HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 05-15-2018 8-a - Minutes1
ORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: May 15, 2018
Action Agenda
Item No. 8-a
SUBJECT: MINUTES
DEPARTMENT: Board of County
Commissioners
ATTACHMENT(S):
Draft Minutes (Under Separate Cover)
INFORMATION CONTACT:
Donna Baker, Clerk to the Board
(919) 245-2130
PURPOSE: To correct and/or approve the minutes as submitted by the Clerk to the Board as
listed below.
BACKGROUND: In accordance with 153A-42 of the General Statutes, the Governing Board
has the legal duty to approve all minutes that are entered into the official journal of the Board’s
proceedings.
April 24, 2018 BOCC Joint Meeting with Schools
April 26, 2018 BOCC Work Session
May 1, 2018 BOCC Regular Meeting
FINANCIAL IMPACT: NONE
SOCIAL JUSTICE IMPACT: NONE
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends the Board approve minutes as
presented or as amended.
1
Attachment 1 1
2
DRAFT MINUTES 3
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 4
CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO BOARD OF EDUCATION 5
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION 6
BOCC/BOARD OF EDUCATION JOINT MEETING 7
April 24, 2018 8
7:00 p.m. 9
10
11
The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a joint meeting with the Chapel Hill-12
Carrboro Board of Education and Orange County Board of Education on Tuesday, April 24, 13
2018 at 7 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, N.C. 14
15
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Dorosin and Commissioners Mia Burroughs, 16
Barry Jacobs, Earl McKee, Mark Marcoplos, Renee Price and Penny Rich 17
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: None 18
COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts 19
CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO BOARD OF EDUCATION PRESENT: Chair Rani Dasi, Margaret 20
Samuels, James Barrett, Joal Braun, Amy Fowler, and Mary Ann Wolf 21
CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO BOARD OF EDUCATION ABSENT: Pat Heinrich 22
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION PRESENT: Chair Dr. Steve Halkiotis, Tony 23
McKnight, Tom Carr, Matthew Roberts and Brenda Stephens 24
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION ABSENT: Donna Coffey and Michael Hood, 25
COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Deputy County Manager 26
Travis Myren, and Deputy Clerk II Sherri Ingersoll (All other staff members will be identified 27
appropriately below) 28
CHAPEL HILL-CARRBORO SCHOOLS STAFF PRESENT: Superintendent Pam Baldwin, 29
Assistant Superintendent – Support Services Todd LoFrese 30
ORANGE COUNTY SCHOOLS STAFF PRESENT: Superintendent Dr. Todd Wirt, Interim 31
Deputy Superintendent Pam Jones 32
33
Chair Dorosin called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. 34
35
Welcome and Opening Remarks 36
Chair Dorosin opened the meeting, and reviewed the evening’s agenda. 37
Steve Halkiotis said, on behalf of the Orange County Board of Education, thank you to 38
the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) for this evening’s meeting. He said the School 39
Board has always looked to the Commissioners in the past, the present, and hopes to continue 40
to do so in the future. He said the BOCC believes in public schools, and always has. 41
Chair Dasi thanked the BOCC for its willingness to allow the Chapel Hill Carrboro-City 42
Schools (CHCCS) Board of Education (BOE) the opportunity to explain its needs. She said Pat 43
Heinrich is unable to attend tonight, as he is out of town on business. She congratulated Dr. 44
Pam Baldwin on her one-year anniversary. She said the CHCCS Board continues to be excited 45
about her work. She thanked Todd LoFrese and Ruby Pittman for their work on this 46
presentation. 47
Chair Dasi said the CHCCS board continues to review operations and processes to 48
improve safety, and wanted to thank law enforcement for their efforts in keeping everyone safe. 49
She said the CHCCS BOE is proud of the students and their efforts to increase safety, by 50
2
writing to state officials. She said the CHCCS Board continues to advocate for improved safety, 1
and does not believe that teachers carrying guns is a good idea. She said CHCCS has three 2
areas of funding request: state mandated increases, instructional and teacher support, and 3
mental health resources. She said CHCCS continue to be grateful for the partnership with the 4
Commissioners. 5
Chair Dorosin reminded everyone to please speak closely into a microphone so it will be 6
recorded clearly. 7
8
1. Orange County Schools (OCS) 9
• FY 2018-19 Operating Budget Presentation and Discussion 10
• Capital Investment Plan Discussion 11
12
Based on the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s projected Average Daily 13
Membership (ADM) enrollment for FY2018-19, Orange County Schools enrollment would 14
decrease by 199 students, while charter students would increase by 152 to a total of 769, less 15
89 Out-of-County tuition paid students, which remains the same as in the previous year. The 16
total budgeted students in FY 2018-19 would be 8,025, an overall decrease of 47 students over 17
the previous year. 18
19
Orange County Schools is requesting an increase in the local per pupil allocation of $396.00. 20
This requested increase in the local per pupil allocation for current expenses would increase the 21
per pupil allocation to $4,387. This funding level would represent an increase in the current 22
expense for Orange County Schools of $3,180,965. 23
24
Orange County Schools Capital Investment Plan projects for FY2018-19 totals $4,368,510 with 25
a 5-Year total of $53,598,720. 26
27
FY 2019 Orange County Schools 28
Local Operating Budget Request 29
30
FY2018 Highlights 31
32
Full scale implementation of K-5 Literacy Framework with early promising results 33
Full implementation of increased access to gifted programs and K-2 nurturing talent 34
Read to Achieve Camp extended to full day 35
Further implementation of Restorative Justice & Capturing Kids’ Hearts 36
6,744 Breakfast, 11,113 Lunches and 211 snacks served through the summer food 37
service program. This has been provided in schools and community centers across the 38
area 39
District Performance Composite grew 1.2% 40
12 out of 13 schools met or exceeded growth 41
Universal Breakfast 42
Seven Elementary Schools; 3,336 students 43
Breakfasts served 44
o FY2017 228,000; 3,432 students 45
• Approx. 66 meals/Elementary ADM 46
o FY2018 to date 142,500 47
• ~18,000/month 48
• Approx. 59 meals/Elementary ADM 49
Grab and Go option available daily 50
3
1
FY2018 Budget Overview (pie chart) 2
3
Funding History (bar graph) 4
5
FY2019 Student Enrollment Projection 6
7
2018-19 District Enrollment Projection: 8,025 8
-Includes DPI ADM Projection of 7,345 9
-Includes 769 actual charter students (based on current charter enrollment) 10
-County reduces students by 89 for out of district students 11
12
Revenue at current per pupil: $32,300,000 13
ADM $ 32,027,775 14
Fines/Forfeitures $ 220,000 15
Interest $ 7,000 16
17
Todd Wirt said Senate Bill 257 lays out the loss of teacher-student funding and salary 18
and benefit increases, and they anticipate a $35 million budget, resulting in a $2.7 million 19
shortfall. He resumed the PowerPoint presentation. 20
21
Budget Update 2018-2019 School Year (chart) 22
23
Class Size Update 24
Class House Bill
90
Current Recommended
FY2019
Recommended
FY2020
Kindergarten 1:20 1:18
up to
1:20
1:18 1:18
1st Grade 1:20 1:16
up to
1:20
Allot 1:16
up to 1:20
1:16
2nd Grade 1:20 1:17
up to
1:20
Allot 1:17
up to 1:20
Allot 1:17
up to 1:19
3rd Grade 1:20 1:17
up to
1:20
Allot 1:17
up to 1:20
Allot 1:17
up to 1:19
25
Chair Dorosin asked if the requirement of HB90 is 1:20. 26
Todd Wirt said that the flexibility will end in 2020, and OCS has prepared for the 27
shortfalls, and identified areas where cutbacks can be made. He said OCS wants to protect 28
employees who are student-facing teachers, including specials teachers. He resumed the 29
PowerPoint presentation. 30
31
FY2019 Continuation and Add’l Continuation to Fund Mandates and Expectations 32
4
Estimated Continuation $ 2,700,000 1
$4,325 per pupil ($334 p/p increase) 2
Additional Continuation to Fund Mandates $ 500,000 3
and Expectations 4
$ 62 per pupil increase 5
6
Total Additional Funds Requested $ 3,200,000 7
$4,387 per pupil ($396 p/p increase) 8
9
Fund Balance Appropriation 10
Fund Balance Appropriations: 11
$175,000: Environment Enhancement Program 12
$100,000: Technology Operating Budget 13
$500,000: Corporate Drive Up fit (Re-appropriation) 14
$ 41,000: Student Assignment Balance 15
$240,000: Safety/Security Balance 16
-Total FY2019 Fund Balance Appropriations: $1,056,000 17
FY2018 Anticipated Unassigned Fund Balance $ 1.0M - $ 1.5M 18
*3% Fund Balance Threshold = $1.1M 19
20
Todd Wirt asked the BOCC if it would revisit a policy limiting the OCS unassigned fund 21
balance of 3%, and consider aligning OCS with the CHCCS. He said there are cash flow 22
constrictions at beginning of the year, and non-County reimbursements cause problems with 23
fronting costs. He resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 24
25
Fund Balance Continued 26
Current BOCC policy limits OCS unassigned fund balance to 3% of General 27
Fund Budget. 28
o Approximately $1.1M 29
Request BOCC consider aligning OCS’ limit with CHCCS – 5.5% 30
o Cash flow constrictions at beginning of year 31
• Large annual payments of Insurances, Software Licensing, etc. 32
o Non-County reimbursements delayed 33
• Federal Government delays/shutdowns require OCS to front money for 34
personnel costs (approx. $250K/month) 35
36
Looking Ahead 37
Rewrite and redesign Student Code of Conduct to include Restorative Practices 38
Continue implementation of K-5 Literacy Framework 39
Continue to implement Bond Projects including a focus on safety and security 40
Student reassignment for optimization of facilities 41
Continue to implement creative strategies to recruit teachers of color in order to diversify 42
our workforce 43
44
QUESTIONS? 45
46
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if the “fines and forfeitures” could be explained. 47
Rhonda Rath, OCS Chief Financial Officer, said these refer to DUI charges that are 48
funneled back through to the school systems. 49
5
Commissioner Rich referred to growth in Hillsborough and Mebane, and asked if there is 1
communication with Mebane regarding the Schools Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance 2
(SAPFO) numbers, to see how they affect OCS. 3
Todd Wirt said last month he presented to the Mebane City Council about the wonderful 4
schools in OCS that serve Mebane residents, and Craig Benedict, Orange County Planning 5
Director, reviewed the SAPFO report. He said OCS has made good inroads with the Town 6
Manager and City Council, and there is momentum to being added to SAPFO. 7
Bonnie Hammersley said she has also spoken with Mebane leadership about the 8
benefits of joining the SAPFO. 9
Commissioner Price asked if social workers are in every OCS school. 10
Todd Wirt said yes, one in each school. 11
Commissioner Price asked if this is sufficient. 12
Todd Wirt said it is not sufficient. He said the Governor came to Cedar Ridge High last 13
week, and OCS encouraged the Governor to have flexibility in his budget for funds for these 14
types of positions. He said some schools need more than one social worker because of a 15
higher acuity of needs. 16
Commissioner McKee referred to the possibility of increasing fund balance, and asked if 17
this was due to timing of early expenses. He asked if OCS is drawing down this fund balance 18
fairly closely now. 19
Todd Wirt said OCS typically hovers within the percentage, at $1.2 – $1.3 million range. 20
Chair Dorosin asked if there is a reason why OCS and CHCCS have difference fund 21
balance amounts. 22
James Barrett said this is due to the CHCCS special school district tax, which CHCCS 23
receives later in the year and needs a larger cushion at beginning of year to meet payroll 24
obligations. 25
Chair Dorosin asked if making these fund balance percentages the same would 26
negatively impact the County budget. 27
Bonnie Hammersley said she did not think it would make any difference to the County. 28
Chair Dorosin clarified if OCS is asking for additional funding up front to increase its 29
fund balance to 5%, or using existing funds at a different time. 30
Todd Wirt said it would use existing funds at a different time. 31
Steve Halkiotis said the recent press conference held by the Governor at Cedar Ridge 32
High School focused on putting a nurse in every school, as well as more school social workers 33
and resource officers. He said he told the Governor that the BOCC made it possible to have 34
asbestos removed from schools over 20 years ago, long before the state and federal 35
governments looked into this issue. He said OCS have a nurse in every school, and long 36
before the Governor came, OCS wanted to put a School Resource Officer in all its elementary 37
schools. He said OCS has been proactive, with the help of the BOCC. He said only 10% of 38
schools in North Carolina have a full-time nurse, and OCS and CHCCS are in an exclusive club, 39
and it is scary for other schools. He said because of the relationship between the schools and 40
the BOCC, health and safety issues have been addressed in an ongoing manner for a long 41
time. 42
Chair Dorosin said the Board appreciates this recognition. He referred to the student 43
reassignment analysis being completed in anticipation of capacity issues, and encouraged OCS 44
to also look at issues of socioeconomic and racial diversity. He referred to the living wage, and 45
asked if the additional funds to bring 96 staff up to living wage is part of the additional 46
contribution budget. 47
Todd Wirt said yes. 48
Chair Dorosin asked if OCS only gets the continuation budget, will these positions will 49
remain below the living wage. 50
6
Todd Wirt said yes, and the topic would be sent back to the OCS BOE for discussion. 1
Commissioner Rich asked if the current living wage could be identified. 2
Bonnie Hammersley said the Orange County living wage is currently $13.75, and will 3
increase to $14.25 on July 1, 2019. She said the County has a living wage for permanent 4
employees of $15. 5
Pam Jones said she will be sharing information regarding the OCS Capital Investment 6
Plan (CIP). She said the plan is one of stewardship, and aging buildings need to be 7
maintained. She said in 2013 OCS completed a facilities assessment, and has prioritized those 8
since then, and the bond issue projects were built on this study. She said OCS also completed 9
a safety and security assessment, which it continues to deploy. She said $2.5 million was 10
included in the bonds that have been earmarked for safety and security. She said the third 11
area of study, completed in 2016, is the roof study, and this is also lot of what is seen in the 12
bond projects and CIP. She said if the exteriors of buildings are not secure, the interiors will 13
fail, and roofs, windows and walls are being maintained. 14
Pam Jones said there are a few material changes in the CIP since last year: 15
1.) Cameron Park Elementary has air quality issues and water filtration problems, and 16
exterior of the building needs resurfacing and windows replacing; 17
2.) $100k is needed for New Hope Elementary HVAC, some air handlers are failing 18
early. 19
Pam Jones said the CIP is essentially the same as last year, and just deals with the 20
basics. She said she would like to update the BOCC on two primary bond projects included in 21
the CIP: 22
1.) The Orange High School geothermal project, which has bids in, and will be taken to 23
the OCS BOE’s next meeting. She said it came in over estimates, but not as much 24
as feared, and this will be completed in phases over two years, with renovations 25
being completed along the way. She said floors and wings will be opened up one at 26
a time, until the work is complete. She said modular units are being considered, 27
since there is not enough capacity, and OCS hopes for creativity from contractors to 28
get the project done as quickly as possible. She said OCS is working on a public 29
relations campaign to communicate with the neighbors regarding noise and run off. 30
She said the payback on this project is about 10 years, but may take 11-12 years. 31
2.) Cedar Ridge High School addition has a designer in place who is working with the 32
planning committee on site visits, and all are excited about enhancements and 33
different ways to offer programs. She said it is hoped that this will go out to bid in 34
the fall, and be completed in August 2022. 35
36
James Barrett referred to the topic of efficiencies of these types of CIP investments, and 37
said this year, as CHCCS does efficiency projects, it is putting ½ the money in a general pot 38
and ½ back in an extra capital/reinvestment funds for longer term work going forward. 39
Commissioner Rich said she went to an Information Technology meeting at Cedar 40
Ridge, and there were places in school with no Wi-Fi. She asked if OCS is working on 41
improving this for students, teachers and everyone else. 42
Pam Jones said OCS knows there are dead spots, and Information Technology has 43
reviewed it, but there is no answer right now. 44
Commissioner Rich said a couple of Commissioners have discussed putting Wi-Fi on 45
school buses, and she spoke with someone at Google to see what it is doing in South Carolina. 46
She asked if there is any possibility of doing this so kids can do their homework on the bus. 47
Todd Wirt said OCS uses Synovia to track buses, which also evaluates connectivity 48
levels throughout the County based on the bus route. He said OCS is pulling this data to 49
7
review the high and low spots pertaining to connectivity. He said other systems are being 1
researched, and the wheels are in motion. 2
Commissioner Rich asked if OCS would please keep the County involved in, and 3
updated on, this process. 4
Steve Halkiotis said he spoke with the OCS Information Technology director, who 5
estimated that 30-35% of students do not have access to the Internet on a regular basis, which 6
is unacceptable in this day and age. He would like for all the boards to get an update from the 7
Information Technology heads throughout all systems in the County on improving this situation. 8
Commissioner Rich said that number seems higher than what she has heard, but all do 9
need to work together. She said this does not need to wait until the next joint meeting. 10
Commissioner Price said she has met with staff from Google, who wants to get in all the 11
rural counties in North Carolina, not just Chapel Hill. She said it may be worth following up 12
about this. 13
Commissioner Price referred to the school repairs, and asked if the schools will be at 14
least minimally safe upon the completion of the first phase. 15
Pam Jones said OCS is prioritizing the money where it sees the greatest needs, and 16
addressing safety issues quickly. She said other issues are longer term. She said the bond 17
money should allow the security of all buildings to be addressed at the same time, and access 18
control is the top priority. 19
Commissioner Price said there are some schools where one can come and go with 20
ease, due to open areas, and there are broken steps, which are dangerous. 21
Pam Jones said things like broken steps should be able to be addressed with recurring 22
capital and daily maintenance funds. 23
Commissioner Marcoplos said he and Commissioner Jacobs went to a Cooperative 24
Extension event last year, and learned about water catchment and reuse system at Stanford 25
Middle High. He asked if Cedar Ridge would be a good candidate for a similar system, given 26
the nearby catchment basin. 27
Pam Jones said OCS has not discussed this for Cedar Ridge, but can look at the 28
potential pond and irrigation use. 29
Commissioner Burroughs referred to the issue of student reassignment, and reiterated 30
the importance of looking diversity. She said it seems to be a good time to look at this, and 31
while it is never easy, it is still the right thing to do. 32
Todd Wirt said last year the OCS BOE reviewed its policy around student reassignment. 33
He said the BOE reviewed policies across the state and nation, from schools that regularly did 34
reassignments, and are balancing diversity with efficiency and proximity. He said the BOE has 35
