MINUTES OF THE INFORMAL MEETING OF THE JOHNSON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS:
OCTOBER 20, 2009
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Work Session with Department Heads.................................................................................. 1
Planning and Zoning Department Assistant Planner Josh Busard: Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan 1
Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek: Non-Bargaining Compensation and Classification Study 2
Public Health Director Douglas Beardsley: Influenza Updates – Status Report on H1N1 Vaccinations for Johnson County, Plans for Continued Roll Out and Seasonal Flu Vaccine Availability 3
Public Health Director Douglas Beardsley: Safety Plans for Health and Human Services Building Occupants – Workplace Violence/Terrorist/Bomb Threat, Etc................................................ 4
Facilities Manager David Kempf: Project Update..................................................... 5
Board of Supervisors: Employee Parking................................................................. 6
Board of Supervisors: Impact of State Budget Cuts.................................................. 6
Reports/Updates From Department Heads............................................................................ 6
Scheduling Date And Time Of Next Meeting........................................................................ 8
Chairperson Neuzil called the Johnson County Board of Supervisors to order in Room 203B of the Johnson County Health and Human Services Building as a Department Head Meeting at 1:33 p.m. Members present were: Pat Harney, Terrence Neuzil, Sally Stutsman, and Rod Sullivan.
Department heads present were: Ambulance Director Steve Spenler, City Assessor Dennis Baldridge, County Assessor Bill Greazel, County Attorney Janet Lyness, County Engineer Greg Parker, County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek, County Treasurer Tom Kriz, Facilities Director David Kempf, Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek, Information Technology Director Jean Schultz, Medical Examiner Administrator Michael Hensch, Mental Health/Disabilities Services Director Kris Artley, Planning and Zoning Administrator Rick Dvorak, Public Health Director Douglas Beardsley, and Social Services Director Amy Correia. Staff present were: Board of Supervisors Executive Assistant Andy Johnson, Board of Supervisors Budget Coordinator Rich Claiborne, SEATS Billing Supervisor Nicholas Pacha, and Auditor’s Office Recording Secretary Nancy Tomkovicz.
Planning and Zoning Department Assistant Planner Josh Busard said they are trying put together a vanpool. According to the Green House Gas Reduction Plan the Board would like to adopt vanpools. They have done a pilot research study from Solon to the main campus area. It would probably also service the Sheriff’s Office and Secondary Roads. He said Solon was chosen because of the location on Highway One, they already had parking facilities, and there were 18 employees who live near by. Busard said this pilot/test program will give them a chance to fix any issues they didn’t see. All the participants know it is a pilot program and it might not continue. He thinks if they slowly implement the vanpool process and prove to employees, departments heads, and elected officials that it works, it will gain popularity. They need to prove that employees can get to work on time and it will be good for everybody.
Busard said the total cost is $5,000 but there is not cost to the County because of grants and participants fees that wouldn’t exceed $40. If there are more participants, their fee could go down. He suggested that during the pilot program the Board subsidize the participant fee for the first 90 days. If the Board approves this they would have to notify the employees who are eligible. He said if the people in Solon aren’t interested they could easily move the pilot program to Lone Tree or Oxford. They will be using SEATS vehicles. Busard said they will have to develop a formal policy that would outline behavior in the vanpool, appraised departure times, and emergency rides. It would cover four emergency rides per year. They would also implement a driver training program. Sullivan asked if the employees would take turns being the driver. Busard said yes and the van would be parked in Solon. Harney asked if it is filed under their insurance or ECICOG vehicle fleet. Busard said he isn’t sure and he needs to talk to County Insurance Agent of Record Bob Saunders about it. He said before he checked into those issues he wants to know if the Board is interested in starting the vanpool. Sullivan said he likes the idea and they should see if people want to do it. Stutsman agreed.
