HOWARD
The Howard County Board of Commissioners met in Regular Session on
The meeting was called to
order by Sheriff Marshall Talbert and conducted by President Bradley J.
Bagwell.
The minutes from the last regular meeting held on
IN THE MATTER OF SPECIAL COMMISSIONER REMARKS AND RECOGNITIONS:
Mr. Raver exhibited a
plaque delivered by Grant Administrator Tina Mendenhall Henderson recognizing
the Commissioners’ sponsorship and
IN THE MATTER OF
HIGHWAY ISSUES:
Mr. Ted Cain, Howard County Highway
Engineer/Superintendent presented the following issues for Commissioner
information and approval:
1. Performance Bond No. BCI 1717926 in
the amount of $88,800.00 was submitted from James Rivers and Mohr Construction
Company, Inc. for the installation of a storm sewer system, concrete curbs and
gutter, stone base and asphalt pavement for street, and street signs for Hidden
Valley Subdivision, Section 4, in
Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to accept the performance bond for Hidden Valley Subdivision, Section 4, as presented. Mr. Raver seconded the motion and it carried.
2. Acceptance of Streets: Four (4) subdivisions have requested approval
for streets. Upon inspection of these
newly constructed streets, the following issues need to be resolved to bring
the streets up to standard before the County can accept them:
a.
One subdivision has dirty streets, mud in the gutter line, an
inappropriately designed concrete curb section, and exposed tiles.
b. A pipe that was supposed to
be added for Cloverdale Subdivision at 600 East failed to be installed.
c.
One street is going to be accepted by the City. The street is covered in dirt and mud and the
City has unresolved problems with it.
d. The street for Greens at
Wildcat has mud in the gutter lines about ready to pour into the inlets and a
temporary turn-around failed to be constructed.
3. The Commissioners signed the title sheet
for the repair plans for Howard County Bridge No. 61 located on 200 South, just
east of State Road 19.
IN THE MATTER
OF SHERIFF DEPARTMENT ISSUES:
Sheriff Marshall Talbert presented the following
issues for Commissioner information and approval:
1. Military
Service Personnel Update:
●
Deputy Larry Sparks returned to the Sheriff’s Department after serving
eight months of active duty in southern
●
Sergeant Larry Shipman, a
●
Jailer Randy Smith expects to be activated to an overseas assignment
soon.
●
Additional deputies and jail staff could possibly be called into active
military duty, which includes Paul Cherry and Michael Ogle. Larry Sparks could also receive a call to be
reactivated.
2. Audio – Video Recording Equipment: (See page 2,
3. Prisoner Transport Van Proposal: The Prisoner Transport Van purchased in
March 2003 has already accumulated 29,000 miles. The Sheriff is traveling to
Sheriff Talbert proposes to replace the
IN THE MATTER
OF PLAN COMMISSION ISSUES AND PROPERTIES FOR APPROVAL:
Plan Commission Director
Glen Boise presented the following issues for Commissioner information and
approval:
1.
There were no subdivision
plats to be presented at this time.
2.
Unsafe Buildings: In
August, the public hearing was continued on the property located at 2255 South
350 West, owned by Gregory and Sonya Ward.
(For related discussion see pages 3 - 4, also
3.
Flood
Mitigation Issues: Mr. Boise
reported that he continues to work on the Flood Mitigation process.
IN THE MATTER OF MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENT ISSUES:
Maintenance Superintendent
Thomas Harrison presented the following issues for Commissioner information and
approval:
1.
New Holding Cell / Prisoner Bench Update: The new prisoner bench was successfully
installed in the holding cell area of the Courthouse. Sheriff Talbert asked about the cost to
replace the old steel frame beds with the same type of bench in the other four
(4) cells. The current beds are designed
with a raised edge to accommodate a mattress, which is uncomfortable to sit on
and takes up more space than a bench.
Mr. Tom Harrison will contact the Bob Barker Company regarding the price
for the additional benches. Mr. Harrison
has contacted Mr. Ed Heffelmier, Project Manager of Terstep Company Inc. about
finishing work on the new holding cell.
2.
The two door locks used by the Sheriff’s Department on the west side
of the Courthouse quit working the day after the camera system was
installed. Maintenance Personnel and a
few licensed electricians were not able to determine the problem; therefore Mr.
Harrison ordered two new lock mechanisms at a cost of $513.00 each.
3.
HVAC System Problems: Mr. Harrison
requested Mr. Bill Bassett to schedule a meeting with everyone involved with
the design and installation the HVAC system to determine and resolve the
problems with the system. Mr. Harrison
requested a Commissioner representative to attend the meeting once it is
scheduled.