done a lot of good work in preparation. 36
Chair Dorosin said it would be great if OCS could share that with the BOCC. 37
Brenda Stephens said she was a part of the student reassignment last time, and OCS 38
always has diversity on the list, and it is a high priority. 39
Chair Dorosin asked if there is update on the Eno River charter school property that 40
OCS purchased. 41
Todd Wirt said OCS will be taking it over at the end of the school year, and delayed the 42
upfit of the building due to possibly needing to use the fund balance appropriation to balance 43
the budget. He said when this building does move forward, OCS will upfit the first building to 44
move central admin staff from Orange High School (OHS), in order to create one-stop shop for 45
parents, which will include child nutrition, afterschool services, enrollment services, translation, 46
etc. all in one building. He said this will also increase capacity at OHS. He said OCS is still in 47
discussions with the BOE regarding the use for the second building, but know that some work is 48
needed on the site as well as additional parking. 49
Chair Dorosin asked if there is an anticipated timeline. 50
8
Todd Wirt said he is uncertain at this time; and it depends on what happens with the 1
budget. He said OCS has contacted someone to talk design for the upfit, but it needs to be 2
prioritized with other projects; but preference is sooner rather than later. 3
4
2. Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools 5
• FY 2018-19 Operating Budget Presentation and Discussion 6
• Capital Investment Plan Discussion 7
• Custodial Contract Services Analysis 8
9
Based on the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s projected Average Daily 10
Membership (ADM) enrollment for FY2018-19, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools enrollment 11
would increase by 235 students, while charter students would remain at 162, less Out-of-12
County tuition paid students of 242, which represents an increase of one student from the 13
previous year. The total budgeted students in FY 2018-19 would be 12,394, an overall increase 14
of 234 students over the previous year. 15
16
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools is requesting an increase in the local per pupil allocation of 17
$253.00. This requested increase in the local per pupil allocation for current expenses would 18
increase the per pupil allocation to $4,244.00. This funding level would represent an increase of 19
$4,069,615 in the current expense for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. 20
21
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Capital Investment Plan projects for FY 2018-19 totals 22
$6,747,291, with a 5-Year total of $33,471,065. 23
24
Pam Baldwin made the following PowerPoint presentation: 25
26
2018-19 Board of Education 27
Requested Local Budget 28
April 24, 2018 29
30
2017-18 District Highlights 31
• District Wide Equity Plan Implementation 32
• Restorative Practices & Discipline Data – data showing improvement; 44% reduction in 33
office discipline referrals; looking closely to insure that students are in class 34
• Co-located Mental Health – 3 agencies and good opportunity for students and families 35
to discuss these issues 36
• CTE Fire and EMT programming – high pass rate; program is going well. Looking to 37
expand program. 38
• The Innovation Project allows teachers to develop virtual classrooms at no cost to 39
schools. 40
• Northside AVID program; 171 4-5th graders involved. 41
• Phoenix Evening Program – overage or drop out students; utilizing flexible scheduling 42
with student teachers. 43
• Newcomer Graduates – 116 newcomers to address students in first year in our 44
country/school district to acquire language acquisition prior to entering schools. 45
• TRAC Grant – externships, internships from ages 16-22 to provide employable skills 46
• LAUNCH – early identification of missing skills; pilot program 47
• District-wide focus: Culture of Safety – hired director of safety; repurposed position. 48
Partner with the Police Department and principals. Safety is at the top of capital needs 49
• Fiscal Responsibility 50
9
o Program Reviews 1
o Budget Reallocations – Look at staff’s talents to best utilize skills and funds. 2
Also identifies gaps 3
o Financial Reporting Excellence 4
5
Strategic Plan Development 6
• Student and Staff Forums, Surveys, etc. 7
• Focus Groups – 44 focus groups; 475 people involved, good representation of needs 8
• Four Key Themes Emerge: 9
o Whole Child 10
o Human Capital 11
o Organizational Structure 12
o Family and Community Engagement 13
14
Todd LoFrese presented this portion of the PowerPoint: 15
16
2018-19 Budget Priorities 17
• Our CORE work 18
• Mental health and behavior support 19
• Mandates and continuation expenses 20
• Salaries, recruitment and retention 21
• Strategic plan goals – budget tied to strategic goals 22
23
2018-19 Student Enrollment Projection 24
2018-19 State Enrollment Projection 12,474 25
2017-18 State Enrollment Projection 12,239 26
District Projected Enrollment Increase 235 27
28
Projected State Mandates 29
State Mandates 30
• 6.9% State pay raise for teachers incl. benefits $ 1,488,731 31
• $1,000 pay raise for other employees 857,000 32
• State retirement match increase 33
(17.13% to 17.64% est.) 500,000 34
• Employer health insurance match increase 35
($5984 to $6104 est.) 211,500 36
TOTAL OF CONTINUATION BUDGET REQUESTS $ 3,057,231 37
38
Priority Expansion Budget Recommendations 39
• Gifted Specialists – Additional .5 FTE for each middle school, 2.0 FTEs $ 164,944 40
(restore positions) 41
• Additional TA/Bus Driver position for each elementary school, 11 FTEs 427,761 42
(partially restore; possibly use as media specialists) 43
• Professional Development: Additional 5 days for teacher assistants 231,700 44
• Implementation of classified hiring local supplement @ 4.5% 200,000 45
• Inflationary budget increase for Facilities Department 133,000 46
• Middle School Behavior Support Program 158,500 47
(not currently provided but needed) 48
• Mental health professionals for each traditional high school 219,000 49
10
TOTAL 1
$1,534,905 2
3
Chair Dorosin asked if the salary for a bus driver could be shared. 4
Todd LoFrese said between $14-15/hour 5
6
TOTAL OF STATE MANDATES AND EXPANSION RECOMMENDATIONS 7
State Mandates $3,057,231 8
Expansion Requests 1,534,905 9
TOTAL $4,592,136 10
11
Projected Local Revenue Increase 12
• County per pupil for enrollment change $ 933,894 13
• 1.5% Inflationary increase to district tax 346,393 14
• Net change in other Local revenues 175,000 15
Total Net Increase $ 1,455,287 16
17
PROJECTED REVENUES COMPARED TO GRAND TOTAL OF RECOMMENDED REQUEST 18
• Revenue Increase $1,455,287 19
• Less: Grand total of requests $4,592,136 20
• Budget Shortfall ($3,136,849) 21
22
Ad Valorem Tax Increase Required to Fund Budget Shortfall 23
Using Current Year Valuation: 24
County Ad Valorem Tax Increase 25
$3,136,849/$1,069,015 = 2.93 cents 26
$253 per pupil increase 27
28
Local Fund Balance Projection 29
• Assign $1,000,000 in Fund Balance for 2018-2019 30
• Estimated year-end unassigned fund balance for June 30, 2018 is $6.9 million or 9% 31
• The projected 5.5% target is $4.2 million 32
• $2.7 million above the target 33
• Fund balance to be directed to facilities – construction costs are increasing 34
35
Questions 36
37
Commissioner Burroughs referred to the middle school behavioral support, and said she 38
knows this has been an ongoing problem. She said there was a program several years ago 39
called Triumph, and asked if this no longer exists. 40
Todd LoFrese said Triumph no longer exists. He said Triumph changed firms several 41
years ago, and then funding ceased. He said there are currently no options for students 42
experiencing significant needs. 43
Commissioner McKee asked if the $253 per pupil increase is exclusive of a possible 44
request for an increase in district tax. 45
Todd LoFrese said yes. He said the BOE voted to provide flexibility to the BOCC to 46
increase the special district tax up to the amount needed to fund the request, which is outlined 47
in the transmittal memo. 48
11
Commissioner McKee said he knows citizens voted in the special district tax, but he has 1
concerns about increasing this tax, and thus increasing the disparity between the schools 2
James Barrett said this tax has not been increased, other than when new schools have 3
been built. He said the request is boiler plate language that has always been put in the overall 4
budget request, allowing for the BOCC to meet CHCCS operating needs by increasing the tax, 5
which it never has. He said CHCCS does not want to increase disparity between the districts. 6
Commissioner Price asked if CHCCS seeks an increase from the County, as well as the 7
district tax. She said OCS is asking for a higher increase than CHCCS, but wonders if the two 8
increases requested by CHCCS would be closer to the one increase request made by OCS. 9
She asked if the BOCC were to approve the OCS per pupil increase, would it cover the amount 10
requested by CHCC. 11
Chair Dorosin said if the BOCC approves increases for one system, it must approve it 12
for both. 13
14
Chair Dasi said if the BOCC approves the increase outlined by OCS, there would be no 15
need to increase the special district tax for CHCCS. 16
Commissioner Jacobs asked Bonnie Hammersley if she could identify how much of a 17
tax increase is being recommended to cover the school bonds. 18
Bonnie Hammersley said this will be phased in over 4 years, as well as a one-time 19
increase of $.05. 20
Commissioner Jacobs said last fall the BOCC discussed that it would be unlikely that the 21
County could afford the requested increase, yet each year the BOCC is asked to do so. He 22
said he realizes that the schools are trying to advocate for the needs of the students, but it is 23
important to realize the limitations of the taxpayers at some point. 24
Chair Dorosin said to be fair, everyone is being realistic and offering both continuation 25
and expansion budgets, knowing that the bonds have to be paid for. 26
Commissioner Burroughs said she has a suggestion for the school bus driver problem. 27
She said Commissioner McKee has a license and did it previously, and maybe he could do it. 28
Chair Dorosin said some OCS employees are paid less than minimum wage, and asked 29
if the number of employees/contractors in CHCCS making less than $15/hour is known. 30
Todd LoFrese said all district employees are making the current Orange County living 31
wage of $13.75/hour. He said the information provided in the handout is a bid analysis for 32
custodial contract bids last spring, and the cost difference between the base bid and the living 33
wage bid, just for custodial services, is $400,000. He said CHCCS could not move forward with 34
the higher bid, and he is not certain how many employees are with the contractors currently. 35
Chair Dorosin asked if the number of contracted custodians is known. 36
Todd LoFrese said he is unsure. 37
Chair Dorosin said the cost of these employees is still a major concern to the Board of 38
County Commissioners, and the possibility of bringing the services in house is still on the table. 39
Todd LoFrese said the CHCCS BOE approved a policy in January 2017 to insure that all 40
employees received the living wage, and custodial and child nutrition services are the only 41
exception. 42
Steve Halkiotis said he wished they had control over the $1.2 million state mandate 43
increases. He said the districts should run the fund balance into the ground, and if a crisis 44
arises, approach the BOCC for a bail out. He said Guilford County recently suffered a tornado, 45
and one cannot know what Mother Nature may do. He said the bottom line is to take care of 46
the kids, and if that means using the entire fund balance, he will vote to do so. He said he 47
cannot control Raleigh, and the districts are caught between a rock and an extremely hard 48
place. 49
12
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if the $400,000 in the living wage bids accounts for the 1
food service employees. 2
Todd LoFrese said there is a $400,000 difference between the base bid and the living 3
wage bid for the custodial cleaning services. He said data on the child nutrition employees is 4
not included at this time, but it is estimated to be an additional $300,000. 5
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if these numbers reflect a continuation of contract 6
services, at a living wage, as opposed to bringing these positions in house. He asked if the 7
BOCC could receive cost analysis for bringing these positions in house. 8
Todd LoFrese said this information is in the evening’s packet for custodial staff. He said 9
information for bringing child nutrition in house has not been calculated since 2010. 10
Chair Dasi said these budgets are based on needs, not wants, and these are critical 11
needs for the students. She said it is important to consider investment into the schools and 12
question the tax increase, but to remember the overall value of quality education in Orange 13
County. She said it is a draw for people to live here. She said the schools have brought forth 14
specific needs with transparency; and this budget does not include even half of the existing 15
needs. 16
Commissioner Jacobs said the BOCC understands that the schools could be requesting 17
much more than they are. He referred to the discussion at the state level about a school 18
construction bond, and asked if this would cover renovation of existing schools, or would it only 19
be for new schools. 20
Todd LoFrese said, as currently written, it would cover renovation of existing schools. 21
He said CHCSS would receive about $7 million. 22
Commissioner Jacobs said this is an endless circle that has been considered for a long 23
time, and there is the constant choice between maintaining facilities and operating funds. He 24
said he would not want to set aside funds for capital, but rather for programs, especially if there 25
is a possibility for a state bond. He said Orange County is way ahead of many other counties in 26
the state, and he does not understand why discussions about the fund balance have been so 27
heated in the past. He said there should be less talk about asking the public for more money, 28
and rather looking at existing funds and how they can go further. 29
Commissioner Price asked if the $253 increase includes the special district tax increase. 30
Chair Dasi said this number is the total need, regardless of how the funding is procured. 31
Mary Ann Wolf thanked everyone involved for their efforts on behalf of the schools. She 32
said it is important to remember that the state does not make this job easy, and North Carolina 33
is very low in teacher and principal pay. She said the local schools are striving for excellence 34
in students, and CHCCS are just a couple of dollars above the national average of per pupil 35
spending. She said it is hard to recruit excellent people, and keep them here. 36
Chair Dorosin said he is still concerned about the living wage. He said paying the living 37
wage is important, but it is not the same as bringing positions in house, as contract employees 38
do not get benefits. He said the County has a commitment to take care of the people who work 39
in the community. 40
41
Chapel Hill High School Updates (aerial photos and renderings) 42
43
Todd LoFrese said this is being done in phases: Phase one includes removing the 44
mobile units during summer and building new addition in academic building. He said the final 45
site plan includes new access road, new right turn lane for better traffic flow, new parking lot for 46
students. He said it is important to separate drop off areas from student drivers. He reviewed 47
the following PowerPoint slides: 48
49
CHHS Key Dates 50
13
• May 2: Chapel Hill High School Open House 1
• May 23: Town of Chapel Hill Public Hearing and Special Use Permit 2
• May 25: Special Board of Education Meeting to approve GMP and notice to Orange 3
County Finance Staff 4
• June 11: Commence construction 5
• December 2020: Project completion 6
7
Unfunded CIP Worksheet 8
• What is feasible with the remaining projects? 9
o Will there be additional $? 10
o Target date for additional funding? 11
o Focus only on broken infrastructure? 12
o Build new schools? Requires $$$$$ But where? 13
• Implement the plan to “escape” the perfect storm 14
o Older facilities in disrepair 15
o Newer facilities that have become older 16
o Class size mandate – need to meet in 2021 17
o Few school sites remaining 18
19
Questions 20
21
Commissioner Jacobs referred to the custodial services, and asked if McDougal 22
elementary and middle are considered as one or two schools. 23
Todd LoFrese said for bid purposes, it is considered one school, but in tallying schools, 24
it is two schools. 25
Commissioner asked when Morris Grove opened. 26
Todd LoFrese said 2008. 27
Mark Marcoplos said he is bewildered by the cost of bringing the contracted services in 28
house. He said it may be helpful to have a separate meeting to discuss this topic further. 29
Chair Dasi said this is a legitimate topic for discussion, but if the schools cannot meet 30
basic needs, it may not be realistic to consider this proposition. 31
Commissioner Marcoplos said it is a serious issue, and there is a moral imperative to 32
the employees. He said it is also an educational issue, and children should not be taught that it 33
is acceptable to hire people, but pay them less than their worth. 34
Chair Dasi said the same logic could be applied to teachers, who are not being paid 35
their worth. She questions whether custodial staff rises to the same level of priority. 36
Chair Dorosin agreed it is worth having a discussion. He said the current contract is 37
almost $1.4 million. 38
Todd LoFrese said that was the previous year’s contract, and the new contract is $1.6 39
million. 40
Chair Dorosin said it is $1.6 million compared to potentially $3.2; although he is unclear 41
on how $3.2 million is reached, without knowing the number of custodians. 42
Todd LoFrese said he does not know the number of contracted services staff, and does 43
not know the contractor’s staffing model. He said the number in the column is based on 44
Department of Public Instruction (DPI) standards and recommendations for facility square 45
footage. He gave an example with Carrboro Elementary being $107,000, which is equal to 3 46
custodians receiving a living wage, state health insurance, and retirement benefits. He said this 47
would allow for 3 employees to clean 60,000 square feet, and industry expectations are 18,000-48
20,000 square feet per custodian. 49
14
Chair Dorosin said these numbers highlight how contracted companies do this so 1
cheaply: there is no living wage, no benefits, and overworked staff. He said this gets to the 2
question of values. He referred to the OCS groundskeepers being contracted out, but asked if 3
nutrition services are in-house employees. 4
Todd Wirt said groundskeepers are contracted at 7 elementary schools, and custodial 5
services are contracted in various amounts at 9 of the OCS schools. He said to move to the 6
living wage would be an additional $300,000 and to bring all custodial services in house would 7
be just over $500,000. 8
Chair Dorosin said the BOCC has all these numbers, and should be able to have a 9
policy conversation in collaboration with the schools, or create a committee to look at the topic. 10
Todd LoFrese said the numbers presented reflect the cost for evening services, and all 11
CHCCS have a head custodian during the day, which is a district employee. 12
Commissioner Price said she would be interested in knowing who these contracted 13
companies are, because if they are local, she would not want to put them out of business 14
because of a policy decision; and would like to gather information. 15
Margaret Samuels said it is important to also look at childcare providers who also 16
receive lower pay, especially if universal pre-K is going to be considered. 17
Dr. Wirt asked if this committee and discussion would be a part of this budget process. 18
Chair Dorosin said probably not for this process, due to the timing, but it is frustrating 19
talking about the same things over and over without a resolution. 20
Commissioner Rich asked if a committee was to meet, could it look at phasing in this to 21
bring custodians in house, if the funding is not available at one time. 22