Neuzil said he is curious about how many people would participate, or if there would be a need for that or a County vehicle. Busard doesn’t know if they use a van if they would be able to get the State and Federal dollars since that wouldn’t be a part of the SEATS program. Sullivan asked if the 18 employees live in the City of Solon or just have Solon addresses. Busard said 11 live in the City of Solon and the other seven live on Highway 382. They also have to find out if department heads would be willing to give employees flexibility if they participated in the vanpool. Stutsman asked if there are any bargaining or contract issues that need to be considered. Shramek said there could be. Stutsman said it is definitely worth trying. Busard said this would be worthwhile if they only had three people. They can try it for 90 days and if it doesn’t work they can stop.
Human Resources Administrator Lora Shramek said she has received the results of the salary survey of July 1, 2009 from PJ Greufe and Associates. In August PJ Greufe and Associates presented that information to the Board of Supervisors. She said since then the Board has been looking at decisions as far as the pay plan structure and how merit and longevity would fit it. They have also been looking at having an evaluation team comprised of a cross-section of individuals that would help evaluate individual positions. She said if an individual is not happy with their individual pay plan they would be able to have an appeal process with the team the following year. Shramek said they are looking at implantation closer to the new fiscal year. She said that they need Board of Supervisors consensus on some issues. They look to have a work session with department heads in one month to roll out the pay plan. Neuzil asked if that is when they would unveil the whole plan and process. Shramek said yes. Neuzil said they would ask the department heads and elected officials impacted by this study to participate. They have 143 individuals that are part of the study.
County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek asked if the date for that meeting has been set. Neuzil said no. Neuzil said they would have a work session with department heads and then hold a meeting with the individuals that would be impacted by this study. Information Technology Director asked about the meetings. Shramek said there will be a meeting with employees right after the meeting for department heads. County Engineer Greg Parker asked if the report is complete. Neuzil said it is and the Board is collectively looking at the results trying to find a compromise on their next steps. Shramek said there are a lot of decisions that have to be made.
Public Health Director Doug Beardsley said there have been delays on the shipment of the regular season flu vaccine. The clinics they had scheduled have been moved back to November if the vaccines become available to the VNA. He said they have started receiving some H1N1 vaccine in the County. They assembled their Ethical Considerations Panel to prioritize who will get first available doses. He said they first focused on Healthcare workers providing direct patient care and emergency responders. They have received close to 2,000 doses in a combination of the nasal spray and the injections. Beardsley said it will be a restricted roll out and as they get more they will move to pregnant women, children with health problems, and all kids.
Harney asked about the difference between the nasal spray and the shot. Beardsley said the nasal spray is an attenuated live virus but has been altered so it won’t grow in the temperature of the lungs. It will live in the nasal passage and the body has an immune response. It is effective, safe, and does not lead to the full flu. Beardsley said only individuals ages two to 49 who do not have a chronic underlying medical condition can receive the nasal spray. He said the injection can be given to anyone. It is a killed virus and cannot cause illness.
Sullivan asked if the doses are going to be here in time or are they going to be so late that it’s not worth it. Beardsley said it is always worth it. H1N1 is unusual because it came in the spring, persisted in the summer, and there is a peak now. He said if someone had flu like symptoms then it probably was H1N1. The shot is free, effective, and safe so people should get it. Beardsley said they are encouraging people to get the seasonal flu shot and the H1N1. Neuzil asked if you can get the flu more than once. Beardsley said in a single season a person shouldn't get the same kind of flu because the body has produced antibodies. H1N1 is a flu and treated the same. There is not a higher rate of hospitalization or death associated with H1N1 as most of the seasonal flues they see.
Beardsley said the department heads in the Health and Human Services Building me to review the emergency plans since they are all now in one building. They want to coordinate on this so incase they have to evacuate they will have separate areas. He said questions came up about procedures for work place violence. The committee asked him to ask Pulkrabek if he had any ideas on that. Sullivan said they need to address what they would do if people can’t make it to work like during the flood.
Pulkrabek said they have procedures that have been agreed upon with the Iowa City Police Department for workplace violence. If there is workplace violence with something happening that is an immediate threat and they call 911 it will ring into the Iowa City Police Department. The understanding is that the Iowa City Police will respond and stabilize the event until the Sheriff’s Office could get there. Pulkrabek said from there they would take care of handling the event and take over any kind of arrest, report, or investigation since it is a County building. Pulkrabek said he checked with Linn County and they do it the same way.
