NCS000400_Email RE Jamestown MS4 Permit Public Comments_20240609 (6)

Georgoulias, Bethany
From: ROBERT FREDERICK <[e-mail]>
Sent: Sunday, June 9, 2024 11:42 PM
To: Lawyer, Mike; Reed, Isaiah L
Cc: [e-mail]; [e-mail]
Subject: [External] Jamestown, NC - NPDES MS4 permit NCS000400
You don't often get email from [e-mail] why this is important
CAUTION: External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless verified. Report suspicious emails with the Report Message
button located on your Outlook menu bar on the Home tab.
Dear Mr. Lawyer and Mr. Reed:
I'm writing with a comment about the NPDES MS4 permit NCS000400 for Jamestown, NC.
In particular, I'm focused on Jamestown's Stormwater Management Plan, in which, first the Town
Manager signs and dates the certification form, but does not check any of the checkboxes to note his
position. This is just a foreshadowing of the inadequacy of this plan, which does not appear complete.
The theme of my comment overall: funding.
In section 4.2 of the Stormwater Management Plan, the Town Manager states that the Town of
Jamestown shall maintain adequate funding and staffing to implement and manage the provisions of the
SWMP and comply with the requirements of the NPDES MS4 Permit and that the town funds the
Stormwater Program through its general fund. The town began charging us a stormwater fee only last
year to raise, as this section suggests, $50,000 for its stormwater budget with the rest of the total of
$58,400 to come from the general fund.
The budget itself, however, shows that$56,000 was approved last year(as adopted), $58,400 was
allocated (as amended), but that$171,600 is proposed in the recommended budgeted for next year(see
page 8 of the PDF):
https://storage.googleapis.com/dbc-jcity/files/pdf/RecommendedBudgetBinderFY2425-
1715623998.pdf
Why these differences for the 2024/2025 fiscal year? We, the public, have no idea.
Why would this money come out of the Town's general fund anyway, when Jamestown was awarded
around $3 million of federalARPA funds, which were designated for municipal water quality, sewer, and
infrastructure projects?
It's because the Jamestown Mayor and Town Council—guided by the Town Manager—voted to spend
$2.3 million of$2.8 million in federal ARPA funding for an approximately one-mile stretch of sidewalk,
most of it on property that appears to belong to the Guilford County School System (and is of no service
to the citizens of Jamestown).
https://www.guitfordcountync.gov/our-county/administration/covid-recovery-funding
1

This use of funding for sidewalks is not in accordance with the federal rules for how this funding is to be
spent, and I have previously raised this issue with both officials at Guilford County and at the federal
government. Instead, however, the Town of Jamestown put out a video as if to say the funding came
about because of"conscientious planning efforts."
https://youtu.be/VG6f3lipYvl?si=xJJ_J9eAoaiRfZGR&t=46
Further, Jamestown, Deep River and the Randleman Watershed were excluded from the distribution of
monies North Carolina received (hundreds of millions of dollars)for water and sewer infrastructure
projects. Those awards were funded by a portion of the$2.3 billion from President Biden's American
Rescue Plan Act, State Revolving Funds (including Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds), and Community
Development Block Grant funding. It was done through the NC General Assembly's 2023 Appropriations
Act, and the NCDEQ is administering the grants.
For years, however, Jamestown's officials have chosen to ignore stormwater and wastewater issues.
A thorough review of the Minutes of Town Council meetings in past fewyears (up to 2022) shows
numerous discussions about the need for repairs and upgrades to the Eastside wastewater treatment
plant(located in Jamestown but operated by High Point, with partial funding from Jamestown), sewer
system and drainage problems (as shown in detail below the
Yet funding was relegated to the back burner, repairs were few, and so the problems still exist and have
only further stressed Eastside -which will inevitably result in even more costly repairs.
It's only now, forced to comply, that the Town has started to do its work. But that work is, unfortunately,
woefully inadequate.
The Town Council had numerous discussions about how to get Jamestown residents to pay for these
repairs, and last year enacted a round of tax increases, increased sewer fees, and assessed a new
stormwater fee on residents even though we residents kept asking about the ARPA funds.
