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HomeMy WebLinkAbout230131 OPEN MinutesBoard of County Commissioners of Washington County, Maryland Open Ses.fion Minutes January 31, 2023 MOMENT OF SILENCE AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE A moment of silence was observed, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage. CALL TO ORDER President John F. Barr called the regular meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County, Maryland, to order at 9:03 a.m. with the following members present: Vice-President Jeffrey A. Cline, Commissioner Derek Harvey, Commissioner Wayne K. Keefer, and Commissioner Randall E. Wagner. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Harvey, seconded by Commissioner Cline, moved to approve the minutes ofJanuary 10 and January 17, 2023. The motion passed unanimously. COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS Commissioner Clin.e attended both Maugansville and Clear Spring's Volunteer Fire Department banquets and thanked all staff for their service and what they do for the community. He also attended tbe Washington County Day in Annapolis event and thanked County staff for their hard work. Commissioner Wagner also attended Maugansville Fire Department's banquet. He also attended a mixer hosted by the Washington County Homebuilders' Association and reminded the Board that this years Home Show will be March 4-5, 2023. Commissioner Keefer attended the Clear Spring Fire Department banquet and thanked everyone for their service. Commissioner Harvey commended the local fire departments and thanked them for their service to the County. He praised the County's local law enforcement and commented on the recent police brutality in Memphis, Tennessee. Commissioner Barr attended both Maugansville and Clear Spring's Volunteer Fire Department banquets and added his own appreciation of their service, commenting on the many awards that were presented. He attended the Washington County Day in Annapolis, and commented on the upcoming bills that are to be presented during the upcoming legislative session. STAFF COMMENTS Kendall Desaulniers, Deputy County Attorney and lnterim Human Resources Director, presented the recommendation to approve the reclassification of the Office Associate position in Human Resources to Human Resources Technician. The Office Associate position would subsequently be terminated. Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Harvey, moved to approve the reclassification request as presented. The motion passed unanimously. Page 2 of 6 OPEN Session, January 3\, 2023 Leslie Hart, Agricultural Business Specialist, Business Development, provided an update as to the Faces of Farming's impact on social media. She also provided the Commissioners with tickets to the Groundhog Day event being held later in the week. Tom Brown, Jr., Director of Emergency Management, provided an update regarding the Automatic External Defibrillators (AED'1,) discussed at a previous Commissioner meeting. Since that discussion it was learned that while seventeen of the County's police cruisers are equipped with an AED, an approximate sixty-five more are needed to fully equip every cruiser. Mr. Brown advised that he would be looking into purchasing the needed AED's using funds from the State Homeland Security grant. He advised that Emergency Management would need to set up a multi-year project to obtain the number of AED's required, and presented the costs associated. Michelle Gordon, CFO, Budget and Finance Department, joined the discussion and advised that the County was recently awarded a grant that could be used towards the purchase. The Commissioners reached a consensus to revisit the matter as an agenda item during the next meeting. Susan Buchanan, Director, Office of Grant Management, provided an update on the County Surplus Funding Non-Profit Grant Program that was approved on October 25, 2022, to distribute the surplus funds that had been set aside to provide assistance to local non-profits serving Washington County citizens. The application for the grant was released to the public on November I 7, 2022, with a due date for submissions by December 20, 2022. The Office of Grant Management received 103 applications from eligible organizations requesting a total of $6.7 million dollars in funding. The total amount of unused surplus funds available is $1,831,447. A grant workshop will be held in March to score the applications received. Jonathan Horowitz, Director, Department of Business Development, presented the request to reach a consensus to send letters of oppositions to legislative officials in Annapolis regarding a bill that is aimed at the Enterprise Program that will be introduced in the upcoming legislative session. Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Keefer, moved to send letters of opposition as presented. The motion passed unanimously. R. David Hays, Director, Division of Emergency Services, requested consensus to apply for the Senator George C. Edwards fund for additional grant funding for the CIP buildout at the Washington County Safety Training Center. There are no County funds match required. Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Keefer, moved to approve the grant application and to accept any awarded funding as presented. The motion passed unanimously. Kirk C. Downey. County Attorney, and John M. Martirano, County Administrator, provided an update on the process to send letters of support for bills that will impact the County. County Administrator John Martirano presented the Board with a request from the Town of Boonsboro for a letter of support to Senator Paul Corderman to support funding for their wastewater infrastructure project, among other projects. Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Cline, moved to provide a letter of support to the Town of Boonsboro as requested. Page 3 of 6 OPEN Se~sion, January 3 \, 2023 Mr. Martirano advised that he also attended the Washington County Day in Annapolis and shared that the Governor is planning an upcoming visit to the County. He reminded the Board of the evening meeting to be held in Maugansville that evening. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION There were no citizens present who wished to participate. COMMUNITY LEGACY GRANT-APPROVAL TO ACCEPT A WARDED FUNDING Rachel Souders, Senior Grant Manager, Grant Management, and Jennifer Kinzer, Deputy Director, Planning and Zoning, presented the recommendation to approve acceptance of awarded funding from the Maryland Department of Housing & Community Development (DHCD) in the amount of $225,000, and to enter into a subrecipient agreement with Cascade Properties. LLC. for the rehabilitation of Building 305 as part of the Fort Ritchie Redevelopment Project. The Building will be used for non- residential purposes by providing a space for an artisan village to be established for local artists to showcase their work. The grant does not require any matching fund contribution from the County. Commissioner Keefer, seconded by Commissioner Wagner, moved to accept funding as awarded and to enter into a subrecipient agreement with Cascade Properties, LLC, as presented. The motion passed unanimously. 2801 NATIONAL PIKE SIDELING HILL HIGHWAY MAINTENANCE FACILITY Andrew Eshleman, Director, Public Works, and Todd Moser, Real Property Administrator, Engineering, presented a recommendation to accept the Maryland Department of Transportation's (MDOT's) offer to sell 2_26 acres of property located at 2801 National Pike in Hancock, Maryland, as shown on State Highway Administration's Plat 45840, and recorded in Liber 650, folio 492 for $14,029.98. Washington County is seeking fee simple ownership of the highway maintenance facility and salt dome structure on National Pike in Hancock, Maryland. Retaining use of the Sideline Hill National Pike maintenance facility is critical to County Highway operations. A fair market property value has been detennined by MOOT to be $98,550.00. If accepted, purchase and closing would occur prior to December 15, 2023. Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Harvey, moved to accept MDOT's offer of sale in the amount of $14,029.98 and to proceed with a Public Hearing on the matter. The motion passed unanimously. 2023 SENATOR AMOSS FUNDING DISTRIBUTION R. David Hays, Director, Emergency Services, presented a recommendation for the Division of Emergency Services to make notification of the grant award from the FY 2023 Senator William H. Amoss Fire, Rescue, and Ambulance Fund subsidy as outlined. The total fiscal year 2023 funding received by the County is $339,167.00. The Senator William H. Amoss Fire, Rescue, and Ambulance Fund is authorized in the Public Safety Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. The Maryland Emergency Management Agency is responsible for the program. Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Keefer, moved to authorize the Division of Emergency Services to make notification of the grant award as presented. The motion passed unanimously. Page 4 of 6 OPEN Session, January 31, 2023 MARYLAND 911 BOARD -REQUEST FOR APPROVAL TO ACCEPT A WARDED FUNDING Sheriff Brian Albert, Washington Cunty Sheriff's Office, and Nicole Phillips presented a recommendation to approve acceptance of grant funds in the amount of $56,640 from the Maryland 911 Board. The funding is for a CAD-to-CAD interface to develop software for compatibility with Maryland State Police. This pilot program for Washington County will allow connections between Washington County's CAD system and CAD systems in other jurisdictions for sharing of call and unit information. There are no matching fund requirements associated with the funding request. Commissioner Harvey, seconded by Commissioner Wagner, moved to accept the grant funds in the amount of $56,640 as presented. The motion passed unanimously. CLOSED SESSION Commissioner Wagner, seconded by Commissioner Cline, moved to convene in closed at 10:05 a.m. to discuss the appointment, employment, assignment, promotion, discipline, demotion, compensation, removal, resignation, or performance evaluation of appointees, employees, or officials over whom this public body has jurisdiction; or any other personnel matter that affects one or more specific individuals; to consult with counsel to obtain legal advice on a legal matter; to conduct or