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Minutes 07 12 07 Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority MINUTES OF THE CAPE FEAR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY July 12, 2007 Mr. Jeff Bellows, Chair, Presiding MEMBERS PRESENT Mr. Jeff Bellows, Chair Mr. Robert Ronne, Vice-Chair Mr. William Bryden Mr. Andrew Koeppel Mr. Howard Loving Ms. Aileen Mair Ms. Christine McNamee Ms. Laura Padgett Ms. Nancy Pritchett Mr. John Stukes STAFF PRESENT Mr. Albert Eby, Director Mr. Arlanda Rouse, Assistant Director Ms. Catherine Cole, Finance Director Mrs. Kathy Williams, Administrative Assistant Mr. Matthew Kunic, Planner CONTRACT MANAGEMENT STAFF PRESENT Mr. Corey Johnson, General Manager, First Transit Mr. Lamont Jackson, Asst. General Manager, First Transit Mr. Armand Scala, Operations Supervisor, First Transit GUESTS PRESENT Mr. Joshuah Mello, Associate Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Mr. Mike Kozlosky, Senior Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Ms. Lawless Bean, Transportation Demand Management Coordinator, City of Wilmington Ms. Pat Melvin, Assistant County Manager, New Hanover County Mr. Pat Gannon, Wilmington Star News Mr. Bill Hart, Soil and Water Conservation Mr. Ricky Meeks, Citizen Mr. Chris Hawkins, Citizen CALL TO ORDER  Chairman Bellows called the meeting to order at 12:15 pm  Mr. Bellows opened the meeting with a moment of silence APPROVAL OF MINUTES  Mr. Loving requested that the minutes from June 14, 2007 be amended to reflect the actual figures from the report given by Ms. Bean regarding the Commuter Challenge  A motion to approve the amended minutes from the June 14, 2007 regular meeting of the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority was made by Ms. Padgett  The motion was seconded by Ms. McNamee and carried unanimously PUBLIC COMMENT  Mr. Meeks expressed an urgent need for service in the northern portions of the county as well as in beach communities  Mr. Hart commended Wave Transit for its environmentally friendly efforts while planning the construction of its new operation and maintenance facilities.  Mr. Hart suggested that Wave apply for the Stewardship Development award after the facility is constructed  The Chairman closed the public comment period EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows stated that the committee will need to organize a performance evaluation for the Mr. Eby  Mr. Bellows stated that input is needed from every board member for that evaluation  Mr. Bellows then asked Mr. Eby to send out his goals for the upcoming year to each board member  Mr. Bellows stated that all input regarding the Director’s performance should be directed to the Chairman  Mr. Bellows requested that all comments be submitted no later than one week after receiving the goals from Mr. Eby  Mr. Bellows then inquired about possibly postponing the Board of Directors meeting during the month of August  He stated that due to previous engagements there may not be enough board members present for a quorum  Mr. Koeppel then suggested having an August meeting for information purposes only  Mr. Bellows then asked for a vote by a show of hands from all members who did not wish to have an August meeting.  He then stated that there will be no Board of Directors meeting in August NOMINATING COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Loving to give the Nominating Committee report  Mr. Loving stated that the committee recommends Mr. Bellows as Chairman, Mr. Bryden as Vice-Chair and Ms. Freeman as Secretary as the 2007-2008 officers  Mr. Loving then stated that the since recommendation came from committee it requires no second  The Chairman called for nominations from the floor  There were no nominations from the floor  Mr. Stukes made a motion to close the nominations  The motion was seconded by Ms. Padgett and carried unanimously  The motion to approve the 2007-2008 Executive Committee officers recommended by the Nominating Committee carried unanimously  Ms. McNamee then commented that Mr. Ronne, the current Vice-Chair, was not selected due to his expiring term in December 2007  She stated that since Mr. Ronne was leaving in December, it was the opinion of the committee that he not continue as Vice Chair because his term ends in the middle of the year  Mr. Bellows then asked the staff to remind the Board to form a new nominating committee in April 2008 ROUTE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Koeppel to give the report for the Route committee  Mr. Koeppel stated that funding has been received for the Columbus Connector for the next 12 months  Mr. Koeppel stated that the committee met to discuss ways of enhancing the Columbus Connector during the upcoming year  He stated that the committee was looking at the possibility of adding additional runs during the day  He stated that the staff will propose that option to the Columbus Connector Steering Committee during their next meeting  Mr. Koeppel stated that the next Route Committee meeting will be on July 31, 2007 at noon in the Wave Transit boardroom FINANCE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Bryden to give the finance committee report  Mr. Bryden stated that the committee did meet, and they reviewed and discussed the marketing budget recommendation made by the Finance Director and the Finance Consultant  Mr. Bryden stated that it was the committee’s recommendation to remain within the current current approved budget until there was a better understanding of income levels  Mr. Bryden said that the Authority was receiving $268,696 less from the City than was requested  He stated that the budget was based on $1.268 million and the Authority was receiving $1 million from the City  Mr. Bryden stated that the Authority was still unsure how much income they would receive from the State of North Carolina  Mr. Bryden then stated that the finance committee does not recommend the $20,000 marketing budget as recommended by staff, but