Board of Commissioners

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – Cumberland County Manager Amy Cannon provided the Board of Commissioners with an update on efforts to expand the County’s solid waste capacity during their Nov. 9 Agenda Session.

Cannon explained that the Ann Street Landfill, which is located at 698 Ann St. in Fayetteville, has less than eight years of useful life remaining and that the County needs to move forward quickly to expand the landfill or identify an alternative option for disposal of municipal solid waste from County residents, including those in the municipalities. She said the preferred option is to expand the current footprint of the Ann Street site by acquiring land adjacent to the landfill, potentially provide decades of additional capacity.

“If we’re not able to obtain that piece of property, our only other option is to haul our trash and transfer it to another regional landfill,” said Cannon.

She said there is a regional landfill approximately 25 miles away, but that it is not a viable long-term option. The next closest regional landfill is approximately 80 miles away. Cannon said hauling trash to another location would require the construction of a transfer station and that it could cost the County between $75 and $95 per ton to haul the trash out of the county, resulting in additional costs of approximately $10 million per year.

Cannon said due the tight timeline required to plan for landfill expansion and uncertainty of property acquisition, the County has to move forward with plans for the second option. She said she has asked the County’s General Manager for Natural Resources Amanda Bader to issue two RFPs or requests for proposals – one for construction of a transfer station and another for the transfer of waste to a regional landfill and the cost of disposal at that facility.

In other business:

County Finance Director Vicki Evans provided the Board with an update on the FY2022 audit. She said the County’s audit firm is short-staffed and behind with the audit, and she is doubtful the report will be completed by December 1, 2022, which would require the Board of Commissioners to approve a contract extension. Commissioners asked Evans to request a letter from the audit firm explaining the issues preventing the audit from being completed by the deadline.

Commissioners received a presentation on the Proposed 2023 (FY2024) Federal Legislative Agenda from Ron Hamm of the Hamm Consulting Group and voted unanimously to place the item on the Nov. 21 Regular Board of Commissioners Meeting agenda for approval. The draft Agenda, which can be found in the agenda packet on the Cumberland County website, was developed with input from commissioners, Leadership Team members, City of Fayetteville staff and the Fayetteville Cumberland Economic Development Corporation during a series of virtual meetings in October. The Federal Legislative Agenda sets priorities and action items for federal advocacy and grant proposals in the following areas: Infrastructure and Environmental; Economic and Workforce Development; Veterans, Health and Human Services; and Public Safety and Emergency Response.

The Board also received an update from Cumberland County Schools Associate Superintendent of Business Operations Jay Toland and Associate Superintendent of Auxiliary Services Kevin Coleman that included information on the school system’s average daily membership (ADM), fund balance, Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief (ESSER) Funds, and capital priorities. The full presentation can be found on the County website.

The Board of Commissioners voted unanimously in favor of placing the following agenda items on the consent agenda for the Nov. 21 Regular Board of Commissioners meeting:

• Memorandum of Understanding between the Cumberland County Public Library and the City of Fayetteville for StoryWalk© Project at Lake Rim Park
• The library has been awarded State Library of North Carolina Bright Ideas Grant for a StoryWalk© at Lake Rim Park. Like the StoryWalk© installed at Clark Park, it is an innovative way for community members to enjoy reading and the outdoors at the same time. Specifically designed pages from children’s books are attached to displays that are installed along an outdoor path at the park. As readers walk down the trail, they are directed to the next page in the story. The project combines literature, nature and physical activity to provide families and citizens of allages with an enriching experience.

• Formal Bid Award for Law Enforcement Center Roof Recovering
• On Aug. 4, 2022, the County solicited bids for the Cumberland County Law Enforcement Center Roof Recovering. The bid period closed on Sept. 13 with seven respondents.

The lowest responsive and responsible bid was AAR of North Carolina, Inc., at $312K. This project was approved for funding as a Fiscal Year 23 capital improvement project and has sufficient funding to execute the project.

