HOWARD COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
MEETING APRIL 21, 2003
The Howard County Board of Commissioners met in Regular Session on
Monday, April 21, 2003, at 8:30 a.m. in Hearing Room No. 338 of the Howard
County Administration Center. Those in
attendance included President Bradley J. Bagwell, Vice President John B.
Harbaugh, and Member Paul J. Raver. Also
present were County Attorney Larry Murrell, Personnel Administrator Wanda
McKillip, and Auditor Martha Lake.
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 March 7th, 2003 were
considered. There being no additions or
corrections, Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to approve the minutes as
submitted. Mr. Raver seconded the
motion, which carried.
IN THE MATTER OF HIGHWAY ISSUES:
Mr.
Ted Cain, Howard County Highway Engineer/Superintendent presented the following
issues for Commissioner information and approval:
1. Requisition for Additional Appropriations for the Motor
Vehicle Highway Fund (002) as follows:
(Much of the request is resulting from snow related issues this past
winter.)
2. Requisition for Additional Appropriations for the Local Road
and Street Fund (007) as follows:
Mr. Cain
spoke of plans to pave more high profile roads in the 2003-year necessitating
extra paint for striping the roads.
3. Requisition for Additional Appropriations for the Cumulative
Bridge Fund (006) as follows:
33702 B-118
CR 100S – 1160 E $ 50,000.00
33703 B-601 Harrison St. (Greentown) $ 35,000.00
33704 B-159
CR 320S – 720W $ 50,000,00
33706 B-502 Center Drive $ 30,000.00
33707 B-507 Defenbaugh St. $ 30,000.00
33708 B-89
CR 300N – 1330E $ 20,000.00
33709 B-66
CR 600E – 440S $ 20,000.00
33711 B-13
CR 250S – 720W $ 10,000.00
33713 B-51
CR 500E – 360N $ 10,000.00
Total $255,000.00
Mr. Cain commented, even with a late start, work on
many bridges was completed last year.
The schedule for 2003 includes preliminary work on the bridges shown
toward the bottom of the list. If there
is time to complete the work, money can be transferred into these
accounts. Mr. Cain would like to get
preservation completed and then replace several of the bridge decks. Wherever box beams are added to an existing
structure, a small gap is created, causing a write-up in the Inspection Report
about an uneven riding surface. Mr. Cain
anticipates replacing Bridge No. 37 in 2003 and Bridge No. 57 in 2004.
Mr. Raver made a motion to grant approval for
the additional appropriations for the Motor Vehicle Highway Fund, Local Road
and Street Fund, and Cumulative Bridge Fund, as submitted, subject to the
approval of the Howard County Council.
Mr. Harbaugh seconded the motion, which carried.
Discussion ensued regarding dependable disbursement of funds from the
State to the County. Mr. Cain was confident that the money would be received in
a timely manner throughout this year. He
assured the Commissioners that some money is still available from the previous
year. Auditor Martha Lake commented
that recently, the State has been granting verbal approval of the County’s
requests for additional appropriations.
IN THE MATTER OF SHERIFF DEPARTMENT ISSUES:
Sheriff
Marshall Talbert, together with Major Steve Rogers, presented the following
issues for Commissioner information and approval:
1.
Status of New
Vehicles: The two new K-9 trucks and a prisoner
transport van have arrived at the Criminal Justice Center. Currently, radios and emergency equipment are
being switched over to the new vehicles.
The new transport module has been installed in the prisoner transport
van. The insert will improve the security
level when transporting prisoners. Once
the new vehicles are fully equipped, they will be displayed to the public at
the next “Coffee with the Sheriff” and will also be made available for
Commissioners and County Council viewing.
2.
The Monthly
Jail Report for April, 2003: The average inmate population at the Howard
County Criminal Justice Center runs between 270 to 290. Today the population is 294; thirty-seven of
those are women. Currently there is a
shortage of mattresses at the jail due to increased number of inmates. Additional mattresses will need to be
purchased. Sheriff Talbert suggested
some quick solutions to the inmate population issue as follows:
a.
