August 4, 2003 Meeting
of the Mitchell County Commission

Search The Minutes

You use the search feature of this site to look for a particular event or topic in the minutes, and can access all formats (Web page, Microsoft Word or Adobe Acrobat PDF) of the minutes from the search results. You must have Microsoft Word or a word processing program that can read Word files to use that format. Adobe Acrobat PDF files can be accessed via a free reader from Adobe which you can access here. here.

Printable Version of These Minutes

• August 4, 2003 Word Adobe PDF

MITCHELL COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS MINUTES
REGULAR SESSION
AUGUST 4, 2003

NORTH CAROLINA
MITCHELL COUNTY

The Mitchell County Board of Commissioners met in regular session at 5:00 p.m. on August 4, 2003 in the Commissioners’ Conference Room, Administration Building, Bakersville, N.C. Those present for the session were Bill Slagle, Chairman; Bill Burleson, Vice-Chairman; Harry Anderson, Member; Ken Hollifield, Member; Keith Masters, Member; Justin Hembree, County Manager and Kathy Young, Clerk to the Board. Also present were Mavis Parsley, Finance Officer; Nathan Hall, Reporter for the Mitchell News-Journal; Steve Murphy, reporter with WKYK Radio Station; several members of Citizens for a Sound Economy; Van Phillips, EDC Director, Shirley Hise, Mitchell County Chamber of Commerce, Executive Director, Richard Canipe, Spruce Pine Town Manager, Andy Ashurst, Editor of the Mitchell News Journal and several other citizens of the Bakersville Merchants Association.

1. CALL TO ORDER – Chairman Slagle called the meeting to order at 5:00 p.m.
   
   
2. INVOCATION – Vice-Chairman Burleson led the invocation.
   
   
3. ADDITIONS OR CHANGES TO THE AGENDA – Chairman Slagle stated there was an additional item that needed to be added to the agenda. This item was a request from the Mitchell County Fireman’s Association. Commissioners Masters asked it this item related to any expenditure. Chairman Slagle replied that it did not. Commissioner Masters moved to add the request from the Mitchell County Fireman’s Association to the agenda as item 7. D. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Anderson and carried unanimously.
   
   
4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – Commissioner Burleson moved to approve the Minutes for June 9, 2003 Special Session, June 12, 2003 Reconvened Session, June 27, 2003 Special Session and July 7, 2003 Regular Session. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Anderson and carried unanimously.
   
   
5. RESOLUTION/PROCLAMATION/ORDINANCES
   
   
   1. Resolution recognizing Spruce Pine Rotary Club – Chairman Slagle stated the Resolution would recognize the Spruce Pine Rotary Club for 75 years of service to Mitchell County. County Manager Hembree read the Resolution. Commissioner Burleson moved to approve the Resolution recognizing Spruce Pine Rotary Club (a copy is hereto attached and becomes a part of the minutes). The motion was seconded by Commissioner Anderson and carried unanimously. The resolution was presented to David Mitchell and Calvin Hall members of the Spruce Pine Rotary Club.
      
      
   2. Proclamation for Litter Sweep Weeks – Chairman Slagle stated the Proclamation would set aside the weeks of September 13 – 28, 2003 as Litter Sweep Weeks in Mitchell County. He explained this information had been given to the Chamber of Commerce and they would be coordinating some of the activities for the cleanup of Mitchell County. Commissioner Anderson moved to adopt the Litter Sweep Proclamation (a copy is hereto attached and becomes a part of the minutes). The motion was seconded by Commissioner Masters and carried unanimously.
      
      
6. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/DECISION
   
   
   1. 21st Century Communities Program Update – Chairman Slagle stated that several citizens representing Mitchell County attended a meeting in Raleigh on the 21st Century Communities Program. Chairman Slagle commended the EDC and the Chamber of Commerce for the job they were doing. EDC Director Van Phillips informed the Board that on July 10 &11, nine people from Mitchell County went to Raleigh to review the 21st Century Communities program. Mitchell County was one of six counties chosen from the state to participate in the program. He informed the Board was a very, very competitive program. The 21st Century Community Program targets economical distressed counties. There is no cost associated with this program. This program is a combination of federal and state government coming into Mitchell County to help us develop a strategic plan to help the county dig out of the recession that it is currently in. Teams of people from the Department of Commerce and other agencies will come in help us evaluate our problems and give us some ideas from other counties that has worked to help get their County build their economic standing. This process should get started within the next thirty days. Being a part of the 21st Century Communities Program easies some of the restrictions for applying for grants.
      
      Richard Canipe, Spruce Pine Town Manager stated that both the Town of Spruce Pine and Bakersville would both benefit from the waiver of the grant matches that both of them could apply for. Infrastructure is the biggest item they would be applying for. He explained they could obtain up to $750,000 for infrastructure grants to replace existing water and sewer systems that are failing. In a normal situation the towns would have to compete with other cities and towns across the state for these grants. There will be no local match for infrastructure grants. In the community block grants and economic development the county would be eligible for an additional $5,000 for each job created. A manufacturing job could be worth approximately $17,000 to the county or towns. Town Manager Canipe explained there would housing development grants for the creation of multiple unit rental developments and would provide for homeownership activity for low to moderate-income families. There is a Capacity Building Grant that the county can apply for.
      
      EDC Director Phillips stated that the purpose of this process is to get the county updated so it could be on a level playing field with other counties. This will be the first step in many to get the county on a level playing field. Van stated in his life there have been three recessions. During that time Hampshire Hosiery had 600 employees and they would lay off 50 to 75 people, Henredon would lay off 75 people, OMC would lay off 50 people and things would turn around and these people would go back to work. Most of those places are gone now and they are not here to bring our economy back up. He stated that in 1985 Henredon had approximately 1200 employees and now they have roughly 375 employees. Since 1997 Mitchell County has lost 2,000 jobs. Things are slowing getting better, but three of the major employers are gone. Van explained they are trying to find new ways to create new jobs and to help existing industries add jobs. In most instances where a factory chooses to locate in a community, they go to an existing building. Mitchell County has one existing building that is good. There are some people coming to look at it tomorrow. EDC Director Phillips stated that God willing the county would land somebody one of these days for that building.
      
