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eceiving $106,000 from FEMA for damage from Hurricane Florence and returning to Robert’s Rules of Order were among the highlights of the October Town Board meeting.

Present were Mayor Sally Belangia, Commissioners Allen Price, Breena Litzenberger, Charlie Overcash, Sandy Winfrey, and Bonnie Crosser. Also in attendance were Town Manager Diane Miller, Finance Officer Lisa Millington and Officer Bill Wichrowski.

Meeting Recap

• Motion defeated to designate 50% of a 2024-25 surplus as a restricted fund for road repair. Request will be revisited in November after the final auditor’s report is issued. The vote was 3-2 with Overcash, Litzenberger, and Winfrey against.
• A new 2026 Schedule of Values for property tax is being reviewed by the Pamlico County Board. They will affect Oriental’s property values.
• Tree Board needs $19,000 and is about $15,000 short. The gap will have to be addressed this year.
• Motion approved to return to “Robert’s Rules of Order” and away from the ‘purple book’ (Trey Allen’s “Suggested Rules of Order for City Councils” aka the Purple Book) The vote was unanimous.
• Christmas lights on Broad and Hodges Streets: broken poles on Hodges Street will be repaired before Christmas. Broken poles on Broad street will not. “Good” poles will be marked as such. Commissioner Overcash suggested residents on Broad Street may want to add their own lights.
• Payment of $106K finally received from FEMA. This dates back to Hurricane Florence.

Public Comments

Three residents spoke during public comments.

Larry Summers
Summers reminded the board that Oriental uses a council-manager system, meaning “the board or the members can only direct those two to take any action,” he said. “They cannot tell any other town employees what to do.”

“The attorney should be at every meeting,” he continued and reminded the board, “the town can be sued by constituents that believe that improper actions were taken,” and stated Oriental has been sued in the past.

He also urged the board to return to Robert’s Rules of Order and urged more transparency and open discussion in the meeting.

Gregory Bohmart
Bohmart, who is running for Oriental town commissioner for the third time, encouraged the board to use a workshop format to discuss upcoming changes in the town police department. “I was surprised to learn that the Oriental police responded to 252 calls in the Oriental area, while the Sheriff’s department responded to over 1,000 calls.” He continued, “several hundred percent difference in effectiveness, right there.”

Bohmart calculated that there are 168 hours in a week. Two officers could, at a maximum, only cover 80 hours a week. “We need fresh eyes and fresh discussion because basically, Oriental is running out of money. We have roads that need repair, we have drains that need updated, we are talking about revamping the police department.”

Officer Wichrowski responded to Bohmart’s saying, “We have to distinguish between the Oriental city limits and the Oriental zip code (which is far greater). My response is limited to the Oriental area and one mile beyond, unless requested by the Sheriff’s department to assist.” Wichrowski suggested the majority of the 1,000 calls answered by the Sheriff’s department were probably outside the Oriental police department’s jurisdiction.

Officer Bill’s jurisdiction is the town of Oriental plus one mile. The Pamlico County Sheriff’s Office has the rest of 28571.

Butch Rasmussen
Rasmussen continued Bohmart’s “thesis on the scope of coverage hours” of two officers. He felt at best they could cover 42% of the allotted time. “Property taxes pay for 100% of law enforcement coverage and includes special events,” he said. “Now I feel that claiming to feel unsafe for the roughly 100 hours that an Oriental police officer is not available is simply not credible.” Rasmussen said police report data shows no justification for a second officer, however, he did not provide a police data report source.

Return to Robert’s Rules of Order

Robert’s Rules of Order was used by the Oriental town board until 2024. It was replaced by this board, when Frank Roe was still a Commissioner. It was replaced but what was known as ‘the purple book’ (Trey Allen’s “Suggested Rules of Order for City Councils.”)

“We found out from our lawyer that it would not address several things.” Overcash made a motion to return Robert’s Rules of Order.

It passed unanimously.

Restricting Funds for Road Repair

“We have a budget surplus of $196,000,” Crosser said. “I am proposing we put 50% of the surplus in a restricted reserve fund for road repairs.” She said it would be used to address the road repairs that are needed.

Crosser made a motion for a restricted road reserve and Commissioner Litzenberger seconded the motion, although in discussion Litzenberger raised concerns about tying the new board’s hands, or possibly including restricted funds such as the occupancy tax.

Crosser reiterated that the funds were from the 2024-2025 budget and that they were “not setting up anything to affect a future board.” Litzenberger said she would rather wait until the auditor’s final report is issued to know how much money is available as a surplus. The motion was defeated 3-2 with Commissioners Overcash, Litzenberger, and Winfrey against and Price and Crosser for.

