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2022-06-16 Agenda Review NEW HANOVER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BOOK 35 AGENDA REVIEW MEETING, JUNE 16, 2022 PAGE 473 ASSEMBLY The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners met for Agenda Review on Thursday, June 16, 2022 at 4:00 p.m. via in person and remote in the Harrell Conference Room at the New Hanover County Government Center, 230 Government Center Drive, Wilmington, North Carolina. Members present: Chair Julia Olson-Boseman; Vice-Chair Deb Hays; Commissioner Jonathan Barfield, Jr. (remote); Commissioner Bill Rivenbark; and Commissioner Rob Zapple (remote). Staff present: County Manager Chris Coudriet; County Attorney Wanda M. Copley; and Clerk to the Board Kymberleigh G. Crowell. Chair Olson-Boseman called the Agenda Review meeting to order and announced that the purpose of the meeting is to review and discuss the agenda items for the June 20, 2022 Regular Meeting with discussions as noted: Regular Agenda Item #10: Update on $26 Billion Settlement Opioid Litigation. County Attorney Copley stated that Harold Seagle will be at Monday’s meeting to thank the County for all it has done regarding the opioid litigation. Regular Agenda Item #11: Update to the Board of Commissioners on the Development of a Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Strategy. County Manager Coudriet stated that the item is just a presentation and there is no ask of the Board at this time. Regular Agenda Item #13: Consideration of Preliminary Assessment Resolution for NCDOT - Required Improvements to a Portion of Stoneybrook Road and Bedrock Court for Inclusion into NCDOT Road Maintenance System. In response to Board questions, Planning and Land Use Director Rebekah Roth stated that because the County does not maintain roads, this is a way for the County to upfront the construction costs. The County will manage the construction process and once the improvements are made and the roads are turned over to the NCDOT, the County will assess the property owners for their share of the cost. Regular Agenda Item #15: Consideration of a $1.65 Million Loan to Wilmington Housing Authority. In response to Board questions regarding the contribution from the City of Wilmington (City), County Manager Coudriet confirmed that $1.65 million is the County’s match. The City Council approved its portion of the match at its last meeting. The loans assume that the North Carolina Office of Resilience and Recovery (NCORR) will approve the $3 million grant request from the Wilmington Housing Authority (WHA). The loan is being structured with the expectation that it will be paid back and will mirror what the City is doing. County Manager Coudriet explained that the grant application is due to NCORR in August, and it is the County’s understanding that there will be a quick evaluation process with the grant notification being made in late August or early September. The loans from the City and County will give WHA the ability to begin work on some of the projects before the grant evaluation is completed. In response to further questions, County Manager Coudriet stated that the request is not related to the per diem costs of families in hotels. Social Services Director Tonya Jackson and her team are working with WHA Executive Director Tyrone Garrett to get families qualified for rental assistance and then that will become the form of payment. The money that the County is being asked to loan is going to the cost of remediation for the units that are currently unoccupied. Regarding the rent payments during COVID, Mr. Garrett stated that some residents got caught in the COVID moratorium where they did not think that they needed to pay rent. Mr. Garret stated that he is working on a clear overhaul of WHA itself including the basic daily operational components. Chair Olson-Boseman thanked Mr. Garrett for his work WHA and for helping the residents of New Hanover County. Regular Agenda Item #19: Appointment of Voting Delegate to the NACo 2022 Annual Conference. The Board, by general consensus, agreed to appoint Vice-Chair Hays as the voting delegate for the NACo 2022 Annual Conference. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Chair Olson-Boseman adjourned the meeting at 4:16 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kymberleigh G. Crowell Clerk to the Board Please note that the above minutes are not a verbatim of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners meeting.