Nathan Fitts - Blue Ridge City Council

UPDATE: BUILDING HEIGHT RESTRICTIONS FOR CITY OF BLUE RIDGE, CBD

My phone and email has been blowing up asking the status of the recent zoning ordinance for the building height for the City of Blue Ridge. After much debate and discussion, we voted and got approved the building height for the City of Blue Ridge (CBD District) to be 35 ft. plus up to 6 ft. for mechanical above that height. All of the feedback I’ve received from Blue Ridge residents and from downtown business owners has been they want to keep Blue Ridge quaint and charming and that 35’ buildings were enough for future development. In keeping with what the people want, we moved forward to enact eliminating future buildings taller than what’s existing as some of the newest buildings have brought attention to this being a hot topic and something we needed to look at for future growth plans. Councilwoman Rhonda Haight and I have fought hard for this even though Council members Mike Panter and Robbie Cornelius were against this building height originally and wanted heights to range up to 50-60 ft despite the overwhelming opinion of the public at large and against our own Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals. The recommendation and feedback from The Planning Commission and Zoning Board of Appeals for the City of Blue Ridge was also the recommendation of the 35 ft. height restriction. They put a lot of time and effort into researching and deciding the best plan for our city moving forward and I think their recommendation was a strong one and can’t understand why their opinion was disregarded by both the Mayor and other council members.

After much debate, we got the Zoning Ordinance approved on June 15, 2021 but has been vetoed by the Mayor, Donna Whitener. No reasons have been given nor provided and open records request made to the city for the Mayor's reasons for vetoing have been given as "do not exist." This is unacceptable. As a council member and as a citizen this is not only unprofessional but leaves the city and the employees handling the day to day operations in a awkward position. I mean really where does this leave the city? Do you presume that all of the Ordinance was vetoed - or - do you presume that parts of the Ordinance were vetoed? More importantly, how does the City (Mr. Stewart, Manager of Zoning & Building or any other staff) respond to requests for approval of plans from any property owner or developer? Which Ordinance would he base his decision on - the former Ordinance or the Ordinance recently approved by all five members of Council but now vetoed by the Mayor for no reason?

The Charter for the City of Blue Ridge mandates that the Mayor shall respond within 10 days. Additionally, in the same paragraph, it states the Mayor shall submit a written statement of the reasons for the veto.

Quoting from the City Charter (Sec.3:23):
(b) The mayor shall within ten days of receipt of an ordinance return it to the City Clerk with or without his approval, or with his disapproval. If the ordinance has been approved by the Mayor, it shall become law upon its return to the City Clerk; if the ordinance is neither approve nor disapproved, it shall become law on the fifteenth day after its adoption; if the ordinance is disapproved, the mayor shall submit to the City Council through the City Clerk a written statement of the reasons for the veto. The City Clerk shall record upon the ordinance the date of its delivery to and receipt from the mayor.

I am still of the opinion that the mayor’s reasons for veto should fall within the ten day requirement as designated in the Charter. A number of provisions are stated within the same paragraph that begins "within ten days of receipt", and this includes the directive that the mayor shall submit a written statement of reasons for the veto. The Mayor notified the city clerk of the veto but never provided notice in writing to the city clerk within the time frame outlined.

The perceived silence and reluctance to respond concerning this decision and the specifics of the decision are disconcerting. This is an issue that the public needs to be aware of and needs to demand to get answers for. The mayor, just as any other citizen or elected official, is bound by her oath of office to follow the City Charter for Blue Ridge. Once again, this as many other items that have been addressed in recent times, should be a major concern for the leadership of the city. I hope you all will take notice of what is going on and stand behind those who are holding these people accountable as it is you that is responsible for holding the elected officials accountable. A full version of the City Charter is on the City of Blue Ridge’s website as well as all council members email addresses.