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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 11-13-2012 APPROVED 2/19/2013 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS WORK SESSION November 13, 2012 7:OOpm The Orange County Board of Commissioners for a Work Session on Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center, in Chapel Hill, N.C. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Bernadette Pelissier and Commissioners Alice M. Gordon, Barry Jacobs, Pam Hemminger, Earl McKee, and Steve Yuhasz COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Valerie Foushee COUNTY ATTORNEY PRESENT: John Roberts COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Frank Clifton, Assistant County Manager Michael Talbert and Clerk to the Board Donna S. Baker (All other staff inembers will be identified appropriately below) Chair Pelissier said that Commissioner Foushee would be unable to attend because she was out of town. She pointed out the yellow sheet, which included the definitions related to fire districts as requested by Commissioner Gordon earlier today. 1. Whitted Buildinq — Former Library Space Adaptive Re-use Jeff Thompson made a PowerPoint presentation. Whitted Building Former Library Space Adaptive Re-use November 13, 2012 Background 2010-11: nd �i Library Move; 2 Floor Vacancy �i Link BOCC Meeting Room Study �i Health Department Renovation Sprinkler system Structural reinforcement , 2012: �i Orange County Cultural Center Discussions �i Hillsborough Joint Meeting Discussions Full summary presented to the BOCC within 2/6/12 Manager's memo attached Guiding Principles �i Adequate Parking for Multiple Uses BOCC Needs County Departments County Recreation Activities Visitor's Bureau Orange County Arts Council Others (OCCC, Hillsborough) �i Effective BOCC Meeting Space Best Practices Site Tour Elements of Link Space Plan �i Flexibility of Use Orange County Schools Visitor's Bureau Orange County Arts Commission Orange County Library Town of Hillsborough Orange County Cultural Center Mark Hammersley presented the parking portion of the PowerPoint. Parking �i Existing Count: 219 197 on County Property 22 On-Street Spaces �i Addt'I Potential: 257 Costs Vary By Area �i Total Capacity: 476 �i Hillsborough UDO: Based Upon Square Footage; Daytime vs. Evening Use; Restrooms and Egress ii, Fire Egress Effect of Sprinkler System Areas for Rescue Assistance ii, Hand Railing �i Handicap Egress ii, Restrooms Facilities to meet maximum need County Uses ii, BOCC Needs Permanent Dais Adequate A/V, Acoustics Public Meeting Room Executive Meeting Room Flexible Pre-Function Areas �i Other County Needs Visitor's Bureau, OC Arts Council Performances School Uses Departmental Uses Exhibit Space Other Uses �i Town of Hillsborough �i Orange County Cultural Center("OCCC") Financial Impact �i Schematic Budget: $1.2 million - $1.4 million �i $425,000 budgeted within current CIP(Link Upfit); however debt not sold �i Should Project Move Forward: Debt Financing would be recommended(current rates are favorable) Financing would not hinder the County's debt capacity Savings generated from recent refundings of debt would offset any increase in debt service for the project. Commissioner Jacobs said that the parking spaces on the south side of parking deck are not full size spaces, near Weaver Street. He said that the Town has flexibility in their standards when it comes to size of parking spaces. Commissioner Jacobs said that the trees beside the Health Department were planted as memorials for 9/11, and this needs to be noted before deciding to do away with those. Commissioner Hemminger said that area 3 could be used better and should be done even if nothing is done with the room. She would prefer to work on areas 1 and 3 first. Commissioner Jacobs made reference to lighting for parking and said that they should consider buffers if lighting is used. He said that it has already been a sore point related to the parking deck downtown. Mike Hammersley said that anything that is done would have to follow the Town's ordinances and he has calculated this into his drawings with the parking. Commissioner Gordon said that the zoning is residential and she is concerned about the impact of bringing people into a residential area at night if there were night meetings. Ken Redfoot went through the two floor plans on the PowerPoint. There is a 13,000 square foot footprint. The existing library would be very accommodating for a meeting room for the Board of County Commissioners and a theatrical facility. He went through the blueprint of the building. There would have to be some improvements, which would include a handicapped ramp. The meeting room would include 133 seats, with an array of seating. The next plan adds more seating with up to 280 seats. Commissioner Hemminger said that she is excited about this opportunity for a meeting room and a theatrical facility. She thinks that this is a good fit. She asked about the acoustics. Ken Redfoot said that any further planning should include an acoustical engineer. Frank Clifton said that the discussions with the arts group are that the County would construct the shell building and supply it with meeting support structure, and then if the County entered into an agreement with the cultural arts group then this group would bear the finances that would apply to a theatrical unit. He said that this is a feasible opportunity if the Town will work with the County. Commissioner Gordon asked about the size of the meeting space and the cost of building a new meeting room. Ken Redfoot said about 4,900 square feet. A new building construction would cost around $300-400 per square foot. Commissioner Gordon said that according to page 4, it does not look like the Town wants to take responsibility. She said that her personal opinion is that the County Commissioners' meeting room needs to be near the east or west campus downtown. She said that the staff needs to be able to reach this facility easily and the Whitted