Eliminate
sentences being served on weekends when there is a surge in population. The Sheriff plans to speak with some of the
Judges about having people serve their sentences on weekdays.
b. For individuals having minor offenses who do
not have lengthy criminal histories or any failures to appear, to just assign a
court date and serve a summons to appear instead of going through the
incarceration process.
3.
There was discussion
at the last Community Corrections Meeting regarding the possible benefits of
having all of the departments (Day Reporting, Community Services, and
Community Corrections) at one location.
Community Corrections has a large sum of money available, but it cannot
be used to build a new facility. If the
County could build one, Community Corrections has money to pay for finishing
and furnishing the inside of the building.
4.
The laboratory
at the Criminal Justice Center is inadequate. The lab is small, cramped and resembles a
closet. When the misdemeanant grant
money is received in the fall-2003, Sheriff Talbert would like to move the lab
to a more adequately sized room.
5.
Prisoner Transport Issue: Recently, it took considerable coordination
to get twenty-seven prisoners transported to Superior Court II for morning
hearings. On an average day, many
transport officers, street deputies, and correctional people are occupied with
the task of transporting prisoners.
Judge Jessup contacted Sheriff Talbert about his using the courtroom at
the jail beginning April 22nd.
The Sheriff’s Department staff will do whatever is necessary to
accommodate Judge Jessup’s needs in order to help the process run
smoothly. If the Judges would be willing
to use the courtroom at the jail or video hookups for the initial hearings, the
number of prisoner transports could be reduced by approximately 50%.
6.
Prisoner
Security Issue: A potential security risk was discovered in
the outside stairwell used to take prisoners into the Courthouse. There was an attempt to smuggle tobacco to a
prisoner by hiding it in the stairwell.
This contraband could very well have been of a hazardous nature such as
a weapon or drugs. Sheriff Talbert said
a security camera placed strategically at that location would be beneficial to
the security of the Courthouse.
Maintenance Superintendent Thomas Harrison said it would help the
security issue if the Adult Probation personnel could start using the west
entrance into the Courthouse instead of the basement door.
7. Patrol Car Replacement:
Officer Stacy Wines’ patrol car was involved in a recent accident and
totaled beyond repair. Sheriff Talbert
came up with a cost-effective plan to replace the patrol car. He proposed to
assign Deputy Craig Trott’s full size Ford Crown Victoria to Officer Wines and
purchase a Chevrolet Impala from Erik’s Chevrolet for $18,387.15. The vehicle is a single color in Arizona
Beige. The cost is approximately
$3,000.00 less than purchasing a new Ford Crown Victoria. The radio, siren, and light package salvaged
from the damaged car will be installed in the new Impala. The $10,000 settlement check from Selective
Insurance Company for the totaled patrol car (deposited in the Sheriff’s Department
automobile line item) can be used in conjunction with a $1,000 trade in
allowance for a 1997 Plymouth transport van formerly used by Officer Jon
Zeck. This leaves an outlay of only
$7,387.15. Sheriff Talbert advised that
the Sheriff’s Department has sufficient funds to make this purchase, and this
purchase will give the department an opportunity to evaluate the performance of
a front wheel drive vehicle.
Mr. Raver
made a motion to authorize the purchase of the Chevrolet Impala, trading in the
1997 Plymouth transport van from Erik’s Chevrolet, for a total purchase price
of $18,387.15. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the
motion, and it carried.
8. Simplex Grinnell Service Contract: (See page 2, April 7th, 2003
minutes, “In the Matter of Sheriff Department Issues”, Item 2, for related
discussion) Attorney Lawrence
Murrell had a chance to review the service agreement for the fire alarm system
at the Criminal Justice Center. A couple
of changes were made and the contract was returned to Simplex Grinnell for review.
9. Cell Phone Service Renewal: Major Steve Rogers researched ways to reduce
the cost of the 12 cell phones currently being used by the Sheriff’s
Department. The phones have individual
contracts and services. Major Rogers
discovered that Centennial Wireless offered the most complete, dependable
coverage of Howard County and has a separate unit specifically for government
phones. Centennial will void the
previous individual agreements and place the existing phones plus one
additional phone (a total of 13 phones) under one contract for a term of two
years. The new contract has more minutes
and options at a savings of $72.82 per month.
