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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 04-10-2014 APPROVED 9/16/2014 MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS WORK SESSION April 10, 2014 7:00 p.m. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a Budget Work Session on Thursday, April 10, 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 and Renee Price COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: Penny Rich COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: Interim County Manager Michael Talbert, Assistant County Managers Clarence Grier and Cheryl Young and Deputy Clerk to the Board David Hunt (All other staff inembers will be identified appropriately below) Chair Jacobs called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m. 1. Board of County Commissioners External Advisory Board Appointees Chair Jacobs said this first item involves trying something different. He referenced a blue sheet that listed the external appointees. He said there has been discussion over the years about connecting with those individuals who represent the County, in order to tie in better with what these people are working on. He said several of these people are here tonight. Susanne Haff is an Orange County representative on the Chapel Hill Planning Board. She said she is ending her first three years in July, and she is interested in having each of the Board members find their very best person in the Joint Planning Area. She said she represents the northern part of where Chapel Hill and the County come together, and this is next to Carrboro and the landfill. She said the area she serves includes a portion of Rogers Road. She is hopeful that the Commissioners have someone they would like to appoint to this position. She is ready to take a break. She said the conversation with the Board of Commissioners has always perplexed her, and she questions their perspective of what she is doing. She does not want to send an email to the Board every week, but she thinks there are things that the County would want to know, such as development projects and school reports. She would like to find a way to communicate these things. She said it has been an honor to serve. Chair Jacobs asked if Susanne Haff has any suggestions on how best to communicate. Susanne Haff said it would be helpful if the Board made a list of the things going on in Chapel Hill that would be of interest to them. She asked specifically about the Board's interest in the property at the intersection of I-40, Eubanks Road, and Hwy 86, or the addition of exits off of I-40. She referenced the land between Old and New 86 and the need for another access point. She asked about the Board's position on development versus open space. She said it is hard to represent the Board without knowing their position on these things. She said a philosophy statement every few years would be good. Commissioner Price said she had also served on the Planning Board. She asked if Susanne Haff felt that her recommendations to the Planning Board have been heard. She said each of the Board members has a different point of view, and she would respect Susanne Haff's point of view equally. Susanne Haff said if she is representing the Board of Commissioners, she would not want to say the wrong thing, though she does not think the Board would know she said it. She thinks her voice has been heard and honored, but her advice has not necessarily been followed. She appreciates the honor of having been heard and of being able to work on difficult problems. Commissioner Gordon asked whether there is an orientation for boards and commissions in other jurisdictions. Staff answered no. Commissioner Gordon said there are parts of the comprehensive plan that relate to land use and transportation. She said this would be helpful to know. She said the Board of County Commissioners has a list of goals and objectives, some of which relate to land use. She thinks an orientation on general issues would be good, and there is some homework that could be done. Susanne Haff said she does a huge amount of homework on Chapel Hill. Commissioner Gordon asked if she was given an orientation by the Chapel Hill planning board. Susanne Haff said yes. Commissioner Gordon said perhaps it would help if the Board of Commissioners was more explicit regarding their expectations. She said she is interested in any item where Chapel Hill's land use will affect the schools. She is also interested in items of regional significance or anything that would spread beyond the borders of Chapel Hill. Susanne Haff said there is currently a big debate on rapid transit and the train from Duke to UNC. She said there would then be dense development along that train route. She knows that part of Orange County doesn't want buses. She has learned much about these issues from a friend who used to be in politics. She referenced issues of water availability and a working relationship between OWASA and the town of Hillsborough Commissioner Gordon said there is a rural buffer in between. Susanne Haff said she has heard the comments and discussions about this. Commissioner Pelissier said she thinks it would be good to have some sort of orientation with planning staff regarding planning and transportation issues. She thinks it might also be a good idea for new people to meet with one or two Commissioners. She thinks it is good to have contextual information on fundamental issues like water and sewer. Susanne Haff said she does think that there are ideas that go back and forth, and she is not sure what and when to send to the Board. Chair Jacobs said she should not be shy to share information. He said too much information is better than not enough. He said there has never been a connection, so a communication plan will need to be invented, and a relationship can be evolved. Commissioner McKee thanked Susanne Haff for taking the time to serve. He said each of the Commissioners might give different answers on specific issues. He said what is important is that the appointees are able to think of what is best for Orange County. He said the Commissioners may not always agree on how to get there, but they all generally agree on the direction. Susanne Haff said she knows several of the Commissioners represent northern Orange County, and she has tried to work on the concept that people in the County have a variety of income and abilities. She has advocated that there needs to be more responsibility for each other. She has also worked on advocating for cable and other services in northern Orange County. Chair Jacobs thanked her for her service, and he noted that all of the Commissioners represent the interests of northern Orange County. Deborah Fulghieri is a member of the Chapel Hill Planning Board. She said she was appointed to the board in 2011 after initially being told that she could not serve because she was not a town resident. She said many things pass through the planning board, and she has caught up slowly and gotten more involved in Chapel Hill issues as well as those of the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ). She lives in the southern part of the County, close to the Chatham County line. Deborah Fulghieri said one item of relevance is the interplay between Chapel Hill and the County at the level of taxation. She said people make improvements in property within the town limits, and those improvements are inspected by the town of Chapel Hill staff. She said the news of those improvements somehow has to get to the County assessor, and sometimes this happens, and sometimes it doesn't. She discussed an article about this issue and the fact that the town had opted not to purchase software that would allow better computer communication with the County. She said when final inspection is made on the improvements it may take three years for the news to reach Orange County so the property can be reassessed. She said she has found some cases where the news never reached the County. She feels that this is important since a great deal of the development in Chapel Hill is justified as a way to build the tax base, and it does no good if the tax assessor is not notified. Deborah Fulghieri said there is the light rail train that may come to Orange County and a half cent tax is remitted by every retail outlet or service provider for this project. She said the light rail project as it currently stands only has three stops in Orange County and four stops in Chapel Hill. She said at least two of the County stops are on UNC owned land that cannot be built on. She said Orange County gets quite a lot of sales tax, and she believes that the town hasn't lobbied for light rail to serve its commercial areas. She said that when this project has been presented to the Planning Board, it has been with the idea that there will be natural growth of retail, mixed use and residential near each stop. She said this is not possible for the stops planned within Orange County. She feels that it would be better for this light rail system to go down 15-501 and serve those residential and commercial districts. She said this is also shorter and avoids the wetland area of Jordan Lake. She said there is a huge new project coming up in the ETJ called Obey Creek, which will have hundreds of dwellings, retail space, and office space. She said this is being built on a piece of land that was set aside in 1992 to offset density in Southern Village, which is across from it. She said the County needs to know about this, since service demands will be made on them. She said she does not know what level, but it will involve water, sewer, and transit. She said this is being worked different than other projects in Chapel Hill, and some people think this is to shut out public input. Deborah Fulghieri said there are other small issues, but these are the large projects that the County needs to be made aware of. She said it is not too late for an orientation, and she likes the idea of having a point person for communication. Chair Jacobs suggested that these planning board appointees could be connected with Craig Benedict for an orientation. Commissioner Gordon said she would like to note that the Commissioners would be interested in the large projects in Chapel Hill. She said the Board has even asked to meet with the town about these. Chair Jacobs agreed. He suggested that