Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutFebruary 17 2015 Regular MinutesIREDELL COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS PRE -AGENDA MINUTES February 17, 2015 The Iredell County Board of Commissioners met in pre -agenda session on Tuesday, February 17, 2015, at 5:00 PM, in the Iredell County Government Center (South Wing Conference Room), 200 South Center Street, Statesville, NC. (Due to inclement weather the regular session at 7:00 was cancelled.) Board Members Present Chairman James B. Mallory, III Vice Chairman Marvin Norman Tommy Bowles Steve Johnson Ken Robertson Staff present: County Manager Ron Smith, County Attorney Bill Pope, Deputy County Manager Beth Dirks, Finance Director Susan G. Robertson, Public Safety Coordinator David Saleeby, and Clerk to the Board Retha Gaither. CALL TO ORDER by Chairman Mallory. INVOCATION by Commissioner Tommy Bowles. ADJUSTMENTS OF THE AGENDA: County Manager Ron Smith had the following adjustments to the agenda: Add: Announcement of Vacancies on Board and Committees — Board of Equalization and Review (7 Announcements) Closed Session — Attorney Client G.S. 143-318.11 (a) (3) Report by Finance Director Susan Robertson on the bond. Report by David Saleeby on the Fire Tax Board. Also, the public hearing scheduled for 7:00 PM will be recessed until the next meeting on March 3, 2015. Chairman Mallory stated there will be a discussion under New Business concerning some run-off issues at Troutman Fire Department. Request from the Sheriff's Office to Adopt a Resolution to Enter into a Mutual Aid Agreement with Other Local Law Enforcement Agencies: Deputy Sheriff Marty Byers said the resolution gives Iredell County deputies the same official authority in other agencies to assist them. Salary and worker's compensation will remain with Iredell County. This resolution is for general law enforcement to have authority in other jurisdictions. Commissioner Ken Robertson asked for clarification on assisting as a private citizen. I chruat % I -, 201' I Byers said it would allow a law enforcement officer to act when they observe a crime in another jurisdiction. The agencies they are most involved with are surrounding counties. It was agreed to place on the consent agenda for March 3. Request from the Public Library to Apply for E -Rate Discounts: Library Director Steve Messick said this request is to apply for discounted rates from the FCC for telecommunication services. They have been receiving these discounts for 15 years. There is a FCC website where they post the types of services they desire and telecommunication companies respond with proposals. They are required, by law, to go with the lowest proposal. They receive a 50% discount on regular phone service and a 70% discount on internet service. The FCC would refund approximately S 19,000. It was agreed to place this on the consent agenda for March 3. Request from the Public Library to Apply for LSTA Grant for a Career and Technology Lab: Troutman Library Manager Julie Moore said the LSTA Grant is an easy literacy lifelong learning grant and would be utilized to establish a career and technology lab at the Troutman Library. They will partner with Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina to provide classes for library users who are unemployed, underemployed, returning to the workforce, or lacking basic computer skills. Classes will be taught by Goodwill staff, library staff, and trained volunteers. The total grant budget is $11,462 with grant funds of $10,420. A 10% local match of $1,042 will be provided by Troutman Friends of the Library and no Iredell County funds will be used. Grant funds will be awarded in June of 2015 with the funding period being July 2015 through June 2016. The success of the lab for the funding period will be a model for the Iredell County Public Library to seek grant funding for a system -wide career and technology lab to meet the needs of library users in Statesville and Harmony. Messick said they are responding to people, approximately 500 a month, who are already visiting the Library for help with resumes and on-line job applications. Moore said Goodwill will come to the Library to conduct classes on job searching, how to read/understand job descriptions, preparing resumes, mock interviews, and then what is expected once ajob is secured. Commissioner Ken Robertson stated David Hollars from Centralina Workforce Development may be able to offer some assistance in obtaining funds and/or resources for training and staff. Chairman James Mallory ask about the replacement plan for the aged computers. Messick said the normal replacement period is four to five years but budget restraints have been an issue. They are working with ITS to begin replacing some of the units in this budget year and incrementally thereafter. Ichral\ I'.'01; 2 It was agreed to place this on the consent agenda for March 3. Request from ICATS to Adopt a Resolution to Apply for Grant Funds: ICATS Director Ben Stikeleather said they are seeking approval for a resolution that would allow submission to FTA to become a direct recipient in order to collect 5307 funds. This is urban money that has been discussed many times before. The resolution is required in order to begin the next process. It was agreed to place this on the consent agenda for March 3. Request from Tax Administration for Approval of January Refunds & Releases: A summary of January refunds and releases was presented. It was agreed to place this on the consent agenda for March 3. Request for Approval of Minutes from January 20 and February 3, 2015: There were no changes or corrections to the minutes. It was agreed to place this on the consent agenda for March 3. ANNOUNCEMENT OF VACANCIES OCCURING ON BOARD & COMMISSIONS Zoning Board