COUNTY COMMISSIONERS’ WORK SESSION MINUTES

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2017

The Board of County Commissioners met today in their weekly Work Session.

Present at today’s meeting were:

Dennis P. Stuckey, Chairman
Joshua G. Parsons, Vice Chairman
Craig E. Lehman
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

E. William Peters
CHIEF CLERK

Lisa Johnson
ASSISTANT CHIEF CLERK

Christina Hausner, Esquire

COUNTY SOLICITOR

Also present were: Shane Ackerman

AMISH VILLAGE

Michael Bard, CFO

SAINT ANNE’S RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

Dale Brubaker, Grant Specialist

DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE

Al Duncan
MILLER’S SMORGASBORD, PLAIN & FANCY FARM, AND THE AMISHVIEW INN & SUITES

Dr. Tim Elkner, Horticulture Educator

PENN STATE EXTENSION

Jim Fasnacht, Senior Buyer

PURCHASING

Kathleen Frankford, President

DISCOVER LANCASTER

Rebecca Gallagher, Innkeeper and Owner

HISTORIC SMITHTON INN

Larry George, Executive Director

BEHAVIORAL HEALTH/DEVELOPMENTAL SERVICES

Barry Kidd, Vice President of Hotels

DOMMEL’S HOTEL MANAGEMENT

Matt Knepper, Director

AGRICULTURAL PRESERVE BOARD

Joanne Ladley, Board Chair

DISCOVER LANCASTER

John Mavrides, Director

PROPERTY ASSESSMENT

Lois Miklas, Master Gardner Coordinator

PENN STATE EXTENSION

Melvin Newcomer, Esquire

Assistant County Solicitor

James Noel, IV, Solicitor

LANCASTER COUNTY HOSPITAL AUTHORITY

Stephanie Shirk, Client Relationship Manager

PENN STATE EXTENSION

Steve Sikking, General Partner & Owner

FULTON STEAMBOAT INN AND EDEN RESORT

John Smucker
BIRD-IN-HAND CORPORATION

– Continued –
 –2–
Lancaster County Commissioners’ Work Session
Tuesday, November 14, 2017

Mary Turnbaugh, President

SAINT ANNE’S RETIREMENT COMMUNITY

David Twaddell, Esquire, Bond Counsel to Saint Anne’s Retirement Community

RHOADS & SINON

Russ Urban, President

HIGH HOTELS

Paul Weiss, Administrator

DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION

Commissioner Stuckey called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m.

Commissioner Stuckey announced that the Board of Commissioners met in Executive Session on Monday, November 6, 2017 at
11:25 a.m. to discuss the Hoteliers lawsuit and Personnel Issues and on Monday, November 13, 2017 at 10:40 a.m. to discuss the Padilla case,
the Hoteliers lawsuit and Personnel Issues.

Commissioner Stuckey announced the approval of the August 29, 2017 Work Session Minutes, October 10, 2017 Work Session
Minutes and October 24, 2017 Work Session Minutes; and the postponement of approval of the October 17, 2017 Work Session Minutes and
October 31, 2017 Work Session Minutes.

Commissioner Stuckey re-announced there will be no Work Session on Tuesday, November 21, 2017.

Commissioner Stuckey announced a Special County Commissioners’ Meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 28, 2017, at 6:00
p.m. at the Lancaster County Government Center, 150 North Queen Street Annex, first floor conference room, Lancaster, for the purpose of
discussing the proposed 2018 County budget. Public participation is invited.

1. Ms. Shirk, Client Relationship Manager, Dr. Elkner, Horticulture Educator, and Ms. Miklas, Master Gardner Coordinator, presented a
PowerPoint on the Spotted Lantern Fly in Lancaster County and the potential impact in Lancaster County.

Ms. Shirk said this invasive pest, which comes from China, Vietnam and Korea, was found in Berks County in 2014, and can greatly
affect the grape, apple, peach and hardwood industries.

Dr. Elkner covered the basics of the spotted lanternfly and the state's response, along with Penn State research on management
strategies based on the pest's biology and behavior. The spotted lantern fly presents a significant threat worth nearly $18 billion to
Pennsylvania and the state Department of Agriculture has imposed a 13-county quarantine regulating the movement of plant
materials and outdoor objects from the quarantine zone. Dr. Elkner shared that Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences and
Penn State Extension are at the forefront of education and research which will help growers and property owners understand how
to identify the insect, what to do if they find it and how to comply with agency regulations.

