Daniel council moves to develop job scope, pursue interim planner after sustained public push

The Daniel Town Council voted Sept. 14 to develop a job description and pursue interim professional planning assistance after a lengthy public-comment period in which residents urged the town to strengthen planning and code-enforcement capacity.

“I'm ready to make a motion as soon as anybody else would like to speak,” said a councilmember who moved the measure; the motion — to develop a job scope and proceed with interim planning support — passed unanimously. Residents had argued a trained commercial planner is needed to evaluate zoning, traffic, drainage and environmental impacts of proposed projects and to defend the town in potential legal disputes.

During the meeting, long-time residents and recent arrivals alike emphasized that the town’s existing one-person planning staff cannot handle rising commercial and industrial proposals. “Good planning minimizes the high risk of rogue and highly disruptive elements getting into our community,” resident Rhonda Rose said during public comment, urging the council to hire “a professional, well trained … seasoned in commercial planning.”

Mayor (speaker 1) outlined next steps: the council will draft a job scope, publicly advertise the opening, accept applications for a standard posting period, convene the town’s Daniel Review Committee (DRC) to interview candidates, and return to the council with recommendations. The council also noted it can contract temporarily with professional planners it already has under contract (Jones and DeMille) while it completes the process.

The motion directs staff to prepare a posting and a plan for how interim services will be used while the town develops longer-term staffing, funding and job definitions. The council discussed funding options, including a possible tax increase or use of town funds; some residents said they would contribute financially to secure planning expertise.