County, Boone

meet in joint session
By Scott Nicholson

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The Boone Town Council and Watauga County Board of Commissioners held a joint meeting to discuss water, sewer and recreation issues Wednesday afternoon.

The commissioners asked for clarification of the county’s role in the proposed Boone water intake that would pump up to four million gallons of water per day from the South Fork of the New River in Fleetwood. The commissioners also asked about possible service connections to county property along Brookshire Road that adjoins the industrial park.

Commission chairman Jim Deal said the county was pursuing a recreation grant for further enhancements.

The property borders the existing Brookshire Park, and a portion is earmarked for soccer stadiums. A portion may be suitable for an affordable-housing project, though it could draw waters from on-site wells.

Deal said the idea was to create town homes so the density of housing units would be greater per acre. He said there were no firm development plans but the project would be structured with restrictions so people wouldn’t purchase them as investment properties.

Boone Town Council member Lynne Mason said the county’s Brookshire property was in a designated rural-growth area where the town would not normally extend municipal services. She said other areas were requesting services and said grants were available for public housing projects but there were limitations on use of public funds.

Mason said the town would be taking on $21 million in debt for the proposed intake, with a $25 million water bond referendum going to town voters in November. She said the amount of debt might restrict what the town was able to do on other projects.

Deal said water and sewer were the key components of the planned affordable-housing project and the two governments would have to work together to keep the per-unit costs low enough to fulfill the goal of providing more housing.

“We don’t expect the town to do something that’s financially responsible,” he said, though he added that many people couldn’t afford to live near town. He said the county could build projects in more-rural areas but it wouldn’t solve the problem. The water connection for water and sewer service to the Brookshire property is estimated at $600,000, with some of the cost going for a sewage pump station.

Commissioner Winston Kinsey said high gas prices and public transportation were also important when determining the location of affordable projects. He said some of the Brookshire property was considered for commercial or industrial site, though the county’s Economic Development Commission recommended focusing on residential use.

Deal said high housing and travel costs were difficult in recruiting teachers, professors and business employees. He said the Brookshire project would be attractive because of AppalCART service and nearby recreational facilities.

Boone is revisiting its Master Plan to look at potential growth areas, and Mason said the water and sewer infrastructure was expensive and with users funding the services, the town tried to keep rates low. “When we have water, we’ll want more customers,” she said.

Boone town manager Greg Young said the town hoped to generate up to 7 million gallons per day in the next 20 years, with 1.5 mgd coming from an upgrade of the existing intakes on the New River and Winkler’s Creek. The town eventually wants to ship half a million gallons per day to Blowing Rock and possibly expand into growth corridors.

Young acknowledged people were concerned about the proposed new intake, and said the town was trying to educate people about the plan, with 99 percent of the water going back into the river. The property around the river could also undergo a watershed reclassification as well, with environmental reviews currently underway.

The boards took no formal action at the meeting, which was held in the Boone Town Council Chambers.