Board of Commissioners

MINUTES OF MEETING TOWN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS SPECIAL CALLED MEETING (STRATEGIC PLANNING RETREAT) FEBRUARY 18 – 20, 2017 The special called meeting of the Board of Commissioners of the Town of Fuquay-Varina, NC was held at Pinehurst Resort on Saturday, February 18 – Monday, February 20, 2017. Members Present: Mayor John W. Byrne Commissioners Present: Blake Massengill (Mayor Pro-Tem) Charlie Adcock William Harris Jason Wunsch Marilyn Gardner Members Absent: None Also Present: Town Manager Adam Mitchell Assistant Town Manager Mark Matthews Mayor Byrne called the meeting to order on Saturday, February 18, 2017 at 10:30 am in the Centennial Board Room at The Carolina Inn at Pinehurst Resort. Mayor Byrne thanked all Town Board members for making it a priority to take from their personal time to attend the retreat. He then made remarks about the importance of the strategic planning retreat. Mayor Byrne then asked Town Manager Mitchell to begin his presentation starting with a review of the retreat agenda. Town Manager Mitchell proceeded to review the agenda for the Town Board Strategic Planning Retreat. Following his review of the agenda, he presented an overview of the Town’s financial position as well as a forecast position into the FY 2022 horizon year. Highlights of the overview included trends in revenue growth over the past five years, projections for the 2016-2017 fiscal year including a surplus of approximately $676,936, forecasted deficits and surpluses for the five year horizon, specifics as it pertains to certain revenues and expenses assumed in the five year horizon, and impacts to unassigned General Fund fund balance over the five year horizon. Town Manager Mitchell then provided a detailed overview and update of the Town’s Major Projects and Debt Service Plan. He reviewed the menu of projects previously identified and prioritized by the Town Board, most of which were road or water and sewer projects. He then discussed changes in funding strategies for the various projects showing the impacts of many grants that the Town has been successful obtaining, including most recently $4,500,000 in LAPP funding for NW Judd Parkway. Town Manager Mitchell showed forecasted unassigned General Fund fund balance over the planning horizon and shared with the Board that the Town’s forecast increased from $11.5-million in available funding after implementing all projects on the plan to $17.5-million. He attributed this growth in projected reserves to successful attainment of grants and improved cost estimates to complete NW Judd Parkway. Town Manager Mitchell then provided a detailed overview of the funding strategy for the Arts Center, as it is a pending project for construction contract award. Following review of the Major Projects and Debt Service Plan, Town Manager Mitchell discussed opportunities for changes to the Town’s fee schedule. Specifically he spoke with the Town Board about vehicle tag fees. He advised that the Town’s current vehicle tag fee is $5 and that the Town can statutorily increase to $25. He informed the Board that the Town’s vehicle tag fee has been set at $5 for at least the last 20 years or longer and that very few if any Wake County towns have a vehicle tag fee set that low. Town Manager Mitchell advised that increasing the fee by $5 increments would generate an additional approximate $100,000 each increment for the Town. Additionally, a fee for reviewing building construction plans beyond the second review was discussed. Discussion surrounded the fact that the Town inspections staff has very limited time to review construction plans on multiple occasions and it is becoming industry standard to charge a fee to recover staff time for review of plans that are submitted beyond the second submittal. It was the consensus of the Town Board to revisit these fees and others during the budget development and review process. Following review of financial information, the Town Board recessed at 12:40 pm for lunch at the Ryder Club Lounge. After lunch, Mayor Byrne reconvened the Strategic Planning Retreat at 2:10 pm in the Centennial Board Room. The Board then received a presentation from the Town Manager concerning matters related to growth opportunities and challenges. Specifically, the Town Manager presented information concerning Town facilities that are reaching or have reached their space capacity. The Manager and Board discussed a vision for a future Town Hall and Police Department. Town Manager presented various options that included building new, which he estimated could cost between $12-milllion and $14-million for both buildings, as well as renovation and expansion of existing buildings that he stated would be much less in terms of estimated expenses. Town Manager Mitchell projected that a renovation of existing spaces could be as low as $5- million to $7-million to accomplish for both facilities. The Town Board discussed the prospect of continuing to have a government presence downtown, perhaps more so than what currently exists. It was the consensus of the Town Board to further investigate development opportunities for a Town Hall and Police Station that meets both current and future needs and bring back recommendations to the Town Board in the near future. Following discussion on Town facilities related to Town Hall and the Police Station, Town Manager Mitchell then presented information pertaining to the need for a strategically located fourth Fire Station. Town Manager Mitchell advised that with the growth and development experienced in the last three years, that there are parts of the Town limits that nearing the outer limits of the five-mile radius for service required by the North Carolina Department of Insurance. He advised that with the planned water and wastewater infrastructure expansion that is on the horizon and a part of the Town’s 5- Year Capital Plan, that there will likely be development in the future that the Town will not be able to service within 5-miles of a current Town fire station. As such, he advised that the Town needs to be planning for and moving forward with the construction of a fourth fire station and that it should be strategically located to best serve current and future development that will allow us to continue to maintain and perhaps improve upon the insurance rating for the Town. The Town Manager then showed a map of the Town and discussed geographic locations where it makes sense to locate a fourth fire station when