MINUTES
January 14, 2013
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MINUTES
WILKES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
January 14, 2013
PUBLIC CONCERNS – None
PUBLIC HEARING – – Chairman Keith Elmore declared the Public Hearing open concerning the
proposed Jeld-Wen Economic Incentive Agreement at 6:50 P. M. on Monday, January 14, 2013 with the
following members present: Chairman Keith Elmore, Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins, Commissioner David
Gambill, Commissioner Gary L. Blevins and Commissioner Eddie Settle.
Also present were Tony Triplett, County Attorney; John Yates, County Manager; and Judy Snyder, Clerk to
the Board.
EDC President Jeff Garstka stated the purpose of the Public Hearing is to discuss an incentive agreement for
Jeld-Wen, a project that has been talked about for the last several months. He stated the company plans to
utilize the building that they own near the North Wilkesboro Industrial Park; they plan to manufacture
composite door skins in that facility; they have gone under some pretty severe building modifications to the
building adding quite a bit of money to it and also in the purchase of new equipment; they plan to operate the
building with about 49 new employees over some period of time and will probably start at about ten or so
until they get the process perfected and then they will hire the rest. He stated this was a situation where they
had a number of opportunities across the country in facilities that they owned that they could either do it here
or do it somewhere else back when we started the discussions several months ago. He stated their total
capital investment is about $4.8M and that is not inclusive of some additional equipment that they are going
to be leasing from another company that will be in the building and it will also be on the tax rolls so that is
not part of the incentive agreement. He stated what you are being asked to consider is a grant that is equal to
about 50% of the net new taxes generated through the building improvements and the $2.3M of production
equipment. He stated there are four salaried positions in the plant and about 45 hourly production positions;
the top to bottom average wage inclusive of benefits is about $13.50 per hour. Mr. Garstka stated we are
happy to have them back here in the County; they have been a good corporate citizen before and certainly
expect them to continue to be one. He stated Tom Brown is going to be the General Manager of this facility
and he is here tonight to answer any questions related to the company. He stated Mr. Brown has been with
the company for about 15 years at different locations. He stated the town of North Wilkesboro passed this
very similar incentive agreement last week and we are ready to move forward.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated when do you expect to be fully operational? Mr. Brown replied by
April 1. Chairman Blevins stated good; that is great. Mr. Garstka stated they are looking to hire the first
wave of people to get the facility started almost immediately. Vice Chairman Blevins stated and the tax
incentive is only on new equipment and… Mr. Garstka stated yes, the net new value of the construction.
Vice Chairman Blevins stated and what percentage of that value is the tax incentive. Mr. Garstka replied
50%. He stated Tax Administrator Alex Hamilton went out and took a good look at the building a couple of
weeks ago and took into account the improvements they have made and he said it would increase in value
about $360K; total value. Vice Chairman Blevins stated my understanding is the company pays their
property taxes and then… Mr. Garstka stated you write a grant equal to a percentage of it, yes, in no way,
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January 14, 2013
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shape or form any rebate or abatement of taxes. Vice Chairman Blevins stated and it is for three years. Mr.
Garstka stated yes. Commissioner Settle stated by May 1 will we get 49 employees. Mr. Brown stated we
plan on being there by May 1, yes. Commissioner Settle stated 49. Mr. Brown stated yes. Vice Chairman
Blevins stated and there are sufficient remedies for non-compliance in the contract if they were because of
economic conditions through no fault of their own unable to meet these benchmarks; there would be no
payments made or refund per se of the taxes paid. Mr. Garstka stated he would refer to the legal expert, Mr.
Triplett, but typically these contracts are pretty tight for both parties really. County Attorney Tony Triplett
stated this one is drawn up so that no payment is made until the benchmarks have been met and the taxes
paid. He stated that is the way the contract is arranged; if the benchmarks are not met, the payments are
waivered by a pro rata amount; by the amount by which the benchmark is not met, payments would
correspond. He stated it is set up like most of our incentive contracts. Vice Chairman Blevins stated your
products are basically, mostly American made products that are being sold in the United States, is that
correct? Mr. Brown stated correct. Vice Chairman Blevins stated well, manufacturing jobs certainly have a
high value in the economy; it is net in flow of capital into the County; it is a value added product and those
jobs at this time are hard to come by and we appreciate the opportunity to work with you and partner with
you on this and we look forward to your success certainly. Mr. Garstka stated he certainly did not want to
draw any extra attention to the layoffs that they had here about 12 months ago but wanted to just clarify on
record – this is not a “we shut it down and are bringing it back with the same employees”. He stated a lot of
times companies kind of have a bad mark on their record for doing those kinds of things; this is not that at
all. He stated that was a completely different situation – they had a distribution facility and that piece of
their business has gone elsewhere and this is now a completely different product line with new employees, so
this is all new. He stated he just wanted to clarify that. Vice Chairman Blevins stated well, this is American
and you can come and go as you please and we are just glad to have you back. Commissioner Eddie Settle
stated that is true and I am not a big fan of incentives; companies go and come back and we foot the bill to
come back, but 49 employees by May 1, a new company…. Chairman Keith Elmore stated he had one
question for Mr. Brown. He stated did I read somewhere that Jeld-Wen was planning to move their
headquarters possibly to Charlotte? Mr. Brown replied there has been announcement that their corporate
headquarters for North America has moved to Charlotte. Chairman Elmore asked if that would have any
impact on you being that close to the headquarters – positive. Mr. Brown stated he was not sure it would
have any positive or negative impact.
There being no further comments regarding the proposed Jeld-Wen Economic Incentive Agreement,
Chairman Keith Elmore declared the Public Hearing closed at 7:00 P. M.
The Wilkes County Board of Commissioners met on Monday, January 14, 2013 at 7:00 P.M. with the
following members present: Chairman Keith Elmore, Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins, Commissioner David
Gambill, Commissioner Gary L. Blevins and Commissioner Eddie Settle.
Also present for the meeting were Tony Triplett, County Attorney; John Yates, County Manager; and Judy
Snyder, Clerk to the Board.
The meeting was called to order by Chairman Keith Elmore who welcomed everyone to the meeting.
INVOCATION - Commissioner David Gambill led the Invocation.
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January 14, 2013
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PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE – Chairman Keith Elmore led the Pledge of Allegiance.
MINUTES - Motion was made by Commissioner Gary L. Blevins, seconded by Commissioner David
Gambill and unanimously adopted to approve the Minutes of the Board Meeting held on January 2, 2013
AGENDA ADJUSTMENT – Chairman Keith Elmore stated at this time he would like to remove Items E.
(Budget Amendments and Transfers) and Item F.1 (Permission to Advertise Tax Liens) from the agenda. He
stated these items were placed on the agenda by mistake.
TAX DEPARTMENT – EXTENSION OF THE LISTING PERIOD – Alex Hamilton, Tax
Administrator, stated he comes before the Board to request permission to extend the listing period; North
Carolina General Statute Section 105-307 entitled “Length of Listing Period; Extension; Preliminary Work”
gives the Board of County Commissioners the authority to extend the listing period by thirty (30) days. He
stated he is requesting that the Board to extend the listing period until March 1, 2013. Mr. Hamilton stated
the statute also allows the County Commissioners to grant “individual extensions of time for the listing of
real and personal property upon written request and for good cause shown”; the statute allows the
Commissioners to delegate this authority to the Tax Administrator. Mr. Hamilton stated the extensions
granted under this paragraph shall not extend beyond April 15, 2013. He requested the Board delegate the
authority to grant the individual extensions to the Tax Administrator.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins made a motion to approve the request to extend the listing period until
March 1, 2013 and to delegate the authority to the Tax Administrator to grant individual extensions of time
for the listing of real and personal property as requested. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Eddie
Settle and unanimously approved.
AIRPORT – TIP SUBMITTAL FOR 2014-2018 – Mr. Jimmy Luther, Senior Project Manager, W. K.
Dickson, stated you have in your packets the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) listing for 20142018 which is a yearly planning document provided to the Division of Aviation for them to basically look at
projects throughout the State at different airports and see how their funding is going to be for picking some
projects as they go through their ranking. He stated approval of this document does not obligate the County
to any funding and it does not obligate DOA to choose any of these projects so it is just kind of a planning
document that goes into their database and you are competing with 70 some other airports in the State for
monies at all times, so your projects go into their ranking system and if one falls out and they do offer a grant
to the County at that time, you would be able to accept that grant if you desired to do so and then you would
have a local match of 10%. He stated this document is just a planning document and does not obligate the
County or the State to fund or put money towards any of these projects. Mr. Luther stated some of you have
not seen this listing in the past, but there are not any new projects on the listing; this is something that is done
every year and it is a five year program but, projects unless they get funded, pretty much stay on the list and
these projects have been on the listing for several years now so they are place holders primarily. He stated
this keeps you in the database and if you were to pull a project out and say next year you wanted to do that
project, you are kind of back at the bottom of the list. He stated as long as it is in the State’s database they
keep a record of what year it was submitted and give it a ranking priority. Mr. Luther asked if the Board
members had any questions regarding the TIP listing.
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January 14, 2013
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Chairman Keith Elmore stated so 2014 we have the two projects that would be considered. Mr. Luther stated
yes, Sir and actually they were moved down last year; they were 2013 and the two projects did not get
funded so they moved down to 2014 and the possibility of them getting funded this year just keeps them in
that ranking slot; those have higher priorities than the ones below that are called “the additional airports”.
He stated those are recommended by the Division of Aviation as projects that they want you to have so that
is why they are up above earlier years. He stated now if those do not get funded this year, next year you will
probably see those move down to 2015. Chairman Elmore stated do you have any idea of the likelihood of
these being funded? Mr. Luther stated no to be honest with you; it is a ranking criteria. He stated the status
is due the 25th to the State and we will put it in for you electronically and then once the 25th of the month the
State’s aviation staff will take every airport’s that has submitted their TIP and start going through and
scrubbing those lists. He stated he thought the next funding cycle would probably be around June 30 or July
1 and at that time they will have chosen projects throughout the State to decide which ones are going to be
funding.
Commissioner David Gambill stated he would just like to point out the brochure you sent out to us; it was
very nice and it showed how good the airport looked. Mr. Luther stated we are trying to obviously promote
the airport; you have got a great facility out there and we have some available spaces for development.
Commissioner Gambill stated it was very nice.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated the projects that are our highest priority are certainly needed; we do
have to update the layout plan at the airport and also this is to overlay the runway and update the airfield
lighting – both of those are just about overdue. Mr. Luther stated you have received the grant for the design
of the overlay; this will be funding the construction so obviously the State sees a priority there and now it is
in line hopefully to receive construction money. Vice Chairman Blevins asked Mr. Luther what would be
the lifespan of the new pavement. Mr. Luther stated you figure it on a 20 year life cycle; after 12-15 years it
is going to need some type of rehab where it is crack sealing or some type of PDC as they call it – “pavement
dressing” but typically the design life cycle by FAA is a 20 year life cycle. Vice Chairman Blevins stated so
for what a 10% match? Mr. Luther stated yes, Sir. Vice Chairman Blevins stated almost a $3M project with
a 10% match, we would have a new runway surface that would probably do for the next 20 years; it sounds
like a pretty good deal. Mr. Luther stated you are beyond your initial 20 years so that is why it is a priority
ranking with the State. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he thought it was a great deal if we are going to
continue to operate an airport it is vital that we do that. Mr. Luther stated he also thought so. He stated the
monies that fund these grants obviously comes out of the Aviation Trust Fund which is not tax dollars; it is
aviation fuel sales so the flying public if you will or pilots are the ones that…. that tax money goes into the
aviation program and that is what funds these grants and the local match obviously is 10% and it is however
you come up with that local match; 90% of the money is Aviation Trust Fund AIP Program which is not tax
deductable out of someone’s payroll. Commissioner David Gambill asked if the paving would allow for
different weight of the aircraft or will you stay the same. Mr. Luther stated it is right now programmed just
to be an overlay; it is not necessarily to add strength to it. He stated it will add some strength but he did not
know if it would kick them up to another weight class as far as aircraft weights go. He stated we are
planning a three inch and it would probably take five to six inches to give you some more strength in that
aging section. He stated as far as he knew you do not have any restraints or constraints on aircraft at the
airport now weight-wise on the pavement section that you have. Vice Chairman Blevins stated it is more the
length of the runway? Mr. Luther stated yes, Sir.
