspections, which covers plan reviews, inspections, re-inspections, and investigations, referencing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) executed with Henderson County in August 2025. The second item addressed reappointments to various Boards and Committees, such as Planning, Agricultural Advisory, Board of Adjustment, Parks, Trails, and Recreation, and the Land Preservation Committee, with staff seeking direction from the Council on whether to continue the current reappointment process or require advertising and new applications for expiring terms.

The Town Council meeting agenda included several key items. The Consent Agenda covered the approval of the Tax Collector Report and authorizing the Town Manager to sign the Ferncliff Industrial Park Site Certification letter, in addition to approving minutes from previous meetings. Regular Agenda items included a Quarterly Update from the Town of Mills River presented by the Henderson County Sheriff's Office and Mills River Fire & Rescue, and a presentation by CodeWright Planners on Draft Module 2 of the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) project. Furthermore, the Town Council held a Business Meeting that included a review of the Nuisance Ordinance, a review of Chapters 5 & 7 of Module 1 of the UDO project, and a discussion regarding the Blue Ridge ABC Board, resulting in a consensus against exploring an agreement. The Council also adopted the Mills River 2030 Strategic Plan objectives with a modification to the general fund operating margin goal.

The meeting agenda included several items for the Town Council's consideration. The consent agenda involved approving the Tax Collector Report, which detailed collections through December 31, 2025, and approving minutes from previous meetings in December 2025. The consent agenda also addressed setting a special meeting for a UDO Roundtable and reappointing two members, Wayne Caland and Kirby Johnson, to the Agricultural Advisory Committee for two-year terms. The regular agenda focused on a discussion regarding the Blue Ridge ABC Board and a presentation on the Strategic Planning Update, where staff recommended the formal adoption of organizational objectives to finalize the Mills River 2030 plan.