Sue raises some pertinent questions about Interim Police Chief Tim Bellamy's move to eliminate the police department's rotating shift schedule. Since this is strictly a personnel issue under the jurisdiction of the police chief and city manager, we city councilmembers have no decision-making role in this change. However, City Manager Mitchell Johnson has kept us informed on this major policy shift, and I will try to shed a bit of light on what is happening and why.
First, I'll share a PERSONAL observation in response to some off-target commentary offered by another blogger. While many of the rank-and-file officers who detested the rotating schedule were unhappy with former chief David Wray for implementing it, that non-support was not the basis for the investigations into the alleged wrongdoings in the Greensboro Police Department. Even with my limited knowledge of the actual findings, it is clear to me that the events and issues that led to Wray's resignation were much more far-reaching and troubling. When the SBI investigation is complete (soon, I hope!) and the city is free to release additional details, that should become quite apparent to everyone.
So why change the work schedule now?
* From the very beginning, Mitch has said "we must get our house in order" before considering any major changes. With the administrative investigations completed and the SBI investigation winding down, there is a much clearer picture of the total situation and the issues that need to be tackled. The police department is now at a point to start acting and addressing internal issues instead of merely investigating them, including issues not related to the investigations.
* Mitch had previously said that any changes in shifts and scheduling should be left up to the new police chief whenever he/she came on board. However, he experienced a total turn-around in that thinking during the earliest stages of the selection process to find a new police chief. In an effort to find out what skills and characteristics they thought were most important in the new chief, Mitch spent weeks meeting one-on-one with various groups of GPD officers of all ranks to gather their input and hear their concerns. He said two things became crystal clear during those frank, no-holds-barred interviews:
1) That the 11-hour-a-day, four-days-on and four-days-off rotating shift schedule was creating genuine hardships for officers in the areas of family life, health, and their ability to perform at their best, and
2) That the work schedule issue was going to be the "800-pound gorilla" that the new chief was going to be forced to address as soon as he/she was hired whether he/she wanted to or not. His/her handling of that complex issue had the potential to put the new chief "behind the eight ball" before he/she ever had a chance to perform and prove himself/herself.
Based on those conclusions, Mitch decided it might be best not to place that burden on the new chief and to go ahead and deal with the issue now. He gave Interim Chief Bellamy the go-ahead several months ago to begin exploring other potential scheduling options.
Along with that permission, he also imposed a number of performance-based criteria and expectations that any new schedule must satisfy in order to be accepted. Those criteria went to the heart of some the issues that Sue has now raised. I read that memo at the time but do not have a copy of it now to refresh my memory of what was contained on that list.
I do recall the following points, but am sure there were several more that I'm forgetting:
* At a minimum, the current level of police presence on the streets and service availability, patrolling, fighting crime, etc. must be maintained, or even better, enhanced.
* Maintain the strong focus on community policing.
* Ensure a good mix of veteran, more experienced officers are assigned to all squads during all shifts along with newer, less experienced officers.
* Keep any additional costs down as much as possible.
It is my understanding that numerous options and shift configurations were thoroughly studied and vetted before Interim Chief Bellamy settled on this new option. There is a committee of GPD officers working out the logistical details of this new permanent shift five-days-on , four-days-off proposal. I hope they are successful so the department can move forward soon with a viable plan.
It is my fervent hope that the needs of both citizens and the officers who provide service to those citizens will be adequately satisfied.
[Update: Here's a link first provided by Ed Cone to the Patrol Schedule Research Committee's report.]
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
The Grand Tour
The City Council's new "offices" are complete now so I took a few photos earlier today to show you what our new space looks like. I joked with News & Record reporter Margaret Banks yesterday, telling her she had exaggerated by calling these spaces "offices" -- a more accurate description is probably "cubicles" or "desks" or "workspaces." Whatever you choose to call them, please enjoy the grand tour!
This shot was taken standing at the far wall of the former city council conference room looking towards the entrance door. There are three sections of cubicles jutting out from the outer wall where the windows are located with a fourth section paralleling the inside wall of the room.
Turning left from the entry door, here is the computer workstation and the cubicles for Goldie Wells and Tom Phillips. These spaces still have a view of the windows even though they are not adjacent to them.
While these functional work spaces are by no means spacious, each council member now has his/her own desk, chair, shelves, and telephone instead of two persons having to share those as had been the previous situation. No privacy, but plenty of elbow room!
This shot was taken standing at the far wall of the former city council conference room looking towards the entrance door. There are three sections of cubicles jutting out from the outer wall where the windows are located with a fourth section paralleling the inside wall of the room.
Turning left from the entry door, here is the computer workstation and the cubicles for Goldie Wells and Tom Phillips. These spaces still have a view of the windows even though they are not adjacent to them.
Adjacent to the far wall of the room, here are the cubicles for Sandra Anderson Groat (the one next to the window, the infamous "corner office") and Mike Barber.
In the center bank of cubicles, you will find my desk (the one next to the window) and Florence Gatten's.
Dianne Bellamy-Small's cubicle is next to the window on the wall near the entry door, and Yvonne Johnson's is beside it.
While these functional work spaces are by no means spacious, each council member now has his/her own desk, chair, shelves, and telephone instead of two persons having to share those as had been the previous situation. No privacy, but plenty of elbow room!
Monday, January 29, 2007
Regional cooperation, or "We are family..."
Regionalism and working together among Greensboro, High Point, and Winston-Salem is much more of a common practice than the public might believe based on continuing media stories. The latest installment on the same tired theme that we are at war with each other was Dr. Keith Debbage's article on the front page of the Ideas section of Sunday's News & Record entitled "Can we just get along?" I have had the pleasure of working with Dr. Debbage on several occasions and have great respect for him and his insightful expertise, but I respectfully disagree with his assumptions in this particular case.
Are things perfect among the three cities and do we agree on every single issue that comes along? Of course not! My husband and I have not agreed on everything over the past 39 years of our marriage but we're still together and doing just fine, thank you, despite all the S*** and weird hours he often has to tolerate with me being an elected official. So it is with our Triad cities -- yes, there is some occasional sibling rivalry, but we are still "family." While we may try to land the same economic development opportunity from time to time (such as Dell), we certainly do see the big picture and know that we are partners with a common interest -- we cooperate WITH each other much more frequently than we compete AGAINST each other.
One shining example Dr. Debbage failed to acknowledge is PART, the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation, that encompasses not only the three cities and the counties in which they are located, but currently nine counties in the Triad region with others expressing interest in joining. The idea for cooperation in regional transportation issues began in 1989 with a conversation among transportation planners in the three jurisdictions which resulted in legislation that created PART in 1997. Elected officials make up the Board of Trustees, and we have harmoniously worked and planned together for the past nine years to create a regional transportation organization that is now lauded as the model for the state. PART has been tasked to conduct a "Seamless Mobility Study" that could result in even closer cooperation and coordination of our separate municipal transit systems, up to and including possible consolidation.
Other examples of cooperation for the common good of the region include the Piedmont Triad Water Authority to secure additional water resources for the region (Randleman Lake) and regional efforts to support High Point's efforts to retain and enhance the Furniture Market. We've worked together on economic and leadership development for years in the Piedmont Triad Partnership.
Dr. Debbage cites the lack of a comprehensive regional map depicting the land uses and infrastructure in the Heart of the Triad. That was simply due to this area's location outside everyone's city limits and on the perimeter of our planning areas -- "not on our radar screens" -- rather than a "it's mine, you can't have it" mindset. With other more pressing priorities, we just had not recognized the need until development pressures brought it to our attention. Once that void was identified, the six planning directors have worked together with PART over the past two years to produce the maps and a transportation model that will provide benefits far beyond the Heart of the Triad project.
The media keeps hyping the supposed hard feelings created when High Point "stole" the La-Z-Boy headquarters from Greensboro. While local economic development officials have bemoaned it and I certainly wish it had not happened, I have not heard any harsh words about it from my fellow councilmembers. The competition between Moses Cone and High Point Regional hospitals is a private matter between those two health care providers, and as far as I know, the elected officials are not involved.
Elected officials from all six jurisdictions -- Greensboro, High Point, Kernersville, Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, and Guilford County -- attended a luncheon meeting today sponsored by the four Chambers of Commerce to learn about the planning for the Heart of the Triad project. I voluntarily sat at a table with four members of the High Point City Council (including the mayor), one of their assistant city managers (a classmate of mine from the Triad Leadership Network), and other city staff. We shared plenty of good conversation and friendship; nary a cross word passed among us.
I didn't hear any disagreement from any of the elected officials from any of the jurisdictions with the concept that the development of the Heart of the Triad area needs to be conducted in a planned, coordinated way instead of a haphazard "business as usual" approach. There is likely to be lots of questions and extensive evaluation of the proposals by officials in each jurisdiction to make sure the interests of our own citizens are protected. That is, after all, the main job you elected us to do. It will be our tasks to thoroughly examine the pros and cons along with the costs and benefits of the project as well as the consequences of not doing anything. I fully expect the final decision reached by each governing body to be based on these criteria and the reality of allocation of scarce resources, not on SUPPOSED jealousy, political rivalries, or failure to get along with each other.
While by no means perfect (what is?), regionalism is alive and well in the Piedmont Triad. All together now, let's sing: "We are fam-i-ly..."
Are things perfect among the three cities and do we agree on every single issue that comes along? Of course not! My husband and I have not agreed on everything over the past 39 years of our marriage but we're still together and doing just fine, thank you, despite all the S*** and weird hours he often has to tolerate with me being an elected official. So it is with our Triad cities -- yes, there is some occasional sibling rivalry, but we are still "family." While we may try to land the same economic development opportunity from time to time (such as Dell), we certainly do see the big picture and know that we are partners with a common interest -- we cooperate WITH each other much more frequently than we compete AGAINST each other.
One shining example Dr. Debbage failed to acknowledge is PART, the Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation, that encompasses not only the three cities and the counties in which they are located, but currently nine counties in the Triad region with others expressing interest in joining. The idea for cooperation in regional transportation issues began in 1989 with a conversation among transportation planners in the three jurisdictions which resulted in legislation that created PART in 1997. Elected officials make up the Board of Trustees, and we have harmoniously worked and planned together for the past nine years to create a regional transportation organization that is now lauded as the model for the state. PART has been tasked to conduct a "Seamless Mobility Study" that could result in even closer cooperation and coordination of our separate municipal transit systems, up to and including possible consolidation.
Other examples of cooperation for the common good of the region include the Piedmont Triad Water Authority to secure additional water resources for the region (Randleman Lake) and regional efforts to support High Point's efforts to retain and enhance the Furniture Market. We've worked together on economic and leadership development for years in the Piedmont Triad Partnership.
Dr. Debbage cites the lack of a comprehensive regional map depicting the land uses and infrastructure in the Heart of the Triad. That was simply due to this area's location outside everyone's city limits and on the perimeter of our planning areas -- "not on our radar screens" -- rather than a "it's mine, you can't have it" mindset. With other more pressing priorities, we just had not recognized the need until development pressures brought it to our attention. Once that void was identified, the six planning directors have worked together with PART over the past two years to produce the maps and a transportation model that will provide benefits far beyond the Heart of the Triad project.
The media keeps hyping the supposed hard feelings created when High Point "stole" the La-Z-Boy headquarters from Greensboro. While local economic development officials have bemoaned it and I certainly wish it had not happened, I have not heard any harsh words about it from my fellow councilmembers. The competition between Moses Cone and High Point Regional hospitals is a private matter between those two health care providers, and as far as I know, the elected officials are not involved.
Elected officials from all six jurisdictions -- Greensboro, High Point, Kernersville, Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, and Guilford County -- attended a luncheon meeting today sponsored by the four Chambers of Commerce to learn about the planning for the Heart of the Triad project. I voluntarily sat at a table with four members of the High Point City Council (including the mayor), one of their assistant city managers (a classmate of mine from the Triad Leadership Network), and other city staff. We shared plenty of good conversation and friendship; nary a cross word passed among us.
