Wayne County commissioners approve consent items including budget amendments, library policy updates and airport change order

The Wayne County Board of Commissioners approved a series of consent items and separate motions on April 15, including budget amendments for several departments, library policy updates, a change order at the Executive Jet Port and proclamations recognizing National Volunteer Appreciation Week and Child Abuse Prevention Month. The board also adopted a resolution awarding the service weapon to a retiring detective sergeant and handled local appointments.

Votes at a glance (actions approved) - Cancel and reschedule public hearing for "Project Istanbul" (consent item 13): Motion to cancel the April 22 public hearing and reschedule it for May 6 at 9:30 a.m.; outcome: approved. (Agenda adjustment added by the board.)

- Budget amendment 3-14 (Finance): Anticipate and appropriate a reimbursement from Team Foods for a Duke Energy invoice to elevate power lines near Park East; county paid as responsible property owner with reimbursement expected from Team Foods; outcome: approved.

- Budget amendment 3-16 (Sheriff's Office): Record receipt of controlled substance tax revenues from the North Carolina Department of Revenue; outcome: approved.

- Budget amendment 3-17 (Social Services): Request additional funds for temporary health and translation services, including contracts with vendors noted in the packet; outcome: approved.

- Budget amendment 3-20 (Social Services): Cover travel for Social Services for the remainder of the fiscal year; staff said typical reimbursement for this line is 50% to 60%; outcome: approved.

- Budget amendment 3-23 (EMS): Reallocate $24,000 to cover linen services for the remainder of the fiscal year; staff noted the county receives $50,000 annually toward linen costs but total need is higher; outcome: approved.

- Wayne County Public Library policy changes (item 11): Motion to approve policy updates recommended by the Library Board of Advisors; staff said the revisions update policies from the early 2000s, expand laptop lending rules and add the Still Memorial Library by name; outcome: approved.

- Executive Jet Port change order (change order number 1): Approve change order for the Executive Jet Port parking lot drainage improvements. Staff explained the contractor originally reported a credit of about $51,000 and later revised that to a credit of about $13,000 due to a unit-price correction for footing/stone backfill items; outcome: approved.

- Resolution 2025-13 awarding service weapon to Detective Sergeant CJ Weaver: The board adopted a resolution, citing North Carolina General Statute 21-87.2, to award Detective Sergeant CJ Weaver his service weapon and badge in recognition of his retirement effective April 1, 2025; outcome: approved.

- National Volunteer Appreciation Week proclamation (presented by Sherry Archibald, United Way of Wayne County): The board approved the proclamation recognizing National Volunteer Appreciation Week and invited commissioners to a recognition event at the Paramount Theater; outcome: approved.

- Child Abuse Prevention Month proclamation (presented by Samantha Nixon, DSS Social Work Program Manager): The board approved a proclamation declaring April as Child Abuse Prevention Month and noted Wayne County DSS received 1,332 child protective services reports in 2024 with 664 cases screened in for investigation or assessment; outcome: approved.

- Appointments and reappointments: The board accepted a resignation from a Wayne Community College trustee and the appointment committee recommended appointing Commissioner Joe Doherty to finish that term; the board also reappointed Chad Matthews to the Wayne County Planning Board; outcome: appointments approved as presented.

- Consent agenda: The board approved the adjusted consent agenda that included the items above.

Who spoke and presented - Sherry Archibald, Executive Director, United Way of Wayne County (presented the volunteer proclamation). - Samantha Nixon, Social Work Program Manager, Wayne County Department of Social Services (presented the child abuse prevention proclamation and provided case-count statistics). - Sheriff Peters (presented resolution 2025-13 honoring Detective Sergeant CJ Weaver). - County staff (Angie and others) presented budget amendment and change-order details during the consent portion of the meeting.

Notes and context - Several budget amendments were described as reimbursements or reallocations rather than new recurring county commitments. For example, the Team Foods reimbursement is intended to cover a Duke Energy invoice the county paid as the responsible property owner. - The Executive Jet Port change-order amount moved from a larger credit to a smaller credit after the contractor corrected a unit-price calculation; staff explained the discrepancy as an error in the footing unit used in the contractor's original calculation. - The child abuse proclamation included the DSS figures for 2024 (1,332 reports; 664 screened in for assessment/investigation); commissioners expressed appreciation for DSS staff and noted the seriousness of the caseload.

Outcome summary: The board approved the adjusted consent agenda and each listed motion; the transcript does not include roll-call vote tallies for each item, and motions were recorded as approved during the meeting.