HCARO  LEE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  MCSWAIN EXTENSION EDUCATION. AND AGRICULTURE CENTER  2420 TRAMWAY ROAD SANFORD, NC 27330 April21, 2023 MINUTES  Roll Call  Present: Lee County Board of Commissioners Chairman Kirk Smith, County Commissioner Mark Lovick, County Manager Lisa Minter, County Attorney' Whitney Parrish, Clerk to the Board/Communications Specialist Hailey Hall, City of Sanford Mayor Rebecca Salmon, Councilman Charles Taylor, Councilman Byron Buckels, City Manager Hal Hegwer, Assistant to the City Manager Holly Marosites, City Attorney Susan Patterson, City Clerk Bonnie Davis and Deputy Clerk Vickie Canady, Town of Broadway Mayor Don Andrews  and Town Manager John Godfrey CALL TO ORDER INVOCATION  Lee County Chairman Kirk Smith called the meeting to order at 11:00a.m.  Chairman Kirk Smith led members of the Interlocal Committee and staff in an invocation  and the Pledge of Allegiance. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE BUSINESS ITEMS I.A VIPER Radio Purchase  Lee County Emergency Management Director Matt Britt presented this item and provided ap presentation tot the members in attendance, which includes the facts and costs of the potential VIPER Radio purchase. Mr. Britt said Lee County and the City of Sanford currently operate on an analog system, while Fire, EMS and the rest of the county operate on a very high frequency system. A current issue is that law enforcement and fire cannot speak to each other on the current systems. Mr. Britt saidt the there is a VIPER-managed tower in Tramway through the state. The primary 911 system is housed att the City of Sanford's municipal building and the backup is    located at the courthouse. Mr. Britt said that with the VIPER system, we could transfer calls and personnel to other counties/municpalties int the event there wasa system failure. The VIPER system can improve interoperability of communications among the various public safety agencies. The surrounding counties are utilizing the VIPER system, which can be a challenge for communication when in need of mutual aid using different agencies on different systems ini response to an incident. Mr. Britt said the state would be responsible for the VIPER infrastructure and the County and City would be responsible for the end user units such as the radios, software and 911 centers. The big concern with switching to VIPER is the entire system, radios andi infrastructure would need to be switched over as well. As far as a time frame, it would take around 6 months for contract negotiations andt to order andi install equipment, then another 6months for training and working through any bugs. The initial cost for both the County andt the City is $7.8 million $5.51 million for the County and $2.5 million for the City. This is state pricing and there will be discount pricing on a bulk purchase; however, the discounts are unknown until a contract is signed. Sanford Mayor Rebecca Salmon said the Council and staff have talked to Fire, Police and the City Manager and understands the interoperability needs, but since the bulk oft the call volume is in the city limits, they feel they need to have say so in those operations and want to have more conversations between City and County personnel. Broadway Mayor Don Andrews said he made notes to talk to his Police Chief about potentially converting to the VIPER system. He asked if public works would have to switch over, and they would not. Mr. Britt explained that Public Works, COLTS and General Services would remain on an analog system. Mayor Salmon asked that an emergency services meeting with all parties be organized. Mr. Britt willi follow up with all agencies to set up a meeting. Mr. Britt said staff approached Motorola because they designed the state system and the radios for VIPER, but there are other vendors as well. The options are to stay with the current system, switch to VIPER or move to a private system, which would be most expensive. There is no deadline to make this transition. Surrounding counties that utilize VIPER are Moore, Harnett and Chatham  The VIPER. system is specific to public safety agencies.  counties.    I.B Fire Station  Mayor Salmon wanted to provide the group with an update on Fire Station #5 and introduced. Assistant tot the City Manager Holly Marosites to provide additional information. Ms. Marosites said the planning for the new fire station stemmed from the need to provide enhanced fire protection and to accommodate imminent growth int the northern part oft the City. Construction is anticipated to begin in. July of 2023 and be completed in September of 2024. The projected cost is $7.4 million, and the City will need to hire 21 new firefighters in late 2023/early 2024. The City applied for FEMA's Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant and, if awarded this cycle, the SAFER grant will pay salaries and benefits for the 21 firefighters for three years. Ms. Marosites presented an animated video of concept of the design, which allows for the addition ofat third bay ifi needed. Chairman Kirk Smith added this item to the agenda due to concerns about which agency isr responsible for responding to 911 calls in certain areas and noted the importance of interoperability. Sanford Mayor Rebecca Salmon said a responder's first dutyist to help andi not who should respond. She said we needt to make sure our maps are updated andi identify gray areas, andi to work with GIS on the maps. City Manager Hal Hegwer noted that state annexation laws make it difficult for the City to pick up road maintenance, and that staff have reached out to the GIS Director Don Kovasckitz to work on maps. Mayor Salmon said we could work with the General Assembly on al local bill for roads and that all of our goals are the same - to render help as quickly as possible no matter the agency responding. She asked that this be added tot the meeting on VIPER for discussion. Commissioner Mark Lovick said we needt to look at mutual aid agencies and potentially make adjustments and addi new sites based on the growth, so the closest unit can be directed to the call. Sanford City Mayor Rebecca Salmon added this item to provide an update to the group on the water filtration facility expansion. Assistant to the City Manager Holly Marosites said the continued industrial and residential growth has created the need for the City of Sanford to increase the capacity ofi its water filtration facility. This expansion would take the facility from 12 to 30 MGD. The City has partnered with the Town of Fuguay-Varina, Town of Holly Springs, and Town of Pittsboro and each partner's financial commitment willl be based upon needed capacity. These partnerships are saving the City upward of $501 million and will decrease fees for residents. The design is currently 95% complete and the current estimate for the project is $257 million. The City has received $17 million through direct appropriation from the State, anda a $85 million loan at 0% interest with $9. 