      Jim Saylor invited the Board of Commissioner and County Manager to a CSE meeting tomorrow night. The guest speaker will be Ms. Connie Wilson, State Representative for Mecklenburg County. Her specialty is jobs and industry in North Carolina. The meeting will be held at the Courthouse at 7:00 p.m.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked about the money for infrastructure if it included roads for the county. He said that he felt Mitchell County would have an extremely hard time competing with McDowell, Burke or any county that have Interstate 40 or 85 running through them. Interstate 26 is scheduled to open tomorrow and hopefully it will have a positive impact on Mitchell County. He asked EDC Director Phillips if he had heard anything substantial for Mitchell County in the movement of raw materials and finished products. EDC Director Phillips stated he had not. He said that he had researched this. Since feldspar is the biggest mining material that Mitchell County has, he thought they might be able to get a company that uses feldspar to locate in the county. EDC Director Phillips stated after bring the appropriate people together; they discovered that feldspar makes up no more than 20-30% of a product. The main product being used is clay. EDC Director Phillips stated that Congressman Ballenger had been in the County 60 days ago on a Saturday morning. It was fixed so that he had to travel up 226 to Coxes Creek up the mountain. Upon Congressman Ballenger’s arrival, he used some choice language and said he didn’t see how any industry would locate in Mitchell County until that road was fixed. Congressman Ballenger stated he was going to try to put $2,000,000 in the budget to do a study on this road. EDC Director Phillips stated they are currently working on getting the part of I-26 from Mars Hill to Spruce Pine speeded up. This has to be a top priority for the county, this section is not supposed to be started until 2009. Commissioner Masters asked that if a manufacturing job was created it would pay $12,000 to Mitchell County and it would make it eligible for an additional $5,000 because of the 21st Century Community Program. Town Manger Canipe explained that when the Town of Spruce Pine laid the new water line from Webb Funeral Home to Unimin two years ago, Unimin agreed to create 20 new jobs in that facility. He said they received $12,000 in grant money for each of those jobs. The Town of Spruce received $240,000 in block grant funds. Because of the 21st Century Community designation an additional $5,000 per job could come back to the Towns or County. Town Manger Canipe stated the laying of fiber might possibly be an eligible expenditure for some of the infrastructure grants.
      
      Janie Cook stated that she was interested in getting a community center for the Glen Ayre Community. The Board of Commissioners have not wanted to accept the responsibility to repay the grant to allow her to move forward with her plans. She asked if this would be covered in the 21st Century Program. Chairman Slagle asked Ms. Cook to contact Shirley Hise tomorrow with her questions and concerns. Ms. Cook stated they really needed some help in Glen Ayre. She said that if all the grants went to Spruce Pine that would be overlooking them again and again.
      
      Carl Braswell questioned the unemployment rate and the percentage of the workforce that is going back to work. He asked if the figures came from the Employment Security Commission. Chairman Slagle asked Mr. Braswell to contact the Employment Security Commission on this matter.
      
      
   2. UST Bids/Jail Demolition – Commissioner Masters introduced Mr. Pat Price to the Board. Mr. Price is an environmental consultant who works out of the Asheville area. Pat has dealt with the softer end of the environmental problems such as asbestos, lead, and underground storage tank removal for many years.
      
      Mr. Price stated when he was contacted back in March by Judy Broadway who was Interim County Manager to come and take a look at the environmental problems and concerns with the jail and then later meeting with Jim Stamey, he had never been treated more graciously and had more cooperation and help from a group people in his life. The county staff had bent over backwards to try to help and resolve the issues with the jail. Mr. Price explained in doing the environmental evaluation it was determined there was an underground storage tank on the property. It is located in the alleyway between the courthouse and jail. The tank is a 2000-gallon tank. It is not quite empty, but fairly empty. A request for proposal was sent to two environmental companies in the area and advertised in the paper twice. Only one proposal was received. It was from a company from Waynesville, North Carolina. The name of the company is Mountain Environmental. Mr. Price said that he thought Commissioner Masters would know of them. There is a cost of $2, 487 to remove the tank any residual left in the tank would be removed at an additional cost of a $1.00 per gallon. The RFP contains a stipulation addressing the possibility of leakage. According to Jim Stamey the tank has probably not leaked based on usage and the filling of the tank. In the event of leakage there is the Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund. This is a trust fund set up by the legislature a number of years ago that allows for reimbursement of owners of registered tanks. The tank at the jail is registered. So in the event the tank has leaked and has to have some remediation, carrying out of additional soil the state will reimburse Mitchell County for that portion of money. The stipulation included in the RFP was that in the event that money has to be expended to remediate the tank, the company would not bill Mitchell County for that amount of money. They will wait for the state to reimburse them directly.
      
      Chairman Slagle stated that Mitchell County put this out to bid in all the local publications and only received one bid. This bid was from Mountain Environmental Services, Inc. dated July 21, 2003. The bid was for $2,487 for the tank removal. The stipulations were as follows: a) disposal of residual liquids/sludge $1.00 per gallon b) Laboratory analyses beyond the two initial samples TPH $100 per sample MADEP analysis $600 per sample c) NCDENR 20 Day closure report performed by P.E. ( if contamination is found and soil is removed) $400. Chairman Slagle asked Mr. Price to explain the laboratory analysis. Mr. Price stated that included in the $2,487 the state had made a determination based on the size of the tank, you are required take so many soil samples beneath the tank. Those samples are included in the $2,487 bid. In the event the tank has leaked, more samples would have to be taken and that is what those costs are for. If the level on those samples were above some standard level then a MADEP analysis would have to done. If the tank has not leaked the cost will only be the $2,487 plus the removal cost of any residual liquids/solids. Chairman Slagle asked if Mr. Price would be supervising the tank removal. Mr. Price stated that he would be. Upon Board approval he will contact Mountain Environmental Services to schedule the time for the tank removal sometime before the end of the month.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that the price is reasonable based upon what this type of environmental work costs. The problem could be sampling, if it was determined that a leak had occurred. The act of sampling involves a lot more than just obtaining a sample, because there are other safety requirements and standards that have to be met. Commissioner Masters stated regardless of what the county does with the jail or the courthouse the tank removal should occur. As a safety precaution for the county the tank needed to come out. Commissioner Masters said that he had been contacted by Jim Hensley regarding the tank removal and he had discussed this with County Manager Hembree but apparently the county did not receive a bid from him. Mr. Price informed the Board that he had sent the RFP to two people. One was sent to Mountain Environmental Services and the other went to Mr. Jim Hensley. Commissioner Masters asked if Mr. Price could tell him anything about what was in the tank. Mr. Price stated that according to Jim Stamey that the fuel oil had been pumped from the tank. As everyone knows you can’t pump a tank dry. There are a couple of inches of sludge in the bottom that represents a couple hundred gallons. Mr. Price explained that this was good, because if the tank had a leak in it there might not be any sludge in it. One thing that the county wanted to do was when the jail is demolished, that the tank and residual material associated with the tank would be gone. This would make the demolition of the jail significantly easier. Commissioner Masters asked Mr. Price if he would characterize what is left in the tank as tank heel. Mr. Price said he would. Commissioner Masters explained that the term heel refers to residual material that has settled out of the free product after a period of time. Commissioner Hollifield asked if this could also include any rust that may have accumulated in the bottom of the tank. Commissioner Master that it could. Mr. Price stated that condensation would be a part of the heels. The jail was built in 1955 and that was when the tank was installed. The tank has been in the ground close to fifty years. Mr. Price explained that the surface would be exposed first, then the top of the tank would be cut open and peeled back. Then the tank will be pumped empty and then it will be cleaned with OSHA consideration and then the tank will be removed. Due to the size of the tank it will probably be removed in one piece and set on a piece of plastic. One of the major problems they will have to face is the logistics of were everything is going to be put once it is pulled out. There is not a lot of room to work with. Once the tank is placed on the plastic it will be cut to such a size that it can be transferred to a metal disposal company. Commissioner Masters said that the tank being transferred to a metal disposal company for disposal was a very important issue. He stated that he was familiar with Max Kimel of Mountain Environmental Services, Inc., and they were a reputable company and he was a reputable person and he would feel comfortable with his organization performing the tank removal for Mitchell County.
      
