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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/14/2010 - SpecialOctober 14, 2010 407 Roanoke County Administration Center 5204 Bernard Drive Roanoke, Virginia 24018 The Board of Supervisors of Roanoke County, Virginia met this day at the Roanoke County School Administration Office, 5937 Coe Road, N.W., Roanoke, Virginia, for the purpose of a joint work session with the School Board. IN RE: CALL TO ORDER -SCHOOL BOARD Chairman Stovall called the meeting to order at 5:15 p.m. The roll call was taken MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Michael W. Stovall; Vice Chairman David M. Wymer; Supervisors, C. Drew Barrineau, Jerry L. Canada, H. Odell "Fuzzy" Minnix MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: Dr. Lorraine S. Lange, Superintendent; Allen W. Journell, Deputy Superintendent; Carol Whitaker, Assistant Superintendent of Personnel; Penny A. Hodge, Assistant Superintendent of Finance; Martin Misicko, Director of Operations; Angela B. Roberson, Deputy Clerk, Darlene M. Ratliff, Deputy Clerk IN RE: CALL TO ORDER -BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Chairman Church called the meeting to order at 5:15 p.m. The roll call was taken. MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Joseph B. "Butch" Church; Vice Chairman Eddie "Ed" Elswick; Supervisors Michael W. Altizer, Richard C. Flora, Charlotte A. Moore MEMBERS ABSENT: None STAFF PRESENT: B. Clayton Goodman III, County Administrator; Daniel R. O'Donnell, Assistant County Administrator; Diane D. Hyatt, Assistant County Administrator; Paul M. Mahoney, County Attorney; Rebecca Owens, Director of Finance 408 October 14, 2010 IN RE: USE OF ONE-TIME FUNDS FOR A ONE-TIME PAYMENT FOR EMPLOYEES Mr. Stovall stated that the Federal Government has made $3,000,000 available to the schools from the federal education jobs fund to be used for cone-time expenditure for personnel-related expenses. The schools have until August 31, 2012 to appropriate these funds. Mr. Stovall stated that the School Board is aware it is available now but when the political power is changed there is always the possibility that it can be taken away. Chairman Church remarked that he can't blame the school system for wanting to use the money to supplement teacher salaries because that is what it is designated for. "You either use it or lose it," however, the Board is always looking for dangers down the road and is not in a position to provide their people with a bonus at this time. He stated that he highly respects the School Board and the fact that they represent the teachers and want to provide bonuses for the teachers; which are a tough job and the teachers deserve pay raises. He would vote to allocate the money if the School Board makes that request, however, Roanoke County employees would have to understand that it would be tough for the Roanoke County Board to offer a bonus situation of that sort. Mr. Canada inquired of Mr. Church whether he was saying that he personally would vote to allocate money for stipends on the Roanoke County Schools side but not on the county side. Mr. Church responded that Roanoke County does not have the funds to make an adjustment for their employees. An allocation from the schools would have to come before their Board and he would vote"yes." Mr. Canada indicated that he would not want to do that because it goes against the grain of what has been done in the past. The money will still be available for two years and maybe we should just sit back for a few months and work our way through this next budget cycle and see what the State does for us and then meet again to discuss. Maybe it would be best to take a step back, hoping the money will not get reversed. He would like to do something for the school employees, but would like to include all employees. Possibly in March or April of 2011 after we have finished the budget process, both Boards can take a different stance on this. Mr. Barrineau expressed his feeling that we always try to treat everyone the same and that we are a family. Roanoke County schools have had a revenue sharing agreement for awhile that has worked out well. He, too, feels the schools would be better off to go through the next budget cycle and maybe after it is known where Roanoke County is heading, the Boards could look at other avenues for using these funds or maybe using the funds for all Roanoke County employees. He would really like to do something for all employees. There are a lot of uncertainties right now. He is concerned about what the Virginia Retirement System ("VRS") will look like at that point. October 14, 2010 409 Ms. Moore agreed with Mr. Canada and Mr. Barrineau and stated both Boards can meet again after this budget has been adopted when we will know where both sides stand. Mr. Wymer feels it is important to remember that these funds are earmarked for teacher compensation and will have to be used in some form of stipend. At some point, the School Board may be able to do something that we have wanted to do for quite awhile, and that is give raises. The School Board will know a lot more about that possibility when we get into the budget process. If raises aren't possible, the funds will still be available for our teachers. They will get compensated in some form. It is a