MINT HILL, NC – In recent meetings of the Board of Commissioners at the Town of Mint Hill the following municipal events have been logged and discussed impacting the local community.

MEDIC made a presentation in April and thanked the Board for allowing them the opportunity to present important information at the Town Hall meeting. The most meaningful part of the discussion revolved around response time. MEDIC reviewed current response times and offered proposed response times going forward.

Bottom line MEDIC concluded there would be a positive impact on Mint Hill. By allowing rapid response to high-priority emergencies, increasing safety (e.g., continued improvement of roadways and response to sickest patients first), will allow MEDIC to triage patients and to put more emphasis on community awareness and proper use of 911 by Mecklenburg County residents. The launch of the new program began on April 17, 2023.

The good news is since Mint Hill primarily has fallen into the Tier 1 emergency response time which is 10:59 ninety percent of the time is very encouraging. Overall, the Commissioners had good questions regarding any impact on the Fire Department, training of the paramedics, size of labor force available to fill positions, lights and sirens used for Tier 1 emergency priority patients is essential, and time saved by using lights and sirens has averaged 3.8 minutes an increase of 42 seconds which can be critical in certain medical situations. The focus on emergency medical situations is considered a plus for Mint Hill residents.

Mayor Simmons thanked Dr. Studnek and Mr. Peterson for informing the community about their response configuration update, which is completely a data-driven analysis by MEDIC. Mayor Simmonds further requested that his preference is to have Chief Leath, Mint Hill Fire & Rescue to receive monthly updates of all new data reports.

The NCDOT made a presentation concerning Highway NC 51 and Palomino Drive Intersection to improve the safety of the intersection. Over the past five years there have been 19 accidents and 12 of those accidents were angle crashes which are far more likely to cause injuries. Engineer Pate Butler from NCDOT introduced a crossover configuration that would be advantageous. The proposed reconfiguration of the intersection would not inconvenience area residents as the roundabout would allow for the full flow of traffic. The estimated cost is $1.3 million, and the NCDOT would allocate the funds needed to complete the project even with potential cost increases. Therefore, the engineer requested the Board to consider supporting the project as NCDOT needs to have the support of local municipalities when access was limited.

Upon the motion of Commissioner Tony Long, seconded by Commissioner Patrick Holten, the Board unanimously approved the following resolution regarding this matter.

Resolution of Support of a North Carolina Department of Transportation Project to Reconfigure the Intersection of NC51 and Palomino Drive to Enhance Safety

WHERE AS, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (hereinafter referred to as NCDOT) is proposing to reconfigure the intersection of NC51 (Matthews-Mint Hill Road) and Palomino Drive to enhance the safety of the intersection (hereinafter referred to as “the Project”); and, WHERE AS, NCDOT has notified the Town of Mint Hill that they intend to seek Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) funds to make these intersection improvements; and, WHERE AS, North Carolina General Statute 136-11.1 “Prior Consultation on Transportation Projects” requires NCDOT to notify all municipalities and counties affected by a planned transportation project and to request that they submit a written resolution expressing their views on the same within 45 days; and, WHERE AS, the NCDOT notified the Town of Mint Hill of the Project on or about February 15, 2023 and has requested the Town submit a resolution expressing its views; and, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the Town of Mint Hill Board of Commissioners does hereby support the Project at the intersection of NC51 and Palomino Drive to enhance driver safety.