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Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins made a motion to adopt the Wilkes County Airport Transportation
Improvement Program (TIP) 2014-2018 Project Listing as presented. The motion was seconded by
Commissioner Eddie Settle and unanimously approved.
Mr. Luther thanked the Commissioners and stated he would make sure it gets to the State in time.
DAYMARK RECOVERY SERVICES, INC. ANNUAL REPORT – Billy West, Executive Director,
Daymark Recovery Services, Inc. stated the last time he was here there was a lot of uncertainty and over a
year later he is pleased to announce that things have gone relatively well regardless of what you read in the
statewide papers and what not about mental health reform as it is called. Mr. West stated hopefully everyone
received a handout. He stated he was not going to go over the handout verbatim, but just hitting the high
spots of the handout about us – our mission statement and then some real specific information about Wilkes
County. Below is the Wilkes County specific data:
Patients Seen: Age/Payer
Unduplicated Indigent Medicaid Medicare Medicare/Medicaid Private Totals
Patients FY
Insurance
2012
Adults
983
332
104
155
88
1,662
Children
38
48
0
0
10
96
Grand Total
1,021
380
104
155
98
1,758
Core Medical/Crisis Services for 2012. Note: Duplicated patients having multiple visits to remain stable.
Services (duplicated
patients)
Medical Team (MD
Visits)
Mobile Crisis Visits
Emergency Walk-in
Clinic
Adult
Child
Total
3,468
165
3,633
1,583
2,200
77
89
1,660
2,289
Mr. West stated here you have the unduplicated count of children and adults by payer source. He stated by
children he means school age to age 18 and adults are 18 and up. He stated he broke it down by payer
sources because he thought it important to look at how many indigent patients are being treated. He stated
depending on what our State does with the Accountable Care Act, that number will go down in theory. He
stated he was not a soothsayer so he could not tell them what will really happen when all that comes to
fruition.
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He stated you can see how many Medicaid, Medicare and Medicare/Medicaid; those are important numbers
because it is very difficult to find a provider to take Medicare or certainly Medicare/Medicaid; it is tough to
make ends meet with those rates as well as just get it billed, approved and paid and then some key services
that he believes are key and this is not just Wilkes County but statewide. He stated those first numbers by
the way are unduplicated people; they are individual, a name beside each number. He stated these other
numbers you are looking at are duplicated meaning one person in theory could have come in 3,000 times.
He stated he would say the average number of times that somebody comes in is probably 6-8 depending on
what service it is. He stated for your medical visits, the average person comes in 3-5 times a year. He stated
your mobile crisis visits he was not sure and your emergency walk-in visits maybe 1-3 times per year. He
stated those are the med team services - psychiatry, psychiatric nurses giving shot injections, administering
indigent medications for people who cannot afford medication. He stated your mobile crisis visits are mainly
visits in hospitals and community services that are just outside of our clinic and your emergency walk-ins
range from someone who may really not have an emergency but they feel like they have one and we would
rather them come to us than sit at home and it get worse and become a real emergency or go to the ER
particularly when it is not an emergency and ranging from that to someone coming in, in handcuffs on
involuntary commitment and then everything in between. He stated those are our numbers. He stated we
looked at our workforce too; we employ 33 staff here and out of those 33, 25 are Wilkes County residents
and that is here. He stated what he did not do is look and see if there might be a Wilkes County resident
somewhere else within our administration or center and he did not run those numbers. He stated he thought
of this when he was driving over here and thought he should have ran those numbers. He stated you can find
out annual report on our website: www.daymarkrecovery.org Mr. West stated he was open to any questions
or comments the Board might have.
Commissioner Eddie Settle asked if they were a detox service. Mr. West stated we do inpatient detoxes in
other location not in the Smoky Mountain or Wilkes County region. He stated we can do follow-up after the
someone has been detoxed and we can get someone into a detox facility; we are often a “portal of entry” and
then we could keep someone hopefully in recovery and sober through outpatient treatment once they have
been detoxed. He stated if you look at our annual report, you will see we have some detox facilities, but they
are in Raleigh, Cabarrus County, and Union County in Statesville. Commissioner Settle stated would those
be for any type of detox - drugs or alcohol. Mr. West stated drugs or alcohol. Commissioner Settle stated
meth? Mr. West stated we could, yes. Commissioner Settle stated he read in the Winston-Salem paper today
where we have 59 cases in Wilkes County. Mr. West stated Wilkes County is one of your higher incidents
of methamphetamine incident rates in the State. He stated if this were a regular business, you would read
that and immediately set up at one of these locations, but those are indigent people mainly and there are only
so many indigent dollars and these detox facilities are $2M operations and so it becomes cost prohibitive and
a lot of the local management issues, which is not Daymark, will try to station them in strategic locations
where multiple counties can use one.
Commissioner David Gambill stated are you doing a follow-up with the mental health patients – are they
coming in for follow-up? Mr. West stated yes, Sir. He stated even on the duplicated... Mr. West stated yes,
what happens and one service that he did not list is just your routine outpatient services because there are just
so many; there is mental health, mental health group, substance abuse individual group, intensive, outpatient
group – it became a two or three page document and he thought that might be a little much. He stated what
happens generally somebody either walks-in, calls for an appointment or is referred by someone else and we
would see them, assign them a therapist assuming it is a routine kind of appointment and they go to some
type of outpatient counseling and they may see the medical services in between those appointments. He
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stated they may have a crisis, but normally people that engage in treatment tend not to use the crisis center,
however, folks that come in, in crisis, they get just enough help to feel better, they leave and think they do
not need to come anymore, they start feeling really good and think “I do not need my medicine anymore” ,
then they do cycle back through into the crisis, but that is okay as long as they are using that front door
instead of law enforcement, jails, emergency rooms – that is why we are trying to keep open the front door as
wide as we can so when folks decide they need to come back they can. He stated sometimes people’s illness
is just that severe; it is hard to get it under control – substance abuse is tough, bi-polar disorder is very
difficult particular at early on set, you just have it and are trying to manage it yourself, you cannot believe it
has happened to you. Commissioner Gambill stated when they are coming up with Wilkes being number
one in the State; are we being compared with counties our size, is it apples to apples? Mr. West stated he did
not know if it was statistically significant or not. He stated he has not really read comparison verbatim, but
what he can tell you is that it is a large number regardless - you could be Mecklenburg County - it is still a
large number of methamphetamine cases that your law enforcement are having to deal with – it is dangerous.
He stated all drugs are dangerous, but this is dangerous for all parties – it is dangerous for the neighbor next
door, it is dangerous for law enforcement going in, it raises things to a whole new level when you have that
type of drug. He stated he did not know that he would say “well, look at the ratio of meth to number of
people – it is okay or not that bad” – it is serious anyway you look at it.
Chairman Keith Elmore stated you do offer like mental health 24 hour service – right? Mr. West stated we
have as mobile crisis service that is 24/7 365 and that is someone that can go out in the community. He
stated now one thing I am caution about this is when you hear the State talk about it, it sounds like they have
blue lights and a ton of people just raring to get out on the street. He stated it is about a two hour – a zero to
two hour - lag time by the time we get a call and we might have one worker on tonight and they might be at
the hospital and they have to get all the way across the County to another call; there are not blue lights or
sirens or anything like that. He stated he did want to preference that, but it is available, it is very helpful and
keeps a lot of people in their home and in fact there were 1600 visits last year; 1,660 calls to be exact – calls
for service and of course from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. we are open and you can walk-in with no
appointment - be it is convenient for me or I need to get in today - and we can see you. Chairman Elmore
asked if calls are routed through Haywood. Mr. West stated he was not sure. He stated Sarah Dunagan our
Regional Manager is with us tonight and may be able to answer this question. Ms. Dunagan stated we have a
dispatch that covers a five county area; when calls come to the dispatch, we contact the crisis person on call
and they take care of the situation. Chairman Elmore stated you do have a central location that calls come
through. Vice Chairman Blevins asked if the dispatch was located in Cabarrus County. Ms. Dunagan
replied we actually have it located here in Wilkes. Mr. West stated he knew it was odd. He stated he was at
the Wilkes center right before he came here and he knew they had a central dispatch for all the counties, but
our mountain counties and he was not sure where that went – if it went through the LME or not – and it was
pushing seven o’clock and there was a lot of people still in the Wilkes building so that must be what they are
doing.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated the $900 per patient per year just says it is considerably less than the
State average; what is the State average? Mr. West stated he was not sure what it is today, but it used to be
about $15,000 per patient back at the onset of reform and our cost then was about $700 per patient. He
stated what had happened and you probably saw it all over the news, they had…and this is back at the early
days of reform when for lack of a better term, it appears that the State was on its way out of the behavioral
health business, they had a service called “community support” and you could take someone with very
minimal training and pay them $8 per hour and bill $50-60 an hour and people were literally going into high
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Medicaid density areas and providing for lack of a better term “mentors” or “keepers or sitters” or whatever
you want to call it – go to the mall, go to the movies, play football for $8 an hour or bill the Government
substantially more. He stated we chose the route of hiring doctors, nurses, clinical social workers,
psychologists, counselors and that in and of itself you just do not have that many visit even if you charge
$100 per hour, which we do not, when you come in six times a year statistically our costs is not going to be
that. He stated the State has done away with that service, titrated things down and given a lot to control by
Local Management Entities (LMEs), which is a good thing. He stated the State was spending about a billion
dollars a year, like $900+M a year, on services like that. He stated he would go to Raleigh for the
Legislative Oversight Committee meetings and they would talk about how 95% of those services were
inappropriate and that is a nice thing for fraud so they literally between giving care management to the Local
Management Entities and doing away with service definitions, the State has probably driven costs down to
somewhere around $5,000-6,000 per patient. He stated that is his guess at this point, but we are still
significantly under that. He stated this is an average of not Wilkes County; it is a 32 county average. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated so other than the “baby sitting” service and the life skills services you are basically
providing the same or better medical care for significantly less. Mr. West stated we have always provided
the medical care component; we never did the “sitter/keeper” services. He stated we want you to coming in
if you cannot take care of yourself then you need to different type of living situation and if you can take care
of yourself, we are going to wrap your family around you and give you a support system, we are going to try
to get you in a place to be as independent as you can and that is not what something doing something for you
does.
Vice Chairman Blevins asked Mr. West about the relationship with the County. He stated we have
purchased the building that you are in and we are easing it to you and you are providing the services; are you
satisfied with that arrangement now that we have evolved into? Mr. West stated it has been very nice to have
that stability because the one thing we did not have, as all of you know was stability when we just had this
upheaval with New River, so that has been one thing that just not having to stress about that and worry about
that, we have really been able to focus on let’s just provide services. He stated he was sure there will come a
time when we will have to focus on that, but if we can get some of these other things squared away in
stability that is just kind of a natural process of things. Vice Chairman Blevins stated things certainly have
stabilized since you came in. He stated he thought he was doing a great job considering where we started
and where we are now. He stated he could see a significant improvement. Mr. West stated thank you.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated he did want to ask what Mr. West sees in the future for mental health
care in Wilkes County as it relates to the State and Federal situation. Mr. West stated it is tough to say and
he thought six months would tell a lot with our new Governor. He stated that is not bad or good. He stated
he likes what the Governor is saying early on – he is saying you have to fix the information technology
system that is broken. He stated he said that is a number one priority. Mr. West stated that is a big deal; that
is one of the reasons things costs so much now; that is one reason spending got so out of control at the onset.
