2026-07-23 - Town Council Work Session

05:45the producer of the report that you

05:46receive or we've been sharing with you

05:48all on our drought update and reports

05:50and she does that. So if you want more

05:52of those things quite frankly I think

05:53you do almost all of our I know it's a

05:55team effort but a lot of our utility

05:57reports. though. Um before we turn it

06:00over to Corey, I'm going to uh actually

06:03call on Scott Barry, assistant manager

06:05Scott Barry, um [snorts] to kind of tee

06:06this conversation up as we talk about

06:08our utility billing system because Scott

06:11was last in charge of the system that we

06:13have currently. So, I thought he might

06:15want to share a few words um as Corey

06:17gets going.

06:18>> Yeah, thanks Russ. And uh good evening,

06:20Mayor Council. So I think back to 2008,

06:23young Scott was working in public works

06:26and got hired by Karen Mills to come

06:28over to the finance department to

06:30implement uh advanced metering

06:32infrastructure or AMI. And so between

06:342011 and 2012, we implemented over

06:3860,000 meters, first of its kind in the

06:40triangle system. As part of that, we

06:44also looked at through um some board

06:46recommendations and from what council

06:48wanted, we looked at a utility billing

06:49portal. Um all this called Aquaar. So

06:53this 15 years ago, we implemented this

06:55thing called Aquaar. We're still using

06:57that portal that we implemented today.

06:59Uh in addition, we have a back-end

07:01system called Navaline, which is even

07:03older. And so I'm just glad to be here

07:05as part of the refresh. And um we'll

07:08turn it over to Corey to give us an

07:09update of where we are. Thank you.

07:12All right, everybody. Um, so just as a

07:16start big, you know, Kerry is a regional

07:18utility. You all know this, but um, we

07:22are providing drinking water to Kerry,

07:24Morrisville, RDU, the Wake County

07:27portion of RTP, Apex, and Chattam

07:29County. That represents a population of

07:32over 300,000 people. And of that we

07:36provide utility billing distribution

07:38utility billing to those first four Apex

07:41and Chattam County have their own

07:42distribution and billing but of that you

07:45know the top four carry Morrisville RDU

07:47and Wake County portion of RTP that

07:49represents over 200,000 people. That's

07:5275,000 meters out in our system. And so

07:56um what we're coming to you saying today

07:58is we understand that this is a big

08:00responsibility. This is a lot of people

08:01that depend on us to make sure that this

08:04utility billing system works well. And

08:07so that's why we wanted to, you know,

08:09we've been taking a lot of time to make

08:10sure we do this right.

08:13So the utility billing system isn't just

08:15about one thing. We can't just do

08:18utility billing. The utility billing

08:20system has to integrate with our Oracle

08:22financials as well because once we take

08:25in the money from our customers, it

08:27needs to go back into the utility fund.

08:29And that's how it does that by

08:30integrating. And then the other thing it

08:32has to do is it has to integrate with

08:34the customer portal. So when customers

08:37come in, they get to look at their

08:39usage, they get to make their payments.

08:41All that happens through the customer

08:42portal. And all three of these things

08:44have to be working together in order for

08:47us to have a successful utility billing

08:49system.

08:52We're moving to Oracle customer cloud

08:55service, CCS. Um, and really the reason

08:58behind that is that like Scott said, we

09:01currently have Navaline. It is an aging

09:03legacy platform. It has limited

09:05flexibility. Staff perform so many

09:07manual processes just in order to make

09:10it work. Um, and so just think about

09:12that compared to what we're looking at

09:15with Oracle is a modern, you know,

09:17industry-leading platform and it's going

09:20to have that improved functionality and

09:22and automation for staff. So, it's going

09:24to help everybody to be more efficient.

09:27Um, and then why do we need a new

09:30portal? You know, Scott kind of touched

09:31on it. We built this portal back in the

09:34early, you know, 2010, 2011. And just

09:37think about anything from back in 2010,

09:402011. Um, we have definitely progressed

09:43in the last 15 years technology-wise,

09:45and the portal has not. And so, we are

09:48we're looking at a lot of things that we

09:50can upgrade. Um, currently the portal

09:53that we have would need significant um,

09:56updates in order to meet the ADA

09:57standards that are coming out. Um,

10:00that's something that's really important

10:01to us and so we are making sure that our

10:03new customer portal will be able to meet

10:05those ADA standards. In addition,

10:08there's limited flexibility in addition

10:10to that outdated, [clears throat]

10:12you know, graphical user interface for

10:14folks. So, we want to make sure that

10:15we're bringing all these things to our

10:18customers. We want to make sure that

10:19it's a place that they can go. It's easy

10:21to find things right now. It's very

10:23difficult to find your usage. It's

10:25difficult to do things like set up leak

10:27alerts. We want it to be so easy for

10:29folks to go and navigate this new

10:32customer portal.

10:34And so, how are we doing that? Well, we

10:37have been going to our advisory boards.

10:39Um, we've been chatting with several of

10:42you. We've met at those advisory boards

10:43already. And, um, in addition to that,

10:47um, we're here today at council, right?

10:49We want to make sure that we are

10:51engaging with our customers and with you

10:53council especially over the next 9 12

10:57months as we get ready to go live with

10:59this new portal. It needs to be right

11:02and so we are going to be coming back to

11:04you. We'll be asking you for your help

11:06with things um and we'll be asking those

11:08advisory boards. So you'll continue to

11:10see us there on the advisory boards um

11:12chatting with them and asking for help

11:14as well. Um we are expecting to go live

11:16in 2027 and that's not going to be the

11:18end of customer engagement. Right beyond

11:21that go live we also expect to be coming

11:24back and asking advisory boards how is

11:26it going how are you know folks feeling

11:29about how we've did we hit the mark with

11:31this

11:32>> and Corey let me add on that slide

11:34>> um because I mentioned this to some of

11:36you in passing 2027 is a target date. if

11:39um if something's not right, we need

11:41more community engagement, we'll we'll

11:43we will not launch this until it's ready

11:45to be launched.

11:47>> Great. Thank you, Russ. Absolutely.

11:50>> And then so these are the things we

11:51heard from our advisory boards,

11:52[clears throat] right? It's really

11:53important for us to not just go, but to

11:55really understand what folks are saying

11:57and to make sure that we have these

11:58things. So folks are looking for more

12:01information. Um they want

12:03recommendations on how to use their

12:05water, how they can save money. um they

12:08want to see more comparative chart

12:10historical data and it's really

12:12important to people that we're thinking

12:14about offering other languages you know

12:16currently we just have English on our on

12:18our platform and we need to be thinking

12:20bigger about those things um make sure

12:23that we're addressing accessibility and

12:26then you know we want to make sure that

12:27we can push critical alerts and

12:29notifications to our users if we have a

12:31water outage things like that um if they

12:34would like to know get some leak alerts

12:36um so we want to make we have all those

12:38abilities with our new portal.

12:42It's very important to us. Our next step

12:45is really ensuring a smooth roll out.

12:47Like Russ said, we're not going to do

12:49this if we're not going to do it right.

12:51So for us, it's we're working on

12:53ensuring we have sufficient testing and

12:55training for our staff because they're

12:57going to have to understand both CCS and

13:00the portal in order to help our

13:02customers when they call in on the

13:03portal on their billing issues. um we

13:06have taken some time and met with

13:08Raleigh, Apex and Fagatville because

13:10they've recently rolled out new customer

13:12portals and they've encountered some

13:14challenges and so we went to them and

13:16asked for their lessons learned and and

13:18they were gracious enough to really give

13:20us some feedback and pointers so that we

13:23could think about things like cut offs

13:25and late fees. How are we going to deal

13:26with those things? you know, we're going

13:28to figure that out over the next couple

13:30months and make sure that it's something

13:31that everyone feels comfortable with and

13:34council manager's office, etc. before we

13:36do anything. Um, and then another thing,

13:39pres preventing those initial login

13:41issues. We want people to come and and

13:45feel like this is an easy experience.

13:46It's very intuitive. So, we want to make

13:48sure we're thinking about all those

13:50things. And we're committed to customer

13:52engagement. We will be coming back um to

13:55the advisory boards. we will make sure

13:57that we're talking with you council. Um

14:00we're talking about public open houses.

14:02Um we have, you know, postcards, etc.

14:05So, this will not be something that just

14:07happens all of a sudden. We want to make

14:09sure that we've engaged our customers so

14:11they feel really comfortable.

14:14So, um with that, I will take any

14:17questions about utility billing,

14:19anything that we've chatted about before

14:21we um chat about drought with Sarah.

