MINUTES
STATE
OF NORTH CAROLINA BOARD OF
COMMISSIONERS
COUNTY
OF HENDERSON OCTOBER 4, 2004
The Henderson County
Board of Commissioners met for a regularly scheduled meeting at 6:00 p.m. in
the Commissioners' Conference Room of the Henderson County Office Building.
Those present were: Chairman Grady Hawkins, Vice-Chairman Larry
Young, Commissioner Bill Moyer, Commissioner Charlie Messer, Commissioner
Shannon Baldwin, County Manager David E. Nicholson, Assistant County Manager
Justin Hembree, County Attorney Angela S. Beeker, and Clerk to the Board
Elizabeth W. Corn.
Also present were:
Planning Director Karen C. Smith, Budget and Management Director Selena Coffey,
Public Information Officer Chris S. Coulson, Fire Marshal Rocky Hyder, County
Engineer Gary Tweed Director of Human Resources Jan Prichard, Director of
Public Health Tom Bridges, and Finance Director J. Carey McLelland. Deputy Clerk
to the Board Amy Brantley was present through nominations.
CALL TO ORDER/WELCOME
Chairman Hawkins called
the meeting to order and welcomed all in attendance.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
Commissioner Baldwin led
the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag.
INVOCATION
David Nicholson gave the
invocation.
DISCUSSION/ADJUSTMENT OF AGENDA
David Nicholson –
“Before we proceed with tonight’s agenda, a week ago this past Friday
Commissioner Baldwin told me that the Board was going to fire me this
evening. If this is the case I would
request that the Board proceed with that motion.”
Commissioner Baldwin
denied this statement and accused the County Manager of slander.
Commissioner Moyer –
“Grady, what I was gonna say is I really think in light of where we stand and
to have a successful – and a meeting that has any purpose we need to deal with
the closed session items first.”
Chairman Hawkins – “Is
that – is that your motion as your adjustment to the agenda?”
Commissioner Moyer –
“That is my motion, yes.”
Chairman Hawkins – “OK, motion on the floor is to go into closed
session pursuant to NCGS 143-318.11
1. (a)(3) To consult with an attorney retained by the
public body in order to preserve the attorney-client privilege between the
attorney and the public body, which privilege is hereby acknowledged and to
consult with an attorney employed or retained by the public body in order to
consider and give instructions to the attorney with respect to a claim and
2. (a)(6) To consider the qualifications, competence,
performance, character, fitness, conditions of appointment, or conditions of
initial employment of an individual public officer or employee or prospective public officer or employee; or to hear or investigate a complaint,
charge, or grievance by or against an individual public officer or employee.
That’s the motion on the
floor for – from Commissioner Moyer to change the agenda and take that item
first. Is there any other changes to the
agenda other than that one item?”
Commissioner Moyer –
“Not from my standpoint.”
Chairman Hawkins – “Any
other changes to the agenda? Ok, all
those in favor of that motion to take the closed session first on the agenda
and the rest of the agenda as presented, say ‘aye’.”
In unison “Aye”.
Chairman Hawkins – “OK,
then we’ll go into closed session.”
CLOSED SESSION
Please see motion above
for the reasons for closed session.
The Board went into
closed session, no staff, just five Commissioners. The Chairman came out once to consult with
the County Attorney. Approx. 7:20 –
7:30 p.m. Chairman Hawkins came out of closed session and asked Mr. Nicholson
to join the Board.
Just past 8:00 the Board
came out of closed session and Chairman Hawkins made the following
announcement.
Chairman Hawkins – “The
Board has decided that it will continue to work with the County Manager and
will have further evaluation at a later date on the first issue of the
evening.”
Chairman Hawkins made the motion that the Board accept the
agenda as presented. All voted in favor
and the motion carried.
CONSENT AGENDA
Commissioner Moyer asked
that item “F-Pardee Hospital – Certificate of Need” be pulled from the agenda
for some discussion. The packet in the
agenda referred to a presentation by Bob Goodwin.
Chairman Hawkins stated
that presentation would be by Ms. Barbara Platz in place of Bob Goodwin.
