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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 06-06-2017 - 6-c - Request to Name the Emergency Services Building as the Philip “Nick” Waters Center 1 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: June 6, 2017 Action Agenda Item No. 6-c SUBJECT: Request to Name the Emergency Services Building as the Philip "Nick" Waters Center DEPARTMENT: County Manager ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: 1) Letter from Dinah Jeffries, Orange Bonnie Hammersley, 919-245-2300 County Emergency Services Director 2) Orange County Property Naming Policy PURPOSE: To discuss naming the Emergency Services building at 510 Meadowlands Drive in Hillsborough as the Philip "Nick" Waters Center. BACKGROUND: Philip "Nick" Waters was the Director of the Orange County Emergency Services Department from 1988 to 2004. Mr. Waters passed away after a short battle with cancer on April 21, 2004. The current Emergency Services Director, Dinah Jeffries, has requeted that the Board of Orange County Commissioners (BOCC) name the Emergency Services building at 510 Meadowlands Drive in Hillsborough as the Philip "Nick" Waters Center because of Mr. Waters many contributions to Emergency Services in Orange County. These contributions included: • In 1993, Philip "Nick" Waters led the opening of the new 911 Center located at 1914 New Hope Church Road with all new and state-of-the-art equipment. • In 1998, Philip "Nick" Waters spoke in favor of certification for 911 Tele- communicators under the umbrella of the Sheriff's Commission and the Commission voted to make certification mandatory for all Sheriff controlled 911 Centers. • Philip "Nick" Waters saw the need and hired the first Orange County Fire Marshal and first Emergency Management Coordinator. • Philip "Nick" Waters led Orange County through multiple disasters and with each disaster Mr. Waters saw an opportunity to teach and better prepare for the next one. Mr. Waters prepared the Emergency Services staff to be present and prepared to help residents and colleagues. • Philip "Nick" Waters was a mentor to each of the Emergency Services employees and constantly encouraged going outside of the "comfort zones." Mr. Waters 2 taught the employees, the community and many of government partners how to effectively react and respond to a crisis. Philip "Nick" Waters was recognized by many in the community for his dedication to leading the emergency responders in Orange County. Mr. Waters encouraged staff to do their best with the gifts and resources available and to always share their knowledge. In memory and appreciation of Philip "Nick" Waters' efforts, the proposal to name the Emergency Services building at 510 Meadowlands as the Philip "Nick" Waters Center is presented to the Board of Orange County Commissioners for consideration. FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no immediate financial impact related to this discussion. SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: The following Orange County Social Justice Goal is applicable to this item: • GOAL: ENABLE FULL CIVIC PARTICIPATION Ensure that Orange County residents are able to engage government through voting and volunteering by eliminating disparities in participation and barriers to participation. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board receive the request and information for consideration regarding naming the Emergency Services building at 510 Meadowlands Drive as the Philip "Nick" Waters Center and, as outlined in the Board's attached policy: 2.6 Upon receipt of the report and the recommendations of the Manager, the BOCC will state its intent to consider the adoption of a resolution for the naming or renaming of the public building, facility or land at the next or some subsequent meeting as determined by the BOCC. couNre Attachment 1 3 *or!, Orange County %;! Emergency Services 'A- . u.rna ......Jeffries aI u.re tor 510 Meadowlands Drive owERGet404 Hillsborough,NC 27278 seRvIces 919.245.6100 December 7, 2016 Bonnie Hammersley Orange County Manager Post Office Box 8181 Hillsborough, North Carolina 27278 Dear County Manager Hammersley: I am writing this letter to request that Orange County Emergency Services be allowed to pursue naming our building in recognition of the most innovative and community oriented director this County has ever been fortunate enough to have in its service. Please allow me to quickly summarize his achievements. Colonel Philip "Nick" Waters came to Orange County in 1988. He faced every challenge with an "out of the box" approach. His experience in law enforcement, EMS, fire and even 9-1-1 afforded him the opportunity to collaborate and open doors based on his understanding of needs and resources. Some, but certainly not all, of his accomplishments included: 1. Only 1 of 2 Emergency Management Directors who stood before the NC Sheriff's Commission and spoke in favor of certification for 9-1-1 Telecommunicators under the umbrella of the Sheriff's Commission. He was vocal across the State and his voice was heard when in 1998 the Commission voted to make it mandatory for all Sheriff controlled 9-1-1 Centers and opened the doors for any agency wishing to do so would be welcomed to certify. 