COMMISSIONERS’ PROCEEDINGS
DECEMBER 11, 2023
Agenda:
8:30 – Bills
8:45 – Cammie Heaton – Workforce Grant
9:00 – Open Bids – Ambulance & Fire Truck
9:30 – Tony Martin – Public Works
The Board of Stevens County Commissioners met in a regular session. Paul Kitzke, County Attorney and Amy Tharp, County Clerk were also present. Pat called the meeting to order. Tron moved to approve the minutes from the previous commissioner meeting. Joe seconded. Motion carried. Joe moved to approve the county vouchers. Tron 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 | $ 67,031.81 |
| Judicial District | $ 3,187.08 |
| Road & Bridge | $ 82,304.23 |
| Airport | $ 27,034.71 |
| County Building | $ 12,192.46 |
| Noxious Weed | $ 6,169.35 |
| EMS | $ 11,732.15 |
| Fire | $ 2,901.78 |
| Community Health | $ 14,523.33 |
| Comm Health Grants | $ 165.50 |
| Fire Equipment | $ 5,584.80 |
| Fire Bequest | $ 55.00 |
| EMS Equipment | $ 5,584.79 |
| EMS Bequest | $ 55.00 |
| Sheriff | $ 43,653.60 |
| Reg of Deeds Tech Fund | $ 292.00 |
| TOTAL: | $ 282,467.59 |
Theresa Dasenbrock and Lisa Axeman from Lewis, Hooper and Dick, LLC were in attendance. Amy Tharp asked Theresa and Lisa about the Alcohol Treatment Fund and Theresa said this fund is for alcohol and drug use treatment and can be used for whatever is needed to help fund these treatment plans or funds for the county. Pat also asked about the landfill closure and post closure and Theresa said it will be a part of the general fund plan. Amy Tharp also asked about the concrete for the museum and stated the minutes from July 10th, 2023, showed where the commissioners agreed to $14,000.00 concrete work to be done for sidewalks around the museum. Pat said he was not aware of the ramps at the museum being concreted. Pat asked if the museum board or county commissioners are responsible for the buildings and property at the museum. Theresa said if the building and property is owned by the county board of commissioners then the commissioners are responsible and the appropriate boards need to request work to be done and follow appropriate county bidding procedures, especially if the entity is requesting the county to pay for those bills. The museum bill for new concrete is $12,300.00 and the county commissioners previously paid $8,800 for a different concrete bill in August. The commissioners agreed to pay $5,200 of the current concrete bill to reach the $14,000.00 previously agreed upon in July.
Pat asked how the county is not coming up short on budgets at the end of the year with taxes not coming in from the grocery store, KDI and Sunrise Hospitality. Theresa stated it was because they were not accounted for incoming taxes in the previous years, so the budgets did not include those taxes as income. Pat asked how the IRB and IRBX’s get their taxes included if it’s tiered. Amy and Theresa stated it was because the Appraiser figures the amounts on the tier and gives that information to the clerk which gets figured into the levy and forwarded to the treasurer to send out tax statements.
Ross Sullivan said the wall at the Memorial Hall entrance has been completed and wood was replaced at the bottom where it was rotted out. Ross said there was about a half inch (1/2”) gap running where the wall met the foundation, so Ross filled it with gap sealer. Ross also ran water on the outside and water was coming up from the bottom corner of the building which will need to be fixed. Ross suggested putting a sloped sidewalk out there and seal it with some sort of water guard and the tree on the west side of the building will need to be removed. Ross will contact some concrete contractors and see what needs to be done to keep water out of the building and to get an estimate. Ross said the health department needs new controls for the boiler and plans to get a quote on one to help run diagnostics. The chiller is new and has updated control systems so it should be fine.
Cammie Heaton came in and told the commissioners she had applied for the workforce grant in August and was awarded $105,964.00 which will be paid out in four (4) years at $26,000.00 annually. Cammie stated this grant is to help with staff support pay. So far the health department has given 36 COVID Moderna vaccines and Cammie plans to order 50 more and contact the care home to see if they are interested in getting vaccinated. Cammie said they have completed their flu vaccine clinics.