14:25I I have a question. Um, a quick Google

14:28search confirmed what I suspected and

14:30that this there's a lot of AI embedded

14:32in this platform and a lot of the

14:34automation is probably AIdriven and I'm

14:36assuming there's a significant agentic

14:39component of what this, you know, new

14:42solutions platform can do. I would

14:45simply ask that we also what I'd like to

14:47hear is is say Nicole Coughlin's

14:50perspective on how we're going to manage

14:52the security just to make absolutely

14:54sure especially when we see what

14:56happened with Apex and how challenging

14:57that was

14:58>> that we are being really really

15:00proactive about um making sure that we

15:03can contain um if there's any problems

15:07and make sure that we are securing this

15:10platform very significantly. One of the

15:13benefits of a legacy platform is while a

15:15lot of times they are vulnerable, they

15:17can't do quite as much. And so, um, it

15:20took me about two seconds to go, oh,

15:21this does really cool stuff. Let's make

15:23absolutely sure [clears throat] that we,

15:25you know, I' I'd like to hear, you know,

15:26a very expert opinion on here's the

15:28steps we're taking and here's how we're

15:30um making absolutely sure that if a bad

15:33actor tries to get in there that we've

15:36got a plan to stop it and if and when we

15:39can't stop it, a plan to contain it.

15:42>> Yeah. I don't know if you have any

15:43thoughts. Nicole is not here tonight.

15:44I'd like to put that on the list and

15:46Corey can add what she wishes and then

15:48we can continue the conversation around

15:50that as we bring you more information

15:52over the next year, year and a half.

15:53>> Yeah, absolutely. We definitely need to

15:56keep that on the list. We have worked

15:58with our CISO to ensure that he's gone

16:01through and and looking at those things

16:02as well. But you're absolutely right.

16:04It's so critically important to us. You

16:06know, we do not we will not fail the way

16:09that we've seen some that some things

16:11fail. So

16:11>> now CESO is is perfectly acceptable to

16:14me. I just am not familiar with that

16:16individual. So,

16:17>> right. Absolutely. So, yeah, Russ will

16:19bring an appropriate person.

16:21>> I know Nicole, that's all. Okay.

16:22>> I have a question. Um, you mentioned

16:24that we went to other municipalities and

16:27they shared their [snorts] experiences,

16:29lessons learned.

16:30>> What are the challenges and issues um if

16:33you could just tell me like briefly um

16:35that they shared in in their journey?

16:40>> Yeah. um you know, lots of things, but

16:42there's definitely some things around um

16:46communications with folks. So, some

16:48folks um rolled out their communications

16:50too early and people started trying to

16:52go and log into the new website that did

16:55not exist yet, things like that. And so,

16:57it it's just about being very specific

17:00about um what exactly we're asking. What

17:03is the ask from this postcard? We just

17:05want to let you know, just an FYI versus

17:08we need you to go here. we need you to

17:10do these three things. So those are some

17:12of the feedback.

17:14>> Are you going to provide any support to

17:16um senior citizens to our senior citizen

17:19communities, you know, or um do we have

17:22any plan?

17:23>> Yes, thank you so much for that question

17:25because we absolutely do. We will be

17:27doing public open houses at the senior

17:29center and community centers both in

17:31Kerry and in Morrisville.

17:34>> Yeah.

17:35>> Couple of questions. Well, first off,

17:37I'm glad to hear you're getting off the

17:38AS400 platform. [laughter] I think that

17:41was the first platform I programmed on

17:44out of college. [laughter]

17:47>> Get out of here.

17:48>> Yes. So, nobody has to do the math. So,

17:52that's really great.

17:52>> Back in the 90s.

17:54>> Yeah, that's it.

17:56Um, so that's really great. Are there uh

17:59there's a couple of things that we've

18:00heard about from people. They love the

18:02AMI capability. They love Aquaar.

18:05Um but we've lost some capabilities over

18:08the last few year or so, right? The

18:11ability to do te for you to be texted.

18:15Um when you go over a certain amount,

18:17right, of water usage, will we be

18:20gaining some of those critical

18:22capabilities back?

18:24And what does that look or what are you

18:27all we talked about you worried about,

18:29but what are you all excited about about

18:31the capabilities coming forward?

18:33>> Yeah, absolutely. Um there's going to be

18:35lots of capabilities coming out um and

18:39you know maybe things to add as we move

18:40forward, but there's definitely going to

18:42be things that are more comparative that

18:44we didn't have before. So being able to

18:47compare to you know what does this bill

18:49look like compared to the last bill that

18:52we had and you know um hopefully in the

18:54future we'll be able to do things like

18:56compare to your neighbor um you know

18:58things like that. And so those are some

19:00of the additional things that we're

19:02going to be able to do that we can't

19:03currently do that we're looking forward

19:04to.

19:05>> Great. Thank you.

19:06>> Uh I I want to share that I started to

19:09use Aqua Star because I had $1,000

19:12utility bill [laughter] a couple years

19:14ago

19:15>> and that I called staff

19:18>> with Yeah, that's why I learned this.

19:21It's so important to remind me that I'm

19:23using too much water. Yeah,

19:25>> that's because of the um irrigation

19:27system and leaking in in the house. So,

19:30uh what I I I I feel that system is very

19:35helpful to save money especially you

19:38have too many case like shower too long.

19:40[laughter]

19:43You can see in the Aqua Star what time

19:46the water uses is the at the peak. We

19:49are I'm not using that much water. Yeah.

19:51So um my question for the CCS is do we

19:55have different uh like uh using on

19:58laptop or phones or appad the different

20:02platforms do we have that kind of user

20:05interfaces

20:06>> right so it's it will be um mobile

20:09friendly right it's not its own app on

20:11the phone because nobody wants we heard

20:13from advisory boards nobody wants

20:15another app um but it will be you know

20:17mobile friendly so that it will you know

20:19get smaller and bigger

20:21based on the size of the device that you

20:22have. You know, some folks like to use

20:24their iPads rather than like a laptop or

20:27a phone. So, yes, it has that

20:29capability.

20:30>> Yeah. And also, I really appreciate the

20:32the notification. Uh if we have not only

20:35email and text messages will be very

20:38helpful, especially you're out of town,

20:40you don't know what is happening in your

20:41house.

20:42>> So, that's help very helpful for to save

20:46money, right?

20:46>> Yeah, absolutely. And the and the new

20:48portal will have the ability to push

20:51notifications via text and email. We

20:54will we will be able to do that for

20:55sure. [laughter]

20:57>> Bringing back the text.

21:01>> All right.

21:02>> Anything else?

21:02>> Okay.

21:03>> All right, Keith. Thank you.

21:04>> Awesome. Thank you. I love all these

21:06questions. And I'll add I'm excited

21:07about the portal that it'll be more

21:09visible. It'll be the billing area and

21:11the usage area in the same place. and

21:13we're gonna have this opportunity to

21:15campaign about it, which we didn't have

21:17haven't done with the Aqua Star one. So,

21:20I'm very excited about that, too. And

21:22I'm also excited about the rain. Um, so

21:24yes, good evening, mayor and council.

21:26[laughter] Great to see you guys. Um, it

21:29is Murphy's law that um, plan a meeting

21:32on drought and the rain will come, but

21:33we wanted to talk to you guys about it

21:34because I know I've been providing some

21:36information, but there's a lot of

21:38information out there. So, definitely

21:40feel free to ask questions as we go. I'm

21:42going to give kind of a drought 101

21:44overview. Um I think the first one I'll

21:48start with is just some context. If you

21:50were around in 2007 and 8, it was a it

21:53was a dry time. Uh on the right side is

21:56the um United the North Carolina drought

21:59map which looks at various factors and

22:01you can see we were in the most extreme

22:03level of drought throughout most of the

22:05state. Um, right now we're not in that

22:08same situation, but the area that has

22:10been that same level happens to be over

22:14the watersheds for Raleigh, Falls Lake,

22:17and for Durham. And that's part of why

22:19some of their experience has been a

22:20little bit different than ours. They're

22:22smaller wheds affected um more readily

22:25and kind of different locations of where

22:28drought is happening. That was last

22:30week. If my animation No, my animation

22:32doesn't work right. It's slightly better

22:34this week. um and will be slightly

22:36better even next week. Um but before

22:38jumping into drought, I just want to say

22:40we've heard a lot in the news about

22:41restrictions. That is just one aspect of

22:43our conservation strategy. So um we

22:47started an official conservation program

22:49in '96 when council made a vision to

22:52reduce per capita per person usage per

22:55day and we've seen significant reduction

22:56in per person usage. A lot of that is

22:58through tiered rates. That's having a

23:00higher rate for higher usage. So, it's

23:03not a discount commodity. Um, we also

23:05have reclaimed water both in bulk and

23:07distributed. We have the leak alerts

23:09with our automated meter system. And

23:12then we have several policies. I'll go

23:13[clears throat] into more detail about

23:14alternate day, but we also have a

23:16policies that if you have an automated

23:18system, you need a rain sensor um so

23:20that you're not watering when it's

23:21raining like right now. Um, and no water

23:24waste, so you're not watering the

23:25sidewalks hoping they'll grow. Um, and

23:28we do also have a water shortage

23:29response plan. um which I want to give

23:31you a little bit more overview on. This

23:33was actually something required by the

23:35state after that 2007 drought to make

23:37sure that people were prepared to

23:39understand what levels of restrictions

23:41they would go to, what would be the

23:43triggers and thresholds to get there and

23:45how they communicate and roll that out.

