The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutMinutes 03-03-2015 APPROVED 4/7/2015 MINUTES BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING March 3, 2015 7:00 p.m. The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, March 3, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. at the Whitted Building in Hillsborough, N.C. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair McKee and Commissioners Mia Burroughs, Mark Dorosin, Barry Jacobs, Bernadette Pelissier, Renee Price and Penny Rich COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Assistant County Manager Cheryl Young and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff inembers will be identified appropriately below) 1. Additions or Chanqes to the Aqenda Chair McKee called the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. He reviewed the following list of items at the Commissioners' places: - White PowerPoint Sheet for item 4a — Orange County School Community's Vision for Public Education Presentation -Yellow memo from Orange County Schools regarding item 5d - Orange County's Proposed 2015 Legislative Agenda - White sheet for item 5d - Orange County's Proposed 2015 Legislative Agenda - Monthly packet from the Planning Department PUBLIC CHARGE Chair McKee dispensed with the reading of the Public Charge. 2. Public Comments a. Matters not on the Printed Aqenda Christopher Vaughn read from the following printed comments: Good evening. I am Christopher Vaughn and I live in the Orange County section of Mill Creek within the City of Mebane. I came here as a response to the letter sent by the Mebane City Council regarding the annexation of Mill Creek into Alamance County. The stated reason for the proposed annexation centers on fire protection and emergency service. This leaves me somewhat confused, in that as City of Mebane tax payers we receive all city services: public works, police, and fire protection, regardless of our county. This leaves only the issue of emergency services, which are currently provided by Orange County. The Mill Creek section of Orange County has been in existence for over 15 years. It is my understanding that the 911 system is computerized, and that the 911 dispatch centers have a cooperative agreement and the ability to intercommunicate. This issue was brought up and settled during the last county line negotiation. It is commendable that Mebane wants to resolve this issue, but I would think the first step would be to resolve the EMS protocols before going to the extreme step of challenging the county line and the disruption that such a change would bring to the lives of its residents. This issue should be of concern for all Orange County residents. During the last county line negotiation, Session Law 2010-61, the law that opened the review of the county line between Alamance and Orange counties, the stated reason for opening the county line for discussion was to define the line and settle disputes over the location of the line. Later, Session laws 2011-88 and 2012-108 settled the 91% and 9% of the line, respectively. In all these cases, the idea was to find the true line as it was defined in the original 1849 law and allow residents to move to the county that they believed they lived in prior to the USGS line definition. This was a good faith effort to keep people in their existing communities and their county. The proposal to move the county line solely around Mill Creek doesn't fit with the earlier charter to find the line and solve disputes. In this case, there is no dispute as to the actual location of the land; it's all within Orange County. Hunter's Run, Collington Farms, and Ashbury neighborhoods all lie in the City of Mebane and in Orange County. However, they are not included in this proposal. My question becomes one of two choices. Is this someone's pet project, or is this a test case? If it is a pet project, it is my opinion that we should not be changing the county line based on the desire of a few well connected individuals. Alternately, if it is a test case, all of the parts of the City of Mebane that lie within Orange County could be up for grabs if this goes through. In either case, I would ask the Board of Orange County Commissioners to deny any further changes to the county line, seeing as how it is now settled law that has passed the legislature and stood for several years. Thank you for your time. Carter Vaughn read from the following printed comments: Good evening. I am Carter Vaughn. I am a sophomore at Orange High, and I'm here to talk about Mebane's wanting to change the Orange/Alamance County line by moving my neighborhood from Orange to Alamance County. I took civics class this year. In that class, we learned how a government functions and how laws are made. The primary purpose of laws is to promote the common good and protect the rights of minority groups and individuals within the community. A couple of years ago, the county line was up for debate, but the legislature worked out this dispute by passing a law solidifying the location of the county line. This is the third time someone has tried to move the county line around us and put us in Alamance County, even though the USGS survey proved we were in Orange County. We are now and always have been in Orange County. I should be considered as much a part of Orange County as my classmates that come from Efland, Hillsborough or Rougemont. If there are emergency service problems, please work them out. This is not a reason to allow the state law to be changed. I like my county and my school and all the things I get to do here that are not available in Alamance County. Please do not let Mebane take our county from us or me from my school. Commissioner Rich said that these residents had received letters from the City of Mebane about this issue, and the Board of County Commissioners was referenced. She noted that the Board of County Commissioners was never contacted about this issue, and she would like for this to be addressed in the next meeting with Mebane. She said this is not the way to open up conversations with your neighboring County. Larry Newsom said he is also a neighbor in the Mill Creek neighborhood. He said his concern with the change in counties is the school system change. He has a son at Orange County High School, and his son has gone through the Orange County school system his entire life. He said it is important that if this change in counties does happen, each family should be given a choice as to which school system they wish to attend. He said no one should be forced to change schools. 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 Pelissier asked the County Manager if there was a telecommuting policy for the County, and if not, she asked that they consider developing such a policy. Commissioner Jacobs said the Pauli Murray Awards were presented on Sunday for the 25th year. He said it would be nice to have a plaque placed in this room or in this building to list the 25 years of winners and to commemorate this event. Commissioner Jacobs asked Bonnie Hammersley to find out the policy for the water and sewer providers in Orange County, regarding what happens when a system fails and overflows and damages residents' properties. He asked if these providers consider themselves exempt, or if there is compensation given to the affected parties. 4. Proclamations/ Resolutions/ Special Presentations a. Oranqe County Schools Community's Vision for Public Education Presentation The Board received a presentation on the Community's Vision for Public Education in Orange County Schools, and provided feedback or questions. Orange County Schools (OCS) Superintendent Del Burns said this community vision process is unique because neither the Board of Education nor the staff participated in the development of this vision. He said this vision was developed by Community stakeholders, and has been adopted by the Board of Education. Del Burns introduced Scottie Seawell and Pam Jones, Interim Deputy Superintendent. Scottie Seawell reviewed the following PowerPoint slides: The Community's Vision for Public Education . We envision a public school system that prepares all students to be creative, constructive thinkers who become healthy, productive and responsible members of our community and the world. The Stakeholders • Identified by the Board of Education • Recruited and Guided by a Steering Committee • Goal of"Broadly Representative" ➢ Walks of Life ➢ Geography ➢ Age and Stage The Process • Starting with Questions • Building Community • Building Support and Understanding • Soliciting Input— More Questions • Analyzing Input • Crafting the Vision Statement and Document • Reaching Consensus • "Ever-green" � Sustainability Public Values • Common Framework and Language • Core Public Values of: �:� Liberty = Value of the "I" �:� Equality = Value of"Groups" �:� Community = Value of the "We" �:� Prosperity = Value of the "Market" �:� A Matter of Balance The Community's Vision for Public Education We envision a public school system that prepares all students to be creative, constructive thinkers who become healthy, productive and responsible members of our community and the world. Uniquely Orange County Schools... • We believe... • We expect... • Learning from our History • Building on our Heritage and Traditions • Always becoming more representative and inclusive Going Forward • Aligning the Community's Vision with the OCS Strategic Plan —Work to date... • Embracing the Vision • Ever-Green Quality • Implications of the Vision for the BOCC ✓ Working together democratically ✓ Using the vision to develop policies ✓ High expectations for all students Scottie Seawell referred to the Ca//s forAction on page 5 of the vision statement. She read the following paragraph: We expect the Board of Education and the Board of County Commissioners, our elected representative, to use this vision to develop policies that create healthy, safe and nurturing environments; support all students in reaching their full potential; and result in the development of productive and responsible citizens as well as lifelong learners with critical thinking and problem solving skills who will lead us in the future. Scottie Seawell said there is also recognition from the community of all of the work that has already been done to support public education. Commissioner Jacobs referred to appendix B, regarding choices in addition to college and the need for more people to work with their hands. He recently talked to an appliance repairman who said it is difficult to find young people interested in apprenticeship programs in the field of appliance repair and related areas. He asked if there are any active apprenticeship programs or a contact person for that. Scottie said the idea of apprenticeships and alternatives was a broadly agreed upon issue with the stakeholders. She referenced the woodworking program at Cedar Ridge and the amazing work that is being done there. She referred the question about apprenticeship programs to Del Burns. Del Burns said there are limited opportunities for apprenticeships through the career and technical education programs at this time. He said the hands-on work ethic is a tradition in Orange County, and there was a discussion of the need for alternatives for students. He said the schools are not taking full advantage of apprenticeships, and this is on the radar. b. Resolution Acknowledqinq February 24, 2015 as Spay Neuter Day in Oranqe County, North Carolina The Board considered adopting the proposed resolution acknowledging February 24, 2015 as Spay Neuter Day in Orange County, North Carolina and authorizing the Chair to sign the resolution. Bob Marotto expressed appreciation to the Board for putting this item on the agenda retroactively, due to inclement weather. He said spay/neutering is a community issue, and he thanked the Board of County Commissioners for their support over their years. The Commissioners were presented with spay/neuter support t-shirts. He noted some of Animal Service's 2014 accomplishments. He said the program sterilized 433 cats and dogs that belong to low income residents, and 289 of these animals belonged to clients of the Department of Social Services (DSS.) He said the outcomes of this effort are measured in the decline of admissions to their facility and the fact that the number of animals being euthanized is at a historically low level. Michelle Walker read the following resolution: ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS SPAY NEUTER DAY RESOLUTION WHEREAS, cats and dogs provide companionship to and share the homes of thousands of individuals in Orange County; and WHEREAS, the problem of pet overpopulation costs the taxpayers of Orange County hundreds of thousands of dollars annually through animal control and sheltering programs aimed at coping with unwanted and homeless cats and dogs; and WHEREAS, humane societies and shelters throughout the country have to euthanize approximately four million cats and dogs each year, although many of them are healthy and adoptable, due to the lack of critical resources such as money, space, and good adoptive homes; and WHEREAS, the Animal Services Advisory Board and the Animal Services Department have made correcting pet overpopulation a priority, and prepared Managing Pet Overpopulation: A Strategic Plan for Orange County and Managing Free-Roaming Cats in Orange County, North Carolina; and WHEREAS, spaying and neutering cats and dogs, among other animal companions, has been shown to drastically reduce overpopulation; and WHEREAS, Animal Services has partnered with AnimalKind and the Department of Social Services to offer "low cost" and "no cost" spay and neuter to households who are economically disadvantaged or who receive public assistance; and WHEREAS, veterinarians, animal care and control organizations, national and local animal welfare organizations, and private citizens have joined together again this year to advocate and support the spaying and neutering of companion animals on "Spay Day USA 2015"; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the Orange County Board of Commissioners that February 24, 2015 is declared "Spay Neuter Day" and the Board calls upon the people of the County to observe the day by having their own cats or dogs spayed or neutered or by sponsoring the spaying or neutering of another person's cat or dog. THIS, THE 3rd DAY OF MARCH, 2015. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price to adopt a resolution recognizing February 24, 2015 as "Spay Neuter Day" in Orange County and authorize the Chair to sign. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Commissioner Jacobs congratulated the Animal Services Advisory Board (ASAB) and staff, and he said it is good to see that they are making a difference in Orange County. 5. Public Hearinqs a. Joint Public Hearinq with the Historic Preservation Commission Reqardinq the Proposed Desiqnation of the White Cross School as an Oranqe County Local Historic Landmark The Board considered 1) conducting a joint public hearing with the Historic Preservation Commission to receive public comment on the draft designation ordinance for the White Cross School, 2) closing the public hearing; and 3) referring the draft designation ordinance back to the Historic Preservation Commission for its final review and recommendation. The following Historic Preservation Members were in attendance: Todd Dickinson, Chair Bob Ireland, Vice Chair Susan Ballard Rob Golan Jaime Grant Grace White Peter Sandbeck discussed PowerPoint photos of the White Cross building, and the landmark process. He said this hearing is a routine step in the landmark process, as required by the County ordinance for historic preservation and by state law. He said it is important to note that the landmark designation program is voluntary in Orange County. He said neighbors are notified when a landmark is being proposed, and these nearby residents are generally very supportive. He reviewed the background of the creation of the program in the 1970's. He said the goal was to encourage and promote the preservation and maintenance of historic properties for public benefit. He said properties must possess special historical, archeological, architectural or cultural significance for Orange County. He said this determination is then reviewed and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office, and landmark status can only be conferred through an ordinance passed by elected officials of a local government entity. He said landmark owners are entitled to receive a 50 percent deferral on their property, but these residents must maintain the historic character of the property. He reviewed the following background information from the abstract: Background: One of the HPC's duties is to recommend properties to the BOCC for local landmark designation. Properties must meet a high standard of historic and/or architectural significance to be designated as an individual landmark. The higher standard is appropriate since landmark property owners are eligible for a 50 percent property tax deferral as provided by state law, as long as the property is preserved and retains its historic character. The historic landmark designation process, outlined in Article 3 of the County's Historic Preservation Ordinance, involves several steps culminating with the adoption of an ordinance by the BOCC for each individual landmark. At its October 22, 2014 meeting, the HPC accepted a Part 2 application from Ms. Danielle Sunde to consider her property, the White Cross School, for designation as an Orange County Local Historic Landmark, thus initiating the application process. Ms. Sunde's application materials were submitted to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) for review and comment as required by state law. The HPC received a favorable response from the SHPO staff. The HPC concurred with the SHPO's evaluation that the White Cross School was worthy of consideration for local landmark designation. The HPC voted unanimously to request a joint public hearing with the BOCC, as required by Section 3.7 of the Historic Preservation Ordinance. Built in 1933, the White Cross School is one of only three brick consolidated schools to survive in rural Orange County. The property consists of the 1933 brick school, built in the Colonial Revival style, along with the cafeteria wing added in 1948. Both portions retain a high degree of architectural integrity, with most of its original historic exterior and interior features still preserved. The White Cross School played a pivotal role in the social and cultural life of lower Bingham Township until it closed in 1961. It now serves as the home for a privately-operated preschool. This is a routine joint public hearing required by state enabling legislation and the county's Historic Preservation Ordinance. Following this joint public hearing, the BOCC and the HPC will take into consideration any public comments in preparing the final ordinance. The HPC will then return the final version of the proposed ordinance back to the BOCC for the Board's consideration and adoption this spring. PUBLIC COMMENT: Stan Lewis said he has lived in this area since 1993, and he knew people that actually went to this school. He said he expressed a few concerns at a previous meeting. He said he does not want to hold this process up, and he is in favor of the landmark. However, he said Mr. Sunde needed water for his business, and so he (Stan Lewis) agreed to have a well installed for this purpose. He said there were some issues related to this that were supposed to be addressed by Mr. Sunde; however, it has been two years, and these issues have not been addressed. He said there is a lease agreement for this, and Mr. Sunde is two months behind on these payments. He said the well issues need to be addressed by the steward of the property. Commissioner Price asked for clarification on the well. Stan Lewis said the well that was built on his property is a separate line that services only the schoolhouse. He said this is on his property. He said the older well services all of the other units, including his house. Commissioner Price asked John Roberts if this has any bearing on the landmark designation. John Roberts said he does not know if it has any bearing on the actual designation of the landmark. He said this is just public comment for the Board to consider, and this will come back for further consideration. Chair Jacobs said he can personally testify to the rigorous review of properties by the Historic Preservation Commission. Discussion ensued between Commissioner Burroughs and Peter Sandbeck regarding the history of White Cross and Carrboro Schools. A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Price to: 1) open a joint public hearing with the Historic Preservation Commission to receive public comment on the draft designation ordinance for the White Cross School; 2) close the public hearing; and 3) refer the draft designation ordinance back to the Historic Preservation Commission for its final review and recommendation. VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Ordinance Text Amendments for Aqricultural Support Enterprises Within the Rural Buffer Land Use Classification — Defer Public Hearinq Process to May 5, 2015 (No Additional Oral Comments Accepted) The Board considered deferring the public hearing process on the Comprehensive Plan and Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) zoning text amendments pertaining to Agricultural Support Enterprises within the Rural Buffer land use classification to May 5, 2015 in order to allow time for the necessary Joint Planning Amendment (JPA) land use amendments to be further considered and adopted. Perdita Holtz said the JPAs are still in the review process. She said Carrboro has adopted a revised resolution without the sunset clause, and Chapel Hill is scheduled to address the JPA amendments next week. She said the JPA materials will need to come back to the Board of County Commissioners for re-adoption, and staff plans to bring this to the Board of County Commissioners on April 7th. She said the UDO amendments will be taken back to the County planning board on April 1 st. Commissioner Rich asked what will happen if there are two very different resolutions from Carrboro and Chapel Hill. Perdita Holtz said staff is not expecting differing resolutions, but if there are differences, the local governments will need to come together to address this. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Rich to: 1. Open the public hearing, and 2. Defer the hearing by adjourning it to May 5, 2015 in order to allow time for the necessary JPA land use amendments to be further considered and adopted. VOTE: UNANIMOUS c. 2015 -2019 Consolidated Plan/HOME Proqram The Board considered opening the public hearing to receive comments from the public regarding the housing and non-housing needs to be included in the 2015-2019 Consolidated Plan for Housing and Community Development Programs in Orange County and proposed uses of the 2015-2016 HOME funds, and closing the public hearing. Audrey Spencer-Horsley said the purpose tonight is to receive public comments, which initiates a community input process for the five year consolidated plan that is required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for funds received by the Orange County Consortium and Chapel Hill CDBG funds. She said the plan covers housing and non- housing needs to be included in the 2015-2019 Consolidated Plan for Housing and Community Development Programs in Orange County and proposed uses of the 2015-2016 HOME funds. She said there will be other opportunities for community input, and prior to submission of the plan to HUD, there will be on-line surveys and stakeholder meetings. She said staff has received a final number for the amount of funding that will be received this year. She said this amount is $311,832, which is $40,000 less than 2014. She said applications for funding were due by February 20th, and these applications have been forwarded to the consortium for review. Commissioner porosin asked why the public hearing is being held now when the application deadline has already passed. He said the purpose is to find out how the community feels the home program money should be spent, but the applications have already been submitted to receive the money. He does not understand the timeline. Audrey Spencer-Horsley said the timeline is not ideal. She said the goal would usually be to complete this process prior to receiving applications. She said these HOME funds will represent the annual action plan, which is required for each of the five years. She said this is the first year in the five year process, and there are four more years of opportunity. She said the consolidated plan also looks for other funding resources for addressing affordable housing. Commissioner porosin said if the deadline for applications is set outside of our control then next year, he would suggest that the public hearing be held two months prior. Audrey Spencer-Horsley said this should be possible next year. She said this year's process will give them a guide for next year. Commissioner Price questioned whether this timeline is due to the Board of County Commissioners schedule or HUD. Audrey Spencer-Horsley said next year's schedule will be more in alignment with the Board's expectations, and it will allow more time to get ahead of the curve. Chair McKee asked if a reason was given for the $40,000 reduction of funds. Audrey Spencer-Horsley said the funding was reduced at the federal level, and the County's cut was proportional to this. PUBLIC COMMENT Brian Curran is the secretary of the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity of Orange County. He said HOME funding continues to be a critical factor in Habitat's building efforts. He said these funds have been used to leverage millions of dollars in private funding for the majority of the 250 homes that Habitat has built in Orange County. He said HOME funding is part of the reason that 50 people now call Phoenix Place home. He said the addition of Habitat homes has resulted in crime rate reductions and a