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HomeMy WebLinkAbout951128November 28, 1995 Hagerstown, Maryland The Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of Washington County was called to order at 8:30 a.m. by the President, Gregory I. Snook, with the following members present: Vice President John S. Shank, and Commissioners Ronald L. Bowers, R. Lee Downey, and James R. Wade. 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. PROCLAMATION - NATIONAL HOME CARE MONTH Commissioner Downey presented Linda O'Hara, representing Home Call, with a proclamation naming the month of November 1995 as National Home Care Month in Washington County and urging all citizens to support the home care profession to provide safe, affordable and comfortable health care in the homes of our elderly and disabled. Ms. O'Hara thanked the Commissioners for the proclamation and furnished information on services provided by home health care. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - NOVEMBER 21, 1995 Motion made by Commissioner Downey, seconded by Shank, to approve the minutes of November 21, 1995, as submitted. Unanimously approved. COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS Commissioner Downey reported on the Salvation Army's Kettle Kick-off and the Restaurant and Beverage Association's Evening with Legislators. Commissioner Snook informed the Commissioners that the second income tax distribution (July - September) was received from the State and came in at $6,244,457 or $222,000 over the budgeted amount. Commissioner Wade reported on a meeting with the Federal Aviation Administration regarding airport issues and on the Municipal League meeting. BUDGET TRANSFER - BNR TESTING - WATER & SEWER DEPARTMENT Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Downey, to transfer $50,000 from the CIP Contingency to the Water & Sewer Department for the BNR test -study at the Conococheague and Nicodemus WWTP which will allow them to select the method to upgrade the plants to State standards by the year 2000. Unanimously approved. APPOINTMENTS - REGION II EMS COUNCIL Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Bowers, to approve the nominations to appoint Charles Bowler, Jr. and Lorna Christian to the Region II EMS Council. Unanimously approved. COMMISSION ON AGING - APPOINTMENTS Motion made by Commissioner Downey, seconded by Bowers, to appoint Robert C. Veil and Mrs. Edward Macon to the Commission on Aging for three year terms extending to January 1999. Unanimously approved. ADMINISTRATOR'S COMMENTS Rodney Shoop, County Administrator, reminded the Commissioners of the Chamber of Commerce pre -legislative forum on December 8. He stated that this meeting will be followed by the Commissioners' meeting with the Washington County Delegation to the General Assembly at 9:00 a.m. to discuss the County's legislative requests for 1996. The workshop meeting with staff to discuss core County services and long- range planning will begin at 11:00. Mr. Shoop informed the Commissioners that a meeting has been scheduled with the Board of Directors of Hagerstown Junior College on December 7th at 12:00 noon. The Commissioners asked to meet with staff at 11:00 prior to the meeting with the HJC Board of Directors to discuss the legislative packet to be presented to the Delegation on December 8. Mr. Shoop stated that the Commissioners' office will be holding a drop-in open house on the afternoon of December 22. Commissioner Downey asked that reminders be included in the payroll checks regarding the United Way campaign. He stated that the Commissioners may wish to discuss the possibility of using employee incentives during next year's campaign. CHILD SUPPORT DIVISION - TRANSFER TO DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES Ken Long, State's Attorney, and David Engle, Director of the Department of Social Services, met with the Commissioners to discuss the possibility of transferring NOVEMBER 28, 1995 MINUTES, CONT'D. the State's Attorney's Child Support Unit to the Department of Social Services under the State government. Mr. Long stated that they feel the operation could be run more efficiently if it is under one division's control. He advised the Commissioners that legislation would have to be introduced to have these employees taken in under the State's merit system. Mr. Engle noted that details would have to be worked out regarding the County -purchased equipment. He stated that the County could donate some of the savings it will realize in the first year for purchase of equipment or could transfer the equipment the staff is presently using to the Department of Social Services. The Commissioners discussed the matter and agreed to support the recommendation. The Commissioners also asked Mr. Engle to discuss the possibility of hiring a full-time attorney to handle the child support cases and other DSS cases instead of contracting for an attorney on a part-time basis. Mr. Engle agreed to discuss this recommendation at another time. Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Downey, to support the recommendation of the State's Attorney and authorize the submittal of legislation requesting the transfer of the employees in the Child Support Unit of the State's Attorney's Office to the Washington County Department of Social Services as State merit system employees and to transfer the assets in this division pending upon approval of the legislation. Unanimously approved. REAPPOINTMENT - WESTERN MARYLAND REGIONAL ADVISORY BOARD TO THE MARYLAND FIRE & RESCUE INSTITUTE Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Downey, to reappoint Jay Grimes to the Regional Advisory Board for the Western Maryland Fire & Rescue Institute as recommended by the Volunteer Fire & Rescue Association. Unanimously approved. RECOGNITION AS EMERGENCY SUPPORT SERVICES Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Shank, to officially recognize HAZMAT, the Air Unit, and Rehab Unit, as Emergency Support Services, as required by House Bill 144 to allow them to take advantage of the income tax subtraction Modification Law for Volunteer fire, rescue and emergency medical services personnel in the State of Maryland. Unanimously approved. PROPOSED FEE CHANGES - RECREATION PROGRAMS AND PARKS FACILITIES The Commissioners continued discussions of the proposed fee changes to recreation programs and parks facilities from last week's meeting. The Commissioners discussed the recommendation to increase the Summer Play Camp Fee from $12 to $15 2.50 per participant a week). Commissioner Wade stated that he would like this fee to be raised to $9.08 per week per participant, which is the "break even" cost for this program, and to use the scholarships currently in place for those who cannot afford to pay this fee. Motion made by Commissioner Wade, to raise the Summer Play Camp Fee to $9.08 per week. Motion died for lack of a Second. Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Downey, to approve the following fees changes for the Recreation Division: Summer Play Camp (per participant) - 6.00 per week for the 1996 session, $8.00 per week for the 1997 session, and to the "break even" cost in 1998; Aerobic Classes - $50 (Resident), $60 Nonresident); and Adult Ballet - $30 (Resident), $36 (Nonresident). Motion carried with Commissioners Bowers, Downey, Shank, and Snook voting "AYE" and Commissioner Wade voting "NO". Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Bowers, to approve the proposed fee changes for the Parks Division: Park Pavilion Fees - (Residents) $35, Nonresidents) $60; Arts Pavilion Fees - (Residents) $55, (Nonresidents) $80; Dance Pavilion - (Resident) $100, (Nonresident) $110; Wood Sales - $60/truck load; Swimming Pool Fees: K-12/grade - $1.75 daily, K-12 grade - $1.00 after 5:30 p.m.; Adults - $2.25 daily, Adults - $1.25 after 5:30 p.m. Unanimously approved. STREET ACCEPTANCE - WHITE OAKS SUBDIVISION Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Wade, to accept 685 linear feet of Treetop Drive and 1,380 linear feet of Israel Creek Court, located in the White Oaks Subdivision, with a one-year bond of $20,650. Unanimously approved. SPAY/NEUTER PROGRAM - TRANSFER OF OPERATIONS TO SPCA Shelley Moore, Director of the SPCA, and Marianne Schneider, President of the SPCA Board of Directors, met with the Commissioners regarding their proposal to operate the County's Spay/Neuter Assistance (SNAP) Program, which is currently operated NOVEMBER 28, 1995 MINUTES, CONT'D. by Angie Harsh, Chairman of the Animal Control Authority Board, and funded through the sale of dog licenses. The Commissioners reviewed the proposal submitted by Ms. Moore and asked that it be changed to require the recipient to have their dog licensed prior to providing the spay/neuter certificate. Ms. Harsh also reminded the Commissioners that $1,000 must be kept in the budget for livestock killed by dogs pursuant to State law. Commissioner Snook thanked Ms. Harsh for initiating and operating the spay/neuter program. Ms. Harsh stated that she feels she should have been kept better informed of the Commissioners' plans regarding this change. Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Bowers, to adopt the proposal submitted by the Washington County SPCA to operate the Spay/Neuter Assistance Program with the amendment that a dog must be licensed prior to issuance of the certificate. Unanimously approved. CITIZENS PARTICIPATION Charles Shindle commended County staff involved in last week's presentation regarding the Hopewell Road Industrial Area and also stated that he is opposed to the proposal to privatize the Economic Development Commission. ANIMAL CONTROL AUTHORITY - RECOMMENDATION Rodney Shoop, County Administrator, informed the Commissioners that the terms for three of the Animal Control Authority Board members have expired and asked the Commissioners if they wish to reappoint this Board or to appoint themselves as the Animal Control Authority. Richard Douglas, County Attorney, advised the Commissioners that a public hearing should be held if they do wish to amend the Ordinance. The Commissioners discussed the system to deal with administrative complaints and also whether or not it would be a conflict of interest to appoint the SPCA as the Animal Control Authority Board. Commissioner Downey asked Mr. Douglas to research this matter from a legal aspect and asked staff to examine the proposal and provide possible alternatives. TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT PLAN Jon Burkhardt and Jason Quan, representing EcoSometrics, appeared before the Commissioners to present the Transportation Development Plan for Washington County. Mr. Burkhardt said that the County has a transportation system to be proud of, however, they will be recommending some small service cuts and changes in staffing as a means of placing the system on a sound foundation. Mr. Burkhardt reviewed the results of an on -board survey which was taken as part of the study. He stated that 