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HomeMy WebLinkAbout010924 wsHARNETT COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS Minutes of Work Session January 9, 2024 The Harnett County Board of Commissioners met in work session on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, at 9:00 am, in the Commissioners Meeting Room, Harnett County Resource Center and Library, 455 McKinney Parkway, Lillington, North Carolina. Members present: William Morris, Chairman W. Brooks Matthews, Vice Chairman Barbara McKoy, Commissioner Lewis W. Weatherspoon, Commissioner Matthew B. Nicol, Commissioner Staff present: Dwight Snow, County Attorney Kimberly Honeycutt, Finance Officer Brent Trout, County Manager Melissa Capps, Clerk Chairman Morris called the Harnett County Board of Commissioners meeting to order at 9:00 am. Commissioner Nicol led the Pledge of Allegiance and invocation. The following agenda was before the Board of Commissioners: 1. Call to order — Chairman William Morris 2. Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation — Commissioner Matt Nicol 3. Discuss a request for approval of a change to Spout Springs Emergency Services Relief Fund Board membership; Larry Smith, Emergency Services Director 4. Discuss a request to accept the bid from Daniel Inc. of Garner for the Government Complex parking lot resurfacing; Kenneth Snipes, Facility Maintenance Manager 5. Discuss a request to apply for a Veterans Treatment Court Innovations (ALLRISE) Grant in an amount up to $67,742; Eric Truesdale, Veteran Services Director 6. Discuss a request for Board approval to accept the Request for Proposal bid from Fast Forward Libraries LLC to provide consulting services for the Harnett County Public Library's 2024-2029 Strategic Plan; Angela McCauley, Library Director 7. Discuss a request for permission to apply for and accept (if awarded) a North Carolina Department of Information Technology Digital Equity Grant in the amount of $61,300, with no match required; Joanna Cox, Assistant Library Director/Systems Librarian 8. Discuss a request to accept grant monies from the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM); Ally Fouts Gaines, Management Analyst Harnett County Board of Commissioners Work Session Minutes January 9, 2024 Pagel of 5 9. Discuss Cooperative Extension Memorandum of Agreement; Tim Mathews, County Extension Director 10. Discuss suspending the issuance of building permits in the Rawls Church Road area until certain safety concerns are addressed; William Morris, Chairman 11. Discuss Jetport Terminal Building Naming; Brooks Matthews, Vice Chairman 12. Review applications to serve on Boards and Committees. 13. County Manager's Report — Brent Trout, County Manager • January 16, 2024 Regular Meeting Agenda Review • Upcoming meetings and invitations 14. Closed Session 15. Adjourn Larry Smith, Emergency Services Director, reviewed a request for approval of a change to Spout Springs Emergency Services Relief Fund Board membership. The department is requesting to change 1 position on their Board. Mr. Eric Hartman to be replaced by Mrs. Lydia Putman. All changes to the department Relief Fund Board members must be approved by the Harnett County Board of Commissioners. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Mike Morrow, Assistant County Manager, reviewed a request for approval to accept the bid from Daniel INC of Garner for the Government Complex Parking Lot Resurfacing. Their bid was the lowest of the six bids received. All references had positive feedback for this company with very high recommendations. The Town of Lillington and The City of Clinton were just two of the five references that gave outstanding reviews for Daniel INC. The bid is $284,230 which will come from the Capital Maintenance & Replacement Fund. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Eric Truesdale, Veteran Services Director, reviewed a request for permission to apply for a Veterans Treatment Court Innovations (ALLRISE) Grant in the amount of up to $67,742. This grant will enable the court to establish an MRT Program that will include training, facilitators, and materials for the program. The grant will also allow two more staff members to attend the required annual conference (NADCP) that provides required training and CEU's. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Angela McCauley, Library Director, reviewed a request for approval to accept the Request for Proposal bid from Fast Forward Libraries LLC to provide consulting services for the Harnett County Public Library's 2024-2029 Strategic Plan. Ms. Cauley reviewed 3 goals completed during the last strategic plan that had the most important impact. A committee comprised of library administration reviewed proposals, interviewed the top three finalists, and voted to recommend Fast Forward Libraries as the consulting firm based on experience and expertise in preparing both comprehensive and vision -based plans for public library systems. The bid estimate for the consulting services is $42,400. Ms. McCauley stated the estimate does not reflect a $5,100 discount offered by the firm. This discount brings the cost to $37,300 which is Harnett County Board of Commissioners Work Session Minutes January 9, 2024 Page 2 of 5 $3,700 less than the amount budgeted for hiring the strategic plan consultant. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Joanna Cox, Assistant Library Director/Systems Librarian, reviewed a request for permission to apply for and accept (if awarded) a North Carolina Department of Information Technology Digital Equity Grant in the amount of $61,300, with no match required. The proposed Digital Equity Grant Project for Harnett County Public Library System is designed to widely advance digital equity in Harnett County, including the 13% of residents without Internet service, and the nearly 8% of residents without Internet -connected devices (ACS - U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2017-2021 5-Year Estimates). The heart of the initiative lies in the acquisition of Chromebooks and hotspots for lending out to the community. This device lending program will address the fundamental barrier of access, providing essential tools for online participation to community members lacking computing devices or reliable Internet access. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Ally Fouts Gaines, Management Analyst, reviewed a request for approval to accept grant monies from the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM). Harnett County has been awarded four directed grants from the State of North Carolina for the 2023-24 Fiscal Year through the Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM). Grant 20284 is for the purchase of a body scanner and related equipment for the sheriffs office. Grant 20285 will be sub -awarded to a list of local subrecipients to provide upgrades and improvements to services within the County. Grant 20286 is for the purchase of a standby power generator and related equipment for the detention center. Grant 20287 is for land acquisition activities or capital improvements. These grants do not require matches. Administration is requesting approval to accept the grant awards and authorize the County Manager to sign the final grant agreement when it is received. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Tim Mathews, County Extension Director, reviewed a request for the Board of Commissioners approve the Memorandum of Agreement between the Board of Commissioner of Harnett County and North Carolina State University. Mr. Mathews reviewed the summary of changes between the 2006 Memorandum of Understanding and the 2023 Memorandum of Agreement. Consensus of the Board was to place this item on the next consent agenda. Vice Chairman Matthews shared he and a longtime friend Mr. Carroll Leggett were talking a year or so ago about the exciting things going on at the Jetport. Mr. Leggett served as the Chief of Staff for Senator Robert Morgan. The next day he received a call from Mr. Leggett sharing how Senator Morgan was the primary person responsible for the FAA approving Harnett County to have the airport which has now become the jetport. Vice Chairman Matthews stated he thought it might be appropriate, as to date Senator Morgan is the only US Senator who was native to Harnett County, to name the new terminal building in honor and memory of Senator Morgan. Discussion was held. Concerns were expressed that once you start naming buildings after someone, you have to continue to do so. Vice Chairman Matthews shared he also spoke with Jerry Milton, Chairman of the Jetport Advisory Committee who invited me to speak at their Harnett County Board of Commissioners Work Session Minutes January 9, 2024 Page 3 of 5 meeting in December to share that with the committee. The committee overwhelmingly voted in support. Consensus of the board was to place this item as a separate line item on the next agenda. Christopher Appel, Senior Staff Attorney reviewed a proposed Ordinance imposing a temporary moratorium on development approvals in the Rawls Church Road and US Highway 401 Corridor. A public hearing would be required. Two weeks of advertisement would be required prior to the public hearing. Consensus of the Board was to proceed with the notice of advertisement and schedule a public hearing for the February 19, 2024 Board meeting. Attorney Appel also asked for direction concerning the area of coverage, in the packet there was a map including a one -mile radius. Direction from the Board would be needed to go by township or parcels within that area. The Board requested maps that included both parcels and townships. The Board reviewed applications for appointments to the various Boards and Committees. Chairman Morris shared the individual who applied for the Dangerous Dog Committee has pending litigation regarding a dangerous dog. Consensus was to table the consideration of the application for the Dangerous Dog Committee until that is resolved. Consensus of the Board was to place the following appointments/reappointments on the consent agenda: Appointment of Sion H. Harrington, III (District 2) to the Historic Properties Commission to fill the vacancy in District 5 pursuant to Section 2.1 of the ordinance which states "the Board of Commissioners may select no more than two qualified candidates from the same district." Reappointment of Robert Doberstein, II and Tracie Turcotte Crowder to the Board of Equalization and Review. Reappointment of Stacy Walsh to the Public Library Board of Trustees. Appointment of Eric Julien as an ETJ member for a one-year term to serve on both the Angier Planning Board and Board of Adjustment. Appointment of Everette Blake for a two-year term to serve on both the Angier Planning Board and Board of Adjustment. Reappointment of Carl Davis, as the Parks & Recreation representative; Cindy Delgado, as the Commissioner Appointee; Mary Spell, as the Director AMH/DD/SA designation and Avis Watkins Smith as the local health director designation to the Juvenile Crime Prevention Council. Reappointment of Cecil Edgerton to the Harnett County Jetport Board. Appointment of Scott Tart to Harnett County Planning Board as District 4 representative. Brent Trout, County Manager, stated currently our Legislative Luncheon is scheduled for February 5, 2024. The short session is supposed to start April 24a'. I would like to move the Legislative Luncheon to sometime in April to allow time to involve the lobbyist firm in the process and have them here to present. I would like to add Legislative Priorities to the March 12th or 26a' work session and approve at the April I' meeting and have the legislative luncheon sometime in April. Commissioner Weatherspoon made a motion to go into Closed Session to consult with the County's legal counsel in order to preserve the attorney -client privilege concerning the handling of certain claims. This motion is made pursuant to NC General Statute Section 143-318.11 (a)(3). The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nicol and carried unanimously. Harnett County Board of Commissioners Work Session Minutes January 9, 2024 Page 4 of 5 Following a motion to come out of Closed Session, Chairman Morris called the meeting back into open session. Commissioner Nicol made a motion to adjourn at 9:55 am. The motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Morris and carried unanimously. William Morris, Chairman Melis Capps, Clerk Harnett County Board of Commissioners Work Session Minutes January 9, 2024 Page 5 of 5