* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:03] BEING LATE. GOOD EVENING, LADIES [A. Presentation - Share the Air Initiative] AND GENTLEMEN. UH, TODAY IS, UH, UH, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER THE NINTH. AND, UH, WE WILL BEGIN OUR WORK SESSION, UH, WITH, UM, PRESENTATION BY MR. BARRY ON, UH, SHARE THE AIR INITIATIVE. OH, I'M SORRY, WITH, UH, SHARE THE AIR INITIATIVE. I, I, I HAD AIRPORT ON MY MIND. . OKAY. HI. YES. THANK YOU SO MUCH. SORRY. UM, SO WE ARE HERE TODAY TO PRESENT, UH, SHARE THE AIR INITIATIVE, UM, BY Y STREET. UH, TABITHA IS THE PROGRAM SUPERVISOR AND THEY PRESENTED TO THE REC COMMISSION ABOUT A YEAR AGO. UM, WE'D LIKE TO IMPLEMENT A VOLUNTARY POLICY, UM, TO SHARE THE AIR IN OUR PARKS AND RECREATION SPACES. SO I WILL TURN IT OVER TO THEM TO PRESENT TO YOU. SORRY, ONE SECOND. WE CAN'T HEAR YOU. CAN YOU TRY AGAIN, PLEASE? GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? YES, MA'AM. YES. UM, THANK YOU SO MUCH, UM, FOR HAVING US, UM, THIS EVENING. WE HAVE TWO OF OUR YOUTH MEMBERS THAT ARE WAITING IN THE, THE WAITING ROOM. CAN WE HAVE THEM ENTER INTO THE, TO THE MEETING? GOOD EVENING. CAN EVERYONE SEE MY SCREEN VERSUS MEET THE PRESENTERS? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND I'LL TURN IT OVER TO OUR GROUP MEMBERS, UM, TO RESPECT EVERYONE'S TIME. YOUR GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. MY NAME IS . I'M FROM PORTLAND HIGH SCHOOL, AND THIS IS MY FIRST YEAR ON THE WASHINGTON LEADERSHIP TEAM. HELLO, EVERYONE. MY NAME IS I HIGH SCHOOL AND I HAVE BEEN LEADERSHIP TEAM FOR FOUR YEARS. SO WHAT IS STREET? WE ARE THE LARGEST STATEWIDE INITIATIVE IN VIRGINIA, AND WE'RE ALSO FUNDED BY THE VIRGINIA CLINIC FOR HEALTHY YOUTH. WE HAVE TWO CAMPAIGNS, FOCUS ON AND OBESITY. AND TODAY WE'LL BE TALKING ABOUT AIR CAMPAIGN. OUR GOAL IS TO PROMOTE PERCENT E FREE OUTDOOR AND RECREATIONAL AREAS TO PROMOTE A HEALTHIER VIRGINIA. NOW, WHY SHOULD YOU GO TOBACCO FREE? BESIDES IS CLEAR, SECONDHAND SMOKE IS JUST AS DANGEROUS AS FIRSTHAND SMOKE. AND WHEN YOU GO OUTSIDE, USE IT TO BREATHE FRESH AND CLEAN AIR. NOT ONLY THAT, TOBACCO AND E-CIGARETTE USE AND OUTDOOR PLACES CREATE LITTER THAT'S NOT ONLY DANGEROUS TO HUMANS, THE ANIMALS, BUT ALSO THE ENVIRONMENT. ONE SUCH ONE SUCH EXAMPLE IS WILDFIRES. SOMETIMES WHEN PEOPLE SMOKE CIGARETTES, THEY'LL THROW THEM ON THE FLOOR WHILE NOT BEING FULLY LIT OR NOT BEING FULLY OUT, AND THEY CAN GET OUT OF HAND VERY FAST. AND PARTS OF CIGARETTE SHOULD PROMOTE HEALTHY ACTIVITIES BECAUSE YOUTH MODEL ADULT BEHAVIORS. NOW, THIS IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT FOR ME BECAUSE I HAVE A YOUNGER BROTHER, AND ONE, ONE THING WE REALLY LIKE DOING IS GOING OUTSIDE, TAKING A WALK OR GOING TO THE PARK. AND I REALLY WANT HIM TO BE ABLE TO GO OUTSIDE IN SAFE ENVIRONMENTS WHERE HE CAN DEVELOP INTO A HEALTHY BODY SAFETY. SO THE REASON THAT WE [00:05:01] OFFER A VOLUNTARY POLICY IS BECAUSE VIRGINIA IS PART OF THE DI RULE, WHICH MEANS THAT THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PASS, PASS SMOKE FREE LAWS THAT ARE STRONGER THAN THE STATE LAW. SO THAT'S WHY WE OFFER THE SOLUTION OF A VOLUNTARY POLICY THAT CAN BE ADOPTED, WHICH WE OFFER FREE SIGNAGE TO HELP PROMOTE OUR A HUNDRED PERCENT TOBACCO AND E-CIGARETTE FREE GOAL. SO ADOPTING A COMPREHENSIVE POLICY MEANS ENCOURAGING NO TOBACCO AND ELECTRONIC SMOKING DEVICE USE IN ALL OUTDOOR VOCATIONAL AREAS AT ALL TIMES, POSTING TOBACCO FREE AND E-CIGARETTE FREE SIGNS IN VISIBLE PROMINENT LOCATIONS, NOTIFYING STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS ABOUT THE TOBACCO FREE AND E-CIGARETTE FREE POLICY AND ENCOURAGING ADHERENCE ANNOUNCING AND POSTING THE POLICY TO INFORM YOUR COMMUNITIES. NOW, OUR CALL ACTION FOR YOU IS TO SIGN A COMMITMENT FORM. WE WANT YOU TO SIGN A, FOR A FORM THAT COMMITS YOU TO ADOPTING OUR VOLUNTARY POLICY THAT PROMOTES NO TOBACCO AND VAPE IN YOUR PARKLAND. NOW, OF COURSE, YOU DON'T WANNA ADOPT A POLICY THAT NOBODY WANTS. SO WHAT ARE ACTUAL VIRGINIA CITIZENS SAYING? WELL, 95% OF VIRGINIANS BELIEVE THAT CIGARETTES EMPTY E-CIGARETTE AND VAPING CARTRIDGES ARE LITTER. 81% OF VIRGINIANS BELIEVE THAT TOBACCO ITERATE NEGATIVELY IMPACTS THEIR EXPERIENCE. AND 93% OF VIRGINIANS ARE IN FAVOR OF TOBACCO FREE ALCOHOL POLICY. AND WE HAVE COLLECTED OVER 7,000 MESSAGES OF SUPPORT FOR OUR SHARE THE AIR CAMPAIGN. FOR EXAMPLE, A VIRGINIA RESIDENT IN THE 2 2 9 0 1 ZIP CODE AREA SAYS I SUPPORT A SMOKE-FREE AND VAPOR FREE SPACE BECAUSE SECONDHAND SMOKE SETS A BAD EXAMPLE FOR OUR KIDS AS WELL AS COMPROMISES THEIR HEALTH. THE DIRECT HEALTH EFFECTS OF ALLOWING SMOKING AND VAPING SHOULD NOT BE IGNORED. AND ESTABLISHING SMOKE-FREE ZONES ESTABLISHES THAT PRECEDENT. SO WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY PROTECTED OVER 2.6 MILLION VIRGINIANS FROM COUNTIES AND LOCALITIES ADOPTING OR SIGNING OUR COMMITMENT FORM. FOR EXAMPLE, SOME RECENT SIGNINGS OF OUR COMMITMENT FORM IS FAKI COUNTY AND GREEN COUNTY, AND WE WOULD LOVE TO ADD WARREN COUNTY TO OUR LIST. UM, SOME AROUND COUNTY THAT HAVE ALSO SAID WITH THIS IS, UH, EMPORIA AND GREENSVILLE COUNTY. NOW, BEING A PARTNER IS A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE. JUST TAKE IT FROM A FORMER LEXINGTON CITY MANAGER SAYING THE LEXINGTON CITY COUNCIL HAS ALWAYS BEEN SUPPORTIVE OF ACTIVITIES THAT ENCOURAGE A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE. THE SHARE THE AIR PROGRAM IS A NATURAL FIT FOR THE LEXINGTON COMMUNITY AND TO KEEP ALL RESIDENTS ON A PATH TO HEALTHCARE LIVES AND BEING A PARTNER COMES WITH OUR FREE TOBACCO FREE SIGNAGE PACK THAT COMES WITH ALUMINUM SIGNS THAT YOU CAN PICK ON YOUR LAMP POST OR FENCES OR DEC DETAILS THAT YOU CAN PICK ON YOUR WINDOW. AND WE OFFER MANY FREE, FREE RESOURCES THAT ARE AVAILABLE IF YOU, IF WARREN COUNTY AGREES TO SIGN OUR FORM. FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAVE PLENTY OF MEDIA COVERAGE THAT CAN POSITIVELY CREATE A BETTER IMAGE FOR THE COUNTY, AS WELL AS, AGAIN, OUR FREE SIGNAGE. AND I'LL NOW PASS IT OVER TO TABATHA TO TALK ABOUT YOUR DEPARTMENT, AND I'M ON MUTE. UM, SO THANK YOU ALL, UM, AGAIN FOR, UM, HEARING OUR PRESENTATION AND THANK YOU DOULA AND ELAB. I'LL OPEN IT UP TO SEE IF THERE ARE ANY QUESTIONS FOR US THAT WE CAN HELP TO ANSWER. YOU ANSWERED MY FIRST QUESTION ABOUT WOULD YOU PROVIDE SIGNAGE? SO THANK YOU. UM, I WANT TO UNDERSTAND THE VOLUNTEER ASPECT OF THIS. ARE YOU, UM, ARE YOU ASKING, UH, US AS A COUNTY TO VOLUNTEER AND THEN WE WOULD, I GUESS PER THE DYLAN RULE, WE COULDN'T CREATE THE ORDINANCE, BUT WE WOULD HAVE SIGNAGE THAT WOULD STATE TO PEOPLE THAT IT'S A NO SMOKING ZONE. UH, AND WOULD THERE BE FINE PRINT THAT THAT'S A, A VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE THING, OR WOULD WE BE ASKED TO SOMEHOW EN EN ENFORCE THAT? NO. SO THERE IS NO ENFORCEMENT GIVEN THAT VIRGINIA IS A ENROLLED STATE. AND SO WHAT OUR VOLUNTARY POLICY IS SAYING IS THAT THIS IS SO VOLUNTARY, WE ARE ENCOURAGING THAT EVERYONE JUST REFRAINS FROM USING TOBACCO AND VAPE PRODUCTS MM-HMM . AND USUALLY WHEN VISITORS SEE THE SIGNAGE, THEY NATURALLY COMPLY. BUT ON THE SIGNAGE, IT EXPLICITLY SAYS THAT, PLEASE REFRAIN. LIKE IT'S, NO, IT'S NOTHING WHERE WE'RE ASKING THE PARK AND REC DEPARTMENT, FOR EXAMPLE, TO PUT ANY PENALTIES OUT OR FINES OR KICKING KICK ANYONE OUT OF THEIR PARKLANDS. OKAY. IT'S SOLELY VOLUNTARY. THANK YOU. [00:10:01] YOU'RE WELCOME. SO WE'RE, WE WOULD BE CONCENTRATING THIS JUST IN THE PARK AREAS? YES, MA'AM. OKAY. AND I, I'VE BEEN TO THE POOL ENOUGH WHERE I WOULD APPRECIATE THAT . SORRY, THE AUDIO WENT OUT, SO I'M NOT, I'M NOT SURE IF THERE WAS A QUESTION THAT WAS DIRECTED TO US, OR IF I'M INTERRUPTING, MY APOLOGIES. UH, NO, JUST, I WAS MENTIONING AT THE POOL, I DEFINITELY, THERE'S A LOT OF SMOKING AT THE POOL, SO THAT WOULD ACTUALLY BE NICE. WELL, SO IF THERE ARE NO FURTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. THANK YOU. I THINK THIS IS A, A GOOD PROGRAM. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING US. UM, AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, UM, TIFFANY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO, TO FORWARD YOUR QUESTIONS TO US. UM, WE ARE HOPING TO PURSUE A PARTNERSHIP WITH YOU, SO THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME THIS EVENING. OKAY. YOU'RE WELCOME. THANK YOU. MORNING, MR. CHAIRMAN, MEMBERS OF [B. Presentation - Department of Social Services Supervisors (CPS, Permanency, Prevention)] THE BOARD. GOOD EVENING. PARDON ME. UH, IT'S MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE YOU TO THE THREE HARDEST WORKING LADIES IN PREVENTION AND, UH, SOCIAL SERVICES. OUR, UM, PERMANENCY SUPERVISOR KAYLEE MILLS, OUR CPS SUPERVISOR, RACHEL ODIN, AND OUR PREVENTION SUPERVISOR, MEREDITH YOST. ALL RIGHT. I'M RACHEL. I'M THE CPS SUPERVISOR FOR WARREN COUNTY SOCIAL SERVICES. I'M KAYLEE MILLS. I'M THE PERMANENCY SUPERVISOR FOR OUR FOSTER CARE UNIT. I'M MEREDITH T I'M THE PREVENTION SUPERVISOR FOR THE THREE PS MICROPHONE. ALRIGHT. UH, WE, UM, ARE THE THREE PS, UM, AS WE ARE CALLED. UM, WE ARE THE CHILD WELFARE TEAM. UM, WE WORK TO PREVENT FUTURE ABUSE AND NEGLECT, PROMOTE SAFETY AND WELLBEING FOR OUR FAMILIES AND PERMANENCY, UH, FOR THE CHILDREN IN OUR COMMUNITY. UM, PROTECTION WOULD WORK FOCUS ON INVESTIGATING AND ASSESSING CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT COMPLAINTS FOR CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF, UM, 18. IN PREVENTION, WE PROVIDE SUPPORTS TO PREVENT FUTURE ABUSE AND NEGLECT, UH, AND PREVENT FOSTER CARE ENTRY FOR CHILDREN AGES ZERO TO 18. AND THEN OUR PERMANENCY UNIT FOCUSES ON WORKING WITH CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE, UM, FROM ZERO TO 18, AND THEN 18 TO 21. UM, AND WE WORK TOWARDS THE REUNIFICATION OF FAMILIES AND THEN IF NOT POSSIBLE, ALSO PERMANENCY FOR THEM. SO, SO I, I THOUGHT THAT THIS, THAT, UH, ONCE, ONCE THEY'RE ADULTS AT 18, BUT IT SOUNDS LIKE THAT, THAT THERE'S STILL A, A PROGRAM AFTER 18 UP UNTIL 21. YES. OKAY. GOT IT. UM, SO FOR PROTECTION, WE, UM, IT'S FOR CHILDREN FOR THE AGES BETWEEN ZERO TO 18, AND WE'RE INVESTIGATING THE ABUSE AND NEGLECT ALLEGATIONS ALL THE WAY FROM PHYSICAL ABUSE ALL THE WAY UP TO CHILD FATALITIES, UM, AND EVERYTHING ELSE IN BETWEEN. UH, WITH PREVENTION, WE ARE WORKING WITH, UH, FAMILIES WHO ARE AT HIGH RISK FOR FUTURE ABUSE OR NEGLECT, UM, AND THOSE WHO ARE REQUESTING SERVICES AND SUPPORT. AND THEN OUR PERMANENCY PROGRAM, LIKE I PREVIOUS, UH, PREVIOUSLY SAID IS ZERO TO 18. AND THEN WE HAVE OUR FOSTERING FUTURES PROGRAM THAT SERVES YOUTH FROM 18 TO 21 AS THEY TRANSITION INTO ADULTHOOD. THERE IT GOES. SO FOR, UH, PROTECTION, UM, IN ORDER FOR IT TO BE A VALID CPS REPORT, UM, IT HAS TO MEET THE FOUR CRITERIA, WHICH IS, UM, IT MEETS THE DEFINITION OF ABUSE OR NEGLECT. UM, THERE'S A, AN ADULT AND A CARETAKING ROLE. UM, THERE'S A CHILD UNDER THE AGE OF 18, AND IT HAS TO BE IN JURISDICTION. UM, IF IT MEETS ALL THOSE, IT WILL THEN BE ASSIGNED A DIFFERENT PRIORITY LEVEL, WHICH COULD GO FROM 24 HOURS, IMMEDIATE RESPONSE TO [00:15:01] 40 WORKING HOURS. UM, AND THEN MY TEAM WILL GO OUT THERE AND ASSESS THE SITUATION, UM, WORK WITH THE FAMILY ABOUT IDENTIFYING THE BARRIERS, EDUCATING THEM, PROVIDING THE RESOURCES AND THE CONNECTION TO POSSIBLE SERVICES. IF THE FAMILY NEEDS MORE CASE MANAGEMENT, UM, AND NEEDS MORE ASSISTANCE WITHIN THEIR HOME, UM, THEN PREVENTION WOULD COME INTO PLAY TO ASSIST WITH THAT. SO, SO DOES THAT MEAN THAT, UH, WHAT, WHEN YOU SAY 24 TO 40 HOURS, CAN YOU EXPLAIN THAT A LITTLE BIT FURTHER? SO, UM, IF ANY KIDS UNDER THE AGE OF TWO, UM, IT WOULD BE IMMEDIATE RESPONSE WITHIN 24 HOURS, I HAVE TO SEE THAT CHILD. UM, AND THEN IT CAN GO ALL THE WAY UP TO 40 WORKING HOURS. IT'S BASED OFF OF LIKE A TREE WITHIN OUR SYSTEM. SO THERE'S DIFFERENT CRITERIA THAT MAKES IT A 24 TO 48 TO 40 WORKING HOURS. UM, IF IT'S HISTORICAL, IT'S MOST LIKELY GONNA BE 40 WORKING HOURS. UM, IT COULD REALLY JUST VARY ON WHAT THE ALLEGATION IS. OKAY. UH, IN PREVENTION, UH, WE ARE WORKING WITH FAMILIES TO PROVIDE INFORMATION SERVICES SUPPORT, UM, IN ORDER TO STRENGTHEN FAMILIES. UM, WE, UM, ARE PARTNERING WITH THOSE FAMILIES TO HELP THEM ACCESS RESOURCES WHILE ALSO PARTNERING WITH OUR COMMUNITY BASED SERVICES TO ENSURE THAT THOSE CONNECTIONS ARE BEING MADE. UM, AND WE'RE WORKING, UM, WITH THOSE FAMILIES TO HOPEFULLY, UM, PREVENT OUT OF HOME PLACEMENT AND FOSTER CARE. UM, THE IDEA IS TO, UM, KIND OF THE, THE MENTALITY IS PROVIDING INTENSIVE UPFRONT SERVICES TO GIVE FAMILIES THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK WITH US, UM, TO, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE, UM, COMPLETELY VOLUNTARY. IT COULD BE COURT, UH, INVOLVED, UM, BUT WE'RE, OUR HOPE IS TO AVOID CHILDREN COMING INTO CARE, UM, AND HOPEFULLY LOWER OUR FOSTER CARE NUMBERS IN THE COUNTY. YES. ALL RIGHTY. SO, OUR PERMANENCY UNIT, UM, WE TAKE STEPS FOR ALL OF OUR CHILDREN IN FOSTER CARE TO PROVIDE RESOURCES FOR FAMILIES AND THEN THE CHILDREN THEMSELVES, UM, TO PROMOTE REUNIFICATION. SO, UM, AND ESSENTIALLY SENDING THOSE CHILDREN HOME IN THE BEST WAY. WITH THAT WE CAN, STRENGTHENING THE FAMILY UNIT, UM, AND TRYING TO PREVENT ANY FUTURE ABUSE OR NEGLECT OR HAVING THESE CHILDREN COME INTO THE SYSTEM AGAIN. UM, WE'RE HELPING TO NAVIGATE THESE CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES THROUGHOUT IT, BECAUSE AS WE KNOW, A LOT OF THE CHILDREN THAT COME INTO FOSTER CARE HAVE EXPERIENCED A LOT OF TRAUMA, AND WE'RE TRYING TO GIVE THEM THAT TRAUMA INFORMED CARE AS WELL. BUT WE ALSO RECOGNIZE TOO, THAT COMING INTO THIS SYSTEM AND GOING INTO A FOSTER HOME AS WELL, CAN BE VERY TRAUMATIC FOR A CHILD AND THEIR FAMILY. UM, WE TRY TO PROVIDE ALTERNATIVES FOR OUR KIDS. SO WE ARE PUSHING, UM, THE BIG KINSHIP INITIATIVE, UM, FOCUSING ON KIN FIRST NOW. SO WHEN CHILDREN COME INTO FOSTER CARE, WE'RE WORKING WITH FAMILY MEMBERS, UM, TO HOPEFULLY KEEP CHILDREN IN THEIR COMMUNITY BECAUSE ONCE THEIR WORLD HAS KIND OF BEEN FLIPPED UPSIDE DOWN, UM, IF WE CAN HAVE A CHILD THAT'S PLACED WITH FAMILY, WITH SOMEONE THEY'RE FAMILIAR WITH, AND THEY CAN GO TO THE SAME SCHOOL, THEY CAN KEEP THEIR FRIENDS, THEY CAN STILL DO LIKE CLUBS, THEY CAN, UM, DO DIFFERENT ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, IT IT CAN REALLY HELP A CHILD TO GET THROUGH THAT AND HELP NAVIGATE IT A LITTLE BIT BETTER. UM, AND THEN WE'RE ALSO SUPPORTING OUR ADULTS AS WELL AS THEY'RE AGING OUT OF FOSTER CARE FROM 18 TO 21. UM, 'CAUSE NO CHILD AT 18 IS REALLY READY TO STEP OUT ON THEIR OWN AND BE ABLE TO DO EVERYTHING INDEPENDENTLY. SO THE POINT OF THAT PROGRAM IS TO GIVE THEM SOME INDEPENDENT LIVING SKILLS AND REALLY, UM, PUT THEM IN A GOOD SPOT. AND THEN FOR OUR COMMUNITY, WE KIND OF JUST DID SOME STATISTICS FOR THE FAMILIES THAT WE SERVE, UM, WITH WARREN COUNTY DSS, AND WE WANTED TO JUST KIND OF, UM, DISPLAY THE INCREASING TREND THAT WE'VE HAD OVER THE LAST THREE YEARS. UM, RACHEL, DID YOU WANT TO TOUCH ON? SO YEAH, SINCE, UM, OUR COMMUNITY GETS BIGGER, UM, WE ARE SEEING AN INCREASE OF CPS REPORTS BEING MADE. UM, AS YOU CAN SEE FROM 2022, WE'RE AT 6 41, AND THEN IN 2024 WE'RE AT 7 68. SO RIGHT NOW WE'RE ON PACE TO BE AT THAT IN 2025. UM, I THINK YOU SEE THE INCREASE BECAUSE OF, UM, THE MANDATED REPORTING, UM, HAPPENING, WHICH IS A GOOD THING. UM, I THINK I'M GOOD. YEAH. [00:20:01] UH, OUR PREVENTION NUMBERS, UM, ARE INCREASING. UM, I WILL SAY OUR PREVENTION NUMBERS RIGHT NOW ARE ABOVE AVERAGE FOR THE YEAR. UM, AND I THINK THAT'S A REALLY GOOD THING BECAUSE I HOPE THAT WE CAN GET MORE PREVENTION CASES. UM, I, I THINK WE'VE HAD MORE, UM, CONNECTION WITH THE COMMUNITY, UM, AND MORE PEOPLE VOLUNTARILY REACHING OUT AND ASKING FOR SUPPORT. UM, AND I THINK THAT, UM, THE, THE HARD WORK THAT OUR TEAM HAS BEEN, UM, OUT IN THE COMMUNITY, MAKING SURE THAT PEOPLE KNOW THAT SOCIAL SERVICES HELPS PEOPLE AND WE'RE NOT ALWAYS SCARY. UM, SO WE'RE, WE'RE HERE TO HELP. UM, AND WE'RE HERE TO, UM, YOU KNOW, PREVENT TRAUMA. I THINK GOING OFF OF THAT AS WELL, WELL, IF THE CPS REPORT IS MADE AND IT DOESN'T NEED A DEFINITION OF ABUSE AND NEGLECT, OR DOESN'T MEET THOSE FOUR CRITERIA, THE DEPARTMENT, UM, HAS A LETTER THAT'S GENERATED AND THEN WE CAN SEND IT OUT TO THAT FAMILY SAYING, HEY, WE'RE HERE IF YOU NEED US. UM, BASICALLY SAYING THAT WE RECEIVED A REPORT AND IT DOESN'T MEET THE DEFINITION OF ABUSE AND NEGLECT, BUT HEY, WE'RE HERE IF YOU NEED US. AND MOST OF THE TIME I DO GET PHONE CALLS SAYING, HEY, WHAT'S THIS REPORT ABOUT? UM, AND I CAN EXPLAIN TO THEM THAT WE'RE NOT THE BAD GUY, THAT WE'RE HERE TO PROVIDE RESOURCES AND STUFF LIKE THAT, WHICH HAS ALSO BEEN HELPFUL WITH INCREASING THE NUMBERS. UM, I USED TO BE THE PREVENTION SUPERVISOR, SO I CAN KIND OF TOUCH BASE ON THIS, BUT A LOT OF THE NUMBERS THAT WE'RE SEEING TOO FOR PREVENTION IS FROM THE COURT SYSTEM, UM, WITH YOUR DELINQUENCY AND YOUR TR TRUANCY AND STUFF LIKE THAT COMING THROUGH. SO AS THAT INCREASES OUR NUMBERS FOR PREVENTION, THEY'RE PROBABLY GONNA INCREASE AS WELL. WHEN YOU, UM, WHEN YOU SEND OUT THAT LETTER AND SAY, WE'RE HERE IF YOU NEED US. DO YOU, UH, YOU SAID THEY DO CALL TO ASK WHAT THE REPORT WAS, BUT DO THEY ACCEPT YOUR OFFER FOR, FOR RESOURCES TO HELP? SOMETIMES YEAH. GET SOME ENGAGEMENT. MOST OF THE TIME THEY SAY, UM, EVERYTHING'S GOOD, NOTHING'S HAPPENING HERE. BUT IF I CAN JUST PUT LIKE A LITTLE PIECE OF INFORMATION IN THEIR EAR AND MAYBE NEXT TIME THEY'LL COME IN. YEAH. AND OR IF IT'S LIKE SOMEBODY WITHOUT FOOD, UM, AND THEY DIDN'T KNOW WE HAVE A FOOD PANTRY, I CAN SAY, HEY, DID YOU KNOW THAT WE HAVE A FOOD PANTRY? AND THEY'RE LIKE, OH, NO, BUT I'M GOOD WITH FOOD NOW. AND MAYBE NEXT TIME THEY CAN COME UP TO THE DEPARTMENT AND GET A FOOD BOX. OKAY, THANK YOU. SOMETIMES. AND THEN FOR OUR PERMANENCY UNIT, UM, WHEN I STARTED HERE IN 2022, OUR, OUR NUMBERS SINCE THEN HAVE MORE THAN DOUBLED. UM, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF CHILDREN COME INTO FOSTER CARE AND, UM, OUR HOPE IS THAT WITH THE PREVENTION CASES INCREASING, THAT WE CAN GET SOME EARLY INTERVENTION IN WITH THESE FAMILIES, UM, BEFORE ULTIMATELY IT DOES TURN INTO A CHILD COMING INTO FOSTER CARE. UM, WE UNDERSTAND THAT THERE ARE SOME SITUATIONS WHERE THAT'S INEVITABLE AND IT'S GONNA HAPPEN, BUT OUR HOPE IS THAT WITH REALLY PUSHING ALL OF THIS, AND THEN ALSO OUR KINSHIP INITIATIVE AS WELL, THAT AT LEAST WHILE THESE CHILDREN ARE IN FOSTER CARE, THAT THEY'RE WITH FAMILY AND IN THEIR COMMUNITY. YES. SO OUR MISSION IS, UM, WE STRIVE TO PROVIDE EARLY INTERVENTION AND SUPPORT SERVICES TO PROMOTE SAFER AND STRONGER FAMILIES. ULTIMATELY, THAT'S WHAT WE WANT FOR OUR COMMUNITY. UM, WITH THE HELP AND SUPPORT OF OUR COMMUNITY, WE CAN GIVE THE FAMILIES THE TOOLS THAT THEY NEED, UM, TO BUILD RESILIENCE AND EMPOWER THEM TO LIVE HAPPIER AND MUCH HEALTHIER LIVES. THANK YOU. DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR US? NOT REALLY A QUESTION. I JUST WANNA GIVE YOU, UM, TO THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU DO. IT'S A VERY TOUGH JOB. AND I THINK THIS THREE-PRONGED APPROACH AT THIS, YOU KNOW, IT USED TO BE YEARS AGO, DSS WAS LIKE, OH, THEY SWOOP IN, TAKE YOUR KIDS AND YOU NEVER SEE 'EM AGAIN. UM, AND HAVING THAT RESOURCE, BECAUSE A LOT OF TIMES IT'S JUST SITUATIONS THAT GET OUT OF CONTROL. MM-HMM . UM, THINGS ARE JUST, YOU KNOW, MAYBE SOMEBODY'S HAVING HEALTH ISSUES OR WHATEVER, AND THEY JUST NEED SOME HELP GETTING OVER THE HUMP. AND INSTEAD OF TAKING CHILDREN AND DISPLACING THEM WHEN IT MIGHT BE A, SOMETHING THAT CAN BE RESOLVED, IT'S NOT A LONG-TERM PROBLEM. SO I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT THAT'S BEING DONE SO THAT CHILDREN CAN STILL BE IN A SAFE, HEALTHY PLACE, UM, AND GET THE HELP AND THE PARENTS GET THE HELP AS WELL. SO I, I'M GLAD AND I, I KNOW YOU GUYS ARE WORKING HARD AT THAT AND I APPRECIATE IT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THAT IS OUR GOAL. MM-HMM. YES. THAT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I GOTTA GO GET MY 40 SCREENS. THEY ARE FAR TOO SHY TO TOOT THEIR OWN HORNS, SO I'M GONNA DO IT FOR THEM REAL QUICK. UM, THE AMOUNT OF ENGAGEMENT THAT THESE THREE LADIES HAVE BROUGHT TO THEIR PROGRAMS IS RISEN TRIFOLD, TRIPLE, QUADRUPLE SINCE THEY TOOK OVER. UM, [00:25:01] YOU SAW ON THE PREVENTION NUMBERS, THERE WASN'T EVEN A PROGRAM TWO YEARS AGO. UM, WE WERE VERY REACTIVE. UH, RACHEL HAS THREE CPS WORKERS THAT HANDLE ALL OF THOSE CALLS AND GO OUT. UM, MEREDITH HAS TWO AND A HALF, 'CAUSE ONE OF 'EM IS NEW PREVENTION WORKERS, AND KAYLEE HAS UP TO FOUR FOSTER CARE WORKERS WHO SCOUR THE STATE VISITING EVERY CHILD IN FOSTER CARE EVERY SINGLE MONTH. AND THE NUMBER OF KIDS THAT WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO GET HOME TO THEIR FAMILIES FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS BEFORE THEY TOOK OVER, WE HAD NONE. AND MEREDITH AND KAYLEE AND RACHEL WORKING TOGETHER, WE'VE HAD 5, 6, 5, 8, 8, 8 CHILDREN RETURN HOME. AND THAT'S THEIR DOING AND THEIR STAFF THAT THEY'RE TEACHING. UM, THEY ALSO WANTED ME TO INVITE YOU ALL TO COME TO THE AGENCY ANYTIME, SPEND THE DAY WITH THEM, GO OUT ON CALLS WITH THEM. THEY WOULD LOVE TO SHOW YOU WHAT THEY DO. SO THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I MIGHT TAKE YOU UP ON THAT. YOU MIGHT, YOU MIGHT REGRET THAT, BUT I, I APPRECIATE THE OFFER. SO NEXT WE HAVE [C. Discussion - Letter of Support to Pursue Land Acquisition - Shenandoah National Park] A LETTER OF SUPPORT TO PURSUE LAND ACQUISITION FOR SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK. MS. COLORS, WOULD YOU BE ABLE TO FILL US IN ON THAT ITEM? I WILL. LET'S SEE IF WE GET BACK TO SEE WHAT'S IN HERE. UM, I WAS CONTACTED BY A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE SHANDOR NATIONAL PARK THAT, UM, SOME LAND IN THE BROWNTOWN AREA. THE FAMILY WANTED TO DONATE IT TO THE SHANDOR VALLEY NATIONAL PARK, AND I ASKED HIM TO BE HERE TONIGHT, BUT I DON'T THINK HE WAS, HE NEVER RETURNED MY CALL. UM, SO AS FAR AS I KNOW, THIS IS LAND THAT BUTTS UP AGAINST THE PARK AND THE FAMILY HAS DECIDED THAT THEY WANT TO, UM, MAKE IT PART OF THE PARK AND THEY NEED A LETTER OF, UM, SUPPORT FROM THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, UM, IN ORDER TO GET THE PROCESS THROUGH TO MAKE THAT HAPPEN. ANY QUESTIONS? I'M, I'M FINE WITH THAT. I'D LOVE TO SEE ON THE MAP JUST OUTTA CURIOSITY, BUT THAT DOESN'T AFFECT ANYTHING. I, I DON'T KNOW IF THEY PROVIDED, I DIDN'T SEE ANY IN HERE, SO I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING MAYBE THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT WITH THE, UM, GRIFFIN, UH, YEAH. CAN GET US. OKAY. WELL, THE, UH, I, I MEAN, I'M, I SUPPORT THAT. I, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE GENEROSITY. SO ANYTHING