Minutes 09 11 03
Wilmington New Hanover Transportation Agency MINUTES OF THE WILMINGTON NEW HANOVER TRANSPORTATION AGENCY September 11, 2003 MEMBERS PRESENT Ms. Christine McNamee, Chair Mr. Jeff Bellows,
Vice Chair Mr. Robert Ronne, Secretary Ms. Laura Padgett Ms. Nancy Pritchett Mr. Howard Capps Ms. Maureen McCarthy Mr. John Stukes Ms. Fannie Freeman MEMBERS ABSENT Ms. Barbara Kane
Mr. William Bryden STAFF PRESENT Mr. Albert Eby, General Manager, WTA Ms. Deborah Houston, Secretary, NHTS Mr. Gary Miller, President, CCL Management Mr. Corey Johnson, Assistant General
Manager, WTA Mr. Mark Tinkler, Senior Transportation Planner, City of Wilmington Ms. Lawless Bean, TDM Coordinator, City of Wilmington Mr. Jonathon David Assoc. Transportation Planner,
City of Wilmington Mr. Bob Kingsbury, NHTS Manager, First Transit GUESTS PRESENT Mr. Kemp Burpeau, Deputy County Attorney, New Hanover County Ms. Annette Crumpton, New Hanover County
Department of Aging Mr. Jeff Crouchley, Transportation Planner, NCDOT-PTD Ms. Kris Frasure, Mayor’s Population Needs Committee Mr. Al McKenzie Director, city of Wilmington Human Resources
Dept. Ms. Dolores Williams, Assistant City Attorney, City of Wilmington Ms. Diane Lackey, Community Transportation Planner, NCDOT Mr. Al McKenzie, Human Resources Director, City of Wilmington
Ms. Tracy Lawson, City Recruiter, City of Wilmington Ms. Denise Matroni, Sr. Human Resource Analyst, City of Wilmington CALL TO ORDER Chair McNamee called the meeting to order at 12:05
pm.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES Mr. Ronne made a motion to approve the minutes from the August 14, 2003 meeting. Ms. Padgett seconded, and the motion was approved unanimously. ELECTION OF HUMAN
SERCICES REPRESENTATIVE TO THE BOARD Nominating subcommittee Chair, Howard Capps, brought before the Board the committee recommendations for the human services representative nominations
that had been carried over from last meeting. Under the advice of city and county legal counsel, the committee agreed to an open election by voice vote. For the human services representative,
the committee brought Ms. Kris Frasure and Ms. Maureen McCarthy. Committee Chair Capps nominated Ms. McCarthy. Seconded by Mr. Ronne. Chair McNamee nominated Ms. Frasure. Seconded
by Mr. Bellows. Chair McNamee called for additional nominees. Hearing none, nominees for the position of human services representative were closed by Chair McNamee. Nominees were
asked to give a brief overview of their qualifications. By a show of hands, the Board elected Ms. Maureen McCarthy human services representative to the Board. REPORT FROM THE TRANSIT
DIRECTOR SUBCOMMITTEE Committee Chair Ronne Introduced Mr. Al McKenzie, Director, City of Wilmington Human Resources Dept. Mr. McKenzie explained to the Board the city’s hiring process.
Ms. Lawson reviewed the recruiting process required by the city. Ms. Matroni explained how the qualifications for the position of Transit Director would be established by the committee
and approved by the Board. The duties of the position would also need to be established by the committee or the entire Board. REPORT FROM THE YEAR TWO INTERLOCAL AND LEGISLATIVE SUBCOMMITTEE
Committee Chair Bellows reported that the committee had meet for the first time and had turned over many questions to the City and County legal staff. One issue for the entire Board
to decide would be whether the new Authority would be independent of the city and county, with the various commissions appointing members and providing funding. funding. Another consideration
was if the current interim agreement is a good foundation upon which to base the permanent agreement. Another point of discussion was the extension of agreements with current contractors
so an RFP could be developed and established.
The committee felt that the June 30, 2004 time frame for hiring a management contractor was achievable, but the uncertainty of the new Authority and a long term Interlocal could prove
problematic. REPORT FROM THE WTA GENERAL MANAGER Mr. Eby updated the board on the status of State Maintenance and Assistance (SMAP) funds. Mr. Eby reported that the WTA FY 2004 budget
included funds to reduce headways to thirty minutes on all existing fixed routes. This goal would be feasible under NCDOT’s operating assistance. Mr. Eby notified the board that
with this reduction of headways some areas would be over serviced and staff would be coming to the board with some recommendations for route modifications. The January implementation
date for the headway reduction may be increased to coincide with the release of the five year plan, currently under development. Mr. David reported that the plan was on target to be
completed by December 2003. If this estimate proves true, planning for the thirty minute headways would include consultant recommendations for additional service offerings and routes.