He stated if reform fails in North Carolina it is likely in large part due to the information technology systems
that are out there or lack thereof, so he is on the right track there and that is music to my ears. He stated we
are on a course right now that we are going to have these local waivers. He stated he thought that was a
great idea. He stated he thought there was going to be some success and there are going to be some failures
in our State. He stated you have probably read the paper and there is already a fight going on in
Mecklenburg County because they did not get to go live and they are challenging that now. He stated he did
not know where all of that is going to end up. He stated he would like to say there will be successes and
failures and North Carolina will have the patience to stay the course and see this out. He stated if you look at
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the history of North Carolina – we love to change things - so he did not know if there is going to be some
failures and then there is going to be a call to reform reform. He stated he knew the Accountability Care Act
is going to be a huge part of this and if it comes through, you are going to see roughly $17-18 Federal dollars
for every one State dollar and that is a pretty good deal and that will improve things significantly. He stated
if it does not go through, of course when I say that, there is a cost to that too – pay me now or pay me later –
you are going to have to deal with that. He stated if we do not see it come through, you will see private
insurances having to follow the regulations in that, but you will see that indigent number stay the same so
that is probably going to be more of a burden on your insurance, you are going to have the same State dollars
that are available. He stated there has been a trend over the past couple of years, July 1 just recently, that the
State dollars just continue to get cut out of the State budget, so that goes back to your next question – who is
going to take care of substance abuse patients that are traditionally indigent. Commissioner Eddie Settle
stated I think we are getting ready to build a place over here next to the Courthouse. Mr. West stated and
that goes back to cost per patient and how much does it cost? Vice Chairman Blevins stated it is more than
$900 per year. Mr. West stated I cannot answer your question is the short answer to your question. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated he did not feel so bad about not know what is going to happen. Mr. West stated the
fact that you guys did a heck of a job getting through that New River piece, particularly the settlement issues
and the fact that you are here still asking these questions; whatever happens you guys will make it through it
though.
Chairman Keith Elmore stated we will be working on the budget in a few months, the money that we budget
which goes to Smoky, how does that impact you here at the service level. Mr. West stated it comes directly
to us, 100% of it for services, and he apologized for not bringing that, but if you want to see how it is spent,
he will email whoever needs it. He stated it goes directly into a line item, probably physicians or emergency
services, is my guess. He stated every county wants a little something different or some counties do not and
it is the LME that makes the decision, but regardless all of the LMEs are very careful about County dollars
and so are we even if the LME says “well, spend it where you need it” it is probably going to go to
emergency or medical services. Chairman Elmore stated he would love to see that report. Mr. West stated
he would send that information either tonight or tomorrow morning.
Commissioner Gary L. Blevins stated he had a couple of questions. He asked Mr. West if they had any
problems with Medicaid patients. He stated he has been hearing that some Medicaid patients in the nursing
homes are going to get kicked out because their Medicaid stopped. Mr. West stated you are talking about
the….. yes, we have not, being an outpatient clinic, had any problems with that but there are particular
problems in North Carolina where….and North Carolina has known about this for many years and the Feds
have finally just said…. and we have almost to some degree ignored it….the State has been put on notice that
Medicaid is going to stop paying. He stated he did not know all the nuances and rules but it will be very
difficult and it will shut down some of these homes and it will cost some people not to have a home. He
stated he thought before the last Governor left, she took some action to make those payments for another
month or something to that effect, so we are not necessarily being affected now because the patients we see
still have a roof over their head. He stated now how this new administration deals with it he was not sure.
He stated he knew folks were very serious about it now and they have some type of blue ribbon panel. He
stated he was not on the panel, but a lot of folks that were much smarter than him on this issue are and he
knew they were making headway on it. He stated it is now at the top of a list; it is no longer being ignored
because the Justice Department is not allowing it to be ignored.
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Commissioner Gary L. Blevins stated he was appointed to the Smoky Mountain Board and asked Mr. West if
he could give him some inside insight regarding Smoky. Mr. West stated as a payer, the Medicaid is flowing
pretty well; it is just as good as…. Commissioner Blevins asked if Mr. West was having any problems with
it. Mr. West replied no problems at all billing Medicaid whatsoever. He stated he thought it was as good, if
not better, than “value options” which is a big deal because a lot of LMEs came out of the gate unable to pay
anything. He stated he was not sure where they were at with billing State dollars, which County dollars are
tied into that, because some of that is billed, some of it is paid in lump sums for different things. He stated
he would say that they have done about as well as any other LME has done out of the gate with a new IT
system; there is inherent problems to that and he was sure if his IT Director were here, he could go into detail
to put us all to sleep on things they are working on and so forth. He stated he was not seeing any problems at
his level where he is worried about cash flow or worried about them being overly punitive or anything like
that and that is really what an LME needs to do. He stated they need to approve care, paid for care and then
make sure it is the right care getting delivered and so far that is what he has seen from Smoky. He stated that
is what he has pretty much seen out of the ones we have contracted with not just Smoky. He stated he would
say as a board member he would recommend that you stay open-minded about expansion. He stated he
thought you will see, as things move down the road, opportunities for Smoky. He stated he was not saying
Smoky is perfect by any means, but he thought Smoky is one of the better LMEs; they have proven that –
they came out of the gate, they did not fail, they paid their claims and those are all big deals when you are
running a managed care company. He stated that was a big deal when Daymark was in Davidson County –
we do not want to be with someone bigger – we got with Piedmont and he remembers people saying “well,
we are concerned about growing”…. Mr. West stated well, I think you need to grow. He stated your Blue
Cross of North Carolina is of North Carolina it is not Blue Cross of Wilkes County or Blue Cross of
Watauga County – it is statewide because they need those covered lives to make the math work.
Commissioner Blevins stated with 30 members on their board that is a large board. Mr. West stated well you
are going to have to….. He stated he did not know what you were going to have to do with the board.
Commissioner Blevins stated they want to cut back. Mr. West stated to be effective he could not imagine,
and he was just making this up with Smoky that covers 15 counties, but well let’s say they just jumped up to
25, now you are talking 50 people. He stated he did not know what the answer was, but you are going to
have to do something different.
Mr. West asked if there were any other questions. He stated he felt like he had left the Board with more
questions than answers. Chairman Keith Elmore stated no, no, no, you have done a good job. He stated we
are very fortunate to have you and Daymark serving our mental health patients. Mr. West stated he would
try to get them that number tonight or tomorrow. Chairman Elmore thanked Mr. West for his presentation.
JAIL UPDATE – Chairman Keith Elmore stated at this time we have Jack Hemphill and Chris Little. He
stated Mr. Hemphill is with Hemphill-Randel Associates, Inc. and Mr. Little is with Vannoy Construction
and they have an update on the jail for us. At this time, handouts were provided to the Commissioners. Mr.
Little stated we have with us Mike Kesterson, our Director of Pre-Construction, who will give you the
official update. Chairman Elmore stated very good. Mr. Hemphill stated he thought he explained briefly the
last time he was here that the design and drawing portions of the project are in three basic phases: the first
phase being the schematic design which was finished in August; the second phase being the design
development which was finished in November; and the third phase is the construction document phase and
that is underway and we are in the process of finishing that up now. He stated we are on schedule at this
point in time and he would also mention that one of the things that came about when you brought the
Construction Manager at Risk on board is they recognized the advantages of taking the first bid package as
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the site package and breaking that out from the general package and bidding that first and then doing the
general package second. He stated so what you have on the table there is actually the permitting package for
the site package and that is now ready to be permitted and that will go through as part of this month and the
bidding with Randel will take place in February. He stated the details of the schedule Mr. Kesterson will
explain here in just a minute, but that is why you have that in front of you right now and you may have some
questions if you look through it and also we have Neil Shepherd of Blue Ridge Engineering with us tonight
and if there is a question that I cannot answer, I will be glad to defer that to him and he can certainly answer
that. Mr. Hemphill stated we have received our comments from the permitting for the general package from
the design development set that went out in December. He stated we received Department of Insurance
comments on that just a week ago and that was very good and there were no comments in there that were
anything other than the regular things that we normally get; there was nothing that would change the
schedule or change any costs, so that is pretty much taken care of. He stated the building package of this
overall set goes to Raleigh and goes to the Department of Insurance and it goes to DHSR and the Department
of Insurance focuses on code issues only and DHSR they focus on the jail code issues mostly and the
building code. He stated he spoke with the architect with DHSR today and he said he would be finished with
his review by the end of this week, but he has to turn it over to the engineering side of that and it will be the
end of this month before we get comments back on that. He stated the only reason I bring that up is the
design development review by DHSR is probably the most critical piece of information that we get back in
terms of finishing up with the final drawing for the project and as I did mention before there has been a big
change in the personnel there and the length of time that they take to go through these is a little longer than
it was before; it took 75 days for them to go through schematic design and if what he said today is correct, it
will have taken them 70 days to have gone through design development, which is a good bit longer than it
has in the past. He stated that may be; as far as he knows right now, the only thing that could possibly have
some affect on the schedule.
Mr. Hemphill stated we also had a review by the local technical review committee here and that was last
week and several comments came out of that and they have already been incorporated into the plans that you
have there. He stated there were seven comments and of the seven, four of them were all ready taken care of
just by virtue of the fact that we have gone from design development into the contract document; they were
already taken care of as part of the drawings we have done. He stated there are three which he will mention
briefly; one of which was a concern in the existing courthouse – they have a number of holding cells for the
inmates that are being taken to court that day; the way the design of the courthouse currently is, in case of a
fire, those inmates are taken out of those holding cells and escorted down a set of fire stairs to the outside.
He stated the concern is that they are escorted down the same stairs that the public would be going down, so
there are several ways that can be addressed. He stated he has talked to the Sheriff about this and he talked
to his staff about this and reported back and he had several comments that were very helpful just in terms of
explaining what is possible to do there and what is advisable. He stated it is possible to create another stair
that would be entirely dedicated for those inmates that are in those holding cells. He stated because the
location of the cells and what we have to do in terms of the location of the new jail facility, it would not be
an inexpensive route to take, but it can be done and that can be an answer if that is the only way to be
acceptable. Commissioner David Gambill stated he had a question right there because he worked in that
building for ten years… Vice Chairman Blevins stated Commissioner Gambill and I met the other day and
talked about this and he found this rather curious. Commissioner Gambill stated there are two sets of stairs,
emergency stairs, on the front of the building on each side; when we used to escort them out there is a set of
stairs in the back and it is a secure area back there, so with that being said, would you still think you would
have to have a fourth set. Mr. Hemphill stated no, I am just saying to satisfy that comment, one would be to
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put a stair in, that would be one way to do it and the comment said that inmates are being escorted out by the
same path that others are having to leave the building in case of a fire and that is an area that would not
necessarily been public use other than the Sheriff’s staff and the inmates and they thought that was
uncomfortable. Mr. Hemphill stated one of the ways to solve that is to put a fire stair on there and we looked
at how to do it and it can be done. He stated the Sheriff also mentioned something else that should be folded
into the thinking of this and that is the fact that the reason why there are so many inmates in those holding
cells is because they have to transport them from the existing cells and transport them from jail over there so
they bring all of them over that are going to have any potential of having a court hearing that day, so there
are a lot of them over there. He stated by virtue of the fact that we are building a jail contiguous with the
courthouse, they are in their cells, the population that they will be using for those holding cells will go
dramatically down and a large portion of that population that will be in there will be misdemeanants and so
they are not going to be dangerous. He stated those that will not be misdemeanants and will be more
dangerous will be held in separate holding cells and according to the Sheriff they could arrange to have those
escorted out one-on-one and as long as they get to the outside of that we can actually have them taken right
back into the secure corridor of the new jail so it would be a much easier fix. He stated the expensive as far
as the construction is concerned would have no affect. He stated he thought that was a good solid answer
and we should present that back to the review committee. He stated he was sure there would be another
review. Vice Chairman Blevins stated it was his understanding there were four sets of steps. Commissioner
Gambill stated no. Vice Chairman Blevins stated there are only three – the two on the side and the main
steps coming down into the foyer and then there is another set. Commissioner Gambill stated there is
another set in the back side of the building. Vice Chairman Blevins stated Commissioner Gambill is saying
there is a set of steps on the east side of the building facing the Detention Center. Mr. Hemphill stated yes.