the Board could give direction after the presenters are done speaking as far as the connection with appointees for communicating County interests. Thomas Fenske is a Mebane Planning Board appointee, and he said he represents the small sliver of ETJ in Mebane that is in Orange County. He said Mebane has a very comprehensive Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) and very attentive staff. He said he reads the minutes every month for the regular Orange County Planning Board, but he has very little business there. He said he has gotten involved in the public hearings about the Buckhorn jockey lot. He said the Mebane Planning Board deals primarily with Alamance County issues, and Orange County issues are only 5 percent or less of the agenda. He said he is an active member on the board, and it is quite a contrast to the issues of the previous speakers. He said he has enjoyed his time on the Mebane Planning Board and he has learned a lot. Commissioner McKee said Thomas Fenske would be welcomed at an Orange County Planning Board meeting. Thomas Fenske said he would be happy to do this. He said he always asks if there are any Orange County issues, but most of the issues involve Mebane specific planning, and the UDO is very comprehensive. Chair Jacobs said one idea is to have the planning board representatives attend the annual joint meetings with the municipalities. He said this would help get them acquainted with the issues that the County is interested in. Commissioner Price asked Deboroah Fulghieri if she feels her voice is being heard on the Chapel Hill Planning Board. Deboroah Fulghieri said if she says something it goes in the minutes. Commissioner Price asked if her point of view seems to be heard, and if she feels as if her work was a good use of time. Deboroah Fulghieri said a lot of development issues can be fraught, and people can jump down your throat if you disagree. She said she has realized that the Planning Board is a sort of lightening conductor meant to take some of the fire rather than have it all directed at the Town Council. Chair Jacobs said this does happen. He said he was on the Orange County Planning Board during the discussion of mobile home park standards, and the Planning Board took fire for this. Deboroah Fulghieri said she feels as much a part of the board as anyone. Chair Jacobs noted that there are nine external boards with County representatives. He said what he has heard from the two here is that there is a need to for some type of orientation with Orange County Planning. He said these appointees need to be invited when there is a joint meeting of the government with which they are affiliated. He said there also needs to be a protocol for communicating, but in the absence of this protocol, the Board is interested in whatever the appointees feel like sharing. He said the larger projects are more likely to be of interest. Susanne Haff asked the Board if they felt informed by their outside appointees to external boards. Chair Jacobs said with some of them yes. He said there will be a work session about this in the future, but he does not know the details. Commissioner Gordon asked the attendees to let the Board know about any big projects that have regional impacts, or any projects that affect County services or capital. Commissioner Price made reference to the list of concerns expressed in the hand out at their places from Amy Jeroloman from the Northern Transition Advisory board. Chair Jacobs said the Board should read them, and she can be contacted to discuss the conversation from this meeting. He said he would also try and put her in touch with Craig Benedict. Commissioner Price suggested both of the Carrboro groups could be invited the joint meeting with Carrboro government. Chair Jacobs said the lack of specific connection has been a gap in the advisory board structure. He appreciates the appointees who came tonight, and he thanked them for their service. 2. To continue review and discussion of the Manaqer's Recommended FY 2014-19 Capital Investment Plan (CIP) Chair Jacobs noted that Commissioner Rich has a work conflict tonight and would be unable to attend. The FY 2014-19 CIP includes County Projects, School Projects, Proprietary Projects, and Special Revenue Projects. The Proprietary Projects include Water and Sewer, Solid Waste Enterprise Fund, and Sportsplex projects. The Special Revenue Projects include Economic Development and School related projects funded from the Article 46 (1/4 cent) Sales Tax proceeds. The Article 46 Sales Tax was approved by the voters in the November 2011 election, and became effective April 1, 2012. Attachment B reflects a comparison by Function of the Manager's Recommended FY 2014-19 CIP with the FY 2013-18 and FY 2012-17 Capital Investment Plans. The CIP has been prepared anticipating continued slow economic growth of between 1-2% annually over the next five years. Many of the projects in the CIP will rely on debt financing to fund the projects. Michael Talbert noted that there is a chart at the Commissioner's places regarding the decline in lottery and ADM funds. He said this is relevant given the school needs in front of them. He said this shows how the funding from the state in regards to available capital funds has gone down over the past 7 years. He said the ADM funds have gone away completely, and the lottery proceeds have been substantially reduced to $1.3 million, but the County's capital needs have not gone down. Schools: Paul Laughton said this is a continued review and discussion of the CIP. He said schools are being discussed first because of the reduction in lottery and ADM funds, and both school systems have representatives here tonight. He said this is in the last tab of the CIP binder, and he reviewed the summary chart on page 91. He said pay as you go funds remain the same as 2013-14, and the lottery proceeds are the estimated numbers provided by the state. He said pay as you go funds are estimated to increase 1.5 percent per year, and lottery funds will stay flat. He said there are no new debt projects until 2017-18. Paul Laughton said School Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (SAPFO) capacity numbers are used in determining new schools construction and additions. He said there is some funding starting for middle school 5 in year 4, but no schools are scheduled to open until years 6-10. He said middle school 5 is actually moved back 3 years from the current CIP to open in 2021, and this is due to the addition of the Culbreth science wing. He said elementary 12 moves up one year to 2012, and the Carrboro High School additions move back 3 years to open in 2023-24. Paul Laughton said for Orange County Schools (OCS), Cedar Ridge High School classroom additions move to 2022-23. He said OCS has expressed concern about growth in the Mebane area, as Mebane is not a partner in the SAPFO numbers. He said this was left as a discussion point for the past years, but this year the SAPFO numbers have been considered, and that moves this to 2023. He said Elementary number 8 for OCS will open in 23-24. Commissioner McKee asked how the move back of Cedar Ridge is valid if Mebane is not providing SAPFO numbers. Paul Laughton said this has been on the table for discussion for 2 or 3 years, but this movement is based on the SAPFO numbers. Craig Benedict said even though Mebane is not part of the formal SAPFO, when children do show up from the Mebane communities, they are counted. He said projections are historical and actual, so if there is an uptick in enrollment from development on the Orange County side of Mebane, those projections will be modified. He said there is a "ghost" count of the development to see if children are showing up as a result of this growth. He said these projections are very sensitive, and they are closely monitored. Commissioner McKee said his question was based on the amount of the jump. Commissioner Price said she is still not clear on the monitoring of Mebane. She asked where this shows up in the CIP and whether it is possible to include a footnote. Craig Benedict said projections are based on the children who show up at the schools; so Mebane is being counted from that standpoint. He said projections are taken based off of what has happening over the last 5 or 10 years, so Mebane's growth is counted. Commissioner Price said parents and teachers were saying that classes at Cedar Ridge were being held in hallways. She questioned if this indicates the need for classroom additions sooner rather than later. Commissioner Gordon said people talk about how certain schools are overcrowded. She said the trigger for building more capacity comes when the level goes up for all of the schools in that category. She said Chapel Hill has a lot of Elementary schools and some are overcrowded while others are not. She said it is the responsibility of the school system to redistrict. She said the same is true for OCS, and in this case Orange High School is not being used to capacity, while Cedar Ridge is at capacity. She said when the capacity of both high schools reaches 110 percent, SAPFO kicks in. She said the rationale is to have the space ready by the time you reach 110 percent. Commissioner Price suggested that the Board bring this to the attention of the schools, and hope it will be corrected. Chair Jacobs said yes. He noted that it is challenging to redistrict. Commissioner Price asked about the schools in Orange County where the students are in trailers, and she questioned the safety of this. Chair Jacobs said it is part of the school comprehensive plan. Commissioner porosin referred to page 91. He questioned, given what staff said about the timetable for new schools, what the money listed as new school allotments for years 1 through 5 would be used for. Paul Laughton said that is strictly pay as you go funds and lottery proceeds. Commissioner porosin asked if the Board has any control over how this is spent. Paul Laughton said this is part of the request in the CIP document. He said the schools have shown how they would like to spend this on repairs and replacements. He said there are budget amendments every year regarding the lottery funds. He said staff receives quarterly notification of the money available in the system, and then the schools can request the money. He said this is then brought to the Board as a budget amendment