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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12.03.1991 December 3, 1991 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, Gregory I. Snook, and John S. Shank. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Invocation was delivered by Commissioner Roulette, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage. BOARD/COMMISSION REPORTS Commissioner Irvin-Craig reported on the Alcohol & Drug Abuse Advisory Council meeting and suggested that their by-laws be reviewed as to term limitations. She also reported on the trip to Montgomery County to tour developments which include moderately priced dwelling units. Commissioner Bowers reported on the Planning Commission meeting and their discussion of the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance as it pertains to County roads standards; Commissioner Snook reported on the United Way Budget and Allocations Committee meeting; and Commissioner Shank reported on the Mental Health Advisory Committee meeting. REAPPOINTMENTS - ALCOHOL & DRUG ABUSE ADVISORY COUNCIL Motion made by Commissioner Irvin-Craig, seconded by Snook, to reappoint Mary Ann Day, Elizabeth Misner, Emmert Stains, and Harry Hager, to the Joint Alcohol and Drug Abuse Advisory Council for three year terms. Unanimously approved. PUBLIC HEARING - AGRICULTURAL LAND PRESERVATION DISTRICTS TheCommissioners convened the public hearing at 9:30 a.m. to consider applications for establishment of Agricultural Land Preservation Districts. Eric Seifarth, Associate Planner - Agriculture, presented each of the applications and stated that all of them have been approved by the Agricultural Land Preservation Advisory Board and the Planning Commission, are outside the Urban Growth Area, and do not have access to water or sewer service. AD-9l-5l - submitted by Menno Martin for 85.9 acres with 80.9% Class I, II and III qualifying soils. There was no one present to speak in favor of or in opposition to the application. MOTION made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Shank, to approve Application AD-9l-5l, submitted by Menno Martin, for establishment of an Agricultural Land Preservation District, as presented. Unanimously approved. AD-9l-53 - submitted by Millard D. Keefauver, Jr., Millard D. Keefauver III, and W. Neill Keefauver, for l67 acres located in the AO Zone, and AD-9l-54 submitted by Millard D. Keefauver, Jr., for ll4 acres located in the AO-l Zone. There was no one present to speak in favor of or in opposition to the applications. MOTION made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Bowers, to approve Applications AD-9l-53 submitted by Millard D. Keefauver, Jr., Millard D. Keefauver III, and W. Neill Keefauver, and Application AD-9l-54 submitted by Millard D. Keefauver, Jr., for establishment of Agricultural Land Preservation Districts, as presented. Unanimously approved. MOTION made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Shank, to bring Application AD-9l-ll back onto the Table for discussion. Unanimously approved. The Commissioner discussed Application AD-9l-ll, which was submitted by Roger Buhrman, for establishment of an Agricultural Land Preservation District. Commissioner Roulette stated that the County is waiting for certification from the State Assessment Department on the number of acres located in Washington County. Mr. Seifarth informed the Commissioners that the State Assessment offices in Frederick County and Washington County must have a directive from the County Commissioners before they will certify if the parcel is in fact in Washington County. MOTION made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Shank, to approve Application AD-9l-ll, submitted by Roger Burhman, for establishment of an Agricultural Land Preservation District conditioned upon receiving certification from the State Assessment Office located in Frederick County that the parcel is located in Washington County. Unanimously approved. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - NOVEMBER 22, 1991 Motion made by Commissioner Irvin-Craig, seconded by Bowers, to approve the minutes of November 22, l99l, as submitted. Unanimously approved. DECEMBER 3, 1991 MINUTES, CONT'D. BID AWARD - HAULING OF LEACHATE Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Bowers, to award the bid for hauling of leachate from the County Landfill to A.C.& T. Co., Inc., who submitted the low unit price/gallon. Unanimously approved. PRESENTATION TO COUNTY COMMUTER Nancy Riegler, Western Maryland Regional Representative from the Mass Transit Administration, Diane Ratcliff of the Mass Transit Administration, and Olivia Payne, representing the Transportation Association of Maryland, appeared before the Commissioners to present the County Commuter with the Fixed Route Transit System of the Year Award. Ms. Riegler commended the County Commuter for its caring drivers and staff, satisfied customers, contributions to the community, efficient service, innovative marketing, outstanding safety program and excellent maintenance program. Keith Godwin, Manager of the County Commuter, accepted the trophy on behalf of the drivers and maintenance and administrative staff. Commissioner Roulette commented that this is quite an honor for Washington County