2. In 1998, Colonel Waters pushed a new initiative—the first in the nation—called "Welcome to the World." An Orange County Paramedic would be contacting families of newborns to schedule a home visit. Included in the visit was a safety check to help assist parents in providing a safe environment for a newborn. This safety check was designed to identify items and issues, which have been shown to place young infants and preschool children at risk for injury or illness.The program was greatly appreciated and welcomed in the Orange County communities, but the program did not survive after the death of Colonel Waters. 3. Another initiative, and the first in the nation, was the Initial Response Paramedic Program.This program was designed to incorporate Paramedics into the community by having them respond A Prepared, Coordinated, and Integrated Emergency Services System I r° V:I( r( ?aac ic( ri,(ner 4 in a vehicle with or without an ambulance and/or first responders.This program was extremely successful in providing education, building community relations, providing in-home care and making effective referrals to more appropriate care other than the emergency department.This program was dismantled in 2010. 4. Organized a meeting, as one of very few EM Directors in the State, to speak up and demand answers regarding the vulnerability of spent fuel and waste pools at the Shearon Harris Plant in case of a terrorist attack. He challenged NC Emergency Management's preparedness and emphasized the need to focus more on the response to public safety rather than to the industry. 5. In 1993, Colonel Waters led the opening of the new 9-1-1 Center located at 1914 New Hope Church Rd. with all new and state-of-the-art equipment. 6. Colonel Waters saw the need and hired the first OC Fire Marshal and first Emergency Management Coordinator. 7. Hosted multiple international groups who were fascinated with Colonel Waters' approach to a consolidated system and advanced emergency medical system.Though the majority of these groups were from the Soviet Union and were all military ranked males, Nick demanded that they acknowledge and speak with his female leadership.This was the type of leader he was. If you earned it, you deserved to be respected for it. I could list several more pages of Nick's achievements. He led this County through multiple disasters and with each disaster he saw an opportunity to teach and better prepare for the next one. We learned very quickly that regardless of where a disaster occurred, we were to be present and prepared to help any of our colleagues who needed help. During the 9/11 attacks, Nick shared with us that even though we weren't damaged in Orange County, this attack was a direct hit to all emergency services responders nationwide. He took the time to mentor each and every one of his employees and constantly encouraged going outside of our"comfort zones." He taught, not only his employees, but the community and many of our government partners, how to react and respond to a crisis. Reverend Freeland, through Nick's interaction with Orange Congregations in Mission, described him as a man "who cared about the fragile and the disenfranchised." He encouraged us to do our very best with the gifts and resources we were given and to always make sure we passed our knowledge down. We continue to share his philosophy and leadership with each and every employee in our agency. He never asked for recognition, but his absence made us all realize how much he was truly appreciated by all he touched. He embraced the community and believed in and supported the cause of every single emergency responder across the country. No job was unimportant and no task was beneath him. He set - 2 - 5 an example that I am proud to say still lives within many of us. "Never compromise your integrity. Leaders don't fight for popularity, they fight for what is right." Nick died after a short battle with cancer on April 21, 2004. His absence is still felt by many across the State, but his voice continues to ring loudly as a strong reminder, every single day, why we dedicate our lives to this business. Thank you for the consideration of our request. Sincerely, Anot:asicoriii, �Wy Dinah L.Jeffries, Director Orange County Emergency Services djeffries @orangecountync.gov - 3 - Attachment 2 6 POLICY FOR INSERTION INTO THE POLICY MANUAL MEETING DATE: February 21, 1989 NUMBER: A-0390 EFFECTIVE DATE: February 21, 1989 REVISIONS:November 9, 2005 March 3, 2009 November 17, 2015 December 16, 2016 POLICY: Orange County Property Naming Policy Policy "Policy Statement" County owned buildings,facilities and land shall bear such names as the Orange County Board of Commissioners shall approve pursuant to this policy. This policy follows all applicable local,state and federal laws,rules and regulations. Purpose This policy is to establish the Board of County Commissioners as the responsible authority for naming of County buildings,facilities,and land. Guidelines 2.1. The naming of public buildings, facilities and land shall be done only by the Board of County Commissioners by resolution adopted by majority vote. 2.1.1. Property to be given names or titles shall be either owned by Orange County government or leased by Orange County government for its use. 2.1.2. Properties to be named or given a title include county-owned or leased buildings. 