The extra minutes are additional savings from the previous overage and
roaming charges. Major Rogers originally
preferred to replace the phones in phases, but the second page of the contract
offers a 25% discount to purchase 13 new phones all at one time. He would like the phones to be equipped with
a vibration alert option, especially needed for the officers working in the
street. The cost to replace all of the
phones at one time would be about $500.00 to be paid out of the Commissary
Fund. Major Rogers said he would discuss
the issue of purchasing all new phones with Sheriff Talbert.
Mr.
Harbaugh made a motion to authorize the Sheriff’s Department to negotiate a
contract with Centennial Wireless for 13 phones and return the contract for
Commissioner signature. Mr. Raver
seconded the motion, which carried.
10. Fire Run at Jail: Kokomo Fire Department made an emergency run
to the Criminal Justice Center on Saturday, April 19th, 2003 due to
smoke from an overheated lamp ballast located in the area of the Administrative
Offices.
11. Jail Study Committee: The following individuals were assigned to
the new Howard County Jail Study Committee on a motion made by Mr. Harbaugh,
seconded by Mr. Raver, and carried:
Bradley J. Bagwell, President - County Commissioner
(Committee Chairman)
Richard H. Miller, President – County Council
(Committee Co-Chairman)
Steven Maus, Director of In Home Detention
Judge Lynn Murray, Howard Circuit Court
Gary Conwell, Adult Probation
Marshall Talbert, Sheriff
Captain Harold Vincent, Jail Commander
James Fleming, County Prosecutor
William Menges, Public Defender
Larry Murrell, County Attorney
James Papacek, County Councilman
IN THE MATTER OF PLAN COMMISSION
ISSUES AND PROPERTIES FOR APPROVAL:
Plan Commission Director, Glen Boise, presented the following issues
for information and approval:
1.
There were no
subdivision plats presented for approval at this time.
2.
County
Comprehensive Plan Update: A series of public workshops were held on
April 15th and 17th seeking input on the comprehensive plan. Mr. Boise distributed a questionnaire and
survey to the Commissioners, asking them to fill out the answers and return
them to the Plan Commission. As the next
step, Ground Rules will draft a plan for the County Comprehensive Plan Steering
Committee’s review. Mr. Boise
anticipated it would be several months before he will schedule another series
of public workshops. Currently 8 members
serve on the Steering Committee. Mr.
Boise said a Commissioner and two appointees are needed to serve on the
Steering Committee.
Mr. Raver
nominated Mr. Bagwell to serve as the Commissioner Representative on the County
Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee.
Mr. Harbaugh seconded the motion, which carried.
3.
Unsafe Buildings:
a. 800
S. Lewis St: (Owners formerly
Earnest Jr. & Mary O. Archer) The
owners have allowed a considerable amount of junk and debris to accumulate
around the mobile home located there.
The property has since been sold.
The new owner has cleaned up the property and is currently stripping out
the mobile home. A letter was sent to
the new owner releasing the clean up order.
b. 618
North 780 East: (Owners formerly
Gary D. & Pamela K. Frakes) The
property has been sold and the current owners have cleaned up the property and
filled in the holes in the front yard. A
letter was sent to the new owner releasing the clean up order.
c.
1803
North 850 East: (The owners, Michael and Marcia Beachy, do
not live on the property, but live at 2212N 250E, Lot 48). The owners have not
responded to letters from the Plan Commission.
d. 7075 West 600 North:
(Owners: Brian Cheek &
Carolyn Humphrey) The attorneys’ staff
at the mortgage company has indicated the property is in foreclosure.
e.
2941
North 300 East: (Michael E. Warner, William J. & Carolyn
Sullivan) Kokomo Municipal Airport is still in the process of buying the
land. They are buying using Federal
Funds, which lengthens the paperwork process.
f.
5389
East 50 South: (Joann Johnson) No improvements have been made to the
property and the owner has not contacted the Plan Commission. The junk cars are going to be tagged by the
Sheriff’s Department. Mr. Boise
recommended proceeding with demolition of the property subject to the money
being available. Some potential asbestos
on the property could affect the demolition cost.
g. 3904 South 350 West:
(Martin E. & Freida H. Meyers)
The house remains in poor condition.
