Town of Lake Lure, 

North Carolina

Just in case you haven’t noticed, the lake went down 4˝ feet right on schedule. Deck Sand Company has been dredging the river for several weeks and Lake Norman Dredging and Marine Construction Company of Mooresville, who was awarded the bid, will commence their work in the harbor area during the first week in January.

Now is a great time for all you lake front property owners to help clean up your shoreline while our crew takes care of the “uninhabited” areas. If you plan to burn any leaves, limbs or other trash, make sure you get a burning permit. These no cost permits are available at Fire Station No. 2 (by the golf course), Dalton’s Store on Bill’s Creek Road, and Dr. Burch’s office near the post office. If you come across big items now that the water is down such as submerged trees, old boats or the like, give us a call and we’ll try to help with our public works crew.

This is a good time to check out the underpinnings of your docks, piers and boathouses. Make sure that the pilings are still sound. If you’re not confident in your ability to recognize unsound structures, it would be advisable to have a contractor help you. It’s also a good time to look over your sea wall to determine if it has been undermined or weakened since the last time it was checked. It’s a lot easier to work on these underwater structures now that the lake is down.

As far as everyone else is concerned, this is a great time to look over your property and get rid of any accumulated trash and debris now that the kudzu and underbrush have died back. Call us if you have “hard trash” (furniture, appliances, etc.) to get rid of. If we can spruce up our property this winter, think how nice the town will look when spring comes with her greenery and flowers. Now’s your chance!

Have a very happy, heathy and prosperous New Year.

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Sheila Spicer, employee of the month, has been with the Town of Lake Lure since August 1999. She works in the pro shop at the town golf course. Prior to her employment with the Town, Sheila was employed at Larkins on the Lake.

In addition to duties at the golf course, Sheila serves as bookkeeper for her husband's landscaping company. Sheila has done a great job at the golf course and we say thank you for your good work.

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REGULAR MEETING: The regular town council meeting was held on Tuesday, December 12, 2000, at 7:00 p.m. at the Lake Lure Municipal Center.

Under the "consent agenda," Council:

* approved the minutes of November 14, 2000 (regular meeting);

* approved town employee holiday schedule for Year 2001;

* approved Town Council meeting schedule for Year 2001; and

* approved contract between the Town of Lake Lure and the town auditor for fiscal year beginning July 1, 2000 and ending June 30, 2001.

In other activities, Town Council:

* received auditor's report;

* approved the appropriation of $1,500 from the contingency fund be transferred to the Fire Department's account (#3400 supplies-equipment) for the purchase of a fire hydrant to be installed near Buffalo Shoals road contingent upon an agreement between the Town of Lake Lure and John Cloud detailing the towns rights for the use of this fire hydrant;

* adopted Ordinance No. 00-12-12 (amending Ordinance No. 00-09-12 of Chapter 62, licensing and regulation, providing for the licensing and regulation of video gaming machines);

* adopted Ordinance No. 00-12-12A (prescribing procedures for disposing of personal property valued at less than $1,000);

* tabled the adoption of Ordinance No. 00-12-12B (delegating authority to purchase apparatus, supplies, materials or equipment) until next month for further review;

* adopted Ordinance No. 00-12-12C (amending Chapter 94.16 to add temporary limitations on granting variances);

* adopted a policy regarding the maintenance of water lines. The town will continue being responsible for maintaining a former town water line for one year from the date of the relocation of a meter, after which the responsibility will fall on the property owner;

* reviewed a request from town employees regarding Christmas supplement benefits; and

* announced board appointments and reappointments will be made at the January 9, 2001 regular town meeting.

SPECIAL TOWN MEETING: Town Council held a special meeting on Tuesday, December 19, 2000, 2:30 p.m., at the Lake Lure Municipal Center. The purpose of this meeting was to approve a bid and award a contract for dredging the Lake Lure harbor area. Lake Norman Dredging and Marine Construction, Inc. of Mooresville, North Carolina were awarded the contract for the Lake Lure dredging project with a bid of $173,870.

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Happy Holidays! We hope this finds each of you happy and well during this festive season. It is especially important during this time of year to think, “how can I prevent crime and accidents.” Please make a conscious effort to work with others throughout the gorge and lake areas to make this a happy and safe holiday.

Recently, the Lake Lure Police Department participated in the Hickory Nut Gorge Chamber of Commerce Annual Auction of goods and services. The department auctioned a ride with an officer during his regular tour of duty, and an escort to and from the restaurant of their choice. The auction was successful in raising several hundred dollars for the Police Department’s Children's Fund which will be utilized to provide Christmas gifts for the children of two families in the Gorge area. We appreciate your donations to this worthy cause!

