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Home My WebLink AboutMinutes 05-20-2014 APPROVED 9/4/2014 MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING May 20, 2014 7:00 p.m. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, May 20, 2014 at 7:00 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center, in Chapel Hill, N.C. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Jacobs and Commissioners Mark Dorosin, Alice M. Gordon, Earl McKee, Bernadette Pelissier, Renee Price and Penny Rich COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: Interim County Manager Michael Talbert, Assistant County Managers Clarence Grier, Cheryl Young and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff members will be identified appropriately below) NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. Chair Jacobs called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. 1. Additions or Chanqes to the Aqenda Chair Jacobs reviewed the following items at the Commissioner's places: - Plaque - Item 4a - Distinguished Budget Award Presentation for the 2013-14 County Budget - White Sheets — PowerPoint for Item 4-b- Presentation of Manager's Recommended Fiscal Year 2014-15 Annual Operating Budget and 2014-19 Capital Investment Plan - White Sheets -- PowerPoint for Item 5a - Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendments for Agricultural Support Enterprises Outside of the Rural Buffer Land Use Classification - White Sheets — PowerPoint for Item 7a - Consideration of a Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendment Related to Home Occupations - Blue sheet— Revised application for Item 11-h — Orange County Planning Board Appointments PUBLIC CHARGE Chair Jacobs dispensed with the reading of the Public Charge. 2. Public Comments a. Matters not on the Printed Aqenda b. Matters on the Printed Aqenda (These matters will be considered when the Board addresses that item on the agenda below.) 3. Petitions by Board Members Commissioner Rich said a couple of things of interest came up during the forum season. She said Mark Marcoplos suggested creating a database of local businesses, and she would like to ask Economic Development to look into this. She said the idea was not for promotion of businesses, but just for creation of a database. Commissioner Rich said the Community Home Trust has provided a draft of their charter and would like to make a presentation before the Board of County Commissioners. She said the charter is for the next budget season, so this could be scheduled in the fall. Chair Jacobs said the Board had talked about trying to get the state to provide an air quality monitor in Orange County. He noted that Orange County is at the confluence of two major interstates and downwind of a number of power plants. He said he would like to raise this issue again on behalf of a citizen request. He suggested partnering with one of the research universities in the area. Commissioner Rich said PORCH is outgrowing their space for keeping food, and the organization is looking for assistance in finding warehouse space in Orange County, close to Chapel Hill. She said there is a small budget to pay for rental fees. 4. Proclamations/ Resolutions/ Special Presentations a. Distinquished Budqet Award Presentation for the 2013-14 County Budqet The Board recognized the budget staff of the Orange County Finance and Administrative Services Department for earning the Government Finance Officers' Association (GFOA) Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the 2013-14 fiscal year budget document. Clarence Grier said the GFOA distinguished budget award is the highest form of recognition that a budget can receive, and it has stringent criteria. He said the County has received the award for the past 22 years. He recognized budget staff inembers for their contributions. He noted that yesterday the County received notification from Moody's bond rating that Orange County now has AAA bond rating. He said Orange County is now one of 7 counties in North Carolina with this rating and is now AAA with all three bond ratings. He said this will keep interest rates low. Chair Jacobs expressed appreciation for all of the work completed in creating the budgets. He thanked the budget staff on behalf of himself and the tax-paying residents of Orange County. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Rich for the Board to recognize the Finance and Administrative Services Director and staff for the receipt of the GFOA Distinguished Budget Award for the 2013-14 County Budget and present the GFOA plaque to them. VOTE UNANIMOUS b. Presentation of Manaqer's Recommended Fiscal Year 2014-15 Annual Operatinq Budqet and 2014-19 Capital Investment Plan The Board received the Manager's Recommended FY 2014-15 Annual Operating Budget and 2014-19 Capital Investment Plan. Michael Talbert referred to the previous item. He said the receipt of the AAA rating was a product of the policies adopted three years ago by the Board of County Commissioners regarding fund balance and funding policies. He said the Board gets credit for stepping up and making this happen. He said this will have a significant impact on borrowing cost moving forward. Michael Talbert expressed thanks to the budget staff. He said this year's operating budget is $195.6 million, and there is no property tax increase. He said there is an appropriation of$8.5 million of general fund balance to balance the budget. He said this is an increase of$7.9 million from the previous year's budget. He said the budget was prepared with the Board's goals in mind. He reviewed several goals from the January retreat as follows: Goa/ 1 - Defending the quality of public education. He noted a $95 per pupil increase and the addition of 294 new students. He said the Board has as target not to exceed 48.1 percent of general fund revenues for public education. He noted that the recommended budget equals 49.3 percent. He said if all of the requests from the school system were honored, this would exceed 51 percent, so the recommendation is a balancing act. Goa/s 2 and 4— Ensure safety net services and target funding to address child poverty. He said there are two initiatives included this year to address this. He said funding is being increased in social services for daycare and general assistance, and the social justice fund is being continued. He said the health department is working on a child poverty intervention initiative, and this is also being funded. Goa/3— Funding for sewer hookups in the Rogers Road area. He said the Board will be asked to approve the preliminary engineering for the Rogers Road sewer to fund 86 homes. He said the capital investment plan also includes $3 million for the County share of that sewer in year two. Goa/5— Support a broad range of economic development. He said the Board has been very active in supporting recruitment of new industry and the retention of existing industry. He said funds from the quarter cent sales tax continue to be used in these initiatives. Goa/ 6— Consider limit to a viability of a tax increase. He said in 2010-11, the Board appropriated $401,000 to balance the budget. He said this year it is $8.5 million, which is a considerable difference; however the budget is balanced, and the County is within all of its policy guidelines. He said this trend is not sustainable and there will be tax increases in the future. He noted that there is a bond referendum being discussed for the fall of 2016, as well as property tax revaluation in January 2017 and $300 million in older school needs. He said there will be pressure on the budget in years to come. He said the budget also funds continuing strategic initiatives such as strategic plans for emergency services, information technologies and the library, as well as funding for core services. Michael Talbert said funding is also for human resources, and staff is recommending a 1.5% COLA and merit increase, as well as an increase in the 401 k match from $1200 to 1500 contribution. He said health insurance cost increases are not being passed on to employees at this point. Clarence Grier presented the following PowerPoint presentation: County Manager's Recommended FY 2014-15 Annual Operating Budget and Capital Investment Plan Presentation Southern Human Services Center, Chapel Hill Orange County, NC May 20, 2014 Guiding Principles • Balances County's operating budget without a property tax rate increase — 6th Consecutive Year • Provides funding for County services at current levels • Funds local school districts enrollment growth, operational funding and debt service. Recommended General Fund Budget • Totals $195.6 million • Represents an increase of$7.9 million from original current year budget of $187.7 million, which is a 4.21 percent increase from previous year original budget • Represents a $2.1 million decrease in the current year's amended budget Components of General Fund Budget General Fund Revenues ........................................ $ 187,131,286 General Fund Unassigned Fund Balance................... $ 8,507,219 General Fund Expenditures..................................... $ (195,638,505) Net.....................................................................