Minutes - 20050616 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

Commissioner Halkiotis said that he was the one that asked for this information. He said that in order to have a conservation ethic, you have to know what you are working with. He did some calculations and they are running high costs per square foot, excluding the animal shelter. The County's energy costs are about $1.78 per square foot, which is way beyond the industry average in the country. He asked if there was a written plan for the conservation ethic and who would be in charge of it. Wilbert McAdoo said that they are working on the plan now. One of the things that drives the industry costs is heating and air conditioning. They are looking to replace some of the equipment with more energy efficient equipment. Commissioner Halkiotis suggested that Public Works would need professional help to assess this situation of high-energy casts. He would like to bring in an objective third party to tell the employees what has to be done. There also must be a watch dog to make sure things are being done to conserve energy. He said that he has experience in this area and the County can save $200,000 easily. Fire Districts (page S- 76 in budget notebook) Commissioner Jacobs said that, in his opinion, this process has been on cruise control. He said that since 1999-2000, four of the departments have doubled their budget. He does not feel that he has a handle an what is going on. He would like to create a venue far discussion of these issues such as getting the rating down for the fire districts and getting the fire departments involved in the planning process, etc. He asked if there was such a thing as district commissioners that the County Commissioners appoint. Rod Visser said that there is a provision in state law far this arrangement. Years ago the County tried to do that, but the only one that is close to this is the South Orange Fire District. The Clerk's office tried to recruit for this, but there was no interest. Chair Carey suggested looking at this as part of the strategic plan. John Link said that he believes that there should be a continuum of scrutiny of working with the fire departments. He said that the Board of County Commissioners has a right to ask for more reports than it is asking for now. Commissioner Halkiotis said that he attended the Efland Fire Department celebration, where they celebrated getting the highest insurance rating at a class 7. He said that they had some very aggressive individuals that pushed this program, and it was not money but personal initiative. Commissioner Halkiotis said that when they had that work session about the study with the fire districts and the rescue squads, he recalls that this was supposed to be in the EMS budget. He took this to mean that the EMS budget would sustain this study by an independent group. John Link said that the budget had already been printed at that paint. Commissioner Halkiotis said that the County could very nicely look at fire district needs, successes, future goals, and haw rescue squads fit into all of that with equipment purchases and develop a strategic plan for fire and rescue services. Chair Carey would like to know what the process would be first. Commissioner Jacobs suggested adding a tiny bit to each fire district and applying the money to a study. Commissioner Foushee made reference to grant funds and said that the County Commissioners could help the fire district find these grant funds. Rod Visser said that Emergency Management Specialist Eric Griffin has been working on homeland grant funds. c. Begin Deliberations of Budget Decision Points (e.g. per pupil allocation, employee pay and benefits, fire and school district tax rates, etc)