I didn't hear any disagreement from any of the elected officials from any of the jurisdictions with the concept that the development of the Heart of the Triad area needs to be conducted in a planned, coordinated way instead of a haphazard "business as usual" approach. There is likely to be lots of questions and extensive evaluation of the proposals by officials in each jurisdiction to make sure the interests of our own citizens are protected. That is, after all, the main job you elected us to do. It will be our tasks to thoroughly examine the pros and cons along with the costs and benefits of the project as well as the consequences of not doing anything. I fully expect the final decision reached by each governing body to be based on these criteria and the reality of allocation of scarce resources, not on SUPPOSED jealousy, political rivalries, or failure to get along with each other.
While by no means perfect (what is?), regionalism is alive and well in the Piedmont Triad. All together now, let's sing: "We are fam-i-ly..."
Weekly schedule
I will be attending the Heart of the Triad public officials luncheon and information session this morning, Monday, January 29 after which I have a meeting over at the Piedmont Triad Partnership.
Tuesday, January 30 begins with a chat with a News & Record reporter then a lunch-and- bridge benefit for Family and Children's Service. The big event for this day is the public information session on the High Point Road/Lee Street corridor plan at which I will be bringing greetings.
The War Memorial Commission (coliseum) will meet at noon on Thursday, February 1 after which I'm meeting with the city manager.
Not a bad week at all!
Tuesday, January 30 begins with a chat with a News & Record reporter then a lunch-and- bridge benefit for Family and Children's Service. The big event for this day is the public information session on the High Point Road/Lee Street corridor plan at which I will be bringing greetings.
The War Memorial Commission (coliseum) will meet at noon on Thursday, February 1 after which I'm meeting with the city manager.
Not a bad week at all!
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Transportation news
Yesterday's TAC (Transportation Advisory Committee) was fairly routine with the adoption of the Public Participation Plan and receiving updates on a number of items.
We did have one speaker from the floor complaining about the large traffic island recently installed at the intersection of Battleground Avenue and Horsepen Creek Road and how it is restricting traffic flow. She also demanded that something be done to immediately widen Battleground north of this intersection, at least as far as the charter school that generates a lot of traffic congestion every morning when parents drive their children to the school. Checking the TIP (Transportation Improvement Program), we found that the widening of this six-mile segment of Battleground north of Horsepen Creek is fully funded and scheduled for construction in 2009 (a major plus), but due to right-of-way constraints, interim widening near the intersection is not as simple as one would hope. NCDOT staff is studying the problem to see if there are any affordable, immediate actions to be taken to alleviate the current problem.
GTA's director Libby James presented an update on the city's bus service. With the introduction of 30-minute service on January 2, ridership for January 2007 has increased 12% (10,000 trips per week) over January 2006. At this rate of growth in ridership, we are right on target to reach the four million riders per year goal set out in Mobility Greensboro study in 2008 as projected, a goal that did not seem realistic and achievable when it was first set.
Mrs. James had two additional items of FANTASTIC news to share as well --
* A&T University has finally agreed to "get on board" with the HEAT service and become a full funding participant! Plans are already being made to service the A&T campus better as well as provide the same shuttle van service from off-campus student housing areas to the campus as is being done in the UNCG area. As with the students from all the other participating colleges and universities, A&T students will soon be able to ride HEAT and the regular GTA buses by presenting their student ID cards instead of having to pay the fare.
* The GTA Board adopted the revised SCAT fare policy recommended by the City Council at their January 23 meeting. As of February 1, the SCAT fares will be the same as GTAs' fixed-route buses -- $1.10 per trip, a 10-ride ticket book for $10, and a 40-ride ticket book for $40. I was a bit disconcerted to learn that CAN-DO, the organized group representing the SCAT riders, had presented yet another request for even lower fares after initially supporting the City Council's final compromise. I'm hoping this issue has finally been resolved with the Board's action ,and we can now concentrate on providing good service instead of continually arguing about the fares.
Staff reported on the December 14 public hearing held at the Pleasant Garden town hall on the US421 interchanges at Woody Mill Road and at Neelley Road where there was "standing room only." It appears that the plans for construction of full interchanges at both of these intersections are supported by the majority of residents. Construction is scheduled for 2010 for the Woody Mill interchange and sometime after 2013 for the Neelley Road one.
NC Board of Transportation chair Doug Galyon reported that the western section of the urban loop (1-40 bypass) from the new I-85 bypass around to Bryan Boulevard will open to traffic just before Thanksgiving, 2008. That will remove a tremendous amount of traffic and congestion from present-day I-40 through Greensboro. He also noted that repair and resurfacing of I-85/40 east of the city should begin later this year -- hooray, I'm tired of dodging potholes on my way to Raleigh!
We did have one speaker from the floor complaining about the large traffic island recently installed at the intersection of Battleground Avenue and Horsepen Creek Road and how it is restricting traffic flow. She also demanded that something be done to immediately widen Battleground north of this intersection, at least as far as the charter school that generates a lot of traffic congestion every morning when parents drive their children to the school. Checking the TIP (Transportation Improvement Program), we found that the widening of this six-mile segment of Battleground north of Horsepen Creek is fully funded and scheduled for construction in 2009 (a major plus), but due to right-of-way constraints, interim widening near the intersection is not as simple as one would hope. NCDOT staff is studying the problem to see if there are any affordable, immediate actions to be taken to alleviate the current problem.
GTA's director Libby James presented an update on the city's bus service. With the introduction of 30-minute service on January 2, ridership for January 2007 has increased 12% (10,000 trips per week) over January 2006. At this rate of growth in ridership, we are right on target to reach the four million riders per year goal set out in Mobility Greensboro study in 2008 as projected, a goal that did not seem realistic and achievable when it was first set.
Mrs. James had two additional items of FANTASTIC news to share as well --
* A&T University has finally agreed to "get on board" with the HEAT service and become a full funding participant! Plans are already being made to service the A&T campus better as well as provide the same shuttle van service from off-campus student housing areas to the campus as is being done in the UNCG area. As with the students from all the other participating colleges and universities, A&T students will soon be able to ride HEAT and the regular GTA buses by presenting their student ID cards instead of having to pay the fare.
* The GTA Board adopted the revised SCAT fare policy recommended by the City Council at their January 23 meeting. As of February 1, the SCAT fares will be the same as GTAs' fixed-route buses -- $1.10 per trip, a 10-ride ticket book for $10, and a 40-ride ticket book for $40. I was a bit disconcerted to learn that CAN-DO, the organized group representing the SCAT riders, had presented yet another request for even lower fares after initially supporting the City Council's final compromise. I'm hoping this issue has finally been resolved with the Board's action ,and we can now concentrate on providing good service instead of continually arguing about the fares.
Staff reported on the December 14 public hearing held at the Pleasant Garden town hall on the US421 interchanges at Woody Mill Road and at Neelley Road where there was "standing room only." It appears that the plans for construction of full interchanges at both of these intersections are supported by the majority of residents. Construction is scheduled for 2010 for the Woody Mill interchange and sometime after 2013 for the Neelley Road one.
NC Board of Transportation chair Doug Galyon reported that the western section of the urban loop (1-40 bypass) from the new I-85 bypass around to Bryan Boulevard will open to traffic just before Thanksgiving, 2008. That will remove a tremendous amount of traffic and congestion from present-day I-40 through Greensboro. He also noted that repair and resurfacing of I-85/40 east of the city should begin later this year -- hooray, I'm tired of dodging potholes on my way to Raleigh!
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
City Council briefing report
In addition to the unveiling of the proposed new City-County Water and Sewer Agreement at Tuesday's briefing session, the City Council received updates on a number of other issues.
Dan Curry and Andy Scott of Housing and Community Development reviewed the South Elm Street Redevelopment Plan that the council will be asked to approve at our February 6 meeting. Councilmembers were hesitant about the possibility of the Redevelopment Commission using eminent domain to acquire properties in this area,but after the detailed explanation, it was clear that scenario is unlikely to be needed or used.
Representatives from the Downtown Tournament Hosts briefed us on two events to be held downtown in conjunction with the NCAA regional women's basketball tournament at the Coliseum. A free block party will be held in the South Elm Street area on Saturday night, March 23 featuring a soon-to-be-announced major performer [Update: Chris Daughtry!] on the outdoor stage near the McGee Street railroad trestle. The coliseum's Show Pros security staff will assist the police department in providing a secure venue where beer will be sold and allowed throughout the festival area. A free "FanFest" event will be held in the Center City Park on Sunday afternoon, March 24 for residents to enjoy games and entertainment. Officials from the NCAA will be in Greensboro evaluating the events and activities to determine whether or not Greensboro qualifies to host the NCAA women's basketball finals. In addition to the prestige of landing the finals, this event would provide another huge economic boost to our economy -- the actual basketball tournament is just a small part of the major national convention that is part of the NCAA presence that weekend and will bring LOTS of visitors and their money to Greensboro if we are successful in landing the event.
City planning staff presented the draft of Neighborhood Conservation Overlay district guidelines being developed by a stakeholders group composed of neighborhood representatives and developers. This overlay option would present neighborhoods with a tool to define compatibility standards for new development. While most councilmembers seem supportive of the concept, we asked the group to define and refine it some more before we consider its adoption.
Two items that did not even appear on the printed agenda seemed to generate the most controversy --
In response to a request at last weekend's city council retreat, planning staff distributed the map showing areas under consideration for future annexation into the city. Despite their dependence on the city and its services, many residents object to being annexed and having to pay city taxes although they receive a much higher level of service. This issue usually generates some hot public hearings -- I can hardly wait. {sarcastic smile}
Margaret Banks has already reported on the Great Corner Office War of 2007 so there's little I can add except to say I was flabbergasted and embarrassed by this behavior. Enough said!
Dan Curry and Andy Scott of Housing and Community Development reviewed the South Elm Street Redevelopment Plan that the council will be asked to approve at our February 6 meeting. Councilmembers were hesitant about the possibility of the Redevelopment Commission using eminent domain to acquire properties in this area,but after the detailed explanation, it was clear that scenario is unlikely to be needed or used.
Representatives from the Downtown Tournament Hosts briefed us on two events to be held downtown in conjunction with the NCAA regional women's basketball tournament at the Coliseum. A free block party will be held in the South Elm Street area on Saturday night, March 23 featuring a soon-to-be-announced major performer [Update: Chris Daughtry!] on the outdoor stage near the McGee Street railroad trestle. The coliseum's Show Pros security staff will assist the police department in providing a secure venue where beer will be sold and allowed throughout the festival area. A free "FanFest" event will be held in the Center City Park on Sunday afternoon, March 24 for residents to enjoy games and entertainment. Officials from the NCAA will be in Greensboro evaluating the events and activities to determine whether or not Greensboro qualifies to host the NCAA women's basketball finals. In addition to the prestige of landing the finals, this event would provide another huge economic boost to our economy -- the actual basketball tournament is just a small part of the major national convention that is part of the NCAA presence that weekend and will bring LOTS of visitors and their money to Greensboro if we are successful in landing the event.
City planning staff presented the draft of Neighborhood Conservation Overlay district guidelines being developed by a stakeholders group composed of neighborhood representatives and developers. This overlay option would present neighborhoods with a tool to define compatibility standards for new development. While most councilmembers seem supportive of the concept, we asked the group to define and refine it some more before we consider its adoption.
Two items that did not even appear on the printed agenda seemed to generate the most controversy --
In response to a request at last weekend's city council retreat, planning staff distributed the map showing areas under consideration for future annexation into the city. Despite their dependence on the city and its services, many residents object to being annexed and having to pay city taxes although they receive a much higher level of service. This issue usually generates some hot public hearings -- I can hardly wait. {sarcastic smile}
Margaret Banks has already reported on the Great Corner Office War of 2007 so there's little I can add except to say I was flabbergasted and embarrassed by this behavior. Enough said!
