MINUTES MERIWETHER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS WORK SESSION APRIL 22, 2025 4:00 PM Commissioners Present: Vice Chairman Emmett Collins, Commissioner Gene King, Commissioner Jennifer Snelson, and Commissioner Bryan Threadgill Commissioners Absent: Chairman Adam Worsley Staff Present: County Administrator John Gorton, County Clerk Allyson Stephens, Finance Director Jamie Tarleton, Human Resources Director Valerie Chambers, and Administrative Assistant Hailee Palmer. Staff Absent: I. CALL TO ORDER Vice Chairman Emmett Collins called the Work Session to order at 4:00 p.m. II. ADOPT AGENDA A motion was made to Adopt the Agenda by Commissioner Bryan Threadgill and seconded by Commissioner Jennifer Snelson. All were in favor. III. NEW BUSINESS 1. Discussion of County Workforce Planning: Staffing Needs, Employee Benefits, and Departmental Placement Strategies County Administrator Gorton opened the Work Session with an in-depth discussion focused on the County's ongoing workforce planning and departmental structure. Chief Stevens presented a proposal for consolidating Fire and Rescue administrative operations into Building A on Woodbury Highway. Currently, the department is fragmented across multiple buildings, with key staff such as Chief Grice, administrative personnel, and logistics storage located in separate facilities, including classrooms at a local school. County Administrator Gorton explained that the idea was to move the whole admin department under one roof. Chief Stevens proposed using Building A for both administration and training functions and converting the back building of Elections into a simulation facility for fire drills. County Administrator Gorton emphasized that the relocation would streamline operations, enhance training capabilities, and create more accessible public service areas, noting that minimal renovations would be needed and could be handled internally by existing personnel. County Administrator Gorton noted that the back building had a basement, sO they could set up for ladder work and ventilation drills. Commissioner Threadgill responded to the proposal by stating that it sounded like a great idea, but they needed a concrete plan. If they don'ts start getting things renovated and move people where they need to be, they were going to run into issues. County Administrator Gorton confirmed that Staff would begin developing a comprehensive dégparmemt-by-deparmemnt plan for facilities and office space to be presented to the Board in a future meeting. ChiefStevens emphasized that minimal renovations would be required, and that they could do most oft the upgrades in-house and they had resourceful employees who could handle it. The Board then shifted discussion to County Recreation. County Administrator Gorton described a recent meeting with the City of Greenville regarding the old high school football field, now under the City's ownership. County Administrator Gorton stated that Greenville was looking to invest about $40,000 to $60,000 to bring football to that field, and they were willing to pay for it entirely with their SPLOST funds. Alternatively, the County could use Greenville High School's current field, as the school board had agreed to allow access with a $1 million liability policy, which the County already held. Commissioner Threadgill asked if Greenville was trying to start their own City Recreation. County Administrator Gorton responded no, and that it was still countywide, but they wanted to host football at the Greenville facility. The Board discussed reviving the Meriwether County Recreation Advisory Board, previously a nine-member body, which had been restructured to include one appointee from each Commission district. County Administrator Gorton stated that it would be nice to have each district represented - that way, they could bring back what their community wants, whether it's football, basketball, pickleball, etc. Staff agreed to place formal appointments on the May Agenda. On the topic of staffing and compensation, Human Resources Director Valerie Chambers informed the Board that all employees hourly and salaried - were now on the approved pay scale with a 3% step structure. Salaried employees were added as ofFebruary 24, 2025, after merit increases were distributed. County Administrator Gorton proposed moving to a 3% or nothing approach, explaining that if someone isn'tp performing, they don't get the raise. They want one consistent pay structure across the board. Commissioner Threadgill echoed the importance of performance, stating that if you can't] perform your job, you don't deserve to get that credit. Director Chambers also introduced several new benefit proposals. These included increasing life insurance for managers from $50,000 to $75,000, at a cost of$1,879 per year, and having the County pay for long-term disability coverage for the same group at $1,795 per year. She explained that they were trying to make their benefits package more competitive to help them retain managers. Another proposal suggested adding Good Friday and Veterans Day as paid holidays, bringing the total to 13 to match the State of Georgia. Commissioner King cautioned against comparing to the State, stating they didn't have the budget the State had, and that they needed to see what surrounding counties were doing. Staff committed to gathering that comparative data for the next meeting. A vacation buyback program was also discussed. Director Chambers suggested raising the accrual cap from 240 to 280 hours and allowing employees with 160 or more hours to cash in up to 40 hours annually. County Administrator Gorton stated they already accounted for it as a liability, sO this just gives the employees flexibility when they need cash. Commissioner Threadgill expressed concern about burnout, stating PTO was in place for a reason and people didn'trealize they were burned out until they already were. Commissioner King stated that some folks couldn'ta afford to take a vacation and that was why they would rather have the cash. They were trying to pay child support, send a kid to college, pay bills, etc. A new retirement loan option was presented as well. Staff were exploring allowing employees to borrow from their 401(a) or 457 (b) retirement plans in emergencies. These loans would be repaid with interest and require the employee to be fully vested. County Administrator Gorton noted that it was another tool to help employees if something goes wrong-like their well goes out or they need a new car. Director Chambers proposed a service awards program to recognize longevity. The proposed structure ranged from $50 at five years of service to $500 at 25 years. Director Chambers stated that it would just be a small way to say thank you noting that retention had improved since the pay scale was implemented. Director Chambers added that as of today, only seven people had voluntarily left this year compared to 13 at this point last year. The discussion then moved to updates from Public Works. County Administrator Gorton stated that Director Brian Griffith was researching the feasibility ofc creating an in-house paving crew. Right now, they were paying $240 per ton for asphalt. Director Griffith thinks they could get it down to $80 ift they do it themselves. However, Commissioners emphasized the need for proper staffing, with Commissioner King stating that they didn' 't want to pull people off grading and ditching. just to pave roads every day. Public Works was also evaluating a demo road-widening machine, which could help on narrow roads like Judson Bulloch Road. They were preparing a fleet replacement list and looking into using retired Sheriff S vehicles for other County departments. County Administrator Gorton stated they needed to find out how many vehicles the Sheriff could release because buying new vehicles was only getting more expensive. The County was also preparing for the next SPLOST cycle. Meetings had been held with five municipalities to gather project lists, with three more scheduled. County Administrator Gorton stated they wanted to have everything finalized by their joint meeting SO they could get it on the November ballot. Lastly, County Administrator Gorton stated that he had received the full Courthouse assessment, and it would be given to the Board at the next meeting, since it was delivered the previous weekend. County Administrator Gorton added that it was 133 pages, front and back, and they would have copies ready to give to the Board by Monday. The next step was to prepare the RFP and hopefully start work by the end of the year. Commissioner Threadgill emphasized the need to act quickly, saying that if they didn't move now, they would be chasing their tails for another 10 years. IV. EXECUTIVE SESSION There was no need for an Executive Session. V. ADJOURNMENT With no further discussion, a motion was made by Commissioner Snelson and seconded by Commissioner Threadgill to Adjourn the Work Session at 5:02 p.m. All were in favor. Approved by: Mgorfy lble of4k Badof Commisiners Attest: IN ACA % a V/ County Ceyt Date: VA