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060815June 8, 2015 The Randolph County Board of Commissioners met at 6:00 p.m. for a special budget session in the 1909 Randolph County Historic Courthouse Meeting Room, 145 Worth Street, Asheboro, NC Commissioners Frye, Kemp, Haywood, Lanier, and Allen were present. Central Boys and Girls Club (CBGC) Thomas Falgout, President/CEO of CBGC, thanked the Board for their years of support. CBGC currently serves over 200 children annually through sports, fitness, recreation, health and life skills classes, educational enrichment activities, career developmental activities, and many other classes. The club exposes them to more opportunities than they would have if the Club was not there. Randolph Arts Guild Derrick Sides, Arts Guild Executive Director, provided a PowerPoint presentation on who they are, what they do, how they do it, and why they do it. They are requesting the same amount as last year: $20,000. He said County funding is vital to the Arts Guild's ability to leverage other grant sources. The Arts Guild operates on a $300,000 budget, thus the County allotment accounts for 7% of their budget. Mr. Sides showcased the exhibitions, conferences, festivals they manage, as well as, their two fundraisers held each year. The events have a large with economic and tourism impact on the community. He thanked the Commissioners for their support. Communities in Schools (CIS) Sandi Norman, Communities in Schools Executive Director, gave history of when the program started and the growth it had gone through. She reported on CIS activities and successes during the past year, saying that 12,734 students received services provided by CIS, which is 51.9% of the school population. Ms. Norman said if you add all the funding they receive and consider every $1.00 they are given, there is a $3.26 return on investment. Ms. Norman reviewed the challenges they faced this year and beyond. They cut two full-time positions back to part-time and lost one full-time position in the Randleman area due to the reduction of a grant. They were able to keep one of the Site Coordinators by splitting the time between Randleman Middle and Randleman High with partial funding from the grant and the help of Randolph County Schools. There is no grant money for the position for 2015-16. The READS grant will end in September and will lose the staff person who has administered the grant funds they received for the past three years. Ms. Norman said they will need more community support to continue services. Ms. Norman said that new standards would be coming from the national office in July. The focus of CIS is changing to align with what school systems are doing. These would be the best predictors of whether a student successfully graduates. She said they would be reviewing their services to decide which are most needed. 6/8/15 Lastly, Ms. Norman said she would be retiring and a new Director would be named soon. Mary Lisk would be the Board Chair and Robin Necci would become the Vice -Chair. She thanked the Commissioners for their continued support. Chairman Frye thanked Ms. Norman for her leadership and foresight of Communities in Schools and wished her well upon her retirement. Randolph Vocational Industries (RVI) Michael Ayers said that they have asked for $20,000 this year and realizes that only $15,000 has been included in the proposed budget. He said they appreciate the generosity of the County for what they've given each year in order to help keep people working. He said there are 29 people currently working at what is better known as the "sheltered workshop." Mr. Ayers asked that the Commissioners consider changes to the policy which requires them to provide a certified audit. Instead, he suggested they accept a certified review which would cut their costs in half, which has been one third of what the County gives them in funds. They have also suffered a reduction on production income and are struggling to meet expenses. He said the federal government may force them to begin paying minimum wage as well. Many workshops have closed due to the same struggles. He said RVI has held fundraisers to try to subsidize their needs. YMCA Cranford Knott, Randolph-AsheboroYMCA Chairman of the Board of Directors, invited and encouraged others to visit the YMCA to see the programs they offer. Patrick O'Hara, Director of the Randolph -Asheboro YMCA, stated that the facility has been active for 44 years and has something for all ages. He said they were able to raise $75,000 last year and gave out $125,000 in scholarships. Mr. O'Hara stated the YMCA has economic value for Randolph County. Companies can offer a reduced rate to their employees and possibly lower the company's health insurance costs. Members can also attend a variety of programs or lectures including lectures exercise, weight loss, and stress management. Mr. O'Hara said that the YMCA also provides locker rooms, showers and an indoor swimming pool for practice, regular season swim meets and a regional swim meet for five Randolph County and Asheboro High School swim teams. He said they have held Special Olympics events, youth sporting leagues and are practice facilities for Senior Games. Mr. O'Hara concluded by saying that he knows no other organization that touches as many lives as the YMCA does. They have over 20,000 individual visits per month and would like to continue to touch more lives and requested they consider their financial request. Family Crisis Center Dare Spicer, Executive Director of the Randolph County Family Crisis Center, thanked the Board for the many years of support. She said the amount requested helps provide critical positions for their agency that allow them to meet N.C. General Statute requirements for the Center. It also serves as a match for other grants. 6/8/15 Ms. Spicer reported the Center has served 2700 individuals (616 were children) who have been affected by domestic violence, family violence, and sexual assault this year. Although that seems high, she said it is good news because last year it was 3200 clients. In the past, Randolph County has been ranked first, second and third in the state in the number of clients served. The efforts made to educate the community have been successful. Ms. Spicer said the rate of returning clients this year, after initial protective order incident, was 6% and return to the shelter was 2%. She said that 399 women and children had been sheltered either at the Archdale or Asheboro emergency shelter. Ms. Spicer said, in regards to community education, the center provides intervention and prevention services in all of the schools and some businesses. They have been tracking specific focus groups in elementary schools, some of which are now in middle school, and results show that impacts are being made in those children's lives because of these programs; grades have