COMMISSIONERS’ PROCEEDINGS
NOVEMBER 14, 2022
Agenda: 8:30 – Bills
8:45 – Karen Vines – HUB
9:00 – Shelby Martin – Wellness
9:30 – Tony Martin w/ Brent Chestnut – Benesch
10:00 – Fire Building Bids
10:15 – Trane (Community Health)
10:45 – Theel – Freedom Insurance
The Board of Stevens County Commissioners met in regular session. Amy Jo Tharp, County Clerk was also present. Tron called the meeting to order. Pat moved to approve the minutes of the last meeting. Joe seconded. Motion carried. Pat moved to approve the county vouchers. Joe seconded. Motion carried. The County Clerk was instructed to draw warrants on the Treasurer chargeable to the various funds of the county for the following amounts:
| General | $ 113,907.15 |
| Judicial District | $ 1,526.88 |
| Road & Bridge | $ 194,391.92 |
| Airport | $ 13,862.59 |
| ARPA | $ 500.00 |
| Noxious Weed | $ 5,054.10 |
| EMS | $ 14,770.30 |
| Fire | $ 7,317.82 |
| Community Health | $ 29,099.41 |
| Insurance Agency Damages | $ (3,414.78) |
| Sheriff | $ 78,763.85 |
| Alcohol Treatment | $ (212.50) |
| County Building | $ 400.00 |
| Library | $ 58,997.50 |
| Emp Misc W/H | $ 252.74 |
| TOTAL: | $ 515,216.98 |
Karen Vines came in and discussed information about insurance and the difference between HUB and Theel/Freedom. She stated the issue with Freedom using an HSA plan, is you never know if employees will use up what is left in contributions and the employer will end up paying more and not be able to set any money back in reserves. Not using an HSA plan will be less complicated and complex and will give the employer more control in changing options.
Shelby came in and stated Keely Hittle has been an asset at the gym and Shelby would like to keep her. Keely has been doing personal training for gym members and teaching a class. Keely is not currently employed by the county and gets paid by the clients she has; Erin gets paid by the county. If a person is not a gym member but is in Keely’s class, the person pays the gym $5.00 to get in for the day and pays Keely her fee. Shelby stated the turnout is great and, in the beginning, Keely was only going to be around for a month, now she is wanting to stay. Shelby turned in a Certificate of Liability for Keely. Amy Tharp asked if the commissioners are willing to allow people to teach classes and not be employed by the county as Erin and Keely are both teaching classes but handled differently and if there needs to be consistency. The commissioners told Shelby to revisit with Keely and see how long she plans on teaching classes.
Shelby said she still is not able to acquire an invoice for the QuickBooks (Intuit) program. Shelby turned in quotes for the Wellness Center roof repairs and stated AK Roofing had around $36,194.00 and AquaShield was around $41,000.00. The commissioners said they would table the roof issue and discuss it later.
Thea Schnittker was in attendance.
Brent Chestnut with Alfred Benesch and Company was in attendance with Tony Martin. Brent said landfill expansion and modification toward the east consists of surveys being put together and plans to be sent off to KDHE every year. Brent said KDHE is reviewing the plans but at this time, trying to find someone able to drill to a 120–130-foot depth and pull soil samples at the same time is a challenge. Brent recommended O’Malley Drilling out of Nebraska because everything is included in their cost, and they are cost efficient. The cost of all and four (4) additional wells will be around $85,000.00. Brent hopes everything could be completed in the springtime but will still need a public hearing. Joe asked about filling the landfill hole in and Brent said it is capped to go above ground for water runoff. Digging is estimated to be completed within two (2) years as the landfill is already more than half (1/2) full. The commissioners gave approval to move forward with O’Malley Drilling. Brent said Benesch would like plans to allow for cells in the entire property the county owns at the landfill area. Brent also stated KDHE has to approve the work for landfill expansion.
Joe made a motion to proceed with Benesch and Company for the landfill procedures. Pat seconded. Motion carried.
Tony asked the commissioners if the paint for the parking stripes can come out of the General Fund instead of Road and Bridge Fund as it is used for all departments, not just Road and Bridge. The commissioners agreed. Tony said he would also like the commissioner’s advice on raising the tipping fee. Currently the tipping fee is set at $20.00 per ton.
Tony said the Cullison contract is up in December, and he has been dealing with Dale Cullison instead of JW. Cullison is wanting to raise the price.
Rodney was present for the fire building insulation bids.
Two bids were received:
- AK Roofing $14,440.00
- Overhead Door $23,300.00
Pat made a motion to accept the AK Roofing bid of $14,440.00 to have six (6) doors in Moscow and two (2) doors in Hugoton insulated. Joe seconded. Motion carried.
Ted was in attendance and did not have anything new to report.
Mike Highland and Joe Reintejes with Trane were in to discuss the Community Health Department chiller and boiler issues. Mike suggested leaving the chiller and boiler setup as is and provide usage education for the building. He stated if the one wing could be kept closed off and the thermostats turned down it would greatly improve the issue. Pat asked if a new chiller needs to be built or if they should go smaller and exclude the unused wing. Mike said there would be a struggle with a smaller chiller and the better option is to shut off the wing which isn’t being used at this time. Mike did state the mother board for the chiller has failed and the boiler does need checked out. Mike and Joe R. stated they would not change the system but to get everything up and running to code it will cost around $150,000.00. ARPA funds have set aside $100,000.00 for the repairs on the Community Health Department heating and cooling system.
Jennifer Pickering from Freedom Claims came in and gave the commissioners more information on the insurance plan. Jennifer explained the employee would have two (2) cards, one would be Blue Cross and Freedom Claims. She stated if a provider doesn’t accept both cards, the employee would need to contact Freedom and they would handle the billing issues.
Thea Schnittker was in to discuss the IT for the county stating NexTech has better rates than Gilmore and would prefer to go with the lower rate option being offered. She stated if the county goes through NexTech for a two (2) year contract period that (based on history) it would be less expensive for the county to pay per issue needing resolution instead of having it included with the contract, especially keeping in mind the Treasurer’s Office had to even go outside of NexTech for resolution and pay for additional IT service. The commissioners agreed to stay with NexTech and any issues outside of the security and Microsoft to be billable.
Thea brought up a program to help people pay for the spay/neuter of cats and dogs within the county and wanted to know what the commissioner’s thoughts were. They asked who would be doing the spay/neuter and Thea stated it would probably be Prairie Pet Mobile Vet that will work with costs to make it affordable for citizens.
Amy Tharp told the commissioners the Hugoton Senior Center van needs new tires and asked if the county would be willing to help purchase new tires. The commissioners agreed not to help fund the tires as the van is not part of the building.
Amy Tharp asked the commissioners if they would be willing to help fund the theater $7,500.00 annually for upkeep. The commissioners asked what the City of Hugoton does and if the county had already agreed to a fund on an annual basis. Amy said she would look back through the minutes and find out what the City of Hugoton is doing annually to keep the theater.
Paul Kitzke said he would like to investigate independent council for the windfarms as the county should hire someone with knowledge of the issues as he is not confident he knows enough to keep the county out of trouble if the windfarms do come to the county.
The commissioners stated they will hold a special meeting after canvass on Tuesday, November 15th to choose employee insurance and see if there are any bids for the sidewalk outside and discuss with Ross about the carpet in the courthouse.
By motion, the Board adjourned.
Attest: Amy Jo Tharp, County Clerk
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Tron Stegman, Chairman