FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
NORMAN BASSETT
240-313-2077
Review of Actions Taken in the Washington
County
Board of County Commissioners Meeting
June 22nd, 2004
CITIZENS PARTICIPATION
Each week the Board of County Commissioners sets aside time
to hear from the Citizens of Washington County on matters of
community interest.
John Himes of Knoxville commented on the need for a traffic
signal on U.S. 340 at the intersection with Valley Road.
Ron Hovis of Hagerstown read a statement he will present to
the Hagerstown Mayor and Council citing the need for increased
number of events honoring veterans.
CERTIFICATE OF MERIT
Commissioners’ President
Greg Snook presented a Certificate of Merit to
Emergency Services Director Joe Kroboth for his recent completion
of the Masters of Business Administration Degree at the Frostburg
University Hagerstown Center. Kroboth spent several years attending
night classes to earn that degree.
SENATOR AMOSS FUNDING DISTRIBUTION
Emergency Services Director Joe Kroboth brought this distribution
of the Senator Amoss Fire, Rescue and Ambulance Funding before
the Board. An annual source of funding for Fire/Rescue units
in the County, the Amoss funds are traditionally divided equally
between all county volunteer Fire and EMS companies, and the
City of Hagerstown. Receiving companies must certify how the
funding is used. $224,184.00 was awarded to the County for the
current fiscal year. The Washington County Volunteer Fire and
Rescue Association and the Emergency Services Council voted to
retain the equal distribution method with the appropriate amount
distributed to the Hagerstown Fire Department. Hagerstown would
receive $49,818.69 to be divided equally between its six companies.
The remaining fire and ambulance companies would receive $8,303.11
each. Kroboth explained that the funds are limited to acquisition
or rehabilitation of fire and rescue apparatus, and capital equipment
used in connection with fire fighting, EMS and rescue services.
The Washington County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association approved
the distribution, Kroboth said. The measure was approved by unanimous
vote.
TOWN OF BOONSBORO WATER LINE
County
Health Officer Bill Christoffel, Environmental Health Officer
Laurie Bucher, George Keller of the Maryland Department of
the Environment (MDE) and representatives of the Town of Boonsboro
brought this discussion to the Board. One year ago, health officials
presented information regarding contaminated wells in an area
along Route 40 between Lappans Road and Mill Point Road. At that
time, MDE and the Health Department recommended that the water
line be extended west 6,000 feet. Serious water quality problems
have been found in wells adjacent to the town resulting in health
risks to the populace. The Mayor and Council of Boonsboro have
given their concurrence, along with MDE, Boonsboro Ambulance
Company, the County Water Quality Department, and businesses
in the area. At that time, the Board approved application for
a grant and investigation into the possibility of using MDE loans,
with the provision that no county debt be involved. The project
as presented would be funded through the MDE Revolving Loan Fund
and a state grant. The Town would be responsible for billing
and collections, and would also provide project management, design
and construction supervision. Boonsboro would own and operate
the water line. Bucher told the Board that current residential
treatment systems may not be able to handle some of the waterborne
diseases. 230 persons would be served each day. Cost for the
entire project would be $963,000, with a grant from MDE for $367,500
a future grant for $310,000 and an MDE loan for $285,500. The
63 users in the area would be billed for the service at $64.00
per month, and hookup costs would run $1,000 per customer. Boonsboro’s
normal hookup fees are $5,000. Commissioner Snook said the project
was very different when presented to the Board last year. Businesses
and the trailer park in the area are under non-compliance orders
from regulatory agencies. The measure was approved with the contingency
that the County be held free of future financial obligation.
APPROVAL OF LOCAL MANAGEMENT BOARD OFFICERS
Stephanie Stone, Director of the Washington County Community
Partnership, the County's Local Management Board, requested Board
approval of its officers for the coming year. Recommended as
Chair was James Blanks, Vice-Chair Millie Lowman, Secretary Dave
Engle and Treasurer Dennis Davis. The appointments were approved
by unanimous vote.
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT AWARD
Major General (Retired) Boyd Cook, Maryland Chairman for the
Employer Support of Guard and Reserve program presented the Board
with a Department of Defense Award for participating in the program
and allowing guardsmen and reservists to return to their jobs
after being called into active duty. Cook said the Washington
County Sheriff's Department has been identified as one of the
leading organizations for guard and reserve support in the nation.
Commissioners' President Greg Snook accepted the award and said
the County will maintain its long tradition of support for our
active military and veterans.