81% have no car available to them and 500 of the households make less than $10,000 per year. He indicated that 40% use the County Commuter to travel to work, 25% for shopping, and 15% for medical purposes. He also stated that 920 of the riders are satisfied with the service and 94% are satisfied with the drivers. Mr. Burkhardt provided projections through 1999 and recommended partial cuts in service. He provided a route -by -route comparison and stated his concerns with the Hancock route and the Boonsboro/Sharpsburg/ Keedysville route because of the small ridership and the proportion to the deficit of the system. Mr. Burkhardt provided the following summary of his recommendations: 1) Cut service on low -productivity routes, 2) cut low - productivity runs, 3) maintain staffing at reduced levels, 4) review maintenance and other staffing assignments, 5) implement an active marketing campaign, and 6) reduce the base fares to $1.00. He also provided other small scale recommendations regarding holiday service, advertising revenues, and distance - based fares. The Commissioners asked questions regarding the plan and reviewed the administrative changes which have been made at the Commuter. They also noted that there will be a public hearing regarding this recommendations at 7:00 p.m. this evening. TRANSPORTATION COALITION RECOMMENDATIONS Mr. Shoop informed the Commissioners that employees of the County Commuter formed the Transportation Coalition to help find ways to decrease costs of the bus system. Kelly Reynard, representative for the members of the Transportation Coalition, provided the Commissioners with the recommendations of the Coalition. He stated that the Coalition and the administrative staff be consolidated, that the runs be restructured, and asked that the Coalition be given the chance to make reductions. The Commissioners thanked the Coalition for their recommendations. LETTER OF SUPPORT - HAGERSTOWN AREA YOUTH SOCCER LEAGUE Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Shank, to send a letter to the United States Soccer Foundation in support of the Hagerstown Area Youth Soccer League's (HAYSL) request for grant funds. Unanimously approved. NOVEMBER 28, 1995 MINUTES, CONT'D. RECESS - SALVATION ARMY'S KETTLE CAMPAIGN The Commissioners recessed at 11:55 a.m. for lunch and to help ring bells for the Salvation Army's Kettle Campaign. AFTERNOON SESSION The Afternoon Session was convened at 1:00 p.m. by the President, Gregory I. Snook, with the following members present: Vice President John S. Shank, and Commissioners Ronald L. Bowers, R. Lee Downey, and James R. Wade. AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION CENTER - FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS Debra Bastian, Director of Finance, reviewed and summarized the funding request made by the Agricultural Education Center's Board of Directors at last week's meeting. She stated that the land abrogation costs are $23,815 which are included in the $41,063 remaining from an outstanding loan for the post frame building. She stated that the Board is asking for State matching grant funds of $350,000 and 335,000 for construction of two barns, restrooms, kitchen facilities, a maintenance building, and a horse barn. She stated that with an operating budget annualized at $25,000, the total request is for $751,063. Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Shank, to transfer $23,815 from the CIP Contingency Fund to pay the land abrogation costs for the purchase of the land from the University of Maryland for the Agricultural Education Center. Unanimously approved. Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Bowers, to approve using $50,000 of the remaining POS monies for the Multi -Purpose Building to have a kitchen put in the Multi -Purpose Building at the Agricultural Education Center. Unanimously approved. Motion made by Commissioner Bowers, seconded by Wade, to request that the Agricultural Education Center Board address and present a game plan regarding how they intend to pay operating expenses at the Center prior to any additional County funding being approved for operating costs. Unanimously approved. The Commissioners discussed the availability of POS funding and Ronald Kidd, Director of the Recreation & Parks Department, provided information on development and acquisition funds for FY 1997. REVISIONS TO GAMING RULES & REGULATIONS Kathy Sterling, Gaming Commission Coordinator, appeared before the Commissioners to review the proposed revisions requested to the Gaming Commission Rules and Regulations. Ms. Sterling reviewed each of the proposed revisions and answered the Commissioners' questions regarding the changes. Commissioner Bowers asked that the language be reviewed for the changes requested regarding delinquent State taxes to be certain it is worded correctly. Ms. Sterling reviewed the financial report for the Gaming Commission as of November 17, and stated that the year-to- date revenue in the Gaming Fund is $162,050 and the year-to-date revenue for the General Fund is $97,803.66. Motion made by Commissioner Wade, seconded by Bowers, to adopt the changes to the Gaming Rules and Regulations, as presented by the Gaming Commission Coordinator. Unanimously approved. CONVENE IN CLOSED SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Downey, seconded by Wade, to convene in Closed Session at 2:33 p.m., with regard to personnel matters, to consult with the County Attorney, and to consider businesses relocating in