Also during that time period, the council members, on numerous occasions, discussed the need for
stormwater"public education."Yet they failed to act upon it. What was the$58,400 (as amended)
actually spent on? We, the public, do not know, but there certainly wasn't much of anything spent—if
any—on public education.
What will the dramatic increase to $171,600 for stormwater for the proposed budget for 2024-2025 be
spent on? We, the public, do not know.
Most of the in-depth and more detailed discussions about stormwater, water quality and wastewater
were held in "Special Town Council Meetings" that took place during weekday morning hours with little
public notice. (See below.)
Thank you for your careful attention to this Stormwater Management Plan and application for the
permit. Please question it all carefully. Indeed, Jamestown's Town Manager publishes documents that
are regularly incomplete and often has inconsistent financial information from document to document,
as I've demonstrated here.
2

Finally, thankyou foryour consideration.
Robert Frederick
[e-mail]
P.S. How does it all fit—financially—with a recently awarded grant from the state of NC (via the Golden
Leaf Foundation, set up initially to distribute funds from the tobacco settlement) of$769,000 for
stormwater projects in one of Jamestown's wealthiest neighborhoods (where the former mayor and two
former councilmen live) that was announced by the town—via Facebook—on June
6? https://www.facebook.com/JamestownNC/posts/pfbidOuaJMEgnfFuL6vAL9uVgGW9yQU4eWyXEqzz
pjejJXa6SP4xngycmZ1 vD93EGudKySl
This is suggested on the Facebook page as if it were "non-tax revenues" but it is tax revenues in one way
or another, as it came from the state of North Carolina:
https://go[denleaf.org/mitigation/
We the public do not know. And again, please take care in what you read from the Town Manager of
Jamestown.
What follows below is a thorough review of the Minutes of Town Council meetings, often "Special"
meetings called, which require little public notice, and were scheduled/held during workday
hours, making it difficult for the public to attend.
All of the minutes referenced below may be viewed in their entirety online at
https.11www.jamestown-nc.govlmy-govemmentlmeeting-minutes-and-schedules
January of 2020: During a "town council retreat" the minutes show that the Town Council discussed how
an increase in housing units and population would impact water and sewer services and increase the
cost of services provided to residents. The Town Manager at the time, Kenny Cole, told the Council that
the Public Services Department would be most impacted and that additional employees would be
needed, especially an Engineering Technician to assist with reviews and permits.
At that January 2020 meeting, Cole also told the Council that Jamestown "had stormwater issues,"
particularly in an area east of Forestdale (south of the D.R. Horton parcel—467 acres recently annexed
and to be built on at density beyond tthat allowed by a Class IV watershed, but approved by the Council
anyway depsite very suspect proceedings by the attorneys involved—for a full accounting I've gathered
thus far, see
—https://www.facebook.com/RobertEdwardFrederick/posts/pfbidOy2vFT9Eeg1 AcnBVg3oaPHGwNyWp
4WfD1jQ7e8HX9u2UYC9BdXCarW5vE1 MAxPu1 Bl). Cole said that "staff had estimated it would
cost about$142,000 to repair the overall problem in the area," according to the minutes. A
discussion ensued about how to pay for the repairs but ultimately the council members
decided that the town's streets were "a higher priority than storm water problems." This was
3

followed by the sentence "There was discussion about creating a policy to address the issue
between Council Members and Cole."
In November of 2020, the Council Meeting minutes state that Cole brought it up again—a request to the
council to budget for an Engineering Technician for the "current fiscal year."According to the minutes,
council member Martha Wolfe expressed surprise that Cole considered the Engineering Technician
position to fall under the Public Services Department(instead of the Planning Department). That same
month, Cole was terminated by the Town Council with no reason given to the town residents or media.
Note:An Interim temporary manager, David Treme, served between the time of Cole's firing and the
hiring of Matthew Johnson.
At the January 22 2021 town council meeting, Public Services Director Paul Blanchard presented an
overview of his department's proposed capital improvement projects and said his "staff would like to
work on the water and sewer infrastructure on Penny Road before that sidewalk was constructed in the
2022/2023 fiscal year," in addition to sewer slip lining projects.
