Highlands Mayor Pat Taylor fired up the coffee pot and sat down with members of the community for his first “Coffee with the Mayor” program of 2023 on Friday.
The monthly town hall series will continue throughout the summer and fall at Hudson Library with a different sponsor each month. The Peggy Crosby Center served as the first host organization of the year and Taylor welcomed board chair Robert E. Smith to give an update on the center’s repairs and renovations since a broken pipe caused serious water damage the day after Christmas.
“As most of you know I’m sure, the big freeze in December caused major problems in our building when a pipe burst and flooded the Kitchen Carryaway and the lecture hall used by The Center for Life Enrichment,” Smith said. “We had some trouble finding a contractor to do immediate repairs, but we are very happy to announce that the work is almost complete, and we hope the Peggy Crosby Center will be back open at full capacity by May 1.”
The Peggy Crosby Center provided the snacks and coffee for the program, which Taylor kicked off by recognizing the library for its continued contributions to Highlands.
“I want to take just a second and say that I am a supporter of the library,” Taylor said. “Having a well-funded and properly staffed public library is critical to the community and the services provided here enrich our town. The library has always been a big part of Highlands and we are very thankful for that.”
Taylor then turned his attention to the main topic of his presentation – Proposed projects in the 2023-24 Highlands town budget.
The mayor went over potential road paving projects that have been proposed by public works director Lamar Nix. Among the roads due for paving at Laurelwood, Gibson, Maney, Wyanoak, Wingina and Upper Lake.
When asked how the town decides which roads are paved, or repaved, Taylor noted that there are several factors.
“We do have a paving schedule that Lamar has, and he keeps up with that so we know the last time a road was paved or resurfaced,” Taylor said. “Then we also consider roads that contribute to sedimentation, which has become a real problem in Mirror Lake and even Lake Sequoyah. And during the year, Lamar and his staff spend a lot of time on the roads, so they take note of roads that have serious issues when it comes to the quality of the surface.”
Taylor also made note of several high-cost projects at the water plant and sewer plant the town is going to have to complete in the next few years. Nix advocated for replacing the caustic tanks at the water plant ($695,000), replacing the pre-clarifier tank ($205,000) and covering the bleach tank ($80,000).
“We don’t know if those projects are all going to be done this year, or if maybe one or two of them can wait another year, but they are coming down the pike,” Taylor said. “The caustic tanks have been around since the 1990’s and they are nearing the end of their life. That’s an expensive price tag for new tanks, but they last a long time and with the new technology that’s available we hope to get an even longer life out of the new tanks.”
Taylor was asked about potential expansion of town water and sewer to currently unserved areas, specifically around Mirror Lake, and he noted that those questions are being asked among the town board as well.
“Over the past couple years, we have had requests to extend water and sewer outside the town limits, and I find that hard to accommodate when we have people inside town limits that want those services as well,” Taylor said. “That is something we continue to look at, if there are areas that make sense to extend the system to. Obviously, it’s a costly process so a number of factors are involved.”
Taylor also addressed the closing of the paper mill in Canton and its wide-ranging effects across the entire region.
“Pactiv Evergreen employs about 1,100 people at the mill itself in Canton, but they indirectly employ many more people who have jobs in the supply chain of that mill,” Taylor said. “There are suppliers in Cherokee County, transportation haulers in Swain County, and so on. The loss of a major business like that will be felt across Western North Carolina, fortunately for the people of Canton they have a good board and a dedicated mayor who are working hard for them to hopefully soften that impact locally.”