Candidates for Chatham County Commission - District 1

Posted Friday, May 2, 2008

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Pittsboro, NC - The primary elections take place on Tuesday, May 6th. The Chatham Journal does not endorse candidates. We provide our readers with candidates’ answers to a questionnaire we sent out in March. These questions were based on input from our readers and the Chatham County Online Chatlist. Below are the responses from the candidates for district 1.

 

County Commission - District 1

Patrick Barnes

DEMOCRAT

274 McCoy Road, Apex NC 27523

Email: patrickbarnes@bellsouth.net

Web Site: Barnes4Chatham.blogspot.com

Age: 72

Marital status: M

Spouse: Becky Barnes

Children: 6

Community activities: In addition to serving my church, I serve on the County Board of Health, Central Carolina Community College Board of Trustees, Economic Development Corporation Board, Solid Waste Advisory Committee, Appearance Commission, Board of Equalization and Review, Child Fatality Prevention Team, Child Protective Service Review Board, Land Use Implementation, Piedmont Conservation Council, Triangle J Appearance Committee, Triangle Regional Solid Waste Committee.

Political offices you have held: Chatham County Commissioner 2004 - present

1. What do you consider the three most pressing issues in this county? What are your plans for addressing them?

One pressing issue is economic development. Chatham County needs to dictate its own future. To do so, we need to proactively seek economic development opportunities to bring business into Chatham County. The guiding tools we would use would include the already adopted Land Conservation and Development Plan.
I am happy to report that the EDC has been successfully restructured and a new President has been hired. We are about to complete Chatham’s first economic development strategic plan. Discussions have included the public, municipalities, businesses, and our community college among others. Working with Commissioner Mike Cross and others, I made sure we established the Chatham County Industrial Park in Siler City with plans for a new regional hospital and community college branch at this location. I am particularly proud of the new environmental biotechnology wing at the Pittsboro community college where we offer training in emerging technologies. All of these initiatives are important to economic development.

Another issue is infrastructure, water & sewer. Some believe that Chatham County should not pursue a sewer plan; that it will result in a massive increase of residential development. I believe, on the other hand, that it is essential to providing sufficient water and sewer capacity for economic development. In accordance with the adopted Land Conservation and Plan, this infrastructure would mainly be directed towards our municipalities to target and support economic growth in these areas. Goldston is in dire need of support. Siler City and Pittsboro both need to shore up their utilities. How can we attract good business without the infrastructure required to support them?
Nearly a year ago, the Commissioners went to DENHR asking for wastewater allocation. We were told that Cary had taken the last of it. Since then, however, we have been able to leverage Chatham’s approval authority over a Western Wake project to obtain an allocation of 19 million per day. Having this allocation means that strategic planning for infrastructure can continue. This should not signal a renewed fear of rampant residential growth, as experienced with the past board majority, but rather the securing of an important tool in the support of our municipalities and the realization of our economic potential.

A third pressing issue is education and our schools. Because of major residential growth brought on by the majority of the previous board, our schools are struggling to keep up. In short we need to build more schools to match the growth occurring in our County. Equally important, our existing schools need renovations and expansions. We have far too many trailer classrooms and many of our facilities are in need of upgrades.
In my first term as Commissioner, I have supported the construction the construction of the Virginian Cross Elementary School in Siler City and a new middle and high school in the north east, in addition to a funding plan for needed improvements to existing schools. I am a major supporter of our community college system, serving on their Board of Trustees.

2. What specific types of businesses do you want to attract to Chatham? What measures will you take to attract these employers to Chatham County?

