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1959-09-21 Regular Meeting4 r?? Wilmington, N. C. September 21,1959 ASSEMBLY - The regular semimonthly meeting of the New Hanover County Board of Commission- ers was held in their Room in the Court House today at 9:00 o'clock A. M. PRESENT: Chairman J. E. Holton, Jr., Commissioners Peter H. Braak, L. E. Broadhurst, J.'M. Hall, Jr. and Berry A. Williams, and County Auditor T. D. Love. County Attorney John Brigiit Hill was not present for the meeting since he was away on vacation. INVOCATION - The Chairman cailed the meeting to order and asked Reverend John R. MacKinnon, Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, to open the meeting with a prayer. APPROVAL OF THL MINUTES - Upon motion of Mr. Hall, seconded by Mr. Braak, the minutes of the meeting of September 8th were unanimously approved as written. COURT HOUSE REMODELING Pursuant to instructions on August 17th, Architect Donald H. Hines presented two proposed Schemes for closing off the area between the law library and the Grand Jury Room on the second floor as office space for Superior Court Judge-Rudolph I. Mintz. Scheme "A" Scheme Office on 2nd Floor only Office on 2nd Floor 8 Mezzanine 1- Partition to exist. cig. & door, paint $550 1- Partition & 2 doors, paint $720 2- Asphalt tile fioor cover $170 2- Asphalt tile floor cover 260 3- Heating $200 3- Heating 300 4- Electrical 150 4- Electrical 260 5- Window Air conditioner 270 5- Window Air conditioners (2) 540 6- Suspended Acoust. clg. . 180 6- Floor & Clg. Const. $1,520 a. wood constr. 675 b. steel & concrete constr1,100 , a. $2.755 b. $3,180 After discussing the merits and demerits of each of the proposals, Mr. Broadhurst offered , a motion that Item 1 in Scheme "A" only be complet¢d at this time. It received no second and the Chairman ruled it dead. Mr. Williams offered a motion that the Architect be authorized to proceed with construction as outlined in Scheme "B" using wood instead of steel and concrete construction and eliminating the asphalt tile floor covering included for the first floor. It was seconded by Mr. Hall and when the vote was taken, Mr. Broad- hurst voted against it however, the Chairman ruled the motion approved by a ma,jority vote of the Board. ? ADVERTISING - COURT HOUSE REMODELING Mr. Williams then moved that the Architect be authorized and instructed to ad- ? vertise and receive. bids to be considered at the next regular semimonthly meeting to be e./40;'"? held on October sth at which time the contract would be awarded. This motion was seconded by Mr. Braak and when the votes were cast, Mr. BroBdhurst voted in the negative, howcver, the Chairman ruled the motion adopted: ELECTRICAL RENiODELING - COURT HOUSE Following approval of Air conditioning for the Recorders Court Room, the Commiss- ioners Room and the Sheriff's Offices, the Execvtive Secretary was informed by reliable air condit3oning engineers that the electrical service panel of 600 amps. was definitely inadequate tio furnish the necessary power for the proposed units. He immediately contact- ed the Carolina Power 8 Light Company and the office of the City Electrical Inspector and was advised to have an electrical contractor inspect the present instailation and make re- commendations for their consideration and approval. A survey was made by the Mason Elec- tric Company which confirms the air conditioning engineer's contention and he recommends the installation of the following: "Install two (2) additional service conduit feeders similar to existing feeders parallelling all feeders, Install a new main distribution switch with 1200 amp. buss; The distribution switch will consist of one 600 amp. three phase fused switch for existing lights and power, two (2) 400 amp. three phase fused switches for 30 ton and 40 ton air conditioning units; Instali one 400 amp. single phase fused switch for all window units, Install one 200 amp. single phase switch for third floor new building circuits, Install one 200 amp. 3 phase switch to be left for future use, Install a new panel for window units which will have 20 double pole circuit breakers with 400 amp. copper buss;. We recommend removing present main switch and sub main and proper cr.edit be given