CITIZEN OF THE MONTH
Commissioner
Dori Nipps presented the Citizen of the Month honor for June,
2004 to Emma Lou Schwagel of Boonsboro (photo). Recent publicity
surrounding the dedication of the World War II Memorial in
Washington, and the 60 th anniversary of the D-Day Invasion
of Normandy included honors for those women who worked in the
defense industry or served in the military during the period.
Washington County has its own heroine, in terms of Emma Lou
Schwagel, who served as a flight instructor for Navy pilots.
The contribution women played in many fields during that war
should be spotlighted. The proclamation cited the many women
who contributed to Washington County's support to the nation
during World War II working in government and industrial jobs,
and aviation as having played a vital role in the history of
the County. The citation named Emma Lou Schwagel as among a
select cadre of female flight instructors, training Navy pilots
in Conway Arkansas, and explained that Second Lieutenant Emma
Lou Schwagel came to Washington County following her marriage
to Rome Schwagel, who was also involved in the flight training
operation. Mrs. Schwagel was lauded for her support and aid
to Rome Schwagel during his tenure as Mayor of Keedysville,
Maryland and as a County Commissioner from 1976 to 1984.
REPORTS FROM COUNTY STAFF
Department of Planning and Community Development Director Mike
Thompson requested advertising of the Community Development Administrator
position, recently vacated due to promotion. The measure was
approved by unanimous vote.
Department of Emergency Services Director Joe Kroboth reminded
the Board that a memorial to firefighters, police and veterans
is set for September 11 th at ceremonies in the City and County.
A memorial event will take place in Hagerstown City Park, followed
by a parade to Valley Mall, with Citizen Preparedness Day events
talking place there. The Public Safety Communications Project
consultant recently hired by the County met with the State Communications
Interoperability Program consultant and officials from Allegheny
and Garrett Counties to discuss regional communications needs.
Communications Maintenance Supervisor Pete Lowenheim said that
the consultant will be submitting drafts of plans for phases
of the communications project.
Public Works Director Gary Rohrer requested approval to advertise
two Motor Equipment Operator II positions at the Highways Department.
The measures were approved by unanimous vote.
OTHER BUSINESS:
Appointments to Boards and Commissions: County Clerk Joni Bittner
brought a request from the Superintendent of Washington County
Schools, Dr. Betty Morgan, that Edward Masood, the schools' Arts,
Health and Physical Education Supervisor be appointed to the
Recreation and Parks Board to fill an unexpired term, and that
William Sterner, Hancock High Athletic Director be appointed
to serve as BOE non-voting member of the Board. The measure was
approved by unanimous vote.
The Antietam Battlefield Advisory Committee is requesting reappointment
of Ann Corcoran, John Schildt and Jan Wetterer to three-year
terms. Waiver of the two-term limit was requested for Schildt
and Wetterer. The measures were approved by unanimous vote.
The PenMar Development Corporation requested additional 4-year
terms for members Michael Zampelli, Peggy Bushey, and William
Mahr.
County Administrator's Comments: County Administrator Rod Shoop
requested an increase in the Planning Department budget in the
amount of $416,000.00 for grant funding from the Metropolitan
Planning Organization.
KAIZEN STUDY REVIEW
Last
week, Human Resources Director Dave Hankinson and members of
the "Kaizen" performance improvement study team
brought a report on the recent event held in the Permits and
Inspections (P&I) Department before the Board. A Kaizen event
is a short-term intense effort with a bias for action, performed
by a multi-functional or multi-level team, designed to help achieve
organizational goals. The report concluded that P&I has experienced
a 36% increase in workload with little increase in personnel.
The team found problems involving workload assignments, number
of employees versus number of permits processed, poor quality
or incomplete applications, lack of public knowledge of the permitting
process, and number of outside agencies that review permits,
which causes delay. Recommendations included plumbing and electrical
on-line permit purchase using credit cards, hiring an additional
Permits Technician, hiring a temporary Office Associate to assist
in peak months, shortening hours for accepting permits to allow
for processing and paperwork, customer education about the process,
immediate assistance to phoned-in questions, additional fees
for re-review if changes in permits plans occur, and development
of a procedure to allow drop-off of plan packages. Inspectors
would be fully cross-trained, procedures put into place to ensure
receipt of complete plan packages for review, commercial inspection
fees would be revised to reflect the extent of services performed,
3 rd party inspections for all buildings covered by the International
Building Code would be required, and code enforcement would be
tightened and include citations for construction work performed
without permits. Improvement of efficiency of Inspectors' time
would require improvements in technology, removal of some enforcement
duties, implementation of flexible working hours, and changes
in electrical inspection fees. Revenue enhancements would include
citations for no-permit construction, fees for permits that have
expired or need to be renewed, and increasing commercial permit
fees. All of the recommendations would aid in better meeting
customer needs and savings to customers, the report concluded.
