The town of Elon held a town council meeting Nov. 12 and discussed energy audits and voted to continue the town’s partnership with Link Transit. The council also welcomed the first inaugural class of the Elon Police Citizens Academy.
Energy Audit Proposals
Town planner Isabell Cooper presented the council with potential options to conduct an energy audit on town of Elon facilities. The facilities include Town Hall, Public Works Main Building, Parks and Recreation Building, Fire Stations 8 and 18, and the Fire Tower.
Both options consisted of using Waste Reduction Partners with one option consisting of conducting an energy audit that would take between two and 12 weeks and cost the town $2,700, while the other would take two fiscal years and would not cost the town anything.
The council voted to move forward with the first option in a 5 to 1 vote with Mayor Pro Tem Monti Allison being the sole “no” vote. Allison said the council should vote for the second option because it cost the town nothing.
Link Transit
John Andoh, the director of Link Transit for the city of Burlington, attended the meeting to answer any of the council’s questions about less trafficked stops following a report that was released prior to the last town council meeting.
Andoh said his goal for the blue route, the bus route that runs through Elon, is to reduce the route frequency from 90 minutes to 60 due to the amount of stops with zero riders. This past September seven of the 16 stops on the blue route picked up zero passengers.
“I believe we can get it to 60,” Andoh said. “Which means shortening some routes. So, an example is we would have the blue route do what it's doing, but instead of going all the way to downtown Burlington, it would go down to the medical center.”
Council members Randy Orwig and Quinn Ray said even though the route may be shortened, they would like to see Link have stops in other parts of the community such as Ballpark Avenue and Blakey Hall. Sharpe also said if the partnership with Link continues then the town will begin to build bus shelters at the stops throughout Elon.
The council voted unanimously to continue its partnership with Link Transit for the next year.
Main Street Impact Report
Downtown Development Director Jill Weston presented a downtown Elon impact report showcasing the growth and usage of downtown Elon from 2023-24.
The report disclosed that the total annual visitors for downtown Elon have increased from 2021 to 2023 from 1.4 million to 1.8 million. In the last 12 months, 1.7 million annual visitors have come to downtown Elon.
Weston’s report also illustrated downtown Elon’s busiest times of year, which include Elon University’s move-in and Family Weekend.
Elon Police Citizens Academy
Town of Elon Chief of Police Kelly Blackwelder welcomed the members of the first graduating class of the Elon Police Citizens Academy. This program is an extension of the town of Elon Police’s Community Relations Division and is meant to provide Elon residents with an understanding of what is required for police officers to do their job effectively. Nine Elon residents were a part of this inaugural class and seven were present at the meeting.
Proclamation of Native American Heritage Month
Town of Elon Mayor Emily Sharpe started the meeting with a proclamation, recognizing November as Native American Heritage Month.
Looking Ahead
The next town council work session will be Nov. 25.