Public Comment, Budget, Among Many Items on Commissioners’ Meeting Agenda — August 1, 2022

Craven County Commissioner Mtg - Screenshot from May 2 2022
Craven County Commissioner Mtg (Screenshot from May 2, 2022)

Monday, August 1, the next regular session meeting will be held at 6:00 p.m. at the Craven County Administration Building, 406 Craven St., New Bern. Should you wish to petition the Board please make sure that you arrive by 5:30 p.m. to sign up.

CALL TO ORDER

ROLL CALL

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

APPROVE AGENDA

1. PETITIONS OF CITIZENS – AGENDA TOPICS

Comments directly pertaining to items on the agenda of any regularly scheduled meeting of the Board shall be made during an agenda comment period occurring at the beginning of each regularly scheduled meeting. Comments during this period shall be limited to those comments directly pertaining to items on the agenda for such meeting.

Each speaker must address the Board as a whole (and not any individual Commissioner, County staff member or the audience) from the lectern and shall begin his or her remarks by giving his or her name and address and the topic about which they intend to speak. Each speaker will have three (3) minutes to make remarks, as measured by a timer operated by County staff. A speaker may not yield any of his or her time to another speaker.

Speakers must be courteous in their language and presentation and must abide by generally accepted standards of decorum. Speakers shall not make the same or repetitive comments, whether during a particular comment period or over the course of multiple comment periods. Speakers shall not attack or insult any person or group of people, and speakers shall not give belligerent or hostile comments during any comment period.

Board Action:  Receive information

2. CONSENT AGENDA

A. Minutes of July 18, 2022

The Board will be requested to approve the minutes of July 18, 2022 regular session, as shown in Attachment #2.A.

B. Tax Releases and Refunds

The Board will be requested to approve the tax releases and refunds, as shown in Attachment #2.B.

C. SRO FY 22 Rollover Budget Amendment

The Board will be requested to approve the budget amendment, shown as Attachment #2.C, in the amount of $12,451.00, in order to move funds that were allocated in FY 22 through purchase orders.  These purchase orders have not yet been completed due to various reasons such as back orders from the vendors.  These funds were allocated in the 4314 (SRO) account lines.

Board Action:  A roll call vote is needed to approve the consent agenda items

DEPARTMENTAL MATTERS

3. TAX: Leslie Young, Tax Administrator

A. 2021 Tax Collection Settlement

Before being charged with the collection of the 2022 tax levy, the Craven County Tax Collector must present to the Board of County Commissioners her settlement of the 2021 tax levy.  A copy of the settlement is shown as Attachment #3.A.  Pursuant to NCGS 105-273(3), the tax collector request that the settlement along with the Board’s action regarding it be entered in full upon the minutes.

Also included in the attachment is a Top 10 Taxpayer List as well as a 2021 summary report of benchmarks of the three divisions of the Tax Department.

Board Action:  Accept the settlement of the 2021 tax levy

B. 2022 Charge to the Craven County Tax Collector

If the 2021 tax collection settlement is accepted, then the Board of County Commissioners must adopt and also enter into its minutes and order to charge the tax collector with the collection of the 2022 tax levy.  The order to be adopted is required by NCGS 105-321(b) and is shown as Attachment #3.B.

Board Action:  Authorize tax collector with the collection of the 2022 tax levy

4. SHERIFF: Sheriff Chip Hughes

A. Jail FY 22 Rollover Budget Amendment

The Board will be requested to approve the budget amendment, shown as Attachment #4.A, in the amount of $25,379.00, in order to move funds that were allocated in FY 22 through purchase orders.  These purchase orders have not yet been completed due to various reasons such as back orders from the vendors. These funds were allocated in the 4316 (Jail) account lines.

Board Action:  Approve budget amendment in the amount of $25,379.00; a roll call vote is needed

B. Sheriff FY 22 Rollover Budget Amendment

The Board will be requested to approve the budget amendment, shown as Attachment #4.B, in the amount of $23,042.00, in order to move funds that were allocated in FY 22 through purchase orders and estimates. These purchase orders and estimates have not yet been completed due to various reasons such as back orders from the vendors. These funds were allocated in the 4310 (SHF) account lines.

Board Action:  Approve budget amendment in the amount of $23,042.00; a roll call vote is needed

C. Vehicle Donation

The ABC Board has donated a 2012 Chevy Traverse to the Craven County Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office is requesting approval of the Board of County Commissioners to accept the vehicle into the current fleet, as well as assume the responsibilities that will come with it, such as future registrations, repairs, fuel, maintenance and any other expenses that may arise in conjunction to this vehicle.

