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Dare
Commissioners meeting summary from Nov. 19…WITH VIDEO
The first meeting of the month will be videotaped and shown on the Government Access Channel (Channel 20) on the following Wednesday at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.following each meeting. The second meeting of the month will be videotaped and shown on the Government Access Channel (Channel 20) on Wednesday at 1 and 7 p.m. following each meeting. For more information, call Dorothy Toolan, Public Relations Coordinator, at 252-475-5903.  The
Dare County Board of Commissioners met in a regular session at 5:00
p.m. on November 19, 2007 in the Dare County Administrative Annex in
Manteo. Commissioners present were: Warren Judge, Virginia Tillett,
Allen Burrus, Richard Johnson, Jack Shea and Max Dutton. Mike Johnson
was absent. Also present were County Manager Terry Wheeler
and County Attorney Bobby Outten. Chairman Judge called the meeting to
order. He called on Reverend Tom Wilson of All Saints Church to offer
prayer followed by the pledge of allegiance to the flag.ITEM 1 – PUBLIC COMMENTS No one came forward to speak. ITEM 2 – 2007 NC AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING VOLUNTEER SERVICE Five Dare County Volunteers received the NC Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service and each group and individual received an award and pin from Governor Easley’s office with a letter of recognition from Governor Easley. Bonnie Bennett, County Coordinator of the NC Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service and Brandi Rheubottom, Chair of the Awards Selection Committee presented the awards and pins. The Selection Committee was in attendance as well. The Medallion Award, new in 2007 was acknowledged and the Medallion Award recipient (Debra Tierney) was recognized as well. The five awards went to the following: Dare Respite Care Volunteers (Renate Macchirole), Monday Night Alive (Betty Selby), Warren Davis, John H. Tucker, Jr. and Debra Tierney. ITEM 3 – PROCLAMATION – NATIONAL ALZHEIMER’S MONTH – NOVEMBER Gail Sonnesso, Executive Director of GEM Adult Day Services, Inc. asked Commissioners to think of someone who has Alzheimers to put a face on the disease. She said the disease can hit anyone and GEM invites the community in to share laughter and tears with the GEM participants. She invited everyone to come and see the program and asked the Board to help her and GEM find a niche so the program may continue in a home setting rather than an institution. Following her presentation, County Attorney Bobby Outten read the proclamation for Alzheimer’s disease Awareness Month – 2007 and Commissioners adopted it as presented. ITEM 4 – BUDGET FOR ADMINISTRATION SITE UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANK (UST) REMEDIATION David Clawson, Finance Director, informed the Board that the County has been notified by the Underground Storage Tank Section (UST) of the NCDENR that the Midway UST site at the new Administration Building is currently eligible for UST Trust Fund funding for evaluation of the need for remediation procedures. (Actual remediation would also be eligible for UST Trust Fund funding if remediation is determined by the State to be necessary.) Commissioners voted to adopt the amendment to the Administration Building Capital Project Ordinance as presented to cover costs of $10,127 for the evaluation that must be performed within a 90 day state deadline. Mr. Clawson mentioned that he received a letter from the UST regarding locating the monitoring wells on the site and he may have to come back to the Board to make minor revisions depending on the outcome regarding this issue. ITEM 5 – REPORT FROM CIP COMMITTEE CONCERNING EOC / E911 AND CSI David Clawson, Finance Director, informed the Board that the Capital Improvements Committee met recently and asked him to present information about the Capital Improvements Plan to the full Board. He presented information regarding the Capital Reserve Fund Balance and the effect that the 800 MHz and the new EOC/E911 Center would have on the fund balance (see attached). He mentioned the other capital projects that have been considered but are not currently included and the associated operating costs for these projects. The new CIP process (2009) will begin in December and he is not sure why a project was considered outside the process. Chairman Judge said the Committee decided not to come to the Board with a recommendation but was unsure how to put this project ahead of projects that have been considered previously. Discussion was held and the Board decided that the County will not make a commitment at this time to move forward with a joint venture to locate a new EOC/E911 facility in conjunction with the Costal Studies Institute (CSI). The Attorney will draft a letter to Dr. Nancy White. The Board expressed concern about the 800 MHz project becoming an unfunded mandate from the federal government and the Attorney was asked to prepare a resolution expressing these concerns to federal and state representatives. ITEM 6 – UPDATE ON OREGON INLET BRIDGE Vice Chairman Burrus reported that in talking with Senator Basnight’s office and DOT, it seems that everything is on go. The DOT design team is working with various federal agencies to make sure the design is acceptable. The EIS is moving along fairly well. He hopes that things will begin to pick up speed and a new bridge will be in place before 2013. Chairman Judge shared some words that moved him recently. It was a presentation by the Outer Banks Scenic Byways Committee and the things that make the villages on Hatteras Island villages. He said that approximately 25% of the consumer taxing revenue comes from Hatteras Island (point of collection). The land value in Dare County that is taxed is roughly over 20% on Hatteras Island. If the bridge were shut down, it would be the death nail for Hatteras Island and it would affect the entire county in many different ways. It is time that we all understand that this is an issue for all of us in Dare County and northeastern North Carolina. He received a response from the NC Audubon that they will not give us the names of their donors and benefactors but they have invited the Board to meet to discuss how to move forward in harmony regarding the bridge. He asked everyone to support our elected leaders in Raleigh and Washington as they work to get permits so the bridge can happen. Everyone in Dare County must share