Weddington Journal Q1 2019

THE

JANUARY

2019

WEDDINGTON JOURNAL The Official Newsletter for the Town of Weddington, North Carolina

Weddington Crime Map...

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN WEDDINGTON

In this issue...

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Review site plans for Weddington’s new plaza and park - then share your thoughts with us!

On January 14th, the Town Council was presented with a new interactive crime map. While Weddington is already a safe community, this map will allow our town to stay informed of all important happenings within Weddington limits.

A special message from the Weddington Town Council and Mayor Callis.

A full recap of Weddington’s annual Christmas Tree Lighting.

Have any questions about the community?

Contact us!

TOWN HALL

1924 Weddington Rd. | Weddington, NC P H O N E | (704) 846 - 2709 E - M A I L | lthompson@townofweddington.com W E B | www.townofweddington.com

Weddington Journal - The Official Community Newsletter for the Town of Weddington - January 2019

Celebration of Service

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amily, friends, and local veterans joined Boy Scout Gerry Hartman for a Celebration of Service honoring U.S. military veterans on Saturday, December 22, 2018. The ceremony included the dedication of Hartman’s Eagle Scout project, which includes a brick patio, benches, and a marble monument listing the names of local Weddington veterans who are either current or former residents.

N.C. House Representative Craig Horn, Weddington Mayor Elizabeth Callis, and Historic Preservation Commission Chair Barbara Harrison gave speeches; Mayor Pro Tem Janice Propst and Councilmember Mike Smith were present. The Town would like to congratulate Gerry on reaching the rank of Eagle Scout and thank him for his hard work and his contribution to the Town of Weddington.

Community Crime Map A new community crime map was presented to the town council on Monday evening, (1/14). Chief Deputy Elmore from the Union County Sheriff’s Office led the presentation. The community crime map provides details on events that have taken place throughout Union County such as vandalism, theft, accidents etc.

When residents visit http://communitycrimemap.com, they can focus in on the Weddington area, and they will be able to zoom in on their neighborhoods to see crime related details.

Chief Deputy Elmore also updated the council with statistics and charts including the number of patrol events, arrival times, and violent crimes. He shared that there has been an increase in school incidents and drug related arrests, and spoke specifically on the topic of the heroin/opioid epidemic.

Currently, Weddington contracts three deputies through the Union County Sheriff’s Office to provide more efficient public safety services to our residents. We thank our deputies for their service to our residents.

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Weddington Journal - The Official Community Newsletter for the Town of Weddington - January 2019

What do you think?

Agenda Item 5

Existing tree grove to remain Existing road remains in place with slight modications Covered Stage/ Band Shelter Trail Bollards

Seating walls

Amphitheater

Monolithic concrete tables

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree Ex. Tree

Town Hall

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree

Pea Gravel Plaza for farmers market/ community events (Christmas tree)

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree

Flagstone path

Refurbished garage for storage, facilities and restrooms

Fountain with seating wall

Terraced patio

Splash Pad Play area

Raised pavers to create pedestrian mall, food truck area.

Road would be closed during events

Tot Lot

Benches

Proposed Facility Bldg.

Picnic tables, Storage and Restrooms

Existing home to be removed

PLAN CONCEPT A planning civil engineering landscape architecture environmental management

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TOWN OF WEDDINGTON

100 Agenda Item 5

Scale 1:20 @ Arch D

TOWN HALL PARK

This plan is conceptual in nature. Site revisions may occur based on grading and jurisdictional requirements.

DATE

2018-11-08

PLAN B

he Town Council is looking for feedback from the Weddington Community.

The Town Council was presented with two potential site plans for a downtown plaza and park. The park would be built on the Matthews property, located behind Harris Teeter. The Council would like to solicit feedback from residents about the plans presented. Please see Plan A and Plan B (right) to review the site designs. Feel free to look them over and let us know what you think! You can send your comments to the Town Clerk at kdewey@townofweddington.com. Please bear in mind that this is still early in the process, so there will be other opportunities to give your input.

The council will begin its budgeting at the annual retreat to start the site planning and construction plan efforts to bring this project forward. We look forward to hearing from you.

PLAN A

T

Potential Plans for the downtown Plaza and Park

Roadside parking for events

Existing tree grove to remain Realigned roadway to create contiguous parcel

Amphitheater with seating walls Covered Stage

Tot Lot

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree

Ex. Tree

Town Hall

Ex. Tree

Pea Gravel Area for farmers market and community events

Flagstone path

Refurbished garage for storage, facilities and restrooms

Fountain with seating wall

Event Lawn with perimeter walk

Patio with seating walls and monolithic concrete tables

Proposed Facility Bldg.

Picnic tables, Storage and Restrooms

Splash Pad/ play area

Sculptured Landforms for children to play Road Connection

Bollards

PLAN CONCEPT B

You can view the plans above online at https://www.townofweddington.com/news/weddington-downtown-plaza-and-park planning civil engineering landscape architecture environmental management

State Champs!

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Scale 1:20 @ Arch D

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60

100

TOWN OF WEDDINGTON

This plan is conceptual in nature. Site revisions may occur based on grading and jurisdictional requirements.

TOWN HALL PARK DATE

2018-11-08

Congratulations to the Weddington High School football team for winning the 3AA North Carolina State Championship! The Warriors defeated Southeast Guilford 27-14 in Chapel Hill on Friday, December 14th. This was the Warriors third time going to a state championship in five short years. They finished the season with a phenomenal 14-1 record. Congratulations to the team and staff on your hard work and dedication!

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Weddington Journal - The Official Community Newsletter for the Town of Weddington - January 2019

A Message from the Council...