On April 8th and 10th the EDC unveiled the preliminary strategic plan for the County. By the time of this publication, the plan may also be on the EDC website, http://www.chathamedc.org/. I am a firm believer in the majority of the plan. It identifies our strengths (and challenges) and targets the businesses Chatham should recruit.
The plan notes that Raleigh-Durham is among the top metro areas with a “super-creative” concentration of workers. This refers to high-tech, biotech types of businesses. Greensboro is ranked among the top metro areas with “working class enclaves” of workers in traditional industries such as manufacturing, goods, and services.
Chatham County is located between these two regions, making it highly attractive to two very different positive growth sectors. If you think about it, the differences between eastern and western Chatham mirror these worker differences, as do our preferences for quality of life amenities. Instead of fighting different ideas on what is needed in the County, the plan suggests we go after both! To be successful will require cooperation between the County and the municipalities on infrastructure and economic development. The plan’s findings were very clear that we will not succeed unless we join forces.

3. How do you propose Chatham County meet the increasing need for safe drinking water for a growing population? What is your opinion of private water and wastewater systems?

First of all we need to do all we can to protect our main source of drinking water, Jordan Lake, and all the rivers and tributaries running through Chatham County. Protection of these waterways is essential, not just for the quality of drinking water, but for the ultimate protection of our environment and quality of life. This can, is, and should continue to be accomplished through our planning regulations and environmental oversight.
We need to think and act regionally on how we manage these resources. Currently there are discussions with Orange and Durham Counties, Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and others on the development of a water intake on the west side of Jordan Lake. Currently, Chatham County’s water from OUR Jordan Lake is obtained through Cary. Until the recent drought, our neighbors showed no interest in partnering with Chatham on such an endeavor.
We also need to reduce our use of water whenever we can. Conservation and reuse will be essential to the County as the region continues to grow. We need to determine ways to treat and capture grey water for use within the County. The BOC has heard presentations on this topic and are thinking in this manner. With our growing use of water, we also have a growing resource in grey water, if it can be captured and reused.
I am not a fan of large private sprayfield style developments. I believe they have too many opportunities for failure and are not sufficiently monitored. I also believe that these sprayfield systems also permit the building of massive communities in rural areas away from established municipal centers. This stretches our services and schools, puts a strain on our road systems, and impacts our rural character and agriculture

4. Can growth be managed? Explain.

Yes, growth can be managed. This requires balance. It requires that we look at all of the components of growth including infrastructure, schools, residential development, economic development, affordable housing, emergency services, and transportation, among others. That is the value of the adopted strategic plan, http://www.chathamnc.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=2300, and our adopted land conservation and development plan, www.chathamnc.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=2298. It is all interconnected. To view only one or two issues without consideration of the rest leads to failure. For example, rampant residential growth cannot sustain itself. However, economic development requires a strong community and a strong workforce. A strong community and a strong workforce require training, good schools collaborating with businesses, and community amenities such as parks and recreation. All of this requires funding, which comes from economic development.

5. Do you support the Major Corridor Ordinance proposal as it currently stands? Explain.

The proposal has not been submitted to the BOC for discussion as of yet. I do support a corridor ordinance for many reasons, including that which was stated in the moratorium ordinance: ‘With over 55 per cent of Chatham workers commuting out of the County to jobs in the Triangle and Triad metropolitan areas and with the build-out over the next decade of the already-approved large scale residential developments containing approximately 12,000 approved or planned residential units, including lots and units within municipalities, Chatham County needs a comprehensive transportation plan and strategy to encourage alternatives to increased road building, clogged commuter highways, and over-burdened rural roads’. As I understand it the ordinance does not call for large setbacks pushing all business away from the roadways, but rather determines how development will occur along these corridors.

6. Were you for or against the land transfer tax? Do you favor putting the LTT back on the ballot for another vote? Explain.

I do support the Land Transfer Tax as an option to help fund our growing school needs. But ultimately that is a decision that is purposely left up to the voters. There are five sources of funding; property taxes, business taxes, sales taxes, impact fees, and the land transfer tax. At some point in time, sooner rather than later, Chatham County needs to determine how it will pay for its schools and infrastructure. Currently, the burden is mainly on property taxes. As these taxes increase, we hear of the burden it puts on fixed income families. As impact fees increase, we hear about the burden it places on low-income families. Retail sales tax is regressive, plus over 55% of retail sales leaves our county, mainly because approximately 55% of our workforce works outside of Chatham.
We need to also seek grant monies and be creative in our construction. We need to be energy efficient and plan for expansion. We need to become proactive on school growth, not reactive. Unfortunately we need to catch up for the unbridled growth ushered in prior to 2006.

