Adjourned Meeting of the Geary County Commission Minutes

ADJOURNED MEETING OF THE GEARY COUNTY COMMISSION MINUTES March 4, 2013

Commissioners Present: Ben Bennett and Florence Whitebread

Commissioners Absent: Larry Hicks (attending NACo Legislative Conference)

Chairman Bennett called the meeting to order and the pledge of allegiance was recited.

Rebecca Bossemeyer, County Clerk discussed the following:  Reported as per bond counsel, John Haas, Ranson Financial Consultants, the bond sale for the Geary Co. GO Refunding Bonds, Series 2013 will not happen today because of the weather and illness. The new date has been moved for the bond sale to be March 18 with a closing date of April 1.

Sheriff Tony Wolf presented the weekly report:  Reported there are 89 prisoners in our detention center today and the high for last week was 100.  Reported the two new Chargers are here. Radio equipment and light bars will be installed this week and should be on the road soon.  Discussed the restructuring he did in the department, effective date 2-25-2013. He said everything has been running smoothly since the changes.  Reported he is 5 deputies short and will be going through the interview and testing process this week. Sheriff Wolf left the meeting.

Lisa Eickholt, Human Resources, presented the weekly report:  Reported she has received the resumes to review for the Flint Hills Regional Council Director.  Reported she has completed the open records request for payroll information from Mark Sanders.  Reported that Jennifer is on vacation this week and with the voice mail system still not working, she will be checking with Nex Tech to see if they can do anything short term to get a voice mail system. She is also going to check on call forwarding for when she is out of the office. Mrs. Eickholt left the meeting.

Rebecca Bossemeyer, County Clerk, discussed the following:  Presented minutes from January 14. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of January 14. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Presented minutes from January 22. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of January 22. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Presented minutes from January 28. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of January 28. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Presented minutes from February 4. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of February 4. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Presented minutes from February 11. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of February 11. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Presented minutes from February 19. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of February 19. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye. Minutes 03-04-2013 Page 2

 Presented minutes from February 25. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the minutes of February 25. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Presented cereal malt beverage licenses for approval. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the cereal malt beverage license for Milford Lake Marina, LLC and the license for John and Kaye Deam (Thunderbird Marina) for sale in original and unopened containers and not for consumption on the premises and a second license for John and Kaye Deam (Thunderbird Marina) for consumption on the premises. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye  Presented a Commission Change Order. Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve Commission Change Order 2012-392. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Commissioner Whitebread moved to approve the Notice of Bond Sale and Bid Form relating to the sale of General Obligation Refunding Bonds, Series 2013, which establishes March 18, 2013 as the sale date for such Bonds, and April 1, 2013, as the closing date for such Bonds. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Provided an update on the preparations for the city/school election. Clerk Bossemeyer left the meeting.

The Department Head meeting began at 11:05 with the following present: Lisa Junghans, Animal Shelter Director; Shirley Ehrlich, Appraiser; Connie Hall, Convention and Visitors Bureau; Therese Hoff, Deputy County Clerk; Audie Magana, Court Trustee; Alice Adams, District Court Clerk; Chuck Otte, Extension; Pat Hunter, Health Department; Lisa Eickholt, Human Resources; David Yearout, Planning and Zoning; Dennis Cox, Public Works Administrator; Diane Briestensky-Leonard, Register of Deeds;

Department Heads absent: Steve Opat, County Attorney; Meredith Butler, Director of Community Corrections; Kathy Tremont, Treasurer; Tony Wolf, Sheriff; Garry Berges, Emergency Management

Chairman Bennett discussed the following:  Inventories are due.  Thanked department heads for cooperation during snow days.

Commissioner Whitebread discussed the following:  Reported she received good comments about the snow removal on the roads in the county and said she is very proud of the employees in Geary County for their service and dedication.  Reminded everyone of the election on April 2 and the candidate forum coming up and stressed the importance of voting.

David Yearout, Planning & Zoning, discussed the comprehensive plan he has been working on and discussed other development going on in the area.

Chuck Otte, Extension, reminded everyone to get their Walk Kansas teams signed up.

Connie Hall, Convention and Visitors Bureau, reported the Symphony in the Flint Hills tickets went on sale this morning. Minutes 03-04-2013 Page 3

Pat Hunter, Health Department, thanked the public works department for doing a good job of clearing the snow in the parking lots and sidewalks.