Item F – Pardee Hospital – Cerfificate of Need
The Board was presented
with a Resolution for adoption, requested by the Board of Directors of the
Henderson County Hospital Authority for the Board’s support of a
non-competitive Certificate of Need (CON).
Mr. Nicholson placed
this item on the Consent Agenda since is was a non-competitive CON.
Ms. Barbara Platz
explained that the Hospital acquired their original linear accelerator in 1993
and propose to replace that piece of equipment.
At the time of replacement it will be twelve years old. The new equipment will offer a great deal of
additional functionality, higher speed, and will update the radiation therapy
program to current standards.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion that the Board accept the
consent agenda as presented, including item F.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
The Consent Agenda
consisted of the following:
Minutes
Draft minutes were
presented for the Board’s review and approval of the following meeting(s):
September 7, 2004, regular meeting
Economic Incentives Agreement – Pepsi-Cola Bottling Company
of Hickory, NC, Inc.
County Staff had
recently received a signed Incentives Agreement from Pepsi- Cola and it was
presented for the Board’s consideration.
Mr. Nicholson recommended
the Board approve the incentives agreement.
Tax Collector’s Report
Terry F. Lyda, Henderson
County Tax Collector, had provided the Tax Collector’s report dated October 18,
2004 for the Board’s information.
Darlene B. Burgess, Deputy Tax Collector, had
provided the Deputy Tax Collector’s report dated October 18, 2004, for the
Board’s information.
Financial Report – August 2004
Cash Balance Report – August 2004
The YTD costs in the
General Fund Non-Departmental line item are the annual property/liability and
workers compensation insurance premiums paid to the NCACC Insurance Risk Pools
for FY 2005. These costs will be
allocated out to departmental budgets in succeeding months.
The YTD deficit in the
Emergency Communications Fund is primarily due to an accounting entry to
reverse accounts receivable recorded in this fund at June 30, 2004. The deficit in this fund will reverse itself
over the next few months and show a positive financial position.
The YTD deficit in the
CDBG-Scattered Site Housing Project, the CDBG-Parkside Commons Project, the
Mills River Watershed Protection Project, the Mud Creek Watershed Protection
Project and the Mills River Sewer Capital Project are all temporary due to
timing differences in the expenditure of funds and the subsequent requisition
of Federal and State funds to reimburse these expenditures.
The County Services
Building Project deficit is due to architectural fees, demolition/abatement and
utilities relocation work performed at the former Carolina Apparel
Building. It is anticipated that these
costs will be recouped from financing proceeds for the project.
Henderson County Public Schools Financial Report – August
2004
The Schools Financial
Report was provided for August for information and consent approval.
Pardee Hospital – Certificate of Need
Please see above. (page
#2)
Resolution – Blue Ridge Fire & Rescue – Tax Exempt Loan
At the May 3, 2004 Fire
and Rescue Advisory Committee meeting, Gary Brown, Chief of Blue Ridge Fire
& Rescue advised Committee members of the intent to purchase a Heavy Rescue
Vehicle in 2004. The department plans to
finance $300,000 over a 5 year term with 20 quarterly payments of $16,341.46.
A motion to approve the
purchase of the Heavy Rescue Vehicle was made by Rick Livingston and seconded
by Chip Gould with unanimous approval.
Blue Ridge Fire &
Rescue respectfully requested authority for the Chairman to execute the
prepared Resolution to First Citizen Bank & Trust Company.
PUBLIC HEARING for Road Name
Chairman Hawkins made the motion for the Board to go into
public hearing. All voted in favor and
the motion carried.
Rocky Hyder presented to
the Board a singular road name, requested by the property owners along the
road. The proposed road name is Dalton Farm Road.
On September 7, 2004,
the Board of Commissioners designated October 4, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. for a public
hearing on Dalton Farm Road.
Public Input
There was none.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to approve the road name of
Dalton Farm Road be accepted. All voted in
favor and the motion carried.
