County Advances New Social Services Building

Architect employed; construction manager retained

By The Smithfield Weekly Sun

SMITHFIELD – The Johnston County Board of Commissioners took two steps Monday morning toward construction of a long-awaited new home for the Department of Social Services, which presently operates with cramped quarters in five buildings:

(1) Unanimous approval of a contract with Moseley Inc. of Raleigh to design a building of approximately 135,000 square feet of office space on two floors with an additional third-floor “warm shell space for future county growth,” producing a total of 202,500 square feet. Moseley will be paid $6,899,293 “for the entirety of the project” from design through the end of construction.

(2) Unanimous approval of a contract with Stephenson General Contractors for a construction manager to oversee the project in the county’s behalf at a cost not to exceed $250,200. (Stephenson’s Jimmy Boykin apparently will be in charge.)

Both the Moseley and Stephenson firms handled recent construction of the county’s Public Safety and Detention centers located across US 70 Business from the acreage where the Social Services building will stand.

County Attorney Jennifer Slusser said the Social Services building’s total cost (including the architect’s contract) could reach $103 million including “a very generous contingency” allowance of about 7.3%.

Regarding employment of a construction manager by the county, Commissioner Godwin said construction savings produced by that oversight could be “tenfold of the cost” of the contract with the Stephenson firm.

A schedule for the project’s construction is yet to be determined.

County accepts grant for another leg of Neuse River Trail

The $225,000 Great Trails Grant from the state will be matched by an appropriation from the county’s Open Space Fund to acquire trail access for almost 80 acres along the Neuse River between Wilson’s Mills and Selma. The tract is located downstream from a larger acquisition by the county two years ago for the new Wilson’s Mills High School as well as a future park site to include part of the envisioned Neuse River Trail’s extension from Clayton to Smithfield. Commissioners voted unanimously to accept the state’s grant.

County OKs Wildlife Resources contract for canoe launch

The launch is to be built on the Neuse River below East Clayton Elementary School along Castleberry Road off NC 42. Its use will be restricted to canoes and kayaks, and the site will include the county’s first public fishing pier on the Neuse, commissioners were told. Under the agreement unanimously adopted by commissioners Monday, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will design and construct a small ramp, parking lot, and pier with the county providing $291,000 for the work and sharing maintenance of the facilities with the Town of Clayton.

Commissioners OK fire-protection cost-sharing formula

The board unanimously adopted a formula for determining shares of funding provided by the county and Johnston’s municipalities for fire departments with service districts that extend beyond the towns’ jurisdictions. The amounts will be calculated annually based 40% on call volume, 30% on property-tax values, 20% on population, and 10% on square mileage.

Commissioners asked if any of the towns had suggested any alternatives to the policy as presented by the Johnston County Fire Commission. Ryan Parker, the county’s director of Emergency Services, said none had done so. Commissioner Butch Lawter pointed out that annual adjustments could be made if needed.

Clerk of Court asks county to front cost of 11 more staffers

Michelle Ball told commissioners Monday morning that her office hasn’t gotten state allocations to cover the cost of additions to her staff since 2022, despite increases in the workload fueled by Johnston’s population growth. Furthermore, she said, prospects for such funding in the near future appear bleak (the N.C. General Assembly still hasn’t adopted a complete state budget for the current fiscal year that started last July 1).

As a result, she asked the commissioners to put up county funds to cover the cost of 11 additional deputy clerks – five to be employed February 1, the other six April 1 – and to budget for maintaining those new positions through fiscal 2026-27. “It’s absolutely necessary for timely justice and public safety,” Ms. Ball declared.

She said the National Center for State Courts has standards for how much staffing is needed based on volume of judicial proceedings over the past three years, providing justification for her staffing request. “It’s a true acknowledgement of the work that needs to be done,” she said of the National Center’s assessment.

Commissioner Mike Rose asked Ms. Ball if she had room in her Courthouse quarters to house 11 more deputy clerks. “We are willing to live with our space and make it work,” she replied. One thing that helps that situation, she said, is the state’s new electronic filing system (known as “eCourts”) which she said has enabled her office to shred and dispose of 600 boxes of paper records removed from storage.

Following a recommendation from Commissioners’ Chairman Patrick Harris, the board took Ms. Ball’s request for additional county-funded staff under advisement for a decision to be made later.

Board gets a progress report on water and sewer projects

Kim Rineer, engineering manager for the county’s Utilities Department, presented a status report on major water and sewer projects during Monday’s evening session. Here’s a rundown of the larger ones:

• Water-plant expansion – increasing treatment capacity of the Timothy G. Broome Water Treatment Plant at Wilson’s Mills from 14-million gallons daily (MGD) to 18-million is scheduled for completion by June 30. Project’s cost: $73 million.
• New sewage plant’s expansion – doubling the capacity of the treatment plant off NC 210 beside the landfill from 4 MGD to 8 MGD is scheduled for completion by the end of November. Project’s cost: $39.9 million.
• Older sewage-plant improvements – upgrades at the county’s plant on the Neuse River at Smithfield should be done by the end of this year. Cost: $12.7 million. (This facility was originally built and operated by the Town of Smithfield.)
• Sewerage upgrades at Selma – an enlarged pumping station on the west side of town is scheduled for completion by the fall of next year. Cost: $17.7 million. This project will handle increased sewage loads from Selma’s massive Eastfield development and the Town of Pine Level.

Other county projects in the works include a second sewage pipeline along Buffalo Road north of Smithfield, upgraded sewage-pumping capacity at Four Oaks, and relocation of a sewage-pumping station where the US 301 bridge over the Neuse is being replaced.

Ms Rineer noted that the county’s Capital Improvements Plan for water and sewer facilities anticipates expenditures approaching $500 million through 2029. Funding for that work will come from fees paid by customers of the county’s systems supplemented by state and federal grants as they become available.