Discussion took place on technology needs and cross training
of personnel as well as fee adjustments. Several Commissioners
had multiple issues requiring further discussion, and approval
of recommendations by line item will take place in the meeting
on July 13 th. Consensus was reached to proceed with hiring an
additional person to assist in taking phone calls and handling
front desk duties, and to move ahead with providing inspectors
with laptop computers for use in the field.
REQUEST TO ADVERTISE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST POSITION
Economic Development Commission Director Tim Troxell and EDC
Chair Doug Wright brought this request, to advertise for the
position of Business Development Specialist that will become
vacant on June 25. Proactive marketing efforts handled by the
position in Fiscal Year '04 resulted in over 150 contacts with
companies, site location consultants and corporate real estate
agents. Some of the contacts resulted in the county being considered
a site for relocation or expansion of business and industry.
The EDC supports continuation of the position, which is funded
in the FY '05 budget. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.
CONTRACT RENEWAL: NATURAL GAS SUPPLIES AT COUNTY FACILITIES
County
Purchasing Agent Karen Luther and Les Lewis of Washington Gas
Energy Services, Inc. brought this contract before the Board.
Luther requested concurrence of the Board to again “piggy-back” on
the State of Maryland contract for natural gas with Washington
Gas Energy Services, Inc (WGESI) of Towson Maryland. Term of
the contract would be from July 1, 2004 through June 20, 2005.
When the original contract was let in December, 2000 a savings
of 10-12% was anticipated. Based on results of that contract,
the County renewed the agreement on January 1, 2002. Each year
since then, the County has renewed the contract and has seen
significant savings. Lewis told the Board that the contract pricing
is lower than last year. Price quoted included the NYMEX index
for natural gas plus a fixed transportation amount, measured
on summer and winter usage. The summer price quote is the index
price plus 46 cents for transportation per dekatherm. The Winter
pricing would be index plus $1.36 per dekatherm. The measure,
which locked in the transportation fee, was approved by unanimous
vote with the provision that the winter pricing be revisited
in the fall to account for market fluctuations.
CONTRACT AWARD: ARCHITECTURAL SERVICES FOR BRANCH LIBRARIES
Luther
and Public Works Director Gary Rohrer brought this request,
to award the low bid for Architectural Services for the Smithsburg
and Boonsboro Branch Libraries before the Board. Murphy & Dittenhafer,
Inc., of Baltimore, Maryland, was the low bidder for the total
lump sum fee of $158,162.50, for the project which calls for
a 106-day project period. The winning bidder has the local firms
of L.S. Grimm and Seibert and Associates among its subcontractors.
Hillis-Carnes, the subcontractor for Geo-technical services is
located in Baltimore but has a Hagerstown Office. Construction
on the libraries could begin with next spring's building season,
Rohrer said. The bid was approved by unanimous vote.
COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS
Commissioner Bill Wivell reported on the Hagerstown Mayor's
Luncheon for the Miss Maryland Pageant.
Commissioner Jim Kercheval reported on the Economic Development
Commission Strategic Planning session held on Monday. The Mack
Truck groundbreaking ceremony has been rescheduled to August
27 th. The Mental Health Authority Board meeting last week discussed
personnel and other issues, while the Mental Health Advisory
Committee discussed impact on local communities of closing of
state hospitals. Black Rock Golf Course personnel met with Engineering
Department representatives to discuss repair of a wall attached
to one of the barns on that site. The repair could cost up to
$20,000 Kercheval said.
Commissioner John Munson commented on the Relay for Life event
that benefited Cancer research. Munson presented $333.00 in funds
from a County Employee Casual Day and additional donations to
that event.
Commissioner Dori Nipps reported on the Local Management Board
recent election of officers and on a presentation regarding test
scores in local schools presented at that meeting.
Commissioners' President Greg Snook told the Board that the state
Department of Safety and Corrections has notified the State's Attorney's
Office of a $2,600 grant to further community program activities
by the Alternative Sanctions Office. The Maryland Department of
the Environment Dam Safety Division sent a letter to the County
regarding the Courtland Manor storm water management pond construction.
Hagerstown Regional Airport recently received an additional 10-year
designation as an Enterprise Zone from the state, Snook said, and
over 700 antique show cars were registered for the car show held
last weekend at the Ag Center, Average Home sale prices in Washington
County were $187,000 to $220,000 in March, with 147 new homes sold
in Washington County, Snook reported.
County Commissioner Dori Nipps presents Citizen
of the Month honors to Emma Lou Schwagel for her service to our
nation.
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