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127 <br /> <br /> The Board of Commissioners for the County of Cabarrus met in recessed <br />session at the Masonic Lodge in Midland, North Carolina on Thursday, June 2, <br />1994, at 6:30 P.M. <br /> <br />Present - Chairman: Jeffrey L. Barnhart <br /> Commissioners: Sue B. Casper <br /> Kenneth F. Payne <br />Absent - Vice-Chairman: Carolyn B. Carpenter <br /> Commissioner: Arne L. Fennel <br /> <br /> Also present were Mr. John V. Witherspoon, County Manager; Mr. John Day, <br />Budget Officer; and Mrs. Frankie F. Bonds, Clerk to the Board. <br /> <br /> Chairman Barnhart called the meeting to order at 6:30 P.M. and announced <br />the lack of a quorum. However, he stated that a summary of the public input would <br />be provided to the other Board members who could not be present. Although <br />Commissioner Casper was absent for the beginning of the meeting, she arrived at <br />7:30 P.M. and was present for the remainder of the meeting. <br /> <br /> Mr. James Martin, President of the Midland Community Association, extended <br />a welcome to the Midland Community. <br /> <br /> Mr. Allen Burnette of the Midland Fire and Rescue Department stated <br />emergency medical service was insufficient in the southern portion of Cabarrus <br />County. He complained of long response times in the Midland area, stating it <br />takes 45 minutes from the time an emergency call is placed until the patient <br />arrives at the hospital. <br /> <br />Mr. John V. Witherspoon gave an overview of County government. <br /> <br /> Mr. John Day reviewed the proposed FY 1995 Cabarrus County budget. He <br />listed the spending options relative to increased funding for the schools, the <br />creation of a new patrol squad for the Sheriff's Department, and the placement <br />of a Quick Response Vehicle (QRV) in the Midland area. <br /> <br /> Sheriff Robert Canaday reviewed the proposal to add a new patrol squad of <br />eight deputies, including the six deputies currently assigned to Cabarrus <br />Memorial Hospital and two new deputies. <br /> <br /> Mr. Aubrey Attkisson, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Director, discussed <br />the goal to attain an eight-minute response time for emergency calls. He listed <br /> the EMS Study Council's recommendations to station a second ambulance at Station <br /> #2, to place a QRV in the Midland Community, and to locate a transport vehicle <br /> in the Kannapolis area. <br /> <br /> At 7:43 P.M., Chairman Barnhart opened the meeting for comments from the <br />public. He specifically asked for input regarding the spending options as <br />outlined by Mr. Day. <br /> <br /> Mr. Bob Andrews questioned the possibility of consolidating dispatch <br />services by the County, the City of Concord, and the City of Kannapolis. Sheriff <br />Canaday responded that consolidation would not reduce the number of employees <br />required for communications, thus no significant savings would result from <br />consolidation. <br /> <br /> Mr. Mike Tucker of the Midland community discussed the offer by the Midland <br />Volunteer Fire Department to lease/rent space to the County to house the QRV. <br />Mr. Attkisson indicated it would cost approximately $150,000.00 to construct a <br />facility if space were not available at the fire department. <br /> <br /> Ms. Martha Hyler, Media Coordinator at Bethel Elementary School, spoke in <br />support of schools funding, stated that a small school such as Bethel would <br />suffer the most from a reduction in funding. She specifically expressed concern <br />about the lack of funding to implement the technology plan and to update the <br />computer lab. <br /> <br /> Mr. Allen Burnette stated the need to support schools but did not offer any <br />suggestions as to how this might be done. He supported the Sheriff's request for <br />additional deputies and the funding for emergency medical services. Stating that <br /> <br /> <br />