23:47So um we are in our year round um stage

23:50and that's something we have the

23:52autonomy as car to decide what is in our

23:54plan um and per our value of

23:57conservation we have year round

23:58alternate day watering. Um we most

24:01importantly we are not anticipating at

24:03this point needing to go into stage one.

24:05Um it's a dynamic situation. We're

24:07calculating it every week really every

24:10day. Our particular trigger um for these

24:12different stages is based on days of

24:14supply remaining. Right now we're at 200

24:16days, which is pretty normal for this

24:18time. 120 days is the level that you'd

24:21have to get to for stage one. And week

24:23to week, you can see that fluctuate up

24:24and down. It's simply a function of how

24:26much is coming into the lake and how

24:28much are we pulling out to use. So glad

24:31to deep dive more into that if you want,

24:32but um just so you know, these are the

24:35different stages we have, the different

24:36restrictions involved. Um and you can

24:39learn a lot more at krnc.gov/drout.

24:43Um, and just for those that might not be

24:44as familiar with alternate day watering,

24:46it means that if you have an home

24:48address that is ending in an even

24:51number, you are allowed to water your

24:54automated system on Sunday, Wednesday or

24:55Friday and odd Tuesday, Thursday,

24:57Saturday with no one doing irrigation on

25:00Monday. You might get some questions

25:02about what this applies to. That's

25:04something we've heard um our friends in

25:06Raleigh and Durham that have implemented

25:07more restrictive stages and clarifying

25:09questions. Anything that you are walking

25:12away from is considered automated. So

25:15you may continue to handwater or do drip

25:18irrigation or reclaimed any day of the

25:20week. Um but this applies to kind of

25:22those automated systems. And we do have

25:25um a website that has more information

25:27not just about our policies but other

25:29ways folks can learn to save money, link

25:32people to Aquaar. So just some resources

25:34for you to have as questions come up.

25:37Um, and we have been communicating with

25:39our with our citizens, with our

25:41residents. We pushed out a press release

25:43in July 7th to remind people of the

25:45alternate day watering. Um, we have had

25:47a few more posts uh recently just making

25:50people aware that we're aware of the

25:52drought. It's not that we're unaware. It

25:54certainly can be challenging because we

25:55have a shared media shed um with our

25:58neighbors and other places, but a

25:59different watershed. Um, so speaking of

26:02that, I thought I would take you on a

26:04little watershed field trip, Miss Frizle

26:07style, which fits with how my hair is

26:09working out today. [laughter] Um, so if

26:11you've ever driven on 64 headed west,

26:14you've probably driven by a raw water

26:17pump station, which is the beginning of

26:18the journey of the water serving our

26:20200,000 people that we distribute water

26:22to. Um there are two pipes that go into

26:25Jordan Lake with two different pairs of

26:28screens that bring water to the wet well

26:30and then through the pump station and it

26:34actually um we have two different levels

26:36purposely for drought. So we normally

26:38operate just our top intake screen um

26:41just for it's a higher quality water. So

26:43it makes sense for us to do that. We've

26:45already enacted our lower in intake

26:48screen. Additionally, um, we do that at

26:50elevation 212 for Jordan Lake, which is

26:53normally at elevation 216. Today, it's

26:55at 213 and a half, so that's great. So,

26:58we're just prepared. Um, but we also

27:00have mitigation strategies in place. So,

27:02that's part of the indicators that we

27:04provide is so you know when we've gone

27:06to the lower intake, how we're ready for

27:08that. And if you were curious what these

27:10looked like in real life,

27:13>> out of the water, obviously, they're in

27:15the water now. Um, but they're quite

27:17large and uh, we even upgraded them in

27:192018 with the expansion at the plant.

27:22Um, and so they travel about six miles

27:24to the Caripex water treatment facility

27:26off Wimberly Road. Of course, this is a

27:28simplified map, but with everything in

27:30utilities, there's redundancy, multiple

27:31lines, generators, etc. because we

27:34ensure continuous service. And our carex

27:37treatment facility um is a 56 million

27:40gallon per day capacity plant. You know,

27:42that's partially because we're planning

27:44for the future. If you want to talk

27:45about long range planning or even our

27:47annual water resources year in review if

27:49you want to see trends I've got a few

27:51extra um booklets in the back be

27:53delighted to talk with you about that.

27:55But we purposefully have space for

27:56growth. So that's why you can see the

27:58capacity is much larger than an annual

28:01average day we might get about 23

28:03million gallons per day. That's

28:04averaging the whole year. Obviously

28:06there's peaks in the summer. As we

28:07continue to grow we expect each year we

28:10make new peaks. We have done that this

28:11year as well. So, um, as of now, our

28:14last greatest peak was last Thursday,

28:17uh, 20 36.7.

28:19Uh, we may see that peak again. We'll

28:21we'll see what happens. Um, but this

28:24actually includes, um, approximately 5

28:27a.5 million gallons per day that we're

28:28sending to Durham, which I have a slide

28:30to talk about as well, but I wanted to

28:32keep this capacity one up here just so

28:33you know that we are completely able to

28:37supply and support the needs of the

28:39residents in Kerry. is not at risk at

28:41all even with supporting Durham. Um

28:44because when it comes to supporting our

28:46neighbors, it's partially treatment

28:48capacity and it's partially supply. Um

28:50so we have the capacity in our treatment

28:53plant. Um and one important

28:55clarification has to do with supply. So

28:57the portion of Jordan Lake um that's

29:00accounted for as water supply is managed

29:02by the state actually and they all lot

29:05um portions of that water supply pool to

29:08different municipalities. So Durham is

29:11actually technically accessing their own

29:13water allocation. So further not

29:15affecting Kerry citizens and residents.

29:18Um and so we have a mutual aid agreement

29:21with them. Something that we're really

29:22proud of in the utility system is being

29:24good neighbors and having

29:25interconnections to support during

29:26emergencies like this. So it allows us

29:28to send them water um obviously for feet

29:31and we are doing that right now through

29:33two of our three interconnections with

29:35them at Sorl Court and Highway 55 pump

29:37station. So about 5 and a half MGD right

29:39now. Um, and I think that's all the

29:43updates I have for drought, but I'm

29:45delighted to take questions before

29:47closing out on Western

29:49Regional Wastewater Partnership.

29:52[laughter]

29:53>> Yes.

29:54>> Having been around forever, uh, I

29:56remember the interra interbase transfer

30:00days. Yeah.

30:01>> And so I know that's like a fiveyear

30:02process. Yeah. Yeah. And so I know you

30:04guys anticipate way in advance so we can

30:08do that process so we can expand in the

30:10future. So when do you anticipate we

30:14will need to start the process to go to

30:17future expansion which seems to me like

30:1910 years away. Is that too far away?

30:22>> Great question.

30:23>> I am delighted that the way that our

30:26interbase and transfer is managed now is

30:28different than it was in the past. Um

30:31and so in the past it was a daily cap

30:33and that was challenging because peak

30:35days are different than the annual

30:37average days as you saw from that graph.

30:38So because our current interface and

30:40transfer certificate is based on a max

30:44month average day so like what's the

30:46average day for July um we do not

30:49anticipate needing to initiate an

30:51interbase and transfer certificate

30:53expansion. uh with our current forecast.

30:55We update our long range plan every five

30:58or so years with a very that's

31:01frequencies because we really have a lot

31:03of data that we take in coordination

31:04integration with the vision that you all

31:07have for growth what that looks like

31:09functionally. Um we do though have

31:12anticipation of a need to ask for

31:16additional water supply. So there's a

31:18lot of factors that come in right now

31:20talking about lake level. Is that what

31:22you're talking about? So yeah, of that

31:25um 100 MGD million gallons per day is

31:28the rough approximation of what the

31:29water supply pool portion of Jordan Lake

31:32is. Jordan Lake is, you know, initially

31:35was built for flood storage. So a lot of

31:37the diagram, if you will, is flood

31:39storage. There's also space for sediment

31:41to come, which hasn't really totally

31:42come. So that's another potential future

31:45access point of of water. Then there's

31:48water that goes over the dam and

31:50downstream. And then there's water for

31:51supply. And within that most of it has

31:54been allocated but there is about 8.8%

31:57which comes out to about 8.8 MGD that is

31:59still unallocated that we will be

32:03looking to work with the state and our

32:05partners um to initiate a round five of

32:08Jordan Lake allocations. Um that's part

32:11of why we're also working on a regional

32:13water supply plan so that we come with a

32:14kind of unified position on that. So um

32:18that is something we anticipate growing

32:20in. But our long range plan kind of

32:22gives a forecast of all of the kinds of

32:25expansions at wastewater at um water

32:28treatment, water supply. But

32:30fortunately, we're feeling like we're in

32:31a good position with IBT specifically.

