Hafela, a distribution business in Archdale, has put green practices into place. They are featured in a tab section included in the print edition.
In addition, Archdale was lauded for its recycling program in the August edition of the publication “Resource Recyling.”
ACE was designed by Archdale’s stormwater program manager, D.J. Señeres, who received the Professional Manager of the Year Award for Water Resources from the American Public Works Association (APWA) in September.
At the June City Council meeting, when the award was announced, Mayor Bert Lance-Stone noted, “He has really put us on the map with our stormwater program.”
The ACE program is an integrated stormwater management program developed and adopted between June and December 2007.
According to the state chapter of the APWA, ACE is a holistic watershed management initiative to protect, preserve and restore Archdale’s waterways through public education and outreach, stormwater management, sediment and erosion control, floodplain management, water quality monitoring and open space acquisition, as well as stream and wetland restoration.
The program incorporated various outlets for education — the Archdale-Trinity News, visits to schools and civic organizations and even “morning rounds,” where city staff members provided man-on-the-street information to citizens. The effort was to garner public support.
It worked. The program in 2008 increased recycling by 200 percent, street sweeping by 400 percent and construction sites are noticeably cleaner with increased enforcement and implementation of a $5,000 per day fine for violations.
“My understanding is that other cities of similar size have expressed high interest levels in this program,” said F. Mark Combs, president of the N.C. Chapter, in the nomination letter.
Archdale began the effort in 2007 to meet environmental regulations. But it was more than that, said Archdale Mayor Bert Lance-Stone. The effort was a way to plan for the future.
At the time, about 70 percent of Archdale was undeveloped. City leaders wanted to balance the cost of the program with goals to protect, preserve and restore natural resources affected by pre-existing conditions and future growth.
Señeres, hired in June 2007, held public information sessions and by December had guided the city council in the adoption of ordinances regarding stormwater utility, stormwater management, erosion and sedimentation control and flood damage.
Several milestones were met in 2008:
• Delegation of soil and erosion control as a local program.
• Establishment of a stormwater utility, which is billed on the city water bill.
• Establishment of a rain harvesting program.
• Distribution of 7,633 closed 95-gallon containers for garbage and recycling.
• Establishment of an incentive program to encourage recycling.
The stormwater management program is the first of its kind in Randolph County, which has been a plus for neighbor Trinity.
Rich Baker, stormwater administrator for Trinity, said Archdale’s progress has served as a model for Trinity’s stormwater management program.
The end result for Archdale is this: Archdale’s Community Effort has created opportunities for growth, enhancement of services and has provided a sustainable program to benefit the citizens of Archdale for years to come.
It’s been more than two and a half years since Señeres was hired, more than a year since the city began to implement its plan, but Señeres remains passionate.
“Although a hard decision at the time, the benefits are proving beneficial to the citizens of Archdale and the environmental health of the region, one locality at a time,” said Señeres.
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