each time. Commissioner porosin clarified that the only thing that would show up on their itemized list would be new school construction items, and the rest shows up in the CIPs submitted by the schools. Paul Laughton said yes. Chair Jacobs said when schools have a leak in the roof, the decision of when to fix it is up to them. Paul Laughton said yes. Chair Jacobs said he had heard that there was a discussion at the Chapel Hill Town Council meeting that there was a school system wanting to revisit the formula for SAPFO. Craig Benedict said this was regarding the numbers for student generation rates, primarily for multi-family. He said staff is contacting a consultant to look at this. He said these student generation rates were a pre-cursor to impact fees. He said staff is getting close to a contract update with the consultant for these student generation rates. Paul Laughton said information has been received from both schools systems about improvements needed for older schools. He said the CIP does not include any of that. He said this amount is in excess of$330 million. Chair Jacobs said the Board is thinking about bonds to pay for this. Commissioner porosin said the Board should be conscious about not letting the discussions of renovations, repairs, and facility assessments be separated from conversations about capacity and building new schools. He said there is an opportunity for synergy here. He said Carrboro Elementary is an example of this, when you consider the potential cost of everything to repair it versus doubling its capacity so that it becomes Elementary #12. Chair Jacobs said that is part of the study, which is looking at safety, technology, and capacity. He said there is a push and pull on capacity as it related to how big school systems want their schools to be. He said there are different school capacities for different levels of schools. He said this may need to be part of the conversation, but the decision on what is too big is very subjective. He said Carrboro High is built with a core that can serve more wings, so that it could have higher capacity; but the addition has not been built yet. He said everyone would prefer to have capacity in the existing schools before this happens, but all of this is being considered in a holistic way in the study. He said there are some schools that are very old and need to be brought up to speed with the newer schools. He noted that the Board will receive this presentation at the end of the month. Commissioner porosin said that he is concerned with the order of priority, and he feels that older schools should be equal. Chair Jacobs said safety comes first. Commissioner Price said Cameron Park is an old school that had to be gutted and needs a total re-vamp. She asked when this shows up and where it shows up. Michael Talbert said these details will be shown at the presentation on April 29th. He said the School Board will be reviewing their plan and setting priorities prior to that presentation. He said the Board will receive a plan for all of the schools, not just one. Commissioner Price asked if the funding for a significant re-vamp like this would show up in the CIP. Paul Laughton said it would likely have to be financed, as it is beyond the scope of lottery funds and pay as you go funds. He said the Board would have to make a decision on this. Michael Talbert said none of those projects are in this CIP, as those are still outside of scope. Chair Jacobs said part of the discussion is a consideration of whether schools are beyond their life span. He said the schools will be coming forward with a series of proposals, and the Board will have to decide on whether to support those items being funded. Commissioner Gordon said this is entering a new era when the Board actually considers funding substantial renovations of older schools. She is glad to see this time has finally come. She said some of this is due to the rapidly growing school districts and the fact that there was an emphasis on building new schools, while older schools were just making do with pay as you go funds. She said the Board is fortunate to work well with both School Boards. She said no judgment can be made prior to the presentation, other than the decision that something must be done about this at some point. Paul Laughton referred to Attachment B, which is a budget comparison by function that looks at percentages in the large function areas. He said this fluctuates year to year and can fluctuate drastically. He said the capital funding policy has a target of 60 percent of projects for schools and 40 percent for County projects over a 10 year period. He said schools are currently 59.6 percent and County projects are at 40.4 percent. County Capital Proiects: Paul Laughton directed the Board to the first tab, beginning on page 16 of the CIP binder. He said there are several department heads here to answer questions. He also referred to page 5 of the abstract, which lists the following five new projects in years 1 through 5 of the CIP: Cedar Grove Community Center Library Kiosk— includes $180,000 in Year 2 (FY 2015-16) to provide patrons an automated material kiosk at the Cedar Grove Community Center providing 24 hour electronic access for checking in and out materials. Parking Lot Improvements— includes repair, resurfacing, and/or replacement of asphalt and concrete parking areas, including necessary curb and gutter systems at the following locations: $120,000 in Year 2 (FY 2016-15) at 501/503 W. Franklin Street; $510,000 in Year 4 (FY 2017-18) at Link Government Services Center/Annex and the District Attorney building; and 3 additional properties ($2,750,000 in Years 6-10). Life Safety—ADA — provides $25,000 in Year 1 (FY 2014-15) for the installation of automated access doors at West Campus and the Seymour Senior Center; $25,000 in Year 2 (FY 2015-16) for fire alarm system improvements/replacement at the Historic Courthouse; $60,000 in Year 5 (FY 2018-19) for elevator improvements at the Historic Courthouse; and additional fire alarm system design and installation at 4 locations ($65,000 in Years 6-10) Rogers Road Historic Rogers Road Neighborhood Community Center— During FY 2012-13, the Board of Commissioners approved the establishment of a capital project for the construction of a Historic Rogers Road Neighborhood Community Center with funds of$650,000. For Year 2 (FY 2015-16), $3,025,000 is recommended, which represents the County's 43% share of the Sewer Concept Plan costs to serve 86 parcels. Year two added 3 million Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR) Park and Recreation Facility Renovations and Repairs— provides funding each of Years 1-5 for the scheduling of planned renovations and repairs to facilities; a total of $900,000 is included over these five years. Paul Laughton noted that Rogers Road is obviously not a new project, but the specific addition of the $3,025,000 in year 2 is new, and this represents the County's share of the sewer concept plan. He said the same is true for DEAPR, which includes a new planned project to get renovations on schedule. He said there are also two projects in the outlier years, as outlined in the abstract, and these are the Main Branch Library Remodel for $1,200,000 and the Court Street Annex, which includes $100,000 in Years 6-10 for the replacement of the main distribution panel and electrical circuits throughout the building to meet modern standards. Chair Jacobs pointed out that the library kiosk illustration is at the Commissioners' places. Commissioner Price asked about Life Safety/ADA project. She asked if the designation of a fire alarm system means that this is when it is due to be fixed or if it is in need now. Paul Laughton said the replacement would happen during that year, and this is just the program based on need and life expectancy. Chair Jacobs suggested walking through the CIP and allowing the Commissioners to ask questions about specific projects. Paul Laughton said he can go through the major projects or entertain specific questions. Michael Talbert said there is an attachment of current year projects and these are the most important. Chair Jacobs suggested starting with current year projects. County Capital Proiects 2014-15 Paul Laughton said this is included in attachment A of the abstract. He said the Year 1 CIP is the only funding that is being approved by the Board. He said the other years are only a concept plan or guide. Paul Laughton referred to attachment 1 on County Capital Projects for 2014-15, which totals $5.3 million. He reviewed the following projects: Cedar Grove Community Center— includes $2,000,000 in Year 1 (FY 2014-15) for construction and adaptive reuse of the former Northern Human Services Center. Final Board decisions regarding use or disposition of the classroom wings will determine the finalized design and cost estimates for the project. Southern Orange Campus (Future Planning) — Design services of$400,000 are included in Year 1 (FY 2014-15), with site development infrastructure work of$3,600,000 in Year 2 (FY 2015-16) for campus buildings not associated with the existing Southern Human Services Center (SHSC). Expansion of the existing SHSC is included in a separate CIP project. Paul Laughton said the Southern Orange Future Planning is outlined on page 22 in the CIP document. Chair Jacobs said there has been some discussion about the Seymour Center and the parking area being at capacity. He asked if there is any proposed plan in relation to this. Michael Talbert said the Seymour Center is at capacity, and there are people parking on the grass and in the street. He said there is very little that can be done to improve that site until the SUP has been approved by the Town of Chapel Hill. Jeff Thompson said Chapel Hill is planning on reviewing the SUP modification plan in June, subject to approval by the advisory boards and Planning Board in May. He said if this goes according to schedule, staff will go into utilization planning for the site. He said this is part of that $400,000 Chair Jacobs asked how staff would propose funding a potential expansion of the Seymour Center. Michael Talbert said the logical place to expand the Seymour Center is toward the road. He said it will be hard to design this until it goes through this next process. He said part of the infrastructure in year 2 is to redesign the