May 6, 1999 - 6:30 PM - County Board of Commissioners Meeting Minutes (Special)

10 413 May 6 , 1999 The Johnston County Board of Commissioners met in special session on Monday , May 6 , 1999 , at 6 30 pm in the Emergency Operations Center , Johnston County Law Enforcement Center , Smithfield , North Carolina , with the following members Present James H Langdon , Jr , Chairman , Cookie Pope , Vice Chairman , Jerry F Wood , Eleanor N Creech , Thomas M Moore , Allen L Mims , Jr and Wade M Stewart Absent None Also Present Rick Hester , Interim County Manager , Joyce H Ennis , Clerk to the Board , J Mark Payne , County Attorney , and members of the Comprehensive Plan Workgroup Chairman Langdon called the meeting to order and noted the purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Proposed Strategical Plan developed by the Comprehensive Plan Workgroup 1 Proposed Strategical Plan Chairman James H Langdon , Jr stated the Board has had the opportunity to review the proposed Strategical Plan One concern that has been voiced is that the plan is too general Hampton Whittington , Chairman of the Planning Board and member of the workgroup , agreed the plan is general , but noted it was not intended to be a final recommendation Since other groups were already looking at school facilities and transportation issues , the workgroup concentrated on planning issues and looked at various solutions to the problems concerning growth He noted that everyone wants to maintain rural character and open spaces , but decisions on how this can be done are not easy The plan identifies problems and offers different strategies for dealing with these problems , however , the Board of Commissioners would need to give direction before the plan could be further developed The Planning Board is working on a new land development ordinance which should be ready in draft form for the Commissioners to consider sometime in June The ordinance will be much more definitive and will provide the specifics Board members may have expected in this document Commissioner Allen L Mims , Jr commented he had hoped this plan would provide some specific direction for making difficult decisions concerning Planning issues He asked Bob Clark , representative of Benchmark , the company that helped develop the plan , to make some comments Mr Clark stated the workgroup began by talking with various groups with the goal of obtaining intergovernmental cooperation The proposed strategical plan was never meant to be a land use plan , but a document that would address major growth concerns and spell out policy areas , identifying the key policy directions that the Board can take The strategical plan lays out the framework , not the details Commissioner Eleanor N Creech stated she attended some of the initial meetings and , in her opinion , this document addresses the goals and objectives that were presented to the group She noted that with this plan and a good land use ordinance , the Board should have the direction they need Commissioner Thomas M Moore congratulated the workgroup on developing a good document with information that the County needs to move forward He pointed out the group has offered some solutions , now it is up to the Board to decide the direction they want to take He wondered how much of the County is still undeveloped In response , developer Fred Smith suggested that only approximately 10 of Johnston County is developed land He noted the County has a big challenge to determine how the remaining 90 is going to be developed Commissioner Moore suggested the Board discuss the various parts of the document noting he had several comments and questions He pointed out the Board recently authorized a study on natural sites and stated , in his opinion , it is important to preserve the land around the natural sites for future generations Commissioner Cookie Pope asked if the workgroup had identified areas for industrial and or commercial development Planner , Dave Roesler , commented that some property has been identified for potential industry through Economic Development , however , when property is labeled , it often affects the price Also it is difficult to determine what the locationPage414 requirements will be for an industry as this differs with different situations He stressed the County would need to be very careful if they attempted to label individual parcels Chairman Langdon agreed but noted that having some idea of areas for industry and commercial use is needed in order to determine where sewer and other infrastructure should be extended Mr Whittington pointed out that countywide zoning provided a general guideline by identifying corridors along interstate highways and major state roads for industrial growth He noted with interest that no one wanted zoning when it was first approved , however , now they are using it to their advantage General discussion ensued during which the following issues were considered ` Preserving land around natural areas ` Open space in development ` usable land vs non - usable land wetlands ` ownership of open space property ` liability associated with County ownership ` responsibility and ownership of open space by homeowners ' associations to create common interest and goals - building communities instead of just houses ` Septic systems - extension of public sewer ` Control of density and prevention of urban sprawl Mr Roesler noted the Development Ordinance will identify and address different types of open spaces as well as possible incentives to encourage developers to provide this area Also a set of standards will be proposed that will address these other issues of concern Following further discussion , the Chairman agreed to appoint a joint subcommittee of several Commissioners and some of the members of the Workgroup to work with the Planning Staff for the purpose of developing a more defined plan The subcommittee would then bring recommendations to the Board and a hearing would be held for public comment Chairman Langdon thanked everyone who served on the committee noting this has provided invaluable information Charlie Parrish , a local developer , thanked the Board for having the foresight to establish this workgroup , and also for establishing a financial committee to study school facilities issues 2 Fuquay - Varina Water Purchase Agreement Amended Upon a motion by Commissioner Jerry F Wood , seconded by Commissioner Thomas M Moore , and carried by unanimous vote , the Board amended the Bulk Water Purchase Agreement with the Town of Fuquay - Varina to allow the town to purchase water from Johnston County at a bulk rate of 155 per 1,000 gallons There being no further business , Commissioner Jerry F Wood moved the Board adjourn Commissioner Cookie Pope seconded the motion , which carried by unanimous vote ____________________________________ James H Langdon , Jr , Chairman ______________________________Page415 Joyce H Ennis , ClerkPage