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january 4 2024 meeting minutes

Minutes January 4, 2024 · 3 page(s)

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Town Council of Centreville
January 4, 2024
7:00 p.m.
M I N U T E S
The January 4, 2024 Town Council meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by President Ashley H. Kaiser at the
Liberty Building located at 107 North Liberty Street, 2nd floor meeting room. The following members and staff
were present: Ashley H. Kaiser, President; Eric B. Johnson, Jr., Vice President; Jim A. Beauchamp, Daniel B.
Worth, and Jeffrey D. Kiel, Members; Carolyn Brinkley, A/Town Manager; Sharon VanEmburgh, Town Attorney;
Krystel Ebaugh, Human Resources Manager; Karen Luffman, Finance Officer; Jenial Turner, Program Manager;
Carol D’Agostino, Main Street Manager; and Betty Jean Hall, A/Town Clerk.
• Following the Pledge of Allegiance, Mr. Worth made motions to approve the December 7 and
December 14, 2023 meeting minutes, as presented. Mr. Johnson seconded the motions, which
passed unanimously.
Citizens Comments
Jaime Johnson, Little Kidwell Avenue offered comments.
Closed Session Statement
(i) The Town Council met in closed session on Thursday, December 14, 2023 at 7:14 p.m. at the Liberty
Building, 107 N. Liberty Street, 2nd floor meeting room to discuss personnel in accordance with the Maryland
Open Meetings Act. (ii) Four members of the Town Council voted to close the session. (iii) The authority to
close the session is found in Section 3-305 of the General Provisions Article.
(iv) The Town Council discussed the following topics:
Personnel – discussed the Town Manger hiring process.
Actions: On a 4-0 vote, the Town Council decided to extend an offer of employment.
The following members and staff were present: Ashley H. Kaiser, President; Eric B. Johnson, Jr., Vice
President; Daniel B. Worth, and Jim A. Beauchamp, Members; and Carolyn Brinkley, Acting Town Manager for
a portion of the meeting.
The meeting adjourned at 7:36 p.m.
Appearances
a. Christmas Parade Winners
• Mr. Johnson presented trophies to Curley Landworx, LLC, 1st Place Most Original; Girl Scout
Troop 446, 2nd Place Most Original; Crossroads Community & Corsica River, 3rd Place Most
Original; Cub Scout Pack 129, 2nd Place Keeping with the Theme; Girl Scout Troop 899, 3rd Place
Keeping with the Theme and CR Realty, Best Overall.
b. Tree Decorating Winners
• Mr. Johnson and Mr. Rich Ryan of the Parks Advisory Board presented trophies to Girl Scout Troop
226, 1st Place; and Clover Seed 4-H Club, 3rd Place.
c. Leah Hall – Hometown Hero Banners
• Leah Hall presented a slideshow to introduce the Hometown Hero Banners program. Council
members were in support of this effort.
d. Sue and Phil Nickerson – Fallen Heroes Memorial Service
• Sue and Phil Nickerson appeared in person to formally invite the Town Council and Centreville
Police Department to the Fallen Heroes Memorial Service on February 13 at 6pm held at the
Centreville Methodist Church.
e. Green Thumb Industries – Joe Stevens, Esq., Laura Brown and Jeremy Kacuba, GTI
• Joe Stevens, Esq., Laura Brown and Jeremy Kacuba presented Byers Scientific evaluation of the
facility at 125 Comet Drive known as Green Thumb Industries, Inc. (GTI) for emissions and odor
mitigation. Air filtration systems in multiple areas of the property and Atomization of a solution of
water and odor neutralizer on the exterior of the building at the exhaust point could be in place
before the summer of 2024.
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Citizens Comments
Pat Fox, Symphony Village; Jeff Armstrong, Regional Director, Green Thumb Industries, Inc., Centreville; Thomas
Seymour, Symphony Village; Joe Sikes, Symphony Village; Jeremy Kucuba, Vice President of Operations, Green
Thumb Industries, Inc.; Mark Emerson, Chesterfield Avenue; Julie Seymour, Symphony Village; and Joe Brown,
Symphony Village, offered comments.
Old Business
a. Ordinance 05-2023 – Chapter 170 – Indoor Agriculture - Consideration – Sponsored by Council Members
Johnson and Worth
• Ordinance 05-2023 for the purpose of amending the Town of Centreville Zoning Ordinance to only
allow indoor agriculture as a permitted use in the Planned Business District.
• Mr. Beauchamp made a motion to table the Ordinance until the June 6, 2024 Council meeting. The
motion failed for lack of a second.
• Mr. Kiel made a motion to withdraw Ordinance 05-2023. Mr. Johnson seconded the motion, which
passed 3:2.
Council Member Yes No Abstain Absent
Council Member Beauchamp X
Vice President Johnson X
President Kaiser X
Council Member Worth X
Council Member Kiel X
New Business
a. Town Manager Position
• Ms. Kaiser made a motion to appoint Carolyn Brinkley as the permanent Town Manager for the Town
of Centreville. Mr. Johnson seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.
Council Member Yes No Abstain Absent
Council Member Beauchamp X
Vice President Johnson X
President Kaiser X
Council Member Worth X
Council Member Kiel X
• Ms. Kaiser then delivered the Oath of Office to Ms. Brinkley.
b. FY2025 Budget Work Session Schedule
• Ms. Luffman presented the Council with a budget work session schedule requesting if there are any
conflicts to make her aware so dates can be adjusted.
Reports of Board and Commissions
a. Maryland Municipal League
• Mr. Beauchamp reported that the Maryland Municipal League will be hosing their Legislative
Reception in Annapolis on Wednesday, next.
b. Council of Governments
• Mr. Kiel stated the Council of Governments meeting will be held at Mamma Mia’s next Wednesday,
January 10, where they will discuss the tax differential.
c. Economic Development
• Mr. Johnson stated he has been recruiting individuals for the Centreville Reaching for Economic
Development Enterprise (CREDE) group.
d. Planning Commission
• Mr. Worth stated the next meeting of the Planning Commission will be held on January 17.
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Reports of Department Heads
a. Town Manager
• Staff is working on posting the Comprehensive Plan on the Town’s website.
• Ms. Brinkley attended the graduation of the Town’s newest police officer Hillary Wroten who was
recognized for her athletic abilities.
• Department heads met yesterday to begin the budget process.
• Ms. Brinkley thanked the Council for the opportunity to serve as Town Manager.
Citizen Comments:
Jamie Johnson, Little Kidwell Avenue offered comments.
Council Roundtable
a. Mr. Worth requested the letter from GTI be posted to the Town’s website. Mr. Worth stated he believes some
sort of action needs to be taken in reference to the Mill property at the southern end of Town. Mr. Worth does
intend to begin work on an odor control ordinance.
b. Mr. Johnson expressed his confidence in GTI and their mitigation plan.
c. Ms. Kaiser stated the plastic bag bill has taken effect as of January 1, 2024 and reminded everyone that
reusable bags are available at Town Hall.
Motion to Adjourn
There being no further business, Mr. Johnson made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Kiel seconded the motion. The
meeting was adjourned at 8:38 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Betty Jean Hall
A/Town Clerk
Council Action Items:
1. Approved the meeting minutes of December 7 and December 14, 2023.
2. Withdrew Ordinance 05-2024 – Chapter 170 – Indoor Agriculture.
3. Appointed Carolyn Brinkley as the permanent Town Manager for the Town of Centreville.
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