Vice Chairman Blevins stated but they are used by Magistrates or staff or something; they are certainly not
used by the public. Mr. Hemphill stated yes, it is closed off to the public, but the inmates are going down
and other staff members are going down. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he was not aware of that at the
technical review meeting; no body mentioned that set of steps. He stated that was fine with him and thought
that was satisfactory if there is a set of steps on the east side of the courthouse building. He stated he did not
see an issue. Chairman Elmore stated this is a courthouse issue – right; this has nothing to do with building
the jail. Mr. Hemphill stated that is correct. Chairman Elmore stated okay, this has always been there since
day one. Mr. Hemphill stated yes and by virtue of building the jail, we do not violate any code issues that
are there that is acceptable the way it is now; they felt like it was a reasonable suggestion for safety, but it is
not a code issue or violation issue. Vice Chairman Blevins stated what brought it up is normally they are
brought down by elevator, but in the case of a fire the elevator would not be available – that was the issue as
much as anything. Mr. Hemphill stated they have to walk them down in case of a fire so that is the issue
there.
Mr. Hemphill stated the second issue had to do with the sewer. He stated the way the plans were drawn up,
we elevated the detention portion of the jail high enough so that we can get a positive slope to an existing
sewer on the north side of the courthouse. He stated we did this for two reasons: number one it is the most
economical way to do it and number two that line on the north side of the courthouse is sluggish and
inefficient because there is a lack of fluids going through it and this actually would increase the performance
of that line. He stated the concern there was the town has volunteered to extend a new line which they are
bringing up to serve some other clients nearby and the comment was they felt like it would serve better to
run the jail sewage into the new line rather than take it into the old line. He stated the sewage that leaves the
jail, all the jails that we design, before it gets into the public sewer goes through a grinder and the grinder
will grind everything in there to powder so if the inmates are stuffing shoes and towels down the toilets, they
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will be ground up into nothing by the time they get there. Mr. Hemphill stated since the town has
volunteered to come part of the way there to the jail, we took a look at what would be the advantages of
doing that. He stated the entire facility cannot run in that direction because the facility is tiered downward
toward the sewer and of course the sewer runs by gravity downward; the toilets on the lower side of that if
we had to run it backward to the south side and obviously we cannot run the sewer up hill, it would have to
run down hill and by the time it got to the toilets at the far south side of the project, it would be like 12 feet in
the ground and would be extremely prohibitive and expensive to do it that way. He stated on page nine of
your drawings, one other way we have looked at doing it, which may be an advantage, is that the detention
portion only be reversed and run to the south and connected to the new sewer line coming in from the south.
He stated we take the grinder from the north side and we put it on that line running to the south; everything
else in the facility, which is all the booking, the offices, the magistrate and other areas, all of that will
continue to go to the north and then to the north side of the courthouse in the way that we originally designed
it. He stated we would no longer have to run the sewage on the northern side through the grinder; only the
sewage coming out of the detention portion has to run through the grinder. He stated it would put all of the
detention sewage into the new sewer and would still allow the remainder of the sewage to go the way it was
originally designed. He stated as you know this is phase one of a two phase design; phase two is a future
expansion of the jail and the future expansion of the jail is on the south side of the courthouse so everything
in the future expansion would also be picked up in that line that we are showing going our to the south side.
Vice Chairman Blevins stated what is the life span of that grinder system and is it built to capacity for the
additional building or will that be about the time it needs to be replaced. Mr. Hemphill stated it will be built
to the capacity to take the original and the expansion and they do have a life limitation. He stated those
things have pretty hefty motors, but the way they are designed to be taken out they can be replaced very
easily and very efficiently; they are not inexpensive grinders they are like $20,000 a piece but they can come
out and they will probably last ten years at best. He stated the way the whole vault is created, they were
lifted straight out and another one just plugs back in. He stated one thing I might point out is by putting it on
that location and there is only so far that we can put it away from the building, it actually ends up in a spot
that still shows up on that drawing which was originally showing to be some parking spaces, so we will have
to redo some of the curb and gutter and we will lose a few parking spaces out of that. Vice Chairman
Blevins asked if they picked up any additional parking behind the building when they shifted the building on
the east side. Mr. Hemphill stated we actually have room to pick up some parking spaces and we have
enough additional parking right now to accommodate what we are doing right now; when we expand the
building there is room to expand the parking spaces. He stated it does not show up on these plans and we are
not showing on these plans the phase two work; these are the plans that go to Raleigh and we only get them
to concentrate on one phase at a time.
Mr. Hemphill stated the third item of the seven, and as I said four of them were already taken care of just a
matter of progress, is there was a suggestion because we have to put a secure fence all the way around the
detention portion of the facility and the suggestion was that the contention, the secure fence, would be an
eyesore in the parking lot adjacent to the courthouse and could some type of other wall be put there that
would get rid of the eyesore. He stated the answer to that is yes we can do that; there is another handout that
shows a red line around the jail and that red line is actually the location of the fence. He stated if you will
orient it so that the words “courthouse” is in the lower left hand corner of the drawing, the parking lot is in
the lower right hand portion of it. He stated that lowest red line could be converted to a brick wall with the
brick matching the jail and it would be high enough so that the concertina wire that we put around a secure
fence like that would actually go on the backside out of sight of that wall. He stated we have done this
before for the same sort of reason – we built a jail that was in a residential area and we did that - and it would
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look better and it would be equally secure and it would cost more money to do that. He stated Vannoy
looked at a very rough ballpark idea of what it would cost to that and we are talking about adding about a
$60-60,000 item to do it not including the costs of the fence to remove if we do that. He stated in that
drawing you are looking at over on the right hand side is a little red dot – that is the new location for the
sewer grinder and that sewer grinder would end up behind that and that does have part of the long part of the
apparatus that sticks up and is not terribly attractive. He stated even if we just do this, we will probably have
to put some kind of screen around that just because it is ugly. Vice Chairman Blevins stated so the fencing
in the diagram takes up that row of parking spaces anyway. Mr. Hemphill stated that fence would take out
that row of parking spaces, yes. Chairman Elmore stated the red line goes a little over three quarters around
the building. Mr. Hemphill states yes, the rest of it would be your regular secure fence with your concertina
wire across the top. He stated there are two reasons for this: number one in case of a fire, the inmates have to
be evacuated directly out of the building and they will be coming out on three sides of the building and then
they have to be herded down over on the right hand side you see “male AOR” and “female AOR” that is
“area of refuge”. He stated they have to be herded into those areas and that entire area has to be 50 feet away
from the building. He stated the second reason for doing this around the detention portion of the building is
the detention portion of the building are considered areas of potential targets for not only vandalism but for
terrorism. He stated we do not want to have any portion of that where the public can come up and touch it or
put anything on it. Vice Chairman Blevins stated the reason it only covers three-quarters of the building is
because the intake center acts as the security area for the north side of the building does it not? Mr.
Hemphill stated yes and the intake area has the Magistrate and some public areas in there and it also has an
area for your Pre-trial Release Program, some offices, food preparation and other things and it is not as high
target for terrorism; everybody knows where the inmates are being housed and that is the population that
somebody wants to go after. Commissioner Gary L. Blevins stated why do we need a brick wall for?
Chairman Blevins replied esthetics is my understanding. Vice Chairman Blevins stated it seems more secure
too, especially on that side of the building – the building is how many feet to the fence? Mr. Hemphill stated
it is about 20 feet. Vice Chairman Blevins stated then in the back – what is that – 50 feet? Mr. Hemphill
stated it is about 35 feet back there and we have really got more than 50 feet over on the right.
Commissioner Blevins stated this is not a resort. Chairman Elmore stated when do we need to make a
decision on the wall? Mr. Hemphill stated the wall should not have any effect on the permitting process and
you would only have to make that decision in time for us to get those drawings in for the bidding process.
Mr. Hemphill asked Mr. Kesterson if he agreed with that. Mr. Kesterson stated one option that Mr. Hemphill
and I were talking about was actually bidding the brick wall as an alternate so the basis of design will be with
chain link and then the discussion would be do we want to pay that premium for that brick wall. Mr.
Hemphill stated that is a good point; then you can decide whether it is worth it or not. Vice Chairman
Blevins asked if there were any other affordable options for fencing other than a woven wire fence with
concertina at the top. He stated he did some research on the internet and saw some type of wrought iron
looking fences with spikes at the top and knew they have to be more expensive, but it looks like they might
last longer as well; are their any other options besides the brick wall? Mr. Hemphill stated there is another
option; there is a type of wire fabric that you can put in the fence and the holes are small enough so that you
cannot get your fingers in there so you cannot climb up it; both that and the option that you talked about is a
little bit more expensive then what we have talked about.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated he was curious about the schedule and any delays. Mr. Kesterson
stated he had a written update to kind of you give a timeline as far as what they have been working on since
we were awarded the CM contract. He stated essentially since we have been awarded the contract, we have
been working solicitation; we started out with some phone calls that morphed into more of the formal public
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advertising that included some national publications, our Plan Room, as well as the local newspaper. He
stated he did not know if anyone had seen the publication or not, but he had attached a copy in the handout.
He stated so we have the public advertisement out there for pre-qualification and what that was is a total
pack up of an AIA 305 and supplemental information and the interested sub-contractors will either contact
us, go on our website that has all the information on there, and submit that to us which ranges from relative
experience, location, personnel, financials, bonding, insurance, essentially the whole gamut so the cutoff
period was last Friday, so this week and probably spanning into sometime next week, we actually go through
them all and we will make our recommendations. He stated so on based on that, we will be sending you a
log as far as here is our recommended approved sub-contractor for each bid package. He stated when we get
a little farther into the design, there may be another advertisement that comes out for some miscellaneous or
specialty package that we originally did not account for. He stated there may be some specialty items that
come in the CD package or what not that may need competitive bids on as well, so just to let you know that.
He stated we have received the 100% CD site packet that you are looking at now, as well as the CD package
for the building. He stated preliminary we are working on some quantities – cost per square foots in the
building…. He stated as Mr. Hemphill mentioned we are kicking around the possibility of doing an early
site package; the incentive would be based on DHSR’s review. He stated if right now we are on time as far
as the design progression goes, but quickly becoming behind schedule which is all out of our control as far as
Raleigh review. He stated right now we are theoretically a month behind just from DHSR giving the
comments back to Mr. Hemphill. He stated if that trend continues and we have a lengthier time period
between when DHSR receives and when they return, the early site package may be a viable option, however,
there is risk involved in that being that we will receive competitive bids for the early site package, which will
be everything with the exception of landscaping and fencing, and return to you all with the guaranteed
maximum price for that portion, but the key word is portion, being that it is not the building and site package.
He stated so again this is going to have to have strong communication amongst the project team,
Commissioners, and everybody involved to make that decision in the future. He stated a couple of other
items: we are working on what is the Bid Manual, which along with Mr. Hemphill’s plans and specifications
is set out to all the approved bidders and it has everything in there as far as safety, logistics, scheduling,
pretty much the A-ZZZ as far as what they need to know before they turn in their bid. He stated what I have
done is I have some generic information, some general conditions, some project specific requirements, as
well as a safety plan on a CD and I will give that to the County Manager before leaving today for Wilkes
County review and comment. He stated hopefully next week we will work up a draft logistic plan and we
will say this is where we are allotting staging, this will be the sequencing of construction traffic, this will be
the parking; not only to we want your review, Mr. Yates’ review, but the Sheriff and courthouse comment as
well so that once we step foot on that job, there is going to be no surprises for anybody. He stated the last
thing that I have kind of goes hand-in-hand if the early site package does in fact happen, but regardless, is the
discussion of getting a third party engineer for the specialty inspections. He stated talking with Mr.
