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Buncombe County outlines Helene Recovery Office staffing plan; budget amendment to establish five grant-funded positions set for tonight's agenda
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Summary
County staff told commissioners they plan to hire a full-time recovery officer and create five grant-funded support positions (three project managers and two financial/grants managers) to manage Helene recovery projects; staff warned grant funding is expected but not yet fully secured, and the county may need to backstop some costs.
Buncombe County staff presented a plan to stand up a permanent Helene Recovery Office and to add five grant-funded staff positions to manage recovery projects and grants related to Hurricane Helene.
Jeremiah LaRoy, presenting for the county’s recovery effort, said the county intends to hire a full‑time recovery officer who will report directly to the county manager and to create five supporting positions: three project managers and two financial and grants managers. “We are gonna be hiring a full time recovery officer for Buncombe County. I think the start date is November 3,” LaRoy said. The five supporting positions are proposed as grant-funded roles designed to handle procurement, construction management, grant reporting and financial tracking.
LaRoy told commissioners the positions are listed as grant-funded because many of the grants the county is pursuing include administrative funding. “Those 5 positions are listed as grant funded positions,” he said. But county staff and commissioners cautioned that grant awards are not certain and the county could be required to cover ineligible administrative costs out of the general fund.
Commissioner Wells pressed for clarification about how much grant funding is already secured. LaRoy said the county has applied for a large number of grants — “for example, like HMGP, we've had 33 or 34 applications for HMGP” — but that awards are pending. County staff said the positions would be temporary by grant rules and that an initial planning horizon of about five years is expected, though the final duration will depend on grant terms and project timelines. “Staff if staff wanted to transfer into that position, that's that is an option,” LaRoy said, noting current employees may apply for the new roles.
LaRoy said the next step is a budget amendment on the evening agenda to establish the five grant-funded positions; commissioners will have the opportunity to act during the formal meeting. Staff emphasized they will try to recoup administrative costs in grant budgets but that some hours or training may not be eligible and the county would need to backstop those limited costs if grants do not cover them.
The county plans the recovery office to manage the recovery plan, oversee recovery projects and coordinate with FEMA and North Carolina Emergency Management. LaRoy said the office would include project management, procurement and financial/reporting capacity to track construction, grants and reporting requirements.
No formal vote on the positions or budget amendment was recorded during the briefing; the budget amendment establishing the five positions was listed for consideration on the evening agenda.