$ - Tax Savings Generated By the Use of Fund Balance Fiscal Year Fund Balance Utilized Property Tax Rate Effect 2009-2101 $0 0 2010-2011 $401,673 .26 2011-2012 $1,131,417 .74 2012-2013 $2,187,872 1.39 2013-2014 $8,507,219 5.19 - The cumulative tax effect of utilizing fund balance to balance the budget totals 10.81 cents. Orange County Projected Cash flows for FY2014-15 (spreadsheet) Orange County Budget Past 6 Fiscal Years (bar graph) Proposed Ad Valorem Tax Rate Effective July 1, 2014 • Proposed tax rate of 85.8 cents per $100 of assessed valuation • This rate produces $140.6 million in property tax revenues for FY 2014 - 15 • Overall Real Property Valuation increased 1.9% • One cent on property tax estimated to generate $1,638,241 Orange County Property Tax Revenues Past 6 Fiscal Years (bar graph) Sales Tax Revenues • Recommended Sales Tax Revenues of$19.0 million is $1.8 million higher than the $17.2 million budgeted in FY 2013-2014 due to increase in consumer spending , and current year projections • Actual sales tax revenues are down over 16% since the peak of$22.5 million in fiscal year 2007-2008 Orange County General Fund FY 2014-15 Revenues (pie chart) Proposed Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools District Tax Rate Effective July 1, 2014 • Recommended tax rate of 20.84 cents per $100 of assessed valuation • Represents no increase in the property tax rate for the District • Recommended tax rate will generate $21.8 million for the Chapel Hill — Carrboro City School District • This represents an additional $1,764 per pupil above the County's allocation • One cent on district tax is estimated to generate $1,044,521. Recommended Funding for Chapel Hill - Carrboro City and Orange County Schools • Total General Fund appropriation totals $92.3 million • Funds day-to-day operations, repayment of school related debt, and capital • Equals an appropriation of 49.3 percent of total General Fund Revenues • Reflects $2.9 million increase from current year General Fund appropriation • Equates to a current expense allocation of$3,364, a $95 increase, per student for each of the 20,202 students in both districts for day-to-day operating funds and projected enrollment growth. County Education Funding Fiscal Year Oriqinal Budqet % of Revenues 2009-2010 $86,378,040 48.6% 2010-2011 $87,135,916 49.8% 2011-2012 $84,175,033 47.5% 2012-2013 $85,455,533 48.1% 2013-2014 $89,424,651 49% 2014-2015 $92,281,361 49.3% Additional Funding for Local Schools • In addition to the $92.3 million for operations, debt and capital, recommended budget allocates $1.25 million to fund non-mandated safety net initiatives for both school districts Some of these initiatives are: • School Health Nurses - $697,380 • School Resource Officers - $556,424 • School Social Workers - $0, due to the of loss State revenue • With these additional non-mandated funding initiatives, the total funding for the local school districts total 49.9% of the General Fund Revenues Major Funded County Initiatives • Maintains all County services at current levels • Funds the increase in medical insurance and fully funds the 401(k)/457 plans for non-sworn employees • A cost of living and merit increase equating up to 2% in compensation for employees • Provides for an increased funding for Emergency Services to address the recommendations of the Emergency Services Study and Work Group • Provides funding to the Town of Chapel Hill Library totaling $568,139 • Allocations provided to non-profit organizations total $1,074,100 for FY 14-15. • Long range/pay-as-you go County capital is $464,800. • Debt service for the General Fund will be $26.5 million. Orange County General Fund FY 2014-15 Expenditures (pie chart) Solid Waste Initiatives • Provides for an increase in the Landfill Fees due to both an increase in tonnage and a $2 increase (from $42.50 to $44.50) in the City of Durham's tipping fees. • The closure of the landfill with public education and other related planning efforts. We expect to incur $3.7 million in closure cost in FY 2013-14. • Provides for $1.36 million in Urban Curbside/Multi-Family Fees to fund the cost of recycling programs and operations for urban curbside collections. This is a new contract for urban curbside recycling, with a fee with a rate of$59/unit. The program will transition from 18 gallon bins to 95 gallon roll carts. • Provides for $840,106 in Capital Outlay for the Recycling Division; $462,106 of those funds are in the Vehicles account and are for the replacement of vehicles based on the replacement schedule, the remaining $378,000 is in the Equipment account and will be used to purchase 7,000 roll carts for the rural roadside recycling program. • The General Fund contribution to Sanitation in the FY14-15 Manager Recommended Budget is $1.8 million; this equates to 1.13 cents on the current property tax rate. • Provides for construction for the Eubanks Solid Waste Convenience Center improvement Additional Funding Options • Appropriate Fund Balance, if necessary; The Board may use up to $650,000 without a negative impact on fund balance • Property tax rate increase • Increase in CHCCS Special District Tax Revenues Generated By Property Tax Increase Tax Increase Property Tax Revenue Generated Per Pupil Equivalency 1 cent $1,638,241 $81.09 2 cents $3,276,482 $162.19 2.4 cents $3,931,778 $194.62 4 cents $6,552,964 $324.37 5.5 cents $9,010,326 $446.01 Revenues Generated By Increase in CHCCS Special District Tax Tax Increase Property Tax Revenue Generated Per Pupil Equivalency 1 cent $1,044,521 $84.56 2 cents $2,089,042 $169.11 3.5 cents $3,655,824 $295.95 - Based on 12,353 projected students for the CHCCS School District County Capital Investment Plan (chart) Concerns and Issues for FY 2015-2016 • Federal State Budget Issues • Debt Service • County Capital Projects • School Capital Projects • Health Insurance • Post-employment Insurance benefit for retirees • Economic Development • Economy • Revaluation • General Fund Revenues FY 2015—2016 Budget (chart) Public Hearings and Work Sessions (All Meetings Begin at 7:00 p.m.) (Chart) Document Availability • Clerk to Board of Commissioners • County Finance & Administrative Services Office • Orange County Library • Chapel Hill Public Library • Carrboro/McDougle Branch Library • Cybrary, Carrboro • Orange County Website Clarence Grier referred to the slide on projected cash flow. He noted that the manager's recommended budget showed only one quarter with positive cash flow. He said the County needs fund balance to mitigate the periods of negative cash flow. He said the current fund balance for the general fund is approximately $36.7 million. Referring to the slide titled Orange County Budget Past 6 Fiscal Years, he noted that the County's budget has increased from $177.6 million to the current $195.6 million, which is an increase of$18 million over the past 6 years. He said the increase in the current year is $8 million by itself, which is the result of an improving economy after the recession. Clarence Grier referred to the bar graph on property tax revenue. He said the components of the property tax include motor vehicles and real property. He said real property has increased by 1.5 percent in the past 6 years. He said the registered motor vehicles amount is projected to increase to $7.9 million due to the change in how the taxes are collected, as well as increased property tax values. He said that property taxes currently account for 72.9 percent of the budget and this is reduced based on the increased reliance on appropriated fund balance. He said sales tax is currently the second largest revenue source, followed by intergovernmental sources. He said these two sources were reversed during the recession, and the improved economy has moved sales tax back to the second highest spot. Clarence Grier said the additional $95 per student funding funds the growth of approximately 297 additional students, as well as the recommended local portion of the state's recommended 3 percent raise for state employees. He said the County Department of Social Services and the schools have worked out an agreement for schools to hire social workers, given the loss of state revenue. This will ensure that services are not lost. Clarence Grier reviewed the pie chart on County expenditures and noted that education is the largest expenditure at 48.7 percent. He said this is the percentage of the total budget and not the general fund revenues alone. He said the necessary tax increase to fully fund the Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools' requests would be 2.7 cents, and it would be 2.32 cents to fully fund the Orange County schools. Clarence Grier said the total amount for the County Capital Investment Plan would be $22,816,805. He said this includes county capital projects, special revenue fund (article 46 sales tax), proprietary capital projects, and schools capital projects. Clarence Grier reviewed the concerns and issues for the 2015-16 fiscal year. He said there are $330 million in older school needs. He said there is an increase of 14.5 percent in the health insurance costs this year. He said there is a liability of$63 million dollars for the post employment insurance benefit for retirees. He said this is fully funded by setting aside $3 million per year, and he would recommend that this practice continue. He noted the revaluation coming in 2017. He said the state currently does a calculation of property values versus property sales. He said the current County tax valuation numbers are 5.5 percent over the sales price. He said that would equate to a 4.42 cent property tax increase if the revaluation occurred now. Clarence Grier said the general fund revenues are expanding, but more and more of the fund balance is being used to balance the budget. He said the gap continues to get larger and a mechanism needs to be found to reduce this. He reviewed numbers from the chart for the FY 2015-16 Budget. He noted that this budget would bring the budget over the general fund target of 48.1 percent. He said there is an expected increase of$600,000 in the debt service. He said this puts the expected adjustments to expenditures at $2,605,431, and the estimated preliminary expenses for 2015-16 at $198,243,936. He said this would be a shortage of$3,934,185, which would mean a potential property tax increase of 2.49 cents. Michael Talbert thanked the departments for putting together a very conservative budget that maximizes the service to citizens. He said the schools asked for $750,000 in planning funds for upcoming older schools construction. He felt this was premature without priorities or a schedule from the Board. He said if this was to happen sometime mid-year, it would be reasonable to go back and establish planning funds for both school systems Commissioner Gordon asked for an explanation on the target percentages for schools. She asked for an explanation of what is and is not included in that target percent and how the school capital projects relate to this. Clarence Grier said the 48.1 percent target for schools is comprised of current expenses, long range and recurring capital, and fair funding. He said the current expense is $67 million; the recurring and long range capital is about $6.7 million; and the fair funding is $988,000 divided equally between both school districts. He said the County debt service for schools is $16.6 million. He said those make up the 48.1 percent target of the general fund revenues. He said the general fund revenues total $187,131,286, and that is the determining factor for the 48.1 percent target, which would be $90 million. He said the fund balance is not a component of this because it is not a general fund revenue. Commissioner Gordon asked if school capital projects numbers are figured in to the 48.1 percent target. Clarence Grier said yes. Commissioner Gordon asked if the school nurses were for both school systems, and the school resource officers were for only the Orange County schools. Clarence Grier said Chapel Hill Carrboro City schools use the fair funding with the police department to fund their school resource officers. He said the