COMMISSIONERS PROCEEDINGS
MAY 11, 2020
Agenda: 8:30 – Bills
9:00 – Kayla Janko/Tiffany Bowen – Cimarron Basin
9:30 – Tony Martin – Road & Bridge
9:45 – Mark Hinde – SDSI
10:00 – Scott Kedrowski – RCDC
The Board of Stevens County Commissioners met in regular session with all members present. Paul Kitzke, County Attorney joined the meeting via Zoom. Also present were Amy Jo Tharp, County Clerk. Tron called the meeting to order. Joe moved to approve the minutes of the last meeting. Pat seconded. Motion carried. Joe moved to approve the county vouchers. Pat seconded. Motion carried. The Clerk was instructed to draw warrants on the Treasurer chargeable to the various funds of the county for the following amounts:
| General | $ 59,356.97 |
| Road & Bridge | $ 77,741.22 |
| Airport | $ 3,531.39 |
| Noxious Weed | $ 4,129.04 |
| EMS | $ 5,173.71 |
| Fire | $ 2,277.46 |
| NW Equipmetn | $ 464.97 |
| Alcohol Treatment | $ 250.00 |
| Community Health | $ 10,280.94 |
| Community Health Grants | $ 3,150.00 |
| Airport Grants | $ 3,994.85 |
| Emp P/R Misc W/H | $ 105.48 |
| Sheriff | $ 40,664.71 |
| TOTAL: | $ 211,120.74 |
Also present in the meeting via conference were: RoGlenda Coulter with the Hugoton Hermes, Kelsee Burnett, Tony Martin, Rodney Kelling, Kayla Janko, Mark Hinde and Scott Kedrowski.
Amy told the commissioners the plexiglass desk shields came in Friday and were distributed and put up today. She said they are connected to a stand and seem to be sturdy enough for the offices.
Tron said the auditors told him there was quite a bit of money being transferred from last year’s remaining budget and felt hopeful. Pat said he would like to hear back from Theresa (Lewis, Hooper and Dick auditor) on how to finish up the year with Seaboard being tax exempt. Discussion resulted in questioning the budget workshop on how this will go. Amy was instructed to let Theresa know the concerns of the commissioners so she can have the information for the budget workshop. Pat asked if anyone had heard anything about the valuation. With the natural gas being depleted and the price of oil, the valuation is going to drop very low.
Commissioners asked Tony how much four (4) miles of road costs to repave. He said it is $88,000.00 per mile per inch which is roughly just above $700,000.00 to complete. Tron asked if there is a way to cut costs in 2021 for roads. Tony said he has budget authority to purchase some product out of the special highway funds to keep the roads up and save the road and bridge budget.
Pat said there is money in the depletion trust fund but when it is spent, there is no more money. Tron said with this pandemic, it could be useful with helping businesses that had to close and now do not have funds to re-open.
Kayla Janko with Cimarron Basin joined in and told the commissioners she would like to request any donation/appropriation the county can help with. Currently, they see seventy-eight (78) felony probation cases in Stevens County but those cases are not all Stevens County cases. She stated she will be in sometime next week to have the chairman sign the inter local agreement.
The commissioners asked if anyone has been in recently to sign up for any of the candidate positions. Damon Simmons came in to get paperwork for District Magistrate Judge. Paula Sosa is retiring and will not be running. No one else has picked up paperwork. Amy did inform the commissioners Kelsee Burnett is going to run as a write-in for the District Magistrate Judge position. She cannot file or she will have to quit her current job as District Court Clerk.
Ted Heaton came in and discussed the value versus cost with Thrifty King. He said the off-brand items are costing as much as name brand and it is hard to cut costs on inmates. He isn’t trying to put a bad name to the grocery store because they have what he needs, he just says groceries are getting too costly. He said he is open to any ideas on saving money and is asking if the commissioners have any suggestions. Joe said he is a big supporter of buying within the county. Ted said he has been cutting medical costs by having Medicare come in and work with the doctor offices on rates. He has saved quite a bit of money doing the inmate medical that way.
