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Record of Proceedings

Greenville City Council Workshop on Trolley and Higgs House Demolition - May 5, 2025

City Council — Monday, May 5, 2025
BodyGreenville, North Carolina
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, May 5, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
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2:10

All right.

2:11

Good afternoon, everybody.

2:13

Welcome everybody to the let's see, May 5th, 2025 workshop for the Greenville City Council.

2:22

Mayor PJ Collinger presiding over the council meeting today.

2:25

Council workshop today.

2:28

First I'll call the city clerk for the roll call.

2:31

Okay.

2:32

Here.

2:32

Mayor Protown Daniels has let us know she'll not be attending this evening.

2:36

Councilmember Foreman?

2:37

Here.

2:37

Councilmember Scully.

2:39

Here.

2:40

Councilmember Blackburn.

2:42

Councilmember Robinson.

2:47

Mayor Collie have a point.

2:48

Thank you very much.

2:49

Mr.

2:49

Manager, any recommended changes on the agenda?

2:51

I have no changes, but the city attorney does.

2:54

Should we skip over him?

2:56

Yeah.

2:57

Hey, it's never a good thing to skip over the attorney.

3:00

Never.

3:01

Thank you, I request that council uh consider adding a closed session motion to be read at the end of the meeting right before adjournment.

3:09

So moved.

3:09

Second.

3:10

All right, must be made by Catherine Wells, second by council.

3:12

All those in favor say I suppose same nay.

3:17

Let's move on to new business presentation of the new emerald express trolley.

3:21

No presentation on the new Emerald Express Trolley.

3:30

So a little update on our existing emerald express trolley.

3:39

But our trolleys are twenty plus years old.

3:42

Getting parts for them, very very challenging.

4:10

So tour assignment has been limited as a result of that vehicle reliability.

4:43

And that would be based on a three-way cost share system.

5:00

All right, we've reached out to a vendor uh that's on a contract uh service that we use, Houston Galveston Area Council that vendor specialty vehicles are trolley manufacturer out of uh out of Nevada.

5:08

So they're on the Usen Galveston Area Council contract, so that meets our procurement process.

5:14

They're Houston, Gallison, or out of where out of Texas.

5:19

Well, I thought you sit somewhere else.

5:22

I was like this contracts out of out of um Texas and that vendor.

5:26

Okay, okay.

5:27

I'll I put the two together.

5:28

I was like, oh my gosh, it's a weird name.

5:32

So here is the cost of the new vehicle.

5:38

You Charlie base price is about 250,000.

5:41

Just short of that.

5:42

That's pretty cool.

5:43

All right.

5:44

Um, based on that um use and galveston pricing, the improvements and upgrades requested by the arts council, an upgraded radio PA system, um, interior lighting, as well as a custom exterior wrap, approaching about $20,000.

6:02

Here is a preview of that uh Emerald Express wrap.

6:11

This was a transit visual buyer.

6:21

All right, so um the total purchase costs and and the breakdown of the the cost share, which is what we're recommending, right?

6:29

Uh the base price of 246, split three ways, 82, 82, 82.

6:34

The um the additions approximately 20,000.

6:40

So about 100 2,000 for the uh arts council maintenance costs, the fuel and general maintenance will look to build that into the hourly charge.

6:51

Um hourly charge 250 per hour for fiscal year 26.

6:57

All right, and then recommendation city staff to move forward preparing agreement.

7:02

Obviously, we'll work with the city uh city attorney's office for the purchase of the trolley in partnership with CBB and and the arts council upon approval of that agreement.

7:11

We would bring that that agreement to council between the three parties.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Historic Preservation███████████████████████████████████████████43%
Public Transportation██████████████████████████26%
Public Engagement████████████████████20%
Procedural███████████11%
Summary of Proceedings

Greenville City Council Workshop - May 5, 2025

Mayor PJ Collinger called the workshop to order at 4:00 PM on May 5, 2025. Roll call showed Mayor Pro Tem Daniels absent, with Councilmembers Foreman, Scully, Blackburn, and Robinson present. The agenda was approved with the addition of a closed session motion. The workshop included two new business items: a presentation on the new Emerald Express Trolley and a discussion on delaying the demolition of the Jacob W. Higgs House.

Approval of Agenda

  • The city attorney requested adding a closed session motion at the end of the meeting. A motion was made and seconded; all present voted aye.

