STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA
COUNTY OF AVERY
The Avery County Board of Commissioners met in Regular Session on
Monday, September 18, 2006 at 3:00 p.m. in their offices, Avery County
Administrative Complex, Newland, NC.
Members Present: Kenny Poteat, Chairman; Susan Pittman, Vice-Chair;
Joe Strickland, Phyllis Forbes and Bill Beuttell
Members Absent: None
Call to Order
Chairman Poteat called the meeting to order at 3:04 p.m. Joe Strickland
offered prayer.
Proclamations & Awards
Robert Wiseman presented a U.S. flag which has the names of all the
fatalities which occurred on September 11, 2001. This flag was presented
to Avery County and this board by the Judges who represent Avery
County. The flag was displayed at the ceremony which took place in
the Newland Town Square on September 11, 2006, Robert said. With
the Board’s approval, we plan to publicly display this flag
behind glass at a strategic location in one of our County buildings
whereby we would be reminded of the attack on our nation and not
let that memory die, Robert said. The Board approved this recommendation
by consensus.
Public Comments
There were no public comments.
Amend Agenda
Commissioner Strickland requested permission to amend today’s
agenda in regard to Board Compensation. He advised that he has prepared
a revised copy of the County Commissioner Policy to this effect. Also,
in regard to the Manager’s request for Legislative Goals, the
one Legislative Goal that I know of that has already been adopted by
the NC Association of County Commissioners is one that dealt with clarifying
the position of Elections Director and putting it under the State Merit
System and making sure the accountability was to the Attorney General
if there were questions or issues, Strickland said.
He asked the Board to agree to this as one of our Goals by consensus
so the Manager can forward it to the NCACC. The Board agreed by consensus.
Susan Pittman suggested that the Board may want to consider the goals
we turned in last year since they may still be a priority.
Joe Strickland brought up the matter of what the Board plans to do
about the Health Department issue. Some information indicates that
it does not require the equivalent of the General Assembly and that
there are certain legal steps we must pursue. Also involved in this
is how the Health Dept. was originally set up and if it was set up
by a local bill, then it can only be untangled by a local bill. I am
hearing now that there is no local bill that addresses that, Joe said.
Michaelle Poore advised that she has been unable to find anything about
a local bill thus far. Joe said if that is true, then this Board is
in a position to follow the legal steps defined by the General Assembly
and you may set up your own health department.
Kenny Poteat commented on Legislative Goals. Kenny said he went to
a session at the NCACC Conference on Tax & Finance regarding a
Transfer Tax. I would like for this Board to consider a Transfer Tax
and to tell the State of NC that we should all be treated equally.
If one county gets to do certain types of taxation, that other counties
should also be afforded that same opportunity, Kenny said.
Joe Strickland said that by consensus, the Manager can get that on
the agenda for the NCACC and we can follow up at our next meeting with
a Resolution that addresses the Elections Officer and the Transfer
Tax. There is a bill that has more interest among the Bd. of Directors
for the Association that if the General Assembly has adopted it for
one county that it should apply to another county as well. We would
not be asking for something just for Avery County; it should be applied
to all counties.
Robert Wiseman advised that the deadline for submission of Legislative
Goals has been moved up to September 29, 2006. He added that he will
contact the Board this week regarding submission of bills and also
to make sure that everyone knows what we are turning in.
Robert added that he agrees with Commissioner Strickland regarding
pushing for equal opportunity for a Land Transfer Fee. An Impact Fee
is not possible now because of a Court ruling in Durham County, but
come December, we need to consider a campaign of our own with a Transfer
Fee for Avery County that would be subject to a referendum for the
people to vote on. I don’t see how we can be denied the opportunity
for our people to vote on it, Robert said.
Bill Beuttell commented that he hopes Scott and Dan and this Board
will be more successful in getting some of these Legislative Goals
passed than we have been in the last few years. We fought to get things
passed that were equal to other counties in the State, but our requests
fell on deaf ears in Raleigh, whether due to partisan politics or grudges,
etc. I hope that whether it is our state Senators, Congressmen, etc.
