MINUTES OF THE INFORMAL MEETING OF THE JOHNSON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS:
APRIL 2, 2009
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
SEATS Director Tom Brase: Changes Made on Johnson County SEATS Job Description for the Position of Maintenance Coordinator...................................................................................................................... 1
Report From County Attorney Janet Lyness............................................................................. 2
Board of Supervisors: Stimulus Funding Grant of $236,000 to Johnson County for Energy Efficiency Projects 2
Board of Supervisors: Stimulus Funding Competitive Grants for Energy Efficiency Projects......... 3
County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek: Sheriff’s Contracts for the Provision of Law Enforcement Services to the Towns of Hills, Lone Tree, Oxford, Shueyville, and Solon........................................................................... 4
Reports and Inquiries from the Board of Supervisors................................................................. 5
Chairperson Neuzil called the Johnson County Board of Supervisors to order in the Johnson County Administration Building at 9:14 a.m. Members present were: Pat Harney, Terrence Neuzil, Sally Stutsman, and Rod Sullivan; absent: Larry Meyers.
SEATS Director Tom Brase said the SEATS Department has discussed the approval of a job description change that updates the training maintenance coordinator position to a maintenance coordinator position. The revisions were made to include more mechanical duties. He said just before he started working with SEATS, the training maintenance coordinator position was posted. They have had a person doing light mechanical duty on occasion for four to eight hours a week. Brase said since that time, there has been a need for a lot more work to be done in-house and for a mechanic. A mechanic could help coordinate different aspects such as training and preparing paperwork to send to the State DOT. Brase said the position was included in labor negotiations and listed as a separate pay grade on Appendix A of the 2008 and 2010, and prior. He said the pay grade has been in the Appendix since before 1998. Brase read the language in the agreement: "Negotiate an agreement between Johnson County Board of Supervisors and Local 180 AFCSME SEATS employees." Brase said they are all excited about getting a mechanic, so that’s positive. This is meant to help start the hiring process for SEATS to hire a person who will do more of the mechanical work in-house. Brase said this would make it possible for the County to save on expenditures and possibly increase revenues. Brase said SEATS would like to fill the position and have the position started by the beginning of FY2010.
Stutsman asked Brase if he had any intentions of filling the other driving and training position. Brase replied, no, that it would be an all-inclusive position. Stutsman asked if it would be a replacement of that. Brase said that is correct. Stutsman asked if it is a union position. Brase said that is correct, but the job description has changed quite a bit and he reviewed the changes with Human Resources. Stutsman said it is basically the same position, but upgraded. Brase said yes. Neuzil said the Board will put it on a future agenda for formal approval.
County Attorney Janet Lyness informed the Board that the Justice Center Coordinating Committee met on April 1, 2009, and discussed the possibility of asking the Board to apply for a grant for some stimulus funds to conduct jail alternatives. She said the alternatives will involve working with the Jail Diversion Program for Mental Health, dealing with substance abuse treatment, as well as evaluations. Lyness said they have a lot of the things in place but could get some additional funding for substance abuse treatment in the Jail and hopefully get some people out of the Jail sooner. Lyness said they will get more details but she just wanted to mention that again.
Sullivan said he got phone call from Beth Freeman from Senator Harkin’s office and District Representative David Leshtz of Congressman Loebsack’s office who were both excited to announce to Johnson County that the County will receive a grant for $236,000. Sullivan said it is not a competitive grant, and is money that is definitely coming to the County for Energy Efficiency projects. There were a number of communities, including five or six counties and about ten cities in the State that received similar money. Sullivan said the City of Iowa City is receiving $600,000. He asked both Freeman and Leshtz what kind of things the money can be used for. One suggestion both of them made was to do something to make the Administration Building more energy efficient. Sullivan said the check should arrive any day, and it is theirs to use however they see fit within those perimeters.
Neuzil said when the Board members go to Washington D.C. to share some of the projects Johnson County is working on, the timing of the County's infrastructure and the stimulus bill has been pretty fantastic for the County. Sullivan said the County owes a real thanks to state senators and congressmen because originally a counties population had to be above 200,000 and when the senators and congressmen realized that only two counties in the state met that threshold, they changed the language to say counties over 200,000 and/or the top seven most populous counties in a given state. Sullivan said rural states all over the Country owe the State politicians a debt of gratitude for catching that to make sure the money was spread a little more widely.
Stutsman asked if there is a date when the money has to be expended. Sullivan said he does not know for sure but assumes they want it spent right away. Stutsman said the County is pretty shovel ready so that won’t be a problem. Neuzil said when he was in Washington D.C. with the National Association of Counties (NACo) there was some discussion about requiring government expenditure to be made within the first three quarters. Neuzil said what they were told was be prepared for a lot of communities receiving grant dollars that aren’t going to have their projects ready and started by then. That means they have to give the money back.
