News

City seeks applicants for business panel

By Bill Moss, Published: January 30, 2014

The city of Hendersonville is seeking applicants to serve on an advisory panel that the City Council formed to examine how regulations affect business.

"The idea is to get people to review it when we have a new ordinance," said Mayor Pro Tem Ron Stephens, who proposed the creation of the board at the Jan. 9 council meeting. "We think we can prevent some unintended consequences when we consult with people it is going to affect."
Two examples he named of city ordinances that hurt small businesses or other constituents were a new water impact fee schedule and new water meters that can't be opened by homeowners.
The council created the advisory board during that meeting but did not give it a specific charge or appoint members. The city has invited people to apply for the board, which will have seven to nine members. Members must own a local business or commercial property within Hendersonville. Unlike most city advisory board members, business panel members don't have to live in the city. The City Council will appoint the chair of the committee. It will meet quarterly and as needed when it needs to review a proposal.
Stephens pointed out that when business leaders and developers appeared before a county regulation review committee "a majority of their complaints were about the city."
It could be that some of the criticism is misplaced. Sometimes developers assume if the city enforces a rule, the rule came from the city. That's not always true.
"We don't want to get the blame for it the way we do now," Stephens said. "We just want to prevent problems, keep people informed and get people involved."
Stephens expects the city will have no trouble filling the seats.
"I've had several people call me and say, 'Hey I want to serve on the committee,'" he said. City Clerk Tammie Drake "said that she's had a call or two."
The council authorized the panel to meet for a year, after which council members will evaluate its effectiveness.

To apply contact City Clerk Tammie Drake at tdrake@cityofhendersonville.org.