site does not meet that criterion as well as a site downtown. She said that the parking deck is under-utilized, so there should be enough parking downtown. She thinks that the Whitted building could be a great arts facility but not a County Commissioners' meeting room. Commissioner Jacobs said that he would like to hear from the cultural arts people. Orange County Cultural Center Chair John Delconte said that the need for a large performance space has been around for a while and they have been petitioning to use this space for many years. The need is for a space for 300 people along with space for art classes and summer programs and possibly some studio and/or gallery space. Commissioner Gordon asked John Delconte about experience in sharing space in other places. He said that sharing space by different cultural arts groups can pose scheduling conflicts. Commissioner Gordon said that it seemed to her that if there is a need for a cultural center, then it should be just a cultural center and not a multi-purpose facility. She said that this group would need a permanent stage and permanent space. She applauds the effort to try and do all of these things in one facility, but as of now, there is not a permanent space they can control and this group needs that in the long term. She said that the Commissioners should also have their own meeting room. She said that this is why she cannot support this. Commissioner McKee said that he has questions about accommodation from the Town of Hillsborough, especially regarding parking. He is supportive of having a multi-use facility rather than a building strictly for a meeting room. Commissioner Yuhasz said that the Board of County Commissioners and the residents of Orange County deserve a permanent meeting room and too many uses would not fit that picture. He said that everyone that wants to use it will cause scheduling conflicts. He questioned what would happen to this facility if it is not used for one of these proposed uses. He would not want to delay for a few more years because of not doing this. He spoke in support of finding a permanent meeting room downtown that all governmental entities can share. Commissioner Jacobs said that the Board of County Commissioners needs a meeting room in Hillsborough that can be set up for easy access, but he is in favor of adaptive reuses. However, if a new facility is built, it will be low on the priority list, so he thinks that this is a good start to meet multiple needs. He would like to make a decision and move forward. The arts community has been looking for a long time for a usable place. He is in favor of moving ahead. Chair Pelissier agreed with Commissioner Jacobs. She said that this is not ideal, but it is workable. She does not see this as boxing the County in for the long-term. Commissioner Hemminger said that she is supportive of this proposal. Frank Clifton said that the next step will be to approach the Town of Hillsborough about the parking issue. This building is 75-80 years old and not the best meeting space but it is the largest facility that can be turned into a meeting space. He said that if the County does build a meeting space then this can be turned over to someone else or used for storage. Chair Pelissier said that though three of them are saying yes tonight, there are three new Board of County Commissioners coming on the Board of Commissioners and they will be involved in future discussions. Commissioner Gordon said that if it costs $300 per square foot to build a new meeting space, then it would cost $1.5 million to build a 5,000 square foot meeting room and it could be an addition to the Link Government Services Center. She said that the County Commissioners should look at their long-term space needs. She is supportive of a cultural center at the Whitted building, but not a meeting room. 2. Proposed Revisions to Enerqy, Water and Fuel Conservation Policies Wayne Fenton from Asset Management Services said that staff is bringing back these policies which have been updated. He made a PowerPoint presentation. Policies for Utility and Fuel Conservation Purpose �i Review and consider modifications to existing Conservation Policies adopted by Board December 5, 2005: Energy Conservation Policy Water Conservation Policy Vehicle Fuel Conservation Policy Background As part of the larger "Environmental Responsibility County Government" goal adopted by the Board at its December 5, 2005 meeting, additional policies were adopted These were aimed at conserving energy, water and fuel Numerous changes in the structure of Orange County government have occurred since these policies were adopted Asset Management Services (AMS) is the County department with lead responsibility for utility and fuel management AMS manages most County facilities and vehicles, including utilities and fuel Focus for Proposed Policy Modifications �i Key Proposed Modifications include: Combining energy and water policies into a single utility policy Replacement of"Energy Conservation Task Group" with focused, quicker responding "Conservation Management Team" Conservation Team includes departments with primary responsibilities for conservation �i Asset Management Services �i Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation Unchanged in Modified Policies �i Responsibility for employees to take ownership of conservation activities �i Responsibility for department heads to promote conservation �i Focus on "action items" in the form of annual plan �i Focus on items with greatest potential for reduction (within available budgets) �i Questions & Comments Commissioner Jacobs said that he does not see anything about pursuing alternative energy sources or seeking grants to acquire alternative energy sources. He said that Orange County has lighting standards and these should be applicable to the County buildings, such as using energy efficient light bulbs, etc. Wayne Fenton made reference to light bulbs and said that each year staff plans to bring forward to the Board different things to continue to meet this goal. He thinks that the County has done a great job with lighting efficiency. Commissioner Jacobs said that it would be good for the document to state that it is the policy to continue to look at this issue. He made reference to page 14 and fuel for County vehicles that is acquired through a card system. He suggested putting "allocation system" so that the wording does not have to be changed every time the system changes. Chair Pelissier asked about the scorecard results and Wayne Fenton said that the scorecard is outside of the budget process. Chair Pelissier said that she would like to see the scorecard as part of the budget process. Commissioner McKee and Commissioner Gordon supported the scorecard being a part of the budget process and getting it out to the public. 