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The Henderson County Board of Commissioners met for a
regularly scheduled meeting at 9:00 a.m. in the Commissioners' Conference Room
of the
Those present were:
Chairman Bill Moyer, Vice-Chairman
Also present were: Public Information Officer Chris S.
Coulson, Planning Director
CALL
TO ORDER/WELCOME
Chairman Moyer called the meeting to order and
welcomed all in attendance.
PLEDGE
OF ALLEGIANCE
Commissioner McGrady led the Pledge of Allegiance to
the American Flag.
INVOCATION
County Manager
INFORMAL
PUBLIC COMMENTS
Chairman Moyer asked each person who had signed up for
informal public comments to please limit their time to about 3 minutes.
1. Dick Baird –
Mr. Baird lives at 511 Hidden Lake in
DISCUSSION/ADJUSTMENT
OF AGENDA
Chairman Moyer suggested that
they strike Consent Agenda Item G, Personnel Action Request. Commissioner
McGrady made the motion to approve the agenda as revised above. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
CONSENT AGENDA
Commissioner McGrady made the
motion to approve the consent agenda as amended above. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Minutes
Draft minutes were presented
for the Board’s review and approval for the following meetings:
November 15, 2006
January 17, 2007
Tax
Collector’s Report
Terry F. Lyda, Henderson County Tax Collector, had
provided the Tax Collector’s Report dated March 9, 2007, for the Board’s review
and consent approval.
Tax
Refunds
A list of 3 tax refund requests was presented for the
Board’s review and consent approval.
Tax
Releases
A list of 31 release requests was presented for the
Board’s review and consent approval.
2006
Strategic Plan and Capital Projects Update
This March report was presented for the Board’s review
and consent approval.
Unsealing
Certain Closed Session General Accounts
The general accounts of certain closed sessions of the
Board were recommended for unsealing, pursuant to policy for April 19, 2006
(session 1), May 1, 2006 (session 1and 3), and October 26, 2006 (session 1).
If the Board is so inclined, the following motion was
suggested:
I move that the Board unseal the general accounts of
the closed sessions of April 19, 2006 (session1), May 1, 2006 (session 1 and
3), and October 26, 2006 (session 1).
Personnel
Action Request
This item was removed from the Consent Agenda.
NOMINATIONS Notification of Vacancies
The Board was notified of the following vacancies
which will appear for nominations on the next agenda:
1.
Nominations
Chairman Moyer reminded the Board of the following
vacancies and opened the floor to nominations.
1. Adequate Public Facilities Task Force Charter –2
vac.
Commissioner McGrady nominated Tedd Pearce and
recommended that the Board waive the two committee limit rule recognizing that
Tedd Pearce serves on the Planning Board and could be implemented as a liaison
on the Adequate Public Facilities Task Force Charter. Chairman Moyer made the motion to accept Tedd
Pearce by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
2. Blue Ribbon Committee on Illegal Immigration – 4
vac.
Chairman Moyer nominated Juan Unda to position
#9. Commissioner Young nominated Robert
Heltman to position #10. Commissioner
McGrady nominated Marion Delorenzo to position #11. Commissioner McGrady nominated Betsy
Alexander to position #10. Commissioner
McGrady made the motion to accept Juan Unda to position #9 and Marion Delorenzo
to position #11 by acclamation. All
voted in favor and the motion carried. The Board considered rolling
position #10 to the next meeting but decided to continue by polling the Board
with the following results:
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Bill Moyer |
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Chuck McGrady |
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1. Robert Heltman |
1. Robert Heltman |
1. Betsy Alexander |
1. Robert Heltman |
1. Betsy Alexander |
The
Clerk tallied the votes with Robert Heltman being appointed to position #10.
3.
There were five nominees including Grady Hawkins,
Candler Willis, David Arnold, Chip Gould and Garrett Mynatt. Board members were
allowed 2 votes each with the following results:
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Bill Moyer |
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Chuck McGrady |
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1. Grady Hawkins |
1. Candler Willis |
1. David Arnold |
1. Candler Willis |
1. Candler Willis |
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2. Candler Willis |
2. Chip Gould |
2. Chip Gould |
2. Chip Gould |
2. Chip Gould |
The Clerk tallied the votes with Chip Gould being
appointed to position #3 and Candler Willis being appointed to position #4.
