ECC Weekly Information Bulletin April 10, 2015

Transcription

1 ECC Weekly Information Bulletin April 10, 2015 Quote: I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been. Wayne Gretsky ECC offers a number of services at reduced cost for member governments. Contact ECC if you need a price for these services for your FY 15/16 budget. pflanagan@eccog.org Maps (all sizes); Special studies (e.g., pay classification); Staffing for planning and zoning boards; GPS services; GIS mapping services (water, sewer, stormwater, etc.); Map scanning (will make that ratty looking map look almost new and give you a digital copy); Surveys (citizen, special issue, employee, P&R); Various types of plans (P&R, revitalization, redevelopment, business development, etc.); Interim help (finance, planning); Staff training (communication, customer service, team building, managing employees, grant writing, grant management, etc.) Executive Searches (managers, executive directors, police chiefs, etc.) Reminder: We urge you to consider attending the NC Tomorrow: Building Communities for Tomorrow s Jobs at the North Raleigh Hilton on 4/27 and 4/28. The agenda is filled with topics of interest to urban and rural communities. Here is the link to the agenda: Here is the link to the registration and hotel booking information: Early bird rates have been extended to 4/13/15. The reserved block of hotel rooms will be released on April 12 th. Don t miss this great opportunity to learn and to network! C2ER to host webinar on Census and Local Employment Dynamics Data C2ER has partnered with Census to host a free webinar on April 15 from 1:30pm-2:30pm on how Local Employment Dynamics data from the US Census can be used to develop interactive visualization tools to assess and communicate regional trends. To register, please go to:

2 MCAS Cherry Point JLUS Update Open House Carteret County, in cooperation with the Counties of Craven and Pamlico, and municipalities, agencies within the region, are preparing a Joint Land Use Study (JLUS) to address land use compatibility around the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point and its auxiliary facilities: ALF Bogue, OLF Atlantic, and Bombing Targets 9 & 11. The study is designed to address complex issues of balancing military operational demands and mission changes with local and regional land use plans, economic development and infrastructure needs, and goals for environmental sustainability. Come to the Open House to review and discuss land use, development and military issues. Help us determine how we want to grow, economic development potential and military integration. Date: Thursday, April 16, 2015 / Time: 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. Location: Town of Emerald Isle, NC Town Hall Meeting Room 7500 Emerald Isle Drive, Emerald Isle, NC Information regarding the development of the JLUS will be available at or contact: Mr. Gene Foxworth, Planning and Development Director, Carteret County Government, Planning & Inspections, Phone: E- mail: Eugene.Foxworth@carteretcountync.gov 32nd Annual Municipal and County Update Seminar This Seminar is scheduled for Thursday, April 30 and Friday, May 1, 2015 at the UNC School of Government. Click HERE for a full agenda. Click HERE to register. The deadline is April 23, 2015 at 5:00 p.m. Federal grant YouthBuild community service projects The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL or Department), announces the availability of approximately $76 million in grant funds authorized by the YouthBuild provisions of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) (Pub. L ). It is the Department s intention to align this Announcement with pending WIOA regulations. Under this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) (formerly known as a Solicitation for Grant Applications), DOL will award grants through a competitive process to organizations to oversee the provision of education, occupational skills training, and employment services to disadvantaged youth in their communities while performing meaningful work and service to their communities. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2015, DOL hopes to serve approximately 4,950 participants during the grant period of performance, with approximately 76 projects awarded across the country. Individual grants will range from $700,000 to $1.1 million and require an exact 25 percent match from applicants, using sources other than federal funding. The grant period of performance for this FOA is 40 months, including a four-month planning period. Deadline June 5, Public Beach and Waterfront Access Grant Cycle Pre- Applications are due on or before Friday, May 29, A link to this application is also available on our website: ECC is available to assist. Contact Executive Director Judy Hills at jhills@eccog.org Department of the Interior grants for Historic Preservation Historic Preservation Fund Grants to Underrepresented Communities. 15 awards ranging from $25,000 to $75,000. No match required. Deadline June 15, SOG Final Report on City Services for FY 13/14 The School of Government's Final Report on City Services for Fiscal Year : Performance and Cost Data presents data for thirteen North Carolina cities in the following service areas: Residential