roadway. Chair Jacobs said presumably staff is going to make a cost estimate of what will be needed for whatever expansion is recommended. He asked if staff is working on this estimate yet. Michael Talbert said staff is not that far along with this yet. He said this has been defined as a need, and hopefully the project needs can be prioritized next year. Commissioner McKee asked for a 30-second overview of the current planning process. Jeff Thompson said staff submitted the special use permit modification that will bring the three existing special use permits on the parcel together into one. He said the intent is to achieve a 25 year vested right on an overall site plan that includes approximately 400,000 square feet of buildable area. He said this includes the ability to expand the existing facilities on the site. Commissioner McKee asked where things are in the process. Jeff Thompson said the Chapel Hill planning staff has done their full reviews and referred the matter to their advisory boards. He said this will graduate into a planning board review and then a decision in June of this year by the town council. Commissioner Gordon noted that the proposed infrastructure is already known, though it is not known whether it will be approved. She suggested that preliminarily it makes sense to think about what is wanted. Chair Jacobs said he is thinking that when a bond committee is created and the different interests are presented, including senior centers, it makes sense to already have some idea of a number. He said the bond will likely be two years from now, and he would like to get moving within the available framework to make a decision. Michael Talbert said that is a logical way to look at it. He said if a bond referendum is done in 2 years, there would be a 7 year window to spend the fund. He said this could be a 2- 4 year project. He said prior to getting to the bond, staff can identify the size, scope and complexity of this project, with an estimated dollar amount. He said they are just not there yet. Commissioner Gordon agreed that it is important to have some ideas of what is going to be done, prior to coming to the bond discussions. HVAC Projects— Geothermal Paul Laughton said these projects total $205,500 and include three areas — Hillsborough Commons, Skills Development and the larger project at the Whitted Building. He said the chiller replacement at the Whitted Building is a need that must be addressed in 2014- 15. He said the total for this replacement is $250,000 but he believes $100,000 of this can be drawn from contingency funds for the Whitted project. Roofing Projects Paul Laughton said these total $179,000 and the schedule on page 28 of the CIP has been updated to show the current needs. Information Technology(IT) Paul Laughton said the CIP lists $500,000 for the entire years and out years. He said $50,000 is set aside every year for Board initiatives, which leaves $450,000 for infrastructure, including replacement of laptops, desktops and other things that need to be replaced. He said this number is a little less than previous years when there were special projects. Michael Talbert said last year, this line was $750,000, and there have been significant updates to infrastructure. He asked Jim Northup to present an update on this. Jim Northup said this past year IT had improved its disk storage system. He said the rapid growth of County data has necessitated the purchase of servers every year. He said staff is now looking at a two-fold method of PC replacements, including physical replacements and virtual desktops. He said the Board will probably be seeing a contract for the virtual desktops in the coming weeks. He said this will mean saving the machines and repurposing them. He said this is not a cost savings, but is about a one for one. He said the oldest computers are about 6 and a half years old, and this process will make the oldest computers 4 and a half years old. He said the staggering of this process, replacing about 20% of computers each year, has been very beneficial. Chair Jacobs said the County had a more aggressive PC replacement schedule in the past and could not afford to keep doing it. He said it is good to see this is coming back. Jim Northup said he was surprised to see the County edging up in age, but he said the timing was around the time of a major upgrade to almost half of the fleet. He said there are currently about 1300 computers, including laptops, and it is easier to manage doing a few of them every year. Michael Talbert said disk space becomes more and more important as the County continues to move away from paper storage. Register of Deeds Paul Laughton said this is a preservation fund from a mandate that 10 percent of register of deeds fees go into a separate project. He said this is $80,000 in 2014-15. Life Safety—ADA He said $25,000 is designated for the access doors at West Campus and the Seymour Center. Viper Radio system/Communication Systems Improvement Paul Laughton said both of these items are related to Emergency Services communications. He said the Viper Radio includes $1 million in costs for communication towers, and this has been spread out over a 2 year period, with $500,000 in 2013-14 and $500,000 in 2014-15. He said the $122,000 in Communication Systems Improvements is to continue scheduled replacement of the 800 MHz radios. He noted that there is a $920,000 amount in year 4 for the replacement of the sheriffs' radios. Commissioner Gordon said there had been discussion at one point about changing the way the agendas are accessed on the website to allow people to access one item without downloading everything. She said she is not sure if this involves buying a new software system or if it would go in the CIP, but she does not see anything in the budget. Michael Talbert said this item was not included in the CIP, because it did not receive any votes after the discussion at the retreat. He said if this needs to be re-visited and moved up, this can be done, but it will require some software and potentially some hardware. Clarence Grier said $50,000 was earmarked the past two years in the IT budget for Board initiatives. He said this is could be paid for out of that $100,000. Commissioner Gordon said she wants to flag this item so it is not forgotten. Michael Talbert said it can be done, and he will find out what it would cost and bring that back to the Board. Blackwood Farm Park Paul Laughton said the last six items are related to parks. He referred to page 45 of the CIP and reviewed the following information from the agenda package, as discussed at the March 11 th work session: Blackwood Farm Park— includes $147,400 in Year 1 (FY 2014-15) for amenities such as trail construction, parking, restrooms, dock, signage, disc golf, and security cameras. Park construction is included in Year 4 (FY 2017-18), with $5.6 million for the construction of an Agricultural, Environment, and Parks Center, including a permanent parks operations base, included in Years 6-10, pending final decisions from the Board regarding the Space Needs Analysis Study. (NOTE: As per direction from the BOCC at their March 11, 2014 work session related to the Space Needs Study, staff will remove funding for a new Agricultural, Environment, and Parks Center at Blackwood Farm Park, currently in Years 6-10 of the Recommended CIP, and will continue the use of the Environment and Agricultural Center(EAC) on Revere Road, either in its current state, an adaptive re-use of the facility, or deconstruction/new facility construction. Staff will provide additional information, including cost estimates, related to these potential options at the April 10th meeting. Funding of$1,432,508 for replacement of the roof, HVAC equipment, and parking lot improvements to the EAC is currently included in FY 2017-18). Revised CIP project pages for these two projects, as well as any other project changes directed by the BOCC at this meeting, will be provided in preparation for the May 15, 2014 CIP work session. Conservation Easements Paul Laughton said there is a total of$250,000 for easements, which is consistent with past years. He said staff also tries to leverage grant funding for this to cover half of this amount, with the County covering the other $125,000. Eurosport Soccer Center(Phase ll) He said $141,000 is allocated for Eurosport in year one; this is for renovation projects including: restrooms, scoreboards, bleachers, and an irrigation system pump. He said this also includes the purchase of some equipment. Lands Legacy Paul Laughton said $400,000 is allocated for Lands Legacy. He said the CIP splits the $2.4 million that lapsed in 2010 with the original bond authorization. He said there would be additional financing that would be needed. He said the total has been split into $400,000 in year one and $2 million in year two. He said split is mainly due to the availability of funds. He said there was $1.5 million available in carryover funds. New Hope Preserve/Hollow Rock Public Access Paul Laughton said $125,000 is budgeted for phase 2 of the 3 phase project. He said phase 3 will occur in 2015-16, and there will be some offsetting grant money affiliated with that. Chair Jacobs asked if Chapel Hill was still a financial participant in this. Paul Laughton said it is just Durham and Orange County now. Dave Stancil said Chapel Hill owns a 2 acre portion of this and participated in property acquisition, but they have not indicated an interest in being part of the construction of facilities. He said staff is proceeding as if it is just the two counties. Chair Jacobs asked how Chapel Hill spent the money outside of their jurisdiction. Dave Stancil said there is legislation that allows them to do this. He thinks this is for parks and open spaces. Commissioner Pelissier asked if there is a pending interlocal agreement with Durham for the sharing of cost. Dave Stancil said yes. He said there are actually two interlocal agreements that will need to come to the Board before the summer break. He said one of these is the renewal of Little River, and the other is the agreement with Durham County regarding Hollow Rock. He said most of this is ironed out, and it will be modeled on the Little River agreement. He said the target for this will be the second meeting in May. Facility Renovations and Repairs Paul Laughton said this is a new project, and