matter of how we do it and when we do it. Mr. Minnix pointed out that hiring additional teachers with this money, or giving raises with this money would be suicide. The Boards know that this money will probably have to be used in the form of some type of bonus. Mr. Minnix then inquired of Mrs. Hodge whether this money could be used for paying back the VRS to the state. Mrs. Hodge responded that the money can be used only for salaries and benefits but that would include VRS payments made this year or next. Mr. Minnix stated that he doesn't really want to do anything that has a possibility of hurting the long-term relationship we have had with the County. This may not be the only problem we face in the next three or four years, and we need to tackle the problems together. Mr. Altizer commended everyone for taking a positive approach. He noted that we sit around the table every year and adopt a budget and do not have disagreements like other localities experience. Our relationship will be found nowhere else in the State. This is a prudent decision and going through the budget process and looking at everything to make sure we are making the right decision is commendable. He agreed with Mr. Minnix that no-one knows what we will be facing in the next two or three years. The budget is grim but not devastating. Revenues and real estate appear to be flat. As we look at the State numbers that were released yesterday we are seven tenths of one percent off in revenues. This approach is right for our employees. Mr. Flora reminded everyone that the School Board has tightened up dramatically on the number of employees, which has put more pressure and more work on the people who are left. You can only do that for so long before they break. You cannot just keep piling work on and expect people to continue to do their job the way they did when they had more flexibility to do it. This money needs to go to the employees. If we wait until we work through the budget process it will give everyone an opportunity to see what we have to work with and make a decision then rather than making a decision prematurely. Ten to fifteen years ago we didn't have this relationship. Everyone was not treated equally on both sides and people complained. In recent years we have not heard one side blaming the other side. We need to keep things going the way they have been and work it out in March 2011. Mr. Stovall stressed that everyone needs to be thankful that people are moving into this County because of education, and the Board of Supervisors support public education. We want all of our employees to know that we care about them and if they 410 October 14, 2010 will bear with us we will get through this budget process and hope there are better things to come. Chairman Church reiterated that this will be incorporated into the budget process and that both sides will be "hands on" and will come up with something we can live with. Mr. Elswick noted that he had read an article in Time Magazine that emphasized that it is hard to get people to teach school when they can make more money somewhere else. Anything we can do to provide more money to beginning teachers would be an asset to the children in the County. He agrees with everyone else that we should wait to determine our status following the budget process. IN RE: USE OF BENT MOUNTAIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS Mr. Stovall explained that the school system had issued a request for proposal ("RFP") for the use of the Bent Mountain Elementary School building and had received no applications for use of the building. At this point, the building has been "mothballed" as the School Board has done to the Roanoke County Central Middle School and the Roland E. Cook Alternative School. Mr. Elswick has represented that area diligently, and Chairman Church has suggested putting that building back on the table for discussion. Mr. Elswick stated that he has received comments from the community as to how they might use the building. The community is a mixture of older people and a number of young families. The school has been a central meeting place for a hundred ("100") years and is the only facility other than the rescue squad that has been paid for by the County; it's the only place they have for a center piece. The library is used extensively by the children as well as the adults. There is no anticipation that there will be any type of industrial development in the area so there will not be very much growth. Mr. Elswick stated that he has talked with Phil Francis, Superintendent of the Blue Ridge Parkway, and he is interested in possibly making it part of the "Crooked Road." Interest has been expressed in possibly moving Fiddle Fest as well as the Blue Ridge Banjo Club to Bent Mountain. There are a number of organizations who may want to occupy the facility. Mr. Elswick stated that he wanted what is best for the community as well as a good cultural resource for the County; it could probably be done in aself-sustaining way. The Women's Club has always been involved with weekly activities on the school grounds. People in the civic league are becoming more and more active. There is no doubt that eventually the kind of activities that would be conducted there would alleviate responsibility of supporting the place from either of the