4. Child Fatality Prevention Team – 1 vac.
There were no nominations at this time so this item
was rolled to the next meeting.
5. Fletcher Zoning Board of Adjustment – 1 vac.
Commissioner McGrady nominated Edward Doyle. Chairman Moyer made the motion to accept Edward Doyle by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
6.
Commissioner McGrady nominated David Jones and Steven
Orr. Chairman Moyer made the motion to
accept David Jones and Steven Orr by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
7.
Chairman Moyer nominated Jim Crafton for position
#8. Commissioner McGrady made the
motion to accept Jim Crafton by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion
carried.
8.
There were no nominations at this time so this item
was rolled to the next meeting.
9. Juvenile Crime Prevention Council – 6 vac.
The Committee recommended Rob Curtis for position
#1. Commissioner McGrady made the
motion to accept Rob Curtis by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion
carried.
10. Library Board of Trustees – 1 vac.
Commissioner Young nominated Margaret Smith. Commissioner McGrady nominated Karyn Joyner.
Chairman Moyer stated that an application was needed from Margaret Smith. This item was rolled to the next meeting.
11. Nursing/Adult Care Home Community Advisory
Committee –4vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
12. Senior Volunteer Services Advisory Council – 1
vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
13. Solid Waste Advisory Council – 3 vac.
Commissioner McGrady recommended reappointment of
Richard Stewart to position #1 and Stan Kumor to position #3. He stated that Finis Cavender, position # 6
is unable to serve again. Chairman
Moyer made the motion to reappoint Richard Stewart and Stan Kumor by
acclamation. All voted in favor and the
motion carried.
DISCUSSION
Pardee Annual Report
A hard copy (notebook) of the annual report had been
presented to the Board with their agenda materials.
Interim C.E.O. Sally Davenport shared the results of
the audit of their financial performance for fiscal year 2006. Some of the significant achievements
beginning with the fiscal year 2007 were as follows:
· Completion of strategic plan for 2007
· Completion of expansion of Medical Records and Education Department
·
Completion
of move of the Cardiac Rehab and Diabetes Education to Four Seasons Rehab Center
·
Continue
implementation, purchase and software build of their Meditach Clinical
Information System
·
Response
to the closure of New Vista’s Mountain Laurel
Ms. Davenport explained that Meditech is a company
that provides software to approximately 40% of the hospitals across the country
and is well established. The reason for
electronic documentation is to improve efficiency as well as patient
safety. Ms. Davenport introduced Chief
Financial Officer Allen House.
Allen House walked through the annual report for
fiscal year ending 9/30/06. Mr. House reported a $6 million turn-around in
2006.
Ms. Davenport and Mr. House were available and answered questions from the Board.
Offer
to purchase former Land Development Building
On February 21, 2007 the Board gave preliminary
approval to the offer of W. Harley Stepp, Jr., to purchase the former Land Development
Building, located at 101 East Allen Street, for the sum of $1,338,000.00. The Board further authorized the “upset bid”
procedure of Section 160A-269 of the General Statutes.
Publication was made in The Times-News on March 3,
2007. No upset bids were received by the
close of business on March 13, 2007.
Chairman Moyer supported the offer and recommended
going forward and that the proceeds from the sale of the building go into a
capital reserve account to be spent pursuant to the Board’s approved capital
budget.
Chairman Moyer made the motion that the Board give
final approval of the offer to purchase the former Land Development building
made by W. Harley Stepp, Jr., for a price of $1,338,000.00, and authorize the
Chairman and staff to take action necessary to close the transaction and direct
that the proceeds go into a capital reserve account to be spend pursuant to the
approved capital budget of the County.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
UPDATE ON PENDING ISSUES
FY 2008 Budget
Process
Assistant
County Manager Selena Coffey presented the Board with a budget calendar. She emphasized a couple of dates as follows:
·
March 28, 2007 –
Final budget due for Fire Districts,
Rescue Squad, Public Schools, and Community College
·
May 7, 2007 – County
Manager will present his recommended budget to the Board and the Board would
need to schedule work sessions.