improved grades and all around behavior. The Center is now sponsoring a S.A.D.D (Students Against Destructive Decisions) chapter for Randolph County. She thanked the Board for being a partner and asked the Board to approve their requested $41,000 to continue to fulfill their mission. Randolph County Senior Adults Dawn Gartman, Executive Director Randolph County Senior Adults Association, asked that the Board consider their request of $267,585 ($242,585 included in proposed budget), which is a 10% increase over the previous year, so that they may offer additional programs for older adults. With the help and support of the community, they opened up a new facility three times the size of the previous one. She stated that they are not only about providing meals, transportation, information assistance, counseling, or adult day care. They are working with RCC, government entities, and private businesses to develop programs to assist citizens in improving skills, either at low or no costs. They do have a business plan and would like to have the additional funds to get started on items included in it. Ulah Fire Department Robert Callicutt, President of the Ulah Fire Department Board of Directors, spoke concerning their current fire district tax rate and requested an increase to 7 cents (.07) from the .0610 they have had for thirteen years. Mr. Callicutt stated they have four stations, twelve trucks, and thirty-eight firefighters (four of which are full-time employees). They have had an increase in calls and expenses. There is a need to upgrade department equipment and firefighter's personal equipment. Commissioner Lanier thanked the Fire Department for their services and said they had been good stewards of their money. Julian Fire and Rescue Department Jeff Folwell, Julian Fire Chief, said the department began in 1971 and changed their charter to Julian Fire and Rescue Department in 2015 to reflect services they perform, which are stated in their charter. He said the days of having a volunteer fire department seem to be gone. He said 6/8/15 his department went to part-time paid positions in 2009 and is probably one of the lowest paying departments. They are requesting and increase from 10 (10) to 13 cents/$100 valuation (13). He reported they had also asked for an increase from Guilford County. The Julian department covers 50 square miles of Randolph County and 22 of Guilford. Chief Folwell then began to list items affecting their budget: • Increased call volume due to increased traffic on U.S. 421, N.C. 62, the railroad, and at the Julian airport. • Equipment replacement costs- The standard life of turn -out gear is 10 years and would like to keep replacing three sets every year. If they are not within those standards and someone was injured, they are liable for injuries or death. • Medical supply expenses- the costs of the medical supplies for bags have increased and most drugs are only good for a year. • A new auditor- they incurred additional costs when their prior auditor retired and had to contract with a new one. • An aging fleet that is costing the department more to maintain. • New Viper radios -They are paying on a loan that was given by Guilford County to purchase federally required new radios. He said they have managed to continue operations, but can't seem to dig out of the hole they have been in for almost five years. With additional funds they hope to increase the hourly rate to attract and retain full-time qualified firefighters. He reminded commissioners as they buy more land for the Greensboro -Randolph Mega Site through a nonprofit foundation that his district's tax base will decrease. He is concerned with the increase in traffic and their response times if an industry locates on the site. They possibly would no longer have access directly through the site and may require another station to be built to provide timely service to citizens on the northern side of the footprint and to also accommodate service to a large manufacturer and any ancillary businesses that may locate in the area. Chief Folwell said they have a station that is out of date, can only house 30 -foot trucks, and it has no sleeping quarters. He added that 30 -foot trucks are more expensive to purchase because the most common trucks are longer. They have discussed this location becoming a substation if a new one had to be built. Level Cross Fire Department Steve Russell, Level Cross Fire Chief, asked for a one cent increase from 11 cents (11) to 12 cents (12) / $100 valuation. He said his department saw an increase in call volume from 450 calls last year to 625 calls this year. The department's health insurance for the paid staff has increased due to the low volume of employees, even after shopping for the lowest rates. They do pay dental on those employees in hopes of retaining them. They currently have 27 volunteers and cover 14.5 square miles. Chief Russell said their 1960 brush truck is no longer working. Price for a new one is $85,000, but decided they will convert a pick-up truck for use as a quick response vehicle. He said that they were in need of a new fire truck during last year's request and reported they were 6/8/15 awarded a FEMA grant to allow for the purchase of the new fire truck with only $16,000 instead of the full $350,000 price. He thanked the Commissioners for their continued support. Westside Fire Department Recil Williamson, Chief of Westside Fire Department, handed out information that included a list of all the grants applied for and awarded, current grants awaiting decisions, department statistics and training from 2010-2014. He said the department has spent 4,739 hours on calls with 49 firefighters with an average of seven firefighters per incident, but total value saved in structures equaled $430,739.00 Chief Williamson asked for an increase from 10.33 cents (1033) to 12 cents (12). He cited they had been using fund balance to cover increased costs for equipment, personnel, and general operations. He said they need to replenish the fund balance again. Proposed Budget Public Hearing At 7:29 p.m., the Chairman opened the public hearing and invited citizens to speak concerning the proposed budget. Hearing no comments, Chairman Frye closed the public hearing. Discussion Chairman Frye thanked those that were in attendance for their interest in the budget process. He reminded the Board that positions, systems, and equipment had been requested from departments; schools had presented their needs, outside agencies and fire departments had made requests. He asked if there was any additional discussion about these requests. Hearing none, he reminded them of the June 15 meeting to adopt the final budget. Adjournment At 7:30 p.m., on motion by Kemp, seconded by Allen, the Board adjourned. Darrell L. Frye, Chairman Phil Kemp Stan Haywood David Allen Arnold Lanier Amanda Varner, Clerk to the Board 6/8/15