Also at the Jan 22 2021 meeting, the drainage problems of East Forestdale (where the aforementioned
Golden Leaf funds were just awarded)were brought up again by one of the council members.
Also at that Jan 22 2021 Town Council Special Budget meeting, the then-planning director, Matthew
Johnson, said that there was "currently no funding mechanism to assist with stormwater projects. He
stated that the stormwater program was an unfunded mandate by the state. He said that the state
required the Town to provide the same level of service as much larger municipalities. Johnson added that
additional funding would allow for the purchase of equipment to prevent and fix stormwater
issues."Again, this is taken directly from the minutes.
Council Member John Capes said "it may be beneficial to educate the public about the issue. Johnson
said that staff could request that a stormwater expert attend a Council meeting to discuss stormwater
and reasons for the necessary funding."
Mayor Montgomery discussed the potential cost per household for stormwater fees. Interim town
manager Treme stated that the Town needed a revenue stream to fix ongoing stormwater issues. Council
Members discussed various ways to address the stormwater problems and the possibility of
implementing a fee in the future.
Mayor Montgomery stated that it was essential for citizens to understand why it should be important to
them. Planning Director Matthew Johnson said that he would request that someone attend a Council
meeting and present information on stormwater in the near future.
A discussion then ensued about the Council's desire to renovate and update the Town Hall building.
An entry in the town council meeting minutes from March 19, 2021, states Paul Blanchard said that he
had been "keeping a record of installation dates and areas where there were breaks in the system. He
noted the importance of maintaining the Town's infrastructure."
12.At the April 2, 2021 Town Council Meeting, Matthew Johnson said that"the stormwater regulations
that were imposed on municipalities had continued to tighten and that it had been challenging to find
necessary revenue to address the infrastructure concerns. Johnson stated that most municipalities
implemented a stormwater fee to assist with those costs."
4

[Note:Despite acknowledging costs of necessary stormwater infrastructure repairs,Johnson and town
council moved forward with plans to renovate offices in Town Hall, renovate bathrooms at Wrenn Park
and renovate bathrooms at the golf course, at a cost to Jamestown residents of hundreds of thousands of
dollars.]
Linsey Lengyel,Water Resources Manger with Blue Steam Environmental, presented information on
stormwater to council members.
She explained basic stormwater permit requirements and said that Jamestown would have a stormwater
audit in 2023. She noted that the audit was required for permit renewal.
Lengyel spoke about the importance of pollution reduction, the connectivity of local waterways, and
how polluted stormwater negatively impacts our drinking water. Lengyel added that pollution of
stormwater had negative impacts on drinking water.
Lengyel gave an overview of documentation requirements for the Town's annual reporting and upcoming
audit. She said that many municipalities were receiving notices of violations as a result of the audit and
that Jamestown would have 30 days to acknowledge receipt of a notice of violation if it were issued.
Lengyel said that the Town would then have 60 days to approve a resolution that stated that the Town
would support, fund, and staff the stormwater program with no exceptions.
Lengyel said that the Town has an opportunity to address some of the requirements before the audit in
2023. She presented a cost comparison of stormwater fees that were charged by municipalities of a
similar size to the Town of Jamestown. She added that the average stormwater fee utilized by towns of a
similar size was about$4.31. Lengyel spoke about the importance of education about the fees before
they were collected.
[Note:At that time, Jamestown's NPDES MS4 permit was expired, the town was operating under a
temporary extension granted by the NC DEQ because MatthewJohnson submitted an application for
renewal within 180 business days (not calendar days) of the permit's actual expiration.]
At the May 18, 2021 Town Council Meeting, financial director Judy Gallman (retired in 2023) presented
the 2021/2022 Recommended Budget and Capital Improvement Plan. She said the budget included a 3%
increase on the Town's water rate. She said that the cost for the Town to purchase water from the
Piedmont Triad Regional Water Authority had increased by the same amount. She noted that the sewer
rates were also going to increase by 8%to reflect the additional expense that the Town was required to
pay for improvements to the Eastside plant.At the Town Council Strategic Retreat on January 21 2022,
the minutes indicate discussions of:
Agenda item 5.3 "Prepare a plan to implement government mandated storm water regulations." Matthew
Johnson explained to the group that"this is a work in progress."