Water and Sewer Agreement changes
Tuesday's city council briefing session drew more interested onlookers than usual due to the first item on the agenda, a review of the current draft of the revised City-County Water and Sewer agreement. There was "standing room only" with representatives from practically every real estate and development firm in the city present, eager to hear about how potential policy changes might affect their property holdings and development plans. The ability to access the city's water and sewer systems is a major factor in deciding where development will or will not occur. These folks were laughingly cautioned not to go out and immediately snap up properties based on the maps and information they were about to see -- there are some remaining details to be worked out. Once that is complete, both the Greensboro City Council and the Guilford County Commissioners must approve the new policy for it to become official.
City and county staffs have been working together diligently for the past couple of years, producing four total revisions and eight or nine drafts of each of those revisions. At the moment, the various policies contained in the Greensboro Comprehensive Plan, the City Water and Sewer Policy, and the City-County Water and Sewer Agreement do not match up and are actually at odds with each other on some points. The purposes of this revision are to --
* better coordinate the policies in those documents,
* encourage economic development,
* encourage sustainable densities and development,
* encourage cost-effective extensions of full City service, and most importantly,
* recognize the market forces influence on location of development and
* operate the water and sewer utility using a business model.
The proposed revision brings us closer to a true countywide water-sewer utility operated in a more rational approach based on business principles. It takes advantage of areas where existing lines are already close and encourages development in those cost-effective areas while allowing development in harder-to-reach, more-costly-to-serve areas if the developer is willing to shoulder 100% of the costs to service that area.
The proposed new lines on the map basically expand the service area countywide except for the High Point service area, increasing the current area by 50%. This includes opening up the land north of the city's water supply lakes, a major policy shift. This change is based on the sound principle that since that land is already being developed with single-family homes on large lots with septic systems, our water supply will be better protected if that sewage is being treated in the city's system rather than seeping into our lakes.
The current policy of requiring annexation of the property into the city once it is served by city water and sewer will be continued. No service will be made available to other incorporated areas -- towns -- outside of Greensboro, only to areas Greensboro can eventually annex and capture the tax base.
Potential water and sewer service areas (WSSA) are designated as A, B, and C.
* "A" areas already have both water and sewer lines and service in them, and the City will cover the full cost of expansions.
* "B" areas have one or the other of the services, and the City would cover one-half of the cost of extension with the developer paying the rest.
* "C" areas currently have neither water nor sewer lines, and the developer will have to pay 100% of the cost to extend the lines as well as other infrastructure such as sewer lift stations, etc.
This structure encourages development nearer the current city limits where it is more cost effective to provide full city services upon annexation but allows developers to go further out if they are willing to "pick up the tab." Economic development projects could be provided incentives for water and sewer extensions based on their economic impact with the waiver and/or reduction of these fees.
Just as important, the city and county will jointly administer review of projects requesting water and service since they will eventually be annexed into the city even though they may be under the county's jurisdiction at the time. Applicants will be required to use the city's development standards. This will foster more compatible, sustainable growth patterns.
County Manager David McNeil declined to speculate when the agreement would be finished and ready for adoption by the city council and county commissioners, saying, "It is more important to get it right than set a specific date."
But whenever that day finally arrives -- hopefully much sooner than later -- it will signal a new era for Greensboro and Guilford County as we work TOGETHER issues vital to our future sustainability, economic development and financial health.
City and county staffs have been working together diligently for the past couple of years, producing four total revisions and eight or nine drafts of each of those revisions. At the moment, the various policies contained in the Greensboro Comprehensive Plan, the City Water and Sewer Policy, and the City-County Water and Sewer Agreement do not match up and are actually at odds with each other on some points. The purposes of this revision are to --
* better coordinate the policies in those documents,
* encourage economic development,
* encourage sustainable densities and development,
* encourage cost-effective extensions of full City service, and most importantly,
* recognize the market forces influence on location of development and
* operate the water and sewer utility using a business model.
The proposed revision brings us closer to a true countywide water-sewer utility operated in a more rational approach based on business principles. It takes advantage of areas where existing lines are already close and encourages development in those cost-effective areas while allowing development in harder-to-reach, more-costly-to-serve areas if the developer is willing to shoulder 100% of the costs to service that area.
The proposed new lines on the map basically expand the service area countywide except for the High Point service area, increasing the current area by 50%. This includes opening up the land north of the city's water supply lakes, a major policy shift. This change is based on the sound principle that since that land is already being developed with single-family homes on large lots with septic systems, our water supply will be better protected if that sewage is being treated in the city's system rather than seeping into our lakes.
The current policy of requiring annexation of the property into the city once it is served by city water and sewer will be continued. No service will be made available to other incorporated areas -- towns -- outside of Greensboro, only to areas Greensboro can eventually annex and capture the tax base.
Potential water and sewer service areas (WSSA) are designated as A, B, and C.
* "A" areas already have both water and sewer lines and service in them, and the City will cover the full cost of expansions.
* "B" areas have one or the other of the services, and the City would cover one-half of the cost of extension with the developer paying the rest.
* "C" areas currently have neither water nor sewer lines, and the developer will have to pay 100% of the cost to extend the lines as well as other infrastructure such as sewer lift stations, etc.
This structure encourages development nearer the current city limits where it is more cost effective to provide full city services upon annexation but allows developers to go further out if they are willing to "pick up the tab." Economic development projects could be provided incentives for water and sewer extensions based on their economic impact with the waiver and/or reduction of these fees.
Just as important, the city and county will jointly administer review of projects requesting water and service since they will eventually be annexed into the city even though they may be under the county's jurisdiction at the time. Applicants will be required to use the city's development standards. This will foster more compatible, sustainable growth patterns.
County Manager David McNeil declined to speculate when the agreement would be finished and ready for adoption by the city council and county commissioners, saying, "It is more important to get it right than set a specific date."
But whenever that day finally arrives -- hopefully much sooner than later -- it will signal a new era for Greensboro and Guilford County as we work TOGETHER issues vital to our future sustainability, economic development and financial health.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Locked doors?
I'm left scratching my head in bewilderment again after reading the following statement in the January 18 edition of The Rhinoceros Times:
"...Last night when the council went into closed session, councilmembers first had the door to the council offices locked, made sure there were two armed guards to protect those doors and then went into the council conference room and shut the door..."
The public should know that --
1. Due to building security issues in general and document security issues in particular raised by the leak of confidential information about the police department investigation, access into the Executive Offices (offices of the City Manager and councilmembers) after normal business hours has been controlled by swipe key card technology since approximately March-April of 2006. This is to make sure no unauthorized persons are in the offices rummaging through documents and confidential information. That after-hours locked door is nothing new.
2. A private security firm with armed officers has been providing building security for city council meetings for the past several years in a cost-cutting effort not to tie up more expensive sworn city police officers for that task. Their presence that night was nothing new.
3. During normal business hours while office staff is present, anyone can enter the Executive Offices through the unlocked entrance door. After 5:00PM, only authorized persons with a city-issued swipe key card can open the door to those offices. That includes city council meeting nights where the lead security officer assists us councilmembers and staff in entering the Executive Offices with his card if we don't have ours handy.
4. The media is allowed open access to the council offices before and after council meetings and during our breaks when councilmembers are in there. Mr. Hammer is almost always present at those times, chatting with various councilmembers and staff. Closed sessions are the only times he and others are asked to wait outside the council offices until we come out of the session.
5. As provided by law, neither the media nor anyone other than councilmembers and persons/city staff with information pertaining to the topic being discussed in a closed session is allowed into the council's conference room during that closed session. We have always closed the conference room door during those sessions to maintain confidentiality so that's nothing new. Even if no doors were closed or locked, the media and/or the public would not have the right to enter and listen in on council's closed sessions.
6. Closed sessions are normally held after the end of our regular council meetings when the office staff is long gone. Usually the only city staff left are the ones who are directly involved in the closed session. Frequently there is no one else left inside the Executive Offices to monitor anyone who might be wandering around in there. Therefore it seems quite logical and prudent that no one -- whether it be John Hammer, John Doe, or Mickey Mouse -- be left to wander freely and snoop around people's offices, computers, and confidential documents.
Bottom line, when the council adjourned to the closed session after 11:00PM on the night in question, those entry doors into the council offices had been automatically locked since 5:00PM -- councilmembers did NOT "...[have] the door to the council offices locked..." as stated.
Second, for obvious security and confidentiality reasons, no unauthorized person is allowed inside the office when there is no one present to monitor his/her activity. I imagine this policy is routine in most of your places of work.
Sigh!
"...Last night when the council went into closed session, councilmembers first had the door to the council offices locked, made sure there were two armed guards to protect those doors and then went into the council conference room and shut the door..."
The public should know that --
1. Due to building security issues in general and document security issues in particular raised by the leak of confidential information about the police department investigation, access into the Executive Offices (offices of the City Manager and councilmembers) after normal business hours has been controlled by swipe key card technology since approximately March-April of 2006. This is to make sure no unauthorized persons are in the offices rummaging through documents and confidential information. That after-hours locked door is nothing new.
2. A private security firm with armed officers has been providing building security for city council meetings for the past several years in a cost-cutting effort not to tie up more expensive sworn city police officers for that task. Their presence that night was nothing new.
3. During normal business hours while office staff is present, anyone can enter the Executive Offices through the unlocked entrance door. After 5:00PM, only authorized persons with a city-issued swipe key card can open the door to those offices. That includes city council meeting nights where the lead security officer assists us councilmembers and staff in entering the Executive Offices with his card if we don't have ours handy.
4. The media is allowed open access to the council offices before and after council meetings and during our breaks when councilmembers are in there. Mr. Hammer is almost always present at those times, chatting with various councilmembers and staff. Closed sessions are the only times he and others are asked to wait outside the council offices until we come out of the session.
5. As provided by law, neither the media nor anyone other than councilmembers and persons/city staff with information pertaining to the topic being discussed in a closed session is allowed into the council's conference room during that closed session. We have always closed the conference room door during those sessions to maintain confidentiality so that's nothing new. Even if no doors were closed or locked, the media and/or the public would not have the right to enter and listen in on council's closed sessions.
6. Closed sessions are normally held after the end of our regular council meetings when the office staff is long gone. Usually the only city staff left are the ones who are directly involved in the closed session. Frequently there is no one else left inside the Executive Offices to monitor anyone who might be wandering around in there. Therefore it seems quite logical and prudent that no one -- whether it be John Hammer, John Doe, or Mickey Mouse -- be left to wander freely and snoop around people's offices, computers, and confidential documents.
Bottom line, when the council adjourned to the closed session after 11:00PM on the night in question, those entry doors into the council offices had been automatically locked since 5:00PM -- councilmembers did NOT "...[have] the door to the council offices locked..." as stated.
Second, for obvious security and confidentiality reasons, no unauthorized person is allowed inside the office when there is no one present to monitor his/her activity. I imagine this policy is routine in most of your places of work.
Sigh!
Weekly schedule
This is going to be a fairly busy week for me.
I have my monthly one-on-one meeting with City Manager Mitchell Johnson this afternoon, Monday, January 22. These informal chats are an excellent venue to discuss anything either of us care to bring up and keeps communication flowing.
The regular city council briefing session will be held Tuesday morning, January 23. Items on the agenda include a report on the City-County water and sewer agreement, an update on the brownfields project on South Elm Street, a Downtown Tournament Hosts briefing – ACC Women’s Basketball Regional, and a status report on the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay.
The TAC (Transportation Advisory Committee) meets on Wednesday, January 24. Items on the agenda include adoption of the Public Participation Plan, updates on GTA and the 2007-13 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program), and a review of the draft work plan for the coming year.
On Thursday morning, January 25 I will be attending the critique/wrap-up review of the US Ambassador from Moldova's visit to Greensboro back on January 9. Everyone I have talked to since that time was quite pleased both with the ambassador's deep interest and willingness to assist with projects as well as the day's activities and reception.