Chair Dasi said if a committee was to meet it would be helpful to include other issues 23
that are critical such as benefits for teachers (dental, maternity leave, etc). She said any policy 24
that directs how the schools spend money should consider all needs/wants. 25
Steve Halkiotis said custodians were contracted out several years ago, to the applause 26
of many, in order to cut costs, and if it comes down to bringing custodians in house or feeding 27
children through the universal breakfast program, he will vote for feeding children. He said 28
benefit plans are being changed in July for state employees, and it is unclear how this will affect 29
things, but he thinks decisions like these should be at the discretion of the school boards. 30
Chair Dorosin said the BOCC changes and priorities change, and he does not expect 31
having to pit hungry children against custodial employees. 32
Commissioner Jacobs said he agrees with Margaret Samuels and Rani Dasi, and if 33
there is going to be a committee, it should bring forth the highest priorities for review. He said 34
there are different policies for the BOCC and the Boards of Education, and he would hope that 35
a collective decision could be made about the highest priority, instead of going around in 36
circles. 37
Commissioner Jacobs said he would like to request an educational item for the next 38
meeting to look at how many schools have been built, what they cost, how it effected the tax 39
rate and capital funding for renovations of existing schools, and the per pupil rate. He said per 40
pupil is a huge investment, and the BOCC is pouring money into educating the children of 41
Orange County, and state funding is always being cut. He said it would be nice to see how far 42
the County has come in the last 20 years. 43
Commissioner Marcoplos said he would be useful to see numbers related to some of 44
the other needs mentioned this evening, such as dental care, living wage, and the universal 45
breakfast plan, prior to convening a group. He said he would like to take a running shot at 46
tackling these issues this year, basing it on the numbers and the program costs that are already 47
known. 48
15
Commissioner Burroughs said she likes hearing the passion about all these different 1
topics, but reiterated that the school boards are elected by the citizens to make these decisions 2
for the children and the staff. 3
Chair Dasi asked if there could be clarity and scope given to the task from the BOCC, 4
and she is hearing heartburn on what the schools have requested. She asked if the BOCC is 5
offering more money to tackle some of the issues mentioned this evening, or would it be in lieu 6
of the schools’ requests. She said it would be helpful to know how much effort should be put 7
into this exercise. 8
Chair Dorosin said it would not be in lieu of, and is rather an item in which the BOCC 9
has interest, outside of the schools’ requests. He said the BOCC would like to know the cost 10
breakdown. He said how everything gets prioritized is open for discussion, and all of these 11
items are educational priorities because they are all reflected in the work of the schools. 12
Commissioner Marcoplos said he would not see this as in lieu either, and the BOCC 13
understands the real needs. He said he would like to see what it would take to address these 14
items. 15
Chair Dorosin said perhaps the BOCC could give some money, and the schools could 16
give fund balance money. 17
Margaret Samuels said the fund balance is for one-time needs, and the future of funding 18
is unknown, and there may come a time again where cuts have to be prioritized. She said if the 19
schools are given the money, they will spend it. She said CHCCS has provided a chart on 20
custodial staff for two years, and while it may shift a little bit, the bottom line is more money, 21
regardless of from where it comes. 22
Chair Dorosin said he hates for everyone to act out of fear of something bad happening, 23
as opposed to acting out of hope to achieve something positive. 24
Commissioner Price said if new policies are going to be considered, it is important to 25
look at all County departments that use contracted services. 26
Chair Dorosin said he thinks this has been happening already. 27
Chair Dasi said she is very concerned about any policy that would direct school board 28
expenditures. 29
Commissioner McKee echoed Chair Dasi’s concerns, and said it is not the role of the 30
BOCC to control another elective body. 31
Steve Halkiotis said they are all adults, and make choices freely. He said if he feels 32
compelled to follow school board dictates, and not those of the BOCC, he will do so. 33
Chair Dorosin said it is all interrelated, and decisions are being made together all the 34
time, and policies are made by collaboration. He said he is respectful of the school boards, but 35
he is going for synthesis. 36
James Barrett said on behalf of Chapel Hill High School alumni, he is not shedding a 37
tear over tearing down the old buildings. 38
Chair Dasi thanked the BOCC for the conversation, noting that all are passionate, and 39
may not always agree; but it is good conversation. 40
Chair Dorosin echoed Chair Dasi’s comments, and said he appreciated the open 41
conversation. He said it is very is helpful, and feels the process is improving all around. 42
Commissioner Rich agreed, and said it is easier to look at budgets now as the two 43
districts are working together so well. 44
45
3. Adjournment 46
The meeting was adjourned at 9:20 p.m. 47
48
49
Mark Dorosin, Chair 50
16
1
Sherri Ingersoll 2
Deputy Clerk II 3
4
1
Attachment 2 1
2
DRAFT MINUTES 3
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 4
WORK SESSION 5
April 26, 2018 6
7:00 p.m. 7
8
The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a work session on Thursday, April 26, 9
2018 at 7:00 p.m. at the Whitted Building in Hillsborough, N.C. 10
11
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Dorosin and Commissioners Mia Burroughs, 12
Mark Dorosin, Barry Jacobs, Mark Marcoplos, Earl McKee, Renee Price and Penny Rich 13
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: 14
COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts 15
COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Deputy County Manager 16
Travis Myren and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff members will be identified 17
appropriately below) 18
19
Chair Dorosin called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. 20
21
1. Boards and Commissions – Annual Work Plans/Reports 22
23
External Boards: 24
• Carrboro Board of Adjustment – Will Heflin was unable to attend, but did send a 25
document for the Board of Commissioners’ review in the agenda packet. 26
27
• Northern Transition Area Advisory Committee (NTAAC) – Amy Jeroloman, Anahid 28
Vrana, and Deborah Eaker-Rich are all attending. 29
30
Amy Jeroloman said she is the current chair, and Anahid Vraba is the vice chair. She 31
provided the following handout for the Commissioners’ to review in detail, and discussed a few 32
highlights from it: 33
34
The Northern Transition Area Advisory Committee (NTAAC) whose primary purpose is to 35
review and make recommendations about development and planning concerns in the area of 36
Orange County under Carrboro’s jurisdiction, has addressed a number projects and issues over 37
the past year. Here are some of the highlights. 38
39
Carrboro’s Proposal for Light-Industrial Land Uses on Town-Owned Property at 7917 Old 40
NC 86: 41
As you know, the Carrboro Board of Aldermen (BoA) are planning to rezone and develop the 42
Town owned property at 7917 Old NC 86 to light Industrial, as a solution for Carrboro 43
businesses which find this type of space within the town limits too expensive or unavailable. It’s 44
our understanding that on 2/6/2018 the BoA directed Town Planning Staff to contact the 45
Commissioners / County staff to discuss this development and a possible joint rezoning public 46
hearing. The NTAAC has not received any information since February and were hoping the 47
Commissioners could update us on the status of this project. 48
49
2
We have included some of the residents’ and adjacent property owners’ concerns within our 1
report for your review. Here are the themes: 2
• What are the Old NC 86 impacts? 3
o Are there Traffic Mitigating Strategies? 4
o Are there any Twin Creeks Park entrance impacts? 5
• What are the Adjacent Property impacts In terms of: 6
o Noise, Lighting, Traffic, Scenery / View Obstruction, and Water Quality? 7
• What does light-industrial really mean given that this is a designated rural residential area? 8
• How will the town manage the dual roles of developer and enforcer of this process (Land 9
Use Ordinance, etc.) since in the past, this has been separate with the town only having 10
the role of facilitator / enforcer? 11
12
The NTAAC recommends that prior to any development that a DOT (Department of 13
Transportation) Engineer review the area for Traffic / Safety issues. 14
15
Adjacent neighbors’ questions (primarily on Britton Drive, Talbryn Way, and Old NC 86): 16
1. How will increasing traffic on Old 86 be addressed? 17
2. What appropriate buffers will be provided for the adjacent properties? 18
3. Can the proposed driveway and buildings be moved towards the North side of the property? 19
4. Will bike lanes/ paths be considered? 20
5. Will light / noise/ water pollution be an issue? 21
6. How will any restrictions placed on the property be enforced? 22
7. How will the property make financial sense for the town/ county? 23
8. Who will pay for the development of the project? 24
9. What is the meaning of "transition area" (the current designation) given this proposal? 25
10. Would greenhouses be considered for the property? 26
27
Traffic Along Old NC 86 and Eubanks Roads Remain Problematic: 28
Traffic along Old NC 86 and Eubanks Road remains problematic for Northern Transitional Area 29
(NTA) residents. 30
• On school mornings, traffic backs up on Eubanks by Morris Grove since the traffic circle 31
does not have a dedicated right turn lane into the school. 32
• During weekday mornings, residents can no longer safely make a left turn onto Old NC 33
86 on the stretch of Old NC 86 from Calvander to Eubanks given the amount of cross 34
traffic on Old NC 86. 35
We’ve recently given a report to the BoA (11/14/2017) which included our concerns and 36
recommendations for mitigating traffic. Unfortunately, though the area continues to be 37
developed, the DOT has not implemented any road infrastructure improvements. On a positive 38
note, it appears that a traffic study was conducted last November (2017) but unfortunately the 39
DOT is unfamiliar with this. Does the County have any information since the collector sites were 40
on Old NC 86, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and within the towns of Carrboro and Chapel 41
Hill? 42
43
North-South Connector Road via Lake Hogan Farms Extension Remains Stalled: 44
For many years, the NTAAC has championed completing the North-South Connector Road, 45
using Lake Hogan Road Extension, northward to Eubanks Road and Morris Grove School, as a 46
solution to traffic and safety issues. This connector road would provide an alternate route to Old 47
NC 86 as well as improve traffic circulation and safety for the surrounding area including Hogan 48
3
Farms and the future Twin Creeks Park. We recently received an update from the Carrboro 1
Planning Staff who confirm the project is stalled since Ballentine (MI Homes) has not proceeded 2
with the last phase of their development. It’s our understanding that an engineering review of 3
the bridge crossings required to complete this connection is being conducted. What funding, if 4
any, has the County allotted to Twin Creeks Parks and the completion of the connector road? 5
We recommend that the Commissioners and BoA discuss the North-South Connector Road 6
project at their next joint meeting. 7
8
Carrboro Advisory Board Guidelines and Staff Resources: 9
We would like to report that over the past year the communication and dissemination of 10
materials to the NTAAC have improved. Yet we remain concerned that the newly enacted 11
advisory board guidelines (Rules of Procedure for Town of Carrboro Boards and Commissions 12
Administrative Policy) have already had the consequence of canceling our March meeting due 13
to lack of Staff resources. (IE Item 4. Meeting agenda… If the agenda is not posted prior to 14
96 hrs. of the meeting, the meeting will be cancelled and items will be continued to the 15
next properly posted meeting.) The NTAAC cannot complete our charge or even meet 16
without dedicated and consistent staff. We meet once a month, a cancellation is more 17
consequential for us compared to other advisory boards who meet more frequently. Also as 18
you may know, the NTAAC is the only board whose members are not the constituents of the 19
BoA. We can’t vote for them, only the Orange County Commissioners. 20
21
The rest of the NTAAC’s projects from the past year are listed below in the report. As you can 22
see, the majority of these projects involve Old NC 86. We believe this focus will continue into 23
the future. We have accomplished our work while having committee vacancies and membership 24
turn over, monthly meetings (if not cancelled), and limited staff resources. 25
26
Thank you for your time and this opportunity to provide this update. Do you have any 27
questions? 28
29
Proposed FLX Applicant/Development at Old NC 86 and Eubanks Roads: 30
As the Commissioners may know, the NTAAC has spent significant time (i.e., years) addressing 31
proposed development and zoning changes within the Northern Transitional Area (NTA). In 32
2011, our members attended a two day charrette, along with other neighbors and citizens. This 33
charrette developed plans and brought forth concerns and interests regarding the development 34
of the property located at the corner of Old NC 86 and Eubanks Road. We have participated in 35
all of the public hearings and meetings concerning this development and new zoning. We have 36
also offered detailed recommendations. Nevertheless, the NTAAC still finds FLZ zoning 37
confusing, especially after attending the 2/7/2017 BoA meeting when the FLX applicant was 38
approved to apply for FLX even though all the zoning terms were not met. We anticipate that an 39
application for FLX zoning will be submitted once the current Eubanks construction projects are 40
completed and may need the county’s assistance to interpret the FLX zoning. 41
42
Multi-use Paths Along Homestead Road and Greenway Connectors: 43
The NTAAC participated in several meetings concerning the developments at the corner of 44
Homestead Road and Lake Hogan Subdivision. On 9/20/2017, we also attended a public 45
hearing with the Board of Adjustment to emphasize our recommendation that, in lieu of two 46
sidewalks (for the interior project), a multi-use path be added to the developments along 47
Homestead Road. Our recommendations were denied though this path would facilitate 48
pedestrian and bicycle safety. Carrboro is not a continuous town but the construction of multi-49
use paths along main roads as development occurs is a good solution to promoting citizen 50
4
safety and enjoyment of the area. The NTAAC has also advocated for multi-use path designs 1
in other projects, including the Ballentine Development where there is a well-used path fronting 2
Old NC 86. 3
4
The Jones Creek path begins at Morris Grove School and ends at the intersection of Carrboro 5
and County land. The County maintains their section of this trail and it continues to be a model 6
example of recreational multi-use paths. Unfortunately the path ends abruptly several hundred 7
yards before the Hogan Farms neighborhood. Much to their frustration, the connecting terrain is 8
unpaved, rocky, hilly, and muddy making a riding a bike or walking to school difficult for 9
neighborhood children. Carrboro has received a grant funding the building this connection to 10
the Jones Creek Path which will facilitate its regular use. The grant includes an educational 11
component which will support the Morris Grove faculty / staff to encourage children to ride bikes 12
or walk to school. The NTAAC is strongly supportive of this effort and continues to recommend 13
that the Town of Carrboro fund connecting its separate sections for pedestrian and bicycle 14
uses. 15
16
Excessive Trash along Old NC 86 Calvander to Eubanks: 17
The NTAAC remains concerned about the excessive trash along Old NC 86 (i.e., from 18
Calvander to Eubanks). It’s our underrating that the trash is collected twice a year by the 19
Highway Departments’ prison systems. This schedule is not frequent enough. Old NC 86 is a 20
major artery road feeding to the Solid Waste Center. Due to trash falling from vehicles traveling 21
to the Solid Waste Center as well as the amount of traffic on this stretch of Old NC 86, garbage 22
accumulates along this road at a more rapid rate than at other locations. The NTAAC 23
recommends that the collection schedule be revised given that the road is too dangerous for 24
community groups to sponsor or adopt for cleanup. 25
26
Way Finding Project: 27
The Town of Carrboro has recently hired Axia, a consultant firm, to analyze its signage into 28
gateway points and within the town itself. The goal is to provide clear and consistent signage 29
and branding. The NTAAC did not have any specific critiques as to the methodology of the 30
analysis as performed and reported in Phase 1 nor did we object to the general conclusions as 31
presented. The NTAAC did, however, provide input as to particular signage in the Northern 32
Transition Area (NTA) which seems to be redundant and adds to the clutter of signage on the 33
roadways, recognizing that some of this signage may be required by NCDOT. The NTAAC 34
recommended that directional signage at the intersection of Eubanks Road and Old NC 86 35
would be helpful, particularly as the area grows and motorists less familiar with that intersection 36
need to ascertain directions to Hillsborough and Carrboro. 37
38
Respectfully Presented and Submitted by: 39
Amy Jeroloman – Orange County Rep to NTAAC, Current Chair 40
Anahid Vrana– Orange County Rep to NTAAC, Current Vice Chair 41
Deb Rich – Orange County Rep to NTAAC 42
43
Commissioner Jacobs asked if Craig Benedict could address some of these issues, and 44
the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) has been waiting for answers from the Town of 45
Carrboro since October 2016. 46
Amy Jeroloman said the NTAAC thought the traffic study was done in November 2017, 47
but has received no information. She said the NTAAC contacted the Department of 48
Transportation (DOT), who was unaware of any such study. 49
5
Craig Benedict, Planning Director, said he had not seen the study either, and the 1
Planning Department asked for another meeting with Carrboro staff about the Old 86 business 2
park, but that has not occurred. 3
Craig Benedict said the BOCC appointed a new member to the NTAAC about a month 4
ago, and an orientation will be set up for this new member. He said a letter will go to the 5
appointee, existing members, and the Town of Carrboro staff to set up this meeting, which can 6
be used as an opportunity to receive an update as well. He said there is no money allocated in 7
the early years to help with Twin Creeks Park and the north-south connector, and it was 8
contingent on the MI homes development being completed, which it is not. 9
Craig Benedict said there should be an orientation for the new NTAAC member within 10
the next month. 11
Chair Dorosin said he and the Mayor of Carrboro have decided to regularize a meeting 12
between the Board Chairs and the Town and County Managers, the first of which occurred last 13
week. He said all of these items will be a part of these conversations. 14
15
• Carrboro Planning Board 16
Susan Colton represents the transition area in Carrboro, and she lives in the County. 17
She said the Carrboro Planning Board said the Fairmont project is filled out and they are 18
interested in the adjacent Hutchinson property, and they will also be working on flex study on 19
the property where Eubanks Road crosses 86. She said the Lloyd property (on 54 and 20
Fayetteville Road) has been stalled for a while, but it should be brought forward some time this 21
year. 22
Chair Dorosin asked if the Lloyd property could still be developed with houses, without a 23