Orange County Schools use officers funded in the sheriff's department, which equates to $556,424. Commissioner Gordon said the capital expenditures will all be reflected in the operating budget, as they will be debt service or outright dollars in recurring or long range capital. Clarence Grier said this is correct. Commissioner Gordon referred to the funding that goes into this budget. She said this includes the per pupil allocation, and she asked if the sales tax allocation is counted in this as well. Clarence Grier said yes. He said this is comprised of property tax and sales tax. He said part of the sales tax is mandated by the state to go towards capital. He said the County already funds at such a high rate that it is over the required threshold. Commissioner Gordon said, looking at the current expense appropriation and how it relates to the 48.1 percent target, the per-pupil is a big part of it, but it is not all of it. Clarence Grier said the per pupil funds only the current expenses. He said the recurring capital and the long range capital are outside of the per-pupil if you want to phrase it that way. He said the school nurses and the resource officers are an additional 1.25 percent that is above the mandated categories for the 48.1 percent. Commissioner Gordon asked if the fair funding still comes out of the per pupil amount. Clarence Grier said no; the fair funding is not part of the per pupil expense. Commissioner Gordon confirmed the only thing that comes out of the per-pupil is current expense. Clarence Grier said that is correct. He said the $1.25 million in additional mandated services brings the percentage up to 49.9%. He said this has been in place since fiscal year 1999-2000. Commissioner Rich asked about the Cost of Living (COLA) Merit increase. She asked if the 2% increase is comparable to what the towns and OWASA are doing. Michael Talbert said it is somewhat comparable. He said the amounts range from 2-3 percent. He said the past several years the County has done about 2 percent for cost of living and has stayed ahead of other local governments. He said the County is trying to build up the 401 k contribution, as this is one area of disadvantage. Commissioner Rich asked if this is part of the package with the $1,200 match. Michael Talbert said that is correct. He said it maxes out at 4 percent max, up to $1,500. Clarence Grier said the County had great participation in the 401 K program, and it exceeded expectations by $675,000. Commissioner porosin said he wanted to follow up on Commissioner Gordon's questions with regard to school funding. He said he would appreciate some simplification of how schools are funded. He referred to the slide regarding the resource officers and nurses. He asked how much of the $697,000 for nurses goes to each school district. He asked the same question for the resource officers. He would like to see how this is broken down. He said he is curious why there is a separation where the percentage is 49.3 in one place and 49.9 in another place. He feels like there should be a total amount and then a clear designation of how much is going to each school district. Michael Talbert said staff will provide all this detail at the work session. He said this is a somewhat older formula that is based on historical information, and this information will be shared. Commissioner porosin said this is his second time through the budget, and he feels like all of the information is there, but it is not coming across in the way that is most accessible. He wants to make sure everything is being done as equitably as possible between the two school systems. He asked where the school district tax for the Chapel Hill school district shows up. He said he looked at the Orange County projected cash flows for 2014-15. He asked if the school district tax is part of this. Clarence Grier said this slide only shows the County's revenues and expenditures. He said the $21.8 million from the Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schools district tax is in their budget only. He said since the Board of County Commissioners is responsible for setting the tax rate, this amount is listed just for informational purposes. Michael Talbert said the tax rate for the school districts is set very much like the fire district tax. He said it is collected and the schools get all of the revenue regardless of the collections. Commissioner porosin asked if it is fair to say that the inequity in the per-pupil funding between the two school districts is the result of the district tax. Michael Talbert said that is correct. Commissioner porosin said everything else should have equity. Clarence Grier said that is correct. Michael Talbert said the state law mandates how the County does this. Chair Jacobs said he has seen many Commissioners over the years try to figure out the inequity created by the district tax. He said this is a conundrum. Commissioner porosin said it is stark to see that one cent on the overall County rate is $1.6 million and one cent on the school district rate is $1 million. He said this could be distributed more equitably. Chair Jacobs said it is proportional to the population. He said over the long term, changes in the revenue generation with the economic development districts might change some of those percentages. Chair Jacobs said one of the reasons that the sales tax changed in 2007 is because the state legislature changed the way it allocates sales tax revenues. He said this adversely affected Orange County. He said if this was calculated the way it used to be, the County is doing even better than before. He said the fact that 58 percent of the sales tax is retained within the County means that the County gets hurt more than most counties in the current formulation. Michael Talbert said that is pretty accurate. He said it was a complicated formula, but the County also gave up the expense on the Medicaid. Chair Jacobs said the County is one of the lowest Medicaid counties in the state. Clarence Grier said this continues to be the case. Chair Jacobs asked if the County is still getting the compensation amount promised during this deal. Clarence Grier said yes. He said recently it was $3.2 million. Chair Jacobs said it is a wash that is not reflected in the sales tax. Clarence Grier said yes. Michael Talbert said it is a wash in a "hold harmless" provision. He said this is a complicated provision. Chair Jacobs asked about the fund balance. He heard the figure $36.7 million, which is a little more than 20 percent, and the goal is 17percent. He asked if the money set aside for other post employment benefits (OPEB) is reflected in the difference between the 17 and the 20. Clarence Grier said that is in a separate fund, and it is not part of the $36.7 million. Chair Jacobs asked if some of the fund balance has been appropriated toward OPEB this year Clarence Grier said yes, but the $36.7 million is without the OPEB. Chair Jacobs asked if the difference between the 17 percent and the 20 percent would be available for spending. Clarence Grier said yes Chair Jacobs asked if this is apart from what has been appropriated or if it is reflected in what has been appropriated. Clarence Grier said this is reflected in the $8.5 million that has been appropriated. Chair Jacobs asked if it would really be 17 percent if you look at the $8.5 million, or if it would still be 20 percent. Clarence Grier said that would be about 18.15 percent. He said the only reason this is not changed is because there is the ability to change the appropriation of the $8.5 million. He said to be consistent the amount is said to be $36.7 million. Chair Jacobs asked if this $36.7 million reflects the $650,000 that could be spent. Clarence Grier said no; that would be over and above. Michael Talbert said each year the County creates a certain amount of fund balance, and staff thinks this $8.9 million is in the range of what will be created this year. Chair Jacobs asked if the revaluation in 2017 is reflected in the 2018-2018 budget. Michael Talbert said yes. Chair Jacobs asked what the tax increase would be on a $100 million bond issue. Clarence Grier said this would be 3.78 cents. Chair Jacobs said, based on the scenarios presented, this could be 7 or 8 cents, which would exceed the proposed limit on property tax increases being discussed by the state legislature. Clarence Grier said this is correct. Chair Jacobs said moving forward with bonds, there may be a need to project about what happens if the revaluation does not bring things back up. He said defensive measures may be needed. Clarence Grier said the first defensive measure was getting the AAA rating with all of the bond rating agencies, and the second would be making sure to close the gap on general fund revenues versus fund balance. He said it is important to make sure nothing is done to adversely affect fund balance. He said the County is in very good financial shape. He said there should be fund balance generated this year and next fiscal year, but it will not be at the same levels, due to the appropriations that have been done stave off a property tax increase. Chair Jacobs asked how fund balance is generated. Clarence Grier said some people say he is very conservative with budgeting. He said there has been a lot of under-spending in the departments. He said there has also been 1.5 percent growth, and there have been improvements in sales tax generation as the economy has improved. He said it is a composite of things, but the main thing is the departments holding the line on budgets and adhering to the policies and procedures put in place. Michael Talbert said an oversimplification would be to say that the fund balance is money appropriated but not spent, and money over collected from conservative revenue estimates. He said there will be a significant build in fund balance from the vehicle property tax. Clarence Grier said the collection rate on registered vehicles has always been low, and with the new method of paying taxes along with your registration, revenues are expected to go up. Commissioner Price referred to the cash flow page and asked for an explanation of the overage in the second quarter. Clarence Grier said property taxes are generally collected in the months of October, November, December, and January. He said there is no positive cash flow until property taxes are received. He said this is why fund balance is critical, as the County relies on this during the periods when expenditures exceed revenues. 5. Public Hearinqs a. Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendments for Aqricultural Support Enterprises Outside of the Rural Buffer Land Use Classification - Public Hearinq Closure and Action (No Additional Comments Accepted) The Board received the Planning Board's recommendation, closed the public hearing, and made a decision on Planning Director initiated text amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) to implement a program commonly referred to as "Agricultural Support Enterprises" outside of the Rural Buffer land use classification. Perdita Holtz said the purpose tonight is to make a decision on a long standing item. She presented the following PowerPoint slides: Agricultural Support Enterprises Outside of the Rural Buffer Land Use Classification Unified Development Ordinance & Comprehensive Plan Amendments • Presented at February 24, 2014 quarterly public hearing • Create new conditional zoning district (ASE-CZ) • Add additional permitted uses to some of the existing general use zoning districts • Create use-specific standards for the new uses • Update some existing development standards • Add definitions • Amend Land Use/Zoning Matrix in Comprehensive Plan Purpose of Amendment • Augment allowable uses famers can pursue in order to generate additional farm-related income and to potentially allow farming support/related uses in rural areas while minimizing any adverse impacts on adjoining property. • Intent is to better enable farmers to keep farming which will help preserve the rural heritage of Orange County and lessen pressure to sell farmland for conversion to residential uses. • Balance between rights of property owner and rights of neighboring property owners History • A work-in-progress since 2001 ➢ Need for Conditional Zoning construct was one of the "sticking points" ➢ We now have this type of zoning in the UDO Two Proposed ASE Amendments • Outside of Rural Buffer land use classification • Within Rural Buffer land use classification • Requires amendments to Joint Planning Area documents • Orange County, Towns of Chapel Hill & Carrboro must approve JPA amendments • March 27, 2014 joint public hearing for JPA amendments • Governing boards scheduled to consider JPA amendments at meetings in June • The three separate Planning Boards have all recommended approval of the JPA amendments to their respective governing boards • Public hearing for UDO/Comprehensive Plan amendments was adjourned to the September 4 BOCC meeting Advisory Board Review & Recommendations • Agricultural Preservation Board has reviewed three times • Supports moving forward with amendments • Planning Board reviewed twice prior to quarterly public hearing and again at April 2 meeting to make a recommendation • Unanimous recommendation to approve • Planning Director also recommends approval Text Changes • Color coding in Attachment 2 • Green text is changes proposed after the quarterly public hearing to correct errors, clarify intent, and address issues of legal sufficiency Recommendation - Receive the Planning Board's recommendation of approval; - Close the public hearing; and - Deliberate as necessary and decide accordingly and/or adopt the Ordinance in Attachment 2 which approves the amendments. A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Rich to receive the planning board's recommendation and close the public hearing. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Commissioner Price asked about the water supply analyses. She asked how defensible this will be, as it is difficult to ask a business to determine how much water they will use. She is curious as to how this would be managed. Perdita Holtz said it is going to be one piece of the puzzle, and the ground water analysis will tell them the drill rates on the particular piece of property and how much water would be available to be used. She noted that this can vary tremendously throughout the County. She said this information would be used in deciding whether to approve or not approve a particular application. Commissioner McKee asked if he is correct in saying that bona fide farms do not have to use this. Perdita Holtz said bona fide uses on the farm would not have to be considered, but the uses being added to the UDO are not considered bona fide farm uses. She said the existing bona fide farm use would not be part of the calculation. Commissioner Price said that when new subdivisions were being put in there was concern with the water flow, but the County could not regulate that. She asked how this is any different. Perdita Holtz said staff is asking for a study to be done to determine if there is water flow available on the property for the use. Commissioner Gordon said this has been discussed, and she feels confident that this can be calculated. She thinks it is important to keep this analysis in there. She said this County is fortunate to have a pure water supply, but there is not a lot of water. She said the point was made in the public hearing that it would be important to find out if the use was comparable to a residential use. She said she lives in an area that does not have a lot of groundwater, and this would be important in areas like that. She urged the Board to keep this requirement. Commissioner Gordon said she is concerned in some cases about the intensity and size of the uses, particularly with the Agricultural Support Enterprises Conditional Zoning ASE- CZ. She said the point was to be more flexible with the standards. She said in some cases it has gotten a little more flexible and a little less predictable. She has general concerns of that nature, but she feels the general concept of agricultural support enterprises is a worthy one. Commissioner Gordon noted for future reference, that the R-1 zoning is not included in Agricultural Support Enterprises outside of the rural buffer. Commissioner Price referred back to the water issue and said she agrees that it is important to know. She is concerned about how much it will cost to do a study and how it will affect others in the vicinity. She questioned whether it will be helping or hurting people to require a study that could cost thousands of dollars. Perdita Holtz said when staff spoke with potential consultants the answer was $3000 to $6000 for a simple study and up to $20,000 for an extensive study. Commissioner Price noted that the outside storage cannot be in the front of the building but could be at the side. She asked how this will work. She said this is on page 74 in the packet. Perdita Holtz said this means outdoor storage would not be allowed in the front of a building between the building and road. She said storage would be allowed from the front building line backwards to the rear yard, and this is meant to limit unsightly storage in the front of buildings. She said for the purposes of zoning, the front yard is defined as the area between the road and the building, regardless of the direction the building faces. Commissioner Pelissier said she hopes that the Board will pass this item, since it has been around since 2001. She said some of the advisory boards have lost faith in the County. She hopes that the passage of this might redeem the Board and the County. She hopes that if this passes the Board would find a way to let the community know that this is opening up rural Orange County for more entrepreneurship related to agriculture and food. Chair Jacobs agreed with Commissioner Pelissier's comments. He said this has been adjusted several times to make it more feasible in every possible way. He is pleased that this is moving on a parallel track with similar uses in the rural buffer. He said residents were promised 30 years ago that they would not be disadvantaged by being zoned rural buffer. He said it has taken a little while but the Board is now at the threshold of fulfilling an obligation and creating opportunities. He said he hopes that the planning department will monitor the effect of the water analysis costs and let the Board of County Commissioners know if changes are needed. A motion was made by Commissioner Pelissier, seconded by Commissioner Rich to: adopt the Ordinance for Agricultural Support Enterprises as outlined in Attachment 2 which approves the amendments. VOTE: 6-1 (Commissioner Gordon) Commissioner Price said this is a topic that hit her when she first got on the planning board in 2001, and it is nice to see it finally happen. 6. Consent Aqenda • Removal of Any Items from Consent Agenda Commissioner Gordon requested the removal of item 6b for discussion. Commissioner porosin requested the removal of item 6d for discussion. 6d • Approval of Remaining Consent Agenda A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Rich to approve the remaining items on the consent agenda. VOTE: UNANIMOUS • Discussion and Approval of the Items Removed from the Consent Agenda b. Fiscal Year 2013-14 Budqet Amendment#8 The Board considered approving budget ordinance amendments for fiscal year 2013- 14. Commissioner Gordon referred to section 5, which specifies a Hook-lift truck to be purchased out of the general fund. She would like to change this to say that the truck will be paid for out of the solid waste fund. Commissioner Gordon made a motion, seconded by Commissioner McKee to approve Fiscal Year 2013-14 Budget Amendment#8, with a change stating that the $190,548 Hook-Lift truck on number 5 for solid waste be paid for from the solid waste fund. Clarence Grier said staff had suggested funding through the general fund because the general fund supports sanitation to approximately $1.8 million per year. He said there are sufficient funds to pay for this from the Solid Waste fund if that is the pleasure of the Board. Commissioner porosin asked why Commissioner Gordon feels this suggested change is important when the Solid Waste fund is already being used to cover recycling cost. Commissioner Gordon said the Board still has not decided how to do the recycling costs yet. She said she thought there was a long range plan to do everything related to solid waste out of the solid waste enterprise fund instead of the general fund. She thought this transition was already happening, and she feels it should continue. She said the $1.8 million from the general fund was mainly there for historical reasons, and the solid waste convenience center fees were increased to wean off of this dependence. VOTE: UNANIMOUS d. Housinq Rehabilitation Proqram — N.C. Housinq Finance Aqency The Board considered adopting the Assistance, Procurement and Disbursement Policies for the 2014 Single Family Housing Rehabilitation Program funded by the N.C. Housing Finance Agency and authorizing the Chair to sign. Commissioner porosin said the policy states that $170,000 will be used to do three renovations, and then later on it states that only $45,000 can be spent on each project. He asked if money will