      Commissioner Masters moved to accept the bid from Mountain Environmental Services, Inc., for the removal of the tank at the jail facility (a copy of the bid is hereto attached and becomes a part of the minutes) under the supervision of Mr. Price. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Hollifield and carried unanimously.
      
      Mr. Price said he would like to bring the Board and the citizens up-to-date on the evaluation of the jail. He has completed an asbestos inspection of the jail and a lead inspection. Unfortunately both of these materials, if they are there in any abundance at all would drastically effect the demolition and disposal cost of the material. Fortunately there is no lead based paint in the jail and the only asbestos in the jail is the floor tile. He has discussed the disposal of the demolition debris with the state. One of the biggest costs in demolition of any structure is the disposal cost of the debris. This cost could be more than the demolition itself. The state will allow the county to demolish the jail without having to take out the asbestos floor tiles. The jail is about 3,000 square feet. There is about 1,000 square feet of asbestos floor tile. This can be taken out with the demolition. Mr. Price stated that he only had two concerns about the demolition of the jail. One is the courthouse on the right and the historic building on the left. The courthouse predates the jail by fifty years. The jail is attached to the courthouse. There are two restrooms on the first floor of the courthouse that are actually in the jail. During the demolition the jail those two restrooms will be separated from the courthouse. There will be a metal door placed where the restrooms were located. This will be the most secure and lest expensive way to handle this issue. Handling it this way should not present a problem with future plans for the courthouse. The historical building on the left should not be a problem if the work is done carefully. Mr. Price stated that once the tank is removed he would work with County Manager Hembree to get the Request for Proposal written for the demolition of the jail. He said that mentally he had selected three or four demolition contractors to come and take a look at the jail. He stated that there would be a required visitation to the site before they could bid on the project.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked if the dirt to file the hole would be clean dirt. Mr. Price said that it would be clean fill dirt. Commissioner Masters asked if this was included in the cost Mr. Price said that it was included in the price.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked if there would be a clean separation from the jail to the courthouse so that there will be no damage done to the courthouse. Mr. Price said that he didn’t feel that it was connected so that it couldn’t be separated. The contractor will be required if necessary to make the final separation manually with a chisel and a hammer to keep the damage to a minimum.
      
      Commissioner Anderson asked if the extra sample cost would be reimbursable from the Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund. Mr. Price stated that it would not be.
      
      Commissioner Masters wanted to make sure that he understood that the county would not have to separate any asbestos bearing materials from the rest of the demolition debris. Mr. Price stated that was correct. The landfill will be required to cover the debris the day that it is taken to them.
      
      Chairman Slagle instructed County Manager Hembree to contact Yancey County and apprise them of Mitchell County’s plan concerning the demolition of the jail.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked if this project was included in the price already upon for Mr. Price. Mr. Price stated that it was.
      Commissioner Anderson moved to allow Mr. Pat Price to prepare a Request for Proposal for the demolition of the jail. Commissioner Burleson seconded the motion and carried unanimously.
      
      
   3. Emergency Management Grant – Emergency Management Director, Eric Wiseman told the Board these were Department of Justice Grants. These are federal grants that are just now making their way down to the counties from Homeland Security. Initially, Mitchell County was awarded $24,456. Two weeks later Mitchell County was awarded a supplemental grant in the amount of $ 48,285 for a total of $72,721. The purposes of these grants are for Homeland Security purposes, to enhance hospital, emergency responders, public health, fire and rescue, public works, city and county governments, infrastructure for security type issues. EM Director Wiseman informed the Board that the next step would be for them to accept the grants. Once the paper work is sent in, then expenditures of the funds could begin. These grants have to be completed by December 31, 2003. Once the Board has given approval of the grants, then a group of people will oversee the grants. This group will be made up of representatives from Fire, EMS, Law Enforcement, Hospital, Towns, and public works etc. The group will meet sometime next week to prioritize the needs of the county.
      
      Commissioner Anderson asked if there was an existing committee. EM Director Wiseman stated that there was, but these grants have a requirement that additional members be added to the committee, such as public works and municipalities.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield stated that he would like a report on the progress of the grant to include what is being purchased and the status of the grant. EM Director Wiseman stated that there had to be a cost report done every two weeks. He can forward that report to the Board.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked if the state was going to give the County this money without any type of plan or schedule. EM Director Wiseman stated the committee would determine the needs of the county prepare the list and submit it to the state for their approval.
      
      Commissioner Anderson asked if the grants required any local match. EM Director Wiseman said there was no local match required for these grants.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked if the County Manager was a member of the committee. EM Director Wiseman stated that Judy Broadway was a member on the last grant and County Manager Hembree would be a member of this committee. Commissioner Masters asked if the Health Department would have a representative on the committee. EM Director Wiseman said that Tommy Singleton was the representative on the last committee and would be their representative. Commissioner Masters insisted that the Health Director be the representative. He also asked if these were the same grants that EM Director Wiseman had come to the Board with earlier in the year. EM Director Wiseman explained these were totally new grants, but that grant was still in progress. He stated equipment was still coming in and that grant was not closed as of this date. Commissioner Masters asked who the people from the fire and EMS would specifically be. EM Director stated Ed Silver was the representative from fire because he is the President of the Fire Association and Jeff Edwards would be the representative from EMS. Commissioner Masters asked the total number of people that would be on the committee. EM Director Wiseman stated there would be 10. Commissioner Masters named the following as members: Ed Silver, Jeff Edwards, Justin Hembree, Tommy Singleton, Kathy Young, Eric Wiseman, Vicki Tolley, Van Williams, Darren Hoilman and municipalities.
      