Hemphill he knew that is in motion as far as getting that advertisement out, receiving a few proposals on
those services, so if we do in fact go down that route in early site package, when they step foot on that job we
will need somebody on site as well, so that is just a little food for thought there.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated so we have got one more inspection from the State now. Mr.
Hemphill stated yes, the C&A review they have to go through and….. Vice Chairman Blevins stated
construction drawings? Mr. Hemphill states yes. Vice Chairman Blevins stated are they in their possession
now? Mr. Hemphill stated they are not in their possession and we cannot finish those until we get their final
CDs and really these have more effect than either the schematic now or the CD because that is the first time
they have really gotten into the engineers; if they have changed their thoughts about the way they want to do
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something, we need to know about it before we can proceed. Mr. Kesterson stated there is no reason to go
into the CDs because you are going to be continuing on that same train of thought, so if they have comments
the last thing we want to do is waste good time. Mr. Hemphill stated right, right. Vice Chairman Blevins
stated so how much to you think this pushes back our completion date if things continue to flow at about this
rate – the end of the summer. Mr. Kesterson stated that is where we are projecting right now – somewhere
around July 14th. Vice Chairman Blevins stated that is not bad; that is pretty good. Mr. Kesterson stated like
end of July, not specifically July 14th. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he was not going to hold him to that
date. Vice Chairman Blevins stated we are still in pretty good shape; at least we are making progress.
Commissioner David Gambill stated I hate to keep driving this, but going back to the wall, you said you
wanted to bid this out separate and maybe I need some help with this, but it seems like it would be cheaper to
bid it out while you are there laying block instead of bidding it separate. Mr. Kesterson stated yes, no I may
have confused you earlier. He stated what I was saying was when we bid this out, we will have an individual
bid form for each trade – say masonry – so when they turn in their bid, they will have base bid which will
include everything shown on the plans and then we will have an alternate on that same bid form, so we will
be able to say “masonry base bid is $500,000; alternate number one, provide brick masonry security fence
$50,000” so then when we bid out the fencing that same day, we will be able to have base bid and then we
will give us an alternate number one credit not to do the fence. He stated let’s say the credit is $10,000, so at
the end of the day, we will say the value of that fence is $40,000. He stated there is not going to be a lull;
you are exactly right, the last thing I want to do is say “hey give us a number and then gee shucks we really
want that fence, tell me how much it is worth” because you are either going to get gouged or you are going to
get pennies on the dollar as far as the credit. Commissioner Gambill stated that helps a lot; thank you.
Commissioner Gary L. Blevins stated what are you talking about – a brick wall instead of a chain link fence.
Commissioner Gambill stated yes. Commissioner Blevins stated why? Commissioner Gambill stated why.
Commissioner Blevins stated it’s a jail. Commissioner Gambill stated well, for security for one reason and
you have got to block that, it is not a pretty sight; we are not going to put flat screens on the wall, so it will
not be a resort, so it will be more or less for security. Chairman Elmore stated this is something we can
discuss; we have time to discuss so let’s do that and consider it later. He stated he could certainly see the
advantages. Commissioner Blevins stated I can understand why; I do not agree with it. Commissioner Settle
stated do not hold it up over the color of brick. Vice Chairman Blevins stated just do not use porous block.
Commissioner Blevins stated fast track it.
Chairman Keith Elmore asked the Commissioner if they had any additional questions. Vice Chairman Gary
D. Blevins stated good update. Commissioner Gary L. Blevins stated learn something new everyday on
walls that is. Chairman Elmore thanks Mr. Hemphill and Mr. Kesterson for their update. Below is Mr.
Kesterson project update handout presented to the Commissioners without attachments:
Project Update – General Overview
Pre-Construction:
 Pre-Qualification of subcontractors
 Estimates and document review
 Bid manual and front end information
 Pre-construction and procurement schedule
 Special inspections
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
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(Tentative Dates)
o Early site package
 Bid period
 Bid day
 GMP presentation
o Building package
 Bid period
 Bid day
 GMP presentation
2/1 – 2/28/13
3/1/13
3/11/13
3/13 – 4/17/13
4/17 – 4/18/13
5/3/13
o Construction
 Early site package start
 Building construction start
 Final completion
3/29/13
5/22/13
7/31/14
Project Update – Specific Items:

Pre-Qualification of Subcontractors
o Since award of CMAR contract, Vannoy Construction has created and subsequently posted
Request for Statements of Pre-Qualification (RFQ) within our online Plan Room, applicable
trade publications and local Wilkesboro newspaper. Along with publication, JRV PreConstruction team has firsthand solicited subcontractors via email, facsimile and phone calls.
o RFQ advertisement posted 11/27/12
o RFQ submission deadline of 1/11/13
o Upon completion of RFQ review, JRV to notify all subcontractors of bidding status (either
approved or not approved to bid the project.) Our decision is based upon but not limited to the
following: (relevant experience, financial status, bonding and insurance limitations, current
workload, backlog, proposed staffing, references, etc.)
o Purpose of pre-qualification is to assemble the most qualified team members all while
minimizing or ideally eliminating risk to all applicable parties.

Document Progression and Estimates
o Vannoy Construction has received Hemphill-Randel Associates design development (DD)
package dated 11/7/12
o Vannoy Construction has received Blue Ridge Engineering construction documents (100%
CD) package dated 8/24/12
o Baseline cost assessment of Wilkes County Detention Center (based upon design
development package) is ongoing. Along with completing a unit quantity takeoff, Vannoy
Construction is inserting relevant cost data derived from subcontractors, suppliers and
previous bids.
o Design development estimate to completed by the end of January (estimate to include
building and site development anticipated costs)
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January 14, 2013
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
Project Bid Manual
o Along with the contract documents and specifications prepared by Hemphill – Randel
Associates Vannoy Construction will be including a project bid manual as part of the
“Bidding Documents” package. Package will only be sent to approved subcontractors for their
use in creating future proposals for the project.
o Project bid manual to include following sections:
 Section 1 - General Information, sections includes copies of official notices and
advertisements, bidder instructions, request for substitutions as well as contract
document log.
 Section 2 – HUB Participation, along with copies of all applicable NCSCO affidavits
pertaining to MWBE identified participation section also includes guidelines
pertaining to payment and expectations.
 Section 3 – Bid Package, section is comprised of individual bid package scope of work
outlines essentially informing the approved bidder of what shall and shall not be
included in their proposals. Likewise, what responsibilities they and other
subcontractors must fulfill on the jobsite.
 Section 4 – Schedule, section will include a bid default schedule illustrating major
milestones from construction start to completion. Purpose is for all bidding
subcontractors to understand (a) sequencing of the project, (b) critical dates and (c)
include any/ all applicable escalation within their proposals.
 Section 5 – General Requirements, section includes written general conditions and
project specific requirements all subcontractors must abide by.
 Section 6 – Safety, project specific safety plan along with listing of proper procedures,
onsite safety policies and forms will be included. Jobsite safety is our number one
priority; we take this topic very seriously and mandate the same from our
subcontractors.
 Section 7 – Bid Forms, a generic bid form will be included along with all applicable
information subcontractors are to execute and include within the bid envelope. A copy
of the proposed subcontract will also be included in this section – the purpose is for no
surprises once deemed the apparent low bidder and sent a copy of the subcontractor
for execution.
 Section 8 – Bid Alternates, a listing of all alternates will be included along with any
additional and/or applicable information for a better understanding. Bid alternates
included in this section will also be listed on each applicable bid form.

Project Procurement
o Project team is currently discussing the possibility of an early site package. We have received
the 100% CD site package and will begin work on an internal estimate, upon completion will
meet with the project team to review and discuss. Pending several variables (specifically prequalification and scheduling) we will meet with Wilkes County and make our
recommendation.
o Building procurement to be discussed by the project team, once construction documents are
completed Vannoy Construction will finalize the project bid manual, bid forms and schedule.
o Pre-bid meeting – date is to be determined at this time
o Bid period and bid day – date is to be determined at this time
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
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Future Steps:
Pre-Qualification of Subcontractors:
 Vannoy Construction to review all received RFQ’s
 Based upon review, Vannoy Construction to formally notify subcontractors of bidding status - letter
to be issued first thanking them for the amount of time and effort involved in preparing the requested
information but more importantly notifying of either approved or not approved status.
 Any and all questions and comments non-approved subcontractors may have after receipt of the letter
will be fielded by Vannoy Construction. Specific reasoning as well as answers to all their questions
will be delivered (if not immediately within a reasonable set time).
 Subcontractors not approved to bid will be included in future solicitation efforts. Purpose is that
possible tiered and supplier relationships can be created with approved single tier bidders.
 Vannoy Construction may re-advertise for RFQ statements in the future. Although at this time not
finalized the rationale would be based upon either insufficient number of pre-qualified subcontractors
within a bid package and/or creation of a new bid package not originally accounted for during
solicitation period.
Document Progression and Estimates:
 Project team to meet and review anticipated costs associated with site development package. Along
with review of estimate, meeting agenda to also include topics such as constructability, sequencing,
logistics and schedule.
 Vannoy Construction to complete constructability review based on site and building drawings
currently available. Along with review, JRV will be reviewing past Request for Information (RFI)
logs from relevant detention/ penitentiary projects.
 Vannoy Construction to complete building estimate after next design deliverable package is received.
Upon completion, Project team to review previous and current estimate.
Project Bid Manual
 The draft bid manual will be issued to Wilkes County prior to releasing to the subcontractors for
review and comment.
 Section 4 – proposed bid default schedule will be sent to Wilkes County for review and comment.
Purpose is to ensure all important dates are illustrated but also coordinate anticipated equipment and
furnishing deliveries, training, etc.
 Section 4 – within this section we will also include a staging and logistics plan, the draft version will
be sent to Wilkes County for review and comment. We want to ensure we will not be impeding
normal business of the campus and surrounding area.
 Section 5 – proposed general conditions and project specific requirements will be sent to Wilkes
County for review and comment. Final version will be included within the project bid manual.
 Section 6 – project specific safety plan will be sent to Wilkes County for review and comment. We
always encourage any and all comments pertaining to safety from our clients- safety is our number
one priority onsite!
 Section 8 – listing of bid alternates will be sent to Wilkes County for review and comment. Not only
do we want to ensure our client fully understands the alternate but also if any additional requested
items may need to be priced at time of bid.
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
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Project Procurement
 Project team to finalize if an early site package will be created
 Project team to finalize dates for pre-bid meeting, bid period and bid day
BLUE RIDGE OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION (BROC) – COMMUNITY SERVICES BLOCK
GRANT (CSBG) FOR FY 2013-2014 - Jessica Prevette, Community Services Block Grant Director, stated
thank you Mr. Chairman and fellow members of the Board. She stated we are presenting to you our
Community Services Block Grant Program which is a yearly deal for the fiscal year 2013-2014 application
process for funding. She stated she would be going through Forms 210 and 212 respectively for both
Emergency Assistance and the Family Self-Sufficiency Programs. At this point, Ms. Prevette reviewed the
application packet with the Commissioners.
Form 210 – Emergency Assistance Program: The planning period is July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014.
The poverty cause name is identified as a depressed local economy due to large scale job loss. This poverty
cause will be addressed by the agency as priority number one. We have described under number two, the
poverty cause in detail. The population experiencing the problem includes: dislocated workers (former
middle class), low-income families, elderly and disabled and BROC is the only agency in the service area
that operates Monday through Friday, 8:30 am – 5:00 pm, on a walk-in basis. We have included the total
population living below the poverty level and to include all three counties and that is data as recent as 2011.