discuss an investigative proceeding on actual or possible criminal conduct; and to discuss cybersecurity, if the public body determines that public discussion would constitute a risk to: (i) security assessments or deployments relating to information resources technology; (ii) network security infonnation; or (iii) deployments or implementation of security personnel, critical infrastructure, or security devices, in accordance with Section 3-305(b) (I), (7), (12\ and (15) of the General Provisions Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. The motion passed unanimously. In closed session, the Commissioners discussed personnel matters and discussed a cybersecurity incident. Present during closed session were Commissioners John F. Barr, Jeffrey A. Cline, Derek Harvey, Wayne K. Keefer, and Randall E. Wagner. Also present at various times, were: John M. Martirano, County Administrator; Kirk C. Downey, County Attorney; and Michelle Priebe, Executive Assistant; Joshua O'Neil, Division Director, David Elliott, Deputy Director, Information Services; and Tom Brown, Jr., Director of Emergency Management. RECESS Evening Meeting at the Maugansville Ruritan Club 17008 Maugans Avenue Maugansville, Maryland 21767 MOMENT OF SILENCE AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE A moment of silence was observed, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage. CALL TO ORDER President John F. Barr called the evening meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County, Maryland, to order at 6:00 p.m. with the following members present: Vice- President Jeffrey A. Cline, Commissioner Wayne K. Keefer, Commissioner Randall E. Wagner, and Commissioner Derek Harvey. COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS Page 5 of 6 OPEN Session, January ~Ii, 2023 Commissioner Wagner thanked the people of Maugansville for hosting the evening meeting and greeted those that attended. Commissioner Cline shared fond memories of the pancake breakfasts he attended in Maugansville with his late father. He thanked the Maugansville and Clear Spring Volunteer Fire Departments for hosting recent banquets. Commissioner Harvey also thanked the people of Maugansville for having the Commissioners, and also thanked County staff that attended the meeting. Commissioner Keefer thanked Marty and Vicki Lumm for assisting in the coordination of the evening meeting and thanked all those who attended. Commissioner Keefer advised that his grandfather worked at Holsinger Meats in Maugansville and as a result he shared fond memories of the community. Commissioner Barr attended the Maugansville pancake breakfast that prior Saturday and thanked all who attended. CITIZEN'S PARTICIPATION Marty Lumm welcomed the Commissioners and introduced various individuals in attendance to the Commissioners. Mr. Lumm extended gratitude towards the Commissioners for the donation of playground equipment from the closed Winter Street school several years ago and shared a picture of the park where the equipment was placed. Mike Shafer shared concerns over a set of railroad tracks in poor condition. He also advised that the traffic circle near Cearfoss was formerly patrolled by law enforcement due to speeding concerns, but noted that there has not been a police presence for awhile and shared his concerns over safety. Joyce Randolph shared similar concerns regarding the safety of the traffic circle in Cearfoss, and other areas in the vicinity, where vehicle crashes occur due to speeding, improper lighting, and/or signs to wam of the sharp turns. She appreciated the Commissioners resuming the evening meeting so that citizens may have a say in local matters. Terry Hovermale questioned the Commissioners as to their opinions on the warehouses going up around the County. Leah Shafer questioned where citizens can view documentation regarding the comprehensive plan. She also noted the traffic and safety issues regarding tractor trailers using back roads to access Cearfoss Pike and asked if anything could be done to prevent them from having access to the back roads. Maria and Harry Wentzel added concerns over traffic safety and tractor trailers utilizing roads that are not big enough for said trucks to safely travel. Samantha Baldwin, a former librarian at the Washington County Free Library7 shared with the Commissioners staffing concerns at the local libraries due to high turnover rates. Ms. Baldwin shared Page 6 of6 OPEN Session, January 3\>, 2023 that there are several areas of concern within the local library system, including safety concerns and management. Sean Wynkoop addressed library administration and the management actions that have created an unsafe environment for employees of the library. Joyce Randolph seconded Samantha and Sean's concerns over the safety of the library staff. Dave Kirkman addressed concerns regarding road conditions and the manner by which maintenance funds are distributed to make needed repairs, Ben Ebersole echoed the concerns regarding traffic safety and excessive warehouses in the community. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Cline, seconded by Commissioner Wagner, moved to adjourn at 7:10 p.m. The motion passed unanimously.