I would like to see them make tough decisions they know are right for
the constituencies rather than to do what is popular just to get re-elected,
Bill said.
911 Communications (Notice of Waiver on Bid Procedure)
Robert Wiseman advised that this item may not require an adjustment
of the Agenda. He said that we previously reviewed a Notice of Waiver
for the purchase of our new 911 equipment. We are piggybacking with
another county, which is legitimate, and we need to schedule a Public
Hearing to conduct that necessary waiver, as we have determined that
it is in the best interest of the county to waive the formal bid
process. Discussion was held on advertisement of Public Hearing and
to hold the hearing on October 2, 2006 at the Regular Meeting of
the Board.
The Board agreed to set up a Public Hearing on Waiver of Bid Procedure
regarding equipment purchase for the 911 Communications equipment at
the October 2 Regular Meeting and to advertise same. Robert added that
a resolution regarding this matter also needs to be adopted at that
meeting.
Designation of Official Depositories
Tim Greene, Finance Officer, requested a Resolution be prepared by
the Attorney designating certain banks as our official depositories.
The County Attorney advised that this is included in our report documents.
It was concluded that no adjustment to the Agenda is required as
this document is already included in his report. Joe Strickland suggested
that the motion should include adopting contingent upon a Resolution
being drafted for the Chairman’s signature. The Resolution
will be necessary under GS 159-31.
Motion by Joe Strickland to amend today’s Agenda to
include discussion and option of a proposed revision to a Board Policy
on Board
Member Compensation. Motion seconded by Bill Beuttell and unanimously
approved.
Board Appointments
Toe River District Health Board Appointment & Discussion
No applications have been received for this vacancy.
Commissioner Pittman previously suggested Dr. Sthay for this slot and
is awaiting an answer from him. She advised that she told him we would
keep that appointment open until we heard from him.
Joe Strickland said that we may or may not need to make this appointment,
depending upon what this Board wishes to do in regard to establishing
an independent health department. Joe said that more than likely you
would be required to establish a Board of Health if you do so, and
I don’t think that this board could function in that capacity
until you establish a separate board of health, by appointment.
Kenny Poteat said this is a very serious matter which we might undertake
and that there are a lot of ramifications we need to pursue and investigate
first. I think we should proceed with naming someone to the current
Toe River Health Board. The Chair then asked for an opinion from each
board member as to whether we should establish our own health department
and not continue as a member of the District Department. Phyllis Forbes
said it has been very frustrating working with the Toe River Health
District. There has been a lot of controversy and a lot of things going
on that should not. I don’t think we need to do anything immediately
but that we need to do some cost figures and investigation into what
it would take for us to go out on our own because I feel that is a
viable option for us.
Susan Pittman said she agrees with Phyllis and that she realizes there
are a lot of things we should research before we go into something
that we don’t know all about at this point. We need to take a
lot of things into consideration about that agency such as how much
they bring into our tax base, etc. This should have really been looked
into a couple of years ago.
Joe Strickland said all these remarks are very prudent, because the
numbers should be the driving force as to what this board does.
Robert Wiseman said that with respect to our neighboring counties as
well as our own, if we come to the point where this is the decision
the Board wants to make, it needs to be coordinated with the start
of the fiscal year. It would be less than realistic to think that we
could have everything in place by next June, Robert added. In my opinion,
it will cost any county of our size more money to go out on their own
than to be in a district organization. The problem is that some of
the members of the district have a tendency to go their own way and
not pay their fair share.
Phyllis said that I feel that this Board is tired of some of the other
counties in the district not paying their way and I feel that our taxpayers
and our county is carrying more of the burden for that reason. That’s
one strong reason that I want to pursue it. Joe Strickland commented
that we might spend a lot of money on the front end in order to save
a lot of money on the tail end.