3. Review the Concept of Establishinq Three (3) New Fire Service Districts to Improve Property Insurance Ratinqs and Lower Homeowners' Insurance Costs Michael Talbert said that this is a recommendation coming to the Board from the Emergency Services Work Group for three new fire service districts. He made reference to the yellow document with the email exchanged with Commissioner Gordon and the memo from September 1 St that talks about Fire Protection Districts and Fire Service Districts. The County has 12 Fire Protection Districts. The County contracts with the individual fire departments to provide fire services within those districts. The districts were established by election in the 1960's and 1970's. Changing those districts becomes difficult. Not long ago, the General Assembly gave counties the option of establishing service districts. A service district is defined by the Board of County Commissioners and is a fairly simple process. Attachment N outlines this process. The third term is a Fire Insurance District. This is a term for the State. This is in Attachment F. He said that there were agreements between Eno and Caldwell recently and insurance districts were created, but the fire protection districts did not change. Commissioner Gordon said that it seems that fire protection district and fire tax district are similar. Michael Talbert explained the difference. Michael Talbert said that right now the County has three Fire Insurance Districts that encompass four different Fire Protection Districts — Damascus, Southern Triangle, Chapel Hill, and South Orange. The proposal is to reconfigure the lines for all of those and come up with three new services. There would be three separate districts with three different providers and three different insurance districts. The insurance district and the service district would be one and the same. Michael Talbert further clarified and made reference to Attachment B. The map is the northern part of the Southern Triangle district (yellow and green). The two gray areas were what was left after annexation of adjacent areas by the Town of Chapel Hill. The area in yellow represents 112 property owners that have an insurance rating of 10. Either they pay double or triple rates or cannot get insurance at all. The goal was to solve this for the 112 property owners and eliminate the two donut holes in gray. Attachment A is a map of the existing South Orange Fire Insurance District. Due to the Town of Chapel Hill annexations, the South Orange Fire Insurance District has been split. The Town of Carrboro provides fire protection in the South Orange Fire Insurance District and now has to travel through the Town of Chapel Hill to respond to a fire call off Mt. Carmel Church Road. Attachment B shows a detail map of the area and Chapel Hill Fire Station # 5 that is less than one (1) mile from the area outlined in gray. The Town of Chapel Hill is better positioned and willing to provide fire protections for this area in gray. The Town staff is prepared to make that recommendation to the Chapel Hill Town Council. This issue has also been discussed with the Town Manager for the Town of Carrboro. The Town Manager is prepared to recommend to the Carrboro Board of Aldermen that the Town provide fire protection to the proposed new Fire Insurance District (see Attachment C) if the tax rate is adjusted to be revenue neutral for the Town. The area in gray on Attachment B represents 100 parcels and $36,003,769 of real property value. When vehicles and personal property values are added to the real property total, an estimated $37,673,414 of taxable value would be removed from the existing South Orange Fire Insurance District. Attachment D shows the existing property valuation of $556,977,528 for the South Orange Fire Insurance District, the reduction of$37,673,414 of taxable value, and the remaining property valuation of$519,304,114. The estimated tax valuation reduction from the existing South Orange Fire Insurance District equals 6.8% of the total. A fire district tax increase from 7.85 cents to 10 cents would be required to insure that this change is revenue neutral for the Town of Carrboro. This would raise about $75,000 more for the district and the Town of Carrboro. North Chatham Fire Service District Orange County had received a letter from North Chatham Volunteer Fire Department (Attachment E) indicating that the Department will charge a tax rate of 8.8 cents beginning July 1, 2013. This is the same rate currently charged in Chatham County and a 76% increase over the existing 5 cents. Attachment F is a map of the existing North Chatham Fire Insurance District. Included on Attachment B, in yellow, are 112 homeowners located more than six (6) road miles from the nearest North Chatham Station, but less than three (3) road miles from Chapel Hill Fire Station #5. These homeowners have an insurance rating of 10 (see Attachment G for an example of insurance premiums related to fire insurance ratings). Several homeowners in this area have indicated that they cannot get fire insurance or that the rate has doubled. The only logical Fire Department that could provide fire protection for this area is the