Washington County, in accordance with Section 10-508 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland. Unanimously approved. Commissioner Bowers was excused from the Meeting at 2:55 p.m. RECONVENE IN REGULAR SESSION Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Wade, to reconvene in Regular Session at 4:29 p.m. Unanimously approved. In Closed Session the Commissioners discussed five (5) personnel matters, consulted with the County Attorney on four (4) legal matters, and discussed seven 7) economic development and land matters. NOVEMBER 28, 1995 MINUTES, CONT'D. APPOINTMENT OF COUNTY ATTORNEY Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Wade, to appoint Richard W. Douglas as County Attorney retroactive to November 21, 1995. Unanimously approved. TRANSIT/ROADS DEPARTMENT - PERSONNEL TRANSFERS Motion made by Commissioner Shank, seconded by Wade, to promote Rick Curry to the position of Transit Supervisor, to transfer Jack Reynard to replace Mr. Curry in the position of Assistant Shop Supervisor at the Roads Department, and to transfer Kelly Reynard to the position of Assistant Shop Supervisor at the County Commuter. Unanimously approved. RECESS The Commissioners recessed at 4:40 p.m. EVENING SESSION - PUBLIC HEARING REGARDING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR REDUCTIONS IN SERVICE TO THE COUNTY COMMUTER BUS SERVICE The Evening Session was called to order at 7:00 p.m. in Court Room No. 1 by the President, Gregory I. Snook, with the following members present: Vice President John S. Shank, and Commissioners R. Lee Downey and James R. Wade, in order to hear testimony regarding recommendations in service to the County Commuter Bus Service. Commissioner Ronald Bowers arrived at the hearing at 7:30 p.m.) Commissioner Snook stated that recommendations were presented today by EcoSometrics as part of the Long -Range Transportation Plan. He said that it is a requirement of the Federal government to have this study every 5 years. Rodney Shoop, County Administrator, stated that the key objectives are to provide "right size" public transit services to serve citizens, to increase effectiveness and efficiency, provide a better value for use of public funds, and respond to changing circumstances. He provided an overall assessment of the County Commuter system and stated that the main problem is that operating costs are increasing as government funding is decreasing. Mr. Shoop stated that possible solutions being considered are as follows: cutting services on low -productivity routes, adjusting times of service, restructuring routes, reducing administrative costs, not providing service on selected holidays, selling used buses, increasing marketing and advertising, reducing fares to $1.00 to increase ridership, and considering distance based" fares for longer routes. At this time Commissioner Snook opened the hearing for public comment. After all testimony was heard, it was announced that the record will remain open for two weeks to allow additional testimony to be submitted in writing. The hearing was adjourned at 8:38 p.m. County Administrator County Attorney December 5, 1995 Hagerstown, Maryland The Regular Meeting of the Board of County Commissioners of called to order at 8:30 a.m. by the President, Gregory following members present: Vice President John S. Shank, an L. Bowers, R. Lee Downey, and James R. Wade. Clerk Washington County was I. Snook, with the d Commissioners Ronald INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Invocation was delivered by Rodney Shoop, County Administrator, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag by the full assemblage. NOVEMBER 1995 YOUTH OF THE MONTH AWARD - JAMIE MILES Commissioner Shank presented a Certificate of Merit to Jamie Miles in recognition of being selected as the Youth of the Month for November 1995 by the Washington County Children's Council. Commissioner Shank listed Jamie's activities and accomplishments and commended her for being a superior role model for all our youth. Ms. Miles thanked the Commissioners for the award. INTRODUCTION OF NEW COUNTY EMPLOYEE - KIM EDLUND Debra Bastian, Director of Finance, introduced the Commissioners to Kim Edlund who is the new Assistant Director of Finance in the Budget and Finance Offices. Ms. Edlund transferred from the Water & Sewer Department to accept this position. COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS Commissioner Shank reported that the Washington County Hospital is now contracting for the services of anesthesiologists and that some local anesthesiologists may lose their Hospital privileges if not hired by the new company. Commissioner Bowers read correspondence from a member of the Convention & Visitors Bureau Board citing his satisfaction with the representation of the Commissioners and the new CVB Board. He also stated that he received letters from Clear Spring Elementary School students requesting air conditioning in their school. Commissioner Bowers said that he will be attending a meeting at the Maryland School of Technology next Tuesday morning and will be late in arriving to the Commissioners' Meeting. Commissioner Downey reported on the Maryland Association of Counties Winter Conference. WASHINGTON COUNTY 4-H CLUB PRESENTATION 4-H Ambassadors Ryan Downey, Courtney Smith, Jay DeBaugh, Heidi Drury, and Tia Waltemire, appeared before the Commissioners to emphasize the importance of 4-H Clubs and agriculture in Washington County. They also thanked the Commissioners