By Shavonne Potts
spotts@salisburypost.com
LANDIS ó Like many surrounding municipalities, Landis was asked at the Board of Aldermen meeting Monday to endorse the 2009 Solid Waste Management Plan for Rowan County.
The plan, which includes recycling and what each town does with its waste, will go before the Rowan County Board of Commissioners for approval, said Lori Swaim, county recycling coordinator.
The 10-year comprehensive plan has to be updated every three years. The Rowan County Environmental Management Department completed a long-range planning effort to evaluate the appropriate strategies available to manage the solid waste in the most effective way.
Something new in the plan, Swaim said, was what to do about animal mortality. In the event of some epidemic where large numbers of animals die, there must be a plan in place for how to dispose of the animals and what equipment would be used.
Swaim said this would be for large animals such as cows.
Another addition to the plan is a town’s disposal of mobile homes. A new state law allows grants for towns that have to dispose of a mobile home.
“The town can apply to get a portion of the money back that you spent on disposal,” she said.
Swaim said she’s spent many months writing the plan, but if the town wished to come up with its own, it could. But the plan would have to be ready by the deadline.
The plan must be submitted to the state by July 1.
In other matters the board:
– Awarded Allred & Carrick CPAs a contract for the town’s auditing services.
The Lexington company was the second-lowest bidder with $14,000. The lowest bidder, Town Administrator Reed Linn said, was a Greenville-based company with $11,000.
Asked why the staff did not recommend the Greenville company, Linn said the company never offered to meet with staff.
Allred & Carrick will offer the town a fixed rate for the next three years.
Sherrill & Smith CPAs in Salisbury previously handled the town’s audits. The company still handles the books, Linn said.
– Awarded Site Solutions, of Charlotte, a contract to conduct a study of the parks and recreation master plan.
The plan will “set the direction for the next 10 years,” the proposal said.
The cost of the study is $23,800.
The company has worked with Mooresville, Cornelius, Matthews, Belmont and Nash and Iredell counties.
The first step in the plan is to conduct an inventory of all public and private recreation facilities, which include parks and school athletic facilities.
The planning process is expected to take about six months, said Recreation Director Julie Noblitt. The study should be completed by the end of the year.
Alderman Tony Hilton voted against going with the Charlotte company. He said the board should save money and go with the less expensive N Focus Design Inc., Kannapolis, whose bid came in at $22,500.
Noblitt said the Charlotte company was highly recommended by other parks and recreation departments. She agreed that both companies were comparable in their plans.
Richard Flowe, one of the principal planners with the company, stood to thank the board for its consideration and noted the company was not an engineering company as was incorrectly stated, but a planning firm.
The board will have a budget work session at 7 p.m. on Monday. A public hearing will be at 7 p.m. June 22 to adopt the proposed 2009-2010 budget.