Board of Commissioners

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – The following is a summary of the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners meeting, which was held Dec. 19, 2022, at 6:45 p.m. in Room 118 of the Judge E. Maurice Braswell Cumberland County Courthouse.

Cumberland County Clerk to the Board Andrea Tebbe took the Oath of Office, which was administered by District Court Judge Tiffany Whitfield with Tebbe’s husband, Donald, and son, Grant, standing with her. The Board of Commissioners appointed Tebbe, who previously served as Deputy Clerk to the Board, as Clerk effective Dec. 1, 2022, following former Clerk Candice White’s retirement.

Commissioners recognized Fayetteville-Cumberland Youth Council (FCYC) members Johnathan Charleston, a sophomore at Cumberland International Early College, and Xen Woods, a senior at the North Carolina School of Science and Math, who provided updates on FCYC activities.

Jermaine Walker, County Director of Engineering & Infrastructure, introduced the project team from EwingCole, the architectural firm the Board has hired to design the new Crown Event Center, which will be built in Downtown Fayetteville on property directly in front of the Judge E. Maurice Braswell Cumberland County Courthouse.

Commissioners Vice Chairman Glenn Adams recognized Presidential Volunteer Service Award recipient Alex Gathright.

The Board unanimously approved the following items as part of the CONSENT AGENDA:

1. Approval to Pay Prior Year Invoice
2. Approval of Sole Source Upgrade of Tech Logic Software and Hardware for Library
3. Approval of Fee Schedule Updates
4. Approval of the Request to Allocate Freed Up Capacity Funding to True Vine Ministries to Support the White Flag Event and Budget Ordinance Amendment #B230175 – This item was pulled from the consent agenda and approved unanimously with Chairwoman Toni Stewart recusing herself from the vote.
5. Resolution Supporting Compression Increases For NC Division Of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Detention, Youth Development Center and Court Services Staff
6. Acceptance of Offer to Purchase Surplus Properties Located at 814 Anita Road, 822 Anita Road, 751 Johnson Street, and Off Clyde Street, Fayetteville
7. Approval of Budget Ordinance Amendments for the December 19, 2022 Board of Commissioners' Agenda
8. Approval of Cumberland County Board of Commissioners Agenda Session Items

1. Recipient Agreement with the State of North Carolina for Methodist University Stream Restoration Funding
2. Formal Bid Award for Emergency Watershed Program (EWP)
3. Request NCDOT to Abandon a Portion of SR 4089 (King Road)
4. Request by Sheriff to Use Funds From Detention Center Telecommunications Contract For Detention Staff Retention Incentives and Approval of Budget Ordinance Amendments #B230191 and #B230189

Consent Agenda item H4, Piedmont Natural Gas Request for Easement, was pulled from the consent agenda and the Board voted unanimously to defer it until a future meeting once documents related to previously-requested changes are ready for consideration.

PUBLIC HEARINGS:

• Request by Robert Van Geons for Matching Funds for Economic Development. This request included approval of Budget Ordinance Amendment B230176 appropriating $1.25M in freed up capacity funding to the FCEDC for the contracted services described. – A motion to approve this request failed in a 2-to-4 vote.
• Economic Development Incentive Agreement with Goodyear. The essential terms of the agreement include: (1) Incentive payments for 6 years in an amount not more than 50% of the increase in Goodyear’s taxes annually due to its increased investment in taxable property after January 1, 2023. (2) The direct jobs must be maintained all years, to include beyond the five years required by the state grant. (3) Any breach of the state grant shall constitute a breach of the county agreement. The number of direct jobs to be maintained during the term of the incentive is 1,789. – The Board approved this item unanimously.

REZONING CASES:

• Case ZON-22-0043: Rezoning from A1 Agricultural District to RR Rural Residential/CZ Conditional Zoning District or to a more restrictive zoning district for 106.75 +/- acres; located east of Hummingbird Place and west of Maxwell Road; submitted by George Rose (applicant) on behalf of Astrakel International LTD (owner). – At the applicant’s request, the Board voted 4-to-2 to postpone the public hearing until the January 17, 2023, meeting.
• Case ZON-22-0064: Rezoning from A1 Agricultural District to R15 Residential District/CZ Conditional Zoning or to a more restrictive zoning district for 5.47 +/- acres; located at 1376 and 1384 Cypress Lakes Road and two directly abutting properties; submitted by Michael Adams (applicant) on behalf of Ricky & Tina Nelson (owner). – The Board voted 4-to-2 to deny the request.
• Case ZON-22-0072: Rezoning from R6 Residential District/CU Conditional Use Zoning to R5 Residential District/CZ Conditional Zoning or to a more restrictive zoning district for 20.48 +/- acres; located off Celebration Drive, east of Chicken Foot Road; submitted by June Cowles (applicant) on behalf of Carolinian Properties INC (owner). – Motions to approve and to deny the request both failed to pass in 3-to-3 votes, meaning the request could come back to the Board at a future meeting.
• Case ZON-22-0074: Rezoning from R6 Residential, C3 Heavy Commercial and C(P) Planned Commercial Districts to C(P) Planned Commercial District/CZ Conditional Zoning or to a more restrictive zoning district for 5.51 +/- acres; located West of Gillespie Street, South of Moody Street; submitted by Ronald Hammond (applicant) on behalf of Annette Autry Trust (owner). – The Board voted unanimously to approve the request.

ITEMS OF BUSINESS

• Amendment to Contract to Audit Accounts. Approval of an Amendment to Contract to Audit Accounts for fiscal year 2022 by extending the submission date to January 18, 2023. – The Board approved this item unanimously.
• Grant of a Franchise Agreement for a Deli at the Courthouse and DSS – Second Reading. This is the second of two required readings approving grant of a franchise to the Yi's (Lee's) d/b/a Go 'N Joy Restaurant for a term of three years. – The Board approved this item in a 5-to-1 vote.
• Consideration of Ordinances to Prohibit Camping on County Property. The new ordinance prohibiting camping on county property and amendment to the parking ordinance are on the December 19, 2022, agenda for a second reading because they were not approved by all the commissioners at the first reading on November 21, 2022. – The Board approved both items in 4-to-2 votes.
• Consideration of Approval of Standing Committees of the Board of Commissioners. The Board voted unanimously to reaffirm four committees and create two new committees to develop strategies for achieving Board priorities:
• Finance/Audit Committee – Required by the internal audit charter; the NC State Treasurer requires and Audit Committee to agree to annual audit contract. This committee was established originally in the early 1990s.
• Grays Creek Countywide Water Committee – Established by the Chairman in January 2022 to make recommendations on providing water to communities affected by the Chemours contamination.
• Crown Event Center (formerly Multi-Purpose Center Committee) – Established by the Chairman in January 2022 to oversee the process for constructing the new Crown Event Center.
• American Rescue Plan (ARP) Committee – Established by the Board of Commissioners in April 2021 to provide recommendations on expenditure of ARP funds and freed up capacity.
• General Government Services Committee – New committee to oversee planning and construction of General Government Services Campus.
• Committee to Address Homelessness – New committee to oversee planning and construction of homeless shelter and to provide guidance on policies related to homelessness.
• The Board voted not to reaffirm the County 911 Committee, which was established in 2019 to oversee the construction of the Emergency Services Center and make recommendations on 911 matters. Staff moved into the new Emergency Services Center in December 2022.

The Board went into CLOSED SESSION to discuss an Attorney Client Matter and Real Property Acquisition pursuant to NCGS 143-318.11(a).

Cumberland County Board of Commissioners meetings are streamed live on CCNCTV (Spectrum Channel 5),  the County’s website cumberlandcountync.gov and the County’s YouTube channel at youtube.com/CumberlandCountyNC.