      Commissioner Masters moved to allow EM Director Wiseman to move forward with the grants contingent upon a regular scheduled basis, he appear before the Board and give them updates as to how the purchases are being handled, where the equipment is being stored and located. This is in addition to any financial reporting that is required. Commissioner Masters stated this was still taxpayers money and he wanted to make sure that we are getting things that would be used and not just being stored somewhere. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Hollifield and carried unanimously.
      
      
   4. Cell Tower Ordinance – Chairman Slagle informed the Board that a couple of months ago he had discussed with County Manager Hembree about some of the dead spots that we have in Mitchell County with our radio systems. County Manger Hembree received a copy of a cell tower ordinance from Madison County and Chairman Slagle asked that it be included in the agenda packet. Chairman Slagle stated this was only a concept and it can be changed in any manner the Board chooses. He said this did hold some merit, because it gives Mitchell County an opportunity to improve it communication systems without spending any money. Other counties in North Carolina are utilizing this to get tower space for free by working with cell phone companies.
      
      County Manger Hembree stated this discussion came about because of Main’s Wireless Project. When the wireless committee started looking at getting Internet service in the rural areas, especially the northern part of the county, they ran into several problems. One of those problems is the topography in the northern part of the county. In this area cell phone reception can be spotty. County Manager Hembree stated that he had sent an e-mail out to other county managers asking how they had addressed this issue. Their answer was through some type of communication tower ordinance that said a certain amount of space on any communication tower is reserved for public usage, whether that is wireless Internet or for communications for emergency services. A good example to look at was when the last search and rescue that took place in the Poplar area, emergency services, law enforcement and fire had to set up a relay person to handle the communications in that area. County Manager Hembree said that he wasn’t saying that if this ordinance was adopted it would alleviate all the problems, but it would give the county some different options. He pointed out that he had worked with cell tower ordinances and communications ordinances and he found that it normally serves 3 purposes. One is that in highly urbanized areas they are adopted to encourage cell phone companies to co-locate their facilities on the same tower so they won’t have cell towers all over the place. This is not the case in Mitchell County. The second reason is for public safety issues in urbanized areas. The third reason is for co-location of public communications or wireless communications service provided to local governments. After talking with the Institute of Government this ordinance can be as simple or as complex as the Board chooses. The Madison County Ordinance is just a concept. County Manager Hembree told the Board he was checking with the Institute of Government to see if such an ordinance were adopted, would existing cell tower providers be required to provide local governments with tower space.
      
      Chairman Slagle asked if the Board was interested in pursuing this ordinance that they each offer some ideas to County Manager Hembree over the next 30 – 45 days. He asked if the Board wanted to move forward with the concept.
      
      EM Director Wiseman pointed out that there is a problem in with topography in the county for emergency communications. He felt that this concept would help all users of the emergency communications.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield stated that he felt that this was something that Mitchell County needed to move forward with.
      
      Commissioner Anderson said it was definitely something that needed to be pursued. He felt that each Board member needed to discuss this with County Manager Hembree individually.
      
      Commissioner Burleson stated that he had several questions, but he appreciated Chairman Slagle’s opening statements concerning the ordinance. He pointed out that Madison County’s Ordinance had a lot of things that he didn’t agree with. In their ordinance it refers to zoning and the zoning enforcement officer. He stated that Mitchell County needed to be very careful that they were not backing into something that later on they would decide was not the best for Mitchell County. He said this was a very, very complicated matter and the Board gets different information from different organizations and sometimes the Board makes decision based on the information available at the time and later look back and wonder why the Board did that. Commissioner Burleson requested that the Board be very careful on how they proceed with this matter. He stated that he needed more information before he could make a decision and feel good about the decision. Commissioner Burleson said that he did not like the wording of Madison County’s Ordinance at all.
      
      Bob Hensley stated that the only cell tower that is on public property is the one on Locust Knob. The private landowners do have the right and the authority to put stipulations on the ascetics of the tower. This needs to be considered in the ordinance.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated he shared the same feelings that Commissioner Burleson did on the ordinance. He said that he did not want to get into a situation that by passing an ordinance like this, that what the County would end up having would be a disincentive to build communication capabilities in the county. The north end of the county does have a problem from Buladean School to Unicoi there is no cell phone coverage. A number of people from that area have contacted him and would like to see a cell tower go up in that area. Commissioner Masters stated that he never wanted to see Mitchell County make regulations that are so strict and stringent that it becomes a disincentive for growth. He stated what he could support was if this intent was that the County wants the capability of having communications access for the county on cell towers that are put up in Mitchell County, but he didn’t want to see an ordinance passed that gets to involved and to in depth with things that probably will not be a problem.
      
      Chairman Slagle stated the intent is for Mitchell County to have access to existing and to any new provider of a new tower site space to enhance its communication system.
      
      By consensus the Board agreed to allow County Manager Hembree to move forward with this issue. County Manager Hembree is to get with each Commissioner and the Institute of Government on how to proceed with this ordinance.
      
      
   5. Change in Protocol for Public Comment – Chairman Slagle asked that any person wishing to make a presentation, comment or ask a question come to the podium in front of the Conference Room in order to ensure that citizen comments are audible on the tape of the meeting.
      
      
   6. Little Switzerland Solid Waste Mobile Unit - Chairman Slagle stated that Commissioner Hollifield had presented at the last Commissioner’s Meeting a request from about 50 or 60 individuals from the Little Switzerland area asking for the mobile unit 2 days a week.
      
      County Manger Hembree stated that Sanitation Director David Forbes has specific information for the Board, but he wanted to give the Board an overall update there are 5 sites that are serviced by the mobile unit. The sites are as follows: Estatoe, Cane Creek, Poplar, Glen Ayre and Little Switzerland. If changes are made additional staff would be required as well as additional equipment or some time would have to be pulled from one of the other sites.
      
      Sanitation Director Forbes stated that his heaviest volume was from the Glen Ayre community and that if a site needed an additional day it would be the Glen Ayre site. He collects two to two and half ton at Glen Ayre and the amount of tonnage at Little Switzerland is seasonal. Generally at the Little Switzerland site he collects one to one and half ton.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield stated that might be true, but if a holiday falls on Monday they are forced to keep their trash for two weeks. Sanitation Director Forbes pointed out that they could take their trash to the Altapass Convenience Center. Commissioner Hollifield stated that they would not drive from Little Switzerland to Altapass to dispose of their trash. He said that the only service that the taxpayer gets for their taxes is the trash truck and the Sheriff’s Department. Commissioner Hollifield stated that a deputy comes through the Little Switzerland area maybe twice a year. He said that he intended to see that something was done about their trash. Sanitation Director Forbes stated that it was the Boards decision. Commissioner Hollifield that was the reason it was before the Board tonight and it would be ironed out before the Board left.
      
