[PAGE 1]
Greg Edds, Chairman Aaron Church, County Manager
Jim Greene, Vice-Chairman Sarah Pack, Clerk to the Board
Mike Caskey John W. Dees, II, County Attorney
Judy Klusman
Craig Pierce
Rowan County Board of Commissioners
130 West Innes Street ∙ Salisbury, NC 28144
Telephone 704-216-8181 ∙ Fax 704-216-8195
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE
ROWAN COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
March 16, 2026 – 6:00 PM
J.NEWTON COHEN, SR. ROOM
J.NEWTON COHEN, SR. ROWAN COUNTY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING
PRESENT:
Greg Edds, Chairman
Jim Greene, Vice-Chairman
Mike Caskey, Commissioner
ABSENT:
Craig Pierce, Commissioner
Judy Klusman, Commissioner
County Manager Aaron Church, County Attorney Jay Dees, Clerk to the Board Sarah Pack
and Chief Finance Officer Anna Bumgarner were also present.
Call to Order
Chairman Edds called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Chaplain Michael Taylor provided a
solemnizing prayer. Chairman Edds lead the Pledge of Allegiance.
Consider Additions to the Agenda
Chairman Edds said that a Duke Energy Easement for the Hangar Expansion - Corporate
Hangar would be added to the agenda as Consent Item S.
Consider Deletions From the Agenda
There were no deletions from the agenda.
Consider Approval of the Agenda
On motion of Greene, seconded by Caskey, the Board voted 3-0 to approve the agenda as
amended.
Consider Approval of the Consent Agenda
On motion of Greene, seconded by Caskey, the Board voted 3-0 to approve the Consent
Agenda as amended, as follows:
A. Consider Approval of the Minutes - 03/02/26 Regular Meeting
B. Budget Amendments, as follows:
Fund 103- Capital Projects Transfer funds to cover Telecom capital $10,728,278
project for towers
6400- Animal Services Appropriate funds to cover vouchers for
Equal Opportunity Employer

[PAGE 2]
the remainder of FY26 $7,727
4125-Finance Transfer funds to correct clerical error on $41,400
WC calculation on BA 08-875
4500- Transit Reconcile City of Concord Grants for $32,615
FY26
4500- Transit Appropriate funds to roll over City of $54,740
Concord grant and then move to T0001 for
reclassification
4950- Cooperative Ext To reconginze NRA Grant award to $3,387
cooperative extention
C. Request to Use County Property for Cruise-In/Car Show - 2026
D. NRA Grant Acceptance for Rowan County 4-H
E. Rowan-Cabarrus Community College North Campus Fire Training Center Project
F. Reclassification of Community Paramedic Position
G. Policy Exemption - DKM Media LLC - FY26-30 -Revised
H. Award Master Agreement for Landscape Architectural Services for Site Selection &
Design — Therapeutic Recreation Facilities - LandDesign
I. Schedule Legislative hearing for Z 01-26/SNIA 01-26 for the April 6th meeting
J. Policy Exemption - DSW - HD. (C26424)
K. Revised Library Hours of Operation
L. Schedule Legislative Hearing for Z 02-26: Jeremy Good, for April 6, 2026
M. Purchase/Install — New 800 MHZ Mobile Radios — Rowan Transit System
N. Approve Repair/Rebuild Cat 826K 2019 Compactor - Landfill - Carolina CAT
O. VTS & TAX REFUNDS FOR APPROVAL
P. Schedule Public Hearing-Road Naming-Wizard Way
Q. Sunday Morning Sporting Events Policy
R. Purchase - RCC – New Health Department Project – Furniture
S. Duke Energy Easement for Hangar Expansion - Corporate Hangar (**Agenda
Addition**)
Public Comment Period
Edds/caskey to extend the public comment period
Chairman Edds opened the floor for Public Comment and closed it after everyone wishing to
speak had done so.
Connie Byrne said there is confusion surrounding a potential data center. She requested the
Board share pertinent information with citizens regarding a data center.
Cheryl Malaguti said it is getting expensive to live in Rowan County. She asked what the
County can do to help residents. She requested a meeting with Commissioners.
Gabriel Malaguti said budget cuts related to HB1 are affecting residents. He gave statistics
regarding struggles that residents are facing.
Page 2 of 5 03/16/26