rise in the rates of home ownership. He said Habitat is requesting $270,000 in funding for 11 new homes for homebuyers who earn between 30 and 65 percent of area median income. He said these funds will be used as second mortgages for Habitat home buyers and will have long term positive impact for residents. He said Habitat also assists residents with revitalization and repair of older homes through its Brush with Kindness program. He thanked the Board for consideration of this request, and he provided a copy of Habitat for Humanity's annual report. Angel Davalos lives in a Habitat home located in the Fairview community in Hillsborough. He said, by providing these funds to Habitat, the Board is keeping the organization functional so that wonderful things can happen. He said, for families purchasing homes, this program makes the single family home dream a reality. He said he had previously lived in public housing, and his wife grew up in one bedroom trailer with her family of five. He said he and his wife feel incredibly blessed to provide a better home for their children. He said the Board is also giving the gift of giving to all of the volunteers involved in this program, and is fostering partnerships between Habitat and organizations within the Community. He highlighted the Hands for Habitat partnership between Habitat and Orange County schools, with a focus on educating students on the issue of affordable housing. He said this program has been in existence for 7 years, and 12 schools and 68 classrooms have participated. He said his home was built by Orange High students, while students in younger grades participated in fund raising activities. He said this program is having an incredible impact on students. He thanked the Board for their support and asked for their continued help. Michael Kelly works for Housing for New Hope. He said he has nothing bad to say about Habitat, but you do have to make a certain amount of money to qualify for a Habitat home. He said Housing for New Hope's homeless outreach and support program targets homeless residents and those who make less than 30 percent of area median income. He said these are people who would probably not qualify for a Habitat home, and some form of assistance is needed for them. He said these currently homeless residents are provided with temporary assistance to obtain and retain affordable rental housing. He said HOME funds are requested to support this direct assistance. He said the team searches the streets of Orange County, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro, and works in cooperation with other organizations in the area. He said funds are used to help provide these homeless residents with rental and utility deposits, first month's rent, and sometimes with monthly rental assistance. He said the program is considered a success when an individual or family becomes securely housed. He said the goal is to assist with the provision of decent, safe, affordable housing, and to assist participants with obtaining income to live as independently as possible. Jamie Rohe is the Homeless Programs Coordinator for Orange County. She hears over and over again from the homeless service providers that there is no affordable rental housing in Orange County. She said Housing for New Hope is an essential program that fills a great need in this area for residents who earn little and are chronically homeless. She said there are very few landlords who will rent to residents with criminal histories or poor credit. She said the Department of Social Services (DSS) and Inter-faith Council (IFC) staff cannot find affordable rental units in Orange County for their clients. She said to bridge these two topics, Orange County and Chapel Hill are required to create a consolidated plan, and this plan is a tool to identify unmet needs and best strategies for filling that need for affordable housing. She encouraged the Board to use this tool to inform funding and policy decisions. Maggie West affirmed the previous comments. She requested that the plan include efforts to address the severe lack of properties accepting Section 8 federal vouchers. She said the community is in a crisis of finding landlords who are willing to accept these vouchers and house the families receiving subsidies. She said she is working for two women who are wheelchair bound and have no poor credit or criminal history, but they are having trouble only because of the vouchers. She said efforts need to be made to recruit and maintain relationships with landlords who are willing to accept these vouchers. She said, the GFC issue affected one fifth of the voucher holders in Orange County, and the relocation of these families caused problems for other voucher holders who were looking for homes. Chiraayu Gosrani is a student at UNC, and he works with the Community Empowerment Fund. He said the consolidated plan needs to involve stakeholders and people who are actually facing homelessness and extreme poverty. He said a concerted effort needs to be made to reach out to those communities to understand their needs and whether they are being met. He said communication with landlords is also very important. He said there is a lack of information with the landlords regarding what housing vouchers entail. He said many of the voucher holders are turned down because of a criminal record or lack of ability to meet other specifications. He said another issue is access to affordable housing. He said there is no central location to find information about options for affordable housing. He suggested the creation of a database to make this information accessible to caseworkers and organizations working to place members into housing. Allan Rosen read from the following written comments: Hello, I am Allan Rosen, project manager at the Inter-Faith Council for Social Service (IFC). I'm here tonight for the housing and community development public hearing. I'd like to share some information about IFC's work that we believe will be helpful in preparing Orange County's Consolidated Plan. As most of you likely know, IFC is one of the principal agencies that address homelessness and hunger in Orange County. Throughout our history, IFC has relied on partnerships with community volunteers, congregations, businesses, civic associations, and peer social service agencies. For housing and community development issues, we actively participate in the Partnership to End Homelessness, the Orange County Affordable Housing Coalition, and the Family Success Alliance. For the past thirty years IFC has focused its effort on basic safety-net programs including emergency shelter and transitional housing, free medical and mental health care for the residents of our housing programs, a community kitchen, food pantry and crisis intervention services for vulnerable individuals and families who are at-risk of becoming homeless. IFC has 20 full-time and 8 part-time employees. Our annual cash budget is $1.75 million, which is surpassed by $2.5 million in donated goods and services (including more than 40,000 volunteer hours). IFC is very appreciative of the support it receives each and every year from Orange County and the Towns of Carrboro and Chapel Hill. This support is critical to keeping our programs operating. In the interest of time, I'll submit detailed service deliver totals from the most recent fiscal year in writing. However, with respect to our housing programs, in the last fiscal year: • Community House provided 17,200 nights of safe shelter for 370 men • HomeStart provided 13,400 nights of safe shelter to 200 women and 80 children • Our Robert Nixon Free Clinic ■ Provided free health care to 350 residents ■ Provided free mental health care to 160 residents ■ Dispensed 500 prescriptions IFC has been operating the Community House and HomeStart at this scale since 1998 when our HomeStart facility opened on land generously made available by the Commissioners. Currently nearly 57%, or $994,000, of our $1.75 million cash budget, supports Community House, HomeStart and the free clinic. Included in this funding is approximately $40,000 in local government dollars and $59,000 from the federal Emergency Solutions Grant. From our vantage point, we believe the FY 2015-20 Consolidated Plan should consider the following factors: 1. The new Inter-Faith Council @SECU Community House is scheduled to open in September 2015 and will provide 52 beds for a men's transitional housing program. At HomeStart, IFC also has ten bedrooms available for women—and women with children—enrolled in a transitional housing program. Last fiscal year 87 men, women, and children successfully found permanent housing after completing the program at IFC. This year the numbers are down because of a noticeable reduction in affordable housing opportunities. Those who successfully complete their transitional housing program typically seek permanent affordable housing in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro community to be near their place of employment and their support networks. Often those who are ready to leave IFC's housing programs delay their departure until suitable affordable housing can be found. It is our experience that without more affordable rental housing, IFC program residents will either stay enrolled longer than necessary, move further away from their place of employment and support networks for the sake of affordable housing, or move into substandard housing in closer proximity to employment and support. Hence, we believe all agencies in Orange County that offer transitional housing programs (IFC, Horizons, etc.) would be more successful if the supply of affordable housing in our community increases by at least twenty-five net units each year available for transitional housing program graduates for the duration of the Consolidated Plan's planning horizon. 2. With respect to Emergency Shelter, currently neither Community House nor HomeStart have limits on how many persons can be accommodated on bad weather nights. At HomeStart we rarely have more emergency shelter guests than emergency shelter beds, which are sixteen. However, at the IFC @SECU Community House, IFC will be limited to seventeen (17) emergency shelter beds for homeless men. This year, beginning in November, on most bad weather nights, we've had at least 20 men staying overnight on a weather-emergency basis. The maximum-to-date has been 29 men. Hence, we believe the community will need an additional 12-15 emergency shelter beds in southern Orange County on cold weather nights for homeless men in addition to those that will be available at the new Community House. Hudson Vaughn works with the Jackson Center, and he supports the previous comments. He feels it is important that the consolidated plan supports critical home repairs for long term elderly residents in Orange County. He gave examples of homes he has seen that have significant repair needs. He said these critical repairs need a quick response, and efforts have been made to connect these residents with agencies such as Habitat for Humanity and the IFC to address their needs in a multifaceted way. He said Orange County's Housing Department has programs to address some of these, but the process is often too slow to accommodate the needs. He gave examples of situations to support the existence of this issue. Robert Reda is the President of Habitat for Humanity of Orange County. He said the demand for Habitat homes will continue to rise, and one way Habitat is preparing to meet those needs is by acquiring land. He noted the future agenda item regarding a lot donation from the County. He hopes the County will be open to future donations of other properties that are suitable for affordable housing. He said Habitat for Humanity's site committee has identified a number of possible building lots, and Habitat will continue to raise funds for purchase of these lots, but local government funding will also be needed. He said Habitat is a member of the Affordable Housing Coalition, which is chaired by Habitat's Executive Director, Susan Levy. He said the coalition has successfully advocated for the Town of Chapel Hill to have an ongoing source of local funding for affordable housing. He said the County will also be asked to develop a sustainable source for funding. He said Habitat also has an exterior repair program, which is supported by the County through its outside agency grant. He said there is still a significant unmet need among low income residents, especially the elderly, and he hopes the consolidated plan will address this. He thanked the Board for their support. The following written statement was submitted via email: FROM: Mary Jean Seyda, COO of CASA, Chair of the Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness DATE: February 20, 2015 RE: Public Comment on the FY 2015-2019 Orange County Consolidated Housing Plan & 2015-2016 HOME Investment Partnership funds Research shows that Extremely Low Income Households (ELI) have the greatest need for rental housing. These are individuals and families whose income is at or below 30% of the median. In Orange County