Considerations need to be made at this meeting for
pre-budget work sessions to discuss operational issues such as compensation packages,
health benefits, and debt service numbers.
The big issues that will need to be discussed are Blue Ridge Community
College, Public Schools, Parks and Recreation, as well as, CIP and Strategic
Plan Initiatives.
Prior to May 7, 2007, Chairman Moyer suggested a
session where they deal with all revenue issues and collection rate for this
year.
BREAK
Chairman Moyer called a five minute break, to change
video tapes.
PUBLIC
HEARING – Permanent Closing of Easement on John Rymer Property
Chairman Moyer called the meeting back to order.
Commissioner Messer made the motion for the Board to
go into public hearing. All voted in
favor and the motion carried.
Property Addressing Coordinator Curtis Griffin stated
that on February 5, 2007 the Board adopted a resolution of intent to consider
closing the easements located on the John F. Rymer property, parcel
identification number 9568095949. Legal
notices were advertised and certified letters were sent to all adjacent
property owners in accordance with General Statures.
Public Input - none
County Attorney Russell Burrell informed the Board
that all necessary legal procedures had been completed including adopting the
resolution of intent to hold a public hearing, notified the public of the
public hearing by advertisement, and had held this meeting today. This road was
never in existence except on a map.
Commissioner McGrady made the motion for the Board to
approve closure of the easements and certify Order of Closure. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Commissioner Messer made the motion to go out of
public hearing. All voted in favor and
the motion carried.
CONTINUATION OF
DISCUSSION ITEMS
Construction
Management Services
County Engineer Gary Tweed informed the Board that
Staff had received a draft agreement for Construction Management Services for
proposed school projects from M.B. Kahn Construction, Co. Inc. Mr. William Cram, Executive Vice President with
Kahn was present at this meeting.
County Attorney Russell Burrell stated that there was
an issue in regards to dividing this contract in between the pre-construction
phases or design stage, and the construction stage. Essentially this is for budget purposes.
County Manager Steve Wyatt explained that he had
concerns with the contract, and there was no question it is a comprehensive
scope of services, both for pre-bid and then for construction phase, but on
page 8 it reads; the Construction Manager cannot and does not warrant or
represent that bids or negotiated prices will not vary from the Project budget
proposed, established or approved by the Owner, or from any cost estimate or
evaluation prepared by the Construction Manager. One of the things that the Board and staff
had discussed was the fact that there was a budget and it is approximately
$28,000,000. In working with the
Architect and the Construction Manager, part of the reason to get Construction
Management on board was to basically assure to the utmost that these projects
come within the project budget. Looking
further into the contract it mentions again the limits of the project budget
but doesn’t address efforts or any assurances.
The issue raised by County Attorney Russell Burrell is a concern that
was raised earlier in regards to Article 9.1, Termination, Suspension or
Abandonment, which reads; this agreement may be terminated by either party upon
not less than seven days’ written notice should the other party fail
substantially to perform in accordance with the terms of this agreement through
no fault of the party initiating the termination. In Article 9.3, it reads; this agreement may
be terminated by the Owner upon not less than seven days’ written notice to the
Construction Manager in the event that the Project is permanently
abandoned. If the Project is abandoned
by the Owner for more than 90 consecutive days, the Construction Manager may
terminate this agreement by giving written notice.
Bo
Caldwell stated that Chris Campbell, the School Board Attorney, has been
working with a contract with
M.B. Kahn and basically the newest contact reads as
County Manager Steve Wyatt had requested.
Chairman Moyer suggested taking this discussion up again
at the Monday, March 26, 2007 meeting.
Commissioner
McGrady made the motion to table this item to the next meeting of the Board,
which is Monday, March 26, 2007 at 7:00 pm as part of the agenda. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Commissioner McGrady also reminded the Board that he
wanted to continue to keep the idea of “green schools” as a consideration.
