1991 Outstanding County Program Awards winners

In the Association’s first effort to sponsor an awards program to recognize outstanding innovative programs in the counties, there were 57 entries in the four categories: General Government, Environment, Public Awareness, and Human Services.

Of the entries, 20 were selected by the awards committee for recognition at the 1991 Annual Conference. They are described below:

GENERAL GOVERNMENT

FORSYTH COUNTY
A Common Vision

A Common Vision is Forsyth County’s Community Development Planning Process - implemented to meet economic challenges facing the county’s business and industry community.

A three-day economic development summit was convened in May, 1990 to begin the process, which 100 community leaders attended.

The major result was the development of a broad-based community planning process involving thousands of hours of volunteer time and a document called “A Common Vision,” which outlines the long-term strategic direction for Forsyth County/Winston-Salem.

For more information, contact Ed Jones, Deputy County Manager, (919) 727-2797.

GASTON COUNTY
Program Area Citizens’ Committee

Gaston County’s staff working with a Community Development Block Grant for a water-sewer project saw the need for greater citizen participation from the two areas served b the grant.

The staff felt that citizen involvement would aid in implementing the project and would help educate citizens who might otherwise know little about government.

The two communities named representatives to a committee, which has emerged as a vocal supporter of various projects, including neighborhood beautification. For more information, contact Sonya White, Gaston County Grants Administrator, (704) 866-3141.

HARNETT COUNTY
Two-Year Revaluation

Harnett County commissioners became concerned about the public’s reaction to the 1988 revaluation, when property values in some areas more than doubled from the 1980 revaluation.

Upon the recommendation of the tax administrator, the county started a two-year in-house revaluation cycle that allows the county to: maintain an accurate database and a more constant tax rate, eliminate huge increases in assessed values and reduce time spent in hearings and appeals.

Harnett County is the first county in the state to conduct two-year in-house revaluation. For more information, contact Bobby Wicker, Harnett County Tax Administrator, (919) 893-7520.

MECKLENBURG COUNTY
Interim Sentence Jail Facility

The county realized the need for more jail space and designed, built and occupied a 600-bed interim sentence jail facility within eight months.

The project required intense cooperation between county departments because of the tight schedule. The county established communication with the neighborhoods near the jail from the outset by holding meetings on security and other issues. For more information, contact James R. Johnson, Jr., New Facilities Project Manager, (704) 336-3746.

WAKE COUNTY
Customer Satisfaction Project

Wake County undertook the Customer Satisfaction Project in July, 1990 to strengthen the customer service philosophy using a number of strategies.

Those included training staff using customer satisfaction tools, self-assessments by staff, a survey of employees concerning support from internal operations, and empowering departments to develop greater levels of customer satisfaction. For more information, contact Wally Hill, Wake County Assistant Manager (919) 856-6160.

PUBLIC AWARENESS

ALAMANCE COUNTY
At Your Service

During the past year, Alamance County worked with a local cable company and its municipalities to produce and air a regular weekly public affairs program called, “At Your Service.”

The program educated citizens about services and explored such issues as local landfill operations, the county’s 1991-92 budget, and child abuse. For more information, contact Joanne Keister, Alamance County Personnel Director, (919) 228-1312.

CABARRUS COUNTY
Public Affairs Bulletin

Cabarrus County commissioners started the county’s first news bulletin earlier this year to increase the public’s knowledge of local government.

The bulletins targeted important issues such as the reservoir project and the Capital Improvements Program). They also included ballots for residents to state their opinion on a number of issues and to volunteer their services on committees.

The county received more than 2,000 responses to the two “ballots” and at least 30 people volunteered their services on committees or boards.

For more information, contact Gerald Newton, Cabarrus County Director of Planning and Zoning, (704) 788-8141.

FORSYTH COUNTY
Substance Abuse Free-Events (SAFE) Initiative

The county saw events such as graduations, Fourth of July, and New Year’s Eve as opportunities to introduce alternative drug and alcohol-free activities for the entire family. Working with a local non-profit drug abuse treatment center and the business community, the county funded three major drug and alcohol-free events (Graduation ‘90, First Night, and 4th of July Celebration) and gave awards to students who had sponsored drug-free parties and dances throughout the year.