Chairman Poteat said it sounds as if there is ample cause for instructing
the County Manager to begin the process that we just alluded to. He
asked if that is the feeling of this Board. The Board advised that
is how they feel. The Chairman then asked the Manager to begin the
process of investigation and costs that we need to know before we make
a decision regarding going out on our own vs. remaining in the current
health district.
WAMY Board Appointment
Discussion on possible candidates to serve on the WAMY Board. The Chairman
asked Scott Heath if he would be willing to serve. Scott agreed to
serve on the WAMY Board.
Scott Heath was then approved by a consensus of the Board to serve
on the WAMY Board. Bill Beuttell commented that he will be going off
of the WAMY Board in December when his term as Commissioner expires,
and that the Board also needs to be thinking about filling his vacancy.
Library Board Resignation
The Manager read aloud a letter from Mr. Dean Taylor who advised that
he is resigning from the Morrison Library Board and the Regional
Library Board as well. This appointment will be considered at the
next Regular Meeting.
Board Policy on Naming of Facilities
Robert Wiseman advised that the Board had a request to consider naming
the new Health Department for Dr. Emma Fink and Dr. E.H. Smith at
the last meeting. Commissioner Strickland had some comments about
that and no one seemed to have any concerns with it at the time.
Commissioner Strickland said he was reluctant to approve naming the
facility after someone still living because it could become a pitfall
if we were to name it for someone who has problems or who was charged
with a felony, etc; that would be awkward for the Board to deal with.
Joe said that if the Board wishes to consider a policy, he will be
glad to draft one. Susan said she didn’t think it would make
any difference about naming the facility in this situation. However,
in the future it could be a problem if we were to name another facility
after a younger person, etc. Discussion. Joe said that after further
consideration, he does not know that he would recommend a policy
at this time. He recommended taking each case on a case by case basis
rather than having a policy. Bill Beuttell suggested that the Board
tread carefully on this because they will be using public dollars
and will be naming facilities in honor of private citizens.
Chairman Poteat asked if the Manager is asking today for official
approval of a name for the building. Robert said that the Board agreed,
by consensus, at the last meeting to name the facility and that a plaque
is being made at this time. Joe Strickland suggested that it would
be appropriate to name this facility by a motion of the Board in order
to avoid any questions that may evolve.
Naming of Health Department Building
Motion by Phyllis Forbes to name the new Avery Health Department building
the “Fink-Smith Building.” Motion seconded by Bill Beuttell.
Discussion. Motion unanimously approved.
County Manager Report – Robert Wiseman
The Manager reported nothing that requires any action today other than
the previous item regarding establishing a Public Hearing on the
Waiver on Bid Procedures. That item will be advertised this week
in the local paper and the Hearing will be held on October 2.
Rock Project
Robert Wiseman advised that he has executed a contract with Young & McQueen,
Inc. from Burnsville, NC, the low bidder, to pulverize the rock and
spread it on site. Due to the cost factor involved, we decided not
to try to remove the rock and debris from the site. The on-grade ground
level will be significantly higher than the access road that goes behind
the school and comes out at the tower. We hope that Young & McQueen
will be moving their machinery in this week to start work. Robert said
that he received four proposals for this job, and three of them were
Avery County companies. The low bid was to remove at least 90% of the
rock by mechanical means and if there was 10% left, we would deal with
it under separate contract, which would involve using some dynamite.
By doing that, the low bid was approximately half of what the other
three bids were. If we can’t get all the rock, we will get all
but the 10% and that 10% will be dealt with under a separate contract.
The low bid was $67,500 to remove at least 90% of the rock. That’s
not much higher than our original bid of $50,000 about 3 years ago,
Bill Beuttell said. He added that he appreciates the Board and the
Manager working on this endeavor and said that he hopes that the rock
is only part of achieving the goal that we have set.