3 refuse collection, Household recycling, Yard waste/leaf collection, Police services, Emergency communications, Asphalt maintenance and repair, Fire services, Building inspections, Fleet maintenance, Central human resources, Water services, Wastewater services, and Core parks and recreation. This report is part of the ongoing North Carolina Benchmarking Project, a joint undertaking of the School of Government and the North Carolina Local Government Budget Association. Click here for more information or to purchase a copy of the report: Title: Final Report on City Services for Fiscal Year : Performance and Cost Data; Prepared by: Dale Roenigk; Edition: 2015; No. of pages: 387; Order number: ; Price: $50.00, plus tax and shipping. If you have questions about this title or other School of Government publications, please sales@sog.unc.edu or call , then press #1. Peruvian city tests produce-growing billboard Lima, Peru, is testing the Air Orchard billboard, which grows fresh produce while displaying an ad. University of Technology and Engineering students developed the billboard, which grew 2,450 heads of lettuce weekly during a test. Click here: CityLab Why trees benefit communities Everyone knows trees are good for the environment they generate oxygen, filter air pollutants and absorb rainwater during storms. A growing volume of research indicates trees are also providing perks to local transit, quality of life and property values. According to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, for every single street planted at a cost of around $300 the city will enjoy more than $90,000 in direct benefits throughout the lifetime of the tree. The research suggests adding trees to urban landscapes can bring about a significant number of benefits to the local community including: read more Waste to renewable energy---what are your community s plans? A growing number of communities are investing in waste-to-energy projects as a means to diversify renewable energy sources while diverting excess garbage from overused landfills. The city of Lebanon, Tennessee, has plans to install a waste-to-energy facility that will provide the community with a sustainable method of waste disposal while producing clean power in the conversion process. The downdraft gasification plant is expected to convert up to 64 tons of waste into a fuel gas daily generating up to 300 kilowatts of electricity. The waste used to generate the fuel gas is made up of: Wood, Scrap tires and Sewer sludge. Read more Solar energy ideas more than just solar farms These days, a rooftop solar array may not sound like a big surprise, even in rainy Seattle. But here, there s a twist: The array of photovoltaic panels may be the first of its kind to be built on the roof of an affordable housing complex and its collaborative funding mechanism enables more people to contribute to, and benefit from, solar power. It s a creative example of the real sharing economy: While participants don t share tangible items like bike parts or strawberries, they do share in the wealth of the booming clean-energy economy. The solar sector in particular is going off. Last year was solar power s biggest year (in terms of new capacity) in the U.S. Solar systems now account for nearly a third of new electricity-generating installations nationwide. The $13.4 billion U.S. solar PV industry employs more people than Google, Facebook, Apple, and Twitter combined, according to a trade group report released last month. Read more solar ideas

4 NC County Health rankings You may have heard recent media reports about NC's county health rankings. To download the summary report, data, and maps go here: Disruption of fiber-optic cables might jeopardize 911 service U.S. Internet service providers, especially in small cities and rural areas, might lack backup systems in the event fiber-optic cables are vandalized or accidentally cut, experts say. Failure to have a backup can threaten 911 and other Internet-reliant services. SiliconValley.com/The Associated Press 5-year update (draft for comment) on sea level rise in NC now available The N.C. Coastal Resources Commission s Science Panel has released for public review and comment a draft of the five-year update of its 2010 report on sea level rise in North Carolina. Required by Session Law , the draft report provides estimated rates of sea level rise along the North Carolina coast over the next 30 years. The report relies on data collected at five tide gauges located along the North Carolina coast at Duck, Oregon Inlet, Beaufort, Wilmington and Southport. According to the report, historical data shows that sea level is rising across the entire coast of North Carolina. The data also indicate that the rate of rise varies depending on location, with the highest rates occurring on the northern coast, primarily due to greater rates of land subsidence, or sinking. The panel s initial draft report was completed in December 2014 and forwarded to a technical peer review group for comment. The draft report and all comments are available for review on the N.C. Division of Coastal Management s website at Comments may be submitted via to Tancred Miller, DCM s coastal and ocean policy manager, at Tancred.Miller@ncdenr.gov. After an extended public comment period from today through Dec. 31, the report will be finalized in early 2016 and delivered to the N.C. General Assembly by March 1, The science panel provides scientific advice to the state Coastal Resources Commission. It was created by the CRC in 1997, and is composed of coastal engineers and geologists. SOG Coates' Canons: 'Building the Record for a Quasi-Judicial Decision' Every quasi-judicial decision shall be based upon competent, material, and substantial evidence in the record (NCGS 160A-388(e2)). Without such evidence, the decision is arbitrary and an abuse of the discretion vested in the board (Godfrey v. Zoning Board of Adjustment, 317 N.C. 51 (1986)). So what is the record? What evidence goes in that record? And how is the evidence obtained? This blog explores those and other questions. You may view the latest post at Workshops/Meetings/Events/Deadlines coming up soon 4/14 NC Coastal Conference in Raleigh 4/16 JLUS open house at Emerald Isle Town Hall 6 PM to 7:30 PM 4/27 SOG course at UNC-CH Utilities Billing & collections 4/27-28 Summit: NC Tomorrow Building Communities for Tomorrow s Jobs. North Raleigh Hilton. 4/30-5/1 SOG Annual County and Municipal Update Click HERE for a full agenda. Click HERE to register. 5/5 NC Rural Infrastructure Grant application due click here for information 5/6 NCACC 2015 County Assembly Day in Raleigh 5/6 Living Shorelines workshop at Pivers Island (Beaufort) Agenda Registration 5/8 SOG Public Law update at Friday Center 5/14 NBAMPO TCC meeting 1:30 PM 303 First Street, New Bern. ChapmanM@newbern-nc.org 5/21 ECRPO meeting at Train Station in Mount Olive 9:30 to 11 AM rwill@eccog.org 5/25 Memorial Day ECC office closed 5/26 DERPO TCC meeting at Human Services Building in Alliance 10-11:30 AM pflanagan@eccog.org

5 5/28 NBAMPO TAC meeting 11:00 AM 303 First Street, New Bern. 528 DERPO TAC meeting at O. Marks Building in New Bern 10-11:30 AM 6/12 EDA applications due for public works projects 7/16 ECRPO meeting at Train Station in Mount Olive 9:30 to 11 AM 7/28 DERPO TCC meeting at Human Services Building in Alliance 10-11:30 AM 7/30 DERPO TAC meeting at O. Marks Building in New Bern 10-11:30 AM Note: The material contained in this bulletin is a compilation from a number of electronic and print sources. Eastern Carolina Council P0 Box 1717 New Bern, NC Phone Ext Fax Web jhills@eccog.org