The SAFE initiative also included an educational program for parents and the community; the development of a parents’ group against drugs; fund raising through dances, concerts, etc. For more information contact County Manager Graham Pervier, (919) 727-2797.

PAMLICO COUNTY
School Recycling Project

The county sponsored an intensive semester-long recycling education program in the Pamlico County Schools, consisting of in-class presentations, information kits, poster contests and can recycling contests. The purpose was to excite children about recycling.

Pamlico County, a small rural county with less than 12,000 people, had limited funds and relied on business contributions from within and outside the county. Businesses donated prizes for the contests. Volunteers taught recycling classes in the schools.

The recycled can contest yielded 12,860 pounds, or almost $4,000 in revenue which helped pay for the county’s labor and transportation costs. For more information about the project, contact Judy Bolin, Dept. of Recycling and Litter Control. (919) 745-5281.

WESTERN PIEDMONT COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS
The Play TRASH!

The four counties in the Western Piedmont Council of Governments (Alexander, Burke, Caldwell and Catawba) agreed to co-sponsor production of a play on recycling called “TRASH!” The group contracted with Lenoir-Rhyne Playmakers to produce and offer the play for all third through sixth grade classes in the region.

More than 17,000 students and 1,000 teachers/staff saw the play.

The program also included a Trash Buster Project, an effort to implement permanent recycling programs in the schools for office paper, beverage cans and cardboard. For more information, contact Doug Taylor, Western Piedmont COG, (704) 322-9191, or attend the session at Annual Conference on Aug. 15 at 4 p.m.

HUMAN SERVICES

CABARRUS COUNTY
Home Remedies Project for Abused and Neglected Children

Like many counties, Cabarrus County experienced a major increase in referrals for child abuse/neglect cases in recent years. The Home Remedies Project helps children and families with problems that have or could lead to abuse/neglect.

The service offers round the clock staff contact, seven days a week for up to six weeks. Follow up visits are also scheduled. So far, 27 children have been helped. For more information, contact James F. Cook, Jr. Cabarrus County Director of Social Services, (704) 786-7141.

GUILFORD COUNTY
Volunteer Psychological Services Program

Guilford County officials knew the mental health needs of foster children wee not being met because the Mental Health Department did not have adequate resources to meet the demand.

The county initiated a Volunteer Psychological Services Committee to locate quality mental health services for the children.

The Mental Health Department, a private child care agency and local psychologists recruit private practitioners to donate time for on-going therapy for foster children.

Currently, 20 therapists are donating 960 hours per year, at a cost of $75 per hour or a total contribution of $72,000. Twelve children are receiving services at a savings of $3,600 per month. For more information, contact Wayne Abraham, Volunteer Services Coordinator, (919) 373-3120.

NEW HANOVER COUNTY
Rankin Community Enrichment Organization

The Interagency Council for Dropout Prevention recommended the county find ways to enable residents of low-income areas to identify problems related to school failure and devise ways to address them.

The Rankin Community is a densely populated, low-income minority neighborhood with few resources.

In March, 1990, residents formed the Rankin Community Enrichment Organization to raise funds and plan for development of community programs. The county enlisted the organization to help with the project. The community established an afterschool program and the elementary school started providing daily information on homework assignments. Academic improvement is already apparent.

For more information, contact F. Wayne Moore, New Hanover County Director of Social Services, (919) 341-4711.

ORANGE COUNTY
Project KIDS

An acronym for Kids Deserve Support, KIDS is a multi-agency project led by the Orange County Child Support Enforcement Department to focus attention on non-payment of child support.

