HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 01-22-2019 8-a - Minutes 1
ORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date: January 22, 2019
Action Agenda
Item No. 8-a
SUBJECT: MINUTES
DEPARTMENT: Board of County
Commissioners
ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT:
Draft Minutes 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.
December 3, 2018 BOCC Regular Meeting
December 18, 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
1 Attachment 1
2
3 DRAFT MINUTES
4 BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
5 REGULAR MEETING
6 December 3, 2018
7 7:00 p.m.
8
9 The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Monday, December 3,
10 2018 at 7:00 p.m. at the Whitted Building, in Hillsborough, N.C.
11
12 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Penny Rich and Commissioners Jamezetta
13 Bedford, Mark Dorosin, Sally Greene, Earl McKee, Mark Marcoplos, and Renee Price
14 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: None
15 COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts
16 COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Deputy County Manager
17 Travis Myren and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff members will be identified
18 appropriately below)
19
20 Chair Dorosin called the meeting to order at 7:07 p.m.
21 Chair Dorosin read the following Resolution:
22
23 Resolution of Commendation for Commissioner Mia Burroughs
24 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
25 RESOLUTION OF COMMENDATION FOR COMMISSIONER MIA BURROUGHS
26
27 WHEREAS, the residents of Orange County elected Mia Burroughs to the Board of County
28 Commissioners in 2014; and
29 WHEREAS, Mia Burroughs has served the residents of Orange County regardless of
30 geographic location faithfully and with honor, integrity and distinction for the past
31 four years; and
32 WHEREAS, Commissioner Burroughs has always been mindful of the interests and concerns
33 of Orange County residents and has brought new and innovative ideas to the
34 Board of Commissioners while continually encouraging the Board and staff to
35 think "outside of the box"; and
36 WHEREAS, during her tenure as an Orange County Commissioner, Mia Burroughs has
37 shared her talent for leadership and public service through her work on
38 numerous boards and commissions including serving as the Commissioner
39 liaison/member to the Orange County Board of Health, the Orange County
40 Partnership for Young Children, the Partnership to End Homelessness and
41 Family Success Alliance;
42 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners
43 officially commends Mia Burroughs for her hard work, dedication and exemplary
44 service to the people of Orange County, and wishes her and her family the very
45 best in their future endeavors.
46 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this resolution be presented to Mia Burroughs and that the
47 Resolution be spread upon the minutes of this meeting.
48
49 This, the third day of December 2018.
50
2
1 A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by Commissioner Price to
2 approve the Resolution of Commendation for Commissioner Mia Burroughs.
3
4 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
5
6 Commissioner Burroughs said one does not get to be a Commissioner without the
7 support of the voters, and she is deeply grateful, and this has been a life changing experience.
8 Commissioner Burroughs said the County has a lot of employees, and she only met
9 about a hundred out of the 966. She said the County has a lot of unsung heroes who serve the
10 County and the people very well. She asked if the department heads would express her
11 gratitude to the staff in their departments.
12
13 Chair Dorosin read the following Resolution:
14
15 Resolution of Commendation for Commissioner Barry Jacobs
16 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
17 RESOLUTION OF COMMENDATION FOR COMMISSIONER BARRY JACOBS
18
19 WHEREAS, the residents of Orange County elected Barry Jacobs to the Board of County
20 Commissioners in 1998 and re-elected him in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014; and
21
22 WHEREAS, Barry Jacobs was elected Chair of the Board of Commissioners in 2002, 2004,
23 2006, 2008, 2013 and 2014; and, Vice Chair in 2001, 2005 and 2007; and
24
25 WHEREAS, Barry has proven himself to be a dedicated and effective public servant who has
26 gained the respect of all who have known him in both the public and private sectors; and
27
28 WHEREAS, Barry has taken a special interest in affordable housing, local agriculture,
29 environmental protection, recycling and solid waste, education, economic development, land
30 use, governmental efficiency, parks and recreation, libraries, social justice, and public access to
31 decision-making; and
32
33 WHEREAS, during his tenure as an Orange County Commissioner, Barry Jacobs has shared
34 his talent for leadership and public service through his work on numerous committees, boards,
35 and task forces at the state, regional and local levels; and
36
37 WHEREAS, he has provided strong support for the local agricultural community through
38 programs such as the Annual Agricultural Summit (in its 201" year), the establishment of the
39 David Price Farmers' Market Pavilion, adding a county agricultural economic developer,
40 maintaining a strong Lands Legacy Program, and the Piedmont Food and Agricultural
41 Processing Center; and
42
43 WHEREAS, Barry has encouraged improving communication and dialog with governing
44 partners, including the North Carolina Department of Transportation, the Triangle J. Council of
45 Governments, Triangle Area Rural Planning Organization, and the Towns of Chapel Hill,
46 Carrboro, Hillsborough and Mebane; and
47
48 WHEREAS, Barry has advocated to have partner participation on efforts including the Solid
49 Waste Advisory Group, the Rural Buffer, the Water and Sewer Management, Planning and
3
1 Boundary Agreement, the Criminal Justice Advisory Council, Little River Regional and Hollow
2 Rock Parks, PFAP, and the Durham Orange Light Rail Transit Plan; and
3
4 WHEREAS, the Orange County Board of Commissioners desire, on behalf of County officials
5 and employees, and the residents of Orange County, to express their deep appreciation and
6 gratitude for the services rendered by Commissioner Jacobs to the County over the past 20
7 years.
8
9 NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED the Orange County Board of Commissioners offers
10 Barry our very best wishes for success, happiness, prosperity and good health in his future
11 endeavors.
12
13 This, the third day of December 2018.
14
15 A motion was made by Commissioner Rich, seconded by to approve Resolution of
16 Commendation for Commissioner Barry Jacobs.
17
18 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
19
20 Commissioner Jacobs read the following comments:
21
22 NINE IMPERATIVES I TRIED TO FOLLOW FROM THERE TO HERE
23
24 Hold the door open.
25 Be a conduit for the aggrieved. Listening costs little beyond time, but may matter a great
26 deal. If you don't listen it's difficult to empathize or have genuine compassion. If you don't act
27 with compassion or empathy you become that bureaucrat we all love to hate.
28
29 No future.
30 Don't lose touch with Orange County values, and don't let anyone convince you there's
31 no such thing. All 15 commissioners with whom I've served, and many before us, maintained an
32 unflagging commitment to support quality public education, to remain frugal but generous, and
33 to help those least able to help themselves. We also didn't forget that, while some say children
34 are our future, there is no future without a healthy environment.
35
36 Words matter.
37 Those in attendance tonight or watching at home or on-line are NOT the audience.
38 They're the public. This is not a performance and we're not here to entertain, although a good
39 laugh now and then is welcome. Speaking of word choice, land that is undeveloped is not
40 vacant. There are living things there, even if someone can't readily exploit them. At all times
41 resist euphemisms, arcane acronyms and stupid terms of art like passive recreation, a
42 contradiction in terms.
43
44 Stop rolling downhill like a snowball headed to hell, to quote Merle Haggard.
45 Quit pretending to transparency if you stow items of import on the consent agenda,
46 where you know they're hidden in plain sight. There's little openness in sacrificing public
47 consideration to shorten a meeting or avoid discomfort.
48
49 Act sincere, even if you don't mean it, to quote Harry Truman.
4
1 Politicians calculate everything by its impact on their electoral prospects, and never stop
2 running. Public servants try foremost to do what principle and common sense tell them is best
3 for their constituents, human and otherwise, and shoulder the consequences of their decisions.
4
5 Guide and guarantee.
6 The land-use plan is a communal guarantee of how government will adapt to change.
7 For nearly 40 years close adherence to growth according to that design has largely protected
8 Orange County's communities and natural features and kept us happily distinct from our
9 neighbors. Cautiously approach alterations for the sake of convenience or to make another
10 buck that will not change our economic destiny any more than investing in small or existing
11 businesses.
12
13 Say no to negativity.
14 Avoid dwelling on what went wrong or who was at fault. Get past north and south, rural
15 and urban, pro and anti. Our job is to bring people together, to promote teamwork and to
16 identify or forge common ground. We don't need schemes, electoral or otherwise, that promote
17 division. We have too much of that already in our state and national life.
18
19 No man is a subdivision.
20 Working together can be far more powerful than acting alone. Plentiful grant funding for
21 partnerships at Little River Regional Park and PFAP proves as much. Don't skimp on reaching
22 out regularly to residents or across jurisdictional boundaries to discuss policy with other elected
23 officials.
24
25 You get free snacks at the meetings, too.
26 Remember to enjoy what you're doing. Learn to lose votes gracefully and move on.
27 Appreciate being part of a team that encompasses the county's dedicated staff and volunteers.
28 Embrace public service even when the hours, the mental and emotional demands, the grating
29 of colleagues'personalities and agendas, the objectionable decisions, the thwarted initiatives,
30 the insoluble dilemmas, the dictates from on high, threaten to overwhelm. What a privilege and
31 honor it is to serve.
32
33 Commissioner Comments:
34 Commissioner Price thanked both Commissioners for their service, and said she
35 enjoyed working with both of them and wished them the best. She suggested that they work on
36 the historic preservation book that has been underway for 15 years.
37 Commissioner Rich thanked both Commissioners, and said she learned much more
38 from Commissioner Burroughs than just about schools. She said she greatly appreciated her
39 willingness to learn and her flexibility.
40 Commissioner Rich said it was going to be weird without Commissioner Jacobs and his
41 institutional knowledge. She said he mentored her when she first came onto the Board, and
42 she will still reach out via phone.
43 Commissioner McKee said it had been a pleasure to work with Commissioner
44 Burroughs, watching her grow into the position and has admired her approach and efforts.
45 Commissioner McKee said he and Commissioner Jacobs have not always agreed on
46 everything, but he has learned a great deal from him. He said Commissioner Jacobs has been
47 a mentor in many ways, and he will miss their discussions. He wished them both the best.
48 Commissioner Marcoplos said he is going to miss the breakup of his first team, which
49 has been a great experience these last two years. He said Commissioners Burroughs is
5
1 reasonable and unflappable, and Commissioner Jacobs brings so much knowledge on many
2 issues. He wished good luck to them both.
3 Chair Dorosin echoed everyone's comments, and said Commissioner Burroughs had
4 grown as a commissioner in the last 4 years. He said he appreciated the grace, openness and
5 thoughtfulness that she brought to the position.
6 Chair Dorosin said Commissioner Jacobs was a mentor to him, and he learned a lot
7 about being the Chair from watching him. He said his historical knowledge will certainly be
8 missed, and will present some challenges while also signifying real change. He said he
9 appreciated Commissioner Jacobs' candor, and his giving of praise and encouragement, as
10 well as critique and constructive criticism.
11 Chair Dorosin introduced Senator Foushee and Representative Graig Meyer and asked
12 them to come to the podium for a special presentation.
13 Representative Graig Meyer thanked Commissioner Burroughs for her service, and said
14 he is here tonight with a special recognition for Commissioner Jacobs for his service, not only to
15 the County, but to people of the State of North Carolina. He reviewed the following highlights of
16 Commissioner Jacobs' years of service:
17
18 In 1985, Barry Jacobs applied to and was granted a seat on the Orange County Planning
19 Board, the beginning of his public service journey. Within six months of appointment he was
20 elected Chair of the Board. Barry Jacobs served on the team that created the Orange County-
21 Chapel Hill-Carrboro Joint Planning agreement, which celebrated its 30th anniversary in
22 October. In 1995 he was appointed as Orange County Representative to the Board of Directors
23 of OWASA, where he served for five years.
24
25 He was elected to the BOCC in 1998. As commissioner, Jacobs worked to create the Orange
26 County Lands Legacy Program, which provides for the acquisition and protection of highly
27 important natural and cultural resource lands. In the past 20 years, the county's natural areas
28 and farmland protection programs have leveraged $5 million in state and federal grants and
29 protected more than 3,000 acres of land.
30
31 Commissioner Jacobs has ensured Orange County pays a living wage to all county employees,
32 and has continually supported funding for the Orange County and Chapel Hill- Carrboro City
33 Schools, taking pride in making sure every single school has a full time nurse.
34 He also supported the commercial redevelopment plan for the Fairview community in
35 Hillsborough, including the redevelopment of the Fairview Community Park.
36
37 Commissioner Jacobs has been a champion of historic preservation, becoming the site
38 supervisor of the Historic Moorefields Estate in 1978. He created a nonprofit, Friend of
39 Moorefield, to assume responsibility of the property. He has advocated for additional historic
40 sites within the state through nominating all of them for the National Register of Historic Places.
41 These sites included the Greensboro Train Station, the Edenton Peanut Factory, the Durham
42 Hosiery Mill, and the Glencoe Mill Village Historic District.
43
44 Representative Meyer said we would be remiss if we did not thank Commissioner
45 Jacobs for his service to all of us, for his role as a freelance writer, authoring five books,
46 hundreds of articles on sports history and the environment for newspapers, magazines, and the
47 internet, writing multiple copies of fans guides to ACC basketball and continuing through today
48 as a weekly sports columnist for the Raleigh `News and Observer,' fostering one of our many
49 favorite things about North Carolina: basketball rivalry.
6
1 Senator Foushee thanked Commissioner Burroughs for her service and friendship, and
2 her sacrifice of time away from her family.
3 Senator Foushee said she came to the Board with some reservations about being well
4 received, but Commissioner Jacobs took her in and got to know her, rather than listening to
5 what others may have said about her. She said she served as vice chair with Commissioner
6 Jacobs as Chair, and were able to discuss the County and its future. She said Commissioner
7 Jacobs helped the board move forward from 5 members to 7 members, despite not being in
8 favor of it initially. She said she may not have always agreed with Commissioner Jacobs, but
9 she will boldly proclaim that there is no other resident of Orange County who loves this county
10 any more than he, and has sacrificed more of him/herself to ensure that Orange County was
11 always first.
12 Representative Meyer said on behalf of the State of North Carolina, and Governor
13 Cooper, they are proud to present Commissioner Jacobs with The Order of the Long Leaf Pine:
14
15 Among the honors and awards the Governor of North Carolina can bestow, none is more
16 valued than The Order of the Long Leaf Pine. Since its creation in 1963, it has been presented
17 to honor persons who have a proven record of service to the State of North Carolina or some
18 other special achievement, and to others as a gesture of friendship and good will. Upon being
19 named to The Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the honoree receives a certificate by which the
20 Governor confers upon the recipient "...the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary privileged to
21 enjoy fully all rights granted to members of this exalted order among which is the special
22 privilege to propose the following North Carolina Toast in select company anywhere in the free
23 world:
24
25 `Here's to the land of the long leaf pine,
26 The summer land where the sun doth shine,
27 Where the weak grow strong and the strong grow great,
28 Here's to "down home", the Old North State!
29
30 Oaths of Office for Board Members
31
32 • Senator Valerie Foushee administered the oath to Commissioner Earl McKee
33 • Senator Valerie Foushee administered the oath to Commissioner- Elect Jamezetta
34 Bedford
35 • Judge Samantha Cabe administered the oath to Commissioner- Elect Sally Greene
36
37 Commissioner McKee expressed deep appreciation to the folks of Orange County for
38 allowing him the honor of serving a third term and he said he takes the role of senior member
39 seriously, and will endeavor to do help move the Board along in an expeditious manner.
40 Commissioner Greene said her heart is filled with gratitude to serve everyone in Orange
41 County, and she announced her office hours: Saturday, January 26I" at the Cup-A-Joe in
42 Hillsborough from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. She said she looks forward to hearing from
43 residents, and will have been through a bit of training by that time.
44 Commissioner Greene thanked the other elected officials and former officials here
45 tonight, and said she looks forward to serving on the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC).
46 Commissioner Bedford said she is a CPA and a numbers cruncher, and she will be
47 brief. She thanked the voters for allowing her to serve, and her family for its support, and those
48 who served with her previously and helped with her campaign. She pledged to serve all the
49 residents of Orange County, regardless of location or any other factor, and she will always put
50 health and safety as her first priority.
7
1
2 Board Organization
3
4 a. Election of Chair and Vice-Chair
5
6 VOTE: 7-0 For Chair: Commissioner Rich
7 VOTE: 7-0 For Vice Chair: Commissioner Price
8
9 Chair Rich thanked Commissioner Dorosin for his service as chair, noting she learned a
10 great deal from him.
11 Commissioner Price said she is looking forward to this opportunity.
12
13 b. Designation of Voting Delegate for all North Carolina Association of County
14 Commissioners (NCACC) and National Association of Counties (NACo) Meetings
15 for Calendar Year December 1, 2018-2019
16
17 A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Marcoplos to
18 appoint Commissioner Dorosin to the NCACC for Calendar Year December 1, 2018-2019.
19
20 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
21
22 Commissioner Price volunteered to serve at the NACo representative for Calendar Year
23 December 1, 2018-2019. Commissioner McKee seconded.
24
25 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
26
27 1. Additions or Changes to the Agenda
28 Commissioner Price asked if staff could provide an update on light rail.
29 Bonnie Hammersley said she would work with staff to provide an update on this item
30 under her comments later in the meeting.
31 Commissioner Price asked to move up Item 11-a -Appointments to the Orange County
32 Justice Advisory Council to Item 4-e.
33 The Board agreed by consensus.
34
35 PUBLIC CHARGE
36 The Chair dispensed with the reading of the public charge.
37
38 Katie Murray, Arts Commission Director, introduced Emily Buehler for the evening arts
39 moment:
40
41 Arts Moment—As a child, Emily Buehler wanted to be an artist, but she ended up studying
42 chemistry. She attended graduate school at UNC, and then became a bread baker at Weaver
43 Street Market, where she quickly noticed how much chemistry is involved in making bread.
44 Teaching bread class for The Artscenter, where students responded enthusiastically to
45 discussions of science, inspired Emily to write Bread Science, a book about the science and
46 craft of baking, written in understandable language. She realized her childhood inklings had
47 been correct, and she was meant to be a writer. Emily's second book, Somewhere and
48 Nowhere, is a memoir of a bicycle trip from New Jersey to Oregon that explores the benefits of
49 living in the present moment. Self-help author Ragini Michaels describes the book as "An
50 enjoyable and worthy read for anyone interested in living a more balanced and happy life."
8
1 Emily is currently working on a fiction novel. She also copyedits academic papers and fiction
2 writing. She advocates for self-publishing and welcomes the new opportunities authors have in
3 the digital age. Emily lives in Hillsborough, where you can often see her bicycling through town.
4 She serves on the board of the Eno River Farmers Market. Her favorite things include letters
5 sent through the mail, Made-in-the-USA knee socks, and very dark Fair Trade chocolate. She is
6 also passionate about recycling.
