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Wednesday, May 13, 2015 – 9:00 a.m.
Courthouse Annex, 79 Jackson Street, Zebulon, Georgia
All five commissioners were present. County Clerk Jo Ann Wrye to take the minutes, County Manager (CM) John Hanson, and County Attorneys Rob and Tom Morton. [Note from the Editor: There will be a Special Called Meeting for the 2nd reading of the budget on the 19th. The next regular meeting will be on the 26th.]
1. CALL TO ORDER....................................................................................Chairman J. Briar Johnson
2. INVOCATION……………………………………………………………………………Ben Maxedon
3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE...................................................................Chairman J. Briar Johnson
4. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA - (O.C.G A. § 50-14-1 (e) (1))
Two items were added to the agenda. They are detailed later in the meeting.
5. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES - (O.C.G.A. § 50-14-1(e) (2))
a. Minutes of the April 28, 2015 Regular Monthly Meeting.
b. Minutes of the May 6, 2015 Special Call Meeting.
6. INVITED GUESTS
a. Employees to be recognized for their service to Pike County: Daniel Bridges, Todd Goolsby, Meredyth Brazel, Tracy Durham, April Jackson, and
Matthew Lawson.
Daniel Bridges - 8 years at Public Works. Public Works Director told of his work at Public Works including learning to use the new equipment for roads.
Todd Goolsby - 8 years at Public Works. CM Hanson told of Todd's dedication and how Todd interacts with the county commission office on a regular basis as they are serving citizens.
April Jackson – 13 years in the Clerk of Court’s Office. Clerk of Court Carolyn Williams said that April is always professional and very dedicated to her job and taking care of the citizens of Pike County.
[Note from the Editor: I have been gone all day and don't have a camera cord with me download this picture so it will go on later tonight. Those who could not be present today will be honored at a later meeting. I really like seeing our employees honored for their service to the county!]
b. Representative from EMS and Reliant Emergency Specialties, Inc. to address the Board in regards to providing emergency medical services to Pike County.
[Note from the Editor: This company asked to be on the agenda as a guest prior to this meeting and was not given special treatment by allowing them to speak. Read the notes from the second meeting for today to find out more about that. It just needs to be noted here too. If there is a meeting to discuss the three proposals, reps from all companies will be invited to come and speak.]
Rep. Johnnie Caldwell spoke on behalf of this company to commissioners this morning. Grady EMS and Reliant Emergency Specialties is the largest and oldest EMS in the state. They serve all of Fulton and the City of Atlanta and well as Decatur County on the Florida line. Headquarters in Atlanta and they have their own personnel training facility. They have a shop where they build and repair ambulances. They are giving the county a proposal to work for the county that will save the county some money. They are the only group that is equipped to handle hazmat emergencies like ebola, etc. If local people want to come it to work at this facility if they are chosen, they will bring them in and give them credit for the amount of years that they have worked overall. Their response time is no more than 12 minutes even in the City of Atlanta. [Note from the Editor: Pike County’s Georgia House Representative Johnnie Caldwell was here to speak on the behalf of this company because he is their attorney. I know how things are done in Atlanta and appreciate that Grady is highly equipped and all that was spoken about, but this left a bad taste in my mouth today. I expect that our county attorneys and county manager will review the bids and advise our commissioners on their recommendations in fairness to all parties involved in the bidding process regardless of who represents whom.]
7. REPORTS FROM COMMISSIONS, DEPARTMENTS, COMMITTEES, AUTHORITIES
a. Monthly Reports submitted from County Departments and County Authorities, including a Revenue/Expenditure Statement for all departments and a summary check register.
b. County Manager Report
Update on County finances for the following funds/accounts:
General Fund ............................................................................................ $2,826,030.01
Fire Dept. Donations........................................................................................ $1,880.86
Cash Reserve Account................................................................................. $500,151.86
Jail Fund ........................................................................................................ $22,228.04
E-911 Fund .................................................................................................... $71,846.83
DATE Fund ................................................................................................... $35,747.42
Juvenile Court Fund....................................................................................... $16,884.19
Residential Impact Fee ................................................................................ $265,759.05
Commercial Impact Fees ............................................................................... $11,851.36
C.A.I.P FUND............................................................................................... $20,001.23
General Obligation SPLOST Tax Bond Sinking Fund, 2011...................... $326,551.37
L.M.I. Grant (DOT)..................................................................................... $157,785.22
c. County Manager Comments.
Patch work going on Cook Road. They are hoping to finish it up pretty soon.
d. Commissioner Reports.
