The Hillsborough Board of Commissioners met for a special meeting Wednesday, July 16 at the Town Hall Annex to make budget decisions related to Tropical Storm Chantal.  

Following is a brief summary of noteworthy actions. It does not include all actions taken at the meeting and should not be viewed as official minutes. The meeting is available to view on the town’s YouTube channel. See the agenda packet for more information.

Budget Amendment

The board approved assigning about $1.07 million in savings (called fund balance) and about $320,000 in the General Fund budget to replace several public works vehicles that were totaled due to last week’s flooding during Tropical Storm Chantal. The replacements will take place over two years, and total estimated cost is $2.3 million. Any insurance payouts will be returned to the fund balance. The approval allows staff to move forward with purchasing a replacement garbage truck this week.

Response and Upcoming Expenses

Assistant Town Manager and Community Services Director Matt Efird provided a presentation on the storm response, sharing photos for context of some of the damage, including the flooded vehicles and facility at the public works yard and damage to structures at Gold Park and along Riverwalk. He noted the vehicle replacements are the most pressing need for restoring service.  

Additional upcoming expenses will include:

• Housing fleet maintenance and public works staff and equipment for about 12 months while the Highway 86 North Facility is expanded to include space for the Public Works Division.
• Making about $12,000 in repairs to Riverwalk’s boardwalk decking and handrails.
• Repairing the Gold Park restrooms with materials that are more water-resistant and easier to clean. 
• Repairing and stabilizing fencing at Gold Park, with mulch replacement in the dog park to come in the fall when less rainfall is expected.

Efird noted staff expects additional vehicle and equipment failures as some of the items restored following flooding may not reach their full life expectancy. The bypass pumps keeping sewer spills to a minimum at the River Pumping Station also are a temporary measure. The assistant town manager noted a long-term need will be reevaluating the planned renovation of the Adron Thompson Water/Sewer Facility, which is located by the public works yard, to determine whether changes are needed, such as raising the floor levels.

Updates

Efird and Town Manager Eric Peterson provided updates and answered questions from the board, including noting:

• Structural engineers have found all Riverwalk bridges to be structurally sound.
• Gold Park and Riverwalk trails from River Park to Gold Park could open in a few weeks. Eno River State Park still needs to make bridge repairs and stabilize areas of the trail it owns between River Park and Elizabeth Brady Drive.
• Staff are meeting with representatives of the Resco Products quarry off Eno Mountain Road this week to assess its damage.
• A longer-term stormwater drainage project is being considered for the area around Riverwalk and Eno Mountain Road.
• The City of Durham charged the town $25,500 for 7.5 million gallons of water last week.
• Some resources for the town and community will require state and federal disaster declarations. A state disaster declaration was made during the meeting and shared with the board.
• Orange County is working on a summary of services currently available to residents and businesses. 
• Orange County residents facing a housing crisis due to the tropical storm can call the Department of Social Services 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays at 919-245-2800 to speak with a social worker about local support that may be available. Most resources require a financial eligibility determination. Documentation of damage will be needed. 

The board received questions from community members in the audience. The board also received in its agenda packet a preliminary after-action report and a report on an exercise to improve a strategy for replacing damaged public works and utilities vehicles and equipment.