October 18, 2010 - 9:00 AM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Special)

10 147 Meeting of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners October 18 , 2010 9 00 am The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in special session Monday , October 18 , 2010 at 9 00 am in the Commissioners Meeting Room , Johnston County Courthouse Annex , Smithfield , North Carolina The following members were present Present Wade M Stewart , Chairman , Allen L Mims , Jr , Vice Chairman , Cookie Pope , Jeffrey P Carver , W Ray Woodall and Tony Braswell Absent DeVan Barbour Also Present Rick J Hester , County Manager , Paula G Woodard , Clerk to the Board , J Chad McLamb , Finance Officer , David F Mills , County Attorney , and Melissa A Daughtry , Paralegal Deputy Clerk Chairman Wade M Stewart called the meeting to order at 9 05 am and the following business was transacted 1 Request from the Criminal Justice Partnership Program County Manager Rick Hester stated the Criminal Justice Partnership has requested the Board of Commissioners ’ support to change the Criminal Justice Partnership REAP Program from a satellite program to a Resource Center He noted the change would have no financial or material impact on the County in that it is an administrative action that would allow the Program to offer additional services Upon a motion by Commissioner Cookie Pope , seconded by Commissioner W Ray Woodall , and carried unanimously , the Board voted to support the request by the Criminal Justice Partnership to change the Criminal Justice Partnership REAP Program from a satellite program to a Resource Center 2 Closed Session - NCGS § 143 - 31811 a 4 – Location Expansion of Industry The Chairman announced that the Board would hold the Closed Session before the Economic Development Incentive Grant Public Hearing in that all parties for the hearing had not arrived Upon a motion by Commissioner Allen L Mims , Jr , seconded by Commissioner Cookie Pope , and carried by unanimous vote , the Board recessed regular session to sit in closed session in accordance with NCGS § 143 - 31811 a 4 – Location Expansion of Industry No action was taken Commissioner Jeffrey P Carver moved the Board adjourn closed session and resume regular session Commissioner W Ray Woodall seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote 3 Public Hearing – Economic Development Incentive Grant Tabled from the October 4 , 2010 10 00 am Meeting The Chairman opened the public hearing Economic Development Advisory Board Chairman Allen Wellons addressed the Commissioners and stated the proposed Economic Development Incentive Grant EDIG agreement would be between the County and Novo Nordisk , located in Clayton Mr Wellons explained that Novo Nordisk plans to expand their operation in Clayton with an additional investment of approximately 70 million and create 85 new jobs He reported the EDIG would be for a period of seven years and he noted the EDIG is somewhat different in that the majority of the investment is in personal property Mr Wellons added it is because of companies like Novo Nordisk that Johnston County is becoming known as a pharmaceutical area within the State of North Carolina County Attorney David Mills outlined the EDIG agreement for the Board Mr Mills explained that while the EDIG is measured by how much ad valorem taxes are paid by the company to the County , he clarified that the payment is a grant and is not a reimbursement of taxes Mr Mills stated the EDIG is a seven year grant whereupon the company would receive grant funds in an amount equal to 90 of their annual ad valorem tax payment for the expansion for the first five years of the grant , and declining to 80 for the sixth year and finally 70 for the seventh year at the close of the grant Mr Mills noted the project has an initial investment planned for 70 million ; however , the company also plans to make incremental investments during the course of thePage148 October 18 , 2010 – 9 00 am Continued seven year grant period He stated the EDIG agreement would apply to the initial 70 million investment as well as the additional incremental investments as they are completed At the inquiry of the Chairman , Mr Mills confirmed that the expansion along with the additional incremental investments will be separated from the existing tax base presently on the property Chairman Wade M Stewart asked if language had been incorporated into the agreement stating that at no time would the EDIG exceed the amount of the ad valorem taxes paid by the company on the expansion Mr Mills responded that such language could be incorporated into the EDIG agreement Ernie Pearson , Attorney for Novo Nordisk , stated that Novo has no objection to the language being incorporated into the agreement Mr Wellons noted that negotiations on the EDIG agreement have been ongoing right up to the moments before the public hearing began and he stated that Mr Pearson has agreed to attach , as an exhibit to the agreement , an architectural drawing of the proposed expansion in order to identify exactly what is associated with the current EDIG agreement Chairman Stewart stated the need to keep the equipment associated with the new expansion separate from the existing equipment is important and must be outlined in the agreement Commissioner Tony Braswell agreed with Mr Wellons that the agreement has gone through many last minute revisions and he asked if the Economic Development Advisory Board Incentive Committee is aware of all the changes Mr Wellons stated the Incentive Committee was aware that negotiations were ongoing and they are in agreement with the spirit of the project and had given him the authority to finalize the agreement Mr Wellons stated the Incentive Committee is pleased that Novo Nordisk has agreed to expand in Johnston County Commissioner Allen L Mims , Jr spoke on the fact that the agreement has undergone revisions right up to moments before the public hearing and he expressed concerns that the Commissioners have not had enough time to properly review the final document to ensure it is in the best interests of the County and its citizens Chairman Stewart recognized Randy Jones , a member of the Economic Development Advisory Board Incentive Committee in the audience , as well as Ernie Pearson , Attorney for Novo Nordisk , and Doug Wallace , General Manager of the Novo Nordisk Clayton facility Ernie Pearson , Attorney for Novo Nordisk , apologized to the Board for the last minute changes to the EDIG agreement and stated he appreciated everyone’s patience and work on the project Doug Wallace , General Manager for the Novo Nordisk Clayton facility , addressed the Board and stated Novo Nordisk has enjoyed a strong and positive relationship with Johnston County Mr Wallace added that he is pleased the parent company has chosen Johnston County for the latest expansion and stated that it would put Novo Nordisk on the cutting edge of technology in terms of insulin delivery devices Mr Wallace thanked the Board for their support to the Clayton facility as well as Peggy Anderson and the Economic Development Advisory Board for their work on the project He commented that the Clayton facility was chosen for the expansion due to their good employees as well as their established presence within the company Mr Wallace stated the project signifies the strong relationship they have with the County and the State and he believes the company will continue to grow Chairman Stewart expressed the Board’s appreciation to Novo Nordisk for their decision to expand in Johnston County Commissioner Mims stated that Novo Nordisk is a wonderful company and he appreciated their decision to expand ; however , he noted that the constant revisions to the agreement had made the process difficult Commissioner Mims asked the Economic Development Advisory Board to look at the EDIG’s going forward , especially the issue of equipment versus real property , to determine how future EDIG agreements should be offered He added that it needs to be a process that is simple , straightforward , and as transparent as possible so that all projects are treated equally Page149 October 18 , 2010 – 9 00 am Continued Commissioner Cookie Pope commented on the high unemployment rate of the County and expressed her appreciation for the addition of 85 new jobs Chairman Stewart expressed the Board’s appreciation to the County staff for their work on the project in that it had taken much effort to accomplish There being no further comments , the Chairman closed the public hearing Commissioner W Ray Woodall moved the Board approve the Economic Development Incentive Grant Agreement between the County and Novo Nordisk Commissioner Cookie Pope seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote There being no further business , Commissioner Tony Braswell moved the Board adjourn Commissioner W Ray Woodall seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote The meeting adjourned at 10 30 am ____________________________ Wade M Stewart , Chairman Paula G Woodard , Clerk to the BoardPage