7 Emily Buehler read a short scene from her bicycle memoir, where she is in the Bitterroot
8 Valley in western Montana in July, during very hot weather with minimal shade. She said she
9 and her friend Mary arrived in the town of Darby and decided to stop for the night.
10
11 2. Public Comments
12
13 a. Matters not on the Printed Agenda
14
15 Scott Washington said he is a Public Historian, Former Assistant Director of the
16 Orange County Historical Museum, and Organizer of the annual Bill of Rights Day
17 Community Bell Ringing Event in Orange County, NC, Birthplace of the Bill of Rights in
18 Hillsborough's Historic Merchant District. He invited all of the Commissioners to come
19 out on Saturday, December 15, 2018, at 12:00 Noon in front of the historic 1845
20 courthouse (104 East King Street, Hillsborough to "Bring Bells, Ring Bells" for 227
21 seconds (3 minutes, 47 seconds) in Hillsborough's Historic Merchant District to celebrate
22 Bill of Rights Day to mark the 227th anniversary of when the first ten amendments to the
23 U. S. Constitution, the ones we call the Bill of Rights, went into force protecting
24 Americans essential freedoms on that day on December 15, 1791. He reviewed the
25 following information:
26
27 The seventh annual community Bell Ringing event will be held in in Hillsborough to mark Bill of
28 Rights Day. Bells will sound from area churches, historic sites.
29
30 Historic Bells will also ring simultaneously from the belfries of five of the area's historic churches
31 whose buildings date back to the 18th and 19th centuries (Dickerson Chapel AME, First Baptist
32 of Hillsborough, Hillsborough Presbyterian, Hillsborough United Methodist, St. Matthews
33 Episcopal) and in front of the 1845 historic courthouse on King Street and the 1771 Regulator
34 Historic Site.
35
36 Unique in the nation, 2018 marks the seventh year that Community Bell Ringing has been done
37 to mark Bill of Rights Day in Orange County, Birthplace of the Bill of Rights.
38
39 Started by Scott Washington, Public Historian and former Assistant Director of the Orange
40 County Historical Museum back in 2012, this event has become a popular fun educational and
41 meaningful way to mark the last great American holiday of the calendar year. It's also the
42 shortest, too.
43
44 This is a non-partisan event. There are no speeches, only the sounds of bells of all sizes ringing
45 at the same time, celebrating Bill of Rights Day and giving new meaning to the age-old refrain,
46 "Let Freedom Ring."
47
48 b. Matters on the Printed Agenda
49 (These matters will be considered when the Board addresses that item on the agenda
50 below.)
9
1
2 3. Announcements, Petitions and Comments by Board Members
3 Commissioner Bedford had no comments.
4 Commissioner Marcoplos said he would like for the Board to consider a resolution
5 urging David Price to support the Green New Deal. He said he will write the resolution and
6 would like to add it to the agenda for December 11t"
7 Commissioner McKee petitioned the Board to back Commissioner Price's request to get
8 information from GoTriangle about the events that have happened over the last two weeks and
9 months. He said he would like to have this information as soon as possible.
10 Commissioner Marcoplos said he could address some of these issues.
11 Commissioner McKee said all should keep in mind the passing of the 41st President of
12 the United States, who, considering the political climate today, stands out as a shining example
13 of a gentlemanly leader.
14 Commissioner Price said the annual Agricultural Summit will be on Monday, February
15 11t" at Cedar Grove Community Center. She said all farmers are invited to participate and
16 should contact Tyrone Fisher.
17 Commissioner Price said she attended the Voluntary Ag District (VAD) breakfast and
18 thanked the landowners that have been participating in that program, and she thanked the
19 planners and organizers of this event and a shout out to Gail Hughes, Soil Conservationist.
20 Commissioner Price said she did not see any information about the widening of 1-40 on
21 the website, and asked if staff could provide some.
22 Commissioner Dorosin said today the UNC Board of Trustees (BOT) announced a
23 proposal to spend $5.3 million to house the Silent Sam statue, as well as additional funds to
24 maintain it. He petitioned the Board to send a letter opposing the restoration of the statue on
25 campus and the exorbitant cost of this building.
26 Commissioner Greene said the Chapel Hill — Carrboro holiday parade is this Saturday.
27 Chair Rich also attended the VAD breakfast and some farmers came up to her and
28 thanked her for the food council. She said she also learned the history of the Schley Grange.
29 Chair Rich attended the Triangle J Council of Governments (TJCOG) meeting and they
30 picked one challenge to work on this year, which is the recruitment and retention of law
31 enforcement. She said this is an issue across the state, and came particularly from the Town of
32 Garner. She said she talked with the Sheriff and it is not a problem here in Orange County.
33 Chair Rich said she and Commissioner Marcoplos met with their representatives from
34 OWASA and would like to do this quarterly. She said they discussed the water main break and
35 learned a great deal. She said there is an independent study going on currently to determine
36 the next steps.
37
38 4. Proclamations/ Resolutions/ Special Presentations
39
40 a. Resolution of Recognition for James Stanford
41 The Board considered voting to approve a resolution expressing gratitude and
42 recognizing James (Jamie) C. Stanford for his service as Orange County Clerk of Superior
43 Court and authorizing the Chair to sign.
44 Commissioner McKee read the resolution:
45
46 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
47 RESOLUTION OF RECOGNITION FOR JAMES STANFORD
48
49 WHEREAS, James (Jamie) C. Stanford has served as Orange County Clerk of Superior Court
50 since May 2001 and was elected four times by the people of Orange County; and
10
1
2 WHEREAS, under his leadership, 25 staff members have been responsible for all clerical
3 record keeping functions of the General Courts of Justice; and
4
5 WHEREAS, as judge of probate, the Clerk of Court has exclusive original jurisdiction over
6 matters relating to the probate of wills and the administration of estates; and
7
8 WHEREAS, the Clerk of Court also presides over many legal matters including adoptions,
9 incompetency proceedings, condemnation of private lands for public use, and foreclosures; and
10
11 WHEREAS, Mr. Stanford has provided area leadership as Chair of the Rules of Record
12 Keeping Committee and Chair of the Estates and Special Proceedings Forms Committee with
13 the NC Administrative Office of the Courts; and
14
15 WHEREAS, Jamie Stanford has diligently executed the duties of his office to the betterment of
16 the residents of Orange County;
17
18 NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners
19 expresses its deep appreciation, gratitude and respect to James C. Stanford for the services
20 throughout the court system provided under Mr. Stanford's leadership for the people of Orange
21 County.
22
23 This the 3rd day of December 2018.
24
25 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Price to for
26 the Board to approve the attached resolution expressing deep appreciation to Jamie Stanford
27 for his services to the people of Orange County as Clerk of Superior Court, and authorize the
28 Chair to sign the resolution on behalf of the Board.
29
30 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
31
32 b. Resolution of Recognition for Linda Foxworth
33 The Board considered voting to approve a resolution expressing gratitude and
34 recognizing Linda Foxworth for her service as Executive Director of KidSCope and authorizing
35 the Chair to sign.
36 Commissioner Bedford read the resolution:
37
38 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
39 RESOLUTION OF RECOGNITION FOR
40 LINDA FOXWORTH
41
42 WHEREAS, Linda Foxworth, Director of KidSCope, which launched on April 6, 1988, will be
43 retiring after 30 years of leading the organization; and
44
45 WHEREAS, under the leadership of Linda Foxworth, in 1999, KidSCope expanded to include
46 the Children's Learning Center, a Developmental Day Center, and Parent and Child (PACT), an
47 infant/toddler program in Hillsborough; and
48
49 WHEREAS, with statewide reform in mental health delivery, KidSCope moved in 2005 under
50 the umbrella of Chapel Hill Training — Outreach Project (CHTOP); and
11
1
2 WHEREAS, adapting to gaps in service and partnering with Orange County Early Head Start,
3 Ms. Foxworth and her staff created a new Developmental Day Center, the KidSCope Early
4 Learning Center (KELC), dedicated to a diverse, multi-cultural early childhood education,
5 officially opening on October 8, 2015; and
6
7 WHEREAS, through the years, Ms. Foxworth has served on numerous local and statewide
8 committees and task forces, including serving as president of the North Carolina Association of
9 Directors on Developmental Day Centers; and
10
11 WHEREAS, Ms. Foxworth was one of the founding members of Child Care Service Association
12 and served on the Board of Directors from 1980 until 2005;
13
14 NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners
15 expresses its deep appreciation, gratitude and respect to Linda Foxworth for the services
16 provided to children and families under Ms. Foxworth's leadership for the people of Orange
17 County.
18
19 This the 3rd day of December 2018.
20
21 A motion was made by Commissioner Bedford, seconded by Commissioner Greene to
22 approve a resolution expressing gratitude and recognizing Linda Foxworth for her service as
23 Executive Director of KidSCope and authorizing the Chair to sign.
24
25 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
26
27 c. Resolution of Recognition for Susan Lew
28 The Board considered voting to approve a resolution expressing gratitude and
29 recognizing Susan Levy for her service to the people of Orange County as Executive Director of
30 Habitat for Humanity of Orange County and authorizing the Chair to sign.
31 Commissioner Greene said she loves that the BOCC includes the social justice impact
32 of items within the agenda abstract. She said this abstract lists this item as having no social
33 justice impact, and she has to believe that Susan Levy's departure from Habitat will leave some
34 negative impact on the work she leaves behind.
35 Commissioner Greene read the resolution:
36
37 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
38 RESOLUTION OF RECOGNITION FOR SUSAN LEVY
39
40 WHEREAS, Susan Levy, Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity of Orange County, will be
41 retiring after 26 years of leading the organization; and
42
43 WHEREAS, she has served nearly 40 years in the affordable housing field; and
44
45 WHEREAS, under Ms. Levy's leadership since 1992, Habitat for Humanity of Orange County
46 has changed lives by building affordable homes in safe and supportive communities; and
47
48 WHEREAS, under the leadership of Susan Levy, Habitat now averages building about 12 new
49 homes a year, and has partnered with Orange County to make effective use of public funds
50 dedicated to expanding affordable housing options; and
12
1
2 WHEREAS, Habitat is not just building new homes, it is also working with existing homeowners
3 to help them stay in their homes and improve the look and feel of entire neighborhoods; and
4
5 WHEREAS, since forming in 1984, Habitat for Humanity of Orange County has built or repaired
6 608 homes as of June 30, 2018;
7
8 NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners
9 expresses its deep appreciation, gratitude and respect to Susan Levy for the services provided
10 throughout the community under Ms. Levy's leadership for the people of Orange County.
11
12 This the 3rd day of December 2018.
13
14 A motion was made by Commissioner Greene, seconded by Commissioner Price for the
15 Board to approve the attached resolution expressing deep appreciation to Susan Levy for her
16 service to the people of Orange County, and authorize the Chair to sign the resolution on behalf
17 of the Board.
18
19 d. Voluntary Agricultural District Designation — Multiple Farms
20 The Board considered applications from eight (8) landowners/farms to certify qualifying
21 farmland within the Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Schley/Eno, and Cane Creek/Buckhorn Voluntary
22 Agricultural Districts; and vote to enroll the lands in the Orange County Farmland Preservation
23 Voluntary Agricultural District program.
24 Gail Hughes, Soil Conservationist, presented this item and reviewed brief farm
25 descriptions on the farms:
26
27 Brief Farm Descriptions:
28 1) Owners Bryant and Nancy Walker have submitted an application to enroll two (2) parcels of
29 land totaling 72.25 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District program
30 (VAD) in the Caldwell Agricultural District. The farm operation includes livestock, pasture, hay
31 crops, and managed woodland. The farm has been evaluated against each of the VAD
32 certification requirement standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above.
33
34 2) Owner Charles Blalock has submitted an application to enroll one (1) of parcel of land
35 totaling 89.81 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) program
36 in the Caldwell Agricultural District. The farm operation includes livestock, pasture, hay crops,
37 and managed woodland. The farm has been evaluated against each of the VAD certification
38 requirement standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above.
39
40 3) Owners Walter and Tammy Havener have submitted an application to enroll one (1) parcel of
41 land totaling of 30.0 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD)
42 program located in the Caldwell Agricultural District. The farm includes hay crops and managed
43 woodland. The farm has been evaluated against each of the VAD certification requirement
44 standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above.
45
46 4) Owners of Latta's Egg Ranch, Paul, Mark, and Frank Latta, have submitted an application to
47 enroll nine (9) parcels of land totaling 569.53 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary
48 Agricultural District (VAD) program in the Schley/Eno Agricultural District. The farm operation
49 includes poultry, beef cattle, pasture, hay crops, and managed woodland. The farm has been
13
1 evaluated against each of the VAD certification requirement standards and meets or exceeds
2 all of the measures above.
3
4 5) Owners David and Gaye Walker have submitted an application to enroll one (1) parcel of
5 land totaling of 126.19 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD)
6 program located in the Schley/Eno Agricultural District. The farm includes vegetable crops,
7 livestock, pasture, hay crops and managed woodland. The farm has been evaluated against
8 each of the VAD certification requirement standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures
9 above.
10
11 6) Owners Randall Williams and Lisa Joyner have submitted an application to enroll one (1)
12 parcel of land totaling 8.7 acres as qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District
13 (VAD) program in the Cane Creek/Buckhorn Agricultural District. The farm operation includes
14 livestock, pasture, vegetable crops, flowers, and agro-forestry/ managed woodland.
15 The farm property has been evaluated against each of the VAD certification requirement
16 standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above.
17
18 7) Owners Tracy Lafleur and Robert VanVeld have submitted an application to enroll one (1)
19 parcel of land totaling 39.94 acres of qualifying farmland for the Voluntary Agricultural District
20 (VAD) program in the Cedar Grove Agricultural District. The farm operation includes vegetable
21 crops, hay crops, and beehives. The farm property has been evaluated against each of the
22 VAD certification requirement standards and meets or exceeds all of the measures above.
23
24 8) Owners Stephen and Marsha Scarlett have submitted an application to enroll additional
25 acres into the VAD program. A revision of ownership on one (1) parcel of land, totaling
26 53.94 acres, will increase the acres in the program by 23.27 acres of qualifying farmland for the
27 Voluntary Agricultural District program in the Cedar Grove Agricultural District. The farm
28 operation includes livestock, pasture, hay crops, and managed woodland. The farm property
29 has been evaluated against each of the VAD certification requirement standards and meets or
30 exceeds all of the measures above.
31
32 Gail Hughes made the following PowerPoint presentation:
33
34 Voluntary and Enhanced Voluntary Agricultural District Program
35 Orange County Board of Commissioners Meeting
36 December 3, 2018
37
38 Orange County VAD/EVAS Program
39 Benefits of Agricultural Districts
40
41 ➢ Voluntary Agricultural District (VAD) is a 10-year commitment for farm to be in active
42 farm production, but the landowner can withdraw from the VAD at any time, for any
43 reason, with a 30-day notification to the Agri. Preservation Board.
44 ➢ Enhanced Voluntary Agricultural District (EVAD) is an irrevocable 10 year
45 commitment to be in active farm production, therefore the "enhanced" qualifies farm for
46 up to 90% cost share rates and a priority for state and federal grants funds.
47
48 Benefits include: (listing a few)
49 ➢ Makes public more aware of the local agricultural and its vital role in the economics of
50 the county;
14
1 ➢ Recorded notice of agricultural district property is recorded at County Land Records
2 office;
3 ➢ Land search on all properties within a '/2 mile radius has notification of the agricultural
4 status; therefore, the agricultural landowner has increased protection from nuisance
5 lawsuits.
6 ➢ Agricultural Preservation Board can request public hearings for proposed condemnation
7 of VAD land and utility assessments may be suspended or waived on EVAD land if not
8 connected to the utility.
9 ➢ Farm may receive up to 25% of gross sales from the sale of non-farm products and still
10 maintain its zoning exemption as a bona fide farm. (EVAD only)
11 ➢ VAD District signs are placed on farms, for public to know location of VAD/EVAD farms
12
13 Bryant and Nancy Walker
14 VAD — 72.25 acres— Caldwell Agricultural District— 2 parcels of land
15 Livestock, pasture, hay crops, and managed woodland
16 Century Farm —same family ownership over 100 years
17
18 Charles Blalock
19 VAD — 89.81 acres - Caldwell Agricultural District— 1 parcel of land
20 Livestock, pasture, hay crops, and managed woodland.
21
22 Walter and Tammy Havener
23 VAD — 30.0 acres — Caldwell Agricultural District - 1 parcel of land
24 Hay crops and managed woodland
25
26 Paul, Mark, and Frank Latta -- Latta's Egg Ranch:
27 VAD — 569.53 acres — Schley/Eno Agricultural District— 9 parcels of land
28 Poultry, Beef cattle, pastures, hay crops, and managed woodland
29 Century Farm —over 100 years in same family ownership
30
31 David and Gave Walker
32 VAD — 126.19 acres — Schley/ Eno Agricultural District -1 parcel of land
33 Beef, vegetables crops, pasture, hay crops, and managed woodland
34 Century Farm —farm owned by same family since 1754-
35 Charter from the King of England
36
37 Randall Williams and Lisa Joyner— Fireside Farm
38 VAD- 8.7 acres— Cane Creek/Buckhorn Agricultural District— 1 parcel of land
39 Goats, pasture, vegetables, flowers, and agro-forestry/ managed woodland.
40
41 Tracy Lafleur and Robert VanVeld
42 VAD- 39.94 acres— Cedar Grove Agricultural District— 1 parcel of land
43 Vegetable crops, hay crops, and bee hives
44 Started farming at the Breeze Farm, and now moving operation to their land
45
46 Stephen and Marsha Scarlett
47 Farmers currently have land in the VAD program.
48 Revision of ownership on one parcel of land, 53.94 acres, will increase program acres
49 by 23.27 acres
50 VAD - Cedar Grove Agriculture District—1 parcel of land
15
1 Livestock, pasture, hay crops, and managed woodland
2
3 Orange County Voluntary and Enhanced Voluntary Agricultural Program
4 • The Agricultural Preservation Board has approved the farms as presented.
5 • Requesting approval from Commissioners to accept eight (8) farms into the VAD
6 program.
7 960 acres* in the Voluntary Agricultural District program
8 * = rounded acres
9
10 Commissioner Marcoplos asked if agro-forestry could be defined.
11 Gail Hughes said they are managing their forestry, but are also running their goats in
12 the forestry area.
13
14 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Marcoplos
15 for the Board to certify the eight (8) farm properties noted above totaling 960 acres* (VAD);
16 designate the properties as Voluntary Agricultural District farms within the Caldwell, Cedar
17 Grove, Schley/Eno, and Cane Creek/Buckhorn Voluntary Agricultural Districts; and enroll the
18 lands in the Orange County Farmland Preservation Program Voluntary Agricultural District
19 (VAD) program.