Transportation Authority Facility
Robert Wiseman advised that he will be conducting a Pre-Construction
meeting tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. with the successful bidder for the
new Avery County Transportation Authority Building, WKM from Kingsport,
Tenn. This is the same company that is working on our Jail Annex
and they are doing a very good job on it, Robert said. He added that
he would like to go ahead and execute the contract, break ground
and get on with the program. This is not a real good time to start
digging footers, but it’s been a long time coming. This project
was floundering when I started work here and has floundered ever
since, but we finally got it approved, Robert said. I think that
was due to sheer tenaciousness on the part of several people that
the project didn’t get tossed. The bid for less is more than
the bid was for a whole lot more 4 years ago. Stalling by the state
in order to try to save money has proved not to be the best way to
go in this situation, Robert said. We do have some serious logistical
problems which we can overcome. Where our Transportation Dept. vehicles
are now being parked will become the construction area, and the place
where the Solid Waste trailers/road tractors are being parked now
will become the staging area. We have to re-locate about 18 vans
and provide security for them and the tractor/trailers.
It has taken a while, but we are hopefully ready to begin the project,
Robert said.
Kenny Poteat thanked the Manager for his tenacity on this project.
If he had not kept onto them, this project would not be a reality.
Robert said that Linda Cuthbertson, Tim Greene and especially Beeson,
Lusk & Street have all worked hard on this.
Health Department Project
The Manager reported that the new Health Department is now occupied
and the staff is getting their offices organized. He added that they
plan to move the storage trailer out of the parking lot by Friday.
Once we get the plaque for the building and get everyone in place,
we will have a Grand Opening and invite all the appropriate people,
Robert said. This is a “state-of-the-art” facility.
Jail Annex
Robert Wiseman advised that the Jail Annex project is under-budget
and ahead of schedule thus far. By the last of October we hope to
be able to move the Central Communications Office out of the space
they now occupy and into the new facility, which will be as good
or better than any county our size in the state. We are waiting on
the fabrication of the work areas and arrival of all of our computer
and radio/telephone equipment. We have to coordinate the arrival
of all of the equipment so we don’t have 911 down for 2 or
3 days, Robert said. We hope to have the whole thing done by January.
We have to move 911 before we can renovate the area they currently
occupy. All of the demolition for the new space for the Magistrate
and Board of Elections has been done. The HVAC system is installed
and we hope to finish ahead of schedule and under budget.
Meeting Regarding Toe River District Health
Robert Wiseman stated that he and Tim Greene recently met at Mayland
Community College with the Finance Officers and the County Managers
from Mitchell and Yancey Counties, along with the Director of the
Health Department and their Finance Officer and the head Sanitarian.
We met to try to get some direction with respect to the change in
the fee structure which took place and has caused such a hurrah.
As a group, we asked the Director of the Health Department to consider
5 options as to what we thought everybody could live with and that
we would bring back to our individual boards. To our surprise, the
individual boards have to vote on these issues. We may meet again this
week and hope to get something back to the Boards of Commissioners
that will be palatable and still do what it needs to do. With input
from the Health Department, we are looking at several options such
as square footage vs. number of bedrooms, flat fee and certain amount
of square footage cost over that flat fee, etc. The one thing that
I know the Avery representatives and the Yancey representatives agreed
on, was that the cost of the service should be self-supporting, no
matter how it is paid for or what formula we use. It should be self-supporting
because if it isn’t, when the citizens at large have to subsidize
the costs incurred by the people who are using the services and everyone
is looking at this as a user fee, then the people who use it need to
be the ones who pay for it. As an example, a person on a fixed income,
such as Social Security, should not be responsible for subsidizing
the expenses that I incur when I have on-site wastewater services provided,
Robert said.
Hopefully, if we can all agree on this, then the Managers from each
respective county will come back to their Commissioners and get their
feelings on the matter, Robert said.