these community members have incomes that range from $0- $13,800 for a single individual, $19,700 for a family of 4. Federal housing assistance including Public Housing Authority units and Housing Choice Vouchers, is aimed at this group. "But unlike most other safety net programs, federal low income housing assistance is not an entitlement. Everyone who is eligible for it does not receive it. These programs only reach about 23% of income eligible households, because they are not funded at a high enough level to serve all eligible households." (National Low Income Housing Coalition, The Aliqnment Proiect, http://nlihc.orq/library/research/aliqnment, 2014) According to the Urban Institute (http://urban.org/housingaffordability� in Orange County • For every 100 ELI renter households, there are only 25 affordable and available rental units. • There are 6,270 ELI renter households • There are 1,564 affordable and available rental units • We need 4,706 affordable units to close this gap. We advocate that funding be prioritized for community members who are ELI, may be homeless, and/or have a disability. These are not three disparate groups; these three characteristics are intrinsically linked. According to the Technical Assistance Collaborative Priced Out 2012, persons with disabilities remain the poorest households in our communities: "The average annual income of a single individual receiving SSI payments was $8,714 — equal to only 19.2% of the national median income for a one-person household and almost 22% below the 2012 federal poverty level." According to Orange County's 2014 Point-in-Time Count, nearly half of the persons who are homeless in our county reported having a disability. As we have seen in the Come Learn with Us sessions at the Town of Chapel Hill, an average of 75% of persons of low wealth, persons with a disability and single parent families spend more than 30% of their income on housing costs. They disproportionately carry a high housing cost burden. By prioritizing funding for ELI households, therefore, we are preventing or ending the cycle of homelessness for the most vulnerable members of our community. CASA's second priority is for households earning less than 60% of the median. This group of renters is not served by the market. Not only is this group cost-burdened themselves, but because this group is competing for the limited number of available and affordable units, they are further constricting the availability of units for ELI households at the very bottom. Priority 1 Affordable Rental: New Construction and Acquisition and Rehab • Extremely Low Income Households 0-30% of Area Median Income • Persons who are homeless • Persons with a disability Priority 2 Affordable Rental: New Construction and Acquisition and Rehab • 30-60% AMI • Persons who are homeless • Persons with a disability Priority 3 Rental Subsidies • As part of the development negotiations request that all new multi-family developments accept rental subsidies (Housing Choice Vouchers, VASH Vouchers, Shelter Plus Care Rental Subsidies) in a percentage of their units. Given that insufficient federal supports such as vouchers are available, the least our community can do is not reject those supports that do exist. Commissioner Price said that the Community Home Trust Executive Director Robert Dowling was unable to attend this evening, but he has sent a request by email for $12,000 from the HOME program funds. Commissioner porosin said he has heard a lot of good things are happening, but he has also heard that there are a lot of challenges still out there. He said there is a need to think more creatively with this plan. He said new and creative solutions need to be added to address these continuing problems. He said a lot of the model has a heavy dependence on the private sector, but this community may have reached the ceiling with the private market. He questioned whether the County should look at owning their own properties that will accept the section 8 vouchers. He said this can be done in partnership with non-profits. He said he has talked with people having issues with manufactured housing too. He suggested the idea of cooperatively owned parks or publicly owned facilities to serve the people with the most need. He hopes the Board can work with everyone present tonight to begin innovating with new and creative strategies to address the gaps. Commissioner Rich said it is important to work with their local government partners too. She would like to know more about the previously mentioned long wait times for urgent repair issues. She agreed with Commissioner porosin that it is time to begin thinking outside of the box, especially in the face of reduced federal funding. She said it may be time to look at some best practices from other states. Commissioner Pelissier echoed Commissioner Rich's comments about working with their government partners. She said she has asked at past joint meetings about the 80 acres of the green tract, which is jointly owned by Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Orange County. She is interested in looking at ways to do something different with at least some portions of that land. Commissioner Jacobs said he agrees with most of what has been said. He particularly supports Commissioner porosin's thoughts regarding manufactured housing. He said the Board has talked about land banking for awhile, to create community opportunities and alternative options for people at the mercy of mobile home park operators. Commissioner Jacobs said the plan also talks about continued dialogue with the university regarding issues that affect affordable rental opportunities in the area. He suggests taking this a step further, and he would like an update from the manager at a future meeting regarding this partnership. Chair McKee said manufactured housing, and particularly modular homes, do provide opportunities for affordable housing, especially if you own the land. Chair McKee asked Hudson Vaughn to contact the manager's office with the name of the person he mentioned in his earlier comments. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to close the public hearing. VOTE: UNANIMOUS d. Oranqe County's Proposed 2015 Leqislative Aqenda The Board considered 1) conducting a public hearing on Orange County's potential legislative items for the 2015 North Carolina General Assembly Session; 2) closing the public hearing and reviewing and discussing the Legislative Issues Work Group's (LIWG) proposed 2015 legislative package and any other potential items for inclusion in Orange County's legislative agenda package for the 2015 North Carolina General Assembly Session; 3) approving the proposed legislative matters resolution on Statewide Issues; and 4) identifying three to five specific items from the entire package to highlight for priority discussion at the March 23, 2015 meeting with Orange County's legislative delegation. Greg Wilder gave some background information. He noted that Commissioner Rich and Commissioner Pelissier were the two Commissioners who served on the Legislative Issues Work Group. He said the proposals from the work group are listed on attachment 2 of the abstract. Commissioner Pelissier highlighted Items 18 and 19 on page 11 of attachment 2, which were added after suggestions and petitions from Board members and the public. These items read as follows: 18) Sales Tax Distribution Formula — Support legislation directing that all sales tax be distributed on a per capita basis; and 19) Classification of Flavored Alcoholic Beverages (Alcopops) — Support legislation to properly classify flavored alcoholic beverages (Alcopops) as distilled spirits rather than malt beverages. PUBLIC COMMENT: Terry Snow resides in Hillsborough and is a registered engineer. He said a safe and efficient transportation system is vital to a vibrant economy in N.C. He said Orange County has taken a proactive position to change general statute 153A-331, which will allow the flexibility to transfer funds to NCDOT and the municipalities for transportation projects. He said this flexibility will aid in timely planning, design, and construction of roadways. He said this change is good for Orange County and N.C. Del Burns referred to a letter the Board received from Orange County School Board Chair Stephen Halkiotis. He said this memo was regarding three issues, including: calendar flexibility; full funding for state allotments, including ADM growth; and full funding for driver education. He said two of these are financial in nature and could have impacts on both districts. He referred to the second item regarding full funding for state allotments, and he said this addresses changes in the last session of the general assembly, whereby growth in school districts has moved from continuation budgets to expansion budgets. He said this means that growth competes with every other item when the general assembly puts together a budget. He said this means absorbing growth, especially rapid growth, may be a challenge. He said this may result in requests for additional county funding to make up that difference. Del Burns said there has been a declining amount of support for driver education as well, and school systems will now be required to provide driver education while having no guarantee of funding to do so. He said the calendar flexibility issue has been brought forth in the face of the recent inclement weather. He said there are August and June cutoff dates that must be adhered to, and the makeup of the lost time ranges from options that are inconvenient, educationally difficult, or negatively impact worship. He said the Orange County Schools would like to offer options that would be family friendly and educationally sound. He said the calendar legislation limits these options. Del Burns said the Board of Education asks for the Board's consideration of these three issues. Commissioner Jacobs referred to the following: item #17 *Participation in Solid Waste Programs for Recycling—Authorize counties to require county residents to impose a fee for the solid waste collection services in a manner similar to the authority granted to municipalities. The fee may not exceed the costs of collection. He asked John Roberts how this is different from his interpretation of how the law was changed last August. John Roberts said #17 simply asks that the counties be granted the same authority as the towns. Commissioner Rich asked about Item #3, which is related to broadband service. She asked how the new FCC ruling would affect the wording of this item. John Roberts said he does not know that it would change anything. He said the FCC ruling is tentative, and he expects some legal challenges ahead. He said this item is asking for extra authority, as the County's current authority is limited to providing grants to public internet providers. He said counties, unlike cities, do not have legislative authority to operation communications facilities, so the FCC guidelines are directed toward cities. A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to close the public hearing and review and discuss the Legislative Issues Work Group's (LIWG) proposed 2015 legislative package and any other potential items for inclusion in Orange County's legislative agenda package for the 2015 North Carolina General Assembly Session. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Additional item: Commissioner Jacobs said the state legislature is considering a constitutional amendment regarding eminent domain, and one of the drafts was very vague about extending eminent domain to those who provide telecommunication. He suggested the following additional wording: "Oppose adding language to a constitutional amendment on eminent domain that extends any further preemption of county authority to regulate the placement of telecommunication towers." Commissioner porosin said he had the following suggestions to add: • Add an item requesting a raise in the age for juvenile jurisdiction from 16 to 18 years of age. • Add an item requesting a raise in the state minimum wage to 10 dollars an hour. • Request restoration of the state earned income tax credit. • Request state expansion of the Medicaid program. • Add a goal to restore same day voter registration, early voting periods, Sunday voting, and pre-registration of 16 and 17 year olds. • Add a goal that the state should abolish the death penalty. • Support Orange County Schools' request for the addition of three items. • Add the planning request regarding transportation funds. Commissioner porosin said these legislative goals are a statement of the County's values, and it is important to add these things. Chair McKee requested that a separate vote be taken for item #1 so that he can vote against this. He noted that a transfer tax was defeated in Orange County, and it has been passed in several other counties. He would like the option to vote against this one item. There was clarifying discussion noting that the total number of items is now 27, with the three recommendations by OCS being counted as one item. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to approve Item #1 Revenue Options for Local Government. VOTE: Ayes, 6; Nay, 1 (Chair McKee) A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Price to approve the proposed legislative matters resolution on Statewide Issues and additional items. VOTE: UNANIMOUS The Board considered identifying three to five (or more) specific items from the entire package to highlight for priority discussion at the March 23, 2015 meeting with Orange County's legislative delegation. Chair McKee reviewed the items added by Commissioner Jacobs and Commissioner Dorosin. Commissioner Pelissier suggested prioritization of item #4 regarding Smart Start and NC Pre-K should be one of the priority items. Commissioner Price suggested prioritization of item #3 regarding Broadband, and said this is important for this community. Commissioner porosin suggested prioritization of item #21 to raise the age of juvenile jurisdiction. Commissioner Burroughs suggested prioritization of item #27, which includes the three issues identified by OCS items. She also suggested prioritization of item #10 regarding childcare. Commissioner Rich suggested prioritization of item # 24 regarding the expansion of Medicaid. She said this does not have to be a long discussion, but it is worth mentioning. Commissioner Jacobs supports the prioritization of item #11 regarding land, water and agricultural preservation funding. Commissioner Price suggested prioritization of item #8, regarding E-911 funds and #9 regarding Mental Health. Chair McKee noted that nine items have been suggested. Commissioner porosin suggested, if nine priorities are going to be kept, it would be good to group them into categories or themes. Discussion ensued regarding this proposal, and it was suggested that Greg Wilder could help with grouping these items. A motion was made by Commissioner porosin, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to highlight these items for priority discussion at the March 23, 2015 meeting with Orange County's legislative delegation. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 6. Consent Aqenda • Removal of Any Items from Consent Agenda Chair McKee noted that a speaker was present for item 6n - Draft Interlocal Agreement for the Hollow Rock Park and Natural Area — and he asked that this item be pulled. Commissioner Price pulled item 6i for discussion. • Approval of Remaining Consent Agenda A motion was made by Commissioner Pelissier, seconded by Commissioner Rich to approve the remaining items on the consent agenda. VOTE: UNANIMOUS a. Minutes The Board approved the minutes as presented or as amended for May 29, 2014; June 5, 2014; June 12, 2014; January 22, 2015; January 27, 2015; and January 30, 2015 as submitted by the Clerk to the Board. b. Motor Vehicle Property Tax Releases/Refunds The Board accepted the report reflecting the motor vehicle property tax releases/refunds requested in accordance with the NCGS for fourteen (14) taxpayers with a total of sixteen (16) bills that will result in a reduction of revenue, and approving the attached release/refund resolution. c. Property Tax Releases/Refunds The Board adopted a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to release property tax values for eight (8) taxpayers with a total of (11) eleven bills that will result in a reduction of revenue in accordance with North Carolina General Statute 105-381. d. Applications for Property Tax Exemption/Exclusion The Board approved the attached resolution for two (2) untimely applications for exemption/exclusion from ad valorem taxation for two (2) bills for the 2014 tax year. e. Contract Renewal — Removal of Scrap Tires The Board approved a contract renewal with Central Carolina Holdings, LLC of Cameron, North Carolina for the removal of scrap tires and authorized the Chair to sign the agreement. f. Approval to Extend the Cane Creek Fire Insurance District Boundary The Board approved the Cane Creek Fire Insurance District Boundary map which has been expanded to include properties from the White Cross Fire District that are not currently in the rated insurance district for insurance purposes only. g. Approval of Expanded East Alamance Fire Insurance District Boundary The Board approved the East Alamance Fire Insurance District Map which has been expanded to include properties within six road miles of Mebane Fire Department Station 3 located at 1469 Mebane Oaks Road in Alamance County for insurance purposes only. h. Fiscal Year 2014-15 Budqet Amendment#6 The Board approved the budget ordinance amendments for fiscal year 2014-15 for Cooperative Extension; Animal Services/Spay and Neuter Fund; Department on Aging; Library Services; New Hope Volunteer Fire Department; White Cross Fire Department; Sheriff's Department; Department of Social Services; Human Services Non-Departmental; and Other Post Employment Benefits (OPEB) Trust Fund. j. Oranqe Unified Transportation Board (OUTBoard) Policies and Procedures The Board approved a resolution amending OUTBoard Policies and Procedures to include Public Health as an additional area of expertise or interest for representation within its membership composition and authorized the Chair to sign. k. An Amendment to the Oranqe County Board of Commissioners Advisory Board Policy The Board amended the membership requirements of the Orange County Board of Commissioners Advisory Board Policy to set aside board-specific policy requirements dealing with town nominees or geographic requirements if the vacancies affected by those requirements remain unfilled for six (6) consecutive months. I. BOCC Rules of Procedure Revisions The Board approved the changes to the "Rules of Procedure for the Board of Commissioners" regarding Announcements and Petitions by Board Members and the Spokesperson for the Board and update the Rules of Procedure booklet. m. Reimbursement Resolution for FY 2014-15 Capital Proiects and Equipment The Board approved a resolution providing for reimbursement of FY-2014-15 Capital Project costs. • Discussion and Approval of the Items Removed from the Consent Agenda i. Revised Applications, Guidelines & Scorinq Sheets for Oranqe County's Business Investment Grant &Aqriculture Economic Development Grant The Board considered approving revised draft Applications, Guidelines & Scoring Sheets for each of two grant programs — Business Investment Grant & Agriculture Economic Development Grant—which are funded by Article 46 one quarter cent sales tax proceeds to support economic development. Commissioner Price asked if the applications will specify that the amount has to be rounded to whole numbers. Steve Brantley said the wording states that the smaller grant is up to $1,000 for agriculture and up to $1,500 for businesses. Commissioner Price said the small grants are listed as up to $1,000, and large grants as between $1,001 and $10,000. She said people could use the 99 cents gap to work around the system. Steve Brantley said their advisory board can be more specific in order to address this. He said he will bring this to their attention. Chair McKee suggested the wording of"small grants of amounts below $1,000, and large grants from $1,000 to $10,000." Commissioner Price referred to item #9 and the request for grant recipients to provide an accounting of how all funds are used within 180 days of receipt. She asked if this is saying that the recipient must have spent all of the money in that time frame, or if this just means an accounting needs to be provided for what has been used up to that point. Steve Brantley said the language could be changed to say, "how the funds were, or will be, used." A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Rich to approve the revised draft Applications, Guidelines & Scoring Sheets for each of two grant programs — Business Investment Grant & Agriculture Economic Development Grant—which are funded by Article 46 one quarter cent sales tax proceeds to support economic development. with the two proposed changes: 1) to designate small grants as amounts below $1,000 and large grants as amounts from $1,000 to $10,000; and 2) item #9 language will be changed to say "how the funds were, or will be, used." VOTE: UNANIMOUS Steve Brantley gave an update of the website improvements and the digitization of the application. He said the grants and the small business loan programs will be incorporated into the business retention program. n. Draft Interlocal Aqreement for the Hollow Rock Park and Natural Area The Board considered receiving a draft interlocal agreement for the construction and operation of the planned Hollow Rock Park and Natural Area — a planned multi-jurisdictional public park located along New Hope Creek and referring the draft interlocal agreement to the Durham-Chapel Hill-Orange County Work Group for consideration at its March 11 meeting before the agreement comes back to the Board at a future meeting for further discussion and action. PUBLIC COMMENT: Bill Hall said is a resident of Durham County and he lives in an area very close to this park. He said approximately 200 homes rely on Randolph Road for access. He said there is opposition to closing Pickett Road, since this will shift significant traffic to Randolph Road. He said a light is warranted at the intersection at Randolph and Erwin Road, but there are limited options for improving the intersection at Randolph and Pickett Road. He said keeping Pickett Road open and developing a safe park environment is not an either or proposition. He said it is possible to design a safe environment for vehicular and pedestrian traffic. He said the residents first heard about this from the Orange County Board of Commissioners, and he appreciates their consideration. He asked the Board to remember that many residents do not want to close Pickett Road, and he asked that plans be made to keep the road open. Debra Barnes said she is also here to represent the residents of Randolph and the adjoining roads who do not want to close Pickett Road. She said calling the Hollow Rock area a park and making improvements to it does not change the fact that closing a portion of Pickett Road will divert traffic into a residential neighborhood, decrease roadway connectivity, and negatively impact the safety of residents of Randolph and adjoining roads because of increased traffic. She noted the history of this proposal, which included a petition signed by 61 residents in 2011. She said there have been several suggestions that the road closure is not necessary. She noted the increases in traffic on Randolph Road since the 2010 traffic study, and she said a stoplight at Randolph Road and Erwin Road will not be enough to alleviate the increased traffic issues. She discussed a recent accident to illustrate this assertion, and she asked that the idea of closing part of Pickett Road be dropped from the planning process for the Hollow Rock portion of the New Hope Preserve. She said this closure is not necessary, and it will negatively impact the residents of Randolph Road. Commissioner Jacobs asked David Stancil to explain the status of this proposal. David Stancil said this issue has been around since the master plan was created. He said the item before the Board tonight is just an interlocal agreement, and it is actually just a pass through. He said the staff has been discussing what to do next in terms of activities and trails for the park, and it was suggested that the Durham Chapel Hill Orange Work group might be the group to work on this. He said this was placed on the agenda for the sole purpose of referring it to the work group, after which it will come back to the Board. He said the master plan does not take a position on the closure of Pickett Road, and in fact it shows both options. He said tonight's action has no bearing on this, but the Board could possibly take action on this when it comes back from the work group. Commissioner Burroughs said when this comes back to the Board she would like to see updated traffic study information. Commissioner Pelissier said she hopes the work group would do this quickly, as it has been around for a long time, and she would like to have it resolved for the sake of the residents. Commissioner Rich asked when this will be referred to the work group. David Stancil said the group meets next week. Commissioner Price said she would like to ask Durham and Orange County Fire chiefs and Emergency Services directors to review this issue and weigh in with their thoughts. Chair McKee said he does not see anything incompatible with a road and a park. He would like to see these comments passed on to the work group for consideration. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Burroughs to receive the draft interlocal agreement for the construction and operation of the planned Hollow Rock Park and Natural Area — a planned multi-jurisdictional public park located along New Hope Creek and referring the draft interlocal agreement to the Durham-Chapel Hill-Orange County Work Group for consideration at its March 11 meeting before the agreement comes back to the Board at a future meeting for further discussion and action. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 7. Reqular Aqenda a. Approval of Broker of Record for Employee Benefits The Board considered approving the recommendation of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. as the County's Broker of Record for Employee Benefit programs, and authorizing the Manager, pending final review by the Human Resources Director and the County Attorney, to sign the contract with Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and to further authorize the Manager to sign any amendments or renewals thereto. Brenda Bartholomew read the following background information: BACKGROUND: Orange County issued a Request for Proposals to obtain the services of a Broker of Record to consult with the County in the management of its employee benefit programs. The purpose of the Request for Proposal (RFP) was to solicit offers from qualified brokers to assist the County with strategically planning, designing and negotiating the best coverage and cost for selective employee benefit programs, which may include but are not necessarily limited to health, dental, vision, and other voluntary programs for employees and retirees. Under the direction of County Purchasing Agent David Cannell, Employee Benefits Broker RFP 5208 was issued on November 12, 2014. Responses were due by prospective vendors by December 9, 2014 and were extended one week thereafter. Four vendors responded with written proposals to the RFP, as follows: Mark III Employee Benefits (the County's current Broker of Record) Willis Group Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. SennDunn Insurance / Marsh & McLennan The four written proposals were initially reviewed on January 9, 2015 by the County's internal Health Advisory Committee, a six-member employee Committee appointed by the Manager. Following this initial review, David Cannell further facilitated Committee interviews with all four vendors on January 29, 2015. Following reviews of the written proposals and the vendor interviews, the Committee recommended to County Manager Bonnie Hammersley that Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. be selected as the Broker of Record for Orange County. Human Resources Director Brenda Bartholomew and the Manager have conducted follow-up discussions and made contact with other governmental units who are current Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. clients. Based on these discussions and reference checks, the Manager concurs with the Health Advisory Committee's recommendation. Wesley Grigston from Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. said he works out of the Charlotte office of Gallagher Benefit Services, and his team will be assigned to Orange County. He said this includes two benefit consultants, an underwriting consultant, a health management consultant, a compliance director, and an account manager. He invited questions from the Board. Commissioner Price asked if the broker is alternated as a means of establishing a system of checks and balances. Bonnie Hammersley said this is the first RFP the County has done for a Broker of Record. A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Jacobs for the Board to approve the recommendation of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. as the County's Broker of Record for Employee Benefit programs, and authorize the Manager, pending final review by the Human Resources Director and the County Attorney, to sign the contract with Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and to further authorize the Manager to sign any amendments or renewals thereto. VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Family Success Alliance Request for Social Justice Fundinq and Approval of Budqet Amendment#6-A The Board considered approving Budget Amendment#6-A transferring $10,000 from the Social Justice fund to the Health Department for the Family Success Alliance (FSA) in order for 12 members to attend the Harlem Children's Zone Practitioner's Institute. Colleen Bridger said she was here to represent the Family Success Alliance. She said the Alliance's first request is for the allocation of$10,000 from the social justice fund to cover half of the cost for 12 members to attend the Harlem Children's Zone Practitioner's Institute. She said participants will spend three days observing this program in order to help implement it in Orange County. Commissioner Rich asked if the Board will see a full budget for the Family Success Alliance to show what will be spent for the 2015-16 calendar. Colleen Bridger said the alliance is in the middle of a gap analysis. She said once these gaps are known, there will be a process to work with the two zones to prioritize how best to address them. She said this plan will then come to the Board, along with a definition of the budget. Commissioner Rich asked if this will become a line item in the regular budget, or if it will always be a request from the social justice fund. Bonnie Hammersley said this has not been decided yet. She said this may have been addressed already in a budget amendment. She said this has already been allocated, so staff will look at how to address it moving forward. Commissioner Rich said a certain amount will be put into the Social Justice fund, but it might be a good idea to move this funding to be a regular line item. Commissioner Burroughs said she was pleased to see that there is a workshop on the evaluation. She thinks it is good to have an evaluation tool in place from the beginning. Commissioner Pelissier said there has been some discussion of possible opportunities for additional funds from United Way. She said this might provide additional money for the implementation of services and programs. Colleen Bridger said that process is under way. A motion was made by Commissioner porosin, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier for the Board to approve Budget Amendment#6-A transferring $10,000 from the Social Justice Fund to the Health Department to pay for Family Success Alliance attendance at the Harlem Children's Zone Practitioners Institute. VOTE: UNANIMOUS c. Land "Swap" Transaction —416 Faucette Mill Road, Hillsborouqh The Board considered: 1) approving a land recombination ("land swap") transaction with AlterVue, LLC involving adjacent parcels to mutually benefit the County and AlterVue, LLC with regard to the integrity of a single family residential property located at 416 Faucette Mill Road and adjacent County owned property that may be used for future affordable housing development; 2) donating the resulting County parcel to Habitat for Humanity of Orange County for the purpose of developing an affordable single family housing unit; 3) authorizing the Chair to sign the necessary paperwork upon final review of the County Attorney; and 4) supporting the Manager's efforts in pursuing similar efforts to analyze under-utilized or vacant parcels owned by the County that may be suitable for future affordable housing development. Jeff Thompson introduced Nick Nickerson, an Orange County resident and the owner of this property. Jeff Thompson referred to a map and said Nick Nickerson has purchased the property on Faucette Mill Road as an investment, with plans to put it back on the market as a residential unit. He referred to another map showing that the property line straddles a County property that was acquired in a tax foreclosure. He said staff has been able to work out a land swap of the Alterview property plus non-monetary compensation in exchange for County property. He said the non-monetary compensation is the engineering work and due diligence and survey work to generate the swap. He said this allows the AlterVue/Nickerson property to be conforming to the UDO, and it also allows a County property, that has not been worthy of anything prior to today, to potentially be used as a single family home lot for affordable housing. He said the donation of this lot has been accepted by Habitat for Humanity, pending final attorney review of this transaction. He said staff will continue supporting the Manager's efforts to analyze vacant County properties for possible generation of lots for affordable housing. Commissioner Price asked how the County decided to give the lot to Habitat for Humanity versus other affordable housing entities. Jeff Thompson said this was a result of the County's relationship with Habitat and their acceptance of that lot as part of the due diligence. Commissioner Price asked if there is an agreement with only Habitat to take these kinds of County properties. Jeff Thompson said no. He said this could be available to other organizations as well. Commissioner Price asked what her answer would be if someone asked why Habitat got this. John Roberts said this is just a proposal to dispose of a residential property that the County can only use to build affordable housing. He said the prior relationship with Habitat led staff to suggest this to the Board. He said if the Board decides to do something else, that is their choice. Commissioner Price said there are several affordable housing organizations in the County, and she wonders how one is chosen over another. Chair McKee said he would suggest taking the first and second recommendations as separate motions. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price to approve a land recombination ("land swap") transaction with AlterVue, LLC involving adjacent parcels to mutually benefit the County and AlterVue, LLC with regard to the integrity of a single family residential property located at 416 Faucette Mill Road. Commissioner porosin said he echoes Commissioner Price's comments regarding the selection of the organizations they work with moving forward. He praises this effort, and he thinks it is a good way to maximize resources. He said he wishes that two homes could be built on the lot. He said this is the kind of opportunity where the County could approach Hillsborough to ask for flexibility in these efforts to work on affordable housing. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Chair McKee opened the floor for a discussion on the issue of donating to the various affordable housing entities. He asked if anyone else is following Habitat's scattered site model. Jeff Thompson said not directly. He said Habitat was approached by AlterVue as part of the due diligence process to see if this lot was attractive to them. He said other organizations can certainly be approached. Nick Nickerson said it was his initiative to contact Habitat, and it was not a conscious decision to not go with someone else. Commissioner Rich questioned whether this is a lot where only one home can be built. Jeff Thompson said, per the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) for Hillsborough, it is available for only for one home. He said it is possible to go back and ask for a special exception, but as it stands now, it is an administrative adjustment to the UDO. Bonnie Hammersley said this can be done in a way that will allow proposals from other organizations. This can be for this one parcel or for other properties going forward. She said the County could give specifications to the affordable housing entities requesting that they provide proposals. Commissioner Rich said it is also important to get the towns involved. Bonnie Hammersley agreed and said it is important to maximize the potential and work with the partners as much as possible. Commissioner Pelissier said if the County is going to talk to different organizations, there needs to be some sort of criteria in place to determine which is chosen. Bonnie Hammersley said this would be determined at a staff level. Commissioner Jacobs said that the point about working with different organizations is a good one. He said Nick Nickerson partially got excited about this transaction because Habitat worked so well with him. He said he would not want to pull the rug out from Habitat on this particular transaction, but he thinks it is a good idea not to default to one organization moving forward. Commissioner Jacobs said he feels that the acreage on this should be enough for more than one unit, so he thinks staff should have some discussion with both Hillsborough and Habitat about the possibility of a duplex. Commissioner porosin said he agrees that the rug should not be pulled out from Habitat, but it would not be unreasonable to see if this can become a duplex to maximize the space. Chair McKee said he agrees with not taking this from Habitat, but he would like to revisit Hillsborough regarding the idea of two units on the lot. Commissioner porosin questioned the best order of events in light of the need for a discussion with Hillsborough. Bonnie Hammersley said staff will talk to Hillsborough first and then bring it back to the Board before the donation. She said this can be done quickly. A motion was made by Commissioner porosin, seconded by Commissioner Burroughs to table items 3 through 5 until the Board hears back from staff on the questions that have been raised. VOTE: UNANIMOUS A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Pelissier to authorize the