32:33>> And I can I add just I don't think you

32:35had touched on it invasion transfer for

32:37those that now can watch is

32:39>> we're in two basins.

32:40>> Yeah, maybe detail that a little bit.

32:43>> We pull from the

32:44>> Jordan Lake is in the Cape Fear River

32:46basin. pull from the fear

32:49>> deposit in the news,

32:50>> right? We are a railroad town which is

32:53delightful and railroads love ridge

32:57lines but water does not. So we are

33:01perfectly splitting um the Capefir on

33:03the left side and the noose on the right

33:05side essentially. Um and so our first

33:08two water reclamation facilities which

33:11are a huge conservation energy

33:13management sustainability strategy

33:15because they use gravity to drain. So, a

33:17lot of that um drains to our north and

33:20south carry water reclamation facilities

33:22going to the noose. And that's why um

33:24when we built our third most recent

33:27water reclamation facility, Western

33:29Wake, it is specifically further west

33:32than you would think it would be for

33:34Kerry. Partially because it's co-owned

33:36with Apex Q to the next slides,

33:38[laughter] but also because it returns

33:41water to the Capefir River. And it does

33:44that with a relatively large outfall, 11

33:46miles. Most times water reclamation

33:48facilities deposit directly to this

33:50adjacent stream. But that was an

33:52important necessary and strategic

33:54decision on our part. Um 2014 was when

33:57it opened. The work for that was much

34:00longer in proceeding. Um

34:02>> and just an anecdote for people

34:04watching, the water we deposit is

34:06cleaner than the water we intake.

34:08>> It is true. It's really lovely if you

34:10get to I mean maybe lovely is an

34:12overstatement. this comes to the

34:13excitement about utilities. But if you

34:14get a chance to visit one of our um

34:16carry 101 or deeper sessions, we have

34:19little um jars that show kind of the

34:22intake stream and the different points

34:24along the way and the output. And so

34:26yeah, we we take that very seriously and

34:28are very proud of our um high performing

34:30water reclamation facilities. Can

34:31>> can you repeat that? Um you know, the

34:33the water we leave is cleaner than one

34:35we take better. For me, I um completely

34:38confused my senior advisory board by

34:41stating that and doing it very poorly

34:42inacc inaccurately. And I'd like to be

34:45able to go back to them and be like,

34:46"Okay, I think I finally got it right

34:48this time." So, we're pulling from

34:50>> Jordan

34:51>> Jordan and it's going into the

34:53>> Cape Cape Fear Basin cleaner than we

34:56pulled it out of Jordan Lake.

34:57>> The water we return is cleaner than the

35:00quality of the stream that it's going

35:02into. That's true for all three water

35:04reclamation facilities. Yeah,

35:05>> you can see it in I've seen at the

35:07outfalls at particularly at the um on

35:10the Cape River. I've you can take a

35:12picture from the outfall and you see

35:13this like clear plume of water going

35:15into like a slightly turbid [laughter]

35:17>> river coming by. So the quality of the

35:20water leaving the the [clears throat]

35:21treatment plant, the water reclamation

35:23facility is higher than the quality of

35:26the water naturally in the stream.

35:27That's because we're Yeah, I won't

35:29>> Sounds like we should get you a picture.

35:31>> That would be terrific. I can do show

35:33and tell and get it right this time.

35:35Bring the water out.

35:36>> My understanding too though is there's

35:37been a lot of um [clears throat] water

35:40quality

35:42>> issues. Not issues, but the water

35:44quality has been increased in Jordan

35:47Lake as well. Is that not correct?

35:50>> Um it's a dynamic situation. Um yeah,

35:54>> I mean as regulations come that improves

35:56certain things. Um, yeah, we what's

36:00great is that regardless of what's in

36:02Jordan Lake, we are well positioned to

36:05treat it and we are already meeting

36:07things that are suggested regulations.

36:09So, um, much like if I have a drought

36:12meeting today and it rains, I feel like

36:13if I say water quality is great, then

36:15that would not be something I'd want to

36:17say for, you know, [laughter]

36:19[gasps]

36:19>> you never know. But we're ready to treat

36:21whatever happens and um, there have been

36:23changes in the

36:24>> and in the process also removing PAS,

36:27>> correct? Right. We are because we have

36:29at that site that you saw that I showed

36:30you the picture of the reclaimed or the

36:32raw water pump station. We are applying

36:35um polyactivated carbon right there

36:37which is one of the more proven

36:38technologies for capturing that. And

36:40because we have that six mile pipe

36:42that's what makes that a really

36:44effective strategy for us in carry. Not

36:46a lot of folks have that long contact

36:48time. So that's been really beneficial

36:50for us. So yeah we are in a great

36:52position with that. And I think I have

36:54heard that there's been maybe some

36:55decrease. I think once it comes into the

36:57news there might have been some people

36:59changing processes upstream but

37:01>> what's good for us for water supply by

37:04having a large waterhed is interesting

37:06when it comes to a large wershed

37:08bringing all kinds of you know fun

37:10things

37:10>> I think um Russ you presented this once

37:15and you mentioned correct me if I'm

37:18wrong but you mentioned that the

37:21location of Kerry is such that you know

37:24the p first does not even flow go from

37:26factories to carry the actually

37:29geographically it moves into the other

37:31direction.

37:32>> Yeah. S explain that a little bit.

37:34>> Yeah. That um I wonder if I could go

37:36back it probably nause in the very first

37:38picture but Jordan Lake majority of the

37:40flow coming in Jordan Lake is from the

37:42Hall River Basin and the Buck uh

37:45Buckhorn Dam where it flows down is kind

37:47of at the very bottom of Jordan Lake.

37:49Highway 64 is like a third to halfway up

37:54Jordan Lake. So not only um are we not

37:57close to right where the hall comes in,

38:00we have the actual some barrier in

38:02highway 64 itself. So um it's it's our

38:06intake in Jordan Lake is well positioned

38:08to be protected from the source of a lot

38:12of the um PAS and other things coming

38:15from the textile industries that were in

38:17that triad area. Oh yeah.

38:19>> Another important thing we learned at

38:20the Jordan Lake One Water is that when

38:22you have a drought, water quality is

38:25much more difficult, more costly to keep

38:28because of that picture,

38:30>> which is that the water quality at the

38:32top of the lake is better than at the

38:35bottom. Makes sense if you look at a

38:37sediment. So the problems with the

38:40drought isn't just less water, but it's

38:43also that the water quality starts off a

38:47little bit more challenging, meaning we

38:49have to use more resources to clean it

38:51up,

38:51>> which makes it more costly and more time

38:54>> because we're already applying that

38:56polyactivated carbon. It helps us

38:58address some of the issues. But we

38:59definitely open that lower intake slowly

39:01so that it's helping the plant get used

39:02to it. And we were pleased it wasn't,

39:04you know, it wasn't as bad. Some of

39:06that's because the sediment storage in

39:07Jordan Lake hasn't isn't filled and

39:09probably won't be filled. So, um I think

39:12the big takeaway is be really glad

39:15you're in a place that has Jordan Lake

39:16as a as a water supply. Um not just for

39:20resiliency, um but even the water

39:22quality. There are a lot of

39:23municipalities that are pulling their

39:24water right from a river and that can be

39:26a much more challenging set of

39:27calculations and water quality

39:29challenges. So, um, we're passionate

39:31about improving and maintaining and

39:34projecting, but we are also really

39:35grateful to be in the position that

39:36we're in.

39:37>> So, speaking of

39:42delightful.

39:44>> All right. Thank you. Now, back to

39:47>> one last piece of this update. This this

39:49one will be fairly quick.

39:51>> Yeah, exactly. This is just one slide,

39:52so everybody can just relax. I'm not

39:54going to talk forever. Um but we did

39:57want to bring this back to you guys

39:58because um we are working we've been

40:02working on this regional wastewater

40:05study for some time now. Uh and this

40:07came about it started with a

40:09conversation between the Kerry and Holly

40:11Springs managers back in January of 25

40:14and you know they at that point directed

40:17their staffs to work together on an

40:20engineering study. So, we've been

40:21working with the staff from Kerry, Apex,

40:24Morrisville, and Holly Springs um on on

40:27this particular study.