6m in principal forgiveness from the State Revolving Fund. The City anticipates beginning construction in March of 2024 and completing the project in. July of 2027.  I.C Law Enforcement and Fire Department Mutual Aid  I.D Water Plant    IE Sewer Expansion p.m.  The Interlocal Committee broke for lunch at 12:00p.m. and reconvened at 12:22 Chairman Kirk Smith asked to discuss possible sewer line expansion down U.S. 1to Grace Christian School. City of Sanford Mayor Rebecca Salmon said the City is working on a way for developers to utilize a tool to help show them what it would cost for utilities where they are looking to expand. It's not an equal expense to all areas and thist tool willl help the City to prioritize where to expand and promote growth. Maylor Salmon saidt the tooli is not yet available to the public, but individuals can visit the Public Works Department and sit down with staff to go through the process and what it looks like. City Manager Hal Hegwer said the Grace Christian site is difficult to run lines due tot the topography and soils. City staff has met with Grace Christian School on this previously. Chairman Smith notedt that another need ist thei future muli-sportsplex. The Carr Creek Pumping Station is the nearest to that site andi needs to be updated. Councilman Charles Taylor said the City hired someone to look ata all of the lift stations. Broadway Mayor Don Andrews said Broadway is still looking at options to solve capacity issues. The City, Town and Assistant to the City of Sanford Manager Holly Marosites provided an update on the Unified Development Ordinance changes. Staff and the City Council are currently in the process of updating the UDO's residential standards, which is Phase I The public hearings for the Text Amendments and Administrative Zoning Map Amendments are anticipated for Summer 2023. Phase Il will focus on multifamily, industrial and commercial development. Councilman Charles Taylor said these updates were needed and while it takes time, it's a worthwhile project. He said the Town of Broadway has chosen to participate in the UDO and would like the County to participate as wella and provide any suggestions for updates to Planning & Development Director Marshall Downey so that staff may begin incorporating those Ms. Holly Marosites provided an update on a future performance area within Kiwanis Family Park. To create a performance area at the park, the City plans to enhance the existing concrete pad located inside the City's paved walking track. The City received a grant of $100k for this project, with the County serving as the pass- through for the funds. The City has also allocated funding for this project. Ms. Marosites said there has been success ini the City's collaborations with Lee County Parks and Rec (Egg-A-Palooza and movie nights), and anticipates additional  Withers and Ravenel are all communicating on this. I.F Unified Development Ordinance (UDO)  suggestions.  I.G Grant Funding for Kiwanis Family Park  opportunities for collaborative success in the future.    IH Opioid Settlement Discussion  Lee County Attorney Whitney Parrish wanted to discuss this item with the group and provided background information on the process. Movement on the settlement funds startedi in 2021 when the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners put together the 555 committee to negotiate with the Attorney General on this litigation. Lee County signed the first initial settlement, which includes $4.2 million spread over 18-year period. Ms. Parrish said these funds willl help, but they won't solve all oft the issues. A subcommittee of Project Lazarus was formed to help guide the funding process. This group is made up ofs staff and local experts, but Ms. Parrish wants to expand the group to include City of Sanford and Town of Broadway representatives, as well as law enforcement and school representatives. The MOA allows for two options, either high-impact opioid abatement strategies, which includes individual specific services, or a holistic approach, which requires a strategic plan and community stakeholder input, but provides better snapshot of what resources are currently available and identify any gaps. Ms. Parrish initially favored option A, but determined option B may be better suited as itv would allow the County to capture both immediate and long-term needs. Councilman Taylor recommended that Project  Lazarus look at the City's Opioid Taskforce Report data as well. Street Lighting Program Enhancement on Corridor  Assistant to the City of Sanford Manager Holly Marosites provided an update on corridor street lighting enhancements planned along Horner Boulevard and Hawkins Avenue, as well as the intersection of Colon Road/U.S. Highway 1. Duke Energy completed: a photometric study of lighting along Horner Boulevard and Hawkins Avenue to assess improvements needed to better light these corridors and concluded that some streetlights should be upgraded and some additional streetlights should be installed. The City anticipates completing these enhancements within FY: 2023-24. Through Duke Energy, the City will enhance the lighting at the Colon Road/ US Highway 1 intersection as well. Enhanced lighting will leverage the highway corridor, improve safety and provide a more inviting and established entrance into Sanford. This project includes the installation of 28 new lights. The City has not yet executed an NCDOT encroachment agreement, but  anticipates project completion within FY2023-24.    ADJOURN thet facility.  Sanford Councilman Charles Taylor asked about the Lee County Jail improvements. County Manager Lisa Minter said the County is working to have a consultant come in and conducta a study on the facility. The Commissioners, just approved funding for the installation of of new locks for  The Interlocal Committee adjourned at 12:59, p.m.  Haponittu Kirk Smith, Chairman Lee County Board of Commissioners  ATTEST:  twlwwl Hailey Hall, dlerk tot the Board  UNT  NORTHCAROLINA,! LEECOUNTY Presented for registration ont tile MaymbiS recordedi inl Book 86 Page473 Pamela G. Britt, Register ofD Deeds