New Business 1: Presentation on the New Emerald Express Trolley

  • City staff presented plans to replace the existing 20+ year old trolleys, which have parts availability issues. The new trolley base price is approximately $246,000, with about $20,000 in upgrades (PA system, interior lighting, custom wrap) requested by the Arts Council.
  • The recommended cost share splits the total (~$266,000) among the City, the Central Business District (CBB), and the Arts Council at roughly $82,000 each. The Arts Council raised additional funds from partners including Smith Family Foundation, GUC, Greenville ENC Alliance, Pitt County, and ECU Health.
  • Operational costs (fuel and maintenance) would be built into an hourly charge of $250 for FY26. The trolley would initially be used for First Fridays and tours, with potential for expanded weekend service.
  • Council expressed support; staff was directed to proceed with preparing a three-party agreement and to bring it back for formal approval. The City will purchase the trolley and surplus the three existing ones.

New Business 2: Discussion Regarding Request to Delay Demolition of the Jacob W. Higgs House

  • The property, a local historic landmark at 1112 Dickinson Avenue, was ordered demolished by Council on January 11, 2024, due to dilapidated conditions. After a required Certificate of Appropriateness, the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) delayed demolition for up to 365 days (expiring June 24, 2025).
  • Preservation North Carolina (PNC) has a contract to sell the property, with closing expected on May 9, 2025. The buyers are Councilmember Foreman and his wife (in partnership with Catherine Ross), who plan to renovate the house into an event space. Councilmember Foreman recused himself from discussion and voting.
  • HPC Chair Andrew Moorhead requested additional time for the sale and renovation, citing the house's architectural and historical significance. Staff outlined three options: allow demolition to proceed (no further action), amend or modify the demolition order (requiring a new public hearing), or repeal the order (also requiring a public hearing).
  • Council debated extending the demolition delay versus repealing the order entirely to give the buyers certainty. The consensus was to pursue repeal to avoid future uncertainty and the need for repeated extensions.

Key Outcomes

  • Emerald Express Trolley: Staff to draft a purchase agreement in partnership with CBB and the Arts Council for formal council approval.
  • Jacob W. Higgs House: Council directed staff to schedule a public hearing to consider repealing the demolition order, allowing the property sale and renovation to proceed.
  • Closed Session: Council voted to enter closed session to discuss real estate negotiations and attorney-client matters.

Meeting Transcript

All right. Good afternoon, everybody. Welcome everybody to the let's see, May 5th, 2025 workshop for the Greenville City Council. Mayor PJ Collinger presiding over the council meeting today. Council workshop today. First I'll call the city clerk for the roll call. Okay. Here. Mayor Protown Daniels has let us know she'll not be attending this evening. Councilmember Foreman? Here. Councilmember Scully. Here. Councilmember Blackburn. Councilmember Robinson. Mayor Collie have a point. Thank you very much. Mr. Manager, any recommended changes on the agenda? I have no changes, but the city attorney does. Should we skip over him? Yeah. Hey, it's never a good thing to skip over the attorney. Never. Thank you, I request that council uh consider adding a closed session motion to be read at the end of the meeting right before adjournment. So moved. Second. All right, must be made by Catherine Wells, second by council. All those in favor say I suppose same nay. Let's move on to new business presentation of the new emerald express trolley. No presentation on the new Emerald Express Trolley. So a little update on our existing emerald express trolley. But our trolleys are twenty plus years old. Getting parts for them, very very challenging. So tour assignment has been limited as a result of that vehicle reliability. And that would be based on a three-way cost share system. All right, we've reached out to a vendor uh that's on a contract uh service that we use, Houston Galveston Area Council that vendor specialty vehicles are trolley manufacturer out of uh out of Nevada. So they're on the Usen Galveston Area Council contract, so that meets our procurement process. They're Houston, Gallison, or out of where out of Texas. Well, I thought you sit somewhere else. I was like this contracts out of out of um Texas and that vendor. Okay, okay. I'll I put the two together. I was like, oh my gosh, it's a weird name. So here is the cost of the new vehicle. You Charlie base price is about 250,000. Just short of that. That's pretty cool. All right. Um, based on that um use and galveston pricing, the improvements and upgrades requested by the arts council, an upgraded radio PA system, um, interior lighting, as well as a custom exterior wrap, approaching about $20,000.

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