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HomeMy WebLinkAbout030513 May 13, 2003 Hagerstown, Maryland The Commissioners attended the dedication of the Sheriff’s Department new patrol building at 8:30 a.m. The regular meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County, Maryland, was called to order at 8:30 a.m. by President Gregory I. Snook with the following members present: Vice President William J. Wivell and Commissioners James F. Kercheval, John C. Munson, and Doris J. Nipps. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Invocation was delivered by Commissioner Snook, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – MAY 6, 2003 Motion made by Commissioner Kercheval, seconded by Nipps, to approve the minutes of the meetings of May 6, 2003, as amended. Unanimously approved. COMMISSIONERS’ REPORTS AND COMMENTS Commissioner Kercheval reported on the meetings of the Planning Commission and Economic Development Commission. He informed the Commissioners that a letter had been sent to Governor Ehrlich regarding the appointment to the Board of Education. He stated that the Hagerstown Rotary Club is hosting a contingent from Korea this week. Commissioner Wivell stated that he attended the Lincoln Day dinner sponsored by the Republican Central Committee. He also reported on the PenMar Development Corporation (PMDC) meeting. Commissioner Wivell indicated that PMDC approved funding $10,000 toward the Business Development Specialist position. Commissioner Munson stated that he spoke with the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House regarding the runway extension project at the Hagerstown Regional Airport. He stated that they might be able to help with funding of the project. Commissioner Nipps reported on the meetings of the Historic District Commission meeting and the Commission on Aging. She stated that she attended the Senior Fair and the Lincoln Day dinner. Commissioner Nipps also noted that the Historical Advisory Committee met last week. Commissioner Snook distributed copies of the Annual Report of Foreign Trade Zone Boards for their review. He informed the Board that the State Highway Administration would begin construction on Alternate Route 40. Commissioner Snook provided information about the Citizen Planners Association through the Maryland Department of Planning. He also informed them that the Extension Office would begin its “Youth on the Board” training in the near future in an effort to get more youth involved on advisory boards in the County. Commissioner Snook stated that the Department of Natural Resources has approved Program Open Space monies for several projects in Washington County. He stated that he attended the annual meeting of the Washington County Homemakers Club and the Emergency Services Advisory Council meeting. CERTIFICATE OF MERIT – CINDY EICHELBERGER Commissioner Nipps presented Cindy Eichelberger with a certificate of merit in recognition of her Associate of Arts degree in Accounting and Business Administration and commended her for her dedication and perseverance. The Commissioners offered their congratulations on this accomplishment. Ms. Eichelberger thanked the Commissioners for the certificate and her co-workers for their support and encouragement. CITIZENS PARTICIPATION Don Allensworth informed the Commissioners that he would be appealing the City’s approval of water service for the Emerald Pointe development. Mr. Allensworth also commented on annexation and the proposed merger of City and County governments. MAY 13, 2003 PAGE TWO Ben Hart, Executive Director of the Hagerstown-Washington County Convention & Visitors Bureau, asked the Commissioners to consider implementing a 6% tax on the rental of sites for recreational vehicles and camping shelters at campgrounds. He indicated that the legislature passed legislation increasing the tax from 3% to 6% during the 2003 session. Commissioner Snook asked Mr. Hart for an estimate of revenue that would be generated by the tax. After discussion, the Commissioners took this request under consideration. COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR’S COMMENTS Rodney Shoop, County Administrator, informed the Commissioners that the April employee casual day raised $336 for the Maryland Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Association. APPROVAL OF OVERTIME FUNDS – NATIONAL PIKE FESTIVAL Motion made by Commissioner Wivell, seconded by Nipps, to approve funding from the Commissioners’ Contingency Fund to pay for overtime for Sheriff’s deputies to provide an escort for the National Pike Festival wagon train on May 16-18, 2003. Unanimously approved. APPOINTMENT – BOARD OF SOCIAL SERVICES Motion made by Commissioner Wivell, seconded by Nipps, to appoint John Miller to the Board of Social Services for a three- year term. Unanimously approved. RECESS – 30th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION AND LUNCHEON AT YOGI BEAR’S JELLYSTONE PARK The Commissioners recessed at 11:02 a.m. in order to attend a luncheon and the 30th anniversary celebration at Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park campground. AFTERNOON SESSION The afternoon session was called to order at 1:09 p.m. by President Gregory I. Snook, with the following members present: Vice President William J. Wivell and Commissioners James F. Kercheval, John C. Munson, and Doris J. Nipps. REQUEST TO FILL VACANCY – PART-TIME INMATE GUARD – HIGHWAYS DEPARTMENT Ted Wolford, Highways Superintendent, requested that the Commissioners approve his request to advertise to fill the Part- time Inmate Guard position at $10.50 per hour. Mr. Wolford stated that Inmate Guards supervise the inmate crews. The positions are filled by retired correctional guards and who work 40 hours per week every other week. He informed the Commissioners that it is a budgeted position. Motion made by Commissioner Munson, seconded by Wivell, to approve the request to fill the position of Part-time Inmate Guard at the Highways Department. Unanimously approved. REQUEST TO FILL VACANCY – PLANT OPERATOR III – WATER & SEWER DEPARTMENT Motion made by Commissioner Nipps, seconded by Kercheval, to approve the request to fill the vacant position of Plant Operator III (Grade 9) at the Water & Sewer Department. Unanimously approved. ADOPTION OF 2004 PROGRAM OPEN SPACE ANNUAL PROGRAM James Sterling, Director of Buildings, Grounds & Parks, met with the Board to present the fiscal year 2004 Program Open Space (POS) budget and to review the acquisition and development projects for the County and the municipalities. Mr. Sterling stated that the County’s FY 2004 allocation for FY 2004 is $415,328, which includes $15,675 in Land and Water Conservation Funds. Mr. Sterling reviewed