of Adjustment (1 Announcement) Adult Care Home Community Advisory Committee (1 Announcement) Animal Grievance Committee (1 Announcement) Historic Properties Committee (2 Announcements) Nursing Home Advisory Board (1 Announcement) Board of Equalization and Review (7 Announcements) NEW BUSINESS Troutman Fire Department: Commissioner Steve Johnson stated there is a water run-off problem behind the Troutman Fire Department. This has progressively worsened over time and there has been an issue as to who is responsible. He asked Public Safety Director David Saleeby to approach the Town of Troutman for some assistance in resolving the issue. Salceby said all the involved properties are effected by a hollow/basin, basically a drainage ditch. He said the extra paving done by the fire department has allowed the water to drain a little faster, but all the properties empty into this basin. Also, debris is a contributing factor to the excess. Chairman Mallory asked if this could be a joint project between all parties. Commissioner Johnson suggested the County be responsible for any drainage problems along the property line of the fire department and then get the other owners to contribute. Saleeby will proceed with further research. I chrual % 17. '015 3 Adoption of the Mission Statement, Vision Statement, and Strategic Planning Process: Chairman Mallory stated the Vision Statement is an overall look at how to provide exceptional public service. The Mission Statement is more of the nuts and bolts on how to accomplish the Vision. He feels that employees should be able to review these statements and ask themselves if they are in aligned within their own positions. From these statements will flow strategic objectives. The staff will be involved on a daily basis with a goal in mind when making recommendations. The Board should remember these strategic objectives are the Board's and will reflect, by necessity, the political views and philosophy of the Board by generally reflecting a conservative viewpoint about the role of government being limited to helping to promote success and being an enabler for success. Commissioner Robertson asked for clarification concerning the task forces and who is actually responsible for making recommendations. Chairman Mallory said he believes the Board and the resources within the County should set the direction. However, the private sector will need to provide input in order to expand and modify. The task forces are to provide input/insights on specific kinds of questions and be multifunctional toward creating policies that are collaborative. Commissioner Robertson stated he was in favor of the mission and vision statement as a starting point. Chairman Mallory said it would not be adopted at this meeting but would like the County Manager and staff to begin working through the process. He would like the strategic objectives ironed out by the Winter Retreat in March in order to begin constituting and moving forward with the task forces. Financial Bond Report: Finance Director Susan Robertson gave a brief update on the results of refunding bonds and Cool Springs Elementary $3.5 million project financing. She said the closing on all issues is scheduled for early March 2015. Results of Refunding Bonds & Cool Springs .• Elementary $13.5 million Project Financing 2/12/2015 Par Amount $ 24,600,000 2/17/2015 $ 28,625,000 GO Bond 2/17/2015 $ 12,700,000 Total Orders $ 67,185,000 13 Bids 6 Bids Premium $ 4,345,245 $ 3,212,428 $ 51,181 Issuance Costs $ 313,295 $ 192,370 $ (12,065) Average Coupon 4.98% 3.76% 3.95% Average Yield 2.05% 1.70% 3.92% True Interest Cost (TIC) 2.10% 1.72% 3.93% All -In TIC (includes closing costs) 2.24% 1.81% -0.0190% Total Savings $ 3,235,332 $ 3,397,715 $ - NPVSavings $ 2,827,733 $ 3,066,346 $ - (1) Includes $800K new money issued for Cool Springs Elementary School (2) Federal interest reimbursement rate up to 4.2% as of 2/17/15. Fohn K11-\ i -10 1 4 Public Safety Update: Public Safety Director David Saleeby stated the County -wide Fire Tax Board was dissolved and replaced by an over -sight committee consisting of the County Manager, Deputy County Manager, Finance Director, Public Safety Director, and Commissioner Tommy Bowles. There are 15 fire departments. Union Grove VFD has moved into their new building and South Iredell VFD will be moving soon. Cool Springs' request for a new building has varied over the last couple of years. Instead of one large building, they are now requesting 2 smaller buildings which freed some funds and has enabled Trinity to consider renovations. Both agencies will be making a presentation before the over -sight committee to show justification for their requests. The committee is researching funding sources. Chairman Mallory stated there seems to be a difference on how fire departments operate aside from capital improvements. Some are all volunteers, some have volunteers augmented by a few full time, some have full time augmented by a few volunteers, and still some with all full time staff. He feels this needs to be reviewed/researched in the future in regards to the relationship with the Board and policies. CLOSED SESSION OTION by Commissioner Ken Robertson to enter into Closed Session at 6:15 PM for Economic Development G.S. 143-318.11 (a) (4), Property Acquisition G.S. 143-318.11 (a) (5), and G.S. 143-318.11 (a) (3) Attorney -Client. VOTING: Ayes — 5; Nays — 0 ADJOURNMENT OTIO by Chairman James Mallory to recess at 7:15 PM until March 3, 2015. (The next meeting will be Tuesday, March 3, 2015, 7:00 PM, in the Commissioners' Meeting Room, Pre - Agenda Discussion at 5:00 PM in the South Wing Conference Room, Government Center, 200 South Center Street, Statesville, NC) VOTING: Ayes — 5; Nays — 0. Approval: Clerk to the Board Fehruar% I7,01) 5