conditional use permit (CUP). 24
Susan Colton said they did not want to build houses, but rather wanted to make a lot of 25
stores with Harris Teeter as the anchor. She said she does not know if they could build houses, 26
even if they wanted to. 27
28
• Chapel Hill Library Board of Trustees (CHPL) 29
James Stroud said the CHPL has stayed on the cutting edge of technology, is very 30
innovative, and has a very good director. He said the usage numbers continue to increase. He 31
reviewed the following letter from the first quarter: 32
33
CHPL Board Budget Priorities for 2018 34
Dear Town Council Members: 35
In response to the request for input, please find below the top three budget priorities that the 36
Chapel Hill Public Library Board of Trustees would like to present for consideration. We see 37
these priorities as interdependent and working to achieve the Town’s themes and goals as 38
depicted in the Chapel Hill 2020 comprehensive planning document. 39
40
1. Fund ongoing and expanded outreach services to underserved populations, with 41
an emphasis on digital inclusion strategies and continuing to add hours of 42
operation. 43
Rationale: part of the ongoing mission of the public library is “creating 44
connections,” particularly with the new role the Library Director will be playing for 45
the Town. We believe that increasing the accessibility of the physical library and 46
its resources as well as its digital reach should remain priorities for the Town for 47
the foreseeable future. With use of the library constantly increasing and the role 48
of the library in Chapel Hill as a source of information and community 49
6
engagement becoming increasingly central, we ask the Town Council to help 1
keep this trajectory supported with funding and resources. 2
3
2. Increase funding to staffing the Library with diverse staff. 4
Rationale: Due to the changing demographics of the Town and the emphasis in 5
the CHPL Business Plan on "creating a more diverse place for everyone," the 6
Board of Trustees prioritizes the hiring of diverse staff to continue to provide the 7
excellence of service for which CHPL is renowned. 8
9
3. Review the current funding model with the County. 10
Rationale: Having a current, working agreement with the County for 11
collaboratively funding operations should be a priority, as strategic decisions for 12
library services continue. 13
14
The Board supports creative ways to accomplish these initiatives, perhaps through 15
collaborations with local organizations. 16
Thank you for asking for our input in your planning process. 17
18
Sincerely, 19
20 Brian Sturm, Chair 21
Chapel Hill Public Library Board of Trustees 22
23
Commissioner Rich asked if there is a deadline for the interlocal agreement with CHPL. 24
Bonnie Hammersley said this interlocal agreement expired in 2014, but Orange County 25
has continued to fund the CHPL at the same amount. She said the County has not received a 26
request from the Town to increase this amount. 27
Commissioner Jacobs said there had been fairly regular meetings, and then the tax 28
equity study was completed, which said that the funding came out even in the wash, and 29
everyone was being treated fairly in this agreement. 30
31
• Chapel Hill Parks, Greenways and Recreation Commission: not able to attend 32
33
• Chapel Hill Planning Commission: not able to attend 34
35
• Hillsborough Board of Adjustment: David Remington 36
David Remington said the one thing he wanted to bring forth was the request for 37
modifying the conditional use permit for the Eno River Academy on highway 57 to expand to an 38
elementary school. He said many similar questions arise about pedestrian and public 39
transportation, and it illustrates how difficult it is to do good things sometimes. He said it is 40
difficult to put sidewalks along a state highway, and with public transportation there is 41
discussion about putting in a bus stop, since this is a charter school with no transportation. He 42
said public transportation in the rural parts of Orange County is an important issue. He said 43
there are 3000 Orange County residents that do not drive, and are not within walking distance 44
of public transportation. 45
Commissioner Jacobs asked if staff would send some updated information about public 46
transportation to the Hillsborough BoA. 47
Chair Dorosin asked if the school’s permit request was approved. 48
David Remington said yes. 49
7
1
• Hillsborough Planning Board: not in attendance 2
3
• Mebane Planning Board: not in attendance 4
5
Internal Boards 6
7
• ABC Board: previously presented at January 23rd BOCC meeting 8
9
• Adult Care Community Advisory Board: No report submitted, but if one can be by next 10
week, this item may be able to be added to agenda on May 3. 11
12
• Advisory Board on Aging: Lorenzo Mejia, Vice-Chair 13
Lorenzo Mejia thanked the Board of County Commissioners for its support for the 14
Department on Aging (DoA), and said Orange County attracts the elderly and retirees. He said 15
he works in this industry too, and DoA is recognized at a national level. He said there are 16
currently three areas of concern: 17
• Affordable housing 18
• Affordable care 19
• Transportation 20
21
Lorenzo Mejia said many of the elderly are not affluent residents, and there are real 22
needs. 23
Commissioner Burroughs asked if more could be shared about the need for affordable 24
care. 25
Lorenzo Mejia said if you are over 65, Medicare covers most needs. He said if one is of 26
limited needs, one is covered by Medicaid, but these two agencies do not cover everything. He 27
said an example is in home care (health assistants, post surgery care, etc.), which is not 28
covered at all, and this is the greatest need nationwide. 29
Commissioner McKee asked if the Advisory Board receives specific feedback on what 30
type of transportation is needed. 31
Lorenzo Mejia said seniors living at home need transportation, especially in rural areas. 32
Janice Tyler said door-to-door transportation in central and northern Orange County is 33
most needed. She said transportation for medical appointments is covered, but going to get 34
groceries, or other errands/social activities, is not. 35
Commissioner McKee asked if any consideration has been given to using a model like 36
Uber or Lyft. He said he is concerned that running a 15-passenger van to rural Orange County 37
is not the most efficient way to satisfy this need. 38
Janice Tyler said she would have to refer that idea to the County Manager. 39
Janice Tyler said there is a volunteer driver program to fill in the gaps, and UNC 40
Healthcare has used Lyft on a limited basis for some of its clinics. She said in years past there 41
have been contracts with taxi services. 42
Bonnie Hammersley said staff is looking at curb-to-curb service, as well as mobility 43
coordinators. 44
Commissioner Price asked if elderly residents are having difficulty aging in place, and 45
thus needing additional housing. 46
Janice Tyler said yes, this is a daily problem because affordable housing is scarce in 47
Orange County. 48
8
Commissioner Jacobs said Theo Letman, Transportation Director, previously talked 1
about an on demand service down the line. He said the public needs to be better informed 2
about Orange County’s transportation plan. 3
Lorenzo Mejia said aging in place is a national challenge. 4
Commissioner Marcoplos said he lives in rural SW Orange County, and northern 5
Orange County always comes up in discussion, but it is better to say rural areas in general as 6
that is more accurate and inclusive. 7
Janice Tyler said her department has a grant funded mobility manager position from the 8
MPO, which has a direct phone line to help residents coordinate the best type of transportation 9
for their needs, which is a great resource. 10
Commissioner Rich said she had seen evidence of the benefits of this mobility manager. 11
She agreed with Commissioner Jacobs to make the transportation information more available. 12
Janice Tyler said the mobility manager does travel training with the older adults to help 13
familiarize them with the route. 14
15
• Affordable Housing Advisory Board 16
Sherrill Hampton said Chair Cook and Vice Chair Jacobs were unable to attend, but 17
there is a report in the Commissioners’ packet, and she is available to answer any questions. 18
Chair Dorosin suggested adding this report to the May 3 meeting, if possible. 19
Donna Baker said she would follow up. 20
21
• Agricultural Preservation Board (APB): APB Board member Howard McAdams, and 22
Pete Sandbeck 23
Howard McAdams said he is a member of the board, and the Chair had a death in the 24
family and could not attend tonight. He thanked the Board for its ongoing support, and 25
reviewed some of the APB’s accomplishments: (page 36) 26
27
• Hosted the second “annual” breakfast program/informational workshop for existing and 28
prospective VAD/EVAD farm owners to encourage new participants and answer 29
questions; 68 people attended this at the Cedar Grove Community Center. 30
• In 2017, reviewed and recommended approval for 15 additional farms as Voluntary 31
Agricultural District and Enhanced Voluntary Agricultural District farms, adding 1,179 32
acres to these programs. This amount increased the total enrollment into both 33
programs to 12,554 acres on 93 farms throughout Orange County and increased 34
acreage in all of the seven Agricultural Districts. 35
36
Howard McAdams shared some of the concerns or emerging issues facing the APB: 37
• The average age of our farmers continues to increase, causing concerns about 38
retirement and farm succession planning. This is an ongoing issue despite the rising 39
numbers of young people taking up farming. Our “senior” farmers control and farm a 40
large percentage of the County’s prime open farmland, thus creating the potential for a 41
significant decline in active farm acreage over the next decade. New farmers tend to 42
grow market crops intensively, on very small farms. 43
• Explore ways to educate farmers and prospective farmers about the many new 44
agritourism opportunities that could be used to enhance and diversify farm income and 45
bring visitors to farms 46
• The APB plans to collaborate with the newly-formed Food Council on a range of 47
initiatives to enhance local markets for farm products. 48
• There is an ongoing need to educate landowners about all available farm programs, 49
including VAD/EVAD and the Present Use Valuation program. 50
9
1
Peter Sandbeck thanked the BOCC for its ongoing support, and gave specific praise to 2
Gail Hughes, Resource Conservation Coordinator, for all her efforts with the VAD farmers. 3
Commissioner Rich thanked the APB for working with the Food Council. 4
Commissioner McKee thanked the APB for keeping agriculture front and center, and he 5
said it is the farming community that keeps Orange County both rural and green. 6
Chair Dorosin referred to the concern about the aging of farmers, and said he read that 7
some counties are creating programs to teach farming to younger people. He asked if Orange 8
County could have a similar program. 9
Pete Sandbeck said the Ag Extension runs similar programs to this, and is hoping to 10
increase it. 11
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if there is actual data about farmers’ ages and other 12
demographics. 13
Howard McAdams said only via census data. 14
Commissioner Marcoplos said he attended the farm tour last year, and the ages ranged 15
from 25 and 50. 16
Commissioner McKee said most of the farmers in Orange County, who are farming 17
considerable acreage, are older. He said the barrier for the next generation to become farmers 18
is not a lack of interest, but rather finances. 19
20
• Animal Services Advisory Board: Molly Mullins, Vice-Chair and Bob Marotto, 21
Department Director 22
Molly Mullins said they provided a work plan for the Commissioners, and she outlined 23
some highlights: 24
Recent Issues: 25
• Suffering Animal Surrenders: A task force of board members and staff has been 26
created to develop a satisfactory approach to animals suffering from neglect that are 27
surrendered to Animal Services. The task force is expected to consider the pros and 28
cons of sanctions up to and including criminal prosecution. The task force is also 29
expected to consider how to address the potential adoption of animals by people who 30
have surrendered a neglected animal and the resources that may be available to 31
support the care and retention of animal companions. 32
• Easement next to AS building- where OWASA is putting in sewer lines to the Rogers 33
Road Community and Duke Power is also planning in more utilities. This area had been 34
an area where the shelter dogs were taken to walk. So it is no longer available 35
anymore. ASAB has been working closely with AS to avoid disruptions around the 36
facility with more open communications with these utilities in advance so AS can be 37
more prepared. 38
39
On- going work: 40
Managing Pet Overpopulation: The board will continue to work with staff to implement a plan 41
for managing free roaming cats. In particular, the board will coordinate with staff to coordinate 42
with the Agricultural Preservation Board and other entities to advance the “working farm cat” 43
program. The board will also continue to work with staff to develop community partnerships and 44
resources for addressing the challenges presented by free roaming cats in Orange County. 45
46
More generally, the board will work with staff to ensure that organizational forms and practices 47
responsible for the county’s success in managing over population are recognized, supported 48
and extended into the future. This is a critical commitment to ensure that pet overpopulation is 49
managed in the long run in Orange County in a humane as well as cost effective manner. 50
10
1
Three (3) ASAB members serve on the Animal Services Hearing Panel Pool. They chair the 2
appeal hearing panels convened under the Unified Animal Ordinance. Each month there have 3
been between two (2) and four (4) appeal hearings (ranging in time from three-quarters of an 4
hour up to two hours). 5
6
Unified Animal Ordinance: Several items of concern have arisen in the hearing process 7
experience over the last year. Some of these are more technical issues but there is a general 8
policy issue as well, namely, whether there should be more gradations in the manner in which a 9
dog is declared a danger to the public. As one panel member recently noted after a challenging 10
hearing, the ordinance does not have a lot of flexibility in this area and everyone would feel 11
better about their service if more tools were available to use in administering this part of the 12
ordinance. Thus, the ASAB will be considering whether there are reasonable options that may 13
be put into the language of an amendment for consideration by the BOCC. 14
15
Also, the board proposed a change from “vicious” to “dangerous” in the UAO and the BOCC 16
adopted an amendment making the change. This is a good illustration of the interdependence 17
of the ASAB and the Animal Services Hearing Panel Pool. In this case, members of the Animal 18
Services Hearing Panel Pool became concerned that the “vicious” language was alarming to 19
the owners of animals so deemed and the three members of the pool from the ASAB brought 20
this concern before the board for consideration. 21
22
Pets of the Homeless: Working with the county’s Homelessness Coordinator to identify 23
community resources that can be tapped to help care for pets belonging to the homeless as 24
they undergo different transitions. Among the expected deliverables for this collaborative effort 25
are an infographic and an inventory of assorted services and resources that may be useful to 26
people with pets who are homeless or who are trying to make a transition to some kind of 27
housing. This has been a perplexing problem for Animal Services to deal with on its own and 28
there is a strong sense that a broad based approach is the most successful way to find 29
solutions to what are very stressful situations. 30
31
Pat Sanford Award: 32
Three members of the ASAB serve on the review committee for the Pat Sanford Animal 33
Welfare Award. The committee is charged with reviewing applications and making a selection 34
based upon award criteria. 35
36
Accomplishments: 37
The ASAB continued to work with staff and stakeholders managing pet overpopulation in 38
Orange County. Free-roaming cats have been of great significance to recent efforts in this 39
area, and among other things, the ASAB and staff together have sought to establish strong 40
working relations with potential community partners. These have included efforts to craft a 41
“working barn cat” program with the Agriculture Preservation Board. 42
43
Commissioner McKee asked if there has been any feedback from utility companies that 44
this easement would not be available, once the construction is complete. 45
Bob Marotto said there was an initial meeting with Duke Energy last week, and they 46
seemed open to letting Animal Services (AS) use the easement while the work is being done, 47
but AS is reviewing the processes before moving forward. 48
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if the dogs rescued from the dog-fighting ring have 49
been cared for. 50
11
Bob Marotto said these dogs are being sheltered at the AS center, and will continue to 1
be there through the bond forfeiture process, which has been initiated and the owner of the 2
dogs will be required to post a bond for the cost of care, or forfeit the animals to the County. 3
He said staff has been working closely with other agencies to avoid bottlenecks in spacing. 4
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if these dogs can be rehabilitated should the County 5
ends up keeping them. 6
Bob Marotto said it is a complex issue, and experts in this area would have to be 7
involved to assess the animals. He said it would be challenging process, and would need to be 8
done in a deliberate manner. 9
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if this is the first time AS has had an experience like 10
this. 11
Bob Marotto said it is not the first time, but it is the largest number of dogs, and the 12
collaboration between AS, the Sheriff’s office, and the District Attorney is unique, and has been 13
a rewarding experience. 14
Commissioner Burroughs said she had an acquaintance tell her recently that she had a 15
wonderful experience with Bob Marotto, who was able to handle a tricky situation and secure a 16
positive outcome. 17
Commissioner Price said she has a concern about the first issue: an abused animal 18
being voluntarily surrendered without recourse on the owner. She said there is legal recourse 19
for dog or cock fighting. 20
Bob Marotto said those are not the situations that they were talking about. He said it is 21
more typical for someone to have an ill animal that they cannot afford to take care of. He said 22
this type of situation is handled quite differently than dog fighting. 23
Commissioner Jacobs asked Bob Marotto if he could share the winners of the Pat 24
Sanford. 25
Bob Marotto said there were four or five applications and two winners this year: N.C. 26
Equine Therapy Center and Independent Animal Rescue. 27
28
• Arts Commission: Tim Hoke, Chair 29
30
Time Hoke said the Commission has had a busy year. He reviewed some 31
accomplishments: 32
33
• Reinstated our positive standing as the Designated County Partner for Orange County 34
with the NC Arts Council after a probationary period implemented by the NC Arts 35
Council in July, 2016. 36
• Revised the Orange County Arts Grants application process, simplifying the application 37
and condensing the cycle to one annual application period. Hosted training sessions 38
and one-on-one assistance to area groups and artists. 38% of applicants during the 39
2017 cycle were first-time applicants. 40
• Served as ambassadors and panelists for the Emerging Artist Program, the Annual 41
Piedmont Laureate Program, and the 4th US Congressional District High School Art 42
Competition. 43
• Completed Calypso Cat public art project in partnership with Orange County Animal 44
Services and Gold Park Bee Hotel project in partnership with the Town of Hillsborough, 45
the Hillsborough Tourism Development Authority, and the Hillsborough Arts Council. 46
• Hosted The State of the Arts of Orange County and the Triangle with the NC Arts 47
Council to announce the findings of Americans for the Arts’ Arts and Economic 48
