Minutes 12 13 07
Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority MINUTES OF THE CAPE FEAR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY December 13, 2007 Mr. Jeff Bellows, Chairman, Presiding MEMBERS PRESENT Mr. Jeff Bellows,
Chair Mr. William Bryden, Vice-Chair Ms. Fannie Freeman, Secretary Mr. Don Betz Mr. Andrew Koeppel Ms. Christine McNamee Ms. Laura Padgett Ms. Nancy Pritchett Mr. Robert Ronne Mr. John
Stukes STAFF PRESENT Mr. Albert Eby, Director Mr. Arlanda Rouse, Assistant Director Mrs. Kathy Williams, Administrative Assistant Mr. Matthew Kunic, Planner CONTRACT MANAGEMENT STAFF
PRESENT Mr. Lamont Jackson, General Manager, First Transit Ms. Valerie McElhose, Paratransit Supervisor, First Transit Mr. Bill Champ, Interim Maintenance Supervisor, First Transit Mr.
Bobby Hunter, Operations Supervisor, First Transit Mr. Andrew Olson, Authority Legal Counsel GUESTS PRESENT Mr. Mike Kozlosky, Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Mr. Joshuah
Mello, Associate Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Ms. Lawless Bean, Transportation Demand Management Coordinator, City of Wilmington Mr. H. Charles Craft, CPA, Partner,
Lanier, Whaley, Craft & Co. CPA’s Mr. Jim Quinn, Wilmington City Council Mr. Bill Caster, New Hanover County Board of Commissioners Ms. Annette Crumpton, Department of Aging Ms. Valerie
Smith, Department of Aging Ms. Beth Wooten, Department of Aging Mr. Ricky Meeks, Citizen Mr. Marvin Grainger, Citizen ELECTED OFFICIALS APPRECIATION LUNCHEON Mr. Eby welcomed elected
officials to the luncheon and introduced Authority staff He thanked the elected officials for appointing a dedicated group of volunteers who are committed to improving public transportation
in the region Mr. Bellows introduced Authority members
Mr. Bellows presented a plaque to outgoing member Mr. Ronne and thanked him for his service Following lunch, Mr. Bellows presented an overview of the Wave Transit Annual Report CALL
TO ORDER Chairman Bellows called the meeting to order at 1:00 pm Mr. Bellows opened the meeting with a moment of silence APPROVAL OF MINUTES A motion to approve the minutes from
the November 8, 2007 regular meeting of the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority was made by Mr. Betz The motion was seconded by Mr. Bryden and carried unanimously PUBLIC COMMENT
Mr. Bellows opened the public comment period Mr. Meeks thanked the Authority for its accomplishments throughout the year Hearing no further public comment, the Chairman closed
the public comment period AUDIT REPORT Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Charles Craft of Lanier, Whaley and Craft, to present the fiscal year 2007 audit report Mr. Craft stated that his
company issued an unqualified opinion on the financial statements of the Authority He stated that the unqualified opinion was the highest opinion that he, as the independent auditor,
can render Mr. Craft said that the report also included a single audit report in regards to the federal and state financial awards received by the Authority Mr. Craft stated that
the audit identified an internal control deficiency by the Authority of not being able to fully segregate all incompatible accounting functions due to the limited size of the Authority
staff He stated that the deficiency was common among many small governmental units located throughout the state Mr. Craft stated that the only way to eliminate the deficiency would
be to increase staff size, which could be beyond the budgetary constraints of the Authority Mr. Craft stated that the Authority did an admirable job in assisting Lanier, Whaley, Craft
& Co. with their audit Mr. Eby thanked Mr. Craft and his staff for their assistance throughout the year EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Mr. Bellows stated the committee had no report Mr. Bellows
then stated that the position of Committee Chairman is open on the Marketing Committee ROUTE COMMITTEE Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Koeppel to give the report for the Route Committee
Mr. Koeppel stated that there were three public meetings held in the month of November which were used to gain input from the public about the restructured routes Mr. Koeppel presented
details regarding the new routes He presented the restructured bus routes for approval on behalf of the Route Committee Ms. Pritchett inquired about bus stops near the Senior Center
Mr. Koeppel stated that the bus stop near the Senior Center was addressed and that the route would continue to utilize the current stop at the corner of Shipyard Blvd and College Road
The motion to accept the restructured routes carried unanimously Mr. Bellows thanked the committee for their hard work and dedication to such a monumental task MARKETING COMMITTEE
Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Ronne to give the report for the Marketing Committee Mr. Ronne stated that the committee did not meet Mr. Kunic stated that the Authority will have an
upcoming billboard on the corner of Oleander Dr. and 42nd St in the month of December, as well as new public service announcements, and transit maps Mr. Bellows thanked Mr. Ronne for
his commitment to the marketing committee FINANCE COMMITTEE Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Bryden to give the finance report Mr. Bryden presented the Authority’s budget through the month
of October Mr. Bryden stated that by the end of the year the Authority must have a balanced budget Mr. Bryden stated that the current budget estimates operating expenses approximately
$80,000 below budget Mr. Bryden then stated that the proposed revenues for 2008 were approximately $280,000 below budgeted amounts Mr. Bryden stated that the Authority was facing