Agenda item 5.9, Coordinate joint meeting with City of GSO, HP and PTRWA to discuss water/sewer cost
and capacities." The minutes state that"Blanchard said we can purchase more water which is good.We
are tied into two different systems and the capacity is there and the town is in a good position."
(Note:An analysis of the town's population, and current and projected water purchasing needs, shows
that this is NOT true. Jamestown is already purchasing more water than it uses. Current contracted
5

amounts showJamestown purchasing more than it will use through the year 2070. The only town/city that
projects a need for more water in the near future is GREENSBORO.]
The "Hazen and Sawyer Growth in Wastewater Study Result"—Per the minutes, "Blanchard introduced
Aaron Babson, senior associate with Hazen and Sawyer who "stated they set up a model to evaluate the
town's water and sewer capacity and found that the existing sewer system has the capacity to accept the
D.R. Horton 1,500-home development with some possible upgrades needed. They recommend using
flow monitors to survey the system. They understand the contract is ready to be approved by Council.
This will help with the survey and monitoring for future impact to the system. They also recommended a
manhole status assessment." The Hazen Sawyer study is
HERE: https://www.drop box.com/scl/fi/j2lccknbw8mrpwafav1n1/Sewer-Study-Hazen-
Sawyer.pdf?rlkey=9lnxc8jwncjg1y9j2xumfb0yu&st=12a70vrn&d1=0
Councilwoman Wolfe asked if the improvement is at the Town's cost. Matthew Johnson said that is a
talking point in the Development Agreement.
[Note: the town council eventually voted to commitJamestown to pay for all sewer and stormwater
upgrades for the D.R. Horton development in exchange for D.R. Horton paying for one-half of a new
garbage truck.]
Capital Improvement projects—Financial director Judy Gallman gave an overview of projects on the list
for General Fund and Water/Sewer fund. Paul Blanchard said he is prioritizing the Penny Road project.
They may need to put in a "new water line parallel to Penny Road to prepare for the sidewalk project.Also
the slip lining project is a priority."
A Special Meeting of the Town Council was held March 25, 2022 at 9:00 am in the Clubhouse at the
Jamestown Park&Golf Course.According to the minutes, "general fund projects" were discussed. Of
note:
Storm Drainage Improvements—Blanchard said he had been working with a consultant to revise the
plans for that project and that staff was hoping to get the contract documents complete so that the
project could be put out for bids.
Stormwater Mapping Project(Withers Ravenel)—Blanchard said this project had been underway for
about four years. He noted that staff believed the upcoming year would be the last year that the project
would be included in the CIP.
Stormwater Audit Prep and Inspection (Blue Stream)—Blanchard said "staff was requesting that Blue
Stream be involved with the Town's water quality feature. He added that they would also assist with the
Town's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. Blanchard said staff was being
proactive to prepare for the upcoming stormwater audit.
Paul Blanchard stated that there needed to be someone on the Town's staff that could focus their
attention on stormwater concerns. There was a discussion about stormwater utility fees and ways they
are used to offset maintenance.
Sewer System Improvements Slip Lining—Paul Blanchard said "he was working on the slip lining
contract."
6

Plan/Survey for Water Line Replacements—Pau I Blanchard stated "he was working with High Point and
Greensboro to ensure that the Town makes good choices on how the water is delivered."
Main Street Water Line—Pau I Blanchard said he was waiting on contract documents for the waterline
project. Council Member Wolfe asked if it would be better to wait until the Jamestown Bypass was
complete and open before the Town started to work on the Main Street water line. PaulBlanchard said he
would speak with NCDOT about potentially delaying the project.
Other Water Line Projects—Blanchard said he would like to replace the water line along Penny
Road before the sidewalk project begins.
At the April 19 2022 regular Town Council Meeting, Marc Isaacson, D.R. Horton's representative, said
that HE was "respectfully requesting a continuation of the hearings associated with the D.R. Horton
project to the June 23rd Town Council meeting because they(D.R. Horton)were waiting on the results of
the Hazen and Sawyer sewer system study. Council Member Straughn asked Isaacson if the results of
the sewer study was the largest issue. Isaacson said that it was D.R. Horton's biggest concern.