4.
Maintenance Issues at Howard Haven:
a. On Thursday, October 30th, Mr. Harrison and Mr. Raver conducted an on-site study of repairs that are needed. Some old faucets must be replaced, a fan needs installed in the upstairs restroom, roof leaks need to be repaired, basement drains need unclogged, and door glass must be replaced. The county home has money to cover most of the cost of the repairs and Mr. Harrison has offered his maintenance staff to perform some of the labor for the repairs.
b. Several miscellaneous discarded items are no longer being used by the facility. Mr. Harrison suggested that the work release crew from the jail could assist in removal of these items.
c. Mr. Raver suggested waiting until Spring 2004 to move the gas tank and pour a concrete pad.
d. Co-Manager Deborah France requested that the cement be widened at the north entrance to the building. Mr. Harrison said he would obtain an estimate and the work could be completed during the year 2004.
IN THE MATTER
OF PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATOR ISSUES:
Personnel Director Wanda McKillip and Administrative Assistant Vickie
Hinkle presented the following issues for Commissioner information and
approval:
1. October Fire Prevention Month: Mrs. Hinkle reported the results of recent fire drills for the County’s three (3) main buildings. A fire drill will be conducted at Howard Haven soon.
● A great deal of help was received from the Sheriff’s Department and Maintenance Department. The emergency radios were not available at that time and Mr. Harrison provided portable radios for the fire drills. All employees and patrons were evacuated from the buildings within 3 minutes. Maintenance personnel secured the entrances until representatives from each office returned to the buildings. The trial run enabled the identification of a few areas the need some corrections.
●
The fire alarm on the third floor of the
●
In accordance with the emergency preparedness
plan, six (6) new radios were needed, which cost about $1,300 each for a total
of $7,800. Mrs. Hinkle thanked Tom
Harrison and the
● OSHA requires the County to maintain an accurate list in each office of who to notify in the event of an emergency. The annual employee emergency forms have been completed. Mrs. Hinkle will continue the process and provide fire drill training to new department heads and employees.
4.
A Commissioner
Appointment list of those appointees having terms expiring on
5. Copies of the quarterly Howard County Newsletter were distributed to the Commissioners. A new concept has been added to the publication. Each newsletter will contain a feature article on an employee or department head in regard to their job tasks and responsibilities. Mrs. McKillip encouraged the Commissioners to submit information for publication in future newsletters.
6.
A Sexual
Harassment Seminar was held on
7.
Flu immunizations will be available to County
employees on Thursday, November 6th, 2003 at the Health
Department in the
8.
An ad hoc committee meeting will hold meeting on
Thursday, November 6th to continue discussing the topic of
medical insurance issues. Mrs. McKillip,
together with Mr. Doug Heath of Miles and Finch Insurance, hopes to have
benefit and renewal information available at the next Commissioners’ meeting on
IN THE MATTER
OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS MANAGER ISSUES:
Mr. Terry Tribby, Information Systems Manager, presented the following issues for Commissioner information and approval:
1. Server Recommendations for Courthouse: Currently there are four outdated
servers in the
a. Clerk’s Imaging Server: The imaging server in the Clerk’s Office is used for imaging applications. There have been ongoing problems with this application over the past year. The server software is Windows NT4.0 and is no longer supported by Microsoft. County Clerk Mona Myers and Mr. Tribby have a meeting set up with a software vendor on November 12th to discuss options to resolve the problems. Upgrading the operative system for the server at a cost of about $2,000 would not be cost efficient because the County would still have an outdated server with no warranty.
b. DOC Server: Antivirus software was installed on an old retired server. This is the only application for virus protection running on a 4 to 6 year old server.
c. DHCP Server: This was also a retired server that is no longer covered by a warranty and is subject to failure. The DHCP application hands out addresses to all of the workstations. If the server would fail, the entire Courthouse network would go down until it is replaced.
d. Prosecutor Server: This server is actually a workstation with server software on it. The “white box” was built by a local vendor and is not up to current server technology standards. There are backup concerns with this server and disaster recovery issues are at risk.
2. Workstation Replacement
at Courthouse: There are approximately 22
outdated workstations that need replaced at the Courthouse. Some of the workstations are still using
Windows 95; continually have hardware failures; have lock up problems; and run
very slowly. An estimate was obtained
from Dell at a cost of $1,050 each for a total price of $23,100. The systems in the Prosecutors and Drug Task
Forces divisions also need replaced. It
is Mr. Tribby’s understanding that the Prosecutor has budgeted for this in
2004.