LAND
DEVELOPMENT CODE
Planning Director Anthony Starr explained that at the
Planning Board’s meeting, March 15, 2007, the Planning Board made two
recommendations to the Board of Commissioners for their consideration with the
current draft Land Development Code.
First, the Planning Board recommended that some commercial uses be
allowed in the zoning and industrial district in the Land Development
Code. As it is written now some uses are
allowed but not all. Staff’s position is
that there are some commercial uses that are appropriate for industrial districts,
but not all commercial uses are appropriate for industrial zoning districts
because it can become an economic development issue if they’re not compatible
and some industries may not locate in a certain area if they have commercial
uses that are not compatible. Staff will
develop some alternate changes as they go through the process and bring them
before the Board at a later date. Second, the Planning Board recommended that,
due to some recent development activity, an additional residential zoning
district, and R4 district in the most rural areas of the County that would have
an average single family density of 1 dwelling unit per 5 acres. This should be applied to areas within and
near public lands such as the Pisgah National Forest, Dupont State Forest, Green
River game land and other areas with extremely steep slope and key water shed
areas. The Planning Board did not
prescribe the exact boundaries of these areas. They recommend that staff
develop them and provide them to the Board.
There is an issue of how to proceed with this in terms of process. The Board needs to decide whether they should
go ahead and develop changes and incorporate them through this process or
address from the backend after the public input stage.
Chairman Moyer summarized that in respect to the two
items proposed by the Planning Board the Board of Commissioners gave direction
to the Planning Board to study the proposals further and present it at a later
date. The public will receive information including the Planning Board comments
and the information collected from each LDC meeting along with zoning
tables. There will be a public hearing
session at the end of the Public Input Meetings to present all information
received and studied.
STAFF REPORTS
County Attorney’s Report
There
was nothing further at this time.
County
Manager’s Report
County Manager Steve Wyatt thanked the Board and the
County Attorney Russell Burrell for their action with the sell of the Land Development
Building. It is now time to start the
process with the next building. Copies of the appraisal for the Public Health
Building have been distributed and there are meetings scheduled with interested
or perspective bidders.
IMPORTANT
DATES
Chairman Moyer made the motion to set a meeting for
Thursday, April 5, 2007, at 6:00 PM to deal with budget items, revenue matters,
and the salary portion of the compensation package. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Set
Public Hearing on Vested Rights Application (VR-2007-03) for the development
known as “Biltmore Farms Hammond Tract”.
Planning Director Anthony Starr stated that an
application was received for vested rights in the Etowah area. It is currently
open use zoning. The Board had received
a copy of the letter and application in their agenda packet. The legal range to
set meetings was between Monday, April 23, and Friday, May 4 to meet the
required window of 45 days of this meeting and acceptance of the
application. Given the size of the
project, Mr. Starr felt that the turnout would be large and recommended setting
a special meeting.
Chairman Moyer made the motion to set a public hearing
on Vested Rights Application (VR-2007-03) for the development known as
“Biltmore Farms Hammond Tract” for Tuesday, May 1, at 7:00 PM. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
NCACC
District Meetings
Discussion was made in regards to the possibility of County
Manager and Commissioners attending some of these meetings.
CANE CREEK WATER & SEWER DISTRICT – no business
Commissioner McGrady made the motion for the Board to
go into closed session as allowed pursuant to NCGS 143-318.11 for the following
reasons:
CLOSED SESSION
1.
1.
(a)(3) To consult with an attorney employed or retained by the public body to
preserve the attorney-client privilege
between the attorney and the public body.
2.
2.
(a)(5) To establish, or to instruct the public body’s staff or negotiating
agents concerning the position to be taken by or on behalf of the public body
in negotiating (I) the price and other material terms of a contract or proposed
contract for the acquisition of real property by purchase, option, exchange or
lease.
3.
3.
(a)(6) To consider the performance and conditions of appointment of individual
public officers or employees.
Commissioner
McGrady made the motion for the Board to go out of closed sessions. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
ADJOURN
Commissioner
McGrady made the motion to adjourn. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
Attest:
_______________________________ ________________________
Terry Wilson, Deputy Clerk to the
Board William
L. Moyer, Chairman