Smithfield
Town Council
    report from May 6 session

Council members present: Mayor Andy Moore, David Barbour, John Dunn, Marlon Lee, Steve Rabil, David Stevens, and Roger Wood
Absent: Travis Scott


WHAT'S LEADING TO SHUTDOWN OF TRASH FACILITIES?

Improper and unauthorized dumping by the public at the town's recycling station beside the Public Works Garage at the intersection of Buffalo and Hospital roads prompted the council's consensus that the facility should be open only on Saturdays with an attendant on duty.

Acting Public Works Director Lawrence Davis said folks are mixing materials that cannot be recycled with those that can, and non-residents are dumping garbage unchecked since the facility is unsupervised most of the time. Currently it's open all day Monday-Friday and half a day Saturday.

Town Manager Mike Scott said this week that the Saturday-only supervised service is scheduled to begin June 1.

Another garbage concern is the poor condition of several alleyways behind some South Smithfield residences where the town's trucks empty roll-out containers. "They are a mess," Mr. Scott told the council.

Actually, the town recently suspended those collections because of muddy conditions, and overgrown vegetation is restricting truck movements, Mr. Davis reported. "We have to cut the shrubs back," he said.

Council members expressed support for discontinuing the alley service altogether, but when that takes effect was left undecided.

"We are still working on the trash alleys at this time," Mr. Scott told the Sun earlier this week. "Public notification will be made once this becomes final."


TRASH FEES SLIGHTLY HIGHER THAN OTHER TOWNS'

Town Manager Scott's "draft" budget includes $1 increases in monthly fees for garbage collection as well as yard-debris pickup. That would raise the total for those services by $2 --- from $26.24 to $28.24 for most residences.

He presented the council the cost of similar services in nearby towns: $25 in Selma and $20.59 in Clayton, both without monthly yard-waste collections; and $22.56 in Benson, which offers at no extra cost weekly "stick pickup" (so long as piles are limited to 4 cubic yards) as well as leaf collections October-January.

Despite the higher fees for Smithfield's service, the town manager said it's "not paying for itself." To cover the full cost would require another $3 increase in fees, he said. Meanwhile, Smithfield's fees may have to go up more than what he has proposed if the county follows through with plans to raise its landfill "tipping fees," Mr. Scott added.


SUPPORT FOR FIXING AMPHITHEATER AND GROUNDS

The manager's draft budget includes $54,000 for rebuilding the stage of the Neuse River Amphitheater on the Town Commons "to make it functional and safe," Parks and Recreation Director Gary Johnson told the council.

Future budgets could include funding for fixing drainage issues around the stage and rebuilding the tiered seating area in front of the stage, he noted.

But several council members said they want the drainage problems fixed when the stage is rebuilt. That would add at least another $20,000 to the proposed budget, according to the parks and rec director.

"People are interested in the amphitheater and want to know when we're going to fix it," exclaimed Councilman Barbour. He called the facility "an important part of our community and downtown" for attracting businesses. "I think it should be one of our highest priorities," he declared.

Councilman Stevens said he favors fixing the drainage before the stage is redone. Town Manager Scott said money for the work could come from more than $200,000 currently in hand from a 2% tax on overnight hotel accommodations in Smithfield.


"SPEED HUMPS" INSTEAD OF "SPEED BUMPS"?

Councilman Barbour asked the staff to get some cost estimates on installing what he termed "speed humps" to slow down speeders on residential streets. The so-called "humps" are made of asphalt, he noted, and aren't as hard on vehicles' suspensions as shorter "speed bumps" like those recently installed in front of the Sarah Yard Center at Smith-Collins Park.

Mr. Barbour said "nobody likes four-way stops" --- the town's current method of slowing residential traffic. He suggested Whitley Drive in West Smithfield where he resides as a test site for the humps that "keep traffic moving but slow it down."

"Put one in and see what people think," he asked.

MANAGER TO PRESENT PROPOSED BUDGET NEXT WEEK

The council recessed last Thursday's session until 6:30 p.m. Thursday, May 20 at Town Hall. Before that session, Town Manager Scott will present a proposed budget based on council members' suggestions during meetings over the past few weeks.


FUNDING APPROVED FOR FOURTH RIVERBANK FIX

Before recessing last week's meeting, the council authorized spending up to $30,000 out of the current budget's contingency fund to shore up yet another portion of the Neuse River's bank beside the greenway trail that was washed away by this past winter's persistent flooding.

The repair job will be tacked onto a recent contract with JP Edwards Inc. to fix a previous washout north of the Market Street bridge. Town Manager Scott said this is the fourth spot to be filled with rocks and concrete over the past couple of years.

Here's the section of riverbank that remains to be rebuilt. It's beside the greenway just south of a section that had to be rebuilt in 2019. Notice the exposed sewer pipe just above the water level.
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