Amy asked Theresa and Lisa about the diversion fund and stated it is funding the county attorney must approve what the fund is used for. Theresa said the commissioners have the ultimate say but yes, the attorney will need to approve the expenditures as well. Amy asked about the fair food, footballs, hats, and other items the sheriff has purchased with the diversion fund if those items the sheriff purchased can be taken out of the special law enforcement fund. Theresa said the sheriff can decide what to use the special law enforcement fund on. Paul said he didn’t feel the footballs, basketballs, hats, and other items stating “Stevens County Sheriff” should be taken out of diversion as he feels it is a form of campaigning. Theresa said if it is not something that is routine or specifically coming out of the general fund then it should come out of the department’s own budget. Paul said he was unaware of the usage of the diversion fund balance until he called the clerk’s office and realized it was down and wanted to use the fund for something such as “shop with a cop” for Christmas or gifts for those in need. Theresa said if the sheriff feels it’s an appropriate expenditure it should come out of the sheriff fund or special law enforcement fund. Paul said he doesn’t mind using the diversion fund for certain items but stated he didn’t want any issues with some people assuming some items are for campaigning. Theresa said Paul will need to sign off on any funds coming from the diversion fund moving forward.
Pat asked how much the Memorial Hall is being rented out for and Amy said it depends on if the kitchen is used and how many hours it is in use. Pat said he noticed how much was being paid to clean and was curious if the rates need to be changed. Pat also inquired about the Nex-Tech fees and thought they were in the ballpark of $600.00 per month, not $4,000.00 per month. Amy said she is waiting to get an estimate from Rusty on what he would charge to act as IT for the courthouse and community health department.
Rodney Kelling was in and said the box for the truck had been installed.
Bid opening for the 1996 Ambulance with VIN #1FDKE30F4TH832115:
- Thomas Willis $5,100.02
- Jim Kraisinger $3,501.00
- Roger Koski $2,773.00
Tron made a motion to accept the high bid for the 1996 ambulance in the amount of $5,100.02. Joe seconded. Motion carried.
Bid opening for the 1975 fire truck, VIN #F66EVW21538:
- Darroll Munson $522.28
Rodney said the 1,000-gallon tank and pump alone is worth more than the bid but the steering is shot, fuel is leaking around the carburetor. Paul said if needed, the county needs to start putting in minimum bid amounts. Rodney stated he thought Darroll wanted to use the firetruck as a donation for Meade State Lake. Paul said purchasers/winning bidders need to sign an agreement for as is/where is with a fourteen (14) day removal statement.
Joe made a motion to accept the winning bid of $522.28 by Darroll Munson, with signing of as is/where is and understanding of the fourteen (14) day removal. Tron seconded. Motion carried.
Rodney requested the funds go to the equipment fund.
Tony Martin came in and requested a resolution to adopt the waste management plan for the landfill for the year 2024.
Tron made a motion for Resolution 23-05 Adopting Waste Management Plan for the year 2024. Pat seconded. Motion carried.
Tony spoke with Dell Cullison about a new contract for the gravel pit and stated the other interested party has backed out. The old contract was for five (5) years and Tony has made an agreement to go down to three (3) years of $2,600.00 per month and at the end of each year split the difference depending on how much gravel was loaded for the year. Pat asked if the gravel pit is considered as mining and if there are any fees with closing. Tony said the county has a license with the state and the topsoil will need to be pushed off and pit pushed in when closed then replace it with the topsoil. Tony said he spoke with Dell and said Grant County purchased a gravel pit, but Dell said at this time he is not looking to sell.
Tony said he received a call from Dave Treaster from Wichita and stated in 1969 or sometime around there someone had written some zoning regs and Stevens County has used them at one time. Tony asked Amy if she could look to see if she had a copy of them as he cannot find them in his files.
Pat asked Tony about the totes coming into the landfill and Tony said the iron people are getting picky and want the plastic out of them. Tony said he is having those dropping off the iron totes to remove the plastic themselves or cut the tanks in half before taking them to the landfill. Tony asked about charging for roll-offs and Pat agreed stating it should be a tonnage fee for the roll-offs.
Tony requested a five (5) minute executive session for non-elected personnel.
Joe made a motion to go into executive session with Tony Martin over non-elected personnel. Tron seconded. The executive session began at 9:26 AM and concluded at 9:30 AM. No action taken.
Tony told the commissioners he will not be in on December 26th.