Alice Adams reported she has a new employee and thanked Dennis and the Public Works Department for their snow removal and work they do for the courthouse.

Steve Opat, County Attorney/Counselor, arrived at 11:20.

Audie Magana, Court Trustee, reported the Department of Child & Family Services is wanting to get request for proposals for child support enforcement services for 10 years. Mr. Magana explained how this could affect his operation.

Shirley Ehrlich, Appraiser, reported the Change of Value notices have been sent out.

Diane Briestensky-Leonard, Register of Deeds, reported the month has been slower, compared to last year. She is on-line with a few abstractors now and charging $1500 a year for that service. Chairman Bennett commented that should cut down on traffic in her office, which she agreed.

Lisa Junghans, Animal Shelter, reported the numbers are down. The shelter has received a donation of dog food and other supplies from Dorothy Stewart’s pet shop. Ms. Junghans discussed a seminar she and a few members of her staff attended about stress and depression in working with animals and situations that arrive at the shelter.

Steve Opat, County Attorney/Counselor, reported his office has been staying busy with unemployment cases, tax sale and criminal cases.

The Department Head meeting ended at 11:27. The group left the meeting.

The meeting recessed for lunch from 12:00 to 1:15

Dennis Cox, Public Works Administrator, presented the weekly report:  Presented a request for payment from Bridges Inc. for work on the Clarks’ Creek Bridge Abutment repair project, which includes a $6,402 change order to cap the top with concrete instead of dirt. Commissioner Whitebread moved for payment to Bridges Inc. in the amount of $86,220.52. Commissioner Bennett seconded and all voted aye.  Discussed the Walla Walla bridge project, received an estimate cost of $169,000, with the bid letting in July with the Liberty Hall bridge project being bid at that time also. Mr. Cox left the meeting.

Dr. Joseph Stratton, CEO, Geary Community Hospital presented the monthly report:  Reported on physician recruitment. They will be trying to hire two family practitioners within the next 6-9 months  Financial report for last month was good, numbers were in the black.  Reported that Tera Stroda, midwife in the OB practice, won the Citizen of the year award from the Chamber of Commerce.  100 year celebration will be starting in April.  Discussed the strategic planning session to be held on Friday. Dr. Stratton left the meeting. Minutes 03-04-2013 Page 4

Deb Johnston, citizen, arrived at the meeting. Mrs. Johnston stated that she had requested and received copies of documents relating to charges made on the commissioners’ credit cards. She expressed concern about the usage for personal items, movies, room service, and alcohol. She stated there were a few instances where the attached paperwork indicated the wrong card was used or an instance where gas was charged on the county card for personal use. Deputy Clerk Hoff stated that some of the personal charges have been reimbursed. Mrs. Johnston said in the paperwork she received, there was nothing about reimbursement. Deputy Clerk Hoff said she will look into this.

Mrs. Johnston inquired about the validity of these charges and asked the commission if they thought this was a good use of taxpayer money. Chairman Bennett stated that this matter will be looked into and someone will contact Mrs. Johnston about her questions.

Mrs. Johnston stated that it took two weeks for her to receive the information she requested, and the law says it should be returned in three days. She also stated she had not received a call or anything as to why the information would be late in coming. Commissioner Whitebread stated that the request does not have to be completed in three days and she thought the Clerk’s Office had communicated with Mrs. Johnston. The commission will talk to Clerk Bossemeyer about this.

Bob Spiteri, citizen, arrived at the meeting.

John Stewart, citizen, arrived at the meeting.

Mr. Spiteri, Mr. Stewart, and Mrs. Johnston left the meeting.

Clerk Bossemeyer returned to the meeting and the commission inquired about her office filling Mrs. Johnston open records request. Clerk Bossemeyer stated that the law requires communication in three days about when the request will be filled. She stated that she or a member of her staff had communicated with Mrs. Johnston on several occasions. She further stated that when Mrs. Johnston picked up the copies she was very complementary of the work performed in the clerk’s office and did not indicate in she was unhappy with the service. Clerk Bossemeyer left the meeting.

The press conference was held.

There being no further business to come before the board of county commissioners, the meeting adjourned at 4:00 p.m.