Junk vehicles and tires are still on the property. There has been no response to the Plan
Commission letters. Mr. Boise
recommended proceeding with demolition of the property subject to the money
being available. The vehicles and
construction materials scattered around the property could affect the cost of
the demolition.
At Mr. Boise’s request, the Commissioners
delayed action on these cases at this time.
Further discussion will be held on these properties at the next meeting
on May 5th, 2003.
4. Flood Mitigation Issues:
a.
504 Ridge Road: The contractor has finished cleaning up and
seeding the property. Mr. Boise
anticipates paying the contractors in approximately one month. Someone parked a trailer on the
property. Mr. Boise will contact the
owner and request that the trailer be removed.
b. Change in Project: As a
subsequent project, Mr. James Hamilton from Butler, Fairman and Seufert,
suggested that a consultant go out and complete an elevation certificate and
assessment checklist for each property in lieu of requesting voluntary citizen
participation. This change would require
reworking the grant so Mr. Boise contacted Jan Crider, Flood Mitigation
Assistance Coordinator at the State Emergency Management Agency (S.E.M.A.). Ms. Crider did not foresee the change as a problem
as long as there are sufficient funds from the allocation to pay for the
project. Mr. Boise will present the
Request for Proposals to the Commissioners in May.
c.
Status
of Federal grant for purchasing and demolishing two more homes: Since
the Flood Mitigation Plan has been approved, Ms. Jan Crider has advised that
the grant was finally going through the system.
Mr. Boise reminded the Commissioners that the county must come up with
the local match of approximately $53,000.00 for the grant. The Commissioners agreed to discuss the
funding sources for the local match upon official confirmation that the grant
monies have been received.
IN THE MATTER OF MAINTENANCE
DEPARTMENT ISSUES:
Maintenance Superintendent Thomas Harrison presented the following issues
for Commissioner information and approval:
1. Courthouse
Renovation Issues: (Also
see page 6, attached, “In the Matter of Courthouse Renovation Issues”, for
related discussion).
a.
Mr.
Harrison and Information Systems Manager Terry Tribby feel that the portable
air conditioner can be removed from the security room at this time. This will result in a savings of $1,800 per
month.
b. The storage trailer is anticipated to be
removed from the lawn on the east side of the building by the end of
April. Various county departments will
salvage some of the items stored in the trailer. Mr. Harrison advised the departments to track
those items in their inventory and forward the paperwork to the Auditor’s
Office. The remaining items will be sold
in the County auction with the proceeds going back into county funds.
c.
The
contractors estimated they would have everything cleaned up and removed within
60 days.
2. County
Recorder Electrical Issues: (See page
5, April 7th, 2003 minutes, “In the Matter of Information Systems
Manager Issues”, Item 1, for related discussion) Maintenance personnel, together
with Stelko Amber Electric Inc. investigated the voltage. Some of the equipment should have been
connected to independent electric lines and a decision was made to install two
additional outlets. Mr.
Harrison obtained a proposal from Stelko
Amber Electric Inc. to install two individual circuits in the amount of
$488.00 to be paid out of the Maintenance Department budget.
Mr. Raver made a motion to authorize the installation
of two additional circuits in the Recorder’s Office and authorize the President
of the Board to sign the agreement with Stelko on behalf of the
Commissioners. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the
motion, and it carried.
3. Koorsen Protective Services submitted a quote to install
the equipment necessary to monitor fire alarm systems in the Courthouse and
Government Building. The cost of the
fire alarm equipment is $549.00 for each building; monitoring will cost $25.00
per month. Koorsen requests a three-year
contract.
Discussion followed about consolidating fire
alarm contracts for all County owned buildings. It was noted that Simplex
Grinnell monitors the fire alarm equipment at both the Criminal Justice Center
and Kinsey Youth Center. Mr. Harrison explained that Key Bank pays an
“out of state company” to monitor the fire alarms in the Administration
Center, but the County pays Koorsen to maintain the fire alarm equipment,
sprinkler system and checks the water system.