20
21 With approval of these additional acres, the Orange County Farmland Preservation program will
22 have enrolled 109 farms totaling 11,737 acres* in the VAD and 2,566* acres in the EVAD, for a
23 total of 14,303 acres** (rounded) in the program.
24
25 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
26
27 Commissioner Dorosin asked if any farms can be found in the Hillsborough or Chapel
28 Hill Townships.
29 Gail Hughes said there are some on the edge, but not in the townships. She said she is
30 talking with someone on the edge of Carrboro, but in the township is unlikely, as the land would
31 likely not meet the necessary criteria; but she is open to talking with any interested parties.
32
33 Item 4-e (moved up item 11-a)
34 e. Appointments to the Orange County Justice Advisory Council
35 The Board considered voting on position changes to the Justice Advisory Council (JAC)
36 structure and making appointments to the Justice Advisory Council.
37 Caitlin Fenhagen, Criminal Justice Resource Director, reviewed the proposed changes
38 below:
39
40 • Delete the Emeritus Position. The current appointee, former Commissioner Bernadette
41 Pelissier, thought that it was an important position for the transition from the Justice
42 Advisory Work Group to the JAC, but believes the position is no longer necessary, as
43 does former Commissioner and JAC Chair Barry Jacobs;
44 . Convert the above position to a Domestic Violence Advocate position. The CJR staff is
45 recommending Cordelia Heaney, the Director of the Compass Center; and
46 • Add a Town and Campus Partnership position. The CJR staff is recommending Elinor
47 Landess, the Director of the Campus & Community Coalition of the Downtown
48 Partnership, for this position.
49
16
1 Commissioner Bedford said she does not know much about the history of the group, but
2 the list of positions is very traditional, and she asked if there is a plan to consider members
3 such as an advocate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
4 (NAACP), or other civil rights groups.
5 Cait Fenhagen said there are 3 formerly justice system involved individuals that serve,
6 and they give a very important perspective. She said there are other people that may be
7 appropriate to ask, and this would be a wonderful addition.
8 Chair Rich suggested that the Committee discuss this idea at its next meeting.
9
10 A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Dorosin to
11 approve the positions changes to the Justice Advisory Council (JAC) structure and making
12 appointments to the Justice Advisory Council.
13
14 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
15
16 5. Public Hearings
17
18 a. Orange County Consolidated Plan — FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan Needs
19 Assessment Public Hearing
20 The Board received comments from the public regarding the housing and non-housing
21 needs to be included in the Action Plan Update for FY 2019-2020 (the fifth year of the 5-Year
22 Plan) as it relates to the Consolidated Housing Plan for Housing and Community Development
23 Programs in Orange County and vote to close the public hearing.
24 Sherrill Hampton, Housing Director, provided the following background information:
25
26 BACKGROUND:
27 Programs in Orange County was developed and approved by the U.S. Department of Housing
28 and Urban Development (HUD) and the Orange County Board of County Commissioners. This
29 document details the housing needs of very low, low and moderate-income individuals, families
30 and special population groups in addition to outlining the strategies and plans for addressing
31 those needs. The Executive Summary of the FY 2015-2019 Consolidated Plan is attached. In
32 addition, the electronic link for the full document (Attachment 4) is noted above.
33
34 Each year, local communities are required to reassess the needs of the community. This public
35 hearing provides an opportunity for the public, public agencies and other interested parties to
36 provide input into the Annual Action Plan Update. In addition, the public may comment on
37 proposed uses of an estimated $504,948 in FY 2019-2020. This amount includes $401,340 in
38 HOME funds, $90,302 in local match funds, and $13,306 in program income funds. The amount
39 listed is only an estimate of the monies to be received and available for use. Information
40 regarding actual Congressional allocation for the HOME Program is not available at this time.
41 Once the Federal budget has been approved, HUD will make the determination of the final
42 award amount. FY 2019-2020 will be the fifth year of the 5-Year Consolidated Plan. Eligible
43 HOME Program activities include: acquisition, new construction, single- and multi-family
44 rehabilitation, rental assistance and homebuyer and down payment assistance.
45
46 The FY 2019-2020 Annual Action Plan will be submitted to HUD on or about May 15, 2019 after
47 approval by the HOME Consortium members. The HOME Consortium members include the
48 Towns of Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Hillsborough, along with Orange County. Orange County
49 serves as the lead entity for the HOME Consortium, which is known as the Local Government
50 Affordable Housing Collaborative.
17
1
2 In order to inform the general public of this opportunity to provide input and comments, as well
3 as encourage participation, notices were placed in The Herald-Sun and La Noticia newspapers.
4 Copies of the notice were also sent to local non-profit agencies and placed on Orange County's
5 website.
6
7 Commissioner Dorosin clarified that applications are out and waiting to be received, but
8 this evening only focuses on the big plan.
9 Sherrill Hampton said yes the identified needs for the year, as every year they must
10 update the annual action plan, which includes any new projects that come out of the
11 recommended applications approved by the BOCC and each jurisdiction.
12 Commissioner Price said it was advertised in the Herald Sun, and asked if any ads were
13 placed in the News of Orange County.
14 Sherrill Hampton said no, and noted that an interpreter is present this evening for
15 anyone who needs those services.
16 Commissioner Price suggested that the ads also go into the News of Orange, as it is
17 widely read in Hillsborough and the northern part of the County.
18 Commissioner Price referred to the priorities, and said housing for seniors was not listed
19 as a high priority. She asked if this referred to past priorities, or to future ones as well.
20 Sherrill Hampton said senior housing is a high priority need in the consolidated plan, as
21 well as housing for the disabled.
22
23 PUBLIC COMMENT:
24 Corey Root, The Partnership to End Homelessness (PTEH) Coordinator, expressed
25 thanks to the BOCC for its support of the PTEH. She said a large function of the PTEH is
26 coordinating services among all the various providers. She said in 2016-17, the PTEH mapped
27 the local homelessness system to determine a gap analysis. She asked if the BOCC would
28 consider the homeless system gaps when looking over the consolidated plan and HOME funds.
29 She said the two highest priority gaps are a rapid rehousing program (housing subsidy plus
30 services), and income based rental units.
31 Delores Bailey, Executive Director of EmPowerment, invited the BOCC to the
32 EmPowerment fundraiser at The Franklin Hotel this Saturday. She acknowledged her support
33 for the plan that Sherrill Hampton has brought forth, especially the 15 vouchers that will go to
34 low-income residents. She also mentioned the great needs in the County, including several
35 mobile home parks whose residents are facing displacement. She said HOME dollars will likely
36 be needed to help address this problem. She is in favor of maximizing dollars as much as
37 possible.
38 Commissioner Marcoplos asked if the Tar Heel mobile home park is located south of the
39 Homestead/MLK intersection.
40 Delores Bailey said yes, it is on MLK across from Pinnacle Bank.
41 Chair Rich said there are 12 units that the developer wants to get rid of at the front of
42 the mobile home park, and plans to rebuild the gas station and a storage facility. She said
43 there will be space for 5 units to remain.
44 Commissioner Dorosin asked if the Home group would reach out to Corey Root, and
45 other providers, about the needs she mentioned, and to ensure that the funding application
46 process is publicized and understood.
47 Sherrill Hampton said the rapid re-housing fund this year was in to be leveraged against
48 the local voucher program. She said an application has been submitted to the State, and are
49 waiting to hear if funding was received.
18
1 Sherrill Hampton said they have re-released guidelines for the risk mitigation and
2 housing displacement program. She said this program has three areas: solely for landlords (to
3 incentivize landlords to stay within the program); housing stabilization; and for displacement
4 mitigation, which is only available to people coming through the manufactured home park
5 initiative.
6 Commissioner Dorosin said these housing issues come up to the Board in a piecemeal
7 way, and he knows Sherrill Hampton has worked hard to knit these issues together and to
8 maximize the funding, which he appreciates.
9 Sherrill Hampton said she will send a corrected and updated copy of the consolidated
10 plan to the BOCC.
11 Jess Brandes, CASA, was unable to attend the Public Hearing due to previously
12 scheduled engagements, and requested that the following comments be included in the public
13 record:
14 On behalf of our CEO Mary Jean Seyda, our staff, our board, and the 46 Orange County
15 families and individuals who are spending the holidays in a safe, permanent CASA home, thank
16 you for your support of our work to end homelessness in the Triangle. Orange County has been
17 and continues to be a key partner in CASA's work to build and manage homes for the most
18 vulnerable members of our community since we started this work nearly 27 years ago.
19 1 am submitting these comments regarding the Annual Action Plan for Orange County. Past
20 County support for CASA's work with these federal funding sources has allowed us to create or
21 preserve homes for families who have been homeless, persons with severe mental illness, and
22 low and moderate-income households who are squeezed out of the housing market. Our
23 apartments mean safety, stability and hope for our tenants.
24 In the next year, CASA plans to continue to take action to create and preserve more housing for
25 those in our community who need it most. To do so, CASA requests that the County continue to
26 prioritize available funding for rental housing serving those below 50% of AMI, with a priority for
27 persons with disabilities and people experiencing homelessness. Orange County CAN get to
28 zero homeless households. CASA stands ready to help do just that.
29
30 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Price to
31 close the public hearing.
32
33 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
34
35 6. Regular Agenda
36 NONE
37
38 7. Reports
39
40 a. River Park Improvements Update
41 The Board reviewed planned improvements to River Park in downtown Hillsborough
42 prior to submittal to the Town of Hillsborough Historic District Commission.
43
44 David Stancil, Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation (DEAPR)
45 Director reviewed the information below:
46
47 BACKGROUND:
19
1 River Park is a nine-acre park in downtown Hillsborough between the Orange County
2 Courthouse/Justice Facility/District Attorney's Office on East Margaret Lane and the Eno River.
3 The park includes the David Price Farmers Market Pavilion, the Stillhouse Creek Stream
4 Restoration Project, a portion of the Hillsborough Riverwalk, and an area of open space
5 between the buildings and the river. Trails and a pedestrian bridge for the park were built
6 consistent with a master plan for the park that was completed in conjunction with the Justice
7 Facilities Expansion Project in 2010. The Farmers Market Pavilion was completed in 2008.
8
9 Since that time, the pavilion and the park have been used for regular farmers markets, movies
10 in the park, community egg hunts, concerts and other events. The site continues to be a
11 desirable destination for events and is regularly scheduled for a range of activities.
12
13 In June 2015, the Board approved funding in the Capital Investment Plan (CIP) and capital
14 budget to build the remaining facilities in the 2009 master plan. This work includes several
15 components (some of which are completed or underway):
16 • A performance stage/shell for the concerts and events that the park hosts;
17 • Realignment of the Riverwalk (part of the NC Mountains to Sea Trail) across a sturdier
18 pedestrian bridge (completed);
19 • Refurbishing and renovation of the Occoneechee Village (underway);
20 • Electrical improvements near the Farmers Market Pavilion (completed), and the addition
21 of more park benches; and
22 • A new pedestrian entrance into the park from Churton Street, concurrent with the
23 Town's pedestrian and transit improvements, including two new trail connecting
24 segments and a stormwater control measure.
25
26 Staff and an engineering consultant (Mike Hammersley of CRA Associates, Inc.) have been
27 working for the last several months to complete the needed design work for the remaining
28 improvements above, for eventual Town permit approvals.
29
30 In the last few months, staff has explored potential sponsorship or naming opportunities for a
31 larger performance stage/shell (please see attached pictures) which could accommodate
32 concerts and performances that the site has been shown to attract. The Orange County Arts
33 Commission has expressed interest in this expanded performance stage/shell and sees this as
34 a possible fundraising opportunity that may be attractive to County and Town community and
35 business interests.
36
37 David Stancil made the following PowerPoint presentation
38
39 River Park
40
41 Improvements Update
42 • Realignment of Riverwalk segment
43 • Occoneechee Village refurbishing
44 . New Churton Street entrance / path
45 • Performance Stage/Shell
46
47 Map of Park
48
49 Katie Murray continued the presentation:
20
1 She said the Arts Commission has spent recent years researching the needs of the arts
2 community, and one on of the main needs to be identified is space for the arts both indoor and
3 outdoor. She said the subject of the staging area came up after some discussion with DEAPR.
4 She said festival space is greatly needed, especially in Hillsborough, and many stakeholders
5 are discussing the needs to insure that plans will be adequate to meet the needs.
6
7 Planned Improvements
8
9 • Gathered feedback from stakeholders regarding needs for festivals, concerts and
10 outdoor performing arts
11 • Exploring funding options with local partners
12
13 Public Art:
14 • Arts Commission partnering with Hillsborough Arts Council and Town of Hillsborough
15 • "Gateway" Sculptural work to include wood from fallen Calvin St. Tree
16 • National call with priority given to NC artists
17
18 Next Steps / Recommendation
19
20 David Stancil said they are here to share this information with the Board, and they do
21 need to move ahead with discussions. He said they are asking the Board for approval to:
22
23 • Continue discussions about the stage
24 • Review and discuss planned improvements
25 • Authorize staff to proceed with other permits and pre-construction efforts
26
27 FINANCIAL IMPACT:
28 Prior years funding of$400,000 was appropriated for all of the planned work outlined above,
29 with a basic stage concept. Approximately $370,000 remains from those funds. It is estimated
30 that the enhanced performance shell and related appurtenances being discussed could cost an
31 additional $125,000, with fundraising efforts potentially addressing some or all of these costs.
32
33 Commissioner Marcoplos said the Farmers Market Pavilion has water barrels around it
34 and this would be a great opportunity to lift them up higher to make them useful.
35 David Stancil said there have been some challenges with those cisterns, but staff wants
36 this water to be used and can look at a better collection process.
37 Commissioner Price referred to the map and asked if the dotted line is behind the stage.
38 David Stancil said yes, the stage is located just outside of the floodplain.
39 Commissioner Price said she hopes the stage is far enough away, and can be protected
40 from rains and storms.
41 David Stancil said there is a natural amphitheater there. He said despite all the recent
42 flooding, it has tended to stay within the boundaries of the 100-year floodplain; however, these
43 massive weather events are happening more frequently.
44 Commissioner Price referred to the budget, and asked how much of the remaining
45 budget is going to the stage and how much to other projects.
46 David Stancil said the stage can be widely variable, and the funding that is approved if
47 for a basic stage, approximately $100,000. He said to do a nicer stage would require
48 considerable additional funding.
49 Commissioner Dorosin referred to three pictures of stages, and clarified that the first
50 picture is the type of stage that could be built within the existing budget.
21
1 David Stancil said none of these are within the existing budget, and he said the range
2 would be an additional $125,000-$300,000.
3 Commissioner Dorosin clarified that staff is seeking the authority to submit information
4 to the Hillsborough Historic District and to continue discussions. He asked if this is possible
5 without the BOCC having to make decisions about the stage and funding.
6 David Stancil said staff would like to continue the conversations with the stakeholders
7 and with the Historic District Commission (HDC). He said the question has been raised as to
8 whether there is another site on the location that would be better for a stage. He said these
9 details need to be worked out, and staff can go to the Historic District Commission without have
10 all the details hammered out.
11 Commissioner Greene referred to the cost, and asked if there is a possibility to work
12 with private funders.
13 David Stancil said yes, and staff is actively pursuing this.
14 Commissioner Marcoplos said most of the events that he has seen at the park have
15 been elevated, and asked if there has there been a discussion about building an elevated
16 stage.
17 Marabeth Carr, DEAPR, said this has been discussed, but it must be ADA compliant,
18 and the higher the stage, the more expensive it is to make it compliant. She said several
19 scenarios will be presented to the HDC, and staff will ask for approval to build the maximum,
20 but may only be able to actually build the minimum. She said some height would also help to
21 further avoid flooding issues.
22 Commissioner Bedford asked if there were restrooms, would they be available during
23 the daytime.
24 Marabeth Carr said this would need to be decided, but public restrooms are often
25 vandalized at parks.
26 David Stancil said there are restrooms in the back of the District Attorney's building, but
27 these are only open when the pavilion is in use. He said restrooms would need to be winterized,
28 and are tend to avoid vandalism when there is an active on-site staff presence, which there
29 would not be at this location.
30 Marabeth Carr said performers would like restrooms at the stage. She said the ADA
31 access is logical not only for those with disabilities, but also for those with strollers, bikes, etc.
32 She said the bus stop shelter will be paid for by transportation funds, and this stop will require a
33 retaining wall to support it, which makes it more expensive than a standard bus stop.
34 Chair Rich referred to the Gateway Art, and asked if it is known who will be on this
35 committee.
36 Katie Murray said it is herself and members of Arts Commission, Peter Sandbeck,
37 Marabeth Carr, Stephanie Trueblood from the Town of Hillsborough, and Todd Stabely, who
38 owns the home where the historic tree fell. She invited the Commissioners to be involved as
39 well, if interested.
40 Chair Rich asked if Katie Murray would send an all email about this to the BOCC.
41 The Board agreed by consensus for staff to proceed with this process.
42
43
44 8. Consent Agenda
45
46 • Removal of Any Items from Consent Agenda
47 Chair Rich removed Item e
48 Commissioner Price removed Items g and h
49
50 • Approval of Remaining Consent Agenda
22
1
2 A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner McKee to
3 approve the remaining items on the Consent Agenda.
4
5 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
6
7 Discussion and Approval of the Items Removed from the Consent Agenda
8
9 e. Award of Blackwood Farm Park Professional Services Agreement
10 The Board considered voting to approve and authorize the Manager to execute an
11 Agreement with Susan Hatchell Landscape Architecture, PLLC for park pre-construction design
12 and engineering services to secure permits, conduct engineering work, and create construction
13 drawings and specifications for bid documents for Blackwood Farm Park.
14
15 Chair Rich said she pulled this to make a point that the Board is doing what it said it
16 would do, and this is an "all women"job.
17
18 A motion was made by Chair Rich, seconded by Commissioner McKee to approve and
19 authorize the Manager to execute an Agreement with Susan Hatchell Landscape Architecture,
20 PLLC for park pre-construction design and engineering services to secure permits, conduct
21 engineering work, and create construction drawings and specifications for bid documents for
22 Blackwood Farm Park.
23
24 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
25
26 g. Efland Sewer System — Transfer of Ownership to City of Mebane
27 The Board considered voting to transfer ownership of the Efland Sewer utility
28 infrastructure to the City of Mebane and authorize the Chair to sign.
29
30 h. Orange County/Orange Alamance Water System (OAWS) Efland Sewer Billing and
31 Town of Hillsborough / Orange County Efland Sewer Treatment Agreement
32 Resolution and Termination Action
33 The Board considered voting to approve a resolution recognizing two entities for
34 collaborating with Orange County and recommend actions to terminate the 1988 agreement
35 with Orange Alamance Water System (OAWS) for sewer billing and the 1987 Town of
36 Hillsborough/Orange County agreement for sewer treatment of the Efland Sewer system since
37 the City of Mebane will be assuming those roles before the end of 2018.