Prosperity Survey V. Have presented to findings to local boards and councils to info 49
• Advocated on behalf of Orange County artists and arts organizations to local legislators 50
12
in Raleigh at Arts Day 2017 1
• In partnership with the Hillsborough Arts Council, hosted “Paint it Orange: Plain Air 2
Paint-out & Wet Paint Sale,” the first county-wide plain air paint-out as a fundraiser for 3
OCAC and HAC. We had 52 registrants for our first year, 60% from outside Orange 4
County. 5
• Published a printed Orange County Arts Map, as well as a digital version on 6
artsorange.org 7
• Surveyed candidates for local offices on their feelings towards the arts and made the 8
results available to the public through artsorange.org 9
• Offered stories of local artists, arts spaces and events on artsorange.org through a 10
partnership with Alicia Stemper/Vitamin O, as well as staff-generated content 11
• Hosted a nine-part series of listening sessions to discuss areas of need within the 12
Orange County arts community. Sessions included Visual Arts; Performing Arts; Literary 13
Arts; Town, Gown & the Arts; Arts & Business; Nonprofit Arts & Culture; Arts in 14
Education (one each for CHCCS and OCPS); Hillsborough Arts. Over 180 members of 15
the community participated. 16
• Funded an extension of The ArtsCenter’s Artists in Residency program, allowing all four 17
Title 1 schools in Orange County 16 artist residencies during the 2017-18 school year 18
19
Commissioner Marcoplos said people often ask him why Orange County is focusing on 20
the arts when there are so many other issues that exist in the County. He said he was 21
interesting to read in the report that, “children with exposure to the arts have lower drop out 22
rates, and better standardized test scores”. He asked if more could be shared about this. 23
Tim Hoke said there is a lot of research on this topic, and there is also evidence of the 24
arts in everyday life being beneficial for the aging community as well. 25
Katie Murray said the specific study, to which Commissioner Marcoplos referred, was 26
conducted by researchers in Philadelphia, and this data is gathered through Americans for the 27
Arts, who publish an annual list of the top ten reasons to support the arts, with updated study 28
results. 29
Commissioner Rich asked if staff could talk about the economic development that the 30
arts bring to Orange County. 31
Katie Murray said the non-profit arts industry reports $130 million was spent in one year 32
in Orange County. She said 2/3 of this is organizational spending, that the non-profits spend; 33
and the remaining 1/3 is spent by the consumers. She said the arts also contributed $5.3 34
million to local government in that same year. 35
36
• Economic Development through the arts. 37
o The OCAC has presented the findings of Americans for the Arts Arts & Economic 38
Prosperity Study 5 to local boards and commissions, informing community leaders 39
that the arts are a $130.3 million industry for Orange County, employing 5,001 full-40
time equivalent jobs (4th largest industry employer), and generating $5.3 million for 41
local government. Presentations have been made to Hillsborough Town Council, 42
Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership Board of Directors, Hillsborough Tourism Board, 43
Carrboro Economic Development Council/Cultural Arts Commission, Chapel Hill 44
Cultural Arts Commission, and Hillsborough Arts Council Board of Directors. 45
46
Tim Hoke closed his presentation by reading a poem. 47
48
• Board of Health: Health Director Quintana Stewart 49
13
Quintana Stewart said she has submitted a report for the Board’s review, and briefly 1
discussed the following: 2
• Successfully filled the Board of Health Strategic Plan Manager vacant position (Beverly 3
Scurry) 4
• Successfully recruited, interviewed and selected a new Board of Health representative 5
(Bruce Baldwin, Johanna Birckmayer, Jennifer Deyo) 6
• The Board was very pleased with their ability to use their community project support 7
fund, and were able to support two staff members from the Orange County School 8
system to attend the action based learning kinesthetic classroom national workshop. 9
10
Concerns and Emerging Issues 11
• The Board plans to continue to focus on social determinants of health in the coming 12
year, including working with the Family Success Alliance (FSA). 13
• The Board will monitor and continue to work on mental health and substance abuse, 14
especially the opioid crisis. 15
• The Board is planning a community forum to facilitate the drinking water fluoridation 16
topic, as requested by OWASA last fall. 17
18
Commissioner Burroughs said Commissioner Rich previously asked about vaping, and 19
asked if there was a timeline for the BOH response to this issue. 20
Quintana Stewart said a draft policy has been completed, and the BOH is currently 21
waiting and doing a political scan. She said the BOH is scheduled to talk about it next month. 22
Commissioner Rich asked if the Health Department can start communicating to high 23
school kids that vaping is not something they should be doing, and warning them of the 24
dangers. 25
Quintana Stewart said there is a senior educator who presents at the schools, and it 26
would be wise to garner more partnerships with the school systems. 27
Commissioner Rich asked if there have been lessons from the Family Success Alliance, 28
and, if so, are those lessons being applied to the rest of the County. 29
Quintana Stewart said some best practices have been developed through the work of 30
the FSA. She said the FSA is beginning its strategic planning process, which will include 31
discussions about spreading the work out beyond the FSA zones. She said this process has 32
yet to be determined specifically. 33
Chair Dorosin said he heard of a statewide report on children, and Orange County 34
scored very well in many categories, but scored poorly on low birth weight babies. 35
Quintana Stewart said she will research this report, and some of their case management 36
programs do work with these clients through pregnancy and infancy. She said determinants of 37
health definitely affect birth weights. 38
Commissioner Price said it could have come from the North Carolina Association of 39
County Commissioners (NCACC), who compiles data from around the state. 40
Commissioner Rich asked if the Health Department is doing a better job of handling 41
undocumented residents and refugees who may be fearful of approaching the department, 42
despite needing help. 43
Quintana Stewart said the Interpreter Supervisor is doing very well at keeping the 44
Department in touch with the immigrant population, and a message of welcome and safety is 45
repeated to these groups; however, missed appointments have increased. 46
47
• Board of Social Services: Tamara Dempsey-Tanner, Chair/Lindsey Shewmaker, DSS 48
Unit Manager 49
Tamara Dempsey-Tanner reviewed the following information: 50
14
Orange County DSS plays an important role in many of our county’s disenfranchised 1
and vulnerable citizens. Our services address the full lifespan. Many are federally mandated 2
and others reflect local community needs. There are 12 general programs and services, which 3
include: 4
• Food & Nutrition services 5
• Medicaid eligibility and re-certification, 6
• Energy Assistance 7
• Work First & Employment Services, 8
• Child Care Subsidy 9
• Adult Services 10
• Child Protective Services 11
• Adoption 12
• Foster Care 13
• Crisis Assistance 14
• Adolescent Parenting Program 15
• Community Outreach 16
17
Among these 12 programs & services, 22,000 residents are annually served in DSS, for a 18
county population of nearly 140,000; nearly 16% of residents are served. 19
20
Staff are daily working with families to ensure access to public health insurance, access to food 21
& nutrition resources to minimize food insecurity, enrollment in quality childcare to ensure our 22
youngest citizens have a safe and nurturing out of home care environment, providing time 23
limited energy assistance or crisis assistance resources to help families bridge the gap and 24
reduce their risk of homelessness. Work- First helps families move from public assistance into 25
employment, a veteran’s services resource office, the child welfare program ensures children 26
are in a safe home environment that promotes their health and well-being. 27
28
Whereas all of these program and services have important management consideration, have 29
unique impact on the specific population served, and select resource allocation; there are a 30
couple emerging issues that we, as an agency and Board, want share with the Commissioners. 31
• NCFAST - North Carolina Families Accessing Services through Technology data 32
platform; rolling out the child welfare component, which is a multifaceted program; data 33
migration accuracy from the prior historical system’s data is critical, because staff need 34
real time access to ensure health and safety and children/youth. Thus this process has 35
become quite meticulous regarding staff time, so we Appreciate the additional support 36
and resources that have been allocated in this transition and minimize in disruption of 37
services 38
• State Performance Improvement Plan for Child Welfare - new performance measures 39
are being developed an expected to be in effect next fiscal year 40
• NC Medicaid Transformation – wait and see what the final model will look like and its 41
implication on local service agencies 42
• HB 630 and Regionalization of DSS agencies: state workgroup includes discussions 43
about performance contracts, regionalization mapping – implications on county budget, 44
staff, county specific DSS programming 45
• Proposed changes to federally funded programs –new Farm bill proposes cuts to SNAP, 46
proposed work requirements for Medicaid eligibility, outcome implications on final 47
Congressional approval decision. 48
15
• Finally for a local focus, time limited crisis assistance – due to particular weather events 1
(localized flooding, extreme cold) have had more requests for assistance to prevent 2
homelessness than previous years; ongoing availability of mental health resources, 3
transportation access for rural sector. 4
5
As always, we continually appreciate the support of the county manager and county 6
commissioners in recognizing our work and services to our Orange County citizens. 7
8
Commissioner Rich asked if staff would provide the Orange County transportation plan 9
to Board of Social Services as well. 10
11
2. Environmental Impact as Part of Agenda Abstracts 12
13
PURPOSE: 14
To consider incorporating an additional information section into the Board of Commissioners’ 15
meeting agenda abstracts to address Environmental Impact. 16
17
BACKGROUND: 18
At the Board of Commissioners’ February 6, 2018 regular meeting, a petition was submitted 19
that the Board considers incorporating an additional Environmental Impact information section 20
into the Board of Commissioners’ meeting agenda abstracts. 21
22
The Board’s meeting agenda abstracts currently includes information such as the Subject, the 23
responsible Department, the Purpose, Background information, the Financial Impact and 24
Recommendations from the Manager (and other staff on occasion). Agenda abstracts also 25
include a Social Justice Impact section, which was added in September 2015 and relates to the 26
five (5) Social Justice Goals adopted by the Board of Commissioners in September 2010. 27
28
This item gives the Board the opportunity to discuss possibly incorporating an additional 29
information section to address Environmental Impact. If the Board does determine to move 30
forward with the additional section, it will be necessary to establish a framework as a basis for 31
any statements or conclusions included by staff in the Environmental Impact section of future 32
abstracts. In conjunction with that framework, the Board will also need to determine the 33
topics/issues that would and would not be addressed in the new section. Topics that could or 34
could not be considered for inclusion are: air quality, drinking water quality, groundwater impact, 35
watershed impact, visual impact, vehicular impacts, pedestrian impacts, safety impacts, noise 36
impacts, vegetation impacts, and likely others. 37
38
Commissioner McKee asked if there is a goal trying to be accomplished by this petition. 39
Commissioner Marcoplos said the goal is similar to the other impacts noted on 40
abstracts, and considering the environment is always important. He said this evening’s item is 41
to define the scope of what they would like to include. 42
Commissioner McKee said he is not opposed to it, but the County’s policies reflect the 43
Board’s commitment to social justice and the environment, and he is not sure adding another 44
section causes any greater emphasis. He said the Board’s actions speak far louder than its 45
words. He said the agenda abstracts all blend together, and he rarely reads past the financial 46
impact. He said he would never oppose it, but he is not sure this change would add anything. 47
Commissioner Jacobs said he does not always read the social justice goal either, but 48
the abstracts are outwardly directed, and serve as a communication tool, to the public. He said 49
the current federal and state administrations are attacking the environment, and it is a 50
16
reasonable request to stress the importance Orange County places on protecting the 1
environment. He said there is a re-entry forum tomorrow, and he was going to share that 2
Orange County was one of the first counties in the country to adopt a social justice goal. He 3
said changes like this are symbolically important. 4
Commissioner Burroughs said she does not read the social justice goal either, but she 5
would not oppose this proposal. She said she is not sure how many people read the abstracts, 6
but agrees with the sentiment of this being a symbolic gesture. 7
Commissioner Price said she skips over the social justice goal, but as she reads the 8
abstracts she does look for social justice and environment impacts. She said she would not 9
oppose this proposal. 10
Commissioner Marcoplos said he looks at the impact statements on the current 11
abstracts, which seem to atrophy. He said the goals could be made more specific and useful 12
with salient points. He said climate change is the biggest crisis in human history, and this point 13
should be made apparent any chance possible. He said if the BOCC makes policy, it should 14
understand how the policy affects the environment in very specific ways. He said it is of 15
paramount importance. 16
Commissioner Price said noting specific, measurable impacts makes sense, but just 17
making a general statement of commitment seems to have no measurable impact. She 18
suggested putting all of the Board’s goals at the front of every abstract. 19
Commissioner Jacobs said repeating the goal does nothing, and he would rather see a 20
relationship between these impacts and the abstract substance. 21
Commissioner McKee said if the abstracts became more specific, then he would read 22
them more closely, but the Board needs to be respectful of staff time in compiling these goal 23
statements. 24
Commissioner Marcoplos agreed with that, but if the BOCC is going to have the goals, 25
then adequate effort should be put in to define the impact of a particular policy. He said the 26
financial impact is always very specifically stated, and the other goals are no less important 27
than finances, and warrant specific impacts as well. 28
Bonnie Hammersley said she has talked with some staff about this, and they would 29
bring back some criteria for the environmental goals. She said staff considers the social justice 30
goals with each abstract, and the BOCC has been clear on what it values pertaining to social 31
justice, and this is not a cumbersome task for the staff. She said a similar practice could be 32
followed with environmental goals. 33
Chair Dorosin said he is not sure how useful the goals are currently, nor is he sure how 34
easy it would be to do this at the level that Commissioner Marcoplos is thinking. He said it 35
would be helpful to make these goals more effective, and he is not sure that just tasking it to 36
staff is the best way to do it. He said each item in the agenda abstract could state which goals 37
it hits, and the Board could flesh out details in discussion. He said he was a big supporter of 38
including the social justice goal, and it has become a bit rote. He said specific information 39
would be helpful, but there needs to be a practical way to accomplish this. He said the BOCC 40
receives the agendas on a Friday, and could task itself with looking at an agenda item and 41
requesting more information if a particular item has more environmental or and social justice 42
implications. He said he wants to optimize these goals, while being mindful of giving open- 43
ended work to staff. He said he liked Commissioner Price’s idea of having all six goals at the 44
front of each agenda. 45
Commissioner Burroughs said she also liked Commissioner Price’s idea of putting the 46
goals on the front of the agenda. She said if an issue has a clear impact on the environment, 47
and the BOCC would like this specific information, then the staff should feel empowered to 48
highlight such significance to the Board. 49
17
Commissioner Jacobs suggested asking the Manager to bring back several options, try 1
them out for a period of time, and find one option that works and is brief enough as to not be 2
onerous for the staff. 3
Commissioner McKee said one of the options could be to have Chair/Vice chair to look 4
at items that specifically speak to a goal, and have them to direct staff to add more information 5
as needed. 6
Chair Dorosin said the Chair/Vice Chair try to do this already, but the Board’s goals are 7
so broadly written, which makes it tricky. 8
Commissioner Marcoplos said having the Commissioners look at agendas, and request 9
information at the last minute, is likely more burdensome for the staff. 10
Commissioner Marcoplos said there are six goals, but these three goals are the legs of 11
the proverbial stool: financial, social and environmental. He said he always thought this would 12
be an experiment, and the Board and staff could test-drive some options. 13
Commissioner Price said staff does the work, and it is incumbent upon this board, which 14
adopted the policies, to interpret the staff’s work. She said the Board should be doing this, and 15
making sure their data meets these goals. 16
Chair Dorosin said if the Board does not read portions of the agendas, then others are 17
likely not reading these goals either. He said if the abstract is too dense, it is 18
counterproductive. 19
Chair Dorosin said to try Commissioner Jacobs’ suggestion of letting staff determine a 20
few options. He said having the goals printed on the agendas is a good reminder of what they 21
are committed to doing. 22
Commissioner McKee agreed. 23
The Board agreed by consensus. 24
25
3. Board of Commissioners Policy on Resolutions Presented at Board Meetings 26
27
PURPOSE: 28
To discuss the Board’s policy regarding the presentation of a resolution during a Board meeting 29
and potentially taking action on that resolution during the same meeting or directing the item for 30
consideration at a future meeting. 31
32
BACKGROUND: 33
At the Board of Commissioners’ March 8, 2018 regular meeting, a petition was submitted that 34
the Board discuss the Board’s policy regarding the presentation of a resolution during a Board 35
meeting and the Board potentially taking action on the resolution during that same meeting or 36
directing the item for consideration at a future meeting. 37
38
Section V, Rule 8 (c) of the Board’s Rules of Procedure states: 39
(c) The board may, by approval of a majority of its members, i.e. an affirmative 40
vote equal to a quorum, add an item at the meeting that is not on the agenda. 41
42
(It is worth noting that this provision applies not only to resolutions, but also to any other types 43
of items, which may be presented during a Board meeting, including a Proclamation, Regular 44
Item, Report, or Public Hearing.) 45
46
In the past, members of the public, Board members and staff have presented resolutions and 47
other items during a meeting. In some instances the Board has chosen to plan the discussion 48
and consideration of the item at a future meeting. In other instances the Board has added the 49