Sullivan said he believes a plan must be approved or disapproved within 120 days although he doesn’t see where the provisions say they actually need to break ground. Neuzil said he thinks what will be sufficient will be to have a resolution ready stating how they will spend the money and then communicate that to the legislature so they would comply with the 120 day rule. Neuzil said if they decide to put the money towards the Administration Building, construction could begin in July 2009. Harney said, for the public’s information, the heating and cooling in the Administration facility have needed replacement. Harney said they can use the stimulus money for geothermal heating and cooling, or to replace the windows, which have been really inefficient. Harney said that is one thing they are certainly looking at using the money for. Neuzil said he thinks there is a consensus to put the money towards the renovation of the building. Neuzil said he will start the process of putting that into a resolution.
Sullivan said it is the exact same program, the exact same pot of stimulus money, and the total was $3.2 billion. $1.9 billion went towards the eligible cities and counties, and he just described how the County became eligible. He said there is also $455 million that is available in competitive grants. Sullivan said they already have projects they have discussed at length which are fairly well developed and it makes sense to apply for one of these competitive grants in addition to what they are already getting. He said the kind of things they have been talking about, like adding geothermal, is exactly what the money is for. Sullivan said the deadline is June 25, 2009, but there are a lot of details in terms of how to apply that aren’t real clear from the email.
Neuzil said he forwarded that to Planning and Zoning Assistant Planner Josh Busard and Facilities Manager David Kempf. He said Busard was working with the Green Team through the Johnson County Council of Governments (JCCOG), and Kempf. Neuzil said he is planning to meet with Conservation Board Director Harry Graves as well and talk with him about the potential of the new facility at Kent Park. Neuzil said he'd like to communicate with all County departments to see if there are additional project applications that could be submitted for this grant money.
Stutsman asked if a County can apply for several projects. Sullivan said yes, and added that a County could apply for the entire $455 million if they thought they could make the argument. Neuzil said these are exceptions, as normally cities have these community development block grants. He said these are Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants (CDBGs). Sullivan said it is really clear that Senator Tom Harkin is heavily involved in this. He said Harkin's staff seems to be very involved in not only the negotiation of this, but also has a handle on what is acceptable and not acceptable. Stutsman said they are also making sure the smaller rural states get their fair share of the pot. She asked if Neuzil is going to work with Busard and Kempf and Graves and come up with some projects. Neuzil said they will come up with some projects, and then discuss them at a Key Issues meeting. Sullivan said this is a huge advantage for the County since these are projects they have been talking about doing for some time now, but have been concerned about the cost. This is an opportunity for the County to get a big portion of that cost covered.
County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek said they increased the hourly fee to the towns to $31 per hour. It is an increase his department had talked about and projected several years ago. Pulkrabek said a couple towns have restructured or reduced their hours a little bit, but when they figure in the rate increase, they stay about the same. He said Lone Tree and Oxford decreased their hours a little bit. Some of that is made up because Shueyville is going to increase their hours and Tiffin might.
Pulkrabek said with the assistance of Assistant County Attorney Andy Chappell the Sheriff's Office made significant changes to the Solon contract. Pulkrabek said in addition to increasing the rate, they increased the number of hours annually. In addition, for the month of July, they implemented a lump additional fee of 40 hours of service because of Solon Beef Days. Pulkrabek said they thought it would be fair because easily, the Sheriff's Office puts in an extra 60 to 80 hours in the month of July. He said Solon will pay not only their regular monthly fee for July but an additional 40 hour lump sum fee to cover services for Solon Beef Days. Pulkrabek asked Sheriff's Major Steve Dolezal if he had anything to add. Dolezal asked if Pulkrabek wanted to talk about North Liberty. Pulkrabek said North Liberty was due to end their contract near the end of this next fiscal year. He said they have changed their mind and are going to be signing a contract for the full year. Pulkrabek said the law enforcement contract is going to go for a complete year, and that was expected to end, so that is an additional change.
Stutsman asked what the total time is for those towns asking for additional time. Pulkrabek said it is minimal. Dolezal said the hours that were reduced have been offset by the minimal increases. Stutsman asked if the towns that reduced their hours are just reducing the amount they pay in the contract. Dolezal replied they are actually keeping that level. So if they were paying $20,000 a year with the rate increase, they reduce the hours to keep it at $20,000. They are trying to stay budget neutral
Pulkrabek said the two towns in particular said they don’t have the money. Pulkrabek said they are still below what the actual cost per hour is, which he has figured at $36 an hour. He said they are still a bit behind. There were a couple towns very, very concerned about the $4.00 hourly rate increase. Pulkrabek said he does understand it is a little bit difficult to take in, especially in the current economic times. He said the increases have been nominal over the past years and that is why they fell so far behind. Pulkrabek said when he took office, they all met and discussed what they thought was appropriate. Neuzil asked if another increase is scheduled in the next year or two. Pulkrabek said traditionally increases happen every other year. The towns were told that in two years there will be another increase in fees. Pulkrabek said they need to get to a point where the towns are paying for the services that they are receiving.