38
39 Commissioner Price said she pulled these two items to make sure the customers have
40 all of the information.
41 Craig Benedict, Planning Director, said the Efland sewer system transfer of ownership
42 from the Efland system that flows to Hillsborough, will eventually flow to Mebane and be part of
43 their ownership. He said the Orange Alamance Water System has been the billing agent for
44 Efland customers, and this will continue in the short term in order to accommodate a seamless
45 transfer. He said since Mebane will be the owner, the treatment costs will be funded through
46 the sewer bills. He said staff has created a brochure for customers, and this transfer has been
47 promoted for 18 months. He said another brochure is being created for those who may wish to
48 build a new house in Efland. He said item H says monies will no longer need to be sent to
49 Hillsborough for sewer treatment, as Mebane will be doing this.
23
1 Commissioner Price said she pulled item H along with this, as she often receives
2 questions from students at UNC about whether Orange County works collaboratively with other
3 entities. She said this is an example of Orange County doing so, and wanted to note this.
4 Craig Benedict said staff and the various entities have worked together to make a better
5 functioning system for the residents.
6
7 A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Dorosin to
8 approve the transfer ownership of the Efland Sewer utility infrastructure to the City of Mebane
9 and authorize the Chair to sign.
10
11 VOTE: UNANIMOUS (Item g)
12
13 A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Commissioner Dorosin to
14 approve a resolution recognizing two entities for collaborating with Orange County and
15 recommend actions to terminate the 1988 agreement with Orange Alamance Water System
16 (OAWS) for sewer billing and the 1987 Town of Hillsborough/Orange County agreement for
17 sewer treatment of the Efland Sewer system since the City of Mebane will be assuming those
18 roles before the end of 2018.
19
20 VOTE: UNANIMOUS (Item h)
21
22 a. Minutes
23 The Board approved the minutes from November 8 and 13, 2018 as submitted by the Clerk to
24 the Board.
25 b. Motor Vehicle Property Tax Releases/Refunds
26 The Board adopted a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to release motor vehicle
27 property tax values for six taxpayers with a total of eight bills that will result in a reduction of
28 revenue in accordance with NCGS.
29 c. Property Tax Releases/Refunds
30 The Board adopted a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to release property tax
31 values for twelve taxpayers with a total of seventeen bills that will result in a reduction of
32 revenue in accordance with North Carolina General Statute 105-381.
33 d. Applications for Property Tax Exemption/Exclusion
34 The Board considered nine untimely applications for exemption/exclusion from ad valorem
35 taxation for nine bills for the 2018 tax year.
36 e. Award of Blackwood Farm Park Professional Services Agreement
37 The Board approved and authorized the Manager to execute an Agreement with Susan Hatchell
38 Landscape Architecture, PLLC for park pre-construction design and engineering services to
39 secure permits, conduct engineering work, and create construction drawings and specifications
40 for bid documents for Blackwood Farm Park.
41 f. Request for Road Additions to the State Maintained Secondary Road System for
42 Moinear Lane and Cairns Way in Dunhill Subdivision
43 The Board made a recommendation to the North Carolina Department of Transportation
44 (NCDOT), and the North Carolina Board of Transportation (NC BOT), concerning a petition to
45 add Moinear Lane and Cairns Way in Dunhill Subdivision to the State Maintained Secondary
46 Road System.
47 g. Efland Sewer System — Transfer of Ownership to City of Mebane
48 The Board voted to transfer ownership of the Efland Sewer utility infrastructure to the City of
49 Mebane and authorized the Chair to sign.
24
1 h. Orange County/Orange Alamance Water System (OAWS) Efland Sewer Billing and
2 Town of Hillsborough / Orange County Efland Sewer Treatment Agreement
3 Resolution and Termination Action
4 The Board approved a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, recognizing two entities
5 for collaborating with Orange County and recommend actions to terminate the 1988 agreement
6 with Orange Alamance Water System (OAWS) for sewer billing and the 1987 Town of
7 Hillsborough/Orange County agreement for sewer treatment of the Efland Sewer system since
8 the City of Mebane will be assuming those roles before the end of 2018.
9 i. Change in BOCC Regular Meeting Schedule for 2019
10 The Board considered two changes to the County Commissioners' regular meeting calendar for
11 2019 to move the February 12, 2019 work session to the Whitted Building in Hillsborough and
12 to add meeting with the Fire Departments prior to the work session.
13 j. Street and Driveway Access Permit and Encroachment Agreement for 10' Multi-
14 Purpose Pathway Associated with Southern Campus Expansion, Seymour Center
15 The Board voted to
16 1) Approve a Street and Driveway Access Permit Application for new driveway access
17 off Homestead for the Southern Campus Expansion site work; and
18 2) Approve a Three Party Right of Way Encroachment Agreement regarding a 10' wide
19 concrete multi-purpose pathway between the North Carolina Department of
20 Transportation (NCDOT), Orange County, and the Town of Chapel Hill; and
21 3) Authorize the Manager to sign the Encroachment Agreement contingent upon
22 County Attorney review of the Agreement.
23 k. Authorization for the County Manager to Execute Contracts for Backup 9-1-1
24 Center Equipment
25 The Board voted to authorize the County Manager to execute contracts for the purchase and
26 installation of equipment for the Backup 9-1-1 Center. (The Board previously approved a
27 budget amendment to finance this project at the November 13, 2018 regular meeting).
28 I. Approval of a Contract and Budget Amendment #3-113 for Remediation, Repair, and
29 Reconstruction of the Battle Courtroom
30 The Board voted to approve a construction contract with Sasser Companies, Inc. for the
31 remediation, repair, and reconstruction of the Battle Courtroom under emergency conditions
32 and to approve Budget Amendment#3-B to finance the project.
33
34 9. County Manager's Report
35 Bonnie Hammersley said she would defer the questions about GoTriangle to
36 Commissioner Marcoplos, since a lot of these issues and information has not been in staff
37 hands.
38 Bonnie Hammersley said that in regards to the Northern Campus update, she said staff
39 is looking more closely at how to address the budget situation, and staff decided that it will not
40 delay the project if staff brings an update to the Board in January as opposed to on December
41 11t".
42 Commissioner Marcoplos said he will start with the Duke issue: GoTriangle addressed
43 the initial issues raised the next day, and many of the issues had been addressed but the media
44 had spring-boarded off the letter. He said there are productive discussions going on, and it
45 was a surprise to everyone that Mr. Goodman resigned as chair of the private fundraising
46 committee. He said this resignation has raised concerns and angst amongst the businesses,
47 which is being actively addressed right now.
48 Commissioner Marcoplos said in the midst of all this has come the news of a felon
49 working on this project. He said the previous director of the light rail project knew of this sub-
50 consultant's record, and he has been terminated.
25
1 Commissioner Marcoplos said the other issue is the Rail Operations and Maintenance
2 Facility, ROMF, which has raised a lot of concerns from neighbors, with the issue of sound
3 being the most talked about. He will ask Jeff Greene to send the Board of County
4 Commissioners a memo on this issue. He said the noise may not be as loud as people expect.
5 Commissioner Marcoplos said there are several negotiations on going as the deadline at
6 the end of December approaches. He said there are discussions with the railroads, as much of
7 the route runs near the railroads.
8 Commissioner Marcoplos said his experience of being on the GoTriangle board is that
9 staff is working overtime and very hard on this project; and this is because the state imposed
10 schedule on the project, as well as the funding decreases made by the General Assembly.
11 Commissioner Marcoplos said things are moving forward, and there is a greater grasp
12 on the details and agreements than the media has led on.
13 Commissioner Marcoplos said he said GoTriangle will be releasing their responses from
14 Duke soon.
15 Commissioner Price asked if there is an update about the Blackwell station.
16 Commissioner Marcoplos said it is being worked on and there is great effort being made
17 to make it bike/pedestrian accessible. He said there will have to be some type of resolution by
18 the deadline. He said it is hard to understand in what all the concerns are rooted, and this is
19 the murkiest issue in his opinion.
20 Travis Myren said when the state imposed the funding limitations Durham agreed to pick
21 up the $57 million gap. He said approval will be needed to amend the changes to the cost
22 share agreement, likely in January or February.
23 Chair Rich asked if the City of Durham will be voting on the ROMF tonight.
24 Commissioner Marcoplos said yes. He said the Chapel Hill Town Council considered it
25 the other night, and the discussion was informative. He said the Council will bring it back next
26 week, and while many issues were raised, the staff did recommend approval.
27
28 10. County Attorney's Report
29 John Roberts said the legislature ratified two bills today: one for increased economic
30 development incentives, and the other for hurricane relief. He said the big item that has
31 everyone's attention is voter ID, and this is in House committee. He said the Senate approved
32 the bill, and one can listen to this on the Ethics and Election Committee website.
33
34 11. *Appointments
35
36 a. Appointments to the Orange County Justice Advisory Council — DONE ABOVE
37
38 12. Information Items
39
40 • November 13, 2018 BOCC Meeting Follow-up Actions List
41 • Tax Collector's Report— Numerical Analysis
42 • Tax Collector's Report— Measure of Enforced Collections
43 • Tax Assessor's Report— Releases/Refunds under $100
44
45
46 13. Closed Session
47 NONE
48
49 14. Adjournment
50
26
1 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Price to
2 adjourn the meeting at 9:40 p.m.
3
4 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
5
6 Penny Rich, Chair
7
8
9 Donna Baker
10 Clerk to the Board
1
1 Attachment 2
2
3 DRAFT MINUTES
4 BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
5 SPECIAL MEETING
6 December 18, 2018
7 7:00 p.m.
8
9 The Orange County Board of Commissioners met in Special Session on Tuesday, December
10 18, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. at the Southern Human Services Center in Chapel Hill, N.C.
11
12 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Penny Rich and Commissioners Jamezetta
13 Bedford, Mark Dorosin, Sally Greene, Earl McKee, Mark Marcoplos, and Renee Price
14 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: None
15 COUNTY ATTORNEYS PRESENT: John Roberts
16 COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Deputy County Manager
17 Travis Myren and Clerk to the Board Donna Baker (All other staff members will be identified
18 appropriately below)
19
20 Chair Rich called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
21
22 1. Changes to the Agenda
23 Chair Rich said this is a special meeting and the Board of County Commissioners
24 (BOCC) cannot make changes to the agenda.
25 Chair Rich noted the following items at the Commissioners' places:
26
27 - PowerPoint for Item 4-a
28 -Audit report for Item 4-d
29
30 PUBLIC CHARGE
31 The Chair dispensed with the reading of the public charge.
32
33 Arts Moment
34 Tinka Jordy, Orange County Arts Commission Board Member, introduced the Arts
35 Moment:
36 Michael Chitwood has published 9 books of poetry. His most recent collection, Search
37 & Rescue, received the 2018 L.E. Phillabaum Prize from Louisiana State University Press. His
38 work has appeared in The Atlantic, The New Republic, Oxford American, The Southern Review
39 and numerous other journals as well as on Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac. He
40 teaches at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
41 Michael Chitwood read a poem called the Bikini Atoll Marching Band and Mt. Rushmore
42 Precision Drill Team, noting that the Bakini Atoll was where the first nuclear test was conducted.
43 He said this is a poem about how language and nostalgia are being used these days.
44
45 2. Public Comments
46
47 a. Matters not on the Printed Agenda
48
49 Riley Ruske made the following comments:
50
2
1 Address to the OC BOCC
2 December 18, 2018
3
4 My name is Riley Ruske, I am a United States Citizen and a Veteran. Almost 50 years ago 1
5 took an oath of office to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all
6 enemies, foreign and domestic: that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same". My sense
7 of duty and patriotism is renewed every time I hear newly elected county commissioners take
8 the oath of office to "support and maintain the Constitution and laws of the United States, and
9 the Constitution and laws of North Carolina not inconsistent therewith". Inherent in both oaths
10 is the duty to protect and preserve the sovereignty of the United States of America. It is also
11 my strong hope that these officials make this oath with a true commitment of their hearts and
12 minds and not just as a minor formality to enter office.
13
14 There has been a lot of talk in recent years about foreign influence in our elections and
15 governance. Most of this talk expresses outrage about foreign nation-states such as Russia,
16 China, North Korea, and others. Our Congress and special counsels conduct politicized
17 hearings and investigations into these activities but it is really just pathetic and dangerous
18 political posturing. The United States government has interfered in foreign elections and
19 governance for decades; from Radio Free Europe to funding of resistance/dissident groups to
20 imposing sanctions to putting in place leaders like Noriega, Castro, Hussein and others. It is
21 only to be expected that other nation-states would try the same things against the United
22 States. Many of the same members of our government who rage against interference in our
23 country are the same ones who sit on Congressional committees or in bureaucracies like the
24 State Department and spy agencies which authorize U.S. interference in foreign governments.
25 Their outrage is hypocritical at best and even dishonest in the presentation to the American
26 citizens. Thankfully, because we still have a fairly open society, the efforts of these foreign
27 nation-states don't have much if any effect.
28
29 However, there is a real existential danger of foreign influence in our country. A recent Yale
30 and MIT University study shows that there are more than 20 million foreign nationals of illegal
31 presence in our country. Not only do these illegal aliens cost United States Citizens taxpayers
32 hundreds of billions of dollars each year, they exert incredible influence in our elections and
33 governance at all levels. They actually distort the allocation of members of the House of
34 Representatives thereby depriving our own citizens of their rightful representation in
35 government. We have seen political candidates pledge everything from amnesty to citizenship
36 to these illegal aliens as part of their campaigns to win office. A recent past president even
37 basically gave 2 million of them amnesty after stating multiple times that he could not legally do
38 so. Some government office holders are even working to give these foreign nationals the right
39 to vote in local elections and to hold office in local government. Our very own Senators Burr
40 and Tillis and Congressman Price all support the illegal alien movement. Recently the Orange
41 County 9--County Manager Hammersley, County Sheriff Blackwood, and all seven
42 Commissioners--Dorosin, Rich, Burroughs, Jacobs, Marcopolos, Mckee and Price--acted to
43 provide U.S. Citizen taxpayer funds to aid and abet, shield and shelter illegal aliens in Orange
44 County. Even more recently, Sheriff Blackwood put our families and children at risk by
45 releasing convicted illegal alien child molesters into our county instead of turning them over to
46 ICE for deportation.
47
48 No doubt some people will call these comments racist or hateful. Such comments would come
49 out of ignorance or dishonesty. National citizenship is the legal identification of affiliation or
50 allegiance to a nation-state. It has nothing to do with race. Requiring that individuals and
3
1 especially government officials obey the laws of the country is not hate--it is one of the civic
2 responsibilities of citizens in a democratic republic such as ours.
3
4 It is not an overstatement to say that our governance has been corrupted by foreign nationals of
5 illegal presence. Illegal immigration is a massive criminal enterprise. That is why a glimmer of
6 hope appears when newly elected officials take the oath of office committing to support and
7 maintain the Constitution and laws of the United States. I truly hope that the new
8 commissioners will resist the pressures that will come to aid and abet, shield and shelter foreign
9 nationals of illegal presence in our county. In fact, I truly hope they will reverse the corruption
10 that already exists and restore the principles of lawfulness to our county government. Please
11 honor your oath of office and, by doing so, also honor the commitments and sacrifices of our
12 men and women in uniform and our veterans who have always protected and defended our
13 Constitution and country against enemies foreign and domestic. God Bless the United States
14 of America.
15 Robin Jacobs, Eno River Association (ERA) Executive Director, presented the 2019 Eno
16 River Association calendar to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC). She said the
17 calendar celebrates what others left behind that lived along the Eno River. She expressed
18 appreciation for the collaboration between Orange County and the ERA.
19 Bill Ward is a green activist in Orange County and petitioned the Board to comment on
20 Duke Energy Carolina's latest integrative resource plan. He reviewed other counties that are
21 carbon free throughout the US: Monterrey Bay Community Power; three counties in California;
22 Warren Buffet's MidAmerican Energy will be by 2020; Green Mountain in Vermont (90% carbon
23 free); Washington DC commits to be being 100% carbon free by 2032. He said Duke Energy is
24 talking about using coal-fired plants into the 2040s, with Duke Energy's emissions factor is
25 currently 0.7 pounds of carbon dioxide for each kilowatt-hour of electricity generated. He said a
26 typical family uses about 1000 KW hours/month. He said carbon dioxide is a waste gas from
27 electricity generation. He asked the Board if it would comment on Duke's energy plan and
28 advocate for greener solutions.
29 Chair Rich said the petition will be taken to agenda review, and clarified that there is a
30 150 day window to make a response to the plan, which was issued in September.
31 Bill Ward said that it is his understanding.
32 Craig Carter said, at a previous BOCC meeting, he asked about flying the 4 x 9.6 foot
33 memorial flag for veterans at a cemetery, and was told he would received a response from the
34 Board, but has not done so.
35 Craig Carter also said his parents had a flag flown over the White House in their honor,
36 and he is no longer able to fly this flag as it is deemed too large by local ordinances.
37 Craig Carter said his most serious concern is the lack of ambulance services in the
38 northern part of the County. He said a church member recently died after waiting 8.5 minutes
39 without oxygen, and the local volunteer firefighters cannot provide medical care. He said he
40 called 911 from his own house, due to a shooter in the state park next to his house, and
41 reached Durham County services who transferred him to Orange County, and was ultimately
42 told no one could respond. He said more services are needed, and asked if an ambulance can
43 be stationed at St. Mary's road. He said a great deal of money was spent on the fire station,
44 but there are no plugs to power the ambulance.
45 Commissioner McKee referred to the response time from Meadowlands, and said the
46 ambulances were likely stationed somewhere else in the County at the time he called. He said
47 he would follow up about the St. Mary's Road station.
48
49 b. Matters on the Printed Agenda
4
1 (These matters will be considered when the Board addresses that item on the agenda
2 below.)
3
4 3. Announcements, Petitions and Comments by Board Members
5 Commissioner McKee said at the December 3 meeting he asked for a report from
6 GoTriangle, which is even more critical now with the proposed tunnel in Durham County. He
7 petitioned for GoTriangle to give a report at the January 22nd BOCC meeting.
8 Commissioner Greene said Sunday 21st is the annual Lantern Walk in Hillsborough and
9 you can bring your own lantern, and meet at the Riverwalk in Hillsborough. She said it is a free
10 event, but one must register.
