January 6 2012

Warren and Fellow Commissioners Spar during December 19 Meeting

Discussion gets dicey over issue of Warren’s actions at recent DSS board meeting.

By John Crowder john@theLNR.com

Friction continues to build between Brunswick County Commissioner Charles Warren and his fellow members of the Board of Commissioners. The rift was obvious during the December 19 regular meeting in Bolivia, with things getting a bit out of hand by the end of the session.

During the public comment period early in the meeting, several members of the public stated their concerns over the actions of Charles Warren regarding his actions as chairperson of the Brunswick County Department of Social Services board. During a recent DSS board meeting, Warren ordered a member of the board to leave the meeting due to her “disruptive” behavior. A reporter from a local newspaper was also asked to leave. Earlier this year, Warren was censured by the board of commissioners for refusing to resign his position on the DSS board in order to conform to the county commission’s new ethics policy.

Warren being escorted out of the Commissioner's meeting

Requesting an adjustment to the commissioners’ meeting agenda, Chairman Bill Sue asked that a discussion of the DSS board situation be placed in the “other business” segment of the agenda. Warren questioned Sue’s motive and then voted against the agenda revision. Warren asked to respond to the public’s allegations, but Sue kept correcting him, noting that he (Warren) would have the opportunity to do that at the appropriate time in the meeting.

Later in the meeting, the Board, acting on a motion by Chairman Bill Sue, voted to schedule a hearing for January 17 to determine if Warren should be removed from the DSS Board. “Things like this…lead me to believe that this board is nothing but a bunch of racists,” Warren said. Sue then ruled Warren out of order multiple times, finally asking him to leave the meeting. When Warren refused, Sue asked BCSO deputies to escort Warren from the building. As Warren was leaving he yelled “Merry Christmas,” and exited the building.

In other business, commissioners approved a motion to enter into negotiations with Crown Management Group regarding purchase of the old Brunswick County Hospital site. The group has offered the County $500,000 for the facility, which is considerably lower than the $2.5 million asking price set by the county. County Manager Marty Lawing will continue negotiations with Crown about offer. It has been reported that the company desires to develop the hospital into a psychiatric facility.

Additionally, commissioners heard from Brunswick County Health Director David Stanley regarding the Board of Health’s request to contract a full time animal control officer for the remainder of the current fiscal year. Stanley noted the Board of Health feels this position is vital to the animal control program, with current animal control officers logging as many as 700 to 800 hours of overtime per year. According to Stanley, the position became vacant in October, and as replacement individual is desperately needed to maintain services and help the morale of the current staff. He suggested that a contract officer be hired for several months to give the department an opportunity to adjust and prioritize services to the public and help compensate for the loss of manpower.

“There have been over 6,000 calls acted upon by the animal control officers ink the past year, and it apparent that these request are not decreasing,” Stanley added.  A suggestion was made that volunteers be used to fill the void,  but Stanley responded that some volunteers can be used in shelter care, but using volunteers for picking up animals and enforcing animal control laws would not appropriate. Commissioners asked Stanley funds available in the department’s budget for contracted services. He noted the department has only enough money to fill the need for one more month at the most.

Commissioners also approved a resolution requesting the local state legislative delegation to introduce a bill requiring voter identification prior to voting in local elections. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-1, with Warren casting the opposing vote.

October 21 2011

County Commissioners Hear Highlights from
Audited BC Financial Reports

n a presentation to Brunswick County commissioners at the October 17 meeting, Bryan Starnes, partner at Martin Starnes and Associates, reported his firm has no issues with the financial reports filed by the county. “Very comprehensive” was the auditing firm’s opinion, and Starnes stated that he enjoys coming to Brunswick County.
Commissioners voted to accept the unqualified audit opinion and the Comprehensive Annual Financial Report as presented for the Fiscal Year 2010-11, and authorize staff to submit the report to the Local Government Commission. The county will also make the report available to other interested parties.
It was noted that the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has not provided counties the necessary information to complete the Schedule of State and Federal Assistance that is included in the compliance letters section of the audit report. Accordingly, Brunswick County will submit the compliance letters in a separate report to be issued at a future date.
The audit report noted:
Brunswick County population increased from 110,292 in 2010 to 111,127 in 2011;
Total revenues increased from $156.3 million in 2010 to $158.4 million in 2011;
Total expenditures in 2011 were $154.4, down from $175.2 million in 2010;

Ad valorem tax revenues were $100.5 million in 2010, with a
decrease to $100.4 million in 2011. ($102.6 million in ad valorem tax revenue is projected for 2012);
Property assessed value is projected to be $23.7 million, down from $33.6 million in 2011;
Government funds investment earnings FY 2012 are projected at $0.2 million down from $0.4 million in 2011, but significantly down from $5.2 million earned in 2008;
Expenditures are projected to be $149.8 million in 2012, up from $144.4 million in 2011;
In other business, commissioners awarded a contract to Canal Wood LLC to remove timber from land purchased by the county off of Highway 211 in Supply. The contract guarantees the county will receive $75,522 for the timber.

by John Crowder john@theLNR.com

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