be sent back at the end of the program. James Davis said this is a loan pool, and the money covers the entire umbrella of what they can max. He said a certain number of properties must be proposed, but that number can be exceeded. He said properties may require a lesser amount of rehab, and that will allow for more projects than originally proposed. He said there are also change orders that may come in after projects are proposed, so they feel safest with three. Commissioner porosin said he thinks, in the policies in d-1, the priority should be a higher number of houses repaired with a lower targeted rate. He said he would rather see them do 10 houses at $17,000 than just 2 or 3 houses that need $45,000 in repairs. He said the Board may need to talk about this policy. Commissioner porosin said the program guidelines also talk about prioritizing families with children under age 6. He said Orange County's priority ranking (page 4) does not prioritize families with children in its scoring system. He feels this should be a priority at least equal to the elderly. He is wondering why it is not. James Davis said these priority rankings are from the housing finance agency. He said while there may be priorities that can be set for things that come out of the County's general fund, these are monies from the housing finance agency, and this requires compliance with the agency's rankings. He referred to the idea of focusing on more properties with lower cost and said it has been difficult to get properties that come in under $40,000 that meet all of the other criteria. He said this is because the entire structure must meet a certain qualification for a rehab, unlike an urgent repair. Commissioner porosin said he would be interested in either the Board or the Affordable Housing Advisory Board (AHAB) giving feedback to the finance agency regarding the County's priorities, or at least requesting more information on how the priorities are set. Chair Jacobs suggested approving this item with direction to refer the matter to the AHAB for additional examination on how to use the remainder of the funds to address more properties within the parameters set by the housing finance agency. A motion was made by Commissioner porosin, seconded by Commissioner McKee to adopt the Assistance, Procurement and Disbursement Policies for the 2014 Single Family Housing Rehabilitation Program funded by the N.C. Housing Finance Agency and authorize the Chair to sign, with direction to refer the matter to the AHAB for additional examination on how to use the remainder of the funds to address more properties within the parameters set by the housing finance agency. VOTE: UNANIMOUS a. Minutes The Board approved the minutes from both meetings on March 27, 2014 as submitted by the Clerk to the Board. b. Approval of Budqet Amendment#8-A Appropriatinq Unassiqned Fund Balance from the Solid Waste Enterprise Fund for Additional Landfill Closure Costs and Purchase of 19,500 Urban Roll Carts The Board approved Budget Amendment#8-A appropriating $1,456,555 in Unassigned Fund Balance from the Solid Waste Enterprise Fund for the additional Landfill closure costs and the purchase of 19,500 roll carts related to the Urban Curbside Recycling program. 7. Reqular Aqenda a. Consideration of a Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendment Related to Home Occupations (8:25 — 8:50) The Board received the Planning Board recommendation and made a decision on a Planning Board and Planning Director initiated text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO). Ashley Moncado reviewed the following PowerPoint slides: Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendment Home Occupation Standards May 20, 2014 Item 7-a Purpose ■ To receive the Planning Board recommendation and make a decision on a Planning Board and Planning Director initiated text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance. Review History ■ November 25, 2013 Quarterly Public Hearing ■ December 4, 2013 Planning Board ■ January 8, 2014 Planning Board ■ February 18, 2014 BOCC ■ April 2, 2014 Planning Board Ashley Moncado said a report has been presented that addresses reservation and concerns with impacts from the revisions to setback and screening standards, and this is included as attachment 4. She said the Planning Board has voted 4-2 to recommend approval of the UDO text amendment. She said no revisions have been made to the text amendment since its submission at the February 18th meeting. She noted that the amendment is proposed to take effect July 1 to allow time for outreach regarding the revised standards. Commissioner Price said she will vote for this, but she is still unsatisfied with the size of the setbacks. She feels it is excessive, and she would like to decrease the buffer to 15 feet. Chair Jacobs proposed a change of language in article 5, section 5.5.3.2 iii on page 5- 36 regarding use of accessory structures. He feels that the wording "structures built with suitable residential construction materials to resemble the appearance of a residential accessory structure" is too restrictive. He feels it should just say "materials not incompatible with a residential accessory structure." He said it is overreach by the government to tell people what their accessory structures should look like. He would rather see them err on the side of flexibility rather than put the planning staff in the position of having to police what is an acceptable material on somebody's property. Ashley Moncado said staff has discussed this, and they would be willing to change the language here tonight. Ashley Moncado referred to Commissioner Price's concern and said there is reference to the accessory structures and setback for a major home occupation in the text language on agenda page 26. She said the site plans were in attachment 4 on pages 44-47. Commissioner Price said there was also one on page 41. Ashley Moncado said these are regarding minor home occupations. She said the 40 foot setback is regarding the screening waiver. She said if a screening buffer is not provided then you would be required to exceed setback standards of 40 feet. She said the 40 foot requirement is on the major home occupations on a property that is at least 5 acres in size. Commissioner Price said she just wanted to bring this to their attention, and she does feel it is excessive. Commissioner Gordon said it is fine to give home occupations more leniency, but she is struggling with the balance of non-residential uses in a residential area and the effect on neighbors. She said her general concern is the intensity and size of some of the uses and that it exceeds the balance in the rural area. She said there were some building trade related uses added after the quarterly public hearing in 2013, and she has some concerns about these being added. Chair Jacobs said staff went to some length to try and strike that balance. ■ A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to approve the text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance, as contained in Attachment 2, with a change in language from Chair Jacobs regarding the materials for an accessory structure. ■ Commissioner porosin asked if there will be an inventory of these home occupations or if there is already a listing or index of where these exist. . Ashley said there is a listing. She said there are currently 63 home occupations with a log showing back to 10 years, and these will continue to be logged moving forward. Commissioner porosin asked for an electronic copy of this to be provided to the Board of County Commissioners, with an update annually. Chair Jacobs said the Board had asked for periodic updates from the planning department, and this could fit into those reports. He would like to see updates regarding new agricultural enterprises and new home occupations as a result of the changes approved tonight. Commissioner porosin said work could potentially be done with economic development to support these new occupations. Michael Talbert said the first report from the planning department, and he will email this to the Board tomorrow. VOTE: 6-1 (Commissioner Gordon) b. Addition of the Unified Development Ordinance to the Code of Ordinances of Oranqe County, North Carolina The Board considered codifying Orange County's Unified Development Ordinance ("UDO") by adding it to the Code of Ordinances of Orange County, North Carolina (the "Code") as Appendix A thereto and authorizing the Chair to sign. John Roberts said this process started in 1996 when the Board at that time voted for and authorized staff to work with Municode to codify all of Orange County's ordinances at that time. He said for various reasons that never happened. He said an unofficial code of ordinances has been available and regularly updated on the County website. He said people would refer to it, but the only actual ordinances were maintained in the offices of the clerk, which caused confusion. He said the Board in 2011 codified all of the general ordinances, and those are now available through a published document available in the clerk's office and on the internet. He said staff is now asking the Board to add the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) to that codification, as appendix 1. He said this will allow it to be plead and proven in courts, as the code of ordinances. John Roberts said the second to last paragraph reads "be it further resolved a recently adopted amendment to the UDO, ordinance 2014-17, related to kennels, which was adopted in April of this year, is not included." He said a motion would be needed to include in this statement the home occupations and agricultural support enterprises text amendments that were adopted tonight. Chair Jacobs clarified that the statement should read "be it further resolved a recently adopted amendment to the UDO, ordinance 2014-17, related to kennels, home occupations and agricultural support enterprises, adopted in April and May of 2014 are not included in the unified development ordinance proofs." Commissioner Rich asked if this will be updated annually. John Roberts said it is updated as often as staff sends in notifications to Municode, and this is usually done quarterly. He said Municode updates the website and sends a republication amendment to the County. He said any text amendment that is adopted will be effective. He said it will show up on Municode's website as not officially published, but there will be a link to a PDF version of the document. Commissioner Rich asked if John Roberts anticipated any confusion from the time that things are adopted to the quarterly report. John Roberts does not anticipate any problems from