ELSE THAT'S AS MUCH AS I KNOW ABOUT THAT PARTICULAR, UM, OKAY. LIKE I SAID, HOPEFULLY I'LL REACH OUT TO HIM AGAIN WHEN THIS GETS PUT ON THE AGENDA FOR A VOTE AND THAT WAY HOPEFULLY IF HE COMES, IF THERE'S ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS. OKAY. SO THE, SOMEBODY WILL DRAFT UP THE LETTER OF SUPPORT PRETTY SOON. I MEAN, I GUESS THERE'S A CONSENSUS HERE, RIGHT? I DON'T KNOW IF THE PARK HAS A TEMPLATE THAT WE CAN WORK OFF OF, BUT I'LL REACH OUT OR YOU HAVE ONE. THE COUNTY HAS A . OKAY. OKAY. OK. OKEY [D. Discussion - Economic Development Consultant] DOKE. UH, NEXT IS THE, UH, DISCUSSION FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CONSULTANT AND OH, OKAY. ALRIGHT. WELL, STARTING BACK IN APRIL, I STARTED TO BRING UP THE NECESSITY AND, AND THE URGENCY KIND OF FOR WARREN COUNTY TO KICKSTART OUR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. UM, I RECENTLY RECEIVED, AND I THINK WE ALL DID RECEIVE SOME, UH, CORRESPONDENCE FROM ROB MCDOUGALL, CHAIRMAN OF THE EDA. AND, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY TO, TO GET SOMETHING ROLLING ON A, ON KIND OF A, A TRANSITORY BASIS SO THAT WE CAN ESTABLISH SOME PLAN OF ACTION, UH, HAVE SOME FACILITATION FROM, OF SOMEBODY THAT'S EXPERIENCED IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UM, AND LAY OUT SOME PRIORITIES THAT ARE SHORT, MEDIUM, AND LONG TERM. DO SOME SWOT ANALYSIS. AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS I MENTIONED WAS REOPENING A DISCUSSION WITH THE TOWN OF FRONT ROYAL AND COLLABORATION OPPORTUNITIES. UM, STILL HAVE TO IDENTIFY WHAT THE ROLE OF THE, OF THE PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY OF THE EDA IS GONNA BE. UH, THAT'S NOT GONNA BE BUSINESS AS USUAL, USUAL WITH THAT. UM, AND THEN FINALLY TO, YOU KNOW, [00:30:01] USE THIS TIME TO IDENTIFY A, A PARTICULAR SKILLS PROFILE THAT'S PARTICULARLY APPROPRIATE FOR WARREN COUNTY SITUATION, UM, TO CONTEMPLATE WHAT AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR ROLE WOULD LOOK LIKE. UM, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, EVENTUALLY TRANSITION INTO THE DEPARTMENTAL ECONOMIC, UH, DEVELOPMENT OPERATIONS. SO, UH, THE QUESTION REALLY IS JUST WHAT, RIGHT NOW, WHETHER THE, THE, UH, BOARD SUPERVISOR WOULD LIKE TO INITIATE THIS, UH, WITH A, WITH A, MAYBE A QUICK QUOTE OR, UH, SOME KIND OF PROCUREMENT PROCESS SO THAT WE CAN INITIATE SOMETHING AND, UM, BASICALLY GET THE BALL ROLLING SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE A, A, A WEEDING PERIOD WHILE WE'RE, UH, LOOKING FOR AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, WHICH WE'RE NOT EVEN SURE, UH, UNTIL WE GO THROUGH AN EXERCISE LIKE THIS FROM SOMEBODY THAT'S EXPERIENCED IN THE FIELD. UM, TO DO, DO, DO WE HAVE AN IDEA AS TO WHAT, WHAT THE COST MAY BE? UH, I THINK PROBABLY LESS THAN $25,000. IT'S A, YOU KNOW, IT'S A FLEXIBLE, UH, CONTEMPLATED IS A FLEXIBLE ARRANGEMENT. SO SIX TO NINE MONTHS, UM, NOT A, NOT A, NOT A LONG TERM AND, AND NOT A PARTICULARLY COSTLY AFFAIR. OKAY. SO TH THIS WAS RAISED BY THE, BY THE EDA BY CHAIRMAN MCDOWELL. IT WAS A SUGGESTION BROUGHT TO US BY, BY, UH, MR. MCDOUGALL. OKAY. UM, WHICH, WHICH I, I ATTENDED A PRESENTATION AND I THINK YOU DID AS WELL. YEAH. UM, UM, YEAH, THAT JUNE 27TH MEETING, THIS, UH, MR. FRIEDMAN WAS THERE, UM, DID I GET HIS NAME RIGHT? UM, BUT, UH, YEAH, DR. FRIEDMAN, UM, I WAS ACTUALLY, UH, PRETTY IMPRESSED, UH, WITH, WITH HIM, UH, BOTH IN HIS ADVICE ON, UH, LIKE WHAT HE LAID OUT THERE, STEPS TO KIND OF GET SOME TRACTION WITH ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, BUT ALSO HE SEEMED TO BE PRETTY, UH, CLUED IN WITH, UM, THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY, UH, THROUGH SOME OF THE INCUBATOR TYPE THINGS HE WORKS WITH AT GEORGE MASON AND ELSEWHERE. UM, AND, UH, HE, UH, HE DID LAY OUT LIKE THE PRIORITY IS REBUILDING BUSINESS, YOU KNOW, REBUILDING TRUST WITH THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY AND, AND REALLY THE, THE BUSINESS CLIMATE OF THE COUNTY IS WHAT THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY SAYS. IT IS NOT WHAT WE SAY IT IS. YOU KNOW, AND, UM, HE, UH, HE CAME ACROSS VERY WELL IN THAT MEETING. I THOUGHT I WAS, UH, YOU KNOW, AT THAT ONE AMONG OTHER EDA MEETINGS AND, AND REALLY DID, TOTALLY IMPRESSED. WELL, I AGREE. WE'VE, WE'VE GOT A STAGNANT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SITUATION. WE'VE HAD THAT FOR A WHILE. I'M A LITTLE RELUCTANT TO JUMP INTO THIS RIGHT NOW. I THINK WITH NEW SUPERVISORS COMING ON BOARD. UM, AND I'D, I'D REALLY LIKE TO SIT DOWN WITH THE TOWN AND WORK TOGETHER ON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. UH, I WANNA BE OPTIMISTIC THAT THERE'S STILL A WAY THAT WE CAN WORK THIS OUT AND GET BACK TO BOTH OF US WORKING FOR A COMMON GOAL. UM, SO I, YOU KNOW, I, I DEFINITELY AGREE WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING, BUT I WOULD LIKE TO, UM, NOT RUSH INTO IT AND, AND GET THE PERSPECTIVE OF, YOU KNOW, THE BOARD MEMBERS THAT WILL BE COMING ON AND REACH OUT TO THE TOWN TO, TO HAVE A DISCUSSION OF WHERE WE CAN BE IN THE FUTURE WITH THIS. UH, THE ONLY PERSPECTIVE I HAVE ABOUT THE RUSHING INTO IT THING IS THAT, UH, THERE'S A THIRD OF A YEAR LEFT. UM, AND I DON'T THINK THAT DRIFTING INTO THE, THROUGH, THROUGH THE END OF THE YEAR IS REALLY NECESSARILY WHAT WE NEED TO BE DOING. I THINK GETTING, GETTING SOME FOUR PLANNING IN PLACE AND, UH, YOU KNOW, WHICH OF COURSE INVOLVES THE OPENING THAT DISCUSSION WITH THE TOWN. UM, WELL, I, I AGREE WITH LIKE GETTING INPUT FROM NEW SUPERVISORS AND WITH TALKING WITH THE TOWN, BUT I'M ALSO WONDERING IF THIS GENTLEMAN COULD KIND OF FACILITATE THAT AS SORT OF LIKE A, UM, NEUTRAL, UH, OUTSIDE PARTY. AND, AND ALSO I BELIEVE THIS WOULD BE TEMPORARY, RIGHT? UNTIL THERE'S AN ACTUAL HIGHER IT'S TRANSITIONARY AND, AND IT IS A, COULD HELP WITH THAT. A FACILITATION ROLE. YEAH. YEAH. OKAY. ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? IS THERE A KIND OF CONSENSUS TO MOVE ON THIS? UM, I, I, YEAH, I THINK WE SHOULD GO AHEAD AND LOOK ON IT AND THE, UH, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, WE CAN PUT IT ON THE, THE AGENDA [00:35:01] FOR, FOR OUR NEXT, UH, SESSION. YEAH. WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD IT TO THE TOWN COUNTY LIAISON MEETING IN OCTOBER? WE COULD, YES. WE, WE COULD DO THAT AND ALSO PUT IT ON THE, UH, MEETING FOR NEXT WEEK. WHY WOULD WE VOTE ON IT BEFORE HAVING DISCUSSION WITH THE TOWN? I MEAN, WELL, THIS ISN'T A, THIS ISN'T A JOINT HIRE. THIS IS, THIS IS A COUNTY INITIATIVE, NOT A TOWN INITIATIVE. SO, UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S GONNA BE DONE IS TO FACILITATE THE REOPENING OF THAT RELATIONSHIP. UM, THAT IS, THAT'S A FUNCTION OF THE TASK. SO, OKAY. I THINK NEXT ONE IS, SO THE NEXT [E. Discussion - Battlefield Foundation acquisition] ONE IS THE BATTLEFIELD FOUNDATION ACQUISITION. I THINK I'VE, UH, MENTIONED IN A, IN A PRIOR MEETING, UM, THAT THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY BATTLEFIELDS FOUNDATION HAS, UH, EXPRESSED AN INTEREST IN, UH, THE MCKAY SPRINGS PROPERTY. UH, THEY ACTUALLY, THEY ACTUALLY TOLD ME THAT THE, THEIR INTEREST PREDATED THE EMBEZZLEMENT ERA, THE EDA EMBEZZLEMENT ERA. AND, UH, SOMETHING HAD POTENTIALLY BEEN IN A WORKS THEN THAT JUST ALL FELL APART. UM, LIKE A, WHEN I WAS WORKING ON THE, UH, FARM STAND, UM, PROJECT, FARM STAND HUB PROJECT, A CONSTITUENT OF MINE, UH, REACHED OUT AND JUST SAID, DID YOU KNOW, DID YOU KNOW THAT THE BATTLEFIELD FOUNDATIONS WAS, WAS, UH, HAD BEEN INTERESTED IN THAT PROPERTY? AND I SAID, NO, I DIDN'T KNOW THAT. UM, SO, UH, THAT, YOU KNOW, MADE A CONTACT WITH THEM, AND THEN THEY, THEY ACTUALLY DID AN APPRAISAL, UH, CAME UP WITH A FOUR $3.4 MILLION APPRAISAL. UM, NOW THE, THE IDEA, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE BATTLEFIELDS FOUNDATION DOES IS ESSENTIALLY, UM, HERITAGE TOURISM. AND THEY HAVE, AND UNFORTUNATELY RATHER DATED, BUT THE NUMBERS WOULD BE SUBSTANTIALLY LARGER THAN THESE 2017 NUMBERS. BUT THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF HERITAGE TOURISM IS VERY, UH, WELL DOCUMENTED. UH, THEY HAVE RESOURCES AND THEY HAVE, UM, HISTORY OF, OF DOING THIS. UH, THE 2017 IMPACT STUDY, THEY HAD, UH, INDICATED AN ECONOMIC, UH, THROUGHOUT THE, THE, THEIR REGION, UM, A $293 MILLION ECONOMIC IMPACT AND, UH, A 24, 20 $0.4 MILLION TAX REVENUE. SO, UM, THIS IS REALLY NOT SPECULATIVE IN TERMS OF THE, THE IMPACT OF HERITAGE TOURISM AND WHAT THEY DO. UM, AND THERE'S, THEY, YOU KNOW, IN, IN A, UH, THERE OPEN ABOUT COLLABORATING WITH THE AGRICULTURAL ASPECT OF THE FARM STAND HUB PROJECT, UH, THAT'S BEEN TALKED ABOUT FOR THAT SITE. UM, NOW, YOU KNOW, THE, FOR, FOR A LONG TIME, I THINK SINCE 2004, THERE'S BEEN AN MOU, UH, IN PLACE WITH THE TOWN THAT, THAT DESCRIBES THE, THE RESPONSIBILITIES AND THE JOINT OWNERSHIPS OF THIS PROPERTY. UM, THAT'S, THAT'S A LONG TIME. NOTHING'S BEEN ABLE TO BEEN, YOU KNOW, ACCOMPLISHED THERE. AND, UM, THERE ARE DEVELOPMENTS WITH VDOT, UH, REGARDING ENTRANCE TO THE PROPERTY. UM, THERE'S BEEN CHALLENGES WITH, WITH IMPLEMENTING THE, UH, THE FARM STAND HUB PROJECT FOR THAT REASON. UH, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT ALSO CAME TO LIGHT DURING THAT IS THAT, UH, VDOT WILL NEVER ALLOW ENTRY TO THAT PROPERTY FROM 5 22. UM, SO THERE, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE, THERE'S BEEN A LONG HISTORY OF JOINT OWNERSHIP. THERE HAS BEEN, UH, NO DEVELOPMENT, NO SALE, UM, IT'S BEEN MARKETED A LOT, AND I JUST THINK IT'S AT LEAST WORTH LISTENING, UH, TO A PROPOSAL, UH, THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO MAKE. UM, AND THAT, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT THAT THE, THE TOURISM CONNECTED DEVELOPMENT IN MCKAY IS MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL, AND IT'S CONSISTENT WITH BOTH OF THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLANS OF, OF THE TOWN AND, AND THE, UH, AND THE COUNTY. SO THE QUESTION NOW, YOU KNOW, IN THIS WORKING SESSION IS SIMPLY, DO WE WANT TO INVITE THE TOWN COUNCIL TO A PRESENTATION, UM, BY THE BATTLEFIELDS FOUNDATION? IT'S NOT A COMMITMENT, IT'S JUST A, A WILLINGNESS TO SIT AND LISTEN TO THE VISION THAT THEY HAVE AND, AND THEN, UM, TAKE THAT AND, YOU KNOW, FURTHER CONTEMPLATE HOW IT COULD IMPACT US, YOU KNOW, POSITIVELY OR, OR, YOU KNOW, OR, OR MAYBE MAKE A DECISION AND SAY IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT THE RIGHT DIRECTION. YEAH. WELL, I THINK WE'RE GETTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE A LITTLE BIT HERE, BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD A CONVERSATION WITH THE TOWN AT ALL ABOUT THIS. WE'RE JUST KIND OF MOVING AHEAD AND I READ THE MOU TODAY, AND ANYTHING THAT GETS DONE THERE HAS TO BE AGREED UPON BY BOTH. UM, SO I THINK BEFORE WE BRING SOMEONE IN TO DO A PRESENTATION, WE NEED TO HAVE A SIT DOWN [00:40:01] WITH THE TOWN TO SEE WHAT THEIR DESIRES ARE HERE, IF THEY'RE IN LINE WITH THIS AT ALL, OR IF, I MEAN, I, IT'S, IT, IT'S, YOU KNOW, KIND OF RAILROADING THIS, AGAIN, GOING AT THIS WITHOUT, AND, YOU KNOW, HAVING ALL THE PARTIES THAT HAVE OWNERSHIP HERE, AND WE WOULD DEFINITELY BE BREAKING THE MOU IF WE TRIED TO MOVE FORWARD WITH ANY OF THIS WITHOUT THE TOWN'S COOPERATION AND AGREEMENT. SO I THINK THAT'S, THAT'S THE REASON TO INVITE THEM TO HEAR THIS, RIGHT? LIKE THE, THE FOUNDATION WOULD PRESENT TO BOTH OF US, AND THEN WE'D BE ABLE, THEN WE'D KNOW WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT SO WE CAN TALK. WELL, AND I, I THINK IF I GOT INVITED TO A PARTY THAT NOBODY KNEW WHAT THE PARTY WAS ABOUT, AND THEN YOU FIND OUT THAT, YOU KNOW, YOUR, YOUR PROPERTY IS GOING TO, YOU WANNA SELL IT OFF LIKE THIS, UM, IT'S NOT A GOOD LOOK. I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE A TALK WITH THE TOWN BEFORE WE INVITE SOMEONE IN. THAT'S REALLY NOT FAIR TO THE BATTLEFIELD PEOPLE TO COME IN AND GET CAUGHT UP IN THE CROSSFIRE OF DISAGREEING THOUGHTS OR EVEN AGREEING THOUGHTS, BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD ANY DISCUSSION WITH THEM. SO DO YOU, DO YOU THINK A GOOD, UH, A GOOD, GOOD WAY TO DO IT WOULD BE AT THE, UH, JOINT SESSION? ABSOLUTELY. EITHER THE LIAISON MEETING OR JUST CALL THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE WELL, WELL, THE, THE LIAISON MEETING HAD JUST MENTIONED IT THEN, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, I ASK HIM, HEY, WOULD YOU GUYS BE INTERESTED IN LISTENING TO THESE FOLKS? I'D LIKE TO POINT OUT THAT THERE'S PARALLEL DISCUSSIONS GOING ON THAT THE TOWN COUNCIL IS NOT IGNORANT OF, OF WHAT'S, OF THIS PROPOSAL. I DIDN'T SAY THEY WERE IGNORANT OF IT, BUT I THINK IT'S, YOU SAID THEY WERE, IT MIGHT BE BLIND SAY TO INCLUDE THEM. YEAH, WELL, WE ARE INCLUDING THEM. THAT'S THE POINT. THE POINT IS THAT WE WOULD LIKE TO ASK IF THEY WOULD, IF WE WOULD ALL LIKE TO JOINTLY RECEIVE A PRESENTATION OF WHAT DECISION WOULD BE, THEN WE WOULD HAVE THE BASIS OF UNDERSTANDING AS TO WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED. AND WE CAN HAVE THAT DISCUSSION. IF WE, IF WE INSIST THAT WE, WE DISCUSS THIS BEFORE WE KNOW WHAT THE PROPOSAL WOULD LOOK LIKE, THEN WE'RE, WE'RE JUST, WE'RE, WE'RE, WE ARE MISSING AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE DEALING, YOU KNOW, SPENDING OUR TIME TALKING ABOUT DON'T THINK IT'S A MISSED OPPORTUNITY SPECIFIC TO COMMUNICATE IT. IT'S NEVER A MISSED OPPORTUNITY TO COMMUNICATE. WELL, I, I WAS ONLY REFERRING TO THE FACT THAT IF WE MEET AFTER THEY HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT WHAT THEY HAVE IN MIND, THEN WE HAVE A COMMON BASIS FOR WHAT WE'RE BOTH CONSIDERING. WELL, AT THE VERY LEAST THEN I THINK WE NEED TO ASK THE TOWN, WOULD THEY LIKE TO HAVE A MEETING PRIOR TO A PRESENTATION? WELL, ALL I'M ASKING IS IF WE WERE LIKE TO INVITE THE TOWN TO A PRESENT TO A MEETING, WHICH IS A PRESENTATION. SO IF YOU WANT TO HAVE A MEETING BEFORE THE MEETING, UM, THAT THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE ADVOCATING. I'M JUST SIMPLY ADVOCATING, CAN WE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE HAVING A PARALLEL DISCUSSION. SO, UH, IF, IF THEY WOULD LIKE TO, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS THE HARM AND US INVITING THEM TO WHAT IS THE HARM AND EVERYBODY GET IN, IN A ROOM AND DISCUSSING IT. THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT I'M, I'M SUGGESTING. BUT BEFORE YOU BRING IN THE PRESENTATION, WELL, THE, THE POINT, THE PRESENTATION, I GUESS WHAT I'M SAYING IS THAT THE BASIS OF THE DISCUSSION IS, WILL BECOME WHAT IT IS THAT THEY'RE OFFERING UNLESS WE'RE SIMPLY GONNA MEET AND HAVE A DISCUSSION, IS DO YOU WANT TO HAVE A DISCUSSION? AND THEN, THEN SAY, WELL, YES, WE'D LIKE TO HEAR THEIR PRESENTATION. WELL, WE CAN MAKE AN INVITATION TO HAVE A PRESENTATION. IF THEY DON'T WANT TO DO THAT, THEN THEY COULD SAY, NO, WE WANT TO HAVE A DISCUSSION BEFOREHAND FIRST. BUT, BUT THAT'S MY POINT. WE, WE HAVEN'T ASKED MEMORY ON THIS. UH, UM, WHEN IS OUR NEXT LIAISON MEETING? I THINK IT'S THE THIRD THURSDAY IN OCTOBER. YEAH. IT'S STILL A, THAT'S A LONG TIME. STILL A BIT. MAYBE WE COULD, UH, YEAH, YOU KNOW, I COULD REACH OUT TO THE, UH, TO THE, UH, TO THE MAYOR AND JUST MENTION THIS TO HER AND SAY, HEY, DO YOU THINK THAT YOU ALL WOULD BE INTERESTED IN DOING THIS? THAT'S WHAT I'LL DO. I'M QUITE SURE THEY HAD THIS DISCUSSION LAST NIGHT. WELL, I'M, I'M SURE THEY DID, BUT YOU KNOW, THE, WE'LL, UH, , THAT'S WHAT I CAN DO. OKAY. I, I THINK THAT'S THE WAY YOU START ANY CONVERSATION. OKIE DOKE. SO THE, SO [F. Presentation - Rockland Athletic Park Project Update] NEXT IS THE, UM, ROCKLAND ATHLETIC PARK PROJECT UPDATE. I WANTED TO GIVE YOU ALL A QUICK UPDATE ON WHERE WE'RE AT WITH THE PROJECT AS IT IS, AND ALSO A TIMELINE AND FINANCIAL IMPACT. UM, SO WITH THE STATEMENT OF WORK, SO WITH THE GRANT [00:45:01] THAT WE WERE AWARDED FROM THE STATE AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, UM, IT IS SPECIFICALLY TO CONSTRUCT TWO SOFTBALL FIELDS, TWO BASEBALL FIELDS, THREE RECTANGULAR ATHLETIC FIELDS, THE CONCESSION STANDS THAT ARE A DA ACCESSIBLE FOR BOTH MEN AND WOMEN, UM, TO REFURBISH THE BATHHOUSE ON THE PROPERTY TO MAKE IT USABLE FOR ADDITIONAL A DA ACCESSIBILITY RESTROOM FACILITIES. AND THEN, UM, POTENTIALLY A MEETING ROOM FOR COACHES AND REFEREES WITH THAT. IT INCLUDES PARKING, FULL STORM WATER LIGHTING, UM, FOR THE ENTIRE PROCESS. SO THIS IS A $4 MILLION PROJECT WITH THE GRANT. IT'S 2 MILLION. SO 50% OF THE COSTS, IF WE DO NOT COMPLETE THE PROJECT AS IT WAS SCOPED, WE DO NOT GET THE MONEY. UM, SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE TO COMPLETE IT. SO IF IT COSTS MORE THAN 4 MILLION, WE STILL HAVE TO COMPLETE IT OR ELSE WE HAVE TO GIVE BACK THE 2 MILLION. UM, SO IT IS A VERY TOUGH DECISION THAT COMES DOWN TO HOW MUCH YOU WANT TO SPEND AND HOW FAR INTO IT YOU WANNA GET BEFORE YOU MAKE THAT DECISION. SO RIGHT NOW, UM, FOR FY 25, WE DEDICATED A LITTLE OVER $56,000 IN ORDER TO GET THINGS DUSTED OFF, SO TO SPEAK. SO THE PROJECT HAS BEEN REMOBILIZE WITH KIMBERLY HORN. UM, PERMITS HAVE BEEN REISSUED WITH DEQ, AND WE'RE STARTING TO KIND OF GO THROUGH THAT PROCESS. UM, WITH THE LAND DISTURBANCES AND THE SITE PLAN SUBMISSION, THERE'S ONE PIECE THAT IS GETTING COMPLETED NOW BEFORE THEY GET SUBMITTED FOR REVIEW. ALL OF THAT IS STILL UNDER BUDGET. WE'VE SPENT ABOUT 38,000 OF THE 56,000. UM, THE ADDITIONAL PLAN UPDATES WE NEED TO HAVE THE, THE INITIAL PLANS THAT WERE DONE IN 2016, THERE ARE BASIC PLANS NOT ACTUALLY BUILD PLANS. SO THE BUILD PLANS FOR ELECTRICAL LIGHTING, THE BUILDINGS AND SEPTIC, UM, THAT IS GOING TO KIND OF BUMP UP THE COST. SORRY, THIS IS JUST A SUMMARY OF WHAT WE'VE SPENT. SO FOR 26, WE HAVE ALLOCATED $200,000 THROUGH CAPITAL, UM, FOR THIS PROJECT. SO WITH THAT, KEEP IN MIND IT'S A MATCH. SO HALF WOULD BE THE COUNTY, AND THEN THE OTHER HALF WOULD BE FEDERAL. SO THAT'S ABOUT $400,000 THAT WE CAN SPEND IN THIS FISCAL YEAR. FOR THE ADDITIONAL PERMITS AND PLANNING, WE'RE LOOKING AT A TOTAL OF BETWEEN 317 TO $367,000. SO IT'S STILL WITHIN THE $400,000 RANGE. AND THIS IS WHERE IT BECOMES A BIG FINANCIAL THING, BECAUSE IF WE'RE GONNA SPEND CLOSE TO $400,000 AT THIS POINT, IF WE DON'T COMPLETE THE PROJECT, THE $200,000 AT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS GIVEN US, WE WOULD HAVE TO RETURN WITH ANYTHING ELSE IF WE DON'T COMPLETE IT. SO FOR FY 27, AND THEN THE PROJECT WOULD BE COMPLETED, IT HAS TO BE DONE BY NINE 30, UM, OF 2027. SO IT GIVES YOU ABOUT THREE MONTHS IN FY 28 IN ORDER TO WRAP IT UP. UM, SO IT'S A LITTLE MORE THAN A $1.7 MILLION CONTRIBUTION FROM THE COUNTY IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT IT DOES GET FINISHED ONE TIME. AND IF WE DON'T DO IT, THEN WE WOULD NEED TO RETURN THE MONEY THAT WE BASICALLY HAVE TAKEN FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. SO I WOULD LIKE YOU ALL TO CONSIDER THAT BEFORE WE MOVE FORWARD WITH THE ADDITIONAL PLANS AND DETERMINING WHETHER YOU WANT TO REALLY COMMIT TO THE TOTAL PROJECT OR, UM, YOUR THOUGHTS ON IT. WHAT, WHAT DO Y'ALL THINK THE, UM, SHOWER FACILITY THAT WAS OUT THERE? I KNOW WHEN I FIRST CAME ON THE BOARD, THERE WAS SOME WORK BEING DONE ON THAT. I DON'T REMEMBER HOW MUCH GOT DONE. IT'S BEEN COMPLETELY GUTTED. UM, THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT VANDALISM AND SO THE WE'RE IN THE PROCESS OF, IT'S A WINTER PROJECT TO ACTUALLY REMOVE THE WHOLE BUILDING. OKAY. I, I KNEW SOMETHING HAPPENED THERE. MM-HMM . UM, IF IT'S, IF WE HAVE, WE LOOKED AT COMPARING DOING IT, AND I HATE TO SAY IT THIS WAY, BUT PIECEMEAL LIKE A FIELD AT A TIME AND DOING IT WITHOUT THE GRANT, WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE. SO IT WOULD ACTUALLY PROBABLY BE MORE EXPENSIVE. 'CAUSE WITHOUT THE GRANT, THAT'S A 50% SAVINGS THAT WE HAVE. MM-HMM . UM, THE WORK IS NOT GONNA GET CHEAPER. WHEN THIS WAS [00:50:01] INITIALLY BID, IT WAS A $1.8 MILLION PROJECT, AND OVER TIME, OF COURSE, IT'S JUMPED UP, IT'S STILL THE SAME PROJECT MM-HMM . UM, BUT THE COST IS MORE THAN DOUBLED. AND SO I DON'T KNOW THAT IF WE PHASE IT OVER FIVE OR SIX YEARS, THAT IT WOULD SAVE US ANY MONEY IN THE LONG RUN. IF ANYTHING, IT WOULD COST MORE BECAUSE WE WOULDN'T BE GETTING THE FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. THAT'S WHAT I PRETTY MUCH, MUCH FIGURED, BUT I WANTED TO ASK THE QUESTION. MM-HMM . UM, YOU KNOW, HISTORICALLY, LIKE FANTASY LAND PARK, THE COMMUNITY CAME TOGETHER AND DID THAT MM-HMM . SO I JUST WANTED TO ASK MM-HMM . SO THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A, A THOUGHT THAT WE'VE RULED IN OR RULED OUT TYPE THING TO, TO LOOK AT THE COST AND, AND IT'S NEEDED. YOU KNOW, WE'VE GOT ALL THESE, ESPECIALLY FOR THE GIRLS. UM, NOT THAT THE BOYS, I WANT TO SHIRK THEM ANY, BUT THE GIRLS DO HAVE LESS AREAS THAT THEY CAN WORK IN AND PLAY IN AND PRACTICE IN. UM, I KNOW WE'VE GOT A LOT OF TEAMS GOING OVER TO LIKEDO PARK OVER TOWARDS STEVEN CITY, AND EVEN THOSE FIELDS ARE GETTING FULL AND, YOU KNOW, HARD TO, HARD TO GET ACCESS TO. SO, ANY OTHER DISCUSSION? NO, YOU'RE SAYING THAT THAT FISCAL YEAR 26, WE HAVE A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS ALLOCATION, AND THAT WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR IS GUIDANCE ON WHETHER OR ACT ACTUALLY PULL THE TRIGGER ON THAT BASED ON THE LIKELIHOOD OF BEING ABLE TO FUND AND FINISH BY WHICH, BY WHAT, WHAT DAY? THE END OF SEPTEMBER OF 2027. SO TWO YEARS FROM THE END OF THIS MONTH. AND DOES, IS THERE ANY GUIDANCE ON THE LIKELIHOOD OF THE PROJECT OF THIS SCALE HAPPENING BY THEN? IT CAN BE DONE IN 12 MONTHS. OKAY. UM, SO THE TIMELINE TO COMPLETE IS NOT A PROBLEM. SO IT'S MORE THE FUNDS. YEAH, IT'S FINANCIAL. THANK YOU. YOU KNOW, SPEAKING OF THAT, I KNOW THAT I WAS TALKING WITH, UH, UH, UH, MIKE BERRY ABOUT THE, UH, ABOUT THE PRESENTATION THAT HE'D MADE, YOU KNOW, CONCERNING THE, THE AIRPORT. AND WE WERE LOOKING AT $113,000 TO GET THAT THAT ONE KICKED OFF. MM-HMM . BUT THE, THAT ONE IS GOING TO, IT'S GONNA SET US UP SO THAT WE WILL HAVE INCOME COMING INTO THE COUNTY. MM-HMM . 