is budgeted at $256,500 for year one. He said this includes several needed repairs and renovations as well as some equipment and furnishings. He said this is one area that could potentially be reduced, and it will come back if it changes. Paul Laughton asked if there any other specific County projects the Board would like to discuss. Chair Jacobs asked about the automatic doors mentioned earlier. Paul Laughton said these automated access doors are included in the Life safety/ADA allocation of$25,000 for year one. Chair Jacobs asked about the HVAC for the Whitted Building. He noted that the neighborhood hated the noise of the current system, and he feels it would be a good idea to let the neighbors know that this system is being replaced. Michael Talbert asked Wayne Fenton if the new system would provide a substantial improvement in the noise level. Wayne Fenton said the unit being looked at is a different design, and the compressor uses a different technology that will improve the sound levels. Chair Jacobs asked if it is possible to give preference to a system with less noise. Wayne Fenton said the unit already being looked at would definitely reduce the levels. He said the current system was designed more for industrial use, and the new system is more of a commercial unit. He said staff can get back to the Board with the details on the frequency levels and the reduction that will be realized. Commissioner Price asked about Fairview Park. Dave Stancil said there are needed replacements and a proposed parking lot, and this is included in year two of the CIP. Commissioner Price asked if it is possible to get a report to show the community the proposed plan. She feels some accountability regarding this project. Dave Stancil said it shows up in the master plan, so it is possible to blow up that segment and post a laminated map. Dave Stancil said the improvements for the most part will complete the master plan. Commissioner McKee asked if the parking lot could be a separate project. Dave Stancil said it could be. Commissioner McKee said there is a considerable amount of concern about the amount of people parking in the community due to the lack of parking. He has been asked repeatedly if people can park on the landfill. He said it might alleviate concern in the community if the parking could be listed as a separate item. Paul Laughton reviewed the changes to the following items: Southern Branch Library—funding of$600,000 was approved in FY 2013-14 for possible land purchase; Design and engineering work of$525,000 is included in Year 2 (FY 2015-16), and construction costs of$7,000,000 and $755,000 in equipment and furnishings are included in Year 3 (FY 2016-17). Note: this project moves up one year from the current CIP. Proposed Jail- total project costs of$30,000,000, with site related planning costs of $500,000 recommended in Year 2 (FY 2015-16), architectural/engineering costs of$500,000 in Year 3 (FY 2016-17), with the construction of a new 250 bed jail recommended in Year 4 (FY 2017-18) at an estimated cost of$29,000,000. Emergency Services Substations - funding for this project will enable the construction of 4 new co-built EMS stations and 2 stand-alone substations in geographical areas across the County that will help reduce response times, which averaged 9:45 at the end of 2013. Year 2 (FY 2015-16) includes $1.2 million for 2 co-builds, one with the Town of Chapel Hill in the Glen Lennox area, and one with the Town of Hillsborough in the Waterstone development area. Year 3 (FY 2016-17) includes $1.2 million for 2 additional co-builds, one with the Town of Chapel Hill in the Weaver Dairy/MLK area or Franklin Street/Elliott Road area, and one with the Town of Hillsborough in a northern location yet to be identified. Also, includes $1.5 million in Year 5 (FY 2018-19) and in Years 6-10 for stand-alone substations. Paul Laughton said this is a change in the approach, to eventually include 4 co-builds and 2 stand-alones, for an increase to 6 substations. He said this is on page 6 of the abstract. Commissioner McKee said he was familiar with the discussions ongoing with Chapel Hill and Hillsborough regarding proposed stations, but he would like to know how far along and how firm the plans are for the proposed station in northern Hillsborough. Jim Groves said there is a lot of interest in Station One in downtown Churton Street, and there are agreements to build the new Waterston station. He feels much more certain about Waterstone than Northside, but something will eventually have to be done about Station One due to traffic and growth issues. Commissioner McKee said he understands the rationale for the station at Waterstone, but he has not heard any comments about the Northern site and he questions the validity of this. Jim Groves said this came from discussions with the Chief about potential build options. He said the intent is there to do this, and the goal is to be able to do it if the opportunity arises. Commissioner McKee asked for an update on the successes that have been seen with co-location and where the proposed co-locations are. Jim Groves said there are currently co-locations with the town of Carrboro, Orange Rural Fire Department at Phelps Road, and the Orange Grove Fire Company. He said there is also an agreement to move into the New Hope station, though there is a little work to be done to make this livable. He said there are conversations with Eno and Efland, who are both amenable to co-locate if it makes sense operationally. Commissioner McKee said the community feedback he is hearing is overwhelmingly positive. He said the residents in Orange Grove were thrilled. He asked for information on how it is working from a departmental standpoint. Jim Groves said it had been an overwhelming success to co-locate with the fire departments. He said this helps with the geographical disbursements throughout the County, and the development of relationships. He said it also allows for joint training of fire and emergency services. Commissioner McKee asked if there are any numbers on run time reductions. Jim Groves said yes, but he does not have those numbers in front of him. He said the run times have gone up over the past three months due to the weather. He said there is data to show why this happened, and there is still a constant reduction in response times. Commissioner McKee said he does not see any problem leaving in the placeholder, but he hopes it will not be used. Paul Laughton referred to the earlier discussion of the Blackwood Farm Project as it relates to the discussion of Revere Road at the March 11, 2014 work session. He said staff took away the direction not to pursue funding for a new Agricultural, Environment, and Parks Center at Blackwood Farm Park. He said staff instead will look at using Revere Road in its current state, with plans for HVAC replacement, new roofing, and parking improvements. He said staff has also looked at adaptive re-use or deconstruction/new construction of the Revere Road building. He said Blackwood Farm Park would keep its intended park operations base. He said staff would prepare updated CIP pages for the Board for the May 15 work session. He said this applies to any changes the Board would like to see. Jeff Thompson referred to the Revere Road building and said there have been meetings with asset management services staff to go through a deliberate space planning exercise to bring this to an adaptive re-use or a re-construction scenario. He said the purpose of the space planning meetings was to make sure the spaces were covered and there was efficiency of the spaces. He said the output was about a 17,000 square foot adaptive re-use or new construction. He said 15,000 feet would be conditioned space, and 2,000 feet would be an outside multi-purpose covered porch space that could be used for classes and various outdoor activities. He said there is adequate use on the site to do this as an adaptive re-use or a de-construction/rebuild. He said the cost is in the range of$225 - $235 per square foot for either option. He said the reason for the comparison is because there are different challenges on either side. He said the cost increase and labor are more intensive on an adaptive re-use, and there are more contingencies, so the pricing on either option is comparison. He said the pricing for this is about $3.9 million. Jeff Thompson said staff also studied a 2500 square foot internal space for a parks operation base at Blackwood Farm, as opposed to the full agricultural base. He said there was an additional 2000 square feet of porch space. He said this is about $210 per square foot, which would equal $935,000. He said the repair cost of the agricultural center at Revere Road, which is $1.43 million, would be absorbed into the adaptive re-use or the new construction. He said this, added to the $5.6 million for the full agricultural center in the current CIP, would total $7.32 million Jeff Thompson said the total for the adaptive re-use or new construction at Revere Road and the parks operations base would be $4.9 million. He said this is a savings of$2.6 million. He said the details of how this lays out can be brought to the May 15th work session. He said the stake holders at the agricultural center were pleased with the outcome. Dave Stancil said staff did involve the farm services agency director and the cooperative extension director in the meetings. He said he also met with the chair and vice chair of the soil and water board, and they were very positive about the idea of a new or retrofitted facility. He thinks there was greater interest in a new facility. He said staff sees this as a great opportunity and a good net reduction. Chair Jacobs asked if this would include removal of the stored documents. Jeff Thompson said the document storage would have to be relocated, and staff is looking at other options. Michael Talbert said the rebuild would require staff to move out for a year to 18 months. Jeff Thompson said staff feels like there is enough of a site there that if there was a new build, the deconstruction would not have to happen right away. He said adaptive re-use would require relocation. Chair Jacobs asked if staff envisions doing this adjacent to the current facility. Jeff Thompson said it would be either perpendicular to or parallel to a north south axis. He said the challenge is making