that. Commissioner Gordon said she wanted to clarify that the kennels, home occupations, and agricultural support enterprises amendments will not be included. She asked if this has to be said every time an ordinance is adopted. John Roberts said the UDO is not part of the code now. He said, since the County is adding it, it is being added based on the re-publication that was submitted to the County a month ago, and that did not include these three text amendments. He said, in the future, whenever a text amendment is passed by the Board, it will automatically be effective, and it will be put into the code as soon as it is sent to Municode. He said there will be no need for any extra action in the future. Chair Jacobs asked if these three items will be incorporated the next time there is an update. John Roberts said Municode should be able to add these before the final publication is completed. A motion was made by Commissioner porosin, seconded by Commissioner Price to adopt and authorize the Chair to sign the attached Resolution of Adoption and add the UDO to the Code of Ordinances of Orange County, North Carolina, with the inclusion of the following change to the second to last paragraph: "be it further resolved that recently adopted amendments to the UDO, related to kennels, home occupations and agricultural support enterprises, adopted in April and May of 2014 are not included in the unified development ordinance proofs." . Commissioner Gordon suggested a friendly amendment to say "agricultural support enterprises outside of the rural buffer." Commissioner porosin asked John Roberts if this is needed. John Roberts said it will not hurt anything. He said only one agricultural support enterprises ordinance was adopted tonight. Commissioner porosin and Commissioner Price accepted the friendly amendment. The complete resolution, including revisions reads as follows: A RESOLUTION ADDING THE UNIFIED DEVELOPMENT ORDINANCE OF ORANGE COUNTY TO THE CODE OF ORDINANCES, ORANGE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, AS APPENDIX A WHEREAS, on December 17, 1996 the Orange County Board of County Commissioners, pursuant to North Carolina General Statute §153A-49, authorized the codification of its ordinances into a code of ordinances; and WHEREAS, for various reasons the code of ordinances was not adopted but remained available to residents using the Orange County website thus creating confusion regarding the actual adopted laws of Orange County; and WHEREAS, the issues regarding adoption were ultimately resolved and on December 5, 2011 the general ordinances of Orange County were codified by the Board of County Commissioners into the Code of Ordinances of Orange County, North Carolina (the "Code"); and WHEREAS, due to multiple problems with the complexity of converting the Unified Development Ordinance ("UDO") to an appropriate format and also several staff changes and other issues at Municipal Code Corporation, the entity with which Orange County contracted to maintain the Code, the Code did not include the UDO which was adopted in its unified form on April 5, 2011; and WHEREAS, the Code's adoption ordinance specified that the UDO would remain in effect, however, and work was continued on adding the UDO to the Code; and WHEREAS, on April 3, 2014 Municipal Code Corporation completed the final proofs of the UDO and delivered them to the County Attorney's office after which both planning staff and the County Attorney reviewed the proofs and determined the Proofs are ready for codification. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED pursuant to North Carolina General Statute §153A-49 and the Adopting Ordinance of the Code of Ordinances, Orange County, North Carolina, dated December 5, 2011, the Orange County Unified Development Ordinance, having been originally adopted on April 5, 2011 and amended from time to time thereafter, and as it is reflected in the Unified Development Ordinance Proofs dated April 3, 2014 provided by Municipal Code Corporation, is added to the Code of Ordinances, Orange County, North Carolina, as Appendix A thereto. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED recently adopted text amendments to the UDO, Ordinance 2014-017 regarding kennels adopted April 15, 2014, Ordinance 2014-007 regarding home occupations adopted May 20, 2014, and Ordinance 2014-022 regarding agricultural support enterprises outside the rural buffer adopted May 20, 2014, are not included in the Unified Development Ordinance Proofs and will not be published at this time, but shall continue in full force and effect until and beyond such time as they are officially published in Appendix A of the Code of Ordinances, Orange County, North Carolina. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all future amendments to the UDO shall be approved and codified in accordance with applicable state law and the Adopting Ordinance of the Code of Ordinances, Orange County, North Carolina, dated December 5, 2011. This, the 20th day of May 2014. VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Oranqe Unified Transportation Board Request to Authorize the Planninq Staff to Review Private Road Standards, Access Standards, and Trail Svstem Standards of the Unified Development Ordinance; Amendment Outline The Board considered instructing Planning staff to review the private road, access and trail system standards, and develop recommended amendments to the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) for consideration. Abigaile Pittman said this activity was identified in the accepted 2014 work plans for the Outboard as well as the planning board. She said this relates primarily to ensuring the properties can be reached by emergency services personnel, there have been reports of public safety concerns regarding the adequacy of certain private roads and other standards. She said additional issues have arisen with requests to convert some private roads to public roads and problems with bringing those private roads up to acceptable construction standards. She said in the review of these standards planning staff would seek input from other County departments to explore a range of perspectives and options. Commissioner Gordon asked if there would ever be an instance where a private road that is already in existence would have to upgrade. Abigaile Pittman said if a road was created legally under the existing ordinance, it would be grandfathered in and would not be required to go back and make revisions. She said it is not uncommon for subdivisions on a private road to seek conversion to a public road for maintenance. She said the class B private roads, which are often 12 feet wide and gravel, can be expensive and difficult to convert. Commissioner Gordon clarified that the existing roads would be grandfathered in, and a new home built in a neighborhood with an existing private road would not be required to make changes to the road. Abigaile Pittman said the ordinance states the any subdivision above 5 homes requires a class A road. Commissioner Gordon asked what would happen if an existing neighborhood decided to subdivide lots to create more homes. Michael Harvey said if a neighborhood is going to create 5 lots, a class B road is adequate. He said the ordinance also requires the accommodation of one additional lot as a means of insuring access. He said if there are 3 lots on a class B private road, and a 4th lot is created, that is still serviceable by a class B private road. He said if there are 5 lots and a 6tn lot is created, the road will need to be upgraded to a class A road. Commissioner Gordon clarified that this need to upgrade is only triggered when you go above 5 lots. Michael Harvey said that is correct. Commissioner Pelissier asked, if a sub-division had a class A road, whether this would involve looking to see if the Class A road really exists versus a class B. She asked about the current process to verify that a road has been constructed as specified. Michael Harvey said the current practice requires final subdivision plats cannot be recorded until the road is bonded or staff has verified that it meets the appropriate standards. Commissioner Pelissier asked about the role of the Commission for the Environment (CfE) in this process. Abigaile Pittman said when the OUTBoard was considering some of the issues, concerns were brought up about emergency access on trail systems. She said it has been suggested that there be staging areas where trails cross roads. She said this relates to Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR) and CfE, and it would go to both boards. Chair Jacobs said he has environmental concerns too, and he would be thrilled to have CfE and DEAPR consider these. He said the Board labored for years to create private road standards that would be environmentally sensitive. He said there was discussion about how in other states you can build environmentally sensitive development without roads built to DOT standards. His concern is that in saying that every private road should accommodate the possibility of becoming a public road or accommodate the large ambulances, it will mean losing the ability to maintain the character of the property. He does not see this concern articulated. He said there are also smaller vehicles that can get down the trails. He does not want to see this item result in the cutting of large swaths through trails to get large emergency vehicles down. He does not see anything articulated about these concerns. Chair Jacobs said there have been past discussions with DOT about adjusting their standards so that they are not one size fit all. He said his concern would be that some of these other boards that have interest in land use and preservation should be part of this discussion. He would like people to have the opportunity to make choices. Abigaile Pittman said staff has not yet begun to do detailed research or consultation with other departments. She said this is a request to allow that research and then come back with the findings. She said staff recognizes that there will be many interests to balance. Commissioner McKee said he does not disagree with any of the statements that have been made. He does want to offer the flipside of DOT road standards. He said there is at least one subdivision in the County where residents have found the maintenance costs to be impossible to meet, and they have asked the DOT to take this road. He said the request was refused because the road did not meet standards. He said DOT is probably not going to change their standards to accommodate any needs but their own. Chair Jacobs said it was mentioned yesterday that the Board should petition the state NCDOT to