July 19, 2021 - 6:00 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Rezoning)

10 294 Meeting of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners July 19 , 2021 6 00 pm The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in regular session Monday , July 19 , 2021 at 6 00 pm in the Old Superior Courtroom Courtroom No 4 at the Johnston County Courthouse , Smithfield , North Carolina The following members were present Present Chairman Chad M Stewart , Vice Chairman Larry Wood , Tony Braswell , Ted G Godwin , Patrick E Harris , RS " Butch " Lawter , Jr , and Fred J Smith , Jr Absent None Also Present County Manager Rick J Hester , County Attorney Jennifer J Slusser , Clerk to the Board Paula Woodard , and Paralegal Deputy Clerk to the Board Dana Cuddington Chairman Chad M Stewart called the meeting to order at 6 00 pm and the following business was transacted 1 Public Comment A Princeton Volunteer Fire Department Chief Comments Princeton Fire Chief Randy Jones addressed the Board and thanked the Commissioners for considering their needs in the Fiscal Year 2021 - 2022 County Budget Chief Jones spoke on the Princeton Fire Department's dedication to maintaining the best training and resources they can for the protection of their citizens and thanked the Commissioners for allowing them to continue their efforts Chief Jones stated the Fire Department offers many services including swift water rescue , a dive team , and medical services in addition to firefighting and their financial needs have expanded over the years Chief Jones thanked the Board for their support Commissioner Patrick E Harris thanked Chief Jones and the Princeton Fire Department for their years of work and professionalism for their citizens stating they have always done a fantastic job B Citizen Concern - Jill Parker - Fire District Boundaries Jill Parker , McGee's Crossroads , addressed the Board regarding her concerns over how the fire district boundaries are drawn in Johnston County Ms Parker stated after a brush fire in her subdivision she had concerns as to why the closest fire department did not respond to the incident and began doing research on how the lines are drawn Ms Parker stated she has since learned that her subdivision is split by two different fire districts , neither of which is the actual closest fire department to their neighborhood Ms Parker spoke on various conversations and meetings with County staff and Commissioners and stated she understands that a fire study is currently ongoing ; however , she would like something to be done in the meantime to address response times in her subdivision The Board and 911 - Communications Emergency Services staff discussed the issue at length with Ms Parker Chairman Chad M Stewart stated while he does not believe that Ms Parker received the answer she wanted at this meeting , he appreciates her bringing the matter to the Board's attention and he is hopeful a solution can be found during the fire study Chairman Stewart stated Ms Parker is not the only situation he is aware of like this and it needs to be researched on a countywide basis through the study 2 Transportation Presentations Consultant Scott Saylor stated he has been serving as an advisor to the County regarding the GoTriangle Commuter Rail Study and through that work , both he and County Manager Rick Hester felt it would be helpful for the Board of Commissioners to receive a general transportation update on matters concerning the County Mr Saylor introduced the first presenters for the evening from the North Carolina Department of Transportation A 70 Corridor Commission - Johnston County Priorities Kevin Bowen , PE , Division 4 Engineer for the North Carolina Department of Transportation , stated that he would be giving an update on the 70 Corridor Commission on behalf of Director Durwood Stephenson who could not attend the meeting due to scheduling conflicts Mr Bowen presented and discussed with the Board the following information Page295 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage296 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Mr Bowen spoke on the potential route confusion due to US 70 being renamed as Interstate 42 because of the existing NC Hwy 42 He explained the Department of Transportation requested " Interstate 36 " as the interstate designation ; however , the federal government informed the DOT that the designation would be Interstate 42 He noted they have already had issues with regards to Emergency Services responses and they are looking at route solutions Mr Bowen stated more information would be forthcoming on that matter soon Page297 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Commissioner Tony Braswell shared with Mr Bowen the concerns he receives from the residents on Davis Mill Road , Peedin Road , and Gor An Farm Road as a result of the closure of intersections in Pine Level and the creation of thoroughfares in the area Mr Bowen thanked Commissioner Braswell for the information and offered to meet with him to discuss the issues in further detail B North Carolina Department of Transportation - Highway & Rail Division Priorities Mr Bowen continued his presentation by reviewing a general update with the Board as it relates to ongoing Johnston County Transportation Projects PagePage pageNumber5298 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPagePage pageNumber6299 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued At the inquiry of Commissioner Patrick E Harris , Mr Bowen reported there is an improvement project coming for Interstate 95 at US Hwy 70 Business and they look forward to that moving along very soon PagePage pageNumber7300 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Jason Orthner , PE , DOT Rail Division Director provided the Board with the update regarding passenger rail service PagePage pageNumber8301 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Mr Orthner noted that there is interest throughout the State to expand passenger rail services with some of that interest making it to the national level that has been included in Amtrak's recent 2035 Vision Plan Mr Orthner stated there is currently no funding formula at the federal level for passenger rail , or rail in general , and those programs are typically competitive discretionary grant programs that seek state funding as a match mechanism Mr Orthner stated that his division has been successful in leveraging funds for a number of different freight , safety , and passenger projects through the years ; however , those funding opportunities are now becoming limited and other sources will be needed C North Carolina Turnpike Authority - I - 540 Project Dennis Jernigan , Deputy Chief Engineer of Highway Operations shared the following information with the Board regarding the I - 540 Project and he spoke on the savings in travel time for citizens as the different phases of the