Mr. Tribby has delayed addressing server and
workstation replacement issues until it has been determined whether there are
any funds available in the Courthouse Renovation Project. Mr. Raver said there are some final bills related to
the Courthouse
Renovation Project that need to be paid.
Mr. Bagwell suggested that Mr. Tribby could request the County Council
to appropriate additional money for the upgrades.
Mr. Bagwell attended a
demonstration of a video system used at the Courthouse and intake area at the
Criminal Justice Center. He commented
that the system is very impressive; however, it takes a lot of floppy discs to
download video clips from the current video systems. Mr. Tribby said when the video system
specifications were written two years ago, CDRW’s were not available. The proposed new systems can write to compact
discs. Mr. Bagwell suggested that the
new systems should support USB ports, compact disc burners, or both.
Discussion ensued about
funding sources and time frames. Mr.
Harbaugh made a motion to request an additional appropriation out of Cumulative
Capital Development Fund (CCD) in the amount $34,000 to accommodate the
upgrades proposed for the servers and 22 workstations. Seconded by Mr. Raver, the motion carried.
3.
Election Day Website: A program
has been designed that will post election information and updates on the
internet for the upcoming election on November 4th. A State Webmaster is hosting the election
results. A firewall and security has
been installed to protect the site from computer hackers. In case of any problems, the website contains
a disclaimer, “Please rely on the actual election results as provided to the
respective parties by the
4.
Card
Access System Update: (See
page 3,
5.
E-911 Grant: Mr. Tribby received information
from Communications Director Tony Ramsey regarding a grant application that is
due to the State by
Sheriff Talbert
said the State Police in
IN THE MATTER OF COURTHOUSE RENOVATIONS:
Mr. Harrison contacted Hayes Brothers to help disassemble the Sheriff’s security station in the lobby next week.
UNSAFE
BUILDING – PUBLIC HEARING – 2255 SOUTH 350 WEST:
Scheduled
Public Hearing –
The
public hearing was opened at
(See page 3,
Attorney J. Conrad Maugans
represented property owners Gregory & Sonya Ward. Attorney Maugans reported that no progress
has been made with the insurance company.
Farm Bureau Insurance Company alleges that the fire was caused by
arson. A copy of the arson
investigator’s report has not been provided and the Farm Bureau refuses to go
ahead and deny the claim. The property owners have until
The Wards employed a
public adjustor to help process their claim.
In the meantime the insurance company is not paying the mortgage company
or the Wards. At this time the Wards do
not have the financial means to clean up the property.
Mr. Harbaugh made a motion
to close the public hearing. Mr. Raver
seconded the motion, and it carried.
Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to continue
the public hearing to
Public Hearing
Closed
IN THE MATTER
OF
Mark E. and Deborah G. Gatti, property owners of Lots 9 and 10 in the
Original Plat of West Liberty, submitted a petition to vacate two 12-foot
sections of public ways along the east and south lines of their property at
3340 South 1250 East.
Mr. Raver made a motion to
set the date for public hearing on Monday, December 1st,
2003 at 9:30 a.m. in Hearing Room No. 338 of the Howard County Administration
Center. Seconded by
Mr. Harbaugh, the motion carried.
IN THE MATTER OF
HOWARD HAVEN COUNTY HOME:
Interim Co-Managers Joyce Colburn and Deborah France advised that things are going well with the facility and presented the following information for Commissioner information:
1. Applications For Admission: ARCH is currently processing the following two (2) applications that were submitted for admission to Howard Haven:
a. Lucille Clifton who currently
resides at Kokomo Rescue Mission’s Open Arms Shelter submitted an application for
the ARCH Program. Mr. Raver made a
motion to accept the application to
Howard Haven Home for Lucille Clifton on a ninety-day probationary period
subject to ARCH approval. Mr. Harbaugh
seconded the motion, and it carried.
b. Kimberly Powell who currently
resides at Kokomo Rescue Mission’s Open Arms Shelter submitted an application for
the ARCH Program. Ms. Powell’s medical
release is anticipated soon. A motion
was made by Mr. Harbaugh to accept the application
to Howard Haven Home for Kimberly Powell on a ninety-day probationary period
subject to the medical release and ARCH approval. Mr. Raver seconded the motion, which carried.