'CAUSE IT'S GONNA BE BUILDING NEW HANGERS OUT THERE. AND, AND, YOU KNOW, BEING A FORMER AIRCRAFT OWNER, I CAN TELL YOU HANGERS COME AT A PREMIUM. MM-HMM . THEY PROBABLY HAVE A THREE YEAR WAITING LIST FOR PEOPLE OUT THERE. MM-HMM . SO THOSE, THOSE WOULD BE SNAPPED UP IN A, IN A HEARTBEAT, AND THE COUNTY COULD BE MAKING MONEY OFF THAT GOOD MONEY. MM-HMM . SO I JUST WANTED TO PUT A PLUG IN FOR THAT. SO THE ALSO, UM, I'D, I'D SENT Y'ALL AN EMAIL BEFORE THE MEETING TODAY. THE, UH, I SENT YOU THE DRAFT COPY OF THE AIRPORT RULES AND REGULATIONS. THE, UH, UH, I FINALLY GOT IT BACK FROM THE, UM, UH, ATTORNEY AND, UH, WANTED Y'ALL TO TAKE A LOOK AT THAT. THE BIGGEST CHANGE IN IT WAS THE, UH, UH, DROPPING THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE, UH, UH, WHEN SOMEBODY WANTS TO OPEN A BUSINESS OUT AT THE, THE AIRPORT, UH, THEY HAD TO, TO GO THROUGH ALL THE SAME HOOPS THAT THEY DID FOR THE COUNTY. AND SO THE, UH, SO THAT THEY WANTED TO LESSEN THE BUREAUCRACY THAT THESE FOLKS WERE HAVING TO, TO, TO GO THROUGH, UH, BECAUSE THEY'VE ALREADY DONE IT ONE TIME, AND THAT WAS THE BIGGEST CHANGE THERE. SO I JUST WANTED TO BRING THAT UP TO YOUR ATTENTION. SO NEXT THING WE [G. Presentation - Quarterly update on Board of Supervisor Goals and Objectives] HAVE IS THE, UH, QUARTERLY UPDATE ON BOARD OF SUPERVISORS GOALS AND OBJECTIVES. SO WITH THIS, I CHANGED THE FORMAT. I'M NOT GONNA READ THROUGH THE GOALS ONE BY ONE. UM, HOPEFULLY IT'S A LITTLE MORE INTERACTIVE. SO THE DEPARTMENT HEADS WHO HAVE BEEN SPONSORING THE GOALS WILL BE ACTUALLY SPEAKING TO THEM. SO HOPEFULLY IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, THEY'LL BE ABLE TO, UM, GIVE YOU A LITTLE MORE DETAIL THEN, UM, I WAS ABLE TO GIVE IN THE PAST. UM, SO TODAY WE HAVE ONE FULLY COMPLETED GOAL, UM, THE WARREN COUNTY COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, WHICH ACTUALLY A LOT OF OTHER GOALS HINGE OFF OF HAS BEEN COMPLETED. UM, SO THAT WAS A MAJOR UNDERTAKING FOR THE PLANNING STAFF, AND THEY WERE ABLE TO GET THAT COMPLETED. AND YOU ALL ADOPTED IT ON APRIL 1ST. UM, SO WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO NOW IS GO THROUGH THE GOALS BASED OFF OF THE OVERARCHING THEME. SO WITH THE THEME OF PROTECTING PUBLIC SAFETY STANDARDS, WE'LL GO THROUGH GOALS NUMBER ONE AND TWO. UM, SO IF, UM, SORRY, CHIEF BONNO WOULD LIKE TO COME UP. UM, WE WILL [00:55:01] START TALKING ABOUT THE FIRE AND RESCUE STRATEGIC PLAN. THANK YOU. UM, GOOD EVENING. UH, SO TO MS. MEADOW'S POINT, I'M JUST GONNA KIND OF GO OVER WHAT WE'VE ACCOMPLISHED THUS FAR, UM, AND WHERE WE'RE AT SPECIFICALLY WITH THE, UH, WE, WE, WE USE THE TERM STRATEGIC PLAN. THAT'S WHAT IT'S BUILDING TO BE. BUT IN ESSENCE, THE BIG START IN THIS WAS, UH, THE THREE INITIATIVES THAT WE MOVED FORWARD, WHICH WERE THE SAFE STAFFING INITIATIVE, UH, THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING, UM, EQUIPMENT AND APPARATUS THAT IS, UH, ALSO MEETS THE CRITERIA OF SAFE. AND FINALLY, THE, UM, IMPORTANCE OF FACILITIES AND FACILITIES MANAGEMENT. SO LOOKING AT, UM, GOAL NUMBER ONE AND THE PROJECT APPROACH, UM, AS YOU CAN SEE, THOSE ARE THE CHECK MARKS THAT WE'VE CREATED OR WE'VE COMPLETED SO FAR WITH THE STAFFING STUDY. UM, WORKING WITH THE MATRIX, UH, CONSULTING GROUP. UM, WE'VE RECEIVED DRAFT REPORTS ON THE CURRENT STATE ASSESSMENT, THE COMMUNITY RISK AND DEPLOYMENT FINDINGS, AND WE'RE STILL AWAITING RESULTS IN KEY FINDINGS REPORT, AND, UH, AS WELL AS THE DRAFT AND FINAL REPORTS. ONE OF, UH, NOT A BIG DEAL, BUT WE HAD SOME ISSUE WITH PROCESS TIMES AS IT RELATES TO SOME OF THE DISPATCH. SO WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THE NUMBERS WE HAD AS FAR AS ANALYTICS WERE CORRECT. UM, THERE WERE SOME FLAWS IN THE WAY THE GROUPINGS WERE, AND MAKING SURE THAT THE WAY THE CAD AS WELL AS THE DIS BATCH INFORMATION COINCIDED OR RECONCILED. SO WE HAD TO DIG A LITTLE DEEPER WITH THOSE ANALYTICS AND WE'RE IN THE PROCESS. WE COMPLETED THAT AND WE FED IT BACK TO THE CONSULTING GROUP, AND THEY ARE NOW REWORKING THOSE NUMBERS TO REFLECT REAL EVIDENCE, IF YOU WILL. UM, MOVING ON TO GOAL NUMBER TWO, ON THE FIVE YEAR PUBLIC SAFETY NEEDS ASSESSMENT. AGAIN, UM, STICKING BACK TO OUR STR OUR STRATEGIC INITIATIVES TO FIRE AND RESCUE, UH, WITH NOT ONLY THE STRATEGIC PLAN WORKING WITH MATRIX, BUT ALSO NUMBER ONE BEING SAFE STANDING, EXCUSE ME, SAFE, SAFE STANDARDS AS IT RELATES TO EMERGENCY RESPONSE, SAFE AND RELIABLE APPARATUS AND EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES AND FACILITIES MANAGEMENT WORKING WITH YOU GUYS AS WELL AS, UH, COUNTY ADMINISTRATION. UM, WE ARE GREATLY APPRECIATIVE. WE'VE MADE SOME HUGE STRIDES IN THOSE AREAS. SUFFICE TO SAY WE GOT A WAYS TO GO, UM, BUT I THINK THERE'S SOME OPPORTUNITIES AS WE LOOK TO THE FUTURE. UM, SO I DON'T WANNA SPEAK TO THE SHERIFF'S SIDE OF THE HOUSE. SO SHERIFF, WOULD YOU LIKE TO JOIN ME? WOULD DO YOU WANT ME TO STEP? I'LL MAKE A NOTE. UM, SO YOU'LL NOTICE THE YELLOW CHECK MARKS ON HERE, AND THESE ARE ITEMS THAT WE HAVE STARTED TO MAKE SOME PROGRESS WITH. HOWEVER, THEY ARE NOT DONE YET. UM, WITH THE COMPENSATION, UM, THE SHERIFF WILL BE ABLE TO SPEAK TO WHAT ACTIONS YOU ALL HAVE MADE WITH REGARDS TO HER DEPARTMENT. HOWEVER, WITH FIRE AND RESCUE, WE HAVE NOTICED THAT, UM, WE'RE FALLING BEHIND, UM, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO THE ADVANCED LEVEL CERTIFICATIONS. SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WE NEED TO MOVE FORWARD. UM, UNFORTUNATELY A LOT OF THIS, IT'S FUNDING RELATED. UM, AND THEN WITH THE RMS AND CAD, ALSO KNOWN AS FLEX, UM, THAT I BELIEVE THE SHERIFF WILL, UM, SPEAK TO AS WELL. SO THANK YOU. BEFORE SHERIFF KLEIN SAYS ANYTHING, I JUST WANNA SAY CONGRATULATIONS FOR A, A PHENOMENAL, UH, ACHIEVEMENT, YOU KNOW, FOR THE FBI ACADEMY. THAT, THAT WAS GREAT. I DO APPRECIATE THAT, . THANK YOU. UM, BUT YOU'LL HAVE TO SIT THROUGH, UM, A 10 MINUTE OR SO, UM, PRESENTATION THIS EVENING ON THAT PROGRAM JUST TO HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF UNDERSTANDING. I'VE HAD A LOT OF QUESTIONS AND STUFF, AND, UM, JANE HAS BEEN GRACIOUS ENOUGH, UM, AS PART OF TONIGHT'S PRESENTATION TO ALLOW ME TO PRESENT THAT TO YOU. SO YOU'LL GET TO FIND OUT JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, ON, ON WHAT THAT MEANS AND, AND WHAT THE LA WHERE I'VE BEEN THE LAST 10 WEEKS. SO THANK YOU. SO, UM, I GUESS THE FIRST THING THAT, UM, WE WOULD LIKE TO TALK ABOUT JOINTLY IS THE JOINT TRAINING FACILITY. UM, I DO FEEL LIKE WE HAVE STALLED OUT JUST A LITTLE BIT ON THAT. WE HAVE SHORT TERM, BOTH OF US ACTUALLY HAVE SHORT TERM ISSUES, AND THEN THE LONG TERM BEING THAT WE HAVE A JOINT TRAINING FACILITY, UM, I THINK BOTH SHOULD BE ON THE TABLE. BOTH SHOULD BE OBJECTIVES THAT NEED TO BE COMPLETED. UM, FOR ME ON MY SIDE, ON THE SHORT TERM, UM, I, I HAVE BROUGHT, UM, SEVERAL TIMES DIFFERENT AREAS TO BE LOOKED AT FOR A TEMPORARY FIREARMS TRAINING FACILITY. IT'S NOT EVEN A FACILITY JUST LAND FOR US TO QUALIFY AND TO TRAIN ON FOR OUR CANINES, OUR SWAT, OUR, UM, ANNUAL QUALIFICATIONS. AND I FELT LIKE, UM, I WAS CHASING MY TAIL MOST OF THE TIME. SO I BRING [01:00:01] ONE PROPERTY. WE DID A LOT OF RESEARCH AND I, I STILL STAND BEHIND THE FIRST, UM, PROPOSAL THAT WE DID THAT THAT WAS THE BEST PLACE AND OPPORTUNITY TO UTILIZE THAT, UM, PROPERTY FOR APPROXIMATELY 15 TIMES A YEAR OUTTA 365 DAYS. UM, SINCE THEN, UM, I HAVE RECEIVED TRY THIS PROPERTY, TRY THIS, HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT THIS, THOUGHT ABOUT THIS. AND WE ARE WASTING A LOT OF TIME CHASING OUR TAIL. UH, NEWAN MANAGER IS IN PLACE AND THERE, UM, I WILL BE REQUESTING TO SET UP A MEETING TO SEE TEMPORARILY IF WE CAN HAVE A PARTNERSHIP THERE. I DO FEEL THAT I STILL HAVE A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH TOWN ADMINISTRATION AS WELL AS THE TOWN POLICE DEPARTMENT WITH CHIEF WHITE. SO I STILL HAVE PLANS TO DO THAT, BUT THAT'S THE SHORT TERM, LONG TERM. WE DO HAVE AN ISSUE WITH A TRAINING FACILITY. UM, BOTH FIRE AND RESCUE AND THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE CAN WORK JOINTLY AND HAVE THE SAME PROPERTY. WE GO TO A LOT OF THE, THE SAME CALLS. WE REQUEST THEIR, THEIR HELP WHEN WE GO OUT ON SWAT CALL OUTS, UM, AND MAJOR FIRES. WE'RE SHUTTING DOWN INTERSECTIONS. WE DO NEED TO CROSS TRAINING. WE DO NEED TO DO THIS TOGETHER. AND WE DON'T HAVE ANY PLACE IN WARREN COUNTY THAT, UM, IS, IS ON THE BOOKS. ONE THING THAT I FORGOT TO MENTION IS QUALIFICATIONS. WE ARE GOING TO HARPER'S FERRY STILL. WE DO NOT GET ANY CREDIT FOR OUR CAREER, UM, HOURS THROUGH THE ACADEMY BECAUSE IT'S OUTTA STATE. UM, AND I THINK THAT'S A MISSED OPPORTUNITY. WE REALLY NEED TO THINK ABOUT THE SHORT TERM. I'M GONNA LET CHIEF BENNO TALK ABOUT THE, THE LONG TERM IN WHERE WE NEED TO GET IN HIS SHORT TERM ISSUES. BUT WE NEED TO KEEP THESE, THESE IDEAS IN THIS INITIATIVE ON THE TABLE AND WE REALLY NEED TO START MOVING ON IT. UM, I'LL LET YOU TALK. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO, UM, TO SHERIFF LINE'S POINT, I AGREE WITH EVERYTHING SHE SAID. UM, THERE ARE SHORT TERM NEEDS, BUT THE LONG TERM NEEDS, I THINK THERE'S SOME REAL OPPORTUNITIES. SO LET ME JUST TOUCH UPON THE OBVIOUS. UM, WE NEED TO ENSURE THAT WE HAVE SUPPORT STAFF AND TRAINING AS IT RELATES TO THE FUNDAMENTALS OF WHAT WE DO. VIRUS IMPRESSION, METHODOLOGY, EMS RUNS, AS WELL AS THE ATYPICAL CALLS THAT ARE ASSOCIATED WITH ANYTHING ELSE WE DO. PREVENTION, THE WHOLE SHOOTING MATCH. THERE'S NOT A LOT OF STAFF, SUFFICE TO SAY, WHERE I THINK THE MISSED OPPORTUNITIES AND THERE'S REAL OPPORTUNITIES FROM REGIONALIZATION. UM, AND I WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE THIS. I DON'T CARE IF YOU WANNA DEFINE IT AS A TASK FORCE, BUT POST SHERIFF AND I HAVE SPOKEN, I THINK THERE'S A REAL MISSED OPPORTUNITY IF WE PARTNER WITH, YOU KNOW, THE BLUE RIDGE TECHNICAL CENTER AS AN EXAMPLE. UM, THERE'S A HUGE DEFICIT AS IT RELATES TO RECRUITMENT IN THIS INSTITUTION. AND I THINK THERE'S, UM, AN UNTAPPED COMMODITY IN OUR COMMUNITY AND SOME OF THE KIDS THAT ARE COMING OUT OF OUR LOCAL HIGH SCHOOLS THAT MAYBE DON'T WANNA DO AN UNDERGRADUATE CURRICULUM, BUT WANNA BE A FIREFIGHTER. I WANNA BE A POLICE OFFICER. I WANT TO BE A, A DEPUTY OR WANT TO BE, UM, UM, IN THE COMMUNICATION SIDE OF THE HOUSE, UH, WE DID, UM, A SURVEY. IT WAS A VERY FUNDAMENTAL SURVEY MONKEY THROUGH THE HIGH SCHOOL A COUPLE YEARS BACK. AND ANECDOTALLY AS WELL AS THE INFORMATION WE GOT BACK, WE GOT A LOT OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK AS THERE WOULD BE AN INTEREST. SUFFICE TO SAY, I THINK IT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE TO TO, TO GO DOWN THAT ROUTE. IN ADDITION TO THAT, UM, TO MISS MEADOW'S POINT, WE HAVE BEEN VERY FORTUNATE OVER MY SHORT TENURE HERE AND JUST SHY OF FIVE YEARS WHERE OUR ATTRITION RATE HAS BEEN RELATIVELY LOW. I THINK OUR MORALE IS HIGH IN OUR INSTITUTION. SUFFICE TO SAY WE HAVE SOME ROOM TO GO, BUT WE DO OUR BEST TO TREAT OUR PEOPLE WELL IN THIS INSTITUTION AS WELL AS COUNTY ADMINISTRATION. I MEAN, YOU GUYS HAVE BEEN GOOD TO US. IT WILL NOT SUSTAIN ITSELF. RIGHT NOW WE'RE BECOMING A TRAINING PLATFORM. GUYS AND GALS ARE MOVING ON TO OTHER INSTITUTIONS, AND I'M NOT JUST REFERRING TO THE NORTHERN VIRGINIA WORLD, OKAY? I'M REFERRING TO COUNTIES THAT TOUCH US RIGHT NOW. I JUST LOST THREE LAST MONTH AND FOR VARIOUS REASONS, BUT ALL OF WHICH HAVE GONE FOR MORE PAY. I DO NOT THINK PAY IS THE SOLE ANSWER, BUT THE COMPLETE COMPENSATION PACKAGE IS NOT COMPETITIVE. SO WE HAVE TO LOOK AT THAT EARNESTLY IN SOME WAY TO SUSTAIN OUR EFFORTS. SO WE DO NOT BECOME A TRAINING PLATFORM. UM, I THINK ALL OF THESE AVENUES ARE WORTH EXPLORATION. UM, ABSENT WHAT I SAY ABOUT THE FUNDAMENTALS OF WHAT WE NEED IN OUR INSTITUTION, A LOT OF WHAT CRYSTAL AND I DO, THE SHERIFF AND I DO, IS INTEGRATED, INTEGRATED RESPONSE. UM, WE DO NOT HAVE TO LOOK FAR MAYBE LAST WEEK OR THE WEEK BEFORE TO LOOK AT SOME OF THE SAD BUT HONEST CRAZY STUFF THAT'S GOING ON IN THIS WORLD WITH SCHOOLS AND SUCH. AND OUR RESPONSE METHODOLOGIES HAVE CHANGED OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS, OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS, SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE SENSE THAT WE WALK A LOT OF THE HALLWAYS, EXCUSE THE METAPHOR, ON [01:05:01] A VERY REGULAR BASIS. AND IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE DO SO IN LOCKSTEP. SO THIS TRAINING FACILITY WOULD NOT ONLY SERVE US BOTH, BUT ALSO JOINTLY. OKAY. THE OTHER THING I THINK IT DOES IS IT HELPS PUT US ON THE MAP. I MEAN, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF INSTITUTIONS THAT TOUCH THIS COUNTY, I THINK THE SHERIFF USES THE ANALOGY WE'RE THE HOLE IN THE DONUT. AND I LIKE THE ANALOGY 'CAUSE EVERYBODY TOUCHES. SO IF THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY WHERE WE CAN FLOURISH A REGIONAL OPPORTUNITY IN WORKING WITH THE TOWN OR WHOMEVER, LET'S DO IT. BECAUSE IT ONLY BENEFITS US ALL IF, IF IT'S ABOUT THE COMMUNITY. AND THAT'S WHAT I BELIEVE WE'RE ALL HERE FOR. THERE'S A REAL OPPORTUNITY HERE. NOW, TO JANE'S POINT AND OR MS. MEADOW'S POINT, I I, I'M GONNA SAY SOMETHING. THIS IS AN EXERCISE IN FUTILITY WITHOUT US IDENTIFYING A BUDGET. AND SO ALL I WOULD ASK THAT IF WE DO THIS, LET'S DO SO FRUITFUL. AND IF YOU, IF YOU ALSO WANT TO, OR HOWEVER, I'D LOVE TO BE A PART OF A CONVERSATION ON, ON HOW BEST IT'LL LOOK TO UNDERWRITE THE FUTURE. UM, I'LL GET OFF MY SOAPBOX FOR A MOMENT. I'LL LET THE SHERIFF SPEAK. THANK YOU. UM, SO A COUPLE OTHER THINGS, AND I DO HAVE TO THANK THE BOARD FOR, UM, ALLOWING THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE TO REVAMP THE SALARY SCALE. UM, JUST IN THE LAST COUPLE MONTHS, WE HAVE HAD SEVEN CERTIFIED, UM, APPLICATIONS COME THROUGH. AND THAT, UH, FAR EXCEEDS WHAT WE HAD BEEN GETTING. UM, WE HAVE HIRED TWO AND WE HAVE, UM, THREE OF THOSE GOING THROUGH THE BACKGROUND RIGHT NOW. UM, HOPEFULLY POSITIVE. WE HAD TWO THAT, THAT WERE NOT SELECTED OUT OF THAT BUNCH. UM, BUT THAT'S MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. UM, PEOPLE WANNA COME TO WARREN COUNTY AND THEY WANNA COME AND WORK AT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE. AND I THINK NOW THAT WE HAVE, UM, FIXED THAT PAY SCALE FOR WHAT IT IS, WE ARE GETTING THOSE APPLICANTS COMING IN. AND THAT MEANS THAT WE CAN GET BOOTS ON THE GROUND, YOU KNOW, QUICKER RATHER THAN GOING THROUGH 18 WEEKS OF THE ACADEMY. AND ANOTHER 16 TO 18 WEEKS DURING FTO IS WE CAN DO A SHORTED FTO AND GET THEM OUT ON THE STREETS. SO I THANK YOU FOR THAT, THAT THAT HAS DONE WONDERS FOR OUR DEPARTMENT. UM, FOR THAT, UM, WE HAVE PAUSED FIVE POSITIONS AND I SAY PAUSED. NO ONE LIKES ME TO USE THE TERM PAUSED, BUT THAT'S WHAT I'D LIKE TO SAY IS PAUSED THAT I'M HOPEFUL IN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS THAT WE CAN, UM, HIRE EVEN MORE CERTIFIED. AND WE HAVE ANOTHER ACADEMY THAT'S STARTING IN JANUARY AND TO FILL THE VACANCIES THAT WE HAVE. UH, I THINK WE CURRENTLY HAVE 10, WE HAVE EIGHT CURRENT VACANCIES WITHOUT THOSE FIVE, UM, POSITIONS, UM, WITH THE THREE GOING THROUGH THE HIRING PROCESS, THAT PUTS US DOWN TO FIVE. I WILL BE REQUESTING THAT THOSE FIVE PAUSES BECOME UNPAUSED COMING IN NEXT YEAR'S BUDGET SO THAT WE CAN REALLY BE PROACTIVE AND ENGAGING WITH OUR COMMUNITY WHEN IT COMES TO PUBLIC SAFETY. UM, ON THE UPDATE ON THE RMS AND CAD, UM, WE HAVE HAD THE, UM, FIRST COUPLE MEETINGS WITH THEM, UM, TO FIGURE OUT WHAT A TIMELINE IS AND ALSO TO DISCUSS WHAT WE HAVE TO DO BETWEEN NOW AND STARTING THIS PROCESS. AND THAT MEANS CLEANING UP OUR DATA. UM, WHEN IT COMES TO, UM, REDUNDANT PEOPLE IN THERE, OUR ADDRESSES. UM, GIS COREY HAS BEEN PHENOMENAL. HE'S BEEN, UM, PART OF THIS PROCESS, UM, FIGURING OUT WHAT WE NEED TO DO TO INTEGRATE ALL OF THAT. SO EVERYBODY, UM, HAS BEEN GREAT. FIRE AND RESCUE HAS BEEN GREAT COMING TO THE TABLE. UM, OUR COMMUNICATIONS, EVERYBODY, SO WE HAVE HAD THE KICKOFF MEETING. THEY ARE EXPECTING THAT THE GO LIVE DATE FOR THIS IS NOT GOING TO BE UNTIL DECEMBER OF 26. UM, SO WE'RE GONNA PUSH REAL HARD FOR THAT, BUT OF COURSE THAT'S GONNA BE TAXING ON OUR EXISTING STAFF MEMBERS. BUT IT IS DEFINITELY NEEDED. BUT YOU'VE, YOU'VE HEARD THAT, THAT PRESENTATION BEFORE, UM, THE DRONE PROGRAM, THAT IS ANOTHER, UM, INITIATIVE THAT I THINK THAT WE REALLY NEED TO LOOK AT. UM, WE REQUEST DRONES FOR MISSING PEOPLE, UM, SWAT SITUATIONS, UM, IT, IT, IT SAVED LIVES. AND I CAN DEFINITIVELY SAY THAT WE DID, UM, HAVE A CASE THAT TOOK US REP COUNTY AND THEY UTILIZED THEIR DRONE PROGRAM AND THE PERSON, UM, UNFORTUNATELY TOOK, TOOK THEIR LIFE. IT COULD VERY WELL HAVE BEEN ONE OF MY DEPUTIES, ONE OF, UM, SHERIFF COMPTON'S DEPUTIES, AND I WAS VERY THANKFUL THAT THEY HAD THAT PROGRAM. I HAVE REQUESTED, UM, THAT WE INITIATE A DRONE PROGRAM AND IT HAVE IT ME, UM, WHAT RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY ALREADY HAS IN PLACE, WHICH ARE SMALLER, LESS EXPENSIVE DRONES THAT WE CAN HAVE ON EACH SHIFT READILY AVAILABLE INSTEAD OF A VERY LARGE ONE, WHICH WE DO HAVE ONE VERY LARGE ONE. IT'S [01:10:01] ABOUT THE SIZE OF PROBABLY A LITTLE BIT LARGER THAN A, UM, A LAWN MOWER. UM, AND IT, WE'D HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE DEPARTMENT AND GO AND GET IT. UM, SO IT, IT'S, IT'S SOMETHING THAT IS NEEDED. NOW, NOWADAYS, I WILL TELL YOU THAT, UM, IN JUST THE LAST YEAR, WE HAVE REQUESTED, UM, DRONES FROM OTHER JURISDICTIONS SURROUNDING US, UM, 18 TIMES. AND WE'VE ALSO REQUESTED FOUR HELICOPTERS, UM, TO ASSIST US. UM, I'M NOT ASKING FOR A HELICOPTER. UM, WE'LL CONTINUE TO ASK OTHER JURISDICTIONS FOR THAT, BUT I DON'T THINK IT'S, UM, OUT OF THE REALM TO START YOUR OWN PROGRAM. SO I WOULD STILL LIKE TO, UM, FOR YOU TO REALLY THINK ABOUT THAT. IT'S A, IT'S SOMETHING THAT CAN, UM, BE UTILIZED, UM, FOR THE SAFETY OF OUR DEPUTIES AND FOR FINDING THE BAD GUYS IN OUR COMMUNITY. SO IF YOU DID ASK FOR A HELICOPTER, I'D WORK TO GET YOU ONE . SO THAT'S A LITTLE BIT ABOUT, UM, WHERE WE ARE. DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING MORE TO ADD ON YOUR INITIATIVES ON THAT PART? UH, THE ONLY THING I WOULD ADD TOO, UM, AGAIN, UH, IN THE INTEREST OF EFFICIENCY, UM, SHERIFF K CLAMP BRINGS THE POINT ABOUT THE DRONE PROGRAM. WE TOO HAVE A SIGNIFICANT USE FOR IT. I MEAN, WE HAVE RIVER RESCUES SIGNIFICANTLY. UM, SOME OF OUR TRAIL RESCUES AS WELL. UM, SUFFICE TO SAY, WE HAVE LIMITED RESOURCES. SO IT'S A MEANS TO HAVE RECONNAISSANCE TO GET A LITTLE BETTER FIDELITY AS WHERE THE PATIENT MAY BE. UM, WE WORK A LOT WITH, UM, TO SHARE LINE POINT WITH MUTUAL AID ENTITIES THAT DO HAVE DRONES AND IT WORKS, UM, IF, GOD FORBID WE HAD A STRIP SHOPPING CENTER WELL INVOLVED OR, OR ANYTHING TO THAT DEGREE. IT GIVES US AN IDEA OF WHAT'S ON FIRE. NOT ONLY THE LOCATION, THE ORIGIN, BUT ALSO THE EXTENT, AND THEN OF COURSE, THE CASUALTIES OF, GOD FORBID. SO ANYWAY, IT GIVES US ANOTHER TOOL AND THE RESOURCE AND IT'S, AND IT'S, IT'S ONE OF WHICH THAT WOULD SERVE NOT ONLY, UH, SHERIFF'S WORLD, BUT OURS AS WELL. SO I, I STRONGLY SUPPORT THE INITIATIVE AS WELL. AND, AND I DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HELICOPTERS, BUT I'M ON BOARD FOR THAT TOO, . BUT I DO WANNA ADD, LIKE, THIS IS ONE OF THE LESSER EXPENSIVE ITEMS. UM, SO THE DRONES THAT WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT AND PRICING OUT, PLUS YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE, UM, CARRYING CASE, THE HARD CASE AND KEEP IT CHARGED AND STUFF. WE'RE TALKING APPROXIMATELY $3,000 PIECE, SO GETTING 10 IS, IS $30,000 TO START. SO IT'S, WE'RE NOT TALKING ABOUT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO GET THIS UP AND RUNNING. IT IS ONE OF THE, THE LESSER COSTING THINGS. SO I, IT, IT'S NOT LIKE 45,000 FOR ONE DRONE. IT, THE PRICES HAVE COME DOWN AS TECHNOLOGY HAS GOTTEN BETTER AND THAT THERE'S MORE OF A MARKET FOR IT. THERE'S MORE COMPANIES, UM, ET CETERA. SO, UM, I JUST WANTED TO ADD THAT INTO THAT AS WELL. SO, SO NOW YOU GET TO, UM, HEAR ABOUT MY PROGRAM. I DON'T KNOW WHO HAS THE CLICKER AND I AM GOING TO, BECAUSE IT IS LOCKED, IT'S 10 WEEKS. AND, UM, I, I WILL HAVE TO TELL YOU, I WAS, UM, I WAS HONORED TO BE A PART OF THIS PROGRAM. I WAS HONORED TO BE A PART OF SESSION 2 9 5 WITH THE FBI NATIONAL ACADEMY. UM, IT WAS ALSO THE 90TH YEAR THAT, UM, THE FBI NATIONAL ACADEMY HAD, UM, CELEBRATED THIS YEAR. SO WE WERE PART OF THAT CLASS, KIND OF A SPECIAL CLASS. UM, BUT TO EXPLAIN THIS A LITTLE BIT FURTHER, AND I KNOW I I'VE PUT IT OUT THERE A LITTLE BIT, IS THAT LESS THAN 1% OF ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT, UM, GET TO GO TO THIS PROGRAM. AND I GOT TO GO TO THIS PROGRAM AND, WHICH WAS REALLY NEAT. I HAD 254 UM, STUDENTS, BUT THEY'RE THE RANKING OFFICIALS, THEIR COMMAND, UM, OFFICIALS WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT ALL OVER THE GLOBE. UM, OUT OF THOSE 254, WE HAD, UM, 22 INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS OUT OF 20 COUNTRIES. AND IT WAS REALLY INTERESTING TO LEARN ABOUT THEIR PROGRAMS AND HEAR THEIR PRESENTATIONS ON WHAT THEY DID. BUT IT IS, UM, I'VE NEVER BEEN TO A TRAINING LIKE THIS AND I'VE BEEN IN LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR 23, 24 YEARS, AND THIS WAS BY FAR, UM, IT'S BEEN A GOAL OF MINE FOREVER. AND, UM, DIDN'T THINK I WAS GONNA BE ABLE TO GO AND I'M, I'M VERY THANKFUL THAT I WAS ACCEPTED. UM, AND IT WAS KIND OF A LAST MINUTE THING. UM, ONE OF THEIR INITIATIVES IS, UM, AND WHAT THEY REALLY TAKE VERY, VERY SERIOUS IS WELLNESS AND FITNESS. AND I KNOW JANE AND THE COUNTY HAS REALLY PUT WELLNESS AND FITNESS AT THE TOP OF THEIR LIST, UH, FOR ALL OF OUR COUNTY EMPLOYEES. UM, WE'RE GETTING READY TO DO THE LIFE SCAN FOR THE SECOND TIME. UM, VERY IMPORTANT. UM, YOU GET A LOT OF INFORMATION OUT OF THAT ABOUT YOURSELF. UM, [01:15:01] AND THE FITNESS PART OF THAT, UH, I HAVE A LOT OF IDEAS. WE HAVE, UH, A DEPUTY, I THINK GOING NEXT WEEK TO, TO CLASS TO BRING OUT BACK IDEAS ON WHAT WE CAN IMPLEMENT AT THE, THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE. AND THAT JUST DOESN'T MEAN NUTRITION, BUT THE THE PHYSICAL ASPECT OF IT TOO. SO THE THINGS THAT I'M GONNA GO THROUGH, UM, THE LAST 10 WEEKS, UM, ARE THE, THE COURSES, UH, THAT I TOOK, THERE ARE FIVE GRAD GRADUATE COURSES THAT I GET CREDIT THROUGH UVA THAT IS HALFWAY THROUGH MY MASTER'S THROUGH UVA IS THESE FIVE COURSES, THE WELLNESS AND FITNESS PART OF IT, THERE'S A HUGE EMPHASIS. I COMPLETELY FORGOT MY YELLOW BRICK, BUT I REALLY DID, UM, WANT TO PUT IT RIGHT HERE ON THIS PODIUM. I DO WANNA CARRY IT WITH ME EVERYWHERE I GO UNTIL I, I GET TIRED OF IT. BUT IT IS REALLY SOMETHING TO ACTUALLY QUALIFY AND TO BE ABLE TO RUN THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. AND, UM, IT'S NOT JUST THE COURSES THAT I WENT THROUGH. THERE WAS ALSO PRESENTATIONS, IT'S SPECIAL EVENTS AND TRIPS THAT I WAS ABLE TO GO ON. UH, CLASSES START AT SEVEN 30 AND DON'T END UNTIL FOUR 30, AND THEN WE WOULD HAVE EXTRA PRESENTATIONS AT NIGHT. SO YOU'RE KIND OF RUNNING TO LUNCH, YOU HAVE LIMITED TIME FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH AND, AND DINNER BEFORE YOU'RE DOING SOMETHING ELSE. AND THEN I ALSO WANNA TALK ABOUT THE LAW ENFORCEMENT MEMORIAL AS WELL. SO I'M GOING TO START OUT, THESE ARE THE COURSES THAT I CHOSE. THERE WAS ABOUT 55 PAGES OF COURSES THAT YOU COULD TAKE. UM, I TOOK CONFLICT RESOLUTION FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT EXECUTIVES MANAGING THE LAW ENFORCEMENT