Minutes 05 11 06
Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority MINUTES OF THE CAPE FEAR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY May 11, 2006 Ms. Christine McNamee, Chair, Presiding MEMBERS PRESENT Ms. Christine
McNamee, Chair Mr. Jeff Bellows, Vice-Chair Ms. Maureen McCarthy Ms. Fannie Freeman Mr. John Stukes Ms. Nancy Pritchett Mr. William Bryden Mr. Andrew Koeppel STAFF PRESENT Mr. Albert
Eby, Director Mr. Arlanda Rouse, Assistant Director Mr. Mike Kincaid, Finance Director Ms. Melissa Watson, Apprentice CONTRACT MANAGEMENT STAFF PRESENT Mr. Corey Johnson, General Manager,
First Transit Mr. Andrew Olsen, Attorney at Law Ms. Hillary Brady, Talk PR GUESTS PRESENT Ms. Lawless Bean, Transportation Demand Management Coordinator, City of Wilmington Mr. Joshua
Mellow, Associate Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Ms. Patricia Melvin, Assistant County Manager, New Hanover County Mr. George Woolfe, Citizen Mr. Ricky Meeks, Citizen
Mr. Demetrius Simpkins, Citizen CALL TO ORDER Chairwoman McNamee called the meeting to order at 12:14 pm APPROVAL OF MINUTES A motion to approve the minutes from the April 13, 2006
regular meeting of the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority was made by Ms. Freeman. The motion was seconded by Mr. Stukes and carried unanimously PUBLIC COMMENT Chairwoman McNamee
opened the public comment period Mr. Ricky Meeks suggested that board consider the idea of a pilot program in which Wave Transit would honor bus passes from other in-state transit
systems
Mr. Meeks then proposed an idea of offering senior citizens free transit service Mr. Demetrius Simpkins stated that he was denied Paratransit service after submitting the required
application He then said that it is difficult for him to board the bus from his neighborhood because of the lack of sidewalks near his home Mr. Simpkins then asked why there was
no bus service going to the area beaches The Chair referred Mr. Simpkins to Mr. Rouse for information concerning the procedure for filing an appeal to the ADA Committee Hearing no
comment, the Chair closed the public comment period NOMINATING COMMITTEE Chairwoman McNamee recognized Committee Chair Ms. McCarthy to present the report Ms. McCarthy stated that
the committee met and developed a slate of officers for the 2006-2007 fiscal year Ms. McCarthy stated that Mr. Bellows agreed to be a candidate for the office of Chairman, Mr. Ronne
agreed to be a candidate for Vice-Chair, and Ms. Freeman has agreed to be a candidate for Secretary Chairwoman McNamee stated that the open elections will be held at the June 08, 2006
meeting of the Authority Open nominations for all officer positions will be available EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Chairwoman McNamee stated that the Executive committee had not met wince
the last Authority meeting. She asked members to please submit their reviews of the Director before the next Board Meeting in order for the Executive Committee to undertake the Director’s
annual review ROUTE COMMITTEE The Chair recognized Committee Chair, Ms. Freeman to present the report Ms. Freeman stated that the committee did not meet the past month, but she has
noticed that all of routes seem to be increasing in ridership Mr. Eby stated that since July 2003 there has been an increase in the number of passengers every month when compared to
the same month of the previous year MARKETING COMMITTEE Chairwoman McNamee recognized Committee Chair Ms. McCarthy to present the report Ms. McCarthy stated that the committee is
at a stand still until a new transfer facility site is identified She stated that the committee plans to develop a six month maintenance budget that will be presented in an upcoming
meeting FINANCE COMMITTEE Chairwoman McNamee recognized Committee Chairman Mr. Bryden to present the report Mr. Bryden stated that he wanted the board to be aware that during last
year’s budget development there was an omission of an annual audit fee which will need to be added to the annual budget Mr. Kincaid stated that the City of Wilmington has requested
that Wave Transit maintain its relationship with Lanier Whaley and Craft for the Annual audit This would allow the City to complete the Wave Transit portion of its annual audit in
a manner that is compliant with the NC General Statutes
It would also minimize costs since the firm has an understanding of the Authority from previous audits Mr. Kincaid stated that the auditor’s estimated fees would be approximately
$15,000 and an additional $7,000 to $8,000 if footnotes to the statement are added He stated that the City of Wilmington has agreed to pay for the footnote charges Chairwoman McNamee
suggested that staff take bids from other audit providers Mr. Kincaid stated that for continuity with the city’s financial results, Lanier Whaley and Craft would be Wave’s best choice,
but audits in future years would be need to be bid to meet procurement procedures Mr. Eby stated that the city may be concerned about a possible delay in their financial reporting,
should the Authority choose to hire another audit firm Mr. Bryden stated that in the future, Wave Transit should entertain offers from other firms, unless the City of Wilmington is
willing to continue to offset a portion of the audit costs He then suggested that the Finance Committee review the Audit Report, and then decide if an Audit Committee should be formed
A contract for Audit services is expected to be brought before the Authority at the June 08, 2006 meeting Mr. Bryden recognized Mr. Kincaid to present the FY 2006-2007 budget changes
Mr. Kincaid stated that he has reached his budgetary limits in many accounting categories and presented a revised budget to cover expenses in these categories He stated that the
board needs to approve the budget changes in order for him to move forward paying monthly expenses He stated that the budget will be discussed in more detail at the upcoming budget
committee meeting Mr. Bryden then made a motion on behalf of the Finance Committee to approval the revised budget No second was required The motion carried unanimously FACILITIES
COMMITTEE Chairwoman McNamee recognized Committee Chair Mr. Bellows to present the report Mr. Bellows stated that the Committee continues to pursue property of interest, and would
share more information as it becomes available STAFF REPORT Chairwoman McNamee recognized Mr. Eby to give the staff report Mr. Eby presented a report from the John Locke Foundation,
the report detailed the efficiencies of transit systems in North Carolina Mr. Eby stated that according to the report, Wave Transit has the lowest cost per passenger of all the transit
systems in North Carolina He stated that some of the report’s findings are really accurate, however other findings were either dated or short-sighted Mr. Bellows asked if any of
the recommendations in report could be of potential value Mr. Eby stated that the recommendation relating to ridership expectations was currently being studied He also stated that
the recommendation to lower costs by running smaller vehicles was impractical because of the higher maintenance costs of light transit vehicles Mr. Eby presented news about upcoming
items Mr. Eby then mentioned a new contract with UNCW, which includes a significant increase in the amount of service for the university and significant amount of revenue for the Authority
Mr. Eby mentioned that the passenger survey is complete and is now being pre-tested He stated that the survey will be administered either in August or September of 2006 SCHEDULING
OF NEXT MEETING Hearing no further business, a motion was made by Mr. Stukes to adjourn The motion was seconded by Ms. McCarthy and carried unanimously The next meeting of the
Authority was scheduled for June 8, 2006 at 12:00 pm in the Wave Transit Conference Room Respectfully Submitted, Albert Eby Director /ar