the concern about how dire this issue is. ITEM 7 – CONSENT AGENDA Commissioners approved the Consent Agenda containing the following items: 1. Approval of Minutes 2. Amendment to Capital Project Ordinances for Manteo High School and Hatteras Secondary School 3. System Safety Program Plan (SSPP), NCDOT Public Transportation ITEM 8 – BOARD APPOINTMENTS AIRPORT AUTHORITY This appointment will be made at the next Board meeting. DARE COUNTY YOUTH COUNCIL Commissioners voted to appoint Kasey Rabar (to replace Mary Kat Keith) reappoint Tyler Reber, Kathy Kiddy, and Loretta Mihcael, and appoint Gail Hutchison (to replace Litany Murray) and appoint Luke McDonald (to replace Cory Smith), Lauren Martinez (to replace Mary Claire Hardy) and Hilary Netsch (to replace Michael Blanchard). No recommendation to replace Justin Farrow at this time. ITEM 9 – COMMISSIONERS’ BUSINESS Commissioner Richard Johnson – Asked for information on where we are going to go with Roanoke Island water issue. The Attorney said that nothing can be done through the formal elections process; it would have to be a more informal polling process. Information he received from Mosquito Control was very good. The County should have something in place to deal with nuisances. The Attorney has met with Planning Director to accomplish this goal. Vice Chairman Allen Burrus – He had the opportunity to attend the League of Women Voters substance abuse forum and he was pleased to be there. It was a very well run program. On Hatteras Island, thanked Meals on Wheels and Dare County employees that do a lot of work for the citizens. Many other things going on and he is thankful for what is happening there. Working Waterfronts money does not look like it will go for working waterfronts after all but will be used to assist fishermen. He is concerned and will contact Senator Basnight’s office. Regulations are part of the problem that fishermen are dealing with. He referred to a lawsuit that some local fishermen have filed. He has spent some time looking at the commercial fishing industry. It is huge. Our guys are struggling locally – A resolution will be presented for the Board’s consideration at the next meeting to address the direction of the state’s working waterfront initiative. He also wonders about the stormwater issue. We feel like the initial crisis is over, but we need to take steps to move forward to address this issue. The Attorney reported that Planning staff is working to move this forward. He congratulated Dare County Respite Caregivers, a countywide organization that has reached out to help people in a lot of different ways. He took a moment to talk about the S-curves. He is unsure how they continue to rent Serendipity (the house at the north end of Rodanthe). He asked the Planning Director to explain this process. It continues to stop traffic in and out of there and the situation needs to be handled. He thinks the state needs to condemn the house and buy the property to work something out. Vice Chairman Burrus then expressed frustration with the birds at Pea Island being gassed. This does not seem to fit with their program or with the views of the environmental groups. Commissioner Jack Shea – Congratulations and appreciation to the volunteers who received awards today. Also thanked caregivers of Alzheimers patients. Commissioner Max Dutton – Connor Winsted is soon to be an Eagle Scout and he has invited Board members to the Dedication Ceremony of the Dare County Commercial Fishermen’s Monument to he held December 1 at 3 p.m. at the Roanoke Island Welcome Center. The Monument is to commemorate fishermen and their heritage. Attended a Board of Education meeting at Kitty Hawk Elementary School and he appreciated the work of the geometry students there. He also spoke about the expansion of the More at Four program - for more information about the More at Four program, call Judy Hornbeck at 480-8888, ext. 1928. He mentioned a law regarding acts of violence that becomes effective December 1 to ensure safety of children in Dare County. He offered many thanks to the wonderful volunteers in Dare County Commissioner Virginia Tillett – The Thomas A. Baum Center will celebrate their 20th anniversary on Dec. 7 and she hopes everyone will attend. The Veterans Day Ceremony hosted by the Town of Manteo was very special because Frank and Linda Hester have gotten school children involved. They would like to come before the Commissioners to share their efforts to make children in Dare County aware of veterans. Basketball registration has been extended by Dare County Parks and Recreation. The OBX Marathon was a wonderful event and it brought a lot of people to the area. Congratulated all of the volunteers receiving awards today. She does not understand why Dare County does not have a sewer system. It is something that the Board needs to look into for the safety of citizens. She would like the Board to seriously consider this issue. Jerome Selby passed away recently. He worked over 20 years for Dare County. Chairman Warren Judge – The Affordable Housing Committee will meet on Tuesday, November 20 at 5:30 p.m. to move forward on the Bowsertown project. One last permit is needed for the Stumpy Point wastewater project. There is a meeting scheduled on December 5 in Washington, NC to try to work out details. On the agenda for December 3, Kevin Fitzgerald and a doctor from Chapel Hill will present the cancer initiative project to the full board. The OBX Marathon was an exciting weekend. The weather was wonderful this year, great crowd, great enthusiasm. Hundreds of volunteers have worked to make this happen, along with the towns. The volunteerism honored today is outstanding. ATTORNEY’S BUSINESS - Commissioners voted to approve the engagement letter with Holland and Knight, the attorneys representing Dare County in connection with litigation regarding ORV use in Cape Hatteras National Seashore. (See attached) He spoke about plans to bring state funding for channels 19 and 20 together to accomplish more for both the education and government channels. ITEM 10 – CLOSED SESSION – APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF LAST CLOSED SESSION Commissioners voted to go into closed session to approve the minutes of the last closed session. Following the closed session, Attorney Outten reported that the Board of Commissioners approved the minutes of the last closed session and took no other action. VIEW VIDEO CLIPS FROM THE MEETING 
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