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New water line will enable restaurant to open
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Published: November 18, 2009
Mooresville's decision to install a new water line behind a half-block of businesses on Main Street means Howard Kosofsky of Old Downtown LLC can move forward with his plans to open the Daily Grind restaurant.
The new eight-inch line will give Kosofsky the water pressure he needs to install a sprinkler system for the business at 170 N. Main St., a safety code requirement that was impossible to meet using the existing town water pipes dating back to the 1920s.
Monday night, the Mooresville commissioners authorized a contract for up to $30,000 to lay the line behind about eight businesses, starting at Moore Avenue and running down Main Street toward the Depot.
The water line will not cover the full length of the block, partially due to the urgency of installing the line as quickly as possible. If the cost rises above $30,000 the town will have to put the project out to bid, a requirement that adds 120 days to the process.
Town Manager Steve Husemann said the work should begin within the next two weeks and should finish before the holiday shopping season is in full swing.
Catherine Cole Scholton, who owns four buildings along the block and who plans to open a bar at 162 Main Street, asked that the line be extended to include her buildings. She said some of her properties are three stories and without the ability to install a sprinkler system, she cannot use the upstairs.
Scholton also owns buildings at 152 Main Street and buildings housing the Mad Hatter and Mangan Martial Arts. Town Engineering Manager Ryan Rase said he thinks the town will be able to run the line to Scholton's properties.
Tapping into the new line is optional, and the existing line will remain in place. Husemann said the tap fee will probably be around $4,000.
Husemann also said the Mooresville Downtown Commission originally asked five property owners for easements to run the line behind Main Street buildings, and that two owners objected.
Erica Ransom, owner of Quilters Loft at 188 Main Street, said the water line is being built to benefit one customer yet she is being asked to sign over to the town a 15- by 26-foot easement for $1.
Ransom says that is not adequate compensation.
"That's my property and I pay taxes on it," Ransom told commissioners, "I personally don't need that water line, but I'll be willing to negotiate."
Husemann said the town has rights to the rear area, and has paved it and must maintain it. "We think this is an alley and we think by legal right we have jurisdiction," he said.
Commissioners were in favor of the line, saying it will increase the uses of building and boost economic development downtown.
In other action Monday, the town board approved the connector alignment study linking Cornelius and Mazeppa Roads. The three-quarter-mile road is designed to be four-lanes with bike lanes, sidewalks and a median, but the estimated $16.6 million project is unfunded and not likely to be built soon.
Commissioners approved an alignment that bypasses Glory Road and misses the Winborne subdivision, but calls for relocation of five homes. The next step for the town is to have the study formally added to the Comprehensive Transportation Plan (CTP), which will require a public hearing.
Once the plan is adopted into the CTP, the town has the right to ask developers to build their portion of the road.
Also, commissioners denied a request by Ted Dubose to amend a condition for a public park included in the approval of a 239-home subdivision called Meadows at Coddle Creek, located at N.C 3 and Rocky River Road.
The condition, approved in December 2007, called for the developer to set aside and level approximately 7.5 acres for future use as a public park. Currently the town does not have funds to improve the property, but Dubose says he needs to know what the park is going to be in order to market the subdivision.
No homes have been built yet. Dubose proposed to build and pay for a $75,000 playground, a full-size soccer field and a parking area on a two-acre parcel. In exchange, the town would increase the subdivision by six additional lots.
The planning board and planning staff recommended approval, but Commissioner Mac Herring made the motion to deny, saying the town should not trade away 7.5 acres in exchange for two. The motion carried 4-2 with Commissioners Chris Carney and Mitch Abraham voting against denial.
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