40:30Some of you folks on council were able

40:32to participate in a joint council work

40:34session u between Kerry and Holly

40:37Springs back in August and and that's

40:39when you all heard from them their need

40:42for um increased wastewater capacity.

40:46And so the point of this study is that

40:48we are looking to see if we could

40:51potentially bring Holly Springs into our

40:53partnership that currently has Kerry,

40:55Apex, and Morrisville. Um, and that's

40:58the work that we've been doing. We are

41:00almost done with that work and so we

41:01just kind of wanted to preview that, let

41:03you know that it's coming and that we'll

41:05be coming back to you with the results

41:07of that engineering study here in the

41:09fall. So we're we're really excited and

41:11looking forward to having those

41:12conversations with you guys. And I was

41:15add some of the dates we were working on

41:17the other night where you were working

41:18with Jenny on calendaring. You know,

41:19we're trying to get potentially another

41:21work session, joint work session with

41:23Holly Springs. I'd made mention that

41:25they you could be hearing from them. Um

41:27I meet with the Holly Springs manager

41:29regularly. Um and this is a great

41:32concern for them. I think they're

41:33getting you can correct me if I'm wrong,

41:34but working on getting additional water

41:36capacity from Sanford. Yes. As a

41:38partnership. So they're looking to us

41:40for some waste water and they might even

41:42be trying to expand their own plant a

41:44little bit.

41:45>> Yes.

41:45>> But they they don't have the same

41:48>> Well, we're lucky to have the capacity

41:49issues that we do and they have a

41:51different situation in Holly Springs.

41:53>> Yeah.

41:53>> Um this will be uh talking to Lisa about

41:57it. There would be likely a lot of um

41:59legal agreements and possibly payments

42:01by Holly Springs and how to fund it and

42:04pay for it will be a lot of the

42:05discussion that's going on. So, didn't

42:07want to bore you with those details

42:08tonight. They're still kind of in the

42:09works. Um, but Holly Springs is um, you

42:13know, probably pretty antsy to get this

42:16done and you know, we're we're trying to

42:17meet their schedule but also meet ours.

42:20Um, so just more to come is kind of the

42:22message tonight.

42:23>> So, so the question I have is um, our

42:27capacity for the future. We don't do it

42:30million gallons a day, do we? Like we do

42:32water intake, we do it by population, I

42:34thought. So this is also by million

42:37gallons per day. Okay. Yes.

42:39>> And so how far would that carry us? At

42:41one time when New Hill was built, I

42:44thought I read something like takes us

42:46to close to a quarter of a million

42:48residents in Kerry or something like

42:50that. I don't know how accurate that

42:52was, but I'm just want to make sure

42:54we're not giving away water and then

42:56we're short. I mean giving away

42:58wastewater capacity without

43:00>> Right. Yeah. In our long range planning,

43:02we're always looking 50 years out and

43:04there are populations that we associate

43:07with that. Obviously, we are reiterating

43:09our long-range planning. So, I don't

43:10know that we've converted into people.

43:12That's an interesting concept. But we

43:14are um so if you you may have heard a

43:16number in the past that went out to I

43:17think 2040 was when the Jordan Lake

43:19round four, you know, major planning

43:21effort went. So, our current plan looks

43:23out to 2070. Um as far as Car's needs,

43:27obviously a lot of dynamics have

43:29changed. So when we last had um designed

43:32or when we were designing Western Wake,

43:34it was before it was based on val

43:37numbers that were before um the 2007 and

43:398 drought and some of that significant

43:41decrease in our per capita usage. And so

43:43instead of um high water use, we're

43:46seeing much more efficient usage and

43:47we're seeing apex grow a lot. So um it's

43:51actually the the forecast of what we

43:53expected from Kerry has not kind of come

43:56to fruition in that same way. So, the

43:58ability to potentially partner, we know

44:00that we would do it only if it was a

44:02win-winwin and it actually um could be a

44:04good strategy for us because we're

44:06wanting to expand anyway, partially for

44:08Apex's needs and a little bit for ours.

44:10So, this could help kind of be some of

44:12that funding of they'd have to buy in

44:15and then expand. Um, so it's there's a

44:18lot of dynamics at play, but of course

44:21it does not compromise um Car's

44:23>> needs and and the if I remember

44:25correctly too, these this is years ago,

44:27New Hill was built as a region in mind.

44:30>> Yeah.

44:31>> Right.

44:31>> Yeah. Absolutely.

44:32>> It wasn't built for us.

44:33>> Yeah.

44:34>> It was built with all of the

44:35municipalities and Holly Springs was a

44:38partner back then. So,

44:39>> Right. Yes. Exactly. So, a lot of the

44:42facilities are already sized for

44:44something larger. So the the pipeline

44:46that goes all the way down to the river

44:49and which is a very long pipeline from

44:51the wastewater treatment facility, it's

44:54already there. All those things are

44:55already there. We just need to expand

44:58our treatment process. Um so and that

45:01will be a good thing. Like Sarah said,

45:02it's a win-winwin for everyone because

45:05that gives us a chance to upgrade things

45:07at the facility and, you know, improve

45:09things as well. So, we're looking

45:11forward to it, but we'll come back to

45:12you guys with all those details.

45:14>> And they we're talking waste water here,

45:16but they also have an allocation from

45:18Jordan Lake as well that they're not

45:20using is correct what we were told it.

45:22>> Yeah. And that's part of the regional

45:24water supply plan of looking at, okay,

45:25what are the needs? What are the

45:26strategies? They honestly don't have an

45:29effective plan right now of how they

45:31will access that. So, that's part of

45:33something we discuss as a as a region to

45:35figure out who would need water in a in

45:37an additional round.

45:39I like the idea of the ex re uh

45:43extending the invitation because it was

45:45originally regional, but if they're also

45:48going to potentially uh use us for

45:51wastewater because I think they get it

45:53from Kate Fear now. They're they're get

45:55their water, not waste water, but get

45:56their water.

45:57>> Yes.

45:57>> And we put back into Capefir. So, you

46:00never want to you you want that to be as

46:02even as possible where you take from.

46:04You don't want to put extra into the

46:07downstream. It will add a lovely level

46:09of complexity to my interbase and

46:10transfer calculations. [laughter]

46:13>> She's excited about that.

46:15>> Thank you.

46:17>> Yeah.

46:17>> Thank you all.

46:18>> All right. Thank you. I told you they

46:19were passionate [laughter]

46:20>> about utilities.

46:22>> So interesting though.

46:25>> Can I ask you a question? We used to

46:28meet

46:30>> about utilities and we don't anymore.

46:33Why did we used to meet and we don't

46:35anymore? Um I believe you delegated it

46:37to some degree.

46:38>> Yeah. When the Western Wake Partnership

46:39was first forming before the plant

46:41opened in 2014, there was a lot of joint

46:43work that was happening and you probably

46:46remember the mayor's meeting with the

46:47managers and that sort of thing. But

46:49once the plant got up and running, the

46:50need for those meetings, it's kind of

46:52reduced.

46:53>> Okay.

46:55>> It's a welloiled machine at this point

46:56in time because I used to go as well.

46:59Um, all right. We're going to move on to

47:00some GO Carry updates and bring in our

47:02transit director, Kelly Blazy, uh, for

47:04some timely Go Carry updates.

47:06>> All right. Good evening. Um, I had so

47:09much fun at the council meeting a few

47:11weeks ago and as passionate as they are

47:14about utilities, I am equally as

47:16passionate about transit and so I asked

47:18if I could come back and give you a few

47:20more updates. So, we have three topics

47:22that we'll cover tonight. Uh the first

47:24is bus rapid transit or BRT and then

47:27we'll talk about the downtown multimmoal

47:29center and also the downtown loop. So as

47:33we start with our first topic of bus

47:35rapid transit um you should have a

47:37handout at your seats. You don't have to

47:39look at it tonight. It is just

47:40additional information and more detail

47:42than [clears throat] we'll go into in

47:43these next couple of slides. Um but it

47:46gives you a little bit more about the

47:47history of BRT in Wake County and

47:50specifically in Kerry. And tonight we'll

47:53focus on two of those projects. So, as a

47:56little bit of background, um, we've

47:58probably been talking about BRT in Kerry

48:01for roughly the same number of years

48:03that I've been here, which is now nine.

48:05So, it's been a little bit of a process

48:08to get us to this point. Um, the Wake

48:11Transit Plan when it was approved in

48:132016 outlined four bus rapid transit

48:17corridors for Wake County, all of which

48:20begin in Raleigh. So Raleigh is the city

48:22or is the um project sponsor for BRT

48:25throughout Wake County and then they

48:27[clears throat] work closely with

48:28municipal partners for the corridors as

48:31they then enter into those other

48:33municipalities. So tonight we'll focus

48:35on that first core route um that's part

48:39of those initial four that comes into

48:42Kerry. So, it is very aptly named the

48:45Western BRT corridor because it starts

48:47in Raleigh and it heads west where it

48:50connects to Kerry. It's about 12 miles

48:53long. You can see the alignment here.