item to the agenda and discussed and taken action on the item during the same meeting. 50
18
1
This item gives the Board the opportunity to discuss the presentation of a resolution during a 2
Board meeting and potentially taking action on that resolution during the same meeting or 3
directing the item for consideration at a future meeting. In light of the current Rules of 4
Procedure provision, discussion on resolutions as well as other types of agenda items may be 5
appropriate. 6
7
Chair Dorosin said he would like to see if the Board can come up a way to 8
accommodate the atypical situations for some matters. He said one option is for the Board to 9
vote to add items to the agenda, but in general the Board would like as much advance notice of 10
resolutions as possible, but some are more time sensitive. 11
Commissioner Burroughs said she is fine with adding an item to an agenda when it is 12
time sensitive in nature. She said resolutions are often just about public relations, and rarely 13
have financial or other impacts. 14
Commissioner Rich said resolutions put information out to the public, and many are time 15
sensitive. She said if more time is available, she would prefer going through the normal 16
process, but if an item is time sensitive she would accept adding it to an agenda. 17
Commissioner McKee said he raised this concern, not because he needs more time to 18
review the resolution, but because the public may not know about it and the public deserves to 19
know about what the Board is up to. 20
Commissioner Price said the BOCC should use common sense, and issue or approve a 21
resolution if it is important or time sensitive. She said waiting can make the BOCC look lazy or 22
behind. 23
Chair Dorosin said these resolutions are important, and the BOCC has been judicious in 24
taking immediate action. He said he is happy to amend the agenda as needed if it is time 25
sensitive, etc., and if a Commissioner has an electronic copy it can be sent out the full Board in 26
advance, and it is always possible to post a statement on web. 27
Commissioner Marcoplos said this suggestion does not box the Board into a corner, and 28
if a resolution is put forth and a Board member makes a case to wait, then the board can vote 29
accordingly. He said some of these resolutions have an impact by encouraging other 30
governments to express a similar sentiment, and have a domino effect. 31
Commissioner Rich agreed with going through the process of amending the agenda at 32
the meeting, to add a resolution if need be. She referred to Commissioner McKee’s point of 33
having the public more involved, and said the Board can always hear public comment at the 34
next meeting if need be. 35
Commissioner Jacobs said there have been several instances in the last few months, 36
where residents have asked the BOCC to pass a resolution on an issue important to them, only 37
to learn that the BOCC has already done so, which he sees as a demonstration of the Board’s 38
leadership, and attunement to the values of Orange County. 39
40
The meeting was adjourned at 9:17 p.m. 41
42
Mark Dorosin, Chair 43
44
45
Donna Baker 46
Clerk to the Board 47
48
49
50
1
Attachment 3 1
2
DRAFT MINUTES 3
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 4
REGULAR MEETING 5
May 1, 2018 6
7:00 p.m. 7
8
The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, May 1, 2018 9
at 7:00 p.m. at the Whitted Building, in Hillsborough, N.C. 10
11
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Dorosin and Commissioners Mia Burroughs, 12
Barry Jacobs, Earl McKee, Mark Marcoplos, Renee Price and Penny Rich 13
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: None 14
COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts 15
COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Deputy County Manager 16
Travis Myren and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff members will be identified 17
appropriately below) 18
19
Chair Dorosin called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. 20
21
1. Additions or Changes to the Agenda 22
The following items were noted at the Commissioners’ places: 23
- PowerPoint for Item 4-a: Budget Presentation 24
- PowerPoint for Item 6-b: SPOT 5.0 Update and Recommendations on County Transportation 25
Priorities in TARPO 26
27
Chair Dorosin said another Closed Session Purpose needs to be added to the other two 28
closed session purposes at end of meeting: 29
30
A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Jacobs to 31
add another closed session purpose at the end of the meeting: 32
“To establish, or to instruct the public body's staff or negotiating agents concerning the position 33
to be taken by or on behalf of the public body in negotiating (i) the price and other material 34
terms of a contract or proposed contract for the acquisition of real property by purchase, option, 35
exchange, or lease, “ NCGS 143-318.11 (a) (8) 36
37
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 38
39
Arts Moment 40
Arts Commission Board Member Linda Williamson introduced Gary Phillips: 41
Gary Phillips is the 2016-2017 poet laureate of Carrboro, North Carolina. He is a writer, 42
naturalist and entrepreneur. Gary has a special interest and expertise in conservation 43
easements and other land-protective strategies. He co-founded Weaver Street Realty over 44
thirty years ago and is still active in the business. He lives in a rammed earth house with his 45
wife Ilana Dubester in Silk Hope, North Carolina. Gary avidly reads poetry and anthropological 46
science fiction, studies amphibian activities on full moon nights and was once Chair of the 47
Chatham County Board of Commissioners 48
Gary Phillips read a poem. 49
50
2
2. Public Comments 1
2
a. Matters not on the Printed Agenda 3
Susan Attermeier said she is here to speak in support of the living wage, and she is on 4
the steering committee of the Orange County Living Wage. She said there is some discussion 5
about employing custodial and cafeteria works within Orange County schools, or outsourcing 6
the job. She said these jobs are in the low wage job group, and presented a handout. She said 7
when people are paid a living wage, they pay more income tax, need less government support, 8
and purchase more goods and services. She said the Orange County Living Wage has worked 9
hard to get employers to raise the wages of their lowest paid workers, and these efforts have 10
lead to increases totaling $600,000-$700,000. She said these funds come back into the 11
community, and leads to a positive cycle. She referred to an article in the NY Times on this 12
topic. 13
14
b. Matters on the Printed Agenda 15
(These matters will be considered when the Board addresses that item on the agenda 16
below.) 17
18
3. An nouncements, Petitions and Comments by Board Members 19
Commissioner Burroughs said she continues to be moved to discuss her views on the 20
history of the confederacy, and she read an excerpt from the PBS article, “The Weeping Time”: 21
22
“In March of 1857, the largest sale of human beings in the history in the United States 23
took place at a racetrack in Savannah, Georgia. During the two days of the sale, 24
raindrops fell unceasingly on the racetrack. It was almost as though the heavens were 25
crying. So, too, fell teardrops from many of the 436 men, women, and children who were 26
auctioned off during the two days. The sale would thereafter be known as "the weeping 27
time." The owner of the slaves, Pierce Butler, had inherited the family's Georgia 28
plantations some twenty years earlier, along with his brother John. But Pierce had 29
squandered away his portion of the inheritance.” 30
31
Commissioner Burroughs said Pierce Butler was one of her forebearers, and there is 32
nothing of which to be proud. 33
Commissioner Jacobs said at the next meeting he would like a status update on the 34
projects with the mobile home park communities. 35
Commissioner Marcoplos had no comments. 36
Commissioner Rich said the Visitors’ Bureau (VB) met last weekend, and is having an 37
ongoing conversation about AirBnB’s, and asked if John Roberts would look into what options 38
are available for the County regarding these businesses. 39
Commissioner Rich reviewed activities from the weekend: Northside block part at the 40
Jackson Center; sold out National Association for the Advancement of Colored People 41
(NAACP) Banquet; and the 21st Community Dinner. 42
Commissioner Rich thanked the Human Relations Commission (HRC) for putting on the 43
discussion about the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) and the proposed changes that 44
may be forthcoming about the flag. She said this was not a conversation, but mostly people 45
making statements back and forth from opposing sides. She said it did not feel that anything 46
changed, and, while it was a good first step, more needs to be done. 47
Commissioner Price said she attended the first Orange County conversation about 48
opioids, which had a host of attendees from the State and the County. She said the next day 49
was the inaugural local Re-entry Council Program. She said she attended the North Carolina 50
3
Association of County Commissioners (NCACC) District meeting, and each county reported 1
what was going on in its county, and the main theme was school funding. She said it reinforced 2
the need for a bond referendum in November, which would only cover a potion of the needs. 3
She said she attended the final program of the Frederick Douglass bicentennial, where one of 4
Frederick Douglass’ decedents spoke about slavery in the past, as well as modern day human 5
trafficking. 6
Commissioner Price also thanked the HRC for the discussion last night, and she was 7
pleased that both sides showed up, but more of a dialogue is needed. 8
Commissioner McKee said he was late to the HRC meeting last night, but he heard the 9
comments made after the presentation. He said it was disappointing to see the two sides talk 10
at/past each other, rather than to each other. He said the primary is 7 days away, and 11
encouraged all to get out and vote. 12
Chair Dorosin asked if all the Commissioners would send him and Commissioner Rich 13
any input on legislative items by May 8th. 14
Chair Dorosin said there is a public charge at the beginning of each regular meeting and 15
agenda, and he does not care for the wording of the charge. He said he finds it to be overly 16
aggressive in its tone, and he would like to consider revising this charge. He said he will not 17
read it in its current form. 18
Chair Dorosin said he was not able to attend the HRC event, and encouraged everyone 19
to keep realistic expectations, as these are incredibly serious matters that people feel very 20
passionate about. He said there is always value in pulling back the curtain, and bringing it into 21
the light. 22
23
4. Proclamations/ Resolutions/ Special Presentations 24
25
a. Presentation of Manager’s Recommended Fiscal Year 2018-2019 Annual 26
Operating Budget and FY 2018-23 Capital Investment Plan 27
The Board will receive the Manager’s Recommended FY 2018-19 Annual Operating 28
Budget and FY 2018-23 Capital Investment Plan. 29
30
BACKGROUND: 31
Each year during the month of May, the County Manager presents the Board of County 32
Commissioners with a recommended spending plan for the next fiscal year. The Board of 33
County Commissioners and County staff have held work sessions, as well as the BOCC 34
Retreat, over the past nine months to discuss various issues and projects that guided the 35
recommendations related to the County’s FY 2018-19 budget. During the meeting, the 36
Manager will provide a brief presentation of the Recommended FY 2018-19 Annual Operating 37
Budget and FY 2018-23 Capital Investment Plan. 38
Bonnie Hammersley made the following PowerPoint presentation: 39
40
FY2018-19 41
COUNTY MANAGER RECOMMENDED BUDGET 42
43
Continuation Budget 44
45
DEBT SERVICE 46
PERSONNEL COST 47
CONTRACT OBLIGATIONS 48
RESERVE LEVELS 49
CHCCS AND ORANGE COUNTY SCHOOL FUNDING 50
4
1
Budgeted Expenditures and Revenues (bar graph) 2
3
Budgeted Revenues (pie chart) 4
5
Budgeted Expenditures (pie chart) 6
7
Assumptions 8
Tax Growth = 3.0% 9
Sales Tax Growth = 2.4% 10
General Fund Reserve = 16% 11
12
Phase In tax Rate Increase $0.0142 to $0.8519 (chart) 13
14
Commissioner Rich asked if the phase in tax increase is to cover the bond for schools 15
and affordable housing. 16
Bonnie Hammersley said the majority of it does cover that, but it also covers some of 17
the significant capital debt. She resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 18
19
$0.0142 Tax Rate Increase Impact (chart) 20
21
Request Compilation (chart) 22
23
County Departments 24
Employee Compensation Package (chart) 25
26
Commissioner Jacobs asked if the living wage for temporary employees is being phased 27
in to be the full living wage over the years. 28
Bonnie Hammersley said this proposed living wage ($14.25/hour) will go into effect July 29
1, 2018. 30
Commissioner Jacobs asked if this will parallel the rise which takes place in County 31
Government. 32
Bonnie Hammersley said yes. 33
Commissioner Price said substitute teachers are still making $10/hour, and asked if this 34
can be increased. 35
Bonnie Hammersley said the County gives money to the schools, and it is at the 36
schools’ discretion as to how the money is used. 37
Chair Dorosin said the BOCC can encourage the schools to raise the living wage. 38
Bonnie Hammersley resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 39
40
FUNCTIONAL LEADERSHIP TEAMS 41
COMMUNITY SERVICES 42
Increase Solid Waste Program Fee $4 to $132 per year 43
GENERAL GOVERNMENT 44
Food Council Coordinator - 1.0 FTE (contingent on cost share amongst all 45
jurisdictions) 46
EMS Billing Collections - 1.0 FTE (additional revenue) 47
Racial Equity Training (REI) - 1st year of 3 year plan (fund reallocation) 48
HUMAN SERVICES 49
Dental Hygienist - 1.0 FTE (new revenue and fund reallocation) 50
5
Implement pilot for “Local Housing Voucher” program 1
PUBLIC SAFETY 2
Criminal Justice Resources - 0.5 FTE (Contingent on new ABC revenue) 3
4
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if there is a deadline for the Town of Chapel Hill to 5
make a decision on the Food Council position. 6
Bonnie Hammersley said by early June. 7
Commissioner Marcoplos asked how much Chapel Hill is being asked to contribute. 8
Bonnie Hammersley said about $40,000. She resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 9
10
FY2018-19 Recommended Budget Education 11
Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS) 12
Orange County Schools (OCS) – table 13
14
Chair Dorosin said he wants to know how exactly many students there are in CHCCS. 15
Paul Laughton, Deputy Finance and Administrative Services Director, said it would be 16
12,387 minus 155 charter students. 17
Chair Dorosin said OCS is 8,011 minus 769. 18
Paul Laughton said yes. 19
Chair Dorosin said the County is giving money for the total numbers of 12,387 for 20
CHCCS and 8,011 for OCS. 21
Paul Laughton said yes. 22
Bonnie Hammersley resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 23
24
Education: CHCCS and OCS Operations 25
26
Paul Laughton referred to the previous slide, and said the out of district pupils are in the 27
seats. He said these students are not included in the ADM, because they pay tuition. 28
Chair Dorosin asked if the number of the actual students in the seats could be identified. 29
Bonnie Hammersley said she would get the specific numbers in a simpler format to the 30
BOCC by the May 10th public hearing. 31
Commissioner Rich asked if this changes the percentages. 32
Bonnie Hammersley said no, and the ADM determines the percentages, and those 33
percentages are determined by the information received from DPI. 34
Commissioner McKee said, as he understands it, in Orange County Schools there are 35
103 out of district students in the seats, for which the County does not pay, and 769 students in 36
charter schools seats, for which the County does pay. He said the funds for charter school 37
students is double, because the per pupil goes to the charter school, and the local district 38
school is also held harmless. 39
Chair Dorosin said then that money is distributed among the rest of the kids, making the 40
per pupil higher than $4,000. He said he would like to know this specific figure. 41
Bonnie Hammersley said staff will get that information to the BOCC. She resumed the 42
PowerPoint presentation: 43
44
Capital Funding for Schools 45
46
Bonnie Hammersley said she is recommending a Deferred Maintenance Plan for each 47
of the school districts, and is proposing to use about $3 million out of the $8 million fund 48
balance. She said if the BOCC adopts this recommendation, the schools can provide a list of 49
6
jobs to the County, and the County will reimburse the schools as these projects are completed. 1
She resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 2
3
Last 5 years- increase in per pupil funding 4
5
Durham Tech Community Recommended Budget Funding 6
7
Commissioner Price asked if the intended purpose for the $75,000 could be identified. 8
Paul Laughton said this is consistent with what Durham Tech has requested in past 9
years. 10
Bonnie Hammersley resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 11
12
Outside Agencies Recommended Budget 13
14
Commissioner McKee referred to the scoring, and asked if there are many agencies 15
scoring below 70. He said if there are agencies scoring so low, it may be wise to consider to 16
discontinuing the funding. 17
Bonnie Hammersley resumed the PowerPoint presentation: 18
19
Fire Districts Recommended Budget 20
• two fire districts requested increases for equipment 21
22
Recommended Budget Timeline 23
Budget Timeline Date 24
Recommended Budget Presentation May 1 25
Budget Public Hearings 26
Budget and Capital Investment Plan May 10 and 17 27
Budget Work Session Schedule 28
Schools and Outside Agencies May 24 29
Fire District, Public Safety, Support Services and May 31 30
General Government 31
Human Services and Community Services June 7 32
Budget Amendments and Resolution of Intent to Adopt June 12 33
BOCC Regular Meeting 34
FY2018-19 Operating and CIP Budget Adoption June 19 35
36
Budget Document Availability 37
Clerk to Board of Commissioners 38
County Finance & Administrative Services Office 39
Orange County Library 40
Chapel Hill Public Library 41
Carrboro/McDougle Branch Library 42
Orange County Website - http://orangecountync.gov 43
44
Commissioner Jacobs asked if he could receive a chart of the increase in the County 45
per pupil amount, over the last 5 years, and what percentage it is; and a chart of the same for 46
the state legislators. 47
Commissioner Jacobs said he appreciated the new housing voucher program. 48
Commissioner Jacobs said adding positions that can pay for themselves is much 49
appreciated. 50
7
Commissioner Jacobs said the report on the consolidated housing program has a 1
number for people who are age 62 and older, which is almost identical to the number of 2
students being funded in the two school systems. 3
Commissioner Jacobs said a SWOT analysis was completed, which recommended that 4
the County aim for 70% property tax dependence and this budget meets this recommendation. 5
Commissioner Burroughs said she appreciated the work and the presentation; and she 6
particularly appreciated the concept of the deferred maintenance for the schools over time. 7
Commissioner Burroughs referred to the charter schools, and said, at some juncture, 8
too many students will leave for charter schools, and it would be wise for the school districts, 9
especially OCS, to show where/when children are leaving for charter schools. She said if the 10
losses are scattered throughout the district, then the current plan is still valid, but if this trend 11
continues, more information may be helpful. 12
Chair Dorosin said he is not advocating for changing the policy, but rather he wants 13
more information in order to tell the story to the residents of Orange County of the full range of 14
support the County provides to the school districts. He said he thinks the number of children 15
leaving the public schools for the charter schools is already at a critical point. 16
Commissioner Burroughs said she would like to see the data on the charter students. 17
Chair Dorosin said the County has close to 10% of students attending charter schools, 18