      Commissioner Anderson asked if the equipment would be available. Sanitation Director Forbes stated that he only had one man.
      
      Chairman Slagle asked how much was being collected at the Estatoe site. Sanitation Director Forbes said that it averaged about a ton. Chairman Slagle asked about the tonnage at the Poplar site. Sanitation Director Forbes said that he collected about 2 tons and the Cane Creek site was the lowest.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked if by going to the convenience center concept of a manned site was the county’ decision or did the state do away with the green box concept. He asked about the possibility of having some unmanned sites for the green boxes. Sanitation Director Forbes explained that the state mandated that there be a reduction in solid waste coming from Mitchell County. By moving away from the green box concept Mitchell County’ solid waste was reduced by 40%.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield asked if there were any of those boxes being used in the County. Sanitation Director Forbes explained that Mitchell County did not have any, but private individuals contract with Waste Management or GDS for that service.
      
      Commissioner Anderson pointed out that he didn’t want to go back to the green box concept but there might be away to make a box available one or two days a week and the remainder of the time be secured. Sanitation Director Forbes stated that he didn’t have the man-hours to do that.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked Sanitation Director Forbes to tell the Board what the current schedule is. Sanitation Director Forbes told the Board that the hours were from Noon to 6:00 p.m. The mobile unit is at Little Switzerland on Monday, Glen Ayre on Tuesday, Cane Creek on Wednesday, Estatoe on Thursday and Poplar on Friday’s.
      
      Chairman Slagle asked Commissioner Hollifield if the hours were increased would help the situation at Little Switzerland, because if a day is added it will have to be cut from another area. Commissioner Hollifield stated that this should have been thought about before this kind of program was set in motion. He pointed out that there are citizens that go through Seven Mile Ridge down to the Yancey County line and have to haul their trash out to the site where the mobile unit is located. The people in Little Switzerland are stuck back in the corner like a lot of other people that are not getting the service that they are paying their tax money for. He stated that he didn’t know it would take, but he was tired of those people calling and getting down on him, presenting a petition and nothing being done, but if the other Board members want to handle those people one on one they were welcome to do it. Commissioner Hollifield said that these people were tired of it. Sanitation Director Forbes stated that all the people that signed the petition were not taxpayers of Mitchell County. Commissioner Hollifield asked Sanitation Director Forbes to show him a person that lived in McDowell County, because he had reviewed the petition.
      
      Commissioner Masters agreed with Commissioner Hollifield that these were people paying taxes and needed to be provided service. He asked if the county still owned a truck that would unload the smaller 4, 8 or 10 cubic yard container. Sanitation Director Forbes stated that it did not; all he has is a roll off truck. Commissioner Masters pointed out that maybe the County would have to look at going back to some of the unmanned sites maybe with some community participation around the site.
      
      Chairman Slagle pointed out the County owns the property were the mobile unit is located in Little Switzerland and maybe the Board should consider developing a site there.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield informed the Board that the citizens that signed the petition had agreed to keep the site as clean as a pen if they could get the extra day. Chairman Slagle stated that they could always add some additional hours to that site.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that Tony Burleson was calling him a couple a day stating that he thought he would be getting additional hours and actually his hours had been cut two hours a week. There are some discrepancies there that need to be addressed in the future. Commissioner Masters said that he had discussed this with County Manager Hembree a couple of times. He said that he felt that this could be worked out if enough time and energy was put into it.
      
      Commissioner Burleson stated that if there were areas that need additional time would there be a way to contract out that portion of the service. He said that he knew that would be an additional expense to the county.
      
      Chairman Slagle pointed out that in the past there have been a lot of problems with engine parts, batteries, paint, etc being taken to these sites that can’t be taken to the landfill. He said that the perfect solution would be to develop convenience centers at all of those sites.
      
      Commissioner Master asked if contracting out the whole service had ever been explored. Chairman Slagle that it had been contracted in the past. Sanitation Director Forbes pointed out that GDS charges the Town of Spruce $18,000 a year for one day a week pick up.
      
      Commissioner Masters suggested forming a blue ribbon committee made up of County Manger Hembree and Sanitation Director Forbes to take a look at this area and come up with a workable solution.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield stated that here was a group of people that are stuck in that area that gets their tax notice from the Tax Assessor that includes fire tax and they are not in a fire district. If their house catches on fire, it will burn down before anyone can get to them. They pay for trash pickup and they don’t get that because there is not enough money to provide that service. They feel they are not even a part of Mitchell County and he felts that this would have to be addressed. If additional hours can be added to the site maybe that will be a quick fix, but the Board is going to have to look at this situation.
      
      Chairman Slagle asked County Manager Hembree to get with Sanitation Director Forbes to look at some kind of quick fix for this problem and bring it back to the Board at the next meeting.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that he wanted someone to talk to Tony Burleson about his situation. Sanitation Director Forbes stated that he would talk with Mr. Burleson.
      
      Janie Cook stated that the Glen Ayre Community had presented petitions asking for a convenience center site to be developed in their area.
      
      
   7. Release of SBI Report Regarding the Jail Fire – Chairman Slagle informed the Board that Commissioner Burleson had requested that this item be placed on the agenda for further discussion.
      
      Commissioner Burleson stated that when the jail fire occurred it was a devastating thing for everybody involved, but it was particularly devastating to the families involved. It has been about fifteen months since the fire and the longer we get away from it the less we want to think about it. Commissioner Burleson pointed out that he feels there are still some questions that still need to be answered regarding the jail fire. He stated he was aware that the Board had already requested two times that the SBI report be released. He requested that the Board ask a third time for the SBI report be released. If the report is not released, then ask the state legislators to see what they can do in getting the report released. Commissioner Burleson stated that he would be in favor personally joining the suits that have been brought by the Asheville Citizen or WLOS. He said that the citizens as well as the families need answers.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that the families will never find closure, but anything that the Board could do to help them in any manner to move in that direction would be their responsibility.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield said that the Board was entitled to know what was in the report and so did the citizens and the family members.
      
      Commissioner Burleson moved to aggressively pursue getting the SBI report that even if it had to be done through legislators and if need be join the suits that have been brought to release this information. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Masters and carried unanimously.
      