48:56And it has roughly 20 stations. And we

48:58say roughly because at this point

49:00they're still working through the

49:02details of what the downtown stations

49:04will look like in Raleigh. So, we might

49:06have 19 or 20 stations in total. But

49:08what we know for sure is there are going

49:10to be six stations in Kerry. and you can

49:13see those outlined in that blue shaded

49:15circle. So, this alignment will probably

49:18look familiar to some on council because

49:21you um endorsed it as part of the

49:25locally preferred alternative in 2020.

49:27So, going back six years, that's part of

49:30the um eligibility requirements to

49:33receive federal funding. So that was a

49:35process that was led by Campo and as

49:39part of that council endorsed the

49:42alignment so the direction that the

49:43route travels the station locations and

49:46then the technical term is termini but

49:49basically the starting and ending

49:50points. So the Kerry multimmoal center

49:52is one of those points um and that's

49:55where the western BRT will end as it

49:59travels out of Raleigh. We have now

50:01reached the 30% design milestone for

50:04this project and so the plans for that

50:07have been submitted to North Carolina

50:09Department of Transportation and are

50:11also going through the review process

50:13with the town. And so it's now a good

50:16time to kind of remind the community

50:18about what we've been working on with

50:19this project. And as the project

50:22sponsor, Raleigh will be leading an

50:24engagement effort this fall that will

50:26really be a refresher for people. So it

50:29will remind them of the alignment, the

50:32way the route travels, the station

50:34locations, and really what's unique

50:37about BRT and the features that make it

50:40different than what you will see as part

50:42of the local service um with go carry

50:46bus service today. Um, also as part of

50:49that, we'll outline the timeline and

50:51next steps for the rest of the project

50:54as it works toward implementation in

50:57probably late um, 2032, early 2033.

51:05So the route that we just looked at,

51:07that original western BRT is at the

51:10bottom of this graphic in the red

51:12outline.

51:14[clears throat] And all the way to the

51:15left of that is the Kerry Multimodal

51:17Center. The circle above it is the

51:21creatively named Western BRT extension.

51:25And so that is now the next study that

51:29has just completed. So that effort was

51:31also led by Campo um and that looked at

51:35the alignment and the station locations

51:38for this extension of service um that

51:41will begin at that termini location at

51:44the Kerry Multimmoal Center and extend

51:47to RTP. So with that study wrapping up

51:51in May, Campo will now present that work

51:55um for public comment in August and then

51:58they're scheduled to take action on it

52:00in September. So that process is very

52:02similar to the process that Kerry Town

52:05Council went through in 2020 where you

52:08endorsed the alignment and the termini

52:10location of the multimodal center. but

52:13you're not required to go through it

52:15again with this extension because it's

52:18starting at the point that you've

52:19already previously approved. Um the

52:22Morrisville Town Council will um see

52:25this presented in August because this is

52:28the first BRT service that is in their

52:31jurisdiction. So this alignment is about

52:3411 miles long and it has 13 proposed

52:38station areas and two of those will be

52:41in carry. So, in addition to the

52:42multimmoal center, the two that are um

52:45highlighted in yellow are within Kerry

52:48Town limits. So, that's uh the station

52:50that's at Chapel Hill and Maynard and

52:53then at Weston and Evans.

52:56And I'll pause for a moment and see if

52:59there are any questions about BRT.

53:02>> I don't want to derail the Sorry,

53:05[laughter]

53:06I couldn't resist. Um, RTA had a hub

53:11plan for I40 that had autonomous

53:15vehicles going into RDU. How does that

53:18all fit together?

53:20>> So, that is somewhat addressed in the

53:23one pager on the back about future BRT.

53:26So, we haven't quite gotten to that

53:27point yet. Um there is an MIS so that's

53:31a major investment study which is the

53:33very initial planning work when we're

53:36trying to determine what the alignment

53:38of the corridor will look like and that

53:40will begin later this fall and that will

53:42study two different options for

53:45additional BRT service um some of which

53:48could be uh in carry and that will be

53:51part of that study and so um the two

53:54options that they'll be looking at to

53:56determine which one makes the most sense

53:58to then go into design and um

54:01implementation first and will then

54:03receive funding first is looking at

54:06service along I40 um from uh from

54:10Raleigh um to RTP and then um extending

54:14on Harrison um and the Kildair Farm

54:18corridor. So that first option is the

54:21one that will look at and study the

54:22feasibility of that uh transfer hub and

54:26that that work will begin um later this

54:28fall.

54:31>> Miss Ples, would you kindly uh clarify

54:34what's different uh between BRT and

54:37regular bus service? Yes.

54:38>> For anybody paying attention?

54:40>> Yeah, absolutely. Um so it's really

54:43focused on the R in the bus rapid

54:45transit. So, it's meant to get people

54:47from point A to point B more quickly.

54:50And the way that it does that, the

54:52alignment is um straighter than it would

54:54normally be with local service. It has

54:57fewer stations and they're generally

54:59spaced further apart. Um it travels in

55:03dedicated lanes for the majority of the

55:06corridor. So, that means um you'll see

55:09lanes that are only for the use of the

55:12vehicles for bus rapid transit. And in

55:14our case, that's um for most of the the

55:18portion that's in Kerry. If I go back a

55:21little bit, um so within that that blue

55:23area, um really anything that's on um

55:28Kerry Town Boulevard and Maynard will

55:30have dedicated lanes. And then as you

55:32start to get closer into downtown Kerry,

55:34where you're in um more of a uh urban

55:38and dense environment, you're going to

55:39be in mixed traffic and that starts to

55:42slow things down. And so you want as

55:44much um dedicated lane as possible.

55:47They'll have signal priority so they get

55:49through lights faster. And then the

55:51stations are designed for everything to

55:53happen more quickly. So it's an elevated

55:56platform where you don't have to deploy

55:58a ramp or a lift. People can just walk

56:00on with level boarding. And if there are

56:03um fairs, you're generally paying for

56:05the fair at the platform before you get

56:08on the bus. uh and that it has very

56:10unique branding so that you can

56:12designate it differently from what you

56:14would see with local service.

56:15>> So for someone like me that lives in

56:17downtown Kerry, BRT would be a very

56:20reasonable time um you know how long it

56:23would take me to get to say an office in

56:24RTP.

56:25>> Yes.

56:26>> And it would be a really attractive way

56:27to not drive on 40.

56:29>> Absolutely. And it uh the frequency will

56:32will be um much faster than local

56:35service generally as well. So, it's

56:37projected to be um to have a bus every

56:4010 to 15 minutes during peak service and

56:42then uh maybe every 20 or 30 minutes

56:44during off peak and the scheduled hours

56:47will start earlier and end later as

56:49well.

56:50>> Excellent. Thank you.

56:51>> Yeah, you're welcome.

56:53All right,

56:55I will now move on to the multimodal

56:57center then and if you have questions

56:58about BRT, we can come back to those at

57:00the end as well. Um so, a quick update

57:03on the downtown multimodal center. Uh we

57:06completed abatement and began demolition

57:09of the project site earlier this month.

57:11Uh so you can see some of the work

57:13there. Um we have uh staff that are

57:17helping us capture the progress using

57:19drone footage. So we'll have a very good

57:21um start to finish of this project

57:23throughout the years and we'll be

57:25providing updates along the way. The

57:28outline of the project area is the the

57:31red um box to the left. So you see where

57:33the existing Carry Depot is and then to

57:36the west of Harrison is the project area

57:39for the new multimmoal center. And so

57:41that's made up of 21 different parcels

57:43that are all owned by the town. And the

57:47um parcels that have been marked are the

57:48seven that we have completed demolition

57:50on so far. And then work will continue

57:53um throughout the end of the year and

57:55will wrap up close to the end of the

57:57year, beginning of the new calendar

57:59year. And so while that's going on,

58:02we're also working through next steps to

58:04plan for what will be built on this

58:06site. And we know that obviously we have

58:09a major transit component that we've had

58:12a lot of study around for many years,

58:14but we're working through what else

58:17would make sense on this site. And so

58:19we're working closely with our director

58:21of planning and community development,

58:23Heather Willahan, and her group to

58:26develop a master planning exercise um

58:29that we'll bring back to council later

58:31this fall for further direction and

58:34anticipating beginning around the start

58:36of the new calendar year and probably

58:38lasting around six or seven months. um

58:42to really look at what else could this

58:44site accommodate that the public would

58:47like to see that the market can deliver

58:50and that the town can support. So there

58:52will be a big engagement component to

58:55this so that we can get feedback from

58:57people um throughout the community about

59:00things that they would like to see so

59:02that we can study it to see whether it

59:04can be accommodated as part of the site.

59:07Um, we hope that that again will last

59:10about six or seven months and then we

59:11can bring recommendations back to

59:13council probably around this time late

59:16summer of next year and then that will

59:18lead us into the initial phase of design

59:21for what that might look like.

59:23>> Can you talk about the funding that uh

59:26is proposed associated with it? I know

59:28we don't have a plan yet but um can you

59:31share the funding model?

59:32>> Sure. Um, so we're fortunate that this

59:35is an a project that was identified very

59:37early on as part of the Wake Transit

59:39Plan as something that is um a key need

59:44to support transit throughout the

59:46region. And you can see from the site um

59:48we have rail lines to both the north and

59:51the south. Um and so we're not just

59:53talking about go carry local service.

59:55This is local and regional service. It

59:58will accommodate the BRT. Um so both the

1:00:01core BRT and the extension and then

1:00:04future BRT that's um just in that very

1:00:07early planning stage. Um inner

1:00:09[clears throat] city passenger rail,

1:00:11other micromobility options like bike

1:00:14share and ride share and um those are

1:00:16things that will determine through the

1:00:18design process what all of that will

1:00:19look like. But because it's such a key

1:00:22location, um there is funding through

1:00:24the wake transit plan for the design and

1:00:27construction of the facility for the

1:00:29transit portion of that. Um and so

1:00:31that's been identified as part of the

1:00:33plan from the beginning and then we'll

1:00:36refine those budget numbers as we get

1:00:38further into the design process. And and

1:00:41your point being, as you really alluded

1:00:43to it, if there is to be private

1:00:44development or some sort of partnership,

1:00:46we have to come up with a funding model

1:00:48opportunity for what that might be,

1:00:50which will be part of the planning

1:00:51process coming up.

1:00:52>> But it doesn't have to just be transit.

1:00:57It can be the envisioning of it could be

1:01:01residential associated, retail

1:01:03associated, right? It doesn't have to be

1:01:05just transit.

1:01:06>> Correct. It does not have to be just

1:01:08transit. Um, and that's what we're

1:01:09hoping to get from the study is what

1:01:11else would people like to see and uh

1:01:13what can fit on the site and what other

1:01:16uh sources of funding may be available

1:01:18to support that. So, we're looking

1:01:20forward to seeing um what opportunities

1:01:23and concepts come out of that that we

1:01:24can bring back to you for further

1:01:26consideration.

1:01:27>> Great.

1:01:27>> And will the concepts plans also talk

1:01:31about the existing carry depot and what

1:01:33happens there? So that's not part of the

1:01:36initial um planning work that we've been

1:01:38doing. So I think that's um for future

1:01:41conversation as well and what council

1:01:42would like to see for next steps.

1:01:44>> We we own the deep depot, not the

1:01:46railroad.

1:01:47>> We do. We own the depot.

1:01:48>> Do they have a significant right of way

1:01:51associated with it?

1:01:52>> Yes. [laughter]

1:01:54>> Yeah. Probably all of it.

1:01:56>> I made that assumption but figured I'd

1:01:58ask.

1:01:58>> There's like a corner on one end. I

1:02:00think we might have

1:02:02>> Yeah.

1:02:03Yep.

1:02:05All right. So, we'll move on to the

1:02:08downtown loop. Um, I'll give a brief

1:02:10update. I know you've seen the news that

1:02:12we had uh suspended service a couple of

1:02:15weeks ago because we've been

1:02:16experiencing a driver shortage. Um, this

1:02:20is something that kind of es and flows

1:02:22and we've been very fortunate that um

1:02:24we've had strong staffing numbers for

1:02:26many years. Um but we've had a recent

1:02:29drop in that and we've were able to

1:02:31cover the gaps for a little while with

1:02:33overtime. Um but then it got to a point

1:02:35where we were starting to see impacts to

1:02:37service and so we had to look at um how

1:02:40do we make changes to service that have

1:02:43the minimal impact to the full system.

1:02:48And with the downtown loop of the 13

1:02:50stops, all but three of those are served

1:02:53by other routes. um all of which uh uh

1:02:57meet at the depot. So very close by. So

1:02:59even the three stops that don't have

1:03:01another route that goes directly by it,

1:03:03there are stops for other routes that

1:03:05are very close by within walking

1:03:06distance. Um the good news is that a

1:03:10recent update, we had nine drivers come

1:03:12out of training recently and I think we

1:03:15have four more that are in the final

1:03:17stages. So by August 3rd, we should be

1:03:20back to um full staffing and I think

1:03:23potentially one over hire at that point

1:03:27um to fully cover service, but it's I

1:03:30mentioned it es and flows. And so we're

1:03:33constantly monitoring um through our

1:03:35contractor. They're they are responsible

1:03:37for managing all of the recruitment and

1:03:40hiring for the drivers um within the go

1:03:44carry system. Um, and we keep in mind

1:03:46that other transit agencies are in the

1:03:48same position, so they're hiring as

1:03:51well. Um, and so they're working through

1:03:53some strategies um to keep our numbers

1:03:55up there. And then I'll turn it over.

1:03:57>> And the contract is with Can you say who

1:03:59the contract?

1:04:00>> Yes. With MV Transportation. So they

1:04:01they've been our contractor for um 10

1:04:04years or longer at this point. The

1:04:06current contract is 10 years, but I I

1:04:08believe they've been here for longer

1:04:10than that.

1:04:12>> Right. I was going to bring up the

1:04:13downtown loop. um kind of a second

1:04:14scenario is because during the um budget

1:04:16process this year and probably for a

1:04:18couple years now, council member Bansaw

1:04:20has been uh kind of advocating for um

1:04:23transit in district D. So, something

1:04:26that we talked about during the budget

1:04:27process was since lighter writership is

1:04:29kind of low here, which led to um

1:04:31suspending the service with the driver

1:04:33shortage is that we could um look at

1:04:36using the resources given to this route

1:04:38and uh moving them to district D. Um if

1:04:41that's something you're interested in

1:04:43and the whole council's interested in,

1:04:44we would um start looking into that and

1:04:47um wanted to have a discussion around

1:04:48that if there was interest and give uh

1:04:51council member Bansaw an opportunity to

1:04:52speak to it as well.

1:04:55I [clears throat] wasn't ready for this

1:04:57but you know I will fight for this

1:04:59today. [laughter]

1:05:00Well um this is one of the things that

1:05:03you know that have come up time and

1:05:04again with the residents in district D

1:05:07where the connectivity is an issue and

1:05:10um you know every district has its own

1:05:13challenges. I think for district,

1:05:15majority of the issues um kind of seem

1:05:18to be with accessibility and the

1:05:20connectivity with the downtown and

1:05:23having that you know that service

1:05:25available is going to help a lot of like

1:05:27senior citizens, lot of students and um

1:05:30one of the things that um has come time

1:05:33and again u during our visit to Carolina

1:05:36preserves and you know all the different

1:05:38uh communities with senior citizens,

1:05:40this has been one of the biggest ask. So

1:05:43um when the whole discussion came up

1:05:45about Danton loop, one of the things

1:05:47that I also heard and correct me if I'm

1:05:49wrong was really that um the this was

1:05:53this service was really started because

1:05:56we didn't [clears throat] have too many

1:05:57uh parking lots or um available in

1:06:01downtown and this was one of the ways

1:06:02for us to help connect residents across

1:06:06you know the entire downtown. And when

1:06:07we those parking lots were built, it was

1:06:10kind of time to transition out of that.

1:06:13And that's when the discussion started

1:06:14to re position and reallocate the funds

1:06:17to the uh to district service.

1:06:21>> Well, and so we had also suggested in

1:06:23some of the budget conversations as we

1:06:25were talking about possible ways to um

1:06:27gain more revenue or maybe spend less

1:06:30was that it was suggested that maybe we

1:06:32look at um suspending this route for

1:06:34good. We learned in talking to Kelly

1:06:36that we can't you can't necessarily do

1:06:38that. You can explain it better than I,

1:06:40but you need this is part of the full

1:06:42plan. Um, so you need to use these

1:06:45hours, which is good that it's on the

1:06:46screen somewhere else in the system.