considering growth trends and the current location of the other three fire stations. After hearing the Manager’s presentation, it was the consensus of the Town Board to immediately pursue conversation and negotiation for the acquisition of property to locate a fourth fire station and bring back a recommendation to the Town Board as soon as reasonably possible. Next, the Town Manager and Assistant Town Manager presented information on the Town’s pursuit of an expansion to the Town’s Extraterritorial Jurisdiction (ETJ). Town Manager Mitchell discussed the importance of expanding the Town’s planning jurisdiction by two-miles, citing that with the development interest, recent proposals in outlying areas, and future construction of I-540, that planning for areas now that are within the two mile radius of the contiguous corporate limits will ensure that the type and form of development that occurs in these areas will be consistent with the vision and character already established for the Town. The Town Board was presented with a map that depicted what areas are proposed to be included in the two mile expansion of the ETJ and the Town Manager spent some time explaining to the Board what that meant in terms of added parcels, acreage, and square miles. Specifically, Town Manager Mitchell explained that the current ETJ encompassed 3,037 parcels, 13.8578 square miles, and 8,869 acres compared to 6,313 parcels, 25.0718 square miles, and 16,046 acres after the two mile ETJ is granted. Town Manager Mitchell also explained that there is a pending annexation of property located between Hilltop Needmore Road and Lake Wheeler Road that if approved will allow the Town to expand even further because the pending annexation will further extend the Town’s contiguous corporate limits. He showed the Board on a map what the further extension of the ETJ would look like and explained that the total parcels would amount to 6,814, the total square miles would amount to 26.6411, and the total acres would amount to 17,050 after the pending annexation were to occur. Town Manager Mitchell then explained that the NC General Statute allow a three mile ETJ expansion once a municipality has reached 25,000 in population as certified by the State Demographer. He advised that while the Town believes the population is closer to 26,000 currently, that the State uses formulas that take information related to development into arrears and therefore are not using current data to base their estimates. Town Manager Mitchell advised that it should only be a year or so before the Town has reached the threshold to pursue the three-mile ETJ expansion and would be doing so at that time. By way of the map presented to the Town Board, it was demonstrated that a three mile ETJ expansion for the nearest contiguous corporate limit point will allow the Town to expand its planning jurisdiction into almost all of its Urban Service Area. It was the consensus of the Town Board after hearing the information presented by the Town Manager and Assistant Town Manager to proceed forward with ETJ expansion as soon as possible. The Town Board then took a short recess at 3:50 pm. Mayor Byrne reconvened the Strategic Planning Retreat at 4:05 pm where Town Manager Mitchell presented on topics related to service delivery and staffing. Town Manager Mitchell first reviewed the Town’s current organization chart and then discussed several recommended changes to organizational realignment. Specifically changes pertaining to code/zoning compliance, GIS, downtown streetscape maintenance and police were discussed. The Board agreed by consensus that the changes described are more in line with industry standard and support management’s decision. It was further the consensus of the Town Board that greater emphasis be given to zoning and code compliance and that they were interested in seeing the Manager’s recommendations to achieve this goal with the upcoming proposed budget. Town Manager Mitchell and Assistant Town Manager Matthews then transitioned to discussing market comparisons as it relates to recruiting and retaining talent in the workforce. Town Manager Mitchell provided the Board with draft findings and recommendations from the consultant, The Maps Group, working with the Town on its Pay and Classification Assessment. He explained that even though it had been nearly 10 years since the Town last conducted a pay assessment to compare the wages it pays its employees to the market, that overall the Town was not that far off market rates because of steady movement in the pay scale with market adjustments each year and because of career ladder advancements accounted for within the organization. He advised that the initial findings of the assessment show that the Town is between 4.2% and 6.36% off the market pace for communities of comparable scale in the region. After providing information and answering questions from the Board, there was general consensus given to the Manager to work to implement a market adjustment consistent with the recommendations provided by the consultant in the FY 17-18 budget. The Strategic Planning Retreat was then recessed at 5:38 pm. The Town Board and management met for dinner at 7:30 pm at the Carolina Dining Room. Mayor Byrne called the Strategic Planning Retreat back to order at 9:30 am on Sunday, February 19, 2017 in the Centennial Board Room at the Pinehurst Resort. He asked the Town Manager and Assistant Town Manager to resume their presentation of agenda materials. Town Manager Mitchell introduced Matt Noonkester, Principal with City Explained, Inc., the Town’s Land Use Plan consultant and Allison Fluitt, Transportation Engineer with Kimley Horn, the Town’s Community Transportation Plan consultant. He advised that Matt and Allison had been invited to attend the Strategic Planning Retreat to provide the Board with a detailed presentation of findings and recommendations pertaining to each of their specific plans. Town Manager Mitchell explained that the morning work session would involve strategic planning regarding Land Use and Transportation. Matt Noonkester made his presentation first regarding the Comprehensive Land Use Plan entitled Community Vision: 2035. He began with a general background on the plan telling the Board that the land use plan will serve as the official adopted statement for future growth and development in the Town. Matt advised that recommendations from the plan document will be used to set public policy, and provide a more predictable environment for public