New River Mental Health
Robert Wiseman advised that he, Sam Ray and our legal counsel, Hal
Harrison, went to Ashe County last week to discuss the New River
Mental Health Agency undergoing some changes which would basically
change their organization into a not-for-profit, public corporation.
A 22-page contract was placed in front of us when we walked into
the meeting. We did not have the benefit of seeing this document
prior to the meeting. When the question and answer exchange got started,
it went on for a long time. All of the 5 counties involved had legal
counsel with them. Bruce Kaplan, legal counsel for New River Mental
Health, appeared to be surprised that that the contract was not just
accepted at face value. The way the contract was presented, I don’t
think this Board would have been very happy with it, Robert said.
They are now putting together a revised version which will be provided
to you once we receive it. I caution you to look long and hard at
this document and take our legal counsel’s comments to heart,
because this is something that could haunt us for years to come,
Robert said. The liabilities that we could potentially incur deserve
some real consideration. Sam Ray commented that Robert did a fine
job at that meeting, along with our County Attorney.
Kenny Poteat advised that he is currently the Vice-Chairman of New
River Mental Health and he agrees that Robert did the right thing by
not going ahead and signing any documents on that particular day until
we have had time to go through them and understand them.
Avery High School Renovation Project
Robert Wiseman reported that per instructions of this Board at the
last meeting, he scheduled a time to meet with Bob Tatum and walk
through the High School project to observe. However, due to a death
in Mr. Tatum’s family, the meeting did not take place. I did
talk with Bob about the project and I got the answers to some of
the issues that were in question. They are currently working in the
600 pod and are within budget and close to being on time, maybe just
a little behind. Two of the issues which caused some concern from
the teachers at the High School were the backup of the sewer and
the failure of the air conditioning in one section. I followed up
on the reason for these problems and was told that there was no relation
between the work that is going on with the renovation and the failure
of these two functions. I was told that foreign objects in the sewer
had plugged everything up and backed up the sewer on the lower level.
As to the air conditioning, the hydraulic pump and oil filter attached
to the air conditioning system went down. Both of those issues were
corrected as quickly as possible.
I have talked to Mr. Tatum about meeting with him later this week and
having a more concise grip on things as far as how close they are to
completion, percentages spent, etc., Robert said.
Discussion on feedback that various Commissioners have received from
some of the teachers about this project. Joe said the teachers are
in the trenches so to speak on this project but are not being consulted
or even asked what the problems may be or may evolve to be from this
renovation. Joe encouraged the Manager to touch base with some of the
faculty to get a different perspective on this issue. Phyllis Forbes
added that she has also received input from some of the teachers. One
teacher didn’t think they had put the insulation back into the
ceiling and that the heat and air would just disperse. I think we need
to check on that issue, Phyllis said. Kenny Poteat said his daughter
teaches at the High school and she has shared some of these same concerns/frustrations
about the project.
Risk Management Meeting
Joe Strickland questioned the Manager about the recent meeting with
the NCACC Risk Management person. Robert reported that the meeting
went very well and that we have another meeting scheduled for October
4 in this regard. There was adequate representation from the county
as well as the NC Association, Marsh and Sedgwick Insurance. There
was also a power-point presentation done for the benefit of the County.
The Sheriff-elect attended this meeting as well. The majority of
the dialog was what progress could be made in Avery County by implementing
procedures that would reduce the frequency and magnitude of accidents
that we have incurred. Avery is not looking very good with the actuarial
comparisons that are being made. We realize that we have had a lot
of small Workers Comp claims and we have also had some major issues
such as deaths and injuries. This will be the 3rd year on some of
those claims and hopefully that impact on our rate will go away.