rather leave the marketing budget unchanged at $70,000 until there was a better understanding of income levels  Ms. McNamee inquired as to the origin of funding for the Brunswick Connector  Ms. Padgett stated that she was anticipating participation in the funding for the Connector from the municipalities in the portion of Brunswick County in which there are bus stops  Ms. Padgett then stated that Brunswick County has agreed to a portion of funding and there was an inquiry into a possible grant from Wal-Mart if a bus would stop at their location  Ms. Padgett then stated that she thinks most of the funding was available, and if necessary that the City could come up with $3000 or $4,000  She stated that it appears that there is enough visible support for the route, and that the committee was trying to create a percentage of cost that each entity would be responsible for paying based upon mileage  Mr. Eby said that the Brunswick Connector was funded within the approved FY 2007-2008 approved budget with 50% of the funding from Federal and State sources, 25% from the City of Wilmington and the goal was 25% from other sources in order to operate the entire 2007-2008 fiscal year  Mr. Eby then stated that he was asked by Brunswick County Commissioner Sue to increase marketing efforts in Brunswick County in order to increase ridership on the Connector MARKETING COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Ronne to give the Marketing Committee report  Mr. Ronne recognized the staff for for their marketing efforts and their ability to remain within the $10,000 marketing budget from April until June 2007  Mr. Ronne recognized Mr. Kunic to present an overview of the marketing projects accomplished by staff from April until June 2007  Mr. Kunic presented the board with a booklet of the marketing accomplishments which included press releases, advertisements, and radio announcements.  Mr. Kunic then stated that the City granted the Authority the ability to place trolley medallions on the sidewalks along the downtown trolley route  Mr. Ronne stated that the current marketing budget was $70,000 with some of the funding being earmarked for other projects and commitments  Mr. Ronne then stated that after all the commitments are subtracted from the $70,000 figure, there should be approximately $20,000 to $30,000 to spend with a professional marketing firm  Mr. Ronne stated that the committee was planning to hire a marketing firm which would allow the Authority to purchase marketing services “a la carte” or on an as needed basis  Mr. Loving stated that he was unable to meet with Debbie Elliot of Talk PR last month because he was unsure of which budgetary figure to use for marketing  Mr. Loving then stated that he wanted to ensure that the marketing committee was planning to use the figure of $70,000 for marketing  Mr. Bellows stated that he was in only favor of a marketing contract which would be flexible, based upon billable hours, no monthly retainer and one in which the Authority had the ability to increase or decrease the contract based upon available funds  Mr. Loving stated that an opt out clause would be included in the contract  Mr. Loving then stated that he was unable to say if a retainer would be included in the contract, because he was unsure as to what the marketing company would accept  Mr. Bellows stated that he was of the opinion that if a marketing company does not want to be flexible with a contract, then Wave Transit should find other marketing companies in which to do business  Ms. McNamee suggested that the Authority construct a progress report for both the City and County to show appreciation for their funding increases  Ms. Pritchett recommended that the Authority request to be added to the County Commissioners’ Commissioners’ agenda for 15 minutes in order to present a progress report  She stated that the Authority should ask to be on the agenda after the September commissioners meeting due to renovation of Old Courthouse building  Mr. Bellows asked if the marketing committee could send out a draft of the marketing contract to all of the board members once it is available for comments or changes  Mr. Bellows stated that the voting for the marketing contract could be arranged either by e-mail or telephone because there is no board of directors meeting during the month of August  Ms. McNamee asked if an email or phone vote would be possible because of the contentiousness of the previous marketing discussions  Mr. Stukes asked if it were possible to switch the August board meeting date to the third Thursday in August rather than canceling the meeting  Mr. Bellows stated that he was waiting until a marketing contract had been developed before scheduling an August meeting  Mr. Ronne stated that Mr. Loving, Ms. Bean and Mr. Kunic were planning to meet with Talk PR to develop a marketing contract  Mr. Stukes asked if Wave could inquire about advertising in the Wilmington Journal  The board agreed to allow staff to investigate the possibility of advertising in the Wilmington Journal FACILITIES COMMITTEE  Chairman Bellows recognized Ms. McNamee to present the facilities report  Ms. McNamee stated the purchase of the property on Division Drive was in progress  Ms. McNamee asked the staff to report on the progress of the temporary transfer facility  Mr. Eby stated that he was working with engineers regarding the Cando Drive extension and design  Mr. Kunic stated that structuring of the temporary transfer facility was on schedule and the target date remains January 2008.  