investment, private development, and returns on investment. He went on to advise that the land use plan is meant to serve as a playbook rather than a blueprint. Matt explained that playbooks provide flexibility and options, which is what the plan intends to provide the Town when considering development opportunities in the future. He also explained that the purpose of the plan is to better link government documents together. Matt used the Capital Improvements Plan, Annual Budget, Economic Development Strategy, and Comprehensive Transportation Plan as examples of plans that serve to support the Land Use Plan. Matt then discussed the importance of a well-rounded community and having development options for investors to choose. He advised that before all else, the Town should immediately pursue a 2-mile expansion of its ETJ. Matt advised that with the rapid pace of growth in Fuquay-Varina, Wake County, and the State of North Carolina, that having a 2-mile ETJ will allow the Town to better plan for the growth that is sure to come and protect lands in its planning jurisdiction from developing in a manner that does not promote variety and differences. He then discussed the importance of committing to the plan upon its adoption. He advised that long-term commitment to the plan rather than making emotional decisions will ensure a better-designed form of development throughout the community. Matt commended the Town Board for committing to updating its land use plan and community transportation plan ahead of the construction of I-540, stating that when it is built, the landscape of the Town will forever change. He shared that having a plan in place in advance that involves multiple functions of local government and is developed in such a way that positions the Town for success is preferred. Matt then shared key components of a successful plan, citing the need to understand people and community, being both visionary and pragmatic, engaging stakeholders early and often, focusing on leveraging infrastructure, and identifying high quality deliverables. He then spent time reviewing the guiding principles that make up a complete plan that included land use, transportation, community facilities and services, housing choices, parks and recreation, natural environment, economic vitality, community design, performance, and communication. After discussing guiding principles, Matt discussed the hierarchy of place type categories and supporting infrastructure before leading into discussion about the draft general recommendations. In his discussion of recommendations, Matt advised there are 40, more or less, recommendations that he will be making to the Town via the Land Use Plan that will fall into one or multiple categories that align with the guiding principles. In wrapping up his presentation to the Town Board, Matt shared several focus area concept studies looked at by his team of consultants that provide a flavor of the type of development the Town is seeking to attract over the next 15 to 20 years. Matt concluded by discussing several tools that the Town can use for the application of the Land Use Plan recommendations when working with the development and building community. One such tool he described and explained was the Community Viz software that he stated the Town is licensed to use and that planning staff will receive training for how best to apply the software to development scenarios. Following his presentation there was open discussion by members of the Town Board. Subjects discussed included the importance of having a variety of housing product as the Town continues to develop, being sensitive to the natural environment and using the natural environment as an amenity to development, being thoughtful about where it makes sense for urban and rural development to occur, the importance of maintaining a “sense of place” and perhaps identifying downtown as an added Preferred Growth Area, focusing on community attractors like parks and greenways as the community further develops, concentrating on community design such as building transitions and gateway treatment, and allowing opportunities for mixed density. Following Matt Noonkester’s presentation and discussion with the Town Board, Mayor Byrne called for a 15-minute recess at 11:20 am. Mayor Byrne called the Strategic Planning Retreat back to order at 11:35 am and invited Allison Fluitt with Kimley Horn to make a presentation and provide information concerning the Community Transportation Plan that she and her team are developing on behalf of the Town. In Allison’s presentation, she discussed why it is important to have an adopted Community Transportation Plan and how it works in concert with an adopted Land Use Plan. She shared with the Town Board the current schedule for the development of the Community Transportation Plan and explained that recommendations are being formed currently. Allison, too, explained that the plan is built on a number of guiding principles, which she listed as Land Use and Transportation Integration, Network Mobility, Economic Vitality, Culture and Environment, Neighborhood Character, Multimodal Options, Safety and Security, and System Preservation. She then proceeded to explain the framework of the plan, which involves a needs assessment, recommendation development, and project prioritization. From there, Allison showed two maps; the first being the roadway element map and the second being the bicycle and pedestrian element. Allison spent some time reviewing what each map depicts before transition discussion to cross section design. She explained that the Community Transportation Plan will reference back to the Town’s Specification Manual and will address what modernized cross sections are intended to look like post construction. Allison then reviewed 5 roadway modernization scenarios that are looked at as case studies in the plan document. She described each of those scenarios as Bells Lake Road, Sunset Lake Road, Kennebec Road, Purfoy Road, and Hilltop Needmore Road. Next Allison spent some time discussing next steps in the development of the plan, which include Collector Street and Transit Recommendations, Key Corridors Analysis, Cost Estimates and Project Prioritization, Action Plan, Final Plan Adoption, and Funding and Implementation. Allison concluded her presentation by focusing discussion on Eastern and Western Parkways. She reported to the Town Board that Eastern Parkway encompasses approximately 7.34-miles of roadway and Western Parkway encompassed