a $200,000 shortfall based on current projections This amount would result in the budget being about 3% over the adopted budget Mr. Bryden then asked the members to look over the
budget and see if there were any expenses they could identify which could be cut Mr. Bryden asked Mr. Eby to address the capital expenditures Mr. Eby stated that there were several
capital procurements such as cutaway vehicles, trolleys, and buses which were in process Mr. Eby stated that some of the capital projects were adopted as annual operating expenditures
rather than capital project expenditures in previous years He then asked for adoption of a capital budget amendment to address these expenditures Mr. Betz made a motion to approve
the adoption of the capital budget amendment Ms. Freeman seconded and carried unanimously Mr. Koeppel inquired about raising fares Mr. Eby stated that the process to raise fares
would have to be compliant with the Wave Transit Public Comment Policy and take approximately four months to implement He stated that currently only one system in the state has a higher
fare than Wave Transit Mr. Betz inquired about the possibility of developing a fund balance Mr. Eby stated that most of the Authority’s funds are based upon grants which reimburse
the Authority based upon actual expenses Mr. Eby stated that the Authority could develop a small fund balance through programs such as advertising Ms. Pritchett suggested that the
Wave staff meet with NHC Finance Director Ms. Avril Pinder to discuss budgetary strategies FACILITIES COMMITTEE Chairman Bellows recognized Ms. McNamee to present the facilities committee
report
Ms. McNamee presented a request to allow staff to issue a RFQ for engineering services for the extension of Cando Drive Mr. Eby stated that if approved, he would strive to have a
contract for approval at the January 10, 2008 meeting The motion carried unanimously Ms. McNamee stated that Rep. McIntyre’s office had requested a technical correction for the earmark
of $836,000 from the multimodal center project to the transfer and administration facility project The correction was expected to be completed soon Mr. Eby recognized NCDOT Board
Member Mr. Wilson and MPO Sr. Planner Mr. Mike Kozlosky for their assistance in getting the technical correction made Mr. Eby presented an agreement between NCDOT, the City of Wilmington
and the Authority for up to ten million dollars for land acquisition for the multimodal transportation center Ms. Padgett made a motion to accept the agreement with NCDOT, the City
of Wilmington and the Authority Mr. Betz seconded the motion which carried unanimously MANAGEMENT CONTRACTOR SELECTION COMMITTEE REPORT Chairman Bellows recognized Ms. McNamee to
present the Management Contractor Selection Committee report Ms. McNamee stated that the RFP had been issued and the committee will have a pre-bid meeting with the parities interested
in biding on the new contract on December 17, 2007 in the Castle Street conference room The meeting has been advertised as a public meeting and all Authority members were welcomed
and encouraged to attend PUBLIC COMMENT (2) Mr. Bellows recognized a member of the public who arrived after the public comment period was closed Mr. Grainger spoke about getting
assistance with transportation for Veterans Ms. Pritchett suggested that Mr. Grainger contact Alex Pender at the County’s Veterans Association for assistance Hearing no further public
comment, the Chairman closed the public comment period STAFF REPORT Chairman Bellows recognized Mr. Eby to give the Staff report Mr. Eby presented the FY 2008 State Maintenance and
Assistance Program (SMAP) application in the amount of $873,600 for approval Ms. Padgett made a motion to accept the FY 2008 SMAP application Ms. Freeman seconded and the motion
carried unanimously Mr. Eby presented a purchase order to The Braun Corporation for five (5) vans in the amount of $178,378.36 He stated that the vans would be used for rural Paratransit
service routes Ms. Padgett made a motion to approve the purchase order for five (5) Paratransit vehicles in the amount of $178,378.36 to Braun Corporation Mr. Betz seconded and carried
unanimously Mr. Eby presented a purchase order to the Braun Corporation for one (1) Paratransit vehicle in the amount of $35,783.80 He stated that the vehicle will be purchased using
FTA §5307 funding
Mr. Bryden made a motion to give approval to purchase one (1) Paratransit vehicle in the amount of $35,783.80 Mr. Padgett seconded and the motion carried unanimously Mr. Eby presented
an purchase order to Dillion Supply Company for the of purchase bus stop poles and hardware in the amount of $23,685.75 Ms. Freeman made a motion to approve the purchase order to Dillion
Supply for bus stop poles and hardware in the amount of $23,685.75 Ms. Padgett seconded and the motion carried unanimously Mr. Eby presented a purchase order to Tolar Mfg for five
(5) bus shelters in the amount of $24,850.00 Ms. Padgett made a motion to approve the purchase order to buy five (5) bus shelters in the amount of $24,850.00 Mr. Bryden seconded
and the motion carried unanimously Mr. Eby recognized Mr. Jackson to introduce new contract employees Mr. Jackson briefly Bobby Hunter and Valerie McElhose OTHER BUSINESS Ms. Pritchett
stated that Mr. Bryden was named UNCW’s Volunteer of the Year SCHEDULING OF NEXT MEETING Hearing no further business, Mr. Stukes made a motion to adjourn the meeting The motion was
seconded by Mr. Ronne and carried unanimously The next meeting of the Authority is scheduled for January 10, 2008 at 12:00 pm in the Wave Transit Conference Room Respectfully Submitted,
Albert Eby Director /kw