2026-03-19 - Town Council Budget Work Session
Summary
John Byrum, Robin Moon, Keith Leonard and Jackie Edwards attended; Mike McAlpine and Berkley Alcorn were absent and Town Manager Brock Hall joined by phone. Hall's first proposed FY 2026-27 budget totaled $2,395,000 (administration $595,000, parks $1,000,000, public works $551,000, cultural and economic development $67,000 including $24,000 in STEAM school grants and $20,000 for the 20th anniversary); the revaluation moves the tax base from $397 million to $657 million, which he budgeted conservatively at $100,000 of added revenue. By consensus Council kept board compensation unchanged, agreed to a 3% cost-of-living raise for staff (park staff mostly earn $15.50 an hour), and asked for a proposal on 401(k)/457 and HSA contributions. The fee schedule (pavilion $100/$250/$500, gazebo $100, returned check $25, copies $0.10) was left as is. Investments drew discussion: Byrum wanted a bank-by-bank maturity overview and favored only guaranteed instruments. Action items were raising Town Hall maintenance from $10,000 to $25,000 and Christmas decorations from $3,000 to $5,000, and correcting a formula error; the session adjourned at 6:50 PM on Leonard's motion, seconded by Moon.
Summary written from the official minutes posted on midway-nc.gov; no video or transcript exists.
Issues discussed: FYE 2027 Budget, Fee Schedule Ordinance 26-03, Town Investments and Banking
Official Minutes
Official minutes posted by the town (PDF text); page headers removed, otherwise unaltered.
MINUTES OF MIDWAY TOWN COUNCIL BUDGET WORK SESSION HELD ON THURSDAY,
MARCH 19, 2026, AT 6:00 P.M. AT MIDWAY TOWN HALL, 426 GUMTREE ROAD, MIDWAY,
NORTH CAROLINA
CALL TO ORDER
Mayor John Byrum called the meeting to order.
Councilors present were: Mayor John Byrum, Robin Moon, Keith Leonard and Jackie Edwards. Absent:
Mayor Pro Tem Mike McAlpine and Councilor Berkley Alcorn. Town Manager Brock Hall joined the
meeting by phone call, Town Clerk Ree Goodson and Finance Officer Linda Hunt were present.
Each Councilor had been furnished an agenda prior to the meeting.
ADOPT AGENDA
On motion by Councilor Jackie Edwards, seconded by Councilor Keith Leonard, Council voted
unanimously to adopt the agenda as presented.
BUDGET WORK SESSION
General Budget Overview
Budget Summary
• Proposed budget totals $2,395,000
• Balances through recurring revenues and appropriations
Revaluation
• Will not have huge impact
• Ad valorem taxes have never been a primary source of the Town’s revenue
• Town went from $397,000,000 tax base to $657,000,000 next year
• Would increase the ad valorem revenue between $125,000 to $130,000
• Rounded down to $100,000 in proposed budget to be conservative and accounting
for 96% collection rate.
Appropriations Summary Overview (Page 1)
• Governing Board – slight increase to $63,000
• Administration – increase to $595,000
• Public Safety – remains the same
• Public Works – slight decrease to $551,000
• Parks and Recreation - $1,000,000
• Planning and Zoning – slight increase
• Cultural and Economic Development – Total of $67,000
• S.T.E.A.M. Grants to schools - $24,000 (Grant money not spent in the current
budget due to several changes going on.)
Mayor Byrum expressed support for being generous with grants to support schools,
noting the increase did not give him concern if there is justification for it.
• Midway 20th Anniversary Celebration $20,000. Current year’s budget includes
$20,000 for the celebration.
Compensation
Town Manager Brock Hall asked Council if they had any questions regarding compensation for
Town Council, Planning Board/Board of Adjustment, or staff. He asked if Council thought current
rates are sufficient or if they should be changed.
• Town Council compensation – It was the consensus of Council to keep Board
compensation the same as it is currently.
