All commissioners present:
Chairman Chad Stewart, Tony Braswell, Ted Godwin, Patrick Harris,
Butch Lawter, Fred Smith, and Larry Wood


COUNTY TO LAUNCH "CONDITIONAL ZONING" JULY 1

Following a public hearing on June 7, the board intends to adopt changes to its land-development rules mandated by a new state law July 1. The big change is the institution of "conditional zoning" --- a relatively new concept that will enable the county to approve "detailed, site-specific plans" with land-use rezonings, explained County Planning Director Braston Newton. Commissioner Smith called that "a great change" over the present system of special-use permits requiring quasi-judicial hearings with limited discretion for the board in regulating particular projects. (The Smithfield Town Council recently added conditional zoning to its land-use code.)


LAND-USE STEERING COMMITTEE TO MEET MAY 17

Planning Director Newton announced that the Steering Committee appointed by commissioners last month to work on a thorough review of the county's land-use regulations over the next several months will hold its first meeting at 6 p.m. Monday, May 17. It will be a "virtual meeting," he noted, but will be recorded for posting on the county's website for the public to observe. Members of the committee were published in the Weekly Sun's April 8 edition>


RV PARK APPROVED NEAR McGEE'S CROSSROADS

With a 5-2 vote, the board rezoned 15.3 acres just south of NC 210 west of its interchange with I-40 to a Resort Residential district to allow The Turner Group Inc. to develop an RV park there. Bill Turner said the project will provide 30 to 50 spaces for Recreational Vehicles. The Johnston County Planning Board and staff had recommended denial of the request, declaring the proposed park "not harmonious with surrounding land uses." Commissioners Harris and Lawter cast the two votes against the rezoning. "I know there's a need for this," Mr. Lawter conceded, but "the term 'resort' really throws me." The McGee's Crossroads area, said, is "not a tourist destination." Noting the location's proximity to I-40, Chairman Stewart countered: "If you don't put 'em there, where do you put 'em?"

Two other rezoning cases considered by the board during its Monday evening session were, in effect, left unresolved:

• With a 6-1 vote, the board denied John Nunziato's request to rezone 6.17 acres along Lassiter Road near its intersection with NC 210 to General Business to allow expansion of his storage business. Except for Commissioner Wood, the rest of the board agreed with a recommendation from the Planning Board that it would be more appropriate to rezone the property with a special-use permit attached. Otherwise, the zoning change would open the way for a variety of other business uses objectionable to neighboring residents. Commissioners expressed their hope that Mr. Nunziato would resubmit his request with the special-use provision.

• The board postponed hearing a request for General Business Special-Use zoning for 0.69 of an acre at 8817 Cleveland Road because no one was present to speak in behalf of the petitioner, Profile Construction, Inc.


ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH'S FEES FOR PERMITS RAISED

The board adopted a revised schedule of fees charged for a variety of services provided by the Johnston County Public Health Department. Most of the increases are for fees charged by the department's Environmental Health Division --- for instance, cost of a permit for a new septic system will rise from $400 to $425; cost of a permit for a new private well rises from $300 to $325. Administrator Steve Strickland said those fees hadn't been raised in four years and were approved unanimously by the county's Board of Health after reviewing rates charged by neighboring counties. The Health Department's new fees are published with the agenda packet for Monday morning's session posted on the county's website>


PROPERTY-TAX COLLECTIONS CONTINUE STRONG

Tax Administrator Jocelyn Andrews in her monthly report to the board said there's "just a little over $1.2 million left to collect" in 2020 county property taxes owed by Johnston's residents and businesses despite the hardships brought on by the coronavirus pandemic this past year. The county's 2020-21 budget anticipates more than $142 million to be collected from taxes assessed on property valuations as of January 1, 2020. Those taxes were due without penalty no later than January 5 of this year.


KENLY FIRM GETS PROPERTY-TAX REFUND

Commissioners granted a refund of $4,219.20 to WLT Matthews, Inc. of Kenly for property taxes paid in error in 2016-2018. Tax Administrator Andrews explained that a sale of property to the firm in 2015 was mistakenly recorded in the Tax Office for two parcels rather than one (the transaction was properly recorded in the Register of Deeds Office). Ms. Andrews assured commissioners that the owner of the property that wasn't transferred will be billed for those taxes wrongly assessed.


FINANCIAL SERVICES AGREEMENT RENEGOTIATED

Commissioners approved a new agreement with Davenport & Company, which has provided financial advisory services to the county for a number of years. Finance Director Chad McLamb said the agreement raises fees for the firm's professional services by $10 an hour --- fees that haven't been raised since 2012. The top fee, for instance, goes to $285 an hour for the firm's senior vice presidents. At the same time, transaction fees covered by the new agreement have been decreased, Mr. McLamb noted.


APPOINTMENTS APPROVED FOR ALL APPLICANTS

Commissioners approved the following appointments:
• Fire Protection District Commission --- Robert Brian Maynard and Mark Morris reappointed representing the Claytex District; John Talton reappointed for Selma; James L. Hodge reappointed and Stephen Pittman newly appointed for Shoeheel; Mark Lane reappointed for Smithfield.
• Firefighters Relief Fund Board of Trustees --- Porter Jones reappointed from the Bentonville Fire Department; Matthew Ryan Blackman newly appointed from the Shoeheel department.

• Pleasant Grove Community Building Board of Trustees --- Natalie Rouse newly appointed.


EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES WEEK PROCLAIMED

The board adopted a resolution proclaiming May 16-22 as Emergency Medical Services Week in Johnston County. Regarding those services, Commissioner Patrick Harris reported that members of the county's EMS Advisory Board have unanimously agreed that the board be disbanded when the county takes over operations July 1 of rescue services based at Four Oaks and 50-210 --- the last two EMS agencies in Johnston operating independently. The Advisory Board was set up years ago when all of Johnston's rescue squads were locally based yet receiving annual allocations of funds from the county.

JUVENILE CRIME PREVENTION BUDGET OK'd

Commissioners gave their blessing to a requested budget for programs operating under auspices of the Johnston County Juvenile Crime Prevention Council during the fiscal year ahead. District Court Judge Addie Rawls, who chairs the council, told the board the proposed budget is based on $363,380 anticipated from the state plus $112,000 from the county --- an increase of $25,000. That money will be spent "for dispositional alternatives for sentencing juveniles who have been adjudicated delinquent or undisciplined," Judge Rawls stated in a memo to commissioners. Included in those alternatives are a Structured Day Program for youth suspended from school or on juvenile probation, a Healthy Choices program aimed at changing "dysfunctional behavior," a Teen Court that hands out "constructive sentences" from a jury of peers, a Passport to Success program to improve interpersonal skills, and The Black and Brown Cultural Exchange "to mentor, educate, and empower minority students through culture awareness, education, and self-esteem enrichment."