Mr. Harrison will contact Koorsen about prorating the contract so it
ends on December 31st, 2005 and bring the contract back to the next
meeting. Discussion also ensued
regarding the benefits of coordinating all similar county contracts under one
company only.
IN THE MATTER OF PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATOR ISSUES:
Personnel Director Wanda McKillip presented the following issues for
Commissioner information and approval:
1.
The Family
Medical Leave Log was confirmed on a motion made by Mr. Harbaugh, seconded
by Mr. Raver, and carried.
2.
National
Child Abuse Prevention: April 21st – 25th is
National Blue Ribbon Week. Additional
ribbons are located in the Personnel Office.
3.
The
Personnel Department updated Anthem and JP information into their
database in order to quickly access information.
4.
Fair
Labor Standards Act (FLA): Some changes will be considered beginning
July 1st, 2003, regarding exempt, non-exempt status, and job
description forms.
5.
Workers’
Claims (IPEP) seems to be
increasing. Mrs. McKillip anticipates
receiving a report from Downey Insurance soon and will keep the Commissioners
updated.
IN THE MATTER OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS
MANAGER ISSUES:
Mr. Terry Tribby, Information Systems Manager, presented the following issues for Commissioner information:
1. E-911 Mapping Quotes have been
received from the following companies:
MicroData GIS
WTH Engineering Inc. (Think Map)
Plexis Group
The quotes will be reviewed and presented at
the next Commissioners’ meeting with a recommendation.
2.
The Voter
Registration Office move back into the Courthouse went well. The computer equipment is up and running and
will properly accommodate the timely execution of the May 6th
Primary Election work.
3.
DoxPop
Update: The first check in the amount slightly over
$60.00 was received from DoxPop for quarterly reimbursement. The money was deposited in the General Fund,
which financially supports the DoxPop program.
4.
Information
Systems Department Relocation: Mr. Tribby requested approval to move the
Information Systems Department into the area on the fourth floor of the
Administration Center formerly occupied by Property Systems and temporarily
being used by some of the Auditor’s personnel.
All of the racking equipment and servers will be located in the large room
along with tables for working on computers.
The electrical needs are already in place except for running one fiber
line. The staff will use the smaller, adjacent office. The cost to move into the new area will be
minimal. The benefits of moving are
added security, separate heating/cooling, and temperature controlled
environment.
Auditor Martha Lake
said she appreciated the room being available to do the special work on the
assessed values out of the flow of the usual Auditor’s Office work. By separating four employees from the normal interruptions,
the assessed values were completed in more than half the time that it would
have originally taken. She requested that some space be left
available to accommodate special projects, etc.
The Commissioners agreed that the old Information Systems Department
Room would be left vacant.
Mr. Raver made a motion to authorize the
transfer of the Information Systems Department to the raised floor computer
area. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the motion,
and it carried.
5. Wireless
Duress System Update: Message Net
Systems provided Mr. Tribby with an on-site demonstration of how their software
works. Mr. Tribby commented that their
system was very impressive; however, a bare bones system is all that is
currently needed. The basic concept is
to have a duress button to send a signal to law enforcement. The
component must be a Windows based system that can be controlled by a
computer. The system is estimated
to cost about $25,000. Mr. Larry Sparks
of Mobile Radio of Kokomo, Inc. was present for the discussion. Mr. Sparks said he could meet with Mr. Tribby
to try to crunch the figures in order for the quote to come in under $25,000.
Mr. Raver made a motion to proceed with a
request for quotes for a wireless multi-side unified messaging and alerting
system, with the number of needed alert systems to be determined by Mr.
Tribby. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the
motion, which carried.
Mr. Tribby congratulated Mr. Raver on his 40th
year anniversary in working with Howard County.
IN THE MATTER OF COURTHOUSE RENOVATIONS:
Mr. William Bassett of William Bassett and Associates presented the
following issues for Commissioner information:
·
First
Floor: Work is progressing in the Public
Defender’s area and the new CASA Office.
Floor covering and windows are being installed.
·
Second
Floor: Work continues on the new court
and clerical area. The new ceiling is
being put up today. Several cases were
heard in the Juvenile Court and it went very well.