We have the resource analysis there for you; the agency resources, the community resources that we are
hoping to gain in that program year. We have identified on item four the resources that are needed as far as
the agency and the community resources are concerned. Our long range goal for the Emergency Assistance
Program is to ensure that the Emergency Assistance Program adequately responds to 3,900 emergency
assistance requests by June 30, 2014 and we have listed the strategies for achieving that long-range goal.
Chairman Keith Elmore stated he would like to ask a question. He stated going back up to resource needs –
“increase funding to allow hiring of additional staff” – are you short on staff? Mrs. Prevette stated with
budget cuts over the past several years, we have not eliminated staff per se but we have reduced hours and
with the needs being increased we definitely need more funding…our staff is pretty much stretched to the
max. She stated in a non-profit world that is how it is going to be, but it would definitely support the
increased demand for our services and would allow us to increase the capacity of our programs. Vice
Chairman Gary D. Blevins asked if these statistics encompass all the counties, the totals – the grant is
basically for all three counties. Dare Stromer, Executive Director of BROC, stated yes. Vice Chairman
Blevins stated do you present this at the other county boards? Mrs. Stromer stated yes, it is presented in all
three counties.
Form 212 – One Year Work Program for the Emergency Assistance Program: The information is
basically the same. This will be plan year one of three so we are going to enter another three year work plan.
The CSBG or Community Service Block Grant funds requested for this project is $107,231 and the total
number expected to be served is 1,300 for this fiscal year which is 33.33% of the long-range goal that we
expect to meet. You have our one year program objectives and activities below with the implementation
schedules with those. It is just basically when they come in for services how our office procedures are
performed and those are there for your review. It lets you know what we are doing.
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Form 210 – Family Self-Sufficiency Program: The poverty cause name is identified as high
unemployment and lack of economic growth. This poverty cause will be addressed by the agency and is
priority number two. We have described the poverty cause in detail who has been affected and we have
included on this on this one the unemployment rates for the three county service areas and the source that we
obtained that from. Section II you have your resource analysis and this is the agency resources and then we
have listed the community resources that we leverage to go along with that. The resources needed are
basically the same additional funding to support hiring of more staff with the ultimate goal of increasing the
capacity of the Self-Sufficiency Program. We have a long-range goal and strategy to move 18 families
above the poverty guidelines by June 30, 2016 and we have our strategies listed below on how we plan to
achieve that long-range goal.
Form 212 – One Year Work Program for the Family Self-Sufficiency Program: The poverty cause
name, long-range goal and selected strategy is the same. The project period remains the same as the
previous one; it will be plan year three of three. CSBG funds requested for this project is $109,805 and we
are expected to serve 38 families over the three county service area. The expected number of new families to
be enrolled during this program year is 18 with an expected number of 20 families to continue in the program
and we expect to move six families within this year above the Federal poverty guidelines and that would be
meeting 33.33% of our long-range goal. Section II, the One Year Program Objective and Activities, is
basically the same; it is the structure of the program, how we plan on enrolling with the implementation
schedules. I would like to note on the objective, we are providing comprehensive services designed to assist
38 low income families to move above the poverty levels by June 30th of 2014. I think when we made copies
for you it said 2016, but we have correct that and wanted you to make a note of that.
Mrs. Prevette asked if the Commissioner had any questions, concerns or comments. Commissioner Eddie
Settle stated what percentage of these are Wilkes County residents? Mrs. Prevette stated well, the way the
allocation is, they want us to spend the allocation and it is distributed to us based on the poverty and the size
of each county. She stated she thought Wilkes accounts for 60%; Ashe 25% and then Alleghany 15%.
Commissioner Settle stated he noticed our employment is a little better than those other two counties. Mrs.
Prevette stated yeah and we actually had more up-to-date information as far as Wilkes. She stated she
thought we were a little bit more ahead on that, but she did not want to say well, Wilkes is this much as of
2012. She stated she wanted to keep the same date, the same time as far as our information was concerned.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated are most of these programs based on population. Mrs. Stromer stated
that is how the funding is allocated. Vice Chairman Blevins asked if this comes through High Country. Mrs.
Stromer stated no; it comes from the Office of Economic Opportunity in Raleigh. Vice Chairman Blevins
stated you have been doing this for several years now and I know the Emergency Assistance Program has
been on for quite sometime. Mrs. Stromer stated yes. Mrs. Prevette stated the need has increased; it takes all
of our partner agencies and all the other resources we try to utilize those first and we try to be a unique
program. She stated she thought what makes them stand out from other programs is they are a community
action, we do not just slap a band aid on it or give a handout – it is a hand up. She stated we look beyond the
situation that has actually happened; we try to help them identify barriers to meet their goals or identify
problems in their monthly budget. She stated it is above and beyond; we advocate for these people, we
follow-up with these people, it is not an entitlement program; we try to empower them and encourage them
to become contributing members to society. She stated a lot of it is generational, they do not know any
difference – we were brought up this way – we try to show them that there is a difference – there is a
different way of life. She stated we are facing a lot of not necessarily scrutiny, but a lot of proposed budget
cuts for our program and you know it would be devastating if we were to have a budget cut of maybe 50%;
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 22 of 32
those programs would not be able to survive. Chairman Elmore stated you are taking families and bringing
them out of poverty – at what point if a family does not…if you cannot work with a family is there a time
that you cut them off. Mrs. Prevette stated absolutely. Mrs. Stromer stated yes. Mrs. Prevette stated we
have an average amount of funds. Mrs. Stromer stated if they cannot meet their goals and stick to the project
rules and regulations then we are mandated to drop them. Mrs. Prevette stated well, it is not that they are
necessarily dropped and I do not like that, but they have a project contract – they know what their
responsibilities are, they know what our responsibilities are, we cannot help anybody that does not want to
help themselves, if they are not following their comprehensive service plan or meeting their goals as
planned, we know that life happens and that is not a problem at all, but if we feel that they are taking
advantage or they are making the same mistakes or having the same problems and are not doing anything to
change that, then it is time for us to move on to a family that is ready to move forward. Chairman Elmore
stated do they end up on the Social Services rolls. Mrs. Stromer stated some of them probably do. She
stated they cannot be in the program if they are not going forward and we have two years to work with them.
Mrs. Prevette stated and if you think, you know 38 families that we propose, we actually had 39 in the
program this past fiscal year, but that is not a lot when you are looking at a lot of families that could really
utilize those services and yeah we do want to help a lot more families, but they have to work to get into the
program so once they finally make it into the program, you know it is best that they put forth their best effort
and utilize that to their best. Commissioner Settle stated I think they stretch the dollar; this group does to the
max. Vice Chairman Blevins stated I served on the board while with the town of Wilkesboro and with the
Chamber; Mrs. Stromer is one of my most respected Executive Directors of the non-profit organizations and
she really puts her heart into it. He stated you help some people that need help probably the most of anybody
and it is great the way you act as kind of a clearinghouse and are able to make sure that people are not there
for fraudulent reasons; that there is a genuine need and I know that you recognize that and try to help people
that really are at the point where sometimes they are very desperate. He stated I look at the number 38 and
that is pretty discouraging that is all the families that we can help, but there are other programs and other
opportunities. He stated talk about walls that is a tall one to climb. Mrs. Stromer stated if we had more staff
we could do more. Mrs. Prevette stated that is right. Mrs. Stromer stated 38 pushes us to the limit. Mrs.
Prevette stated it is a broad spectrum; we wear a lot of hats – not only do we help them with life skills and
budgeting, but we are a counselor per se, we are a coach, we are a friend, we fill so many gaps or so many
positions for each individual family and they are all different, so we have to be where we can change gears –
no two families have the same needs or same service plan - it is completely different. Mrs. Stromer thanked
the Commissioners for their support. Commissioner Eddie Settle stated you do a good job.
Commissioner Eddie Settle made a motion to approve the application for Community Services Block Grant
for FY 2013-2014, Forms 210 and 212, as presented. Motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Gary D.
Blevins and unanimously approved.
FINANCE DEPARTMENT – COMMISSIONERS MONTHLY REPORT (DECEMBER 2012)
Finance Officer Jerry Shepherd stated he was going to be reporting on the month of December. He stated we
are half way through our fiscal year so this is our half way mark. He stated he would just go right into the
report and if the Commissioners have questions just stop me and ask anything during the presentation. He
stated on page 1 you can see our total investment - $37.2M and the center part shows the General Fund has
$30.6M of those funds and the rest of those funds is shown in the remainder of that section. He stated you
will notice the Jail Capital Project Fund which we had a report on earlier; we have spent $422K to date on
the jail project and if you want to see detail, if you will just turn over to the back of that page, you can see the
payments that we have made towards this jail project. He stated that is just a little bit of additional
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 23 of 32
information. He stated as the jail project goes on and as we get deeper into it, he will be doing some special
reports for the Commissioners to keep them updated on what is spent, how much is left and everything. He
stated this is just an extra piece this month that he wanted to include for them. He stated the bottom part of
the page shows where all the funds are located in which bank and all of that of course totals the $37.2M.
Chairman Keith Elmore stated the money for the jail project… all that will be rolled into the loan? Mr.
Shepherd stated yes, it will; right now the General Fund has paid for that and we will reimburse the General
Fund back for that when the loan is taken out. Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated will we do that before
the end of the fiscal year? Mr. Shepherd stated he hoped so. Vice Chairman Blevins stated that was one
thing I was wondering about with regards to the schedule; we need to reach a certain point in the process
when we can start reimbursing. Mr. Shepherd stated he was hoping to close and do everything, but you have
to know the bid and what the project costs are going to be before we actually do it. He stated the Local
Government Commission will not approve it until the bids are in, but once we get to that point then we can
move forward with the financing. Page 1 of the Financial Report is shown below:
WILKES COUNTY
Cash and Investments
12/31/2012
CENTRAL DEPOSITORY
Checking Account……………………………………………………………………
Investments……………………………………………………………………………
TOTAL
CENTRAL DEPSITORY EQUITY BY FUNDS
General Fund…………………………………………………………………………
Wireless E-911 System………………………………………………………………
Law Enforcement Restricted Fund…………………………………………………..
Community Development Capital Project Funds……………………………………
Jail Capital Project Fund…………………………………………………………….
Airport Enterprise Fund……………………………………………………………...
Landfill Enterprise Fund…………………………………………………………….
Landfill Capital Reserve Fund………………………………………………………
Tax Collections to be distributed to (4) Towns……………………………………..
Tax Collections to be distributed to (25) Fire Districts……………………………..
TOTAL
CENTRAL DEPOSITORY EQUITY BY FINANCIAL INSTITUTION
NC Capital Management Trust……………………………………………………..
First Citizens Bank…………………………………………………………………
BB&T………………………………………………………………………………
FiniStar……………………………………………………………………………..