Pulkrabek said he found a problem with a written plan with procedures to do with hazardous material evacuation. He said that it is always best to go uphill and upwind. In the plan it says to meet in the northeast corner of the lower level parking deck which might not be upwind.
Social Services Coordinator Amy Correia said at the old building there was a panic button. She asked if they would want to consider putting those in some of the offices. Facilities Manager David Kempf said there is one panic button in Juvenile Probation because they requested one. They have the capabilities to add them to the building and he is looking at having a wireless system so they could have more buttons. He said the buttons call into 911 and give the location. Pulkrabek asked if the old panic button in the Supervisor's meeting room calls into a third party that makes the call. Pulkrabek doesn’t personally like those and would favor calling 911 because it goes directly to a human being that has law enforcement at their fingertips.
Correia asked if when they call from the building if it will show up Johnson County. Pulkrabek wasn’t sure how it would show up but when they call 911 they are talking to a human being to tell what the problem is, the location, and what is happening. Those are the three most important things and it gives less chance of a false alarm. He said if there is an active shooter situation they want to know that because they are going to come in fast and in a different way. Neuzil said sometimes there isn’t a chance to make a call when someone is making an act. Beardsley said that was the issue that came up. He asked if Pulkrabek had any suggestions on how to communicate internally so someone else could call 911. One idea could be a person saying they need the red folder as a code when contacting 911 if there is a problem at their counter with an individual. Pulkrabek said this isn’t a simple situation. If someone is pushing a panic button for an active shooter situation they need to know that so they know how to respond because they will come in with different equipment. Correia said there was also a question about the procedure for an active shooter.
Beardsley said they usually say lock down and if you see an escape then use your best judgment. There is no standard answer. Sullivan asked how people are supposed to know what’s happening. Beardsley said that was also a question. They might need to make codes of the all page to alert the building. Pulkrabek said they could come up with some codes but without practicing people might not remember what the codes are. Correia said when something happens at a school the doors are locked and the kids stay inside and they wanted a procedure like that to follow. Pulkrabek said they should go into lock down mode including office doors if there is an active shooter. The problem with that is if there is an escape then they should get out of the situation.
County Assessor Bill Greazel said Homeland Security has a team that will do a complete evaluation of the facility and give them a checklist of what to do and not to do. They will do it for free and they are the experts. Greazel asked if they had been contacted. Neuzil said someone needs to contact them. Pulkrabek didn’t know they offered that. Sullivan asked if there is anything for the Administration Building. Pulkrabek said they need to train people not to ignore sounds that seem like firecrackers. Beardlsey said the things he has read say they need to train and get used to it. They need to establish a plan. Their committee can get together again and coordinate with the Sheriff.
Kempf said they are almost finished with the SEATS and Secondary Roads Building. They are on schedule for the Administration Building project. The completion date is December 15, 2009 and they are hoping to be done before that. He said they have to open up IT’s old space and are getting Planning and Zoning relocated. Once they move it will trigger the next phase of the project. Kempf said they had some wiring issues and had to reengineer some VAV boxes. Sullivan asked if the boiler issues were taken care of. Kempf said both boilers are installed. The signage is starting to show up and they have some of the exterior signs installed. Neuzil wanted to make sure that if anyone has problems to make sure they let Kempf know. Kempf said everyone has been doing a good job of communicating that to him.
Kempf said he has someone starting on producing key cards for parking. They are going to make a sheet of employees including what department they work for and their job classification. He said she will be going around getting pictures as well. Sullivan said there have been complaints from the public that there haven’t been spots for public parking at the HHS Building. Kempf said employees should be parking at the north half of the first level or on the second level. The south half of the first level of the parking ramp is intended for public parking. Correia asked if they could paint the pavement to say public parking. Kempf said that should be done through their signage. Sullivan said this could continue to be an issue if employees take public spots. Kempf said it would be hard to police and he hopes everyone can follow these guidelines.