Chairman Hawkins moved the Board go out of public hearing
and into the second public hearing. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
PUBLIC HEARING on Property Address Changes
On September 7, 2004,
the Board of Commissioners designated October 4, 2004 at 7:00 p.m. as a public
hearing for the purpose of approving property address changes from February 1,
2004 through September 30, 2004.
Pursuant to NCGS 153A-239.1 counties must hold a public hearing on
property address changes, therefore the Board conducts public hearings on a
bi-annual basis to formally approve changes made by the Property Address Office
during the previous six month period. A
list of address changes had been provided to the Clerk to the Board.
Mr. Hyder stated that
most of the property address changes were due to development on roads and road
name changes. He stated there were
approx. 1,200 changes listed.
Public Input
There was none.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to approve the list as
presented by Mr. Hyder as the bi-annual update.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion for the Board to go out of
public hearing. All voted in favor and
the motion carried.
NOMINATIONS
Notification of Vacancies
The Board was notified
of the following vacancies which will appear for nominations at the next
meeting:
1.
Cable
Franchise Renewal Advisory Committee – 6 vac.
2.
Henderson
County Transportation Advisory Committee
3.
Hendersonville
Planning Board – 1 vac.
4.
Hospital
Corporation Board of Trustees – 1 vac.
Nominations
Chairman Hawkins
reminded the Board of the following vacancies and opened the floor to
nominations:
1.
Blue Ridge Community
College Board of Trustees – 1 vac.
Chairman
Hawkins nominated Bill Farrell. He has
indicated that he would be willing to come off the Equalization & Review
Board if appointed to this. (Mr. Farrell already serves on two appointed
Boards). There were no other nominations.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion
to accept Mr. Farrell by acclamation. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
2.
Community Child
Protection Team – 6 vac.
Chairman
Hawkins nominated Margo Nagel to position #4.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion
to accept Ms. Nagel by acclamation. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
Commissioner
Baldwin nominated Jeffrey Perkins to position # 2.
Commissioner
Messer nominated Mary Murray to position # 1.
There
were no other nominations at this time.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to
accept these nominees by acclamation.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
3.
Environmental Advisory
Committee – 2 vac.
Commissioner
Moyer nominated David Lowles.
Chairman
Hawkins nominated Chuck Garrett.
There
were no other nominations.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to
accept these two nominees by acclamation.
All voted in favor and the motion carried.
4.
Henderson County
Planning Board – 1 vac.
Commissioner
Moyer nominated Mark Williams.
There
were no other nominations.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to
accept Mr. Williams by acclamation. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
5.
Hendersonville Board of
Adjustment – 1 vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
6.
Juvenile Crime
Prevention Council – 5 vac.
Chairman
Hawkins nominated Ashley Hornsby. There
were no other nominations.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to
accept Ms. Hornsby by acclamation. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
7.
Library Board of
Trustees – 1 vac.
Commissioner
Messer nominated Joy Perry.
Chairman
Hawkins nominated Tom Orr.
The
Clerk will poll the Board at the next meeting .
8.
Mountain Area Workforce
Development Board – 1 vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
9.
Planning for Older
Adults Block Grant Advisory Committee – 2 vac.
There
were no nominations at this time so this item was rolled to the next meeting.
10.
Senior Volunteer
Services Advisory Council – 1 vac.
Commissioner
Moyer nominated David Beardsley.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to
accept Mr. Beardsley by acclamation. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
11.
Solid Waste Advisory
Committee – 1 vac.
Commissioner
Moyer nominated James Phelps.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to accept
Mr. Phelps by acclamation. All voted in
favor and the motion carried.
12.
Western Highlands LME –
1 vac.
Chairman
Hawkins nominated Justin Hembree.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to
accept Mr. Hembree by acclamation. All
voted in favor and the motion carried.
INFORMAL PUBLIC COMMENTS
She
discussed the proposed new animal shelter, on property that isn’t in the
floodplain. She discussed the chance for
educating people about animal adoption in the new facility and a spay/neuter
program.
She also expressed that the 24/7 pickup of injured animals should be the
responsibility of the county.
PARTNERSHIP FOR HEALTH
The Henderson County Partnership
for Health requested a few minutes at this meeting to update the Board on the
1.7 million dollar grant that they have received to help uninsured and
underinsured persons in our community.