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he town had a fantastic start to the holiday season, as we kicked it off with our annual Christmas Tree Lighting. As always, our local school groups and churches provided us with a wonderful array of holiday performances. We had a tremendous turn out to support our local talent, enjoy some hot chocolate and cookies, and of course see Santa Claus.

Successful events and accomplishments like these are only possible because of the unwavering support of our residents. Thank you to all that continue to support this town, our schools and this community. I am truly humbled to be a part of it with you all!

Warmest Regards, Elizabeth Callis Mayor of Weddington

During this event we also held a Winter Coat Drive. In partnership with the Weddington Fitness Center, residents and club members donated over 150 coats that were distributed to needy families in Union County. Thank you to all those that donated!

Our holiday season was topped off when our Weddington Warrior football team won the 3A State Championship.

Congratulations to the team and entire WHS Athletic department for this wonderful achievement!

WEDDINGTON PROPERTY TAX FAQ When are my taxes due?

Taxes are due September 1st of every year and are payable without penalty by January 5th of the following year. Payment must be received or postmarked by this date.

What are the penalties for late payment?

A penalty of 2% will be assessed on January 6th and a penalty of 3â „4% will be assessed on the first of every month the tax remains unpaid.

Why is my payment going to a lockbox in Georgia?

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The Town banks locally with South State Bank who outsources their lockbox service to Georgia.

How can I make my payment?

2019 Taxes Due September 2019

By mail, drop box, or in person at Town Hall (1924 Weddington Rd.) or by credit card on our website (www.townofweddington.com.)

If paying by credit card, there is a fee of $4.95 per payment to cover the fee assessed the Town.

What do I get for my tax payment?

Weddington has a very low tax rate, currently it is 5.2 cents per $100.00 in valuation. The majority of our tax money is allocated to public safety. We have 3 Weddington Sheriff’s Deputies who are contracted through Union County. Tax dollars also go toward Fire Services and zoning regulations in the town which helps keep property values high.

Weddington Journal - The Official Community Newsletter for the Town of Weddington - January 2019

WEDDINGTON

Christmas Tree Lighting The Town of Weddington was pleased to host our annual Christmas Tree Lighting on Friday, November 30th. The community enjoyed culinary delights from three local food trucks - Spoons BBQ, Plated Palette, and Oak City Seafood.

Christmas carols were sung by the students from Weddington and Antioch Elementary Schools, Weddington Middle School, Siler Presbyterian’s choir, and children from Chesterbrook Academy (Weddington and Ballantyne campuses).

Attendees enjoyed hot chocolate, cookies, and s’mores by the fire pit while listening to festive music provided by the talented DJ Fannie Mae. Our youngest community members were able to share their Christmas wishes with the guest of honor, Santa Claus, and our beautiful tree was lit to kick off the holiday season. As part of our Christmas Tree Lighting event, The Town of Weddington held a coat drive.

We would like to express our thanks to the many community members who donated outerwear; we were able to collect 150 coats! These coats were distributed to citizens in need throughout Union County. Your generosity will help keep many families warm this winter season.

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Weddington Journal - The Official Community Newsletter for the Town of Weddington - January 2019

How to Keep Weddington Beautiful Three Ways to Get Involved

W

e have a growing public concern about trash and debris along our roadways.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) no longer has a service group that picks up litter, so it is accumulating in our community. If you would like to help keep our town a beautiful and scenic community, please consider helping in one of the three ways detailed below.

Traditionally scheduled for the last two weeks of April, the town gathers volunteers for a Litter Sweep in conjunction with NCDOT’s biannual roadside litter removal initiative. In this initiative, residents throughout North Carolina participate in local efforts to help clean up North Carolina’s roadways.

Volunteers are provided with cleanup supplies, such as reversible orange & blue trash bags, gloves, and orange safety vests from their

respective local NCDOT County Maintenance Yard office. If you’d like to get involved in this event, please be on the lookout for the Weddington litter sweep date and get a group to volunteer.

In addition to the litter sweep, NCDOT established its Adopt-a-Highway program. Adopt-A-Highway is made up of civic and community groups — including religious, professional, and social organizations and schools — as well as individuals and families.

There is no fee to be part of the program, but NCDOT asks volunteer groups to commit at least four years of maintenance to a 2-mile stretch of roadway. Litter cleanups happen at least four times a year, sometimes more often on heavily traveled roads. NCDOT, in turn, installs two Adopt-A-Highway signs, each with a recognition panel, on the adopted roadway and provides

the training and materials that volunteers need to safely carry out their goals.

Many residents may have noticed accumulation of litter and debris right outside their own neighborhoods and subdivisions. To maintain the look and feel of your neighborhood, please consider getting your neighbors together for your own community clean-up day to clear the litter in your community. Regardless of where the litter came from, you can build a sense of civic responsibility and community with your neighbors while beautifying the neighborhood as a team.

If you have any questions or concerns about how to get involved in keeping Weddington beautiful, please contact Lisa Thompson (?) at lthompson@townofweddington.com.

TOWN COUNCIL & PLANNING BOARD MEETINGS The Weddington Town Council meets on the 2nd Monday of every month at 7:00 PM. The Weddington Planning Board meets the 4th Monday of each month at 7:00 PM. All Town Council & Planning Board meetings are held at Weddington Town Hall and are open to the public unless otherwise noted.

Council Retreat – February 9th from 8:30 AM to 1:30 PM Town Council Meeting – February 11th at 7:00 PM Planning Board Meeting – February 25th at 7:00 PM Town Council Meeting – March 11th at 7:00 PM Planning Board Meeting – March 25th at 7:00 PM

Have any questions about the community?

Contact us!

TOWN HALL

1924 Weddington Rd. | Weddington, NC P H O N E | (704) 846 - 2709 E - M A I L | lthompson@townofweddington.com W E B | www.townofweddington.com

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