Commissioners to swear-in El-Amin and vote on Sheriff’s Office pay
BY TODD LUCK
THE CHRONICLE
Forsyth County commissioners will swear in Fleming El-Amin as its newest member and deal with Sheriff’s Office pay in its next business meeting.
The first order of business at the county commissioner’s meeting on Monday, March 27, at 2 p.m. will be approving the recommendation of the Forsyth County Democratic Party that El-Amin fill the seat vacated by the death of Commissioner Walter Marshall. El-Amin, a former Democratic Party chair and Board of Elections member, will then take his oath of
office.
After that, there will be several items on the agenda, including an increase in pay for sheriff’s deputies and detention officers to help with critically high law enforcement vacancies. The resolution will acknowledge the Winston-Salem Police Department as the closest competitor and raise starting salaries to match the WSPD’s next expected increase.
Starting salary for sheriff’s deputies would increase from $34,807 to $36,250. Starting pay for detention officers would increase from $32,487 to $35,163. These increases go into effect on April 22 and would include adjustments for current sworn officers.
The commissioners currently have two options on those adjustments for current employees. One gives them a raise equal to 50 percent of the difference between their current salary and the new market rate created by the starting salary increase. Including fringe benefits, this could cost the county up to $1.10 million annually and eliminates a temporary shift differential. The other option would be for a 25 percent increase, which will include the shift differential in its calculation, for up to $1.01 million.
“I just hope the board will consider the 50 percent option,” said County Commissioner Everette Witherspoon.
Also on the agenda is a resolution accepting $100,000 grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation to help pay for a road into a business park that the county is developing off Idol’s Road near Tanglewood Park. Furniture manufacturer Beaufurn has committed to purchasing the first lot and several companies have expressed interest in the other lots on the property.
Next month the county will need to make a commitment to pay to install sewer service for the park from a treatment plant being built by Davie County. This will cost $4.2 million. The county is planning on asking for $1 million from the town of Clemmons, which it is counting on annexing the currently unincorporated land.
The total project to develop all the land will ultimately cost about $10.8 million but will only bring in $8.3 million in revenue from property sales, grants and loans. However, if factoring in the tax revenue it’ll bring in over 20 years, the county will make $4.25 million.