11 Commissioner Greene congratulated Carly Wheelis of Hillsborough, for being a finalist
12 for the National Horse Trainer of the year. She said Carly is 16 years old. Commissioner
13 Greene reviewed a bit of Carly's history with horses.
14 Commissioner Dorosin said on Friday he and Commissioner Greene attended the
15 Justice Advisory Council, and received a presentation from Assistant District Attorney Jeff
16 Nieman and Daniel Bose, North Carolina Justice Center, on a project for driver's license
17 restoration and the elimination of traffic court debt. He said during the presentation they
18 learned that Durham County recently funded a pilot program to have 4 attorneys to work on
19 these issues. He said he would like Orange County to fund a similar program with maybe one
20 full time attorney to address these issues. He said he would like to have the presentation about
21 the Durham program at a future meeting.
22 Commissioner Dorosin said a resident recently contacted him about the usage of gray
23 water (water from washing dishes, taking showers, etc.), which the County currently requires to
24 be processed like black water (sewage). He said the State says gray water can be recycled for
25 home use or irrigation. He would like information from their Orange Water and Sewer Authority
26 (OWASA) representatives about the use of gray water for irrigation.
27 Chair Rich said when she was on the OWASA board they did work with UNC to put in
28 the purple pipes for gray water. She said it may not be in done as much in the County, and
29 more information can be provided.
30 Commissioner Price asked if there are plans for the Pat Sanford award to come before
31 the Board of County Commissioners.
32 Bonnie Hammersley said she will check with Bob Marotto, Animal Services Director.
33 Commissioner Price said she would like a resolution honoring Nate Davis who has
34 retired from the Town of Chapel Hill after 48 years.
35 Commissioner Price petitioned to recognize the seniors at Orange High School who are
36 on the Future Farmers of America team. She said this team won the highest state honor, and
37 is going on to the national completion.
38 Commissioner McKee said they often recognize ball teams for their accomplishments,
39 and he would like to recognize this team as well.
40 Commissioner Price said she received an email regarding the ABC Board and the
41 possibility of privatization, and she would like to ask the Board of County Commissioners to sign
42 on to the petition to oppose this.
43 Commissioner Bedford had no comments.
44 Commissioner Marcoplos said he previously proposed a resolution to support the Green
45 New Deal, and he will write a draft for the January meeting.
46 Chair Rich asked if staff could provide updates on the Hillsborough train station and the
47 Wegman site in Chapel Hill.
48 Chair Rich wished everyone a Happy Hanukkah, a day late.
49 Commissioner Marcoplos referred to an article about the train station, and he would like
50 to know the timing schedule for the construction of this station.
5
1
2 4. Proclamations/ Resolutions/ Special Presentations
3
4
5 a. November 6, 2018 General Election Follow-up Report
6 The Board received a follow-up report on the November 6, 2018 General Election held
7 in Orange County.
8 Rachel Raper, Elections Director, gave a PowerPoint presentation, which reviewed the
9 background information below, as well as several charts and graphs pertaining to election data:
10
11 BACKGROUND:
12 Below are some of the various activities and statistical information concerning the November 6,
13 2018 General Election:
14
15 Pre-Election Activity
16 All pre-election tasks were completed in a timely manner by staff, through a temporary
17 relocation and Hurricane Michael making landfall the day before the voter registration deadline.
18 These tasks included, but were not limited to:
19 • 41 campaign finance reports were audited
20 • Logic and accuracy testing was completed on all voting equipment
21 • Voter education outreach events were held at both the Passmore and Seymour centers
22 • Early voting and Election Day precinct election officials were trained over the course of
23 24 sessions
24 • Ballots were ordered and received equaling to 100% of registered voters
25 • Election supplies were prepared for 44 precincts and 5 early voting sites
26 • Software was loaded on 132 Election Day and 24 early voting laptops
27 • Multi-partisan Assistance Teams were trained and certified to be deployed as requested
28 to assisted living facilities to assist voters with requesting and casting absentee ballots
29 • From July 1, 2018 to November 6, 2018, the staff processed 7,232 new voter
30 registrations, 4,939 duplicate registrations, 5,786 changes of information, and removed
31 5,195 from the voter rolls due to registration activity in other counties/states, death,
32 request from voter, or felony sentencing. In total, 17,726 voter cards were mailed during
33 this time period.
34
35 Absentee Voting
36 Although litigation coupled with Hurricane Matthew delayed the start of absentee-by-mail voting
37 2,865 absentee-by-mail ballots were processed and sent to voters as requested
38
39 Legislation passed prior to the start of early voting resulted in a longer early voting period and
40 required 7 am — 7 pm weekday hours if voting beyond normal office hours was offered.
41 As directed by the Bipartisan State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement, 5 early
42 voting sites were established with a total of 905 cumulative hours. 43,253 total votes
43 were cast, with the votes cast at each site being:
44 - 10,197 at the Board of Elections office
45 - 11,379 at Carrboro Town Hall
46 - 7,869 at Chapel of the Cross
47 - 3,152 at Efland Ruritan Club
48 - 10,656 at Seymour Senior Center
49 1,776 new registrations and 2,154 updated registrations were processed during the
50 early voting period
6
1
2 Election Day
3 Polls were open 6:30 am to 7:30 pm on November 6, 2018. Voting was steady throughout the
4 day.
5 • An Orange Water and Sewer Authority water main break the day before the election
6 resulted in additional logistical planning as facilities began closing as trucks were in
7 route to deliver equipment and supplies
8 • The Asset Management Services department ensured temporary restrooms were
9 delivered to precincts affected by the main break to allow election officials access to
10 restrooms during the 14+ hour day
11 • All precincts were open at 6:30 am as required by law
12 • No electronic poll book or printer issues were reported
13 • A total of 22,008 people voted on Election Day
14 • All Election Night results were reported, uploaded to the website, and finalized by 10:15
15 pm
16
17 Post-Election
18 Voter turnout for the November 6, 2018 General Election was 58.71%, considerably high for a
19 midterm, "blue moon" election.
20 371 provisional ballots were cast. Of those, the Board of Elections:
21 - Fully approved 124
22 - Partially approved 5
23 - Did not approve 242
24
25 Chair Rich asked if"partially approved" could be explained.
26 Rachel Raper said these are people who presented to vote, typically, out of precinct,
27 and were not eligible to vote on certain items on the ballot due to being out of precinct (such as
28 the Chapel Hill Affordable Housing bond).
29 Commissioner McKee referred to the people voting without a record of registration, and
30 asked if this could be clarified.
31 Rachel Raper said provisional ballots may have been cast, but if the ballot is not
32 approved it is not tabulated.
33 Commissioner McKee asked if there was any follow up as to why these residents
34 thought they could vote.
35 Rachel Raper said some residents believed they were registered, but staff looked and
36 was not able to verify the registrations. She said there were some students who were unsure if
37 they were registered, and voted the provisional ballot in order to be registered for future
38 elections.
39
40 * No record of registration and previously removed due to registration activity in another county
41 or state made up the bulk of provisional ballots the Board did not approve.
42 • Data was uploaded from electronic poll books to complete voter history entry by mid-
43 morning Thursday, November 8.
44 • The election results were certified by the Board at canvass on Friday, November 16.
45 • No election protests or challenges were filed in Orange County.
46 • Absentee results by precinct will be reported by December 6, 2018 as required by law.
47
48 She reviewed the demographics:
49 52% Democrats; 38.5% unaffiliated; 14.5% Republicans; less than 1% Libertarian,
50 Constitution and Green.
7
1 • Turn out by gender: Women, 53%; Men, 43%
2 • Turn out by age group: 41-65 were the most committed voters (44% of total turnout)
3 • Race: 77% White; and 10% Black/African American; 6% undeclared; 4% Asian; 2%
4 other; 1% multiracial
5 • Ethnicity: 78% Not Hispanic/Latino; 20% undeclared; 2% Hispanic/Latino
6
7 Rachel Raper said this is a blue moon election (happens every 12 years, and involves
8 no state-wide races on the ballot other than judicial races). She said there was a 58.71% voter
9 turnout, which is good for this type of election (38.86% in 2006; the last blue moon election).
10 Rachel Raper said the Orange County Board of Elections is able to provide voters the
11 best possible services due to the dedication of the Board of Elections members and staff and
12 the continued support from the Orange County Board of County Commissioners. She said the
13 Board of Elections members and staff and Orange County voters appreciate the support
14 provided by the Board of Commissioners and other County staff.
15 Commissioner Dorosin said 42,000 early voters came out, and asked if many of those
16 voters were registered that same day.
17 Rachel Raper said there were 1,776 new registrations and 2,154 updated registrations
18 processed during the early voting period
19 Commissioner Dorosin said he appreciated the report, but he would also like different
20 information; for example, every one over the age of 65, who is registered, compared to the 18-
21 25 year old age group.
22 Rachel Raper said the demographics mirrored the voter registration. She said she has
23 this information and will get it the Board.
24 Commissioner Dorosin referred to the slide about age demographics, and clarified that
25 44% of all voters were aged 41-65 years, and of those aged 41-65 years, 44% turned out to
26 vote. He said this seems mathematically surprising.
27 Rachel Raper said 38% of the registered population is 41-65 years of age, and 44%
28 turned out to vote. She said of the 38% registered 44% turned out.
29 Commissioner Dorosin said he would like to know how many voters are in each age
30 group category and how many turned out to vote, and same thing with the race.
31 Commissioner Dorosin said there was 58% total turnout. He said there are 115,000
32 registered voters in Orange County, but asked how many people in the County could be
33 registered, if everyone over 18 was registered.
34 Rachel Raper said 85% of the population is registered to vote, which is a good average.
35 Commissioner Dorosin said it would be good to have this information as benchmarks.
36 Commissioner Price referred to the one-stop voters per hour, and asked if staff
37 averaged these.
38 Rachel Raper said yes, she took the number of voters per day and averaged it by how
39 many hours were offered that day.
40
41 b. Proclamation — Bill of Rights Day
42 The Board considered voting to adopt a proclamation to officially recognize Bill of Rights
43 Day in Orange County during the month of December 2018 and authorize the Chair to sign.
44 Peggy/Margaret Misch read the Proclamation:
45
46 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
47 PROCLAMATION
48 Bill of Rights Day
49 DECEMBER 15, 2018
50
8
1 Whereas, the necessary states ratified the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments to the
2 United States Constitution, on December 15, 1791; and
3
4 Whereas, the Bill of Rights protects every person of this state and nation from the
5 infringement of basic human and civil rights; and
6
7 Whereas, the freedoms of speech and association and the right to due process and equal
8 protection of the law, as embodied in the Bill of Rights, are a model for democratic institutions
9 and laws all over the world; and
10
11 Whereas, it was the North Carolina convention, held in Hillsborough, which was instrumental
12 regarding the inclusion of a Bill of Rights as part of ratifying the United States Constitution;
13 and
14
15 Whereas, the people of North Carolina stood strong in withholding ratification of the
16 Constitution until the Bill of Rights was added to ensure their inalienable rights; and
17
18 Whereas, the Orange County Board of Commissioners demonstrated its commitment to
19 "upholding the civil rights and civil liberties of all persons in Orange County and their free
20 exercise and enjoyment of any and all rights and privileges secured by our constitutions and
21 laws of the United States, the State of North Carolina, and Orange County," in a May 20, 2003
22 approved resolution entitled "A Resolution Regarding the Protection of Civil Rights and Civil
23 Liberties"; and
24
25 Whereas, the Orange County Board of Commissioners reaffirmed the protections of all its
26 residents by passing "A Resolution Opposing the Use of Local Law Enforcement to Enforce
27 Civil Immigration Law and Policy" on January 23, 2007;
28
29 Now, Therefore Be It Resolved that we the Orange County Board of Commissioners do hereby
30 proclaim December 15, 2018 as "BILL OF RIGHTS DAY" in Orange County and commend
31 this observance to all people.
32
33 This, the 18t" day of December 2018.
34
35 A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner Price for the
36 Board to adopt the Proclamation regarding Bill of Rights Day and authorize the Chair to sign the
37 Proclamation.
38
39 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
40
41 c. Resolution In Support of Campaign to Make North Carolina a No-Torture State
42 The Board considered voting to adopt a Resolution In Support of Campaign to Make
43 North Carolina a No-Torture State and authorizing the Chair to sign.
44 Commissioner Greene read the resolution:
45
46 ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
47 RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF
48 CAMPAIGN TO MAKE NORTH CAROLINA A NO-TORTURE STATE
49
9
1 WHEREAS, the non-governmental North Carolina Commission of Inquiry on Torture (NCCIT,
2 www.nccit.org) was established to examine the role of North Carolina in the United States'
3 secret, global torture program launched soon after September 11, 2001; and
4
5 WHEREAS, the volunteer led NCCIT has conducted an inquiry into the use of public airports by
6 the CIA to facilitate torture and learned that Aero Contractors, a CIA affiliated company,
7 transported at least 49 people for torture, many of them innocent of any terrorist ties; and
8
9 WHEREAS, Aero Contractors is headquartered at the Johnston County Airport in Smithfield,
10 NC, and also used the state-run Global TransPark in Kinston for "torture taxi" flights; and
11
12 WHEREAS, North Carolina residents have been calling since 2005 for investigation of Aero
13 Contractors, and support has come from people of faith, veterans, elected officials, civic
14 groups, labor, various political parties, and members of different racial and ethnic groups; and
15
16 WHEREAS. 10 NCCIT Commissioners — a diverse, blue-ribbon panel of distinguished
17 individuals — heard testimony from 20 witnesses (survivors, journalists, human rights experts)
18 on November 30 and December 1, 2017, in Raleigh; and
19
20 WHEREAS, Governor Roy Cooper and Attorney General Josh Stein are expected to respond to
21 the 84-page NCCIT Report (NCTorture Report.org) since its release on September 27, 2018;
22 and
23
24 WHEREAS, the Orange County Board of Commissioners adopted the RESOLUTION IN
25 SUPPORT OF THE NORTH CAROLINA COMMISSION OF INQUIRY ON TORTURE (RES-
26 2016-08) in December 2016;
27
28 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Orange County Board of Commissioners,
29 do hereby urge Governor Cooper and Attorney General Stein to hold private contractors such
30 as Aero Contractors accountable for involvement in the torture program; to enforce state,
31 federal, and international law; and to stop hosting Aero at public airports to prevent North
32 Carolina from being the home to "torture taxis."
33
34 This, the 18th day of December 2018.
35
36 A motion was made by Commissioner Greene, seconded by Commissioner Price for the
37 Board to approve and authorize the Chair to sign the resolution.
38
39 Commissioner McKee referred to "NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the
40 Orange County Board of Commissioners, do hereby urge Governor Cooper and Attorney
41 General Stein to hold private contractors such as Aero Contractors accountable for involvement
42 in the torture program," and asked John Roberts if this could be explained.
43 John Roberts said the language means what it says, and he would have to research
44 further into existing laws that may apply.
45 Commissioner McKee asked if one commits an act that is legal at one point, but is made
46 illegal in the future, can one be held to the future law retroactively.
47 John Roberts said he does not think one can be held accountable to a law retroactively.
48 Commissioner McKee asked if there are any current protocols in place that could
49 prevent Aero from landing.
50 John Roberts said he cannot answer that at this time.
10
1 Commissioner McKee said he would support this motion, but he has issues of bringing
2 resolutions before the Board with language that is so nebulous. He said he does not know how
3 one can be held accountable for something against which there is no law available. He said
4 torture is egregious, but he has issues with bringing resolutions that have this type of vague
5 language and the ultimately become meaningless.
6 Commissioner Marcoplos said he does not read the word accountable as a legal term,
7 and asked if this word indicates legal action.
8 John Roberts said it does not have to indicate legal action.
9 Commissioner McKee asked if accountable could be more clearly defined.
10 Commissioner Marcoplos said one can be held accountable in any number of ways. He
11 said he finds the wording to be fairly clear and straightforward.
12 Commissioner Greene said this resolution is about events that have already taken
13 place, where no branch of state government had any interest to investigate. She said a
14 contractor that ran out of Smithfield was involved in transporting people overseas to be tortured.
15 She said this is not about holding others accountable to a future law. She said the very well
16 written and complete can be found online at nctorturereport.org. She said those flying the
17 plane are just as complicit in the torture as the ones committing the actual torture.
18
19 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
20
21 Peggy Misch said she tried to combine this resolution and the Bills Of Rights Day
22 together and relate these two because the 81" amendment speaks against torture.
23 Peggy Misch said solitary confinement is a form of torture that is still used today and she
24 hopes the resolution that just passed can get to Governor Cooper and Attorney General Josh
25 Stein. She said this resolution is about accountability.
26 Commissioner Dorosin suggested forwarding the resolution to the Governor and
27 Attorney General.
28 Commissioner Greene asked if the resolution could be forwarded to the Johnston
29 County Commissioners.
30 Commissioner Price suggested sending the resolution to all the counties across the
31 state.
32 Commissioner Price said she forgot one question during the elections presentation, and
33 said she would like to know the costs of the elections.
34
35 d. Presentation of Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for FYE 6/30/2018 and
36 Approval of Audit Contract Extension
37 The Board received the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) for the fiscal
38 year ended June 30, 2018 and considered voting to approve an extension to the audit contract
39 for Mauldin & Jenkins, PLLC.
40
41 BACKGROUND:
42 The CAFR reports on all financial activity of the County for the fiscal year July
43 1, 2017 through June 30, 2018. Mauldin and Jenkins, a firm of Certified Public Accountants,
44 audited the financial statements. The financial statements, audit and contract extension are
45 required by Chapter 159-34 of the North Carolina General Statutes. The County prepares a
46 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) that meets the standards set by the
47 Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). The CAFR is submitted to the GFOA in
48 order to be awarded the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting. The
49 financial report for the Orange County SportsPlex, as required under the management contract,
50 is included in the County's CAFR.
11
1
2 The County received an unmodified (clean) audit opinion on the financial statements received
3 from the audit. The financial audit results indicate compliance with County financial policies.
4 The Chief Financial Officer and representatives of Mauldin and Jenkins will cover highlights of
5 the report and answer any questions.
6
7 The audit contract extension is required to accommodate Mauldin & Jenkins submittal of the
8 audit report to the Local Government Commission on December 4, 2018.
