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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 10 11 07 Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority MINUTES OF THE CAPE FEAR PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY October 11, 2007 Mr. Jeff Bellows, Chair, Presiding MEMBERS PRESENT Mr. Jeff Bellows, Chair Mr. William Bryden, Vice-Chair Mr. Don Betz Mr. Andrew Koeppel Ms. Christine McNamee Ms. Laura Padgett Ms. Nancy Pritchett 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. Lamont Jackson, General Manager, First Transit Mr. Geoff Delphonse, Para-Transit Supervisor, First Transit Mr. Bill Champ, Temp Maintenance Supervisor, First Transit Mr. William Williamson, First Transit Mr. Andrew Olson, Attorney GUESTS PRESENT Mr. Mike Kozlosky, Transportation Planner, Wilmington Urban Area MPO Mr. Pat Gannon, Wilmington Star News Mr. Richard Foster, Citizen Mr. Ricky Meeks, Citizen Mr. Bonnie Reed, Citizen Mr. Demetrius Simpkins, Citizen Ms. Brenda Williams, Citizen CALL TO ORDER  Chairman Bellows called the meeting to order at 12:10 pm  Mr. Bellows opened the meeting with a moment of silence APPROVAL OF MINUTES  A motion to approve the minutes from the July 12, 2007 regular meeting of the Cape Fear Public Transportation Authority was made by Mr. Bryden  The motion was seconded by Ms. McNamee and carried unanimously PUBLIC COMMENT  Mr. Bellows opened the Public Comment Period  Ms. Pritchett stated that the trolley medallions located along the trolley route looked really nice, and she was glad to see them installed  After hearing no further comments the Chairman closed the public comment period EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows introduced new member former Wilmington Mayor Mr. Don Betz and welcomed him to the Authority  Mr. Betz briefly introduced himself  Mr. Bellows stated that the First Transit management contract expires on June 30, 2008  Mr. Bellows requested an ad-hoc committee to oversee the contractor selection process  Ms McNamee then volunteered to serve as Chair of the committee  Mr. Betz and Mr. Bryden agreed to serve as committee members  Mr. Bellow then recognized Mr. Olsen to present an employment contract for the Director  Mr. Olsen stated that the contract is in draft and format and open to suggestions  Ms. Padgett suggested that the contract state that notifications be sent by certified mail rather than regular mail  Mr. Betz made a suggestion that the twelve months of severance pay for the Director be change to six months  He stated that six months was the normal amount of time given to government employees such as the City and County managers  Ms. Pritchett make a motion to table the employment contract until counsel could determine who was responsible for the contract should the Authority be dissolved  Ms. McNamee seconded the motion which carried unanimously  Mr. Bellows then stated that he would like to undertake a salary survey for Authority employees  Ms. Padgett suggested that the Authority review the Director salary and the Director undertake the survey for staff  The Chairman stated that he accompanied staff to the APTA annual conference in Charlotte  He requested that those in attendance prepare an overview of the highlights of the conference for the November meeting FACILITIES COMMITTEE  Chairman Bellows recognized Ms. McNamee to present the facilities report  Ms. McNamee stated the Division Drive property had been transferred and the deed is being prepared by the Attorney General’s Office  She stated that the committee met with Kent Harrell, PE who was responsible for assisting staff with the subdivision process for the Cando Drive extension  Ms. McNamee presented a recommendation for approval of a contract extension for additional engineering work to be done on the Cantu Drive extension for $7,950.00 to Norris, Kuske & Tunstall Engineering of Wilmington  The additional funding was necessary because the city technical review committee had required the Authority to completely redesign the road  The motion for the approval of the additional funds for the Cando Drive extension in the amount not to exceed $7,950.00 was presented by the committee and carried unanimously  Mr. Eby stated that seventy-five percent of the funds would be reimbursed by Corning per the property purchase agreement  The remaining funds would be shared by Wave Transit and NCDOT under the Moving Ahead initiative  Ms. McNamee inquired about the estimated start date for the temporary transfer site  Mr. Eby stated that a work is underway and encroachment and right of way agreements for the temporary restrooms are being addressed  Mr. Koeppel inquired about an estimated date for groundbreaking  Ms. McNamee stated that there are funds for the preliminary construction work, but not the actual building project  Mr. Eby stated that he is continuing to research and apply for construction funds PUBLIC COMMENT (2)  Due to arrival of several citizens after the original public comment period was closed, Mr. Bellows reopened the Public Comment period  Mr. Meeks stated that the #6 bus