sure there is adequate parking and circulation access. Commissioner Gordon said there is a little building that used to be used by animal services and is now being used by emergency services. She asked if this would stay. Jeff Thompson said it could stay or be removed from the site. Commissioner Gordon asked about the location of the carwash. Jeff Thompson said this is on the eastern border of the site. He said it is currently used for storage, but it is unorganized and this is being worked on. He said there is adequate ceiling height for significant storage. Commissioner Gordon said the storage items might be able to be moved to this building. She suggested that if the cost is the same, the grocery store can give way to a new building. Commissioner McKee said he is not sure they are saving anything. He finds it interesting that this is being presented as a savings over a very tenuous proposal at Blackwood Farm, instead of a doubling of the cost of repair. He said he has only heard one comment associated with the repair and upgrade. Michael Talbert asked Jeff Thompson to speak about the format of a $1.4 million renovation and what this would buy them. Jeff Thompson said the roof would be a 20-25 year buy; the HVAC would be a 12 to 15 year buy; the park would be a 12-15 year buy; and the minor fa�ade changes could be kept up with the maintenance budget. He said there is certainly an alternative to maintain what we have. Chair Jacobs asked that staff bring back multiple alternatives. Commissioner Gordon suggested that staff should bring back the details of the basis for their estimates. Chair Jacobs referred to the Southern Branch Library, as listed on page 24 of the CIP. He said this is listed at $8.25 million, and he does not think this is a realistic number. He said maybe this is because of past discussions of a 20,000 square foot library, but if a 20,000 square foot library is not being built, it should not be funded as such. He said if this issue needs to be voted on, it should be added to an agenda for vote. Commissioner porosin asked Chair Jacobs if he was saying the number is unrealistically high. Chair Jacobs replied yes. He does not think the Board ever envisioned a 20,000 square foot library with associated parking, but that was what kept being proposed, although it was not the Commissioner's recommendation. He said the same was true of the idea of demolishing the building at Cedar Grove. Michael Talbert said this is the best number staff has at this point. He said the Board has not re-visited this issue since it was introduced three years ago. He said staff may be in a position to improve on this in June if the potential Carrboro location works out. He said staff can then come back and adjust these numbers. He said it would be premature to adjust this now. Chair Jacobs said there should be a vote this fiscal year so that more direction can be given. He said this is operating on an assumption that the Board has never embraced or voted on. Commissioner Pelissier said she was operating under the assumption that the goal was to have a 10,000 square foot library with the potential to expand to 20,000 square feet as population grows. She would like to have some idea of when the additional square footage might be needed. She said it sounds like the current proposed site would not even allow this expansion. Chair Jacobs said the point is whether $7 million is really needed in year three Michael Talbert agreed, but said this is a fair number until other sites are ruled out. Chair Jacobs said this will then affect all of the other fiscal projections. Commissioner Gordon asked when the Board will know this information. Jeff Thompson said the Board will have a work session on June 13th to hear the results of the public process and the physical due diligence. He said there will also be a closed session regarding the state of the negotiations for the transaction structure. Commissioner Gordon said she does not believe there is 20,000 square feet available at that site, but it is more than 10,000. Jeff Thompson said the 20,000 is the upside, but the understanding with the developer is 18,000. Commissioner McKee said his concern on all of these potential building projects is that we are as efficient and effective as possible. He asked about the $400 per square foot price and why this cost was so high. Jeff Thompson said this figure is a project budget, and it includes not only the building but the cost of outfitting the building, including books, as well as a parking deck to accompany the building. Chair Jacobs referred to page 32 about the proposed jail, and asked about the fact that it states that a consultant has been retained. Jeff Thompson said Steve Allen is the consultant who is working on the jail alternatives and the capacity study. He said these are being done separately, but they are complimentary to each other. He said there should be something to report in the next few weeks. Chair Jacobs asked about the professional services budget of$250,000 and whether it would be expended in the next three months or carried forward. Jeff Thompson said this will carry forward. Commissioner McKee asked if this will be brought back to the Board for consideration with all of the concept options. Jeff Thompson said yes. Commissioner McKee said the build out scenario could radically change the amount. He said he is comfortable leaving the amount as placeholder, though he is not sure it will be necessary. Commissioner Gordon thinks it is a good idea to come back with what is realistic regarding building this in stages. She said it can cost more depending on how it is planned. She would like to see what the reasonable break points would be. She asked if staff thinks this can be figured this out this fiscal year. Jeff Thompson said yes, that is the plan. He said he believes this will be done in the next several weeks. Commissioner Price asked what the debt service number is based on. Clarence Grier said this would be based on the County issuing a debt of$250,000 this year for the professional services. Jeff Thompson said the County has spent about $30,000 this year. Michael Talbert said this is part of a long range plan and is laying the groundwork for what comes next. He said it is important to get this in the plan as soon as possible. Chair Jacobs urged staff to investigate the Efland Community Center and whether it is sufficient. He said there were concerns being raised about this issue ten years ago. He would like to get more information about the community perceived needs and how easy it would be to expand on the existing building. Dave Stancil said staff has had community meetings in the last few months and the availability of the facility has been ratcheted up. He said activities at the center have increased in the last six months. Commissioner porosin said $200,000 is listed in the article 46 section on page 12 for the small business loan pool. He asked when the Board would receive a report on this. Michael Talbert said this would be available at the next meeting. Commissioner porosin said if this loan pool is not being used effectively, he would potentially support moving that money to something else. Commissioner McKee said there is currently an application before the Small Business Loan committee that is being reviewed and this pool is being used. Commissioner porosin said historically the County has used its small business loan fund too conservatively, and he hopes this is being perfected. Commissioner Price said she had highlighted this issue as well. She asked if this will be a report or a presentation. Michael Talbert said this will be a presentation. Special Revenue Proiects (Article 46 Sales Tax Proceeds) Paul Laughton directed the Board to the Special Revenues section of the CIP binder on page 61. Special Revenue Projects (Article 46 Sa/es Tax Proceeds) — Highlights The Special Revenue section includes anticipated revenue from the Article 46 (1/4 cent) Sales Tax, with 50% of the proceeds for Economic Development initiatives and 50% for Education (allocated by the ADM count of the two school districts). In FY 2013-14, proceeds are estimated at $2,732,000, with 1.5% growth assumed in subsequent years. A summary is provided within the Special Revenue Projects section of the document listing the recommended uses of these proceeds. Economic development Paul Laughton referred to attachment A, page 11 and said there are 8 initiatives listed in the Economic Development category, with the first being debt service. He said these projects total $1.38 million. He said the other 50 percent goes to schools. Chapel Hill Carrboro City Schoo/s He said Chapel Hill Carrboro has been using 50 percent of their funds for technology and next year they will use 50 percent of the proceeds for facility improvements at older schools. He said this will total $852,000 Orange County Schoo/s Paul Laughton said Orange County schools have always used this for technology in their 1:1 Initiative, and the amount is $533,000 He said the estimated total for Special Revenue Projects in 2014-15 is $2.77 million. Chair Jacobs asked how much this has grown since last year. Paul Laughton said he does not have a breakdown by year, but as of today, $4.7 million has been collected in total for the Article 46 Sales Tax. He said this has been split to allocate $2.36 million to Economic Development and $2.36 million to schools. Commissioner Pelissier asked when the current debt service for infrastructure will be paid off. Paul Laughton said for utilities this goes out for 20 years, and this information is on page 110. Clarence Grier said the financing structure for the Buckhorn EDD is only for 15 years. He said this debt was issued on July 1. Paul Laughton said 60 percent of what Economic Development gets is earmarked for debt service. Chair Jacobs asked how much of the 60 percent is encumbered. Paul Laughton said to date $340,000 has been spent for this years' program for debt service. He said right now $290,000 has been spent for the 25 percent. Proprietary Proiects Water and Sewer Utilities Paul Laughton referred to the tab for Proprietary projects, beginning on page 65 of the CIP binder. He said there are a couple of new projects and initiatives in year one, as outlined below: - Economic Development Infrastructure—this project reflects the FY 2013-14 funding of infrastructure