A copy of the Certificate of Title is shown as Attachment #4.C.

Board Action:  Approve vehicle donation

5. MAINTENANCE/FACILITIES: Zach Chenoweth, Assistant Facilities Director; Steve Creel, Facilities Director

A. Fuel Site Project Budget Amendment

With the approval of the FY2021-2022 Annual Budget, the Board of Commissioners directed staff to develop a project to build a dedicated fueling center for Craven County vehicles. On July 6, 2021, the Board approved Vaughn & Melton as the engineering firm for this project and on February 7, 2022 the Board approved the contract with JF Petroleum Group as the provider for the purchase and construction of the fueling center and related equipment. At that time, a budget amendment in the amount of $1,229,240.00 was approved and the amount was added to the General Fund budget of the Facilities and Maintenance Department.

With the beginning of a new fiscal year, the amount remaining for this project must be re-budgeted so that the purchase orders and outstanding invoices can be carried forward. As of June 30, 2022, we had the following amounts remaining in this project that will need to be carried over:

General Construction – JF Petroleum Group ($797,564.00)

Engineering and Design – Vaughn and Melton ($28,603.00)

Other Than General Construction ($77,000.00)

Project Contingency ($100,000.00)

Project Budget ($1,003,167.00)

The Board is being requested to approve the budget amendment, shown as Attachment #5.A, in the amount of $1,003,167.00, in order to carry over the unspent funds from Fiscal Year 2021-2022 into the current fiscal year so this project can continue uninterrupted.

Board Action:  Approve budget amendment in the amount of $1,003,167.00 to continue the County Fuel Station project; a roll call vote is needed

B. Ford F-250 Budget Amendment

A purchase order was placed last fiscal year for three (3) Ford F-250’s with Piedmont Truck Center, Inc.  Due to the pandemic, and supply chain issues, vehicles and parts are on back order. The department did not receive the trucks last year; therefore, we are requesting to re-allocate funding for three (3) Ford F-250’s in this fiscal year. Piedmont Truck Center has been in contact with the County, providing details and updates as they become available.

The Board is being requested to approve a budget amendment, shown as Attachment #5.B, in the amount of $102,807.00, in order to carry over the unspent funds from Fiscal Year 2021-2022 into the current fiscal year so the vehicles can be paid for when they arrive.

Board Action:  Approve budget amendment in the amount of $102,807.00; a roll call vote is needed

6. WATER: Gene Hodges, Assistant County Manager; Dail Booth, Water Superintendent

A. Authorization of Water Hydrologic Model Project

Hydraulic modeling concerning a municipal water system is a study and analysis of water usage trends and a forecasting total for future water needs. It has been several years since a hydraulic study was performed on the Craven County Water System. During that time, measurable water usage trends may have been altered by residential and commercial development. Additionally, the Lawson Creek Interim Bypass Booster Pump is pumping water from the Water Treatment Plant to the Northwest Craven Water System. This is a fundamental change in how the water system has historically performed, and the study will reveal if there are any measurable changes in pressure throughout the system. By performing a hydraulic model study, Craven County Water will have an updated, accurate, and holistic view of the system’s operation. The plan is to install 12 pressure transmitters throughout the county to collect real-time pressure data and update consumption data based on billing. This will ensure that the model is current and as accurate as possible. A calibrated hydraulic model is essential to developing a comprehensive long-term Capital Improvement Plan (CIP).

In order to proceed, staff requests the Board of Commissioners approve a Budget Amendment, shown as Attachment #6.A, in the amount of $48,000.00. Additionally, county staff requests that the Board approve the attached resolution exempting this project from the formal request for qualifications (RFQ) process. Along with the exemption, the Board is requested to authorize staff to contract with the firm of CJS Conveyance, LLC to provide engineering services for this project in an amount not to exceed $50,000.00.

Board Action:  Approve the Budget Amendment in the amount of $48,000.00, the Resolution of Exemption for engineering services related to conducting a hydraulic modeling study, and authorize staff to contract with CJS Conveyance, LLC to provide engineering services for this project in an amount not to exceed $50,000.00.