There are several things that we intend to do and we will start formulating
those at our next meeting, Robert said. One of the things that Tim
and I have been talking about for a while is the County having their
own doctor of record who would be the doctor that an employee who
is hurt on the job would go to see. The County would pay for this
doctor visit. If it is a bona fide emergency, then an E.R. visit
may be necessary. If the employee wants to go to the doctor of their
choice, they can do so, but they would pay for it themselves. If
you look at the Workmen’s Comp claims over a period of time
and look at the doctors, eight out of ten employees will go to the
same doctor. If we had a doctor of record that would look out for
the County’s welfare, just as much as that of the individual,
I think that you would see a serious reduction in the number of Workmen’s
Comp claims, Robert said. Joe Strickland agreed that it would save
the County a lot of money on Workers Comp if we were to contract
with a physician, and he urged the Manager to give it consideration.
Robert advised that the first thing we will be doing is to establish
a 5-member Safety Committee for Avery County, and out of that Committee
will come recommendations such as we just discussed.
County Commissioner Compensation – Joe Strickland
Joe Strickland advised that over the past 6 years, this Board and past
Board Members have had a fixed rate of pay. We should be giving consideration
to a cost of living adjustment for Commissioners as we do for other
elected officials and our County employees as part of our budget
process. I think it would be appropriate for this Board to at least
give consideration for a cost of living adjustment when the budget
is adopted for the board members. I have re-written the policy to
this effect, Joe said. He read aloud the current policy and also
the proposed revision. The cost of living increase would not take
effect until FY 2007-08. Commissioner Strickland added that if the
policy revision for a cost of living increase is adopted, that he
and Commissioner Beuttell would no longer be in office when it becomes
effective.
Motion by Joe Strickland to adopt these revisions on County Commissioner
Compensation as read. Motion seconded by Bill Beuttell.
Discussion. Joe Strickland explained that the only difference with
this Policy revision is that the cost of living adjustment would now
apply to the Board of Commissioners each year just as it already applies
to all the other elected officials and County employees, effective
FY 2007-08. Last year the employees received a 3% COLA, Joe said. Chairman
Poteat said the increase would equate to around $165 additional salary
per year for a regular board member. Joe reminded the Board that this
is assuming a cost of living increase is approved for that budget year;
if there was no adjustment approved in the budget, then there would
be no adjustment for the Commissioners or anybody else.
Bill Beuttell said that in the past he has been somewhat critical of
our State Senators and Representatives and that he has made questions
as to the amount they are being paid by the State because they receive
a per diem pay, travel expense, etc. Bill added that we have not received
a cost of living increase over the past 6 years that I have been here,
and I have been perfectly happy with that. I did not run for Commissioner
for the money. With all due respects to Kenny, Phyllis, Susan, Scott
and Dan, I think that if they feel a cost of living adjustment is appropriate
for them in subsequent years, then they will need to look into it for
themselves at the appropriate time and make that decision. Joe Strickland
commented that there is one major difference between what we are doing
and how the General Assembly handles a raise; we are doing it publicly,
right here with all newspapers represented. We are not hiding anything.
It seems ludicrous to me for the future Board to endure some of the
expenses a Commissioner must endure and not receive at least a cost
of living increase that we currently give to every person associated
with the County, Joe said.
Susan Pittman thanked Joe Strickland for his interest in this Board,
adding that she felt that once the new Board Members take office that
we can discuss this issue with them and approve an increase if we feel
that we need it.
Bill Beuttell suggested deferring this matter until the next meeting
or maybe consider amending it. Bill said he would like to know our
rate of pay vs. what other county commissioners across the state are
paid, and if our pay rate is below the median across the state, then
I would vote in favor. If it is above the median, then I would vote
against it, Bill said. Joe said if he had looked at the salaries of
commissioners in other counties, that he would not be asking for a
cost of living adjustment, that he would be increasing the salary for
commissioner up from about $5,000 to around $8,000 and the Chairman
from $8,000 up to $10,000, but I am not doing that. I am just suggesting
that we do something reasonable and logical.
