Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
14 <br /> 1 Commissioner Richards asked if they have applied for other funding than the federal <br /> 2 transportation grant. <br /> 3 Doug Plachcinski said that the MPO has not. He said there are funds that support the <br /> 4 North/South Bus Rapid Transit Line. <br /> 5 Commissioner Richards asked for clarification. <br /> 6 Doug Plachcinski said there are a lot of projects in the infrastructure act and Orange <br /> 7 County has asked the MPO to see if there are any county projects that would be most appropriate <br /> 8 for some of those funding sources. He said that they will work with the County on that. He said <br /> 9 that some of the enhanced funding that was recently approved supports the North/South BRT <br /> 10 line. <br /> 11 Commissioner Fowler asked if the MPO was becoming part of the Triangle J Council of <br /> 12 Governments (TJCOG). <br /> 13 Doug Plachcinski said that traditionally, the City of Durham has been the lead planning <br /> 14 agency for the MPO. He said that in North Carolina, when the MPOs were developed, the largest <br /> 15 city in the area took the lead. He said that is not necessarily how MPOs still exist in North Carolina, <br /> 16 or in other states. He said there was a governance study that the MPO produced that suggested <br /> 17 that the MPO no longer be housed with the City of Durham. He said they had other alternatives, <br /> 18 such as becoming a standalone agency or joining Triangle J COG. He said the TJCOG is re- <br /> 19 evaluating office space and other logistical items that make it a great time to move forward with <br /> 20 negotiations with them. He said that he is going to ask for authorization to negotiate a new <br /> 21 agreement with TJCOG. He said that he appreciates the City of Durham's support for all of the <br /> 22 years. <br /> 23 Commissioner Fowler asked if TARPO would move or if it would increase the cost. <br /> 24 Doug Plachcinski said there would be an increase in cost because Durham does not ask <br /> 25 for reimbursement. He said that Durham receives reimbursements for the hard costs that the <br /> 26 MPO spends and salaries. He said they would be adding the indirect TJCOG rate but it will be a <br /> 27 very transparent calculation. <br /> 28 Commissioner Price said she appreciates what the MPO is doing now with more data. <br /> 29 She encouraged the MPO to keep up with public engagement. She said that Durham paid <br /> 30 ambassadors to ask people in communities what they really need. <br /> 31 Doug Plachcinski said it's critical to make the process open and engaged. He said he <br /> 32 wanted to make sure materials are straightforward and clear and not full of jargon. He appreciated <br /> 33 Commissioner Price's comments. <br /> 34 <br /> 35 <br /> 36 8. Consent Agenda <br /> 37 <br /> 38 • Removal of Any Items from Consent Agenda <br /> 39 <br /> 40 Commissioner Richards requested to remove item 8-d from the consent agenda. <br /> 41 <br /> 42 • Approval of Remaining Consent Agenda <br /> 43 <br /> 44 A motion was made by Commissioner Price, seconded by Vice Chair McKee, to approve <br /> 45 the remaining consent agenda. <br /> 46 <br /> 47 VOTE: UNANIMOUS <br /> 48 <br /> 49 Discussion and Approval of the Items Removed from the Consent Agenda <br /> 50 <br />