IMAGE, PSYCHOLOGY OF LEADERSHIP, MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT AND CRITICAL INCIDENT LEADERSHIP DECISION MAKING FOR EXECUTIVES. AND THESE COURSES AREN'T TO TEACH ME HOW TO BE A COP. UM, IT HAD, NONE OF THESE COURSES HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH THAT AT THE LEVEL THAT WE'RE AT. IT'S JUST A, A HIGHER LEVEL IN HOW TO, TO RUN TEAMS AND RUN ORGANIZATIONS AND AGENCIES AND LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHIES AND WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN'T. AND GOING THROUGH THE HISTORY OF THAT, GOING THROUGH REAL LIFE INCIDENTS, UM, THE CRITICAL INCIDENT LEADERSHIP, THE DECISION MAKING, WE, WE WENT OVER CASE STUDIES WITH INCIDENTS THAT HAVE HAPPENED ACROSS THE GLOBE. AND THEN WE DISCUSSED, YOU KNOW, WHAT, HOW OUR CLASS, HOW WE WOULD MANAGE AND, AND WHAT DECISIONS WE WOULD MAKE AT, AT OUR LEVEL. UH, WE HAD LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY REPRESENTATIVES FROM THOSE THAT HAVE, YOU KNOW, 10 TO 30 OFFICERS AND DEPUTIES UP TO 2000, 3000 DEPUTY AGENCIES. SO IT, IT RANGED IN SIZE AS WELL AS, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE RESPONSIBILITIES WERE. UM, THIS WAS A LOT OF, UM, IT TOOK A LOT OF MENTAL ACUITY, UH, EMOTIONAL ACUITY OUT OF THIS, UM, PHYSICAL, UH, IT, IT JUST KIND OF HITS YOU FROM ALL OVER, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE LIKE, OH, YOU'RE, YOU'RE GONE FOR 10 WEEKS AND, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? YOU'RE JUST HANGING OUT AND TALKING. THAT'S NOT WHAT THIS IS ABOUT AT ALL. IT'S GOING THROUGH THESE CLASSES AND HAVING OPEN DISCUSSIONS. WE HAD A DEBATE ON BETWEEN MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP AND THE QUALITIES AND, AND WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS BETWEEN THERE. AND IT WAS, YOU KNOW, IT WAS PRETTY HEATED DEBATE. UM, I'M NOT HAPPY HOW, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE DECISION ON WHO WON THAT DEBATE WAS. AND I WANTED TO BOYCOTT THE CLASS, BUT I DIDN'T. I CONTINUED ON. UM, BUT GREAT CLASSES, I GOT A LOT, A LOT OUT OF THEM. AND I, I CAN'T WAIT TO IMPLEMENT SOME OF THOSE THINGS HERE AND TALK TO MY STAFF. UM, THE NEXT IS THE WELLNESS AND FITNESS, WHICH IS, UM, GREATLY IMPORTANT. I WAS, UM, I ALMOST COULDN'T GO BECAUSE I FAILED MY ONE MILE RUN. YOU HAVE TO RUN THE ONE MILE UNDER 11 MINUTES, 29 SECONDS FOR ME. AND OF COURSE PEOPLE ARE LIKE, OH, YOU CAN JUST WALK THAT. NO, I COULDN'T . UM, I, I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE SEEN ME UP HERE IN MY JOURNEY. I, I HAD A, YOU KNOW, A HEALTH SCARE AND I WASN'T, YOU KNOW, I, I DIDN'T KNOW IF I'D BE HEALTHY ENOUGH TO EVEN GO. I DID HAVE TO TAKE THE RUN A SECOND TIME. A FEDERAL AGENT DID COME TO, UM, TIME ME, AND I WAS, I WAS ABLE TO MAKE IT, THANK GOODNESS, UM, ALL LESS THAN A MONTH BEFORE I WAS SCHEDULED TO ATTEND. SO THE WELLNESS YOU HAVE, UM, YOU HAVE CLASS BETWEEN THREE AND FOUR TIMES PLUS YOU HAVE A CHALLENGE EVERY SINGLE WEDNESDAY. AND SOMETIMES WE HAD TO BE THERE AT 6 45 IN THE MORNING, 7, 7 30 TO GET THIS CHALLENGE. AND THE CHALLENGE IS MADE UP OF ALL OF THESE STATIONS. ALL 254 OF US, UM, WAS SHOW UP. THE FITNESS IS, BECAUSE THERE'S 254, THERE'S FIVE BLOCKS. I WAS B BLOCK, [01:20:01] B BEST. UM, THAT WAS OUR, OUR MOTTO. AND SO IN OUR CLASSES, WE, WE WOULD WORK. UM, THE MIDDLE TOP ROW IS BUTLER STADIUM, AND THAT'S REPRESENTATIVE OF OUR FALLEN MARINES AND THOSE THAT ARE INJURED. WE HAD SOME OUT THERE DOING THE COURSES AND STUFF WITH US. IT WAS EXTREMELY HOT ON THAT DAY. I THINK WE WERE IN THAT BOWL AND IT WAS LIKE 110 DEGREES SUPER HOT. UM, BUT WE WORKED REALLY, REALLY HARD DURING THIS. WE HAD THE CHALLENGES AND IT'S BASED, YOU KNOW, THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. IT'S BASED OFF OF, YOU KNOW, WIZARD OF OZ. SO OUR CHALLENGES THAT WE HAD TO COMPLETE, UH, IS LISTED THERE TO THE LEFT. IF YOU MISSED ONE, YOU HAD TO MAKE IT UP OR YOU COULD NOT RUN THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. UM, WEEK EIGHT, WE HAD TO RUN THE MILE AGAIN, AND YOU HAD TO QUALIFY, UM, IN ORDER TO, TO EVEN RUN THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. UM, I DID QUALIFY. I WAS ABLE TO RUN THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD, UM, WHICH IS EXCITING. AND THE NEXT, UM, SLIDE IS A VIDEO. SOMETIMES THE, THE SOUND COMES OUT REALLY LOUD. I'VE TOLD THEM TO TURN IT DOWN IF IT IS TOO LOUD, BUT IT, IT'S ANOTHER BLOCK THAT, UM, MADE A VIDEO OF A LITTLE BIT WHAT IT IS. IT IS NOT JUST RUNNING ON THE OPEN ROAD, IT IS AN OBSTACLE COURSE THAT THE MARINES USE. IN FACT, DURING THIS, WE HAD TO YELL AND GO ASIDE AND STEP ASIDE FOR MARINES THAT WERE DOING A TIMED RUN AND DOING THE OBSTACLE COURSE. AND IF THEY HAD TO WAIT, THEY HAD TO STAND IN LINE AND IT, THEY HAD TO COUNT. AND THAT'S HOW MUCH TIME THEY COULD TAKE OFF AT THE END OF, OF THEIR RUN. BUT IT WAS, I WISH I HAD THEIR, THEIR SKILLS. UM, THEY WERE AMAZING TO RUN ALONGSIDE THEM DURING THIS. UM, SO I'M JUST GONNA SHOW YOU THIS VIDEO. IT, IT IS ABOUT THREE MINUTES. NEVERMIND. IT'S ON THE NEXT ONE. ALL RIGHT, HOLD ON. BEFORE YOU, CAN I GO BACK? BEFORE YOU START, BEFORE YOU START, HOLD ON. DID YOU SAY THAT THEY MADE YOU EAT AND THEN RUN? WELL, I NEVER ATE BREAKFAST BEFORE. I HAD TO RUN AND DO CHALLENGES. OH, OKAY. OH NO. OH, HECK NO. . I'D BE ON THE SIDE ROAD, BUT NO. SO, UM, THESE ARE A COUPLE OF MY PICTURES FROM THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. UM, HOW EXCITING IT IS. THAT IS MY BLOCK DOWN THERE. BE BEST, UM, AFTER WE GOT OUR YELLOW BRICK, UM, THERE, UM, I FORGOT THIS WAS IN FRONT OF THIS. SO THE NEXT ONE IS THE VIDEO AND IT SHOULD PLAY. AND THIS IS MY SESSION, SO TAKE THE FALL, STILL FRIENDS AND ENJOY MIND HANGING ON A SHELF IN GOOD, GOOD TIME. TATTOOS AND MEMORIES AND DANCING ON TRIAL, [01:25:32] SOMETHING, RIGHT? I, SO THAT WAS 6.1 MILES THAT WE HAD TO RUN. SO IT WAS PROBABLY A LITTLE UNDER A MILE TO GET TO THE OBSTACLE COURSE. THE OBSTACLE COURSE ITSELF WAS, UM, A MILE OF GOING THROUGH DIFFERENT OBSTACLES, PROBABLY A LITTLE OVER A MILE. AND THEN YOU'RE RUNNING, UM, FOR FOUR MILES. AND THEY HAD FIVE BUSES THAT TOOK US. AND, AND WE WERE ALL A LITTLE CONCERNED BECAUSE THE BUS RIDES WERE TAKING LIKE 15 MINUTES TO GET THERE. AND WE'RE LIKE, THIS ALWAYS SUPPOSED TO BE SIX, SIX MILES. WHY IS IT TAKING US SO LONG TO GET THERE? BUT THEY, THEY TOOK, TOOK US THERE, DROPPED US OFF, AND WE WERE EXPECTED TO MAKE IT BACK. UM, I WAS, THEY, THE BUSES WERE FROM SLOWEST, WHICH I WAS ON THE FIRST BUS, UM, THE SLOWEST TIME FOR THE MILE, AND THEN WENT UP TO THE FASTEST, UM, PEOPLE THAT RAN THE MILE AND STUFF. SO FIVE BUSES WENT OUT THERE, DROPPED 'EM OFF, AND THEN WE WERE, WE, WE CAME. SO I WAS ON THE FIRST BUS. I WILL TELL YOU, UM, IF THIS YELLOW BRICK ROAD HAD HAPPENED IN THAT FIRST WEEK, I DON'T THINK THAT I COULD HAVE MADE IT. UM, WE HAD ALL BUT ONE, UM, MAKE IT, UM, WE HAD SOMEONE WITH AN INJURY, UM, THAT, UM, IS GONNA BE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME BACK AND RUN IT. I SAID, THIS IS GONNA BE A ONE AND DONE. BUT, UM, HE'S REALLY GOOD GUY OUTTA SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH. AND I, I WOULD GO BACK AND I WOULD RUN IT WITH HIM IN HEARTBEAT. I REALLY WOULD. UM, SO THAT'S A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT. UM, SO LET'S TALK ABOUT THE LAW ENFORCEMENT MEMORIAL. UM, THERE WAS A LOT OF THINGS, EXTRA THINGS THAT WE COULD DO. I SIGNED UP FOR THE LAW ENFORCEMENT MEMORIAL, UM, TO BE A PART OF THAT. I WAS THE MASTER OF CEREMONIES FOR THIS EVENT. AND SO I GOT TO GO UP THERE AND SPEAK AND INTRODUCE PEOPLE TO SPEAK. AND WE WENT INTO DC FOR, FOR THIS FOUR, FOUR BUSES. WAS THERE FIVE? I THINK THERE WAS JUST FOUR BUSES THAT WENT THROUGH. AND, UM, I'D NEVER BEEN TO THE LAW ENFORCEMENT MEMORIAL. THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME BEING THERE, AND I THINK THAT'S AWFUL, CONSIDERING I'M AN HOUR AND A HALF AWAY. UH, WE WENT TO SO MANY THINGS IN DC DURING THIS THAT I JUST HAVEN'T TAKEN THE TIME TO DO. NOW THAT I'VE BEEN A PART OF THIS. I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO, TO GET WARREN COUNTY DEPUTIES AND FRONT ROW OFFICERS AND TO, TO GET A BUS. AND WE NEED, WE NEED TO GO THERE DURING MEMORIAL WEEK. IT IS, IS IT'S REALLY SOMETHING TO, TO GO THERE AND, AND SEE IT AND SEE THE NAMES AND, AND GO THROUGH THAT. SO I WAS VERY FORTUNATE TO BE A PART OF THIS CEREMONY, UM, THAT DAY. UM, WE ALSO HAD A LOT OF PRESENTATION, SPECIAL EVENTS. UH, SILENCE OF THE LAMBS WAS PARTIALLY FILMED AT QUANTICO, UM, IN THE SAME BUILDINGS AND WITH THE SAME TREE. I DON'T KNOW HOW TO GET THE MIDDLE ONE TO PLAY, BUT YOU'LL SEE THAT IT, IT WOULD PLAY. AND JODI FOSTER'S GONNA RUN EXACTLY BY THAT TREE THAT I AM STANDING BY. BUT WE DID A WHOLE PRESENTATION ON EVERYTHING. YOU KNOW, EACH IMAGERY CLIP OF THE MOVIE THAT COINCIDED WITH, WITH QUANTICO, THERE'S THESE LITTLE GERAL TUBES THAT YOU GO THROUGH. IT'S LIKE A MAZE IN THERE. AND YOU SEE HER WALKING AND RUNNING UP THE SAME STAIRS THAT I DID. IT WAS REALLY, IT WAS A REALLY NEAT PRESENTATION. UM, WE ALSO HAD, UM, DC MUSEUM DAY, AND THAT WAS A MANDATORY WHERE ALL 254 OF US WERE BUSED, UM, TO DC AND WE DID DIFFERENT MUSEUMS AND THE HOLOCAUST MUSEUM, AMERICAN HISTORY MUSEUM, UM, THE BLACK HISTORY MUSEUM, ALL OF THESE MUSEUMS. UM, I THINK ON THAT DAY I HAD LIKE 21,000 STEPS GOING ALL AROUND, UH, DC SO IT WAS REALLY COOL. WE HAD AN EVENING WITH JACK, [01:30:01] WHO WAS JACK THE RIPPER. WE HAD A TWO HOUR PRESENTATION ON THAT ABOUT, UM, DIFFERENT HYPOTHESIS ON WHO IT COULD HAVE BEEN IN IN EACH OF THE CASES AND STUFF. IT WAS REALLY COOL. UM, THE BOMBER'S MOTIVATION, THAT'S ANOTHER ONE. UM, BOMBING INCIDENTS ALL OVER THE WORLD. AND, UM, DISSECTING THOSE, THAT WAS A REALLY GREAT PRESENTATION AS WELL. AND THEN WE DID, UM, A LOT OF OTHER THINGS. THEY GAINED PANEL DISCUSSIONS, SHARING CULTURE AND LESSONS THROUGH STORY THAT WAS BY THE INSTRUCTORS, THE SPECIAL AGENTS AT THE FBI, AND DIFFERENT THINGS THAT THEY'VE LEARNED AND WHAT THEY'VE DONE. AND JUST TELLING US, YOU KNOW, LET IT GO. YOU KNOW, WE KNOW THAT YOU WORK FOR AGENCIES AND WHAT YOUR RANKS ARE, AND LET JUST LET THAT GO WHILE YOU'RE HERE SO YOU CAN JUST REALLY EMBRACE IT. AND I CAN'T THANK MY STAFF ENOUGH. UM, MY CHIEF DEPUTY JASON WINTER AND MY CAPTAINS, UM, THEY HELD THE FORT DOWN. THEY KEPT THINGS MOVING. I WAS NOT BOTHERED. PEOPLE WOULD COME UP TO ME. UM, I WAS THE ONLY SHERIFF THAT ATTENDED, UH, OUTTA 254 PEOPLE. THERE WAS 26 WOMEN OUT OF THAT CLASS. AND I WAS THE ONLY SHERIFF THAT ATTENDED. AND I GOT A LOT OF QUESTIONS BECAUSE THERE'S POTENTIAL SHERIFFS, YOU KNOW, AND THEY WERE SAYING, HEY, WHAT'S THE PROCESS? HOW DOES THAT GO? WHAT YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU KNOW POLITICALLY, YOU KNOW, HOW DOES THAT GO? AND I WAS VERY, VERY OPEN AND HONEST. UM, BUT THE GUYS IN GALS HERE IN WARREN COUNTY AT WARREN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE, UM, FULL APPRECIATION FOR, FOR WHAT THEY DID THE LAST 10 WEEKS. I, I WALKED IN AND I, MY SHOULDERS ARE NOT UP TO MY EARS. I'M NOT STRESSED. LIKE I, THEY DID A PHENOMENAL JOB AND THEY ARE TO BE COMMENDED FOR THAT. UM, PENN PASSION COIN NIGHT IS A MAJOR THING FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT, AND I'VE BROUGHT IT UP HERE BEFORE. IT'S KIND OF LIKE THE SWAG THINGS AND STUFF. SO I DO A LITTLE PACKAGE HERE. SO I WANTED TO SHARE A COUPLE THINGS. UM, IT WAS, IT WAS A LITTLE CHAOTIC THAT NIGHT, BUT THAT IS, THAT'S BASICALLY MY LOOP THERE. UM, AND IT'S, IT'S PILED ON TOP OF EACH OTHER AND WHAT EVERYBODY SHARED. BUT I WOULD LIKE TO SHARE WITH YOU, AND I, I'M SURE MAYBE SOME OF YOU HAVE SHERIFF'S OFFICE PATCHES AND OUR COINS, BUT WE DO HAVE A WARREN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE COIN. BUT I ALSO WANNA GET YOU THE FBI NATIONAL ACADEMY PATCH AS WELL, UM, TO THANK YOU FOR, YOU KNOW, ASSISTING MY STAFF IN DOING EVERYTHING, UM, OVER THE SUMMER IN MY ABSENCE AND STUFF. SO I DO WANNA HAND THIS, THIS OUT TO YOU. I THINK I HAVE ONE EXTRA, UM, BECAUSE WE NOW HAVE A MISS SEAT, AND I WANNA ASK FOR ME IN EXCHANGE. WE DID IN EXCHANGE, BUT I, I WON'T ASK YOU FOR ANYTHING. YOU HAVE AN WOULD YOU, AND THEN OF COURSE THERE WERE TOURS AS WELL, AND THERE WERE BASEBALL GAMES AND THEY WENT TO THE RICHMOND RACE. UM, I DIDN'T GO TO THE RICHMOND RACE AND SOME THINGS, BUT THERE WERE SO MANY THINGS TO DO. UM, AND JUST THINKING ABOUT IT, HOW LUCKY AM I TO BE IN THE AREA AND LIVE HERE? UM, PEOPLE WENT TO WILLIAMSBURG ROAD, UM, HORSES. UM, WE HAD PEOPLE THAT, UM, CAME TO THE NORTHERN SHENANDOAH VALLEY AND HIKED, UM, SOME OF OUR TRAILS IN, IN REY. THEY WENT TO REY CAVERNS. UH, PEOPLE WERE LOOKING UP WARREN COUNTY. THEY THOUGHT IT WAS COOL THAT THE SHERIFF WAS IN THE, IN THE CLASS. UM, I DON'T THINK THAT HAPPENS VERY OFTEN. THEY'RE LOOKING AT WARREN COUNTY. AND SO WE'RE ALL THE INFORMATION, EVERYTHING ON ON THERE, IT, IT'S ACCESSIBLE. LIKE, WHO, WHO'S CRYSTAL KLEIN? LIKE WHO, WHO IS SHE AND HOW HAS THIS COME? SO THEY'RE, THEY'RE DOING THE GOOGLE SEARCHES AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF IT IS, IS NOT SO GOOD. UM, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF GOOD TO IT. UM, I, I, I THINK WE PUT WARREN COUNTY ON, ON THE MAP BY THESE LAST 10 WEEKS, HEAD OF BLAST. SO WE ALSO DID A COUPLE TRIPS. I WENT ON THE PHILADELPHIA TRIP, UM, AND I WANNA LET YOU KNOW THAT WARREN COUNTY IS NOT GONNA TAKE ON THIS, BUT THIS IS PHILADELPHIA MOTORCYCLE COP. AND HE IS, WAS ESCORTING US. WE GOT AN ESCORT FROM QUANTICO ALL THE WAY INTO PHILADELPHIA. AND THE WHOLE TIME WE WERE STAYING THERE. AND HE HAS A CIGAR IN HIS MOUTH, AND HE WAS AWESOME , TO SAY THE LEAST. I WAS LIKE, WE'D NEVER GET AWAY WITH THAT IN, IN WARDEN COUNTY, BUT I'LL TELL YOU WHAT, THEY STOPPED THE TRAFFIC. AND THAT GUY IN PARTICULAR, WE WERE GOING DOWN THE ROAD AND HE STOPPED THREE LANES OF INTERSTATE TRAFFIC AND SAW SOMEONE THAT WAS GONNA GO AROUND. AND HE PARKED THAT BIKE QUICKER THAN ANYBODY THAT I'D [01:35:01] EVER SEEN, GOT OFF THAT BIKE. AND HE STOPPED THAT VEHICLE TO LET US PASS. IT WAS LIKE, YOU, YOU WEREN'T GETTING BY HIM, YOU WERE GONNA LISTEN. SO IT WAS ENTERTAINING JUST TO WATCH THEM ESCORT US THROUGH. SO WE WENT TO THE EAGLE STADIUM. WE GOT A WHOLE HISTORY LESSON DOWNTOWN, UM, PHILADELPHIA, THE LIBERTY BELL AND, AND A, A LOT OF THINGS THAT I, I HAD BEEN THERE A COUPLE TIMES THAT I, I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT. PHENOMENAL TRIP. THEY, UM, TREATED US LIKE ROYALTY. UM, THEIR FOP IS, THEY HAVE A WHOLE, THEY HAVE A STORE AND A HOLE. IT'S, IT'S KIND OF A RESTAURANT BAR AREA, AND IT IS PROBABLY 10 TIMES THE SIZE OF, OF THIS ROOM. AND IT, THEY, THEY WERE JUST PHENOMENAL. TREATED US GREAT. WE ALSO WENT ON A NEW YORK CITY TRIP, SAME THING. WE WERE ESCORTED ALL THE WAY UP THE INTERSTATE, ALL THE WAY INTO NEW YORK AND EVERY SINGLE LIGHT. AND WE HAD, UH, FOUR BUSES. AND, UM, WE WERE ABLE TO GO TO, UM, HEADQUARTERS. WE WERE ABLE TO, UM, SEE THEIR CANINE DEMONSTRATIONS, THEIR SWAT STUFF, UM, EXPLOSIVES. I WAS ABLE TO DETONATE C FOUR, UH, AND MAKE IT GO BOOM. IT WAS REALLY COOL. WE SAW THE HELICOPTERS. THEY DID A RESCUE IN THE WATER. UM, THE HUDSON BAY. WE WERE ABLE TO GO TO THE, UM, THE LAW ENFORCEMENT MEMORIAL THERE, THE NINE 11 MEMORIAL AND GO THROUGH THAT. IT, WHAT A GREAT TRIP. UM, CAN'T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THAT EITHER. UH, INTERNATIONAL NIGHT, I HAD SPOKE THAT WE HAD 22 INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS OUTTA 20 COUNTRIES. WE HAD INTERNATIONAL NIGHT WHERE EACH OF THE INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS WERE TASKED WITH BRINGING THEIR FOOD AND DRINK AND ITEMS FROM THEIR COUNTRIES. AND THEN YOU GO AROUND AND YOU SAMPLE IT. UH, THEY, THEY HAD SOME INTERESTING FOOD. UM, I DIDN'T TRY ALL OF IT. , I WASN'T THAT ADVENTUROUS, BUT I DID TRY SOME OTHER, SOME OF IT. UM, BUT GREAT GROUP. THEY, UM, THEY DIDN'T GET TO GO HOME, UM, TO FLY OUT ON A FRIDAY AND TO COME BACK ON SUNDAY. WE, WE HAD TO STAY IN THE DORMS WITH A ROOMMATE. SO LIKE, I HAD A ROOMMATE, UM, IN THE SAME ROOM. AND THEN WE HAD SUITE MATES. SO THERE WAS FOUR OF US LADIES SHARING ONE BATHROOM, ONE SHOWER, ONE, UM, TWO SINKS ACTUALLY, UM, AS A COMMON AREA. SO THAT WAS INTERESTING. 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, I'M IN MY FIFTIES AND GOING BACK TO THOSE DAYS, THAT WAS INTERESTING. UH, WE HAD TEXAS NIGHT, THEY HAD A GROUP FROM TEXAS. THEY HAD, UM, EIGHT TO 10 PEOPLE FROM TEXAS COME AND TRAVEL WITH ALL OF THEIR MEAT AND SUPPLIES AND SMOKERS AND EVERYTHING, UM, TO PROVIDE FOOD AND DANCE AND EVERYTHING. BUT THOSE ARE A COUPLE PICTURES THAT, THAT WE TOOK. WE ALSO HAD LOUISIANA NIGHT, LOUISIANA NIGHT. UM, SAME THING. THEY BROUGHT UP PEOPLE FROM LOUISIANA TO COOK ALL OF THIS FOOD, UM, WHICH WAS PHENOMENAL. UM, I DIDN'T STAY AS LONG AT LOUISIANA NIGHT. THAT WAS THE SAME DAY AS THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD. AND I'M GOING TO TELL YOU, THIS GIRL WAS TIRED BY THAT TIME, SO I DIDN'T STAY AS LONG. SO I DON'T HAVE AS MANY PICTURES ON THAT. UM, WE ALSO HAD CHARITY, UM, NIGHT AND WARREN COUNTY PUT A BASKET AND THE COIN HOLDER INTO THE AUCTION. AND THAT WAS DONATED BY, UM, A LOT OF BUSINESSES HERE IN TOWN. I WISH I WOULD'VE HAD SOME FORETHOUGHT. I DO NOT HAVE A, A FULL LIST OF EVERYBODY THAT DONATED TO THAT BASKET, BUT IT DID BRING IN $400. THERE WAS A BIDDING WAR IN IT. SO ANYTHING THAT REACHED OVER 200 OR $250 AUTOMATICALLY WENT TO THE LIVE AUCTION. AND MY BASKET MADE IT, OUR BASKET DID. SO IT DID GO TO THE TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION. UM, WE RAISED $37,861 FOR THE NIGHT ON ALL OF THE AUCTION ITEMS. AND IT WAS STEVEN SILLER WHO RESPONDED TO ON NINE 11. AND THE, HE WENT THROUGH THE TUNNELS TO GET TO THE TWIN TOWERS TO SAVE AS MANY PEOPLE AS HE COULD. AND HE ENDED UP, UM, LOSING HIS LIFE. AND THEY STARTED THIS CHARITY. AND A COUPLE OF THE PROGRAMS THAT THEY, UM, DO ARE LISTED ON THE RIGHT THERE. BUT I, I BEG EACH OF YOU TO LOOK UP TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION AND, UM, DONATE IT IS A WORTHY CAUSE. AND THEY DO A LOT FOR FIRST RESPONDERS AND PUBLIC SAFETY. UM, IT IS A, A PHENOMENAL CHARITY AND THEY GAVE THE NUMBER, BUT VERY, VERY, VERY LITTLE GOES TO ADMINISTRATIVE WORK. IT GOES TO FAMILIES, UM, UH, FIRST RESPONDERS. AND [01:40:02] IT, IT'S REALLY NEAT. UM, THEY DID A REALLY NEAT PRESENTATION. THESE ARE A COUPLE OTHER PICTURES. JUST, I WAS IN A CORNHOLE COMPETITION. IT WAS DEA VERSUS FBII WAS ON THE FBI TEAM. SO MYSELF AND VERONICA FROM FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, WHERE TEAMMATES, WE, UM, DID GET KICKED THE FIRST ROUND, BUT THAT'S OKAY. WE DID IT ANYWAYS. UM, PHILADELPHIA COPS ARE, THEY'RE BY FAR MY FAVORITE PEOPLE DOWN THERE. BUT I MADE SOME REALLY GOOD FRIENDS IN A LOT OF CONTACTS, UM, IN FOUR OVER 48 STATES, UM, THAT I CAN JUST CALL UP AND, AND SAY, HEY, THIS IS WHAT WE HAVE, OR HEY, WE NEED YOUR HELP IN. UM, GREAT PROGRAM. AND THEN GRADUATION, UM, THESE 10 WEEKS, I WASN'T JUST AWAY FROM, FROM YOU ALL. I'M SURE Y'ALL MISS ME GREATLY IN MY DEPARTMENT. I'M SURE THEY MISS ME GREATLY, BUT MY FAMILY AS WELL. UM, WELL, I DON'T KNOW. SOME PEOPLE SAY THAT MY HUSBAND GEORGE HAS GONE THROUGH A DEPRESSION NOW THAT I'M BACK, YOU KNOW, , BUT NOT TRUE. BUT, UM, WE HAD LIMITED TICKETS TO GO, SO NOT EVERYBODY COULD GO. I HAD THREE TICKETS AND THEN A COUPLE OF THE FAMILIES COULDN'T, UM, HAVE SOME PEOPLE COME TO THEIR GRADUATION. SO I WAS ABLE TO SNAG AN EXTRA TICKET. BUT, UM, AND THEN WE HAD GRADUATION THIS LAST THURSDAY AND BACK TO WORK ON MONDAY. SO THAT'S A LITTLE BIT OF WHERE I'VE BEEN IN THE LAST 10 WEEKS. UM, I'M VERY THANKFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY. SO, AND THANK YOU FOR SITTING THROUGH THIS. I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS 10, 10 MINUTES OR NOT, BUT NO, THAT, THAT WAS VERY, VERY GOOD. VERY IMPRESSIVE. VERY IMPRESSIVE. I APPRECIATE IT. I WOULD LIKE TO, TO SAY THAT IT WAS AN AM AMAZING THING THAT, UM, IT, THIS, THAT YOUR, YOUR DEPARTMENT HANDLED THINGS IN A WAY THAT ESSENTIALLY, LIKE YOU SAID, UH, WE KEPT THAT MOVING FORWARD. YEAH. YEAH. SO THERE'S NO POLITE WAY TO SAY IT, BUT I MEAN, YOU WERE GONE, BUT THEY WERE STILL, EVERYTHING WAS AS NORMAL AND, AND, UM, SO CONGRATULATIONS ON THAT TOO. YEAH. UM, THANK YOU. SO NOW WE ARE MOVING ON TO THE THEME OF PROVIDING QUALITY MUNICIPAL SERVICES. SO WE HAVE THREE GOALS THAT WE'RE GONNA SPEAK ABOUT REGARDING, UM, THIS THEME. THE FIRST ONE, OOPS, I'M IMPATIENT. I'M LIKE, THERE WE GO. UM, THE FIRST ONE IS THE POST LIBRARY DEBRIEF. SO I'M JUST GONNA PROVIDE AN UPDATE OF KIND OF THE TIMELINE, UM, SINCE THE LAST, UM, UPDATE. SO ON JUNE 10TH, THE UM, BUDGET WAS APPROVED AND AT THAT POINT THE BOARD ALLOCATED A MILLION, UM, $24,000 TO THE WARREN COUNTY LIBRARY BOARD. UM, ON JULY 1ST, THE, UM, CANCELLATION OF THE RFP WA FOR LIBRARY SERVICES OCCURRED. UM, AND I REALIZE I DIDN'T PUT THE DATES ON THIS, UM, $275,000 WAS ALLOCATED FROM THE, UM, LIBRARY BOARD. UM, ITEM TWO, UM, THE TENNIS COURTS AT THE HIGH SCHOOL AND THE CARPET FOR THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS, AND THEN ALSO TO FUND THE CHESTER GAP, UM, AGREEMENT FOR AN ADDITIONAL THREE MONTHS. AND THEN, UM, LAST WEEK, $480,000 WAS ALLOCATED FOR WARREN COUNTY FIRE AND RESCUE. UM, THE LOCAL PORTION OF THE SAFER GRANT, IF THAT IS AWARDED OR FOR ALTERNATE STAFFING AND ASSET REPLACEMENT NEEDS, UM, THERE IS A BALANCE OF $269,000 REMAINING IN THE, UM, WARREN COUNTY LIBRARY BOARD. UM, LINE, THE NEXT GOAL IS, UM, NUMBER 18. SO TURN THAT OVER TO TIFFANY. HELLO, THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME THIS EVENING. UM, SO MY GOAL NUMBER 18 IS EXPANDING RECREATIONAL ACTIVITY OPPORTUNITIES AND PROGRAMS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY. UM, AS OF JUNE 1ST, I WAS ABLE TO HIRE A NEW PROGRAMING COORDINATOR AFTER LESLIE HAD DEPARTED US. UM, SHE WENT TO CLARK COUNTY, SO BETTER THINGS FOR HER, BUT I WAS ABLE TO FILL THAT POSITION ON JUNE 1ST. UM, SO WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO OFFER NEW PROGRAMS AND WE'RE GONNA IMPLEMENT MORE AS THE YEARS GO ON. UM, WE'RE CONTINUING TO GROW OUR PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE COALITION. UM, REACHING OUT NOW, UM, WE'RE WORKING WITH THE PALS PROGRAM WITH THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT NOW. UM, SO WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT. UM, WE STARTED TO DO SEVERAL POP-UP PROGRAMS THROUGHOUT THE PARKS. WE HAD A FEW AT THE AIRPORT AND THEN AT SOME OF THE FIRE DEPARTMENTS. WE'RE TRYING TO ENGAGE, UM, INDIVIDUALS [01:45:01] THAT DON'T NECESSARILY LIVE IN THE TOWN LIMITS. UM, THAT CAN'T MAKE IT INTO US. UH, WE DON'T WANNA HAVE EVERYTHING JUST AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER. WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO REACH PEOPLE IN OTHER LOCALITIES. UM, WE COMPLETED RECENTLY THIS SUMMER 10 PROGRAMS. UM, WE HAD A GOOD PARTICIPATION RATE. UM, USUALLY IN THE PAST WE'VE BEEN CANCELING PROGRAMS BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T HAD ANYBODY PARTICIPATE. UM, I'M VERY FORTUNATE THAT THAT HAS NOT BEEN THE CASE AS OF THIS YEAR. UM, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO OFFER ALL OF OUR PROGRAMS AND TO HAVE THOSE PROGRAMS GO. UM, WE DO HAVE ONE PROGRAM ON HOLD. UM, WE WERE GOING TO TRY TO START A PUMPKIN PATCH OUT AT ROCKLAND ON ONE OF THE OPEN FIELDS, OF COURSE, TOO LATE IN THE SEASON THIS YEAR. BUT WE ARE GONNA TRY FOR THAT NEXT YEAR. UM, WHICH WE'RE HOPING TO WORK WITH THE TOURISM COMMITTEE TO PROVIDE A COMPLETE FALL FESTIVAL OUT THERE. UM, WE HAVE 15 PROGRAMS IN PROCESS AND ONGOING. UM, WE'RE TAKING REGISTRATION FOR A FEW NOW. SOME ARE ONGOING THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE YEAR. UM, WE ALSO HAVE 11 PROGRAMS THAT WE'RE GONNA IMPLEMENT IN THE FALL AND UPCOMING WINTER. UM, WE'RE GONNA DO A NORTH POLE LIGHTS PARTNERING WITH, UM, REACHING OUT NOW AND HOPEFULLY HAVE A LIGHT THEME GOING AROUND THE SPLASH PAD. AND THEN SANTA AND MRS. CLAUS, THEY'RE ON SITE AS WELL WITH PICTURES TO BE TAKEN. UM, ON SEPTEMBER 24TH AT 2:00 PM I REACHED OUT TO SOME COMMUNITY LEADERS. WE'RE GONNA HAVE A MEETING ON REVITALIZING FANTASY LAND, UM, TO SEE WHERE WE CAN GO FROM THAT TO SEE IF WE CAN GAUGE COMMUNITY INTEREST, SEE IF WE CAN GET SOME PARTNERSHIPS, REACH OUT FOR DONATIONS. UM, I DID BRING IT UP TO THE BUILDING COMMITTEE. I HAD RECEIVED A MATCHING GRANT FOR A NEW PIECE OF PLAY EQUIPMENT FROM GAME TIME. UM, IT'S $50,000 WE'D HAVE TO MATCH. UM, THEY WOULD MATCH 50,000 TODAY. I WAS JUST GIVEN A DONATION OF 25,000, UM, FROM Z DR. ZIKA'S OFFICE. UM, SO WE'RE HALFWAY THERE. UM, WE'VE PUT A LETTER OUT TO SEVERAL DIFFERENT DOCTOR'S OFFICES, ORGANIZATIONS. UM, WE'RE PUTTING IT OUT ON FACEBOOK TO SEE IF ANYBODY IN THE TOWN WOULD BE INTERESTED IN DONATING TO THAT PROJECT. SO DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? I DON'T HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, BUT I'D LIKE TO CONGRATULATE YOU FOR THE RE-ENERGIZING. YES, SIR. AND REVITALIZATION ON OUR THANK. YOU'VE DONE A GREAT JOB. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. I APPRECIATE THAT. AND NOW, UM, MR. MARKS GETS THE HONOR OF SPEAKING FOR THREE OF HIS PEERS. UM, MR. BEAM AND MY ATCO ARE BOTH OUT OF TOWN FOR WORK, SO JOHN'S GONNA DO A BRIEF UPDATE. MY, MY PARTNERS ARE ON VACATION, SO I GOT ELECTED TO BE HERE. UM, BEFORE I START THOUGH, UH, PARKS AND REC AND DSS EVERY YEAR WE PARTNER FOR THE JACK OF LANTERN JUBILEE, WHICH IS GENERALLY THE THURSDAY BEFORE HALLOWEEN. THIS YEAR IS GONNA BE A WEEK EARLIER, SO WE'RE GONNA BE HAVING ABOUT A THOUSAND PEOPLE. SO WHAT WE HAD LAST YEAR OUT TO THE TRACK OVER ON 15TH STREET, I BELIEVE IT'S OCTOBER 23RD. UM, SO, UH, WE HOPE EVERYBODY CAN, CAN MAKE IT OUT TO HELP US CELEBRATE. ALRIGHT, GOAL NUMBER 22, A WORK GROUP TO EVALUATE HOMELESSNESS, HOUSING NEEDS AND SUBSTANDARD STRUCTURES. AND WE HAVE MET A COUPLE TIMES. MS. CALLERS WAS IN THE MEETING WITH US. UM, WE WERE REALLY, UH, ABLE TO IDENTIFY, UM, PART OF PART, THERE'S TWO POINTS TO THIS WORK GROUP. ONE IS SUBSTANDARD HOUSING AND WHAT CAN BE DONE, IF ANYTHING, UH, TO HELP THAT. AND THEN THE OTHER IS THE HOMELESSNESS SITUATION THAT WE HAVE HERE IN WARREN COUNTY. NOW THE, UM, POINT IN TIME COUNT FOR THE NORTHERN REGION, WHICH WE'RE IN, HAPPENED TO COINCIDE WITH THIS. AND WE GOT SOME OF THE STATISTICS ABOUT THE HOMELESS IN OUR AREA, OUR LARGER AREA, UM, AND OUR WARREN COUNTY SPECIFIC HOMELESS. UM, SO THE STATISTICS ARE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE AND THEY'RE PRETTY CONSISTENT NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE. UM, A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO ARE AFFECTED BY HOMELESS HAVE, UM, A LOT OF THESE, UM, ARE FACING A LOT OF THESE CONDITIONS. UM, THE NEEDS ARE HOUSING WITHOUT GREAT CONDITIONS, UM, AFFORDABLE AND LOW BARRIER HOUSING WITH WRAPAROUND SUPPORT. UM, YES SIR. UM, WHAT IS HOUSING WITHOUT PRECONDITIONS? I'M SORRY, WHAT'S HOUSING WITHOUT PRECONDITIONS? UM, I COULDN'T HEAR, I'M SORRY. WHAT IS HOUSING WITHOUT PRECONDITIONS? HOUSING WITHOUT PRECONDITIONS. OKAY. UM, SOME HOUSING UNITS, WELL, LIKE SECTION EIGHT, YOU HAVE TO HAVE CERTAIN, UM, INCOME LIMITS. UM, IT HAS TO BE CERTAIN FAMILIES, IT HAS TO BE, YOU HAVE TO MEET CERTAIN PRECONDITIONS IN ORDER TO LIVE IN THOSE APARTMENT COMPLEXES. UM, TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF INFORMATION ABOUT WARREN COUNTY SPECIFIC, UH, IN 2024, UH, DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES, WE HAD 366 REQUESTS, UM, FOR HOMELESSNESS ASSISTANCE. AND THOSE ARE EITHER PEOPLE WHO ARE CURRENTLY HOMELESS [01:50:01] OR WERE FACING HOMELESS AS DEFINED BY SOMEBODY WITH AN EVICTION NOTICE OR A FOR FORECLOSURE. UH, YEAR TO DATE, UH, WE'VE HAD, UH, 228 REQUESTS FOR ASSISTANCE. MICHELLE'S HERE AND SHE CAN TELL YOU ALL ABOUT THE PROGRAMS THAT SHE HELPS US RUN, UH, FOR, UH, PEOPLE WHO COME IN, UH, SPEAKING ABOUT, UH, POSSIBLE BEING HOMELESS. UH, WE ALSO DO, ONE OF THE SITUATIONS WE FACE HERE IN WARREN COUNTY, WHICH IS UNIQUE AND OUR PARTNERS DON'T, IS RSW. UM, PEOPLE COMING OUT OF RSW ARE KIND OF GIVEN A LIFT INTO TOWN AND SAYING, BEST OF LUCK TO YOU. UM, AND MOST OF THE TIME THEY, IF THEY'RE NOT FROM AROUND HERE, THEY HAVE NOWHERE TO GET BACK TO WHERE THEY'RE GOING. UM, AND SO THEN THEY KIND OF BECOME, UH, SOMETHING THAT WE WORK WITH THEM ON. AND I KNOW THAT MICHELLE HAS WORKED WITH A FEW TO GET, UM, BUS TICKETS TO, UH, THEIR PLACES OF ORIGIN. UH, SO THEY GET BACK HOME, UM, AND DON'T AFFECT, YOU KNOW, OUR RESOURCES HERE, BUT THAT IS A SITUATION THAT WE HAVEN'T ADDRESSED YET. BUT DOWN THE ROAD, IT'S GONNA NEED TO BE, SOMEBODY'S GONNA NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO THIS. UM, LIKE TO KNOW HOW MANY OF THESE, THESE CATEGORIES, THESE SIX CATEGORIES THAT YOU'VE GOT, HOW MANY OF 'EM ARE, ARE KIND OF LIKE, UH, YOU'VE GOT SOMEBODY WHO'S, UH, UNEMPLOYED AND THEY'VE BEEN EVICTED BECAUSE THE, THE PLACE THAT THEY WERE LIVING IN WAS TOO EXPENSIVE AND THEY CAN'T FIND A PLACE THAT THEY CAN'T AFFORD. RIGHT? YEAH. A LOT OF THEM OVERLAP AND ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER. IT'S KINDA LIKE THE DOMINO EFFECT. UM, AND YOU KNOW, IT CAN START WITH SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS CHILDCARE. UM, OUR CHILDCARE FACILITY, WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH HERE IN WARREN COUNTY. AND IF YOU CAN'T HAVE CHILDCARE, WHERE DOES YOUR CHILD GO WHEN YOU GO TO WORK? AND IF YOU START MISSING WORK BECAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE CHILDCARE, YOU LOSE YOUR JOB, YOU LOSE YOUR JOB, YOU LOSE YOUR CAR, YOU LOSE YOUR CAR, YOU LOSE YOUR HOME. AND NEXT THING YOU KNOW, ALL THE DOMINOES HAVE FALLEN. AND IT STARTED WITH THAT ONE INCIDENT. UM, AND MICHELLE CAN ATTEST TO THAT. THERE'S A LOT OF OVERLAP OF, UM, FOR LACK OF A BETTER TERM, SYMPTOMS, UM, AND CAUSES. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ARE LOOKING AT IS, UH, REENGAGING WITH PEOPLES INC. THEY ARE OUR COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY THAT COVERS OUR AREA. IT, IT'S A LITTLE STRANGE 'CAUSE THEY'RE BASED IN ABINGDON AND THEY COVER THE ABINGTON AREA AND THEN THE AREA UP HERE WITH SHENANDOAH COUNTY AND WARREN COUNTY. UM, AND I'VE ASKED THE STATE WHY THERE'S SUCH A SPLIT. I THINK WE'D BE BETTER SERVED WITH A COMMUNITY ACTION AGENCY BASED WHERE WE ARE INSTEAD OF BASED IN ABINGTON, BUT OH, SORRY. UH, WE DO NEED TO REENGAGE WITH THEM BECAUSE THEY DO OFFER A LOT OF DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THAT WARREN COUNTY COULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF. I WAS TALKING WITH MICHELLE EARLIER AND SHE WAS REMINDING ME THAT THEY HAD ACTUALLY WANTED TO APPROACH THE COUNTY ABOUT BUILDING AN APARTMENT COMPLEX HERE, BUT COULDN'T GET ANY TRACTION. UM, THE BOARD DOES HAVE THE ABILITY TO, UM, PLACE A MEMBER ON THE, UM, ADVISORY BOARD OF PEOPLE INC. BECAUSE THEY DO SERVE OUR COMMUNITY. UM, UH, MS. COOK WAS OUR REPRESENTATIVE. UNFORTUNATELY, SHE WASN'T ABLE TO MAKE THE MEETINGS. UM, WE DO NEED SOMEBODY GOING FORWARD WHO'S GONNA BE INVOLVED AND ADVOCATING TO BRING SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY. 'CAUSE THEY'RE NOT GONNA COME HERE UNLESS WE ADVOCATE AND SAY, WE WANT THESE SERVICES THAT YOU'RE OFFERING EVERYBODY ELSE, LET'S BRING 'EM HERE TO WARREN COUNTY. UH, THE OTHER THING THAT WE DO HAVE HERE IS WE TALKED ABOUT A TENANT'S RIGHTS PACKET. UH, WE DO HAVE THOSE AVAILABLE AT THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES AND IT REALLY WALKS THROUGH WHAT YOUR OPTIONS ARE IF YOU'RE LIVING IN THE SUBSTANDARD HOUSING, IF YOU'RE LIVING WHERE, UM, A LANDLORD. UH, WHAT RIGHTS DO YOU HAVE AS A TENANT WHEN YOU'RE RENTING? UH, RENT PRICES ARE HIGH. I CAN TELL YOU THAT A LOT OF MY STAFF CANNOT AFFORD TO LIVE IN WARREN COUNTY. AND SO THEY LIVE IN SURROUNDING COUNTIES, WHICH IS UNFORTUNATE. UM, THEY WANT TO BE PART OF THEIR COMMUNITY, BUT THEY'RE PRICED OUT OF THE COMMUNITY. AND IF YOU DO HAPPEN TO HAVE A RENTAL HERE, UM, WHAT HAPPENS IF THE LANDLORD DOESN'T WANT TO FIX IT UP? UH, IF PROBLEMS ARE, SO YOU DO HAVE SOME RIGHTS AS A TENANT, YOU GOTTA KEEP PAYING YOUR RENT , YOU CAN'T JUST STOP PAYING YOUR RENT. BUT THERE ARE SOME RESOURCES THAT ARE AVAILABLE AND WE DO HAVE THOSE PACKETS AT THE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES FOR ANYBODY WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN THEM. ANY QUESTIONS? ANY QUESTIONS? I HAD ONE AND IT FLEW AROUND OUTTA MY HEAD ON THAT, BUT I DID HAVE A CONVERSATION, I DON'T REMEMBER WHO I HAD IT WITH RECENTLY ABOUT THE FACT WE DON'T TAKE ADVANTAGE OF PEOPLE INC THE WAY I THINK WE SHOULD. I THINK IN THE ENTIRE TIME I'VE BEEN ON THE BOARD, THERE'S BEEN MAYBE TWO PRESENTATIONS FROM PEOPLE INC. [01:55:01] UM, OTHER THAN THAT, NOTHING CRICKETS. AND I DON'T BLAME THAT ON THEM. I THINK WE NEED TO TAKE MORE, LIKE YOU SAID, THE INITIATIVE ON THAT. UM, AND THERE WAS ANOTHER THAT I CAN'T THINK OF WHO THE GROUP IS THAT IS LOOKING AT, UM, HOUSING THAT, AND I WISH I COULD THINK OF WAS IN THE CONVERSATION WITH THE SAME PERSON OVER THIS. THE OTHER THING, UM, AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY INFLUENCE OVER THIS AT ALL, BUT THERE ARE PEOPLE IN SOME OF THE APARTMENT BUILDINGS THAT WE HAVE THAT ARE ON THE SECOND OR THIRD FLOOR LEVEL THAT REALLY CANNOT AMBULATE AND HAVE THE MOBILITY TO GET THERE INDEPENDENTLY. THEY NEED TO BE ON A LOWER LEVEL, BUT SOMETIMES THERE'S NOT A LOWER LEVEL TO BE IN. AND THEN THEY DON'T, IF THERE IS, IF THEY DON'T WANNA MOVE THERE, WHICH I DON'T LIKE MOVING EITHER DID IT ONCE IN THE LAST 38 YEARS AND MY NECK IS GONNA BE SIX FEET UNDER. BUT IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU CAN HELP WORK WITH? BECAUSE THERE'S A LOT OF PUBLIC ASSISTANT CALLS TO HELP WITH THAT MOBILITY. UM, ACTUALLY, UH, THE CHIEF AND I WERE JUST DISCUSSING THIS EARLIER ABOUT A CLIENT THAT WE HAVE IN COMMON WHO'S MAKING A LOT OF CALLS, UH, AND HOW CAN DSS, AND IT WAS ONE OF THE EARLIER GOALS AS WELL, UH, PROTECTIVE SERVICES ADULT AND CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES. HOW CAN WE WORK BETTER WITH OUR PARTNERS, UM, ON THOSE? IF YOU'RE ON THE HIGHWAY TWO IN THE MORNING AND YOU PULL OVER SOMEBODY WITH THE DUI CHILD IN THE CAR, YOU'RE CALLING US, UM, AND WE'RE GONNA COME RESPOND TO THAT. AND IN THIS SITUATION, UM, I THINK BRINGING TOGETHER SOME COMMUNITY PARTNERS TO DISCUSS WHAT THE OPTIONS ARE. UM, WE'VE LONG ADVOCATED HAVING A, UM, RESOURCE COUNCIL WHERE WE CAN BRING TOGETHER EVERY INDEPENDENT RESOURCE IN MORIN COUNTY AND SEE WHERE THE OVERLAP IS AND SEE WHERE THE GAPS ARE. BECAUSE I KNOW WE HAVE A LOT OF AGENCIES WHO DO REALLY GOOD WORK, BUT WE HAVE A LOT OF 'EM THAT DO THE SAME WORK. AND SO CAN WE START TRACKING THOSE AGENCIES WHO ARE GONNA FILL IN THOSE GAPS FOR US? IDENTIFYING ISSUES SUCH AS THAT, UH, WHAT CAN WE DO MOVING FORWARD, WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS, UH, WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, WITH FIRE AND RESCUE, UM, WITH OUR OTHER NONPROFITS WHO ARE IN THE AREA. AND I SEE MICHELLE'S WHISPERING, SO I KNOW SHE HAS AN IDEA. UM, AND WE'LL BRING THAT FORWARD AS WELL. WELL, I WAS GONNA SAY, IF, IF IT'S THE MOVING, WHICH I, PACKING UP AND MOVING AND UNPACKING IS NO FUN, RIGHT? IF WE CAN HAVE A MOVING PARTY FOR 'EM TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE, MAKE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE BETTER, THEY CAN GET OUT EASIER AND SO FORTH AND TAKE THAT STRAIN OFF OF FIRE AND RESCUE, THAT'S, YOU KNOW. RIGHT. AND EARLIER TONIGHT YOU SAW OUR PROTECTION PREVENTION AND PERMANENCY GROUP. UH, THE NEXT TIME WE COME BACK WE'RE GONNA BRING OUR ADULT SERVICES, OUR ADULT PROTECTIVE SERVICES GROUP IN TO TELL YOU WHAT THEY DO AND HOW THEY CAN HELP OUR CITIZENS ACCESS RESOURCES AS WELL. THANK YOU. APPRECIATE ALL YOU DO. SURE. THANK YOU. THE NEXT THEME IS PROMOTING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. SO WITH THIS, UM, THE FIRST, UM, GOAL IS TO DEVELOP AN IMPLEMENTATION, UM, OF A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM. UM, EARLIER THIS WEEK, I BELIEVE I SENT TO ALL OF YOU THE COPY OF THE, UM, COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY THAT THE REGIONAL COMMISSION, UM, RECENTLY COMPLETED. SO THEY HAVE GONE THROUGH THE PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD AND SUBMITTING OR SUBMITTED IT TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR REVIEW AND APPROVAL. UM, IT IS 97 PAGES OF A LOT OF INFORMATION, BUT IT'S VERY IMPORTANT AND RELEVANT. THERE WILL BE CERTAIN THINGS IN THERE THAT YOU'RE LIKE, DOES THIS APPLY TO US? AND WARREN COUNTY'S IN A VERY UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE IN THAT WE HAVE A LOT OF PROPERTY THAT IS ALREADY UTILIZED, UM, WHEREAS OTHER LOCALITIES HAVE A LOT MORE OPEN SPACE. SO YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THAT BROKEN OUT AS TO WHAT TYPES OF PROPERTIES ARE AVAILABLE. UM, AND THEN I THINK PROBABLY TWO WEEKS AGO THE DRAFT OF THE TOURISM STRATEGIC PLAN WAS SHARED WITH YOU ALL AND THE TOURISM COMMITTEE HAS THAT AS WELL AND THEY'RE REVIEWING THAT FOR FEEDBACK. UM, AND I'M GONNA GIVE YOU A BRIEF UPDATE AS TO SOME OF THE WORK THAT THE TOURISM COMMITTEE HAS BEEN WORKING ON. UM, SO THE TOURISM ADVISORY COMMITTEE, I THINK ALL OF YOU'RE AWARE, IT'S MADE UP OF VARIOUS BUSINESS PARTNERS, STAKEHOLDERS. UM, AND ABOUT THREE MONTHS AGO, UM, REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE TOWN STARTED JOINING US AS WELL. UM, SO WE HAVE LIZZIE LEWIS AND GLEN WOOD WHO HAVE BEEN CONSISTENTLY [02:00:01] PARTICIPATING IN, UM, ACTIVE MEMBERS OF THE MEETING AS WELL, WHICH HAS BEEN VERY GOOD BECAUSE WE DO WORK TOGETHER, WE OVERLAP. UM, AND THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF DISCUSSION ABOUT SHOULD IT BE, UH, TWO SEPARATE TOURISM ENTITIES OR ONE COMBINED. UM, THE HARD PART IS AS A TOWN THEY NEED TO REPRESENT TOWN BUSINESSES, UM, BUT THE COUNTY IS WHERE A LOT OF THE THINGS TO DO COME FROM. UM, I THINK THERE IS VALUE IN STILL MAINTAINING TWO SEPARATE ONES, HOWEVER, THAT COLLABORATION IS GOOD IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT YOU'RE NOT REALLY WASTING TIME AND SPACE. UM, BUT IT'S INTERESTING HOW YOU HIT ON DIFFERENT THINGS AND ARE ABLE TO CHAMPION BUSINESSES IN THE COUNTY AND IN THE TOWN. UM, AND OVERLAP. UM, SO SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON IN COLLABORATION, SO WITH THE TOWN, UM, THE VISITOR CENTER TAKEOVER, SO THESE ARE STATE VISITOR CENTERS THAT, UM, IT STARTED WHEN LESLIE WAS HERE. LESLIE AND LIZZIE HAVE TAKEN PARTNERSHIPS AND WORKED TOGETHER IN ORDER TO BASICALLY TAKE OVER THE VISITOR CENTER FOR, UM, A WEEKEND AND REALLY SHARE THE GREAT THINGS HAPPENING IN WARREN COUNTY AND FRONT ROYAL. UM, A LOT OF SIGNAGE AND EVENTS AND NEW PROGRAMS WE'RE TRYING TO DO COLLABORATIVELY. UM, IN THE LOWER RIGHT HAND CORNER YOU'LL SEE THE, AND I THINK THIS IS PROBABLY A PERSONAL, UM, PROJECT THAT MS. KOHLERS HAS BEEN ASKING FOR, FOR PROBABLY CLOSE TO A DECADE. UM, SO WHEN YOU GO THROUGH SMALLER TOWNS OR DIFFERENT TOWNS, YOU'LL SEE THE VETERANS REPRESENTED. SO IN THE COUNTY WE DON'T HAVE CONSISTENT POLLS THAT WE CAN DO THAT HOWEVER THE TOWN DOES. SO, UM, LORI PRESENTED IT TO TOWN COUNCIL I THINK ABOUT A WEEK AGO, MAYBE TWO WEEKS AGO. AND THEY'RE MOVING FORWARD WITH THE PROGRAM AND WE'RE DOING IT IN COLLABORATION BECAUSE WE HAVE OVER 4,000 VETERANS IN THE AREA AND A LOT OF INTEREST. UM, AND SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE PROV PART OF THAT. AND SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT THE TOWN WILL BE MAINTAINING IT AND WE'LL BE POSTING INFORMATION ON BOTH WEBSITES, UM, SO THAT UM, DIFFERENT CITIZENS CAN PURCHASE A FLAG FOR THEIR LOVED ONE AND HAVE IT REPRESENTED. UM, AND IT WILL BE ROYAL AVENUE, UM, I THINK SHENANDOAH AND ALSO SOUTH STREET. SO REALLY WRAPPING THROUGH TOWN. UM, SO THIS IS A HUGE PROGRAM THAT WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT. UM, THE TRIBUTE BANNERS, UM, THE TOURISM MANAGER POSITION REMAINS ON HOLD. UM, ONCE THE NEW COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR IS IN PLACE LATER THIS WEEK, UM, HE'LL BE WORKING WITH YOU ALL TO DETERMINE KIND OF THE MOVE FORWARD. UM, WITH BOTH PLANNING AND TOURISM. UM, THE ADMINISTRATION STAFF, MR. HENDERSON, UM, CONTINUES TO HELP AND WITH THE TOURISM COMMITTEE TO KEEP THINGS GOING. WE DO THINK THAT THAT MOMENTUM IS IMPORTANT. THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT CAN BE DONE ADMINISTRATIVELY, KIND OF BEHIND THE SCENES TO KEEP THINGS MOVING FORWARD. UM, WITH EXPERIENCE WARREN COUNTY, THE WEBSITE IS BEING REVISED IN ORDER TO MAKE IT A LITTLE MORE FRESH AND RELEVANT. IT'S SOMETHING THAT UM, WE'RE NOT PUSHING TO MAKE SURE IT'S DONE IMMEDIATELY BECAUSE THERE'S NOT THAT MUCH TRACTION TO IT TO BEGIN WITH. SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE IT'S DONE RIGHT. UM, WITH THE TOURISM DEPARTMENT PAGE, WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE REALLY SEPARATING THE TWO. SO THE EXPERIENCE, WARREN COUNTY IS A MARKETING BRAND, SO THAT IS FOR VISITORS WITH THE TOURISM DEPARTMENT. IT IS A PROVIDER. SO WHERE YOUR BUSINESS OWNERS WILL HAVE UM, RESOURCES. SO IN THE LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS, UM, WE'VE DEVELOPED THE EVENT SPONSORSHIP FORM. IF FUNDS ARE BEING GIVEN TO WHETHER IT'S APPALOOSA OR UM, A DIFFERENT FESTIVAL, EVERYBODY SHOULD BE REQUESTING AT THE SAME FORMAT. IT'S NOT JUST DROPPING OFF A FLYERING GOING, HEY, YOU USED TO GIVE US MONEY. UM, SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE KNOW WHAT THE PARTICIPATION IS, KIND OF WHAT THE TARGET AUDIENCE IS. AND SO A LITTLE MORE STRUCTURED. IT HELPS WITH REPORTING VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT IMPLEMENTED ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO WITH OUR PARTNER AGENCIES. UM, AND THEN WE IMPLEMENTED THE FARM PRODUCT AND SERVICE DIRECTORY SURVEY. SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE'LL START ONCE WE HAVE A TOURISM MANAGER REALLY GETTING WITH DIFFERENT FARMERS. IF YOU LOOK AT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN, IT HAS A HUGE FOCUS IN THERE OF AGRITOURISM AND IT LOOKS AT THE IMPACT OF THE NUMBER OF FARMS WE'RE LOSING AND THEN THE NUMBER OF BASICALLY THE DEMAND FOR IT. UM, SO A LOT OF FARMS YOU'RE SEEING THAT THEY'RE TRYING TO DIVERSIFY AND THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT DIRECTION TO GO BECAUSE THEY DON'T NECESSARILY KNOW WHO'S ALREADY GOT SOMETHING OUT THERE. SO THIS SURVEY WILL BASICALLY GATHER THAT INFORMATION SO THAT PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO SEE THAT IF YOU HAVE, WE HAVE ROUGHLY [02:05:01] I THINK 320 SOME ODD FARMS IN WARREN COUNTY. IF YOU HAVE 300 OR WHO ARE ALL PROVIDING THE SAME SERVICES, YOU END UP ACTUALLY NOT BEING ABLE TO PROVIDE SOMETHING THAT'S IN DEMAND. SO YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE HITTING AN AREA THAT THERE'S AN ACTUAL NEED. SO THIS IS REALLY JUST ONE OF THE TOOLS THAT WE WILL HELP TO PROVIDE INFORMATION, UM, FOR THOSE UM, AGRITOURISM PROVIDERS. AND I THINK THERE'S ACTUALLY SOMEONE WHO REACHED OUT TO MS. KOHLERS AND MR. BUTLER WHO'D LIKE TO DO A PRESENTATION FOR YOU ALL IN THE UPCOMING WEEKS. UM, AND THEN THE LAST THING IS MAKING SURE THAT WITH OUR WEBSITE AND OUR SOCIAL MEDIA, WE ADDED IN THE ROOTED IN THE VALLEY. SO IT'S A SEPARATE, UM, SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE AND ON THE COUNTY TOURISM DEPARTMENT WEBSITE THERE, ONE THAT IS FOR MARKETING AND ONE THAT IS FOR RESOURCES. SO THAT'S WHERE I THINK PEOPLE ARE LIKE, WHY DO YOU HAVE TWO? WHAT IS IT FOR? IT'S BECAUSE SOMEONE WHO'S COMING HERE VACA FOR VACATION COULD REALLY CARE LESS ABOUT RESOURCES FOR OUR BUSINESSES. HOWEVER WE NEED TO HAVE THEM OUT THERE FOR THEM SO THAT WE CAN TRULY PROMOTE THAT WITH THEM. UM, AND THEN WE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT VA TWO 50. I THINK IT'S BEEN MENTIONED AT A COUPLE OF MEETINGS. SO WE ARE GETTING READY TO COME INTO THE 250TH, UM, ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, WHICH IS HUGE. SO WE ARE WORKING WITH NOT ONLY THE TOWN, SO IT'S THE TOWN COUNTY AND VARIOUS COMMUNITY PARTNERS IN ORDER TO CELEBRATE AND REALLY PUT ON A ONGOING, UM, CELEBRATION IN ORDER TO HIGHLIGHT THE VALLEY FOR ITS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T NECESSARILY REALIZE WHAT IT IS THAT WE DID. UM, SO WITH THE NORTH AND THE SOUTH WORK BEING STRAIGHT THROUGH THE COUNTY, IT WAS A HUGE THOROUGHFARE. UM, AND SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD CELEBRATE AND I THINK A LOT OF TIMES WE DON'T NECESSARILY THINK ABOUT THE HISTORY AND THE VALUE THAT OUR SPECIFIC LOCALITY, UM, CONTRIBUTED TO THAT. SO IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS YOU'LL HEAR A LOT MORE ABOUT THE VA TWO 50 AND WE'RE EXCITED TO SHARE THAT WITH THE COMMUNITY. UM, AND THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS A PERSONAL, UM, FAVORITE OF MINE. MAINLY IF ANY OF YOU HAVE EVER BEEN TO NEWBURG, NORTH CAROLINA, THEY HAVE BEARS. I THINK THEY STARTED OUT WITH 60 AND THEY NOW HAVE UH, ABOUT 190 PLUS BEARS. UM, SO IT'S SOMETHING THAT THE BUSINESSES, UM, AND VARIOUS PROVIDERS HAVE BEEN ABLE TO REALLY CHAMPION. AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT GIVEN OUR LOCALITY AND THE PREVALENCE OF BEARS AND THE AREA, UM, WHEN LESLIE WAS HERE, WE DISCUSSED, ARE DEER MORE PREVALENT THAN BEARS? I WAS LIKE, I'M AFRAID THE DEER WILL GET SHOT AT . UM, HOWEVER, BY HAVING LITTLE MORE DISTINCTIVE DECORATIONS THAN A STANDARD BEAR, UM, HOPEFULLY NO ONE WILL MISTAKE IT FOR A BLACK BEAR IN THE VALLEY. UM, IT GIVES US AN OPPORTUNITY TO PROVIDE MORE FOCAL POINTS, UM, THAT AS PEOPLE LOOK THROUGH. UM, I KNOW WHEN I GO ON VACATION, I LOOK FOR THE QUIRKY WEIRD THINGS. AND THIS WOULD GIVE A MAP, WHICH WOULD, COREY AND LIZZIE, WE'VE TALKED ABOUT HOW IT WOULD BE INTEGRATED INTO GIS, UM, WITH A VISITOR CENTER SCANNING A QR CODE SO YOU CAN HAVE A PAPER, UM, MAP OR DO IT ONLINE. AND THEN VARIOUS, UM, MARKETING, UM, ASPECTS THAT YOU CAN TIE INTO IT AS WELL. SO THERE ARE A COUPLE OF JUST SAMPLE PICTURES, AND IT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT THE BUSINESS WOULD BE ABLE TO WORK WITH AN ARTIST DIRECTLY IN ORDER TO CUSTOMIZE AND COME UP WITH A, UM, DESIGN TOGETHER. UM, SO IT WOULDN'T BE SOMETHING WHERE WE'RE DICTATING WHAT IS ON THERE. UM, SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT, UM, WE'LL DISCUSS IN THE FUTURE AS TO WHETHER IT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU ALL FEEL WOULD BE A GOOD, UM, AVENUE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH. ANY QUESTIONS ON WHAT'S GOING ON ON THE TOURISM SIDE? 