Some discussion was focused on the fact that SMAP funds allocated to the city exceeded those in the current budget. Mr. Eby explained that NCDOT does not release funding estimates
until after the beginning of the fiscal year. This is due to the fact that the funding is set by the NC Legislature and the amounts are not determined until a state budget has been agreed
to. Mr. Eby and Mr. Crouchley explained that although this leads to difficulty in planning, no alternative solution is available. Mr. Eby explained that for fiscal year 2004, the
WTA not take advantage of $526,324.00 in SMAP funds. SMAP funds are required to be matched by the local entity on a 50/50 basis, although WTA staff has been able to offset the 50/50
requirement by leveraging some UNCW contract funds for the Seahawk Shuttle to count toward the local subsidy. The funds are largely formula based and the growth of the area has lead
to a increase increase in SMAP funding by over 1000% since fiscal year 1998. Mr. Bellows suggested the Authority ask the City for an increase in operating assistance in the amount
of $526,000.00 to take full advantage of available funding. Ms. Padgett stated she felt the city budget most likely would not be able to meet such a request. Mr. Eby explained that
any increase in service would have to be in the evening or on Sundays as the current fleet size would not accommodate and expansion during currently established service hours. He explained
that his recommendation would be to study the consultant five year plan report before establishing even a short term approach.
The Board and staff were in agreement that leaving money unclaimed was unfortunate, and measures should be implemented to minimize any unclaimed funds in future budgets, although this
difficult due to the timing in which NCDOT allocates SMAP funds. REPORT FROM THE NHTS PROGRAM MANAGER Ms. Houston spoke to the Board about the annual driver appreciation day to be
held for NHTS drivers on October 7, 2003. Ms. Houston reported that they would be receiving a new cutaway shuttle in the near future. Mr. Kingsbury reported the NHTS operating statistics
for July and August. Mr. Bellows asked that a basic financial report be submitted to the Board by NHTS. REPORT FROM THE TDM COORDINATOR Ms. Bean reviewed the Brunswick Connector
Project for the Boards benefit. Ms. Bean asked that a motion be made to use the WAVE logo and striping on the Connector Project to tie this project in with other area transportation.
Mr. Eby was asked to explain any logistical or liability problems that could arise from this request. His concerns were minimal, but he explained that the use of a logo by a company
for which he had no knowledge of could associate the WTA with a program that was poorly run or mismanaged. Mr. Eby did explain that he was confident in the ability of the contractor,
Two Plus Inc., and the project manager Mr. Joe Melvin. Mr. Eby felt confident that Mr. Melvin, with the assistance of Ms. Bean would provide a competent service, but he felt his concerns
should be made to the Board so they could make an informed decision. Mr. Eby agreed to continue to provide technical support to the project and informed the Board that the WTA would
be committed to assisting all partners in the pilot project in order to hopefully offer successful public transit services to the citizens of northern Brunswick County. Ms. Padgett
made the motion to allow the use of the Wave logo for the project, and Mr. Bellows seconded. The motioned passed unanimously. Ms. Bean also informed the board that she was working
on an Interlocal agreement that would allow the NHTS to buy fuel from the City at wholesale prices. MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION CENTER UPDATE Mr. Tinkler reviewed a meeting that took
place concerning the multimodal center. The WTA request for a voting member on the multimodal center committee was tabled until the next meeting scheduled for Friday October 10, 2003.
TRANSIT MASTER PLAN UPDATE Mr. David offered a brief overview of the public meetings on September 09, 2003 concerning the transit master plan. He felt the participation was excellent
and the feedback would greatly assist the development of the plan. He thanked the Board and all those involved in making the meetings successful. OTHER BUSINESS, SECHEDULING OF NEXT
MEETING Mr. Kingsbury spoke to the need for a call center that would serve as an initial point of information for both the WTA and NHTS. Mr. Eby explained that the WTA was currently
implementing plans for a call center using NCDOT technology funds in the amount of $10,000 for a new phone system. Mr. Kingsbury offered the services of a First Transit call center
specialist to speak to the Board at its October meeting. Ms. McNamee reported that she had conversations with staff concerning the marketing efforts of the Agency. Mr. Eby explained
that since new passengers were the target of the authority, marketing efforts should address this goal. Ms. McNamee suggested that a marketing committee be established to address the
need. Ms. McNamee asked Ms. McCarthy if she would agree to chair the committee. Ms. McCarthy agreed. Volunteers were solicited. Board member Mr. Bryden agreed to serve on the committee.
Ms. Crumpton also agreed to assist with the effort. Mr. Eby, Ms. Houston and MS. Bean agreed to serve as staff representatives to the committee. Hearing no further business, the meeting
adjourned at 1:35pm. The next meeting was scheduled for Thursday October 09, 2003 at 12:00pm in the WTA Board room. Respectfully Submitted, Deborah Houston Program Manager NHTS Albert
Eby General Manager WTA