approximately 5.06-miles. She advised that 10 to 12 different possible scenarios for Eastern and Western Parkways were analyzed as a part of the Community Transportation Plan development process. Allison stated that their findings support that without the two parkways; the town will experience the majority of roads within its transportation network to be above capacity based on population and projected growth data. She provided the Town Board with a map that depicts that by building Eastern and Western Parkway substantial traffic volume decreases occur on major routes. She concluded by explaining to the Board that by 2040 the cross sections of Eastern and Western Parkways will likely need to be four lanes with divided medians but that until approximately 2035, a two lane divided median cross section may suffice. Following Allison’s presentation there was open discussion by members of the Town Board. Subjects discussed included the importance of the Products Road extension, funding strategies, and working towards getting the Eastern and Western Parkways added to the NCDOT Metropolitan Transportation Plan. Allison advised that the Town work with CAMPO to best resolve the goal of adding Eastern and Western Parkway to the MTP. The Town Board then recessed at 1:05 pm for lunch at The Deuce restaurant at the Pinehurst Golf Clubhouse. After lunch, Mayor Byrne reconvened the Strategic Planning Retreat at 2:30 pm in the Centennial Board Room. The Board then received a presentation from the Town Manager concerning matters related to quality of life for citizens and businesses. He began the presentation by reviewing with the Town Board the current Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan and sharing the projects on the plan that have been completed and the few that remain to be completed. Town Manager Mitchell advised that the Town is nearing completion of the projects identified in the current master plan and that PR&CR Director Cox would soon be working with the PR&CR Advisory Board to start the process of developing a new master facilities plan. He advised that the process would include extensive public input to include public drop-in meetings and a community survey. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned into sharing with the Town Board, engineered construction documents for the Fleming Loop Park project. He reviewed with the Board that the newly developed park will include seven regulation sized soccer fields that can also be used for other sports like rugby, field hockey, ultimate frisbee, and lacrosse. He further described the design as including a playground, a 1-mile walking path, multiple restrooms, concessions, maintenance buildings, and lighting. Town Manager Mitchell reported that the Town had worked cooperatively with the organizers of the WRAL Freedom Balloon Festival to ensure that the final design of Fleming Loop Park will accommodate the needs of the festival and that festival organizers are pleased with the design. Next, Town Manager Mitchell reviewed a recent proposal by The Conservation Fund of North Carolina and the owners of the Crooked Creek Golf Course property. He showed the Board a conceptual plan submitted by the two parties of a regional multipurpose park development that he anticipated will cost between $20- million and $30-million to fully develop, which includes the estimated $4-million purchase price of the land. He advised that the two parties are inquiring if the Town would be willing to acquire the property and develop the property of the purposes of a park. Town Manager Mitchell stated that he and the Mayor advised the parties that this would not be a project that the Town would be in a position to take on by itself. He stated that it was suggested that the parties investigate if this is a project that the County is willing to take on. Town Manager Mitchell advised that the parties met with County officials and the County also advised that this is not a project that the County is in position to take on by itself and it would have to push other projects that are in their capital plan back in order to proceed. He stated that Town staff and County staff would be meeting soon to verify the position of each. Town Manager Mitchell also advised that it had been conveyed to the two parties that before the Town could consider a project of this scale that there would have to be evidence of other committed financial partners, the residents of the Crooked Creek residential neighborhoods would need to petition for voluntarily annexation, and the logistics for how residents would be served with water and sewer service would need to be resolved thereby providing assurances to the Town that there would not be a future issue with surrounding property owners. The Town Board then engaged in discussion about the proposal and asked several questions before concurring that this is not a project that the Town is in a position to take on without substantial financial partnership and the other provisions described by management. Town Manager Mitchell then presented information concerning the property that Wake County Public Schools in under contract on with the owners of the Crooked Creek Golf Course. He explained that the Wake County Public School System intends to close on property that they plan to eventually use for the construction of a new elementary school. Town Manager Mitchell explained that representatives of the Wake County Public School System have been engaged and involved in the Town’s future land use plan development and have initiated conversations with the Town about a joint facility agreement whereby the County would construct a Community Center, gym, and multipurpose fields with the construction of the new elementary school with the Town’s financial participation and the Town would have use of the facilities via agreed upon terms. Town Manager Mitchell showed a layout of the site and the Town Board generally agreed that they like the concept of a joint facility use agreement with the County school system, however asked the Town Manager to explore potentially a similar arrangement with the new elementary school planned for construction near the new Willow Spring High School versus the proposed site off Hilltop Needmore Road. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned to discussion regarding the Fuquay-Varina Arts Center. He shared the plans for the Arts Center with the Town Board and reviewed recent bids for construction. Town Manager Mitchell advised how he and staff have worked with the architects and low bidder on the project to shave off approximately $250,000 in costs and also are looking at ways to divert other general contractor mark- ups by independently re-bidding the upfits for the theater. The Board discussed the cost of construction and agreed that following the Town Manager’s review of the Town’s financial position and the timing of when the construction bids were taken that the price to construct will likely be no lower than it is now. There was some discussion about whether there were areas that could be cut from the scope of work in order to lower the cost of construction even further. Town Manager Mitchell recommended against reducing the scope of work citing that the design is well planned and that it will cost the Town more in the future to add amenities back to the building. The Town Board generally concurred with Management’s recommendation. The Town Board then took a short recess at 4:05 pm. Mayor Byrne reconvened the Strategic Planning Retreat at 4:20 pm where Town Manager Mitchell continued his presentation on topics related to quality of life for citizens and businesses. Town Manager Mitchell next shared information with the Town Board concerning recent and future investments in Council Gym. He discussed with the Town Board recent investments in roof replacement, gutters, and floor refinishing. He then transitioned to discussing the need for upgrades to restrooms. Town Manager Mitchell presented usage data of the facility, recent pricing on the improvements, and design schematics. It was the consensus of the Town Board that restroom upgrades are a good investment. Next, Town Manager Mitchell reported on a request for information from an earlier Town Board meeting about outdoor work out equipment and workout stations. He presented information about specific equipment, pricing, and a recommended location for the outdoor equipment if the Board wished to proceed with adding the equipment as a project in the 2017-2018 fiscal year. Town Manager Mitchell advised that the equipment would be best served where an existing walking/exercise path exists and where staff can monitor its use. He suggested the walking/exercise path at South Park that surrounds the baseball fields, has visibility from the Community Center, and can be seen from U.S. 401 South (S. Main Street). The Town Board generally liked the idea of outdoor exercise equipment and agreed that South Park is a good candidate for the equipment if the Town were to pursue the project. The Board asked the Town Manager to do further research and potentially find locations of communities that have previously installed this type of outdoor exercise equipment that members of the Board and staff could possibly go visit. Following discussion about outdoor workout equipment, Town Manager Mitchell transitioned discussion to the downtown parking study. He reviewed a number of draft recommendations provided by the parking study consultants, which include exploring unimproved lots as becoming surface parking, developing an arts center parking management plan, exploring potential agreements for private parking lots being used for public parking, incorporating wayfinding signage that includes public parking designations, and supporting parking elements incorporated into downtown mixed use projects. Town Manager Mitchell showed several maps of downtown to include vacant and unimproved tracts of land to demonstrate where potential parking opportunities exist. He further discussed a vision for possible surface parking improvements in the downtown Fuquay district. The Town Board generally agreed with the information provided by the Town Manager and directed him to further explore surface parking opportunities in both downtown districts and bring back recommendations in the near future. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned discussion to investments in the Lincoln Heights Neighborhood. He presented the Town Board with a map and recalled that this was a topic that had been requested for discussion at retreat. The map shown by Town Manager Mitchell demonstrated the types of public investments made by Town and other partners, which included five water line replacements, past sidewalk enhancements along W. Academy Street, future sidewalk installation along W. Academy Street in 2017, future sidewalk installation along Bridge Street in 2017, future Bridge Street resurfacing in 2017-2018, renovation to Lincoln Heights Elementary School, future crosswalk enhancements at McLean and Bridge Streets in 2017-2018, future construction of NW Judd Parkway, and the future extension of Washington Street. After discussion by the Board, it was the general consensus that the Board was satisfied that considerable public investment either has or will be made in the Lincoln Heights area of the community and that management and staff should continue to evaluate potential ways to further reinvigorate this area. The Strategic Planning Retreat was then recessed at 6:10 pm. The Town Board and management met for dinner at 7:30 pm at the Carolina Dining Room. During dinner, Town Manager Mitchell and Assistant Town Manager Matthews presented on a number of topics to include legislative agenda, lobby efforts, relationships with non-profits, and Interlocal Agreements with Wake County specific to inspections and transit. Town Manager Mitchell first presented on the subject of a legislative agenda and potential lobbying efforts. He advised that there are certain subject matter such as utility fees, municipal revenue options, sales tax changes, and transportation that the Board may wish to formally adopt via resolution as its legislative agenda to discuss with the local delegation and other representatives. The Town Board generally agreed that it was good policy to have a list of broad or local specific topics identified to speak with the Town’s legislative delegation about. Town Manager Mitchell advised that he would bring something forward for the Board to consider at a future Town Board meeting. Town Manager Mitchell then discussed the subject of retaining a lobbyist that could provide assistance to the Town with identifying and securing future grant funding. He advised that while the Town did not receive the TIGER grant that there was value to having support from a lobbyist when visiting Washington DC last year. Town Manager Mitchell expanded by explaining that developing and maintaining relationships with legislators and agency representatives may not