Terri Wallace, Executive
Director for Partnership for Health, explained that the Partnership for
Health’s Mission is to achieve a healthier Henderson County through community
collaboration.
Partnership for Health
has received a Healthy Community Access Program (HCAP) grant from the Health
Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Program of the federal
government. The grant is a collaboration
among key community health leaders which make up the Community Health Committee
of the Partnership for Health. The
committee has been meeting for the past year planning the details of the grant. Key collaborators include: Henderson County
Department of Public Health, Park Ridge Hospital, Pardee Hospital, Blue Ridge
Community Health Services, Mountain Laurel Community Services, Appalachian
Counseling, Access II Care, Volunteer Medical Resource Center and
Hendersonville Family Practice. The
grant will run until 2007 and will be used to increase coordination and quality
of care for the uninsured, improve efficiency and effectiveness of services,
and generate cost savings for the community.
The grant will help to decrease the severity and incidence of
depression, asthma and diabetes and will extend into Polk and Transylvania
counties in year two and three.
Partnership for Health
is a private non-profit agency that has been serving Henderson County since
1994. The Partnership was started by a
group of community health leaders that conducted a health assessment to
determine the health needs of the county.
The group incorporated as a non-profit to engage members in a collaborative
spirit. “Partnership for Health is also
the local Healthy Carolinian partnership.
We have a vision to become the healthiest community in North Carolina”
said Terri Wallace. “We are thankful for our many partners who came together in
this outstanding endeavor to serve the community.”
In Henderson County
today, there is no organized system in place to assure comprehensive,
cost-effective care to the uninsured. They
believe the need in our community has never been greater. This grant will allow health care providers
to work together to care for those with chronic disease.
In year one of the grant
they will concentrate on depression, year two on asthma, and year three on
diabetes. It is a three year grant and will be added to each successive year.
AMENDMENT – ANIMAL SERVICES ORDINANCE
At the last meeting the
Board took a first look at the Animal Services Ordinance Amendment. The amendment adds provisions to deal with
injured animals. The Board has received
some comments on the issue. In order to
make the ordinance effective the Board had to have a second reading, therefore
it is on this agenda for Board action.
Tom Bridges reminded the Board that he has
been in Henderson County for six years and prior to his arrival animal services
had been providing 24/7 emergency pickup of injured animals. His understanding was that due to
short-staffing that service was dropped.
He had been talking with Brenda Miller, Animal Control Supervisor, who
feels with her current staffing that we could resume what had been done
before. She has a protocol and
procedures and would be working closely with law enforcement. They feel this service can be done with
current staffing and budget. Ideally we
would have a new facility which would help to provide that service better. This service is in phase II of the plan but
they feel they can offer this service earlier than planned.
Brenda Miller explained
that at one point her staff dropped to three and they had to cut something
out. At that time All Creatures Great
and Small was assisting with the injured animals. Ms. Miller said they feel that now they can
help relieve the burden to All Creatures Great and Small by assisting with
injured animals again. With her current
staff, they have better hours they can serve the public.
Ms. Miller answered some
questions from the Board members. This
service would take place across the county, including municipalities.
Commissioner Baldwin
expressed concern and wished to wait until the Board had a letter of support or
endorsement for the service from the Sheriff.
There was also some discussion that letters of support were needed from
the municipalities.
It was not the pleasure
of the Board to take action at this time.
After receiving letters of support, staff will place this item back on
the agenda for Board action.
ANIMAL SHELTER – SCHEMATIC DESIGN
Mr. Nicholson informed
the Board that the architects have been working with county staff, as well as
Bill Meade of Shelter Planners of America, who developed the original program
for this facility. His report, “Needs
Assessment, Feasibility and Building Program Study”, outlined the features that
he believes are needed for a comprehensive animal control program for Henderson
County. The plan included his
projections for the shelter. The first
was a minimum 6,396 square foot facility costing approximately $845,920. This was a basic facility. Mr. Meade’s
recommendation was for a 9,500 square foot facility costing $1,254,000.