project are completed PagePage pageNumber9302 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage0303 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Mr Jernigan spoke on their efforts to expand outreach and communication , particularly since the COVID - 19 Pandemic began At the inquiry of Commissioner Ted G Godwin , Mr Jernigan stated studies have proven that toll roads benefit not only those that use the toll road but they also improve travel for people on adjacent routes He stated another benefit of toll revenue is the ability to speed up construction projects versus those that are traditionally funded Upon a question by Commissioner Butch Lawter , Mr Jernigan stated Phase 1 is currently scheduled for completion in late 2023 ; however , 2020 has been the wettest year on record for them and they are still trying to overcome those delays Mr Jernigan stated they are currently showing Phase 2 being completed sometime in Fiscal Year 2029 - 2030 D GoTriangle - Commuter Rail Update and 2021 - 2022 Schedule Charles Lattuco , President & CEO for GoTriangle , stated he has been with GoTriangle for approximately 15 months Mr Lattuco presented the following update to the Board Page1304 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage2305 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage3306 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage4307 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued The Board thanked Mr Lattuco for the report E Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization CAMPO - Regional Priorities Bret Martin , CAMPO Wake Transit Program Manager , addressed the Board and provided the following information as it relates to regional priorities Mr Martin stated Johnston County has been an active long - term member of CAMPO and they appreciate the participation by Commissioner Butch Lawter who represents Johnston County on the Executive Board Page5308 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage6309 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage7310 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage8311 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Commissioner Butch Lawter stated CAMPO is an organization that the more you participate , the more you get out of it Commissioner Lawter commented that he also served as the Town of Clayton's CAMPO representative as a Clayton Town Councilman and he can definitely say that CAMPO is great to work with Commissioner Lawter continued that he sees the benefits of actively participating in their work and he is committed to that work so the County can see the same results as other areas F Upper Coastal Plain Rural Planning Organization RPO - Regional Priorities James Salmons , Transportation Planner , provided the Board with the following update concerning regional priorities from the RPO Mr Salmons thanked Commissioner Ted G Godwin for his participation in the RPO representing Johnston County Page9312 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage0313 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage1314 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Commissioner Godwin stated Mr Salmons does a great job in helping the counties involved in the RPO to stay focused and meet timelines involved with various priority goals Commissioner Godwin thanked Mr Salmons for all that he does for the RPO and Johnston County G Johnston County Area Transit System JCATS - County Priorities Neal Davis , JCATS Executive Director , spoke to the Board regarding County priorities and presented the following update Page2315 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage3316 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage4317 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage5318 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm ContinuedPage6319 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued Mr Davis concluded his presentation and stated through the continued collaboration and planning with the RPO and CAMPO , he feels JCATS is well positioned to fulfill its role for community transportation , public transportation , and emergency response The Board thanked Mr Davis for the update 3 Manager Reports and Comments None Page7320 July 19 , 2021 - 6 00 pm Continued 4 Board Reports and Comments A Funding for Positions in the District Attorney's Office Commissioner Tony Braswell reported District Attorney Susan Doyle was notified in mid - June that she would not be receiving grant funding from the Governors Crime Commission to cover two positions in her office , an Assistant District Attorney and a District Attorney Legal Assistant Commissioner Braswell stated those two positions in Ms Doyle's office are used in the prosecution of domestic violence cases and they have been funded nd by the grant since 2014 Commissioner Braswell stated Johnston County is ranked 2 in the State for domestic violence cases and while the Board can talk about who should and should not fund the positions , the bottom line is that the Board must serve the needs of the citizens Motion Commissioner Braswell stated he does not believe the Board can let the County fall behind in the prosecution of domestic violence cases and he moved the Board approve an allocation of funding to cover the two positions for six months 65,21500 Commissioner Patrick E Harris seconded the motion Discussion Commissioner Fred J Smith , Jr expressed his opposition to the motion stating this is the State's responsibility Commissioner Smith shared his concerns that this would be asking the citizens to pay twice for something when the State clearly has the funds to cover the cost Chairman Chad M Stewart stated while he understands Commissioner Smith's concerns , he cannot let the County's citizens be underserved because of the lack of State funds Commissioner Ted G Godwin stated he is also opposed to the motion and feels that if the County funds the positions , then the State will not resume its funding in the future Commissioner Braswell stated these two positions are different from the positions which were considered in the budget , and he commented that this situation is the result of a grant that has been in place since 2014 which is no longer being continued Commissioner Braswell stated he wants the abusers to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and if the State will not provide the funds , then it leaves the County to do it Vote The motion carried by the following vote Ayes Commissioners Chad M Stewart , Tony Braswell , Patrick E Harris , and Butch Lawter Nays Commissioners Larry Wood , Ted G Godwin , and Fred J Smith , Jr There being no further business , Commissioner Patrick E Harris moved the Board adjourn Commissioner Ted G Godwin seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote The meeting adjourned at 8 40 pm Chad M Stewart , Chairman Paula G Woodard , Clerk to the BoardPage