In the minutes for the "Special Meeting of the Town Council at 9 am on May 11, 2022," financial director
Judy Bouldin Gallman said that there had been some changes made to the capital improvement program
items in the General Fund. Council Member Wolfe asked if the Main Street water line project should be
pushed out until the bypass is completed. Blanchard said that he was in favor of waiting until the bypass
was complete. There was a consensus to push the project out until the 2023/24 FY.
The Town Council Regular Meeting on June 23 2022 included the continuance of the public hearing from
April 19 2022 as D.R. Horton waited for the results of the Hazen and Sawyer sewer study. Town planner
Anna Hawryluk said the study had been completed and that"Paul Blanchard would provide the results."
Paul Blanchard presented an overview of the Hazen and Sawyer Study, described in the town minutes as
a study that"examined existing conditions of the town's sewer infrastructure to determine any potential
necessary improvements.
Blanchard said that they had identified some minor inflow and infiltration issues. He added that prior to
development of half of the D.R. Horton project, the Town would need to address issues with about ten
manholes. Blanchard said that staff planned to add those improvements to the CIP or to address them
while doing some of the other ongoing projects."
This is the account as presented in the minutes from that meeting. However, more specifically,
Blanchard's actual words, from the online YouTube video of that meeting, were that the Hazen and
Sawyer study found "minor inflow and infiltration issues ... but that's typical for systems our size and age
... and we should update the study every two or three years with Hazen ... Key findings are that PRIOR TO
DEVELOPING MORE THAN HALF of the D.R. Horton project AS SHOWN ON PRELIMINARY PLANS (he
later calls it the "preliminary subdivision layout"), we need to address issues with about 10 manholes
and one short(sewer) segment not close to the Horton property but further down ... we'll see if can do as
part of Capital Improvement Plan with other projects ongoing."
The manholes—Blanchard explained that Jamestown needs to raise 10 manholes downstream of the
development by a height of two feet and ALSO that one short sewer segment needs to be addressed.A
Councilwoman asked about the cost of raising the manholes. Blanchard said about$5000 each."

Note: The Hazen and Sawyer Study was conducted based on a PRELIMINARY SCHEMATIC DATED FEB 1
2022 shown in the June 23rd meeting packet. The CURRENT SCHEMATIC DATED DEC 14 2022 has
notable DIFFERENCES such as the inclusion of an "Exhibit B-2" plan for 500 apartment units in an
unidentifiable adjacent"match line" location, along with the addition of unidentifiable parking or units
directly adjacent to the CRITICAL WATERSHED portion of the property.
In addition, the Critical and Protected water streams are less delineated on the current map so we are
unable to see the buffers and 100-foot vegetated setbacks that are now required by the enactment of
the RANDLEMAN WATERSHED AND BUFFER PROTECTION Administrative Code. The Town of Jamestown
has NOT YET added the code to its Land Development Ordinance, even though it is mandated by the
State of North Carolina to do so, and even though the Town Council has made numerous amendments
and updates to its LDO over the past two years.
At the Nov 15 2022 regular Town Council Meeting, attorney Tom Terrell said that"The Town of Jamestown
had made numerous assurances to D.R. Horton regarding the provision of water, sewer, and solid waste
pickup AND that The Town of Jamestown had agreed to make improvements to the water and sewer
infrastructure as defined in the Development Agreement.
Terrell said that D.R. Horton had "agreed to pay 75% of the cost of a new trash truck[this has since been
reduced] as a result of the numerous concessions that THE TOWN OF JAMESTOWN had made," a list
that includes the Town's agreement to assist with the right-of-way acquisition for emergency access to
Hunt Chase, payment for upgrades to wastewater lines, guarantees of approval of Development
Clearance Certificates within 9 working days, agreement to raise manholes, agreement to allow DR
Horton to be vested under current laws for 40 years, and the approval of alternate construction
materials."
The tax, water and sewer increases were approved by the town council in spring of 2023 and made their
debut on our August 2023 utility bills.
a