Ms. McNamee inquired about the prospects for funding the construction of the transfer facility  Mr. Eby stated that the first prospect would be the discretionary FTA $445 million in which the Authority had applied for a portion of funding  Mr. Eby stated that after the discretionary grants were appropriated, the Authority could begin to look for alternative sources of funding if necessary  Mr. Bellows inquired about the timeline for the FTA grant review  Mr. Eby stated that FTA had not developed a plan to review the discretionary requests at this time  Mr. Koeppel asked if it would be premature to consider the architectural design plans for the facility  Mr. Eby stated that the goal was to complete the Cando Drive extension by using the Moving Ahead funding until Corning reimburses the Authority for the project  Mr. Eby then stated that after the completion of Cando Drive Drive and if the Authority has the available funding that the Authority would enter into design STAFF REPORT  Chairman Bellows recognized Mr. Eby to present the staff report  Mr. Eby presented a purchase order in the amount of $213,501 to National Bus Sales to purchase three light transit vehicles (LTV)  Mr. Eby stated the vehicles would be used mainly within the unincorporated areas of New Hanover County  Mr. Koeppel made a motion to accept the purchase order in the amount of $213,501 to purchase three light transit vehicles  Ms. McNamee seconded the motion and carried unanimously  Mr. Eby presented a purchase order in the amount of $77,472 to Digital Recorders in order to complete Phase II of the AVL system project  Mr. Koeppel made a motion to approve the purchase order in the amount of $77,472 to Digital Recorders for Phase II of the AVL system project  Mr. Bryden seconded the motion and carried unanimously  Mr. Eby stated that trolley survey cards were placed on the trolley to evaluate the service of the trolley, who was riding, and where there was a demand for service  He stated that he was of the opinion that individual service does not meet the mission statement of the downtown trolley nor does it serve the entire central business district  Ms. McNamee recommended that staff meet with the human resources department of PPD in order to see if the Authority could survey PPD employees for their input regarding the trolley  Mr. Kozlosky recommended that the Authority consider the entire central business district when conducting surveys regarding the trolley route  Mr. Eby stated that it may be possible to implement bus service to Wrightsville Beach when the routes are restructured  Mr. Eby stated that he would send a letter to Mr. Robert Simpson, Wrightsville Beach Town Manager, to ask if the town would formally respond to a request by Wave Transit to provide service to Wrightsville Beach  Mr. Bellows asked if the operational costs would increase for the additional Wrightsville Beach service  Mr. Eby stated that as long as the route remained on thirty minute headways the operational cost would remain the same  Mr. Kozlosky inquired about possible delays caused by the drawbridge  Mr. Eby stated that the Authority does not have any experience with the drawbridge, but the route committee would construct a route schedule to minimize delays caused by the openings  Mr. Eby presented a letter from the Workforce Development Commission regarding the funding for the Columbus Connector which provided one half of the subsidy funding for the Columbus Connector and that the current subsidy would the last for the Columbus Connector project  Mr. Eby stated that the Authority provides the other half of the funding for the Columbus Connector through the Job Access Reverse Commute (JACR) grant  Mr. Eby stated that in order to continue the service, the route committee would need to investigate the effectiveness of the route and other sources of funding  Mr. Eby recognized Mr. Rouse who stated that the Authority has recently partnered with a company named Wired Commute to provide local employees with transit passes  Mr. Rouse Rouse stated that Wired Commute is a private third party agency that administers a pretax transit program to employers around the country  Mr. Rouse stated that Harris Teeter has partnered with Wired Commute to provide discount passes to employees in Wilmington and the cost of the passes for the employees would be deducted directly from their payroll checks  Mr. Rouse stated that Wired Commute will purchase bus passes at full fare, as well as supply all the mailing materials for the passes  Mr. Eby recognized Mr. Kunic to discuss Alternative Transportation Day on July 21, 2007  Mr. Kunic stated that Wave Transit and Cape Fear Breeze have partnered to host Alternative Transportation Day  Mr. Kunic stated that during Alternative Transportation Day all Wave Transit buses will be fare free  Mr. Kunic said there will be shuttles from Independence Mall to Legion Stadium and individuals who ride the bus or get to the game using alternative transportation will receive a free admission  Mr. Kunic stated that Independence Mall planned to hand out gift bags  He then stated Wave Transit and Cape Fear Breeze would host an informational table, have prize giveaways and there would be an appearance by Seamore  Mr. Bryden made a motion to allow Wave Transit bus service to be fare free on Saturday July 21, 2007  Mr. Ronne seconded the motion and carried unanimously OTHER REPORTS  Ms. Bean stated that she was working with Mr. Kunic on Alternative Transportation Day  Mr. Kozlosky stated that the MPO has completed contractor selection for the site evaluation study for three locations which could serve as satellite transfer facilities  Mr. Kozlosky stated that the MPO had received four proposals from qualified engineering firms in order to complete the site evaluations  He stated that the MPO would look at a preferred site as well as an alternative site which would allow for the installation of shelters as well as the easy transfer of riders  Mr. Koeppel asked when the evaluations would be complete  Mr. Kozlosky stated that the evaluations should be completed by January 2008 SCHEDULING OF NEXT MEETING  Hearing no further business, a motion to adjourn was made by Mr. Stukes and seconded by Mr. Ronne. The motion carried unanimously.  The next meeting of the Authority is scheduled for September 13, 2007 at 12:00 pm in the Castle Street Board Room Respectfully Submitted, Albert Eby Director /kw