Interim Road and Bridge Supervisor John Schouten provided his report to Greenwood County Commissioners on Monday, October 30, first sharing that one bid had been received for approaches to Baker’s bridge and the department is waiting for the receipt of additional. Schouten told commissioners that an issue had been experienced with another grader Monday morning. After noting he was unsure what was wrong with the machine yet, Schouten explained that the operator had put it in gear and it didn’t want to move. Schouten will be looking into this. Employment verification for Justin Jones for the Road and Bridge Department was presented and approved for $15.50 an hour. Schouten told commissioners that the department would be working on grading and fixing road conditions this week. In regards to a bridge on CC Road approximately a mile from the Hamilton/Virgil Road, Schouten reported that crew members would be addressing a hole in the bridge.
Executive sessions were held for candidate interviews for the Road and Bridge Supervisor position. The first session for the duration of 15-minutes with candidate one was held for the subject of employer/employee negotiations. Following the session, 10 additional minutes were taken. Following the return to regular session and a 5-minute break, commissioners called a second executive session for the subject of employer/ employee negotiations for the duration of 20 minutes. Following the session, no decisions were made.
County Fire Chief Glen Collinge presented a request for Invena/Emergency Fire Equipment putting a new liner in the tank of a truck from Eureka for $6,592. Commissioners approved the request.
Marilyn Brink with the Greenwood Preservation Society was present to request for waiver of tipping fees. Brink shared that they would be proceeding with preliminary work to clean out the former Red Owl building. She noted that they will gut the interior and reinforce the structure and then the organization will get engineers to look at the roof. Commissioners approved for waiver of the county fee.
During discussion of plans for recycling, moving cardboard from being county pick up to entities/ individuals bringing the material to the facility was discussed as a potential option to reduce time. Commissioner Roy Ballard noted that approximately $8 dollars a head per county resident would cover provision of the service. Officials were reminded at this time that the City of Madison offers their own recycling service. As discussion on the potential of charging a fee continued, Commissioner Preston Evenson commented that if they could figure out an alternative plan for cardboard, that would be beneficial, noting that this would conserve time for the employee for efforts to be directed towards other tasks. The potential for moving to once per week collection of cardboard was proposed. In response, it was noted that the employee tries to keep these empty so that he stays caught up. Trailers for recycling are taken to Emporia. Commissioners noted that they have checked with Waste Connections and the company is not interested in offering recycling in Greenwood County. Commissioners asked Paul Dean, who serves as Mayor for the City of Madison, what Madison spends on their service. Dean noted that he believed $800 was spent per month to an independent contractor. Sheriff Heath Samuels commented that they could consider having conversations with the Cities of Eureka, Hamilton and Severy to look at cities allocating funds toward the service. No actions were taken as to changing the manner in which the service is structured.
Ambulance/EMS Director Brian Mongeau reported that a Duramax unit was sent to the shop for what is believed to be a DEF issue related to a sensor.
An employee verification for the Greenwood County Clerk’s Office was approved for Kim Hinrich at $13 an hour. Emergency Management Director Levi Vinson requested an executive session for 15-minutes for the subject of legal consultation pertaining to roads. No action was taken following the session. A 15-minute executive session for personnel evaluation was held. Following the session, no decisions were made.
Payables in the amount of $252,379.71 were approved.
Special Payables in the amount of $3,271.67 were approved.
Payroll in the amount of $142,863.04 was approved.
Minutes of the October 16 and October 23 meetings were approved.
The Neighborhood Revitalization Plan for the City of Eureka, an annual item, was approved.
Commissioners approved the appointment of Eureka resident Cinda Beals to the Greenwood County Hospital Board of Trustees.
Following the completion of their regular meeting, commissioners were slated to hold a work session with Scott Day with Day Insurance.
The next meeting of the Greenwood County Commissioners will be Monday, November 6 at 9 a.m.