More information can be found at http://www.agriculture.pa.gov/plants_land_water/plantindustry/entomology/spotted_lanternfly.

Penn State Extension will offer a free, web-based seminar to local elected officials, county and municipal staff, agency personnel and
others on December 12, 2017 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and will be recorded for later viewing. To participate, go to the
following URL: https://psu.zoom.us/j/162163551.

2. Ms. Shirk, Client Relationship Manager, presented an Amendment to an Agreement on behalf of Penn State Extension.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

3. Mr. Noel, Solicitor, Mr. Twaddell, Bond Counsel, Ms. Turnbaugh, President, and Ms. Bard, CFO, presented Resolution No. 93 on
behalf of the Lancaster County Hospital Authority for financing of a project for Saint Anne’s Retirement Community.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

4. Mr. Brubaker, Grant Specialist, presented a Project Modification Request on behalf of the District Attorney’s Office.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

5. Mr. Fasnacht, Senior Buyer, presented a Bid Award for Pest Control Services on behalf of Purchasing.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

6. Mr. Knepper, Director, presented a Contract of Sale of Agricultural Conservation Easement on behalf of the Agricultural Preserve
Board.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

– Continued –
 –3–
Lancaster County Commissioners’ Work Session
Tuesday, November 14, 2017

7. Mr. George, Executive Director, presented Amended Agreements and Agreements on behalf of Behavioral Health/Developmental
Services.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

8. Mr. Peters, Chief Clerk, Mr. Mavrides, Director of Assessment, and Mr. Newcomer, Assistant County Solicitor, presented Resolution
No. 95 – 2018 Reassessment Millage Rate.

NOTE: For more information please refer to the County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes dated November 15, 2017.

9. Ms. Ladley, Board Chair, and Ms. Frankford, President, presented a Proposed Ordinance to Increase the Hotel Room Rental Excise
Tax from 1.1% to 3% on behalf of Discover Lancaster.

Ms. Ladley said funding for marketing and promoting Lancaster County as a destination is eroding at a time when competitors are
expanding their marketing budgets.
Ms. Frankford said Discover Lancaster’s mission is to stimulate economic growth throughout the county by encouraging people to
visit. Her PowerPoint presentation offered research which indicates the increase is needed in order to effectively promote
Lancaster County as a destination and asked the Board to advertise and support the ordinance.

Mr. Smucker, Ms. Gallagher, Mr. Ackerman, and Mr. Urban made comments in support of the requested increase.

Ms. Sikking, Mr. Duncan and Mr. Kidd made comments in opposition of the increase.

Commissioner Lehman stated that, in his opinion, “the well has been poisoned” and that the parties are simply too far apart to
compromise. He expressed profound disappointment on that point. Commissioner Lehman also suggested modifying Discover
Lancaster’s proposal to include a five-year sunset provision, along with other implementing language, to see if Discover Lancaster
can deliver the impact predicted. Commissioner Lehman also indicated that he would only provide one vote towards a rate
increase, excise tax or hotel room rental tax, and only if it provides additional stable tourism & marketing dollars and places the
convention center on firmer financial footing. He also stated that putting the Convention Center on firmer financial footing benefits
the County because it reduces the risk that the County guarantee on the Convention Center debt, which he opposed, will ever be
called. He doesn’t want County property taxpayers to ever have to pay any part of the Convention Center’s debt.

