BY DEBBIE PAGE

The Troutman Town Council honored two officers as Employees of the Month for November for their exhaustive efforts in investigating a fatal traffic accident.

Devin Bentley, who has been with the Troutman Police Department for 13 years, and Justin Dagenhart, who joined 17 years ago, both started in the patrol division and are currently serving as South Iredell High School’s school resource officers.

Both are also certified traffic crash reconstructionists. When a fatal accident occurred on their day off, both reported for duty to help investigate the accident. They spent the next week fulfilling their full-time SRO duties as well as working diligently to get the measurements, data, and information to build a thorough case file on the accident.

Chief Josh Watson said their work on this investigation was outstanding and prompt.

Watson went on to praise their work as SROs who build strong relationships with the students and have positive impacts on those with whom they interact. He also commended their active involvement in community outreach efforts, especially anything that involves competitions like charity sports events or community pickup games with officers.

Both set a great example to other officers and the community, said Watson.

TRAFFIC/PEDESTRIAN IMPROVEMENTS

The council discussed the possibility of getting marked crosswalks with flashing lights at intervals along Main Street to help pedestrians safely access the greenway.

Town Manager Ron Wyatt said that several crosswalks should be added with the Wakefield developments traffic impact analysis requirements.

The staff plans to reopen discussions about a light at the Old Murdock Road intersection.

Town Planner Andrew Ventresca is also in the process of looking at various community requests and intersection improvements that will be discussed with the council in January.

Ventresca also said that he received some of the right-of-way plans for the Talley Street sidewalk project on Thursday morning, which he sent to NCDOT for a second round of approval.

He said that the speed with which breaking ground on the project occurs depends on affected residents’ cooperation with the town to purchase needed right-of-way from residents along Talley Street.

Wyatt warned the council that costs for the project are much higher than when the project was originally approved in 2016. “Our part will be four to five times higher,” he said.

Wyatt hopes Talley Street community members will agree to fair terms to sell right of way for the sidewalk project. However, if the town has to resort to eminent domain to obtain it, the process will be time-consuming and will further drive up the cost with increased legal fees as well as create further construction delays.

HOLIDAY CLOSURES

Wyatt reported that Town Hall will be closed December 24-26 for employees to enjoy the holiday with with their families. The Public Works Department will be on call 24/7 for any emergencies, and the police will be on duty as usual through the holiday period.

OTHER BUSINESS

♦ With councilman Eddie Nau and Felina Harris out of town, the remaining three council members unanimously approved:

♦ Annexation and rezoning of nearly an acre at 203 Timber Lake Drive to suburban residential.

♦ Adoption of the Troutman Town Council 2025 Meeting Schedule.

♦ Appointment of Harris as delegate and Nau as alternate to the Centralina Council of Governments

♦ Appointment of Jerry Oxsher as alternate to the Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization (CRTPO). Mayor Teross Young is the designated delegate per CRPTO policy.

♦ Appointment of Nicholas Jaroszynski as delegate and Paul Henkel as alternate to the Lake Norman Regional Transportation Commission (LNRTC).

♦ The Town of Troutman 2025 Calendar of Events/Programs.