boards. Currently, the activities aren't organized enough to produce a lot of income. From now until the middle of next year, they would need a little help with utilities, which Mr. Elswick estimates to be $10,000 or less. The biggest question would be the major expenditures along the way to maintain the facility, such as roof repair or replacement. The community could not cover that type of large expenditure; perhaps the money could be obtained from grants. If after a year, the facility is not generating income and no grants are available and October 14, 2010 411 nothing has materialized, the issue would be revisited. The community would like to have a chance to make it their place. Most of the activities would be in the gym and that is the main area the community would be interested in using. Mr. Barrineau expressed his disappointment that no proposals were received though a number of people were interested. He inquired of Mr. Elswick as to whether he anticipated some of these groups getting together to present a proposal to the board. Mr. Elswick indicated that it can easily be done. He does not think anyone has seen fit to present a proposal up to this point because the groups could not comply with the conditions of the RFP. Mr. Minnix suggested that it might be a good idea for the County economic development department to promote it in order to bring in some of these events that have been mentioned. Mr. Elswick indicated that would be part of the process that would occur over the next year. Based on what he has heard so far, especially the Fiddle Fest, the opportunity is great for some type of cultural activities there. It is a wonderful location for that. Mr. Minnix noted that if an expenditure of $200,000 would be necessary to get something set up he doesn't see how we could possibly do that. Mr. Elswick doesn't feel it would take any money now. Chairman Church inquired of Mr. Goodman what he sees as the immediate needs financially for repairs of the building. Mr. Goodman indicated that he has not done any detail work, though they did a preliminary report in the spring. He estimates operating expenses to be between $48,000 and $63,000 for utilities, grounds, insurance, and the cost of a part-time custodian. There is a possibility of a large capital outlay for HVAC. If the building is going to be used only two or three days week, the cost would be significantly lower. The County intends to keep the library open and maintain it. Chairman Church suggested that both Boards get together to find a way to allow the community to use part of the building and if after one year it is not working then we will know we gave it our best shot. If we do not try it in some way we will be missing an opportunity. Mr. Barrineau noted that there is a concern about wanting access to the kitchen as well. If there is something we can do in that regard he would like to look at that possibility as well. Additionally, he would be in favor of streamlining our application if that has been a deterrent for outside parties wishing to submit a plan. Mr. Elswick felt that Bent Mountain should be treated like other areas of the county. He does not recall any other areas having to submit an application for a community center. There should not be a lot of money required from either Board for operating costs. Maintenance of the facility would be the large cost factor. The community could not afford to assume responsibility for replacement of the roof, for example. The community could not ever afford to support upkeep for the whole building. Most organizations would only use the gym. Mr. Minnix raised the question that if the facility needed $500,000 in repairs, could the Board of Supervisors afford $250,000? Chairman Church said that at that 412 October 14, 2010 moment he would say "no." When we start looking down the road and get to the budget process he does not know what they could come up with. We should at least take a look at the operating costs of a part of the building -the gym for example. Chairman Church asked Mr. Goodman the approximate cost of operating the Catawba Center. Mr. Goodman stated that the cost of operations only is between $12,000 and $15,000. Mr. Altizer stated that the biggest travesty would be to allow people to use the facility and then have to ask them to leave if it does not work out. What we do with Bent Mountain has effects on other areas of the county as well. In Vinton, we have Roland E. Cook and the old William Byrd High School that are not in use. The citizens in the Vinton district would have the right to ask for the same thing. If we go down this road we must be prepared for the consequences in other areas as well. How can we say "no" to another area whether it costs $500,000 or $500? The only thing that makes a difference to the citizens is that the building is in their community and they want it fixed. It is a big picture decision. I feel sure we will hear from the Vinton district if we do this in another area. We need to look at the long-term in all of Roanoke County when we are talking about an extra $250,000 for Bent Mountain. We need to move very slowly and very judiciously because of the precedent it would set. We need to understand that when we make a decision to open Bent Mountain, it will stay open, and we need to be prepared for that. We would not be