Mr. Nicholson outlined
three options for the Board’s consideration:
The first alternative is
based on Mr. Meade’s full recommendations.
The projected cost for this facility is $1,134,150. They have indicated that they could eliminate
features such as the carport, the freezer and future crematory room and four
extra kennels, which would lower the budget to $991,500. They also indicated a shelter could be
constructed for $852,029. However, major
reductions would be made to the ‘core building’ areas such as the public areas,
educational areas, and offices. All of
these plans would allow for future additional kennels.
Mr. Nicholson
recommended that we proceed with the design based on the schematic concept,
basing this recommendation on what he believes is needed to fully implement the
programs that the Board of Commissioners had indicated interest in
providing. Some of these future programs
would include citations for violations, spay and neuter programs, leash law,
crematoria services and differential licensure.
This amount exceeds the current budget of $800,000; however, he
recommended that the additional funds be taken from unappropriated fund
balance.
Mr. Nicholson reminded
the Board that the Planning Board has not made a recommendation on our request
for a zoning change of the property yet.
Mr. Nicholson showed the
facility by schematic plans (drawing), pointing out the different areas of the
facility and the area for adding additional kennels.
Following much
discussion, Commissioner Baldwin made the
motion to adopt the full blown plan as recommended by the County Manager and to
give staff the authority they need to move forward with the project.
Following more discussion, Commissioner
Baldwin amended his motion that it be conditioned upon receipt of the zoning
approval and authorizing the County Manager to negotiate a fee to bring back to
the Board at the next meeting to proceed, based on the full-blown project. All voted in favor and the motion carried.
CHAIRMAN’S COMMENTS
Chairman Hawkins stated
that at the last meeting the Board had some service delivery questions, one of
which specifically dealt with Mental Health.
He referred to a memo from the County Manager dated September 27 which
gave an update on how he is proceeding with the mental health issue. He thought there had been some requests for
proposals since then and the Board should hear more after October 22, 2004.
David Nicholson informed
the Board that October 22 is when the bids will be opened.
The Board will expect to
have further discussion on this issue at a future meeting.
STAFF REPORT CONCERNING E-911 COMMUNICATIONS
CENTER
As requested during the
September 7, 2004 meeting of the Board of Commissioners, County Staff had
completed a report concerning the operations and funding of the County’s E-911
Communications Center. The purpose of the staff report was to provide an
overview of the organizational structure, operations, and funding streams of
the Henderson County E-911 Communications Center. As requested by the Board of Commissioners,
information concerning alternatives for the organizational structure and
funding of the Center was also provided.
One of the most, if not
the most, important missions of any local government is to safeguard life and
property. As has been demonstrated
during the recent severe weather events, Henderson County, volunteers, staff,
and municipalities are committed to providing high levels of emergency services
to the citizens of the County. As the County has grown, the methods in which
the various emergency services are provided have changed dramatically. However, one constant remains – the need for
an effective and efficient emergency communications system.
Justin Hembree reviewed
what the most common structures are for organizations of 911 Centers in North
Carolina. He reviewed with the Board several options for the organization
structure and operations of the E-911 Center:
1.
The
center could continue to be operated as a division of the Office of the
Sheriff. This option would require no changes in terms of the reporting
structure or personnel and there would be no need for approval for access to
the State’s Criminal Information System.
2.
The
center could be operated under the County Manager as a separate County
Department. The new department would have a direct reporting relationship to
the Board of Commissioners through the County Manager. This structure would
create a new department with a new department head. With this operation an
agreement would have to be reached with the Sheriff to provide for accessing
and entering DCI information. Some of
the advantages of this option include:
standardization of the chain of command with other departmental
operations; direct accountability to the County Manager and Board of
Commissioners.
3.
The
center could be operated as a division of Emergency Management. Under this
option, the operations of the Communications Center would be managed by the
Emergency Management Director. Day to
day activities would be supervised by the Communications Director. The management chain of command under this
option would flow from the Communications Director through the Emergency
Management Director to the County Manager and Board of Commissioners. Again, with this option an agreement would
have to be reached with the Sheriff to provide for accessing and entering DCI
information. Some advantages of this
option include: standardization of the
chain of command with other departmental operations; direct accountability
through the chain of command with other departmental operations; direct
accountability through the chain of command to the County Manager and Board of
Commissioners; close contact through the organizational structure with local
emergency service agencies and individuals.
