April 1, 2002 - 7:00 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Special)

10 827 April 1 , 2002 7 00 pm The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in special session for the purpose of holding a public hearing on Monday , April 1 , 2002 , at 7 00 pm at the Elizabeth United Methodist Church on SR 1010 approximately six miles from Smithfield , North Carolina , with the following members present Present James H Langdon , Jr , Chairman , Cookie Pope , Vice Chairman , Thomas M Moore , Allen L Mims , Jr , Wade M Stewart , and W Ray Woodall Absent Fred Smith Also Present Rick J Hester , County Manager , Joyce H Ennis , Clerk to the Board , and Mark Payne , County Attorney The Chairman called the meeting to order 1 Public Hearing - 7 00 pm - Expansion of Wilson’s Mills Fire Department The Chairman opened the public hearing and invited anyone who wished to make comment on the proposal by the Wilson’s Mills Fire Department to build a second fire station and expand their service to cover an area currently not covered by any fire district Ricky Barbour , Wilson’s Mills fire chief , explained his department has been considering this expansion for about two years The new area to be served consists of approximately 1,400 parcels of land located on either side of SR 1010 which fall outside all existing fire districts Plans are to build a second Wilson’s Mills fire station near the intersection of SR 1010 and Short Journey Road The Department is planning to move three of its fire trucks to the new station A fire tax of 06 per 100 valuation will be assessed the residents , which will be used to help pay off the debt for the new station and eventually purchase new trucks and equipment In addition to being assured that help is close by in case of a fire , property owners in the new district will get a reduced rate on their insurance Mr Barbour offered to answer any questions the citizens from the area might have Tom Benton , who lives in the designated area , asked how quickly this can be done considering the fact that no tax money has yet been collected from the expanded district Mr Barbour responded the Wilson’s Mills Fire Department will make arrangements to build the station , then use the district taxes to help pay the debt He noted the tax dollars collected from that area will go to providing service in that area Heather Murphy asked if the fire department will be volunteer , and whether there will be someone there at all times Mr Barbour responded the station will be staffed with volunteers at first with the hope to have someone there every day once the first tax money comes in He noted a number of people in the community have indicated they would be interested in serving as a volunteer Those people will be contacted about training in the near future In response to a comment from Steve Johnson , Mr Barbour noted the fire personnel will be first responders , but will not offer EMT service In the case of a need , the nearest EMS service , which in this case is probably Smithfield , will be dispatched when the initial call is made County Emergency Management Director , Dewayne West , pointed out the high level of capability the fire units provide The trucks are equipped with emergency equipment including automatic defibrilators , and the firemen are trained to begin the initial response , which makes it much easier on the paramedics when they arrive on the scene County Manager , Rick Hester , noted the dispatchers in the County’s 911 Center are also trained to give emergency life - sustaining medical advice until help arrives In response to a comment concerning the area covered and how this would affect insurance , Mr West explained the property within five road miles from the fire station will be considered in the insurance district and will receive a significant reduction in their insurance cost , in accordance with the rating awarded the fire department The State will probably allow the district to extend for an additional one mile , but those persons located between five and six miles from the station will never receive more than a 9s rating , which is only a slight reduction in insurance rates He recommended that once this becomes a reality , the people in the proposed district should contact their insurance companies to make sure they have been notified of the change in their status Page828 Ronald Dellinger asked who has been covering this area Mr Barbour responded the surrounding fire departments , Smithfield , Cleveland and Wilson’s Mills and others , have always been dispatched as needed He introduced Cleveland Fire Chief , Jeff House , and Smithfield Chief , Norman Johnson , who were present in support of this expansion Phil Wineinger asked if the tax rate will be reduced when the debt on the new station is paid Mr Barbour explained the rate would most likely stay the same and would be used for both operational and capital needs , such as new trucks and equipment Caren Wharton stated she strongly supported this proposal She noted a fire broke out in a field next to her house last summer , and it took approximately 20 minutes for someone to get to the scene from an outlying department She noted she would feel much better with a station close by Commissioner Thomas M Moore commended the Wilson’s Mills Fire Department for taking on this additional responsibility Other Board members agreed and thanked everyone for coming to the meeting Those present were polled , and everyone voiced support of the proposed expansion No one spoke or otherwise indicated opposition There being no further comments , the Chairman closed the public hearing Upon a motion by Commissioner Cookie Pope , seconded by Commissioner Allen L Mims , Jr and carried by unanimous vote , the Board voiced support for the Wilson’s Mills Fire Department to continue the process to expand their territory and build a second fire station on SR 1010 to provide fire service for the people in the proposed area Upon a motion by Commissioner Cookie Pope , seconded by Commissioner W Ray Woodall and carried by unanimous vote , the Board adjourned __________________________________________ James H Langdon , Jr , Chairman _____________________________ Joyce H Ennis , Clerk to the BoardPage