SunTrust……………………………………………………………………………
Community One……………………………………………………………………
TOTAL
$
755,149.09
36,513,265.93
$ 37,268,415.02
$ 30,598,900.28
1,021,543.65
35,072.60
3,921.74
-422,086.00
-234,192.29
630,861.89
4,535,073.91
528,845.72
570,473.52
$ 37,268,415.02
$
820,861.54
26,104,033.64
2,764,936.96
265,299.77
250,886.34
7,062,396.77
$ 37,268,415.02
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January 14, 2013
Page 24 of 32
WILKES COUNTY JAIL CAPITAL PROJECT EXPENSES
AS OF DECEMBER 31,2012
DATE
AMOUNT
8/15/2012
9/12/2012
10/23/2012
11/05/2012
11/19/2012
12/11/2012
57,000
57,140.00
77,156.00
1,960.00
76,000.00
152,830.00
CHECK NO
PAID TO
DESCRIPTION
HEMPHILL-RANDEL ASSOCIATE
HEMPHILL-RANDEL ASSOCIATE
HEMPHILL-RANDEL ASSOCIATE
BLUE RIDGE ENGINEERING
HEMPHILL-RANDEL ASSOCIATE
HEMPHILL-RANDEL ASSOCIATE
260457
261198
262444
262763
263221
263730
WC JAIL SCHEMATIC DESIGN
WC JAIL DESIGN & REIMB PR
WC JAIL DESIGN & REIMB
SOIL BORINGS/WC JAIL PROJ
WC JAIL DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
DESIGN DEV & EXP/WC JAIL
$422,086.00
Mr. Shepherd stated page 3 is our tax collections and you can see for the month of December we have
collected $5.1M. He stated it is a little less than we collected the same time last year, but overall it is running
with our budget – what we were expected to collect. He stated you can see that we have collected a total of
$281K more this year than we collected the same time last year. Commissioner David Gambill stated do you
think January is going to be better and will offset it. Mr. Shepherd stated he was hoping so. He stated if it
goes the trend that it went last year, we should collect more than budget which will be great, but you never
know what is going to happen the next few months. He stated we should reach budget anyway. He stated he
did not think they would come under budget by any means. Page 3 of the Financial Report is shown below:
WILKES COUNTY
TAX COLLECTIONS SUMMARY REPORT
GENERAL FUND
MONTH
FISCAL YEAR
2010-2011
FISCAL YEAR
2012-2013
MORE/LESS
THAN
PRIOR YEAR
470,121.84
14,828,603.78
2,240,560.52
1,325,942.01
1,562,564.92
5,502,587.47
5,115,731.55
1,438,513.50
1,237,022.64
706,527.07
536,080.62
653,563.56
35,617,819.48
$ 442,578.36
15,480,900.31
2,335,282.48
1,666,864.34
1,548,587.06
5,180,454.94
$ (27,543.48)
209,718.17
94,721.96
340,922.33
(13,977.86)
(322,132.53)
26,212,089.13
$ 281,708.59
JULY
AUGUST
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
JANUARY
FEBRUARY
MARCH
APRIL
MAY
JUNE
TOTAL
$ 135,380.49
14,399,877.71
2,249,792.29
1,032,315.85
1,544,860.94
5,703,053.25
5,308,968.46
1,012,090.80
1,539,235.62
843,101.03
517,077.16
484,101.36
34,769,854.96
BUDGET
34,464,549.00
34,600,707.00
34,588,339.00
305,305.96
1,017,112.48
(8,376,249.87)
OVER/UNDER
$
FISCAL YEAR
2011-2012
The above figures represent the following monies collected by Tax Collections (General Fund Only). Does not include Fire
Districts and Towns.
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 25 of 32
A.
B.
C.
D.
Current Year Tax Collections (Real, Personal and Vehicles)
Prior Years (1st through 10th)
Penalties, Interest and Advertising Costs on Past Due Taxes
Less 1.5% Tax Discounts for Early Payments
Mr. Shepherd stated page 4 is our sales tax. He stated do not pass out, but our sales tax number last month
for the month of October was $989K and then the month of November came in at $681K, but let me explain
that. He stated the month of November was the month that the State did all the refunds back to non-profits,
governmental entities and everything so we are about $400K less than we would have received if these
refunds had not been sent back by the State, so that is why our number is low. He stated you will notice in
comparison to last year at this same time, we collected $84K more this year than we did last year at the same
time, so that is good news. He stated we are still on target with our budget. He stated if you will see in the
black section at the bottom of the page, we still are $108K more ahead of budget right now. Vice Chairman
Blevins stated when will you get the number for December? Mr. Shepherd stated the earliest, probably the
12th of February. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he was always curious about that. Mr. Shepherd stated that
is the reason these reports are given to you the day of the meeting. He stated he just got the sales tax
numbers on Friday for the month of November. Page 4 of the Financial Report is shown below:
WILKES COUNTY SALES TAX DISTRIBUTION CURRENT FISCAL YEAR COMPARISION TO LAST FISCAL YEAR
ACTUAL:
FOR MONTH:
July
August
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
Total Collected:
FY: 2011-2012
FY: 2011-2012
Fiscal Year Comparison
Difference +/% More/Less
Article 46
Additional ¼ cent
Effective 10/1/2010
1,094,092.28
1,003,219.22
979,573.36
996,211.01
607,242.58
910,271.54
1,175,654.20
884,400.11
970,272.63
1,084,360.58
950,257.32
1,031,780.87
11,687,335.70
1,077,065.62
1,002,775.55
1,016,802.88
989,024.03
691,372.29
(17,026.66)
(443.67)
37,229.52
(7,186.98)
84,129.71
-1.56%
-0.04%
3.80%
-0.72%
13.85%
98,544.27
97,680.53
102,495.49
96,927.27
54,158.09
4,077,040.37
96,701.92
2.07%
449,805.65
10,645,720.00
11,204,341.00
558,621.00
5.25%
BUDGET:
Total Budgeted:
÷12
Monthly Budget
933,695.08
X 5 month
4,668,475.42
Over/Short of Budget
1,041,615.70
108,564.95
NOTE:
The month listed is when the NCDOR collects the revenue for sales generated the prior month.
Therefore July collections are for sales in the month of June, etc. and the funds are forwarded
to us 2 months following their collections. We receive July collections in September, etc.
2.33% Collections to Date More (Less) than Budget
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 26 of 32
ADDITIONAL NOTE:
November distribution reflects a decrease largely due to non-profit and governmental entity refunds.
Mr. Shepherd stated page 5 is just a few little things that are of interest and gives you an idea of how the
economy is doing with our Register of Deeds recording deeds and different things and what’s going on. He
stated to be where we should be it should be at 50% or greater and you can see some of our revenues are just
right under the 50%. Mr. Shepherd stated he did want the Commissioners to notice EMS collections were at
60%. He stated so if he continues to trend, he will go over budget on the EMS collections which is a good
thing. He stated our Blue Cross, our medical insurance; we are still ahead by $391K on our insurance. He
stated on the back of this page is a little description on the inmate housing. He stated this number is the same
as it was on your report last month; the reason being nobody has billed us. He stated he wanted the
Commissioners to see what they had been billed on page 6. He stated Ashe County has billed us for July,
August, September and October and we have paid them a total of $210K and if we have got the bill for
November it has not been turned into my office yet to be paid, so as far as he knew they have not received
the November and December billing yet. He stated Buncombe County - we paid $6,200. He stated the
Department of Correction, we do keep inmates in there and it costs the same - $40 per day per inmate. He
stated sometimes a Judge will say that a person needs to go directly to the Department of Correction because
of their demeanor and it may not be safe to have them in a jail facility or even when we are out of space in
our jail. Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins stated so that goes into the program, Misdemeanant Program,
basically, is that what you are saying or something similar to it? He stated they are going straight to the
Department of Corrections and we have to pay for it? Mr. Shepherd stated correct, we have to pay their stay
there. Commissioner Eddie Settle stated that is just a Judge’s ruling. Mr. Shepherd stated it could be a
Judge’s ruling, it could be that we just do not have room too and somewhere else it is just easier to put them
there. Vice Chairman Blevins stated are they going to the Department of Corrections and then going to
another jail. Mr. Shepherd stated that was a Sheriff’s question. He stated he was not exactly sure how that
works. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he thought that was what was happening. Commissioner David
Gambill stated he thought that was what was happening. Vice Chairman Blevins stated they are probably up
in Asheville. Mr. Shepherd stated yes. He stated we do not spend a whole lot of money, but we do
occasionally do have, but we still have the same expense with them being there and if they have medical
expenses, we still have to pay the medical expenses wherever they are staying. Chairman Keith Elmore
stated this may be a question for the County Manager – why have we chosen to ship to all these different
jails? County Manager John Yates stated he thought it probably has to do with females. He stated he knew
Buncombe and Lincoln keep females and then there have been cases where Ashe has run out of space. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated now that is only because they are housing misdemeanants now under that program.
Commissioner Gambill stated Alleghany is doing the same. Vice Chairman Blevins stated the State instead
of building more Department of Correction facilities have farmed them out to the individual county jails and
they are paying a per diem; that is why the jails….has Alexander come on line – have we check with them at
all? Mr. Yates stated no we have not; they are not on line yet, but will be in the next few weeks. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated oh, okay, good. Mr. Yates stated he thought they were training right now. He
stated they completed their construction and Commissioner Gary L. Blevins and I took a tour last week and
they are almost ready. Vice Chairman Blevins stated logistically that would be a good place for us to house
inmates. Commissioner Settle stated when they leave Wilkes and go to Ashe or those other facilities, are we
still responsible for paying their health bills? Mr. Yates stated yes. Vice Chairman Blevins stated but we
would be responsible for them here too so that is kind of outside this health care issue and you cannot get
insurance on them. Commissioner Settle stated wow. Page 5 and 6 of the Financial Report is shown below:
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 27 of 32
Wilkes County General Fund
Other Miscellaneous
December 31, 2012
To be on target with Budget the % used or collected should be:
Breakdown of other Revenue & Expense
Revised
Budget
Actual
34,588,339
11,204.341
100,000
170,000
150,000
25,000
118,000
2,500,000
26,212,089
4,085,668*
74,568
100,896
74,713
15,865
51,390
1,500,321
Expense
Revised
Budget
Actual
Blue Cross Adjustments (Medical & Dental) Ins.
Inmate Housing/Safekeeping/Other Facilities
$ 400,000
600,000
(391,198)
237,798 **
Original
(Used) or Added
Available
$ 96,695
$
$ 96,495
Revenue
Ad Valorem Taxes, Interest & Penalties
Sales Tax
Deed Stamp Excise Tax
Reg of Dees Recording Fees
Building Inspection Fees
Planning Permits & Fees
Environmental Health Fees
EMS Collections
%
75.78%
36.47%
74.57%
59.35%
49.81%
63.46%
43.55%
60.01%
* December distribution will show on next report.
%
- 97.80%
39.63%
**See attached detail
Contingency Reserve
2012-2013
Revised Budget
Total General Fund Revenues
Total General Fund Expenses
$ 65,748,144
65,748,144
Revenues Over
(Under) Expenses
(200)
2012-2013
Actual
$ 39,594,244
32,137,576
7,456,668
Average rate of return on investments: 0.30%
60.22%
48.88%
50%
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 28 of 32
PAYMENTS FOR INMATE HOUSING AND SAFEKEEPING
PAID THRU DECEMBER 31, 2012
EFF DATE
AMOUNT
CHECK
NO.