'CAUSE I'M GONNA LET MIKE REALLY SPEND A LOT OF TIME TALKING ABOUT THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT SIDE, AND I THINK IT'S JAY'S PROBABLY PERSONAL, PERSONAL PASSION OF THE AIRPORT. MM-HMM . I THINK JANE'S TRYING TO PUT YOU THROUGH THE YELLOW BIG ROAD TONIGHT. , I NEED THE CLICKER, I GUESS. MM-HMM . I'LL TRADE YOU. THANK MR. BUTLER. ALREADY HIT THE, THE GOAL A LITTLE BIT, UM, BEFORE THIS EVENING, BUT I, I RAN THROUGH MY, MY CAPITAL AND I, I HAVE A LITTLE LIST, BUT I WENT THROUGH SOME SLIDES PRETTY QUICK LAST MEETING. UM, BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT, UM, FOR YOU GUYS TO KNOW THAT WE ARE, [02:10:01] YOU KNOW, COLLECTIVELY WORKING AS A GROUP TOWARDS OUR GOALS. UM, THE LEADERSHIP TEAM, UM, MR. BUTLER, MR. STEINMEYER ARE, ARE ON THE COMMISSION. AND, UM, THE AIRPORT COMMISSION IS A GOOD GROUP. I THINK THAT THE, THE TEAM WORKS WELL, UM, AS A COMMUNITY. UM, AND, AND THE LEADERSHIP WANTS TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR GOALS ARE ALIGNED WITH COUNTY GOALS. UM, WE HAVE REAL, UM, MEASURABLE PLANS AND, AND WE CONTINUE TO IMPROVE THE COMMUNICATIONS, UM, AND ENSURE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'RE DOING EVERYTHING TIMELY AND, AND, UH, TRANSPARENT. AND, AND I THINK, YOU KNOW, AND I'LL, AND I'LL GET TO IT, BUT I THINK THE, THE, THE, THE BIG PIECE OF THE PUZZLE CURRENTLY IS REALLY GETTING THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, UM, TO, TO BE A PART AND REALLY TO, UM, PUSH OUR PLANS FORWARD. AND, AND I, I WANT TO, UM, YOU KNOW, I, I SEE, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'VE HAD SOME CHANGES. IT HASN'T ALL BEEN ROSES AND SUNSHINE IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS. I MENTIONED BEFORE FOR MYSELF, I WAS KIND OF, YOU KNOW, CONCERNED WHEN ED DROPPED THE AIRPORT ON ME. UM, I HAVE KIND OF, I, I'M THE COLLECTOR OF THINGS AND, YOU KNOW, SO I'M HEARING SOME GOOD STUFF TONIGHT. LIKE, I, I LIKE THE IDEA OF THE HELICOPTER. YOU KNOW, I'M, I'M GLAD TO FIND A PLACE FOR THAT AND, YOU KNOW, AND I CAN GET MONEY FOR A, FOR A SPOT THERE. SO, UM, YOU KNOW, THOSE THINGS, YOU KNOW, CAN HAPPEN. UM, AND, AND COLLECTIVELY, YOU KNOW, JANE MENTIONED THE REGIONAL, REGIONAL COMMISSION. I THINK MS. COLORS IS A PART OF THAT, UM, STUDY, BUT THE AIRPORT SPECIFICALLY IN, IN THE REGIONAL COMMISSION IS LISTED AS, UM, AS AN ASSET IN THE COMMUNITY. I MEAN, I KNOW IT FOCUSES ON OKV WINCHESTER, BUT WE'RE, WE'RE ONE OF THE GENERAL AVIATION AIRPORTS AND SUPPORT. UM, SO I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO, TO HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF, YOU KNOW, AND, AND, AND THE CULTURE AT THE AIRPORT. YOU KNOW, I, I MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, I KIND OF HAD THIS FEAR 'CAUSE I REALLY, I DON'T FLY. I MEAN, LIKE I DO THE STUFF THAT THE AVIATORS DON'T CARE ABOUT. THEY DON'T REALLY CARE ABOUT THE BUSINESS. THEY DON'T REALLY CARE ABOUT THE NUTS AND BOLTS AS MUCH AS THEY DO SEEING THIS COMMUNITY COME TO LIFE. BUT THAT'S THE, THAT'S WHAT, YOU KNOW, HAS REALLY INSPIRED ME BECAUSE IT IS A PLACE THAT I HAVE SEEN FOLKS THAT REALLY, UM, CARE ABOUT THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE. UM, YOU KNOW, I'VE HEARD, I'VE HEARD THE, UM, YOU KNOW, UH, OUR EMERGENCY RESPONDERS, YOU KNOW, MENTION, YOU KNOW, UM, YOU KNOW, WHAT THEY DO AND WORKING TOGETHER AND, AND I CAN THANK THEM PERSONALLY. 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I MENTIONED LAST WEEK AT THE END WAS THE EVENT COMING UP. UM, BUT AT THESE EVENTS, BOTH FIRE AND RESCUE AND, AND THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE HAVE SUPPORTED THE AIRPORT COMMISSION AND, AND TRYING TO SAY, HEY, COMMUNITY, WE'RE HERE. YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT JUST A CLUB. WE WANT YOU TO COME OUT, SEE WHAT WE DO, AND SEE, YOU KNOW, HOW WHAT WE, WHAT WE ARE HERE IN THE COMMUNITY. IT'S NOT JUST FOR THE FOLKS THAT HAVE AN AIRPLANE. UM, AND, AND I THINK IT'S REALLY BEEN GREAT. UM, ALL OF OUR, OUR, OUR CLUBS, OUR SOARING CLUBS, UH, PHI MENTIONED, WE ARE A PART OF EMERGENCY RESPONSE. YOU KNOW, OUR GUYS KEEP THE DOORS OPEN AND FIX 'EM AND, AND MAKE SURE THE SNOW'S PLOWED. UM, THOSE FOLKS ARE SAVING LIVES. SO I THINK IT'S REAL IMPORTANT FOR, FOR THE, UM, THE, THE BOARD TO HAVE AN AWARENESS. I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS, YOU KNOW, IT'S BEEN A, A VERY MUCH A LEARNING EXPERIENCE FOR ME. AND I REALIZE I HAVEN'T HAD A LOT OF FACE TIME IN, IN THIS GROUP, BUT THE PLAN IS VERY OLD. YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE PUBLIC HEARINGS ARE VERY OLD. WE'RE TALKING, YOU KNOW, 20, 30 YEARS. AND, AND I'M, I'M GONNA, I'M GONNA MOVE QUICK BECAUSE I KNOW IT'S BEEN A LONG NIGHT, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR THE BOARD TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, KNOWLEDGE THAT, HEY, I'M NOT JUST SLINGING UP HERE A MILLION DOLLAR GRANT, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVEN'T BEEN THINKING ALONG THE WAY. AND, YOU KNOW, SO I JUST WANTED TO KIND OF SHOW A LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY. 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, WE, WE TALK ABOUT OUR COUNTY AND YOU KNOW, THIS, THIS AIRPORT FROM WARREN COUNTY STARTED AS STOKES FIELD, AND IT SERVED AS A PRIVATE LANDING STRIP FOR MR. AUBREY STOKES AND HIS THREE BROTHERS. YOU KNOW, AND THIS WAS, UM, CONSTRUCTED IN 1943. SO I, I MEAN, I'M NOT GONNA READ EVERYTHING HERE, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT TO SAY, HEY, THIS HAS REALLY MOVED FORWARD 1967, THE AVIATION COMMITTEE OF THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. 'CAUSE WE'VE, WE'VE, YOU'VE MENTIONED THE CHAMBER, YOU'VE MENTIONED THE TOWN WORKING TOGETHER. THIS IS WHERE IT STARTED. THE TOWN OF FRONT ROW AND WARREN COUNTY, UM, PURCHASED AND OPERATE FRR TOGETHER. UM, SO, YOU KNOW, IT STARTED AS A JOINT VENTURE. SO YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THESE THINGS. AND SOME OF THIS HAS HAPPENED AT THE AIRPORT PREVIOUSLY. UM, ANYWAY, WE KEEP MOVING FORWARD PART, UH, FAA PART 77. AND, AND, AND I CAN SEND THIS TO YOU. I DON'T HAVE TO READ EVERY LINE, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO KNOW, WE'VE BEEN IN THE AIRPORT BUSINESS FOR A LONG TIME. IT STARTED HERE, AND WE CONTINUE TO BUILD UPON WHAT WAS STARTED MANY YEARS AGO BY MR. STOKES. UM, AND I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO KNOW THE HISTORY. UM, AND AGAIN, YOU KNOW, THINGS THAT WE'VE DONE, I, I GAVE YOU A LIST OF OUR CURRENT PROJECTS, BUT FROM [02:15:01] 1943, YOU KNOW, ALPS ARE OUR, AS-BUILTS, OUR LAND ACQUISITIONS, WE'VE BEEN WORKING STEADILY TO, TO GET TO WHERE WE ARE TODAY AND TO LOOK AT THE FUTURE. THESE ARE THE PROJECTS I WENT OVER LAST WEEK, BOX HANGER PROJECT, PARALLEL, TAXI AWAY CONNECTORS, PAYMENT, REHAB, OUR BEACONS, OUR WIN CONES, OUR OBSTRUCTION, UM, POTENTIAL BROADBAND PROJECTS. AND THIS IS JUST THE STUFF HAPPENING NOW. BUT AS YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE INITIAL GRANTS WERE MANY, MANY YEARS AGO. SO WE'RE, WE'RE, WE HAVE TO MAINTAIN WHAT WE HAVE. WE'RE PART OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, BOTH FEDERAL DOLLARS AND STATE DOLLARS. AND I THINK THAT SOMETIMES WE FORGET THAT. UM, AND, AND THE THING THAT I REALLY LIKE, 'CAUSE I DEAL WITH VDOT TOO, YOU KNOW, ALTHOUGH THE, THE, THE AVIATION IS A PART OF TRANSPORTATION THAT COMMUNITY'S A LITTLE SMALLER. UM, SO MY PLACE IS A LOT CLOSER THAN IT IS IN VDOT. UM, I CAN ACTUALLY TALK TO LIVE PEOPLE IN FAA AND, AND WITH DOAV AND, AND, AND THEY'RE VERY RESPONSIVE. UM, AND, AND AS I MENTIONED LAST WEEK, UM, I'VE HAD A VIRGINIA AVIATION BOARD REPRESENTATIVE, MR. ROBERT BOWEN HERE TWICE AT OUR AIRPORT. AND, AND HE PROMOTED OUR, OUR PROJECT FOR US, UM, FOR THE SITE DEVELOPMENT OF THOSE BOX HANGERS. AND I THINK THAT'S VERY ENCOURAGING TO SHOW THAT, HEY, IF WE SPEND THE TIME TO BUILD A RELATIONSHIP THAT WE CAN GET SOMEWHERE. AND THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO, UM, AS, AS A COMMISSION AND AS A BOARD. UM, JUST TO LET YOU SEE, AS WE TALKED ABOUT THE SITE WORK, THIS IS WHAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE. YOU KNOW, THE UNIT C UM, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF YOU, UM, THAT'S RMA UNIT D IS IS THE OLDEST HANGAR. I THINK THAT WAS, I THINK IT WAS 75. I DON'T HAVE THE DATE UP HERE, BUT IT'S, IT'S A OLD HANGAR. UM, SO WE HAVE A, WE HAVE A LOT OF, WE HAVE A LOT OF, UH, FACILITY HERE, BUT A LOT OF IT HAS BEEN BUILT FOR MANY, MANY YEARS. 2011 WAS THE LAST TIME WE REALLY DID A, ANY CONSTRUCTION. UM, BUT WHAT WE HAVE A RIGHT, CURRENTLY WE HAVE A 32 HANGAR WAIT LIST. UM, AND, AND THAT'S, YOU KNOW, AFTER KIND OF, YOU KNOW, SAYING, HEY GUYS, THIS, IS THIS REAL, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE NOT GONNA JUST HANG ON THE LIST TO BE ON THE LIST. YOU KNOW, WHEN SOMEONE MOVES UP, IF YOU'RE NOT READY, YOU'RE OUT. YOU KNOW, SO WE'VE HAD SOME FOLKS THAT HAVE MOVED OUT, AGED OUT, OR, YOU KNOW, JUST KIND OF MOVED ON TO ANOTHER STATE, ET CETERA. UM, BUT WHAT WE HAVE REAL CUSTOMERS WAITING, AND WE HAVE A LIST POSTED ON THE WALL DOWN THERE. UM, WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, IF YOU DON'T KNOW, WE HAVE THE 83 CRAFT, INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, OUR, OUR SOARING FOLKS AND, AND A FEW DRONES DOWN THERE. SO, YOU KNOW, IT'S, IT'S NOT REAL SMALL, SMALL THOUGH. IT LOOKS LIKE SMALL POTATOES AT TIMES. UM, UH, AN IMPORTANT PART OF OUR GOAL AND STRATEGY, YOU KNOW, IS, IS TO ENSURE, AND, AND I THINK THIS IS WHERE, AT THE LOCAL LEVEL, SOMETIMES WE CAN GET, LIKE, ALL KNOW WHO, WHOSE FEELINGS ARE WE GONNA HURT, WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN. BUT FOR MANY YEARS, THIS PLAN, IT'S BEEN A PART OF THE COMP PLAN. IT'S BEEN A PART OF ZONING AND DEVELOPMENT. AND, AND, AND THAT LAND USE HAS TO BE COLLABORATIVE. AND ALL THE FOLKS, ALL THE PLAYERS NEED TO BE A PART OF THE PLAN. AND THEY HAVE BEEN FOR MANY, MANY YEARS. AND WE JUST NEED TO CONTINUE. I THINK, AND THAT'S WHY I SAY, I THINK YOU GUYS ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT PART. NOW WE NEED TO CONTINUE TO PROJECT WHERE WE'RE MOVING, WHERE WE'RE WALKING, WHERE WE'RE GOING WITH THIS PROJECT. UM, YOU KNOW, THE, THE POTENTIAL THE AIRPORT REALLY RELIES ON WHEN ALL OF THESE PARTIES WORKING TOGETHER. AND AGAIN, IT'S A PUBLIC USE AIRPORT. OUR A LP, OUR MASTER PLAN, YOU KNOW, IT LAYS OUT 20 YEARS. WE, WE, WE SIT DOWN ANNUALLY WITH THE STATE AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, AND WE WORK OUT OUR PLANS FOR THE YEAR. WE HAVE TO HAVE THOSE PLANS APPROVED TO GET THE FUNDING. UM, DR. DALEY ALWAYS ASKS ME, WHERE'S THE $600,000? BECAUSE I HAVE TO HAVE THAT, I HAVE TO HAVE THE END IN PLACE. IF I DON'T HAVE AN APPROVED PLAN, THEN I CAN'T USE THAT ENTITLEMENT FUNDING. STATE OF VIRGINIA. SIMILARLY, YOU KNOW, WHEN CAPITAL PROJECTS, THEY, THEY COINCIDE. WE SHOWED, WE SHOWED SOME OF THOSE PERCENTAGES LAST WEEK. UM, AGAIN, THE TIMING IS CRITICAL. AND, AND THAT'S WHERE SOMETIMES I CAN GET A LITTLE FRUSTRATED BEHIND THE SCENES BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, EVERYBODY'S GOT A DIFFERENT FISCAL YEAR, A DIFFERENT OF DIFFERENT FUND CYCLE. AND, AND THEN I THROW OFF OUR, OUR CURRENT BUDGET BECAUSE, OH, MY GRANT, I, I JUST PUT IN IN MAY AND IT DIDN'T COME TILL AUGUST. AND, YOU KNOW, SOME OF THOSE THINGS, WE CAN BACK UP SOME OF 'EM, LIKE A MASTER PLAN WE WORK ON FOR MANY YEARS, YOU KNOW, AND, AND THAT CAPITAL CONTINUES TO MOVE FORTH THROUGH MULTIPLE YEARS OF REIMBURSEMENT. JUST, I JUST WANT TO MENTION WITH, ESPECIALLY WITH ZONING AND, AND YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE ANYTIME YOU DO ANYTHING TO AIRPORT, UM, YOU KNOW, I DEAL WITH, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, HEY, THE, THE NOISE OR THE TREES, UM, WE HAVE OBSTRUCTIONS, BUT, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE UNIQUE PROTECTIONS BY CODE IN VIRGINIA CODE. AND, AND WE'RE REQUIRED, UM, TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT THOSE OBSTRUCTIONS ARE NOT IN THE WAY. AND, AND WE, AND WE SHALL [02:20:01] HAVE, UM, THESE, THESE EFFORTS IN PLACE. AND, AND WE DO HAVE THOSE, AND, AND I'M NOT GONNA READ THE CODE WORD FOR WORD, BUT, UM, WE HAVE, AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU GUYS HAVE EVER READ IT, I DON'T KNOW IF WE'VE EVER REVIEWED IT, BUT WE HAVE WARREN COUNTY CODE, UM, WE HAVE AIRPORT OVERLAY DISTRICT THAT IS IN PLACE CURRENTLY. UM, AND I, AND, AND THAT'S TO PROTECT FROM HAZARDS. AND THAT'S ALSO TO HELP THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND, AND THE REAL ESTATE, THE PROFESSIONALS, THE REALTORS TO SAY, HEY, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, IF WE MOVE OUT HERE, WE NEED TO BE AWARE OF WHAT'S GOING ON AND WHAT'S HAPPENING. SO, UM, JUST JUST FOR A VIEW HERE, UM, THIS, THIS IS A PHOTO OF THE AERIAL, UM, OVERLAY. AND, AND I HAD THIS DONE. UM, COREY WAS MENTIONED EARLIER. HE'S GREAT AT, UM, GETTING WHATEVER YOU NEED ON TIME, BUT THIS IS THE OVERLAY DISTRICT. HERE'S ANOTHER ONE, A LITTLE LESS COLOR OF THE OVERLAY AREA. YOU CAN SEE THE PURPLE THERE, UM, IN THE RUNWAY AND ZONING. AND, AND I MENTIONED THIS TOO, BECAUSE SOME OF OUR PROJECTS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS. WE'RE TALKING ABOUT REMOVING TREES. I MENTIONED THAT LAST WEEK. BUT PART OF, YOU KNOW, WE JUST SIGNED THE GRANTS, YOU KNOW, ASSURANCE 21, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO BE COMBAT COMPATIBLE WITH OUR LAND USE. WE HAVE TO ENSURE THOSE OBSTRUCTIONS ARE TAKEN CARE OF, OR, OR WE ARE, WE WILL HELD RESPONSIBLE AND WE WON'T GET THOSE DOLLARS. SO WHAT WE'RE DOING AS, AS A, AS A GROUP, AS A USERS GROUP, YOU KNOW, THE COMMISSION, COUNTY ADMINISTRATION, BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, REPRESENTATIVES, UM, AIRPORT MANAGEMENT, SUPERINTENDENT, UM, AND, AND THE FRIENDS OF THE AIR BOARD, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, YOU KNOW, ALL THE THINGS WE NEED TO DO, CONTINUING ON WITH WHAT, WHAT GROUNDWORK'S BEEN LAID. WE COMPLETED THE MASTER PLAN UPDATES. MR. BUTLER BROUGHT UP OUR RULES AND REGS TONIGHT. THEY HAVEN'T BEEN UPDATED FOR MANY YEARS. UM, WE WANT BUSINESSES TO BE SUCCESSFUL AND, AND THEY'RE NEAR COMPLETION. AND, AND I HOPE THAT YOU GUYS WILL, WILL GET THAT DONE AND, AND MOVING FORWARD BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, ALL OF THESE FOLKS, THEY, UH, VIRGINIA AVIATION OPERATORS COUNCIL, WHICH I'M A MEMBER OF AT THIS TIME, YOU KNOW, THEY, THEY LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, THINGS HAPPENING IN THE REGULATORY ASPECT AND IN THE STATE OF VIRGINIA, UM, THE, THE VIRGINIA AVIATION BOARD WHO ARE IMPORTANT, I MENTIONED THOSE GUYS, THE STATE OF VIRGINIA, FAA, UM, OUR REGIONAL PARTNERS, UM, IN WINCHESTER, UM, ALL, ALL OF THE GROUP, WE'VE WORKED WITH ALL OF THESE FOLKS AND INVESTED IN, IN COUNTY AIRPORT STAFF, UH, ATTENDING, UH, MEETINGS AND TRAININGS. AND, AND I JUST WANT YOU GUYS, 'CAUSE WE DON'T REALLY COMMUNICATE ALL THIS TO THE BOARD ALL THE TIME, BUT PART OF THE GOAL IS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO, TO TRY TO IMPROVE WHAT WE'RE DOING AND WHERE WE ARE. UM, THE COMMISSION, THEY, THEY'VE ACTUALLY, UM, OFFERED FREE TRAININGS FOR SAFETY, FOR MAINTENANCE COMMUNICATIONS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. AND THEY'VE HAD THOSE ON WEEKENDS AND, AND FREE OF CHARGE. AND, YOU KNOW, AND THEY'VE BEEN WELL ATTENDED AND, AND FOLKS HAVE COME IN AND DONE THOSE FOR VERY LIMITED COST. UM, THE THING THAT I THINK HAS REALLY BEEN ENCOURAGING FOR THE LOCAL COMMUNITY IS THE FLYING EVENTS. I MENTIONED THE EVENT COMING UP NEXT MONTH FOR, FOR HALLOWEEN AND THE FLY IN AND THE PANCAKES. SO, YOU KNOW, THE COMMISSION SAYS, HEY, WE NEED TO INVITE THE COMMUNITY TO SEE WHAT'S GOING ON. AND I THINK IT'S HELPING, I THINK THAT IT'S SHOWING FOLKS THAT THERE'S MORE TO THE AIRPORT, AND IT IS, IT CAN BE AN ECONOMIC ENGINE FOR BUSINESS. THAT'S THE REASON THAT WE WANT TO PUT HANGERS OUT THERE. UM, I'M, I DON'T KNOW WHERE I GOT IT IN HERE, BUT OUR MASTER PLAN, OUR AIRPLANE LAYOUT, THEIR, THEIR PRIMARY USE IS TO LOOK AT CURRENT AND FUTURE ACTIVITY IN THE FACILITY NEEDS AT THE AIRPORT. I HAD A MEETING THIS WEEK WITH SOMEONE THAT, YOU KNOW, IS, IS AT THE AIRPORT CURRENTLY WHO'S INTERESTED IN, YOU KNOW, HEY, CAN I BUILD TEE HANGERS? HEY, CAN I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE TURBO PROPS HERE ONE DAY. I REALIZE THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, WE CAN BRING TURBO PROPS AND, AND WE CAN WORK TOGETHER. I WOULD LIKE TO START A CHARTER BUSINESS HERE ONE DAY. I ALREADY HAVE AN INVESTOR BEHIND ME. AND SO WE HAVE, WE HAVE FOLKS COMING TO ME. I, I, I HAD SOMEONE COME TO ME WITH A PLAN FOR, FOR TWO BUSINESSES, FOR A HANGAR AND SAY, HEY, I WOULD LIKE TO DO THIS. WHAT CAN WE DO TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN? SO THAT'S WHY I SAY AT THIS POINT, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO HAVE THE BOARD. YOU KNOW, I, I FEEL LIKE I HAVE THE VIRGINIA AVIATION BOARD BEHIND ME AND THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION BEHIND ME AND THE AIRPORT COMMISSION WORKING TOGETHER. BUT I THINK THE LOCAL BOARD, UM, WE GOTTA HAVE YOUR SUPPORT AND, AND, AND YOUR HELP TO, TO GET WHERE WE NEED TO GO IF YOU REALLY WANT THIS TO, TO BE A REALISTIC GOAL. UM, SO THAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I'M TRYING TO GET TO TODAY. I NEED YOUR SUPPORT. THE AIRPORT NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT. SO I CAN TELL YOU THAT HAVING A CHARTER BUSINESS OUT OF THERE WOULD MAKE SENSE. AND I KNOW THAT THEY CAN LAND THE, THE, UH, THE SMALLER TURBOPROPS IN THERE, YOU KNOW, THE ONES THAT, UH, THAT WOULD BE A, OF A CHARTER TYPE. YEAH. AND, AND I, AND I, I'M NOT A [02:25:01] HUNDRED PERCENT, BUT I DO BELIEVE THAT THE STATE HAS SOME TYPE OF GRANT SUPPORT RIGHT NOW TO SUPPORT, UM, 'CAUSE THEY WANT TO BRING THOSE TYPE OF OPERATIONS TO MORE LOCATIONS IN THE STATE OF VIRGINIA. UH, MOST RECENTLY, YOU KNOW, THE STATE IS, UM, YOU, WELL, IN, IN, IN VIRGINIA, THEY'RE ACTUALLY DOING TESTS WITH ADVANCED AIR MOBILITY AIRCRAFT, VERTI, PLEXES, YOU KNOW, THE THING OF THE FUTURE, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, I DON'T THINK IT, IT'S TOO FAR OUT THAT, YOU KNOW, THESE SMALLER CRAFT WILL BE COMING IN AND, AND TAKING SOMEBODY TO NEW YORK OR DC FROM A PLACE LIKE FRONT ROYAL. SO WE NEED TO BE PREPARING, UM, FOR IF, IF WE SEE SOME, YOU KNOW, UM, MORE DRONE WORK OR IF THE SHERIFF GETS A HELICOPTER. I MEAN, WE NEED TO LOOK AT THE PROPERTY THAT WE HAVE AND, AND CONTINUE TO KEEP WHAT WE DO HAVE AND, AND LOOK FORWARD TO THESE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES. UM, ALL OF THE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES, I BELIEVE THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE KIND OF WENT OVER. BUT, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT LOCATION, LOOKING AT NEEDS FORECASTING DEMAND, UM, HELPING, MAKING, ENSURING THAT WE MEET ALL STATE, LOCAL AND FEDERAL REGULATIONS, WHICH WE HAVE TO DO, UM, TO, TO MEET OUR GRANT, UH, REQUIREMENTS. AND, AND, AND THESE GRANTS, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THE MONEY'S THERE. I MEAN, ONCE IT'S APPROPRIATED, IT'S THERE. SO YES, SIR. YEAH. WHAT IS THE, WHAT'S THE NAME OF, OF WHAT THE AIRPORT IS IN TERMS OF ITS ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY? WHAT'S THAT TERM? IT'S AN ENTERPRISE. YEAH. ENTERPRISE FUND. ENTERPRISE FUND, OKAY. AND, AND WHAT IS THE RISK, LIKE WHEN YOU SAY YOU NEED THE BOARD SUPPORT, WHAT RISKS GETTING THAT BOARD SUPPORT? BECAUSE IF IT'S AN ENTERPRISE FUND, IT'S NOT REALLY MONEY, RIGHT? OR IS IT? WELL, I MEAN, IF, WELL, I MEAN, IF, LET'S JUST SAY LIKE LAST WEEK, OKAY, SO I ASKED YOU, YOU KNOW, I NEED 112 TO GO WITH MY 1.3 OR WHATEVER IT IS OF LOCAL FUNDING. THE REST IS THE STATE. IF I DON'T HAVE THAT, AND, AND WE SWITCH GEARS ON HOW WE WENT THROUGH THE PROJECT FROM FEDERAL TO STATE, IF I DON'T HAVE THE DOLLARS IN MY CURRENT BUDGET, THEN I CAN SAY, OKAY, FINANCE, DO I TRANSFER THIS MONEY FROM MY, YOU KNOW, UM, MY PERSONNEL LINE, WHICH I DON'T HAVE THAT MUCH MONEY IN MY PERSONNEL LINE. UM, BUT, BUT THERE'S, THERE'S GOTTA BE AT SOME POINT, SOME DOLLARS INVESTED. OKAY. AND HOW YOU GUYS LOOK AT THAT IS, IS THIS GOOD? IS IT GOOD FOR ME TO OVERRUN MY BUDGET WITH A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS? OR DO I FIND A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS OR 113 FROM YOU LOCALLY TO INVEST IN THE AIRPORT? OKAY. SO IT'S NOT ALL, IT'S NOT ALL SELF-SUFFICIENT, RIGHT? SO IT, IT'S LARGELY SO, BUT WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE RISK TO, TO BOARD SUPPORT, IT IS PRIMARILY MONETARY THEN, RIGHT? YEAH. OKAY. YEAH. FOLLOW UP QUESTION ON THAT ACTUALLY, LIKE YES, WITH THE HANGERS, UM, THAT NEED THE 113,000, AND THAT'S JUST SITE DEVELOPMENT. OKAY. RIGHT. UM, AND MORE DOWN THE LINE, RIGHT. BUT ALSO RECOGNIZING THAT THEY WILL BE, UM, A CONTINUOUS REVENUE STREAM. YES, SIR. ONCE THEY'RE OPEN. AND ESPECIALLY IF WE SENT, IF WE DO A LITTLE STUDY AND SET THE RENT AT THE RIGHT LEVEL. RIGHT. UM, I KNOW, OR I'VE HEARD IN READING ABOUT, UH, SANITARY DISTRICTS THAT AT LEAST IN THE PAST, THERE HAVE BEEN TIMES WHERE THE COUNTY WOULD