B. Award of Telemetry and Electrical Upgrade Contract Related to the Water Telemetry Project

At the June 20, 2022 Board of Commissioners meeting, the Board approved the fiber construction portion of Phase 1 of the Water System Telemetry/SCADA project. At that time, it was stated that the electrical and telemetry upgrade portion would be brought forward at a later time. In an attempt to find cost efficiencies in the project, there have been several discussions with the apparent low bidder regarding optional upgrades that could be omitted from the project to better align the costs with the original engineer estimates that were created early in the project. These discussions have resulted in a reduction of the bid of $925,059.00. It is recommended by staff, that Turner Murphy Company, Inc. be awarded this project in the amount of $2,972,975.60. This phase of the project will provide connectivity, electronic controls, and accessibility of backup power generation for the critical water assets throughout Craven County. Ultimately, the entire water system will be monitored and controlled from the Water Treatment Plant near Lewis Farm Road.

Attachment #6.B is a Project Ordinance Amendment and related Budget Amendment in the amount of $5,164,144.00 that updates this project. The components of this project are broken out as follows:

Construction:                     $5,965,419.00

Capital over 5k:                 $   640,000.00

Engineering:                      $1,567,300.00

Contingency:                     $   596,542.00

Total Project Budget:         $8,769,261.00

Construction encompasses the fiber construction contract that was previously approved as well as the new recommended contract for the electrical and telemetry upgrade. Additionally, $617,000.00 is included in this line item based on the estimate to extend fiber from approximately Slocum Creek to Roger Bell New Tech Academy in the Havelock area. Capital over $5,000.00 was previously approved and consists entirely of network switches that are needed for connectivity.  Engineering reflects the design costs related to this project and project contingency reflects 10% of the total construction costs.

The request is for the Board of Commissioners to approve a project ordinance amendment and associated budget amendment in the amount of $5,164,144.00 to fund this project and to authorize the County Manager to execute the agreement with Turner Murphy Company, Inc to perform this portion of the construction related to water telemetry and controls for this phase of this project. Staff and representatives from McKim and Creed are available for any questions.

Board Action:  Approve the project ordinance amendment and associated budget amendment and authorize the County Manager to prepare and execute the agreement with Turner Murphy Company, Inc. for construction related to the telemetry upgrades for the Water Telemetry Project.

7. APPOINTMENTS

A. PENDING
B. CURRENT
C. UPCOMING

Board Action: Appointments will be effective immediately, unless otherwise specified.

A. PENDING:

Board of Equalization and Review (District 5)

Craven Aging Planning Board

Craven County Board of Adjustments

Voluntary Agricultural District

B. CURRENT:

Emergency Medical Services – all seek reappointment

  • Jean Matthews (Cove City)
  • Doug Furgason (Citizen Rep)
  • Mark Dail (Rhems VFD)
  • Debra Rogers (CarolinaEast Emergency Director)

Emergency Medical Services –

  • Applicant Daniel Whitehead seeks appointment to the MCAS Cherry Point Fire/Rescue seat previously filled by Nicholas Salter (See Attachment #7.B)

Craven County Clean Sweep – both seek to be reappointed

  • Barbara Smith
  • Judi Lloyd

River Bend Board of Adjustment – seeks reappointment

  • Kelly Forrest

Fire Tax Commissioners Board – seeks reappointment

  • Otto Simmons (TWP 8 WNB II Rhems)

C. UPCOMING:

Local Emergency Planning Committee

  • Timothy Lawrence

Craven County Planning Board

  • Sharon Marion

River Bend Planning Board –

  • Kelly Forrest

Community Child Protection Team

  • Shawna Knight

8. COUNTY ATTORNEY’S REPORT: Arey Grady

9. PETITIONS OF CITIZENS – GENERAL TOPICS

Comments directly pertaining to items on the agenda of any regularly scheduled meeting of the Board shall be made during an agenda comment period occurring at the beginning of each regularly scheduled meeting. Comments during this period shall be limited to those comments directly pertaining to items on the agenda for such meeting.

Each speaker must address the Board as a whole (and not any individual Commissioner, County staff member or the audience) from the lectern and shall begin his or her remarks by giving his or her name and address and the topic about which they intend to speak. Each speaker will have three (3) minutes to make remarks, as measured by a timer operated by County staff. A speaker may not yield any of his or her time to another speaker.

Speakers must be courteous in their language and presentation and must abide by generally accepted standards of decorum. Speakers shall not make the same or repetitive comments, whether during a particular comment period or over the course of multiple comment periods. Speakers shall not attack or insult any person or group of people, and speakers shall not give belligerent or hostile comments during any comment period.

Board Action:  Receive information

10. COUNTY MANAGER’S REPORT: Jack Veit

11. COMMISSIONERS’ REPORTS

By Alison Newcombe, Administrative Secretary, Craven County Manager’s Office