2.1.3. Official names or titles for property belonging to the County shall only be changed by the Board of County Commissioners as it deems appropriate after a public participation process. 2.1.4. Current names for property belonging to the County shall remain the same unless changed by the Board of County Commissioners upon relocation or change in function of the property. 2.1.5. Property belonging to Orange County may be named for living persons with the following qualifications. a. Any areas or rooms in buildings,other physical facilities, collections of books, records or other printed or audio-visual materials,land or water areas b. Living persons who secure funding and/or make a significant contribution to the life and well being of Orange County. c. Leased property that has been conferred a name by the lessor that is a person's name need not be renamed if it has locational or other value 7 2.1.6 Official names or titles for property belonging to or leased by the County shall be based upon geographical, historical, ecological, functional, or other such factors as the Board of County Commissioners deems appropriate. If a geographical reference of locational value is derived from the name of a person, such as a street name, it may be used in naming County property. a. A public building/facility under construction/renovation or land purchased for park development or conservation/preservation will be given a "working title" which will only become the official title of the property when formally approved as such by the BOCC b. Memorial naming of a public building, facility or land is in addition to the official title of the building/facility/land and is bestowed in accordance with Section 2.2 of this policy c. Leased property naming will respect historical names that may already be attached to the facility or as may be negotiated with the owner of the building. 2.1.7 Exceptions to this policy of naming property belonging to the County may be made by the Board of County Commissioners as it deems appropriate. 2.1.8 This policy does not apply to the naming of public streets, roads, alleys and other similar thoroughfares. 2.1.9 This policy shall not be construed as the mechanism for selling the permanent naming rights to County structures, buildings, facilities or land. 2.2. Memorial Naming (in honor of a deceased individual) of Public Buildings, Facilities, or Land: In the event Orange County wishes to honor a deceased individual by naming a public building, facility or land after such an individual, the following shall apply: 2.2.1. The person who is being honored by such a memorial shall have made a significant contribution to the well-being and betterment of Orange County. 2.2.2. The party requesting a memorial shall submit a brief biography of the person to Orange County government for recording purposes. 2.2.3. The memorial naming of a public building, facility or land will be in addition to the official name as defined in Section 2.1.6 of this policy. 2.2.4. Renaming a public building, facility or land which has previously been named in honor of or in memorial to an individual shall only be done in extraordinary circumstances as determined by the Board. Procedures 2.3. A public building/facility under construction/renovation or land purchased for park development or conservation/preservation shall be given a "working title" by staff for easy identification of the property. 8 2.4. The proposed naming of a public building, facility or land may be generated in the following manner. a. Staff shall recommend to the BOCC an official title of the public building, facility or land in accordance with Section 2.1.6 of this policy. Such recommended by staff will be made prior to the completion of any project to construct, renovate or develop the property. b. Any person, firm or association may propose a name for a County owned building, facility or land by submitting the proposal in writing to the County Manager or Clerk to the Board. c. Under certain circumstances the BOCC may wish to set in place a public process for soliciting input in the official naming of a public building, facility or land. 2.5. The County Manager shall prepare a report with recommendations for the proposed naming of the public building, facility or land and present it to the BOCC for consideration at a regularly scheduled public meeting. 2.6. Upon receipt of the report and the recommendations of the manager the BOCC will state its intent to consider the adoption of a resolution for the naming or renaming of the public building, facility or land at the next or some subsequent meeting as determined by the BOCC. 2.7. The Board may determine the public building, facility or land is of significant public interest and direct a notice be published informing the public of the Board's intent to consider the naming or renaming of the public building, facility or land and fix a time and place for a public hearing on the question. 2.8. Upon approval of the resolution by the BOCC, the public building, facility or land shall bear the name assigned to it from and after the date of Board action or such subsequent date as the BOCC may prescribe.