2. Mr. Harrison and Mr. Raver conducted an inspection of the facilities on October 30th.
3. Jean Lushin is making a personal vdonation of an upright freezer to Howard Haven.
4. Mr. Harley Carey, General Manager at Meijer Supermarket, is scheduled to tour Howard Haven and discuss ways to help the facility.
5. The residents participated in a Halloween Costume party and had a wonderful time.
6. The co-managers are working on scheduling a Christmas Open House to be open to the public during one weekend in December.
7.
The County Council has made appropriations for the
operation of Howard Haven in the 2004-year.
Ms. Colburn and Ms. France expressed a desire to be reappointed as
co-managers of the facility. Mr.
Raver made a motion to re-appoint Joyce Colburn and Deborah France as
Co-managers commensurate with the appropriations through
8.
Food Purchase Issue: In order to get the best value for the money,
the co-managers asked the Commissioners to suggest a means to purchase food
from grocery stores using cash.
IN THE MATTER OF
A Poor Relief Hearing was conducted on
Mr. Raver made a motion to uphold the report by the
Poor Relief Hearing Officer in the poor relief appeal of Jaqueline
Cochran. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the
motion, and it carried.
IN THE MATTER OF CLAIMS AND REPORTS:
1.
Operating claims payable on
2.
Commissioner’s Salary Claims for hourly, salary, and overtime payable for November
7th and
3.
Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to approve the Contract for Animal Control and Shelter Services for the year-2004 as stated. Mr. Raver seconded the motion, and it carried.
4.
The Commissioners acknowledged a claim signed by the
5.
Release of Retainage for Courthouse Renovation Project: First National Bank sent a letter stating
that a check was issued to Terstep Company, Inc. on
6.
Resolution No. 2003-BCC-19: $46,000 was
previously approved for the two new radio channels for E-911. When the bill arrived the Equipment Account
was short approximately $10,000. There
is some money in the Mapping Software (Phase 2) Account; therefore $15,000 is
being transferred to the Equipment Account.
An additional $10,000 may need to be appropriated in the Equipment Fund to
cover the County until the end of the 2003 calendar year.
Resolution No. 2003-BCC-91 was approved on a motion made by Mr. Raver, seconded by Mr. Harbaugh, and carried.
7.
A copy of the Soil and Water Agenda and Minutes was provided to
the Commissioners.
8.
The
IN THE MATTER OF ROAD 400 NORTH PROJECT – PURCHASE OF PARCELS:
Following the Executive Session on
Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to schedule an Executive
Session for Thursday, November 6th, 2003 at 2:30 p.m. in Room 220D of the Howard County Administration Center to discuss strategy with respect to the purchase of
right-of-way parcels. Mr. Raver seconded
the motion, and it carried.
IN THE MATTER OF COUNTY ATTORNEY ISSUES:
1.
2.
At the previous meeting Attorney Murrell had a question regarding the
e-mail from Communications Director Tony Ramsey about changes to the MA/COM
Contract. Since that time, Attorney
Murrell had an opportunity to communicate with Mr. Ramsey and found out that
Mr. Ramsey is attempting to set up the dates on a calendar year basis. Attorney Murrell advised Mr. Ramsey that he did
not see a problem with changing the dates.
3.
Chrysler Bond Issue: (See
pages 6 – 7, October 20th, 2003 minutes, “ In the Matter of County
Attorney Issues”, Item 4, for related discussion) The Council scheduled a Special Meeting on
Wednesday, November 12th, 2003 at 12:00 p.m. in Room No. 338 of the Howard County
Administration Center to discuss the refunding of the Howard County Economic
Development Income Tax Revenue Bonds of 1996. The Redevelopment Authority and Redevelopment Commission
have scheduled a meeting at the same time.
Mr. Chris Johnson of Crowe Chizek will be present to review the
documents in order to get the refinancing in place before the end of the
2003-year.
4. Howard Haven Objective: Attorney Murrell suggested that the
Commissioners might want to review and establish the purpose of the county
home. Historically, the home was for
indigent people but now the trend seems to be going toward a retirement
home. Also vehicle issues have come up
that need to be addressed.
IN THE MATTER OF COMMISSIONER ISSUES:
1.
The Sewer Advisory Committee held a meeting on
2.
There being no further
business before the Board at this time, Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to
adjourn. Mr. Raver seconded the motion
and it carried. The meeting closed at
THE
HOWARD
___________________________________________
BRADLEY
J. BAGWELL, PRESIDENT
___________________________________________
JOHN
B. HARBAUGH, VICE PRESIDENT
___________________________________________
PAUL
J. RAVER, MEMBER
ATTEST:
__________________________________
Commissioner Minutes,