Commissioners agreed to revisit the restricted road reserve request at the monthly November meeting.

Manager’s Report

Electronic Billing for the Water Bill is Active
Oriental Town Manager Diane Miller told the board that customers may still be receiving a paper bill if they have not completed all of the steps in the process to set up electronic billing.

“People thought that if they linked their account they are not getting a paper bill,” she said, “there is one more step and we have walked many people through that last step.” Customers who opt for paper bills will be charged a fee to cover printing and administrative costs.

Revenue collected from EV Charging Stations
In September, ChargePoint collected $144 in revenue for use of Oriental’s plug-in electric vehicle charging stations located on 507 Church Street and 303 South Street.

This is the first full month Oriental has collected revenue from use of the stations.

Duke Power Tree Limb Removal Criticized
Duke Power removed tree limbs to accommodate power lines for a projected ten-years of tree growth. Miller said “they are doing a terrible job, the Tree Board made sure to let them know they are doing a terrible job.”

Miller said, “We are doing everything we can to save everything we can. I had calls today talking about how bad it was—it was a contractor hired by Duke (Power). We have kept on top of it the whole time and hopefully it will go better.”

Residents complained about the amount and way that limbs were cut and the mess it left in yards. Duke Power followed the trimming with limb pick up later in the week.

Update on Testing Wells for PFAS
In July 2024, Oriental joined a class-action lawsuit for PFAS chemicals – perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances – also called forever chemicals that might be found in the town’s wells. Since then, the town’s wells are regularly tested.

“Because we chose a different (testing) provider than what was recommended by the attorney, it is a little more expensive,” said Manager Miller. She assured the board that “that the money will come from the PFAS settlement.” Miller told the board they would see a budget amendment to address the cost difference.

Audit Finished Early, Briefing Scheduled
“The audit went smoothly, (it was) budgeted for three days but finished in a day and a half,” Town Manager Miller informed the board. Motion passed to have the board briefed by the auditor on Monday, November 17, to prepare for the town board meeting on the 18 when the results will be shared with the public.

Commissioner Crosser was not available for either review date although she had asked the town for the briefing. Crosser offered to review the report and prepare her questions in advance of the November town board meeting.

Christmas Lights Conundrum
Manager Miller reminded the board, “If you recall on December 24 on Christmas Eve—everything on one side of Broad Street went out.” She said, “Christmas lights have to be done by Duke; Oriental can’t hire its own electrician.”

Duke was contacted in May to have the power checked in October. In October, Duke said they were booked until January 2026. “I have done everything I can do, contacted our engineer and our contact at Duke who refuses to change their schedule,” Miller said.

Overcash suggested “…residents on Broad street could put lights on their houses.” Miller said they would mark working poles in November at Commissioner Crosser’s request. “We will put up lights on the poles we know are working” on Hodges and Broad Streets.

How Will Oriental Property Taxes be Assessed in 2026?
The Pamlico County Board’s October 20 meeting was the only opportunity for the public to comment on a new rating system to be used for the upcoming property tax assessment in 2026. Oriental Town Manager Diane Miller told commissioners, “You should be aware. It is going to change your property values.”

Miller explained, “The Schedule of Values gives you examples—what kind of siding is good—it gives you pictures which are really very interesting.

It gives you the values “A+, A-, etc.” The proposed Schedule of Values 2026 is included in the links at the end of the article. Miller noted, “…it is a snoozer.”

Tree Board Has Work Cut Out for Them
Several trees and limbs sneed to be removed on Neuse and Freemason Streets, the corner of Factory and King Streets, on Ragan Road and at the Wildlife Ramp. “$19,950 of tree work needs to happen soon, as either trees or the limbs could come down in the right-of-way,” Miller said. “ Once we were made aware of it (the need for removal), we are liable.” She said it must be addressed this year because, “we do not have enough insurance.”

There is only $753 in the Tree Board account. “We got over $425 from a young lady whose tree was dropping stuff on private property and dropping stuff on the road,” Miller added. “She is paying back over time.”

Florence FEMA Finally Received
“I have been chasing this money since 2018,” said Manager Miller. FEMA changed the process for reimbursement while we were going through it.” Miller said the original estimate to repair the fishing pier and the street was around $393,000 and the project was completed for much less.

Miller applied for the overage to cover other damages from the storm. She said, “I wrote letters in 2022, 2023 and 2024, they (FEMA) realized I was not going to stop.” Although very excited to receive the $106,000, Miller said she is “still chasing $37,000.”