4.
The
center could be operated under a Committee or Commission. With this option, the
Board of Commissioners would appoint a special committee or commission
consisting primarily of local leaders in the field of emergency services
(police chiefs, the Sheriff, fire chiefs, the EMS Director, etc.) This special
committee or commission would guide the general operations of the
Communications Center through establishing policies and procedures, and through
involvement in the budget process. The
Communications Director would report directly to the special committee or
commission. It should be noted that many
jurisdictions in North Carolina use an advisory committee for emergency
communications. However, several
jurisdictions provide oversight powers to special emergency communications
committees and commissions. Yet again,
with this option an agreement would have to be reached with the Sheriff to
provide for accessing and entering DCI information. A few advantages of this option include: direct day to day input from stakeholders in
the emergency services field; accountability by emergency services officials
for the operations of the Communications Center.
The E-911 center that is
operating and serving the citizens of Henderson County currently is a
centralized dispatch. All agencies are
dispatched out of the center, law enforcement, emergency medical services,
fire, along with other organizations, with the exception of Hendersonville
Police Department. Calls for service for
Hendersonville Police Department are still routed to our 911 center and are
then routed to the Hendersonville Police Department Communications Center.
Funding
Currently there are two
funding sources for the costs of the operations and capital requirements of the
E-911 Communications Center – 911 Surcharge revenues and General Fund
revenues. As the County continues to
grow in population and development, so too will the demand for emergency
services, including emergency communications.
Like all other County services, the increased demand directly relates to
increased costs. Hopefully, some of this
growth-driven cost increase can be absorbed by increases in the tax base. However, it is important that the County
consider alternative revenue sources in order to lighten the burden on our
local tax payers and more fairly cover the costs for specific services. Specifically, in terms of alternative funding
options for the Communications Center, County staff discovered two
possibilities:
1.
Special
Tax
2.
Enterprise
Fund and/or Internal Services Fund
One final issue relating
to funding of the Communications Center for the Board of Commissioners to keep
in mind is the use of 911 Surcharge funds.
As a legislative goal for the 2005 session of the General Assembly, the
Board is requesting a change in the manner in which these funds can be used. Currently revenue from the 911 surcharge can
only be used, as a rule of thumb, for the purchase of “capital related” items
that are used in the direct answering of 911 calls. Hopefully, the General Assembly will remove
this restriction and allow local governments to use these funds for operational
related expenditures. This, more than
any other alternative revenue source, would greatly reduce the burden on tax
payers in terms of paying for the costs associated with emergency
communications operations.
Recommendations
During the analysis of this
process several key issues arose in terms of personnel. County staff has yet to have a good feel for
the amount of time it would take for such a major transition to take
place. Questions concerning the
willingness of current Communications Center employees to continue their
employment directly with the County, the market for emergency telecommunicaters,
and other recruitment matters would have to be answered. County staff would also have to determine the
impact that an organizational realignment would have on the operations of other
departments, specifically Finance and Human Resources. The bottom line is that many of these and
other management related issues would have to be addressed if a change is made.
County staff is willing and able to carry out the wishes of the Board.
As is obvious, Henderson
County’s emergency communications system involves a complex matrix of emergency
service agencies, volunteer organizations, County departments, emergency
service personnel, and local governments.
This is an extremely complex system.
There are many issues related to emergency communications that are
beyond the knowledge of County staff and will require an in-depth
analysis. An important factor in such an
analysis would be the inclusion of all stake holders in this discussion. This would be a major change to our whole
emergency services system. Therefore,
County staff recommended that, if the Board is interested in the reorganization
of the Communications Center and/or changes to the method of collecting
revenues, the Board appoint a special committee made up of stakeholders
(emergency services personnel, volunteers, county officials, and others) to
research this issue, develop recommendations, and report to the Board on a
specific date.