9
10 Gary Donaldson, Chief Financial Officer, made the following PowerPoint presentation:
11
12 Fiscal Year 2017-18 Review and Summary
13 Gary Donaldson, Chief Financial Officer
14 December 18, 2018
15 BOCC Regular Meeting
16
17 FY 2017-18 Audited Reserves by Fund (chart)
18
19 Fund Balance Policy Compliance (bar graph)
20
21 Debt Service Policy Compliance (bar graph)
22 FY 2017-18 Unassigned Fund Balance of 16.23%= $34,439, 230 compared to 16%
23 Policy=$33,951,266
24 The .23% difference= $487,964
25 Service Policy Compliance
26
27 Investment Earnings Performance: General Fund Investment Earnings (graph)
28
29 Investment Earnings Performance: Solid Waste Fund Investment Earnings (graph)
30
31 Operating Funds Highlights
32 ➢ Met Board County Policies; Unassigned Fund Balance and Debt Service Limit;
33 ➢ AAA Bond Rating Affirmation by all 3 Rating Agencies citing Favorable Budget versus
34 Actuals Performance and Reserve Levels;
35 ➢ Refinanced Existing Debt and Achieved $2 million in savings over the life of the Debt
36 obligations;
37 ➢ Reduced General Fund subsidy to Solid Waste Fund from $1.8 to $1.5 million;
38 ➢ Doubled Investment Earnings through timely investment of cash in higher interest rate
39 environment three successive fiscal years;
40 ➢ Decommissioned structurally imbalanced Vehicle Replacement Fund in Budget
41 Amendment#10; and
42 ➢ Implemented GASB 74 and 75 for Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB); with no
43 adverse impact on Financial Statements;
44
45 Capital Fund Highlights
46 ➢ Spring Installment Purchase Financing: $7.5 million included Northern Campus
47 acquisition; Government Services Annex relocation of Electrical and HVAC; School
48 Facilities and Buildings; 9 Sheriff Dodge Chargers; 3 Emergency Services Ambulances;
49 1 Animal Services Truck; 1 Solid Waste Truck and 1 Compactor Equipment; IT
50 improvements; and Affordable Housing Land Banking.
12
1 ➢ General Obligation Bonds: $64.4 million for Chapel Hill High School; $15.9 million
2 Orange County Schools Mechanical Systems, Site acquisition, Roofing and Safety
3 improvements; $5.9 million Two-thirds bonds for both School Districts; and $2.5 million
4 for Affordable Housing Bonds for CASA, Empowerment and Habitat for Humanity
5 Projects.
6
7 Financial Management Monitoring
8 • Monthly and Quarterly Finance Reviews of all Funds
9 • Budget versus Actual Variance Analyses compared with Prior Year
10 • Financial Analysis Distinguishing Timing versus Performance Variances
11 • Updating Economic indicators and trends in new Long-Term Financial Model
12 • Regular Communication and Collaboration with all Departments to monitor and improve
13 Financial Results
14
15 Internal Control Key Performance Indicators (table)
16
17 James Bence, Maudlin & Jenkins, made the following PowerPoint presentation:
18
19 Maudlin and Jenkins
20 Presentation of 2018 Audit Results
21 Orange County, North Carolina
22 December 11, 2018
23
24 Agenda
25 ■ Engagement Team
26 ■ Results of the 2018 Audit
27 ■ Financial Ratios
28 ■ Comments, Recommendations,and Other Issues
29 ■ Questions& Comments
30
31 Engagement Team
32 Maudlin & Jenkins, LLC; General Information
33 o Founded in 1918
34 o Large regional firm serving the Southeastern United States
35 o Office located in Atlanta, GA; Macon, GA; Albany, GA; Savannah, GA;
36 Bradenton, FL; Chattanooga, TN; Birmingham, AL; and Columbia, SC employing
37 approximately 260 personnel
38 o In addition to our governmental practice, we have large banking, healthcare, not
39 for profit, benefit plan and tax practices.
40 Maudlin & Jenkins, LLC; Governmental Sector
41 o Largest specific industry niche served by the Firm representing 25% of Firm
42 practice
43 o Serve more governmental entities throughout the Southeast than many other
44 certified public accounting firm requiring over 85,000 hours of service on an
45 annual basis.
46 o Approximately 100 professional staff persons with current governmental
47 experience.
48 o Current auditor for over 400 total governments in the Southeast, including
49 approximately:
50 • 45 counties;
13
1 • 100 cities;
2 • 50 school systems;
3 • 40 state entities; and,
4 • 140 special purpose entities (stand along business type entities, libraries,
5 etc.)
6 Engagement team leaders for Orange County
7 o Joel Black, Engagement Partner
8 o James Bence, Audit Services Partner
9 o Tim Lyons, Quality Review Partner
10
11 Results of 2018 Audit
12 Our Responsibility Under Auditing Standards Generally Accepted in the United
13 States of America (GAAS) and Government Auditing Standards(GAS)
14
15 - We considered the internal control structure for the purpose of expressing
16 our opinion on the County's basic financial statements and not providing
17 assurance on the internal control structure.
18 - Our audit was performed in accordance with GAAS and GAS.
19 - Our objective is to provide reasonable—not absolute—assurance that the
20 basic financial statements are free of material misstatement.
21 - We did not audit the financial statements of the Orange County ABC
22 Board. We reviewed and relied on the report of other auditors for
23 amounts included in the County's statements related to the ABC Board.
24 - The basic financial statements are the responsibility of the County's
25 management.
26
27 Report on 2018 Basic Financial Statements
28
29 - Unmodified ("clean") opinion on basic financial statements.
30 - Presented fairly in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in
31 the United States of America.
32 - Our responsibility does not extend beyond financial information contained in our
33 report.
34
35 Significant Accounting Policies
36 - The significant accounting policies used by the County are described in Note 1 to
37 the basic financial statements.
38 - The policies used by the County are in accordance with generally accepted
39 accounting principles and similar government organizations.
40 - In considering the qualitative aspects of its policies, the County is not involved in
41 any controversial or emerging issues for which guidance is not available.
42
43 Management Judgment/Accounting Estimates
44 - The County uses various estimates as past of its financial reporting process —
45 including valuation of accounts receivable, depreciation of capital assets, seld-
46 insurance claim liabilities, and pension and OPEB assumptions.
47
48 Financial Statement Disclosures
49
14
1 - The footnote disclosures to the financial statements are also an integral
2 part of the financial statements and the process used by management
3 to accumulate the information included in the disclosures was the same
4 process used in accumulating the statements. The overall neutrality,
5 consistency, and clarity of the disclosures was considered as part our
6 audit.
7
8 Relationship with Management
9 - We received full cooperation from the County's management and staff.
10 - There were no disagreements with management on accounting issues or
1� financial reporting matters.
14 Audit Adjustments
15 - There were several posted adjustments, which were necessary during the audit
16 process. Those entries have been provided to management and have all been
17 recorded on the County's general ledger by management and they have agreed
18 with all adjustments. There was one proposed and passed adjustment related to
19 the understated depreciation of completed capital outlay projects. This
20 adjustment has been provided to management. Evaluated by management, and
21 deemed immaterial to the County's financial statements.
22
23 Management Representation
24 - We requested, and received, written representations from
25 management relating to the accuracy of information included in
26 the financial statements and the completeness and accuracy of
27 various information requested by us.
28
29 Consultation with Other Accountants
30
31 - To the best of our knowledge, management has not consulted with, or
32 obtained opinions from, other independent accountants during the
33 year, nor did we face any issues requiring outside consultation.
34
35 Significant Issues Discussed with Management
36 - There were no significant issues discussed with management
37 related to business conditions, plans, or strategies that may have
38 affected the risk of material misstatement of the financial statements.
39
40 Information in Documents Containing Audited Financial Statements
41 - Our responsibility for other information in documents containing the
42 County's comprehensive annual financial report and our report
43 thereon does not extend beyond the information identified in our
44 report. If the County intends to publish or otherwise reproduce the
45 financial statements and make reference to our firm, we must be
46 provided with printers' proof for our review and approval before
47 printing. The County must also provide us with a copy of the final
48 reproduced material for our approval before it is distributed.
49
50 Auditor Independence
15
1 - In accordance with AICPA professional standards, M&J is independent with
2 regard to the County and its financial reporting process.
3 - There were no fees paid to M&J for management advisory services during
4 fiscal year 2018 that might affect our independence as auditors.
5
6 General Balance Ratio to Expenditures — chart
7
8 Trend Analysis of Property and Sales Tax Revenue per Capita - Chart
9
10 General Fund Budget to Actual Results for FY 2018 - Chart
11 ■ General Fund revenues were 2.4% more than the amended budgeted
12 amount. The actual revenue was over budget due to increased actual
13 property tax collections.
14 ■ Expenditures for many functional areas were less than budget by $6.4 million
15 (2.9%)from the operating budget. Several departments came in under budget
16 due to personnel vacancies and efforts to spend conservatively.
17 ■ Budgeted use of fund balance was not needed to the extent anticipated, as
18 actual revenues and other financing sources exceeded expenditures.
19 ■ General Fund significant transfers were $1,357,688 to School Capital
20 Improvement Fund; $320,000 to County Capital Improvement Fund;
21 $1,426,972 to Solid Waste Landfill Fund; and $864,230 to nonmajor
22 governmental funds.
23
24 Enterprise Results- Chart
25
26 Changes in Single Audit Engagements
27 Change in reporting of direct benefit payments — removed from Schedule of Expenditures of
28 Federal and State Awards (SEFSA)
29 ❖ Previously reported Federal Expenditures of$93.4 million
30 ❖ Type A program threshold was $2.8 million
31 ❖ Average 2 federal programs, Medicaid tested every year
32 ❖ Now reporting Federal Expenditures of$21.9 million
33 ❖ Type A program threshold now$750,000
34 ❖ Testing for 8 federal and 1 state programs in 2018 — SEFSA
35
36 Additional changes in Medicaid:
37 o Now eligibility testing is required to be performed as agreed upon
38 procedures engagement;
39 o Separate from financial/compliance audits for the County;
40 o Procedures determined by the Office of State Auditor;
41 o Issued report for the County on October 31, 2018 — no inconsistency reported.
42
43 Additional Testing
44 Local Government Employees Retirement System
45 • Attestation report issued October 10, 2018
46 • Test was performed on employee census data as of December 31, 2017
47 • State randomly selects LGERS participants for testing
48 • Report issued stated the County was providing the significant elements of employee
49 census data for the year ended December 31, 2017 — no errors noted.
16
1
2
3 Cash Handling —Agreed Upon Procedures
4 • We are working with each office throughout the County to evaluate the cash receipting
5 process
6 • Procedures started and will be wrapping up in early spring 2019
7
8 Comments, Recommendations, and Other Issues
9
10 Material Weaknesses on Financial Reporting
11
12 Debt Financing Reporting
13 Misstatements were detected in the reporting of the County's recording for debt
14 issuances, including the associated balance sheet accounts, revenues,
15 expenditures, and expenses. During our testing, audit adjustments were required to
16 properly report the County's debt and related debt service schedules and related
17 balance sheet account, revenues, and expenditures/expenses. Audit adjustments
18 totaling approximately $30 million were required to record other financing sources
19 and other financing uses; and $8.5 million were needed to correct the classification
20 of the County's accounting and reporting of the debt service activity. We
21 recommend the County carefully review all financing documents received during the
22 issuance of the bonds or notes. There are several draft versions, which may
23 circulate before the final information is available, but all members of the County's
24 management team should ensure all key members have the necessary schedules to
25 properly report the issuance, issuance costs, and other disbursements associated
26 with the issuance.
27
28 Expenditure/Expense Recognition
29 During our testing, audit adjustments were required to properly report the County's
30 expenditures/expenses and related balance sheet accounts. During our testing of
31 subsequent disbursements we identified expenses that were incurred as of June 30,
32 2018 but were note remitted until subsequent to the fiscal year end. The expenses
33 of the County Capital Project Fund and the Solid Waste Landfill Fund were
34 understated by $227,745 and $65,712, respectively. Audit adjustments totaling
35 approximately$293,450 were needed to correct the County's
36 expenditures/expenses and related balance sheet accounts. We recommend the
37 County ensure all expenditures/expenses are properly reported in accordance with
38 generally accepted accounting principles.
39
40 Equity Reconciliation
41 During our testing, an audit adjustment was required to adjust the opening net
42 position of the Solid Waste Landfill Fund. The entry included adjusting balances
43 incorrectly coded to equity during the current year, as well as to record audit entries
44 from the prior year, which were not posted to the County's general ledger. An audit
45 adjustment totaling $806,521 was needed to correct the County's opening net
46 position as of June 30, 2018. We recommend the County carefully review all
47 transactions to ensure all year-end closing entries, including those proposed by
48 the auditors, are recorded in accordance with generally accepted accounting
49 principles.
50
17
1 Industry recommendation
2 The Information Technology environment is characterized by rapid change and there
3 has been no shortage of headlines about cyber security attacks. While breaches
4 of large organizations have been very high profile and have received a lot of
5 press coverage, organizations of all sizes face the same types of threats and are
6 experiencing similar breaches. Many organizations are still struggling to effectively
7 address cyber security issues; however, they are no longer ignoring them. During the
8 performance of our audit of the financial statements of the County, we noted that the
9 organization is taking measures to prevent such an attack on the County, but is
10 lacking some elements of a Cyber security Framework or Cyber security Risk
11 Management Program (CRMP). A functioning CRMP will assist the County with
12 comprehensively identifying cyber security weaknesses, potential threats and risks,
13 and controls used to safeguard information and systems. We recommend that
14 the entity investigate and consider implementation of a Cyber security Risk
15 Management Program including covering the monitoring and testing of controls in
16 place.
17
18 New GASB Pronouncements- Implemented This Year
19
20 - GASB Statement No. 75, Accounting and Financial Reporting for
21 Postemployment Benefits Other Than Pensions, replaces the requirements of
22 Statement No. 45 and addressed accounting and financial reporting for OPEB
23 that is provided to the employees of the state and local governmental employers.
24 This statement established standards for recognizing and measuring liabilities,
25 deferred outflows of resources, deferred inflows of resources and
26 expense/expenditures. For defined benefit OPEB, this statement identifies the
27 methods and assumptions that are required to be used to project benefit
28 payments, discount projected benefit payments to their actuarial present value,
29 and attribute that present value to periods of employee service. Note disclosure
30 and required supplementary information requirements about defined benefit
31 OPEB are also addressed.
32
33 - Statement No. 74, Financial Reporting for Postemployment Benefit Plans Other
34 Than Pension Plans. The objective of this statement is to improve the usefulness
35 of information about postemployment benefits other than pensions (other
36 postemployment benefits or OPEB) included in the general purpose external
37 financial reports of state and local governmental OPEB plans for making decisions
38 and assessing accountability. This statement results from a comprehensive review
39 of the effectiveness of existing standards of accounting and financial reporting for
40 all postemployment benefits (pensions and OPEB) with regard to providing
41 decision- useful information, supporting assessments of accountability and inter-
42 period equity, and creating additional transparency.
43
44
45 - Statement No. 76, The Hierarchy of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for
46 State and Local Governments. The objective of this statement is to identify (in the
47 context of the current governmental financial reporting environment) the hierarchy
48 of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). The "GAAP hierarchy"
49 consists of the sources of accounting principles used to prepare financial
18
1 statements of state and local governmental entities in conformity with GAAP and
2 the framework for selecting those principles.
3
4
5 - GASB Statement No. 83, Certain Asset Retirement Obligations, requires the
6 accrual of an estimate for any legally enforceable future liability associated with
7 the retirement of a capital asset (i.e. decommissioning a sewer treatment plant)
8 and to report the expenses over the life of the associated capital asset.
9 Applicable for June 30, 2019.
10
11
12 - GASB Statement No. 84, Fiduciary Activities, This statement establishes
13 criteria for identifying fiduciary activities with a focus on: 1) whether a
14 government is controlling the assets of the fiduciary activity; and, 2) the
15 beneficiaries with whom a fiduciary relationship exists. Applicable for June 30,
16 2020.
17
18
19 New GASB Pronouncements for Future Years
20
21 - GASB Statement No. 87, Leases was issued in June 2017 and is
22 effective for the first reporting period beginning after December 15,
23 2019. This statement increases the usefulness of governments' financial
24 statements by requiring recognition of certain lease assets and liabilities
25 for leases that previously were classified as operating leases and
26 recognized as inflows of resources or outflows of resources based on the
27 payment provisions of the contract. It establishes a single model for
28 lease accounting based on the foundational principle that leases are
29 financings of the right to use an underlying asset. Under this statement,
30 a lessee is required to recognize a lease liability and an intangible right-to-
31 use lease asset, and a lessor is required to recognize a lease receivable
32 and a deferred inflow of resources, thereby enhancing the relevance and
33 consistency of information about governments' leasing activities.
34 Applicable for June 30, 2021.
35
36 - Statement No. 88, Certain Disclosures Related to Debt, Including Direct
37 Borrowings and Direct Placements, under Statement 88, debt for
38 disclosure purposes is defined as a liability that arises from a contractual
39 obligation to pay cash (or other assets) in one or more payments to settle
40 an amount that is fixed at the date the contractual obligation is
41 established. Applicable for June 30, 2019.
42
43
44 - Statement 89, Accounting for Interest Cost Incurred Before the End of
45 a Construction Period, this standard eliminates the requirement/ability to
46 capitalize construction period interest costs as part of the cost of a capital
47 asset in enterprise funds. This standard should be applied prospectively
48 with no restatement. This standard can be early implemented as part of
49 fiscal year 2019, but is applicable for June 30, 2021.
19
1
2
3 - Statement No. 90, Equity Interests an amendment of GASB
4 Statements No. 14 and No. 61, is intended to improve the consistency
5 and comparability of reporting a government's majority equity interest in a
6 legally separate organization and to improve the relevance of financial
7 statement information for certain component units. It defines a majority
8 equity interest and specifies that a majority equity interest in a legally
9 separate organization should be reported as an investment if a
10 government's holding of the equity interest meets the definition of an
11 investment. A majority equity interest that meets the definition of an
12 investment should be measured using the equity method, unless it is
13 held by a special-purpose government engaged only in fiduciary
14 activities, a fiduciary fund, or an endowment (including permanent and
15 term endowments) or permanent fund. Those governments and funds
16 should measure the majority equity interest at fair value. Applicable for
17 June 30, 2020.
18
19
21 ■ Other Matters Currently Being Considered by GASB
22 - Re-Examination of the Financial Reporting Model. GASB has added this
23 project to its technical agenda to make improvements to the existing financial
24 reporting model (established via GASB 34). Improvements are meant to
25 enhance the effectiveness of the model in providing information for decision-
26 making and assessing a government's accountability.
27 - Conceptual Framework is a constant matter being looked at by GASB.
28 Current measurement focus statements (for governmental funds) to change to
29 near-term financial resources measurement. May dictate a period (such as
30 60 days) for revenue and expenditure recognition. May expense things such as
31 supplies and prepaid assets at acquisition.
32 - Revenue and Expense Recognition is another long-term project where the
33 GASB is working to develop a comprehensive application model for recognition
34 of revenues and expenses from non-exchange, exchange, and exchange-like
35 transactions.
36 - Conduit Debt. The GASB is looking at improving the definition of conduit debt
3M77 and determining whether a liability should be reported for these transactions.