Soon I'll be leaving for the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia, for a police management course of study. Hopefully, this experience will provide some additional ideas and contacts to help keep Lake Lure as safe and crime free as possible. In my absence, Sgt. Eric Hester will be in charge of the department. I will maintain close contact with the department during this period and you should notice no interruption or change in services provided. Please contact us when we can be of service to you.

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The beginning of a new year always brings on feelings of expectations for the year to come, reflections on the year passed and the reality of time moving quickly forward. We are in our last year of our 2-year grant cycle with Clean Water Management Trust Fund implementing our four program objectives for the Upper Broad River Watershed. “Helping to protect soil and water resources in the Upper Broad River Watershed is our goal.” How we do that is watershed protection education and program participation.

We have had some success stories in the past year working with property owners who had severely eroding roads and road banks. We assisted property owners in writing conservation plans to stabilize erosion sites and property owners received financial reimbursements for implementing the plans. One property owner told me “he had not ever been helped like that before.” We are here to help you with stopping off-site sedimentation on existing eroding sites. We do this by implementing various surface water control measures such as grading, culvert installation, rip rap, and hydroseeding.

We have implemented conservation measures on the highest peak in our watershed, Little Pisgah Mountain, with an elevation of over 4,400 feet. Part of the top of Little Pisgah has been void of trees and vegetation of over 40 years. One property owner has already seeded areas that were bare and installed straw blanket (this protects the seed, lime, and fertilizer) in an eroding gully over 300 feet long. Late this winter we will be working with two other property owners at Little Pisgah planting trees and seeding exposed soil areas.

We have been working on protection of stream bank areas with property owners willing to participate in Riparian Conservation Easements. We are working on protecting a portion of Cane Creek, a major tributary to Lake Lure, and another possible riparian easement for Rainbow Falls Creek in Chimney Rock. An easement is only possible if the property owner is willing to protect their stream bank area from development.

You could say our conservation work is just beginning. Natural resource management involves property owners making the choice to protect the natural beauty you have on your property and if needed conservation measures to restore them.

We are pleased to announce an addition to the Upper Broad River Watershed Protection Program staff; Myriah Skidmore is a recent graduate of the University of North Carolina in Asheville with a Bachelors of Science Degree in Environmental Studies. She is assisting us through the Americorps Program sponsored through the Soil & Water Conservation District.

Our next Upper Broad River Watershed Protection meeting will be held January 17th at 9:00 a.m. at the Lake Lure Municipal Center. Come be a part of an exciting and conservation minded group of people. We want your input and participation.

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The Lake Lure Town Council will be appointing and reappointing individuals to serve on various town boards and committees at their next regular town meeting on January 9, 2001. Applications are available at town hall for anyone interested in serving on one of these town boards or committees. For further information, call town hall at 828-625-9983 ext. 100.

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Reminder: The Kiwanis Club of Hickory Nut Gorge needs your favorite recipes for its new souvenir cookbook! We need recipes for everything including: soup to nuts, old-timey to men's favorites, to modern heart-smart, and we need it SOON! Please type or clearly print your recipes, with all necessary details plus your name, phone number, and a line or two about the origin of the recipe to be used in the book. Then mail them by February 15 to Marcia Hardy, Cookbook Chairman, P.O. Box 335, Lake Lure, NC, 28746, or drop them in the box at Nita's Grocery in Gerton, at Burch Real Estate in Bat Cave, at Child's Corner Restaurant in Chimney Rock Village, or in the lobby at Lake Lure Inn. Proceeds from the book will be passed on to a variety of Hickory Nut Gorge community organizations and services. THANKS!

Lions Christmas Cheer. The Lake Lure Lions Club contributed $616.00 to help sponsor the Rutherford County Lions 30th annual Christmas party for the blind and visually impaired; purchased and distributed 32 baskets and peck containers of assorted fruit to the blind and visually impaired, disabled, handicapped and widowed persons; sponsored an eye exam and pair of glasses for a visually impaired widow; gave $500.00 to a cancer patient to help pay medical expenses; and contributed 50 stuffed animals to the Salvation Army for distribution to children. Our motto is "WE SERVE". This is our Lake Lure Lions Club's twenty-second year of helping to support the needs of our community.

Lake Lure Newcomers invite those who are new residents in Lake Lure (24 months or less) to join them in various activities which include: potluck, gourmet, out'n about, theater, bridge/poker, book club, and hiking. Anyone interested in becoming a member, call Fred Noble or Jeanine Noble at 828-625-8706.

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The Official Government Site of the Town of Lake Lure.

This Site is dedicated to the memory of former Mayor Jack Powell.

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