Greenville City Council Meeting – October 6, 2025
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Greenville City Council Meeting – October 6, 2025
The Greenville City Council met on October 6, 2025, at 6:00 PM in City Hall Council Chambers. The meeting was called to order by Mayor P.J. Connolly, followed by an invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll call showed five members present, with Councilmember Willis absent. The agenda was approved after adding item 8 (City of Greenville vs. Camping World Property LLC) under new business. All votes were unanimous (5-0) unless noted.
Special Recognitions
- The Greenville Utilities Commission (GUC) was recognized for a conservation easement project at the wastewater treatment plant. The project planted 63,900 hardwood trees and shrubs across 101 acres of stream drainage area, expected to prevent approximately 227,000 pounds of nitrogen and 14,000 pounds of phosphorus from entering the Tar River. The initiative included 31 species and was developed in partnership with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality. GUC also noted future plans for a constructed wetlands project to increase treatment capacity by 2–4 million gallons per day.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Ivan Brown (property stockholder at 409 Elizabeth Street) expressed concerns about the 5th and Elizabeth Street roundabout landscaping plan. He listed multiple flaws, including planting oak trees in raised beds, near curbs, under power lines, and improper grading that created safety hazards. He stated that four meetings with city staff had only yielded “band-aid” solutions.
- Wade Wilson (resident of Gabriel Drive, speaking on his own behalf) urged council and the public to reduce reliance on phones and social media, citing the Mark Sanchez incident as an example of online misinformation and real-world violence. He also advised against listening to anti-vaccine advocates without presenting research to medical experts.
Consent Agenda
- Item 2: Resolution approving an interlocal agreement with Pitt County Sheriff's Office for shared cost of sally port roll-up doors and a fingerprint machine.
- Item 3: Resolution declaring 32 vehicles and equipment as surplus and authorizing purchase of replacements for various city departments.
- Item 4: Authorization to accept a U.S. Department of Homeland Security Assistance to Firefighters Grant for defibrillators, thermal imaging cameras, and technical rescue training.
- Item 5: Resolution authorizing opt-in to new opioid settlements with Purdue and secondary manufacturers (Alvogen, Amneal, Apotex, Hikma, Indivior, Mylan, Sun, and Zydus). All consent items were approved unanimously.
Discussion Items
- Item 6 – Public Art Request (Dickinson Avenue Sculptures): Holly Garrett, executive director of the Arts Council, presented. She requested official approval for existing sculptures by Jonathan Bowling and for installing three new sculptures on a soon-to-complete walkway from Dickinson Avenue to Ficklin and 9th Street. The Arts Council plans to purchase some of Bowling’s work and designate a sculpture pad for the Downeast Sculpture Exhibition juror. Council approved the request and agreed to review sculpture selections at the October 9 workshop meeting.
- Item 7 – Budget Ordinance Amendment #3: Chief Financial Officer Jake Joyner presented amendments to the 2025-2026 budget, including: increasing technology and community partnership allocations ($45,000 general fund), appropriating funds for police equipment ($145,495), design of Fire Station 8 ($350,000 capital project fund), additional live fire training facility costs ($80,000), sanitation office renovations ($500,000 from reserves), and recognizing NC TRI Grant revenue ($70,000 housing fund). The total operating budget rose to $202.2 million. Approved unanimously.
- Item 8 – City of Greenville vs. Camping World Property LLC: City Attorney Emmanuel McGurt explained that House Bill 926 (limiting local authority to regulate American flag displays on private property) had passed, and recommended voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit. Council authorized the dismissal unanimously.
City Manager’s Report
- City Manager announced that the budget amendment included funding for the design and construction of Fire Station 8 on Frog Level Road (land donated by Pitt County Board of Education). He also noted plans to bring forward appropriations for improvements at three existing fire stations next month.
Councilmember Comments
- Councilmember Blackburn presented facts on GUC rate increases: temporary electric rate increases in 2024 and 2025 (falling off in 2026-2027), a 3.4% permanent increase, and water/sewer increases in 2023-2024, while noting rate decreases in 2016-2018. She emphasized the need for factual accuracy.
- Councilmember Robinson clarified that electric rates had not increased in 12 years (not 10 as he previously stated). He highlighted a collaboration with Pitt Community College, ECU Health, and the Overton family to build 50 affordable homes on the west side over 10 years, and a memorial scholarship for Trey Kuhn to support construction program students. He also reported GUC’s recent awards (2025 TRUST award for gas department, best of NC technology award) and paid tribute to retired officer Stu Stevens, who died in an accident while delivering supplies to Western North Carolina.
- Councilmember Scully welcomed sociology students in attendance and encouraged civic participation.
- Mayor Pro Tem Daniels invited everyone to National Night Out on October 7 (5:30-7:30 PM at Five Points) and proposed establishing a poet laureate for Greenville, asking the city manager and Arts Council to explore the idea.
- The City Clerk listed upcoming appointments to be made at the October 9 meeting (Historic Preservation, Housing Authority, Planning & Zoning, PCRC, Recreation & Parks, Shepherd Memorial Library Board).
Key Outcomes
- All agenda items (consent, new business, added item) were approved unanimously (5-0).
- Council directed staff to present public art sculpture selections at the October 9 workshop for approval.
- The city attorney was authorized to voluntarily dismiss the lawsuit against Camping World.
- The city manager will proceed with Fire Station 8 design and future fire station improvements.
- Exploration of a poet laureate position was initiated.
- The meeting adjourned at approximately 7:15 PM (estimated).
Meeting Transcript
Good evening. Uh I'd like to call the October 6th, 2025 meeting of the Greenville City Council to order. I'm Mayor P. J. Connolly, I'll be presiding over tonight's meeting. First, I will ask everyone to join me for a moment of silence, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Thank you. Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands while nation on the under God. Madam Clerk, will you please call the roll? Yes, sir. Mayor Connolly. Here. Mayor for Tim Daniels. Present. Councilmember Foreman. Here. Councilmember Blackburn. Present. Councilmember Scully. Here. Councilmember Robins? Here. And Councilmember Willis is last night. She will not be attending. Thank you very much. We'll now move on to the approval of the agenda. Any recommended changes, Mr. Manager? Mr. Attorney. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Mayor and Council, I would um recommend that the council add under new business item eight uh entitled City of Greenville Plaintiff versus Camping World Property LLC, formerly known as Camping World Property Incorporated Defendant. So moved. Second. All right. Motion was made by Councilmember Blackbird, second by Councilmember Robinson. All those in favor say aye. Aye. Motion passes five zero. All right, we'll move on to special recognitions. Staff of Greenwood Utilities Commission. And he was telling me about one uh project, which was a conservation easement at the wastewater treatment plant. And it was a project that uh GUC had been working on for about three to four years, and uh hadn't heard about it, and he was uh describing it to me, and I was just blown away at the project and uh thought that it was not only worthy of recognition, but Mayor this will serve as my city manager shout out for this month. So it's a double dose here. Let me give you a little bit of history of this project and kind of describe uh to you what this conservation easement project, uh conservation uh easement project at the GUC water wastewater treatment plant is all about. The project includes the development of a restorative buffers to offset the environmental impact of growth throughout the community. This initiative provides planned perpetual green spaces which are maximized to capture nutrients, primarily nitrogen and phosphorus to protect our water or surface waters, and actually there's pictures of of this uh being displayed on the screen as we speak. The conservation easement was a GUC effort initiated about four years ago to plant sixty-three thousand nine hundred hardwood trees and shrubs along a hundred and one acres of stream drainage area on the wastewater treatment plant farm.
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