Then it's off to Raleigh for Friday and Saturday, January 26-27 for NC PTA's winter board meeting. Not much time for rest and relaxation this weekend, unfortunately!
I have my monthly one-on-one meeting with City Manager Mitchell Johnson this afternoon, Monday, January 22. These informal chats are an excellent venue to discuss anything either of us care to bring up and keeps communication flowing.
The regular city council briefing session will be held Tuesday morning, January 23. Items on the agenda include a report on the City-County water and sewer agreement, an update on the brownfields project on South Elm Street, a Downtown Tournament Hosts briefing – ACC Women’s Basketball Regional, and a status report on the Neighborhood Conservation Overlay.
The TAC (Transportation Advisory Committee) meets on Wednesday, January 24. Items on the agenda include adoption of the Public Participation Plan, updates on GTA and the 2007-13 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program), and a review of the draft work plan for the coming year.
On Thursday morning, January 25 I will be attending the critique/wrap-up review of the US Ambassador from Moldova's visit to Greensboro back on January 9. Everyone I have talked to since that time was quite pleased both with the ambassador's deep interest and willingness to assist with projects as well as the day's activities and reception.
Then it's off to Raleigh for Friday and Saturday, January 26-27 for NC PTA's winter board meeting. Not much time for rest and relaxation this weekend, unfortunately!
City Connections
The latest edition of City Connections contains updates on some key construction projects.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
City Council retreat, round 2
The second round of the City Council's planning retreat kicked off this morning with a birthday serenade from my fellow councilmembers. Thankfully they did not launch into the "how o-ld are you?" verse.
Today's topics were issues suggested by councilmembers during the first session. We began with ways to deal with economically depressed/poor areas of the city. Strategies included increased neighborhood policing and helping neighborhoods to become better organized (help from Neighborhood Congress?) in order to help themselves. Mayor Holliday noted that although the experience ended badly, Project Homestead (and other housing non-profits) have provided hundreds of decent, affordable homes for many citizens. Interested councilmembers will form a committee and explore further options.
On the topic of homelessness, it was noted the city currently budgets $650,000 per year for homeless programs and assistance. We agreed we did not need to "reinvent the wheel" to search for other solutions but should work closely with the group working on the ten-year plan to end homelessness. Citing the need to appoint a councilmember to serve as our liaison with that group, Councilmember Goldie Wells volunteered to be that person. There was also a suggestion that we identify a good place for day laborers seeking work to gather instead of the current street corner.
We discussed how to tackle the perceived need for additional personnel for the inspections department to handle the multitude of overgrown lots, junk vehicles, and dilapidated housing complaints the city receives. Part of the delay in addressing these problems is caused by legal notification requirements to the property owner. The more cost-effective practice of consolidating numerous clean-up assignments under one contract instead of assigning a single contract for each complaint slows the process as well. Given the budget constraints we imposed on the city manager yesterday -- no tax increase if possible -- it is unlikely we will be able to afford additional manpower at this time. One councilmember suggested deputizing citizens to unofficially inspect and submit complaints, but with the liability and neighbor-on-neighbor friction that could arise, we decided this probably was not a good idea. It was suggested that perhaps concerned residents should proactively offer their assistance to their neighbor to help clean up the offending situation, a much friendlier and fruitful approach than complaining.
Councilmember Sandra Anderson Groat complained about her perceived lack of communication among councilmembers and from city staff. It was pointed out to her by veteran councilmembers that the current level of communication far exceeds what we had experienced in the past.It was noted that Open Meetings Law constraints prohibit the use of a conference call to all councilmembers at the same time unless the media is allowed access, and making individual calls to nine individual councilmembers is very time-consuming. Most of us are quite satisfied with the existing level of communication between council and staff, and we are hoping our planned weekly press conferences will improve our communication with the public. City Attorney Linda Miles gave clarification about the use of emails to councilmembers and how the press is allowed access to that communication upon request.
Special needs in certain communities such as Overland Heights are being targeted through the use of SCORE -- multiple departments working together to identify and address issues in a target area. We suggested that the council district representative be added to the team and/or be kept closely informed of progress. City Manager Mitchell Johnson has already assigned the Overland Heights area to the SCORE program for action.
The hottest topic of the day was the discussion of council's follow-up action (or lack thereof) on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report. Mayor Holliday explained that after our July 18 discussion of the report, he had chance conversations with four of us over a period of time who indicated we had no interest in doing anything else with it. Because of those responses from a majority of city council (after taking his own opinion on the subject into account), he did not put a high priority on formulating next steps, particularly with other pressing issues such as the ongoing police department investigation.
Councilmembers Yvonne Johnson and Goldie Wells expressed great frustration about not being consulted about this, being under the impression that the Mayor was going to make suggestions such as referring it to the Human Relations Commission for study. Mayor Holliday apologized numerous times for "dropping the ball" and for not talking with all members of council about the continued delay but stressed his actions were not intentional.
Councilmember Tom Phillips pointed out that ANY councilmember can bring ANY issue forward at ANY time for the council to vote up or down, and no one had chosen to do so with the recommendations in this report. Councilmember Wells replied she had not done so because she thought the Mayor was taking care of that. The Mayor responded that if another councilmember wanted to step forward and champion the issue and put something before the council for a vote, they are welcome to do so, but HE would not be that champion.
I predict this issue will be brought up for consideration at our next city council meeting on February 6. I further predict that any motions for approval or adoption of the TRC's recommendations will fail.
Next we discussed the request for further expansion of GTA's bus routes, particularly the one received from residents in the Brightwood School area at the last city council meeting. Citing the recent expensive expansion of service (30-minute departures, South Town connector) and ever-increasing SCAT costs, we decided it was not feasible to pursue any further service expansions at this time.
After a short discussion about recycling, the council asked the city manager to do a cost-benefit analysis to see if it makes fiscal sense to continue the program. Mitch noted that with the budget-cutting directions he already received yesterday, this item was already on his radar screen for examination.
A majority of councilmembers did not support the Mayor's suggestion that we hire a lobbyist to represent the city in the General Assembly and in Congress, despite potential benefits, due to the costs for such a person.
While this day-and-a-half retreat consumed a lot of time and energy, I believe we made some key decisions and gave clear direction to staff on a number of important issues, especially the upcoming budget. I certainly feel it was time well spent.
Today's topics were issues suggested by councilmembers during the first session. We began with ways to deal with economically depressed/poor areas of the city. Strategies included increased neighborhood policing and helping neighborhoods to become better organized (help from Neighborhood Congress?) in order to help themselves. Mayor Holliday noted that although the experience ended badly, Project Homestead (and other housing non-profits) have provided hundreds of decent, affordable homes for many citizens. Interested councilmembers will form a committee and explore further options.
On the topic of homelessness, it was noted the city currently budgets $650,000 per year for homeless programs and assistance. We agreed we did not need to "reinvent the wheel" to search for other solutions but should work closely with the group working on the ten-year plan to end homelessness. Citing the need to appoint a councilmember to serve as our liaison with that group, Councilmember Goldie Wells volunteered to be that person. There was also a suggestion that we identify a good place for day laborers seeking work to gather instead of the current street corner.
We discussed how to tackle the perceived need for additional personnel for the inspections department to handle the multitude of overgrown lots, junk vehicles, and dilapidated housing complaints the city receives. Part of the delay in addressing these problems is caused by legal notification requirements to the property owner. The more cost-effective practice of consolidating numerous clean-up assignments under one contract instead of assigning a single contract for each complaint slows the process as well. Given the budget constraints we imposed on the city manager yesterday -- no tax increase if possible -- it is unlikely we will be able to afford additional manpower at this time. One councilmember suggested deputizing citizens to unofficially inspect and submit complaints, but with the liability and neighbor-on-neighbor friction that could arise, we decided this probably was not a good idea. It was suggested that perhaps concerned residents should proactively offer their assistance to their neighbor to help clean up the offending situation, a much friendlier and fruitful approach than complaining.
Councilmember Sandra Anderson Groat complained about her perceived lack of communication among councilmembers and from city staff. It was pointed out to her by veteran councilmembers that the current level of communication far exceeds what we had experienced in the past.It was noted that Open Meetings Law constraints prohibit the use of a conference call to all councilmembers at the same time unless the media is allowed access, and making individual calls to nine individual councilmembers is very time-consuming. Most of us are quite satisfied with the existing level of communication between council and staff, and we are hoping our planned weekly press conferences will improve our communication with the public. City Attorney Linda Miles gave clarification about the use of emails to councilmembers and how the press is allowed access to that communication upon request.
Special needs in certain communities such as Overland Heights are being targeted through the use of SCORE -- multiple departments working together to identify and address issues in a target area. We suggested that the council district representative be added to the team and/or be kept closely informed of progress. City Manager Mitchell Johnson has already assigned the Overland Heights area to the SCORE program for action.
The hottest topic of the day was the discussion of council's follow-up action (or lack thereof) on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report. Mayor Holliday explained that after our July 18 discussion of the report, he had chance conversations with four of us over a period of time who indicated we had no interest in doing anything else with it. Because of those responses from a majority of city council (after taking his own opinion on the subject into account), he did not put a high priority on formulating next steps, particularly with other pressing issues such as the ongoing police department investigation.
Councilmembers Yvonne Johnson and Goldie Wells expressed great frustration about not being consulted about this, being under the impression that the Mayor was going to make suggestions such as referring it to the Human Relations Commission for study. Mayor Holliday apologized numerous times for "dropping the ball" and for not talking with all members of council about the continued delay but stressed his actions were not intentional.
Councilmember Tom Phillips pointed out that ANY councilmember can bring ANY issue forward at ANY time for the council to vote up or down, and no one had chosen to do so with the recommendations in this report. Councilmember Wells replied she had not done so because she thought the Mayor was taking care of that. The Mayor responded that if another councilmember wanted to step forward and champion the issue and put something before the council for a vote, they are welcome to do so, but HE would not be that champion.
I predict this issue will be brought up for consideration at our next city council meeting on February 6. I further predict that any motions for approval or adoption of the TRC's recommendations will fail.
Next we discussed the request for further expansion of GTA's bus routes, particularly the one received from residents in the Brightwood School area at the last city council meeting. Citing the recent expensive expansion of service (30-minute departures, South Town connector) and ever-increasing SCAT costs, we decided it was not feasible to pursue any further service expansions at this time.
After a short discussion about recycling, the council asked the city manager to do a cost-benefit analysis to see if it makes fiscal sense to continue the program. Mitch noted that with the budget-cutting directions he already received yesterday, this item was already on his radar screen for examination.
A majority of councilmembers did not support the Mayor's suggestion that we hire a lobbyist to represent the city in the General Assembly and in Congress, despite potential benefits, due to the costs for such a person.
While this day-and-a-half retreat consumed a lot of time and energy, I believe we made some key decisions and gave clear direction to staff on a number of important issues, especially the upcoming budget. I certainly feel it was time well spent.
Possibilities...
What if...? What a boost for Greensboro's economy!
(Be sure to click on the in flight video -- I think I recognize familiar scenery in the background.)
(Be sure to click on the in flight video -- I think I recognize familiar scenery in the background.)
Friday, January 19, 2007
City Council retreat, round 1
The all-day session of our city council retreat held at the Center for Creative Leadership was a productive one with lots of discussion, sharing of information, and setting of some clear directions for budget development and other key areas. Following are some of the highlights:
* General Fund revenues are on track to meet or slightly exceed budget projections. The 2006-07 budget is balanced using $6.8 million from last year's fund balance, depleting that reserve fund by approximately $1.6 million from the previous fiscal year.
* Expenditures are right on target as well. For the past several years, we have expended approximately 97% of the budgeted funds due to tighter budgeting, several percentage points above the preferred 94-95% range. This leaves less dollars in the fund balance to carry over to the next year's budget.