40 Other Changes
41 - There continues to be changes to auditing standards relative to the conduct
42 and reporting of Single Audits. This year's financial and compliance audit
43 recognized the implementation of the new Uniform Grant Guidance (UG), which
44 included significant changes to cost principles and other requirements for
45 auditees receiving Federal funds. These changes are driven based on the
46 grant award date as awarded by the Federal agency. As such, auditors and
47 auditees will follow requirements from both the "old" and "new" guidance for a
48 few years to come.
49
20
1 Commissioner Dorosin referred to page 11, and asked if this is that just a change in the
2 way things get reported, or is there a substantive change in the County's overall fiscal health.
3 James Bence said in short no, there was no change, but there is a new audit that the
4 County has to have. He said the State still requires auditors to come in and audit the eligibility
5 determination, but because it is not part of the County's financial packet, the State requires
6 agreed upon procedures, which was a separate engagement that the Firm did with the County.
7 He said the results of this engagement were submitted to the State in October, citing no
8 instances of determination ineligibility.
9 Commissioner Dorosin clarified that the way things are done has changed, but the
10 underlying substantive outcomes shows that everything is in order.
11 James Bence said yes, in layman's terms. He said the audit is still clean, and the
12 biggest takeaway would be to know that more of the County's programs are going to be subject
13 to compliance review now than in the past.
14 Commissioner Marcoplos asked if these changes added additional expense to the
15 County for additional audits.
16 James Bence said yes.
17 Commissioner Greene referred to page 15, and asked if a cyber security risk
18 management program is costly to implement.
19 James Bence said he does not know if he can answer that question. He said the
20 process starts with a study and it may be able to be handled in house. He said his firm's
21 greatest emphasis is placed on the County getting a policy in place.
22 Commissioner Greene said the County would need to commit to having a policy and
23 then find out how to implement it.
24 James Bence said yes.
25 Commissioner Bedford referred to page 20 of the full audit report, and asked if this is
26 where the Board should be focusing most of its attention.
27 James Bence said that is the County's budget schedule, and pages 17-20 would be
28 good schedules to look at.
29 Commissioner Bedford said it would have been helpful to have these documents in
30 advance of this meeting, in order to be familiar with them prior to having the presentation.
31
32 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Price for the
33 Board to approve the audit contract extension per North Carolina General Statute.
34
35 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
36
37 5. Public Hearings
38 NONE
39
40 6. Regular Agenda
41
42 a. Approval of the Proposed Guidelines for the New Orange County Local Rent
43 Supplement Program (OC-LRSP) and Approval to Enter into an Agreement with
44 the Orange County Housing Authority to Administer the New OC-LRSP Utilizing
45 the Locally-Appropriated Funds
46 The Board considered voting to adopt a resolution approving the proposed program
47 guidelines for the new Orange County Local Rent Supplement Program (OC-LRSP); and
48 authorize the County Manager to execute the necessary agreement with the Orange County
49 Housing Authority to administer the new Orange County Local Rent Supplement Program (OC-
50 LRSP).
21
1 Sherrill Hampton, Housing Director, reviewed the information below:
2
3 BACKGROUND:
4 The Orange County Board of County Commissioners, at its June 19, 2018 regular meeting,
5 approved an initial $100,000 appropriation for a new local voucher program known as the OC
6 Local Rent Supplement Program. In addition, the HOME Consortium, now known as the Local
7 Government Affordable Housing Collaborative and consisting of the Towns of Carrboro, Chapel
8 Hill, and Hillsborough, as well as Orange County, approved a recommendation to award
9 $139,613 in FY 2018-19 HOME funds to be used for Tenant-Based Rental Assistance. Of the
10 aforementioned amount, $114,613 will serve as leveraged resources for the new OC Local
11 Rent Supplement Program. The remaining amount of$25,000 will be used for the Rapid Re-
12 Housing Program. The federal Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) approved
13 the FY 2018-2019 HOME grant award on October 3, 2018, and the grant agreement was fully
14 executed on October 10, 2018 by the County Manager.
15
16 The new OC Local Rent Supplement Program (OC-LRSP) in many aspects mirrors the
17 federally-funded Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program. However, it is also designed to allow
18 for flexibility in meeting local identified housing needs. Attachment 1 provides a full program
19 overview and the proposed guidelines of the new OC-LRSP. In addition, a draft implementation
20 timeline and a copy of HUD's FY 2019 Fair Market Rents (FMRs) are also included as
21 Attachments 2 and 3, respectively. The listed rents serve as the payment standards for the
22 rental subsidies offered under the new program. It should be noted that there has been an
23 increase in the FMRs in FY 2019 as opposed to those originally cited for FY 2018. OCLRSP is
24 able to handle the increase in rents due to the leveraging of the HOME funds.
25 However, the increased amount of HOME funds for rent subsidies will decrease the availability
26 of funds for security deposits and utility connections. Nevertheless, monies from the Risk
27 Mitigation and Housing Displacement Fund could be allocated to also cover the increase, but
28 these are usually one-time payments.
29
30 Implementation of the new OC-LRSP is proposed to begin in mid-January 2019 with an
31 announcement of the new program and a briefing for applicable service providers. The
32 application period is anticipated to begin February 1, 2019. However, this date may be delayed
33 for 10-15 days due to the integration of new software in order to handle the required new
34 Waiting List.
35
36 Approval is being sought to enter into an agreement with the Orange County Housing Authority.
37 This is due in part to HUD's review of the overall agency and best practices in the public
38 housing industry. HUD requires an agreement between the parties if Housing Authority staff will
39 be used to conduct any part of the work. Most other communities (District of Columbia, Hawaii,
40 Massachusetts, Toronto, etc.) in the US and Canada who have or considered having a local or
41 state voucher program utilize a Housing Authority to administer the program.
42
43 Sherrill Hampton provided a sheet of answers to questions she received from
44 Commissioner Greene's, the content of which she reviewed below:
45
46 RESPONSES TO COMMISSIONER GREENE'S QUESTIONS AND OTHER POINTS OF
47 CLARIFICATION
48 Question 1:
49 What would a "sponsor-based" rental assistance program be?
22
1 A Sponsored-based rental assistance component allows even greater flexibility and could be
2 used in two (2) different ways in conjunction with the Bond Program and/or HOME Program
3 where (1) a nonprofit or for-profit entity is developing new housing units or acquiring and
4 rehabilitating units. The vouchers are portable and would allow use at the new and/or acquired
5 sites, as well as at other sites owned by the participating non-profit and/or for-profit entities.
6 Under the (2) strategy, the Sponsor-based vouchers could be awarded to entities that agree to
7 provide supportive services to applicable tenants housed in their affordable units.
8 Note that this category of rental assistance will be employed in the future if the new program
9 receives a substantial investment to allow for its implementation. Staff included it in the initial
10 guidelines in case non-County funding is received in the near future that would allow for its
11 implementation. The category being recommended for initial implementation is tenant-based as
12 the funds appropriated only allow for approximately 15-20 vouchers.
13
14 Question 2:
15 Under the section on Funding Policies and Procedures, is there an error when
16 describing the OCHA Board as OCHA Board of Commissioners?
17 Yes that is an error. The section should read "The Orange County Board of County
18 Commissioners (BOCC) will review and approve all policies, procedures and guidelines, as well
19 as amendments, revisions or other changes for its new Local Rental Supplement Program.
20 However, given the experience the Orange County Housing Authority (OCHA) has with running
21 several federally-funded voucher programs, i.e. VASH and the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV)
22 Program, the BOCC will enter into an agreement with OCHA to administer the Local Rent
23 Supplement Program on behalf of the County. OCHA cannot implement any major policy
24 changes without the review and approval of the Orange County Board of County
25 Commissioners but may make minor changes to allow for best practices in the industry to be
26 incorporated or other minor revisions to ensure a smooth implementation, i.e. application
27 period, forms of outreach, etc. In addition, the OCHA, from time-to-time, may make
28 recommendations to the BOCC for other needed changes and/or revisions".
29
30 Page 2 — Responses to Commissioner Greene's Questions
31 Question 3:
32 Under the section on Screening &Assessment, what are the assumptions about support
33 services that these tenants will get?
34 For the tenant-based and project-based categories, there are no assumptions about the
35 provision of supportive services that a tenant may receive. Like the federally-funded Housing
36 Choice Voucher Program, the provision of supportive services is not mandated. This only takes
37 place with the Permanent Supportive Housing Voucher Program. That is why the statement is
38 included in the guidelines that "the individual must not require a level of care that is not offered
39 by the OC Local Rent Supplement Program".
40 Only the Sponsored-base Category allows for an option to award vouchers to entities seeking
41 vouchers and also providing supportive services. Note that even in this case, the OC-LRSP still
42 would not be providing funding for supportive services.
43
44 Question 4:
45 Where are the definitions for homelessness and victim of domestic violence? Is it
46 included in the document?
47 The definitions were not included in the document but staff used the definitions from the current
48 HCV Administrative Plan as it relates to homelessness and victims of domestic violence. These
49 definitions follow HUD policy regarding homelessness and domestic violence.
23
1 See attached for excerpts from the Orange County Housing Authority's Administrative Plan and
2 Federal Register's Wednesday, November 16, 2016 edition.
3
4 Question 5:
5 PHA was used a few times in the document. Shouldn't that have been OCHA?
6 Yes and no. Staff and HUD utilize "PHA" interchangeably when talking about housing
7 authorities. Staff is certainly open to making the change, deleting PHA and inserting OCHA
8 where appropriate.
9
10 Question 6:
11 Please explain the use of criminal background checks and sex offender checks and why
12 it is based on HCV regulations. Is there any flexibility for local jurisdictions regarding
13 criminal backgrounds, i.e. the Town of Chapel Hill and its Public Housing Program?
14 Like the Town of Chapel Hill's federally-funded Public Housing, the Housing Choice Voucher
15 (HCV) Program, which is also federally-funded, must follow HUD rules regarding the use of
16 criminal background and sex offender checks as it relates to awarding or denying assistance.
17 So when it is mentioned that the County's new Local Rent Supplement Program will be
18 following the HCV Program Guidelines as it relates to criminal background and sex offender
19 checks that is the relaxed policies that HUD requires.
20
21 Question 6:
22 Because the voucher program and the public housing program are so closely related,
23 Commissioner Greene would like to be sure that there is as much consistency as
24 possible between the two or she would like an explanation for why they can't or
25 shouldn't be. In addition, the Commissioner would like for County staff to reconsider the
26 strictness of the proposed policies as it relates to criminal back grounds, etc.
27 While the public housing and voucher programs have similar intent and are both funded by
28 HUD, the regulations for the programs do differ. To name a few of the more important
29 differences, see below:
30 • In public housing, the Housing Authority owns the units and in the HCV Program, the
31 units are owned by various private property owners. This difference allows HCV
32 participants a "choice" in selection of the location of their home, as well as serves to
33 mitigate concentrations of poverty.
34 • In public housing, the Housing Authority does not have the ability to request a rent
35 increase each year but instead must rely solely on federal funding to provide for its
36 capital needs and unit subsidy.
37 • With the HCV Program, there is no mechanism for having Resident Councils but public
38 housing allows for the creation of resident councils at the various complexes. The
39 bylaws of OCHA does allow for resident representation on the Board of Directors.
40
41 In the case of the new Local Rent Supplement Program, the County has the opportunity to craft
42 a program that provides for flexibility given specific needs found throughout all areas of the
43 County, as Orange County has rural, urban and suburban characteristics. County staff has
44 recommended that in several instances the new program mirror the current HCV Program
45 policies to mitigate confusion among constituents and alleviate potential legal ramifications, as
46 well as follow industry best practices.
47 As it specifically relates to the criminal background checks and being less restrictive, note the
48 following:
49 Staff proposes that the Orange County Local Rent Supplement Program "mirror" the
50 criteria of the current HCV Program as it relates to criminal background checks, etc. The
24
1 current HCV Program screening criteria is less stringent than the Town of Chapel Hill's
2 screening criteria, as I read in the materials forwarded by Commissioner Greene, unless
3 additional changes have been made to Chapel Hill's policy since it was adopted. The
4 proposed LRSP policy, as well as the current HCV policy, allow the flexibility to review
5 each applicant on a case-by-case basis whereas The Town of Chapel Hill has a more
6 rigorous, set criminal screening criteria.
7 The chart below compares the proposed Orange County LRSP policy with the Town of
8 Chapel Hill's policy:
9
10 Orange County Local Rent Supplement Program
11 Town of Chapel Hill
12 • Currently engaged in is defined as any use of illegal drugs during the previous six
13 months.
14 • The following chart summaries the exclusionary periods of ineligibility for admissions to
15 the public housing program, based on criminal activities:
16
Table 1: Chart EXCLUSIONARY
summaries the PERIOD
exclusionary periods
of ineligibility for
admissions to the
public housing
program, based on
criminal activities
CRIMINAL
ACTIVITY
Registered Sex LIFE
Offenders
Manufacturing LIFE
Methamphetamine
Felony Drug 10 YEARS
Possession with
intent to sell,
manufacture or
distribute,
trafficking
Felony-Assault 7 YEARS
Felony-Larceny 7 YEARS
Burglary 7 YEARS
Drug Possession 5-7 YEARS
Felony- Fraud 3 YEARS
Misdemeanor- 2 YEARS
Larceny
(shoplifting)
Misdemeanor- 1 YEAR
25
Assault
Trespassing 1 YEAR
1
2
3 Sherrill Hampton referred to page 2 of the table, and said there was a question about
4 bedroom size. She said staff has a limited budget, and is seeking to stay within the allocated
5 funds. She said staff looked at the most requested unit sizes, and the way staff would address
6 this question is highlighted in yellow on the table. She said the need is so great, and staff
7 wants to manage expectations. She said if one is not meeting the bedroom size by one's
8 household size, then one's application will not be considered at this time.
9 Sherrill Hampton referred to funding policies on page 3, noting some changes. She said
10 Commissioner Greene pointed out a discrepancy, which has been corrected and is contained
11 under question 2 in the response to Commissioner Greene's question. She said if the Board
12 approves this tonight, the Housing Authority will administer the local rent supplement program
13 and can only make very minor changes as relates to implementation; any major change will
14 require coming back before the Board for approval.
15 Sherrill Hampton said there was concern that the guidelines very clearly talk about
16 displacement due to the closure of manufactured home parks, as well as other urgent
17 community needs. She said this is addressed in item 6.
18 Sherrill Hampton said there was a question regarding why staff was not targeting
19 veterans. She said there is a voucher program that is solely for veterans, and if a veteran is
20 homeless they have a preference. She said staff tried not to pile on too many preferences, in
21 order to use the number of vouchers available to make a dent in the need. She said due to the
22 availability of federal programming and resources at the VA, staff did not give veterans a
23 preference at this time.
24 Sherrill Hampton referred to page 4 and outreach and marketing, noting that the Board
25 requested that staff contact social service agencies and other providers within the 10 mile
26 radius of where the County voucher can be used. She said staff plans to do this, and has
27 included in the plan.
28 Sherrill Hampton referred to the top of page 7, which discusses persons displaced due
29 to an urgent community need, and how they will be addressed. She said this is referring to the
30 manufactured home park closures. She said these persons will be referred to her office by
31 EmPowerment, which has the contract for relocation coordination services.
32 Sherrill Hampton referred to the top of page 8, which further addresses inclusion for
33 urgent community needs. She said the responses that she provided to Commissioner Greene's
34 questions explained that the local rent supplement program will mirror the current policies,
35 under the Housing Authority's voucher program, as it relates to criminal background checks.
36 She said staff looked at the admissions policy from the housing authority in Chapel Hill, which is
37 public housing and differs from the County's program. She said her office will review on a
38 case-by-case basis, and therefore, does not have a rigid set determination. She said her
39 office's policy was reviewed and approved by HUD, and meets with HUD requirements and
40 most recent notice of granting some leeway around criminal background checks.
41 Commissioner Greene said her concern is how to deal with ex-offenders when they
42 make an application, and she suggested having a joint conversation with the Chapel Hill
43 Housing Authority to promote more flexibility. She said it would be worthwhile to have a
44 thoughtful review of the County and the Town's two policies. She said in Chapel Hill, if one has
45 an arrest that is dismissed, it does not affect an application in any way. She said it appears,
46 however, that this is not the same for the County policy.
47 Commissioner Greene petitioned the Manager to come up with a process and who to
48 include in this discussion.
26
1 Chair Rich said she has found that the County is not consistent with the towns on
2 several issues regarding housing.
3 Bonnie Hammersley said County staff meets monthly with the Towns of Chapel Hill,
4 Hillsborough and Carrboro's Housing Directors and Managers. She said are all aware of this
5 local program, and there was interest at one time on the part of the Town of Chapel Hill but
6 there has been a changeover in management. She said staff will continue this conversation.
7 Commissioner Greene said this particular conversation may only need to include Chapel
8 Hill, and it would be helpful to have a thorough and thoughtful review of this one policy, with the
9 involvement elected officials.
10 Commissioner Dorosin said this is exciting and echoed Commissioner Greene's
11 comments. He said he would like to come up with another name or acronym for this program,
12 as OCLRSP is cumbersome. He suggested OCRA: Orange County Rental Assistance, or
13 something else that is catchy, and easy to market and remember.
14 Other Commissioners noted that there is already a program with the acronym OCRA
15 (Orange County Rural Assistance).
16 Commissioner Dorosin said the point remains, and this program must be promoted. He
17 said it is a great program.
18 Commissioner Greene commended all of the hard work that had gone into this program
19 and policy:
20
21 A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner Price for the
22 Board to adopt and authorize the Chair to sign a resolution:
23
24 1) Approving the proposed guidelines for the OC Local Rent Supplement Program; and
25 2) Authorizing the County Manager to execute the necessary agreement with the Orange
26 County Housing Authority after consultation with the County Attorney.
27
28 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
29
30 b. County Commissioners: Boards and Commissions Assignments
31 The Board considered selecting the Boards and Commissions on which Board members
32 would like to serve going into 2019.
33 Chair Rich said the Board changed this process last year: the intragovernmental boards
34 would be 2 one-year terms; and the regional boards would be 4 one-year terms. She said there
35 are a few other snags that should be reviewed at a later date, but tonight the Commissioners
36 will just choose boards. She said the reasoning behind the duration of service on the various
37 boards is due to some boards have large learning curves, and it makes sense to serve longer
38 than just one year. She said the process starts with the most senior commissioner choosing
39 first.
40 Commissioner Bedford said she would like to know the responsibilities and expectations
41 of some of these boards.
42 Chair Rich said the Commissioners are liaisons to these boards, and the first
43 responsibility it to attend the meetings of these boards. She said if one cannot attend, one
44 should inform the Clerk who would see if anyone else can attend.
