Thursday, January 25, 2007

County begins interview process for county EM job

by Kenneth Lassiter

Five interviews for the emergency management director position were the main order of business for county commissioners Monday in a meeting that stretched into the late afternoon.

David Samuelson, Devan Tucking, David Hanna, Michael Cope and John Rodecap were the five candidates for the emergency management job called in for interviews Monday. Commissioners said another five candidates are set to be interviewed Jan. 29. Paula Phillips, Douglas County’s emergency management director, and Daryl Chess, fire chief of county fire district No. 8 (Oskaloosa) sat in to assist the commission in the interviews along with county counselor Jan Hayes.

The interviews combined to take up roughly four hours of the commission’s meeting time Monday as the meeting didn’t adjourn until 4:15 p.m.

Perhaps the other most interesting part of the meeting was health department director Eileen Filbert’s raising the possibility of a regional emergency preparedness exercise being held at Harrah’s Casino north of Topeka sometime in May. She said the lack of a closer large facility prepared to play host to officials from several counties for such an exercise led organizers to consider using a conference room at Harrah’s.

Commissioner Francis Grollmes said he had no problem with it and commissioner David Christy at first seemed reluctant to support the idea but stated the opinion he would be fine with it as long as the location didn’t disturb the business of the meeting. Commissioner Don Edmonds said he could see how having the meeting at the casino could open the county to criticism but, considering the need for adequate space for the event, he understood the organizers taking the idea into consideration.

In late action from the Jan. 16 meeting, commissioners suspended yet another county employee. After a 30-minute executive session with acting ambulance director James Tweed, paramedic John Shipley and Hayes, commissioners emerged into open session to suspend Shipley for two weeks without pay from Jan. 20 to Jan. 31 for “actions unbecoming a Jefferson County employee.”

Commissioners have now suspended four employees in two departments and fired two employees – ambulance department director Don Haynes and paramedic Steve Scott – in recent months.

In other business Monday, the commission:

• Approved vouchers and signed tax change orders.

• Heard an update from Eloise Tichenor, planning and zoning director. Commissioners signed conditional use permits approved at the Jan. 16 meeting.

• Heard an update from George Pogge, road and bridge superintendent. Pogge said no major problems arose during winter weather over the weekend and he had reordered more salt and sand to refill the county supply. Pogge reported the bid letting for the Lecompton Bridge project was set for 3 p.m. Tuesday at the courthouse in Lawrence.

• Heard an update from Filbert. Commissioners accepted a bid of $3,060 from George Royer for the sale of a health department pickup. The notice of termination form for the Indian Ridge Sewer District No. 2 sewer project was also signed.

• Accepted the decision of the grievance committee in Steve Scott’s employment matter. A request to see the grievance committee’s findings was disallowed by Hayes as she said she needed time to find out if the report is an open record.

• Met in executive session with Hayes and county clerk Linda Buttron for 15 minutes to discuss matters of attorney-client privilege.

• Met in executive session with Duanette Baker of geographic information systems and Hayes for 15 minutes to discuss matters of non-elected personnel.

• Accepted the bid of J.B. Pearl for chemicals for the auxiliary services department.

• Discussed property taxes with Jim Schonherr, who owns a storage facility business at 1003 Walnut Street in Oskaloosa. Appraiser Kathy Wagner also sat in on the discussion. Schonherr expressed issues with the assessment rate and valuation process for commercial property. Commissioners recommended Schonherr pursue legislative change to the law to help with the problem.

• Heard an update from Wagner. • Met in executive session with Hayes and Susan Newell, 911 director, for 35 minutes to discuss matters of non-elected personnel and attorney-client privilege. In other business at the Jan. 16 meeting, the commission:

• Signed vouchers, tax change orders and notices for cereal malt beverage licenses.

• Approved a conditional use permit for Donna and Ed Speich for an antique and convenience store along Ferguson Road near its junction with 62nd Street.

• Approved a conditional use permit for Selective Site Consultants to build a cellular tower along US-59 Highway between 27th and 37th streets. Conditions regarding maximum height, a performance bond, and additional accessibility on the tower were included.

• Appointed Bonnie Kramer, Winchester, to the planning commission for a term to expire in 2010.

• Adopted a resolution exempting the county from certain requirements under state statute, which is referred to as the GAAP waiver. Buttron reported this is a yearly move by the county.

• Heard an update from Pogge. Pogge reported Douglas County has stated the Lecompton Bridge will be closed no earlier than March 12 and will be opened and “substantially complete” no later than Aug. 10. There will be a provision in the contract for liquidated damages of $10,000 per day for failure to complete the project by Aug. 10.

• Heard an update from Mary Underwood, treasurer.

• Met with Bob Perry, bond counsel, and Ivan Godsey, general manager for Ernest-Spencer Metals, regarding the reissue of industrial revenue bonds for the company. Ernest-Spencer plans a $1.4 million expansion later this year and asked that the county continue a tax exemption for the bonds with the new expansion, which will include 11 new employees. Commissioners passed a resolution acknowledging receipt of notice from Ernest-Spencer regarding the issue of the bonds.

• Approved an EMT training class from Feb. 2 through May 7 with John Shipley as the instructor. His compensation of $190 for instructing the class will by provided through a $5,085 grant from the state board of emergency services.

• Heard a report from Buttron that the allowance of Jan. 2 as a county holiday resulted in personnel costs of $6,325 to the county. • Approved the contract for service with The Guidance Center.