7. What are the best ways to fund and handle the county’s growing school construction needs?

Ultimately strong economic development is the best way to fund our schools. Unfortunately we need funds now in order to be successful in bringing strong economic development to Chatham. Businesses will not locate to an area that doesn’t provide essential services and education for their children. Good schools lead to strong communities, which in turn lead to higher property values. Chatham County needs to invest now in order to have a greater return in our future. This is not just an investment in a monetary return, but in our economic success and our quality of life. In question #6, I’ve indicated our current options. I welcome and am willing to hear any and all specific and detailed ideas on budget savings as well. I believe though that Chatham currently operates on a fairly tight budget.

8. What two things would you like to see changed in Chatham County over the next four years and why? What, if anything, would your election do to bring about these changes?

First, I would like to see the citizens of Chatham, east & west, new residents and life long residents alike, come together and actually have good quality discussion and action in addressing Chatham’s needs. We spend a great deal of time and energy tearing down the ideas of others instead of seeking common ground. At the same time, growth will overcome us, and we will not be in control of our future. It will be decided for us.
Second, in the same vein, I would like to see our municipalities actively engaged in the future of the entire County, of which they are an integral part. We will only succeed if we are determined to work together. If we are going to be successful in economic development, in improving the quality of our schools, and in building our infrastructure, we need to work together.
For my part, I have committed myself, and will continue to do so, to seeking out common ground and to working with others in realizing Chatham’s vision.

9. Please describe how you have worked effectively with team members who are very different from yourself in political or ideological perspective.

In my first two years as a Commissioner, Mike and I were mostly in the minority. We had to work with the existing majority. Those that know me know that I am direct and I speak my mind. I also try to work as best I can with those I disagree. Even with the existing board, while we may not always agree on our approach to an issue, we do agree more times than not on the direction Chatham needs to be focused.

10. Why should I, as a Chatham County resident vote for you?

When I ran for Chatham County commissioner in 2004 I made a few promises to the citizens of Chatham. I believe I have and will continue to keep my promises.
I promised to work for proactive economic development and job education to prepare Chatham for the future. For a number of years very little had been accomplished. I made sure we restructured the Economic Development Corporation and hired a new director. Currently the EDC is in the midst of completing the County’s first strategic plan for economic growth, http://www.chathamedc.org/. Working with Commissioner Mike Cross and others, I made sure we established the Chatham County Industrial Park in Siler City with plans for a new regional hospital and community college branch at this location. I am particularly proud of the new environmental biotechnology wing at the Pittsboro community college where we offer training in emerging technologies.
I promised to insist that the County implement its existing and already approved plans. While commissioner, we established a one-year moratorium on residential development to allow us time to review and update our ordinances and procedures. We have added staff to the planning department, hired Chatham’s first erosion control officer, restructured the Planning Board, and passed key ordinance updates to lighting design and stream buffers. Ordinance development committees were established and new and improved policies for commercial development and other standards are almost complete. We have included all interested parties in this work. We are implementing the Land Conservation and Development Plan as promised.
I promised to bring the citizen’s voice back to Chatham government. Getting our fair share when dealing with regional governments such as Cary was one of the main reasons I wanted to be a commissioner. Other regional governments have too long dictated their terms to Chatham on issues of water, sewer, highway construction, land use planning, and annexation. Most recently, along with BOC Chair Lucier, I insisted on Chatham County’s participation in Western Wake County’s design meetings for a large wastewater treatment plant planned for the New Hill area. While Chatham was not initially invited to these meetings, we are there anyway to ensure Chatham’s interests are represented.
Improvements to county services and the development of a capital improvement plan are among the successes of the last three years. A full time county attorney position has been created as promised. The position has begun to serve us well, particularly in our dealings with Cary and other regional governments. Immediate improvements have been made to the Dunlap building to provide the access and delivery of county services (including the health department). Our capital plan calls for a new elementary and high school in NE Chatham, a new library, and a new judiciary building.
I am asking the citizens of Chatham to vote for me so I may continue to focus on our adopted vision, Chatham County will be a place that cooperatively controls its own destiny to assure the state of well-being desired by all of our people, while proudly preserving diverse cultural heritages and the County’s rural character.” I believe that Chatham County is in a better position now than it was three years ago, but there is more to do. I wish to continue to serve as your commissioner to build on our successes.
Thank you.