The county used a four-phase media approach to generate public interest. Phase I used PSAs, advertisements and news releases asking people for information about people who were not paying support. Phase II used the news media to announce “amnesty week,” to allow people to pay on their delinquent accounts. Phase III involved the Sheriff’s Department in serving delinquent parents with orders to appear in court. Phase IV was the court hearings with 150 cases heard on one day. For more information, contact Janet Sparks, Director of the Child Support Enforcement Department, (919) 732-8181.

WAKE COUNTY
Jobs for the Homeless

Developed as a partnership between the Job Training Office and the Capital Area Private Industry Council, the Wake County Jobs for the Homeless Program started as a national demonstration project funded by the U.S. Dept. of Labor.

The Jobs for the Homeless Program offers support and assistance to homeless persons who can reasonably be expected to enter training and/or employment.

Support services such as day care and transportation allowances, personal hygiene supplies, and work clothes are an important component of the program. So far, the program has assisted more then 232 individuals with 40 percent placed in full-time unsubsidized jobs. For more information, contact Charles Trent, Wake County Job Training Director, (919) 856-6040.

WARREN COUNTY
Warren Health Institute

Warren County commissioners recognized the need to provide health services when the county-owned hospital closed in 1985.

So, the county created the Warren Health Institute, as a way to house an out-patient clinic and the Warren County Health Department. The idea reduces duplication, encourages collaboration between the two agencies and provides preventive and curative health care in a cost-effective way to a rural population.

For more information, contact Dennis Retzlaff, Health Director, (919) 257-1185.

ENVIRONMENT

CATAWBA COUNTY
Recycling Program

In the later part of 1989, waste buried in the Catawba County landfill peaked at 441 tons/day. Following implementation of an aggressive recycling program, that figured dropped to 341 tons/day, a 23 percent reduction.

Prompted by a county program that grants credits for waste diverted from the landfill, five of eight municipalities in the county provide residential curbside collection. The county is the first in the state to offer curbside collection in the non-municipal areas. More than 350 companies, offices and plants have cardboard collection services and at least 150 have office paper collection. The county’s goal is to reduce waste by 50 percent in the 1990’s. For more information, contact Steven D. Wyatt, Assistant County Manager, (704) 465-8201.

GASTON COUNTY
Quality of Natural Resources Commission

In 1988, the Gaston County Board of Commissioners established the Quality of Natural Resources Committee (now called Commission) in response to community concerns about environmental quality.

The commission’s purpose was to determine the status of natural resources in the county and recommend policies, procedures, ordinances, and changes in state statutes to promote and protect the environment. Commission members come from a variety of backgrounds.

The county contracted with the Cooperative Extension Service at N. C. State University to provide assistance through a team of researchers.

So far, the commission has carried out two phases. Phase I involved development of computerized information on surface water, ground water and air quality; a written report with slides; and a public opinion survey of citizens’ concerns and priorities. Results of Phase I led to specific projects under Phase II in the areas of air quality, groundwater surface water and public education. For more information, contact Martha Burris, Gaston County Extension Director, (704) 922-0301.

WAKE COUNTY
Recycling Sites & Education at Schools

In January, 1991, the Wake County Keep America Beautiful Program established a recycling program in partnership with the county school system (83 schools with 63,000 students in K-12). The program boosts 37 voluntary recycling drop-off sites on school campuses collecting beverage cans, glass, co-mingled plastic, office paper, and computer paper. Newspaper is collected on specific weekends in special rolloff containers at 12 high schools. Schools receive any funds generated by the sale of recyclables from their campus. A packet on recycling contains materials for all grade levels and suggest other available materials.

For more information, contact Lois Nizon, KAB Director for Wake County, (919) 856-6778.

REGIONAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY

The counties of Craven, Carteret and Pamlico created the Coastal Regional Solid Waste Management Authority in August, 1990, to develop a regional approach for managing waste reduction and disposal.

The three counties initiated legislation (Senate Bill 58) to create the new political subdivision. The Authority is involved in a comprehensive waste management program, including design, construction, and operation of a regional high-tech landfill, a solid waste composting facility, and three solid waste transfer stations. For more information, contact any of the three county managers in Craven, Carteret or Pamlico counties.