Stutsman said these conference rooms are used a lot and most of that parking could be people attending meetings. Kempf agreed with Stutsman and asked department heads to send out an email to their employees about where to park. They will not fill up the entire north half of the ramp with County vehicles so there will be spots. He said all those spots are going to be reserved. Neuzil asked if they are going to implement the parking at Car Quest and the Armory all at the same time and if there was a timeline for that. Kempf doesn’t have a time line but their hope is to get the gates in place and getting the resurfacing done. He doesn’t want to do gates at the Armory because of the project they are doing because they will being changing the entrance into that space.
Sullivan said they have a parking committee that will need to meet when the key cards are done. Neuzil said they need to take some time to make sure everything is working properly. Kempf asked Schultz if they have run some test programs to make sure it works. Schultz said they think it works but they want to have a live test.
Neuzil said if any of the departments are impacted by the 10% cut it would be helpful for the Board to know because they are going to be having some discussions with legislators. Having any examples will be helpful during those talks. Stutsman said right now a lot of that is speculation. Neuzil said it is starting to happen in some committees that have a lot of State funding, such as Empowerment which knows it has an $82,000 deficit now.
Correia said they are getting ready for Free Tax Help. It is a program that is in collaboration with the University of Iowa Tippie College of Business Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program. They call it “You Earned it now Claim it”. She said they are trying to get the word out about the earned income tax credit. Her department assists with coordination of community outreach locations. Correia said they will have them at Penn Elementary, Northwest Junior High, Lucas University, and the Iowa City Public Library. Last year 994 tax filers went to those sites and this year they are hoping for over 1,000. She said it brought about $1 million in tax returns. Correia said they receive funding from United Way of Johnson County, Veridian Credit Union, University of Iowa Community Credit Union, and a grant from ISCD Ventures in Des Moines. She will do a display in the Administration Building in January and they are hoping to have the outreach materials ready at the beginning of December.
Correia said on September 18, 2009 there was a Livable Community for Successful Aging community planning event. Correia said that Stutsman is on the Transportation Team and went to Washington D.C. with SEATS Director Tom Brase. There is a website livablecommunity.org that has a lot of information for seniors. Correia hired a part time program assistant funded through a State grant to administer the Focus on Youth fund. So far this year they have served 30 kids.
Shramek said they have an open enrollment period that will start October 23, 2009 for dental and healthcare coverage and the effective date for that will be January 1, 2010. She said they have had their first round of collective bargaining with the three PPME units. PPME bargained vision care benefits from last year go into effect January 1, 2010. Shramek said the Board of Supervisors has voted to extend those benefits to non-bargaining employees. The Union recommended IMED Vision Care and they have procured extremely favorable rates for employees only which is $4.16 a month. The County will pay 100% of that for employees. If they want to have that for a family the price is $10.60 a month and would be $6.44 for employees after the County’s contribution. Shramek said with that they would receive an annual eye exam with a $10 co-pay, lenses, or contacts every year with a $25 co-pay, and frames every other year. There are 22 providers in the Linn and Johnson County area. Greazel asked when that starts. Shramek said January 1, 2010.
Parker said they are pouring the bridge deck for Black Diamond Road on October 20, 2009. The intersection between 120th and Derby Road is complete. All the paving is complete on Oak Crest Hill Road and they still have to do some shoulder work, put the cable stay rail up, painting, and seeding. He said Highway 965 from Quail Road north to 120th has all the paving done and should be open soon. Parker said they are having some problems with the utility companies on the Dubuque Street Trail. He is hoping to have that paved before snow but the utility issues are a stumbling block for the contractor. 120th at Highway 965 over the interstate east and from Highway 965 at 120th north was let on October 20, 2009 and he hasn’t seen the results. Parker said Oak Crest Hill Road south is also in the DOT letting for October 20, 2009. They are hoping to have a spring letting for 540th. The Sharon Center Road Bridge design is being completed and have permits submitted for that. They are waiting for staff to do belly cross sections for a type size location on Cosgrove Bridge. Parker said Merrick Road will be opened in a week. The seal coat will be done in the summer. Stutsman asked if they are ready for winter. Parker said they are getting equipment ready for snow.
The next meeting will be December 15, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. The location is to be determined.
Adjourned at 2:35 p.m.
Attest: Tom Slockett, Auditor
By Nancy Tomkovicz, Recording Secretary