·
Third
Floor: A wall was demolished to relocate
the Juvenile area. Contractors propose
to begin work in Superior Court II and Circuit Court areas this week. The administrative personnel will temporarily
relocate to the jury room during renovations to their area.
·
Court
Recording Systems: A representative from
Word Systems met with the Judges last week regarding the recording system. Mr. Bassett said he would contact the
representative today. The new courtroom
was equipped with a new sound system only.
A recording system will be factored in with the review of what the Commissioners
want to do. Only the recording system
equipment has been discussed which does not include any of the cabling or
wiring. Cabling and wiring will need to
be installed also.
There was some brief discussion about
updating the recording systems in all of the Courtrooms, plus the juvenile
courtroom and the courtroom located at the Criminal Justice Center. Mr. Bagwell stressed that all of the
recording systems must be compatible.
·
A
meeting has been scheduled with Mr. Bassett, Mr. Raver, the Auditor, and Deputy
Auditor Konny Zurcher on Monday, April 28th, 2003 at 9:00 a.m. in
Room 338 to review and discuss the status of financial issues and
projections of the Courthouse Renovation Project.
IN THE
MATTER OF PHASE II STORM WATER REGULATIONS (MS4 PROJECT):
Ms.
Amy Moore, Environmental Engineer with Butler, Fairman & Seufert, presented
the following issues for Commissioner information and approval:
1.
The MS4 Advisory
Committee has been working on a Community Initial Assessment (survey) to
meet the requirements of Rule 13 regarding public education and public
outreach. The Committee came up with an
idea to hold a drawing as an incentive for people to return the surveys. Vendors are being contacted about donating
items and services for the promotional giveaway. Examples of the prizes are a free septic tank
cleaning or some lawn care service. Ms.
Moore talked about distributing and collecting the surveys at the Howard County
Fair this year and other collection points that are yet to be determined.
2.
An MS4
Operator and Contact person (one or two names) must be determined
and listed on the Notice of Intent (NOI) form by October 2003. The Commissioners discussed whether the
Surveyor’s Office would be able to accommodate this position. Surveyor Beryl Grimme stated that he has
additional space in his office and is willing to become the MS4 office point of
operation. He would have room for an
additional employee if determined necessary, or possibly his existing employees
could absorb the additional responsibilities.
3.
Being inundated
with meetings and committees, Mr. Bagwell invited one of the other
Commissioners to serve in his place on the MS4 Advisory Committee. Mr. Raver gave his consent to serve on the
committee. Mr. Harbaugh made a motion to
remove Mr. Bagwell and appoint Mr. Raver to the MS4 Advisory Committee. Mr. Raver seconded the motion, and it
carried. The next MS4 Advisory Committee
meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 14th, 2003, at 12:00
noon, in room 338, at the Administration Center.
IN THE MATTER OF JUVENILE PROBATION DEPARTMENT ASP GRANT:
Chief Juvenile
Probation Officer Don Travis presented the following issue for Commissioner
information and approval:
1.
Juvenile Drug
Court Program: Approximately 50% of the candidates for the drug
court are kids that are out of school for “whatever reasons” their addiction
has caused. A grant proposal is
available through the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute for an Alternative
School Program (ASP). The grant funds
$75,000.00 each year for a three-year term.
The county would need to come up with a 50% in-kind (not cash) match of
$37,500.00. The in-kind match will be
the staff provided by the Kokomo Center School System. Most of the expense is the software and
licensing, which costs $46,500.00. The
money is used to develop a computer assisted educational program transmitted
over the internet. Kids experiencing
expulsion or pending expulsion will be able to contract with Kokomo Center
Schools to attend this alternative program.
The location for the program has not been established at this time. The deadline to apply for the grant is May 1st,
2003.
Mr. Raver
made a motion to approve the grant application for the Alternative School
Program and authorize the President to sign on behalf of the
Commissioners. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the
motion, which carried.
IN THE MATTER OF CLAIMS AND REPORTS:
Howard
County Auditor Martha Lake presented the following reports for Commissioner
information and approval:
1.
Auditor Lake thanked the Commissioners for the position they have taken
on the payment of claims from the previous meeting, and backing the Auditor’s
Office regarding future problems with claims.