PAID TO:
DESCRIPTION:
9/7/2012
$ 1,568.00
261124
ALLEGHANY COUNTY SHERIFF
JULY INMATE HOUSING/WILKES
10/3/2012
10/17/2012
11/20/2012
12/5/2012
61,520.00
40,920.00
51,920.00
56,240.00
$210,600.00
261859
262131
263144
263503
ASHE COUNTY DETENTION CEN
ASHE COUNTY DETENTION CEN
ASHE COUNTY DETENTION CEN
ASHE COUNTY DETENTION CEN
JULY INMATE HOUSING/ WC SHE
AUG INMATE HOUSING/ WC SHE
SEPT INMATE HOUSING/WC SHE
OCT INMATE HOUSING/WC SHE
9/5/2012
9/19/2012
4,950.00
1,320.00
6,270.00
260983
261368
BUNCOMBE COUNTY DETENTION
BUNCOMBE COUNTY DETENTION
JULY INMATE HOUSING/WC SHE
AUG INMATE HOUSING/WC SHE
$
2,240.00
2,880.00
3,880.00
3,480.00
$ 12,480.00
260815
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION
JULY SAFEKEEPING/WC JAIL
262007
262953
263703
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION
AUG SAFEKEEPING/WC SHERIFF
SEPT SAFEKEEPING/WC JAIL
OCT SAFEKEEPING/WC JAIL
$
261486
261486
LINCOLN COUNTY SHERIFF’S
LINCOLN COUNTY SHERIFF’S
JULY INMATE HOUSING/WC SHE
AUG INMATE HOUSING/WC SHE
$
8/29/2012
10/10/2012
11/15/2012
12/11/2012
9/19/2012
9/19/2012
$
Grand Total:
3,680.00
3,200.00
6,880.00
$237,798.00
Mr. Shepherd stated page 7 just shows you our General Fund broken down in a little more detail; that is the
revenues on page 7 and on pages 8 and 9 is the General Fund expenses by departments so you can see the
total budget – how much has been spent today. He stated page 10 starts all of our other funds and it shows
you the breakdown of revenues and expenses for various funds. Mr. Shepherd stated he would be glad to
answer any additional questions. Chairman Elmore asked the Commissioners if they had any questions for
Mr. Shepherd. He stated good job. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he liked getting these reports; this has
been a good addition to the meetings. Commissioner Gambill stated he would like to know for sure that the
inmates and Commissioner Blevins hit it right on the head, but I would like to know for sure that is the case
when they go off to the Department of Corrections that they are shipping them out to another State site –
farming them out because there should not be a charge if they were under safekeeping. Mr. Shepherd stated
he just knew it is a bill that they get and they charge $40 per day and it comes from the Department of
Correction. Vice Chairman Blevins stated that is the charge under the misdemeanant fee. Mr. Shepherd
stated yes. Chairman Elmore thanked Mr. Shepherd for his report.
ECONOMIC INVESTMENT AGREEMENT – JELD-WEN – County Attorney Tony Triplett stated this
is a matter that was discussed in the Public Hearing that we had earlier. He stated this Economic Investment
Agreement reflects what we have been discussing with Jeld-Wen for some period of time. He stated it calls
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 29 of 32
for economic incentive payments to be made over a period of three years beginning actually in 2014; the first
payment would not be due until September 15, 2014. He stated the three payments to be made by the
County under the agreement would respectively be $14,852.50, $14,254.50 and $13,581.75. He stated those
payments are contingent in turn on Jeld-Wen meeting their benchmarks and those benchmarks are: the 49
employees they have agreed to hire; to hire that number and retain them for three years; and to make the
capital investment that they have agreed to make: $2.3M in equipment and $2.5M in real estate. He stated it
is always good to stress as he does with all of our agreements and will stress with this one too that to the
extend Jeld-Wen does not meet those goals, we just simply pro-rate the payment down; if they make 50% of
the capital investment they are required to, we make 50% of the payment – that is how it works. He stated
we do not make a payment until after the tax bill for that particular bill has been paid, so that is the way our
economic agreements are set up and this one is set up exactly like the rest are. He stated this agreement has
been reviewed by Jeld-Wen’s counsel; they looked at it and we made some adjustments to it based on
suggestions they made; it fits all the requirements that we typically impose in investment agreements and is
ready for the Board’s consideration. Mr. Triplett stated he would be glad to answer any questions and Mr.
Garstka and Mr. Brown were here and would be glad to answer any questions the board might have.
Chairman Keith Elmore asked the Board members if they had any questions at this time. Vice Chairman
Gary D. Blevins stated he would just like to make one comment and wanted to address something that
Commissioner Settle said earlier. He stated he did not think any of us care that much for Economic
Incentive Agreements per se; you know you are transferring tax money from one entity to another and we are
all taxpayers and we all share the burden when we get involved in this kind of an agreement. He stated he
has had some taxpayers that have expressed opposition to this kind of a plan and that always make it a tough
decision. He stated however, I did do some quick math so forgive me as I may be wrong, but quickly
calculating approximately 50 jobs at $13.50 per hour; in three years that’s an hourly payroll, not including
salaried employees, of $4.2M that is put into the economy. He stated we are paying them back in an
adjustment of taxes they have paid $41,000, so there is going to be $4.2M put into the Wilkes County
economy in manufacturing jobs, value added jobs, which is probably one of the most valuable types of jobs
that we have, and creates the most robust environment in the economy and the most sales tax. He stated it
allows these people to buy homes and pay property taxes, rent, buy services and good and pay sales tax and
being a business man myself, I look at it more as an investment and after the three years is over and the
$41,000 we refunded, we still have them pumping over about $1.4M per year into the economy just in hourly
wages for 50 families in this County. He stated when you frame it in those terms, although it is not an ideal
situation, there is a very competitive environment both in the State and in the region to get these types of
jobs. He stated given all those facts and the economic stimulus we get from it and the advantage it gives to
families in our community, I think it is worth the investment; otherwise I would not support it either
Commissioner Settle. Commissioner Settle stated he did not support incentives and he thought a lot of
businesses had been started in Wilkes County with hard work from the ground up and working with our local
people here, but given these figures and that $13.50 was that not a combined…. Vice Chairman Blevins
stated it is called “blended”. Mr. Triplett stated blended wage hourly rate. Commissioner Settle stated
…from management down? Mr. Triplett stated yes, that would include the top four management positions.
Chairman Elmore asked Mr. Brown if they offered benefits for their employees. Mr. Brown replied yes,
there are insurance, vision, dental and 401K. Chairman Elmore stated so you could probably add 30% to this
salary. Mr. Garstka stated that is included in that. Chairman Elmore stated oh, in this, it is; okay. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated again that is $4.2M approximately just for the hourly; that is a lot of money.
Commissioner Blevins stated he appreciates the company coming back here and the jobs an all, but he would
still like to have seen a penalty clause in this, but it is not in there. He stated he would vote yes to do the
incentives for the company. He stated he would wait and see what happens.
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 30 of 32
Commissioner David Gambill made a motion to approve the Economic Investment Agreement between the
County of Wilkes and Jeld-Wen as presented. The motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins
and unanimously approved.
COMMITTEE/BOARD APPOINTMENTS – Chairman Keith Elmore stated he would like to make some
changes to the following committees.
Jail Committee: He stated Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins has taken a very active role and he is
very competent and thinks he would be help move this project forward. He stated he was glad Vice
Chairman Blevins had agreed to head up the committee along with Commissioner David Gambill. Chairman
Elmore stated Vice Chairman Blevins would do a good job. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he was glad to do
it and that he wanted to see this through to completion as it is very important. Vice Chairman Blevins
replaces Chairman Blevins on this committee.
Board of Education Liaison: Chairman Elmore stated we have a Commissioner that is very
interested in education and has a lot of connections on the Board of Education and can serve us well. He
stated he would like to appoint Commissioner Eddie Settle as our liaison to the Board of Education. He
stated he was sure Commissioner Settle would do a good job. Commissioner Settle replaces Chairman
Elmore on this board.
Advertising Board Appointments: Chairman Elmore stated we have discussed in the past meetings
advertising our board appointments; there has been some work done on that and believes we have an
application that the Clerk developed. He asked the Board members if everyone had received a copy of the
application to review. Commissioner Gary L. Blevins stated are we going to have to put in an application?
Commissioner Gambill stated no. Commissioner Blevins stated well, I’m just asking. Chairman Elmore
stated hopefully we can set up something for future years when we are not here and it will give people the
opportunity…. He stated he was telling Commissioner Gary D. Blevins that he hoped maybe when he retires
that he will be able to come back to serve on some committees or board and maybe this will give me an
opportunity to apply; a way to get in there. He stated in any case, hopefully we can tap into some talent in
the County that has not had the opportunity to participate in the process. Chairman Elmore stated so we are
continuing to work and you do have the application and welcome any feedback; hopefully we can get this on
maybe in another few weeks. Vice Chairman Blevins stated it is a work in progress; right? Commissioner
Settle stated he liked where it asks “are your taxes current”. Vice Chairman Blevins stated it seems relevant
doesn’t it.
NEW BUSINESS:
FUTURE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS’ MEETINGS – DATE/TIME CHANGE: County
Manager John Yates stated Vice Chairman Blevins has a scheduling conflict on February 19 th the date of the
Commissioner second Board meeting in February. Vice Chairman Blevins stated he would be in Raleigh to
work with Legislators on some economic development issues. He stated as he has learned over the last few
years that you cannot be in two places at the same time. He asked Chairman Elmore if he would like to
mention what they had been discussing in terms of the meetings going forward. Chairman Elmore stated that
is also something the Commissioners need to consider; we have discussed the possibility of changing our
evening date to maybe Noon and having one of our meetings at Noon or whenever. Vice Chairman Blevins
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 31 of 32
stated 10:00 a.m. in the morning; it is done in a lot of counties – they will have a day meeting and a night
meeting during the month and that kind of enables more people to attend, but it is something we would need
to publicize because everybody is very used to the first and third Tuesday. Commissioner Settle stated he
would like to have a meeting on the eastern end of the County. Vice Chairman Blevins stated wait a minute,
one step at a time. Chairman Elmore stated that has been done in the past. Vice Chairman Blevins stated we
have talked about going to the high schools. Commissioner Settle stated he would like to see it. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated we are ready to a change. Commissioner Blevins stated we are? Chairman Elmore
ask what would be a good way to proceed – just bring the ideas and put it on as an item next meeting? Mr.
Triplett stated he thought it would and that the Board might want to keep in mind that we are required by law
to adopt a resolution that sets forth a regular schedule of meetings and you can change that at any time you
want to, but you will need to decide how you want to change it and then he will draft the resolution. He
stated right now it says the first and third Tuesday, 5 o’clock first meeting and 7 o’clock second meeting here
at the County Office Building. Chairman Elmore stated let’s bring all of our ideas…. Commissioner Settle
stated well if we need to move it…we moved this one. Vice Chairman Blevins stated with regard to that the
only one at issue right now is the one for the 19th of February which we were discussing perhaps moving to
the 18th but having it during the day on the 18th. Commissioner Gambill stated he would be fine to go with
the lunch time meeting – Noon. Commissioner Blevins asked if that meeting would be with lunch. Vice
Chairman Blevins stated so we are talking about…. Commissioner Blevins stated is that with lunch? Vice
Chairman Blevins stated no lunch.
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins made a motion to change the Wilkes County Board of Commissioners
second meeting in February from Tuesday, February 19, 2013 to Monday, February 18, 2013 at Noon in the
Commissioners’ Board Room located at the County Office Building. The motion was seconded by
Commissioner Eddie Settle and unanimously approved.
Chairman Keith Elmore wished Vice Chairman Blevins good luck in Raleigh. Vice Chairman Blevins stated
we are going to get them.
CLOSED SESSION – Commissioner David Gambill made a motion to go into Closed Session to discuss
matters relating to the location or expansion of business in Wilkes County; to establish or instruct the staff or
agent concerning the negotiation of the price and terms of a contract concerning the acquisition of real
property; and to consult with the County Attorney to protect the attorney-client privilege. The motion was
seconded by Commissioner Eddie Settle and unanimously approved.
Motion was made by Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins, seconded by Commissioner David Gambill and by
unanimous vote adopted to adjourn back into regular session. No action was taken.
SET PUBLIC HEARING - Commissioner Eddie Settle made a motion to set a public hearing for Tuesday,
February 5, 2013, at 4:50 p.m., in the Commissioners’ Meeting Room at the County Office Building,
pursuant to G.S. §158-7.1(b)(2), for the acquisition of real property to be held by the County for use or resale
for economic development purposes. The motion was seconded by Commissioner David Gambill.
Voting on the motion:
Ayes: Chairman Keith Elmore
Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins
MINUTES
January 14, 2013
Page 32 of 32
Commissioner David Gambill
Commissioner Eddie Settle
Nays: Commissioner Gary L. Blevins
ADJOURN - Motion was made by Vice Chairman Gary D. Blevins, seconded by Commissioner David
Gambill and by unanimous vote adopted to adjourn the meeting of the Wilkes County Board of
Commissioners at 10:00 P.M.
Judy A. Snyder, Clerk
Approved:
G. Keith Elmore, Chairman
WILKES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS