BY BETH VELLIQUETTE
bvelliquette@heraldsun.com; 419-6632
CHAPEL HILL -- As the Orange County manager attempts to reorganize departments and offices, members of two advisory boards said they are worried their volunteer work will be dismissed.
Orange County Manager Frank Clifton told the Board of Commissioners on Tuesday that he is integrating the Office of Human Rights and Relations into the Housing and Community Development Department in an attempt to avoid duplication of services and to cut costs.
In the consolidation, the director of Housing and Community Development will assume the role of directing the Office of Human Rights and Relations, and the position of director of Human Rights and Relations will be reclassified as grants compliance specialist.
During Tuesday's meeting, however, members of two advisory boards, the Council for Women and the Human Rights Commission, spoke against the merger. They said they fear their opportunities to volunteer, advocate for their issues and serve the county will disappear under the reorganization.
They also complained that they had not been informed about the reorganization and the possibility that their advisory boards would be dismantled.
The advisory boards comprise volunteers who work with Orange County staff to advise them on various issues, and they sometimes also sponsor and run programs.
Bryant M. Colson, vice chairman of the Human Relations Commission, asked the commissioners to reconsider merging the offices.
"The Office of Human Rights and Relations is needed as much as it's ever been," Colson said.
Marty Rosenbluth, a member of the Human Relations Commission, said it was not the way to move civil rights, women's rights and human rights forward, and that making such a change should be the topic of wide discussion and debate.
Shannon Jackson, chairman of the Commission for Women, also told the commissioners that the council had developed a successful mentoring program for girls, held a yearly Women's Agenda Assembly and those things could be lost if the Council for Women is disbanded.
Clifton told the commissioners that it's likely the county would continue working with the Human Relations Commission, but the county is considering working with a women's nonprofit group to deal with women's issues rather than the advisory board.
The commissioners voted 5-2, with Alice Gordon and Barry Jacobs voting against the package of recommendations Clifton offered.
The commissioners encouraged Clifton to consider changing the name of the Department of Housing and Community Development to reflect that it also includes Human Rights and Relations, and he said he would.
The commissioners will be discussing advisory boards and commissioners today during a retreat in Chapel Hill.