for the Morinaga Company, which consists of design for the extension of water, sewer and roadway infrastructure to the site from surrounding existing utility system and construction of the water and sewer extension. This project is funded by $250,000 from Article 46 Sales Tax proceeds, and $750,000 in CDBG funds. This new project also includes $50,000 in Year 1 for EDD zones right-of-way-accesses, and $50,000 in Year 1 for public-private participation in EDD zones and rural broadband related access. - Economic Development Utility Extension Project(s) — provides funds of $250,000 in Years 1 and 2 for future economic development projects that are currently being considered, but have not been finalized. If no project develops in the coming year, which requires utility extension, the funds would be available for future years as needed. He said the $100,000 for the EDD infrastructure includes $50,000 for EDD zones, right of way access, and $50,000 for public private participation in EDD zones and rural broadband related access. Craig Benedict said this $100,000 is a placeholder. He said the first $50,000 is set aside to partner with an entity such as Piedmont Electric Cooperative, which can access rural dollars. He said this creates the possibility of getting some broadband monies from the state. He said this allocation is for seed money to entice private entities to put fiber into rural areas prior to their business plan. He said there are needs for this broadband access in the rural sections of the county. He said the other $50,000 is there for the possibility of having opportunities to improve economic development zones. He said the area north of I-85, south of the railroad tracks and east of Buckhorn Road has only one access point. He said there are meetings happening with community members about a possible extension of Industrial Drive from the west side to the east side. He said this area is a prime railroad economic development zone with a lot of industrial potential. Chair Jacobs noted that there was an article stating that ATT was bringing high speed wireless to the area. He asked if Orange County is in the loop with these discussions. Craig Benedict said we are in the loop for wireless, but not wired. He said ATT is adding additional towers or making connections on existing towers. He said ATT's plan is to provide better wireless and data coverage in rural areas using towers. He said they are also considering using fiber between towers to make better connectivity. He said there is no plan for a network in the primarily urban area. He said some of the seed money is available for anyone who would like to partner with the County to get into the rural areas. Chair Jacobs said he is thinking of the economic development districts. Michael Talbert said this is an initiative that Chapel Hill has taken on. He said the town is part of consortium of 6 or 7 towns and cities that went out and requested proposals. He said this could potentially be in competition with potential Google infrastructure that will come later. He said ATT wants to get into this area. He said this is primarily targeting high density areas, but there may be some benefit and the possibility of connecting to it if it comes right up I-40. Chair Jacobs said even if it was the Hillsborough EDD it would still be in an economic development district, and it would join up the UNC Hospitals and Carolina North to Hillsborough. Michael Talbert said the County was not part of the original discussions, but they may be able to piggy back this. Craig Benedict said a side benefit of a rural grant would be to pull redundant connections from near those economic development zones. He said one of these is being considered in the Efland area, because there is something available near I-85. Chair Jacobs said this was a big part of the discussion of the Efland Mebane small area planning group. He said he wants to make sure the County can get to the table for these opportunities that are opening up. Michael Talbert said this is possible, but only in the areas where it works and not in the rural areas. Commissioner porosin asked if all County owned buildings could provide free Wi-Fi like the towns do. Jim Northup said this can be done; it is just a matter of money. He said the infrastructure will still have to be paid for in the rural areas where there is no internet service. He said all of the County buildings served by the County network proper have public Wi-Fi service. He said the penetration for this is only a couple of houses away. He said staff can come up with the numbers to put broadcast equipment on this. Commissioner McKee said he would like to see those numbers. Jim Northup asked what kind of wireless the Board is talking about. He said he is talking about wireless access in public areas like this meeting room that does extend into the parking lot. He said penetration in neighborhoods is different. Craig Benedict said it would be good to have a hot spot in the Cedar Grove parking lot. Jim Northup said staff is already working with elections on wireless for curbside voting, so this would be easy enough. Commissioner porosin said he would like to figure out how to get the biggest boost. He said students in the County I-pad program cannot use the I-pads at home. He said if there is a place near the students' house to provide free Wi-Fi, this would be the goal. He wants to think about ways to bridge the digital-divide. He said this availability could be advertised. Jim Northup said there are already people using the County wireless, but this could be advertised better. Commissioner porosin suggested use of the DSS building, which has a large parking lot. Michael Talbert said staff can investigate this for several of the major facilities to see what the cost is. Clarence Grier said there are appliances and antennas that can be placed outside the building to enhance the wireless. He said staff will bring back information on this. Commissioner Price said at one point the wireless companies had worked it out with state legislature so that Counties could not provide free Wi-Fi to the whole community. She asked if the outside antennas would be a problem. Jim Northup said his understanding is that this would be allowed under the contract with Time Warner. Commissioner Price asked if it would be feasible to work with the Town of Hillsborough to reach more people. Jim Northup said the town of Hillsborough does not have an IT department, and this is subcontracted. He said he would be happy to work with the contact on this. He said he can explore this possibility. He said there are network connections that permeate through that area and there is still an ability to deliver network service. Commissioner Price said she would like to create a clear network signal from the County. Chair Jacobs suggested this issue could be flagged for future discussion. He said if there is a fund for Economic Development, this could be included as part of infrastructure. Paul Laughton reviewed the following item changes: - Eno EDD - includes $1,750,000 in Year 5 (FY 2018-19) for the construction work in this EDD. Note: based on recent feasibility studies to provide sewer service to this area. Note: This project has been pushed back several years from the current CIP. He said Orange County, jointly with the City of Durham, hired a consultant to look at the feasibility of extending the sewer for the Eno EDD. He said the results were alarming, and these estimates ranged from $5.8 to $6.8 million. He said this is because the sewer must go 3.5 miles into Durham to be dumped into a centralized station. He said this is because all of the gravity sewer within 3 miles of the Orange County border is over capacity. He said the 3 potential outfall directions in Durham are also over capacity. He said this is now on pause, as there is not enough money. He said the work has been pushed out, and he will have to bring back the joint water and sewer agreement with Durham since something had to be done within 3 years according to that agreement. He said staff is moving up the Hillsborough economic development district: - Hillsborough EDD - reflects funds of$150,000 in Year 1 for design and easement purchase, and $1,000,000 in year 2 (FY 2015-16) for construction of water and sewer infrastructure in this EDD. Note: this project has moved up several years due to projected growth and economic activity in the Hillsborough EDD area. Paul Laughton said the program here would be to bring the new sewer line for the hospital south of the interstate and into the EDD. - Efland Sewer Flow to Mebane Regarding the Efland to Mebane switched flow, Paul Laughton said staff has found a way to improve this exchange and open more economic development zones south of the railroad tracks. He said the lift station has tentatively been moved south of the interstate to be able to draw more economic development zones. He said this is more money, but it is more efficient. He said this is being done in conjunction with the City of Mebane, and Mebane would prefer one larger lift station. He said this bears fruit from an operational and a capital standpoint in both the short and the long term. Commissioner Gordon asked if the numbers in the CIP reflect the cost increase. Paul Laughton said yes, the figure has gone up from $3.4 million to $4.3 million on the new CIP, for year one. Chair Jacobs asked if this will service more of the EDD in Efland, south of I-40/I-85. Paul Laughton said no. He said this will primarily service south of the railroad tracks and north of I-85. Before moving on, Chair Jacobs noted that the Board has requested that IT staff come back to a meeting within this budget cycle to provide information on how the County might amplify signals to provide more free Wi-Fi. Commissioner porosin said he would like to also suggest reaching out to schools, EMS facilities, and fire departments to get as broad a dispersal as possible. Commissioner Gordon asked if this would include the whole County. Michael Talbert said yes. Paul Laughton referred to the Sportsplex which is detailed on page 84 of the CIP binder. He said there have been some changes from the current CIP, as outlined below: Sportsplex— includes funding in Year 1 (FY 2014-15) for a Mezzanine addition at the pool area to include dedicated member change areas and lockers, workout rooms, and a