• Staff compensation – Park staff – Most of the Park staff are making $15.50 and hour. These
are calculated at 1,000 hours per year, which is the maximum each of the park staff can be
working.
• Does Council want to increase the compensation and if so, do they want a flat
increase or a percentage?
• Council members expressed support for some kind of increase for park and office
staff, feeling it would be a big mistake not to offer an increase given the work they
do.
• Cost of Living Increase (COLA)
Town Manager Brock Hall said he has seen cost-of-living increases as high as 5%
and as low as 1%. Council could also make a cost-of-living increase that would not
go into effect until January, paying on half the year. Mr. Hall emphasized that if
you do not stay on top of the cost-of-living adjustment incrementally year to year,
it would be easy to suffer compression issues. He said he felt staff would appreciate
some acknowledgement every year, even if conservative.
• Current cost of living increase is 2.8% for 2026 so 3% would not be a bad estimate.
• Consensus of Council to include a 3% COLA for staff. (Town Manager to work up
numbers and present them to Council at the April budget workshop.
• 401(k) Retirement Plan
Town Manger Brock Hall discussed other benefits, noting that as the Town grew in stature and
professionalism, Council would need to consider certain things like 401(k) contributions. Even
part-time employees would be eligible. Usually this is done on a percentage of 1% or 2% of salary.
• Health Savings Account (HSA)
Mr. Hall said HSA contributions for staff on health plan as a trade-off for being on higher deductible
plans that cost the Town less but made it more beneficial to staff by giving them contributions to
their HSA. These range from $500 to $1,000 just to make the option more appealing.
Mr. Hall said these were just suggestions for Council to consider, not requirements. He noted they
were not unheard of in other jurisdictions and would add to the Town’s benefit package for those
under the Personnel Policy.
Council members expressed interest in seeing what it would cost the Town. Mayor Byrum asked
if the North Carolina League of Municipalities had data on how many cities and towns in the state
offered what Midway does not offer and whether the Town is in the minority or majority for their
benefit package.
Mr. Hall said he had some data from the League already and could try to find more. He said he did
not think their package was bad, but these two things were pretty common in other jurisdictions.
Council discussed the 401(k), and the conversations with former Interim Town Manager Hank
Perkins about establishing a 457 plan as a place to "park money" rather than the Town participating
financially.
The original plan was not for the Town to fund it, but just to offer the benefit that the Town had
the plan available for employee contributions.
Council members expressed understanding that the 457 plan was already changed in the Personnel
Policy to make it an option for negotiations with a new Manager during the hiring process, but
Council did not obligate the Town to make any sort of contribution.
Council asked Mr. Hall to come up with a proposal and find additional data from the League for
Council to make an informed decision at the next meeting.
Fee Schedule
Town Manager Brock addressed the fee schedule.
• Returned Check Fee $ 25.00
• Copies $ 0.10
• Pavilion – ¼ Pavilion $100.00
• Pavilion – ½ Pavilion $250.00
• Pavilion – Full Pavilion $500.00
• Gazebo – Full Gazebo $100.00
All reservations require a refundable deposit equal to rental fee.
Mr. Hall said he felt the fees were all reasonable but asked if Council felt otherwise and wanted to
make changes.
Mr. Hall mentioned he is getting comments from people saying the Town charges too much for
the Pavilion and would get more rentals if the price was lowered. Mr. Hall stated the Town is
getting plenty of rentals as it is and the Town is not hurting for business. He said the fees were not
considered a significant source of revenue, just something to offset the cost of operating the park.
Council members discussed not wanting to reduce fees since they were getting lots of rentals.
Council discussed future smaller Pavilions that might be built, with assumptions the fee structure
would be similar to the gazebo or maybe even less.
Council reached consensus to keep the fee schedule as it currently is.
Other Discussion Items
Town Manager Brock Hall asked for any other initiatives Council wanted to ensure they had
enough money to address next year.