is repeatedly late and transfers are problematic from this bus  Mr. Simpkins commended several Wave Transit drivers for excellent service, he then mentioned that others drivers need to work on their customer service skills  Mr. Simpkins stated that at several areas around the city the bus stops, but there is no bus stop sign  He mentioned this because it has become inconvenient for several passengers, due to the contractor enforcement drivers stopping at only designated bus stops  Mr. Eby stated that during the route restructuring new signs will be installed and the problem should be corrected  Ms. Williams stated that she would like to catch the bus on Wellington and the closest bus stop to Wellington is on Silver Stream Drive which is sometimes difficult for her to walk  Mr. Foster requested that more benches be placed near Food Lion located on Oleander Dr, 8th Street and Greenfield Avenue and in front of Kmart located on College Road due to senior citizen usage  Ms. Reed requested a bench be placed on 11th and Market Street  Mr. Eby stated in order for a location to be considered for a bus bench or shelter, that it must meet the minimum required threshold of 25 passengers boarding per day for a bench and 50 passengers boarding per day for a shelter  He further stated that passenger amenities would be added each year following route restructuring  Hearing no further business Mr. Bellows closed the Public Comment portion  Mr. Williamson responded to the citizen concerns ROUTE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Koeppel to give the report for the Route committee  Mr. Koeppel stated that the staff was still working on an agreement to supply service to Wrightsville Beach  Mr. Koeppel then stated that during the route restructure, the staff would ensure that the maps and signs are accessible to both the mentally and physically challenged  Ms. McNamee inquired about the start date for route restructuring  Mr. Eby stated that everything was still on schedule  Mr. Bellows suggested that the Authority also begin to look into reducing headways down from thirty minutes down to fifteen minutes  Ms. McNamee stated that understanding the complexities of the Authority was a challenge since the Authority met only once monthly  A suggestion to plan a retreat for the Authority was presented  Chairman Bellows asked staff to include discussion of the request on the November agenda MARKETING COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Kunic to the Marketing Committee report in the absence of Mr. Ronne  Mr. Kunic stated that the staff was continuing to work with Colonial Marketing on maps and schedules  Mr. Kunic then stated that the staff has ordered promotional magnets and pens FINANCE COMMITTEE  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Bryden to give the finance report  Mr. Bryden stated that the committee had received a draft of the annual audit/budget report  Mr. Bryden stated that the audit/budget report should be complete and ready to report at the November meeting  Mr. Bryden presented the July and August 12007 financial reports  Ms. Cole responded to the questions concerning the reports  The board commended Ms. Cole on the layout of the new report STAFF REPORT  Mr. Bellows recognized Mr. Eby to present the staff report  Mr. Eby presented a purchase order to Port City Signs in the amount of $12,360  Mr. Eby stated this purchase order would allow the Authority to purchase signs that will be used for the restructured routes  Mr. Eby stated that the signs would indicate what times and which bus would arrive at a particular bus stop  Ms. Padgett made a motion to approve the purchase order to Port City Signs in the amount of $12,360  Mr. Bryden seconded the motion and carried unanimously  Mr. Eby then presented an purchase order in the amount of $24,200.00 to GFI Genfare for two each Odyssey fare boxes that will be installed onto the new transit vehicles  Mr. Eby stated that New Hanover County had funded the local match for vehicles to the unincorporated areas which would benefit from electronic fareboxes capable of accepting passes and issuing electronic transfers  Mr. Koeppel made a motion to accept the purchase order in the amount of $24,200 to GFI Genfare  Mr. Bryden seconded the motion and carried unanimously  Mr. Eby recognized Mr. Williamson to introduce interim Paratransit manager Mr. Geoff Delphonse  Mr. Eby recognized interim maintenance director Mr. Bill Champ and commended him for maintaining maintaining the vehicles under a great amount of turnover in the maintenance department OTHER REPORTS  Mr. Bellows recognized other agencies to give reports  Ms. Bean stated she was working on some projects with major employers in the area and would keep the Authority informed SCHEDULING OF NEXT MEETING  Hearing no further business, Mr. Betz made a motion to adjourned the meeting  The motion was seconded by Mr. Koeppel and carried unanimously  The Authority’s next board meeting is scheduled for November 8, 2007 at 12:00 pm in the Wave Transit Conference Room Respectfully Submitted, Albert Eby Director /kw