1:06:48Which kind of led to well then that

1:06:50might be an opportunity to provide the

1:06:51exact amount. Um, we don't there was no

1:06:54more money um allocated in the budget,

1:06:56but if you wish to allocate the

1:06:58resources to this loop route, we could

1:07:00bring you back some options uh for D or

1:07:03any other part of Kerry. Um, but you had

1:07:06brought it up for D, so I just wanted to

1:07:08give the opportunity to speak to it and

1:07:10see how you might wish us to proceed

1:07:13>> and and talk about it if you will or ask

1:07:15Kelly any questions you have. [snorts]

1:07:17>> Um, sure. And I can respond to the the

1:07:20budget piece of it. Um, so when Wake

1:07:22Transit first began in 2016,

1:07:26um, and we knew that as part of that

1:07:28plan, we would be receiving funding to

1:07:31expand public transit service in Kerry.

1:07:34They looked at the level of service that

1:07:37was currently being provided um, through

1:07:41local um, funding and that um, was set

1:07:45as a baseline going forward. And so we

1:07:48need to maintain a baseline of service

1:07:51to continue to be eligible for all of

1:07:53the funding that we receive through Wake

1:07:55Transit. So if we reduce our baseline

1:07:59any it then reduces what we're receiving

1:08:02from Wake Transit. And for the most part

1:08:05that's our core service anyway. We

1:08:07already had um six routes at that time

1:08:11and Wake Transit increased some

1:08:13frequency and added Sunday service but

1:08:14those core routes have remained in

1:08:16place. But then there was this other

1:08:18piece that at that time um was like a

1:08:22killedair farm express route and we've

1:08:25tested it as part of the route 8 and now

1:08:27as the downtown loop. So it's kind of

1:08:29served as this pilot program um to look

1:08:33at how service can work in different

1:08:36parts of the community because it is a

1:08:38small piece. Um, just as a comparison,

1:08:41the 48 hours per week for the downtown

1:08:43loop is about 25% of a route in our

1:08:47schedule. And so what that equates to in

1:08:50funding is about 250 to $270,000

1:08:55um compared to over a million dollars

1:08:57for a new um for one of our standard

1:09:01routes for a full year of operations. So

1:09:03that doesn't take into consideration

1:09:04capital at all. Um but just for the the

1:09:08service piece of it. And so if we were

1:09:10to repurpose what we've been using for

1:09:13the downtown loop, it would be about 48

1:09:15hours per week, which is around um that

1:09:18$250 to $270,000 of our budget.

1:09:21>> And to be clear, um not asking for

1:09:24direction on to decide anything tonight.

1:09:26Be much like a council initiated item.

1:09:28um you could request us look into

1:09:30options to bring back to you and then

1:09:32you could decide what to do with it.

1:09:34>> If you were to do that, is there

1:09:36possibility, as much as I love the idea

1:09:39of going to Western Kerry, are there

1:09:41other needs that are potentially greater

1:09:44or do [snorts] we've heard a lot about

1:09:46regional connections that people say

1:09:49that there's not enough connection with

1:09:50Apex or not enough connection with

1:09:52Raleigh. I mean, how does Western Kerry

1:09:55line up with the needs of the greater

1:09:58service area?

1:10:00>> So, we're actually going through a bus

1:10:02plan update as part of the wake larger

1:10:04wake transit plan right now and that's

1:10:07looking at um service over the next 5 to

1:10:1010 years and what would be prioritized

1:10:13for funding for Carrie through the wake

1:10:15transit plan. Um, so there could be some

1:10:17opportunities that come through that,

1:10:19but I think it also goes back to the

1:10:21microtransit study that we did a couple

1:10:24of years ago where that really

1:10:25identified that the biggest gaps in

1:10:27service are in western and southern

1:10:29Kerry and outlined um kind of the

1:10:32priority areas that we had heard from

1:10:34the community about where they would

1:10:36like to see service. So it it does um

1:10:39fit in with the needs in western and

1:10:43southern Kerry that don't currently have

1:10:44service. But then there could also be

1:10:46opportunities to expand hours on

1:10:50existing service um or add more

1:10:52frequency if that were something that

1:10:54that others wanted us to look at. And if

1:10:57you move if you add a service to western

1:10:59Kerry or southern Kerry or District D

1:11:02and District C,

1:11:04>> can it then be reimbursed by Wake County

1:11:07or are they extensions and that means

1:11:09that Kerry will be a paying for those

1:11:12forever?

1:11:13>> It depends. So the way that the Wake

1:11:16Transit Plan works is that um the

1:11:19service would have to be part of the

1:11:21plan in order for it to be eligible for

1:11:23funding. And so if we implemented a

1:11:27service that were prioritized in the

1:11:29plan before it was funded, then it could

1:11:33be eligible for reimbursement once it

1:11:36reached the year in the plan that it had

1:11:38funding. But if we decide to implement

1:11:40something that's not part of the plan,

1:11:43then it would need to be funded through

1:11:45carry um and it doesn't become eligible

1:11:48for federal funding until it's in

1:11:50service for at least three years. And

1:11:52then it's still not 100% covered. It's a

1:11:54it's an allocation um based on

1:11:57writership and some other fund numbers

1:11:59that I'm happy to get into at some

1:12:01point, but it's it's a portion of the

1:12:02funding. So, there would still be a

1:12:04significant um uh level of funding

1:12:06required from the town.

1:12:08>> Okay.

1:12:08>> And I just wanted to jump in at 608.

1:12:12Kelly, for my clarification and the

1:12:15clarification for everyone listening,

1:12:17you know, I I could see a resident

1:12:19saying, "Well, there's low writership

1:12:20here and it's $200,000 plus dollars.

1:12:25Just eliminate the route and save that

1:12:27money." But what you're saying is we

1:12:30have to maintain this baseline of hours

1:12:33per week. And so there is not a scenario

1:12:36where we cut service and Car's bottom

1:12:39line saves money. we lose dollars. So,

1:12:42you lose service and lose funding.

1:12:45>> Yes. Yes.

1:12:46>> Great recap there.

1:12:48>> Yes. Thank you.

1:12:48>> Good job.

1:12:50>> Thank you for bringing up the

1:12:51microtransit study. I I know we

1:12:53definitely need service out in in West

1:12:56Kerry and also um as you said the

1:13:00microtransit study covered um well we

1:13:03learned about southern and western and

1:13:05because I'm in district B and share a

1:13:07border with district C and people knew I

1:13:10had an interest in transit um from the

1:13:12time I was on council several people

1:13:13have reached out about um southern as

1:13:16well as routes that were a route that

1:13:19was eliminated

1:13:21that they felt if it had had a little

1:13:24more hours it would have been

1:13:27sustainable or or like days of the week

1:13:30it would have been sustainable but

1:13:31instead it was cut back. So I'm glad to

1:13:34hear that we have an option of kind of

1:13:36looking um holistically again

1:13:40>> and that's why I think a suggestion if

1:13:42you want us to look at something is let

1:13:44the process of the looking at the whole

1:13:45system continue and if you desire to

1:13:48have a do something different with the

1:13:51um circulator route by itself is that's

1:13:53why you you could direct us to do

1:13:55something with that

1:13:56>> and you need a motion tonight to do

1:13:57that. Correct.

1:13:57>> I think a motion would help us um know

1:13:59how to proceed.

1:14:02>> Okay. So, what exactly do you want in

1:14:04the motion? I can do that.

1:14:05>> Probably something like directing staff

1:14:08to look into options for wherever you'd

1:14:10like it. Um, and bring something back to

1:14:13council to make a decision.

1:14:15>> Okay. So, I'll do it for district D. Um,

1:14:18I'll put a motion for the staff to look

1:14:21into um

1:14:24repurposing this um service hours to

1:14:27district D and help us identify what the

1:14:31um what the path is going to be and

1:14:33propose some um

1:14:34>> bring you options

1:14:35>> bring bring some options back to the

1:14:37council for the decision. Can we

1:14:39>> would you be open to amending that to

1:14:41have

1:14:42>> them look at both D and C so that we

1:14:46could get some options. Would you be

1:14:48open to amending that to include D and

1:14:50Z? I want to add that especially uh

1:14:52Kokaboo area and southern um like

1:14:55publics that are weak uh wick tech I

1:14:58think a lot of needs around that area if

1:15:01we can just extend uh services to there

1:15:05will be very uh I will appreciate that.

1:15:08>> Okay. So I will amend um the the koka

1:15:12booth and wake area as well. Wake Tech

1:15:15>> Wake Tech Wake Tech, not Wake Mat um

1:15:18area as well um to bring back some

1:15:21options for council to consider.

1:15:24>> Is there a second?

1:15:25>> I'll second.

1:15:26>> Discussion. All in favor?

1:15:28>> Any oppose? Motion carries unanimously.

1:15:31>> Thank you very Thank you very much. Um

1:15:34believe that is all for tonight other

1:15:36than I I'll draw your point to Jenny

1:15:38passed out believe the pulse report from

1:15:40301 calls for service um over the last

1:15:43month. That's otherwise that's all we

1:15:45have for tonight. Thank you. We're

1:15:47session adjourned.