Stutsman asked if Pulkrabek has enough personnel to meet the increased demand for patrols in the cities without offsetting patrols in the unincorporated areas. Pulkrabek said because the overall total number of hours they are talking about is fairly close, they can accommodate that. Pulkrabek said he still believes that they are understaffed and they should not have operational times in a 24 hour period where they only have two deputies on patrol. Pulkrabek said he feels very strongly about that, and they have all discussed it before.
Sullivan said he has heard from people who wish the deputies were in their town more often and so he told them to speak to their city councils. He said those citizens didn’t realize that cities actually have contracts for service. Sullivan said the public needs some education on this topic. Pulkrabek said they will do the best they can to patrol the cities but they won’t be able to catch all five or six towns during the same hours every day. He said they do have the speed trailer that the towns all love. Pulkrabek said the department did buy a new one that collects data, so they can use that one to give them feedback on the speeds. Pulkrabek said when people need help they dial 911 and expect someone to come and they want law enforcement there soon. However, Pulkrabek explained they only have two deputies covering the County. He said if both of the deputies are assisting an accident in Lone Tree and something happens in Swisher, they have to rely on other agencies to help them until they can get there. Pulkrabek said it is just a fact of life.
Neuzil said these contracts will be on the Formal meeting agenda for April 16, 2009 and asked Pulkrabek to give the Board a break down of the dollar amounts on each contract. Dolezal asked Neuzil to clarify what he meant by break down of dollars. Sullivan said they just want to know the dollar amounts on each contract. Pulkrabek and Dolezal said the figures are in the contract. Neuzil said it would be helpful to see what the current contract is and what the changes are.
Harney attended a Military Affairs Meeting at the Army Reserve Center, a Sixth Judicial Department of Corrections meeting, and the Elected Officials Meeting. Harney said the open house for the Health and Human Services Building is on April 18, 2009 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. He attended the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC) meeting in Des Moines, and the Communications Center Policy Board Meeting. Harney attended a liaison meeting with Human Resources Director Lora Shramek and another liaison meeting with Ambulance Director Steve Spenler.
Stutsman attended the Eastern Central Council of Governments (ECICOG) meeting, an Evaluation Committee meeting, and the Open House Committee meeting. Stutsman said Congressman Dave Loebsack has agreed to attend the Open House. Stutsman attended the Planning and Zoning Staffing meeting. Stutsman said she scheduled a Space Needs Committee meeting for April 17, 2009 at 10:30 a.m.
Sullivan said he attended the Community Partners Subcommittee of the Livable Communities For Successful Aging Group, and the Chamber of Commerce Ag Breakfast Series. Sullivan attended a school district meeting on high school and elementary school boundaries, and two weeks ago, he started meeting with Planning and Zoning Assistant Director R.J. Moore and Planning and Zoning Director Rick Dvorak to work on the Sutliff Village Plan. Sullivan congratulated the United Way of Johnson County for its' record setting campaign which brought in over $2.6 million dollars this year.
Neuzil said he and a number of Board members attended the State Capitol visit as a part of the Iowa State Association of Counties (ISAC) meetings. He said four pieces of legislation on the hot seat are unfunded mandates, not funding homestead credits, open meetings legislation, and state bonding for infrastructure projects. He said the counties biggest concerns are the distribution of those stimulus dollars. Neuzil said it appears the State of Iowa is going to keep most of those dollars for projects the State has put on hold. Neuzil said he wants to make sure Board members are part of that conversation.
Neuzil attended a Johnson County Emergency Management Agency meeting. Neuzil said Johnson County Emergency Management has scheduled a Storm Spotter class for April 9, 2009 at the Iowa City Public Library along with other tornado safety projects around the community. Neuzil said the County Administration Building is showcasing the Code Red System for April 2009. Neuzil said April 17, 2009 is the start of the Kent Park campground season. KRUI, the University of Iowa's radio station, is celebrating its 25th birthday on April 4, 2009. Neuzil said he will host a Listening Post on April 8, 2009 at 7:30 a.m. at Bruegger's in Coralville.
Harney said he would like to ask the residents in rural Johnson County to be patient as there are a lot of road embargos in place. There have been some issues on some of the gravel roads where construction was damaging the roads so they have stopped the work and are grading the roads now. Harney said Secondary Roads is still struggling from the wet areas over the past two years.
Adjourned at 9:59 a.m.
By Nancy Tomkovicz, Recording Secretary