Commissioners to meet Monday, June 1

The Johnston County Board of Commissioners will meet twice on Monday, June 1.

On the Board’s 10 a.m. agenda are:

• A public hearing on County Manager Rick Hester’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-27. Under the proposal, the County’s property tax rate would remain at 52 cents per $100 valuation, and the fire service tax would stay at 11.5 cents. At the same time, the budget would give the public schools $113 million for operations and another $3.5 million for capital needs. Johnston Community College would receive just over $10 million for operations and $1.2 million for capital. Although department heads requested 30-plus new hires for the year ahead, the proposed spending plan includes just four, all in Public Utilities, where revenue comes from water and sewer sales, not tax dollars. Commissioners on Monday expect to hear funding pitches from the schools and several nonprofits.
  
  
• The presentation of a study that lays out where Johnston County will need to build fire stations as its population grows.
  
  
• A presentation on the options for moving forward with construction of a new building to house the Johnston County Department of Social Services. One option is the traditional one, where the County would design the building, seek bids, and then award the construction contract. Another option is “construction manager at-risk.” Under that option, the County would hire an architect and builder at the same time, which would likely speed the project along.
  
  
• A proposed proclamation for Summer Learning Week, July 6-11. The draft proclamation notes that during summer months, children can lose what they learned in the prior school year. It calls on parents to “help prevent learning loss by reading with their children and encouraging them to read independently throughout school breaks.”
  
  
• A proposed proclamation for Elder Abuse Awareness Day, June 15. The draft proclamation calls on Johnston residents to watch for and report “signs of physical abuse, withdrawal, depression, anxiety, fear, and living without necessities” among the County’s older adults.

• A request from Celebrate Cleveland to close Cleveland Road from 9:45 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, July 4, for the community’s Independence Day parade.
  
  
• A staff request to extend the County’s contract with Denise Hogan, who transcribes minutes of County Commissioner meetings. Under the terms of a contract that began July 1, 2024, the County pays Hogan $90 per recorded meeting hour but no more than $10,000 per year. The contract extension would be through June 30, 2027.
  
  
• Budget amendments that would add $39,759.68 in federal revenue to the Sheriff’s Office budget and $1,283.42 in miscellaneous revenue to the jail budget. A third change would set aside $92,000 for what’s known as Law Enforcement Officer Separation. That’s a state-mandated benefit for law enforcement officers who retire early.
  
  
• Appointments to the Child Fatality Prevention Team, the Juvenile Crime Prevention Council, the Firefighters Relief Fund Board of Trustees, the Local Emergency Planning Committee, the Nursing Home/Adult Care Home Community Advisory Board, the Social Services Board, and the Voluntary Agricultural District Advisory Board.
  
  
• A staff request to amend the County’s contract with Kimley-Horne, the consulting firm helping Johnston draft a new Unified Development Ordinance. In response to community feedback, Commissioners asked the firm to take part in a town hall meeting and reconvene the stakeholder group that helped put together the draft UDO. That group has held multiple meetings over the past several months. Also, the firm has made revisions and updates to the document based on input from the public, stakeholders and Commissioners. Still to come is a drop-in meeting for the public once the latest draft is ready. Kimley-Horne puts the cost of the additional work at $160,000.

 On the 6 p.m. agenda are:

• A public hearing on a request to rezone 2.586 acres at 6232 Raleigh Road in Elevation Township for business use. Owner and applicant Kurtis Farrell wants to offer indoor storage for recreational vehicles. That is a change from earlier, when Farrell proposed a scaffolding business on the tract. That request met opposition from nearby residents. The land is near West Johnston High School.
  
  
• An update on the County’s Capital Improvement Plan, which includes new homes for Social Services, County Administration, the Public Health Department, and the Planning Department.

Citizens who would like to address the Board for public comment but have concerns with physically attending the meeting may email their comments to Clerk to the Board Dana Cuddington at dana.cuddington@johnstonnc.gov.

Monday’s meetings will be livestreamed on our YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/jocogovnc.

To view the meeting agendas in detail, visit:  https://www.johnstonnc.com/content.cfm?id=200.

Page last updated on:  July 14, 2026