• Formal Bid Award for Crown Coliseum Sports Lighting, Parking Lot Lighting, Building Control Replacement
• The intent of this turn-key project is to provide a new network lighting system consisting of new LED sports lighting fixtures, LED Parking Lot Lights and the integration of existing LED and non-LED light sources onto the new system, to add dimming and agile control functions to designated light sources and to replace the existing legacy building lighting control system with a fully integrated lighting control and monitoring network. This project was solicited for bid on Aug. 2, Aug. 29, and Sept. 13, 2022. NGU Sports Lighting submitted a qualifying bid of $711K. This project was approved for funding as a Fiscal Year 23 capital improvement project and has sufficient funding to complete the project.
• ARP Committee Recommendations
• The American Rescue Plan Committee met on Nov. 4 and recommended the following five items be placed on the Nov. 10, agenda for consideration:

1. Small Business Funding Recommendations
• Recommendations include $683,085 in funding for 21 additional small business applicants, bringing the total project cost to $1,947,815.
2. Consideration of ARPA Policy Revisions
• Consideration of Policy No. 3-13: Policy for Records Retention of ARPA/SLFR Funds
• Consideration of Policy No. 10-1.9: COVID19 Assistance to Nonprofits
• Staff adapted the existing Small Business Assistance policy to create a new policy for nonprofit organizations. The new policy follows the Board’s approval of staff’s recommendation to reject all proposals submitted by nonprofit organizations as part of a previous RFP process in order to create an assistance program that will allow for a more inclusive and streamlined process for providing assistance for nonprofit organizations, including those that submitted proposals in the previous process.
3. ARPA Grant Project Ordinance Amendment B230001
• The ordinance amendment reallocates a portion of the County’s ARPA allocation to reimburse the County for health insurance costs directly related to COVID and another portion towards restoring pre-pandemic employment in order to free up General Fund dollars to fund ARP priority projects with fewer restrictions and administrative requirements.

• Crown Event Center Committee Recommendation on Construction Delivery Method
• Staff recommends the Board approve a recommendation to use the Construction Manager-at-Risk or CMaR delivery method for the project. This item was presented to the Crown Event Center Committee on Nov. 1 and was recommended for approval by the Board of Commissioners.

Assistant County Manager Sally Shutt provided the Board with a Competitive Grants Update, including recent grant award notifications for Justice Services, the Sheriff’s Office and Solid Waste, along with recent grand submissions and upcoming applications. She also announced that the County’s new Grants Manager will be starting on Nov. 28.

Assistant County Manager Tracy Jackson presented the Deli Franchise Bid Tab Award, noting that the agreement with the current franchisee Happy Deli, which operates locations in the Courthouse and Department of Social Services, will expire in December 2022. The County issued an RFP and received only one proposal, which was from the current franchisee. Jackson requested the Board add consideration of awarding the bid to Happy Deli to the Nov. 21 meeting as an item of business for the first of two required readings. If approved, the second reading would take place at the Dec. 19, 2022, meeting.

The Board received the Financial Report, Health Insurance Update Report, Southern Health Partners, Inc. Quarterly Statistical Report on Inmate Health Care American Rescue Plan Act Quarterly Project and Expenditure Report as of Sept. 30, 2022, and Project updates from the staff. Please visit cumberlandcountync.gov/departments/commissioners-group/commissioners/meetings/agendas-minutes-and-videos to see the detailed presentations..

Agenda sessions are held once a month and provide an opportunity for the Board of Commissioners to discuss potential agenda topics for Regular Board of Commissioners’ meetings.

Meetings are live streamed on CCNC-TV though the County’s website at cumberlandcountync.gov, YouTube Channel and on CCNCTV Spectrum Channel 5. All associated documents to this meeting can be found on the Cumberland County website to include meeting agendas, minutes and links to the videos under the Board of Commissioners tab.

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