and the school districts are held harmless. He said if this policy were to change, it would have 19
a negative impact on the school districts. 20
Chair Dorosin referred to Commissioner Jacobs’ point about the property tax, and said it 21
would it would be useful to break down the 70% property tax to see how much is residential and 22
how much is commercial. 23
Commissioner Jacobs said the charter schools have their own growth plan, and the 24
County needs to be more proactive in projecting where this trend is going. He said the County 25
may not have any control over the charter schools, but it does have control over whether or not 26
to keep holding harmless the charter school students. 27
Chair Dorosin said the state law was changed last year, and now charters can grow up 28
to 20% without additional oversight. 29
Commissioner Marcoplos said Commissioner Burroughs’ request for more information 30
gets to the point that all of the lights do not have to be kept on if 30% of the students have left a 31
district. 32
Commissioner Jacobs said this may work in tandem with the mandated class size 33
reduction. 34
Commissioner Price said there are incentives provided to businesses to build in 35
Orange County, and as these incentives time out, the County starts to see tax revenue. She 36
asked if the revenues will be projected in the budget at any point. 37
Bonnie Hammersley said it will show in the 5-year projection, and this is the last year of 38
the incentive for Morinaga. She said there will be a little bit more money in article 46, as it is 39
currently being used to pay the incentive. 40
Commissioner Price asked if this is shown now. 41
Paul Laughton said it shows now in the article 46 sales tax fund. 42
Commissioner Price said there is a trend with students leaving, but the County needs 43
to find out why the students are leaving, or else we will end up with one school district being 44
wealthier than the other. She said it is important to think about how to get the schools back to a 45
level where parents want their children to return. 46
47
5. Public Hearings 48
49
a. Public Hearing on the Financing of Various Capital Investment Plan Projects 50
8
The Board conducted a public hearing on the issuance of approximately $8,150,000 to 1
finance capital investment projects and equipment for the fiscal year; and approve a related 2
resolution supporting the County’s application to the Local Government Commission (LGC) for 3
its approval of the financing arrangements. 4
Gary Donaldson, Chief Financial Officer, reviewed the information below: 5
6
BACKGROUND: 7
County staff estimates that the total amount to be financed for capital investment projects and 8
equipment will be approximately $8,150,000. The financing and transaction costs are included 9
in the loan amount. 10
The North Carolina General Statutes require that the County conduct a public hearing on the 11
proposed financing. The notice of public hearing was advertised in The Herald Sun and the 12
News of Orange. A copy of the published notice is provided at Attachment 1. Since the actual 13
public advertisement, the project name for the Environmental Agricultural Center has been 14
changed to the Northern Campus site acquisition and an additional $60,000 has been added to 15
the 911 Center Improvements, these represent the only changes from the actual public 16
advertisement. 17
18
After conducting the public hearing and receiving public input, the Board will consider the 19
adoption of a resolution (Attachment 2). This resolution formally requests the required approval 20
from the North Carolina Local Government Commission (LGC) for the County’s financing, and 21
makes certain finding of fact as required under the LGC’s guidelines. County staff has been in 22
contact with the LGC staff, and staff expects no issues with receiving LGC approval. 23
24
If the Board adopts the resolution indicating its intent to continue with the financing plan, the 25
Board will be asked to consider a resolution giving final approval to the financing plans at its 26
June 5, 2018 meeting. Under the current schedule, County staff expects to set the final interest 27
rates and close on the financing by the end of June 2018. 28
29
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact related to conducting the public hearing and 30
approval of the resolution. However, there will be a financial impact in proceeding with the 31
financing. A preliminary estimate of maximum debt service applicable to the capital investment 32
projects and equipment financing would require the highest debt service payment of $1.2 million 33
in FY 2019-20. The tax rate equivalent for the estimated highest debt service payment is 34
approximately .67 cent. 35
36
Commissioner McKee asked if this money is for the current Agricultural building. 37
Gary Donaldson said no, it is for the new northern campus. 38
39
A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Rich to open 40
the public hearing, 41
42
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 43
44
A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner McKee to 45
close the public hearing. 46
47
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 48
49
9
Chair Dorosin asked if it matters that the public hearing notice listed one figure, and 1
there is another number for the BOCC to approve, 2
Bob Jessup, Bond Counsel, said it does not matter since they are comparable 3
numbers. 4
5
A motion was made by Commissioner Burroughs, seconded by Commissioner Price for 6
the Board to adopt the resolution supporting the application to the Local Government 7
Commission for approval of the financing. 8
9
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 10
11
6. Regular Agenda 12
13
a. Orange County Consolidated Plan – FY 2018-2019 Annual Action Plan and 14
Proposed FY 2018-2019 HOME Activities 15
The Board considered voting to adopt a Resolution approving the Consolidated Plan’s 16
proposed FY2018-2019 Annual Action Plan; adopt and authorize the Chair to sign a Resolution 17
approving the proposed HOME Program Activities for FY 2018-2019; and authorize the County 18
Manager to implement the HOME Program as approved by the BOCC, including the ability to 19
execute agreements with partnering non-profit organizations after consultation with the County 20
Attorney and based on the allocation received from HUD. 21
22
Sherrill Hampton, Housing Director, reviewed the information below: 23
24
BACKGROUND: 25
In May 2015, based on Federal requirements, a Consolidated Plan for 26
Housing and Community Development Programs in Orange County was developed by the 27
HOME Consortium and approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 28
(HUD). This document details the housing needs of very low income, low income and moderate 29
income families and special population groups, in addition to outlining the strategies and plans 30
for addressing those needs. FY 2018-2019 will be the fourth year of the 5-year Plan. 31
32
Each year, local communities are required to reassess the needs of the community. Public 33
hearings provide an opportunity for the public, public agencies and other interested parties to 34
provide input as it relates to the Consolidated Plan and updates of the proposed Annual Action 35
Plans. The public is also asked to comment each year on the proposed uses of the annual 36
HOME allocations. Public hearings were held by the Board of Commissioners on December 37
4, 2017 and April 3, 2018 to receive resident input and comments regarding the proposed 38
Annual Action Plan and uses of FY2018-2019 Program Year Funds. Furthermore, a 30-day 39
written public comment period was provided from March 29 - April 30, 2018. Notices were 40
placed in The Herald-Sun, News of Orange and La Noticia. Copies of the proposed Annual 41
Action Plan are made available at Orange County Housing and Community Development 42
Department’s Main Office, Orange County Library and the Chapel Hill Library, as well as on the 43
Orange County Website. All public comments received are summarized in the proposed FY 44
2018-2019 Annual Action Plan. 45
46
The Orange County HOME Consortium, known as the Orange County Local Government 47
Affordable Housing Collaborative, anticipates the following Federal financial resources for FY 48
2018-2019: 49
FY 2018 HOME Funds $ 289,693 50
10
HOME Program Income $ 13,306 1
HOME Match $ 65,181 2
Total $368,180 3
4
The above amounts are estimates only and may be adjusted according to the allocation 5
received from HUD. 6
7
Furthermore, the HOME Consortium, comprised of one (1) elected official and staff members 8
from Orange County, the Town of Carrboro, Town of Chapel Hill and Town of Hillsborough, 9
reviewed the applications received as it related to proposed FY 2018-2019 HOME funds and 10
made recommendations regarding funding for consideration by each of the Consortium 11
member jurisdictions’ elected bodies as follows: 12
Community Home Trust - Homeowner Assistance $ 60,000 13
Empowerment, Inc. – Rental Acquisition $145,000 14
Habitat for Humanity – Homeownership $ 60,000 15
Inter-Faith Council for Social Services (IFC) – Rapid Re-Housing and 16
General Tenant-Based Assistance $ 25,000 17
Orange County – Housing Rehabilitation $ 49,211 18
Administration $ 28,969 19
Total $368,180 20
21
The requested amounts above may be adjusted based on the allocation the HOME Consortium 22
receives from HUD. 23
24
In accordance with the Orange County HOME Consortium Agreement, approved in May 2011, 25
the HOME Program Design for each year must be approved by all jurisdictions prior to 26
submission to HUD. The HOME Program Design is scheduled for approval by the Town of 27
Carrboro on May 1, 2018 and by the Town of Chapel Hill on May 2, 2018. The Town of 28
Hillsborough adopted the HOME Program Design on April 9, 2018. The Board of County 29
Commissioners (BOCC) is therefore asked to consider approval of the attached HOME 30
Program Resolution. 31
32
The FY 2018-2019 Annual Action Plan will be submitted to HUD on or before May 15, 2018. 33
34
HOME Program Implementation 35
After approval of the FY 2018-2019 HOME Program Design by all Consortium participants, 36
authorization is also requested to allow the Orange County Manager, based on the HUD 37
allocation received, to execute agreements with partnering non-profit organizations as 38
necessary to implement the approved HOME Program Design. All agreements will receive the 39
review and approval of the County Attorney’s Office. 40
41
Commissioner Jacobs asked if there was any discussion within this group about 42
relocation funds for those being displaced from mobile homes. 43
Sherrill Hampton said this topic was covered under part of the displacement mitigation 44
assistance program, approved by the BOCC in March 2018. She said there is also the risk 45
mitigation and housing displacement fund, approved by the BOCC in the past budget cycle. 46
She said guidelines have been created and sent out to the local non-profit providers. She said 47
the HOME program is a federal one, and thus all are being very cautious with compliance 48
issues when trying to serve undocumented people. 49
11
Commissioner Jacobs said he was wondering if the federal funds could be used, and 1
not solely rely on local funds, but if there is concern about undocumented individuals, then it is 2
more complicated. 3
Chair Dorosin asked if the line for administration comes back to the department to cover 4
staff salaries. 5
Sherrill Hampton said a very small portion is used to cover salaries, and it is mostly used 6
to cover soft costs such as lead testing, etc. 7
Commissioner Price said she is surprised that lead is still an issue. 8
Sherrill Hampton said it is prevalent in the older homes. 9
Commissioner Price asked if the number of affected units is known. 10
Sherrill Hampton said she can get this information to the BOCC. 11
Sherrill Hampton shared that the County received its allocation for FY18-19, and there 12
will be a surplus. She said staff will be meeting with the housing collaborative later in May to 13
determine the best uses for these additional funds. 14
15
A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price for the 16
Board to: 17
18
1) Adopt a Resolution approving the Consolidated Plan’s FY 2018-2019 Annual Action 19
Plan; 20
2) Adopt and authorize the Chair to sign a Resolution approving the proposed HOME 21
Program Design for FY 2018-2019; and 22
3) Authorize the County Manager to implement the FY 2018-2019 HOME Program 23
Design, as approved by the BOCC, including the ability to execute agreements with 24
partnering non-profit organizations after consultation with the County Attorney and 25
based on the allocation received from HUD. 26
27
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 28
29
b. SPOT 5.0 Update and Recommendations on County Transportation Priorities in 30
TARPO 31
The Board received an update on Strategic Prioritization Office of Transportation 32
(SPOT) 5.0 activities from Orange County Transportation Planning staff and considered the 33
Orange Unified Transportation Board’s (OUTBoard) recommendation for Orange County’s 34
priorities within the Triangle Area Rural Planning Organization (TARPO). 35
36
BACKGROUND: 37
SPOT 5.0 Update – The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) released its 38
SPOT 5.0 scores on April 3, 2018. Metropolitan and Rural Planning Organizations (MPO/RPO) 39
are limited to the number of transportation projects that can be submitted and scored through 40
the process. Orange County’s prioritized transportation projects scored in SPOT 5.0 are now 41
subject to different MPO/RPO adopted – and NCDOT approved – local input point processes. 42
Projects receiving local input points will ultimately score higher than those that do not, which 43
increases likelihood of State funding through the State Transportation Improvement Program 44
(STIP) FY 2020-2029. Following are some key aspects of the local input assignment 45
methodologies from each of the County’s applicable transportation planning organizations: 46
47
Triangle Area Rural Planning Organization (TARPO) 48
• Orange County submitted 6 transportation projects to TARPO of which 3 were scored. 49
12
• Its process for assigning local input points incorporates both quantitative data and 1
priorities from member jurisdictions that must rank their scored projects. 2
• The top two ranked projects scored for each member county (Chatham, Lee, Moore, 3
and 4
Orange) in TARPO will be given the full 100 local input points. 5
• Additionally, the 6 next-highest scoring projects within TARPO will also be allocated 100 6
local input points. These projects will be determined after all counties have submitted 7
their rankings, which are due to TARPO staff by May 15. 8
• TARPO staff will conduct a public drop-in session to present the local input assignments 9
and gather input during late-May/early-June. 10
11
No BOCC actions are required at this time for the Durham – Chapel Hill – Carrboro 12
Metropolitan Planning Organization (DCHC MPO) and Burlington-Graham Metropolitan 13
Planning Organization (BG MPO). Following is a brief update on their local input point 14
processes for information. 15
16
DCHC MPO 17
• Orange County submitted 19 transportation projects to DCHC MPO of which 6 were 18
scored. 19
• DCHC MPO staff is conducting its quantitative based process and will publish the results 20
for a 21-day public review period running from May 14 through June 4. 21
22
BG MPO 23
• Orange County submitted 3 transportation projects to BG MPO, none of which were 24
scored through SPOT 5.0 due to BG MPO project ranking and selection processing, 25
which put projects with the highest pre-preliminary scores forward. 26
• Orange County staff is working with BG MPO staff and staff of other member 27
jurisdictions to develop a process for SPOT 6.0 that considers more than just pre-28
preliminary scores as prerequisite for formal scoring. 29
30
Additional specifics on the local input point methodologies of the two MPOs and RPO were 31
provided as an Information Item to the BOCC at its January 23, 2018 meeting. 32
33
OUTBoard Recommendation for Ranking of County Transportation Priorities in TARPO – All 34
counties within TARPO have been asked to rank their scored transportation projects. At its 35
April 18, 2018 meeting, the OUTBoard recommended the following: 36
37
• Orange County Public Transit Purchase of Two Light-Transit Vehicles be ranked as the 38
County’s top project, followed by Old Greensboro Road and Efland-Cedar Grove Road 39
Modernization and 4’ paved shoulder (Attachment 1). 40
• NC-54 should not be ranked, as it is not identified as a County priority and completion of 41
the NC 54 Corridor Study remains pending. 42
• NCDOT should include crosswalks, intersection improvements and bike/pedestrian 43
safety modifications when doing modernization projects. 44
• Bridge on Old Greensboro should accommodate pedestrian and vehicular safety. 45
46
Transportation Planning Staff Comments – It is clear that Orange County’s top two ranked 47
projects will receive the maximum (100) local input points from TARPO through its 48
methodology. 49
13
How many local input points will be allocated to Orange County’s third ranked project will not be 1
known until all member counties submit their prioritized rankings to TARPO staff and they are 2
scored through its internal methodology for assignment. It is possible that Orange County’s 3
third ranked project may receive less than the maximum amount of local input points. 4
5
Additional Background Information on SPOT 5.0 - The preliminary results of Orange County 6
prioritized transportation projects are presented in Attachment 2. In accordance with State 7
regulations and in coordination with the NCDOT schedule, MPO/RPO Board approvals of local 8
input point distribution are scheduled for June, following a 21-day public review period. 9
Transportation planning staff will continue to keep the BOCC informed throughout the SPOT 10
5.0 process. 11
Nishith Trivedi, Transportation Planner, made the following PowerPoint presentation: 12
13
Strategic Prioritization of Transportation (SPOT) 5.0 & 14
County Recommendations in TARPO 15
5/1/18 16
17
Outline 18
SPOT 5.0 Process & Update 19
o Draft Orange County Statewide Priorities 20
o Preliminary Orange County Regional and Division Priorities Scores 21
County Transportation Project Ranking in TARPO 22
o OUTBoard Recommendations 23
24
SPOT 5.0 Process & Update 25
Process – How projects get funded 26
• 2013, General Assembly passed Strategic Transportation Investment (STI) Law 27
o New formula and process for funding transportation projects 28
o Data driven with local input 29
• STI takes money from NCDOT’s Capital Projects (state and federal sources) and 30
divides it into three buckets 31
• NCDOT develops a Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) every two 32
years. 33
o 10-year “Programmed” projects 34
1st 5-years are “committed” 35
2nd 5-years are “development” – subject to reprioritization 36
37
Process – 3 STI Funding Pots (chart) 38
39
Process – Role and Responsibility (chart) 40
41
Process – Score Breakdown (pie chart) 42
43
Process – STIP Dates (chart) 44
45
Draft Orange County Statewide Priorities 46
(3 in Orange County) 47
48
New Scored & Funded I-85/NC-86 Interchange 49
14
• New interchange 1
o Diamond with widened bridge and turn lanes 2
• Committed statewide highway project for DCHC in SPOT 5.0 3
o ROW in 2024 4
o Construction in 2026 5
o Same timeline as current STIP 6
7
Funded - I-40 Widening in Orange County 8
• Add lanes from I-85 to US 15/501 9
• Developmental Project – ROW in 2025 10
• Previously in “future years” 11
• Widen I-85 from Orange Grove Road in Orange County to Sparger Road in Durham 12
County 13
• Widens entirety of four-lane section of I-85 in Orange County 14
• New Developmental Project 15
o ROW in 2025 16
o Construction in 2027 17
18
Preliminary Orange County Regional and Division Priorities Scores 19
20
Orange County Priorities Preliminary Scores (chart) 21
22
Process – Current Status (graph) 23
24
County Transportation Project Ranking in TARPO 25
26
TARPO Local Input Point Process 27
• TARPO’s process is 50% NCDOT data score and 50% county-level rankings. Together 28
they determine how local points are assigned. These county-level rankings are 29
developed/adopted by the local jurisdictions within each of the four counties in TARPO. 30
o Orange County 31
o Chatham County 32
Goldston 33
Pittsboro 34
Siler City 35
o Lee County 36
Broadway 37
Sanford 38
o Moor County 39