Chair to sign the necessary paperwork upon final review of the County Attorney for the land swap on Faucette Mill Road. VOTE: UNANIMOUS d. Potential Notice of Board's Intent to Schedule a November 2016 Bond Referendum and Discussion on Proposed Creation of a Capital Needs Advisory Task Force The Board considered: 1) Formally expressing its intent to schedule a November 2016 Bond Referendum to address County and School capital needs; 2) Discussing the proposed creation of, structure, and charge for a proposed Capital Needs Advisory Task Force that would provide recommendations to the Board regarding the elements to be included in the referendum and consider approval; and 3) Directing the County Manager to arrange for the services of a qualified facilitator for the Task Force. Bonnie Hammersley referenced the proposal before the Commissioners. She said this abstract was composed to mirror the 2001 bond referendum abstract. She said the attachments provide information from the previous bond referendum, and this item is for the Board's discussion. Commissioner McKee said this is starting much earlier than the timeframe allowed for the 2001 referendum. He said this allows time to get this right. Commissioner Price said if a facilitator is hired, it would be good to get someone with experience in dealing with government, and perhaps some familiarity in dealing with bonds. Commissioner Pelissier referred to the last item on page 4, and she asked if the language regarding the Capital Investment Plan implied that anything and everything is on the table for a bond referendum. She said there needs to be a specific focus. She questioned whether there would be a need to look at the entire CIP if only certain things were wanted on the bond referendum. Bonnie Hammersley said if the Board identifies a certain need, in affordable housing for example, and that information is in the CIP, then it will be pretty succinct as to the issue. She said this is how she reads that, and it mirrors the last bond referendum. Commissioner porosin questioned why a facilitator is needed. He asked if this could be handled by someone on staff who is familiar with the Board's goals and needs. Bonnie Hammersley said the facilitation of types of projects is always a very important part of the project, and internal facilitation can sometimes be less effective because they know too much about the issue. She said some of the best facilitators do not know the issue well. She said it is a good idea to hire someone who has experience in bond referendums, but not necessarily Orange County bond referendums. She said an objective view is good. She will take the Commissioners comments into consideration moving forward. Commissioner porosin referred to the proposed composition of the task force. He said if the school boards appoint members of the school board to sit on the task force, then it will not necessarily just be a group of citizens, as there will be elected people as well. He would suggest that the appointed people should not be elected officials. He thinks that there will be some critique of this process, and the more organic it can be the better. Commissioner Rich asked about the schedule. She questioned when the information will be requested from the schools. She said this is necessary before any discussion can start. Bonnie Hammersley said the information gathering is happening now, and the CIP will include all of this. She said staff has received lists from both school districts. She said these lists are not comparing apples to apples. She said Chapel Hill Carrboro Schools (CHCCS) has included the needs of all schools built prior to 1990, and the list from Orange County Schools (OCS) lists all schools' needs. She said CHCCS has prioritized their list, and OCS is working on this now. She said this information will be in the appendices to the CIP. Commissioner Rich asked where information regarding affordable housing will come from. She asked if this will just include Orange County's information or if it will include the needs of their partners as well. She is just wondering about the information flow. Bonnie Hammersley said the entities were invited to speak at the Capital Needs Task Force for the referendum in 2001, and that is how the information came forward then. Chair McKee said the schedule is just conceptual at this point, and nothing is set in stone. Commissioner Jacobs said in 2001 there were co-chairs who facilitated. He said people with leadership skills can be appointed, or there may just be advisory board members appointed who are noted for facilitating conversations. He said it is more organic to have the group settle out into who is going to facilitate, and then the Board can intervene if there is a problem. Commissioner Jacobs said it is a mistake to take the towns out of the composition. He said it is important to have either an elected official or an appointed person from the towns. He said this will help the process and it will create buy-in. Commissioner Jacobs said if there are going to be any elected officials there should be Commissioners on this task force. He said he has no problem with having elected officials from the schools. He feels it would be a mistake to have a group of citizens with other elected officials and no representation from the Board of Commissioners. Commissioner Jacobs said if it is a genuine process then the Board does not tell the task force what the Commissioners hope the outcome will be. He said this is an opportunity for the task force to talk about what is of interest and they can look at the CIP for guidance. He said it is better to let them work it out and bring it forth to be voted up or down. He said if there are Commissioners present, they would not be there to drive things in any direction. Bonnie Hammersley noted that there is a reference on page 2 stating that there is an appointment for each town. Commissioner Burroughs said she understands the value of buy-in and the desire for an organic process; however, she said there are already such clearly illustrated needs, including school needs, and affordable housing needs, and there is a limited pot of money. She said the sooner that the broader topics have been settled, the better the work of the committee will be, because there will be a focus. She said she comes from a background of thinking it is better to be more directed, at least on the two issues that are already clearly identified. Commissioner Price said she had the same question about the need for a facilitator. She said if there are clear reasons to hire a facilitator, it will be necessary to thoroughly vet the person. Commissioner Pelissier feels the Board does need to narrow down what they want in the bond referendum. She said public buy-in is important, but her concern is that the proposed task force composition may be setting up false expectations. She said the schools already want a level of money that is nowhere near what will be put on a bond referendum, but it is clear that the schools will be part of this. Commissioner Pelissier said she had a discussion with a Chapel Hill town council member about affordable housing, and it may be a good idea to see what Chapel Hill puts on their bond as relates to affordable housing. She suggested that staff be asked to work behind the scenes with Chapel Hill to work this out. Commissioner Rich said Chapel Hill voted last night on the topics that would be moved forward in the bond discussion. She said this has narrowed the list down. Commissioner Rich said the purpose of a bond is to involve citizens. She said citizens are voting on a tax for themselves, and it does not seem organic to set limits. She questioned why you would not want to get opinions from residents. Commissioner Jacobs said it is important to set some limits. He said as soon as the school needs came up, he suggested a bond issue discussion. He said it is reasonable to tell the group that a preponderance of the funding will go to the schools, and the group will need to hash this out. He said 68 percent went to the schools last time. He said he does not want to say up front that seniors are to be discounted or that the parks system should not be developed. He said it is not fair to go in and say that the bond will only support two things, as it is a disservice to people who care about the other things and would like to make their case. He said it is good to set parameters, money, and preponderance, and then allow people to work the rest of it out. Commissioner Burroughs said there is always the opportunity for the residents to make their concerns known through the regular budget process and the CIP discussion. She said she does not see it as cutting people out, but there are well known needs that are a priority. She said ultimately the Board is elected to think about these issues and make decisions. She said her representation side is weighing more heavily after years of hearing about these two particular issues. She said that tone can be set without discounting what others have advocated for. Chair McKee said the County has built schools and purchased land without going through a bond process. He is not sure that everything that everyone wants should be financed by a bond. He said parks could be done with regular financing, if all of the borrowing power is not used up. He said there is also a jail that needs to be built. He wants to hold back on some amount of borrowing ability to take care of the needs between 2017 and 2020. Chair McKee said he is uncomfortable with the fact that there is no clear identification of school priorities. He said if these needs are so great, then the bond may need to be only for the schools. He has a very unclear idea of what the school needs will be before 2020. He said if a bond is passed in November of 2016, the funds will probably be accessed in mid 2017, and even if plans are in place, it will be 2019 until a school is built. He would like a clear picture of the school needs prior to 2019, so that this money can be taken out of a bond and be put in the CIP under regular funding to address those projects. Chair McKee said it is disingenuous to ask a task force to expect other project funding when there are really one or two priorities that the Board of County Commissioners may be interested in. He said it is important to be very honest with this task force. He sees his position as an elected official to be responsible to make that decision regardless of the comfort level or the re-election potential. He feels the concentration should be on the schools, and he thinks a decision on whether to place this on the 2016 ballot should wait until they get information from the schools. Commissioner porosin said the schools will take as much as they can get. He agrees that if there are 4 votes to create a bond only for schools then that vote should be taken and the committee should be told. He said if the will of this Board is to only do a bond for schools and affordable housing then there is no need for a task force. Commissioner porosin said even with a citizens' committee the Board will not necessarily hear from the whole County. He said it is an insider's game, and the task force will be made up of people who are interested. He said the point of a bond is to get the public to make decisions as to what they want the Board of County Commissioners to support. He said some general categories can be set, and then the Board can see what other ideas bloom. He said this is a good way to take the temperature of the community. Commissioner Jacobs said his comments were along similar lines. He said if people have already made up their minds, then there is no point to impanel a group of citizens. He thinks the Board should listen to the community. He said the Board can certainly tell the public upfront what percentage of the money will go to schools, but he wants to hear what the community thinks. He suggested an invitation for public comment on the bond topics. Commissioner Burroughs said the schools will take as much money as they are given, because the needs are so great. She said the schools know how to stretch a dime to make the buildings better for the children and the staff. Commissioner Burroughs said she has expressed a real interest in affordable housing, and she is interested in a task force to determine the optimal way to spend this money. She said you can think about a task force as a way of defining goals within a specific subject area. Commissioner Rich said a task force has more than one job. She said part of this is to help identify what goes on the bond, and the other part is helping educate the public about the bond. She said if the bond is only going to be for schools then that vote should be taken now. Commissioner Pelissier said she does not agree that if you limit the topics there is no need for a task force. She said even if it were just schools, there are still decisions about priorities and the allocation of the resources. She said affordable housing encompasses a lot of different needs, and there are a lot of things here that could be discussed and prioritized. Chair