“We are going to get with a tree removal company and make sure we are targeting the right things,” Miller said. “Some monster trees -sycamores – are dropping big limbs from the very top.” Miller implored, “Please do not plant sycamore trees.”

General Fund is in the Black
Miller said, “We are in the black again. Revenues are at 28% instead of 25% which is good. Expenditures are at 24% which is good.”

Miller noted that the General Fund balance is over one million dollars and reimbursements from grant projects are due which will make that balance higher.

Auxiliary Board Updates

Parks and Recreation Board Barbara Miller, chairwoman of the Parks & Recreation Board said they are excited to implement new ideas for the Spirit of Christmas event. Chairwoman Miller reminded everyone to join them at the Fall Festival on November 1st.

Water Advisory Board
Commissioner Crosser reported the Water Advisory Board “had an interesting meeting with a company called EFI Solutions that make pre-fab buildings.” Crosser said, “Oriental will need a prefab building for the Booster station.”

She said the water board is considering a pre-fab building for the water plant and the town already has a piece of land to the south of the current building. EFI Solutions is preparing a cost/benefit analysis in advance of any bidding process. Crosser said the company is promising a turn key solution, however she added it sounded “too good to be true.”

“The Valve Project is very close to a final bid,” continued Crosser, “we are checking to see if any additional permits are needed now that DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality) has signed off. This is the project to replace 90% of the valves that do not work.” The project involves digging up the streets and replacing the water valves and covering up the road with asphalt. Crosser said the Valve project will be “ready to go by January 2026.” Commissioner Winfrey offered to join the Water Advisory Board and review quotes.

Harbor Waterfront Board
Harbor Waterfront Advisory Committee member Jim Blackerby reported his board discussed recommendations to rebuild the bulkhead at the Dinghy dock. Blackerby said they are not yet ready to tender bids, and although Manager Miller thought the permitting process should be pretty quick, Blackerby thought it could be extended.

Overcash asked if Oriental sustained any damage from the storm. Blackerby said that some boards and safety rings came loose adding that the water was one to two feet above what was expected.

Miller said, “we disconnected the pump-out and raised the lift in advance.” She added, “because of prior maintenance, we did the work in advance to tighten things up – it did not bounce and break.”

Blackerby plans to “maintain a schedule of maintenance to keep things tightened up.” He said he would try to set it as a routine so the Waterfront board won’t have to think about it.

Funds for Holiday Volunteer Party
A motion was approved to move $2,500 from the Storm Preparation fund which has $31,000. “I think it is important to show our volunteers how much we appreciate them,” said Overcash. “Thank you all. We couldn’t run this town without our volunteers.”

Contracts Awarded for Dredging and Water Consultants
Motions were approved to award the Whittaker Creek dredging contract to King Dredging, and to execute a contract with TRC water consultant Walter Bailey.

Officer Bill’s Report

Officer Wichrowski expressed gratitude to the Sheriff’s department for all they do, but he also pointed out that “there are things they cannot do.”

He explained that the Sheriff’s department cannot enforce town ordinances, saying most of the incidents in the monthly report are the enforcement of town ordinances, such as a boat that has overstayed or other nuisance complaints.

Wichrowski emphasized his community contacts saying, “I know you. I see you everyday. I know what kind of car you drive. I know if you are sick, or when you are in the hospital. The Sheriff’s office does not do that. That is a salient point.”

He listed the September events that “went off without a hitch:” The Ol’ Front Porch Music Festival, The 9/11 Anniversary, The Greens Creek Regatta and Fay Bond’s birthday at the Women’s Club.

Mayor’s Remarks

Mayor Sally Belangia declared, “I am the Good Witch of Silverbrooke. On the corner of King and First Street on October 31st we will be raising money for a very worthy cause — the Pamlico Partnership for Children.”

Dates to Know

The next Town Board Meeting will be Tuesday, November 18 at 6p, because the second Tuesday in November is Veteran’s Day. Other upcoming events are The Chili Cookoff on October 25, The Witches Crawl October 31, and the Fall Festival November 1.

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Story by Laurie Stahlmann

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Related Information

• October Meeting Agenda
• Consent Agenda
• Manager’s Report
• Auxiliary Board Minutes
• Water Advisory Board Appointment
• Bonus Amendment and Police Considerations
• Consultant Contract for Water Advisory Projects
• Budget Amendments
• FEMA Reimbursement Overage
• Capital Reserve Ordinance
• Police Report
• Pamlico County Schedule of Values for 2026

Posted Wednesday October 22, 2025 by Allison DeWeese