Minutes of the County Commissioners of Worcester County, Maryland January 7, 2014 James C. Church, President Merrill W. Lockfaw, Jr., Vice President Judith O. Boggs Madison J. Bunting, Jr. Louise L. Gulyas (Absent) James L. Purnell, Jr. Virgil L. Shockley Following a motion by Commissioner Boggs, seconded by Commissioner Lockfaw, with Commissioner Gulyas absent, the Commissioners unanimously voted to meet in closed session at 9:00 a.m. in the Commissioners’ Conference Room to discuss legal and personnel matters permitted under the provisions of Section 10-508(a)(1) and (7) of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland and to perform administrative functions. Also present at the closed session were Harold L. Higgins, Chief Administrative Officer; Kelly Shannahan, Assistant Chief Administrative Officer; Sonny Bloxom, County Attorney; Kim Moses, Public Information Officer; and George Bradley, Human Resources Director. Topics discussed and actions taken included: filling critical vacant positions, including transferring Jason Windsor from Parks Worker II in Recreation and Parks to Roads Worker II within the Roads Division of Public Works, hiring Lea Cataggio as a Recreation Program Manager II within Recreation and Parks, and agreeing to advertise to fill the position of Warehouse Operations within Liquor Control; reappointing Carl Smith to the Board of Electrical Examiners, Betty McDermott to the Agricultural Reconciliation Board and David Massey to the Local Development Council for the Ocean Downs Casino; receiving legal advice from counsel; and performing administrative functions. After the closed session, the Commissioners reconvened in open session. Commissioner Church called the meeting to order and announced the topics discussed during the morning closed session. Commissioner Gulyas was absent from the meeting. The Commissioners reviewed and approved the minutes of their December 17, 2013 meeting as presented. The Commissioners presented a proclamation to Kelsi Owens of Big Brothers/Big Sisters (BBBS) recognizing January as National Mentoring Month. Ms. Owens advised that her organization partners with County organizations, including the Health Department, Atlantic General Hospital and Stephen Decatur High School, to provide community-based mentoring programs that match positive adult role models with youth. She encouraged those in attendance 1 Open Session - January 7, 2014 to donate time each month to make a positive difference in the life of a young person and invited interested individuals to contact BBBS to find out more. The Commissioners met with Fire Marshal Jeff McMahon to discuss his request for an authorized over-expenditure to replace one of the two vehicles in the Fire Marshal’s Office recently involved in collisions with deer. Mr. McMahon stated that the 2012 Chevy Tahoe, with 49,565 miles, was involved in a collision with a deer on November 21, 2013, and it was able to be repaired at a cost of $1,562 and returned to service. However, the 2007 Ford Expedition, with 125,976 miles, was severely damaged when it collided with a deer on November 27. It also needed additional repairs, and the two separate estimates he solicited to complete the work totaled $13,835 and $16,380, respectively. The current Kelley Blue Book value of this vehicle is only $11,676. Mr. McMahon further explained that he had planned to request replacement of this vehicle in his FY15 budget. As a result of the repair estimate, which exceeds the current value of the vehicle, Mr. McMahon requested replacement with a 2013 Chevrolet Tahoe that is currently available from Hertrich Fleet Services by piggybacking on the recent bid award for the Sheriff’s vehicles at a cost of $29,960. Mr. McMahon advised that additional equipment will also be required for a new vehicle at a cost of $6,333, bringing the total cost of the new vehicle to $36,293. Following some discussion and upon a motion by Commissioner Purnell, the Commissioners unanimously approved the purchase of the new 2013 4WD Chevrolet Tahoe under the recent contract with Hertrich Fleet Services and the requested over-expenditure in the amount of $36,293 to replace this vehicle in the Fire Marshal’s Office. In a related matter, County Attorney Sonny Bloxom suggested installing deer whistles on County vehicles, which have reportedly reduced the number of such collisions. After some discussion, the Commissioners requested staff investigate the cost and consider outfitting all County vehicles with deer whistles to attempt to prevent such collisions in the future. The Commissioners reviewed a requested easement for Maryland Broadband Cooperative, Inc. to the Glen Riddle Water Tower site. Commissioner Shockley recused himself from the discussion due to a potential conflict of interest as a board member of Maryland