 

Sally Kost

DEMOCRAT

1101 New Hope Church Road,

Apex, NC 27523

Email: SallyKost@bellsouth.net

Web Site: www.SallyKost.org

Age: 55

Education: BS Political Science, NCSU, Masters of Public Administration, TSU

Marital status: married for 33 years

Spouse: tom Kost

Children: One son Ryan, 22, in graduate school

Community activities: Chair, Chatham County Planning Board ( vice chair in 2007); Vice Chair, Chatham Coalition; Chatham Democratic Women; Sierra Club; Volunteer Rails to Trails; Major Corridor Task Force; Chair, Subcommittee of Planning Board reviewing subdivision regulations; Triangle J Smart Growth Committee

Political offices you have held: Executive Committee of the Democratic Party, Precinct Chair East William (and formerly vice chair)

1. What do you consider the three most pressing issues in this county? What are your plans for addressing them?

The three most pressing issues in this county and my top three priorities are: (1) Providing quality jobs and expanding the tax base; (2) Improving education and school facilities; and (3) Protecting the environment.

Providing Quality Jobs and Expanding the Tax Base

All across the state, industries are moving out and going overseas. Both Siler City and Moncure are facing new plant closings and/or layoffs that are devastating to the local economy, with citizens losing their jobs, impacting the merchants and the farmers. There are no easy short term solutions to these crises which are the direct result of global economic pressures. Chatham County and the Economic Development Corporation should do all that they can to alleviate the short term pain. But we must address the long term challenges to prevent this from happening again.

Historically, Chatham has been a bedroom community, with more than 50 percent of our workforce going out of county to work. Under the leadership of our new commissioners, Chatham contracted with UNC to develop a strategic plan for economic development. We should implement this plan with the goal of recruiting green, high-tech industry/businesses that pay decent wages and provide benefits for its employees.

Chatham needs to aggressively work to ensure high speed internet in all areas of the county. This will encourage business and telecommuting.

The County and the Economic Development Corporation must coordinate with the community college system to ensure training of the workforce is coordinated with the needs of the business community.

Improving Education and School Facilities

Chatham County must be competitive to recruit and retain high quality teachers. The local teacher supplement, the money counties pay above the state salary schedule, needs to be on par with surrounding school systems. Although our average supplement fairs well with counties to our south and west and with Alamance, we lag behind Wake, Orange, Chapel Hill, Guilford and Durham in teachers’ pay. I would work for a five year plan to bring the local teacher’s pay up to a more competitive level.

We must build and upgrade schools to accommodate increased enrollments and 21st century standards. I find it unacceptable that we have allowed any school to become so crowded that we have 19 trailers at one school. While Chatham County sits on a substantial fund balance well exceeding its own financial guidelines, we have been slow in providing the needed planning money to get new schools built. As commissioner, I would have insisted that we use part of the County’s “rainy day” fund now so that the schedules for opening new schools is not delayed.

The County should earmark a revenue source for school capital to ensure that these funds are set aside each year to upgrade and improve our facilities. One option would be to set aside a certain percentage of property tax revenue, so these funds are dedicated to school facilities.

Additionally, the County must work hand-in-hand with the community college so that the college is training our students for real 21st century jobs and meeting the needs of the business community.