Mayor John Byrum said he understood the public safety building project would be managed as a
project ordinance when they reached that point, so it would not be considered during the regular
budget ordinance process.
Council members indicated they were good with what had been discussed and could not think of
anything else at that time. Mr. Hall said he did not think they would be "nickeled and dimed" as
they had cushions on most accounts, so if something comes up at the last minute, they could easily
make it happen within reason.
Mr. Hall stated he would be getting a quote from Jon Dumont for redoing the rubber mats
(presumably playground surfacing), which would be around $15,000. Mr. Hall said he planned to
include this in his manager’s report and noted the Town had the money to do it. Mr. Hall stated
the maintenance was supposed to be done every 3 to 5 years, involving painting a rubber coating
to freshen up the mats and keep them looking good.
Mr. Hall reminded all Council members to continue thinking about budget items and bring them
forward before the next budget work session in case someone thinks of something between now
and then.
Council discussed the investment earnings, with Mayor Byrum noting they budgeted $125,000 in
column C but $150,000 in column J. Mr. Byrum requested a refresher for the Council at the next
budget meeting on where the Town has money, how much at each bank, and when it would mature
requiring decisions on reinvestment.
Mr. Hall said Sandra Mock has all that information and that he has not dug too deeply into
investment earnings. Looking at actuals, their budget for 2025 was $130,000 and they made
$159,000. Budget for 2026 was $140,000 and they were at $75,000 currently.
Town Manager Brock discussed talking to Sandra Mock about investment options and stated there
were other options available depending on how active they wanted to be in following markets and
interest rates. He mentioned this information was provided in monthly finance reports given to
Council at Council meetings and he could get more data for the next budget meeting.
Mayor John Byrum expressed concern about municipalities being restricted from putting reserves
in variable investments like the stock market, believing they had to use money markets or CDs.
Mayor Byrum strongly opposed investing taxpayer money where market crashes could result in
significant losses, preferring guaranteed investments even if allowed to do otherwise.
Mr. Hall stated that firms like Capital Management Trust, where they had some money invested,
specialized in investing money on behalf of local governments. These firms understood the rules
and guidelines and dealt with investments in a way that was lower risk but higher reward.
Mayor John Byrum stated he had a conversation with Ron Sink at Davidson Water about similar
investment restrictions for quasi-municipal entities, noting they could not just invest in individual
companies on the market but had to keep investments conservative.
Mayor Byrum supported diversifying investments as long as they were guaranteed and safe,
referencing how the Town had moved from standard savings accounts to CDs years ago in 2008
or 2009 as better way to secure taxpayer money.
Mr. Hall agreed the Town could be more active with investments and that it could be a significant
source of revenue. Mr. Hall stated smart investments would allow them to keep tax rates low while
paying for what they needed through sales tax and investment revenue, which looked good to
citizens as proper stewardship.
Action Items Assigned:
● Increase Town Hall maintenance repairs line item from $10,000 to $25,000
● Increase Christmas decorations budget from $3,000 to $5,000
● Apply 3 percent cost of living increase to all staff compensation
● Prepare proposal for 401(k)/457 plan contributions and HSA contributions
● Provide investment portfolio overview including bank locations, amounts, and maturity
dates
● Correct formula error line 11 on page 5 Column D "1905" in actual column
ADJOURNMENT
On motion by Councilor Keith Leonard seconded by Councilor Robin Moon, Council voted unanimously
to adjourn the meeting at 6:50p.m.
________________________________
John Byrum, Mayor
________________________________
Ree Goodson, Town Clerk
Agenda
Town Council Budget Session, March 19, 2026, 6:00 PM, Town Hall Conference Room, 426 Gumtree Road
- Call to Order
- Adopt Agenda
- Budget Work Session
- General Budget Overview
- Compensation
- Fee Schedule
- Other Discussion Items
- Adjournment