investigate alternative methods for the provision of public roads. He said the arguments would need to be marshaled before there was any hope of success in this. He suggested efforts should be made to put those arguments together. A motion was made by Commissioner Price seconded by Commissioner McKee to move forward with the OUTBoard's recommendation to: 1. Authorize the Planning staff to review the private road standards, access standards, and trail system standards of the UDO; 2. Authorize the Planning Board to provide review comments to the Planning staff; 3. Authorize the Planning staff to solicit comments from Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation staff and the Commission for the Environment and/or Parks and Recreation Council; 4. Authorize the Planning staff to solicit comments from the Emergency Services staff and the Fire Chief's Council; and 5. Return to the BOCC in the Fall of 2014 with an update and request to proceed with text amendment(s). VOTE: UNANIMOUS 8. Reports a. Report of the Human Relations Commission (HRC) The Board received and discussed the Human Relation Commission's (HRC) position regarding the establishment of a subcommittee that focuses on matters of the equitable treatment of women. James Davis reviewed the highlights of the report. He said the HRC has discussing an issue presented by the Board regarding the reinstallation of the Commission for Women or the creation of a subcommittee to address the equitable treatment of women. He said this report highlights the points of this discussion. He said this includes a recommendation that the HRC continue to do its duty to carry out the mission of the equitable treatment of everyone and to increase its awareness and involvement in issues regarding women. He said the HRC further recommended that if there are any identified inequities in the County, the Board would permit a consultant to figure out what those inequities were with regard to wage and salary and to administer a charge on how to address those. Commissioner Gordon said she is happy about the last part of the report. She is not so sure that the only way to do this is with additional resources. She asked why there cannot be a sub-committee on this since there are so many other sub-committees. James Davis said the HRC is comprised of a diverse membership, and having a sub- committee focused strictly on women sparked a discussion about sub-committees for all of the other minorities. He said it occurred to the HRC that this could lead to a never ending creation of subcommittees and issues with failing to include certain groups. He said the Diversity Matters subcommittee was created prior to these discussions, and it was decided that this subcommittee should be the one to discuss all matters of diversity, including women and equity. Commissioner Price said she is pleased that this is going forward, but she wonders if hiring a person to address this issue may not be the way to go. She said if the staff person does not get funded, there may be other ways to collect the data. She said this could be addressed with Diversity Matters. Commissioner porosin asked if the Board is supposed to give direction to HRC on what to prioritize over the next year. Chair Jacobs said the request is for a response to this report. Michael Talbert said the purpose is specifically to deal with the study of women's issues by the HRC, and give feedback on where the HRC should go from here and whether their idea of addressing it through the Diversity Matters subcommittee is adequate. Commissioner porosin said he has not signed on to the idea that study of pay equity is the highest priority human relations issue. He said if there are limited resources on what can be focused on, he has some different ideas on gender discrimination and what the focus should be. He noted that the Health Department is going to have the poverty council, which will be looking at issues including gender discrimination and the problems faced by single mothers and female heads of household. He feels there is an opportunity for synergy here, and he wants to be clear on what the Board is supposed to be doing here. He said he would propose a broader agenda than just pay disparity, as he does not think this is the most pressing issue. Commissioner Price said this was in response to a request she made along with Commissioner Gordon to bring back a commission that focused on women's issues. She realizes there are many issues that can be tackled, but after talking to many women a decision was made to hone in on such issues as pay equity, raises, promotions, and the ability to get loans. She said there are many issues, but an advisory board can only do so much, and she is pleased to see this step in the right direction. She said there are already plans to do a community read to begin the dialogue. James Davis said this is planned for the fall. Commissioner Price said she does not see why other issues could not be addressed further down the road. Commissioner Pelissier said as she understands it the Board does not have to give any direction and can just accept the report. She said a pay study has been proposed, but she would agree that this is not the best way to address this. She likes the approach of Diversity Matters and looking at all of the different groups where there may be issues. She said the work plan will come to the Board early next year and this can be approved and direction given as needed at that time. Commissioner Rich said she agrees with Commissioner porosin, and she feels the focus should be on more than one issue. She does not feel this is the most important issue for women right now. She said she talked with the Durham Human Rights Commission (HRC) about how they handle their women's division. She said Durham does not have a women's commission, and everyone is involved in the conversations. She said this group is in their 7tn year of producing a Women's Forum in March and there are all kinds of issues addressed here. She said it is a very successful all day event, and there are public and private partnerships. She would like to see this on a broader scale, and she thinks it should be under the Diversity Matters committee. She said some issues discovered with women's issues will be true across the board for other groups. Commissioner Gordon said it seems that the HRC may not do anything in particular about women's issues unless they are given more money. She said this concerns her, as it seems like the resources of the Diversity Matters group could be focused on women's issues. She feels that pay equity is important, because if women were paid equally a lot of other issues would fall into place. She said she still thinks there should be a focus on women's issues. She would like to see Diversity Matters have a focus on women to determine the concerns and issues for women in Orange County. Commissioner Rich said it is already known that women are paid less than men, and she does not understand what the goal is in researching this and putting it on paper. She asked if this is a proposal to come up with a solution. She said the County cannot tell private companies to pay women more. Chair Jacobs said the manager is asking the Board to provide feedback to staff on next steps. He said the Board feels there are several issues of interest that could be pursued, and the HRC has heard these issues. He said the goal now is to have them look at the gamut of issues and how they impact women in Orange County and then report back to the Board of County Commissioners before going out too far on a limb. He asked about a timetable for this report. He suggested there be a specific time line for deliberation, discussion, investigation and reporting Chair Jacobs said the HRC used to do an annual day-long symposium, and then it stopped. He said this may be a fruitful area for the creation of this type of event. Commissioner Price said the point of this was just to get the ball rolling. She said the HRC has a forum every January, and she understands that women may be the focus of this event in 2015. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner porosin to accept the report, inclusive of the points raised in this discussion and the articulated timeline. Michael Talbert said he feels the Board is on the right track. He said feedback has been given and James Davis will take this back to the HRC for further discussion. He suggested that the HRC bring back a plan in late fall as to how these issues will be addressed. Commissioner porosin said the Board needs to have a discussion about how priorities are set for advisory boards. He said this should be discussed and voted on. He is not saying this is not an important issue, but he has talked to a lot of women in the community who have different sets of issues that are priorities. He does not think the Board had agreed that pay equity is the highest priority. He feels the Board should provide clearer and broader direction when setting priorities. Commissioner Pelissier asked why the Board would ask the HRC to come back in the fall since they submit their work plan in January for review. She referred to Commissioner Dorosin's point and said the plans of all of the advisory boards are approved by the Commissioners and there can be direction given regarding priorities. She feels that the report from the HRC should just wait until January. Chair Jacobs said it would be nice to receive a report in the fall if there is potentially going to be a forum in January, so that the Board can address the priorities of this event. James Davis said the forum in January is proposed to be an acknowledgement of the 50th anniversary of the 1965 Voter's Rights Act, combined with the anniversary of the 1 gtn amendment, which granted women the right to vote. Chair Jacobs said the Board has given some direction and having this timeframe will allow impact of how this discussion moves forward. He said it sounds like this event will be centered on voting rights, but there are a lot of related issues, such as civil rights that can be brought to bear. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 9. County Manaqer's Report Michael Talbert asked Carla Banks to show a promotional video of the recent County expo. Carla Banks gave a brief overview of the expo. She said the month of April was County Government Month, and staff hosted the first every Orange County Expo. She said there were 250-300 people who stopped by University Mall. She said WCHL radio was there and this was a good public private partnership event. She said the expo resulted in collaboration among more than 20 County departments who were able to showcase their programs and services. Carla Banks showed a video highlighting the event. She thanked all of the departments for their participation. Michael Talbert referred to the hand out of the annual report for the Community Giving Fund. He said this is the first year of the fund, and the donations totaled $9,386. He said Animal Services received the lion's share of this. He said the donations can be categorized for a specific purpose. He said most people giving money have a specific need that they want to see addressed. He said the fund is moving at a faster pace now that residents are finding out about it. Commissioner Rich asked who creates the buckets. Michael Talbert said a combination of staff and resident input contributes to the creation of these buckets. Commissioner Gordon suggested the mention of this fund during the televised budget public hearings. Michael Talbert said Orange County was before the Chapel Hill Town Council last night in reference to the SUP as it relates to the development of the 33 acres here at the southern campus. He said the town received comments and the presentation. He said it was generally well received, and the town will act on this on June 23. 10. County Attorney's Report NONE 11. Appointments Commissioner porosin said he has noticed that there are several people seeking appointments to a second commission. He thinks the wealth should be spread around, and he feels that this should be adopted as a rule. He said he will not vote for anyone to be appointed to a board if they are already serving on another board. Chair Jacobs said this is currently allowed, but it could be discussed at a future work session. a. Adult Care Home Community Advisory Committee —Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Adult Care Home Community Advisory Committee. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to appoint Dr. Mario Battigelli to a second full term (Position #1) At-Large ending 03/31/2017. VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Animal Services Advisory Board —Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Animal Services Advisory Board. A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to appoint Ms. Virginia Fitt to a first partial term (Position #10) Animal Advocate ending 06/30/2014. VOTE: UNANIMOUS c. Commission for the Environment—Appointments The Board considered making appointments to the Commission for the Environment. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Rich to make the following appointments to the Commission for the Environment: • To move Lydia Wegman from (Position #3) At-Large Land Resources to (Position #2) At- Large Air Quality (please see attached recommendation letter) ending 12/31/2016. • Appointment to a first partial term (Position #3) At-Large Land Resources for Mr. William Kaiser ending 12/31/2014. • Appointment to a first full term (Position #6) At-Large for Mr. Clifford Leath ending 12/31/2016. • Appointment to a first full term (Position #8) At-Large for Ms. Judy Miller ending 12/31/2016. VOTE: 2 ayes (Commissioner Gordon, Commissioner Pelissier), 5 nays (Chair Jacobs, Commissioner porosin. Commissioner Price. Commissioner McKee, Commissioner Rich) A motion was made by Chair Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Rich to: • Leave Ms. Wegman in Position #3 ( At-Large Land Resources) with an ending term of 12/31/2014. • Appoint William Newby to Position #2 (At-Large/Air Quality) with an ending term of 12/31/2016. • Appointment to a first full term (Position #6) At-Large for Mr. Clifford Leath ending 12/31/2016. • • Appointment to a first full term (Position #8) At-Large for Ms. Judy Miller ending 12/31/2016. VOTE: Ayes, 5 (Chair Jacobs, Commissioner porosin. Commissioner Price. Commissioner McKee, Commissioner Rich); Nays,2 (Commissioner Gordon, Commissioner Pelissier) d. Economic Development Advisory Board —Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Economic Development Advisory Board. A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to appoint Mr. Ronald Keizer to a first full term to the Core Business Position with an expiration date of 6/30/2016. VOTE: UNANIMOUS e. Hillsborouqh Board of Adiustment—Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Hillsborough Board of Adjustment. A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Price to appoint Mr. Dustin Williams to a first partial term to position #2 - Hillsborough ETJ with a term ending 09/30/2016 VOTE: UNANIMOUS f. Hillsborouqh Planninq Board —Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Hillsborough Planning Board. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to appoint Ms. Jamie Morris to Position #3 (Hillsborough ETJ) with a term ending 5/31/2017. VOTE: UNANIMOUS g_ Nursinq Home Community Advisory Committee —Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Nursing Home Community Advisory Committee. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to appoint Ms. Vibeke Talley to a one year training term (Position #12) ending 04/15/2015. (POSITION EXPIRATION DATE of 12/31/2016) VOTE: UNANIMOUS h. Oranqe County Planninq Board —Appointments The Board considered appointments to the Orange County Planning Board. A motion was made by Commissioner McKee seconded by Commissioner Price to make the following appointments: • Appointment to a second full term (Position #11) Chapel Hill Township for Ms. Lisa Stuckey ending 03/31/2017. • Appointment to a second full term (Position #12) At-Large Representation for Ms. Maxecine Mitchell ending 03/31/2017. Commissioner porosin said he will be voting no to this because one of these applicants is already serving on a board. He requested a statement of any other advisory boards that applicants are serving on. He would like to see this information clearly in the application. Donna Baker said this information is taken directly from the database and she can work with IT to make sure the information is clear and up to date once someone is already serving on a board. VOTE: Ayes, 6; Nays, 1(Commissioner porosin) A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Gordon to appoint Bryan Warren to a first full term to position # 5(Hillsborough Township) with an ending term of 3/31/2017. VOTE: UNANIMOUS A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner porosin to appoint Ms. Laura Nicholson to a first partial term to position # 6 (Eno Township) with a term ending 3/31/2016. VOTE: 4 Ayes (Chair Jacobs, Commissioner Price, Commissioner porosin, Commissioner McKee); Nays, 3 (Commissioner Rich, Commissioner Gordon, Commissioner Pelissier) A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Rich to appoint Kim Paracci to position# 9 ( At-Large) with and ending term of 3/31/2017. Motion failed — no vote taken with previous vote taking precedence. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Rich to appoint Lydia Wegman to position # 9 ( At-Large) with an ending term of 3/31/2017. VOTE: Ayes, 5 (Chair Jacobs, Commissioner Gordon, Commissioner Pelissier, Commissioner Rich, Commissioner McKee); Nays, 2 (Commissioner porosin, Commissioner Price) A motion was made by Commissioner porosin seconded by Commissioner Price to appoint Kim Paracci to position# 9 ( At-Large) with and ending term of 3/31/2017. Motion failed — no vote taken with previous vote taking precedence. 12. Board Comments Commissioner Pelissier said the Jail Alternatives Report probably will not be available to the board before the break. She said the report is still incomplete and needs more comment and discussion. She noted that this does not affect the planning for the new jail. Commissioner Price said she attended the Ladies of Excellence program at Stanford, which was spearheaded by the 4-H club. She wanted to highlight that there are some great young people in the County. Commissioner McKee said the gross income requirement for farm use valuation is proposed to be increased from $1,000 to $10,000. He said this is scheduled to be voted on tomorrow, and it is unlikely that there are enough votes to defeat it. He said this will have an impact on a lot of the smaller farmers in North Carolina, especially those who are trying to get started. Commissioner porosin — none Commissioner Rich thanked the staff for arranging for the groundbreaking for the Rogers Road Community Center. She said there was also a groundbreaking for the new Inter Faith Council (IFC) community home. She said it is nice to see them moving forward with some of these community homes. Commissioner Gordon said, in connection with the Durham Chapel Hill Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization (DCHC MPO), the state has now released the prioritization 3.0 scoring. She said these are the scores that will be the underpinning of the prioritization of the state transportation projects. Commissioner Gordon said the public hearing on the SUP for the Southern Human Services Center Campus with the Town of Chapel Hill was an interesting experience. She feels it was well received and she hopes the town will act favorably on June 23. Chair Jacobs said the Burlington Graham MPO is another planning organization that involves Orange County, and he just attended their meeting and received a sheet on the prioritization 3.0. He said there was a DOT luncheon meeting yesterday and Sheryl McQuery was there. He said there was discussion about how the I-40 project might be funded if it was done in phases or segments as opposed to one big $70 million project. He said there will be a report from staff to get the Board up to speed on all of the projects. He said there was a meeting last week with another waste disposal group called Greenwave. He said this was an entity that is trying to get started doing plasma torch destruction of solid waste. He said staff was going to pursue whether this idea was feasible and cost effective. He said this is just part of trying to get ideas on the table. Chair Jacobs said there was a meeting last night at Cedar Grove to discuss the bus plan expansion for central and northern Orange County. He said there are 4 of these meetings listed on the website. He said there were two dozen people there. He congratulated all of the people who won election in the democratic primary. He expressed gratitude for the support of staff and the public and said it is a privilege to serve the citizens of Orange County. 13. Information Items • May 8, 2014 BOCC Meeting Follow-up Actions List • Memo Regarding Orange County Web site Redesign 14. Closed Session - NONE 15. Adiournment A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner McKee to adjourn the meeting at 10:19 p.m. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Barry Jacobs, Chair Donna Baker Clerk to the Board