Protecting the Environment

Under the initiative and leadership of George Lucier, Carl Thompson and Tom Vanderbeck, we are doing a better job of protecting our streams, rivers and lakes. But we need to do more. We must address the issue of storm water management, important because runoff from roads and parking lots is carrying oil, gasoline and automotive fluids into our waters.

To address climate change, Chatham needs to sign on to the “Cool Counties” initiative that pledges to reduce carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2050, an achievable average annual reduction of two percent. We need to be strategic in our development policies, promoting our existing towns and economic nodes. We need to encourage energy-efficient design and construction of public and private projects.

We must do more to protect and enhance our water supplies, as we deal with the impact of drought and climate change. Because so many Chatham citizens depend on groundwater as their water supply, we need to do more to protect the quality and quantity of this source.

We must fully implement the Land Development and Conservation Plan which is a plan to locate development and infrastructure strategically to avoid sprawl and protect our natural resources and farms.

2. What specific types of businesses do you want to attract to Chatham? What measures will you take to attract these employers to Chatham County?

Chatham does not have the infrastructure to attract large industrial companies and with the shift of these jobs going overseas, it is not realistic to think these companies are coming to Chatham. We should instead be focusing on smaller, mid-size companies that pay a good wage and provides benefits.

The first step in creating jobs in Chatham is to assess our strengths and weaknesses and to build on those strengths and improve those areas where we are weak. Clearly our location near universities and high-tech research centers is an asset and we need to build upon that. Further we must develop a better relationship with our towns and with our neighbors and help our towns build the infrastructure needed to support new business.

As mentioned, Chatham also needs to take advantage of what it has to offer. In addition to attracting high-tech industries, we could promote low-impact tourism through our arts, agriculture, historic downtowns and natural areas.

3. How do you propose Chatham County meet the increasing need for safe drinking water for a growing population? What is your opinion of private water and wastewater systems?

Chatham County needs to upgrade and expand its own water treatment plant to ensure that the water is safe. This will result in doubling our own current water supply from 2.7 million gallons per day to 6 million gallons per day. Additionally we need to be working with our regional partners, the Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA), Durham and Cary and the State to increase our allocation from Jordan Lake and to construct a regional water intake. Additionally, water conservation is critical; we must reduce our use, and increase our re-use through grey-water systems.

My concern about private water and wastewater systems is that the State is responsible for monitoring these systems and that they do not have adequate staff to ensure that the systems are working properly. Better oversight is imperative to protect public health.

4. Can growth be managed? Explain.

The Land Conservation and Development Plan is our plan to manage growth. The core principles were developed with extensive citizen involvement but the plan was never completed. Developing a map, which will guide the location of the types of development, is critical.

Managing growth requires coordination with various state agencies, with the municipalities, with the school system, and with other regional governments. We must do a better job in this coordination.

5. Do you support the Major Corridor Ordinance proposal as it currently stands? Explain.

I served as an active member of this task force. The charge to the committee was to provide development guidelines along the County’s major corridors as recommended by the Land Conservation and Development Plan. The stated purposes of these guidelines are “to ensure sufficient traffic flow, protection of environment, esthetics and rural character of these major thoroughfares and to provide and map designed economic nodes as recommended by the Land Conservation and Development Plan.”

The major corridors included Highways 421, US1, 87, 15-501 and US 64.

The proposal currently being considered is good although there are a few areas that need to be revisited. Some of the landscaping standards need to be adjusted. The location of the Highway 421 node may need to be shifted southward. Further we need to work with existing businesses along the corridor to ensure that they are properly zoned. The 100 buffer requirements serve the county well, in that in the future, road widening will likely occur and these buffer help to ensure a safer and more attractive setback.

One of the major objectives of the Land Development and Conservation Plan is to encourage development in our existing towns, and the proposal does this.

6. Were you for or against the land transfer tax? Do you favor putting the LTT back on the ballot for another vote? Explain.