* The preliminary 2007-08 budget projected a 3-cent tax increase to cover increased debt service on bonds (1 cent), garbage transfer station operations (.75 cent), and additional police and fire personnel (slightly more than 1 cent). After considerable discussion, a majority of us directed City Manager Mitchell Johnson to produce a budget where projected expenses equal projected revenues, trying to lessen or entirely avoid this tax increase. We acknowledged that this will require significant cuts to existing city programs and services and that council members will have to stand firm and support those cuts if we are to attain that goal.
Mitch acknowledged a need to change the city's "DNA" in order to live within our revenues while being flexible to address specific needs in certain areas using current resources.
* State law allows cities to issue bond debt up to 8% of their total property evaluation. In Greensboro, we have traditionally kept that level at or below 2%.
* A majority of councilmembers supported the exploration of using "2/3 general obligation bonds" to pay for deferred maintenance on city facilities, including possibly War Memorial Stadium. "2/3 bonds" is a funding mechanism used by many cities and counties. Bond capacity is calculated by adding the amount of bond debt retired in a given year and subtracting the amount of any additional bond debt issued in that same year. Additional bonds may be issued without a bond referendum up to 2/3 of that amount. Greensboro does not have any such capacity for the 2006-07 fiscal year because we sold $22 million in bonds the previous year while retiring $14+ million in debt. However, in the 2006-07 fiscal year, we anticipate retiring $15 million with no additional selling of bonds, giving us approximately $10 million in "2/3" capacity.
* The City Council will make the decisions about the use of the $10 million in economic development bonds using guidelines we directed staff to develop. Our preference will be to leverage private funds as well as recoup and recycle revenue from those projects where we can. The focus will be on job creation (business and industry), not residential.
* The City Council plans to meet with the board of the Guilford Economic Development Alliance in February to share expectations and clarify our roles in preparing for and attracting new businesses.
* After reviewing a list of critical needs at the coliseum's War Memorial Auditorium that would have been addressed if voters had approved the bonds, we directed that the Coliseum explore imposing a $1 (or more) ticket surcharge on all tickets sold, a common practice at many other venues. This would shift some of the burden of paying for coliseum improvements to users of the facility.
There will be additional debt capacity using "Certificates of Participation" repaid with hotel/motel tax revenues after 2010. While Matt Brown has suggested that this be used to finance future improvements to the arena, councilmembers noted that the auditorium's needs are more critical at the moment.
Lastly, we asked that an effort be made to attract additional private and corporate funding, including another push to sell naming rights to the facility.
* Since War Memorial Stadium is now used solely for amateur sports functions, it now more closely resembles our other Parks and Recreation facilities and could be treated and funded as such. This would allow for coverage of the basic maintenance issues, but still leaves in question the complete historical renovation/restoration of it.
* The need for additional swimming facilities was discussed in addition to "where do we go from here" regarding the proposed competitive swim center that failed in the bond referendum. There was discussion about whether the swim center would be approved if it was folded into a future Parks and Recreation bond question or would such inclusion doom normally popular and successful Parks and Recreation bonds.
* The city council is requesting a joint meeting with the Parks and Recreation Commission in February to make sure that we are all "on the same page" and trying to achieve the same goals.
* Allocations will be made from the regular Housing and Community Development budget over the next six years to complete the Ole Asheboro redevelopment.
* The City Council will meet with the board of the International Civil Rights museum in March to hear about their plans to complete and open the museum. There was frank talk regarding the continued role of Skip Alston and Earl Jones in that endeavor.
* The city's "training and organizational development" function is being moved from the Communications and Organizational Development Department to the Human Resources Department to allow Director Pat Boswell to devote her talents full-time to the communications responsibilities.
* Beginning March 1, the City Council and City Manager will hold a weekly press conference (likely on Thursday mornings) in an effort to provide better communication and sharing of information with the public. We hope to televise this event on Channel 13. Various councilmembers will sign up to cover each press conference along with the manager and other city staff as appropriate.
* We authorized the Planning Board to assume the duties of the Comprehensive Plan Monitoring Committee when it expires in March. Development of the LDO (Land Development Ordinance) is behind schedule due to the tedious details and need to discuss them fully.
* The City Council agreed to seek and support state legislation allowing each jurisdiction to determine its own laws governing smoking in public buildings.
* The City Council agreed to be more aggressive with involuntary annexation of urbanized areas adjacent to our boundaries. Staff will present a map of areas currently under consideration.
It was a BUSY day! Saturday will bring Round 2 and who knows what other significant decisions!
* General Fund revenues are on track to meet or slightly exceed budget projections. The 2006-07 budget is balanced using $6.8 million from last year's fund balance, depleting that reserve fund by approximately $1.6 million from the previous fiscal year.
* Expenditures are right on target as well. For the past several years, we have expended approximately 97% of the budgeted funds due to tighter budgeting, several percentage points above the preferred 94-95% range. This leaves less dollars in the fund balance to carry over to the next year's budget.
* The preliminary 2007-08 budget projected a 3-cent tax increase to cover increased debt service on bonds (1 cent), garbage transfer station operations (.75 cent), and additional police and fire personnel (slightly more than 1 cent). After considerable discussion, a majority of us directed City Manager Mitchell Johnson to produce a budget where projected expenses equal projected revenues, trying to lessen or entirely avoid this tax increase. We acknowledged that this will require significant cuts to existing city programs and services and that council members will have to stand firm and support those cuts if we are to attain that goal.
Mitch acknowledged a need to change the city's "DNA" in order to live within our revenues while being flexible to address specific needs in certain areas using current resources.
* State law allows cities to issue bond debt up to 8% of their total property evaluation. In Greensboro, we have traditionally kept that level at or below 2%.
* A majority of councilmembers supported the exploration of using "2/3 general obligation bonds" to pay for deferred maintenance on city facilities, including possibly War Memorial Stadium. "2/3 bonds" is a funding mechanism used by many cities and counties. Bond capacity is calculated by adding the amount of bond debt retired in a given year and subtracting the amount of any additional bond debt issued in that same year. Additional bonds may be issued without a bond referendum up to 2/3 of that amount. Greensboro does not have any such capacity for the 2006-07 fiscal year because we sold $22 million in bonds the previous year while retiring $14+ million in debt. However, in the 2006-07 fiscal year, we anticipate retiring $15 million with no additional selling of bonds, giving us approximately $10 million in "2/3" capacity.
* The City Council will make the decisions about the use of the $10 million in economic development bonds using guidelines we directed staff to develop. Our preference will be to leverage private funds as well as recoup and recycle revenue from those projects where we can. The focus will be on job creation (business and industry), not residential.
* The City Council plans to meet with the board of the Guilford Economic Development Alliance in February to share expectations and clarify our roles in preparing for and attracting new businesses.
* After reviewing a list of critical needs at the coliseum's War Memorial Auditorium that would have been addressed if voters had approved the bonds, we directed that the Coliseum explore imposing a $1 (or more) ticket surcharge on all tickets sold, a common practice at many other venues. This would shift some of the burden of paying for coliseum improvements to users of the facility.
There will be additional debt capacity using "Certificates of Participation" repaid with hotel/motel tax revenues after 2010. While Matt Brown has suggested that this be used to finance future improvements to the arena, councilmembers noted that the auditorium's needs are more critical at the moment.
Lastly, we asked that an effort be made to attract additional private and corporate funding, including another push to sell naming rights to the facility.
* Since War Memorial Stadium is now used solely for amateur sports functions, it now more closely resembles our other Parks and Recreation facilities and could be treated and funded as such. This would allow for coverage of the basic maintenance issues, but still leaves in question the complete historical renovation/restoration of it.
* The need for additional swimming facilities was discussed in addition to "where do we go from here" regarding the proposed competitive swim center that failed in the bond referendum. There was discussion about whether the swim center would be approved if it was folded into a future Parks and Recreation bond question or would such inclusion doom normally popular and successful Parks and Recreation bonds.
* The city council is requesting a joint meeting with the Parks and Recreation Commission in February to make sure that we are all "on the same page" and trying to achieve the same goals.
* Allocations will be made from the regular Housing and Community Development budget over the next six years to complete the Ole Asheboro redevelopment.
* The City Council will meet with the board of the International Civil Rights museum in March to hear about their plans to complete and open the museum. There was frank talk regarding the continued role of Skip Alston and Earl Jones in that endeavor.
* The city's "training and organizational development" function is being moved from the Communications and Organizational Development Department to the Human Resources Department to allow Director Pat Boswell to devote her talents full-time to the communications responsibilities.
* Beginning March 1, the City Council and City Manager will hold a weekly press conference (likely on Thursday mornings) in an effort to provide better communication and sharing of information with the public. We hope to televise this event on Channel 13. Various councilmembers will sign up to cover each press conference along with the manager and other city staff as appropriate.
* We authorized the Planning Board to assume the duties of the Comprehensive Plan Monitoring Committee when it expires in March. Development of the LDO (Land Development Ordinance) is behind schedule due to the tedious details and need to discuss them fully.
* The City Council agreed to seek and support state legislation allowing each jurisdiction to determine its own laws governing smoking in public buildings.
* The City Council agreed to be more aggressive with involuntary annexation of urbanized areas adjacent to our boundaries. Staff will present a map of areas currently under consideration.
It was a BUSY day! Saturday will bring Round 2 and who knows what other significant decisions!
Thursday, January 18, 2007
High Point Road corridor study
I received the following information today about the kick-off for the High Point Road/West Lee Street corridor study I have been pushing for. Hurray, finally!
A public kickoff meeting for High Point Road / West Lee Street Corridor Study will be held on Tuesday, January 30, 2007, from 6:00 to 8:00 pm. The meeting will take place in Meeting Room #1 of the Greensboro Coliseum Special Events Center. Parking will be available in Zone A.
Background information: In early 2007, the City of Greensboro will be kicking off its efforts to develop the High Point Road/W. Lee Street Corridor Plan, which includes the portion of the roadway that runs along the northern boundary of the Glenwood neighborhood.
Why the Corridor Plan Is Important: The High Point Road/W. Lee Street corridor is identified in Greensboro's Comprehensive Plan as an area needing a more comprehensive assessment for both long-term economic viability and opportunities for enhancement of its visual quality and character. Continued public and private investment in this corridor related to the Greensboro Coliseum complex, the Four Seasons mall and convention center, the UNCG campus (and associated uses), the S. Elm Street corridor and now the Glenwood community, calls for a unified plan for the main roadway connecting or significantly influencing all of these areas.The evaluation of this corridor is a listed implementation project of the City's Comprehensive Plan, and a stated priority from the City Manager's Office. A lack of recent investment, deterioration and clutter around many properties along the corridor, along with limited coordination among corridor property owners and the prevalence of multiple strip centers of various quality, speaks to the need for a unifying plan.
Area(s) to be Addressed by Corridor Plan: Given the length of this roadway corridor, and the fact it will involve several potentially overlapping planning efforts, the corridor evaluation and plan will be done in two phases. Phase 1 (directly related to the Glenwood community) will look at the stretch of High Point Road/W. Lee Street from I-40 east into downtown to S. Eugene Street (the edge of the S. Elm Street redevelopment area.) While the official boundaries for the corridor plan will be finalized during the planning process, unless there are compelling reasons otherwise the corridor plan will focus primarily on those lots directly adjacent to the roadway corridor. However the effects of activity within the corridor on areas beyond these lots will also be examined and public participation from adjoining neighborhoods is vital.
Glenwood Community Participation: Look for upcoming announcements about meetings related to the High Point Road/W. Lee Street Corridor Plan and plan to participate. With the Glenwood Neighborhood Plan occurring at roughly the same time, it is extremely important to make sure both processes provide positive results for both the neighborhood and this roadway corridor.
If you have any questions or would like to further discuss the upcoming Corridor Plan process, please contact:
Mike Kirkman, City of Greensboro Planning Department, 373-4649 mike.kirkman@greensboro-nc.gov
Finally, snow!