      
   8. CDBG Administration – County Manager Hembree pointed out there is a new funding cycle for the CDBG Scattered Site Program that the county has been participating in for the last three years. He stated the County was to the point where a decision needed to be made on who will administer the upcoming grant for Mitchell County. As the Board is aware High Country Council of Governments has administered the grants in the past. Mr. Jim Byrne has also administered some grants for the county, but never a scattered site project. Normally, the person who completes the application and sends it in is the administrator of the grant. County Manager Hembree pointed out that one thing that the county should look at in the long term, but not immediately, is the possibility of establishing a position for a grant administrator coupled with other duties or responsibilities. Mitchell County does have some employees with experience administering and writing grants, but the CDBG Scatted Site Program would be a big undertaking for any of those employees to administer this grant at this time, but hopefully at the next funding cycle, someone would be able to step into that position. County Manager Hembree stated that because of the 21st Century Community Program, Mitchell County would be applying for a lot more grants than they have in the past.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield asked County Manager Hembree how High County Council of Governments or Jim Byrne get paid. County Manager Hembree said those were only two options and there were more out there. Normally, there is a certain percentage of the grant ranging from 2 to 10% of the grant that is set aside by the granting agency that determines the amount that is paid for the administration. Commissioner Hollifield asked if either of these two agencies would be working only for Mitchell County or could they work for other counties. County Manger Hembree stated that they could be working for someone else. Commissioner Hollifield asked if their interest could go somewhere else before coming to Mitchell County. County Manager Hembree said that was always a possibility.
      
      Chairman Slagle stated that the question before the Board was to select who will administer the grant. County Manger Hembree pointed out to the Board the process that Mitchell County was getting ready to enter, required that the County to hold two public hearings held before the application could be sent in. This is a pretty detailed process that has to begin quite soon. High Country Council of Governments has done some preliminary work on getting the application together. County Manager Hembree stated that he felt it only fair to let them know if we are going to contract with them or someone else on this grant.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked who the County has in house currently that could function in this capacity. He stated if we have a local person that can handle this function and we could save some administration money, could we not put those dollars back into the project or into the general fund.
      
      County Manager Hembree stated that money could be put back into the general fund and be shown as revenue. This would be shown as an indirect cost, or the money could be put back into the project. County Manager Hembree said that as far as staff was concerned it would depend on their workload. He stated that some work would have to be shifted around, which he has been working on for the last couple of months. County Manger Hembree said that obviously Kathy Young has the experience and expertise to do this in terms of the grant and that he would feel comfortable handling that position. He stated that he felt that Susan Norris could be trained to handle this. She has worked with the trails grant. County Manager Hembree stated that he felt that enough people could be identified in house to handle this process in the future. This is one of the things that he is working toward for the future growth of Mitchell County.
      
      Commissioner Masters said that there appeared to be a lot of in house expertise and he would not be in favor of adding a position for the sake of adding positions, but if we could handle this with current staff and could add money to the general fund, the Board would be foolish not to move in that direction.
      
      Commissioner Anderson stated that he had been on the Board for seven years, and that Kathy Young is the only one capable of handling this grant. He pointed out that she is the Systems Administrator, Clerk to the Board and the de-facto Assistant County Manager when you got right down to it. He said that he didn’t feel that she could be pulled from these duties to be the grant administrator. Commissioner Anderson also pointed out that Mitchell County has to be ready to apply for these grants, because no one will apply for the grants for nothing.
      
      Commissioner Masters said that if Susan Norris wasn’t capable of doing this, he would be deeply surprised. Commissioner Anderson agreed, but he said that he would hate to throw a major project on her without having some time for some additional training. He agreed this would be a good long-range plan for Mitchell County to have someone who can apply and administer grants. Because of the 21st Century designation there will be a lot of grants that we will be eligible for and we would not want to loose out due to lack of experience.
      
      Commissioner Burleson stated that he learns something every time he attends a Commissioner meeting. He said that County Manager Hembree started out by saying that the grant administration costs range from 2 to 10%. The administration for the last grant was 10%. He wondered if High Country Council of Governments stuck it to Mitchell County. This possibility leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. Commissioner Burleson said that he felt that the people who have served on the scattered site committees would have a better understanding of this process than anyone. He asked if the committee had any feeling concerning this matter. Commissioner Anderson stated that he felt there was a certain amount of expertise needed to administer a scattered site grant. He said that he would not feel comfortable handling the administration, but he would feel comfortable it Kathy Young handled it. He pointed out that he didn’t feel that she could be pulled from her other duties to do the grant administration.
      
      Commissioner Burleson said that he had a bad feeling about High Country Council of Governments. He said that when you look at their budget, it looks awfully fat and awfully full of fringe benefits. Commissioner Burleson stated that on the last grant we had, we paid them $40,000 to administer it. I wonder how many other grants they were administering and how much money they made doing the administering of grants.
      
      Commissioner Anderson stated that he thought Michelle Ball was administering two grants right now. He explained that all the $40,000 does not go to the person administering the grant. Commissioner Burleson stated that he felt there were a lot of frills in their budget and if this Board had control over it, it would be slim and trim. Commissioner Anderson asked the Board to be careful with this and not miss opportunities that they should take advantage of.
      
      Chairman Slagle stated that he was one the Board members who at one time hired a local guy by the name of Eddie Buchanan to administer a similar grant. Mr. Buchanan did a marvelous job. One reason was because he was a carpenter. The second reason was because he knew the people. When he was hired, it was with the understanding that when the grant was complete he would no longer have a job. Chairman Slagle said his vote was going to be to bring the grant administration in house, because when Mitchell County has nine and half unemployment rate, he would not send any money to Boone for someone to have a job. He stated that Mitchell County has capable people whether someone is hired to do the job or it is handled in house.
      
      Janie Cook stated that her community had applied for a revitalization grant in 1980 to keep the Glen Ayre School and then at the last minute they were told that it didn’t go through. She said that the Commissioners needed to see where the grant money is going.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that he wanted to make this process as local as possible.
      
      Commissioner Anderson pointed out that when the Board did the budget for this current fiscal year, the Board had held Toe River Health District to the same amount as last year. But, when Commissioner Masters came to him with a recommendation asking that Toe River Health District be given an increase, Commissioner Anderson stated that he trusted Commissioner Masters enough to say that since he is the representative on that Board and that he felt the increase was justifiable, he went along with the increase. Boards in the past has trusted members who serve on certain boards to make recommendations to the Commissioners and have gone along with those recommendations. Commissioner Anderson stated that jerking the rug out from High County Council of Governments at this late date would be completely unfair since they have done some work on this project. He suggested that the Board take a little time to consider whether they want to apply for and administer grants on their own. He stated that it was a great idea for the future, but not at this point.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that the Board had taken Commissioner Anderson's recommendations on the Mental Health Reform, which the Board went against the grain of a lot of people that were present for that meeting. He said that this was not unilateral but bilateral.
      