Amy said the president of the SWKAC has reached out via mail and expressed concerns with possibly disbanding the association. The commissioners discussed the issues with the SWKAC and inquired on the cost per year to stay within the association. Amy said the annual cost is $100.00 per county. The commissioners said they will table the discussion for a later date.
Tony Martin said Stevens County was nominated to receive a grant for projects. He said the Moscow/Hooker road still has many wrecks from people just going across without stopping. He said Kirkham Michael will come up with a plan to fix it and not exceed the amount the state is giving. There will be signage at intersections and hopefully, flashing lights with the thought it will cut down on the wrecks. Commissioners agree to getting the intersections noticed more to cut down on wrecks.
Tony said weather permitting, the road patching will begin.
Mark Hinde with SDSI (Southwest Developmental Services Inc.) was in Zoom and discussed the quality of help for the individuals who meet the criteria for assistance. SDSI utilizes money for services for adults, transportation, Medicaid ineligible, low-income assisted living and other programs. He is very appreciative the county has always donated funds to help keep the program going. He showed the commissioners a waiting list for those requesting SDSI aid. He told them the list is usually due to waiting on information from the individual. The SDSI needs this information to give them assistance.
Mark said he is looking for a board representative for Stevens County. They only meet four (4) times a year and mileage and meals are provided.
Phillip Willis called in and said he is having a problem with the trash that has blown around caused by the weather. He would like to hire some college students for two to three (2-3) weeks to pick up the trash, before the landfill gets written up by the state. The commissioners agreed and said to pay them $10.00 per hour.
Ross Sullivan stopped in and Joe asked if he got a new mower for the grounds yet. Ross said he purchased one from Flatlanders and it is working well. The commissioners told Ross to have someone look at the tree in front and get a quote for trimming. They asked Ross if anyone has used the kitchen. Ross and Amy told them the Memorial Hall has been closed since the courthouse was shut down due to COVID-19. Amy told the commissioners they will not be opening the Memorial Hall until at least the next phase or when the courthouse opens back to normal. Ross said he has been dusting down the kitchen to keep it clean. He said he has sanitizer and Amy has several gallons being delivered so there should be plenty for a while. He has given a case of gloves to Amy to pass around plus Rodney gave some masks also he has some wipes with more on back order.
Jan Leonard spoke up on the zoom call saying there are some community service kids in Seward County who would probably be interested in doing their community service by picking up trash or other things Stevens County needs done if the commissioners are interested.
Scott Kedrowski the director for RCDC (Russell Child Development Center) called in and asked to speak with the commissioners. He said RCDC has been in service for fifty-five (55) years in Southwest Kansas. He informed the commissioners the RCDC helps families with newborns, preemies, micro-preemies and tiny-k kids. There were 107 children helped last year alone. In the past, they have received $22,050.00 from Stevens County and he is asking for a donation of $25,000.00. He did say any amount the commissioners will agree to pay would be greatly appreciated.
Amy expressed her concerns with conducting draw downs on grants for the airport. She told the commissioners the clerk office and treasurer’s office have never requested grant funds for any of the other departments and she is not wanting to be responsible for the airport. She told them after discussions with Sarah Smith on the Delphi program for the FAA, it is up to the county to determine who is allowed to do the draw downs in Delphi. Currently Amy Jo Tharp, Vanessa Willis and Dax Gaskill (prior airport board member) are the authorized Delphi users. Amy said she gets notified when the airport is waiting for the draw down and she has to get information from the airport in order to do the draw down. She feels she is too much in the middle with no knowledge about the grants to be useful. She said she spoke with Vanessa from the treasurer’s office and was told Kim Harper (previous airport board member) use to bring in the amount the grant/draw down was for so she knew when and how much to expect to see going into the bank account. He also brought the project number so she could have the information to place the correct funds into the correct account. Amy said she has an e-mail she is wanting to send to the airport board discussing this issue. She asked Paul if he had a chance to view it and if the commissioners would agree to discuss having different people being authorized. Paul told her the e-mail was fine and did express his concerns with having someone on the Delphi system from either the clerk or treasurer’s office in case something was to happen.
By motion, the Board adjourned.
Attest: Amy Jo Tharp, County Clerk ________________________________ Tron Stegman, Chairman