In Glen Alpine, even a successful fall festival can spark tense debate

On Monday night, the town’s board of aldermen, seated in a new formation meant to cool tensions, disagreed on how much, if anything, to pay volunteer firefighters who pulled off the town’s largest festival in years.

With no mayor present to break the tie, the issue was postponed to December.

In October, Fire Chief Adam Marlowe requested that the town pay his firefighters who helped organize and work the festival. Marlowe, who was asked to arrange the festival at the last minute, took on the task for his first time, but said that when it came down to working the event, he was missing help from the public works department.

The public works department, which has been newly headed by Alderman Reid Scott, has helped work the festival for pay in previous years, but was not in attendance this year. Since Scott’s hiring, he has brought two new employees on board and fired former employee Kenny Williams.

When asked why public works employees did not help this year, Scott said that one of his new employees had been falsely accused of arson while working for the fire department, and therefore, he would not ask his employees to work the event. But when asked by Marlowe who the accusation came from, Scott didn’t say who.

At the October meeting, the board asked Marlowe to provide a definite number of hours each person worked, as well as how much they would be owed. At Monday’s meeting Marlowe provided the amount, which was $1,170 for a total of 11 personnel, and four of whom he said are already set up through the town as paid personnel. He added that his average for part-time pay is $15 per hour.

Scott expressed outright that he was against the town paying that amount, saying that in years past community service groups such as the Merchants and Friends Association as well as the Glen Alpine Ruritan Club did not get paid for organizing the event.

“Why do you gotta get paid for everything?” Scott asked.

However, Marlowe said that the reason he had to recruit more staff was that the fire department did not have help from the public works department. Scott then suggested that the town only provide funds to pay for two of the firefighters to make up for the two public works employees who were not in attendance.

“But we are in a bind because we did ask them to put on the town festival, and it was a success,” Mayor Pro Tempore Luke Boone said. “It was a big festival. There was a lot of people that turned out for it. And they said this is the man-hours that they required to work.”

Marlowe also added that the request only includes the man-hours for the day of the festival and doesn’t include all of the planning and organization that went on behind the scenes. With more vendors this year than ever before, Marlowe said there were a few hiccups with getting them set up, but other than that, he said the festival was the best he’s seen in years.

However, those who helped won’t get paid until December at the earliest. Scott and Alderwoman Sheila Perkins voted against paying the full amount, and Boone and Alderman Jason Miller voted for the payment. Perkins said she would be willing to have them get paid for eight hours, which would be more in line with their normal workday, instead of 10 and 12 hours.

With Mayor Michelle Lewis not in attendance, there could not be a tie breaker, so the item was pushed back to the December meeting. Town Attorney Rob Denton suggested that when the town does decide what to pay, they should also pass a policy that outlines what to expect in the future as far as who gets paid for working events.

The board discussed several other items in the jam-packed meeting but tabled some of Lewis’ items. Other items included:

• Surveillance system for the town: Robb Sawyer with Digital Eyes Surveillance, LLC will be assessing the town’s existing door access system, cameras, and IT equipment to see what can be utilized for an improved surveillance system and security. There is no charge yet for the town, but Town Administrator Crystal Carswell reminded the board that should they make extra purchases, there will have to be a budget amendment.
• Park fence for the Glen Alpine Park: As there have been safety concerns about the location of the Glen Alpine Park in proximity to the railroad tracks downtown, Alderman Reid Scott said that in two weeks, work will begin to install a 6-foot chain-link fence, blocking the railroad bank.
• Golf cart ordinance: Police Chief Kirk Penley brought forth the idea to create a golf cart ordinance for the town, following surrounding municipalities such as Drexel and Morganton. Attorney Denton said he would help put together an ordinance, and Penley suggested using Drexel’s ordinance as a framework. The goal is to vote on the ordinance at their December meeting.
• Christmas parade: The town’s Christmas parade is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6.