      Commissioner Anderson asked that the Board consider his recommendation on High Country Council of Governments this one time, but if it is the wishes of the Board, he will go out of the meeting still being their friends.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked when the money would actual be available. Commissioner Anderson explained that the houses have to be chosen and the grant completed by October 15th. Kathy Young stated that the money would not be available until the first or second quarter of 2004.
      
      Commissioner Anderson moved to allow High Country Council of Governments to administer the upcoming cycle of CDBG Scattered Site Grants. The motion died for a lack of a second.
      
      Commissioner Masters asked about the funding cycle. Commissioner Anderson explained that the application has to be completed and the houses chosen by October 15th.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked what the feelings were of the local Scattered Site Committee. He said that those are the people who are going to have to work with the Boards decision.
      
      Chairman Slagle asked Kathy Young what her feelings were concerning the administration of the grant. She explained that she would have to work with whomever the Board chose to administer the grant. Clerk to the Board Young stated there were some problems with the first grant administrator from High Country Council of Governments, but since they changed grant administrators there had not been any major problems. Michelle Ball has worked well with the committee and followed the committee’s wishes and met the timeframe to get the additional funding. Ms. Young stated that she had not worked with Mr. Byrne on a scattered site grant, but the grants that she has worked with him on there have not been any issues working with him. She said that she didn’t know if High Country Council of Governments would be willing to work with the county on training someone at the local level to take over the administration of this grant in the future. Former Interim County Manager Broadway had discussed this issue with Mr. Byrne and he had agreed to work on this for the future. Ms. Young stated that High Country Council of Governments might be willing to do the same thing, but it had not been discussed with them.
      
      Commissioner Masters agreed with Chairman Slagle that when the Board is dealing with an unemployment rate that we currently have and we have the possibility of taking some funds from the administrative top of this program, his opinion was to try to do it in house if they could achieve the same or better level of work, it should be done in house.
      
      Commissioner Masters moved to administer the CDBG Scattered Site Grant in house. Commissioner Hollifield seconded the motion.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked who would administer the grant. Commissioner Anderson agreed that someone has to be in place to handle this grant. He asked if County Manager Hembree or Kathy Young would be handling to grant. Kathy Young stated that she didn’t have the time. Commissioner Hollifield stated not putting any reflection on County Manager Hembree, he has a big job, but during his interview he was asked if he had experience getting grants. He replied that he did. Commissioner Hollifield said that if we are going to do this in house, there has to be someone in place to handle the grant. Commissioner Anderson stated that if County Manager Hembree feels comfortable with doing at this point, then he wouldn’t have any problem with that. Commissioner Hollifield agreed with Commissioner Anderson, but he didn’t think that it needed to be put off on County Manager Hembree, he just felt there needed to be someone to handle it. Commissioner Burleson asked who the person was. Chairman Slagle stated that he felt that it needed to be laid right in the County Managers lap. He is the CEO of the County and what Commissioner Hollifield said was true, that one of the questions he was asked during his interview was if he could administer and write grants and his answer was yes. Chairman Slagle said that the Board would just see if he was worth his $45,000 a year. Commissioner Anderson asked County Manager Hembree if he felt comfortable handling this $400,000 grant. County Manager Hembree said he was not comfortable handling a CDBG Scattered Site Grant. He said that he did not have the expertise to handle this type of project. He told the Board that he has written grants and gotten grants before, but he has never gotten a $400,000 grant and has never administered one, that is not to say he couldn’t administer one. Commissioner Anderson told the Board that he felt that bringing the grant administration in house was a great plan, but he felt they were rushing into.
      
      Commissioner Masters with drew his motion and asked County Manager Hembree to look at this and at the next special meeting bring to the Board a realistic recommendation on this matter.
      
      County Manager Hembree stated that he didn’t have any doubt that he could administer this grant, but he felt that he could do a much better job if he had someone like Jim Byrne or Michelle Ball to walk him through the process.
      
      Commissioner Burleson asked Kathy Young to poll the members of the Scattered Site Committee as to their thoughts on this issue.
      
      
   9. Draft Personnel Policy/Draft Drug/Alcohol Policy –Postponed until the next meeting.
      
      
7. PUBLIC HEARINGS/MEETINGS
   
   
   1. Special Meeting for August - By consensus the Board agreed to have a Special Meeting on August 18th at 8:00 a.m
      
      
   2. Local Economic Update – Chairman Slagle stated that at the last Board meeting, Commissioner Masters requested that a local economic update be given to the Board.
      
      County Manager Hembree stated that he had been in contact with the economic professors at ASU who do the Western North Carolina Economic Index. They are willing to come down and make a presentation to the Board as to the overall state of the economy in the region of western North Carolina. He said that he thought that Commissioner Masters wanted local lending institutions to come in and discuss what they are seeing. He suggested having people from the Employment Security Commission attend this meeting. Commissioner Masters stated that was exactly what he wanted. He asked that Ms. Conley from Centura be invited to attend this meeting. County Manager Hembree explained that this meeting might have to be held in October to work with everyone’s schedule.
      
      
   3. Public Hearing on the Old Courthouse – Chairman Slagle explained that at the last Board meeting there had been some discussion on having public hearings to get citizen input on the use of the old courthouse. He asked that County Manager Hembree gather as much information as possible so that the Board will know what their options are.
      
      Commissioner Masters stated that it seemed to him that in this particular situation, the Board was jumping from 0 to step B or C, because he couldn’t recall this Board having any specific discussions as a Board on the direction they wanted to take on the old courthouse. He told the Board that he had asked Kathy Young to pull the minutes for the January 6, 2003 meeting where the Board gave Jim Byrne the go ahead to start looking for some funding for the old courthouse. Commissioner Masters read the following from the January 6, 2003 Minutes – “one possibility that has been discussed relative to this project is a renovation of the old courthouse and annex building as well as the recreation/park type activities on the property behind Helen’s Restaurant”. Commissioner Masters stated that by going directly to a public hearing was a mistake because the Board had not had any discussion as to the direction they should be taking with the old courthouse. He told the Board that he had gotten a lot of feed back from the people in the Bakersville area and the county as a whole about this courthouse. He stated that before the public hearing phase is started, there should be a Commissioner discussion phase.
      