No reports from anyone except for the Chairman. Chairman Johnson complimented Farm Bureau for their Eggs & Issues Breakfast on Friday. It was a very good meeting. He also attended the Clovers and Company concert. He said that we have some outstanding local talent. He was out of town and was not able to attend the National Day of Prayer but heard that it was very well attended.
e. County Attorney Report to Commissioners.
Working with the CM on some issues. Some of these issues will be forthcoming in the next couple of weeks.
8. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: None.
9. NEW BUSINESS
a. Approve/deny contract for 2016 public transportation with Three Rivers and the Georgia Department of Transportation. Authorize County Manager Hanson to sign.
CM Hanson asked for permission to sign this. Motion to sign. County Attorney Morton said that this is the standard contract and is in line with our budget. Approved 5-0.
b. Approve/deny Clifton, Lipford, Hardison & Parker Letter of Agreement. Authorize County Manager to sign.
This is for the same amount as last year and they have done a good job for keeping in touch with us and keeping costs down for the county. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
c. Open sealed bids for review for the 2015 LMIG Project.
This LMIG project is for Williamson-Zebulon Road. Accept bids for review. This will have a recommendation at the 19th meeting.
1) Piedmont Paving Incorporated out of Newnan. Option 1: $634,250.94. Option 2: $806,522.19.
2) CW Mathews out of Marietta. Option 1: $566,389.23. Option 2: $786,155.32.
3) Blount Construction out of Marietta. They only want to do 1 of the 2 options. Option 2: $774,948.50.
4) Georgia Asphalt Inc. out of Macon. Option 1: $557,079.09. Option 2: $736,370.98.
5) ER Snell out of Snellville. They only want to do 1 of the 2 options. Option 1: $539,301.97.
Motion to accept these bids for review and for recommendation at the meeting on the 19th. 5-0.
d. Open sealed bids for review for the Ambulance Service for Pike County.
They opened sealed bids for county ambulance service. [Note from the Editor: Pike County is currently paying $395,000 per year for ambulance service and this is our 8th year with Mid Georgia. There are a lot of things to be considered here including how many ambulances will be stationed here, what happens if we have a lot of calls around the same time and all of our ambulances are transporting patients and we get another call, what are patients being charged for transportation to a hospital, etc. I also want to look into whether other counties are happy with the service that they are receiving from the apparent low bidder listed here. On a side note, I do not think that there is a requirement to go with the lowest bidder; however, it is prudent to examine all of our options—including the price that we will be paying for overall service.]
1) Grady EMS and Reliant Emergency Specialties. 1 year contract: $275,000 prorated $22,917 per month. 3 year contract: same. Option 3: 5 year is the same
2) Mid Georgia Ambulance. 1 year contract: $370,000 30,833.33 per month. 3 year contract: same. 5 year: same.
3) Spalding EMS: 3 year contract: $350,000 with a monthly charge of $29,167.
Motion to accept for review and recommendation at the meeting on the 19th. If there are additional questions, the county can set up a workshop. 5-0.
e. Convey ownership of the Sewer Lines on County Farm Road to the city of Zebulon.
Last year, sewer lines were run to connect to the City of Zebulon for the animal control facility. This will be for the sewer lines for maintenance and upkeep and not the right of way. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
f. Approve/Deny renewal option of Blue Cross Blue Shield Employee Health Insurance.
Motion to approve Option 1 which will allow the employees to buy up to a lower deductible if they choose.
g. Consider one appointment to the West Central Georgia Workforce Investment Board to fill an unexpired 3-year term, set to expire February 28, 2017.
We don’t have the physical application in hand for review yet. Motion to postpone. Approved 5-0.
h. Consider request from Montgomery Lodge #31 to use the courthouse grounds on May 16, 2015 for BBQ sales from 6:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
i. Consider request from American Legion Post 197 to use the courthouse grounds on Monday, May 25, 2015 for Memorial Day Service from 9:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.
Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
j. This was added at the beginning of the meeting. Commissioners held a discussion about renewal of the annual document for the County Extension Office. Motion to approve. Approved 5-0.
k. This was also added at the beginning of the meeting. A request has been received by the county for a one day sale of alcoholic beverages for a wedding. We don’t have anything in our ordinances to address a one day permit for something like this so we send them a letter from the county that we don’t oppose this so they can address this with the State of Georgia. Discussion: We don’t have a policy on a one day permit. Typically, alcohol sales are regulated by the State of Georgia and we give an ok for alcohol sales contingent upon an ok from the State. Motion to send the letter. Approved 5-0.
10. PUBLIC COMMENT- (Limited to 5 minutes per person) - None
11. EXECUTIVE SESSION - None
12. ADJOURNMENT
Motion to adjourn. 9:49 p.m.
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