senior/adult cardio strength center. Year 2 (FY 2015-16) includes funding of$1,900,000 for a new building addition that would house an indoor turfed field for soccer, lacrosse, senior walking, running, Kidsplex functions, and youth/adult flag football leagues. A second new building addition includes funding of$900,000 also in Year 2 for a second new building addition that would house a regulation sized high school/college basketball court, including bleacher seating, for youth and adult basketball leagues, court based fitness programs, volleyball, and Kidsplex activities. Projected revenue from these new projects would generate enough funds to cover the additional annual debt service needed for these projects. Paul Laughton said phase two of an indoor field have been combined in year 2 with phase three to include an indoor court. Commissioner Gordon asked what the amount was last year for these two phases. Paul Laughton said it would have been $1.9 million for the indoor turf, and then $900,000 for the court one year later. He said this will be one large building, and there will be a division between the court and the indoor turf. Commissioner Gordon said there was past discussion that the debt capacity could be paid off with the proceeds if this is moved up. Paul Laughton said the growth potential in membership and revenue stream outlined in the documents supports the business case of paying for the debt. Commissioner Gordon noted that the County paid for the original building, and she asked how much is being paid for debt. Clarence Grier said the County is paying $302,000 per year, and there are 12 years left on the debt. Commissioner Gordon asked how this factors into the budget. Clarence Grier said this is in the Sportsplex budget in the debt service. He said it is not shown in this outline, but it could be included Commissioner Gordon said it would be helpful to see this. She asked what page this is on right now. Clarence Grier said this is on page 84, but the debt service for the building purchase would have to be added. Commissioner Gordon said this should be included as part of the reason for moving forward with this. She questioned whether this $302,000 would be paid for by the revenue streams. Clarence Grier said it should. He said the current revenue streams have been paying for it every year. Commissioner Gordon said this should be shown to give the big picture. John Stockton said the Sportsplex has generated $487,000 in net income as of the end of March. He said this will be the first year that the Sportsplex will go above $500,000 in contributions to the fund balance. He said they are $200,000 ahead of budget year to date. He said there are close to 5,000 members and 85 percent of these are residents and County employees. He said the fitness mezzanine in the pool area is going to handle the fact that there are a lot of lines in peak hours. He said the addition of turf and court is to handle the focus on obesity issues in two key populations — children and people over the age of 60. He said their programs are designed to tackle this obesity problem, and this is a core mission of the Sportsplex. Chair Jacobs said the Board appreciates the good job he and his staff were doing John Stockton said this facility is really multi-generational and the addition of these new areas will make it one of the more spectacular facilities in the southeast. Michael Talbert said John Stockton has done a great job over the past 4 years in making the Sportsplex more profitable, and adding more members and services. He addressed Commissioner Gordon's questions and said historically the debt service was paid from the general fund and there is still a small transfer to cover it, but this is being evaluated again as the Sportsplex becomes more profitable. Commissioner Gordon asked how much is currently being transferred. Clarence Grier said this amount was about $500,000 this past year. Chair Jacobs said the County should do a press release when the Sportsplex membership reaches 5,000. Commissioner Gordon asked if the general funds transfer will be $500,000 this year as well. Clarence Grier said if things keep going the way they are, there will likely not be a need to transfer more than $100,000-$200,000. Commissioner Gordon said it would still be good to include this. Solid Waste Paul Laughton referred to page 78 of the CIP. He referred to the highlights on the abstract on page 12 and reviewed the following: - Sanitation - includes funds of$2,428,283 in Year 1 (FY 2014-15) for Solid Waste Convenience Center (SWCC) improvements at the Eubanks Road site (the cost has increased by approximately $1.1 million from the current FY 2013-18 CIP due to the movement of the scale house operations and associated site improvements, extending water and sewer to the site, additional stormwater structures, purchase of two additional stationary compactors, and a larger household hazardous waste building). Year 1 also includes $206,944 for the replacement of a Hook Lift truck; Year 2 includes $495,000 for SWCC improvements at the High Rock Road site; and Year 3 includes $340,000 for SWCC improvements at the Ferguson Road site. Years 6-10 includes $212,028 for SWCC improvements at the Bradshaw Quarry site. Commissioner Gordon asked for some elaboration on the cost increase for Eubanks Road. Gail Wilson said staff moved the scales and the entrance structure to the north side of the road. He said this allowed more efficient traffic flow and better safety by eliminating the need for a road crossing. Commissioner Gordon asked how much it costs to move the scales. Gayle Wilson said a new scale costs about $150,000, but the road infrastructure has to be taken farther back and this is also a cost. He said this also moves a significant operation further away from Rogers Road, which will improve community impact to the south. He said the other component is the extension of water and sewer to the north side. He said there will be two additional compacters and two additional z-wall slots. He said there are many components, but most of the cost has to do with the movement of the scales and the entranceway. Commissioner Price asked about the maintenance of the land fill and why it does not show up in the CIP. She said this has to be maintained for 30 years. Gayle Wilson said it must be maintained for a minimum of 30 years or perhaps longer. He said the County intends to do this, and hopefully the reserves will pay for a significant portion of this for several years into the future. He said there is continued ground water monitoring, and gas monitoring for a minimum of 30 years. He said the University's landfill gas recovery system will be operating there for at least 25 years. Commissioner Price asked where this item shows up. Clarence Grier said the landfill is part of the operating budget, not the CIP. Commissioner McKee said he has received many compliments on the Walnut Grove Solid Waste Convenience Center (SWCC). He said one of the residents who complained about the plans to improve the site has said he was wrong and that this site works. He thinks if these same changes are made at Eubanks, it will be a vast improvement. Commissioner Gordon asked when this will start. Gayle Wilson said this depends on the other workload. He said the project could be bid out this fall and constructed by late spring or early summer of next year. Commissioner Pelissier suggested designing a Solid Waste Convenience Center that could be used as a "pay as you throw" facility. She asked if this was in the design. Gayle Wilson said this was incorporated into Walnut Grove and all subsequent convenience center improvements. Chair Jacobs said Carrboro had a discussion about "pay as you throw." He said it might be good to find out about this discussion. - Recycling Operation Paul Laughton referred to page 81 of the CIP and noted the purchase of two rural curbside trucks and the purchase of 19,500 urban recycling carts. He said the plan in year one also provides for the purchase of 7,000 rural carts, as well as the replacement of two trucks. He said year two has a projected additional purchase of 2,000 additional carts. Commissioner Price asked about the timing of the purchase of carts. Paul Laughton said 7,000 will be purchased in year one and then another 2,000 in year two. Commissioner Price asked about a reference to the carts in the abstract. Gayle Wilson said the Board has already approved the 19,500 urban rollcarts, and staff will begin to distribute those next month to start service on July 1. Commissioner Gordon asked if agreements are in place with Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Gayle Wilson said the interim agreement is in place and the inter-local agreement will be brought forward in May. Commissioner Gordon asked how the Board decisions on recycling will impact the purchase of roll carts. Gayle Wilson said adjustments will be made as necessary depending on the Board's decisions. Commissioner porosin asked if there has been any discussion on reducing the frequency of collection, given the size of the new roll carts. Gayle Wilson said those conversations have been had with the municipalities and the most recent bids were done to be awarded either way. He said the towns would like to stay with weekly for now, with the option to change to bi-weekly in the future. Paul Laughton said there are some changes in the CIP from last year for large pieces of equipment. He said a re-build program has been instituted, and this is a cost savings of 30- 35 percent. He said the CIP reflects these reduced equipment costs. Gail Wilson said, with the closing of the landfill and the reduced hours, staff decided to approach things differently and rebuild once before equipment is replaced. He said this has eliminated $2.2 million from the equipment reserve account to be moved to the landfill post closure reserves. Paul Laughton said the next scheduled work session to discuss the CIP will be on May 15. Commissioner Price asked about the infrastructure in Efland and whether staff could look at the at-grade railroad crossings. She would like this to be put into the scope of work because she is concerned about these. 3. Budqet Goals for Fiscal 2014/2015 DEFERRED A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to adjourn the meeting at 10:26 p.m. Barry Jacobs, Chair David Hunt, Deputy Clerk