by contractor; We recommend main distribution panel to be similar to Westinghouse FDP series or Square D NIHP series. We.find present load to be approximately 700 amp. adding the proposed 80 tons of air conditioning plus 25% for future needs we recommend a 1200 amp. capacity main service and main switch gear. The cost of these changes will cost approximaLely 'h?o Thousand Five Hundred Dollars to Three Thousand Dollars." After ca.reful discussion, Mr. 4Jilliams offered a motion that the Executive Secretary be instructed to invite Mr. Von Oesen to be present with his plans at the next regular meet- ing. The motion'was seconded by Mr. Hall and unanimously approved, ROAD PETITION Marx Neuwirth presented a Petition for the residents of I-lawthorne Road from the City limit line to its terminal requesting highway assistance. Upon motion of Mr. Williams, seconded by Mr. Broadhurst, the Board unanimously approved it and instructed the Executive Seeretary to forward it to the State Highway Commission for their consideration. -A ,498 . Minutes of the Neeting September 21, 1959 Continued ? bet?°? DRAINAGE PROBLEM - Pursuant to deferment of action at the last meeting on the complaint of 0. E. Eldridge about a drainage ditch under Cape Fear Boulevard and the Carolina Beach Boulev- ard intersection; Messrs. Braak and Broadhurst both had inspected the problem and agreed with the recommendations made by the Executive Secretary previously, however they thought the approach ditch on the south side of Cape Fear Boulevard and the ditch carrying the water from the east side of Carolina Beach Boulevard toward Greenfieid Lake should be cleaned out by the County drainage crew. It was the unanimous opinion that any repairs made to the pipe put in by the property owners should be maintained by them. f ? CAROLINA BEACH DRAINAGE - The Executive Secretary reminded the Board that Carolina Beach authorities had requested some drainage assistance at their February 9th meeting and that he had dis- ------ r ?2c?'e covered the major trouble was a rock ledge in the main drainage canal commonly known as Henniker ditch leading to the Cape Fear River and that it was on property owned by the Federal government. Since that time, the Federal government denied any responsibility for correcting the trouble as it was present when they acquired the property bnt they are willing for the work to be done 'on their property. A discussion of the matter with the Town of Carolina Beach Manager revealed that the Town of Carolina Beach would supply the dynamite in sufficient quantities to lower the ditch in the buffer zone area provided the County use their dragline and ditching forces to remove the obstruction in the ditch and thus remove the bone of contention that has existed for many years. The completion of this work should also give relief to Kure Beach, Wilmington Beach in addition to the Caro- lina Beach benefits. By common consenL the Board agreed to delay action on this matter until the next, regular semimonthly meeting on October sth and instructed the Executive Secretary to put this subject on the Agenda. VOTING MACHINES - Mr. Henry C. Bost, Chairman of the New Hanover County Board of Elections was recogni2ed by the Chairman and explained that much interest was being shown over the state in the matter of voting machines for expediting elections and he thought it would be a good thing for New Hanover County to consider the pnrchase of enough equipment to insure a fair trial and appraisal of their worth at one or more of the more d¢nsely populated precincts. He said that the 33 voting precincts could be reduced to not more than 22 without substantially affecting the distance that the voters had to travel, and too, he could reduce the maximum personei used at the precincts from 5 to a minimum of 3 which is required by Statute. Another advantage would be the cost which would be for only one day whereas in some instances in the present system, two legal days have frequently been,irequired, and on occasions three days. He estimated that New Hanover County would require 45 or 50 machines at a cost of $1823.00 each approximating $90,000.00 which could be amortized over a period of ten years'and thus assure the County of a more accur- ate