My snowman windchime has been outside since before Christmas patiently awaiting the arrival of real snow. With this morning's light dusting, we finally got a taste of the real thing. Now he looks more authentic.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Heart of the Triad update
The steering committee of the Heart of the Triad met this morning to prepare for the January 29 presentation of the study results to the elected officials in Greensboro, High Point, Kernersville, Winston-Salem, and Guilford and Forsyth counties at a luncheon meeting at the Airport Marriott. Today's meeting was well-attended, including several residents of the affected area who shared some of their concerns to the group.
Kernersville Mayor Curtis Swisher ignited a lengthy explanation with a question about the accuracy of the projected employment numbers for the HOT area -- 140,000 jobs -- and how could he "sell" those numbers to his fellow aldermen. Information supplied by various persons provided the following explanations:
1) The expected population growth in the region as well as the state overall with NC expected to become the 7th most populous state by 2035 with much of that growth occurring in the Triad area,
2) These projections are for a 30-35 year time period and take into account existing employment already in the area,
3) Computer models show 100,000 population in the HOT area with just the "natural demand" under the "business as usual" scenario,
4) We only have to "bump up" the existing growth rate by 1/2% to achieve the projected number, and
5) Due to discomfort with the numbers, a technical committee has already scaled back the original projections -- so there's a distinct possibility that the numbers are actually understated.
Several residents of the area complained that they felt excluded from the planning process and did not feel their concerns were being heard. They cited a "fear of the unknown" and that they "were not trying to stop it [Heart of the Triad], but trying to figure out how to work with it." The steering committee directed that someone on staff be designated to be the contact person for these residents to receive and respond to their specific concerns.
There were also concerns about what type of governance would control the area and residents' ability to have elected officials to represent and respond to them versus a more distanced, appointed authority board. With no plans at this point to form such an authority, residents were advised to communicate with the elected officials who currently represent them since those are the people who will eventually adopt (or reject) the proposals for the area and govern it.
One resident farmer noted that he has a conservation easement on his property which is located adjacent to the west branch of the Deep River that includes a NCDOT mitigation project that would prohibit construction of the proposed north-south parkway in that area. Co-chairman Robbie Perkins explained that the current road alignment is just a conceptual line brushed on a map that will be refined in the future to avoid such situations as this. He also pointed out that all three concepts developed by the consultant show 32-34% green space/open space that encompass areas such as his that are environmentally sensitive, and this is likely much more green space than if the area is allowed to develop haphazardly.
These property owners obviously fear that their property is going to be taken from them through eminent domain (or "intimate domain" as someone mistakenly called it in another setting). It was explained that there has never been any intention to use eminent domain for HOT -- that was specifically rejected by the steering committee early on in the process -- and it would be entirely up to the property owners whether or not they chose to sell their land for development. The committee noted we need to do a better job making that point clear to property owners, elected officials, and the general public.
Everyone seemed to agree that coordinated planning for the area is key to avoid urban sprawl and transportation gridlock although there may not be buy-in and agreement on the exact details of that plan.
The steering committee unanimously approved the HOT Action Agenda that includes the following:
1) Recommend approval of the HOT concepts by the six government jurisdictions,
2) Take advantage of any applicable state legislation and seek funding to advance the project,
3) Continue to use PART as the coordinating entity for the next phase of the planning process,
4) Create a HOT Planning Council to continue the coordinated planning and implementation tasks,
5) Amend the Comprehensive Plans [of each affected jurisdiction] to add the proposed land use plan categories and transportation plans,
6) Adopted coordinated land development regulations and supportive design standards,
7) Develop a set of coordinated capital improvements for roadway, utilities, regional parks, and educational facilities that serve the Heart of the Triad, and
8) Create a HOT economic alliance from the Chambers of Commerce and economic development entities.
Elected officials from the six jurisdictions will be asked to approve these items within the next 30-45 days for the HOT project to move forward with more detailed planning. The steering committee also unanimously agreed to support the Chambers of Commerce's pursuit of state funding to pay for that next level of planning.
With these proposals soon moving to the agendas of the elected officials in the area, the time is approaching to see if the Heart of the Triad concept is a viable project we/they can support. Stay tuned!
Update: Here are reports from the News & Record , the Winston-Salem Journal, and the High Point Enterprise on the same meeting.
Kernersville Mayor Curtis Swisher ignited a lengthy explanation with a question about the accuracy of the projected employment numbers for the HOT area -- 140,000 jobs -- and how could he "sell" those numbers to his fellow aldermen. Information supplied by various persons provided the following explanations:
1) The expected population growth in the region as well as the state overall with NC expected to become the 7th most populous state by 2035 with much of that growth occurring in the Triad area,
2) These projections are for a 30-35 year time period and take into account existing employment already in the area,
3) Computer models show 100,000 population in the HOT area with just the "natural demand" under the "business as usual" scenario,
4) We only have to "bump up" the existing growth rate by 1/2% to achieve the projected number, and
5) Due to discomfort with the numbers, a technical committee has already scaled back the original projections -- so there's a distinct possibility that the numbers are actually understated.
Several residents of the area complained that they felt excluded from the planning process and did not feel their concerns were being heard. They cited a "fear of the unknown" and that they "were not trying to stop it [Heart of the Triad], but trying to figure out how to work with it." The steering committee directed that someone on staff be designated to be the contact person for these residents to receive and respond to their specific concerns.
There were also concerns about what type of governance would control the area and residents' ability to have elected officials to represent and respond to them versus a more distanced, appointed authority board. With no plans at this point to form such an authority, residents were advised to communicate with the elected officials who currently represent them since those are the people who will eventually adopt (or reject) the proposals for the area and govern it.
One resident farmer noted that he has a conservation easement on his property which is located adjacent to the west branch of the Deep River that includes a NCDOT mitigation project that would prohibit construction of the proposed north-south parkway in that area. Co-chairman Robbie Perkins explained that the current road alignment is just a conceptual line brushed on a map that will be refined in the future to avoid such situations as this. He also pointed out that all three concepts developed by the consultant show 32-34% green space/open space that encompass areas such as his that are environmentally sensitive, and this is likely much more green space than if the area is allowed to develop haphazardly.
These property owners obviously fear that their property is going to be taken from them through eminent domain (or "intimate domain" as someone mistakenly called it in another setting). It was explained that there has never been any intention to use eminent domain for HOT -- that was specifically rejected by the steering committee early on in the process -- and it would be entirely up to the property owners whether or not they chose to sell their land for development. The committee noted we need to do a better job making that point clear to property owners, elected officials, and the general public.
Everyone seemed to agree that coordinated planning for the area is key to avoid urban sprawl and transportation gridlock although there may not be buy-in and agreement on the exact details of that plan.
The steering committee unanimously approved the HOT Action Agenda that includes the following:
1) Recommend approval of the HOT concepts by the six government jurisdictions,
2) Take advantage of any applicable state legislation and seek funding to advance the project,
3) Continue to use PART as the coordinating entity for the next phase of the planning process,
4) Create a HOT Planning Council to continue the coordinated planning and implementation tasks,
5) Amend the Comprehensive Plans [of each affected jurisdiction] to add the proposed land use plan categories and transportation plans,
6) Adopted coordinated land development regulations and supportive design standards,
7) Develop a set of coordinated capital improvements for roadway, utilities, regional parks, and educational facilities that serve the Heart of the Triad, and
8) Create a HOT economic alliance from the Chambers of Commerce and economic development entities.
Elected officials from the six jurisdictions will be asked to approve these items within the next 30-45 days for the HOT project to move forward with more detailed planning. The steering committee also unanimously agreed to support the Chambers of Commerce's pursuit of state funding to pay for that next level of planning.
With these proposals soon moving to the agendas of the elected officials in the area, the time is approaching to see if the Heart of the Triad concept is a viable project we/they can support. Stay tuned!
Update: Here are reports from the News & Record , the Winston-Salem Journal, and the High Point Enterprise on the same meeting.
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Streetlights at the I-40/Patterson Street exit
At the end of last week's one-on-one session on the 2007-2013 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program), I inquired why the streetlights on the eastbound exit ramp off I-4o at Patterson Street have never been turned on. That is one dark exit!
I received the following response this morning:
Great! It sounds like there will be badly-needed lighting there, eventually.
I received the following response this morning:
Sandy,
As a follow up to your question at the one on one meeting I have found the following information.
The lights @ Patterson are part of a larger project (I-2201G) that stretches from Sandy Ridge Road Interchange to the Freeman Mill Road Interchange. There have been some delays but it is anticipated that the project will be completed by the fall of this year. If you require additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Best Regards,
Mike Cowan
Deputy Division Engineer
Great! It sounds like there will be badly-needed lighting there, eventually.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Transportation update
Here are some updates on various transportation issues of interest that I received or dealt with during the past week.
* Item # 1o from the 2007 Outlook produced by the World Future Society caught my eye with its prediction about the increased demand for public transit. With the recent debate about SCAT fares in Greensboro, this forecast has troubling financial implications.
* The January 10 PART meeting went well. We accepted the 2006 audit report and mid-year financial reports as well as adopted the 2007 Work Plan and a legislative agenda for the coming year. Board members rated Executive Director Brent McKinney's job performance as "excellent" and approved a 4% salary increase for him. I was re-elected as chair along with Forsyth Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt as vice chair, Rural Hall Mayor Larry Williams as secretary, and Gibsonville Mayor Leonard Williams as secretary.
The most interesting part of this meeting was Mr. McKinney's presentation on PART's long-range financial outlook. The Winston-Salem Journal provided excellent coverage of this information.
- By the year 2030, North Carolina will become the 7th most populous state surpassing New Jersey, Michigan, Georgia, and Ohio. Population in the urban core anchored by Guilford and Forsyth counties will reach 1.6 million, an increase of 500,000 over today's number. Employment will approach a million jobs and significant numbers of workers will continue to commute out-of-county to access those jobs -- 100,000 already do so. Brent noted that we "live where you want, work where you can," and better transit options can not only reduce congestion and improve air quality, but also reduce travel costs for these workers.
- The projected gap in state transportation funding between 2005-2030 is now projected at $65 billion. It is unlikely the state will be able to contribute significant additional funds to assist with our needs.
- As PART expands its transportation services into other corridors (such as the highly successful Surry County Express, interest expressed by Davidson, Randolph, and Alamance for similar service), the costs quickly outpace the revenues generated by fares and the vehicle rental tax. Without considering expanding current Express service to night and weekend schedules (a frequent request from current riders), these additional routes would eat up the current $5 million in fund equity by the year 2012. He noted "we can't afford to be too successful."
- With permission from the county commissioners in each jurisdiction, PART currently has the authority to impose up to $5 on vehicle registrations, but we have been reluctant to take that step. As High Point Mayor Becky Smothers noted, that new fee targets our own residents and constituents, not the out-of-town folks who use rental cars. She also observed that the General Assembly is unlikely to grant additional revenue sources until we have used the ones for which we already have authorization. The committee that has been investigating the revenue issue has been asked to meet again and develop recommendations.
* The "one-on-one" consultation with NCDOT about the draft 2007-13 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program) was thankfully changed and held in Greensboro at the Division 7 Highway Office through a conference call instead of having to travel to Raleigh again. We mainly discussed projects that have increased in costs or have been delayed AGAIN due to cash flow management.
- A contract to resurface I-85/40 from US29 eastward to the I-85 bypass should be awarded in September 2007 at a projected cost of $2.2 million. This will be funded through "GARVEE bonds" that basically borrow against future allocations from NCDOT, allowing the work to proceed sooner and payback to occur over a number of years. Since highway construction costs are increasing at the rate of 10-15% per year, the savings in construction costs are expected to more than offset the interest charges incurred using the GARVEE option. If sufficient capacity exists, this resurfacing project could be extended westward on I-40 to High Point Road., upping the price tag to $5 million.