yield results right of way but that when the opportunity does arise, Fuquay-Varina will likely be better positioned for success. There was general discussion amongst Board members regarding retaining a federal and state lobbyist, however no definitive conclusion was reached concerning the appropriate timing of moving forward. Town Manager Mitchell transitioned next to speaking about the Town’s future relationship with several existing non-profits as it relates to plans for creating “Friends Of” programs. He stated that the Town was developing guidelines for the creation of a non-profit “Friends Of” program to assist with raising monies to support the parks, arts, and downtown initiatives led by Town departments and committees. Town Manager Mitchell advised that if the Town Board wishes to proceed with the creation of these programs, that thought would need to be given to how best implement a “Friends” program taking into consideration the existence of other non- profit entities and the finite pool of resources to pull from. There was general discussion amongst members of the Board whereby the consensus was to perhaps proceed with a “Friends” program for the parks and bring forth additional information about competing interests with respect to the arts and downtown. Assistant Town Manager Matthews then presented information regarding proposed Interlocal Agreements between the Town and Wake County with respect to building inspections and transit. He advised that Wake County is investing the interest of the local municipalities to allow the County to perform all construction plan review and inspections for County and Wake Tech facility projects. Assistant Town Manager Matthews and Town Manager Mitchell advised against the Town participating in the agreement citing the need to continue reviewing plans and inspecting County and Wake Tech facility projects in order to collect the revenue associated with the projects as well as perhaps justifying the retention of staff in the event of a slow down in housing growth. After brief discussion, the Board agreed by consensus that not participating in the agreement as it stands today is in the best interest of the Town. Assistant Town Manager Matthew then provided a brief update on the Wake Transit 2018 Work Plan and the Interlocal Agreement soon to be distributed to all Wake County municipalities and partners. He reported that the agreement essentially obligates the Town to abide by the County’s process for transit funding if the Town is to receive the benefit of service that will be paid for by the increase in taxes attributable to the 2015 Transit Bond. Assistant Town Manager Matthews and Town Manager Mitchell advised that the agreement was straightforward in the sense that we are agreeing to terms that allow us to gain a service without having to invest local dollars and that they would be bringing forward the agreement after all parties and their legal counsels have had the opportunity to view the document and provide feedback. Mayor Byrne called the Strategic Planning Retreat back to order at 8:30 am on Monday, February 20, 2017 in the Centennial Board Room at the Pinehurst Resort. He asked the Town Manager and Assistant Town Manager to resume their presentation of agenda materials. Town Manager Mitchell then presented strategic planning topics related to economic development and community identity. He spent a few moments reviewing goals and objectives regarding manufacturing recruitment and expansion as well as commercial, retail and office recruitment. Town Manager Mitchell further shared information about the Town’s working relationship with the Fuquay-Varina Chamber of Commerce and Fuquay-Varina Economic Development Commission with respect to co-working initiatives and revolving loan funds. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned conversation to downtown development and the Town’s work with the Development Finance Initiative. He advised that DFI is working with the Town to select an architect to prepare design schematics and cost analysis for a variety of mixed-use applications on the property in the Fuquay District that the Town either owns or has under control. He discussed the timeline for moving forward with the DFI model as well as other locations in Town that staff is in conversing with DFI about to include area in the Varina District as well as The Link. The Board shared interest on the topic and discussed future development in the downtown districts and how the Town may participate in the acceleration of potential development. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned discussion to community identity and presented renderings of wayfinding signs. He shared a proposed design that explains sign options in four ways: gateway signs that are appropriate for specific locations along major thoroughfares and entrances into the community; destination signs that are appropriate for specific public facility locations; proximity signs that are appropriate for areas that are designed for slow speeds and pedestrian activity; and trailblazer signs that are appropriate for areas along major thoroughfares where speeds are typically higher. The Board discussed the proposed design presented by Town Manager Mitchell and generally liked the renderings presented and expressed excitement that the Town was advancing this project. Town Manager Mitchell advised that he and members of the staff have begun to identify locations for signs as well as what content the sign should have on it with respect to specific locations. He stated that staff would immediately begin to order and install destination signs while locations and approvals for the other signs described are worked out. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned discussion to social media presence, particularly the use of video media to tell the Town’s story and promote positive happenings in the Town. He advised that while Facebook and Twitter are excellent tools for relaying information to social media followers in the community, that there are other mainstream social media outlets that are becoming more frequently used to share information. Specifically, Town Manager Mitchell advised that YouTube is an excellent way that communities are sharing information and using video media as a means to assist with economic development and marketing efforts. He showed examples from Asheville, NC and Charleston, SC that were focused on business climate and industry recruitment. Town Manager Mitchell advised that he intends to incorporate funding in the proposed FY 18 operating budget for video production so that the Town can regularly tell its story about the great things happening. He advised that he envisions that some video production may be done in- house and some may be outsourced in order to get a good mix of activity on the Town’s YouTube page. The Town Board liked the idea of video media and particularly liked it as an economic development tool. The Town Board then took a recess at 10:00 am to check-out. Mayor Byrne called the Strategic Planning Retreat back to order at 10:20 am and asked Town Manager Mitchell and Assistant Town Manager Matthews to continue their presentation of information to the Town Board. Town Manager Mitchell advised that the remainder of the Strategic Planning Retreat discussion topics would revolve around infrastructure and information technology. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned discussion into discussing water and sewer infrastructure. He shared a planning map with the Town Board that outlined specific water and sewer infrastructure projects that were previously identified around the time of the 2015 Bond Referendum. Town Manager Mitchell stated that the Town had begun to design the water line infrastructure improvements with plans to go to construction later in the year. He inquired if the Board had any direction or wished to reprioritize any of the infrastructure plans. The Town Board generally agreed that the plans make sense and did not wish to reprioritize at the time. The Board did share enthusiasm to move forward with the plans as expeditiously as possible so as to get ahead of development. Town Manager Mitchell advised that that one change had been made to the plans from the prior year and that was to focus water lines along Optimist Farm Road where previously water lines were show east on Donnie Brook Road. He advised that development interest in the area was driving the decision to make the minor change. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned to discussing water capacity and provided the Town Board a very high level presentation of materials provided by Freese and Nichols, consultant performing the water capacity assessment. He advised that the consultant evaluated future water needs by developing a model that factors usage data and trends along with population projections. Town Manager Mitchell reported that based on the model and projected growth statistics, that the Town has sufficient capacity to serve the public for approximately 7 years. He then advised that the consultant met with 8 water providers in the area to discuss the feasibility of serving and selling the Town water capacity in the future. Town Manager Mitchell stated that at the conclusion of their analysis, the consultant has recommended that the Town take a deeper look and analysis at either purchasing water from the City of Sanford, NC, which would require the expansion of distribution lines approximately 15- miles and the construction of several booster pump stations or consider building its own water treatment plant. He then advised that the consultant will be presenting their findings to the Town Board at a future Town Board meeting with the recommendation of moving forward with Phase 2 of the analysis, which involves taking a closer look at the two recommended solutions. There was general discussion amongst members of the Board with specific interest in learning more about both potential solutions, particularly the construction of the Town’s own water treatment plant. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned to discussion about a potential infrastructure agreement between the Town and the developers of the former Hidden Valley Golf Course. He advised that Pulte Group proposes to develop the former golf course with a single-family open space subdivision. He further stated that the subdivision will be rather large and that Pulte Group representatives and Town staff have begun to discuss how the infrastructure that they will be installing may provide for an opportunity to be upsize and expanded to the point that a great basin or basins may be opened for future development in the southern area of the Town’s service jurisdiction. Town Manager Mitchell then showed the Town Board a map of the area described and reported that he, Jay Meyers, and Town Attorney Mark Cumalander were working with the Pulte Group to prepare an infrastructure agreement for the Town Board’s consideration. There was general discussion amongst the Board, and while the Board liked the idea of partnering with a developer to create additional opportunities they acknowledged that the area described was not seeing as much development interest as properties north of Hilltop Needmore Road and therefore want to better understand the Town’s obligations and cost under the agreement before forming a complete opinion. Town Manager Mitchell acknowledged the point and stated that additional information would be forthcoming. The next topic presented was concerning the Town’s fiber network project. Town Manager Mitchell presented a digital map describing where fiber has currently and is planned to be installed. He discussed the timeline for installing the infrastructure and shared with the Board that staff would be working to establish relationships with residential and commercial broadband providers once the majority of the fiber backbone has been installed. The Town Board encouraged the continued progress on the fiber network plan noting that there are other communities in Wake County doing similar work and that in order to be competitive the Town will need to continue its efforts as well. Town Manager Mitchell then gave the Town Board a high level overview of the work being done by the Town’s IT Governance Committee. He advised that Departments Heads submit their interests to the I.T. Governance Committee and the Committee vets those potential initiatives to better identify the cost benefit of planning and budgeting. Town Manager Mitchell and Assistant Town Manager Matthews both reported that the I.T. Governance Committee was formed as a recommendation coming from the I.T. assessment outsourced in 2015 and is made up of staff from various Town departments. They informed the Board that the Committee is functioning as designed and is helping management to identify only the investments in technology that will yield the highest return in terms of value. Town Manager Mitchell then reported that management and staff are currently evaluating the conversion from AMR (Automatic Meter Reading) to AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure). He stated that the consultant, MeterSys, is currently evaluating the Town’s system and has indicated that an opportunity exists to convert the Town’s system for greater efficiencies and is currently assessing the cost of implementation. Town Manager Mitchell advised that the AMI system would allow the Town to read system meters with the click of a button from Town Hall and is intended to prolong the hiring of future employees as the Town’s customer base grows with the water system. It was the consensus of the Town Board, after general discussion, that the AMI water meter system in theory sounds like a project worth pursuing and is eager to see additional information during the budget process. Town Manager Mitchell then transitioned conversation to updating the Town Board on Hurricane Matthew recovery efforts. He informed the Town Board that management and staff have been working to provide FEMA and North Carolina Emergency Management with specific information related to damage caused by the storm. He advised that the Town is working with FEMA and the State to possibly receive full funding assistance with the stabilization of the stream bank at the Fuquay Mineral Spring Park. He then shared a rendering of a possible installation of gabion baskets along with stone to the stream banks from Spring Avenue to S. Main Street. After general discussion, the Board encouraged the Town Manager and Assistant Town Manager to stay with the process to seek storm related damage funding from FEMA and the State and agreed that if full funding can be achieved to better stabilize the stream banks at the Fuquay Mineral Spring Park that the Town should do its best to make it happen. Town Manager Mitchell then advised the Board that he had concluded his presentation of materials to the Town Board for the 2017 Strategic Planning Retreat. Mayor Byrne then recessed the Strategic Planning Retreat at 12:10 pm for lunch at The Ryder Cup Lounge. While at lunch, Mayor Byrne and the Town Commissioners recapped their priorities coming from the presentation of materials by Town Manager Mitchell and Assistant Town Manager Matthews. The priorities were as follows:  The Board’s #1 priority continues to be advancement and acceleration in transportation and mobility improvements  The Board’s #2 priority is to complete the Land Use Plan and Community Thoroughfare Plan  The Board’s #3 priority is to prepare and submit an application to Wake County for the extension of the Town’s Extraterritorial Jurisdiction to two miles.  The Board’s #4 priority is to continue efforts towards the expansion of water and wastewater infrastructure into the Town’s Preferred Growth Areas as discussed during the retreat  Staffing resources are a priority  Staffing realignment for efficiencies and a greater focus on code compliance should be a focus in the FY 18 budget  Inclusion of pay and classification study recommendations in the FY 18 budget is a priority and programming a pay for performance plan in the FY 18 budget should be attempted  Continued planning for future Town facility needs is a priority  Further work with DFI to develop plans and opportunities for mixed use projects in both the Fuquay and Varina downtown districts  Work to attract more commercial/retail development to better balance the blend of residential and commercial  Continue investing in technology to reduce costs in other areas to include the fiber network and automatic metering infrastructure  Complete the construction and renovation of the Fuquay-Varina Arts Center  Further plan for the creation of a downtown arts district  Focus on economic development voids  Continue to invest in quality of life amenities  Evaluate opportunities to work with Wake County Public Schools on joint facility opportunities in various locations of the community  Focus on maintaining financial flexibility  Work to complete the development of the Fleming Loop Park  Advance the completion of Council Gym restroom upgrades  Further evaluate the potential inclusion of South Park outdoor exercise equipment for the FY 18 budget  Specifically focus on high end retail development as part of the economic development strategy  Evaluate the possibility for inclusion of downtown parking study recommendations in the FY 18 operating budget  Maximize the value of remaining capacity in the Terrible Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant is advance of the plant expansion coming online. Preference should be given to single family residential and retail/consumer commercial projects.  Continue to focus on opportunities for recruiting advanced manufacturing and potential work/live developments  Continued involvement in the County’s transportation and transit strategy is important  Advocate for school facility enhancements and new construction  Continue to develop relationships with the NCDOT and enhancements to the State road network within the Town  Communicate with the development community and enhance the footprint of the Town limits in Preferred Growth Areas and the Town’s Urban Service Area  Developing a plan for eliminating vacant and dirt lots in downtown is important   Work to implement branded signs to include gateway, destination, and wayfinding in the FY 18 budget  Expand the Town’s social media presence to include video media in a goal for FY 18  Further develop plans for future water capacity needs is a priority Mayor Byrne thanked all Town Board members for their input, feedback, and engagement during the Strategic Planning Retreat. He then recognized Town Manager Mitchell and Assistant Town Manager Matthews for their presentation of materials and evident preparation in advance of the retreat. It was the consensus of all Board members that the 2017 Strategic Planning Retreat was informative and encouraging. Each Board member referenced one or two goals and objectives that were of the most significance to them from the summary of priorities. With their being no further information to present by management and no further comments or remarks by members of the Town Board, Mayor Byrne adjourned the 2017 Strategic Planning Retreat at the conclusion of lunch at 1:40pm without objection from members of the Board. Adopted this the 3rd day of April 2017 in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. FUQUAY-VARINA, NORTH CAROLINA John W. Byrne, Mayor ATTEST: (TOWN SEAL) Rose H. Rich, Town Clerk