Joe asked Tony about the wind/solar zoning regulations and if anything had started yet. Tony said he does not have anything to look at yet and is waiting on Glenn Kerbs to get a draft for the planning and zoning board to review and discuss if they want to make changes. Paul said he will get in touch with Glenn Kerbs and see where he is on the regulations. Tony stated it is a long process because when the zoning board reviews and decides on changes, there will have to be a two (2) week notice before it can be presented to the commissioners for review. The zoning board is also waiting to see if there needs to be any special regulations for the FAA due to the airport. Pat said it is important to have a PILOT program and he would like to make sure it is solid. Joe said the county can use a moratorium if more time is needed to get things together for this deal. Tony said the county is zoned so Stevens County cannot fall under those rules. There was further discussion over the planning and zoning regulations for wind/solar farms.
Pat noticed the school is charging the county for the resource officer to eat and the county is not charging the school for the resource officer. Amy said it is probably due to OPA rules.
Joe asked if anyone had heard anything from Sunrise Hospitality. Pat said he gave the information to Carrie, and she stated it was the only bill she had received. Amy said it is because it has never been in the tax rolls until this year. The warranty deed was set up in the IRBX for the city in lieu of Sunrise Hospitality as that was how the rules used to be but have since been changed to allow the entity who owns the company to have their name on the IRB’s. Paul stated someone should call Gilmore and Bell to facilitate all the IRB’s and ask them if the warranty deed can be changed back to Sunrise Hospitality for them to start receiving the tax bills. Amy stated Jayme had sent a letter and has tried to contact someone from Sunrise Hospitality over the tax issue. Amy called Jayme and asked if she had heard back, and Jayme stated she has not heard back from Sunrise Hospitality. Pat asked Paul if there is something the county can do to retrieve those missed taxes from Sunrise Hospitality, Paul said to let him know what they want done.
Ross Sullivan was in appearance and stated the AA building needs new doors and possibly windows. The commissioners agreed the building needs new doors and they need to be steel doors. Ross said he will get an ad in the Hugoton Hermes for sealed bids on the steel doors to be open on the December 26th commissioner meeting at 10:00 AM. Ross also stated KCAMP will pay a portion of the work needed on the Moscow Senior Citizens roof due to hail damage and help repair the leaks. The commissioners told Ross to get something written up for the newspaper to have bids for the Moscow Senior Center roof and to get costs of sprayed and replaced. They said the work will need to be done in the spring as the weather is too cold now to do roofing work.
Amy read a letter of resignation from the Economic Development board sent by Jack Rowden and stated the commissioners need to find a replacement. The commissioners stated maybe the candidate in 2024 who wins Hugoton mayor would be interested.
Amy stated Danny purchased a lot in the Pioneer Addition and would like to deed the lots back to the county. Pat stated there was a clause in the agreement that a house needs to be built within three (3) years of the lot being purchased or the lot will be turned back over to the county. Tron stated that clause came into after the Christian Brothers purchased the lots. The commissioners agreed to take the lot back without purchasing it and it will need to be deeded back to Stevens County Board of Commissioners.
Amy asked the commissioners if they are going to give the county employees a COLA. The commissioners discussed COLA for county employees.
Tron made a motion to give county employees a COLA in the amount of $1,350.00 for the year. Pat seconded. Motion carried.
Amy brought up the Christmas holiday closure for 2024 saying the handbook states the county will be closed on Christmas Eve depending on the day it falls on. Further discussion over county holidays was held with Joe stating the courthouse should be open the day following Thanksgiving and should not be closed on Christmas Eve, only Christmas day. Pat stated he is in agreement with the county closing at 3:00 PM or 4:00 PM on Christmas Eve but not any earlier. No action taken on changing the county holiday closings for 2024.
Added and Abated Orders were reviewed and approved by commissioners and given to the County Treasurer; for tax year 2022 number 230 total valuation removed 2,211 and tax assessed -$428.71; for tax year 2023 number 11-12 and 19-21, total valuation added 3,990 and tax assessed $528.74, and order number 9, 10, 13 and 18-21 total valuation removed 18,705 with tax -$3,123.59. Total valuation of -12,507 and total tax assessed -$3,023.56.
By motion, the Board adjourned.
Attest: Amy Jo Tharp, County Clerk
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Pat Hall, Chairman