- Federal funding allocations to NCDOT are currently being calculated under a continuing budget resolution (where spending levels remain the same as the "old" budget) that will expire in February. If Congress chooses to renew this continuing resolution instead of adopting a new budget that increases allotments for "donor states" such as North Carolina (NC currently receives only 86-cents of every dollar in gasoline taxes we send to Washington), it will cost NC an additional $150 million in lost revenue, further worsening our transportation funding woes.
- Due to the cap on the gasoline tax and decreased sales of new vehicles, the state transportation revenue picture does not look good either.
- The contract to widen the final segment of Hilltop Road from Adams Farm Parkway to Guilford College Road should be let soon.
- We asked NCDOT to consider partnering with Greensboro and Burlington to begin the study for widening US70 between our two cities. Although this is a greatly-needed project, due to historic structures abutting this road in Sedalia such as the Charlotte Hawkins Brown school site and others, this project will have significant challenges to address.
As is true in most situations, the many congestion mitigation and highway maintenance needs greatly exceeds our ability to pay for them. What else is new?
* Item # 1o from the 2007 Outlook produced by the World Future Society caught my eye with its prediction about the increased demand for public transit. With the recent debate about SCAT fares in Greensboro, this forecast has troubling financial implications.
10. A rise of disabled Americans will strain public transportation systems. By the year 2025, the number of Americans aged 65 or older will expand from 35 million to more than 65 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Individuals in that age group are more than twice as likely to have a disability as those aged 16 to 65. If that figure remains unchanged, the number of disabled people living in the United States will grow to 24 million over the course of the next 20 years. Rising rates of outpatient care and chronic illness point to an increased demand for public transportation as well as special public transportation services in the coming decades.
* The January 10 PART meeting went well. We accepted the 2006 audit report and mid-year financial reports as well as adopted the 2007 Work Plan and a legislative agenda for the coming year. Board members rated Executive Director Brent McKinney's job performance as "excellent" and approved a 4% salary increase for him. I was re-elected as chair along with Forsyth Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt as vice chair, Rural Hall Mayor Larry Williams as secretary, and Gibsonville Mayor Leonard Williams as secretary.
The most interesting part of this meeting was Mr. McKinney's presentation on PART's long-range financial outlook. The Winston-Salem Journal provided excellent coverage of this information.
- By the year 2030, North Carolina will become the 7th most populous state surpassing New Jersey, Michigan, Georgia, and Ohio. Population in the urban core anchored by Guilford and Forsyth counties will reach 1.6 million, an increase of 500,000 over today's number. Employment will approach a million jobs and significant numbers of workers will continue to commute out-of-county to access those jobs -- 100,000 already do so. Brent noted that we "live where you want, work where you can," and better transit options can not only reduce congestion and improve air quality, but also reduce travel costs for these workers.
- The projected gap in state transportation funding between 2005-2030 is now projected at $65 billion. It is unlikely the state will be able to contribute significant additional funds to assist with our needs.
- As PART expands its transportation services into other corridors (such as the highly successful Surry County Express, interest expressed by Davidson, Randolph, and Alamance for similar service), the costs quickly outpace the revenues generated by fares and the vehicle rental tax. Without considering expanding current Express service to night and weekend schedules (a frequent request from current riders), these additional routes would eat up the current $5 million in fund equity by the year 2012. He noted "we can't afford to be too successful."
- With permission from the county commissioners in each jurisdiction, PART currently has the authority to impose up to $5 on vehicle registrations, but we have been reluctant to take that step. As High Point Mayor Becky Smothers noted, that new fee targets our own residents and constituents, not the out-of-town folks who use rental cars. She also observed that the General Assembly is unlikely to grant additional revenue sources until we have used the ones for which we already have authorization. The committee that has been investigating the revenue issue has been asked to meet again and develop recommendations.
* The "one-on-one" consultation with NCDOT about the draft 2007-13 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program) was thankfully changed and held in Greensboro at the Division 7 Highway Office through a conference call instead of having to travel to Raleigh again. We mainly discussed projects that have increased in costs or have been delayed AGAIN due to cash flow management.
- A contract to resurface I-85/40 from US29 eastward to the I-85 bypass should be awarded in September 2007 at a projected cost of $2.2 million. This will be funded through "GARVEE bonds" that basically borrow against future allocations from NCDOT, allowing the work to proceed sooner and payback to occur over a number of years. Since highway construction costs are increasing at the rate of 10-15% per year, the savings in construction costs are expected to more than offset the interest charges incurred using the GARVEE option. If sufficient capacity exists, this resurfacing project could be extended westward on I-40 to High Point Road., upping the price tag to $5 million.
- Federal funding allocations to NCDOT are currently being calculated under a continuing budget resolution (where spending levels remain the same as the "old" budget) that will expire in February. If Congress chooses to renew this continuing resolution instead of adopting a new budget that increases allotments for "donor states" such as North Carolina (NC currently receives only 86-cents of every dollar in gasoline taxes we send to Washington), it will cost NC an additional $150 million in lost revenue, further worsening our transportation funding woes.
- Due to the cap on the gasoline tax and decreased sales of new vehicles, the state transportation revenue picture does not look good either.
- The contract to widen the final segment of Hilltop Road from Adams Farm Parkway to Guilford College Road should be let soon.
- We asked NCDOT to consider partnering with Greensboro and Burlington to begin the study for widening US70 between our two cities. Although this is a greatly-needed project, due to historic structures abutting this road in Sedalia such as the Charlotte Hawkins Brown school site and others, this project will have significant challenges to address.
As is true in most situations, the many congestion mitigation and highway maintenance needs greatly exceeds our ability to pay for them. What else is new?
Weekly schedule
After an extended holiday break, city council duties return full force this week with a number of meetings and events.
I'll be attending the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Memorial Breakfast sponsored by the Greensboro Human Relations Commission bright and early on Monday, January 15. The rest of the morning won't be quite as pleasant as I have a dental appointment later -- I have a great dentist, but I still do not look forward to these visits.
The regular city council meeting on Tuesday, January 16 could be a lengthy one, judging from the number of contested zoning cases on the agenda. Those zoning appeals seem to be one of the main causes of long agendas.
The steering committee of the Heart of the Triad study will be meeting on Wednesday morning, January 17 to put the finishing touches on the information that will be presented to elected officials later in the month. The News & Record provided excellent coverage and discussion of the issues residents of this key area are facing in the Sunday edition of the paper.
Thursday is clear at this point, but all day Friday, January 19 and a half-day on Saturday, January 20 will be spent at the city council retreat. We'll be looking for ways to build on last year's foundations and move forward with discussion of strategic goals and priorities and ways to address needs related to bonds that did not pass (War Memorial Auditorium, building maintenance, etc.). We'll also review known budget issues for the FY2007-08 budget and discuss our strategic goals for that budget. Not exactly the most exciting way to spend one's birthday! :(
I'll be attending the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Memorial Breakfast sponsored by the Greensboro Human Relations Commission bright and early on Monday, January 15. The rest of the morning won't be quite as pleasant as I have a dental appointment later -- I have a great dentist, but I still do not look forward to these visits.
The regular city council meeting on Tuesday, January 16 could be a lengthy one, judging from the number of contested zoning cases on the agenda. Those zoning appeals seem to be one of the main causes of long agendas.
The steering committee of the Heart of the Triad study will be meeting on Wednesday morning, January 17 to put the finishing touches on the information that will be presented to elected officials later in the month. The News & Record provided excellent coverage and discussion of the issues residents of this key area are facing in the Sunday edition of the paper.
Thursday is clear at this point, but all day Friday, January 19 and a half-day on Saturday, January 20 will be spent at the city council retreat. We'll be looking for ways to build on last year's foundations and move forward with discussion of strategic goals and priorities and ways to address needs related to bonds that did not pass (War Memorial Auditorium, building maintenance, etc.). We'll also review known budget issues for the FY2007-08 budget and discuss our strategic goals for that budget. Not exactly the most exciting way to spend one's birthday! :(
Charter school interview
This is what I was doing after last Thursday's Charter School Advisory Committee meeting in Raleigh. Given the current make-up of the General Assembly, I doubt if charter school backers will have much success with their effort.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
More on the Willow Oaks demolition costs
In his weekly Items for Your Information memo to the city council, City Manager Mitchell Johnson provided 30+ pages of explanation and documentation (invoices, cancelled checks, etc.) of the additional costs incurred by United Maintenance's demolition work in the Willow Oaks area. There are notations from city staff on some documents disallowing costs due to being part of the base bid while others are marked as "extra."I do not have this information in electronic format so am unable to post it, but Mitch said it will be available in .PDF format for anyone who wants to get it from the Public Information Office.
Key points that caught my eye include the following:
* The third party review by Steve Kennedy's firm that recommended not paying the additional costs was written in March, 2005 with which the Manager concurred at that time and reiterated to the contractor in December, 2005: "...I informed him that unless he could provide clear documentation regarding his expenses, he would not receive any additional compensation even if I agreed that the work he described and had photographs of was not in the original scope of work, which I agreed it appeared not to be."
The decision to award additional payment was made in late June, 2006 -- well over a year after that third party review-- based on new information received during the intervening 14-15 months.
* This contract for services was handled as a Purchase Order (PO), and the increases to it were extensions to the initial PO, although the terminology of "change order" was used in the PO extensions.
* The city's specifications for the demolition work were vague as to what was underneath the parking lot asphalt specifically to the quantities of concrete and masonry structures.
* Previously unknown conditions at the site included old service station holding tanks that had been filled with concrete instead of removal in addition to footings and foundations of buildings that had been buried under gravel and dirt (allowable in the city code at the time this was done), not visible at the time of inspection. These concealed structures were deemed NOT to be part of the base bid. [January 9 update/clarification: The old gas tanks were removed, not filled. Normal practices are to fill the resulting holes with compacted soil or washed stone, but these holes were filled with concrete instead.]
* Another direct quote from Mitch's memo: "While I certainly would not and did not pay a contractor for work they didn't do or should have done as base bid, I also wonder what the criticism would be of the City of Greensboro is we were to tell this contractor we are not going to pay you because we are going to interpret the contract to mean anything under the slab no matter how much, how big or if no one knew it was there, unless you can hire a lawyer and sue us. I believe my obligation is to be fair and reasonable, and this is what I believe the City of Greensboro has done with regard to this matter...As you will be able to see from the information provided, the contractor in question clearly did significant work beyond the scope of the original agreement. While he initially did not have the appropriate documentation to prove the quantity and cost of this additional work, he was not paid until he was able to satisfy the staff that his request for payment was fully supported with actual documentation of costs incurred for the work beyond the initial Purchase Order or the $16,875 extension."
I stand by my original statement of support for the manager's decision.
Key points that caught my eye include the following:
* The third party review by Steve Kennedy's firm that recommended not paying the additional costs was written in March, 2005 with which the Manager concurred at that time and reiterated to the contractor in December, 2005: "...I informed him that unless he could provide clear documentation regarding his expenses, he would not receive any additional compensation even if I agreed that the work he described and had photographs of was not in the original scope of work, which I agreed it appeared not to be."
The decision to award additional payment was made in late June, 2006 -- well over a year after that third party review-- based on new information received during the intervening 14-15 months.
* This contract for services was handled as a Purchase Order (PO), and the increases to it were extensions to the initial PO, although the terminology of "change order" was used in the PO extensions.
* The city's specifications for the demolition work were vague as to what was underneath the parking lot asphalt specifically to the quantities of concrete and masonry structures.
* Previously unknown conditions at the site included old service station holding tanks that had been filled with concrete instead of removal in addition to footings and foundations of buildings that had been buried under gravel and dirt (allowable in the city code at the time this was done), not visible at the time of inspection. These concealed structures were deemed NOT to be part of the base bid. [January 9 update/clarification: The old gas tanks were removed, not filled. Normal practices are to fill the resulting holes with compacted soil or washed stone, but these holes were filled with concrete instead.]