Aberdeen 40
Carthage 41
Foxfire Village 42
Pinehurst 43
Robbins 44
Southern Pines Vass 45
46
Orange County Priorities in TARPO May 2, 2017 BOCC Resolution 47
1. Old Greensboro Road Paved Shoulder 48
2. Efland-Cedar Grove Road Improvements 49
15
3. Deviated Fixed Route Service Implementation Vehicles 1
2
Orange County Priorities in TARPO April 18, 2018 OUTBoard Recommendation 3
1. Deviated Fixed Route Service Implementation Vehicles 4
2. Old Greensboro Road Paved Shoulder 5
3. Efland-Cedar Grove Road Improvements 6
7
Orange County Priorities Preliminary Scores (NCDOT Data Portion) 8
9
Manager Recommendation 10
• The Manager recommends the Board consider the OUTBoard recommendation 11
included in Attachment 1 as the County’s ranking for submittal to TARPO. 12
13
Commissioner Jacobs referred to the Efland - Cedar Grove Road project, and said when 14
Hillsborough expands its reservoir it may change the roads, and asked if this will change the 15
ranking. 16
Nishith Trivedi said no, and this is ranked by DOT as a modernization project. 17
Commissioner Jacobs said if Hillsborough is going to change the road, it does not make 18
sense to make improvements until Hillsborough’s plans are known. 19
Nishith Trivedi said he would look into this. 20
Commissioner Jacobs asked if the work at I-85 and NC 86, and the widening of I-85 in 21
general, will eliminate all of the trees. 22
Nishith Trivedi said this is part of a committed funded project, and design and 23
engineering have yet to be completed. 24
Commissioner Jacobs asked if staff could find out why DOT is removing trees. 25
Commissioner Jacobs referred to information in the abstract about the BGMPO, and 26
asked if the following wording could be translated into layman’s terms: “develop a process for 27
SPOT 6.0 that considers more than just pre-preliminary scores as prerequisite for formal 28
scoring”. 29
Commissioner Rich said she was confused about this language as well, and it seems 30
that nothing ever gets funded with the BGMPO. She said this is of concern to her. 31
Nishith Trivedi said the BGMPO has a subcommittee meeting going over the SPOT 6.0 32
process, to determine which projects to put forward. He said he will gather additional 33
information for the BOCC. 34
Commissioner Rich said NC 54 was not ranked, but was put in. She said the OUTBoard 35
did not want to put it in, due to not knowing the completion of this. She asked if there is an 36
update on the completion. 37
Nishith Trivedi said staff recommended not putting any points on NC 54 projects, since 38
staff did not submit it, and it was not part of TARPO’s. He said it was a surprise to everyone 39
when that project showed up on the SPOT process. He said a corridor study is being 40
completed on NC 54, and DOT is awaiting it. 41
Commissioner Rich asked if it is known when this study will be completed. 42
Nishith Trivedi said some time in the fall of this year. 43
Commissioner Rich asked if this study would be done on time to get into SPOT 6.0. 44
Nishith Trivedi said this can be reviewed to see if the BOCC wants to submit it for SPOT 45
6.0. 46
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if these rankings speak for themselves, or will the 47
BOCC be asked to testify on behalf of its favorite roads. 48
Nishith Trivedi went to the table on page 10 of the slides, and said the projects are 49
ranked based on the May 2nd resolution, with Old Greensboro Road ranked number 1; Efland - 50
16
Cedar Grove Road ranked number 2; and OCPT ranked number 3. He said staff agrees with 1
these recommendations, and the OUTBoard recommends ranking OCPT as number one. 2
Commissioner Marcoplos said he drives Old Greensboro Road all the time, and it would 3
be nice to see some improvements. 4
Chair Dorosin referred to the same slide, and asked if the maximum number of points a 5
project could receive is 50. 6
Nishith Trivedi said yes, the maximum score is 50 based on NCDOT’s quantitative data. 7
Chair Dorosin clarified that none of Orange County’s projects scored higher than 25. 8
Nishith Trivedi said yes. He said NCDOT is now looking for local input points, which will 9
raise the score. 10
Chair Dorosin asked if the local input scores will go in the second column, or be added 11
to the division score. 12
Nishith Trivedi said it will be added to the division score. He said the top ranking item will 13
get the most number of points added, but there is no guarantee that any projects will get 14
funded. He said the maximum amount any project can score is 100 points total. 15
Commissioner McKee said given that the impact of the reservoir expansion on Efland -16
Cedar Grove Road is an unknown, he suggested that the BOCC be laser focused on getting 17
transit services, and thus move Efland - Cedar Grove out of contention. 18
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if choosing only one item to recommend, would 19
guarantee any more certainty of funding. 20
Nishith Trivedi said items number one and two will each receive 100 points. 21
22
A motion was made by Commissioner Rich for the Board to approve the OUTBoard 23
recommendation included in Attachment 1 as the County’s ranking and submit to the TARPO. 24
25
Commissioner McKee said Old Greensboro Road is more critical, since it has a lot of 26
bike traffic, and he would rank this project higher than the transit buses. He said he would love 27
to see 4-foot shoulders added to Old NC 86. 28
Commissioner Marcoplos echoed Commissioner McKee’s comments, and said so many 29
of the rural roads are dangerous on a daily basis. 30
Commissioner Marcoplos asked Theo Letman, Transportation Director, if he could give 31
the relative value of recommending the transit buses versus the roadwork. 32
Theo Letman said the transit vehicles are necessary for the fixed deviated services that 33
the County has been planning to deploy, as well as for ADA services. 34
Commissioner Marcoplos asked if the cost for these buses is known. 35
Theo Letman said $54,000 per bus. 36
Commissioner Jacobs said, at the last meeting, three advisory boards reported a need 37
for increased transportation in rural areas, and the Board also recently discussed the lack of 38
funding to purchase a public transportation vehicle. He said he likes the idea of the bike lanes, 39
but he said the highest priority is public transportation. 40
Commissioner Price asked if the BOCC could just recommend only two projects, and 41
put all the weight of the points on the top 2. 42
Nishith Trivedi said yes. 43
Commissioner McKee said Old Greensboro Road and OCPT are priorities, and he does 44
not oppose the motion in any way. 45
Commissioner Burroughs seconded the motion. 46
47
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 48
49
17
Commissioner Jacobs suggested dropping the Efland - Cedar Grove project, and asked 1
if the motion makers would accept this friendly amendment. 2
Commissioner Rich asked if there is any information about this road, and why did it go 3
to the OUTBoard. 4
Nishith Trivedi said it was part of the resolution from May 2, and it scored according to 5
NCDOT data. 6
Chair Dorosin said the Board receiving information regarding this road likely fell through 7
the cracks. 8
Commissioner McKee said from his perspective the prioritization should not include 9
Efland - Cedar Grove Road at this time. 10
Commissioner Rich and Commissioner Burroughs accepted the friendly amendment. 11
12
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 13
14
7. Reports 15
NONE 16
17
8. Consent Agenda 18
19
• Removal of Any Items from Consent Agenda 20
Commissioner Jacobs – item j 21
Commissioner Price – item d 22
23
• Approval of Remaining Consent Agenda 24
25
A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price to 26
approve the remaining items on the consent agenda. 27
28
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 29
30
• Discussion and Approval of the Items Removed from the Consent Agenda 31
32
j. Resolutions of Approval – Conservation Easements on Two Eno River 33
Association Properties and Approval of Budget Amendment #8-C 34
The Board considered voting to approve resolutions to approve the acceptance of 35
conservation easements from the Eno River Association for two conservation properties that 36
the Board agreed to help fund in June 2017, approve Budget Amendment #8-C, and authorizing 37
the Chair to sign 38
39
Commissioner Jacobs said he wanted to point out that 79 more acres are being added 40
in Orange County to be protected. 41
42
A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner Price to 43
approve resolutions to approve the acceptance of conservation easements from the Eno River 44
Association for two conservation properties that the Board agreed to help fund in June 2017, 45
approve Budget Amendment #8-C, and authorize the Chair to sign. 46
47
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 48
49
d. Older Americans Month Proclamation 50
18
The Board considered voting to approve a proclamation joining Federal and State 1
governments in designating the month of May as Older Americans Month and a time to honor 2
older adults for their contributions to the community and authorizing the Chair to sign. 3
Commissioner Price said she wanted to recognize Janice Tyler, Department on Aging 4
Director, for the Older American’s Month Proclamation. 5
Janice Tyler read the following proclamation: 6
7
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 8
PROCLAMATION 9
Older Americans Month – May 2018 10
Theme - “Engage at Every Age” 11
12
Whereas, Orange County includes over 26,000 persons aged 60 and older who enrich and 13
strengthen the community; and 14
15
Whereas, Orange County is committed to engaging and supporting older adults, their families, 16
and caregivers; and 17
18
Whereas, we acknowledge the importance of taking part in activities that promote physical, 19
mental and emotional well-being – no matter your age; and 20
21
Whereas, Orange County can enrich the lives of individuals of every age by: 22
• Promoting home and community based services that support independent living; 23
• Involving older adults in community planning, events, and other activities; and 24
• Providing opportunities for older adults to work, volunteer, learn, lead and mentor. 25
26
Now Therefore, W e, the Orange County Board of Commissioners, do hereby proclaim May 27
2018 to be Older Americans Month and urge every resident to take time this month to recognize 28
older adults and the people that serve them as vital parts of our community. 29
30
This the 1st day of May, 2018. 31
32
A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Jacobs to 33
adopt the proclamation. 34
35
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 36
37
a. Minutes 38
The Board approved the minutes from April 10 and 17, 2018 as submitted by the Clerk to the 39
Board. 40
b. Motor Vehicle Property Tax Releases/Refunds 41
The Board adopted a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to release motor vehicle 42
property tax values for seven taxpayers with a total of eight bills that will result in a reduction of 43
revenue, in accordance with NCGS. 44
c. Property Tax Releases/Refunds 45
The Board adopted a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to release property tax 46
values for nine taxpayers with a total of seventeen bills that will result in a reduction of revenue, 47
in accordance with North Carolina General Statute 105-381. 48
d. Older Americans Month Proclamation 49
19
The Board approved a proclamation joining Federal and State governments in designating the 1
month of May as Older Americans Month and a time to honor older adults for their contributions 2
to the community and authorized the Chair to sign. 3
e. Application for North Carolina Education Lottery Proceeds for Orange County 4
Schools (OCS) and Contingent Approval of Budget Amendment #8-B Related to OCS 5
Capital Project Ordinances 6
The Board approved an application to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction 7
(NCDPI) to release proceeds from the NC Education Lottery account related to FY 2017-18 8
debt service payments for Orange County Schools (OCS), and to approve Budget Amendment 9
#8-B (amended School Capital Project Ordinances), contingent on the NCDPI’s approval of the 10
application, and authorized the Chair to sign. 11
f. Request for Road Addition to the State Maintained Secondary Road System for 12
Amberidge Drive 13
The Board made a recommendation to the North Carolina Department of Transportation 14
(NCDOT), and the North Carolina Board of Transportation (NC BOT), concerning a petition to 15
add Amberidge Drive in Amberidge Subdivision to the State Maintained Secondary Road 16
System. 17
g. Request for Road Addition to the State Maintained Secondary Road System for Avon 18
Brook Lane 19
The Board made a recommendation to the North Carolina Department of Transportation 20
(NCDOT), and the North Carolina Board of Transportation (NC BOT), concerning a petition to 21
add Avon Brook Lane in Pleasant Green II Subdivision to the State Maintained Secondary Road 22
System. 23
h. Request for Road Addition to the State Maintained Secondary Road System for Little 24
Doe Lane 25
The Board will consider making a recommendation to the North Carolina Department of 26
Transportation (NCDOT), and the North Carolina Board of Transportation (NC BOT), 27
concerning a petition to add Little Doe Lane in Buckhorn Ridge Subdivision to the State 28
Maintained Secondary Road System. 29
i. Request for Road Addition to the State Maintained Secondary Road System – Strouds 30
Creek Road 31
The Board made a recommendation to the North Carolina Department of Transportation 32
(NCDOT), and the North Carolina Board of Transportation (NC BOT), concerning a petition to 33
add Strouds Creek Road to the State Maintained Secondary Road System. 34
j. Resolutions of Approval – Conservation Easements on Two Eno River Association 35
Properties and Approval of Budget Amendment #8-C 36
The Board approved resolutions, which are incorporated by reference to approve the 37
acceptance of conservation easements from the Eno River Association for two conservation 38
properties that the Board agreed to help fund in June 2017, approve Budget Amendment #8-C, 39
and authorized the Chair to sign. 40
41
9. County Manager’s Report 42
NONE 43
44
10. County Attorney’s Report 45
NONE 46
47
11. *Appointments 48
49
a. Commission for the Environment – Appointments 50
20
The Board considered making appointments to the Commission for the Environment. 1
2
A motion was made by Commissioner Jacobs, seconded by Commissioner McKee to 3
appoint the following to the Commission for the Environment. 4
5
k. Appointment to a partial term (position #8) “At-Large” for Carrie Fletcher 6
expiring12/31/2019. 7
l. Appointment to a partial term (position #12) “Engineering” for James Eichel expiring 8
12/31/2018. 9
10
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 11
12
According to previous BOCC discussions, if an applicant is not sent for recommendation by the 13
CFE for position #3 by this appointment date, the BOCC will move forward with an appointment 14
15
At Large Position: 16
17
A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Chair Dorosin to appoint 18
Laurie Langham for Position 3. 19
20
VOTE: Yeas, 3 (Commissioner Price, Chair Dorosin, and Commissioner Marcoplos); Nays, 4 21
(Commissioner Burroughs, Commissioner Jacobs, Commissioner Rich and Commissioner 22
McKee) 23
24
MOTION FAILED. 25
26
Commissioner McKee said he sees no harm in allowing more time to recruit, as there is 27
only one vacancy on this commission. 28
Commissioner Jacobs said there is member that has served three terms (two terms in a 29
row, stayed out a year, and is now back on the board), and he would like applicant biographies 30
to indicate this type of service when it exists. 31
Chair Dorosin said he was not pushing to fill the vacancy due to the commission being 32
understaffed, rather he sees that people are willing to volunteer, and he thinks these people 33
should be recognized and given an opportunity. 34
35
A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Chair Dorosin to appoint Emily 36
Mixon to Position 3. 37
38
VOTE: Yeas, 4 (Commissioner Rich, Chair Dorosin, Commissioner Marcoplos, and 39
Commissioner Burroughs); Nays, 3 (Commissioner Jacobs, Commissioner McKee, and 40
Commissioner Price) 41
42
MOTION PASSES, 4-3. 43
44
b. Human Relations Commission – Appointments 45
The Board considered making appointments to the Human Relations Commission. 46
47
A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Marcoplos to 48
appoint the following to the Human Relations Commission: 49
• Appointment to a first full term (position #1) “At-Large” for Stacey Sewall expiring 50
21
06/30/2020. 1
• Appointment to a partial term (position #12) “At-Large” for Stephanie Harrell expiring 2
06/30/2019. 3
4
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 5
6
c. Nursing Home Community Advisory Committee – Appointments 7
The Board considered making appointments to the Nursing Home Community Advisory 8
Committee. 9
10
A motion was made by Commissioner Burroughs, seconded by Commissioner Rich to 11
appoint the following to the Nursing Home Community Advisory Committee: 12
• Appointment to a first full term (Position #3) “At-Large” representative for Stephanie 13
Miller expiring 09/30/2020. 14
• Appointment to a partial term (Position #6) “At-Large” representative for Karen Macklin 15
expiring 03/31/2019. 16
17
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 18
19
d. Orange County Board of Adjustment – Appointments 20
The Board considered making appointments to the Orange County Board of 21
Adjustment. 22
23
A motion was made by Commissioner Marcoplos, seconded by Commissioner Rich to 24
appoint the following to the Orange County Board of Adjustment: 25
26
• Appointment of Leon Meyers to a full term (Position #5) for Leon Meyers to the 27
“Alternate” representative BOCC Appointee 06/30/2021. 28
29
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 30
31
A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Jacobs to 32
appoint the following to the BOA: 33
• Appointment to a second full term (Position #1) “At-Large” representative for Susan 34
Halkiotis expiring 06/30/2021. 35
• Appointment of Randy Herman (current Senior Alternate) to the open full member 36
vacancy (Position #6) “At-Large – Formerly Planning Board” representative expiring 37
06/30/2020. 38
• Appointment of Holly Safi (current Alternate) to “Senior Alternate” (Position #7) 39
representative expiring 06/30/2019. 40
41
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 42
43
12. Information Items 44
45
• BOCC Meeting Follow-up Actions List 46
• Tax Collector’s Report – Numerical Analysis 47
• Tax Collector’s Report – Measure of Enforced Collections 48
• Tax Assessor's Report – Releases/Refunds under $100 49
22
• Update on Activities of the Bicycle Safety Implementation Subcommittee (BSIS) of the 1
Orange Unified Transportation Board (OUTBoard) 2
3
13. Closed Session 4
5
A motion was made by Commissioner Burroughs, seconded by Commissioner McKee to 6
go into closed session at 9:11 p.m. for the purposes below: 7
8
“Pursuant to G.S. § 143-318.11(a)(3) "to consult with an attorney retained by the Board in order 9
to preserve the attorney-client privilege between the attorney and the Board.” 10
11
“To discuss matters related to the location or expansion of industries or other businesses in the 12
area served by the public body, including agreement on a tentative list of economic 13
development incentives that may be offered by the public body in negotiations,” NCGS § 143-14
318.11(a)(4). 15
16
“To establish, or to instruct the public body's staff or negotiating agents concerning the position 17
to be taken by or on behalf of the public body in negotiating (i) the price and other material 18
terms of a contract or proposed contract for the acquisition of real property by purchase, option, 19
exchange, or lease, “ NCGS 143-318.11 (a) (8) 20
21
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 22
23
RECONVENE INTO REGULAR SESSION 24
25
A motion was made by Commissioner Price seconded by Commissioner Burroughs to 26
reconvene into regular session at 10:35 p.m. 27
28
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 29
30
14. Adjournment 31
32
A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Burroughs to 33
adjourn the meeting at 10:35 p.m. 34
35
VOTE: UNANIMOUS 36
37
38
Mark Dorosin, Chair 39
40
41
Donna Baker 42
Clerk to the Board 43