Broadband. Pursuant to the recommendation of Mr. Bloxom and upon a motion by Commissioner Bunting, the Commissioners voted 5-0 to authorize Commission President Church to sign the Easement Agreement between the County Commissioners of Worcester County, Maryland (Grantor) and Maryland Broadband Cooperative (Grantee), in which the Grantor conveys an easement located at the Glen Riddle water tower site to the Grantee for the construction and operation of certain telecommunications facilities. In response to a question by Commissioner Purnell, Public Works Director John Tustin advised that the County typically receives free internet service at the site from the provider in exchange for the easement. Pursuant to the recommendation of Mr. Bloxom and upon a motion by Commissioner Purnell, the Commissioners unanimously authorized Commission President Church to sign the Agreement between Seaside Acquisition, LLC, Seaside Village Community Association, Inc., Stockyard, Inc. and the County Commissioners of Worcester County, Maryland to approve a boundary adjustment and other considerations to resolve building permit violation issues with 2 Open Session - January 7, 2014 regard to encroachments by Stockyard, Inc. onto Seaside property, which were constructed by Stockyard without valid permits and approvals. In response to a question by Commissioner Bunting, Mr. Bloxom advised that the remedies outlined in the agreement will all meet the current code requirements. Pursuant to the recommendation of Mr. Tudor and upon a motion by Commissioner Shockley, the Commissioners unanimously authorized Commission President Church to sign the Amendment to Agreement of Sale between Benjamin and Elizabeth Aydelotte (Seller) and the County Commissioners of Worcester County, Maryland (Buyer) for the purchase of a Rural Legacy easement for $480,000 on approximately 153.87 acres adjacent to Swan Gut Creek, a Wetland of Special State Concern, and identified on Tax Map 101 as Parcels 5, 8 and 9. Mr. Tudor stated that the original agreement of sale was approved by the Commissioners on August 7, 2012, and an amended agreement of sale occurred in March 2013 due to delays in federal processing. However, due to the continued cumbersome federal process associated with the Federal Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FFRPP) Grant, which provides a portion of the funding, and now a delay in the receipt of the State funds, settlement will not occur before the revised deadline, necessitating a second amended agreement of sale. He further advised that the easement purchase is to be funded by the County’s FY 2011 FFRPP grant and the FY10 Coastal Bays Rural Legacy Area grant, at no cost to the County. In response to a question by Commissioner Bunting, Mr. Tudor confirmed that no County match for this State and federally-funded easement purchase is required, and he agreed to provide Commissioner Bunting with the exact breakdown of State and federal funding once he reviews the file. The Commissioners reviewed the notice informing residents about the Worcester County Coastal Flood Risk Open House on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at the Stephen Decatur Middle School (SDMS) cafeteria from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. The Department of Development Review and Permitting, on behalf of the Commissioners, will host the open house with representatives from the State and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and their mapping partners to present the updates to the coastal flood maps, also known as the Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), which were recently released by FEMA. The Commissioners strongly encouraged the public to attend and to know their flood risk. The Commissioners conducted a public hearing to receive public comment on the Requested Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for FY14 through FY18. Budget Accountant Kim Watts met with the Commissioners to review the requested CIP. Chief Administrative Officer Harold Higgins informed the Commissioners and the public that the CIP is strictly a planning document the County will use in preparing future operating budgets, anticipating the future financial needs of the County and to identify possible funding resources; therefore, a project’s inclusion in the CIP does not constitute a guarantee of funding from the County. He stated that the CIP is like a wish list. Ms. Watts advised the Commissioners that projects totaling $142,647,466 are proposed in the five-year CIP. She stated that, of the proposed projects, $15,566,498 or 10.91% is proposed to be funded by the General Fund and $82,615,470 or 57.92% from bond funds. The remaining portion would be funded by user fees, grant funds, 3 Open Session - January 7, 2014 State match funds, designated funds or enterprise fund