* Another direct quote from Mitch's memo: "While I certainly would not and did not pay a contractor for work they didn't do or should have done as base bid, I also wonder what the criticism would be of the City of Greensboro is we were to tell this contractor we are not going to pay you because we are going to interpret the contract to mean anything under the slab no matter how much, how big or if no one knew it was there, unless you can hire a lawyer and sue us. I believe my obligation is to be fair and reasonable, and this is what I believe the City of Greensboro has done with regard to this matter...As you will be able to see from the information provided, the contractor in question clearly did significant work beyond the scope of the original agreement. While he initially did not have the appropriate documentation to prove the quantity and cost of this additional work, he was not paid until he was able to satisfy the staff that his request for payment was fully supported with actual documentation of costs incurred for the work beyond the initial Purchase Order or the $16,875 extension."
I stand by my original statement of support for the manager's decision.
Congratulations, Greensboro Fire Department!
According to a memo from City Manager Mitchell Johnson, the City of Greensboro's fire department was again awarded Class 1 Public Protection Classification (PPC), first received in 1991. This ISO rating is based on an evaluation of the fire department (50%), the water supply and distribution system (40%), and the emergency communication system (10%). Only 42 of the 45,000 fire districts in the US have achieved the Class 1 PPC, and Greensboro is one of only seven departments in the world to be internationally accredited AND hold the Class 1 rating.
In addition to excellent fire protection, Greensboro citizens and businesses benefit though lower fire insurance premiums and reduced losses due to fire. The Class 1 rating is also a positive economic development recruitment factor.
Congratulations and kudos to all for a job well done!
In addition to excellent fire protection, Greensboro citizens and businesses benefit though lower fire insurance premiums and reduced losses due to fire. The Class 1 rating is also a positive economic development recruitment factor.
Congratulations and kudos to all for a job well done!
Coliseum report
I missed the War Memorial Commission meeting last Thursday since I was out of town. I checked with one of the attendees and learned it was a routine meeting with nothing unusual.
The one item of note was figures for the Disney High School Musical performance in December. Attendance was in the 11,000 range and concession sales were a weak $29,000. But merchandise sales (souvenirs, T-shirts, etc.) grossed $110,503, averaging $10 per patron -- Centerplate had to bring in extra credit card machines in anticipation of the heavy credit card sales.
The one item of note was figures for the Disney High School Musical performance in December. Attendance was in the 11,000 range and concession sales were a weak $29,000. But merchandise sales (souvenirs, T-shirts, etc.) grossed $110,503, averaging $10 per patron -- Centerplate had to bring in extra credit card machines in anticipation of the heavy credit card sales.
Weekly schedule
This is going to be one of those "on the go" weeks with two trips to Raleigh on my schedule. Coupled with the two I made last week, that's four trips down and back within an 8-day period -- I can almost drive that I-40 route in my sleep now.
My schedule is totally clear for Monday so I hope to put the finishing touches on this bathroom project (a little caulk here, some paint touch-ups there) and be done with it. We certainly did not intend to do this much work, but our totally remodeled bathroom turned out nice. Let's hope we never have to do that again!
US Ambassador to Moldova Michael Kirby will be in Greensboro all day Tuesday, January 9 accompanied by NC Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Deputy Secretary Rodney Maddox. Various groups and individuals who work on projects supporting Moldova (such as the Greensboro Jewish Federation, Hospice, Rotary, and Carolina Adoptions) will be briefing him throughout the day on their projects. I will be assisting with the reception for him that evening. As soon as that reception ends, it's off to War Memorial Auditorium for Cirque Dreams -- Jungle Fantasy.
The PART board will meet on Wednesday morning, January 10. Items on the agenda include consideration of our 2007 work plan and legislative agenda, a presentation on the long range financial outlook, the performance appraisal of the executive director, and election of officers for the coming year.
It's off to Raleigh for the Charter Schools Advisory Committee meeting on Thursday, January 11 where we will interview the leaders of four charter schools seeking renewal of their charter and consider the action plans they have written to correct deficiencies in those schools.
On Friday, January 12 it's back to Raleigh. This time I'm travelling with GDOT staff to meet with NCDOT officials for the routine "one-on-one" review of our area's projects on the proposed 2007-13 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program). This is an exercise where we always hear about how little money is available for transportation, how many of our road projects have slipped another year or two on the construction schedule, etc.
That's it for the week!
My schedule is totally clear for Monday so I hope to put the finishing touches on this bathroom project (a little caulk here, some paint touch-ups there) and be done with it. We certainly did not intend to do this much work, but our totally remodeled bathroom turned out nice. Let's hope we never have to do that again!
US Ambassador to Moldova Michael Kirby will be in Greensboro all day Tuesday, January 9 accompanied by NC Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and Deputy Secretary Rodney Maddox. Various groups and individuals who work on projects supporting Moldova (such as the Greensboro Jewish Federation, Hospice, Rotary, and Carolina Adoptions) will be briefing him throughout the day on their projects. I will be assisting with the reception for him that evening. As soon as that reception ends, it's off to War Memorial Auditorium for Cirque Dreams -- Jungle Fantasy.
The PART board will meet on Wednesday morning, January 10. Items on the agenda include consideration of our 2007 work plan and legislative agenda, a presentation on the long range financial outlook, the performance appraisal of the executive director, and election of officers for the coming year.
It's off to Raleigh for the Charter Schools Advisory Committee meeting on Thursday, January 11 where we will interview the leaders of four charter schools seeking renewal of their charter and consider the action plans they have written to correct deficiencies in those schools.
On Friday, January 12 it's back to Raleigh. This time I'm travelling with GDOT staff to meet with NCDOT officials for the routine "one-on-one" review of our area's projects on the proposed 2007-13 TIP (Transportation Improvement Program). This is an exercise where we always hear about how little money is available for transportation, how many of our road projects have slipped another year or two on the construction schedule, etc.
That's it for the week!
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Nothing's ever easy...
Last week I noted that my husband, son and I would be making some repairs to our bathroom floor and doing some other minor remodeling. A simple, one-day job, right? WRONG! Murphy's Law kicked in and we're still not finished, despite untold hours of labor (one night until 2AM), countless trips to Lowes Home Improvement and Home Depot, and $1,000+ in expenditures. I'm days behind on reading the newspaper, responding to emails, blogging, etc. and feel like I'll never catch up again. What happened?
The original task was to remove the toilet and replace the water-rotted flooring beneath it. BUT
* The water damage was more extensive than we thought, which necessitated going down to the sub-floor for the entire room and even replacing part of the sub-floor.
* This necessitated the removal and replacement of the bathroom vanity (since it didn't make it out intact) along with a new sink/counter top.
* Our vinyl floor tile pattern had "expired," so we had to purchase a new pattern and re-tile both the bathroom AND adjacent connected laundry room floors.
* This required wrestling the washer and dryer into the hallway. Residual water in the washer leaked onto the cardboard we used to protect the carpeting, and ink from the cardboard markings stained the carpet -- will have to shampoo those if and when we ever finish this job.
* We were installing bathroom paneling over the wallpapered walls, but since the panels had to be applied with adhesive instead of nails, we had to strip off the old wallpaper so they would stick correctly.
* We couldn't find any paneling that matched the current color scheme, so we had to repaint all the trim and the entire adjacent connected laundry room. This took two coats of paint since we went to a much lighter color.
* Finally the panels and flooring were installed, the painting completed, and the washer and dryer reconnected and back in place.The moment arrived to install the new vanity. Of course the back support brace on which the drawers are anchored hits the wall exactly where the cold water supply line exits the wall -- a Saturday afternoon discovery that precipitated the use of some "choice words." That job, of course, requires professional plumbing expertise.
* Even though their ads in the Yellow Pages say that various plumbing firms are on duty "24/7," that apparently does not apply to holiday weekends if it's not an emergency. Therefore all work has ground to a halt until we can get a plumber to move that water line, hopefully sometime today (Tuesday).
My son says once the plumber moves that line, it will be a simple matter to install the new vanity and sink and then re-seat the toilet and do the necessary caulking -- 1-2 hours max, he says. Sure -- with our luck, who knows what other "surprises" await! (JW tells me her project begun on Labor Day still awaits completion, so I'm not feeling very optimistic right now.)
Our remodeled bathroom is going to look great -- if we ever get it finished! In the meantime, kindly ignore any stray spots of paint and caulking you may see on my hands or in my hair -- they were well-earned. {smile}
The original task was to remove the toilet and replace the water-rotted flooring beneath it. BUT
* The water damage was more extensive than we thought, which necessitated going down to the sub-floor for the entire room and even replacing part of the sub-floor.
* This necessitated the removal and replacement of the bathroom vanity (since it didn't make it out intact) along with a new sink/counter top.
* Our vinyl floor tile pattern had "expired," so we had to purchase a new pattern and re-tile both the bathroom AND adjacent connected laundry room floors.
* This required wrestling the washer and dryer into the hallway. Residual water in the washer leaked onto the cardboard we used to protect the carpeting, and ink from the cardboard markings stained the carpet -- will have to shampoo those if and when we ever finish this job.
* We were installing bathroom paneling over the wallpapered walls, but since the panels had to be applied with adhesive instead of nails, we had to strip off the old wallpaper so they would stick correctly.
* We couldn't find any paneling that matched the current color scheme, so we had to repaint all the trim and the entire adjacent connected laundry room. This took two coats of paint since we went to a much lighter color.
* Finally the panels and flooring were installed, the painting completed, and the washer and dryer reconnected and back in place.The moment arrived to install the new vanity. Of course the back support brace on which the drawers are anchored hits the wall exactly where the cold water supply line exits the wall -- a Saturday afternoon discovery that precipitated the use of some "choice words." That job, of course, requires professional plumbing expertise.
* Even though their ads in the Yellow Pages say that various plumbing firms are on duty "24/7," that apparently does not apply to holiday weekends if it's not an emergency. Therefore all work has ground to a halt until we can get a plumber to move that water line, hopefully sometime today (Tuesday).
My son says once the plumber moves that line, it will be a simple matter to install the new vanity and sink and then re-seat the toilet and do the necessary caulking -- 1-2 hours max, he says. Sure -- with our luck, who knows what other "surprises" await! (JW tells me her project begun on Labor Day still awaits completion, so I'm not feeling very optimistic right now.)
Our remodeled bathroom is going to look great -- if we ever get it finished! In the meantime, kindly ignore any stray spots of paint and caulking you may see on my hands or in my hair -- they were well-earned. {smile}
Weekly schedule
The holidays were great and the break was welcome. Now it's time to ease back into the normal routine, but I have few official duties this week.
My first meeting is on Wednesday, January 3 is to finalize the plans for the visit of the US ambassador to Moldova next week. Things are shaping up nicely and Greensboro and the efforts of various groups and individuals should leave a good impression.
I'm doing a TV taping of Triad Today later that afternoon, talking about PART's accomplishments for the past year.
On Thursday, January 4 I will be off to Raleigh to meet with a member of the State Board of Education. That will cause me to miss the War Memorial Commission's monthly meeting but I will check later and report on any significant news from that meeting.
It's back to Raleigh on Saturday, January 6 for another NC PTA meeting -- this volunteer position sure requires a lot of time, but it's a "labor of love" for the sake of children and education.
My first meeting is on Wednesday, January 3 is to finalize the plans for the visit of the US ambassador to Moldova next week. Things are shaping up nicely and Greensboro and the efforts of various groups and individuals should leave a good impression.
I'm doing a TV taping of Triad Today later that afternoon, talking about PART's accomplishments for the past year.
On Thursday, January 4 I will be off to Raleigh to meet with a member of the State Board of Education. That will cause me to miss the War Memorial Commission's monthly meeting but I will check later and report on any significant news from that meeting.
It's back to Raleigh on Saturday, January 6 for another NC PTA meeting -- this volunteer position sure requires a lot of time, but it's a "labor of love" for the sake of children and education.
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