      Commissioner Burleson explained the reason he was for the public hearing phase was there might be some options out there that the Board might not have thought about. The public hearing would give the public the opportunity to give their thought on the usage of the old courthouse, then the Commissioner’s could then sit down and discuss the issue.
      
      Commissioner Hollifield stated that if a public hearing were held the citizens would want to know what the Commissioners have thought about doing with the courthouse. He agreed with Commissioner Master that the Board needed to discuss this issue before having a public hearing. Commissioner Hollifield agreed that the Board needed to have public hearings on this matter, but not before the Board meets to discuss this issue. He stated that the public would be asking for the Board thoughts on this issue.
      
      Commissioner Anderson stated that he didn’t have a preference; he was still trying to get a vote on High Country Council of Governments. He felt that the Board should have some ideas to present to the public.
      
      Commissioner Master stated that the Board needed to be very careful on how they dispose of County property and should be careful in ever looking at doing anything where someone wants 30% of the selling price to do something that this Board is charged in doing. He said that he felt that he had missed a step in this process.
      
      Jana Reid stated that in discussing what should be done with the county courthouse, the Board did not need to make up its mind definitely, or change its mind mid-stream just keep in mind what the options are and keep an open mind as to what might be suggested to the Board.
      
      Carl Braswell said as a taxpayer that all the citizens of Mitchell County not just Bakersville needed to have input on the courthouse. He felt that he had some thoughts that would save money and bring it up to code. Mr. Braswell said the people needed to have the say so, because they are the ones that actually own the courthouse, not the Board of Commissioners.
      
      Ed Reid agreed with Commissioner Masters that as a Board should discuss this issue before proceeding with the public hearings.
      
      Dorothy Campbell from the Bakersville Merchants Association stated that she received a rude awakening when she was told that the Board of Commissioners has more authority than the President of the United States. The Bakersville Merchants Association has been concerned for sometime about what was going to happen to the old courthouse. She explained the courthouse was the core of the Town of Bakersville and a source of pride for the Town of Bakersville and the citizens of Mitchell County. The Merchants Association had been made aware of the recent offer for someone to assume the restoration and later place it up for sale. She charged the Board that this was a quick fix and there were other options out there. Ms. Campbell pointed out the county owns several buildings in Bakersville. She suggested that some of the agencies that are located in these buildings be moved into the courthouse. This would allow these buildings to be sold to businesses that would want to come to Bakersville. If there are grants out there or grants that already be secured, put it to use for the good of the county not an individual group or organization. The Bakersville Merchants Association feels that the courthouse should remain the property of the county.
      
      Chairman Slagle stated that he felt the Board needed to find out what its options are for the courthouse. One thing they need to know is what the county can do with the old courthouse, what leverage the county has. Secondly, what are the funding sources the county could access, because the county couldn’t go out and spend $2,000,000 to renovate the old courthouse. Once the Board has some options in place, then present them to the public for their input.
      
      County Manager Hembree told the Board that Susan Norris had spent a lot of time researching the historical aspect of what can be done with the courthouse. Every old courthouse in the state is on the state registry. Henderson County is going through the same process and we have received a lot of information from them. County Manager Hembree stated that by the September meeting, hopefully everything would be in place to give the Board a presentation giving them all the information that had been obtained.
      
      Janie Cook stated the courthouse was in good shape compared to other courthouses. She stated there was a place needed for the probate office records to be stored. She thanked the Board for giving them space in the Annex Building to store records. The DA’s office also needs space. Ms. Cook stated there was not a fireproof vault in the Annex Building but there is one in the old courthouse. She felt the old courthouse could be used for public meetings and court overflow if need be. She told the Board that Mitchell County still needed the old courthouse.
      
      
   4. Request from the Mitchell County Fireman’s Association – County Manager Hembree informed the Board he had contacted Ed Silver, President of the Fireman’s Association a couple of weeks ago concerning their request for training at the jail. He explained to Mr. Silver that the hold harmless clause needed to hold Mitchell County harmless instead of the Fireman’s Association. They are requesting to be allowed to hold confined space and forced entry extraction training at the jail. There would be no smoke or fire. Bakersville Fire Department would be the lead agency, but all the fire departments would be invited to the training session. The original dates they had set for the training were August 1st & 2nd , which was this past weekend. County Manager Hembree stated that he had contacted him and explained that the County could not meet that time frame because the Board would not be meeting until August 4th. If the Board approves their training they felt they wouldn’t have any trouble rescheduling the training session once all the paper work was in place.
      
      Commissioner Masters informed the Board he had spoke with Jack Goodwin about this issue this morning. He stated that he felt some of the fire fighters had also become victims of the jail fire and they need some closure about some issues. Commissioner Masters said that at the appropriate time they should be allowed to train at the facility. Chairman Slagle agreed with Commissioner Masters. By consensus the Board agreed to allow them to use the jail for training once all the paper work is in place and a decision is made about the demolition.
      
      
8. RELEASE/REFUNDS
   
   
   1. Release/Refunds for Board Approval – Commissioner Masters questioned the release for the Nature Conservancy. He stated that if appeared that an agency that had taken a large amount of property and put it in a situation that it can’t be used nor taxed. He felt there was something inherently wrong with this. Commissioner Masters asked if this was the law.
      
      County Manager Hembree stated that they do fall under the exempt status in terms of the Machinery Act. This is comparable to federal or state forestlands, except the county does receive a little reimbursement for them. For this type of agency the County would not receive any reimbursements for their land. Kathy Young explained this tax was for mineral rights only not for the property.
      
      Commissioner Anderson moved to approve the Releases/Refunds of $100 and greater (a copy is hereto attached and becomes a part of the minutes). Chairman Slagle seconded the motion and carried unanimously.
      
      
   2. Release/Refunds Approved by Manager – (a copy is hereto attached and becomes a part of the minutes).
      
      
9. BOARD COMMENTS - Chairman Slagle asked any citizen wanting a full agenda packet to give their names to Kathy Young, Clerk to the Board. Only those citizens will receive a full packet otherwise just a copy of the agenda itself will be provided. The citizens requesting a full agenda packet were: Jana Reid, Hazel Yelton, Carl Braswell and Elena Street.
   
   Commissioner Masters stated he wanted to commend Kathy for the way the agenda is being prepared. It was a real time saver for the Board members.
   
   
10. CLOSED SESSION - None
    
    
11. CITIZEN & AUDIENCE COMMENTS - None
    
    
12. ADJOURNMENT - Commissioner Hollifield moved to adjourn the meeting. Commissioner Masters seconded the motion and carried unanimously.