RUNDOWN: Bulloch Board Of Commissioners – 06-01-21

Here’s what happened at the June 1, 2021 Bulloch County Board of Commissioners meeting.

Call to Order
Invocation
Roll Call – all members of the Commission were present.

Approval of Zoning Agenda

Williams Family Limited Partnership submitted an application to rezone 25 acres from R-40 (40,000 square feet residential) to AG-5 (Agricultural 5 acres) to allow for a 3MW Solar Electric Power Generation Facility. The property is located on Williams Road. Related documents.

• Planning Director Randy Newman told commissioners that the Planning Commission recommended the request in a 4-0 vote.
• Michael Parnell from Radiant Solar was present to present the request for the rezoning request. He shared that the company was prepared to comply with all conditions set forth for conditional use.
• No one from the public was present to speak in favor of against the agenda item.
• A motion was made to approve the request and it passed unanimously.

Williams Family Limited Partnership submitted an application for a conditional use to allow for a 3MW Solar Electric Power Generation Facility. The property is located on Williams Road.

• Planning Director Randy Newman told commissioners that the Planning Commission recommended the request in a 4-0 vote.
• Stringer made a motion to approve the the measure and it was approved unanimously.

Approval of General Agenda

Public Hearing

Public Hearing and Resolution to Abandon a Portion of County Road No. 122 a/k/a P.B. Brannen Road

In accordance with Georgia law, the Commissioners must hold a public hearing on this issue before taking action to formally abandon this portion of P.B. Brannen Road. The public hearing notice was published in the Statesboro Herald on Tuesday, May 18th and Tuesday, May 25th, and property owners on the road were personally notified of the hearing with a letter sent via regular U.S. mail. If, after conducting a public hearing, the Commissioners find that abandonment of a portion of County Road No. 122, also known as P.B. Brannen Road, is warranted because it has ceased to be used by the public to the extent that no substantial public purpose is served by it or its removal from the county road system is otherwise in the best public interest, then the Commissioners may adopt the attached resolution to certify abandonment of the road.

• No one from the public was present to speak for or against the road abandonment request.
• Commissioner Gibson said he spoke with families in the area and they were not opposed to the road closure.
• Chairman Thompson said this is the first time he had a road closure proposal where no one was present to speak in favor or against.
• Commissioners voted to have another public hearing for input from the public before a vote.

Public Comments

• Randall Simons wanted to address Commissioners about a problem on old Highway 46 with excessive truck traffic between Hwy 119 and Arcola Road. He said DOT told him they would enforce the truck weight limit if the county had signage in place about the weight. He also said the trucks are driving too fast but the Sheriff’s Office told him they cannot do anything about it because the road has never been assessed by DOT. Simons also requested Commissioners make Arcola Road and Old Hwy 46 a 4-way stop to increase the safety precautions at the intersection.

Consent Agenda (The collective items on the Consent Agenda are voted on as a single line item)

• Minutes of May 18, 2021 8:30 AM
• Executive Session Minutes of May 18, 2021
• Sole Source Purchase of Flow Rider Ride Surface. This is a budgeted item in the FY21 CIP schedule listed at $45,000.
• Approve the reappointment of Allen Amason to the Coastal Regional Advisory Council to serve a term of July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2022 (The Board of Commissioners must appoint one non-public representative to serve in this capacity)
• Approve the reappointment of Bryan Burke to the Coastal Area District Development Authority (CADDA) to serve a term beginning January 1, 2020 and ending December 31, 2022
• Approve the appointment of Janice Cawthorn and reappointment of Jeff Giddens to the Library Board of Trustees to serve terms beginning July 1, 2021 and ending June 30, 2024

The Consent Agenda was approved unanimously.

FY 2022 Tentative General Appropriations Budget

Highlights:

• $1.7 million surplus in the general fund at the end of the Fiscal Year, which prevents the county from having to take out a Tax Anticipation Note in an emergency
• ~$88 million in revenues and expenditures across funds
• Approx. $46 million for the General Fund
• $205,000 available for contingency funds
• Plans to pay the POAB dues for Sheriff’s Office employees as the county currently does for firefighters
• Plans to expand staffing at BCSO under the 5-year plan proposed three years ago
• Budget positions county to avoid a millage rate increase with a strong possibility of a rollback
• A more in-depth analysis of the budget will be published when the budget is finalized for public review

New Business

Resolution to Approve Stop-Loss Insurance and Associated Administrative Fees for the 2021-2022 Year for the Employee Health Plan

The resolution authorizes the procurement of stop-loss insurance coverage from Companion Life Insurance Company. The proposal reflects estimated costs as follows:

• Specific stop-loss coverage – $640,013.88 (rates as 10.90% lower than current),
• Aggregate stop-loss – $17,690.40 (rates are 12.29% lower than current), and
• Administrative fees – $134,136.00 (no change from current rates)

Total fixed costs (estimated at $791,840.28) in this proposal are approximately $90,000 less than current rates and more than $225,000 less than the renewal quote from our current carrier.

The broker representative for the county sought proposals from multiple insurance carriers; however, none of them, including our current carrier, responded with terms and pricing as favorable as the proposal from Companion Life. Staff recommended approval.

You can read the administrative fees and full report here.

Approved 5-0.

Commission and Staff Comments

Executive Session – Personnel

Adjourn