The Whispering Pines Village Council unanimously approved the voluntary annexation of The Shops of Whispering Pines Wednesday.

The shopping center will be anchored by Food Lion and is off Sullivan Drive near N.C. 22.

Before the vote, a public hearing was held to consider resident input on the annexation. One resident spoke, asking when the annexation would take effect. The annexation is effective immediately

The Food Lion grand opening is tentatively scheduled for September.

The council also voted 4-1 during its monthly meeting to counter a settlement offer from Whispering Pines LLC, new owners of Whispering Woods golf course, for the repair of Cardinal Lake Dam. The village and the owners of the dam have had a deal in place in which the village would repair the dam and the golf course would pay a portion of the repair costs to the village in annual installments, unless the club was sold, and then the outstanding amount would be due immediately. The remaining amount owed is $74,800.

The club changed hands earlier this year. Representatives have argued that the agreement is lease-to-own and that ownership has not changed. The village disagreed.

During the meeting, the council rejected a lump sum payment of $52,000 upon completion of the dam. It rejected a similar offer in December. The council instead offered to accept $52,000, due in 30 days, with the remaining $22,800 being repaid at the end of five years at 6 percent interest.

Mayor Bob Zschoche opposed the offer.

"Why would we want to make a deal on a note with somebody who has already reneged on the last note we made with them?" Zschoche said.

Council member Skip Gebhardt defended the counter offer.

"If we said we want the entire payment, that is the best we could get in court," Gebhardt said. "So they would have no motivation to settle this. That's why we are giving them a break."

The newest repair plan for Cardinal Lake Dam has been approved by the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR).

Bids have been completed, and the bid packages are available now to contractors. The bid opening will be May 20, and the 150-day construction schedule is planned to begin in June. The cost of the repair work is expected to be in the $400,000 range.

In other business, the council set a special meeting for 1:30 p.m. April 30 to continue discussions of the draft of its new land development ordinance.

The village welcomed two new police officers, Michael Maness and Jody Dunlap.

The village also announced its big garage sale, which will be held April 23-25. There is a $5 permit fee. So far, more than 50 permits have been issued. Residents can apply for a permit by contacting Village Hall.

Contact Tom Embrey by e-mail at tembrey@thepilot.com.