HomeMy WebLinkAboutPublicSafetyCommMinutes2023July20
PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE REPORT to the BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Thursday July 20, 2023
8:30 a.m.
1080 COVERSTONE DRIVE, WINCHESTER, VIRGINIA
ATTENDEES:
Committee Members Present: Walt Cunningham, Helen Lake, Heather
Lockridge, and Chairman Bob Wells. Denny Linaburg was absent.
Staff present: County Administrator Mike Bollhoefer, Deputy County
Administrator Jay Tibbs, Fire & Rescue Chief Steve Majchrzak, Director of Public
Safety Communications Tamara Perez, County Attorney Rod Williams, Major Steve
Hawkins, Volunteer Fire & Rescue President Dan Cunningham, Sheriff Lenny
Millholland, Lieutenant Jason Cornwell, Lieutenant Warren Gosnell, Deputy Caden
Thurgood, Ben Johnson- Principal at Dowell J. Howard and Marv Davis.
ITEMS REQUIRING ACTION BY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS:
1. None
ITEMS FOR INFORMATION ONLY:
1. Update on proposed Fire Station 22:
Chief Majchrzak provided an update to the proposed Fire Station 22 proposed to be
located in the southern end of the county. Currently the closest station- Stephens
City Company 11- is approximately 12 miles away from communities like Lake
Frederick. Fire & Rescue staff are working on vehicle solicitations, equipment
needs and staffing scenarios for the proposed station and are projecting a possible
completion date in 2025. Chairman Wells requested that Chief Majchrzak and
County Administrator Bollhoefer meet to narrow down 3 general locations for the
proposed station adding that Frederick Water owns land in the area which could be
utilized at no cost. An update on the proposed sites is requested in 90 days.
2. Report on the Dowell J. Howard program:
Deputy Caden Thurgood from the School Resource Officer division and Ben
Thompson, Principal at Dowell J. Howard presented information on the newly
adopted vocational studies program Criminal Justice 1 scheduled to begin in the
2023-2024 school year. This program would allow career exploration in law
enforcement and corrections. Students overwhelmingly voted to adapt this program
and interest is high for enrollment. Lt. Cornwell noted that Frederick County is the
only county in the State to provide this program with a certified deputy as instructor.
Director Perez added that in the 2024-2025 school year, there will also be a
Communications class offered as well for students interested in a career in public
safety communications/dispatch.
3. Blue Line Solutions-school zone speeding enforcement (see attached):
Lt. Gosnell discussed a proposed new speed enforcement project for school zones.
There are currently 12 active school zones in the county that are active in the
morning and afternoon. He noted limited manpower makes it difficult to monitor
the speed of motorists in these zones. This proposed program would be at zero cost
to the County. Blue Line would install and maintain all cameras. Lt. Gosnell briefly
discussed how the program would work to include fines and summonses.
4. 522/Lake Frederick intersection:
Chairman Wells requested input on the intersection at 522 and Lake Frederick citing
the numerous accidents and close calls. Sheriff Millholland advised that he had
made a request to VDOT to do a site survey to see what could be done about the
stoplights/notifications. Major Hawkins mentioned doing away with the yellow
flashing left turn arrow to avoid creating blind spots.
5. Other business (see attached):
Helen Lake mentioned that she will be presenting a 2-hour in person workshop
titled "Communicating using Cross Cultural Awareness" on August 7th geared
towards School Resource Officers. The intent is to provide School Resource
Officers information that will help them to communicate and interact with students
and parents who are of varied cultural ethnicities and for the SRO's to understand
the differences of cross culture. She noted that there are 54 different languages
spoken in Frederick County Public Schools.
6. Closed session called at 9:26 a.m.:
All Public Safety Committee members were present except Denny Linaburg. Ms.
Lake moved that the Frederick County Public Safety Committee enter a closed
session pursuant to Virginia Code Section 2.2-3711(A)(1) for personnel
matters, specifically discussion of public safety communications staff.
Chairman Wells seconded the motion which carried on a voice vote.
Ms. Lake moved that the Frederick County Public Safety Committee come out
of closed session and reconvene in regular session. The motion was seconded
by Chairman Wells and carried on a voice vote.
At 10:02, Ms. Lake moved that the Frederick County Public Safety Committee
certifies that, to the best of each member’s knowledge, (i) only public business
matters lawfully exempted from open meeting requirements by Virginia law
and (ii) only such public business matters as were identified in the motion
convening the closed meeting were heard, discussed, or considered by the
Committee in the closed meeting to which this certification applies. Chairman
Wells seconded the motion which carried as follows on a recorded vote:
Helen Lake Aye Heather Lockridge Aye
Robert Wells Aye Denny Linaburg Absent
Walt Cunningham Aye
Respectfully submitted,
Public Safety Committee
Bob Wells Heather Lockridge Denny Linaburg
Helen Lake Walt Cunningham