putting our citizens out and we will have to pay whatever expenditures necessary to keep it open. Mr. Wymer noted that none of the three properties we are talking about were voluntarily closed in the sense that if their budgets had not been required for us to balance the budget in Roanoke County they probably would not be closed. We absorbed the Bent Mountain students in another school and saved the operating costs of that school. The Roanoke County Central Middle School students were moved to individual schools; and another place met our needs for an alternative school at less cost than Roland E. Cook. The money we took out was personnel and maintenance. It was not just teachers and salaries. It was operating costs as well. Ms. Moore agreed with Mr. Elswick that every community deserves to have a community center. She would like to see a plan from the citizens of Bent Mountain as to how much money they can come up with and what they can afford. No one knows what this is going to cost and she doesn't think the County should go out on a limb to spend any money. Mr. Canada stated that the school system is not trying to keep the building away from anyone but he does not want to be funding it. He would like to have the citizens use it but he doesn't want the school system to pay for it. If someone can determine who would insure and pay for it the School Board would consider a plan. Mr. Elswick inquired as to whether its use would be approved if the community agreed to cut the grass and maybe help a little with utilities with no added cost to either of the Boards Mr. Canada responded that the community proposal should include insuring the building and holding the school board free of any responsibility. October 14, 2010 413 Mr. Stovall indicated that a proposal is the bottom line; we need a proposal before a decision can be made. Mr. Barrineau suggested that possibly he and Mr. Elswick could get together and work something out to make the application process easier. Mr. Elswick responded that he thought this discussion would revolve around whether the Board of Supervisors would accept the facility from the School Board. If they do that, then the proposal would go to the Board of Supervisors. Mr. Barrineau stated that the School Board would get a proposal from either the Board of Supervisors or someone else. He was not aware that a discussion was to take place as far as the Board of Supervisors asking for the school. Mr. Minnix was under the impression that they were talking about looking at a plan that both bodies are happy about. Mr. Flora responded that he would consider a proposal that contained no cost to either the School Board or the Board of Supervisors. Before we can consider anything we have to see a plan that would detail what you are going to do and how frequently the facility would be used. Both the School Board and the Board of Supervisors are afraid they will get stuck with the bill, and he is not interested in taking it on, especially when we do not know where the money is coming from. He suggested that an interested organization come up with a plan and submit it to both bodies, and if it is completely self-sufficient he would see no reason the School Board could not lease the building to the organization under 501 c3. The School Board is in the business of educating children, not operating recreation centers. The gym is on a separate HVAC system and it would be possible to operate the gym without operating the remainder of the school's system. However, the bathrooms may not be on the same system as the gym but it may be possible to extend the HVAC system to the bathrooms. Submit a proposal to the school system and we will see where we go from there. Mr. Goodman requested permission for the County staff to go through the building to do an extensive evaluation because at some time during this process they will need to know the condition of the building and what costs would be associated with operating and maintaining the building. The School Board granted that permission. Chairman Church noted that there is a possibility things may work out if both bodies put their heads together but it may not come overnight. Many times things just do not happen quickly because of finance. Mr. Elswick pointed out that the people on Bent Mountain raised $35,000 for a small addition to the library, and the Women's Club has donated thousands of dollars to the school, yet the County can fund a community center in Catawba but cannot afford to spend another $10,000 to $15,000 for another rural area. Urban areas get all kinds of amenities and yet very little is available to the rural areas. Mr. Stovall asked Mr. Elswick to obtain a proposal and then both bodies can get back to the table and decide. Mr. Elswick will ask the interested parties to get a proposal done within a week that will detail what area of the building will be used and how frequently it will be used. Mr. Stovall noted that we have certain rules that need to be followed if it is 501(c)3. 414 IN RE: ADJOURNMENT October 14, 2010 Chairman Church adjourned the joint meeting at 5:40 p.m. Chairman Stovall noted that the Roanoke County School board would remain in session for the regular School Board Meeting at 7:00 p.m. by: Deborah C. Jac Deputy Clerk to a Board Approved by: osep B. "Butch" Church Chairman `1 7