JOINT MEETING OF
THE
PERSONNEL &
ADMINISTRATION/FINANCE
AND
BUILDING,
TECHNOLOGY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT/SAFETY
Chairman Emig called the joint committee meeting to order at
Present: Commissioners Hoaglund, Brooks, Sikkema, Faber, Tiedt and Emig.
Also Present: Susan VanderPol-County Coordinator, Karen Bluhm-County Clerk, Jim Crawford-Sheriff, Alan Benson-Animal Control Director, Ed Nettle-EMS Director, Lance Cornelius-Maintenance Supervisor and Rick Chamoli-Cadillac News.
Moved by Commissioner Sikkema, support by Commissioner Brooks to approve the agenda as amended. Motion carried.
Public Comment: None.
Employee Comment:
Karen Bluhm,
Moved by Commissioner Brooks, support by Commissioner Sikkema to approve the committee minutes of July 17, 2007. Motion carried.
Moved by Commissioner Brooks, support by Commissioner Tied to approve the claims presented in the amount of $62,929.82. Motion carried.
Sheriff Crawford presented information on the acquisition of a LK-9 explosive dog. Yoplait approached the department earlier this year about donating funds to acquire a K-9 explosive dog. Several other donors have come forward and enough money has been procured to obtain such an animal. This dog would be trained in bomb and article search as well as tracking. The Sheriff talked to the committee members about the advantages of having a dog available in this area, with the main factor being faster response time. He also advised the dog could be used by neighboring agencies, for a fee of the deputy’s wages and mileage. The dog would be a German Shepherd and would be available in two weeks.
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Joint Committee Meeting
Recommendation by Faber, support by Brooks to allow the Sheriff to proceed with acquiring a K-9 Explosive Dog and authorize the Chairperson of the Board to sign the said agreement. Recommendation carried.
Sheriff Crawford left the meeting at
Alan Benson was present to ask permission of the committee to purchase the Ruger, Security Six, stainless steel, .357 Magnum revolver he previously used prior to the department going to .40 caliber automatic pistols. Discussion was held on the fact that deputies have been awarded the privilege of purchasing their old weapons when replaced at the department for a cost.
Recommendation by Commissioner Faber, support by Commissioner Sikkema to allow Alan Benson, Animal Control Director, to purchase the Ruger, Security Six, stainless steel, .357 Magnum revolver for a cost of $100.00. Recommendation carried.
Alan Benson left the meeting at
Mike Tillman, Chairperson for MOTA, was present to ask for a
resolution from the Board allowing for the elimination of the sunset provision
of their articles of incorporation.
After some discussion on it was decided that in the resolution
previously presented they would be eliminating articles D & E. Mr. Tillman advised the committee that as of
this date, neither Mecosta nor
Sandy Marvin, Prosecutor, arrived at
OSCEOLA
#2007-
AMENDING INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT AND ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION FOR MECOSTA-OSCEOLA TRANSIT AUTHORITY
WHEREAS, Mecosta-Osceola Transit Authority, also known as MOTA, is presently operating a public transportation small bus system that serves the Counties of Mecosta and Osceola under Public Act 196 of 1986; and
WHEREAS, Article X (D and E) of MOTA’s Articles of Incorporation, as amended, state:
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Joint Committee Meeting
D.
If a transportation millage proposal is not approved
for operation of the Authority before
E. The Mecosta-Osceola Transit Authority shall cease operations if a local millage approved in calendar year 2007 is not maintained or renewed at any amount for any 12-month period, and if deemed necessary to dissolve the Authority, a request shall be made on behalf of the Mecosta-Osceola Transit Authority to the Michigan Legislature for dissolution of the Authority. and,
WHEREAS, for the preceding two years the Authority has operated under a balanced budget, has continued to provide services without incurring additional debt, and has paid off the Counties’ debts incurred by MOTA’s predecessor, and
WHEREAS, the
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the attached Intergovernmental Agreement and
Articles of Incorporation for Mecosta-Osceola Transit Authority are hereby amended to delete
Sections D and E of Article X. The Intergovernmental Agreement and Articles of Incorporation
are approved as amended.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a copy of this Resolution, and the attached amended
Intergovernmental
Agreement and Articles of Incorporation, shall be
filed and published as required by law.
Recommendation by Commissioner Tiedt, support by Commissioner Hoaglund to adopt the proposed resolution eliminating the sunset provision of the MOTA Articles of Incorporation. Recommendation carried.