Following much discussion,
Commissioner Baldwin made the motion that
the Board appoint a committee, give them a timeframe and allow them to do a
study and bring the report back to the Board.
David Nicholson offered
for staff to write a charter and distribute same to the Commissioners for their
review.
Break
Chairman Hawkins called
a brief technical break, to change videotapes.
Following the break, Commissioner
Baldwin restated and amended his motion –
He moved that the Board ask staff to draft a charter that would commission a
committee to be appointed by the Commissioners that would include those listed
in the agenda materials as well as the Fire Service, to study the 911
communication process and organizational structure, also as it would relate to
providing continuity of service, response time, participation from all those
who would use the service and that the committee be appointed and report back
their findings within six months. A vote was taken and the motion passed four
to one with Commissioner Moyer voting nay.
STAFFING AND CLASSIFICATION STUDY
Jan Prichard reminded
the Board that as of the start of the fiscal year, July 1, 2004, the Board asked
staff to look into pursuing a staffing and compensation and classification
study, both to be conducted simultaneously.
A project team was developed.
Potential consultants were invited in and interviewed and the team
gathered information prior to development of a request for proposal or request
for qualifications.
The team moved quickly
and met with several consulting firms in August. The request for qualifications went out and
responses were received back from three consulting firms about
mid-September.
The Project Team
received three responses to its Request for Qualifications to perform a
Staffing study and a Compensation & Classification Study for Henderson
County:
1-
The
Mercer Group, Inc. (North Carolina, near Raleigh)
2-
MGT of America, Inc. (Columbia, S.C.)
3-
Springsted,
Inc. (Virginia Beach)
It was the opinion of
the Project Team that the most responsive proposal was that of Spingsted. The Team further recognized that certain
aspects of the project as proposed require clarification prior to final
agreement and initiation of the project.
The County had budgeted
a total of $235,000 in FY 04-05 for both studies and implementation. Springsted proposed pricing for separate
studies: $39,875 for the Compensation
and Classification Study; $131,250 for the Staffing Study. Out-of-pocket expenses may cost an additional
$5,000 - $25,000. The Project Team is
optimistic that we will be able to achieve a reduction in the overall fee based
on some tasks that may be performed by current staff as we further define the
project. Our currently budgeted funds
may not be sufficient to perform the studies and fully implement the
recommendations during this fiscal year.
Staff anticipates that embarking on the project will require further
commitment of funds in the following fiscal year, 2005-2006, to achieve full
implementation.
Ms. Prichard informed
the Board that the Project Team awaits further direction to move forward with
this important project.
Mr. Nicholson requested
authorization from the Board for him to get with Springsted, Inc. and negotiate
a final contract with them and bring it back to the Board for approval.
Following much
discussion, Chairman Hawkins made the motion to direct the County Manager to
proceed with the Compensation and Classification Study, not to exceed $40,000.
It seemed to be the
consensus of the Board not to pursue the staffing study at this time but to
proceed with the compensation and classification study.
Commissioner Moyer
offered an amendment to Chairman Hawkins’ motion, suggesting that remaining
monies go back into the incentive program for employees. More discussion followed.
Chairman Hawkins amended and restated his motion – to
proceed with the compensation and classification study and take the remainder,
about $200,000, and complete the bonus program for this year. A vote was taken and the motion passed four
to one with Commissioner Baldwin voting nay.
Continued Meeting
Due to the lateness of
the hour, Chairman Hawkins suggested continuing the meeting until 5:30 p.m.
tomorrow, prior to the already scheduled meeting at 6:00 p.m. He felt the following items could be finished
in 30 minutes.
Chairman Hawkins made the motion to continue the meeting at
5:30, here, tomorrow. All voted in favor
and the motion carried.
UPDATE ON PENDING ISSUES
Local Government Commission Meeting (LGC)
Proposal – County Services Building
IMPORTANT DATES
DISCUSSION ITEMS – none
CANE CREEK WATER & SEWER DISTRICT – no
business
CLOSED SESSION – none
Attest:
Elizabeth W. Corn, Clerk
to the Board
Grady Hawkins, Chairman