[PAGE 3]
Mark Ortiz said it may be difficult as a commissioner to face citizens with all of the
challenges the county is facing, including a data center on Long Ferry Road. He is worried about
power consumption related to the data center.
Adam Parnell is concerned about the noise that could potentially be produced by the data
center, particularly at a nearby church. He questioned if Duke Energy will raise rates due to the
data center’s energy usage.
Samantha Ring said data centers emit a low to high frequency noise 24 hours per day that
can cause hearing loss, mental health problems, and cardiovascular disease. Particulate matter
can also be released, affecting residents. Water systems may also be affected. She is concerned
about health and environmental impacts. Duke Energy is also declaring record profits while
raising prices to unsustainable levels. She noted that Board decisions regarding the data center
will leave a legacy.
Anthony Collins is a regenerative farmer who lives on Long Ferry Road. He suggested that
data centers will have a major impact on the future, especially for farmers. If pollution occurs or
energy costs are impacted, it could influence him to seek a home elsewhere. He advocated for
trying to live the American dream, and data centers will hinder that.
Sal Cerbone Jr. said he recently purchased property next to where the data center is
proposed and is disgusted by the land development happening adjacent to his property. He said
that Duke Energy has poisoned the local land and water is contaminated. He has no faith in the
government. He said residents are having to deal with the issues caused by this data center.
Chairman Greg Edds addressed the crowd, noting it was the first time in his tenure he had
stepped out to respond during public comment, emphasizing that the board typically does not
engage during that period. He reiterated expectations for respect and explained he wanted to
directly address concerns. He provided an update on the Long Ferry Road water line, including
past issues with water chemistry interacting with older plumbing, the county-funded fixes, and
plans to transfer the system to Salisbury-Rowan Utilities to reduce residents’ costs.
Chairman Edds clarified that there is currently no data center deal, no negotiations, and no
offers, though data centers were added as a permitted use for the site. He distinguished a separate
manufacturing company from any data center discussion and emphasized that many circulating
claims—such as county payments to developers or secret deals—are inaccurate. He explained
the county had proposed (but never paid) $4.2 million for road improvements tied to a prior
development agreement that did not materialize.
He outlined the county’s due diligence process, including studying water usage,
infrastructure costs, environmental impacts, and noise. He stated that any project would require
dedicated utility infrastructure paid for by the developer and noted the county’s intent to require
detailed studies and safeguards before any decision. He acknowledged community concerns
about water, environmental risks, and transparency, and committed to providing public
documentation and timelines online.
Page 3 of 5 03/16/26

[PAGE 4]
Chairman Edds also discussed broader economic development strategy, explaining the
county’s goal to shift its tax base toward a more balanced mix of residential and
commercial/industrial revenue to reduce pressure on property taxes. He highlighted significant
upcoming capital needs (schools, EMS, infrastructure, parks) and explained why large capital
investments—such as a potential data center—are financially attractive due to high tax revenue
with relatively low traffic impact.
He concluded by emphasizing that no final decisions have been made, that the county shares
many of the community’s concerns (especially water and environmental impacts), and that any
future action would depend on thorough evaluation and what is deemed in the best interest of the
county as a whole.
Donation to Animal Services
Chief Finance Officer Anna Bumgarner said Rowan County received a donation of
$456,435.94 for use by Animal Services.
Commissioner Caskey asked if the money had to be used any specific way.
Animal Services Director Maria Pannell shared several ideas for using the funds to improve
pet retention with the goal of keeping animals out of the shelter.
On motion of Greene, seconded by Caskey, the Board voted 3-0 to accept the donation to
Animal Services in the amount of $456,435.94.
Presentation & Approval – Statement of Work (SOW): Project 25 Public Safety Radio
Communications Systems Enhancements – Motorola
Emergency Services Chief TJ Brown discussed upgrading the public service radio system.
The proposal seeks to upgrade the core infrastructure of the existing system, beyond the
previously approved subscriber portable and mobile radios. Key improvements include
modernizing the microwave transmission links between towers and introducing a looped network
design for redundancy. This eliminates the current single point of failure at the tower, allowing
transmissions to reroute via alternate paths if needed.
A major safety feature involves enabling automatic vehicle location geographic positioning
system (GPS) tracking on radios. The system would transmit the user's position whenever the
radio is activated, and even send location updates roughly every 1.5 minutes when idle. This is
particularly valuable for law enforcement during foot pursuits or chases, enabling the 911 center
to track officers' real-time locations, even through backyards or areas with poor verbal
description, and quickly direct backup support.
Discussion arose about battery life concerns with GPS-enabled radios, based on past
experiences where batteries drained quickly (e.g., lasting only a few hours or around 11 hours
with thicker batteries). Chief Brown countered that current radios with GPS active have shown
no significant battery issues in their deployment, often lasting a full 12–20+ hours depending on
the battery type and usage. The department initially purchased two batteries per radio as a
Page 4 of 5 03/16/26

[PAGE 5]
precaution, and there are no plans to allow users to disable the location feature. Additional
batteries could be considered if needed.
The total turnkey project cost is $5,364,138.60. The board was asked to authorize the County
Manager to execute the Statement of Work, approve a budget amendment, and approve the
capital project ordinance. The budget amendment reallocates funds originally set aside for debt
service (since the project is now being funded without new debt) and pulls one year's debt
payment budgeted for an unfinished EMS station project. This created a roughly $2.3 million gap
covered by fund balance to fully fund the $5.365 million project.
Chief Finance Officer Bumgarner explained the need for a budget amendment.
On motion of Edds, seconded by Caskey, the Board voted 3-0 to authorize the County
Manager to execute the attached Statement of Work (SOW) with Motorola to begin the next
phase of the Public Safety Radio Communications Enhancements project, not to exceed
$5,364,138.60.
On motion of Edds, seconded by Greene, the Board voted 3-0 to approve the associated
budget amendment.
On motion of Edds, seconded by Caskey, the Board voted 3-0 to approve the associated
Capital Project Ordinance.
Financial Report
Anna Bumgarner, Chief Finance Officer, presented the financial reports, stating that
cumulative expenditures through February were up $6.8 million (5.34%) over the prior year;
revenues were up 2.1% overall (1.33%); property taxes through January rose $5.9 million
(5.52%); and sales tax through November increased $451,000 (2.48%), though November was
slightly down and December preliminary figures suggest a modest uptick. She noted sales tax
trends remain variable and require more time to assess fully for the fiscal year.
Adjournment
At 8:20 p.m., on motion of Greene, seconded by Caskey, the Board voted 3-0 to adjourn.
______________________________________
Sarah Pack, CMC, NCCCC
Clerk to the Board
Page 5 of 5 03/16/26