Mike Tillman left at
Ed Nettle, EMS Director, advised the committee of the
discontinuation of the Evart Fire Department’s First Responders program. The elimination of this service puts the
responsibility of both 1st Response and Advanced Life Support on the
County’s
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Joint Committee Meeting
with the staffing. He shared how this impacts the operations in
the
Ed Nettle left the meeting at
Russ Wayne, Jail Administrator, arrived at
Susan VanderPol,
Recommendation by Commissioner Sikkema, support by Commissioner Brooks to adopt the revised Maintenance of Vehicles policy as presented. Recommendation carried.
Commissioner Brooks presented some budget amendments and cash transfers for committee consideration.
Recommendation by Commissioner Brooks, support by Commissioner Sikkema to approve the budget amendments and cash transfers as follows:
Line Item Description Increase Decrease
101.131.899.002 Appeals
Atty. $ 4,000
101.168.899.004 Court Appt. Attys. $ 4,000
265.000.699.001 Approp. Fund Balance $
255
267.000.695.000 Transfer
In $ 255
267.000.931.000 Equip/ Maint. & Repair $ 255
265.000.999.000 Transfer
Out $ 255
Cash transfer of $255.00 from the 265 Drug Enforcement
Fund to the 267 Drug Fund.
Recommendation carried.
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Joint Committee Meeting
Lance Cornelius, Maintenance Supervisor, talked with the committee members about the emergency call system used in each of the County departments. The Annex is having trouble with their signal between the building and the jail. Currently the call system is going off
automatically on its’ own. On the weekends the Reed City Police Department gets called continually to see if someone is in the building. The system is averaging four to five false hits a day. After some discussion the committee asked Lance to contact Brooks Security for ideas on how to repair and/or replace the current system.
Lance then spoke about repairing a fence at the Schumacher property
in
Discussion on the South wall of the Courthouse repair was held. Lance reported receiving an advertisement from a company regarding the “tuck pointing” of that wall, so he contacted them. However, they have now sent him a sealed bid, which he has not opened. Discussion was held on how board members might want to proceed with this project.
Lance is being asked to mow the lawn and remove a tree on
the newly acquired property in
The air conditioning project at the jail was briefly discussed.
Lance Cornelius and Russ Wayne left the meeting at 11:03 a.m.
Mark Watkins, EMD Director, updated the committee members on the upcoming Emergency Exercise scheduled to begin on August 28, 2007. He reviewed on the agenda the major activities scheduled for this activity and gave a brief explanation for the planned activity. He shared information on the purpose of doing some of the exercise activities the way they will be carried out. He explained the assistance he will need from the Board on Friday the 31st of August regarding the utilization of the Building Department offices, as outlined in the plan, for a small
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Joint Committee Meeting
block of time. Mark updated the committee on the assisting a couple neighboring counties in their exercises.
Russ Wayne and Lance Cornelius returned to the meeting at 11:13 a.m.
Mark Watkins left the meeting at
Lance Cornelius, Maintenance Supervisor, was back regarding the previous discussion on air conditioning in the jail. Lance had previously advised committee that a crack was found on the heat exchange that needs to be repaired prior to the unit being fired up for the heating season. He questioned if rather than investing some $2000.00 on the repair of that heat exchanger if it might be the time to obtain bids on replacing it with a dual – heating and cooling - system at the same time. Discussion was held regarding the need for inmates to have air conditioning. Russ Wayne, Jail Administrator, reminded the committee that the air conditioning is needed to reduce the noise created by the fans currently running. These fans create so much noise in the back of the jail, that jail staff have difficulty in this part of the jail facility. He does not look at air conditioning as a convenience for inmates, but rather a safety issue for staff. Committee members asked Lance to get quotes on both options, before they decide.
Susan VanderPol,
Recommendation by Commissioner Faber, support by Commissioner Brooks to approve the Fraud Policy as presented. Recommendation carried.
A letter has been received from Ken Ford indicating interest in serving on the Planning Commission. Mr. Ford is a certified forester and wildlife manager.
Recommendation by Commissioner Brooks, support by Commissioner Sikkema to appoint Ken Ford to the Osceola County Planning Commission filling the environmental position on that board. Recommendation carried.
Extended employee comment: None.
Extended public comment: None.
Motion by Commissioner Brooks, support by Commissioner Hoaglund to adjourn at 12:07 p.m.
________________________________ ______________________________
Karen J. Bluhm,