In addition, Ms. Lake expressed appreciation for the use of the room on
the fourth floor in the Administration Center to expedite the calculation of
the 2002-2003 NAV’s.
2.
Policy Regarding Claims and Purchase Approval: No
requests for purchases over $10,000 will b e considered unless the information
is submitted to the County Auditor for review 10 days prior to the meeting of
the Board of Commissioners. Other pending claims/purchasing issues were
also discussed. A directive letter will
be drafted and distributed to all department heads and elected officials.
3.
Operating claims payable on April 21st, 2003
in the amount of $54,458.24 were approved on a motion made by Mr. Harbaugh, seconded by Mr. Raver,
and carried.
4.
Commissioners’ Salary Hourly, and
Overtime Claims payable for April 25th and May 2nd, 2003 were approved on a motion
made by Mr. Raver. Mr. Harbaugh seconded
the motion, which carried.
5.
Humane Society Animal Control – 2004: For Commissioner information, the Kokomo
Humane Society sent a letter regarding their submission to renew the budget for
the year-2004 in the amount of $144,617.50.
6.
Outstanding
Ameritech Statements: The County received two outstanding bills
from SBC Communications/Ameritech totaling $50,376.00. The Auditor traced the bills and discovered
they were for the video arraignment equipment installed in Superior Court III
in 1999. The bills were originally sent
to the Court and copies were not forwarded to the Auditor’s Office. $74,500 was appropriated out of the
Cumulative Capital Development Fund, but there were no bills submitted for the
final two payments. Approximately $24,000
was paid, leaving a balance of approximately $50,000. There was no encumbrance. The Auditor will check with Carol Harbaugh to
verify that there are no grant funds available.
Mr. Raver
made a motion to request additional appropriations of $50,376.00 out of the
Cumulative Capital Development Fund to pay the SBC Communications bill for the
video arraignment equipment, subject to Council approval. Mr. Harbaugh seconded the motion, which
carried.
7.
For Commissioner
information, a letter was sent to First National Bank requesting the final
retainage payment of $21,452.59 on the Escrow Agreement entered into on
January 20th, 1999 between the Howard County Board of Commissioners,
Property Systems Co., LLC, and First National Bank of Kokomo.
8.
Howard Community
Hospital sent a card thanking the
Commissioners for their support and a copy of the Power Point Presentation
shown at the April 15th presentation of their annual report.
IN THE MATTER OF
ATTORNEY ISSUES:
County
Attorney Larry Murrell had no issues to present at this time.
IN THE MATTER OF
COMMISSIONER ISSUES:
1.
The Weights
and Measures Monthly Report for the month of February 15 to March 15, 2003, was
accepted on a motion made by Mr. Raver, seconded by Mr. Harbaugh, and carried.
2.
The Commissioners
felt it was time to act on the following issues that were discussed at previous
meetings.
a. Howard County Historical Society’s request for $25,000.00
to help pay for the unexpected electrical upgrade during the renovation project
at the Seiberling Mansion. (See page 7,
April 7th, 2003 minutes, “In the Matter of Seiberling Mansion
Renovation Project”, for related discussion)
b. Make a contribution to Kokomo Technology Center’s business
high-tech incubator that allows entrepreneurs to start a business in a
facility without so many of the usual start up costs associated with new
business. (See page 6, November 4th,
2002 minutes, “In the Matter of Commissioner Issues”, Item 2, for related
discussion) The Commissioners
consented to contribute $50,000.00.
c. Contribute to the U.S. 31 Coalition, a group of Indiana
Counties providing a unified voice to the legislature in regard to INDOT plans
for the US 31 Corridor/By-Pass. The Commissioners agreed to contribute
$6,000.00.
IN THE MATTER OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY GRANT APPLICATIONS:
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 11:30 a.m.
THE
HOWARD COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
___________________________________________
BRADLEY
J. BAGWELL, PRESIDENT
___________________________________________
JOHN
B. HARBAUGH, VICE PRESIDENT
___________________________________________
PAUL
J. RAVER, MEMBER
ATTEST:
__________________________________
MARTHA J. LAKE, AUDITOR