and commended Mr. Godwin and his staff. BOARD OF EDUCATION - BUDGET REDUCTION Dr. Wayne Gersen, Superintendent of Schools, and Wayne Stouffer, Director of Finance, met with the Commissioners as requested at last week's meeting to discuss where reductions will be made if the Commissioners adopt the recommendation to cut $l.5 million from the Board of Education budget. Dr. Gersen explained that they are proposing no furloughs of personnel at this time and are not proposing any negotiations with classified employees. They will be reopening negotiations to "roll back" the increases provided to teachers and administrative and support staff and are freezing all expenditures. Commissioner Snook also asked questions regarding the deficit in their insurance fund. Mr. Stouffer related changes made in the program to address the problems and stated that they will be assessing the results at the end of the fiscal year. The Commissioners thanked the Board of Education for the manner in which they are dealing with the situation and feel they are making a sincere effort to come up with solutions to budget problems. PROPOSED FIRE & RESCUE EQUIPMENT STANDARDS Russ Grimm, President of the Volunteer Fire & Rescue Association, and Greg Socks, Chief of the Hazardous Incident Response Team, appeared before the Commisisoners to ask that the County Commissioners adopt the equipment standards which were adopted by the Association. Mr. Grimm stated that would only apply to new pieces of apparatus and would not be retroactive. He also stated that each department has received a copy of the proposal and has been approved by the Chief Officers Committee. The Commissioners indicated that they need to review the material further before making a determination and questioned whether the standards include non-essential equipment which would elevate the cost. After discussion, the Commissioners decided to take this under advisement at this time and Commissioner Roulette asked that they include enforcement procedures in the standards. The Commissioners then requested that a policy be considered standarizing the number of vehicles which respond to an incident. BID OPENING - MAUGANS AVENUE EXTENDED Bids for construction of Maugans Avenue Extended were publicly opened and read aloud. Firms participating in the bidding and their proposals were as follows: Wolfe Brothers, Inc. - $854,383.20; E. F. Goetz and Sons - $946,667.60; Charles E. Brake Co. - $853,084.70; D. L. George & Sons - $l,ll8,755.9l; Fayetteville Contractors - $774,955.45; and C. William Hetzer Co. - $892,6l2.29. The bids will be reviewed by appropriate officials prior to a decision being rendered. (Decision rendered later in this Session.) CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Albert Roelkey expressed his concerns regarding the prices for treatment of septage waste. He stated that the price of treatment is cheaper in Frederick County than at the Nicodemus Plant in Williamsport and also that haulers from West Virginia can transport from Maryland back to West Virginia for application and not pay the costs the Maryland haulers must pay for treatment. Mr. Roelkey felt that out-of-State haulers should be licensed to work in Maryland. Charles Wiles appeared before the Commissioners to express concerns regarding the Alsatia Club banning animals from the parade and his opinion that the County government should not contribute funds toward the parade. The Commissioners took this matter under advisement. DECEMBER 3, 1991 MINUTES, CONT'D. RECESS - LUNCHEON AT DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES The Commissioners recessed at ll:55 a.m. in order to attend a luncheon at the Department of Social Services. AFTERNOON SESSION The Afternoon Session was convened at l:30 p.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. GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS - RESOLUTIONS Cheryl Guth, representing Smith, Somerville and Case, the County's Bond Counsel, met with the Commissioners to present two resolutions for their approval and execution. Ms. Guth explained that one Resolution would authorize and empower the County Commissioners to issue and sell, upon its full faith and credit, $l2,680,000 in principal amount, subject to adjustment, of serial maturity, general obligation, fully registered bonds to be designated "Washington County, Maryland Consolidated Public Improvement and Refunding Bonds of l99l", and the second is a Resolution to consolidate the l985 bond issue and refinance at a lower interest rate. Ralph France, County Attorney, stated that he has reviewed the documents and they are in order. In answer to the Commissioners' questions, James Young, Director of Finance, indicated that the County's Financial Consultant has estimated that the total savings on refinancing of the l985 bond issue is $200,000 with an initial savings of $400,000 in that a debt service payment will not be due in Fiscal Year l992. Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Shank, to approve the two Resolutions presented by Bond Counsel designated for "Washington County, Maryland Consolidated Public Improvement and Refunding Bonds of l99l." Unanimously approved. (Copies of executed Resolutions are attached.) COUNTY COMMUTER - PROPOSED REDUCTIONS Keith Godwin, Manager of the County Commuter, met with the Commissioners regarding the $62,000 shortfall in their budget and adjustments recommended to make up this deficit. Mr. Godwin stated that they have surveyed routes and are proposing to cut trips which have the lowest ridership. He reviewed possible routes to be cut which, along with the proposed closing of 4 additional holidays, would have a total annual savings of $88,273.98. He also stated that this recommendation has been approved by the Transportation Commission for submittal to the County Commissioners. The Commissioners agreed to have a public hearing scheduled for the proposed route cuts. Mr. Godwin also distributed a list of drivers and workers who have offered to donate a day without pay to work at the County Commuter. The Commissioners asked that a time be scheduled to present these employees with Certificates of Merit. CONVENE IN EXECUTIVE SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Snook, to convene in Executive Session at l:50 p.m. in regard to property matters and to perform annual personnel evaluations, pursuant to 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 Bowers, to reconvene in Regular Session at 3:05 p.m. Unanimously approved. EMPLOY - SALES DIRECTOR - CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Bowers, to employ Stephanie Johnson as Sales Director for the Visitors & Convention Bureau, with the condition that she relocate to Washington County within a one year period at which time the Board will review the situation. Unanimously approved. EMPLOY CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU COORDINATOR Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Shank, to employ Nancye Messore as Coordinator at the Convention and Visitors Bureau to fill an existing vacancy. Unanimously approved. BUDGET REDUCTIONS - APPROVAL Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Snook, to approve the recommendations made by the County Administrator, and Director of Finance, to reduce the budget by $2.3 million with further decisions to be made on where the specific cuts will be made. Unanimously approved. MAUGANS AVENUE EXTENDED - BID AWARD Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Snook, to award the bid for Maugans Avenue Extended to Fayetteville Contractors, who submitted the low bid DECEMBER 3, 1991 MINUTES, CONT'D. of $774,955.45, but to approve the amount budgeted of $760,000 for the project and to see if a lower price could be negotiated with the contractor if the County Roads Department performed a portion of the work to reduce the cost. Unanimously approved. ESTABLISHMENT OF POLICY - BOARDS & COMMISSIONS Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Snook, that the Board of County Commissioners establish a policy pursuant to which members of boards and commissions, the membership of which is appointed by the Board of County Commissioners, are required to be residents of Washington County during the term of their office and should any member of a board or commission, the membership of which is appointed by the Board of County Commissioners, move from Washington County during the term of their office, it would be the policy of the County Commissioners that the individual's resignation be requested, and that this policy take effect immediately but not retroactively. Motion made by Commissioner Bowers to TABLE the original motion until next week's meeting to give the County Attorney time to review it. Motion died for lack of a Second. The Commissioners discussed the process of appointing members to various boards and commissions and possible factors to consider in adopting this policy. Motion made by Commissioner Bowers to TABLE the Original Motion until the technicalities can be resolved. Motion died for lack of a Second. Commissioner Roulette suggested that the County Attorney draft appropriate language for the policy before adopting the motion. Commissioner Shank withdrew his Original Motion. Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Bowers, to adopt in concept a residency requirement for County appointed boards and commissions and to have the County Attorney draft an appropriate policy and make necessary revisions, to be brought back in final form for adoption by the Commissioners at the meeting on December l0, l99l. Unanimously approved. Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Snook, that it be the policy of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County that each member of the Board appoint one person to each of the following boards and Commissions: Washington County Regional Airport Commission, Planning Commission, Board of Zoning Appeals, Parks and Recreation, Transportation Commission and Economic Development Commission. Motion made by Commissioner Snook, seconded by Irvin-Craig, to TABLE the original motion for one week. Unanimously approved. PROCLAMATION - PEARL HARBOR DAY The Commissioners adopted a proclamation naming December 7, l99l, as Pearl Harbor Day in Washington County in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and resolving that this day be consecrated to the memory of those who gave their lives to preserve the freedom of the United States. ADJOURNMENT Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Bowers, to adjourn at 3:51 p.m. County Attorney , Clerk