the proposed annual POS program for acquisition and development that was approved by the Recreation and Parks Board. The Commissioners then discussed and approved the proposed projects. Motion made by Commissioner Nipps, seconded by Kercheval, to approve the FY 2004 Program Open Space program, as presented. Unanimously approved. MAY 13, 2003 PAGE THREE REVIEW OF FY 2004 PROPOSED BUDGET Debra Bastian, Director of Finance, met with the Commissioners to discuss the Fiscal Year 2004 budget and the testimony given at the public hearing held on May 6, 2003. The Commissioners then considered the various requests for funding that were made at the hearing. Ms. Bastian reviewed Draft #5 of the proposed budget, which transfers $124,000 from one-time costs to maintenance of effort in the Board of Education’s budget. The Commissioners agreed not to provide additional part-time wages as requested by the Election Board. They also agreed that the elimination of one position in the school health nurse program was an administrative decision made by the Health Department. The Commissioners requested that the Board of Education consider requesting legislation next year to allow an extension of the life of school buses. They also discussed potential State funding cuts in education and compared the funding level in FY 2002 to that proposed for FY 2003. The Commissioners asked the Board to consider averaging the number of buses needed over the next four years. William Blum, Chief Operating Officer, stated that nine buses would be needed each year for the next four years. Mr. Shoop stated that he would provide information next week on where the revenues for an additional bus could be found. Ms. Bastian then reviewed the Capital Improvements Program (CIP) budget as well as projected revenues and borrowing. Commissioner Snook asked the Commissioners to submit any questions they may have regarding the budget to Mr. Shoop this week in order to allow the staff time to address them so the FY 2004 budget can be adopted at next week’s meeting. DISCUSSION ON MORATORIUM The Commissioners continued discussions on the moratorium that was enacted on October 29, 2002 relating to new major residential subdivisions outside the County’s designated growth areas. The recitals in the Ordinance specify that it be reviewed after the passage of six months for the purpose of continuing the moratorium. Richard Douglas, County Attorney, stated that if the Commissioners take no action, then the moratorium would continue through October 2003. At this time, Commissioner Snook polled each of the Commissioners regarding their positions on the moratorium and Subdivision Text Ordinance SO-03-001. Robert Arch, Director of Planning & Community Development, stated that the text amendment would not be necessary if it is their decision not to repeal the moratorium. After discussion, it was the consensus of the Commissioners not to repeal the moratorium. They also agreed not to enact the subdivision text amendment. Commissioner Wivell recommended that a timeline be developed to consider the implementation of transferable development rights (TDRs), compensation for downzoning, and inclusion of school capacity guidelines in the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (APFO). Mr. Arch stated that he would schedule time on the agenda in June to review school capacity guidelines but that TDRs and compensation issues would take considerably longer to develop and may involve more than just the Planning staff. The Commissioners emphasized the need to stay on schedule with the zoning amendments, especially for the agricultural zoning. Commissioner Kercheval asked Mr. Arch to provide additional information on the eight major subdivisions that were in the pipeline when the moratorium went into effect, as well as consideration for immediate family members. Mr. Arch stated that he would schedule time on the agenda in the near future to review the information with them. PROPOSED EXCISE AND TRANSFER TAX RATE DISCUSSION The Commissioners reviewed the options presented for implementation of the excise and transfer tax. Robert Arch and Debra Bastian, Director of Finance, provided additional information for their review. Mr. Arch outlined a detailed breakdown of the number of building permits issued in Washington County in 2002, the types of permits, and a summary of the average number of permits issued each year over the last six years. He stated that 2002 was probably a record year for the number of building MAY 13, 2003 PAGE FOUR permits issued in Washington County. Mr. Arch also provided information on square footage of various types of housing. The Commissioners discussed the information provided as well as the findings from the Tischler study. They agreed that additional discussion of the information is needed and asked Mr. Arch to schedule time on next week’s agenda to allow them time to analyze the information. Ms. Bastian provided information from the State on transfer tax and recordation tax as well as a copy of the “Washington County Growth Management Act” legislation that was approved in the 2003 legislative session. She also provided information on projected revenues from the transfer tax at various levels. The Board took this under consideration. CONVENE IN CLOSED SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Wivell, seconded by Nipps, to convene in closed session at 4:31 p.m. to discuss a personnel matter, consult with staff about pending and potential litigation, consult with counsel to obtain legal advice, and consider a matter that concerns a proposal for a business or industrial organization to locate, expand, or remain in the State, in accordance with Section 10-508 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. Unanimously approved. RECONVENE IN OPEN SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Munson, seconded by Kercheval, to reconvene in open session at 5:06 p.m. Unanimously approved. In closed session, the Commissioners discussed a personnel matter, consulted with counsel to obtain legal advice on two (2) matters, consulted with staff about pending and potential litigation, and considered a matter that concerns a proposal for a business or industrial organization to locate, expand, or remain in the State. Present during closed session were Commissioners William J. Wivell, John C. Munson, James F. Kercheval, and Doris J. Nipps. Also present at various times were Rodney Shoop, County Administrator; Richard Douglas, County Attorney; John Martirano, Assistant County Attorney; and Joni Bittner, County Clerk. ADJOURNMENT Motion made by Commissioner Nipps, seconded by Wivell, to adjourn at 5:06 p.m. Unanimously approved. , County Administrator , County Attorney , Clerk