and progressive convenience for the voters at the polling places. He offered' to fur-' nish, without cost, one or two machines at the next election on a trial basis in order , for the Commissioners to appraise the value to the public. f ARMORY B01 LER REPA I RS - Pursuant to instructions at the meeting on August 17th on the repairs to the boiler at 814 Market Street, the Executive Secretary informed the Board that he had dis- covered, in his investigation of this problein, that there was no insurance being carried on this equipment at the present tim¢ and in order to report the full facts he had re- ? quested the State Boiler Inspector to check the safety features and he reported thatan expansion washer, a check valve, a pressure valve and a safety valve should be installed. The estimated cost of these repairs would approximate $150.00. Mr. Williams offered a ? motion that authorization be given for sufficient repairs to make the boiler safe for use and that $75.00 be appropriated from the Emergency Fund to County Aid - Cape Fear Armory to cover the County's cost of one-half of the repairs. It was seconded by Mr. Braak and unanimously approved. BUDGET TRANSFER - The Executive Secretary informed the Board that recent repairs made in the Jail kit h d d h th ti d t f B i ti 0 0 d h en a c use up e eR re u ge appropr on o $4 a an t e Jailor is requesting 0.0 a transfer of $50.00 Lroin his Bedding and Linen Account to the Building Repairs Account in order t,.o comlilete his program. Mr. Broadhurst offered a motion that this transfer be approved. It wa5 secohdecl by Mr. Braak and unanimously adopted, SIM{ JAIL - .? The Executive Secretary informed the Board that the old, leaky, three compart- S?- ment sink recently removed from the Jail kitchen had only a junk value amounting to $5.00 but because one of the employees, J. W. Guthrie, wanted it he thought the Commissioners should be consulted before le'tting him have it. By common consent of the Board, they agreed to this arrangement. PETITION FOR RELIEF - The Superintendent of Public Welfare presented a Petition for entering Mrs. ? Evaline G. Burns to the County Hom¢ for care as she is suffering from senile arterio- ?, sclerosis and is bedridden. She receives OASI of $67.00 per month. Upon.motion of Mr. Broadhurst, seconded by Mr. Braak, the Board unanimously approved admitting her to the County Home providing she pays $40.00 per month. REUERTER NOTICE - The Chairman informed the Board that he had noticed some activity by Federal employees with reference to some real estate which was donated by the War Assets Adminis- Lration to the New Hanover County Board of Education. The transferring instrument includ- ed a clause allowing the title to be rec•laimed in event the property was not actively used for Educational purposes over a ten year period. He stated that he had requested an investigation by the Executive Secretary who reported that he had contacted Mr. C. D. Hogue Jr., Attorney, Mr. John O. Marshall, Business Manager, Mr. H. M. Roland, Super- intendent of Schools for the Consolidated Board of Edueation which revealed that a Noticc of a Reverter had been filed by a Federai Agency and although no furiher activity was in evidence, it was the opinion of the Board of Education that in event it appeared that they might not be successful in holdirig the property they would work with the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners 100% in aiding them to gain title to it. Th¢y will ke4P the Board informed of future developments. Mr. Williams offered a motion that the Airport Committee be authori2ed to take whatever steps are necessary to obtain possession of the 61 F'i4 J ('? . . .. . . . ." ? Minutes of the Meeting September 21, 1959 k REVERTER NOTICE - (Continued) ? property should it_appear that the Board of Education might be forced to re- linquish its possession. This motion was seconded by Messrs. Broadhurs£ and Braak and unanimously adopted by the Board. ? FREEMAN BEACH GROINS - The Board was informed by the Executive Secretary that repair work had been p? done at Freeman Beach at the Northern end of Carolina Beach and that an investigation re- vealed rapid erosion was taking place and that repleni.shment of the b¢rm and dunes would - be a waste of money unlesstwo groins were constructed Lo break the force of tfie tide along that strand. The Chairman remarked that the Freeman Beach pro,ject was earmark- ed over a year ago and he thought immediate action should be taken as the funds were suf- ficiently increased at Budget time to build at least one of the groins at the present time and requested the presence of the Engineer, Mr. Henry Von Oesen who confirmed the above report and suggested two groins approximately 750 feet apart. A discussion devel- oped the suggestion that the Engineer immediately negotiate with the low bidder on the groin work. The lowest bid was $7,755.00. The County has earmarked $10,000 in the Bud- get for this purpose, therefore it was felt that the Town of Carolina Beach might be will- ing to supplement the balance of $2,245.00 and complete the construction of another jetty at the Town and County line. Mr. Hali offered a motion that Mr. Von Oesen be authoriz- ed to proceed at once with the groin work at Freeman Beach so far as the available funds will permit. It was seconded by Mr. Williams and unanimously adopted. PERIODIC AUDIT REPORTS Mr. Williams Auditor to furnish the which collect and spend furnish such reports on unanimously approved by HIGHWAY COMMISSIONER remarked that several years ago it :ounty Commissioners with quarterly funds and he offered a motion that a quarterly basis. This.motion w? the Board. was customary for the County reports on the departments the Auditor be requested to is seconded by Mr. Braak and The Chairman informed the Board that Governor Hodges had appointed Mr. Ralph ?v-e--? T. Norris of New Bern as a State Highway Commissimer•asa replacement for the late 'Mr. E.L. White and by common consent, the Board instructed the Execuiive Secretary to write ? him congratulating him on his appointment to this important post, assuring him of our cooperation and inviting him to visit with us whenever he was in this end of the area. REPORTS - The following reports were reviewed and ordered ,.f.Y.led for information. I 1- State Commission for t-he Blind notice regarding Free Privilege Licenses for the Bl ind G5 105-244 ---"0" 2- Wilmington Public Library Report for August, 1959 3- New Hanover County Agent's Report " " " 4- Notation from State Highway Commission approving request for $3,375 allo - cation for School Bus Driveways in New Hanover County. ? 5- Notice of request for Beer License Permit from William Louis Wells trading a?- as Ram's Drive In, 3512 South Front St., City -I- 6- Report of New Hanover County Airport disbursements for August 1959 income for August, 1959 -'' °"?a '? 7- North Carolina Law Library Check List from The Michie Company of Charlot te- , 'sville, Virginia. 8- Notice from NACO regarding recent Nlajor Legislation Effecting Counties. 9- Notice from NACO 'r.egarding recent S:."2026,_AdviS6ry CommiSsion on Inter- governmental Relations. AD.]OURNMENT - Upon motion of Mr. Hall, seconded by Mr. Sroadhurst, voted adjournment. the Board unanimously i W. G. Houck, Executive Secretary - Wilmington, N. C. Octbber 5, 1959 ASSEMBLY The regular semimonthly meeting of the New Hanover County Board of Commission- ers was held this day at 9:00 A. M. in the Commissioners' Room of the Court House. PRESENT: Chairman J. E. Nolton, Jr., Cominissioners Peter H. Braak, L. E. Broadhurst, J. M. Hall, Jr, and Berry A. idilliams; County Attorney John Bright Hill and County Auditor T.D. Love. INVOCATION The Chairman called the meeting to order and asked Reverend Horace H. Hilton, Pastor of the Winter Park Presbyterian Church; Lo invoke the Divine Presence through prayer. APPROUAL OF THE MINUTES - Upon motion of Nr. Hall, seconded by Mr. Broadhurst, the minutes of the prev- ious meeting were unanimously approved. ? PRELIMINARY TAX SETTLEMENT Tax Coilector Sam W. Johnson presented his Preliminary 1958 Tax Settlement ` showing that he had been charged with a totai of $1,690,1(}1.49 and that he had actually collected and deposited in the Wachovia Bank snd Trust Company $1,188,143.49. Rea3 es- tate sold for taxes, abatements, discounts, and delinquent personal property taxes accounts for the majority of the difference, as you can see from the follbwirig detailed report: Continued - 'A