McKee said with this bond issuance, he is supportive of schools and affordable housing. He said that does not mean that other items cannot be funded through regular financing. He noted that this is what Chapel Hill is proposing. He said there is no need to limit items just because they are not on a bond. He said just because a bond is passed, it does not mean that the public is supportive of the item. He is not expecting full buy-in, and he is prepared for this. Commissioner Jacobs said he would be perfectly comfortable doing what Chapel Hill did with the use of bond and private financing. He said a statement can be made to reflect these intentions, and the public can still be asked to speak into it. He would like to see all of these options on the table at the same time. He said the schools could probably tell you how that money could be spent, but for some of the other issues, people could provide discussion. He said the suggestion based on Chapel Hill's approach may be the best approach. Chair McKee said the absolute priorities can be determined and included in the bond, and then the other priorities can be done in staged intervals. Commissioner Pelissier said when she said she would like to limit the topics for the bond referendum, she also presumed all along that the Board has their CIP and would fund topics accordingly. She said this discussion points to the need to find a different way to engage the public in the CIP. She said the Board does not start out informing the public of the debt capacity before taxes would need to be raised. Commissioner porosin said it may be good at some point to vote on the bond priorities, and then he would like some more information on the other idea of funding. He does not like the idea of just saying that items will go on the CIP, and he would like to see items spelled out in an independent resolution. He is interested in a different type of strategic funding, but it needs to be clear. He suggested that this be put on the agenda for a vote and information be provided on the Chapel Hill funding model. He said, following this, there could be a public hearing to gather the desired input. Commissioner Burroughs said if they pursue this concept, she is interested in hearing from Bonnie Hammersley regarding the strategic thinking about the CIP. Bonnie Hammersley said she has some school information and the recommended CIP, which includes items that would not be considered part of the referendum. She said staff could take a look at this more closely as to how items fit into the CIP. She said the renovations being done by Carrboro are creating more seats and putting off building a school. She said this creates some more room. She said it is possible to look at different options to determine the maximum ability on the CIP and the bond referendum or a hybrid model. Chair McKee said he would like to get the priorities from OCS as quickly as possible so that the finance department can compare these numbers with the total borrowing capacity. He said this could help with an informal discussion at a work session. Public Comment: Submitted by Bonnie Hauser via email Dear Commissioners: As you know, many of us will be in Efland or Carrboro tonight discussing affordability and cannot appear at the county commissioner meeting to offer our view on the possible bond referendum. Please accept this as public comment and enter it into the public record. There is growing sentiment throughout the community that it is too premature to county to ask its citizens to approve a bond for schools or other initiatives. Affordability is a major issue in Orange County, and a 5% tax increase will make things worse. We'd prefer to see the county pursue better planning and priority setting. Based on your budgets, it appears that county plans to continue to spend lavishly on parks, offices and waste facilities while schools sit in embarrassing disrepair waiting for voters to approve a bond and a tax increase. The bond followed by a property tax revaluation could have disastrous effects on already struggling real estate markets and economic development initiatives. You have already heard our concerns about the county's outdated park plans - yet these parks continue to show in the county's capital plan. Plus, there's nearly $20 million planned for expanded offices on Revere Road, Southern Human Services, and at the new Blackwood Farm Park. While none of these projects are bad in themselves, given the needs at many of our aging schools, the timing couldn't be worse. We also remain concerned that the county and school boards have not fully vetted the school capital requests or attempted to place them on a timeline. For example, OCS doesn't need $30 million for HVAC systems this year. Over time, these expenses will be quite manageable. Similarly, spending millions on new offices for both school districts shouldn't be a priority - especially given the surplus of lower priced office space throughout the county. Reliable heating, roofs and mold-free schools are a priority and should be funded now. There's growing concern about CHCCS new plan for a centralized pre-K. Many believe it will exacerbate challenges that low income families already face with transportation and getting their kids to school. We believe that a plan to increase pre-K at every elementary school would be better aligned to the community's priorities for poverty and the achievement gap. That will require more planning. Of course this is in addition to the uncertainty around the impact of development, aging and lack of affordable housing on school enrollment growth. As you know, enrollment at both school districts is relatively flat. If this continues, it will slow the need to expand schools. The county's conservative revenue accounting is also creating problems. County revenue projections do not factor in expected revenue increases from growth - even though town leaders are rapidly approving new commercial and residential projects. That, plus the county's repeated surpluses ($7.5 million just last year), could fund essential school maintenance. Reshuffling of county and school projects - and assuring high priority projects are funded first, would go a long way to free up funds for essential repairs and maintenance. There are other options to contain or defer spending on non-essentials. If better planning is not enough, commissioners always have the option to increase debt and raise taxes without voter approval. Please vote against pursuing a ballot referendum at this time, and instead commit to work with schools and county staff to develop better plans and funding polices that assure all county assets, including our schools, are kept in good repair. Thank you for considering this view. Bonnie Hauser 919 732-9316 919 619-4354 (cell) 8. Reports - NONE 9. County Manaqer's Report Bonnie Hammersley noted two future work sessions and the following discussion items: Proiected March 5, 2015 Reqular Work Session Items Updates and Recommendations for Employee Benefits Effective July 1, 2015 Orange County Bus and Rail Investment Plan Annual Report Capital Investment Plan (CIP) Presentation 10. County Attorney's Report John Roberts said last week the FCC preempted state regulation of municipal broadband services. He said he cannot comment on how far this decision goes. He said if this only applies to municipalities that operate broadband and the FCC decision holds up, then the County could look at getting into the broadband service at some point in the future. He said he will keep the Board updated on this. 11. Appointments a. Animal Services Advisory Board The Board considered making an appointment to the Animal Services Advisory Board. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price to appoint: • Appointment to a first full term (Position #11) Animal Welfare/Animal Advocacy for Ms. Molly Mullin ending 06/30/2017. POSITION NAME SPECIAL EXPIRATION NO. REPRESENTATIVE DATE 11 Ms. Molly Mullin Animal Welfare/Animal 06/30/2017 Advocacy VOTE: UNANIMOUS b. Board of Health —Appointment The Board considered making an appointment to the Board of Health. A motion was made by Commissioner Pelissier, seconded by Commissioner Price to appoint: • Appointment to a partial term (position #2) At-Large Pharmacist for Mr. Dan Dewitya expiring 06/30/2016. POSITION NAME SPECIAL EXPIRATION NO. REPRESENTATIVE DATE 2 Mr. Dan Dewitya At-Large Pharmacist 06/30/2016 VOTE: UNANIMOUS c. Nursinq Home Community Advisory Committee —Appointments The Board considered making appointments to the Nursing Home Community Advisory Committee. A motion was made by Commissioner Pelissier, seconded by Commissioner Price to appoint the following: • Appointment to a first full term (Position #5) At-Large Nursing Home Administration for Ms. Sandra Nash ending 06/30/17. • Appointment to a one year training term (Position #7) At-Large Nursing Home Administration for Mr. Bill Crittenden ending 02/03/2016. • Appointment to a one year training term (Position #11) At-Large Nursing Home Administration for Ms. Maria Hardin ending 02/03/2016. POSITION NAME SPECIAL EXPIRATION NO. REPRESENTATIVE DATE 5 Ms. Sandra Nash At-Large Nursing Home 06/30/2017 Administration 7 Mr. Bill Crittenden At-Large one year training 02/03/2016 term 11 Ms. Maria Hardin At-Large one year training 02/03/2016 term VOTE: UNANIMOUS A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price to appoint Nick Galvez to position #1 "At-Large". VOTE: UNANIMOUS d. Oranqe County Housinq Authority—Appointments The Board considered making appointments to the Orange County Housing Authority. A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner porosin to appoint the following: • Appointment to a first full term (Position #3) At-Large for Ms. Tammy Jacobs expiring 06/30/2019. • Appointment to a first full term (Position #5) At-Large for Mr. Daniel Bullock expiring 06/30/2017. POSITION NAME SPECIAL EXPIRATION NO. REPRESENTATIVE DATE 3 Ms. Tammy Jacobs At-Large 06/30/2019 5 Mr. Daniel Bullock At-Large 06/30/2017 VOTE: UNANIMOUS A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner porosin to appoint Mark Marcoplos to position #6 — "At Large" position with an expiration date of June 30, 2019. VOTE: UNANIMOUS 12. Board Comments Commissioner Jacobs handed out information from the Durham Chapel Hill Metropolitan Planning Organization regarding the economic impact of the pedestrian bridge that goes over Interstate 40. Commissioner Price said she attended NACo legislative conference, and she did her best to represent Orange County. She thanked Steve Brantley for his help with the PowerPoint presentation. Commissioner Rich said the Chapel Hill fencing team won the state championship again. Commissioner Rich said she could not attend the Pauli Murray Awards because it was on the same day as the Dean Smith memorial. She discussed this with a Hillsborough commissioner who did not know about this information. She suggested that all elected officials should receive an invite to these events. She said it is important to pull these people in. Commissioner Pelissier said all elected officials need to receive a special invite to events. She said that she did a tour of the Durham Orange Light Rail, and it was great. She highly recommends doing this. She noted that there will be a presentation of the results of the light rail environmental study on March 18th from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Friday Center. Commissioner Burroughs said she toured the Animal Shelter today, and what struck her the most was the stark contrast to their jail, particularly as it relates to working conditions. Chair McKee said he attended the Justice United Assembly on Sunday with several other Commissioners. He said the assembly is very concerned with the issue of affordable housing and homelessness. He said more will be heard from them as the bond discussion proceeds. Chair McKee said Commissioner Jacobs had spoken at the Pauli Murray awards, and he did a great job. Chair McKee said the Commissioners should all have received a lunch invitation from Congressman Mark Walker. He said regardless of whether you agree with his politics, it would be good to go in order to make sure he understands the needs of Orange County. Clerk Donna Baker noted that she sent an invitation on January 30th to all of the clerks to forward to their elected officials regarding the Pauli Murray awards. Commissioner Jacobs suggested that future invitations should be sent directly to each elected official. Donna Baker said this can be done from here forward. 13. Information Items • Tax Collector's Report— Numerical Analysis • Tax Collector's Report— Measure of Enforced Collections • Tax Assessor's Report— Releases/Refunds under $100 • Memo Regarding Staff Response to Petition Impervious Surface Issues • Memo Regarding "The Edge" Proposed Development Project in the Town of Chapel Hill's Planning Jurisdiction 14. Closed Session - NONE 15. Adiournment A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Rich to adjourn the meeting at 11:26 p.m. VOTE: UNANIMOUS Earl McKee, Chair Donna S. Baker Clerk to the Board