LOAN MONEY TO THE SANITARY DISTRICT, UM, SO THAT IT COULD SAY DOING A PAVING JOB WHERE IT'S NOT COUNTY MANAGED. YEAH. UM, AND THEY WOULD PAY THAT BACK THROUGH, UH, THEIR TAXES, FOR EXAMPLE. UM, I'M WONDERING FOR SOMETHING LIKE THIS, COULD THE COUNTY LOAN THE MONEY TO THE AIRPORT, UH, AND THEN IT WOULD BE PAID BACK ONCE THEY START GETTING HANGAR REVENUE? RIGHT? WELL, AND THAT'S WHAT THEY DID WITH THAT SERVICE, UM, ON THE LAST HANGERS. UM, I'LL TELL YOU, THAT'S BECAUSE THE COUNTY'S THE OWNER, THE COUNTY IS THE, THE USER, UM, OF THE AIRPORT. AND, AND THAT MAKES SENSE BECAUSE I, I WORKED OUT THE NUMBERS AND IT'S, UH, IT'S ANYWHERE FROM TWO TO THREE YEARS THAT YOU RECOUP ALL OF THAT MONEY. RIGHT. BECAUSE THOSE HANGERS WILL BRING IN A, A PREMIUM. RIGHT. SO, I MEAN, AND, AND THE OTHER OPTIONS TO CONSIDER IT. AND, AND I MENTIONED LAST WEEK, YOU KNOW, DR. DALEY SAID HE WAS HAPPY TO SIT DOWN AND TALK ABOUT FINANCE OR, YOU KNOW, IF YOU WANTED TO LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, IF YOU DID NOT WANNA GO THAT ROUTE, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF AIRPORTS GO WITH LIKE, LAND LEASES FOR 20, 30 YEARS. UM, BUT YOU HAVE TO, I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO STUDY, UM, AND, AND SEE WHAT, YOU KNOW, THE OUTCOME WILL BE. I MEAN, IF YOU CAN RECOUP IN TWO OR THREE YEARS, IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO LET SOMEBODY HAVE IT FOR 20 OR 30 YEARS. UM, NOW I'M NOT SURE, YOU KNOW, IF WE WILL HAVE EVERYTHING OUT, BUT, YOU KNOW, I ALSO MENTIONED WE HAVE SOME INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING, UM, THAT WE HAVE CURRENTLY THAT WE CAN USE TOWARDS THESE THAT, UM, WE HAVE TO USE. UM, THAT'S ONE TIME, TYPICALLY YOU CAN'T GET, THAT'S THE ONE THING THEY WON'T SUPPORT. THE STATE WILL SUPPORT SITE WORK, BUT THE STATE, THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND, AND THE DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION WITH VIRGINIA DO NOT GIVE YOU GRANTS FOR HANGERS. UM, [02:30:01] THE ONLY REASON THAT WE WERE ABLE TO GET STARTED WAS BECAUSE OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING, THE BILL FUNDING. AND IT WASN'T UNTIL HOW LONG, IT'S ONLY BEEN A FEW YEARS THAT IT HAS BEEN AN ENTERPRISE BEFORE THAT IT WAS ANYWHERE FROM TWO TO $400,000 OUT OF THE GENERAL FUND TO RUN THE AIRPORT. SO, UM, IT IS NOT ENTIRELY SELF-SUFFICIENT, BUT MUCH MORE SO THAN WHAT IT WAS WHEN I FIRST CAME ON THE BOARD. YEAH. AND, AND THERE'S BEEN SO MUCH CHANGE, UM, YOU KNOW, WITH WHAT WE DO. I MEAN, I, I MENTIONED IT STARTED OUT TOWN COUNTY, AND IT, IT, IT KIND OF MOVED TO, UH, FBO RUN A PERSON THAT LIVED THERE THAT WAS PART OF HIS PACKAGE. HE HAD FUEL, HE HAD TIE DOWNS. AND THEN WE MOVED THROUGH A COUPLE THINGS SINCE 2020. UM, YOU KNOW, AND, YOU KNOW, WHERE WE ARE NOW IS, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE ONE FULL-TIME EMPLOYEE AND WELL, I THINK JAKE'S DOWN THE ONE RIGHT NOW, PART-TIME GUY. BUT YOU KNOW, THAT WE DO ALL THE, ALL THE, THE MOWING, ALL THE MAINTENANCE. HE'S WORKING ON THE DOORS, WE'RE DOING THE FUEL SALES. SO, YOU KNOW, WE ARE BRINGING SOME MORE REVENUE IN, BUT WE'RE ALSO STRETCHING THINNER AND THINNER WITH, YOU KNOW, THE, THE FOLKS THAT WE HAVE THERE. MM-HMM . SO, UM, ANYWAY, I THINK I CAN JUMP ON, UM, JUST SOME, JUST SOME NEWS FOR RIGHT NOW. UM, AND KIMBERLY HORN MENTIONED I DIDN'T HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING FOR LEY HORNE IN THIS SITUATION. THE STATE OF VIRGINIA IS ACTUALLY DOING A STUDY. UM, THEIR, THEY'RE, UM, STUDYING IN THE, UH, AIRPORT SYSTEM AND THE ECONOMIC IMPACT IN VIRGINIA, UM, DEPARTMENT OF AVIATION IS, IS, UH, PROMOTING THIS. AND, AND WE PARTICIPATED. I I THINK BOTH YOU GUYS WERE THERE, UM, AS WE INITIALLY MET IN THE SPRING WITH OUR CONSULTANT OR THE STATE'S CONSULTANT. BUT SHE ASKED IF WE'D BE WILLING TO MEET, PROVIDE DETAILS OF WHAT WE DO, AND THEN WE SIT DOWN AND RESEARCHED ALL OF HER QUESTIONS. UM, AND I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY COOL, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU DRIVE OUT THERE AND YOU, YOU DON'T ALWAYS THINK, LIKE, RIGHT NOW, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE WE REALLY, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE MADE AN IMPACT JUST CHANGING A LITTLE BIT, YOU KNOW, JUST A FEW THINGS ON THE BUSINESSES THAT ARE THERE. UM, THAT CULTURE, THAT ENVIRONMENT, THAT SHIFT HAS BEEN POSITIVE. AND WE'VE SEEN, UH, MULTIPLE BUSINESSES COME. I MEAN, WE HAD A, A HANGAR OUT THERE FOR MAINTENANCE, BUT NOBODY WAS IN IT. AND NOW WE HAVE FOLKS THAT YOU CAN REGULARLY GET MAINTENANCE, UH, UH, DONE. AND WE HAVE, UH, SCOTT, UH, FRONT ROYAL, OF COURSE, WE MENTIONED PHI, WE HAVE UPWIND AVIATION, UM, RANDOLPH MACON ACADEMY AND FRONT ROYAL AVIATION. SO WE HAVE TWO, TWO FLIGHT SCHOOLS ON TOP OF RMA, WHO'S BEEN OUT THERE FOR YEARS. MM-HMM . SO YOU LOOK AT THE CURRENT AIRPORT BUSINESS TENANTS, WE HAVE 22 FULL-TIME FOLKS AND EIGHT PART-TIME OUT THERE. YOU KNOW, UNTIL WE SIT DOWN AND REALLY STARTED WORKING WITH A CONSULTANT, I REALLY DIDN'T SEE THAT NUMBER RIGHT IN MY FACE EVERY DAY. BUT PHI, YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU HAVE A LOT OF FOLKS, THEY'RE SEVEN DAYS A WEEK. UM, SO I MEAN, IT, IT, I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY COOL TO SEE THESE NUMBERS AND THEN TO LOOK AT THE OFF AIRPORT RELIANCE. YOU KNOW, VALLEY HEALTH, THEIR MEDICAL TRANSPORT TEAM RELIES ON PHI AS WELL. I MENTIONED THEY HAVE A CONTRACT TOGETHER. BUT, YOU KNOW, I, I GOT IN A SITUATION WHERE I WAS LIKE, JAKE WAS ON VACATION AND THEY'RE DROPPING OFF BLOOD. AND I'M LIKE, THESE GUYS ARE OUTTA HERE. I'M WORRIED ABOUT THIS BLOOD. IT WAS LIKE 110 DEGREES OUTSIDE, YOU KNOW? SO I MEAN, LIKE, I, YOU KNOW, I'M NOT THERE ALL THE TIME, BUT THERE'S SO MUCH HAPPENING THAT YOU DON'T SEE, UM, UNLESS YOU'RE THERE. AND AERO SERVICES, THEY PARTNER WITH HANGAR 13 ON MAINTENANCE, YOU KNOW, THE, THE MILITARY ACADEMY, OF COURSE, UM, WITH, WITH THEIR SCHOOL. AND THEN, UM, SILENT FALCON, UM, WHICH, YOU KNOW, THEY STILL HAVE A PRESENCE THERE. THEY STORE SOME DRONES, BUT, UM, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'VE MOVED TO NORTHERN VIRGINIA. THEY'RE NO LONGER IN THE COUNTY AS FAR AS THEIR BUSINESS LOCATION. SO THE DID, SIR, ARE THEY LOOKING AT MOVING THEIR GROANS AND STUFF? UM, THEY HAVEN'T MENTIONED THAT TO ME. UM, AND I, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT'S ANOTHER DISCUSSION WITH PROBABLY WITH, YOU KNOW, UM, GRANTS. 'CAUSE I THINK THAT CAME IN ON AN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GRANT. OKAY. UM, AND, AND THAT'S SOMETHING WE PROBABLY SHOULD LOOK AT. I THINK THEIR WHOLE, YOU KNOW, UM, SYSTEM CHANGED. WE REALLY COULD USE THE SPACE. I THINK IT WOULD PROBABLY WORTH REALLY DISCUSSING THAT. UM, AND SEEING WHAT WE CAN DO TO, UM, USE THAT SPACE THAT THEY'RE NOT TAKING ADVANTAGE OF. 'CAUSE AND, AND ACTUALLY IT'S CONNECTED TO WHERE WE WANNA BUILD HANGERS AS WELL. WOULDN'T THEIR CONTRACT HAVE BEEN EXPIRED BY NOW? I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS FOR, IT WAS A 10 YEAR AGREEMENT INITIALLY. AND, UM, BUT THEY NEVER MET ANY, THEIR GOALS. SO I THOUGHT THAT THEIR GRANT FUNDING FROM THE STATE WAS DISCONTINUED. HOWEVER, I THINK THEY HAVE MULTIPLE THINGS, COMPONENT OR OH, BUILDING INTO THAT. [02:35:01] SO THERE'S A, A COUNTY, THERE WAS A COUNTY EDA, UM, PARTNERSHIP. I THOUGHT IT ALL HINGED ON MEETING THE CRITERIA. THE STATE PUT THE YEAH, THAT'S WHAT WE WERE GONNA GET INTO. THAT'S, I MEAN, THAT'S SOMETHING WE WANTED TO, UH, KIND OF DIG INTO A LITTLE DEEPER AND, AND MAYBE GET MR. HAM TO EVALUATE FURTHER FOR US. SO, UM, AIRPORT ACTIVITY, JUST TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA, TOTAL OPERATIONS, UM, LAST YEAR, THIS WAS ANOTHER PIECE OF OUR, UH, OUR SURVEY AND UM, 28,933 OPS. THAT'S UP AND DOWNS. AND YOU KNOW, MOST OF THAT'S GENERAL AVIATION. SOME OF IT'S MILITARY. I PUT SOME NUMBERS DOWN THERE, UH, DOES INCLUDE SOARING CLUBS. SO, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE A LOT OF SEWERS OUT THERE. WHOOPS. HANG ON. I HAD ONE MORE, I MISSED IT. THIS WAS, YOU KNOW, JUST LOOKING AT TOURISM AND, YOU KNOW, I KNOW IT'S BEEN MENTIONED SEVERAL TIMES, UM, YOU KNOW, APPROXIMATELY 35% OF OPERATIONS WERE FROM OUTTA STATE. SO, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, WE, WE, JUST BASED ON INFORMATION WE HAD OR YOU KNOW, DATA THAT WAS COLLECTED, UM, WE FIGURED THAT MOST TRIPS WERE ABOUT TWO AND A HALF DAYS IF THEY CAME IN FROM OUTTA STATE AND STAYED HERE. AND THEN THE PURPOSES OF THE OUT-OF-STATE VISITORS, 10% BUSINESS, 80% PERSONAL, AND 10%, UH, BUSINESS AND PERSONAL TRAVEL. SO I THINK THAT IF WE HAVE OTHER BUSINESSES HERE, YOU KNOW, AS A COMMISSION, THEY'VE LOOKED AT, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, WHAT WE HAVE AROUND US TO, YOU KNOW, SUPPORTING, YOU KNOW, THE RIVERS, THE MOUNTAINS. A LOT OF FOLKS COME IN HERE. WE HAVE A LOT OF FOLKS FROM NORTHERN VIRGINIA COMING NOW TO SKYDIVE, UM, WAS A YEAR OR SO AGO, THERE WAS ACTUALLY A NETFLIX SHOW, UM, WITH THE SKYDIVE CREW. UM, AND UM, I CAN'T REMEMBER. IT'S ONE OF THE MATCHMAKING SHOWS. I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER THE NAME OF IT NOW, BUT IT'S KIND OF LIKE A NEW LOVE CONNECTION. AND, UM, THEY FILMED AT THE AIRPORT. BUT WE'VE SEEN THESE FOLKS AND THESE BUSINESSES AND THEY DO A GREAT JOB PROMOTING WHAT THEY DO. UM, AND, AND I THINK THAT, UM, WE CAN DO GREAT THINGS AND WE CAN IMPROVE THE COMMUNITY, BUT WE DO NEED YOUR HELP. SO I, WITH THAT, I'M GONNA ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS AND, AND I'M GONNA GET OUTTA THE WAY. I HAVE A, A QUESTION. WHEN IS THIS, UM, KIMLEY HORN STUDY SUPPOSED TO BE OR MAIL? I, I THINK IT, IT, I, NOW, I DON'T, I CAN'T GIVE YOU AN EXACT DATE, BUT I THINK THEY WERE ANTICIPATING SOMEWHERE IN FALL OR SPRING. UM, YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE THEY WERE COLLECTING THE INFORMATION THIS YEAR. SO STATE OF VIRGINIA, I WOULD SAY NEXT FALL, YOU KNOW, UM, BECAUSE USUALLY THE DATA'S OLD WHEN YOU GET IT. UM, BUT, BUT OUR DATA, YOU KNOW, THEY, WE SIT DOWN AS A TEAM. WE LOOKED AT IT, WE LOOKED AT THE, OUR CONSULTANTS, WE LOOKED AT THE PROJECTIONS FROM MANY YEARS PAST AND THEN PROVIDED THE DATA TO THEM. SO, ALRIGHT. SO, SO IS THI IS THIS A TOOL? IT'S AN ECONOMIC IMPACT STUDY, BUT IT'S BEING DONE STATEWIDE, RIGHT? YEP. IT'S A TOOL. SO GONNA BE A TOOL FOR US. YES. YES, SIR. TO BE ABLE TO, BECAUSE YOU'RE SAYING, CAN WE GET SUPPORT AND YEAH. IT'S ALWAYS GONNA BE WHERE CAN WE SEE THAT IT'S, YEAH, IT'S OKAY. SO THIS IS GONNA BE SOMETHING. YEAH, THIS IS A, IS A DATA TOOL, THE STATE. YEAH. ONE OF THE ONES THAT THEY DID IN, IN MY TIME WITH, WITH THE AIRPORT HERE, UM, WAS ON PAVEMENT. UM, AND, AND, AND EVALUATION OF PAVEMENT OF RUNWAYS. AND THE STATE SENT A TEAM OUT TO DO THEIR OWN EVALUATION, UM, OF, OF THE CONDITION. SO THE ASPHALT. AND, AND WE, WE WE'RE ACTUALLY SUCCESSFUL AS, YOU KNOW, I, WE, WE JUST STARTED ANOTHER DESIGN ON THE, THE PARALLEL TAXIWAY. SO THE STATE ACTUALLY TRIES TO HELP THE AVIATION COMMUNITY AND THE AIRPORTS AND, AND THEY DO INVEST. OKAY, GOOD. WELL THAT'S WHAT, AND IT'S REGULAR. IT'S REGULAR. TO GET THE SUPPORT WE NEED TO HAVE THE ECONOMIC UNDERSTANDING, SO, RIGHT. YES, SIR. WELL, I WILL SAY SINCE MY TIME ON THE BOARD, I, I USED TO GET CALLS, YOU KNOW, TO COME OUT BECAUSE THERE WERE THINGS THAT PEOPLE DIDN'T LIKE AT THE AIRPORT GOING ON AND CALLING ME TO GO TO AN AIRPORT WAS, I HAVE NEVER BEEN ON A PLANE, DON'T REALLY HAVE A DESIRE. SO I THOUGHT THEY WERE, UM, A LITTLE OUT OF TOUCH CALLING ME. BUT I DON'T GET THOSE CALLS ANYMORE. UM, THE TIMES PEOPLE TALK TO ME, IT'S ALL POSITIVE. MM-HMM. SO IT'S, YEAH. AND IT'S, WE'RE NOT DUMPING THE LARGE AMOUNT OF MONIES AND NOT REALLY SEEING YEAH. THE OUTCOME FOR, FOR THE AMOUNT OF MONEY WHEN THEY'RE NOW WE'RE NOT DUMPING AS MUCH MONEY AND IT'S, IT'S DOING REALLY WELL. RIGHT. SO THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU'RE DOING OUT THERE. AND THE BOARD, WE'VE GOT A REALLY GOOD BOARD OUT THERE TOO. I HAD ONE OTHER THING THAT I WANTED TO MENTION. IT'S KIND OF TAGGING ON TO, UH, WHAT THE CHIEF SAID EARLIER IN REGARDS TO OUR YOUNG FOLKS IN EDUCATION. YOU KNOW, THIS YEAR, UM, IT WAS ACTUALLY [02:40:01] JULIA FRONT ROW SKYDIVE, SHE'S NOW ON THE COMMISSION, BUT SHE INVITED JAKE AND I TO GO TO THE, THE JOB FAIR FOR THE SCHOOLS, YOU KNOW, AND WE'D NEVER BEEN INVITED BEFORE AS AN AIRPORT, YOU KNOW, IN THE FIVE YEARS I'VE BEEN HERE, YOU KNOW, BUT THE, AND I'M NOT PICKING, BUT THEY, THEY DIDN'T EVEN KNOW, YOU KNOW, THE PERSON IN CHARGE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHERE OUR AIRPORT WAS, YOU KNOW, AND THEY HAD FOLKS THAT HAD TALKED TO WINCHESTER, 'CAUSE THEY DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WE HAD AN AIRPORT HERE. AND, AND WE SPOKE TO 'EM ABOUT JOBS, LIKE RIGHT NOW, WE SPOKE TO 'EM ABOUT, YOU KNOW, FUTURE CAREERS. I EXPLAINED TO THEM, LIKE EVERY YEAR THE STATE OF VIRGINIA HAS, UM, A SCHOLARSHIP FOR, FOR NON-ENGINEERING STUDENTS THAT'S AVAILABLE. THEY ACTUALLY HAVE A PROGRAM FOR FOLKS THAT WANT TO, UH, GET THEIR, YOU KNOW, THEIR LICENSE TO FLY, EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT IN SCHOOL. UM, THERE'S SOME MONEY AVAILABLE. SO, YOU KNOW, THERE, THERE'S, THEY, THEY HAVE A WHOLE GROUP OF FOLKS AT THE STATE THAT TRY TO PROMOTE AVIATION. AND JUST LIKE THE EMERGENCY SERVICES, THERE'S A GREAT NEED FOR PILOTS, FOR MECHANICS, UM, ACROSS THE BOARD, THERE'S A NEED. UM, AND, AND THE COMMISSION MEMBERS ARE EVEN, YOU KNOW, SPEAKING TO, UM, LAUREL RIDGE, UM, LOOKING AT THEIR STEM STUDENTS AND, AND TRYING TO SEE, HEY, CAN WE GET IN HERE SOMEHOW AND DISCUSS, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO BE HELPFUL HERE AND, AND MAYBE, MAYBE GET INVOLVED A LITTLE MORE AS WELL. SO BEYOND JUST THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT THE FUTURE NEEDS. AND, AND I, YOU KNOW, AS A YOUNG MAN HERE, I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT, YOU KNOW, GETTING INTO THE AVIATION FIELD. UM, BUT, YOU KNOW, IT'S REALLY INTERESTING. AND ON THE ENGINEERING SIDE, I MEAN, IT'S REALLY, IT'S REALLY COOL STUFF. UM, AND I, I THINK THAT A LOT OF KIDS PROBABLY WOULDN'T REALIZE THAT THERE'S AN OPPORTUNITY FOR 'EM, YOU KNOW? AND IF THEY WOULD GO DOWN TO THE AIRPORT, THAT COMMUNITY WOULD BE GLAD TO SIT AND TALK TO 'EM. 'CAUSE THEY WANT 'EM TO COME. BUT THAT'S ALL I GOT. THANK YOU. WE'RE NOT DONE . UM, SO THE NEXT ONE, ALYSSA, IF YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT OUR FINANCIAL STRATEGY, WOULD, UH, WE'VE GOT, WOULD YOU, WOULD Y'ALL MIND IF I TOOK A SHORT BREAK? WE SURE CAN. OKAY. ABOUT, UH, CAN WE TAKE ABOUT A FIVE MINUTE BREAK? ALRIGHT. BE, SO ARE, ARE WE READY TO, TO, UH, RESUME? OKAY, THANK YOU. I AM HERE TO PRESENT ON GOAL NUMBER FOUR, WHICH IS FINANCIAL STRATEGY. I PROBABLY HAVE ONE OF THE FRESHEST UPDATES. SO FRESH, THERE'S, UH, AIRBAG DUST STILL LINGERING IN THE AIR. OUR CONSULTANT, BARRY DUNN WAS HERE LAST WEEK. THEY WERE HERE FOR A FULL DAY WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY, AND HALF A DAY ON FRIDAY. AND WHAT THEY STARTED WITH WAS THE PROJECT TEAM INTERNALLY, WHICH IS MADE UP OF MYSELF AS THE PROJECT SPONSOR, TODD JONES, OUR IT DIRECTOR, SABRINA REED, OUR DEPUTY FINANCE DIRECTOR, AND IVY THOMPSON, OUR SENIOR ACCOUNTS PAYABLE COORDINATOR. AND THAT INTERNAL TEAM MET FOR ABOUT FOUR WEEKS BEFORE WE REALLY KICKED THINGS OFF ON WEDNESDAY MORNING OF LAST WEEK. AND IT WAS SETTING UP AND ESTABLISHING A TIMEFRAME THAT WILL WORK FOR THE COUNTY. AND THEY ALSO ISSUED A SURVEY THAT THEY SENT OUT TO ALL STAKEHOLDERS, AND THEY HELD A KICKOFF MEETING, WHICH IS ALWAYS A FUN EXPERIENCE. THEY WERE REALLY IMPRESSED WITH THE TURNOUT. THEY WERE REALLY IMPRESSED WITH THE RESPONSES THEY RECEIVED BACK FROM STAFF. AND SO I THINK THAT WE ARE IN A REALLY GOOD POSITION TO CONTINUE MOVING FORWARD TO OPTIMIZE THE FINANCES FOR WARREN COUNTY. UH, SO WITH THAT, THEY MET WITH EACH INDIVIDUAL, UH, MODULE OF THE FINANCE SYSTEM, INCLUDING THE TREASURER'S OFFICE AND THE COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE, AS WELL AS ACCOUNTS PAYABLE, PROCUREMENT GENERAL LEDGER, AND DETERMINED WHAT OUR PROCESSES WERE, HOW WE DO WORK, AND WHAT WE WANT TO DO BETTER. AND THEY LISTEN TO US. THEY ARE GOING TO PUT EVERYTHING TOGETHER INTO A PLAN. THEY'RE GOING TO ISSUE A GENERALIZED REQUEST FOR INFORMATION, WHICH BASICALLY SAYS THIS IS GENERALLY WHAT THE COUNTY IS LOOKING FOR. AND THIS IS GENERALLY WHAT WE EXPECT THE WHOLE ENTIRE COST TO BE OF THE SOFTWARE. THAT'S GOING TO REPLACE WHAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE RIGHT NOW, WHICH IS BRIGHT, OR BAI. UH, SO THAT'S GOING TO BE ISSUED HERE VERY SHORTLY. UH, THERE'S NO COMMITMENT WITH A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION RFI. IT'S, IT'S BASICALLY, PLEASE GIVE US INFORMATION, PLEASE TELL US THAT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN DOING BUSINESS WITH THE COUNTY AND IN GENERAL HOW YOU CAN MEET OUR NEEDS. SO ONCE WE GET THOSE RFIS BACK, WE'RE ABLE TO ASSESS SPECIFICALLY WHAT WE CAN PUT INTO THE RFP TO BE AS DETAILED AS WE POSSIBLY CAN TO GET SOFTWARE VENDORS TO RESPOND TO EXACTLY WHAT WE NEED. AND WE'LL HAVE A PRICING POINT AT THAT TIME THAT WE CAN PUT INTO AN APPROPRIATION FOR THE FY 27 BUDGET. THAT IS GENERALLY THE FIRST [02:45:01] PHASE OF THE PROJECT. THEN THERE IS PHASE TWO, WHICH IS SELECTING THE SOFTWARE THAT BEST SUITS THE COUNTY'S NEEDS. AND THE THIRD PHASE IS THE IMPLEMENTATION AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT PROCESS. AND SO THAT IS ACTUALLY GOING TO BE SOMETHING THAT WE DESPERATELY NEED WHEN IT COMES TO GETTING A CULTURE CHANGE INTO THE COUNTY, SO THAT EVERYONE IS ON BOARD AND ACCEPTS THAT, THAT HUGE CHANGE. SO FOR EXAMPLE, RIGHT NOW, THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT HAS ACCESS TO THE SYSTEM OF RECORD. WE PUSH THE INFORMATION OUT TO THE DEPARTMENTS, TO THE PUBLIC TO LET THEM KNOW WHAT THE FINANCES ARE TO IN A NEWS SYSTEM. WE WOULD HAVE PEOPLE COMING IN, TAKING A LOOK AT THE DASHBOARD, LOOKING AT THEIR OWN BUDGETS, BEING ABLE TO DETERMINE WHAT THEY NEED SPECIFICALLY AND HOW THEY'RE GOING TO ASK FOR THAT. EXCUSE ME, THERE'S A LOT. SO IN GENERAL, THAT IS THE PROCESS. AND WE WOULD LIKE TO HAVE DEPARTMENTS MORE INVOLVED WITH, UH, WITH THE FINANCES, WITH THEIR BUDGETS AND, AND BUDGET OVERSIGHT. AS YOU KNOW, WE HAVE THE FINANCE AUDIT COMMITTEE THAT WE, THAT MEETS THE SECOND WEDNESDAY OF EVERY MONTH. AND WE GO OVER THE FUEL REPORT, WE GO OVER THE AP REPORT, WE GO OVER THE PCARD REPORT, WE GO OVER THE BEVERAGE AND EXPENDITURE REPORT, ALL OF WHICH IS PROVIDED TO YOU ON THE THIRD MEETING OF THE MONTH, THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE MONTH. SO GETTING A BETTER REPORTING CAPABILITY OUT OF THE NEW FINANCIAL SOFTWARE WAS MADE ONE OF THE MAIN DRIVERS OF THIS INITIATIVE. IT GIVES YOU A BETTER PICTURE OF WHERE WE ARE, SPECIFICALLY, HOW MUCH CASH IS IN THE BANK, HOW MUCH CASH IS IN THE AIRPORT FUND, WHAT DO WE NEED TO DO TO MOVE MONEY FROM HERE TO HERE AND BE A PART OF THE WORKFLOW OF THE BUSINESS OPERATIONS OF THE COUNTY. SO WITH THAT, THAT'S MY UPDATE FOR THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM REPLACEMENTS. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME? YEAH. SO THIS SYSTEM, WHEN IT'S SET UP, WILL GO A LONG WAY TOWARDS KEEPING US OUT OF A SITUATION LIKE WE'RE IN NOW WITH THE, THE DELAYS WITH THE AUDIT, RIGHT? UM, UH, BECAUSE THE, THE DEPARTMENTS WILL JUST INTERFACE BETTER AND, UH, THERE'LL BE MORE CONTROLS IN TERMS OF PREVENTING HUMAN ERROR OR, YOU KNOW, MAKING SURE THAT TRANSACTIONS ARE LOGGED APPROPRIATELY AND AND SO FORTH. UM, YES. OKAY. IN PARTICULAR, WILL, WILL, WILL, WILL THIS, WILL THIS INTERFACE WITH THE TREASURER'S OFFICE OR, BECAUSE WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IS, I THINK IT'S INTERNAL TO THE, UH, ON THE, THE COUNTY SIDE, NOT THE TREASURER'S OFFICE. AND THE TREASURER'S OFFICE IS WHERE WE'RE HAVING THE DIFFICULTIES AS FAR AS GETTING THE, THE, UH, OR CHALLENGES WITH A, WITH GETTING THE AUDIT DONE, ISN'T IT? IT IS SPECIFICALLY THE TWO MAIN REASONS FOR THE DELAY IS A LACK OF RESOURCE THAT ARE AVAILABLE IN THE TREASURER'S OFFICE TO PERFORM THE BANK RECONCILIATIONS ON A MONTHLY BASIS AS SHOULD BE DONE. YEAH. THE OTHER REASON IS THAT, UM, THE ACCOUNTS PAYABLE PORTION OF THE PAYROLL PROCESS, THAT'S ONLY ON THE BACKSIDE, NOT ON WHAT YOU SEE FOR THE EXPENDITURES, DOESN'T MATCH UP TO ALL OF THE INTEGRATIONS THAT WE HAVE. SO THE NUMBER ONE REASON OUTSIDE OF THE FINANCIAL REPORTING IS THAT THESE SYSTEMS WILL BE ABLE TO TALK TO ONE ANOTHER AND WORK TOGETHER CURRENTLY. OKAY. THE COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE, THE TREASURER'S OFFICE, AND THE FINANCE OFFICE IS ON THE SAME SOFTWARE. IT'S, WE'RE ALL ON BRIGHT AND HOW IT INTERACTS WITH ONE ANOTHER IS NOT THE MAIN PROBLEM. RIGHT NOW. THE MAIN PROBLEM RIGHT NOW IS HAVING THE, THE ASSIGNED RESOURCES, HAVING THE RIGHT SEATS ON THE BUS TO BE ABLE TO PERFORM THE BANK RECONCILIATIONS WITHIN THE TREASURER'S OFFICE. OF COURSE, THE FINANCE OFFICE IS ASSISTING WITH THAT RIGHT NOW. OKAY. AND AN OUTSIDE CPA FIRM, BUT THAT, THAT WON'T SOLVE THE PARTICULAR ISSUE OF HAVING A DELAYED AUDIT. YEAH. WHAT WHAT WILL HELP WITH THAT IS MAKING SURE WE A, HAVE THE RIGHT RESOURCES AND B, MAKE SURE THAT THEY ALL TALK TO ONE ANOTHER. OKAY. THE TREASURER'S OFFICE AND THE COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE IS INTERESTED IN MOVING TO A SOFTWARE CALLED AMENITY. UH, THEY ARE ONE OF THE NUMBER ONE SOFTWARES FOR BOTH OF THOSE TWO OFFICES. IT IS NOT AN AVAILABLE SOFTWARE THAT THE FINANCE OFFICE WOULD USE. IT DOESN'T INTERACT WITH THE GENERAL LEDGER. SO PREVIOUSLY THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF WORKFLOW THROUGH THE TREASURER'S OFFICE ONTO THE GENERAL LEDGER OUTSIDE OF RECORDING REVENUE. UH, THE TREASURER AND I HAVE WORKED TOGETHER OVER THE PAST YEAR, ALMOST A YEAR EXACTLY TO THIS DAY, TO UPDATE THE WORKFLOW PROCESSES SO THAT THEY MAKE SENSE FOR THE RE FOR THE TREASURER TO ONLY RECORD THE REVENUE AND TO ONLY CUT CHECKS FOR TAX, REFUNDS ONLY. EVERYTHING ELSE FALLS INTO THE FINANCE OFFICE AS IT SHOULD. SO ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO DOING IS TO SEEING WHAT THOSE WORKFLOW PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS CAN BE FOR MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY. THANK YOU. [02:50:03] ANY OTHER QUESTIONS WITH, WITH STAFF HAVING AVAIL ABILITY TO SEE THEIR BUDGET? YES. SEE WHERE THEY ARE. ARE THEY GOING TO BE ABLE TO PROCESS IN AND TAKE SOME OF THE LOAD OFF YOU OF THEIR EXPENDITURES, UH, THE RECEIPTS AND, UM, DO THAT PROCESS WITHOUT IT HAVING TO GO FOR YOU TO HAVE TO SCAN IN OR WHATEVER YOUR DEPARTMENT DOES? YES, WE'RE DEFINITELY LOOKING INTO THAT RIGHT NOW. THERE'S ONLY TWO DEPARTMENTS THAT REALLY USE WHAT WE CALL THE BUDGET SITE HOSTED ON A SHAREPOINT, UH, WEBPAGE THAT THE FINANCE OFFICE HAD SET UP. THAT'S THE PUSHING OUT OF THE INFORMATION. AND THAT'S WHERE, UH, FIRE AND RESCUE AND THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE GOES TO STORE THEIR OWN INVOICES, RECORD THEIR OWN TRANSACTIONS IN ADDENDUM TO WHAT THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM POSTED, THAT THEY CAN BE MORE CURRENT RATHER THAN, UH, HAVE A LAG OF A MONTH BEHIND. SO THE FIRST THING WE'RE LOOKING FOR IS HOW CAN THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IN FIRE RESCUE LOG IN AND SEE ON THEIR DASHBOARD, THESE ARE WHAT THEIR EXPENDITURES ARE, THIS IS WHAT THEIR REVENUE IS. AND THEY WOULDN'T, YES. THEY WOULDN'T ASK THE FINANCE OFFICE FOR THE INFORMATION BECAUSE IT WOULD BE READILY AVAILABLE TO THEM ALONG WITH COPIES OF THEIR INVOICES. SORT OF LIKE A CHECKBOOK. YOU CAN SEE, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THE TRANSACTIONS THAT HAVE GONE OUT. IF I WENT AND BOUGHT SHOES FOR, UM, FIRE AND RESCUE, I KNOW THEY GET SHOES, UH, TRANSFER STATION, DIFFERENT ONES. THEY GET A PAIR OF SHOES A YEAR. SO IF THEY WENT AND BOUGHT SHOES, THEN IT'LL BE THIS EXPENDITURE WITH SHOES FOR X, Y, Z PERSON. RIGHT. 'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR WHEN I LOOK AT THE EXPENDITURES. I DON'T LIKE TO SEE, UM, I'M TRYING TO THINK OF SOME OF THE DIFFERENT THINGS THAT ARE PUT DOWN A PURCHASE. MM-HMM . IS USUALLY, YOU KNOW, A HUNDRED DOLLARS WORLD KING PURCHASE DOESN'T TELL ME ANYTHING. RIGHT. SO THAT'S, THAT'S WHAT WHAT I'M HOPING WILL, THEY'LL HAVE THE AVAILABILITY TO PUT THAT IN THEMSELVES OFF OF THEIR P CARDS. RIGHT. AND THEY HAVE THE ABILITY TO DO SO NOW. AND WE'RE TRAINING STAFF ON SPECIFICALLY WHERE THEY NEED TO PUT THAT DESCRIPTION IN. SO PART OF IT IS A MANAGEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY OVERSIGHT. AND THE OTHER PART IS A SOFTWARE, UM, AVAILABILITY. WHAT, WHAT IS CAPABLE OF, EXCUSE ME. SO WE WANT A SOFTWARE THAT IS CAPABLE OF LEARNING THOSE COMMODITY CODES AND TYING THOSE COMMODITY CODES TO OUR CHART OF ACCOUNTS SO THAT THE OVERALL GENERAL DESCRIPTION IS THERE AND WE CAN BE SPECIFIC WITHIN THE INVOICE AS WE NEED TO BE MM-HMM . SO THAT WHEN YOU SEE THE REPORTS, WHEN YOU SEE THE TRANSACTIONS ON A MONTHLY BASIS, YOU CAN TIE A SPECIFIC TRANSACTION TO WHAT IT WAS FOR, WHO IT WAS FOR, OR BASICALLY WHY IT WAS. UM, SO I THINK WE, WE DEFINITELY MENTIONED THAT THAT WAS VERY IMPORTANT TO HAVE THAT CAPABILITY TO BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THAT DESCRIPTION BECAUSE CURRENTLY HOW IT IS THROUGH ACCOUNTS PAYABLE, IT'S UP TO THE ACCOUNTS PAYABLE TO ENTER IN THAT DESCRIPTION. WHEREAS PCARD, IT'S UP TO THE INDIVIDUAL PCARD USER. SO WE'RE DEFINITELY PUSHING OUT THAT TRAINING TO STAFF TO LET THEM KNOW THIS IS SPECIFICALLY WHAT YOU NEED TO ENTER INTO YOUR DESCRIPTIONS. YEAH, I APPRECIATE THAT. THANK YOU. SURE. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU. I APPRECIATE IT. MR. JONES IS GONNA WRAP UP OUR PORTION. THE LAST BUT NOT LEAST. RIGHT. I WILL, UH, MENTION TO YOU THAT WHILE, UH, WE HAD A VERY FRESH UPDATE WITH ALYSSA, MY INFORMATION CAME IN TODAY. SO I, I MIGHT ACTUALLY BE MORE FRESH WITH INFORMATION, BUT I CONTACTED A PB TODAY TO GET AN UPDATE AS TO WHERE THINGS STOOD WITH OUR, UM, ROLLOUT WITH, UM, BROADBAND HERE IN THE COUNTY. OF COURSE, WE'VE BEEN WAITING QUITE A WHILE TO GET THINGS MOVING FORWARD AND SUCH. UM, THE, UH, A PB OF COURSE, ONE OF THE CHALLENGES THEY HAVE IS FIRST THEY HAVE TO GET PERMITS TO, TO GET THEIR CONSTRUCTION AND GET, GET THINGS START DIGGING IN THE GROUND AND THAT TYPE OF STUFF. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THEY MENTIONED TO ME TODAY WAS THAT THEY REALLY WANTED ME TO POINT OUT TO YOU THAT THEY'VE HAD A GREAT RESPONSE FROM THE EDINBURGH RESIDENCY RELATED TO THEIR VDOT, UM, PERMITS AND THOSE TYPES OF THINGS. UM, THEY ACTUALLY MENTIONED, UH, A YOUNG LADY NAMED RHONDA FUNKHOUSER, WHO IS JUST REALLY WELL VERSED IN THE PROCESS THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN WITH THE PERMITTING. AND, UH, AS THEY'VE MOVED THROUGH THINGS AND, AND, AND HAD HIGH PRIORITY, UH, CHALLENGES WITH OTHER, UM, COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES, THEY'VE SEEN SOME THINGS TAKE TYPICALLY EVEN ON A FAST TRACK SIX WEEKS. AND, UM, MS. FCA AND EVERYBODY OVER AT THERE, EDINBURGH RE RESIDENCY'S, BEEN ABLE TO DO A LOT OF THOSE THINGS IN SIX DAYS, WHICH IS A REALLY, REALLY POSITIVE NOTE FOR US. THE [02:55:01] FACT THAT THEY'RE TURNING THAT AROUND SO QUICKLY. UM, THEY EXPECT TO HAVE CREWS, UM, READY TO GO BY THE END OF SEPTEMBER. UM, AND ACTUALLY CONSTRUCTION STARTING HOPEFULLY IN THE FIR IN THE, UH, FIRST PART OF OCTOBER. SO YOU'LL HOPEFULLY SEE PEOPLE DIGGING IN DIRT COME OCTOBER 1ST. UM, AND THEN THEY'LL, UH, WHEN THEY START COMING TO AN AREA AND START LAYING OUT, UM, THE, UH, THE, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE THERE, THE RESIDENTS IN THAT AREA WILL GET A NOTIFICATION, HEY, WE'RE, WE'RE COMING INTO YOUR LOCATION AND IF YOU WANT SERVICE, HERE'S HOW TO SIGN UP FOR IT. AND THEY, THEY'RE TRYING TO MAKE THE ENTRY A REALLY SIMPLE, UM, LOW COST, STRAIGHTFORWARD, UM, PROCESS. THEY'RE KIND OF, I THINK THEY'RE ALL GONNA OFFER UP SOME DISCOUNTS AND DIFFERENT THINGS IF YOU SIGN UP EARLY ON. UM, AND THEN ONCE YOU SIGN UP AND GIVE THEM THAT INFORMATION WHEN THE CONSTRUCTION IS COMPLETE, THEY'LL BASICALLY REACH OUT TO YOU AND GIVE CREDIT CARD INFORMATION, ACTIVATE YOUR SERVICE, AND SCHEDULE SOMEONE TO COME OUT AND DROP IT FROM THE, UH, STREET INTO YOUR HOME, IF YOU WILL. UM, THEY EXPECT TO, WHEN THINGS GET REALLY RAMPED UP AND MOVING QUICKLY, THEY EXPECT TO BE PUTTING OUT 120 TO 250 LOCATIONS AT A TIME, AND YOU'LL START HOPEFULLY SEEING THAT COME EARLY DECEMBER. THEY'RE, AS THEY MOVE FORWARD. UM, UH, WHAT ELSE DID I HAVE FOR YOU? SO, SO YEAH, THEY'RE, THEY'RE EXPECTING VERY SOON HERE TO START DIGGING INTO THE DIRT MOVING FORWARD. SEEMS LIKE THINGS ARE MOVING FORWARD WELL. SO, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? NO, I WAS JUST GONNA MAKE FUN. UH, RHONDA FUNKHOUSER IS AWESOME. YEAH. WHEN SHE DECIDES TO RETIRE, THEY'RE PROBABLY GONNA HAVE TO CLOSE OUT OFFICE DOWN. YEAH, SHE IS. UM, SHE IS, SHE'S BEEN THERE MANY YEARS MM-HMM . AND SHE IS AMAZING. SO I HAVEN'T MET HER, BUT I, I HEAR GOOD THINGS AND I KNOW AP B'S EXCITED BECAUSE THEY'VE RUN INTO SOME CHALLENGES IN OTHER PLACES AND OTHER THINGS, AND THEY'RE EXCITED TO, YOU KNOW, GET THE PROCESS MOVING. SO, YEP. THANK YOU. ANYTHING ELSE? HAVE A GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. THANKS. THANK YOU. SO THE, UH, CAN, CAN YOU PUT UP ON THE SCREEN ABOUT THE, UH, ONGOING GOALS, YOU KNOW, THE, THE, THE NEXT ONE? SO THESE ARE GOALS THAT HAVEN'T HAD SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS, SO WE FIGURED WE'D SAVE YOU A COUPLE HOURS RATHER THAN GOING THROUGH ALL OF THEM. THEY ARE ALL CURRENTLY STILL BEING WORKED ON. UM, BUT THEY'RE AT DIFFERENT PHASES. SO IN DECEMBER, UM, YOU'LL GET A SUMMARY AND AN UPDATE ON 'EM. AND TODD, LET KNOW, I MADE A MISTAKE. THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SURVEY IS MOVING FORWARD. THERE IS A LOT OF TRACTION, UM, ACTUALLY GOING ON WITH THAT. BUT A LOT OF THESE SCHOOLS ARE GOALS THAT ARE DEPENDENT ON OTHER AGENCIES OUTSIDE OF THE COUNTY GOVERNMENT, UM, OR THEY'RE FINANCIALLY DRIVEN. SO THEY'RE BASICALLY ON HOLD. UM, AND THEN FOR DECEMBER, SO AT THE END OF THE YEAR, WE'LL DO A SUMMARY OF WHERE WE'RE AT WITH ALL OF THE GOALS, BECAUSE THESE ARE GOALS WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR TWO YEARS. UM, BOARD IS IN PLACE AS A COLLABORATIVE GROUP. THE BOARD WILL ESTABLISH GOALS FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS, UM, AND DECIDE WHAT GOALS FROM THE 24, 25 YEARS WILL CARRY FORWARD INTO 26, 27, AND HOW YOU ALL WOULD LIKE TO UPDATE YOUR GOALS. OKAY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. SO NEXT [H. Discussion - Board of Supervisors Fork District Vacancy] WE HAVE THE, UH, FORK DISTRICT VACANCY. SO OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE A VACANCY, UM, WITH A RECENT RESIGNATION. UM, AS A BOARD, YOU ALL HAVE 45 DAYS FROM THE DATE OF THE RESIGNATION TO MAKE A DECISION AS TO, UM, WHO YOU WOULD LIKE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH. IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO FILL THE POSITION, IF YOU CHOOSE NOT TO DO ANYTHING DURING THOSE 45 DAYS, UM, THE CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE DOES HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PLACE SOMEONE IN THE POSITION FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE TERM. UM, SO ONCE YOU EITHER MAKE A DECISION, YES, WE WANT TO APPOINT SOMEONE, OR NO, UM, THERE'S A LITTLE BIT OF A BACK WORK. SO IF YOU DO HAVE AN INTEREST IN AS A GROUP OF FOUR DECIDING WHO YOU'D LIKE TO PUT IN THAT PLACE, UM, WE CAN ACCEPT APPLICATIONS. AND THEN ONE WEEK PRIOR TO YOU ALL MAKING A DECISION, WE NEED TO PRESENT ALL OF THE NAMES WHO ARE BEING CONSIDERED AND THEIR RESUMES TO THE PUBLIC IN A MEETING. AND THEN THE FOLLOWING WEEK YOU WOULD VOTE AND DECIDE. UM, AND THAT'S, YOU HAVE 45 DAYS TO MAKE THAT DECISION. YEAH. IS IS IT REQUIRED FOR A MAJORITY OR DOES IT HAVE TO BE A A, UH, UNANIMOUS IT HAS TO BE A MAJORITY. IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE UNANIMOUS. RIGHT. UM, SO YOU'RE ABLE TO DO THAT BASED OFF OF THE MAJORITY. OKAY. SO FEEL FREE TO DISCUSS KIND OF WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE ON HOW YOU'D LIKE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THE PROCESS. [03:00:05] WELL, I WOULD SAY, OH, I'M SORRY. UM, AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED, WE HAD A PRIMARY, AND WE HAD AN INDIVIDUAL SELECTED FROM THAT PRIMARY WHO'S UNOPPOSED AND SEEMS TO PRETTY MUCH BE AIR APPARENT UNLESS THERE'S A WRITE IN. AND HISTORICALLY WRITE INS DON'T HAVE, UH, MUCH OF A CHANCE OF, UM, TAKING THAT SEAT. SO I FEEL LIKE THAT INDIVIDUAL SHOULD JUST BE APPOINTED. OKAY. OH, FURTHER, RICH, WE WERE GONNA SAY SOMETHING. OH, I'M INTERESTED, I'M INTERESTED IN, IN, UH, TAKING APPLICATIONS FOR THE JOB. I THINK THAT, UM, UH, MRS. COOK'S TERM WAS TO THE END OF THE YEAR, AND, UH, I THINK IT'S REASONABLE THAT WE WOULD BE ABLE TO SEE APPLICANTS THAT, THAT, UM, WOULD REFLECT WHAT HER VIEWPOINTS AND REFERENCES WERE IN TERMS OF THE GOVERNANCE SHE DID AND, AND, UM, THAT, THAT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE TO TAKE THAT TO THE END OF, END OF THE TERM. I TEND TO AGREE WITH THAT. AND I'M ACTUALLY WONDERING, MS. MEADOWS, IF ANY APPLICATIONS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED THUS FAR? NO, NO. WE HAVE NOT FORMALLY ADVERTISED FOR APPLICATIONS. WE WANTED TO SPEAK WITH YOU ALL FIRST. OKAY. UM, IF THE DECISION IS TO ACCEPT APPLICATIONS, Y'ALL WILL JUST HAVE TO LET US KNOW HOW LONG YOU'D LIKE TO HAVE THAT PROCESS. MM-HMM . AND WE JUST NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE DO HAVE AT LEAST SEVEN DAYS BEFORE THE END OF THE 45 DAY PERIOD, UM, TO MAKE ALL APPLICATIONS PUBLIC. AND THEN THE FOLLOWING, UM, WEEK, YOU'D BE ABLE TO MAKE A DECISION. OKAY. SO, SO AT THIS POINT, I, I WOULD HAVE TO, TO, UH, AGREE WITH, UM, UH, MS. CALLERS. I MEAN, I I I'M JUST THINKING OF A SCENARIO WHERE WE GET SOMEBODY ELSE IN HERE AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, IN THE POSITION AND THEN, YOU KNOW, COME NOVEMBER OF, YOU KNOW, AFTER THE, UH, AFTER THE, THE NEW FOLKS ARE, UH, HAVE BEEN ELECTED, YOU KNOW, AFTER THE ELECTION, THEN THE, UH, THEN THE, THE NEW BOARD MEMBERS WOULD BE COMING IN AND SITTING IN ON THE MEETINGS AND YOU'D HAVE TWO DIFFERENT PEOPLE THERE. SO I'M JUST, I'M JUST LOOKING AT, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE THE PRACTICALITIES ON THIS? WELL, AND I THINK THE PRIMARY AND THE FACT THAT NO ONE ELSE HAS STEPPED UP TO RUN, UM, SPEAKS FOR THE COMMUNITY, WHAT THEY HAVE SAID, THEY HAVE CHOSEN THIS INDIVIDUAL THROUGH A PRIMARY, NO ONE ELSE HAS STEPPED UP. I, I JUST, THE AMOUNT OF CONTROVERSY AND ADVERSARIAL ISSUES WE'VE HAD, I THINK THIS WOULD BE IN OLIVE BRANCH TO GO AHEAD, PUT THIS INDIVIDUAL IN AND NOT CAUSE MORE CONTROVERSY AND DIVISION IN THIS COMMUNITY. AND DO YOU THINK THERE ARE SOME, SOME THINGS THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE SORTED OUT TO DO THAT? UH, FOR EXAMPLE, IT WOULD CREATE A VACANCY ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO START WITH, UM, AND THOSE PEOPLE WOULD NEED REPRESENTATION OR ALL OF THOSE? WELL, I THINK THAT INDIVIDUAL COULD BE APPOINTED TO JUST THE SAME PROCESS AS, UM, YEAH. WHAT WE WOULD DO WHEN THAT INDIVIDUAL TAKES A SEAT FULL TIME. YEAH. BUT MY POINT IS JUST THAT YOU'RE CREATING ONE VACANCY FOR ANOTHER. UM, SECONDLY, I, I, I BELIEVE THAT MR. HENRY HAS AT LEAST ONE CONTRACT WITH THE COUNTY THAT WOULD PROBABLY NEED TO BE, UH, DEALT WITH IF THERE'S ANY CONFLICT THERE. UM, SO CAN YOU SAY THAT AGAIN? I WE WERE HAVING A SIDE CONVERSATION. YEAH, I, I, I BELIEVE THAT MR. HENRY, AND I THINK HE'S HERE IF HE WANTS TO SPEAK, BUT I, I BELIEVE THAT HE HAS AT LEAST ONE SORT OF, UH, SANITARY DISTRICT TYPE CONTRACT WITH THE COUNTY, IF, IF NOT MORE THAN THAT, WITH ANYTHING LIKE THAT, AS LONG AS IT'S LISTED AS PART OF THE DISCLOSURE AND IT'S PUBLIC RECORD. MM-HMM . THAT WOULD NOT BE SOMETHING THAT HE, HE WOULD HAVE TO ABSTAIN IF THERE WAS A VOTE DIRECTLY ON THAT. OKAY. SO IT WOULD BE THE SAME AS ANY OTHER PRIVATE CITIZEN WHO THEIR JOB IS SOMETHING THAT THE GOVERNMENT VOTED ON. THEY WOULD HAVE TO ABSTAIN ON THAT ITEM. OKAY. I THINK MS. CALLERS HAS ABSTAINED FROM SEVERAL THINGS REGARDING PROPERTY DECISIONS BASED OFF OF HER OWN PERSONAL INVOLVEMENT. SO SINCE IT'S TWO TO TWO RIGHT NOW, WHAT DO WE DO? JUST FLIP A COIN. SO IF IT'S TWO TO TWO, UM, AND IT'S NOT REALLY A VOTING THING. UM, SO, AND I'LL TALK THROUGH SOME OF THE TIMELINES AND ACTUALLY THE CONVERSATION WITH MR. RISINGER. UM, SO ANYONE WHO [03:05:01] DOES GET LISTED WOULD HAVE TO BE CERTIFIED, SO WE, IT WOULD TAKE A COUPLE OF DAYS IN ORDER TO VERIFY THAT. UM, SO LOOKING AT THE TIMELINE, AND THIS IS IF YOU WANTED TO DO IT AT REG AT A REGULAR MEETING, YOU CAN ALWAYS CALL A SPECIAL MEETING OUTSIDE OF THE STANDARD TUESDAYS. UM, BUT A DECISION WOULD NEED TO, OR A VOTE WOULD NEED TO BE MADE BY THE 17TH. THE TUESDAY PRIOR IS THE 14TH OF OCTOBER. SO PRIOR TO THAT, THE 7TH OF OCTOBER WOULD BE WHERE YOU WOULD NEED TO MAKE ALL CONSIDERED CANDIDATES PUBLIC TO UM, EVERYONE. AND SO YOU COULD POTENTIALLY ACCEPT APPLICATIONS PROBABLY FOUR DAYS PRIOR TO THAT. UM, SO THAT IT DOES GIVE MR. REISINGER'S OFFICE TIME TO VERIFY THAT THEY ARE INDEED A REGISTERED VOTER IN THE FORK DISTRICT. UM, SO THAT GIVES YOU A LITTLE LEEWAY. SO BASICALLY WE'RE LOOKING AT PROBABLY THE END OF SEPTEMBER, SO THREE WEEKS FROM NOW. UM, IF YOU WANT TO ACCEPT APPLICATIONS, UM, IF YOU DON'T WANT TO ACCEPT APPLICATIONS AND YOU WANT TO MOVE FORWARD, THEN IT COULD BE SOMETHING THAT, UM, IF HE IS INTERESTED, HE WOULD JUST NEED TO SUBMIT HIS INTEREST TO US FORMALLY AND THEN IT WOULD BE ABLE TO BE DISCUSSED PUBLICLY, UM, AND THEN MAKE A DECISION THE FOLLOWING WEEK. BUT ULTIMATELY THE FOUR OF YOU WILL HAVE TO DECIDE. SO, SO, SO IN ORDER FOR US TO MOVE FORWARD, WOULD WE PAPER SCISSORS, WOULD WE DISCUSS THIS, UH, IN A PUBLIC FORUM OR, YES. OKAY. UM, THE ONLY THING YOU WOULD DISCUSS IN PRIVATE WOULD BE THE INDIVIDUAL CANDIDATES AND COMPARING THEM, UM, IF THE FOUR OF YOU AREN'T ABLE TO DECIDE PATH FORWARD, UM, THAT WOULD BE WHEN IT GOES TO JUDGE BONK AND HE WOULD DECIDE THE APPROPRIATE PATH FORWARD. OKAY. MR. CHAIRMAN, MAY I MAKE A STATEMENT? PLEASE DO. THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK ON SUCH A IMPORTANT TOPIC TO ME. OF COURSE. UM, AS, UH, I'VE PUT A LOT INTO AN ELECTION TO, UH, WIN A PRIMARY AND THEN CURRENTLY RUN AN UNOPPOSED. I, FOR ME PERSONALLY, AND I THINK FOR THE FORK DISTRICT, IT WOULD MAKE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR, TO MAKE A SOFT TRANSITION INTO THE, WE'VE GOT A NEW ACCOUNT ADMINISTRATOR, UH, THAT'LL BE ON BOARD, UH, AND PROVIDING THAT I CAN WIN THE ELECTION IN NOVEMBER. AND MY ODDS ARE VERY GOOD. I MEAN, I, IT'S NOT A GRANITE, I'M NOT CONCEITED TO THINK THAT I'VE ABSOLUTELY IT'S DONE 'CAUSE, YOU KNOW, WRITE-INS HAVE WON BEFORE. BUT PROVIDING THAT I CAN WIN THE ELECTION AND DO SO I'LL, COMING IN JANUARY 1ST, YOU KNOW, COUPLE NEW SEATS, I'LL, NEW COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR I FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR, IT WOULD GIVE ME AN OPPORTUNITY TO ALREADY LEARN HIM AND THEN WORK WITH THE REMAINDER OF THE BOARD, UH, TO FINISH OUT THE REST OF MS. COOK'S TERM. AND THEN I THINK IT WOULD MAKE A SMOOTHER TRANSITION IN JANUARY. 'CAUSE WE'RE GONNA HAVE ONE NEW MEMBER AS, AS, UH, CHAIRMAN BUTLER, WELL WON'T, IT DIDN'T RUN ANYMORE. SO OBVIOUSLY SOMEONE ELSE IS GONNA BE IN THAT SEAT. SO INSTEAD OF GETTING TWO NEW, I'M JUST GOING TO RETIRE. RETIRE. YES. OH, SO RATHER THAN HAVE TWO NEW MEMBERS IN JANUARY TO GET INTEGRATED, OH, IT WOULD ONLY BE ONE. 'CAUSE I WOULD HAVE A FEW MONTHS TO, TO, TO GET TO WORK WITH YOU GUYS AND, AND, AND ACQUAINT IT WITH STAFF, UH, BECAUSE I WAS RUNNING, KNEW I WAS GONNA RUN FOR THE BOARD AND IT LOOKED LIKE THAT, UH, I'D PROBABLY GET THAT POSITION. AND YOU'RE CONCERNED ABOUT THE VACANCY? I HAVE TWO PEOPLE IN MIND NOW. UH, I TOLD 'EM TO BE FIRST OF THE YEAR, SO, YOU KNOW, IF WE DO SOMETHING A LITTLE FASTER, BUT I WILL, WELL, IF IT'S GONNA TAKE APPLICATIONS OR IF YOU'LL ACCEPT ME, WHATEVER YOUR CHOICE IS, I'LL DO WHATEVER PAPERWORK'S NECESSARY. BUT I DO, UM, IN ANTICIPATION OF THAT, I DO HAVE TWO PEOPLE THAT, UH, I, I WOULD LIKE TO NOMINATE FOR THE POSITION, UH, ONE IN PARTICULAR. AND THEN THEY BASICALLY HAD A BACKUP, UH, UM, THE, UH, THE GUY THAT I WAS LOOKING FOR. AND I, I'LL JUST GO AHEAD AND ANNOUNCE IT, UH, THAT, UH, IT'S KIND OF ON THE FENCE, BUT I THINK I GOT HIM TALKED INTO IT AS RYAN OAKS. UH, HE'S ANOTHER CONTRACTOR. UH, I DON'T THINK THAT THESE COMMITTEES NEED FIVE CONTRACTORS ON 'EM, BUT I THINK IT'S REALLY NICE IF ONE'S ON, ON, YOU KNOW, SO YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU GET A, YOU GET A DIVERSE, SO I WAS THE CONTRACTOR PER SE, ON THE PLANNING COMMISSION. SO I WAS TRYING TO PUT ONE BACK. AND THEN, UH, BACKUP CANDIDATE WOULD BE, UH, PAUL BARNHART, WHO, UH, I DID HAVE PUT ON, HE'S A LITTLE MORE RETIRED, BUT HE SAID HE WOULD, HE WOULD TAKE THE POSITION. UM, AND HE'S CURRENTLY ON THE BCA, UH, HE IS ONLY DID ONE MEETING, BUT, UH, STAFF SEEMED TO LIKE THE WAY HE WAS QUALIFIED AND STUFF. SO, YOU KNOW, ONE OF THOSE TWO. AND THEN, UH, I HAD A THIRD GUY REACH OUT. UH, IT WAS A FORMER TOWN PLANNER, [03:10:01] WHICH WAS DARRYL MERCHANT. UH, UH, HE LIVES IN TOWN. UH, HE, HE, HE TOLD ME, UH, HE DIDN'T ACT LIKE HE WAS DYING TO DO IT, BUT HE, HE SAID IF, UH, YOU KNOW, IF THIS POSITION WAS OPEN TO REACH OUT. SO I DO HAVE SOME GOOD, UH, GOOD OPTIONS OR GOOD, UH, GOOD SOLID CANDIDATES, NOT JUST EMERGENCY A FILLS, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE THAT, UH, I LIKED RYAN 'CAUSE HE'S YOUNGER AND I THINK HE'LL, UH, HE'D BE THERE A GOOD WHILE IF, IF WE WANT HIM THERE. AND THEN, UH, BUT IF, IF HE, UH, HE, HE, HE MAY BE IN A POSITION I WAS A FEW YEARS AGO WHEN I DIDN'T RUN. YOU HAD A POINT IN BUSINESS WHERE MAYBE YOUR BUSINESS IS AT A POINT WHERE IT NEEDS A HUNDRED PERCENT TENSION ATTENTION. AND, UH, SO HE, HE WAS, HE WAS INTERESTED, BUT HE SAID, LET ME THINK ABOUT IT A LITTLE BIT. AND I TOLD HIM, I SAID, WE GOT TO THE FIRST OF THE YEAR, BUT I COULD, UH, WE COULD DEFINITELY SPEED THAT SPOT UP. SO I APPRECIATE YOU LETTING ME TALK, UH, 'CAUSE I KNOW IT'S NOT A, YOU KNOW, BY RIGHT THING THAT I GET TO GET TO SPEAK JUST AS A CANDIDATE, BUT, UH, I APPRECIATE YOUR TIME. UH, I'D REALLY, I THINK IT WOULD, I COULD, UH, DO A GOOD JOB REPRESENTING THE FORK. I HATE FOR THE SEAT TO BE OPEN. I DO LIKE, I'D REALLY LIKE FOR ALL THE DISTRICTS. UM, IN OTHER WORDS, YOU WOULDN'T HAVE THE TIE PROBLEM THAT YOU'VE GOT CURRENTLY. UM, SO THERE, THERE'S ALWAYS A POTENTIAL FOR A TIE AND THERE CAN'T BE ONE WITH FIVE. SO THAT, THAT MAY WOULD BE A STUMBLING BLOCK GOING INTO THE LAST FEW MONTHS OF THIS YEAR. UH, ON OTHER TOPICS, I HOPE NOT. UH, IT'S NICE WHEN EVERYTHING GOES UNANIMOUS, BUT I KNOW THAT DOESN'T, UH, THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN AT THESE THINGS THAT EVERYBODY'S OPINION CAN VARY HOW THEY'RE REPRESENTING THE PEOPLE THAT VOTED FOR THEM. SO, BUT, UH, I'D BE GLAD TO DO THE JOB A LITTLE EARLIER, UH, TO, TO MAKE THAT INTEGRATION A LITTLE SMOOTHER. AND, UH, I'LL WHATEVER PAPERWORK. AND THEN AS FAR AS YOU'RE CONCERNED AS, UH, HAVING, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER VACANCY, I'VE, I'VE ALREADY THOUGHT OF THAT BECAUSE OF THE CONCERN IN JANUARY. SO, BUT IF, UH, IF Y'ALL GOT ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME, UH, I'D BE GLAD TO ANSWER 'EM OR ANYTHING THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW. THANK, THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK. SO YOU ALL DO HAVE TIME TO DECIDE WHETHER YOU WANNA WORK THROUGH IT YOURSELVES OR WHETHER, UM, IF YOU COME TO A STALEMATE OR WE GET CLOSE TO THE 45 DAYS, WHETHER WE NEED TO REACH OUT TO THE JUDGE. HOW ABOUT IF YOU GIVE US A LITTLE BIT OF TIME? BECAUSE I THINK RIGHT NOW IT'S, IT'S, UH, YOU KNOW, TWO TO TWO MM-HMM . AND, UH, AND I, I JUST, YOU KNOW, IF, IF, UM, IF MR. HENRY WAS IN A, IN A RACE WITH SOMEBODY ELSE OF, UH, I'D SAY, WELL, OKAY, WE, WE NEED TO SEND THAT OUT TO THE COMMISSION, OR WE NEED TO SEND OUT AND GET, UH, GET PEOPLE, UH, GET APPLICANTS. UH, BUT SINCE HE'S RUNNING UNOPPOSED, AND I'D SAY THAT THERE'S A PROBABLY ABOUT A 98.9% CHANCE THAT HE'S GOING TO WIN OF THE, UH, UH, I, I JUST, I CAN'T SEE THE SPECTER OF US GOING THROUGH THE, THE, THE, UH, PROCESS OF SELECTING SOMEBODY ELSE, HAVING THEM COME IN HERE AND THEN, YOU KNOW, COME NOVEMBER WE WOULD HAVE MR. HENRY COMING IN ALONG WITH THIS INDIVIDUAL. SO WHAT HAVE WE GAINED? AND, UM, SO THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S MY QUESTION. THAT'S, THAT IS MY, MY VIEWPOINT ON THIS. SO, UH, HOW ABOUT IF WE TAKE A LITTLE BIT OF TIME BECAUSE I WOULD LIKE TO TALK TO THE OTHER MEMBERS AND, AND SEE WHERE WE CAN GO FROM HERE. FANTASTIC. LET US KNOW WHEN YOU'RE READY TO MOVE FORWARD. WE'LL, OKAY. NEXT ON THE AGENDA IS ADJOURNMENT. DO I HAVE A MOTION? SECOND. SO MOVED. DO I HAVE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL IN FAVOR? AYE. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.