I supported the concept of the land transfer tax since it would provide needed revenue for the county and would be collected one time when real estate is sold, as opposed to an increase in the property tax that would be collected each year. I am very concerned about rising property taxes, especially the impact on our senior population, many who are living on a fixed income.

I support all the proceeds from the LTT, not just a portion, be allocated to improve our schools.

Additionally the vote on this tax was rushed to the ballot without time for careful and complete planning. I will not support putting the LTT back onto the ballot until more careful analysis is done.

7. What are the best ways to fund and handle the county's growing school construction needs?

Residential development, in general, does not generate sufficient tax revenue to pay for the services needed to support it so we must work to diversify the tax base with good clean “green industries.”

We need to work with the development community to secure school and park sites, and we need to develop our school facilities for community use. Our current impact fee of $3,500 may need to be adjusted, although I am reluctant to support this unless we can find a way to minimize the impact on housing affordability since the law requires the impact fee be the same amount whether it is paid on a large expensive home or a more modest one. As I said in a previous answer, I do support the land transfer tax over an increase in property taxes, if 100 percent of the LTT is dedicated to schools.

8. What two things would you like to see changed in Chatham County over the next four years and why? What, if anything, would your election do to bring about these changes?

I would like to see the county do more long range planning both fiscally and in land use. Our Land Conservation and Development Plan needs to be upgraded and completed so that we have a sound document with maps to which we can manage land use decisions. Fiscally, we need to forecast our revenues and expenditures so that we can anticipate and adjust the budget more readily. As a former budget official, I know the importance of budget planning and the need to establish goals and priorities for the future.

The second thing I would like to see changed is to have a better relationship with our regional partners and with the municipalities within Chatham County. Protection of our drinking water, transportation issues, infrastructure issues, including water, schools, recreation are all areas where we need to have better coordination. I know that I can establish more solid relationships with our regional partners to work in the best interest of Chatham citizens.

9. Please describe how you have worked effectively with team members who are very different from yourself in political or ideological perspective.

The most important quality of working effectively with individuals with different ideologies is to treat them fairly and respectfully. As chair of the Planning Board, where we have a variety of different perspectives, I believe that I have done that effectively.

I believe that a commissioner is accountable to the citizens of this county and that each citizen deserves to be listened to and treated with dignity, manners, and respect.

I was in attendance at the commissioners meeting the night that Mr. Cross and Mr. Barnes were so angry over a simple request to delay an action, that they got up and left the commissioners meeting before it was over. The public and the other three commissioners deserve to be treated with more respect than this.

10. Why should I, as a Chatham County resident vote for you?

It is critical that Chatham elect visionary 21st century thinkers, who look for innovative and creative solutions to our problem. I am dedicated to open government and collaborative decision- making and have the vision and the experience to lead this county.

I have over 20 years of professional experience working in the public sector, including public budgeting, finance and program evaluation. As former budget director in both Wake and Orange Counties, I have dealt with many of the challenges that Chatham County now faces. I am knowledgeable of all county services, understand the revenue structure of local government and have extensive experience in school design standards, school financing, and long range capital planning.

This experience will serve Chatham citizens well as we wrestle with how to provide services within the budget limitations.

I am the current chair of the Chatham County Planning Board, and am familiar with all the ordinances and plans that govern development in Chatham County. I am former Democratic Chair for the East Williams Precinct, resigning only to run for office. I also chair the subdivision regulations review committee, which is studying changes in our regulations to make the subdivision process more collaborative with citizens, among other things. I serve on the Major Corridor Task Force and currently represent the County on the Triangle J Smart Growth Committee.

Additionally, I have served on various professional committees, including the NC County Commissioners Association legislative goals committee.

As your commissioner, I will listen to your concerns and be responsive to your needs. I will work hard to preserve what is special in Chatham County and build upon our strengths to make this a better place for all citizens.

Jeanna Bock

REPUBLICAN

344 Ridge Springs Dr.

Chapel Hill, NC 27517

There is no Republican primary for the BOC. Jeanna will run against the District 1 Democratic primary winner in the November general elections.