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HomeMy WebLinkAbout930119 January 19, 1993 Hagerstown, Maryland 21740 The Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by the President, Richard E. Roulette, with the following members present: Vice President Ronald L. Bowers, and Commissioners Linda C. Irvin-Craig, John S. Shank, and Gregory I. Snook. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Invocation was delivered by Commissioner Bowers, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage. BOARD/COMMISSION REPORTS Commissioner Irvin-Craig reported on the meeting last week in Hancock, the Task Force on Homelessness meeting, the Commission for Women meeting, and the open house held for the new pilots' lounge. AREA AGENCY ON AGING - CHANGE IN TERMS Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Bowers, to approve the recommendation of the Washington County Area Agency on Aging Advisory Council to amend the expiration date on the terms of the following members to comply with the membership requirements: William Frentz, Ida Jo Martin, and Raymond Hahne -expiration date January 1994; Darlene Cooper, Sally Fost, and Thelma Coffman - expiration date January 1995; Robert Hogan, Sr. and James Miller - expiration date January 1996. Unanimously approved. APPOINTMENT - TRANSPORTATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Shank, to appoint Donald Self to the Transportation Advisory Committee representing the railroad system to replace Beverly Blevins, who did not accept the appointment. Unanimously approved. DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES - GRANT APPROVAL Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Bowers, to accept a State Department of Human Resources' grant in the amount of $10,000 to be used to correct health and safety code violations at Community Action Council and Salvation Army shelters. Unanimously approved. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - JANUARY 12, 1993 Motion made by Commissioner Irvin-Craig, seconded by Shank, to approve the minutes of January 12, 1993, as corrected. Unanimously approved. BLOODBORNE PATHOGENS EXPOSURE CONTROL PLAN Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Irvin-Craig, to adopt the policy on Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Control as presented by the Director of Personnel to comply with recent OSHA regulations. Unanimously approved. RZ-92-6 - TEXT AMENDMENT Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Irvin-Craig, to approve Text Amendment RZ-92-6 to add a new section 4.20 to the Zoning Ordinance, as presented at public hearing. Unanimously approved. CONVENE IN EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Irvin-Craig, seconded by Snook, to convene in Executive Session at 9:49 a.m. with regard to property matters and to confer with the County Attorney to obtain legal advice, in accordance with Section l0.508 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. Unanimously approved. RECONVENE IN REGULAR SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Irvin-Craig, to reconvene in Regular Session at 10:01 a.m. Unanimously approved. FIRE & RESCUE STANDARDS - WASHINGTON COUNTY VOLUNTEER FIRE & RESCUE ASSOCIATION Phil Ridenour, Standards Committee Chairman, and Ronnie Jeter, President of the Washington County Volunteer Fire & Rescue Association, reviewed the standards for volunteer fire and rescue companies in the County which were approved by the Association. Mr. Ridenour asked that the Commissioners formally adopt these standards as the standards for the County. The Commissioners suggested that a time period be established to allow companies the time to come into compliance and asked the Standards Committee to outline the mechanics of the enforcement procedures. JANUARY 19, 1993 MINUTES, CONT'D. Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Irvin-Craig, to adopt the standards presented by the Washington County Volunteer Fire & Rescue Association Standards Committee for volunteer fire and rescue companies in Washington County. After discussion, the Commissioners agreed to amend the Main Motion to include the requirement that this is conditioned upon a satisfactory resolution regarding the mechanics of the enforcement procedures and a term to allow companies to come into compliance with the standards. The Motion as amended was unanimously approved. MARYLAND VETERANS' COMMISSION - USE OF COUNTY FACILITIES Dale Mongold, President of the Joint Veterans' Council, presented Certificates of Appreciation to the Board of County Commissioners and Barry Teach, County Administrator, to thank them for donating office space in County facilities to allow a representative from the Maryland Veterans' Commission to meet with area veterans and offering the services of the County's Disabled Citizens Coordinator. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SERVICES - PRIVATIZATION Rod McRae, Director of the Environmental Health Division at the Health Department, met with the Commissioners and presented a status report on the services which would be involved if privatization of this Division was required. The Commissioners stated that they are satisfied with the Environmental Health Division's programs and the way they are administered but would have to consider privatization as an option of the State would cease funding. Mr. McRae stated that he would like to see the County maintain control of as much as possible over environmental matters. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Donald Allensworth thanked the people involved in the rezoning case on Walnut Point Road and stated that he feels the Planning Commission should find that the case was withdrawn with prejudice. Terry Hepburn asked the Commissioners to consider extending liability coverage on the corridor from the Board of Education property to Ft. Tonoloway if the State leases the park to the County, so environmental aspects of the ground can be incorporated into the school curriculum. Ed French asked the Commissioners if they are having a bill drafted to include the provision for a public hearing in the Department of the Environment's application process for sewage sludge permits. Commissioner Roulette informed him that the Commissioners have sent a letter to the Delegation to the General Assembly requesting it to amend the law to provide for a public hearing. RECESS - LUNCHEON & MEETING WITH TOWN OF HANCOCK The Commissioners recessed at 11:28 a.m. to travel to the Town of Hancock to meet with the Mayor and Council. After lunch, the Commissioners met with Hancock Mayor, James Myers, and Council members Sally Fost, Gerald Shaw, John Shepherd, and Louis Close. Barry Teach, County Administrator, announced that pursuant to Article 81, Section 32 of the Annotated Code of Maryland, the Commissioners are required to meet annually with each municipality regarding tax differential or payment-in-lieu of services. Mr. Teach stated that for Fiscal Year 1992-93 Hancock is estimated to receive $34,798, which will be adjusted based on audited expenditures. Robert Davenport, Director of Solid Waste Management, addressed the mandate from the State of Maryland that the County close the Hancock Landfill when the operating permit expires on March 30, 1993. Mr. Davenport indicated that the State agreed to give a 30-day extension if the County is making progress to close the facility. He explained that the County is planning to construct an area for a greenbox facility for residential use at this site to serve the area, but the Town and commercial establishments will have to haul its refuse to the Resh Road facility. The Town discussed issues to be resolved and possible alternate sites for the new facility and agreed to negotiate with the Town on fees since they will be using the Town's property. At 1:30 p.m., the group moved to the Hancock Community Center to meet with residents of the Town who have concerns to discuss with the Commissioners. Since there were no residents at the Community Center, the Commissioners continued the discussion regarding closing the landfill in Hancock. The meeting was recessed at 2:05 p.m. to return to the County Administration Building. JANUARY 19, 1993 MINUTES, CONT'D. CONVENE IN EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Bowers, to convene in Executive Session at 2:50 p.m. with regard to personnel matters and to confer with the County Attorney to obtain legal advice, in accordance with Section l0.508 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. Unanimously approved. RECONVENE IN REGULAR SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Irvin-Craig, to reconvene in Regular Session at 3:33 p.m. Unanimously approved. WAGE & SALARY STUDY - CONSULTANT SELECTION Motion made by Commissioner Irvin-Craig, seconded by Bowers, to approve the recommendation of the Coordinating Committee to hire the Singer Group, Inc., who submitted the low proposal of $13,890 to perform the specified Wage and Salary Study. Unanimously approved. MEETING WITH BOARD OF EDUCATION The Commissioners met with Board of Education members B. Marie Byers, Barbara Stansberry, E. Kenneth Grove, Janice Cirincione, and Thomas Berry. Also in attendance were Dr. Wayne Gersen, Superintendent of Schools, and Wayne Stouffer, Director of Finance, for the Board of Education. Dr. Gersen reviewed the cuts the Board of Education has made and their impact on the services to the students. Mr. Stouffer presented the staff's recommendation on where the Board could cut the additional $163,000 the Commissioners have requested to offset the State's reduction in Social Security tax payments. Each of the Board members commented and agreed to cooperate with the Commissioners but noted the impact this would have on their budget. The Board also reviewed the Student Success accomplishments in 1991-92. The Commissioners then discussed the Board of Education's budget and received status reports on the North High and Paramount Elementary renovation projects. Mr. Stouffer also reviewed the early retirement incentive the Board of Education is offering to employees. ADJOURNMENT Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Snook, to adjourn at 4:40 p.m. Unanimously approved. County Attorney , Clerk