45 Chair Rich said sometimes members give updates during Commissioner comments at
46 BOCC meetings, or by email if the update is particularly long in nature.
47 Chair Rich asked if John Roberts would clarify the importance of not having more than
48 three Board of County Commissioners members at a meeting.
27
1 John Roberts said if four BOCC members attend, it is considered an official BOCC
2 meeting as that number constitutes a quorum, and it would violate open meeting and notice
3 laws.
4 Chair Rich said a Commissioner can attend a meeting to which said Commissioner is
5 not a liaison, but to be careful to keep open meeting and notice laws in mind. She said it would
6 be wise to notify the Clerk and the assigned Commissioner prior to attending.
7
8 Process Governing the Selection Process of BOCC Boards/Commissions Assignments
9
10 1. Each Commissioner is to have one "save" (senior members to go first)--(choosing one
11 board that they currently serve on and service as an officer is not an automatic exemption):
12 . Appointments to regional boards are to be no more than 4 years.
13 • Appointments to intra-county boards are to be no more than 2 years.
14
15 The round robin process will continue as in the past below:
16
17 2. The junior member will then pick one board first in the first round and then least senior
18 members of the Board will choose one board on which to serve (suggestion is to do this
19 alphabetically - by last name)
20 3. In the second round, the senior member will pick first, and then the other senior members to
21 the least senior member will pick
22 4. And then it is back to the junior member.
23
24
BOARD NAME MEETING DATE BOCC MEMBER BOCC member BOCC Member
Serving 2018 Serving 2019
STATUTORY
ABC Board Monthly, Third Commissioner Not Commissioner Price Commissioner Price
Tues 8:30 AM- Required (non-voting
ABC offices in member)
Hillsborough
Board of Health Monthly, Fourth 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Wed Required Burroughs McKee
7:00 PM-at Health
Dept in
Hillsborough
Board of Social Services Monthly, Third 2 appointees Commissioner
Monday-4:00 PM Commissioner not Commissioner Bedford
at DSS offices in required but usually a McKee
Hillsborough Commissioner serves
Central Community Board Quarterly 1 Commissioner or Commissioner Price Commissioner
(Orange, Person and designee Bedford
Chatham Counties are 1 Consumer/Family
now combined with member
Alamance and Caswell 1 Citizen/
Counties) Stakeholder
INTERGOVERNMENTAL
and OTHER GROUPS
WITH BOCC MEMBERS
28
Burlington/Graham MPO 5x/year-(or more Requires Commissioner Member-
Transportation Advisory as needed) 1 Commissioner McKee- Member Commissioner
Committee Tuesdays at 5pm member Commissioner Bedford
in Burlington 1 Alternate Burroughs -Alternate Alternate-
Commissioner Commissioner
McKee
Chatham Orange Joint 3x/year- alternates 2 Commissioners Commissioner Rich Member-
Planning Task Force between Orange Commissioner Commissioner Price
County and Marcoplos Alternate- Chair Rich
Chatham County
Chapel Hill/Carrboro Monthly 1 BOCC member Commissioner Commissioner
Chamber of Commerce McKee McKee
Third Thursdays at
8:30am at
Chamber
Community Home Trust Monthly-2" 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
BOD Thursdays at 6pm Required McKee McKee
at CHT office
Durham- Chapel Hill— Monthly-2" 1 Commissioner Commissioner Price- Member-
Carrboro Metropolitan Monday at 9am in 1 Commissioner Member Commissioner Price
Planning Organization Durham Alternate
(MPO)-Transportation Commissioner Alternate: Chair Rich
Advisory Committee Marcoplos -Alternate
DCHC-MPO
Durham- Orange-Chapel Quarterly-at noon 2 BOCC Members Commissioner Commissioner
Hill Work Group - rotates locations- Jacobs Marcoplos
Durham/
Chapel Commissioner Rich Commissioner
Hill/Orange County Bedford
Durham Tech Board of 6x/per year- 2 Appointees—one Commissioner Commissioner
Trustees usually 4th Commissioner Marcoplos - Member Marcoplos
Tuesday of month
at 4-6pm One resident- already
(locations move appointed
about)
Plus there are
committee
meetings
Family Success Alliance Meets 6x per year- 2 Commissioners Commissioner Commissioner Price
1-3pm Burroughs
Alternates— Commissioner Commissioner
northern and Marcoplos Marcoplos
southern Orange
Count
Fire Chief's Association of Bi-monthly—first Commissioner not Commissioner Commissioner
Orange County Weds.-7pm required as member— McKee Dorosin
but can attend as
guest(s)
Food Council Meets 1/x per 1 Commissioner Commissioner Rich Commissioner
Month ( usually the Greene
1 st Monday at
4:00)Alternates
between Chapel
Hill and
Hillsborough
29
Go Triangle Board of Monthly 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Trustees 3rd Wed-12pm in Marcoplos Marcoplos
Durham
Go Triangle Special Tax Meets every 2 Commissioners Commissioner Commissioner Price
Board January(more required Burroughs
often if needed) in Commissioner Price Chair Rich
Durham at GoT
office
Go Triangle Community 6x per year( 1 Board of County Commissioner Price Commissioner Price
Advisory Committee- assuming they will Commissioners' Liaison
meet at Go T
offices
Healthy Carolinians Meets quarterly Commissioner not Chair Dorosin Commissioner
(3rd Thursdays at required —often same Dorosin
8:30am) BOCC Member as on
the Board of Health
Orange County Local Quarterly 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Government Affordable Required Marcoplos Dorosin
Housing Collaborative
the Collaborative
Intergovernmental Parks Meets 3 times per 1 Commissioner Chair Dorosin— Member-
Work Group year at 5:30pm-on Member Member Commissioner
Wed. 1 Alternate Commissioner McKee
at SHSC Commissioner McKee-Alternate
Alternate-
Commissioner
Bedford
Joint Public Safety Meets as needed 2 Commissioners Chair Dorosin Commissioner
Training Facility Work at ES Commissioner Price Dorosin
Group
Jordan Lake One Water Meets the third 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Association- Elected Wednesday of Jacobs Marcoplos
Officials every other month
from 9:00 AM to
11:00 AM at
TJCOG
Justice Advisory Council Quarterly (Friday 2 Commissioners Commissioner Commissioner
afternoons- Jacobs Dorosin
3:30pm) in Chair Dorosin Commissioner
Hillsborough Greene
JCPC (Orange County Meets 6-7x per 1 Commissioner Commissioner Chair Rich
Juvenile Crime year(every other Burroughs
Prevention Council) month)
Fridays at noon
LIWG ( Legislative Issues Meets as needed 2 Commissioners Commissioner Rich Commissioner
Work Group) Term -one year Chair Dorosin Dorosin
Commissioner Price
NACo Voting Delegate 1 Commissioner Commissioner Price Commissioner Price
Required (12/2/18)
30
NCACC Voting Delegate 1 Commissioner Commissioner Price Commissioner
Required Dorosin (12/3/2018)
May have alternate
N/S BRT (North/South As needed 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Bus Rapid Transit) policy Jacobs Dorosin
committee
Orange County Bi-monthly- Last 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Partnership for Young Wednesday-at Burroughs Bedford
Children 8:30am-alternates
—Chapel
Hill/Hillsborough
Partnership to End Monthly- 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Homelessness Burroughs Greene
Schools Joint Action TBD 1 Commissioner Commissioner Rich Commissioner Rich
Committee just appointed in
11/18—group hasn't
met et
Small Business Loan Meets monthly as 1 Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
Program needed to vet Jacobs Bedford
applications
received (usually
7:30am on Fridays
in Hillsborough)
Solid Waste Advisory Meets as needed 2 Commissioners Commissioner Chair Rich
Group (SWAG) Jacobs
Commissioner Commissioner
Marcoplos Marcoplos
Strategic Meets as needed 2 Commissioners Commissioner Rich Commissioner
Communications Work Commissioners Commissioner McKee
Group (internal) Marcoplos
Community Relations Commissioner Price
Director
Triangle Area Rural Bi-monthly- 1 Commissioner Commissioner Member-
Planning Organization meetings at 12pm, Member Marcoplos—Member Commissioner
(TARPO) Transportation alternates counties 1 Alternate Commissioner Rich- Greene
Advisory Committee —Lee and Commissioner Alternate
Chatham Alternate-
Commissioner
Marcoplos
TJCOG Meet 1x per 1 Commissioner Commissioner Member-
month- Last 1 Alternate McKee— Member Commissioner
Wednesday 6pm Commissioner Rich- Greene
Alternate
Alternate—Chair Rich
Upper Neuse River Basin Bi- monthly at One Director Position Commissioner Member-
Association 9:30am-12:OOpm Two Alternate Positions McKee-Member Commissioner
(meets in Butner) Alternate- Greene
Commissioner Price
as of 3/8/18 Alternate—Chair Rich
Workforce Development Meets monthly in Does not require a Nancy Coston Nany Coston
Board—Regional various counties- Commissioner-usually
Partnership has been 1 Non-Voting
Liaison
31
Visitor's Bureau 8:00 am third 1 Commissioner Commissioner Rich Chair Rich
Wed., monthly, no Required
meeting in
July/December
1
2
3
EX-OFFICIO
Hillsborough/Orange County Chamber of Commerce- does not Chair Serves
require a Commissioner
NC DOT Quarterly Meetings Chair/Vice Chair
School Collaboration Meetings Chair/Vice Chair
4
5
6 A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner Price to
7 approve these appointments.
8
9 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
10
11 Commissioner Marcoplos referred to Chair Rich's comments at the beginning of this
12 item, and said this process can still be improved. He said last year the goal was to ensure that
13 no Commissioner had a lifetime appointment to any committee, which was achieved by the
14 changes made. He said the Board also acknowledged the need to serve for longer on some
15 boards due to the learning curve; however, there was no formal process put in place to ensure
16 this. He said he would like to discuss this at a future work session, and wants to know how the
17 Board makes the most of its power by putting the right people in these very important positions,
18 part of which is allowing the person to stay in the position for more than a year.
19 Chair Rich said one can be on a board for two years and when it comes time to choose,
20 it may be that no other Commissioners want the position. She said this begs the question of
21 whether the original Commissioner should be able to remain on the board. She agreed there
22 are details that need to be ironed out.
23 The Clerk said this process was approved previously, but there is merit in having further
24 discussion.
25 Commissioner Dorosin said the Board honored the process it established last year, and
26 he would argue against any one Commissioner becoming "an expert" on a particular
27 board/commission, or the notion that one Commissioner may be better suited to serving a
28 particular board than another.
29
30 7. Reports
31 NONE
32
33 8. Consent Agenda
34 • Removal of Any Items from Consent Agenda
35 Commissioner Greene: 8-d
36
37 • Approval of Remaining Consent Agenda
38
39 A motion was made by Commissioner Greene, seconded by Commissioner Bedford to
40 approve the remaining items on the Consent Agenda.
32
1
2 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
3 Discussion and Approval of the Items Removed from the Consent Agenda
4
5 8-d Resolution of Approval —Adopt Best Management Practices for Roadsides and
6 Utility Rights-of-Way that Benefit Pollinators and Native Plants in Orange County, NC
7 The Board considered voting to approve a resolution to implement voluntary roadside
8 and utility rights-of-way best management practices that will increase the visibility, enjoyment,
9 and conservation of pollinators and native plants along the roadways and utility rights-of-way in
10 Orange County and authorize the Chair to sign.
11
12 Commissioner Greene read the item, and said this has been a discussion that has gone
13 on for a long time. She invited Johnny Randall to come forward.
14 Johnny Randall, Botanical Gardens, said he has had great interest in this topic for a
15 long time, and Orange County is taking a leadership role in the right-of-ways (ROWs). He said
16 he hopes this will be a model that the rest of the State can follow.
17 Commissioner Price thanked Johnny Randall for sticking with this over the years.
18 Commissioner Marcoplos asked if it is difficult to work with the utility companies on this.
19 Johnny Randall said yes it is. He said the Department of Transportation (DOT) does the
20 mowing, but the power lines are adjacent to the roadside. He said he looks forward to having
21 more discussions with the utility companies to create a solution that is economical and mutually
22 beneficial.
23 Commissioner Marcoplos said a resident recently contacted him about the Duke Energy
24 sprayers on the edge of her farm, expressing concern.
25 Johnny Randall said the utility companies contract much of the work out, and the utility
26 companies may not have as much control as suspected.
27 Commissioner Price said one used to be able to contact utility companies and request
28 that pesticides not be used on one's private property, but this may no longer be true.
29 Johnny Randall said he thinks this is still true, but the landowner would be responsible
30 for controlling the woody vegetation that interferes with the utilities.
31
32 A motion was made by Commissioner Greene, seconded by Commissioner McKee to
33 approve a resolution to implement voluntary roadside and utility right-of-way best management
34 practices that will increase the visibility, enjoyment, and conservation of pollinators and native
35 plants along the roadways and utility rights-of-way in Orange County and authorize the Chair to
36 sign.
37
38 VOTE: UNANIOUS
39
40 a. Minutes — None
41 b. Fiscal Year 2018-19 Budget Amendment #4
42 The Board approved budget and capital project ordinance amendments for fiscal year 2018-19
43 for the Health Department; Library Services; Orange County Public Transportation; County
44 Capital Projects; Department of Environment, Agriculture, Parks and Recreation; Department of
45 Social Services; and Emergency Services.
46 c. Resolution of Approval — Conservation Easement on Walker Farm and Approval of
47 Budget Amendment#4-A
48 The Board approved a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to the purchase of and
49 acceptance by Orange County of an agricultural conservation easement for the Walker Farm,
50 and approve Budget Amendment#4-A and authorized the Chair to sign.
33
1 d. Resolution of Approval —Adopt Best Management Practices for Roadsides and Utility
2 Rights-of-Way that Benefit Pollinators and Native Plants in Orange County, NC
3 The Board approved a resolution, which is incorporated by reference, to implement voluntary
4 roadside and utility rights-of-way best management practices that will increase the visibility,
5 enjoyment, and conservation of pollinators and native plants along the roadways and utility
6 rights-of-way in Orange County and authorized the Chair to sign.
7 e. Schools Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (SAPFO) —Approval of Membership
8 and Capacity Numbers
9 The Board approved November 15, 2018 membership and capacity numbers for both school
10 districts (Orange County and Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools) which will be used in
11 developing 10-year student membership projections and the 2019 SAPFO Technical Advisory
12 Committee (SAPFOTAC) Report.
13 f. Agreement with the State for Federal Assistance
14 The Board approved an agreement with the State of North Carolina for assistance related to the
15 recovery from the September 14-17, 2018 Hurricane Florence Incident and authorized the Chair
16 to sign.
17 g. Designation of Orange County Agent for FEMA Public Assistance
18 The Board designated an agent for Orange County's application for FEMA's Public Assistance
19 for the recovery related to Hurricane Florence, September 14-17, 2018 and authorized the
20 Chair to sign.
21 h. Service Renewal with Spectrum for Connecting County Buildings with Network
22 Services and Dedicated Internet Access
23 The Board approved a Service Renewal between Orange County and Charter Communications
24 Operating, LLC for network services and upgrade of Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) from
25 200Mbs to 500Mbps and authorized the Manager to sign.
26
27 9. County Manager's Report
28 Bonnie Hammersley noted the information items on the agenda, particularly the
29 Memorandum on Unified Development Ordinance text amendment clarifying enforcement of
30 Nutrient Standards. She said this has come to the BOCC in the past as an abstract, and the
31 Board approved the Planning Board to proceed in this process. She said this is under
32 information items simply to inform the Board that this is going forward as a text amendment,
33 and not that it has been completed.
34 Bonnie Hammersley introduced Orange County's new Child Support Director Erica
35 Bryant.
36
37 10. County Attorney's Report
38 John Roberts said in addition to the well-reported bills that the General Assembly (GA)
39 passed (elections and voter ID) the legislature also revisited some statutory requirements and
40 technical aspects in a technical corrections bill. He said this impacts local governments as the
41 GA eliminated the requirement for cable/telecom services to provide evidence and maps of how
42 many households they skip over in their service areas. He said the Republican legislator who
43 pushed that indicated that in the upcoming long session they will put forward a bill that will
44 replace that and be better than what was being used. He said they clarified that local
45 governments cannot require new or increased stormwater controls for preexisting
46 developments, and that that has to go in stormwater ordinances, and they further restricted
47 town's ability to impose fees for the review of small cell applications.
48 Commissioner Dorosin asked if the Governor has signed the technical corrections bill
49 yet.
34
1 John Roberts said no, it has been ratified by both houses, but is waiting for the
2 Governor's signature.
3 Chair Rich asked if Commissioner Dorosin thinks the Governor will not sign it.
4 Commissioner Dorosin said there is some controversial stuff in there about municipal
5 charter schools and the innovative school district.
6
7 11. *Appointments
8 Commission for the Environment—Appointments
9
10 The Board considered making re-appointments to the Commission for the Environment.
11
12 A motion was made by Commissioner Dorosin, seconded by Commissioner Marcoplos
13 to appoint the following to the Commission for the Environment:
14
15 • Position 12 James Eichel to an At-Large Engineering for a First Full Term ending
16 12/31/2021
17 • Position 13 Matt Crook to an At-Large Position for a First Full Term ending 12/31/2021
18 • Position 14 Lynne Gronback to an At-Large position for a Second Full Term ending
19 12/31/2021
20 • Position 15 Bradley Saul to an At-Large Position for a First Full Term ending 12/31/2021
21
22 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
23
24 12. Information Items
25 • December 3, 2018 BOCC Meeting Follow-up Actions List
26 • Memorandum - Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) Text Amendments Clarifying
27 Enforcement of Nutrient Standards
28 • Memorandum - Water Resources Information Item
29 • Memorandum - County Revenue Manual
30 • Memorandum - County Government Academy for Orange County Residents
31
32 13. Closed Session
33
34 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Dorosin to
35 go into closed session at 9:50 p.m. for the purposes of:
36
37 "To discuss the County's position and to instruct the County Manager and County Attorney on
38 the negotiating position regarding the terms of a contract to purchase real property," NCGS §
39 143-318.11(a)(5).
40
41 "To discuss matters related to the location or expansion of industries or other businesses in the
42 area served by the public body, including agreement on a tentative list of economic
43 development incentives that may be offered by the public body in negotiations," NCGS § 143-
44 318.11(a)(4).
45
46 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
47
48 RECONVENE INTO REGULAR SESSION
49
35
1 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Greene to
2 go back into regular session at 10:35 p.m.
3
4 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
5
6 14. Adjournment
7
8 A motion was made by Commissioner McKee, seconded by Commissioner Greene to
9 adjourn the meeting at 10:35 p.m.
10
11 VOTE: UNANIMOUS
12
13 Penny Rich, Chair
14
15
16 Donna Baker
17 Clerk to the Board