Chairman Poteat said that he has been sitting here 12 years and it’s
not for the money. I taught school for 30 years and that was not for
the money, either. Joe Strickland has made an excellent suggestion
and I have no problem with it; I can live with it either way since
money is not the object. I do not like it though when people I have
known and sat beside up here over the past 12 years make the comment
that we have given ourselves a raise. That’s not what it’s
all about. I have also had them stand up here and say that they want
to give their paycheck back to the County, Poteat said. To me, that
is just political stumping on their part. I appreciate what Joe has
offered this Board. I realize that he is going out of office in December
and this cost of living would not even affect him, but I appreciate
his willingness to do this.
Vote on Motion: Joe Strickland, Phyllis Forbes and Kenny Poteat – in
favor. Opposed: Susan Pittman and Bill Beuttell. Motion carried by
majority vote.
Finance Officer Report – Tim Greene
Depositories
GS 159-31 requires that the governing board of each local government
designate as its official depositories one or more banks, savings
and loan associations or trust companies in this state.
At some time in the distant past, we have done that due to bank mergers
and most recently due to our QZAB loan closing. Bank of America opened
up a checking account to put our loan proceeds into, and Bank of America
is not one of our official depositories, so I would like to correct
that and add them to the list Tim said. We can also update our list
at the same time to include current names of the banks that have been
merged.
Tim Greene requested that the County Attorney draft a Resolution incorporating
the appropriate language and for the Board to authorize the Chairman
to sign the Resolution designating the following as official depositories
of the County:
Wachovia Bank of America
United Community Bank North Carolina Capital Management Trust
First Citizens
Motion by Joe Strickland to authorize the County Attorney to draft
a Resolution designating the following as official depositories of
the County: Wachovia, United Community Bank, First Citizens, Bank of
America, and North Carolina Capital Management Trust. Further, to authorize
the Chairman to sign the Resolution on behalf of the County. Motion
seconded by Phyllis Forbes and unanimously approved.
Budget Amendment #__________
Senior’s Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP)
Grant
Tim Greene advised that this matter was discussed at the last board
meeting when R.D. Daniels presented two different items. We approved
a budget amendment for the first item he requested, but on the second
item of $3,100 for SHIIP, we did not actually tie in the dollars to
that amendment, so I would like to clarify that with a budget amendment
today, Tim said. These funds are to be used to help with the administration
of the new Medicare Part D Program.
Motion by Joe Strickland and second by Susan Pittman to approve a
budget amendment in amount of $3,100 for the SHIIP Grant in the Senior
Services budget. Motion unanimously approved.
County Attorney Report – Michaelle Poore
Michaelle Poore advised that the only real major development we have
had since the last meeting was in regard to the Wayne Johnson ESC
appeal. We got word back from that appeal, which was entered in favor
of Mr. Johnson. We are in the process of filing the next step appeal
in that matter, which will be heard in front of a Superior Court
Judge. We will wait and see how that turns out since it goes back
to the fact that the County was responsible for Mr. Johnson’s
pay but he was not actually a County employee. Under the statute,
the Board of Elections did not follow the procedure statutorily as
they needed to in order to terminate his employment, Michaelle said.
That is a consideration in the appeal process that we are in right
now.
Approval of Minutes
Motion by Joe Strickland and seconded by Bill Beuttell to approve the
Minutes of the September 5, 2006 Regular Meeting. Motion unanimously
approved.
Agenda Consent Items
The Board approved the Agenda Consent Items by consensus.
Upcoming Meetings
The Joint Meeting with the Board of Education will be held October
2, 2006 at the Board of Education at 5:15 p.m.
Kenny Poteat reminded the Board of the Road Dedication Ceremony for
Dr. Mary Martin Sloop at Crossnore on October 6, 2006 at 1:30 p.m.
Beginning in November, we will begin our schedule of holding one regular
meeting per month.
Adjourn
Motion by Joe Strickland and second by Susan Pittman to adjourn at
4:30 p.m. Motion unanimously approved.
______________________________________
Kenny Poteat, Chairman
Avery County Board of Commissioners
ATTEST: ______________________________
Nancy H. Cook, Clerk to the Board
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