Town of Chapel Hill. The Town of Chapel Hill is a municipal fire department which relies on hydrants as its water source to fight fires. The Town of Chapel Hill is better positioned and willing to provide fire protections for this area. Discussions have occurred involving the Town of Chapel Hill Fire Chief and North Chatham Fire Department Chief concerning possible fire and insurance solutions for this area. Attachment H is a map of the existing Greater Chapel Hill Fire Insurance District. Attachment I is a map of the proposed new Greater Chapel Hill Fire Insurance District that includes not only the area proposed to be deleted from South Orange, but also the 112 homeowners from Attachment B and additional properties included in the Southern Triangle Fire District that have hydrants. The Town of Chapel Hill staff is prepared to make this recommendation to the Chapel Hill Town Council, and the North Chatham Fire Chief has indicated a plan to make this recommendation to the North Chatham Board of Directors. Attachment J shows a potential new Chapel Hill Fire Service District which includes hydrants. Attachment K is a projection of property values and revenues for the New North Chatham Fire Insurance District. Attachment L is a map of the proposed New North Chatham Fire Insurance District. With a property tax increase from 5 cents to 8.8 cents and a reduction of property covered by the district, the net impact for the new district is a revenue increase of $31,441 from $213,325 to $244,766. Greater Chapel Hill Fire Service District Attachment M is a projection of property values and revenues for the New Greater Chapel Fire Insurance District. The result of these changes is that the homeowners on Attachment B in yellow will save considerable money on fire insurance. It is very likely that the new district will keep a rating of 3 or no worse than a 6. Commissioner McKee said that it is critical to get these 112 homeowners out from under that 10 insurance rating. Frank Clifton said that there are no real issues with North Chatham or the Town of Carrboro with this proposal. The real issue is that by giving fire protection to this area it would not allow Chapel Hill to annex this area in some future time. He said that while they have negotiated with staff on this issue, it still has to go before the elected officials of Chapel Hill for approval. Commissioner Yuhasz asked what would happen if the County said no to a tax increase. Frank Clifton said that the fire department could say no to providing service. John Roberts said that if the fire department says no, then the County would have up to a year to find another service provider. However, it was pointed out by staff that since the existing fire service contracts had been canceled, the County only had until June 30, 2013 to negotiate and sign new contracts. Commissioner Yuhasz said that it might be better to take the tax burden off some individuals and spread it around to all residents in that area. Commissioner McKee said that the great majority of these people in Southern Triangle will go to 8.8 cents because North Chatham has to charge them the same as they do in their own district. He said they are not going to discontinue fire service anywhere in Orange County. From February until now the Emergency Services work group has run various scenarios with this proposal. This is not an ideal option and many will get an increase in taxes but with little or no benefits, with the exception of these 112 homes. He said that the 112 homes will get a financial benefit, but the County has to do something to correct the situation. He would have preferred to keep the service district. Commissioner Gordon said that the County will continue to facilitate fire protection. She said that Commissioner McKee is right in that there will be winners and losers. She asked why the fire chiefs did not want the service districts. Commissioner McKee said that his perspective and personal opinion is that fire tax districts are set up by vote of the citizens and are very difficult to set up or change. This prevents meddling by any board. Fire service districts are much more easily changed by a board. He thinks that politics can play a much larger role in the service districts. He likes the certainty of where the districts are and what the districts serve. Commissioner Jacobs asked if the homeowners would be invited to come when this comes back for a vote. Michael Talbert said that the process would be to come back in December to move forward on this issue and try to get it on the calendar as an informational issue for Chapel Hill and Carrboro. If everyone is on board, there could be a public hearing in January. If everyone is in approval, it will move forward through the budget process to establish the tax rates. Frank Clifton said that staff could develop a notice or letter to the residents in these areas affected letting them know about the public hearing. Michael Talbert said that the State needs everything before February 1 St Commissioner Gordon asked about the residents living in the Southern Triangle being notified and Michael Talbert said that they would be notified during the budget process. Commissioner Gordon said that she has to object to such a late notification. Frank Clifton said that there could be a notification in December and January to the whole area. Commissioner Gordon said that she wants to get all the necessary steps outlined and put into a timeline so that that all the steps can be completed well before the June 30tn deadline. She also wants this process to be as transparent as possible. She said that North Chatham and Chapel Hill and Carrboro have been good to provide this fire service over the years and they should be recognized for this. Chair Pelissier thanked everyone from the work group and those from the towns that worked on this. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to adjourn the meeting at 9:26 PM. Bernadette Pelissier, Chair Donna S. Baker, CMC Clerk to the Board