Johnston County searches for new Clayton, Benson senior-center space as JCATS details federal grants, EV and microtransit plans

Johnston County officials said April 7 they are searching for new senior-center space in Clayton and Benson while the county's transit agency is expanding services after winning federal grants and adding vehicles and technology.

The county's Community and Senior Services representative, Josh Jensen, told the Board of Commissioners the building the county had expected to use in Clayton was sold despite a handshake agreement on a right of first refusal. Jensen said staff analyzed attendance at the Clayton senior center by geocoding nearly 600 addresses and found "about 40% of them are Clayton citizens," a figure he said the county will present to the town of Clayton in discussions about operating support.

Why this matters: senior centers provide meal programs, activities and social services relied on by older residents; losing facility space or operating-money arrangements could disrupt services and require the county or towns to identify new buildings or budget lines.

Jensen summarized several parallel transit and facility developments for JCATS (Johnston County Area Transit System). He said the county secured roughly $4,000,000 in federal funding for construction of a new facility and is finishing an additional $2,100,000 in improvements to the JCATS operations site. Those improvements include two solar canopies that "can cover about 25 of our 35 vehicles," three Level-3 fast chargers and an initial delivery of five electric vehicles, Jensen said. He added the county expects five additional gasoline-powered expansion vehicles this fiscal year.

Jensen described a recent surge in demand for services: in prior years JCATS recorded "99,000-plus rides," and staff described strong increases in quick-ride and work-related trips in the Smithfield-Selma area. He said July-through-February quick-ride trips this fiscal year already exceeded 13,000 in the Smithfield-Selma zone and that the county is considering adding an additional vehicle there because of demand.

Federal funding tied to the Clayton urbanized area (UZA) is a key outstanding item. Jensen said approximately $930,000 per year is currently allocated to the Clayton UZA but that to draw that money locally a recipient must be designated to draw down Federal Transit Administration funds. "There is a 50% match involved," Jensen said, adding that the county prefers to be the recipient but that legal and federal-recipient questions remain. He said some of the federal funds can roll over up to five years, which has preserved the county's ability to use those dollars while recipient issues are resolved.

JCATS also won a separate federal technology grant for microtransit. Jensen said the award provides $50,000 per year for four years to explore and implement microtransit technology, and staff have already purchased much of the intended technology. As an immediate product of that work, he said the JCATS app now appears in app stores as "JCATS" rather than the vendor's name, and staff are deploying geo-fencing and ticketing changes so trips can be routed and paid using the correct funding pools. Jensen described a regional goal: a rider could take a JCATS quick-ride to Amtrak, travel to Charlotte, and use a second city's microtransit system with a single ticket.

On vehicle fuel strategy, Jensen said the county is pursuing propane kits for long-range buses to add a secondary fuel source and extend range by "200 to 300 miles," and that propane procurement through state contracts would reduce per-gallon costs. Jensen also described operational decisions for electric vehicles: the plan is to use electric vehicles in the Smithfield-Selma zone where charging infrastructure already exists and shift existing quick-ride vehicles to Clayton once the infrastructure and funding are arranged.

County commissioners asked about timing and interim options. Jensen said the county would present the Clayton attendance data to town officials and is in ongoing conversations with Benson leaders because Benson's Parks and Recreation is moving and the building that houses the Benson senior center and a food bank may be sold this fall.

"We plugged in nearly 600 addresses into our GIS system...and of the 600 people that regularly attend the Clayton Center, about 40% of them are Clayton citizens," Jensen said during the meeting. He also summarized the grants and vehicle counts: "we received the federal funding for of around 4,000,000 to construct the new building" and noted an additional $2,100,000 in improvements are under way.

Jensen concluded with an ask that county and town leaders finalize who will serve as the federal recipient for Clayton UZA funds and with an overview of next steps for a transit study to inform service in the Clayton area.

Looking ahead: Jensen said the county and towns will pursue a transit study funded through planning dollars recently made available to the Clayton UZA and that staff will continue to seek matching funds and infrastructure solutions to keep senior-center services and expanded transit operating smoothly.