Commissioner Parsons made the following statement:

Thank you all for being here and your comments. I truly appreciate your thoughts and the time you have taken to attend here today.
I also appreciate those on both sides who have answered my request for information and data.
In February 2017 Discover Lancaster (DL) released to the media a proposal for the Board of Commissioners (BOC) of Lancaster
County to raise the Lancaster County Hotel Excise tax from its current 1.1% to 3%, thus generating more revenue for DL.
After releasing their proposal to the media, DL provided this proposal to the Commissioners.
Currently there is a 3.9% Hotel Room Rental Tax, which funds the Lancaster County Convention Center Authority and 1.1% Hotel
Excise Tax, which generates about $1.8 million a year in revenue that is directed to DL for tourism marketing.
The crux of DL’s argument is that there has been a substantial decrease in their media spending – from $1.8 million in 2011 to
$550,000 in 2016. Thus, because media marketing of Lancaster County is their core business, they seek to increase their media
spending to higher levels.
My first question to DL, as it is to any entity that seeks more tax revenue, was: why is the current revenue not enough? I have not
taken a no tax pledge, but as a fiscal conservative I have pledged to 1.) ensure I thoroughly understand the need, 2.) understand if it
is real, and 3.) understand whether there are other viable courses of action available.
To that end I requested DL’s full budget, including personnel/ salary information and other expense and revenue detail. After several
requests I was provided with a 2017 projected budget document. This document did not have individual salary information for
employees, but did show the aggregate projected numbers. Later I was provided documents with more detail.
The DL budget reveals approximately $3.3 million in income. Approximately $1.8 million of that is current Excise Tax revenue.
The revenue numbers lead to the following question: why, if media advertising is the core business of DL, is only $550,000 of $3.3
million allocated to that mission?
Thus, there appears to be significant revenue not currently directed to the media budget.
As to the follow up question – are there other viable course of action – subsequent to my meeting with DL I found out that there had
been a voluntary Tourism Improvement District (TID) proposed at one point in 2015. I have asked for information from DL about
why that proposal was not viable as a source of new revenue and/or why it did not come to fruition. DL indicated there had been
significant support for the TID, but negotiations broke down over who would have power to appoint members to the TID Authority.
I do not have full information on this, but it appears a possible viable alternative to a tax increase was discussed, but not implemented.
Thus, I have unresolved questions given the current revenue and whether there is a viable alternative that could have been tried.
Lastly, the County must keep in mind questions about the judgment of using up hotel tax capacity given the interest in long term
viability of the Convention Center. There has been much debate over the Convention Center since its inception. But, given the BOC’s
2014 agreement, before I was on the BOC, which guaranteed all of the Convention Center’s approximately $60 million in debt, there
can be no doubt that the County taxpayer’s interest is in the continued success of that enterprise so that the debt guarantee is never
called.
In response to my inquires, DL has undertaken certain cost saving measures in an effort to direct more of their current revenue and
their core mission of advertising. I am pleased with those efforts and am interested in seeing whether they bear fruit. I think that is
responsible to do before considering more revenue. By the way – I apply that same rigor to our own internal organization as well.
Examples include Children and Youth Agency and the Prison.
Lastly, I would say that the continuing conflict between DL and the Hoteliers is unhelpful to the County and County taxpayers. We
must be united in our efforts to market Lancaster County. Things like the lawsuit filed against the County by GHLMA, which is
beyond frivolous, as well as things like the implied threat in DL’s letter of Nov 8, where DL states that without new lodging tax DL

– Continued –
 –4–
Lancaster County Commissioners’ Work Session
Tuesday, November 14, 2017

will “have no choice but to insist on its 20 percent of the HRRT under any new collaboration agreement.” Going forward I am
looking for leadership in both organizations who can collaborate, compromise, and work together. We do that here on this Board.
There ought to be some way we can do that with you as well on both sides.

Commissioner Stuckey confirmed that the Board was not in favor of advertising the ordinance at this point in time but they will
certainly consider all input.

A copy of the presentation is on file in the Commissioners’ Office.

10. On motion of Commissioner Parsons, seconded by Commissioner Lehman, the following re-appointment was made to the
South Central Transit Authority and Red Rose Transit Authority Board, five year term through December 31, 2022.

Ms. Donna “Bonnie” Glover

Community Action Partnership
P.O. Box 359
Lancaster, PA 17608-0359

Lancaster County resident.

Motion passed unanimously.

11. Ms. Johnson presented the November 15, 2017 Commissioners’ Meeting Agenda noting no changes.

12. On motion of Commissioner Lehman, seconded by Commissioner Parsons, the meeting was adjourned at 12:14 p.m.

Motion passed unanimously.

Respectfully submitted,

Christine M. Carrigan, Executive Assistant

Commissioners’ Office