HOWARD COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MINUTES

JANUARY 26, 2006 

A meeting of the Howard County Board of Commissioners was convened in open an public session on the 26th day of January 2006, in the Boardroom, Howard County Courthouse, St. Paul, Nebraska.

Notice of the meeting was given thereof by publication in the Phonograph-Herald on the 18th day of January 2006, a proof of publication filed in the Clerk’s office. Copies of the agenda were posted in the courthouse, the county web site, mailed to each Commissioner, and kept current and available to the public at the County Clerk’s office.

Notice of the meeting was given to the County Board and a receipt of their acknowledgment is also filed in the Clerk’s office.

Chairman Bader called the meeting to order at 8:30 a.m. Roll Call: Jim Watson, AYE; Bill Sack, AYE; Larry Seifert, AYE; Gary Rasmussen, AYE; Philip Bader, AYE. Also present is County Clerk Marge Palmberg.

Minutes

Motion was made by Seifert and seconded by Sack to approve the minutes with several changes where the roll call was left out and also the salary for the County Commissioners should have been $16,500 and not $16,400. These changes will be in the permanent record. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Road Discussion

Road secretary Jackie Mayberry met with the Board regarding several road issues and the county was audited for the Homeland Security monies. She stated the audit of the local fire departments checked out fine.

County Attorney Karin Noakes is present at 8:40 am.

Road employee Leonard Lemburg met with the Board to let them know he will officially retire the end of February after 34 years employment. The Commissioners thanked Leonard and stated their appreciation for his many years of service to the county.

Meeting Date

The Commissioners have county board workshop on February 8, 9 and 10 in Kearney so the meeting date will be changed to February 6 th. The Clerk will put a notice in the paper.

Claims

Motion was made by Watson and seconded by Rasmussen to approve the payroll claims for the month of January. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

PAYROLL CLAIMS

General Salary 56.484.00

Road Salary 21,909.12

Civil Defense Salary 265.25

Weed Salary 2,343.42

Communications Salary 10,251.33

Federal W/H 7,325.80

State W/H 2,778.21

BCBS Insurance 26,827.92

FICA/Medicare 14,960.60

Retirement 9,555.34

NE C/S Payment Center 216.00

Public Hearing for Rezoning

Motion was made by Seifert and seconded by Sack to open the public hearing for the rezoning north of St. Paul. Planning and Zoning Administrator Ron Vonderohe is present along with Dan and Jennifer Smydra. This is for the rezoning of lands on both sides of Highway 281 North of the Loup River in Sections 10 and 15, Township 15, Range 10, Howard County. This would rezone the land from A-1 agricultural to A-2 transitional which would allow for small acreages. After some discussion, motion was made to close the hearing for public comments at 9:16 am by Watson and seconded by Rasmussen. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

After some discussion, motion was made by Rasmussen and seconded by Watson to approve this rezoning which had also been approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Courthouse Building Committee

Chairman Bader appointed Connie Nickel, Katie McCann, Marge Palmberg and Larry Seifert to the building committee for any improvements for updating the inside of the courthouse which will include the interior painting of the common areas and the courtroom in the courthouse.

Caterpillar Discussion

Representatives Larry Hettler and Tim Renz with Nebraska Machinery met with the Board to discuss grader equipment. Also Tim is the new sales rep for this area and wanted to introduce himself to the Board.

911 Center Bids

An ad was placed requesting sealed bids for the construction of the new 911 Communications Center. Received were the following:

Dvorak Construction 18,680.00

Open Range Construction 17,712.50

Jim Anderson Construction 46981.00

After much discussion, motion was made by Watson and seconded by Sack to accept the bid of Dvorak Construction for the cement and block work; accept the bid of SE Smith & Sons for the finish material; and accept the bid of Open Range Construction for the interior work. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Motion was then made by Bader and seconded by Seifert to place an ad in the paper for bids for the electrical wiring and for a 200 amp generator for the new communications center. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Hospital Agreement

Motion was made by Sack and seconded by Watson to approve the agreement between the hospital and the county as it is written in regard to the separate parts of the building that will house both the county communications center and the hospital maintenance room. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Board of Equalization

Motion was made by Sack and seconded by Watson to convene into Board of Equalization at 11:04 am. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried. Also present is Assessor Neal Dethlefs. Presented were two personal property corrections for Timothy Markvicka. Motion was made by Watson and seconded by Sack to approve these corrections. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

The Assessor also had a list of the exempt properties for the county. Motion was made by Watson and seconded by Rasmussen to approve the exempt properties. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Tagge Engineering

Bruce Raddatz, representing Tagge Engineering, met with the Board to give them an update on the county projects. He also had the engineering agreement to be signed. Motion was made by Rasmussen and seconded by Watson to approve the Chairman signing the agreement. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Region 3 Agreement

Motion was made by Seifert and seconded by Sack to sign the agreement with Region 3 which deals with Emergency Protective Custody service. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Road Discussion

Discussion was had regarding road employee Lloyd Rowland but no action was taken.

Deputies Salaries

Discussion was had on the salaries for the deputies of the officials. Treasurer Connie Nickel and Assessor Neal Dethlefs were present. They have ranged from 75% to 80%. After much discussion it was decided that the deputy’s salaries will be $28,000 per year starting 2007 and they will receive an increase of $800 per year for years 2008, 2009 and 2010. Motion was made by Rasmussen and seconded by Watson to follow this schedule. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Pledge of Allegiance

Discussion was had on the Board starting each meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance. Motion was made by Seifert and seconded by Rasmussen that they begin each meeting reciting the Pledge. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

School Resource Officer

Sheriff Harold Schenck met with the Board regarding the school resource officer for Howard County. The Sheriff had been contacted by former deputy Mike Thompson regarding his request to continue as the school resource officer and DARE instructor. He is certified and will utilize his training teaching in Howard County at very little cost to the county. Sheriff Schenck asked the approval of the Board in appointing Mike Thompson as a reserve deputy. Motion was made by Seifert and seconded by Sack to approve this appointment and to pay him mileage for his time. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

There being no further business to come before the Board, motion was made by Seifert and seconded by Watson to adjourn at 2:09 pm. Roll Call: All Ayes. Motion carried.

Dated this 26 th day of January 2006.

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Philip G. Bader, Chairman

ATTEST:

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Marge Palmberg, County Clerk